List-y List #1: My Favorite Writers, aka, The Writing Gods

Starting off my series of lists, I thought I'd do the one that was most thematically relevant to me on a personal level.  Wanting to be a writer, I've studied and observed a number of them, from a variety of mediums, with a particular focus on comics.  I'd like to think that they would be happy to know that their works and efforts have helped inspire me not only to write, but to start and maintain this blog, which I've so far managed to do at a daily clip.  They are, in short... my writing gods.

These kinds of lists tend to be a matter of personal taste, and are in no way meant to disparage anyone else's favorites.  They are simply my favorites, my gods of writing, and there are plenty of other excellent writers who didn't make this iteration--Chris Claremont, Alan Moore, and Ed Brubaker come immediately to mind, as will doubtless others.  

The writers who have had the biggest effect on my reading experience, and who hopefully influence my writing the most, are:

1. Neil Gaiman - Sandman.  Neverwhere.  The Graveyard Book.  Coraline.  Marvel 1602.  American Gods.  An episode of Doctor Who.  If there's a medium for which Neil Gaiman can't write, I have yet to experience it.  Truly one of the most imaginative and culturally aware writers of this day and age, his ability to take the fantastic and marry it to the mundane with such effortless aplomb never fails to amaze and surprise me, even when I'm expecting it.  He's resurrected comic book characters, and reinterpreted mythological and historical figures with a deft touch that makes you wonder from where his insightful characterizations come. It's no wonder his work translates well to comics, television, film and prose works.  I can only hope to come anywhere near matching the depths of his fertile imagination.

2. Joss Whedon - Another master of many mediums, Joss Whedon had actually made a big impression on me long before I knew who he was, and impressed me less when I started to realize who he was.  Some of his episodes of Roseanne are among my favorites of the show's run, long before I cared who was scripting individual episodes.  My first "knowing" exposure to his name and work was the fifth season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which at the time, didn't impress me.  Then along came Firefly, and I emerged a Whedonite converted.  Film, comics, television... especially television.  There's nothing the man can't do well.  Whedon's witty dialog, strong women characters, and clever subversions of storytelling tropes are things I admire about his writing, and hope inform my own.  I particularly adore the Firefly and Serenity comics he's worked on, and the Buffy continuations as well.  All this before any mention of The Avengers, to boot!

3. Steve Moffat - The first non-comics writer on my list, Steve Moffat rates highly for his amazing work in television.  I first got acquainted with his writing on Coupling, a clever British comedy series about sex and the  thirtysomething characters trying to get it.  I loved its clever humor, occasionally imaginative plot structures, and the evenness generally portrayed when the sexes battled it out.  When I started watching Doctor Who, appropriately during the Matt Smith episodes, I didn't even realize at first that this was the same guy writing and running it!  It was a delightful treat.  Now this guy has gone and put a fantastic series together called Sherlock... perhaps you've heard of it?  He's a magnificent bastard of a writer, whose talent for suspense, adventure, and comedy are that rare blend that make for amazing television.  If you haven't seen any of the TV shows I've mentioned here, do yourself a favor and check them out.

4. J. Michael Straczynski - Most of JMS's writing work is stuff I've only been tangentially familiar with: the occasional episode of Babylon 5, a glimpse of an issue of Thor he worked on--and did you know he also wrote for the He-Man and the Masters of the Universe cartoon in the 1980s?!  But the two works that have stood out most starkly for me have been his run on Amazing Spider-Man--in which he took bold, imaginative risks in interpreting Spidey's powers and his relationships with those closest to him--and Superman: Earth One, a dynamic and insightful retelling of Superman's origin story and debut as the Man of Steel.  I don't often go in for Superman, but then again, I don't often go in for Thor or Babylon 5, either.  Yet I've never been anything but awed by the stories this man tells.  An excellent writer, of whose works I need to read more.

5. Scott McCloud - Though I've only ever read his most famous work, the graphic book Understanding Comics, I still hold Scott McCloud in immeasurably high regard for his insightful, playful, and easy-to-understand handling of the material.  In a clever sequential art style that matches the content and subject of the book, McCloud explains with simple thoroughness and plenty of visual aides how comics are made, and how writing and pictures are used to create this most wonderful of mediums.  That level of dedication alone is worthy of admiration; that he does it so eloquently and passionately is what makes him great, in my opinion.  It was after reading Understanding Comics that I was inspired to start writing my own comic scripts and even drawing some of my own pages occasionally.  And while I'll probably never draw as well as I'd like, I'll credit my own start as a writer of comic scripts to him.

6. H.P. Lovecraft - Though occasionally verbose and a little archaic in his diction, Lovecraft is undoubtedly one of the most influential figures in modern horror, serving as the inspiration for such modern masters as Stephen King, Anne Rice, Clive Barker, and John Carpenter--not to mention the aformentioned Neil Gaiman.  His stories about otherworldly cosmic horrors, ghoulish cults and creatures have had an undeniable effect on the collective psyche of horror writers and readers--not to mention my own sensibilities.  I think what intrigues me the most is the inescapable dread that infuses his stories, which seem to generally hinge on the idea of man's general cosmic insignificance, and that there is knowledge out there that we simply can't handle.  It doesn't make for the most uplifting of storytelling endeavors, but it does make for interesting and challenging storytelling.

