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I&Nterview: Guillermo Zubiaga

14 Monday Jul 2014

Posted by dmainhart in I&Nterview

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Domingo de Luça, Guillermo Zubiaga, Hal Foster, Joanes de Echaniz, Joanes or The Basque Whaler, Juanes de Larrume, Michael Barkham, NY ComicCon, Prince Valiant, The Center for Basque Studies, University of Nevada, whaling

There are a lot of ways for independent creators to get published these days. You could start a Kickstarter campaign. You could publish on the web. Or, if you’re Guillermo Zubiaga, you could have it financed by scholarly cultural institutions like the University of Nevada and The Center for Basque Studies. His comic Joanes, or the Basque Whaler, has garnered him considerable attention, much of it from sources you wouldn’t normally associate with comic books.

guillermo1

 Derek Mainhart: So first a little background info: What’s your professional comics background?

Guillermo Zubiaga: I started my career working in an animation cartoon studio, while getting my degree at Syracuse University. After graduation I decided to move to New York City, to expand my professional possibilities. I got my first job in the comic book industry around 1997. I did a year or so work “ghosting” (uncredited work) and after a relatively short time I managed to get my work credited in Marvel’s X-Force. I also ghosted on Images Comics’ HellHole #1 and then on Witchblade INFINITY, for which I was given credit. 

Around the same time I also worked as a toy designer with Art Asylum, drawing designs for action-figures for ToyBIZ: X-Men, Spider-Man, Lord of the Rings and others. I also worked on the Image Comics title Nosferatu 1922 and some more ghosting for Vertigo (DC) on Big Daddy Danger, for which I was occasionally credited. I did some inking on an issue of B.P.R.D. for Dark Horse, and on an Image graphic novel, The Romp.

I have also drawn quite a few storyboards, mostly for TV-advertising, some music videos, but most notably for the short film Witchwise (2006) by Joe Harris and Night Messiah Films-Lointerscope.

DM: So you’ve been around. How did you feel about the “ghosting” process? Did it bother you to not get credited for some of your work?

GZ: I found ways around it. For example, perhaps semi-consciously, I began peppering a few subtle Basque “winks” and “tags”. Well, some not so subtle at all: there were iconic Basque symbols, letters, words, even phrases and names of Basque rock and rap bands, etc. Things I thought would not be recognized by anybody. I figured no other Basques were likely to be working as artists in the comic book industry. I never thought I was getting away with anything. If any of the camouflaged, incomprehensible Basque “winks” I drew in the background would have jumped out as any kind of red flag to an editor, the worst that could have happened was that I would’ve simply erased them and drew them over. But that never happened. On the contrary, I think that my when some of the books I worked on in America got published back in Europe, the “Basque winks” that I thought I had concealed so inconspicuously were eventually discovered. This led to some very considerable attention until finally the University of Nevada got news of my “affairs”.

DM: What was this “considerable attention”? When the University contacted you, were you already working on Joanes?

GZ: Yes. In 2007 I finished the flying whaleboat, showed it around to different editors in NYC and throughout the Comic Con circuit, trying to find a suitable venue.  I gave myself a self-imposed deadline of one year to find somebody to publish it. If not, I’d try self-publishing it.

During this time several articles were published about it in just about all the newspapers back in the Basque Country. I also was invited to participate in several interviews in a couple of Basque Radio shows and featured in a small piece on Basque News television.

A few months before my self-imposed deadline to find somebody to publish my book, I received a call from the University of Nevada, Reno. In 2009, courtesy of their Center of Basque Studies I published Episode 1 of my Joanes or the Basque Whaler saga: The Flying Whaleboat.

The second installment of the Basque whaling trilogy, Whale Island, premiered two years later at NY COMICON.

guillermo2

DM: What part did the University and the Center for Basque Studies play in publishing/promoting the book?

GZ: The Center for Basque Studies of the University of Nevada, in Reno holds and publishes (for the last 50 or so years and counting) the largest Basque themed library in the world (outside of the Basque country). So it has been, along with its vast distribution network, pivotal in spearheading this project and making it a reality.

