Todd Klein's Blog, page 297

And Then I Read: AQUAMAN 11

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

I’m definitely enjoying reading this title since its relaunch. Writer Geoff Johns has wisely ignored much of the previous Aquaman continuity and is giving us stories that feel fresh. This storyline has Black Manta hunting down a previously unseen international super-group that Aquaman was previously a member of. Johns has built back into the history of the group until it feels real, even though we don’t know the players that well. Manta is after a secret treasure, and in this issue is homing in on it. Aquaman is determined he won’t get it. The rest of The Others, as the team is called, is ready to back him up when they track Manta to a mysterious tomb. Meanwhile, back at home, Mera has had her own encounter with Manta, and it didn’t go well for her. The big reveal at the end of this issue is Indiana Jones territory, and I loved it.

The art by penciller Ivan Reis and a trio of inkers is lovely. Reis seems to me to take some cues from George Perez as well as younger artists like Jim Lee. His work is top notch. The colors by Rod Reis add a lot of great atmosphere.

Recommended.

And Then I Read: GREEN LANTERN 11

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

William Hand, the “Black Hand” behind much of the crossover trouble from last year is back to life of a sort, as he escapes from the prison planet of Nok, and returns to Earth. Crazed dead people are not too unusual in the current comics world, but Hand is certainly one of the most convincingly craziest. His first matter of business? Resurrect the dead bodies of his family for a quiet dinner get-together. Meanwhile, Sinestro and Hal Jordan are looking into Hand’s disappearance, and the Guardians of the Universe continue to monitor things, apparently quite happy to see their Green Lantern Corps falling apart. I continue to enjoy Geoff Johns’ writing on this title, particularly the uneasy team of Hal and Sinestro.

The art by Doug Mahnke and a quartet of inkers continues to be excellent. I can’t find a thing to say about it in even a slightly negative way, it’s quite pleasing in every aspect.

Recommended.

And Then I Read: SWAMP THING 11 & 12

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

Issue 11 presents Anton Arcane in all his creepy glory returning from the dead to attack his niece Abby, Swamp Thing’s sometimes partner. Swampy is resting/regenerating after his last battle with The Rot that got Abby back, but there’s not much rest for him, as The Green calls him back to face this new threat.  Both Arcane and Swamp Thing have some new tricks as avatars of The Green and The Rot, respectively, and it’s a good battle that ensues. The end of the issue leads into…

The beginning of a new crossover with ANIMAL MAN, “Rotworld.” I haven’t been reading Animal Man, and don’t plan to, so we’ll see if this storyline holds up for me in just SWAMP THING. Issue 12, which is part 2 works okay for me, aside from the character interactions between Abby and Animal Man’s family. I don’t recall them very well from when I was reading the title during Grant Morrison’s run, but I’m sure I can get up to speed on that. The two “men” are inside Rotworld in what promises to be a chaotic adventure. Swampy is keeping his powers together through a long tether vine back to the bayou, but you can probably guess that doesn’t last too long.

I liked the art by Marco Rudy with some inking help on 12 by Dan Green and Val Staples, though at times the character faces seem to lose focus. But they do the creepy stuff quite well.

So far so good. Recommended.

And Then I Read: SARAH BISHOP by Scott O’Dell

© Estate of Scott O’Dell, illustration not credited.

I discovered the work of Scott O’Dell with his novel “Island of the Blue Dolphins,” of 1960, though I think I read it a year or two later, after it had won the Newbery Medal. I’ve read a number of his other historical novels for children since then. This one from 1980 shares some elements with “Island.” It’s about a young girl who is forced through circumstances to strike out on her own, living alone in the wilderness. Here, the wilderness is in New York State during the time of the American Revolution.

Fifteen-year-old Sarah Bishop’s father is a Tory, and when the war comes to their Long Island neighborhood, his home is burned and he himself is killed. Sarah escapes that persecution for a while, but soon gets into further trouble trying to find her brother, who was fighting on the American side. A British officer suspects Sarah has started a fire in an attempt to free her brother from a prisoner of war camp (she’s innocent), and arrests her. Sarah learns her brother is also dead, and in despair, makes a desperate escape from the British guards, and manages to reach the north shore of Long Island Sound, where she treks north. Fearing the British are searching for her, she sneaks away from a town where she found a few friends and finds refuge in a wild area, making her home in a cave.

Sarah has some skills and some supplies, including a rifle, but a lot happens she’s not prepared for. A bite from a poisonous snake almost kills her, and if not for the help of an Indian family, she would not have been able to survive the harsh winter that’s soon upon her. The appearance of an old enemy on her land is another frightening episode, made worse when he gets his leg caught in one of his own bear traps! Sarah can’t let him die, but doesn’t want to have him stay with her, so it’s a difficult situation.

Later, when things seem to be going better for Sarah, she returns to the town, only to be accused of witchcraft and put on trial. What happens then leads to a surprising ending.

