This is the perfect X-book for people who are bored of X-Men.  It’s plucked straight from my favorite era of X-Men comics, back when Morrison was blazing a trail with his fresh science-fiction-heavy run on New X-Men and editorial were trying hard to push books in innovative directions. Things were glorious for a brief, bright time – then that milk suddenly soured.  Originality waved a white flag and it was back to basics.

X-Statix (for those of you who don’t know) was less about mutants as outcasts and more about mutants as celebrities and media-darlings.  That may sound sort of unspeakable, but consider this; they are a team of people who aren’t fighting crime for good, or for evil, they’re fighting for fame.  They’re a bunch of self-centered narcissistic, backstabbing assholes who will do anything to get their faces on television, or their names in the gossip columns.  It’s like a glorious car crash you can’t look away from, being filmed by a small, amorphous green blob with eyes.  How can you resist?

I hear Jonathan Ross has an upcoming book exploring the idea of reality show contestants as superheroes, but that’s already happened.

First in this collection, and comprising the bulk of Happy Town Tales, is “No Girls Allowed.” As I said, this book made a strong impression on me early on. Part of the reason for this is Madson’s gorgeous art. He has a simplified style that doesn’t abandon complex perspective or intricate backgrounds. He seems keenly aware of what in a given scene needs to be to focused upon in detail versus what needs to be simplified down to a gestural line. His figures are subtly elastic, allowing them to better emote through gentle exaggerations. The author’s use of black-spotting is particularly strong as well, though if I have one criticism, it’s that his overall framing is sometimes confusing. It’s not such a problem as to hinder readability, but it is at times distracting.

The other reason that I was so responsive to this book is the quality of writing. “No Girls Allowed;” about revisiting childhood memories in the wake of a suicide; is exceedingly well paced. Madson wisely leaves plenty of space between moments without making the story feel slow. The protagonist is interesting in that he’s not particularly sympathetic. He comes across as a descent-but-self-involved person who can only view a person’s tragedy through his own mirror. I find this sort of complex character so much more interesting than the usual bland everyman or author-surrogate.

“Beach Walk” is a short, thoughtful piece about a relationship. It creates a snapshot of a  couple at their most playful and is a perfect respite from the melancholy of “No Girls Allowed” and the grief to come in “World’s Greatest Dad.” The art for this story was similarly strong, with noticeably improved framing and an even more languid, attenuated line-work. It’s a simple back-and-forth, conversation-style story. The author does a good job of defining each character by the actions of the other, and in a larger sense defining the rhythm and flow of their relationship as well.

“World’s Greatest Dad” is the darkest and most surreal story in this collection. It begins like the prologue to an epic; as though the protagonist is the last man standing after an apocalypse. But as the story jumps backwards in time to unfold, we find that the apocalypse in question is one located within a single person’s mind. Instead we have the character study of a broken man; a father who still searches for his kidnapped daughter long after he has given up hope of finding her. It’s a heartbreaking portrait, and the way Madson pretends to build to a massive crescendo only to retreat to the smallest, most personal space imaginable magnifies the isolation of the father.

“World’s Greatest Dad” is not without flaw, however, and it relates to the title itself. The story gets its title from an incident in the father’s past, and it’s one that, without giving anything away, skirts the line between poignant and corny. It provides much of the character’s motivation, and as such comes off as a little too on the nose. But this is easy enough to overlook, as Madson is skilled enough to keep the story from running off the emotional rails that he’s laid down for it.

So there it is. Only a month into the new year and already I have something I’ll be recommending to anyone who’ll listen, until I’m blue in the face. Check out more from Justin Madson at www.justmadbooks.com

——————————————————————
Look for more from Morgan Pielli online at IndestructibleUniverse.com and follow him on Twitter at @UltraMorgnus

Anywho, I promised you guys a look at the new line of Marvel Universe figures, and I shall deliver, because I’m that type of guy, and there’s not much I can talk about at the present. Today we’ll be looking at the new set of 2 packs, as well as a more indept look at the 18th wave which I talked about last post.