I want to think of it as having been the right fit, and in retrospective I think I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

DM: What can you tell us about the story?

GZ: I would describe it as a fictional epic scattered with Basque mythological references. Regarding the first volume, Joanes, the protagonist, tries to make his fortune as a whaler during an era when the whales in the Bay of Biscay were becoming scarce. He’s forced to look farther afield, but without the means to do so. Here is when the story begins to depart from historical fact and the narrative weaves in elements of Basque legend. With the help of witches, Joanes summons a sea-devil who assist him…But for a price!

The episode ends with danger hanging over the recent success of Joanes and his crew as he has to live up to his unhallowed pact.

As far as the second book goes, continuing with the idea of Joanes as an anti-hero, we see that his fame and fortune grow, but so does his notoriety as a blasphemous and impious drunk. This defect will ultimately become his downfall, something quite real, human and flawed, characteristically lacking in most heroes.

This volume represents a turning point in the narrative: it’s the point of highest tension, before the conclusion in #3.

DM: The story takes great pains to recreate 15th century whaling practices. What interested you about the subject?

GZ: I hold the entire framework to be genuinely a Basque Western genre, comparable to The Cowboy in America, The Samurai in Japan or The Viking in Scandinavia. A truly epic age for the Basque people, which to quote a friend of mine “was the time when Basques have shined the brightest in their history”.

We Basques have been sitting on a buried treasure. As luck would have it, in our lifetime we have had the opportunity to discover the oldest and best preserved wreckage from the exploration age in the world. Not to mention two of the oldest written documents in American history, acknowledging us with the verifiable truth to claim back such a historical and cultural wealth.

DM: In addition to the whaling stuff, the narrative teems with historical detail. How much research did you have to do? Can you tell us about the process?

GZ: Research indeed!! I believe that the success of anything you do in this life depends 90% on research. It wasn’t easy, especially since not all investigating, in terms of archeological study, was done when I began this project. I realized that there wasn’t a whole lot to be found, although I am quite a library mouse and as much as I like to research, I had to talk to quite a lot of people. It wasn’t easy. I remember I went to different academic and cultural museums in the Basque Country as well as in Canada and Iceland, requesting any kind of visual aid, but like I said there wasn’t much. Luckily today I would say the field itself seems to be experimenting a bit of a revival.

DM: The story has the feel of folklore about it. How much derives from Basque tradition and how much is purely invention?

GZ: As far as the narrative is concerned, with the exception of personifying the natural occurrence of the Traganarroo (“watersprout” in Basque) into an anthropomorphic killer whale, I have painstakingly gathered every single element from the vast Basque mythological tradition; the witches and their relationship with the sea as well as the night whaleboat air rides, etc. I also drew from a very rich (though often little known) maritime history. The way I see it, all the elements were already there I just had to find them and weave them in a cohesive way that made them all fit.

guillermo3

the Traganarroo

DM: You incorporate text and symbols into some of your page design. Considering your penchant for hidden “winks”, are these meant to provide added layers of meaning?

GZ: Well of course! One would only hope those “added layers of meaning” are deciphered. However, unlike my days of ghosting, where my Basque winks were somewhat unpremeditated, every element in JOANES is fully planned.

DM: The overall storytelling approach, episodic in nature, with an omniscient narrator, reads less like a traditional comic and more like a heavily illustrated narrative. In fact, the combination of this approach with your exhaustive attention to detail and realistic rendering style put me in the mind of nothing so much as Hal Foster’s work on Price Valiant. Was this approach dictated by the type of story you’re telling? Why did you choose this method?

GZ: Right off the bat, thanks for that reference to “the Prince of Illustrators”! I am not sure if I could explain my method or how I choose it; however I knew from the very beginning that I wanted to do something “different”, with a clear conscious effort along the way that I wanted to avoid most (if not all) cliches, narrative as well as visual. Yet I also knew I wanted something done with a traditional feel, especially if we consider the atavistic nature of the subject matter. I even considered doing it in sepia tone as opposed to B&W to give it a weathered look, although I do think the current print works fine.