7. Brian K. Vaughan - Having only read Y: the Last Man of his works, I can say that there are plenty of other titles out there that Brian K. Vaughan has worked on that have either been highly recommended to me by friends and family (Runaways), or that I just can't wait to read, based on that title alone (Pride of Baghdad, Saga, Ex Machina).  He clearly has a talent for taking supremely unenviable situations, thinking them through, and creating great opportunities for character development and exploration from them.  My little sister has started reading his run on Runaways, and given me the best feedback you can get about a writer's title, namely, "Buy me more of these, please!"  I'm aching to read his current series, Saga, but am currently waiting to get my hands on issues 1 and 2 before I can start.  It's a bit of a torturous undertaking, but some things are worth waiting for.

8. Terry Moore - A Houston institution, Terry Moore's strong depiction of women characters has set him apart as a writer who understands that beauty goes far beyond physical perfection.  Both a skilled writer and a good artist, his Strangers In Paradise strikes emotional chords in both the touching love story it tells as well as the expressiveness of the characters that populate it.  Moore can take a simple situation, such as a break-up, put a humorous spin on it with just the slightest clever twist, and make it unforgettable, just as he can shatter your expectations with a single, well-drawn look of pain on his heroines' faces.  His women, who tend to be his main characters, have a range of imperfections and flaws, from self-loathing to body image issues, but his ability to imbue them with humanity and depth make him an unforgettable writer and an amazing storyteller.

9. Scott Snyder - If there's been a best side to reading the New 52, it's that it's enabled me to discover Scott Snyder.  His deft guidance of Batman through the mystery of the Court of Owls saga and the subsequent (and current) Night of the Owls storyline have left me with my jaw hanging open more times than I can honestly remember.  Whether he's doing creepy nightmare illusions, mind-bending labyrinths, or unbelievably taxing physical trials, Snyder shows that he's not afraid to put heroes through the ringer, physically, mentally, or emotionally--and it makes for amazing storytelling.  I've yet to read any of his other titles, but I know he's got several projects going, and I intend to sit down and check them out as soon as time allows.  For now, the Court of Owls and Night of the Owls storylines alone have made Snyder one of my fastest-rising writing gods.

10. Dan Slott - I'm primarily familiar with Dan Slott through the recent and current issues of Amazing Spider-Man, but I'm very impressed with what I've seen so far.  He's taken different approaches to telling Spidey's story--some humorous, some dramatic, and some that are off the scales epic--and made them all very successful.  He obviously knows the characters, and I've been particularly amused at his banter and thorny relationship between Spidey and Mayor J. Jonah Jameson, as well as his writing of the supremely bright and quirky individuals at Horizon Labs, who serve as Peter Parker's colleagues and oftentimes as Spider-Man's allies.  With the current Ends of the Earth arc, we're seeing Spidey at his most serious, as well as his most resourceful, as he effectively takes on the Sinister Six with the entire world turned against him.  If that's not gutsy storytelling, then I don't know what is.

Film Review -- The Avengers / Joss Whedon, Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Clark Gregg

So, I'm guessing most of you who read this blog have probably seen The Avengers at least once already, and are well aware of the box office juggernaut (pun intended) this film is becoming.  The advance reviews for it have been unprecedented in their uniform level of praise for a superhero movie, and the ticket sales back up the claim that this movie has not only been hyped, but anticipated at a ravenously frenzied level.  It has action, humor, and a narrative flow that never really bogs down the film, but by now you know this--unless you've been actively hiding under a rock.

And the reviews--oh, the scores of positive reviews--have generally said the same thing: excellent start to the summer movie season, best superhero movie yet, audiences of all ages and markets are going to love it.  The acting, writing, and directing is brilliant.  Excellent moments for all the characters.  Hulk steals the show.

But you already know this.

I'm well aware that any review I write of this film--which I will agree, was spectacular and mind-blowing and fun in a way I haven't quite experienced since Iron Man four years ago--is going to be yet another paean to a film that is racking them up left and right.  I'm also relatively late to this party.  So instead of a straight-up review, I'm going to focus on a few things that stuck out to me about the film and the experience of it.

Warning: spoilers ahead.  If you haven't see this movie and don't want to be spoiled, don't read any further.

I've seen this film twice now, and will probably see it several more times.  Iron Man, as I've mentioned previously, holds the distinction of being the movie I've seen the most times in the theater.  If there's a film that will break this record, it's this one, and I daresay it stands a pretty damn good chance of doing so.  Even after two viewings, my desire to see it again remains exceptionally high.

