Yesterday, I picked up DC’s Wednesday Comics. As with any anthology book, it’s hit-and-miss affair.
Good:
Each creative team gets 12 pages over the series, so Bang! they drop the readers into the middle of the action. With a couple of exceptions I’ll note below, the colours pop off the oversize pages and the large format serves the stories well. The paper stock and the newspaper format remind one that this isn’t high art but a quick, enjoyable read.
Batman by Azzarello and Risso. A fantastic opener. Lovely composition, slightly creepy story. Classic Batman.
Kamandi by Gibbons and Sook. Damn, that's some beautiful artwork by Sook. Imagine Kamandi drawn in the style of Prince Valliant without losing the Kirby influence and you've almost got it. Nothing happens story-wise, but it’s a nice opener.
Hawkman by Baker. Need proof that Kyle Baker is one of the pre-eminent comic artists working today? Here it is. This is the best page in the book. There's a real sense of impending dread in the writing and the artwork, and it leads up to a bona fide cliffhanger. Telling the story from the birds’ point of view lends the story a nice twist, too. After years of seeing Hawkman changed into this or that, plunged into this or that intergalactic civil war, it’s nice to see the simply- (yet not childishly-) delineated heroic version here.
Metamorpho by Gaiman and Allred reads like a 1970s Saturday morning cartoon show but that’s not meant as an insult. It has beautiful drawings and a perky story full of goofy charm and funny segues. C’mon, Metamorpho’s a goofy character. Gaiman and Allred have the good sense to embrace that. And, hey, kids! Thought balloons are unashamedly back!
Metal Men by Didio, Lopez, and Nowlan. Wow, this art shines, and there’s a nice little bank heist story too. We don't get to see the Metal Men in action, but this certainly is a well-executed intro to this strip. Q: Is this the first time we've seen that the Metal Men can disguise themselves as humans? The human analogues of the Metal Men are great; you instantly can tell who's who.
Sgt Rock by Kubert and Kubert. Does anyone in comics, except maybe John Severin, tell a story as clearly as Joe Kubert? No backgrounds in the panels, yet we get a sense of exactly where we are. Now in his 80s, this an artist still on top of his game. This makes me long to find a copy of the oversized DC Treasury Edition Tarzan comic he drew.
Flash by Kerschi and Fletcher. If you can ignore the obvious error of The Flash speaking about half a dozen sentences while the narration tells us he is outrunning a radio wave (he should have used thought balloons!), this is a nicely told half-page. The other half is given over to Iris, which is a cute soapy melodrama with a nice little mystery tossed in.
M’eh:
Since this is the first issue, most of the stories seem to be following the same formula. But with this talent, I'm confident that by the second or third issue the stories will differentiate themselves.
Deadman by Bullock and Heuck. M'eh. To be expected, as apart from his cameos in Swamp Thing and the Books of Magic original miniseries, Deadman is pretty much a m'eh character to me. Standard murder-mystery setup, but nice, noirish art.
Superman by Arcudi and Bermejo. Since All-Star Superman I only want to see Frank Quitely drawing the Man of Steel. No offence to Bermejo, whose highly rendered artwork is outstanding, but it just feels too "painterly" to me; Superman should be a four-colour fever dream. Nice little one-page teaser story, though.
Green Lantern by Busiek and Quinones. Trying way too hard to be Darwyn Cooke's DC The New Frontier and not even getting the surface elements right, let alone the heart of it.
Strange Adventures by Pope. Whatever this is... brilliant retro future… sprawling space opera... it ain't Adam Strange. What a s shame, after Pascal Ferry did such a fantastic redesign on Adam's costume. An odd take on what should be an instantly recognizable character. Still, as a little sci-fi story, it’s great fun.
Supergirl by Palmiotti and Conner. Uninspired. Supergirl chases her Super-pets who have gone off the rails for some reason. This one looks like it was put in for the kiddies. Along with Teen Titans, this one feels like it belongs in another book.
The Demon and the Cat by Simonson (which one, it doesn't specify, I'm assume Louise) and Stelfreeze. Nice work by everyone involved, but hard to judge as it’s such a teeny part of a story. Fantastic artwork, if a bit muted colour-wise.
WTF?!
Teen Titans by Berganza, Galloway. Awful. The art looks like subway graffiti. Where's Walt Simonson or George Perez when you need him? The pale, almost pastel, colour palette doesn’t help. And I’m not sure a team lends itself well to short-form stories.
Wonder Woman by Caldwell. Who snuck a unused page from Promethea in here? No, seriously. This one's too ambitious for a one-pager, and the character as drawn looks nothing like Wonder Woman. I'm not for a "house style" but there is such a thing as drawing a character properly. This is a missed opportunity. A Marston-inspired retro strip would have been most welcome, and given this book a sense of being tied to great works of the past.
Conclusion
I'd say this thing's a qualified success. I'd love to see at someone at least attempt a complete story in one page in this format. Apart from the few misfires and the one or two odd choices, it looks like we’re in for a good read this summer.