DM: There is some interesting conjecture in the story concerning the Basque’s discovery of the New World (you even provide some historical footnotes to this effect). What evidence you find supporting this? And was this part of the impetus for the story?

GZ: Impetus for the story? You bet!! There is a whole lot of undisputed evidence on the early presence of Basques in the New world. The tale itself is inspired by two of the oldest known texts to be produced in North America, the last will and testaments of Juanes de Larrume and Joanes de Echaniz, Basque whalers who respectively died in Canada in the years 1577 and 1584. ( A recent discovery by Michael Barkham places Domingo de Luça, also a Basque Seaman, who died in 1563, as the oldest written document in North America). Along with these written documents, the oldest shipwreck found north of Florida is the Basque Galleon, San Juan.

Furthermore a recent discovery (it happened while I was wrapping #3) at a Huron village site near Toronto, places one of the oldest pieces of iron (an axe fragment) in North America. The item was radio carboned to be from around 1500 A.D. and it has yielded very suggestive results because not only does it turn out it is Basque in origin but forensic archeologists were even able to locate the actual forge where it was manufactured back in the old B.C. (Basque Country).

In 1497 A.D. when Giovanni Caboto sailed for the King Herny VIII of England and “discovered” Newfoundland, on his arrival to the New World he encountered several Basque ships already fishing its coast.

Later in 1534 A.D. as Jacques Cartier explored the east coast of Canada on his “discovery” expedition for France, he also reported seeing Basque whalers off its shores. Moreover, some of the French-Basque crew that Cartier brought with him were the only ones who could understand a few trade words that the natives were using. An Algonquin-Basque pidgin had developed over years of trade between the two groups. Modern Micmacs today claim that when both Cartier and Cabot were first encountered they were greeted in Basque. The Basque language was without a doubt one of the earliest European languages that the natives learned, before, English, French or Spanish.

You see the whole subject of Basque whaling shrouded in a halo of mystery. Besides working so far from their home ports, they were exempt from many taxes that the crown or the church would otherwise claim, so naturally the occupation itself was quite secretive, in the nature of the fisherman who keeps quiet about the source of its catch to protect him from his competitors.

At any rate, all these elements were like a jewel for at least the backdrop of the centerpiece for a narrative work.

DM: The second issue ended on a note of almost biblical proportions. What can you tell us about Joanes #3?

GZ: The whole narrative of Joanes could be described as a journey of self discovery where the protagonist begins as a clear cut anti-hero but events transpire which transform him into a more traditional hero. Self sacrifice comes into play in this last issue, but even though the character appears more benign, the inner scoundrel never fully disappears.

The only two things that I can reveal is that our character has himself ordained and in addition to that becomes a pirate!!! (hence the title, Priest of Pirates)!

guillermo4

Look for Joanes or the Basque Whaler on Guillermo Zubiaga’s Blog:

http://guillermozubiaga.blogspot.com/

 

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What’s I&N Store (5/28)

27 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by ScottNerd in What's I&N Store?

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2000 AD, Adrian Alphona, Ales Kot, BOOM!, Brass Sun, Brian Wood, C. Willow Wilson, C.O.W.L., Chris Roberson, Danijel Zezelj, Dark Horse, DC Comics, Dead Boy Detect, Doc Savage, Doctor Spektor, Dynamite, Ed Brisson, Garry Brown, Garth Ennis, Gary Erskine, Guiu Vilanova, Harbinger, I.N.J. Culbard, Ian Edginton, Image, Iron Patriot, J. Michael Straczynski, Jason Aaron, Jason Howard, Jason Latour, John Christmas, Joshua Dysart, Kyle Higgins, Mark Buckingham, Mark Waid, Marvel, Matt Kindt, Michael DiPascale, Mind MGMT, Ms. Marvel, Neil Edwards, Peter Milligan, Prince Valiant, Rod Reis, Rover Red Charlie, Ryan North, Shadowman: End Times, Sheltered, Southern Bastards, Star Wars: Rebel Heist, The Massive, The Midas Fesh, The Twilight Zone, Toby Litt, Trees, Vertigo, Warren Ellis