My first viewing of this film was a midnight showing, and as any fan knows, going to those is always an experience in and of itself.  The number of people in Avengers shirts, costumes, and gear was astounding, as was the overall atmosphere of excitement and anticipation.  I saw girls dressed up in Thor regalia, a Captain America who fashioned a shield out of a trash can lid, and a rather large gentleman who, rightly, got a loud ovation from the crowd when he appeared as the Hulk, his body and hair dyed green.  Applause and cheering were constant, from the moment the film began to the climax of so many excellent scenes, including the post-credits scenes.

The great thing about this experience is the sense of camaraderie and kinship you feel with these folks, all of whom share a high interest in what you do.  It's loud, raucous, and energetic.  It can also, of course, make viewing difficult.

One good example is during the scene where Loki gets beat down--authoritatively--by the Hulk.  We loved that scene.  I laughed harder than I had in a long time when I saw that.  And so did the audience, at length, and in that circumstance, it was all too easy to miss what the Hulk said to Loki as he walked away, leaving the Asgardian staring up at the ceiling in unmoving shock (a pitch-perfect "Puny god!").  I actually didn't catch it until the second viewing (where it was still hard to hear), and a friend I was with was upset that he missed the dialog due to the audience's loud appreciation of the prior moment.

Do you mind, Cap?  Bruce and I were having a moment!

I think the development that came out of this film that I liked the most was the budding bromance that developed between Tony Stark and Bruce Banner.  It's no surprise that these two would connect on an intellectual level--they're both super-geniuses--but I thought it was pretty ingenious to have Tony express an admiration for Banner on both aspects of his life, and then essentially take him under his wing.  The biggest obstacle to this new friendship seems to be Banner's own distrust of his Hulk side, which Tony Stark seems eager to see.  Tony's encouragement of Bruce to embrace his green side was also a brilliant way to set up the idea that the Hulk's rampages can actually be a good thing, a fun thing, a pleasure and an asset, when properly aimed and directed.

I also have to begrudgingly give Joss Whedon his due, in the scene where Agent Phil Coulson is killed.  I didn't see it coming, and I think I may now understand how Firefly fans felt when Wash was suddenly killed off in Serenity.  I mean, that was a surprise too, but I hadn't been as emotionally invested when I saw it the first time.  Here, I was both shocked and horrified, but even as I mourned this character who'd connected previous Marvel films to this one, I found myself nodding in unwilling agreement.  His death was necessary for the Avengers.  After all, they needed something to avenge, if I may finish the character's final, uncompleted thought.

All of the characters have moments to shine, which are all pretty fairly spread out.  Cap gets to be a noble, heroic super soldier.  Black Widow shows she has many skills, including interrogation.  Iron Man is the epitome of Whedon snark and banter.  Thor and Hulk throw down with aplomb, and Hawkeye shows that he's more than a man with a bow and good aim.  Coulson gets to be super-fan and get the last word in with Loki before he fades.  And Nick Fury shows why he's the top spy in the world, keeping and defending both his ship and his command in all his Samuel L. Jackson badass-ness.

There's a million other things I could compliment and talk about in this movie, but chances are extremely high they're covered in other reviews, which you've probably read.  If you haven't seen this movie, do yourself a favor and do so.  Even as a straight-up popcorn action flick, you'll be entertained and engaged throughout.  And if you're a comic book fan, shame on you for reading this review before having gone and seen it already.  Get out of the house and go see it!

Overall, this is a great comic book movie that truly does live up to the massive hype around it.  Packed to the brim with moments of awesome for all of its characters, it's epic, fun, and very clever.  I don't see how you can like superheroes and comics and not see this movie.  Very highly recommended!

Female Superheroes My Little Sister Can Admire

I recently had a conversation with my teenage little sister that led to something of a comic book quandary.  It was both somewhat frustrating--I'm used to having all the answers for the new and uninitiated when it comes to comic books--and a little satisfying, as I enjoy finding the answers to questions I don't know about, particularly in this arena.

It started off in about as positive a way as it could have.  She made the comment that superheroes are so cool these days--she's excited about The Avengers coming out in May, among other superhero films--and we started talking about comic books in general.  I mentioned a few of my favorite heroes, and then she asked me what women superheroes whose exploits and adventures I thought she should follow.

This question actually caught me off guard.  I remember hemming and hawing about it for a bit, not actually able to give her a quick, immediate answer that wasn't "Buffy."

I read comic books of all stripes and types, though I make no apologies about favoring superhero comics.  I can list off plenty of good superhero comics.  I can list off plenty of good children's comics.  I can list off plenty of good comics with strong girl characters.  But that wasn't what my sister was asking me.

She was asking me about female superheroes.  And I just didn't have any ready answers.

Tough?  Yes.  Admirable? Yes.  Relatable? Not
so much, oftentimes.

Don't get me wrong.  There are plenty of recognizable and admirable women superheroes out there.  But when viewed through the lens of the question, "Do I want my little sister to emulate this person?" it became a lot harder to really put their names forward for consideration.