The newest 2-packs in the Greatest Battle line consist of Adam Warlock vs. Thanos, a staple of cosmic Marvel, and Mr. Sinister Vs. Gambit, which is a solid set of 90s Marvel mutant memorabilia. Loran took a look at the Thanos figure a few months back,  and this one is repainted slightly different from the one we saw on the blog. The Adam Warlock figure is mostly new, and comes armed with the Infinity Gauntlet, as well a staff. The Sinister/Gambit 2 pack offers a Mr. Sinister painted black, while the Gambit figure is a repainted and slightly altered figure from the X-men Origins: Wolverine line a few years back. If you need some advice as to which one to buy, I prefer me some cosmic Marvel, as this 2 pack goes well with the Guardians of Galaxy box set. Speaking of which, there’s a slightly new Future Foundations 3 pack out, which is basically a repaint of the Fantastic Four box that dropped awhile back, and ties into the Future Foundation Spider-Man figure that will drop this spring. That’s some impressive synergy!

Alright, so let’s give a look at the 17th Wave of MU figures. Starting off with  Avengers-related releases, we have Young Avenger Patriot, which I think is the first YA to get a MU figure. This is kind of rad, except for the fact that the costume he’s rocking was worn for like the first 3 issues, and the mask was discarded shortly after. I guess Hasbro didn’t want to risk making another fugly face sculpt. Still kind of  whack if you ask me. Wave 17 no longer comes packaged with stands, so you’re only get an old-timey Captain America shield with him. Double whack. On the right we have Thor, rocking his Ages of Thunder look. I think the body is a new sculpt, and the hammer and head are just repainted from an earlier Thor figure.

Moving onto the X-men side of things (well technically still Avengers as Storm is an Avenger too…)  , we have X-women Psylocke and Storm. I’m fairly certain this is the first time we’ve gotten a Psylocke figure, and she comes packed with a purple psychic katana & psi-blade. I couldn’t tell you how it’s psychic katana, but I assume it has something to do with being purple. I like the figure, but I’m hoping this gets re-released later in black, so she can be  Uncanyy X-Force accurate. Moving onto Ms. Munroe (Is she still Mrs. Black Panther? I want to say yes. Someone correct me in the comments section) , this is the 3rd Storm figure we got, and it’s the closest we’ll get to her rocking her modern costume. I’m fairly certain it’s a mostly retooled Classic X-men Storm (apart of that awesome Uncanny X-Men box set) and comes with lightening bolts for both arms. I think that’s kind of cool, which is while I bought her and she’s chilling with the rest of my X-Men.

Rounding out the Wave 17 figures, are 2 blatant repaints, Iron Fist and Daredevil. The white and gold Fist is to reflect something nonsense that happened in New Avengers, and black and red Daredevil is to indicate his fall from grace via demonic possession during Shadowlands.  New paintjobs aside, they’re literally figures you’ve seen before, and they both rock the same accessories they’ve always rad (snap on chi and nunchuks respectively). Buy only if you need these figures, and missed them every time they’ve dropped so far.

Each of the figures retail for about $12, and we also got in some older releases as well if you want to check em out. That’s all I got this week, take care of yourself Forbidden Planet Faithful!

With that in mind, we will be looking today at two graphic novels from artist Colleen Frakes; Woman King and The Trials of Sir Christopher.  In the interest of full disclosure, Colleen Frakes was a classmate of mine at The Center for Cartoon Studies.

Additionally, I was part of the critique group in which Frakes workshopped Woman King, and I was a member of the studio where The Trials of Sir Christopher was drawn. I will endeavor to remain as objective as possible. However, I have had the unique privilege of seeing both of these books as various stages of completion, and will likely draw upon that for my review.

Woman King is a lush and powerful book. Like much of Frakes’ work, Woman King has a timeless fairy-tale quality to it. It is the story of a girl who is adopted by a tribe of bears and groomed to lead them in their war with men. Like the best fairy tales, there is as much blood as there is sweetness, and Frakes’ spare drawing style heightens the grim circumstances in some unexpected ways.