Back to business–big business:

  • The Massive #23 (Dark Horse): Man, Brian Wood is at the top of his game.  Proof: The Massive has earned Top 5 honors three months running, with #22 claiming the top spot for April.
  • Mind MGMT #22 (Dark Horse): My love affair with Mind MGMT continues–despite the fact that #21 earned the most ignominious monthly distinction we have to offer: The Biggest Dis(appointment) of April.  Say it ain’t so, Scott!  Oh, I’ve said it and written it–right here.
Mind MGMT #22

Mind MGMT #22

  • Star Wars: Rebel Heist #2 (Dark Horse): I’m not a big Star Wars guy.  I was when I was a kid, though: had all the toys, put on plays based on Empire.  I was always Luke; my cousin, Han.  So, Star Wars-wise, this wasn’t a gimme; but it was–because of Kindt.  He certainly brought his writing style to the cause, relying heavily on first person narration to sell Solo.  I wasn’t particularly sold–again, ain’t my bag–until something struck me like a speeding yellow Rolls Royce!  Once I saw Nick Carraway in Jan and Gatsby in Han, the story took a different shape for me.  Turns out, this is the Star Wars series I’ve been looking for.
Star Wars: Rebel Heist #2

Star Wars: Rebel Heist #2

  • Dead Boy Detectives #6 (DC/Vertigo): #5 took us through a looking glass, now didn’t it?  I just keep falling for this series!
Dead Boy Detectives #6

Dead Boy Detectives #6

  • C.O.W.L. #1 (Image): Gates of Gotham was my first experience with Kyle Higgins.  I’m willing to try another–even if the Previews description does sound a bit like Watchmen.
  • Sheltered #9 (Image): Hasn’t been hitting the same notes that really drew me to the book initially.  And still I buy–because, I guess, I haven’t read Lord of the Flies in a while.
  • Southern Bastards #2 (Image): #1 was easily one of our Top Books of April.  Gosh!  There was so much I liked about it, and I wrote it all down just for you right here.
Southern Bastards #2

Southern Bastards #2

  • Trees #1 (Image): Warren Ellis is branching out all of a sudden, isn’t he?  Moon Knight‘s been very good through three issues, which has served to grow expectations for this very different story, with its roots in…  OK.  I’ll stop; don’t want to get too sappy.
Trees #1

Trees #1

  • Iron Patriot #3 (Image): Ales Kot hasn’t caught me yet, but Garry Brown’s been a sure bet.  Says a lot if I’m buying a book for the art.
  • Ms. Marvel #4 (Marvel): #3 was really, really good.  C. Willow Wilson shines when she highlights Kamala Khan and her family, much in the same way Bendis made–and may still be making–magic with Miles Morales.  If I had to guess, I’d say she’s following the Bendis formula, which is a pretty smart move.  Biggest fear: the Inhuman connection will suck the life out of this book; it’s been a concern ever since the mist came a-rollin’ in.
  • Brass Sun #1 (2000 AD): I lost interest in Hinterkind pretty quickly, so Ian Edginton isn’t a must buy or a must try; but the Previews description left me trying to picture “a clockwork solar system where planets whirl on vast metal arms and the sun of cogs is worshipped as a god”–and now I want to see what it looks like!  We’ll see if I.N.J. Culbard can live up to the images in my nerdy mind.
Brass Sun #1

Brass Sun #1

  • Doc Savage Anuual 2014 (Dynamite): Annuals rarely work out well–especially when a different creative team is in charge.  Speaking of charge: $5.99?  Really?  I can’t imagine that that much value will be added to the book to warrant a two buck bump.
  • Doctor Spektor #1 (Dynamite): I don’t know from Doctor Spektor; but, with faith as my friend, I’ll optimistically Waid into this one.
  • Harbinger #23 (Valiant): Getting closer to the end.  Sad, ain’t it?
  • The Midas Flesh #6 (BOOM!): Has gotten heavy fingered–and seriously so.  The damn heavy finger has flicked away all the fun!  Don’t get me wrong: I’ve enjoyed the ethical dilemma at the heart of the book; the situation surrounding it is pure gold, after all.  But the dialogue’s become a real drag, its being weighed down by wheel spinning and redundancies and all.  I mean, what is this?  The Republic?  No: The Republic actually goes somewhere.  Sad to say, Ryan North’s gone a bit south.  But there are only two issues left, so…
  • Rover Red Charlie #6 (Avatar): What a weird series, right?  So many affective moments offset by the inevitable Avatar moments.  You know the moments of which I speak.  Which will win the day here in the finale?  Hoping it’s the former.  Please let it be the former.
Rover Red Charlie #6

