Todd Klein's Blog, page 208

And Then I Read: SURVIVOR’S CLUB 1

Cover art by Bill Sienkiewicz

This story begins with a group email that states, “Hi. You don’t know me, but I found your name on a list on the internet. Everyone on that list is missing or dead. There are only six survivors. We’re all in L.A. We’re all connected. Something bad happened to every one of us in 1987. Meet me and I’ll tell you about it.”

What a great opening hook, showing that in the hands of good writers, even plain, emotionless statements of fact can fill the mind with unease and prime the desire to know more.

From there we meet the “survivors” of this mysterious list connected to a long-defunct video game. Each of them seems fairly normal on the surface, but there are undercurrents everywhere, and when the group does get together, things get even weirder and scarier.

Unusually, this book has two writers: Lauren Beukes and Dave Halvorsen, and one artist, Ryan Kelly. Everyone is doing an excellent job of drawing me in and making me want to know more, even as I’m a little afraid of what I might learn. And that cover is killer.

Recommended.

Pulled From My Files #37

Images © DC Comics

Here are two more examples of hand-lettering created for covers that I don’t think I’ve run before.

Both are Legion of Super-Heroes books most likely from the early 1990s. The sort of thing I did lots of at the time, often four to six a week. I like the very thick letters in CRUSH above, and I did a lot of the jagged outlines seen here. I can get close on the computer, but it never looks quite as good as pen and ink.

And Then I Read: DOCTOR FATE 5

Image © DC Comics

Is Khalid ready to take on the super-hero role of Doctor Fate? He’s not sure. An attempt to stop some looters turns up important gaps in his knowledge, such as how to deal with bullets directed his way. I love the fact that Khalid and the helmet talk to each other, making him seem a little crazy, even to himself. Khalid’s family loves and cares for him, but they can’t help with this sort of problem. And his father is in great danger already from the main opponent facing Doctor Fate — the evil Egyptian god Anubis, the jackal. If Khalid isn’t ready to fight regular criminals, how can he tackle Anubis? To save his father, he has to try. Great comic from Paul Levitz and Sonny Liew, my favorite series at the moment.

Highly recommended.

And Then I Read: DREW FRIEDMAN’S HEROES OF THE COMICS

Image © Drew Friedman

This large, attractive hardcover collects 83 of caricaturist Friedman’s portraits of (mostly) comic book creators from the earliest days through perhaps the 1970s, depending on how you figure it. Most are known names to me, but I’m not familiar with the visual appearance of about half of them. Drew’s caricatures usually feature a head larger than the body, and some exaggeration, but they are also very detailed, and give the impression of realism, an interesting combination. Most of them worked for me, but the portrait of Jack Kirby on the cover above did not — I had no idea who that was until I came to his page in the book.

On the other hand, many seemed spot-on, like this portrait of Joe Orlando, who I worked with at DC Comics for a few years. In general, Drew works from photographs, and likes to bring out every last detail on his faces. This can be a little less than flattering at times, but it does add to the feeling of a true portrait.

The 83 color portraits in the book each have a facing page of text about the subject. There’s also a foreword by Al Jaffee of MAD fame and an informative introduction by Drew. One page of text is only a brief summary of some careers, and a pretty detailed synopsis of others, depending on the subject. I saw a few errors, but it seems well researched in general. It’s a fun collection, and one I enjoyed reading and viewing. Another volume is in the works.

Recommended

And Then I Read: MISTER MAX: THE BOOK OF KINGS by Cynthia Voigt

Cover illustration © Iacopo Bruno

This is the third book in the Mister Max trilogy, and I’ve enjoyed all of them. Young Max Starling has been on his own since his parents were kidnapped in the first book, and in this one he and his friends and supporters are finally ready to journey to South America to try to rescue them. Since finding himself alone except for his grandmother and friends, Max has developed his own business solving mysteries. He calls himself “Mister Max, Solutioneer,” and his clients range from school-children to his town Mayor and important and wealthy families. No mystery has proved as challenging as the one of his missing parents, but Max is closing in on it. They’ve surfaced as the apparent King and Queen of the very small South American country of Andesia. Clearly the local General is really in charge, and keeping the theatrical actor couple on hand for show. How to get them back? Max’s first big hurdle is meeting the King of his own country so he can set up an official delegation to visit Andesia. Then the delegation, actually all Max’s friends and his grandmother, must travel across the sea and over rough mountain terrain to reach the remote capital. If they succeed, there’s no telling what new hurdles will await them there, far from any further help.

Cynthia Voigt has developed great characters and a clever coming-of-age story in these three books. Here, about two thirds of the time we are in Andesia, where Max has fewer chances to work his skills as a problem solver, and there is an oppressive regime atmosphere there that makes this last book somewhat gloomy, but it’s still a fine read, and has some clever revelations and surprises. There is also the satisfaction of Max and his parents finally being reunited in Andesia after so many months, though that reunion is hard to achieve for the rescuers, and fraught with peril for everyone.