I told her as much, explaining that, while I have plenty of superheroines I admire, for various reasons, there were too many stigmas I attached to them as being good enough or accessible enough for me to want her to look up to them.  Wonder Woman was a prime example: super-strong and powerful enough to sometimes give Superman a run for his money, she was also from a culture that removed her worldview from that of a typical teenage girl.  In many ways, she was characterized like a man, only with a woman's body and costume.  She could be hard to relate to for that reason.

And, of course, there was the cheesecake factor.

Can not recommend to aspiring girl
superhero fans.

And that factor is a big deterrent for me in terms of recommending a superheroine for her to follow regularly.  There are plenty of women superheroes I admire, but it's overwhelmingly difficult for me to separate them from the perception and depictions as fan service characters.  The recently reviewed Black Cat is an excellent example of this.  Does she have stories where she is compellingly written and portrayed as a three-dimensional character?  Yes, thanks especially to Kevin Smith.  But how many stories are written about her where she's not flashing cleavage or titillating the reader in some other way?  To be honest, nothing comes to mind.

As much as I like Felicia--and as much as I personally like the cheesecake images of her--I would never recommend her as a hero I want my sister to follow and emulate.

Same thing goes for She-Hulk.  And Power Girl.  And Catwoman.  And so many of the women superheroes out there.

We finally solved this question by visiting my local comic shop and asking for help from one of the knowledgeable salespeople there.  At first, he initially had the same problems I did, particularly when I explained why so many popular women heroes were not acceptable.  After a few tentative recommendations, including the Jessica Jones title Alias, the Batgirl trades featuring Stephanie Brown, and perhaps some of the X-23 material out there, he finally hit upon a title that we both smacked ourselves for not thinking of from the get-go.

Runaways.

I've personally never done more than skim the Runaways books, but I didn't need to.  I can tell from the writing credits alone that I should have thought of these immediately.  Joss Whedon.  Terry Moore.  Brian K. Vaughan.  I've read enough of their work to know that not only would it be good, but the depictions of women and girls--girls with powers--would be nothing short of stellar.  I've also seen enough of the titles to know that, when I finally do get to sit down and read them, I'll enjoy them.

I took my sister to the area where they were, had her look at the summaries for some of them, and she quickly got excited about the premise.  I ended up buying her the first two volumes, which she devoured in a matter of a couple days.  A few days later, I got a message from her, saying that they were REALLY good, and she wanted more, please.

It's the kind of thing that makes me smile, even when I'm having a rough day.

So now, when I'm looking for comics, I keep an eye out for stuff for my sister.  I still enjoy the cheesecake female superheroes, but now I look at them in a slightly different light, or at least, a more developed way than I had before.  That they're so widely portrayed this way, with so few alternatives that make for positive portrayals of strong women characters, says that this is something that needs to change.

As a male, I do enjoy and want the guilty pleasure portrayals to continue, at least a little bit.  As an older brother with a cool little sister who's getting into comics, however, I want them to not be so widely distributed as to be the expected norm in superhero comics.

There needs to be more Buffys in comics.  There needs to be more solo titles for women that don't depict them purely as objects of lust and titillation.  And there needs to be a variety of them.

I want to be able to take my sister to the comic shop, and for her to have a hard time picking and choosing the titles of her favorite superheroes because there are just so darned many of them--a quandary I'm constantly in.  I want her to have that same experience.  And I don't think, the way comics are currently set up, that it's really possible.

It's something I would urge comic readers to keep in mind when they think about how women are portrayed in comics.  Just ask yourself, "Is this what I would want my little sister/cousin/niece/daughter to emulate?"  If you're the object of admiration for a young female comics geek, and you want the best for her, chances are that answer will be no.

Buffy's Choice and the "Evils" of Free Speech Fallout

One of the things I love about free speech is that it grants you the right to have--and express--your own opinions about anything you want.  You don't have to take small little things like etiquette, dignity, and respect for others who might be more involved in an issue, into account--and this of course is the hallmark of so many citizens of the Internet, who often feel that their views on something trumps everything else.

Including, apparently, their own dignity.

When I finally read about the goings-on in the current issues of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I was shocked at the developments.  Buffy Summers, the heroine and protagonist, had apparently made a bad decision at a party, gotten black-out drunk, and ended up sleeping with some guy.  She was too wasted to even remember who it was, but apparently she became pregnant as a result.  In thinking about her circumstances--which are, to say the least, unique--she has apparently resolved to have an abortion, reasoning that she simply doesn't feel ready to bring a child into the world.

It is, of course, at this point where the free speech kicks in, and every anti-abortion crusader from underneath the rock springs up and decries what a horrible development this is.  They berate everything they can: Buffy is supposed to protect the weak; Buffy shouldn't have made such an irresponsible decision; why can't she just consider adoption; and so on and so forth.  I've seen articles and comments from idealogues galore--many of whom freely admit they've never read this comic or seen the television series, but still feel they have the proper context to argue about this particular story.