Rover Red Charlie #6

  • Shadowman: End Times #2 (Valiant): OK, so I’ve erased five blurbs.  Thing is, I still don’t know why I’ve followed Shadowman this far.  Yeah, that might explain why we’re in the End Times.
  • The Twilight Zone #5 (Dynamite): The first arc was pretty sharp.  Definitely Straczynski at his best.  Hoping to get more of the same going forward.

What are you looking forward to this week?

Turning pages,

Scott

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Back and Forth: A Stitch in Time

16 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by ScottNerd in Back and Forth, Microviews

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Adam Glass, Alberto Ponticelli, AvX, Batman, Before Watchmen, Brian Azzarello, Butch Guice, Charles Dickens, Chris Bachalo, Chris Samnee, Comedian, Cyclops, Dark Horse, Dark Shadows, DC Comics, Dynamite Entertainment, Ed Brubaker, Frankenstein, Gene Ha, Greg Rucka, Guiu Vilanova, Hal Foster, Harbinger, IDW, J.G. Jones, James Robinson, Jason Aaron, Jeff Lemire, Lee Garbett, Mark Waid, Marvel, Mateus Santoluoco, Matt Kindt, Matthew Southworth, Mike Mignola, Mike Raight, Oni Press, Oscar Wilde, Prince Valiant, Professor X, Punk Rock Jesus, Rico Renzi, Robert Venditti, Rocketeer, Sandman, Sean Murphy, Stefano Gaudiano, Stumptown, Suicide Squad, The Shade, Valiant, William Shakespeare, Winter Soldier, Wolverine and the X-Men, X-O Manowar

Scott Carney: With a first page that leaves two-thirds of We3 in pieces on lab tables, Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #0 skulks its way toward a violent origin, one that plays out–thanks to the way Frank is depicted–like the birth of a pre-Atomic Age Hulk.  What a fun book!  Just turn to page 11.  I know what you’re hearing while looking at that scurvy bunch: you’re hearing a salty Obi-Wan Kenobi say forcefully: “Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious.”  Glorious!  The rest of the story reads well enough.  Necessary comment: Kindt’s father-son showdown–an expected but wholly appropriate climax–makes the mutant patricide of AvX look pedestrian in execution.  Just sayin’.  And, come on: a Nazi robot spider?  That’s right up there with gorillas with guns.  I’d like to also celebrate Ponticelli’s cover, which is my favorite of the zeroes.  Every time I look at the damn thing, I feel like that sword’s gonna come down and cut off something I might need.

Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #0 Cover

Derek Mainhart: Yeah that cover is really something. Best use of the whole “tearing through the page” conceit. For a book that initially seemed like it was going to be DC’s version of the Mike Mignola’s B.P.R.D., this title has really established itself as one of the most fun corners of the DCU. Jeff Lemire’s initial run was characterized  by  a wanton sense of absurdity, grounded (well, semi-grounded) by Frankenstein’s grave demeanor (pun intended!). Frank’s unwavering character anchored the stories allowing Lemire to introduce whatever wild sci-fi / horror tropes he could come up with. Matt Kindt’s run has continued in that vein but, in exploring the monster’s past, has introduced a level of pathos to the proceedings. This extra wrinkle, combined with Kindt’s refined appreciation of the ridiculous, have produced stories that thrill on a level that I would call epic, if “epics” didn’t take themselves so seriously. (To wit: your apt contrast of this with the “epic” AvX, which is simply awful. But that is perhaps grist for another discussion.) Alberto Ponticelli has visually really made this book his own. Some standout scenes, in addition to the ones you mentioned: page 6 as the freed mental inmates tear through the mansion past the Doctor’s poor sainted wife; and the palpable, kinetic action of the big fight scene in pages 17-20. I’ll be sad to see him go, as he moves over to Dial H (I’m also sorry to see Mateus Santoluoco leave that book). My one quibble about this issue was that it really should have ended at page 26, with the line “You can call me Father”. How apropos, no? The final two pages seemed tacked on for the benefit of new readers, I guess. Still, I’ll forgive it since those last pages include the aforementioned GIANT NAZI SPIDERS! Book of the Week.