The pacing of Woman King is languid without feeling ponderous. It does stumble slightly two-thirds of the way in as events come to a head; the helter-skelter chaos that the author is trying to convey becomes confusing in a way that works against readability; but that stumble is minor and brief. The book ends with the culmination of its lite-motif while at the same time finding time to lightly comment on the cruel cyclical nature of conflict.

The Trials of Sir Christopher is the result of a bold personal challenge: to draw a full graphic novel for National Novel Writing Month in November. To that end this 200+ page book is a resounding success, however on its own merits it struggles to overcomes the initial novelty of its conception.

Unfolding like a shaggy-dog story, we follow the titular hero of The Trials of Sir Christopher on his many adventures as he struggles to fulfill a destiny promised by a laconic Lady of the Lake.

Frakes’ normally spare style is pared down even further to the point where some pages come dangerously close to looking like thumbnails rather than finished art. This is the difficult balancing act that comes with cranking out one or more finished pages a day.

The final result is a fun and lively book, but one which lacks the power and storytelling craft of Frakes’ traditional work. It is still well worth reading, but if you’re unfamiliar with Frakes’ work, Woman King is a better place to start.

——————————————————————
Look for more from Morgan Pielli online at IndestructibleUniverse.com and follow him on Twitter at @UltraMorgnus

Fuff #8 by Jeffrey Lewis

Two months ago I had the great fortune of being asked to participate in a live comics reading at the KGBar in Manhattan. The lineup included many artists I admire, and they all did a killer job. One man, however, knocked it clean out of the park. That man was Jeffrey Lewis. Rather than merely read his comics off of a projector screen, Lewis arrived with a specially drawn cue-card-sized comic in one hand and his guitar in the other. He read, he sang, he engaged in a conversation with a pre-taped Jeffrey Lewis. Part indy artist and part rock star, Jeffrey Lewis is an odd mixture of influences and approaches.

Fuff #8 is the most recent in his long-running collection of beautifully drawn and eclectic short comics. The bulk of this collection is a series entitled “Stories My Dad Tells” that recount how Lewis’ father built a cabin in the woods of Maine. The tales are told Rashomon-style from the perspective of Lewis’ father, mother, a family friend, and even Madonna (whose life did intersect, however briefly, with that of Lewis’ parents). Each story presents the reader with a different type of unreliable narrator, and the omissions and inconsistencies therein serve to illustrate the relationships between the various storytellers.

As much as I enjoyed the “Stories My Dad Tells” tales, my favorite part of Fuff #8 was the “Meteorite Mite.” Couched in the guise of a coming-of-age superhero spoof, “Meteorite Mite” seems almost autobiographical of the author’s adolescence. If it’s not a thinly-veiled true account of childhood humiliation, this speaks even more to the talents of Lewis for creating lived-in and believable characters.

Either way, the story has great emotional weight to it. Apart from the superhero elements, “Meteorite Mite” paints a very realistic portrait of how boys begin to think about sex as they enter puberty; lacking the mental maturity and benefit of life experience needed to understand it.

Spider Monkey #1 by Jesse McManus with Austin English

This is a tough comic to describe. Both visually and story-wise, Spider Monkey #1 is a twisting, constantly shifting ribbon of a tale. Ostensibly the story of a boy who can talk to animals, the book moves further and further away from conventional narrative. The art, provided by Jesse McManus, has a disturbing quality to it that reminded me of a looser, more Tex Avery-inspired version of Jim Woodring. Cartoon physics blend with real-world consequences (except when they, um, don’t) to create an environment of constant unease. Austin English’s story bounds across the world that they have created as though he were laying railroad tracks in front of their own moving train. The end result is a story that reads like a nightmare or a nervous breakdown.

And yet, despite the extreme and elastic surreality of both writing and art, there is remarkable clarity to the book. The geography of the story is always clear; I never found myself unable to read a panel or understand where the characters are in a given space. Spider Monkey #1 is a high wire act. It is impressive to read, albeit a little overwhelming. This is only the start of a larger story and I will be interested to see if this careful balance can sustain itself without collapsing in on itself or becoming exhausting to the reader. Well worth checking out.