Never mind that you had no interest in this series or story until it told this particular story, about this particular issue, in a way that seems to avoid the ending you'd want it to.  Never mind that you're now condemning Joss Whedon and his creative team based solely on this issue.  Never mind that this decision is rarely addressed in a respectful way in the mainstream storytelling media--it's not going the way you want it to, so you're going to scream and shout and bitch to anyone who will listen that this Joss Whedon and all these evil liberal leftist comic book readers are tearing up the nation and sending it straight to hell in a hand-basket.

Ah, irony.

I'm usually not given to this level of derision, but I've seen so many posts that support this stance that I can't help but transfer the sentiment to this one.

I probably won't be reading the current issues of Buffy anytime soon.  I don't know all of the specific details of that plot, aside from the occasional sample page put out on the Internet.  But I do have an abiding faith in Joss Whedon's ability to tell a story that is involving, insightful, and above all, respectful of the human issues involved.  That's simply what the man does: he tells stories well.  They may be stories about vampires and monsters and captains in tight pants, but they are also stories about suddenly losing a family member, dealing with a betrayal from a friend, and struggling through drug addiction.  They are stories of human beings: wonderful, horrible, flawed, fantastic human beings, and if we know anything about Buffy, she's one of the most human protagonists he's come up with.

And humans, as so many of us know, are prone to make at least the occasional bad decision.  And those bad decisions often end up coming back to haunt us, and force us to confront them, however uncomfortable they may be and however much we'd like to simply ignore them or gloss them over.  That's exactly what Buffy is doing right now, and we as observers of this story should think about the agony, the seriousness, and the life-changing potential of that confrontation--not doling out knee-jerk reactions immediately based on our own personal beliefs.  It's fine to have your own opinions about abortion--but focusing only on the outcome without respecting the heroine's struggle through the narrative is, at the very least, flagrantly insensitive.

And, while I could be wrong, I get the distinct feeling that most of the pro-lifers here have simply gotten word of this headline, and then set out to spread their displeasure about it without even giving the issue a read.  I point them out mostly because they appear to be reacting negatively to the apparent direction of the narrative.  I have yet to see any pro-choice posts trumpeting this as "Abortions for all!" or anything like that.

If the Komen Foundation debacle has proven anything, it's that pro-lifers have a long way to go before they're going to take away a woman's right to choose.  The fact that women mostly have the right to choose in this country is not something you'd know by watching the mainstream media these days, astoundingly enough, and that is undoubtedly due in no small part to influence from those who are outraged at the very notion that some woman somewhere should have the right to decide what's going on in her own body.  With this story at least, now even that is under fire.

I don't mean for this post to be political, even if my loyalties are very clearly showing.  My main goal is to argue for the sanctity of storytelling, and respect for its ability to start a dialog about topics that are controversial or uncomfortable.  Many of the people and organizations that have responded to this news item have only argued their own points, seemingly just from the idea of this story's very existence, without having read it.  I think that's deplorable, and to me at least, it demonstrates a complete lack of respect for not only those who tell such stories and their fans, but also anyone who may have lived another version of the same story.

GN Review -- Buffy the Vampire Slayer, v. 1: The Long Way Home / Joss Whedon & Georges Jeanty

If you've been reading this blog, you know I've pretty well taken to reviewing Joss Whedon's Serenity comics.  I've waited a while to come around to other properties of his, partially out of concern for my blog being perceived as a Joss Whedon comics review blog, and partially because I haven't read some of them.  Where Buffy the Vampire Slayer is concerned, though, I've read plenty, and think it's a good time to start reviewing the post-television comics.

When volume one, The Long Way Home, starts, we see things are not necessarily the way they were left in the TV show.  In the wake of Sunnydale's destruction and Buffy Summers's victorious battle against the First Evil, the world has changed considerably for her.  She's gone from being a single, solitary Slayer to commanding a worldwide army of women Slayers.  Her sister Dawn has become inexplicably giant, and their home base has moved to a castle in the Scottish highlands.  She and her friends monitor demon and monster activity on a worldwide scale, and respond to threats with the help of squadrons of mystics, seers, and Watchers as they are able.

But things have also gotten more complicated.  The world is aware--and scared--of the sudden influx of Slayers, and military forces that can't control them are eager to wipe them off the face of the earth.  Old nemeses are eager to take advantage of the situation so they can resolve personal grudges, and the arrival of a new organization named Twilight is using both technological and supernatural means to fight them.  And the Scoobies, as Buffy and her gang are lovingly called by fans, have their own problems: Dawn won't talk to Buffy about her condition, Willow arrives in time to save the day but soon gets kidnapped, and Xander is just trying to keep from getting splashed while living among all these strong women.

As I'm sure you either know or can expect, the writing here is exceptional.  It's well plotted, paced, and characterized, and the dialog is typical Whedon intellisnark.  The characters feel exactly like they were portrayed in the show, and the plot involving the new nemesis, Twilight, sets up a potentially huge foe for them to fight.  The myriad of self-referential material will be a delight to devotees, and further serves to advance the plot as characters from the show emerge out of the woodwork, all over the world, old and relatively new, good and evil.  In the end, we're set up with the Slayers in an unenviable position, and Buffy, with her typical resolve, essentially acknowledges it with a simple okay.