Recommended.

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN ANNUAL 4

Image © DC Comics

Billed as “Tales of Hal Jordan,” the first half of this comic tells what happened when some of the Green Lantern Corps tracked down the renegade Hal. It’s a battle of powers, but also of hearts and minds, as the GLs are Hal’s former companions and friends. The second half features an evil super-villain and his gang — or are they more like bounty hunters? — who are also after Hal and his current companions. The writing by Robert Venditti is pretty good, if predictable. The art is by Pascal Alixe and Martin Coccolo. Not sure who did what, but while the art in the first half is fine, I don’t care for some of the art in the second half, where it gets very soft and hazy, like looking through gauze.

Mildly recommended.

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN LOST ARMY 4

Image © DC Comics

Guy Gardner, John Stewart, Kilowog, Arisia and several other Green Lanterns are trapped in the very distant past, before the beginning of our universe, and under attack by creatures who can drain their green energy. Here, it’s all about who controls light, and the GL’s are captured by light pirates who want theirs. Local light energy wielders are also imprisoned by the light pirates, and the squirrel-like GL B’dg finds a way to gather everyone together for an attempted jail break. Despite nice art by Javier Piña, this series seems to be floundering, and did not appeal to me much.

Mildly recommended.

And Then I Read: THE OUTSIDE CIRCLE

Image © Kelly Mellings

This graphic novel was sent to me by the artist, I wouldn’t have seen it otherwise. It’s about Pete, a young Aboriginal man in Canada, and his younger brother Joey. I hadn’t seen the word “Aboriginal” applied to what we think of as Native Americans, but it does make sense. Pete is caught up in a world of crime and drugs, with no connection to his people or roots. Joey is heading the same way. When Pete goes to jail, he’s redirected to a rehabilitation center run by his people who try to reconnect him with the past that the Canadian government has spent many decades trying to eliminate.

While the art for this book is excellent, the story soon turns from the family drama to detailed information about Pete’s rehab and Aboriginal rediscovery. It seems intended for a particular audience of people like Pete and Joey rather than those of us on the outside of his situation, and I imagine if it reaches that audience will be a great thing for them. As a story, it gets well bogged down in the rehab process at times, but the family drama does eventually come to the fore again, and is well resolved.

Recommended, particularly to anyone interested in the topic.

And Then I Read: THE BLUE SWORD by Robin McKinley

Illustration © Dan Craig

This book came out in 1982, and is an excellent read. An orphan girl named Harry Crewe has come from a very civilized land that suggests Victorian England to live with her aunt and military-man uncle in a border outpost that suggests Pakistan. It’s a fantasy, and there are definitely elements to the story and characters that go well beyond the implied British Empire setting. The land is the desert country of Damar near mysterious mountains that remain unconquered and the home of the Free Hillfolk. Beyond the mountains are The Northerners, an enemy empire that wants to beat back the “British” army and citizens now occupying Damar.

When the king of the Free Hillfolk, Corlath, comes to parley with Harry’s Uncle Charles, commander of the small garrison where they live, he finds no common ground, but Harry catches his eye, and vice versa. That night, Corlath and his men kidnap Harry and carry her off to their mountain village, where she begins a new life. At first, Harry is frightened and angry, but she soon comes to realize this new life is exactly what she has been longing for. In time she becomes a warrior woman of great prowess herself, and even finds she has magic within her that she never suspected. That magic is revered by the Hillfolk, and also in Corlath — he recognized it in Harry from the start.

The Northerners are gathering for an invasion of Damar, one that will take them through the mountains of the Hillfolk. While few in numbers, Corlath and his people are determined to oppose them, even if it means their own destruction. Harry has plans of her own to help in that battle, and perhaps even recruit her uncle’s forces as well.

This book is not only well written, it feels fresh because of the unique language, characters and mythology developed for it by the author. It’s not a Tolkien clone, if anything it’s more reminiscent of George R.R. Martin’s “Game of Thrones,” which was written 14 years later.

Highly recommended.

And Then I Read: ABE SAPIEN Vol. 6

Image © Mike Mignola, art by Max and Sebastián Fiumara

The odd fish-man Abe Sapien has drifted far from his B.P.R.D. roots, living among a mysterious group in a small Texas town which is mostly untouched by the massive and Hellish destruction of the “Hell on Earth” storyline now stretching over several years in the other B.P.R.D. books. The story is told in an interesting way, with each of five chapters focusing on one of the core group of people in this enclave, each one with a hidden agenda, a troubled past, and unusual abilities. Abe is one of the five. Despite that, I didn’t find the overall collection all that satisfying, as the story of Abe does not seem to be going anywhere. The art by the Fiumara brothers is also pretty far from the Mignola template, and at times distorts the characters in ways that I found unappealing. Not sure if I’m going to stick with this series.

Mildly recommended.