Greetings, folks. Hope you had a good weekend.
The Best of The Spirit
Writer/Artist: Will Eisner
$14.99
Although Eisner’s pioneering graphic novels like A Contract with God and Invisible People are justifiably celebrated, they tend to suffer from being overwrought, maudlin, and predictably fatalistic. To me, The Spirit (once Ebony, the Spirit’s racial-stereotype sidekick, becomes a more well-developed character) is where Eisner’s true genius is at its most apparent and enjoyable.
A compilation of 22 punchy stories taken from DC’s carisimo $erie$ of Spirit Archives hardcovers, Best of is exactly what it claims to be. Virtuostically drawn, these thrilling noir sagas are striking in their artistry, intelligence, and tireless innovation, and contain some of the blueprints for modern graphic storytelling. In short, Eisner’s a major figure in comics, and this book helps explain why. Here’s to hoping DC releases a couple more volumes.
A+
Wolverine: Origins #1
Writer: Daniel Way
Artist: Steve Dillon
$2.99
For being the most popular superhero of the past 20 years or so, it’s kind of surprising Marvel hasn’t done much of anything with Wolverine as a solo character that’s been all that great. Case in point, Wolverine: Origins is essentially identical to what the company’s been peddling since the 1980s: Wolverine has a shady, violent past, he’s mad at somebody, and he wants answers…except this time he has a magic sword!
I’ve never read anything by Way, but he seems to have a bad habit of making jumps in logic and leaving out important details just to help move his plot along. This leads to more than a few “wait, what…?” moments — more than in your average superhero comic. But Dillon, a consummate storyteller as always, makes it tolerable.
All in all, this isn’t anything terrible, just more of the same. At the end of the day, why would/should anyone care?
C
Blue Spring
By Taiyo Matsumoto
$9.99
Almost 15 years old, these seven striking, prescient short stories of disillusionment, nihilism, and frustration among Japanese teens are a far cry from the weird science fiction of Matsumoto’s No. 5 and Black and White. One of the most aesthetically striking manga artists to be translated into English, Matsumoto relies on a loose, surreal approach that makes his work more similar to Moebius and Burroughs than, say, Tezuka or Toriyama.
As with all short story anthologies, Blue Spring has its ups and downs — the main issue being Matsumoto can sometimes meander and get too obscure. “Revolver” and “If You’re Happy and You Know It, Clap Your Hands,” the longest pieces here, are fitfully involving, but never really go anywhere and can be tough to follow. “Suzuki -san,” The Family Restaurant Is Our Paradise!,” “This Is Bad” — are tighter, stranger, and have a harsh, satirical edge. “Mahjong Summer” appears to be somthing of an experiment in cinematic montage. A bleak and fascinating read.
B+
Argh…I already regret not ordering that Best of the Spirit. I’ve got 2 of the archives, but even at ridiculous discounts, they’re too expensive to buy ‘em all. (Although, I do have one signed by Eisner!). I’ll have to pick this up.
Man, you nailed it on Wolverine: Origins. I want to like this stuff so much, but if you’re going to explore Wolverine’s past, explore it! In other words, let us know what the hell is going on! Why is he at the White House? What did the Secretary of State exactly do? How did Wolvie get in the White House? I think Way is building towards something, but the stories (including the Wolverine arc that lead to Origins) are paced so poorly and so oblique that they’re just hard to follow.