The most questionable aspect I have about The Long Way Home is its viability as a stand-alone story for readers who may not be familiar with the Buffyverse.  I actually read this volume when I was only moderately familiar with the series--I certainly hadn't seen much of it--and I have to say that this could be an issue to someone who isn't an initiate.  Looking at it now, I can appreciate things like who Ethan Rayne is, why Buffy showed Amy Madigan her mother at a critical point, and what it meant for Willow to "go dark."  But back then, I really had to shove all that to the side to push on with the larger narrative.  The solid writing kept me from getting too lost, but I also had a modicum of familiarity with the show at the time.  It's obviously a great read for fans of the series, but Buffy newbies may find the constant self-references confusing, when they get them, and could be turned off by it.

The artwork here is pretty stunning, and I have to give Georges Jeanty props for not only faithfully recreating the characters from the TV show in comic book form, but for realistically extending them beyond their scope in the show, now that they're not limited by a television show budget.  Willow's brief aerial battle with Amy, for instance, was amazing.  Dawn as a giant was both hilarious and visually believable.  And the locales are very well done too, from a castle in Scotland to a military base.

Overall, I don't have any problems commending The Long Way Home as a worthwhile read.  It positively shines for Buffy fans, and while it can be considerably more confusing for the noobs, it's still very well written and beautifully illustrated.  A must-read for Joss Whedon fans, people who like vampires, demons and monsters, and anyone who enjoys witty writing.  Highly recommended.

Five Comic Book Movies Coming Out In 2012

Since today was the Super Bowl, traditionally a huge day for new comic book movie trailers (though not so much this year), I thought I'd go ahead and give my two cents on which comic book movies scheduled for release this year will likely get my filmgoing dollars.

I'm  generally pretty picky about when I go to see movies.  They either have to be from a franchise or mythology that I have affection for (think Harry Potter, Transformers, Spider-Man, the Muppets, etc.), or they have to be extremely imaginative, well-marketed, or recommended to me by people I trust (The Social Network, Avatar, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World [at the time] fit this category for me).  Comic book movies generally fall into the first category for me, but even then it's not always a guarantee that I'll go see it.  I didn't, for example, see Daredevil in the theaters, thank goodness, and I've yet to watch either of the Fantastic Four movies at all.

Five fairly big movies are due out this year, though whether or not they all qualify as comic book movies is up for debate.  It seems like overall it'll be a pretty good year for comic book movies--particularly comic book movies that feature women in black leather.  I'll elaborate below:

• Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance--This one comes out in less than two weeks, and I have to say, it looks to be the least promising of the bunch.  Granted, it seems considerably darker and more serious in tone than its cheesy predecessor, but there are a few moments from the trailers that just look contrived, juvenile, or just plain bad.  Still, I rather did enjoy the first Ghost Rider, so I may give this one a shot despite my misgivings.  At the very least, I'll have plenty of words for the review if it's bad.

Scarlet Johansen in black leather?
Check!

• The Avengers--The only thing that would keep me from seeing this as soon as it releases would have to be a serious medical condition.  Seriously.  I've known--known, this was coming since I stayed behind after the end of Iron Man and saw the post-credits scene in 2008.  Iron Man?  Check.  Hulk?  Not the same actor, but check.  Thor?  Check.  Captain America?  Check.  Plenty of cameos tying their films together to create a unified cinematic universe?  Check.  Awesome writer, creator, comic book fanboy Joss Whedon directing?  Check.  Big, titanic, unknown threat to Earth requiring the formation of a team of heroes who otherwise probably shouldn't be working together?  Check.  This promises to be a superhero team movie extravaganza, and it looks like it will deliver the goods in spades at this point.  It was already a foregone conclusion that plenty of comic book nerds were going to check this one out, but with the premier of today's trailer during the SuperBowl, you can be sure that plenty of others will be joining them in lining up to see this one when it opens in about three months.

• G.I. Joe: Retaliation--Okay, a few things here.  First of all, calling G.I. Joe a comic book franchise is a shaky move, at best.  I remember it as a toy and a cartoon before a comic.  Granted, I wasn't reading comics at the time the cartoon came out, but clearly it existed as a toy line long before that.  Still, it had a significant run as a comic book series, so I suppose I'll give it a pass for that reason.  The next issue is the lackluster performance of the last G.I. Joe film, The Rise of Cobra.  Honestly, aside from watching Snake Eyes's action scenes, I was thoroughly disappointed.  With all of that said, however, I will also say that the trailers for this one look promising, as does the basic premise, in which they're framed and all but a few are killed, then must fight back on their own.  Will it get me into the theaters?  I'm not sure yet.  I'll probably wait to hear some initial reviews and make the call then, but at this point, I'm slightly leaning to yes... barely.

