The Bum’s Rush #99


WARNING! None of the news or rumors you see here in The Bum’s Rush should be considered FACT until it actually happens. It might never happen. How do you know I’m not just making all this crap up? I could, you know. You’ve been warned!

“Name Three Comics . . .” – 5 Titles I Love (And You Should Too)

The guy that runs the comic book store I shop at, the same place I’ve shopped at for almost eight years, at times seems utterly convinced that I hate comics. That I only continue to read them so I can have something to bitch about. He’s probably not the only one who thinks that, but I digress. For a while, whenever I would come into the store with some gripe about whatever stupid nonsense Marvel or DC happened to be pulling at the time or how I hated what had been done to this comic or that, the store owner would look at me and laugh and say, “Paul, are there any comics you do like?” And I would reply that, sure, there are tons of comics I like. To which he would inevitably respond, “Oh yeah? Name three comics you actually like.”

I had to wonder, do I really seem to hate comics that much?

Now maybe I don’t say it often enough, but I love comics. I really, really do. Sure, I love movies, I love books and movie scores and menthol cigarettes, but none of these things come close to imbuing me with the same passion and energy I experience when reading, talking about or creating comic books. And like any passionate love affair, my relationship with comics has been filled with marvelous highs and devastating lows.

During the good times I sing praises for the comic book industry, I hoot and I holler and I salivate all over my keyboard as I punch out page after page of nothing but the sweetest of words for sequential art and storytelling and the people who do it so well. And during those not so good times, well, I tend to rail against the beast that is the comic book industry pretty damn hard. Because I love it so much, you see, when I encounter something that ticks me off, something that I feel is bad for comics, I can get pretty carried away in my condemnation of that thing.

Lately though I’ve been a bit too hung up on condemning comics. It’s time to celebrate them a little. Time to sing some praises and pass out some shiny gold stars to the comics that I can’t wait to get my grubby little hands on month in and month out. Time to wash all the junk out of our systems, all the death and the shock revelations and the hype, with not just three, but five comics I like. No, no… make that “love”.

B.P.R.D. – Thank God for the B.P.R.D. If it wasn’t for this book I might begin to notice that there haven’t been more than a handful of Hellboy comics published in the last five years. Luckily the continuing adventures of Abe Sapien, Roger, Liz Sherman, Johann Kraus, Ben Daimio and Kate Corrigan do more than just fill the void, they almost make me forget that I’m missing Hellboy altogether. Plus, how can you not absolutely love the brilliant art of Guy Davis?

Criminal – This is the book that Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips were born to create. A gritty noir-thriller that’ll have you rooting for the bad guy from the very first page. Criminal is simply the best crime comic I have ever read, full of suspense, backstabbing, revenge, bad love and heists gone wrong. Hell, forget about comics, this book surpasses most crime movies.

Invincible – In a time where I am sick to death of most superhero comics along comes the most superhero comic of all to knock me off my feet. You see, Invincible remembers what being a superhero comic book is all about. Drama, romance, bright and flashy costumes, secret identities, things getting hit and those things exploding. Everything that made superhero comics fun is packed into each and every page of just one single issue of Invincible. The cover of every issue proudly declares “Probably the best superhero comic book in the universe!” There ain’t no “probably” about it.

Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil – How do you spell SHAZAM? F-U-N. Okay, maybe that was a little cheesy, but we are talking about the Big Red Cheese after all, the only superhero who can out-boyscout Superman himself. There’s a genuine sense of wonder and excitement present in this book that is missing from almost 90% of mainstream comics these days. It’s one of those rare books that anyone can enjoy, kids and adults alike. Sure, I could do without Jeff Smith shoehorning his politics into certain scenes, but things like that are quickly forgotten when confronted by scenes like Billy Batson ordering a hot dog for his alter ego, because Captain Marvel doesn’t have any pockets to carry money in or Billy’s kid sister Mary becoming Mary Marvel and discovering that she’s faster than Captain Marvel himself.

