7 posts tagged “ed brubaker”
I wasn't very impressed by the first 12 issue story arc by Ed Brubaker on Uncanny X-Men. I didn't feel that story needed that many issues. This second arc is more focused, but it is also part of the big event starting soon.
This story (487-491) stars the Morlocks, and we see how they deal with the events of M-day. The themes of this arc are religious, with one faction of the Morlocks dividing themselves from the other half, but both following the teaching of the same book (like Catholics and Protestants?).
I was also glad to see some classic X-Men in action here, since Carey's run had a lot of new or unconventional X-Men. I also liked seeing Magneto, even if for a brief moment.
The art by Larroca is very beautiful, the storytelling is also clear enough. However it also felt a little bit too digital and therefore stiff and computerized. I admit I am torn about it.
This is not a great story by itself, but it is an improvement over the previous arc. But this is mainly a lead in to Messiah Complex.
All this to say that Criminal is by far his best current work. If you are a fan of his superhero books and are not reading Criminal, you are missing the best. Criminal is a series of stories all taking place in the same "universe", each featuring different characters. Some characters might show up in more than one story, sometimes as secondary characters, sometimes as the star. Also each story is a different type of crime story.
The first story called Coward is a heist story. It stars Leo as the mind behind the heist, as well as the other members of this heist. This is a typical crime story complete with twists and turns. Obviously I am not going to spoil them for you, but these twists wouldn't matter if we didn't care about the characters.
Each character (primary or secondary) has its own motivation, so every twist feels natural and not forced just to throw the reader off. Even though there isn't enough "screen time" for every single character, their past and motivations are explained concisely in the dialogs, so we understand all their subsequent actions.
The art by Phillips is perfect. The storytelling is clear and not boring. There are many dialogs in this series, but Phillips manages to move the camera around a lot and make the scene entertaining or not boring to the reader. The dialogs are already entertaining by themselves, I am not saying that the dialogs are boring. But visually a dialog might be less exciting. Phillips manages to avoid that problem. Even when there is action, the storytelling is clear and flows naturally.
I highly recommend the collection of this first story, as well as the single issues as they come out. The trade is a nice package that is easy to handle and maybe lend to friends. However the trade does not contain the "extra" material found in the singles. This material consists of mails, as well as essays about crime noir movies or novels, or anything related to crime fiction.
The first 12 issues in Brubaker's run (475-486) tell a space story involving the Shi'Ar and the long lost (ret-conned) 3rd Summers brother, Vulcan. The X-Men assembled to deal with this situation was an eclectic group of people, so it felt like a new group even though most of the members were veteran X-Men.
This story arc felt too long, so in each issue there wasn't a hell of a lot happening. On top of that I didn't feel that the characters were developed a lot, apart from Vulcan. The first 2/3 of the story was simply about the X-Men chasing after Vulcan.
It's only in the last act that things happened and it finally felt like a space adventure. The usual Shi'Ar characters are part of this story, including Corsair and the Starjammers. The only new element was Vulcan, who is basically at the center of this story. He's not a bad character, but the way he follows D'Bird is too stupid and unbelievable to me.
The end result didn't bring enough closure to this story though. This is really bad for a 12 issue run and I was not satisfied by this. In fact there is going to be a new mini series which will continue this story, but it will not be written by Brubaker. That annoys me, even though I shouldn't complain being an X-Men comic.
The art was competent, though it also didn't excite me too much. I didn't hate this arc, but I was definitely disappointed by it. Now I don't know if I should keep reading Uncanny X-Men. Also I hope that Mike Carey's run on X-Men is better. That will be next in my X-reading.
The first 14 issues (sans a couple of stand alone stories) are one big story arc introducing Cap's new nemesis and the Winter Soldier, aka Bucky. This is a particularly good series for readers who are unfamiliar with Cap's history, like me. I know all the main points, but I am not familiar with some of the detailed history.
Throughout this arc there are many flashbacks to the WW2, be it Cap remembering it or simple flashbacks told by someone. It really felt like half of the story took place in the past. And it makes sense, since both Bucky and General Lukin are tied to Cap's past.
Art is by Steve Epting and Michael Lark. I remember Epting's art from his old Avengers days. I must say he has improved a lot! His line is now clean, and his action scenes are superb, easy to follow as it should be. Michael Lark has always been a favorite of mine, ever since I read Scene of the Crime, however I don't think his style suits superheroes too well. His flashback scenes are fine though.