• The Amazing Spider-Man--Anyone who knows me has a pretty good idea that I'll see this one.  I'm a pretty big fan of all things Spider-Man, and thought the previous film franchise was pretty good.  This is a reboot, where they start from scratch again, and it looks like they're going to incorporate story elements that were hardly even considered in the first set of films--most notably the use of Gwen Stacey as a major character.  Its tone appears more subdued and dark than the previous movies as well, which I really like.  Oh, and last but not least, it looks like the Lizard is the main villain in this film--one of Spidey's oldest and, pound for pound, most dangerous foes.  You can bet I'll be in the theaters for this one.

Anne Hathaway in black leather?  Check!

• The Dark Knight Rises--Okay, first of all, if you haven't seen the first two Batman films done by Christopher Nolan, I'm forced to question your competence as a living being.  Seriously, like them or not (and there are people who don't like them), they put an important spin on the Batman mythology that continues to influence the comics every bit as much as they were influenced by them in their creation.  The Dark Knight Rises is the third and final story within this franchise.  Will the brutal new villain Bane break Batman, or worse, eight years after the events of the second movie?   Internal and external conflict abound in this film, and it sets up a mood that suggests that perhaps not everyone who used to be in Bruce's corner is necessarily there anymore.  The realism and premise of this franchise absolutely guarantees that I'll be in the theaters to see how this all plays out, possibly at a midnight premier showing.  Given the popularity of Nolan's work with these films thus far, you can bet I won't be the only one there.

GN Review -- Serenity: Better Days and Other Stories / Joss Whedon, Brett Matthews, Will Conrad, Zack Whedon, Patton Oswalt, Chris Samnee, Jim Krueger, and Patric Reynolds

It is with a heavy heart and a hopeful longing that I review the final volume of Serenity comics that are currently in existence.  While I won't go into much detail about how very awesome is the show they were spun from, the all-too-brief Firefly, I will say that it was the show that made me love Joss Whedon's writing skills.  It's the show that made me give Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and, by extension, Angel) a second chance, and when I got through the show and the feature film it spawned, I was upset that there weren't more stories to tell.  The emergence of the comics from Dark Horse were like a god-send.

Better Days and Other Stories is chronologically the second volume of stories, after the magnificent Those Left Behind and before the surprisingly disappointing The Shepherd's Tale.  It includes several stories from various creative teams, including "Better Days," in which the crew happens upon an obscenely wealthy payoff and muses on what they plan to do with it before typical circumstance pulls it away from them; "The Other Half," a short piece where the crew wards off a pack of Reavers while River saves them from a fate they couldn't have known about; "Downtime," a character study of the crew that gives an idea of what they get up to when they're not actively thieving; and "Float Out," a post-movie story about several of Wash's old friends christening a ship in their deceased comrade's name.

The writing in all four stories is very well done.  It's always fun to see Serenity's captain and crew both in and out of action, and the dialog, pacing, and plotlines all work like short episodes of Firefly.  Whether they're pulling Mal out of yet another grim situation, bantering and bickering with one another, or guessing slyly at one another's secrets, the characters are true to the portrayals of their on-screen counterparts.  The storytelling might not stand on its own for the casual reader, but I think it's safe to say that these books are meant for the fans, and they are a treat for those Browncoats who wanted more stories from the show.

Art-wise, I think it's unfair to compare anyone else's illustration work to Will Conrad's uncannily spot-on renditions of the characters.  It's honestly like some photographer took still shots from some lost Firefly episode, filmed but never distributed, and gave them to Conrad to do the line work.  His portrayals of the characters look that close to their actors.  Patric Reynolds's work is pretty close to the mark as well, while Chris Samnee's efforts are the most cartoonish, though I will say that doesn't detract from the story in "Downtime."  It's merely a different form of expressiveness that satisfies in a different way.

Overall, I think this is a wonderful collection of stories, certainly the most varied in the Serenity volumes that have been released.  This is definitely fan material--while I'm sure the stories are good enough sci-fi/western/action fare on their own, there's definitely more of a payoff for those who have been devotees of the show, the movie, and anything else Firefly.  For my part, it's a complete and total treat, one that makes a worthy addition to my own collection.  Highly recommended.

GN Review -- Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale / Zack Whedon and Chris Samnee

I am an unabashed fan of Joss Whedon's sci-fi/western show Firefly, and when I learned of the existence of the graphic novel based on it, I eagerly searched for them.  By November 2010, I'd heard of the impending publication of Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale, and was chomping at the bit to get a hold of this story.  Shepherd Book, the character who is the focus of this story, was one of the most compelling and mysterious members of Serenity's crew, and to have his back-story finally revealed in a comic book format was nothing short of miraculous, I felt.

But as I read the story, I couldn't help but come away with a profound sense of disappointment.

It isn't that the book lies to the reader in any way, or that it's poorly written, or even poorly illustrated (though I do feel the art does pale in comparison to other graphic stories of this property).  The Shepherd's Tale does exactly what it sets out to do, which is to reveal the specifics about Derrial Book's life and activities before he met up with Serenity and her crew.  It's creatively structured, with good little points of dialog and character development.  And while the art may feel less distinctive and crafted than I'd prefer, it does its job of accurately portraying the characters and supporting the mood and plot of the narrative.

