Monthly Archives: April 2010

David Mazzucchelli is well-known for his collaborations with Frank Miller, having illustrated Daredevil: Born Again and Batman: Year One. And if that were all he’d done he’d still be a comics legend.

Thankfully, it’s not.

Asterios Polyp is a rare work indeed, a book that took Mazzucchelli the better part of a decade to create, and it’s one of the richest, most rewarding reads in the entire medium. It’s the story of a middle-aged university professor who has built an insular, joyless life for himself, and who is given a second chance one night by a freak accident. Asterios leaves his familiar surroundings and begins a journey that is physical, spiritual, and ultimately transformative.

The presentation of this story is striking- the book itself is a gem of modern design. Mazzucchelli’s cartoon style is iconic in the best of ways, and his use of color tints is simply genius (be sure to check out the previews). Best of all though is the fact that the book has an internal logic you simply don’t see much in graphic storytelling- it’s uniquely what it is. Mazzucchelli uses the comics medium to tell a story that only comics could tell (if comics were generally this good, that is).

I’m trying to think of stories this book reminds me of- there’s a generous helping of The Odyssey retold here (in one memorable sequence), and the (brilliant) Takeshi Kitano film Sonatine comes to mind as well.

Okay, I think I’ve gushed enough. Don’t just take my word for it- this book won the 2009 LA Times Book Prize for Graphic Novels, and is nominated for four Eisners this year. Asterios Polyp is a thoroughly transcendent work, and gets my highest possible recommendation.

Once again I’ve asked a friend to write a few words on this seminal Warren Ellis work, this time it’s our own Dan! He says:

“Warren Ellis’ City of Silence was written for Epic Comics in 1995, but Epic folded before publishing it, and it didn’t see the light of day until Image released it in three issues in 2000. Silence is a nice mashup of 80s cyberpunk, occult horror, and Ellis’ now familiar (or should I say ubiquitous?) “this one goes to 11”-brand of perversity. The seeds of Transmetropolitan (1997-2002) are visible in it, though to me it feels denser and more disciplined, and the humor is of a different sort.

Ellis writes “the exponential curve of technological innovation went straight up. The more new ideas and tech appeared, the more the masses got a junkies lust for MORE MORE MORE.” But instead of a Vinge-ian or Kurzweilian Singularity, Ellis conjures a Gibsonian dystopia built on occult foundations. Frost, Litany and Gitane are the Silencers (the original title for the series, apparently), FBI agents who protect the City of Silence from dangerous new technologies and ideas (“and their owners”) with extreme prejudice. Investigating the provenance of a piece of circuit-laden pentragram implant/jewelry found on a corpse leads the Silencers towards what looks more and more like an apocalyptic conspiracy.

This is vintage Ellis – raw creativity on display, a voice unlike anything else at the time, and really something to appreciate. Gary Erskine’s art is perfectly suited to the noir-ish feel, as detail-oriented as a haunted Geof Darrow on a bad acid trip – he makes individual subjects appropriately eerie, menacing or ugly, while crafting a beautiful whole. The characters’ visit to another dimension where time runs faster is very cleverly done. I also got a kick of out the omnipresent graffitti, something I hadn’t seen so well done since Truman’s run on First Comics’ GrimJack. D’Israeli, who drew Lazarus Churchyard, another wonderful early Ellis book, does a fantastic job bringing unearthly colors to the City.

I enjoyed the hell out of this, and hope you do, too.”

Thanks Dan! This is a really exemplary piece of Ellis’ work, displaying his wicked sense of humor, and some great art by Gary Erskine. Check it out!

I’ve asked our friend Derek to write a few words on this masterpiece, here’s what he has to say:

“The time in American culture of great discoveries and confident optimism that began in the late 1950s has been given many appropriate names when romanticized by popular culture: the Atomic Age, the Jet Age, the Space Age. In comics, it was the Silver Age, when a new generation of strange and exciting super-heroes were created, inspired by the exploits of the long-lost original super-heroes of the Golden Age of the 30s and 40s, and in turn inspiring generation after generation of creators to reshape them for the future. While genius creators such as Frank Miller and Alan Moore broke new ground by deconstructing the heroes of the Silver Age by exposing their dark consequence and dystopian future, with The New Frontier Darwyn Cooke (Parker: The Hunter, The Spirit, Selina’s Big Score, storyboards for Batman: The Animated Series and Batman Beyond) casts aside grim and gritty for chrome and pretty, re-presenting the debut of the first DC heroes of the Silver Age with a dazzling period artistic style which fits perfectly with yesterday’s bright future. Cooke’s meticulous attention to historical detail and period culture grounds the larger-than life people and events in an authentic realism. This is mature, character-driven drama and adventure, satisfying to the eye and the mind. With an ensemble cast of the world’s greatest heroes, the story asks the best of characters from across DC’s line of books from that era as evidence is uncovered of a creeping alien invasion of America, reflecting Cold War paranoia of the time. Our heroes must face this threat even as they discover those powers and abilities, some of them alien themselves, that set them apart from their fellow Americans. These powers make them uniquely qualified to defend America, but only if they can be brave enough, bold enough to come together in the name of Justice. As a stand-alone story and a hearty read, DC: The New Frontier will be enjoyed by people who’ve never read super-hero books before just as well as those who grew up on them. Great for fans of The Incredibles.”

I’ve just read this myself and was blown away. Darwyn Cooke really comes into his own as a writer here. What a wonderful story. I love how he integrates real lesser-known DC properties like The Challengers Of The Unknown and The Suicide Squad, and, frankly, this book made me give a rat’s ass about Hal Jordan like no Blackest Night or whatever ever has. I also love the John Jones arc, not knowing a whole lot about the character in the first place. This is an excellent read, a really exemplary bit of comics storytelling. Highly recommended!

There are some great stories in this volume (“The Giant Robot Robbers”, “The Golden Fleecing”, “The Horseradish Story”, “The Status Seeker”, “The Unsafe Safe”, and “Tralla La”). The focus of these collections is on the Carl Barks stories which were adapted into Ducktales cartoons, so these will be familiar if you watched the show at all. Carl Barks didn’t create Donald Duck, but he’s responsible for a lot of his design, and he did create the Ducktales supporting cast, so his influence is really pretty huge. He’s really a master illustrator and storyteller, with a keen eye for detail and a great sense of humor. Great for readers of all ages!