Lukin however is very well protected, and Cap cannot do much to get to him. Lukin is also working with the Skull now, which makes him even more dangerous.
Cap and Sharon are close once again, especially now that Cap knows that Bucky is still alive and still himself. Brubaker keeps Bucky's appearances very limited, so that he is a mystery to us as well as Cap.
The overall storyline of Lukin/Skull's plan is not easy to follow, it really feels like a complex spy story at the moment, and I can't wait to see where it goes.
This is a fun series, full of action, espionage, characterization and drama. I am sure Brubaker has mapped out the overall storyline, and I really can't wait to read it.
This is the mini-series that brought Ed Brubaker to the X-Men universe. In this series he retro-fitted the first story featuring the "New X-Men", meaning Wolverine, Colossus, Banshee etc.. (not the Morrisons's New X-Men). It seems to fit nicely (I have to go back and re-read that first story), but it also introduces huge changes in the X-universe.
Spoilers will follow!!
It finally reveals the third Summers brother. Unfortunately, it has nothing to do with what has been hinted in the past, at least not that I know of.
Xavier is not a mutant anymore. We probably could have guessed it by the way he just disappeared after House of M. But it is now finally shown. And we also see more of his manipulations.
Overall a good story, the reveal was a good pay off for the previous issues mystery. The art was ok, it recalls some of the old school art, with a touch of modern sensibilities. Maybe a mix of John Byrne and Brian Hitch.
The backup stories are excellent short stories. At first we don't know what they're about, or if they're even connected to the main story, but in issue 4 we find out what they are all about. I am very interested in Darwin's character, his power is very cool.
I like Brubaker (Sleeper), he might be my favorite writer at the moment. He has taken over Uncanny X-Men and continue his Vulcan storyline there. I can't wait to read it, especially his 4th issue where he said all expectations will be subverted. And he usually delivers on his promise.
I previously reviewed Point Blank, which is the prelude mini-series to Sleeper. Sleeper continues Ed Brubaker's story from Point Blank, but you don't really need to read PB to understand this series.
The star of the story is Holden Carver, a double agent who works for Lynch and infiltrates Tao's criminal organization. At least this is the setup, but what happens afterwards is completely different. I won't spoil it for you, because I want you to go out and buy the 4 TPBs that collect this story.
This is a crime comic for mature readers. Sure, it stars people with superpowers, but they are secret agents with powers, not superheroes. I really like Miss Misery's powers: whenever she does good things, or thinks good things she feels sick. The only way for her to survive is to do very bad things. Her problem is that might fall in love with Carver...
The 12 issues make up the first season, and season two has a completely different setup. The end of the series is satisfying, even though I predicted Carver's plan.
The art by Sean Phillips was jarring at first, probably because I read this right after Point Blank, which has very different art. However the art grew on me very quickly, and now I can't imagine anyone else drawing this series. This is a crime series, so the dark tone of the book fits perfectly. And I love the layout of the pages, the panels are floating on the page, and the background is a panel itself. Great stuff.
I just love this series, and wish there was an Absolute edition to collect it all. And I can't wait for Criminal by the same authors, a straight crime comic this time, no superpowers.
Ed Brubaker is a great crime writer, his best example is probably Scene of the Crime. However, this mini-series is a good blend between crime and superhero. Let's be clear, there are superheros in tights, other than in the background. The stars of this story are mainly secret agents in a superhero universe (Wildstorm).
This story is about government secret agencies vs underground rogue agencies. John Lynch has contacted Cole Cash (Grifter from Wildcats) to help him doing some underground work. Lynch is trying to find someone, who doesn't want to be found. One day Lynch is shot in the head, and goes into a coma. Cole then tries to find out who did it, and who Lynch was trying to find. I won't spoil the ending for you, but it is a great revelation. Classic crime story.
If you are at all into crime stories (who isn't, with all the CSI/L&O series on TV?), this is a pretty good one, that also contains superhero elements. The art by Colin Wilson is very good, a gritty style that fits this story well. Check this out.
This is a setup mini-series for another series, Sleeper, also by Brubaker. Review coming soon.
My Groups
-
Graphic Novels Updated: 7 days ago
-
Films Updated: Dec 21, 2009
-
Comic Book-ers Updated: Dec 10, 2009
Neighborhood
Explore friends, family, friends & family, or entire neighborhood.