Well written, and I like the way O’Dell handles the terrible things Sarah goes through: very matter of fact, telling all the important details without adding any melodrama. He excels at the descriptions of wilderness wildlife and survival strategies. I also like his ending, which rather than tie everything up neatly, simply points out a direction for some resolution and leaves the reader to figure it out after a bit of reflection.

Recommended.

 

And Then I Read: JUSTICE LEAGUE 11

Images © DC Comics, Inc.

The Justice League is having a lot of trouble with their current villain, a writer named David Graves. A writer as a villain, interesting choice, Geoff Johns! Unable to get their hands on the fellow when they finally confront him, they fall to squabbling, in that tried and true way, with Wonder Woman taking on first Green Lantern, and then Superman. Finally they realize they have to work together to find Graves and his recent victims, including Steve Trevor. Their quest takes them to the Valley of Souls, where each League member is confronted by ghosts from their past, probably the most interesting part of this story, and one that has me looking forward to the next issue.

In the Shazam backup, things are finally getting to the heart of the matter, with Black Adam being revived by Dr. Sivana, while Billy Batson finds himself at the Rock of Eternity. Despite the slow movement of this story, I continue to enjoy the characters and don’t really mind that we have yet to see Billy become a hero, something that happened in a few pages of his first story back in the 1940s.

Here’s a page of great art by Jim Lee and Scott Williams. The art on Shazam by Gary Frank is equally good.

Recommended.

And Then I Read: THE LONE RANGER Definitive Edition Vol. 1

Images © Classic Media Inc.

This handsome oversized boxed hardcover matches DC’s Absolute format, and collects the first twelve issues of the series from Dynamite written by Brett Matthews, art by Sergio Cariello (with a small section by Paul Pope), covers and design by John Cassaday. It looks great in every way, and was a joy to read. I’m not a big western stories fan, but I did enjoy the Lone Ranger TV show in my youth. This storyline definitely refers to that in places, but it’s a darker, more violent approach to the character’s world and motivations, though the character of John Reid, the Lone Ranger himself, comes across as a good man, and even something of a pure soul, driven to sometimes dark feelings of revenge for the deaths of his father and brothers, an ambush murder that almost kills John himself. John is rescued by a lone Indian, Tonto of course, and again this version of Tonto is somewhat darker and more realistic than the TV version, which is certainly a good thing. The passage through near death to rebirth as a heroic figure is handled well by writer Matthews, and I like even more his villains, secondary characters, and the authentic feel of the language and settings, all very well done.

The art by Sergio Cariello is wonderful. It has a Joe Kubert feel in places, so I was not surprised to learn that Cariello was a Kubert School student who loved learning from Joe. The action scenes are vivid and thrilling, the character moments touching and real. The covers by Cassady are also terrific. Great work throughout.

This story stayed with me as I read it, I kept thinking about it during the days it took me to read the entire thing, something which doesn’t happen often. I don’t remember specific episodes of the TV show anymore except for the “origin” story, of which this is a parallel in some ways. I found it reached me in a way that few comics do at my present age, and that made the reading experience all the better.

Highly recommended!

And Then I Read: DAREDEVIL by Mark Waid Vol. 1

Images © Marvel Characters, Inc.

This is the collection that won lots of Harvey Awards and a few Eisner Awards as well this year. While I rarely read Marvel superhero books these days, I was intrigued enough to buy it. It was money well spent.

The Daredevil I remember best is the one from the Miller/Janson years. I know there’s a lot of stories since then, but these seem at least in the same arena, though with a somewhat lighter feel that I enjoyed. Writer Mark Waid really thinks about what it would be like to have the physical characteristics of Matt Murdock, both in the limitations of blindness and the superior abilities in the other senses his powers bring. This brings the stories to life in a way that the usual Big Threat alone can’t do. Whether dealing with the bad publicity of having his identity outed, and what that would mean to Matt Murdock as a working lawyer to what happens to this “radar sense” when confronted with confetti-like anti-radar flak to how Daredevil might deal with an entity made of pure sound waves, Mark is always coming up with fresh ideas and directions for the character. The relationships in the book are equally well handled, from the perennial one with Matt’s law partner Foggy Nelson and his overeating to new ones like another blind person being discriminated against, or a feisty new female assistant district attorney. It all feels fresh.

The art by the Riveras (son Paolo pencils and father Joe inks) and Marcos Martin on other issues seem to have been equally inspired visually by Waid’s ideas, also bringing fresh approaches to the storytelling and visual depictions of Daredevil’s view of reality. Two great examples are in the cover at the top of this article and the page above. None of it is particularly typical superhero art, but I think that’s what I like best about it. It also seems fresh.

Highly recommended! I’ll be looking for more when the next collection comes out.

Monarch Mania!

Images © Todd Klein.

Every fall Monarch Butterflies make an amazing journey from all over North America to their wintering grounds in the mountains of Mexico, and a few places in California. We see hundreds, sometimes thousands, passing through our area on that journey, and occasionally they form roosts at the southern tip of New Jersey in Cape May Point.