X-Factor – I can’t believe an X-book is in my top five either but I absolutely love this book. Under the guidance of writer Peter David, the book’s star Jamie Madrox is quickly becoming one of the most well developed characters in the Marvel Universe. And his supporting cast is brilliant, a truly dysfunctional family of mutants without purpose brought together under the guise of a very unique detective agency. What makes this book so much fun to read is the interaction between the characters, who are so different from one another that it’s amazing someone hasn’t been killed yet. But the main reason this book gets a pass into the top five isn’t the brilliant characterization. It’s the addition of artist Pablo Raimondi to the regular creative team. I’ve been a Raimondi fan for years and now, with X-Factor, I get to enjoy his work on a monthly basis!

Go read these books immediately! And prepare to fall in love.


Return of Quick Bits!

Since I’m trying to keep this column short I’ve decided to bring back a feature I used to use back when I first started this column – Quick Bits! It’s more like a news brief, hitting the major headlines and such, without any long winded “opinions” by some tool (a.k.a. Me).

1. In it’s opening weekend the film adaptation of Frank Miller’s 300 broke records and smashed the competition, bringing in $70 million ($5 million more than the film cost to make). It’s an incredible film and it really has to be seen in the theater!
    
2. Starting in April, artist Cory Walker will be re-teaming with Invincible co-creator Robert Kirkman on two issues of The Irredeemable Ant-Man. Walker is also working on a new 12-page Science Dog story which will be featured in Invincible #50 and, following that, will be drawing two issues of Invincible focusing on Allen the Alien. Also in the works for Walker is a creator-owned series, which he will both write and draw.
    
3. Speaking of Invincible, issue 42 of the series will be a special jumping on point for the series as it kicks off a brand new storyline and offers a complete recap of the series so far. The issue will be available for a mere $1.99.
    
4. Over on his blog, Dustin Nguyen revealed that he would be working on the Superman/Batman series this summer with writer Alan Burnett. Nguyen says that the creative team is already on the fourth issue of their run, the first issue of which isn’t scheduled to ship until July. Impressive.
    
5. Holy crap, there’s a Dead @ 17 movie in the works! Okay, technically it’s a fan film by
   Mark Steensland which cover the first issue of the original Dead @ 17 mini-series. But Dead @ 17 creator Josh Howard has given the filmmaker his blessing and has even posted several production photos which you can view HERE.
    
6. Is this the new Captain America?
   
   
   
   God… I hope not.
    
7. A still picture featuring Rorshach, star of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen was found hidden in a recent trailer for director Zak Snyder’s 300. Snyder’s next film is scheduled to be an adaptation of… Watchmen. Ooooh.
   
   
    
8. Joshua Middleton has been working on a series of inventory covers for a number of DC books, including Batman, Flash, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern (not pictured):
   Click on an image to view full size in a new window
   
   
                  
   
    

In Case You Didn’t Know…

Captain America ain’t dead! He’s alive and kicking over at the awesome Draw Captain America (http://superleezard.livejournal.com/186923.html) meme I started last week. Even Mike Wieringo showed up to play!


The Only Comics That Matter

Last Week –
Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil #2 by Jeff Smith
Criminal #5 by Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips
Iron Man: Hypervelocity #3 by Adam Warren & Brian Denham
Boneyard #24 by Richard Moore

This Week –
BPRD: Garden of Souls #1 by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi & Guy Davis
Buffy The Vampire Slayer #1 by Joss Whedon & Georges Jeanty
Stormwatch: PHD #5 by Christos Gage & Doug Mahnke
Grifter and Midnighter #1 by Chuck Dixon & Ryan Benjamin

Next Week –
The Spirit #4 by Darwyn Cooke & J. Bone
Y: The Last Man #55 by Brian K. Vaughan & Pia Guerra
X-Factor #17 by Peter David & Pablo Raimondi

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If you have any interesting news, rumors, lies, etc. about comics and think I should know about it too just email me at thesuperleezard@yahoo.com.

Read more dumb crap written by me at www.livejournal.com/users/superleezard.

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