A close second however was Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom #2 by Mark Waid and Chris Samnee (IDW). After a shaky first issue, Waid really seems to have found his footing here. There isn’t a wasted moment as the story propels from one improbable action scene to the next. Samnee draws a particularly effective sequence right away on pages 2-3 as the villain of the book is shown incapacitating the dangerous cargo of the title without revealing what the cargo actually is; a neat visual trick. Samnee’s visuals perfectly complement Waid’s retro tone, which is a gleeful combination of Indiana Jones, King Kong and perhaps a touch of Looney Tunes. Like Indy, its an homage to the propulsive movie serials of old, complete with the requisite, exquisitely unbelievable cliffhanger. Don’t miss it.

SC: I liked Winter Soldier #10, too.  Loved Guice’s layouts from the get-go; he gives stunning and shadowy life to the Widow’s unexpected awakening and to Jasper’s selfless final act.  Brubaker brings Captain America, Wolverine, and Hawkeye to Bucky’s side, creating a formidable cavalry to face down an increasingly formidable foe.  The romantic Parisian flashback, juxtaposing the rain and the pain, is tenderly rendered, and rounds out a seriously solid issue.  If this storyline  is Brubaker’s kiss goodbye to Marvel, it’s a French kiss, indeed.

DM: Big fan of Butch Guice’s artwork as well (this book has been blessed with some stellar artists), but this issue just seemed to be treading water to me. Brubaker spends the first nine pages rehashing events that the reader could have surmised from last issue (including a beloved SHEILD agent getting killed a la The Avengers movie). Then some expository dialogue explaining her brainwashing in more detail than is needed. And then the guest stars show up. (Wolverine seems kinda forced. Doesn’t he have enough to do?) It even ended on an awkward beat. Hopefully things will pick up next issue.

SC: Wouldn’t you know, with Wolverine and the X-Men #16, Aaron has pulled another one out of the Phoenix fire.  This time, he’s out of the damn crossover frying pan and into the Hellfire.  This Kilgore kid is bad-ass and has a killer back story to prove it–specifically a black and white one that Bachalo just absolutely blows up.  This is wicked fun that seems to be headed in the right direction–back to where it all started; back to what drew me to the book in the first place.

DM: Glad AvX didn’t ruin this book for you. (Did I mention it was awful?)

SC: The Shade #12 isn’t bad for a final issue.  Too often exceptional story arcs fall apart at the all-too-crucial end; but not this one.  Robinson mixes up some magic with an Oliver twist.  The art’s no joke: when the Scrooge-lookin’ Simon summons Scathach, Ha hits a high note driving the darkness into Dick.  Oh, I’m sure–well, I hope I’m sure–this isn’t the last we’ll see of the good Mr. Swift.  I mean, where else is Robinson going to shine but in The Shade?

DM: I’m going to miss The Shade. If the final two issues weren’t completely satisfying, it’s only because Robinson set the bar so high with the first ten. The roster of artists has been stellar, but the star of this series was the writing. Something about playing in the Starman universe seems to bring out the best in Mr. Robinson, and here we were treated to roguish imaginings in various eras filtered through the arched eyebrow of an Oscar Wilde dandy. Interesting that for this last issue the Shade’s teamed up with Charles Dickens. (It brought to mind the final issue of Sandman featuring William Shakespeare, right down to the lush period illustrations of Gene Ha.) My main quibble is that this didn’t feel like a last issue. The reintroduction of Simon Culp as his arch-nemesis, the mystery of why the goddess chose the Shade to receive his powers, the friendship with Dickens; all of these seem like plot threads of a series in mid-stride, not one that is winding down. Let’s hope you’re right and Robinson returns to this material soon. It’s the best stuff he’s written in years.