Yes, the book (pun not intended) does exactly what it needs to do.  Nothing more, nothing less.

And I think that's my problem with it.

Maybe I've just gotten spoiled by the other Serenity comics.  Maybe I just built up too spectacularly the mystery of Book's origin, to a level so high that no reveal could have possibly lived up to it.  Whatever the case, this particular story was a decent story, and nothing more, which I think is abysmal praise when applied to Firefly and the narratives spawned from the show and film.  I'm so used to being blown away by what I've read in Dark Horse's releases of this franchise, that this story feels comparatively flat and unimpressive.

I thought the use of interlinked flashbacks at the various crossroads in Book's life was pretty interesting, despite the occasional bout of confusion.  The chain of events created leads the reader all the way back to Book's childhood, where he endured an abusive parent and eventually ran away.  His decision to join the Browncoats and spy on the Alliance by rising through the ranks of their military explains how he knows so much about arms and criminals as a Shepherd, but his disastrous singular failure as an Alliance commander also raises questions about why the Alliance treated him so well in an episode of the show.  When he finds God in a bowl of chicken soup, it's both amusing and illuminating, but also feels a little silly and contrived, particularly if you've never watched the show.

I suppose I'm just used to a certain standard of entertainment when I visit the fictitious 'verse of Serenity.  There's a certain depth to the story, or the characters, or the dialog, or the humor, or the simple feeling that this was a labor of love.  The Shepherd's Tale does what it promises, but was nowhere near as fulfilling to experience as the rest of the stories in this franchise.  Maybe this was just destined to be a disappointing story, but I can't help the feeling that, in other hands, this would have been a far deeper, more fulfilling, and ultimately more meaningful story than it turned out to be.

If I had been among Serenity's crew, and traveled and fought alongside Book, and watched him die, as they did, I would naturally want to know more about who he was before he came to be in my life.  This story was like being told by an Alliance administrator, in cold, clipped clarity, those details, as opposed to the warm recollection that would be given by the friaress in the Southdown Abbey from where he came to us.  It would do, but it would feel ultimately disappointing in its delivery.

Recommended, but only for fans of Serenity.  And unfortunately, most of them will still be disappointed.

GN Review -- Serenity: Those Left Behind / Joss Whedon, Brett Matthews and Will Conrad

I seem to be on a tear of comics that are made from pre-existing series these days.

For those of you who haven't seen it, Firefly, the short-lived sci-fi/western show off of which Serenity: Those Left Behind is based, is one of the best shows you've likely never seen.  It only lasted 14 episodes, but developed a dedicated following that endures to this day.  The writing, characterizations, and story arcs were intriguing and gripping, and even though the show was cancelled, it managed to get a movie to wrap up the story in Serenity.

Those Left Behind takes place between the end of Firefly and the beginning of the film Serenity, serving as both a bridge between the two stories and a decent enough action tale on its own.  Starting off with a situation typical of ship captain Malcolm Reynolds' bad luck, we come to see that the crew of Serenity has fallen on hard times and is struggling to make enough money to keep their ship running.  When an associate appears and gives them a job that seems to easy for the money it offers, they find that more than one enemy of theirs has laid a trap for them, and will stop at nothing to tear them apart.

It's a fun little story, and feels just like an episode of the show on which it's based.  This shouldn't be any surprise with series creator (and director of forthcoming movie The Avengers!) Joss Whedon penning the script in conjunction with Brett Matthews.  The crew of Serenity is where they normally are: down on their luck, on the move, and scrounging to make ends meet.  They're the classic underdogs in any fight, and yet they always manage to pull off the slimmest of victories in a fashion that is both convincing and endearing.

The dialog and characterization are also spot-on in this story.  From the judicious use of Mandarin Chinese to the slight country cadence that comes through in their speech, we know that we're in the Firefly 'verse from the dialog alone.  The main characters are also well preserved in speech, manner, and action.  Wash, the ship's pilot, whines at Mal in a manner reminiscent of Alan Tudyk, the actor who plays him, while ship's engineer Kaylee Frye continues to epitomize cuteness, even in high-stress situations.  For fans of the show, these little touches are invaluable to the narrative.

The artwork is wonderful throughout.  I'm not familiar with Will Conrad's other work, but looking at his renditions of the characters was about as close as I figured you could come to seeing the show again as you can in comic books.  It's a step above what I consider the norm for comics, and keeps you looking the book over even after you've read the story.  This volume also contains reprints of the covers by various artists featuring the various crew of Serenity originally done for the single issues that made up this story, and they are also a beautiful addition to the story.

Overall, a highly enjoyable read that won't take you very long.  If you're a Firefly fan and haven't read this book, what's wrong with you?  Read it!  For anyone looking for a good action sci-fi tale with beautiful artwork and interesting characters, definitely check out Serenity: Those Left Behind.  Highly recommended.