Good:
Each creative team gets 12 pages over the series, so Bang! they drop the readers into the middle of the action. With a couple of exceptions I’ll note below, the colours pop off the oversize pages and the large format serves the stories well. The paper stock and the newspaper format remind one that this isn’t high art but a quick, enjoyable read.
Batman by Azzarello and Risso. A fantastic opener. Lovely composition, slightly creepy story. Classic Batman.
Kamandi by Gibbons and Sook. Damn, that's some beautiful artwork by Sook. Imagine Kamandi drawn in the style of Prince Valliant without losing the Kirby influence and you've almost got it. Nothing happens story-wise, but it’s a nice opener.
Hawkman by Baker. Need proof that Kyle Baker is one of the pre-eminent comic artists working today? Here it is. This is the best page in the book. There's a real sense of impending dread in the writing and the artwork, and it leads up to a bona fide cliffhanger. Telling the story from the birds’ point of view lends the story a nice twist, too. After years of seeing Hawkman changed into this or that, plunged into this or that intergalactic civil war, it’s nice to see the simply- (yet not childishly-) delineated heroic version here.
Metamorpho by Gaiman and Allred reads like a 1970s Saturday morning cartoon show but that’s not meant as an insult. It has beautiful drawings and a perky story full of goofy charm and funny segues. C’mon, Metamorpho’s a goofy character. Gaiman and Allred have the good sense to embrace that. And, hey, kids! Thought balloons are unashamedly back!
Metal Men by Didio, Lopez, and Nowlan. Wow, this art shines, and there’s a nice little bank heist story too. We don't get to see the Metal Men in action, but this certainly is a well-executed intro to this strip. Q: Is this the first time we've seen that the Metal Men can disguise themselves as humans? The human analogues of the Metal Men are great; you instantly can tell who's who.
Sgt Rock by Kubert and Kubert. Does anyone in comics, except maybe John Severin, tell a story as clearly as Joe Kubert? No backgrounds in the panels, yet we get a sense of exactly where we are. Now in his 80s, this an artist still on top of his game. This makes me long to find a copy of the oversized DC Treasury Edition Tarzan comic he drew.
Flash by Kerschi and Fletcher. If you can ignore the obvious error of The Flash speaking about half a dozen sentences while the narration tells us he is outrunning a radio wave (he should have used thought balloons!), this is a nicely told half-page. The other half is given over to Iris, which is a cute soapy melodrama with a nice little mystery tossed in.
M’eh:
Since this is the first issue, most of the stories seem to be following the same formula. But with this talent, I'm confident that by the second or third issue the stories will differentiate themselves.
Deadman by Bullock and Heuck. M'eh. To be expected, as apart from his cameos in Swamp Thing and the Books of Magic original miniseries, Deadman is pretty much a m'eh character to me. Standard murder-mystery setup, but nice, noirish art.
Superman by Arcudi and Bermejo. Since All-Star Superman I only want to see Frank Quitely drawing the Man of Steel. No offence to Bermejo, whose highly rendered artwork is outstanding, but it just feels too "painterly" to me; Superman should be a four-colour fever dream. Nice little one-page teaser story, though.
Green Lantern by Busiek and Quinones. Trying way too hard to be Darwyn Cooke's DC The New Frontier and not even getting the surface elements right, let alone the heart of it.
Strange Adventures by Pope. Whatever this is... brilliant retro future… sprawling space opera... it ain't Adam Strange. What a s shame, after Pascal Ferry did such a fantastic redesign on Adam's costume. An odd take on what should be an instantly recognizable character. Still, as a little sci-fi story, it’s great fun.
Supergirl by Palmiotti and Conner. Uninspired. Supergirl chases her Super-pets who have gone off the rails for some reason. This one looks like it was put in for the kiddies. Along with Teen Titans, this one feels like it belongs in another book.
The Demon and the Cat by Simonson (which one, it doesn't specify, I'm assume Louise) and Stelfreeze. Nice work by everyone involved, but hard to judge as it’s such a teeny part of a story. Fantastic artwork, if a bit muted colour-wise.
WTF?!
Teen Titans by Berganza, Galloway. Awful. The art looks like subway graffiti. Where's Walt Simonson or George Perez when you need him? The pale, almost pastel, colour palette doesn’t help. And I’m not sure a team lends itself well to short-form stories.
Wonder Woman by Caldwell. Who snuck a unused page from Promethea in here? No, seriously. This one's too ambitious for a one-pager, and the character as drawn looks nothing like Wonder Woman. I'm not for a "house style" but there is such a thing as drawing a character properly. This is a missed opportunity. A Marston-inspired retro strip would have been most welcome, and given this book a sense of being tied to great works of the past.
Conclusion
I'd say this thing's a qualified success. I'd love to see at someone at least attempt a complete story in one page in this format. Apart from the few misfires and the one or two odd choices, it looks like we’re in for a good read this summer.
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