SC: The Valiant books were all right.  I wasn’t too impressed by the introduction of Ninjak in X-O Manowar #5.  But I did enjoy Aric’s arrogance; it reminds me so much of myself.  Harbinger #4 was a bit better with Pete’s almost losing Faith and then his really losing it over Joe.

DM: As someone who was, shall we say, less than enthused about the whole Valiant relaunch, I gotta say X-O is growing on me. I’m enjoying the artwork by Lee Garbett and Stefano Gaudiano (a touch of Hal Foster, no? A little Prince Valiant in Valiant?  Have I taken things too far?). And Robert Venditti’s tale of Roman slaves, time travel and pseudo-religious space invaders has never been less than a good time. (The grenade bit on page 12 alone was worth the price of admission)

SC: I may be done with Comedian after #3.  I may be nuts, too, but is there any doubt that Azzarello’s been dropping little hints about how he feels about this whole Before Watchmen venture.  The first hint pops up in Rorschach #1, when “Crime” tells Rorschach that he doesn’t quite live up to the myth.  Here, it’s not-so-hidden on pages 22-23, where Blake watches a dog take a dump on the sidewalk and then tosses a piece of crap at a police chief’s face.  Is it possible Azzarello’s not doing this on purpose?  Is it?  No, really, is it?

DM: Comedian was a bit of a letdown for me as well, though I think I liked it a little more than you. I enjoyed his moral ambivalence as he played all sides against each other simply because, well, he could. (And the art by J.G. Jones certainly doesn’t hurt.)  Having said that, I was disappointed that this is starting to read like an overly comprehensive flashback – “this happened, then this happened, then this, and so on” – an aspect that has been endemic in all of the Before Watchmen books. How about focusing in on just one compelling story and seeing what it reveals about the character?

SC: I am done with Suicide Squad after #0.  My soft spot for the book killed itself a few pages in.  That’s right: the Glass has finally cracked.  What a disaster.

Re: Batman #0: When does #13 come out?

DM: Yeah, what was the point of this issue again? After the laser-like focus and highwire tension of the Court of the Owls arc, this issue and the last one (which was better, a little) have meandered into territory that seems trivial at best. A lost opportunity for a zero issue.

To end on a high note I’d like to show some love to the following:

Stumptown: The Case of the Baby in the Velvet Case #1. (Oni Press) The title alone grabbed my attention. In his end piece, writer Greg Rucka extols the pleasures of the 70’s PI show, highlighting The Rockford Files. This first issue shares that show’s laconic tone and wry humor. No end-of-the-world stakes here. Just a seemingly routine mystery that begins with a missing guitar. Solid art by Matthew Southworth and Rico Renzi. Fans of detective fiction should check it out.

Dark Shadows #7. Speaking of the 70’s, Guiu Vilanova’s art, with it’s shaggy hair, handlebar mustaches and big-honkin’ police cars, captures the era of this book perfectly (This is a compliment. Really). Unlike the recent Tim Burton movie, writer Mike Raight, focuses less on the camp (which is inherent) and more on the horror. Fans of Dark Horse’s line of arcane horror books (Hellboy, et al.) should give this a try. Another solid book from Dynamite.

And finally, Punk Rock Jesus #3, the story of Christ’s second coming via cloning (story and art by Sean Murphy.) The art features a harsh, expressionistic (but never unreadable) line well-suited to its punk rock ethos. The character development and pacing may be a tad forced (I think this is Murphy’s first crack at writing), but this is more than made up for by the anarchic energy and send-up of modern society that the title so ably suggests. Definitely worth a look.

SC: Hmm.  You’re inspiring me to think outside my bag.  (I could hate you for it; but I don’t.  Not yet, anyway.)  Just when I thought it was safe to go back to the comic shop.

Turning pages,

Scott & Derek

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