Word went out yesterday to nature fans that such a roost had formed at the corner of Lincoln and Cape Avenues in the Point, and butterfly fans as well as casual tourists migrated there to see this amazing sight: hundreds of the large orange, black and white butterflies gathering on a few pine trees along the dune line next to the ocean.

Ellen and I were in the Point on an errand yesterday afternoon, and soon heard of the roost. We drove over to see it, but had not brought binoculars or camera. I tried getting some pics with my phone, but bad lighting and distance defeated me, so I decided to go back this morning. Thankfully, the roost was still there and busy with hundreds of butterflies. I got plenty of pictures, these are my favorites.

While Monarchs are mostly solitary, at this time of year they gather like this in migration, perhaps for communal warmth, or the old “safety in numbers” thing, though there are few birds that will eat them, as they taste very bad. One of the natural side effects of their favorite food, milkweed plants. In fact, their orange color is thought to be a warning sign to predators to stay away.

This roosting behavior will be followed on their wintering grounds, but multiplied by hundreds, with roosts covering entire trees. Most butterflies don’t survive winter, but nature has allowed some Monarchs to succeed with this strategy. As weather warms in the spring, the butterflies will gradually return northward, over several generations, until they’re back in all of North America.

While the still pictures I got are fine, this 1.5 minute video gives you a better idea of how cool the roost site is.

Monarch Mania is on in southern New Jersey. If you have a chance to come down and see this amazing natural event, take it! There’s no telling how long the roost will last. A map link is below.



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Peregrinations

The weather this September has been excellent most of the time, this past week being no exception. We try to take advantage of it by getting outside for walks as often as possible, whether it be around the neighborhood…

…or down at the beach in a place like Sea Isle City, where the waves glisten in the sun and are hardly interrupted by humans except for a few waders and surfers.

This small Ghost Crab was also having a walkabout that day. Usually they duck into holes in the sand before you get a good look, but this one was wandering on the surface.

When I wasn’t able to get out walking, I enjoyed some great birds from our screened porch. There were quite a few migrating songbirds attracted to the small waterfall on our pond, including a Red-Breasted Nuthatch, an Ovenbird, a Veery, and quite a few warblers like this Northern Parula having a bath. There were three of them one day, and I caught them on video with my camera. A two minute clip is below.

On Friday I went for a walk down in Cape May at the Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area. A group from the Cape May Bird Observatory was at the new viewing platform in the first field, and I joined them for a while.

It wasn’t a great day for birds there, mostly residents like this Gray Catbird, not many migrants, but it was still a great morning for a walk, and I enjoyed it.

There’s lots of things for birds to eat at Higbee, including persimmons like these (though they’re much more edible after the first frost)…

…and plenty of berries like these wild grapes. Lots of seeds, too, for the birds that prefer that kind of food.

There were a number of Brown Thrashers, and I was able to get a pretty good picture of this one.

After walking the fields I took a short sand road north toward the dike, a lovely place to walk.

Didn’t see many birds there, but there were lots of migrating Monarch Butterflies everywhere, like this one feeding on Groundsel. This is the time of year when they gather in this area in large numbers, and it’s fun to see them. I predict more walks in the coming week!

And Then I Read: The Best of PS MAGAZINE by Will Eisner

Images © Harry N. Abrams, Inc.

This is another nice book gifted to attendees at the Harvey Awards this year. Abrams is an art book publisher, and under the guidance of Charlie Kochman, their Abrams Comicarts imprint has been putting out lots of interesting books in the past few years. This small hardcover is one of them.

Between the end of THE SPIRIT SECTION, Eisner’s Sunday newspaper insert and the beginning of his very personal graphic novels that started with A CONTRACT WITH GOD, Eisner was largely out of the standard comics business and doing educational comics. His biggest contract was with the U.S. Army producing PS MAGAZINE, a small monthly pamphlet, about digest size, that was distributed throughout the Army and was intended to help soldiers correctly care for and maintain their equipment. It sounds dry, but Eisner made it a lot more fun by doing some of each booklet in comics form, with regular characters like Joe Dope and Sgt. Half-Mast.

When he introduced the blonde bombshell Connie Rodd, I bet he really got the soldiers’ attention. She’s much like some of the femme fatales in THE SPIRIT, though perhaps a bit more wholesome (usually). The instructional story on the art of tightening bolts, which the page above is from, is a good example of how a little sex can make almost anything interesting.

I enjoyed looking through the book, and there’s lots of great art in it, though the first few years have the best of it, but the subject matter doesn’t interest me enough to read much of the content. The comics-style stories are the best, and some are close to THE SPIRIT in feel, but there are lots of other articles that are drier and less interesting.

If you’re a Will Eisner fan, this is something you might want to add to your library. Eddie Campbell has made the choices for this “best of” compilation, and most of them are worth a look, at least for the art. On that basis, it’s recommended.