As always, everything I review can be found at Forbidden Planet NYC and on our website (www.FPNYC.com). In addition, you can find more from Jeffery Lewis at thejeffreylewissite.com, Jesse McManus at heyfu.com, and Austin English at http://windycornermag-austin.blogspot.com.

Happy stapling!

——————————————————————
Look for more from Morgan Pielli online at IndestructibleUniverse.com and follow him on Twitter at @UltraMorgnus

La Petite Mort by Russell Ihrig

La Petite Mort is about zombies and sex; two great tastes that don’t normally go together at all even a little. The premise has an interesting hook; the dead are coming back to life, but rather than killing and/or feasting on brains, they just hang around and masturbate. Unfortunately, I found the execution to be a bit too jokey for my taste. High concept stories tend to work best when played straight. The premise of this book is funny enough that it doesn’t really need any winks to the reader or puns to enliven it. That only serves to shrink the world that is being built down to the size of a running gag. Russell Ihrig avoids this for the most part, but things like the Federal Undead Control Department or FUCD, make the trombone in the back of my mind go “wa-waaaaaaa.”

Additionally, as interesting as the premise is, the book only gives it ten pages to breathe. That’s not much space to set up the bizarre scenario, establish the central mystery, and still work in some twists and gross-out moments. The result is a cool idea that rushes to the punch-line. I would love to see this story expanded upon and explored in more detail; there is a lot of room for world building here.

The art of La Petite Mort is solid and I applaud Ihrig’s fearlessness in drawing complex backgrounds and perspective. I would be interested to see what he can do with a longer story.

Oak & Linden #1 by Pat Barrett

As I’ve done in the past, le me again state up front that Pat Barrett is someone who I know from the Center for Cartoon Studies, and this fact should probably be taken into account when reading my review.

Oak & Linden #1 is a collection of four short comics with a wide range of themes. They tend to be on the surreal side and mix humor with melancholy. The art is also a melding; of realism and detail with cartoonish-ly rubbery limbs. This gives Barrett’s work a unique style, but it sometimes works against the clarity of storytelling. His devotion to detail can result in panels where everything has been given equal line weight; making it a difficult composition to navigate. The rubbery limbs, on the other hand, work well in moments of action and whimsy, but I found them distracting in moments of melancholy. That said, the writing in this book is uniformly strong, so any issues that I had with the art are more than made up for.

The strongest piece in Oak & Linden #1 is “Petrified Girlfriend.” It starts in a place of absurdism; with the protagonists’ girlfriend freezing on his bed; and drifts effortlessly into a charming boy-meets-girl reminiscence of how they first met (as he nestles beside her, trying to thaw her out). The art is fun and lively, and the writing is some of the book’s most personal.

Overall, Oak & Linden is a perfect introduction to Barrett’s work. He has two new issues of the series out, and from what I gather several of these stories (including “Petrified Girlfriend”) are continued therein.

——————————————————————
Look for more from Morgan Pielli online at IndestructibleUniverse.com and follow him on Twitter at @UltraMorgnus

Infandum #2 by Molly Lawless

We have Molly Lawless’ second installment of Infandum in stock. I haven’t read the first in the series, but if it’s on par with this book, then Lawless is a talent to watch. Infandum #2 is a fun and funny look at a variety of topics. The bulk of the book is a tongue-in-cheek retelling of famous baseball goofs (narrated by the embodiment of the flub; mister Bill Buckner). The stories are as interesting as they are amusing (which I appreciated, as normally have very little interest in sports and sports trivia). Rounding out the book are several autobiographical tales as well as an instructional vignette on how to react to being dumped.

Lawless has an expressive and detailed drawing style that compliments her sense of humor nicely. The sideways alignment of some of the baseball stories is a bit awkward on the page (I suspect they were drawn originally for someone else’s anthology), but that’s really the only criticism I have. Her work is well worth checking out.

Heaven All Day by John Martz

I’ve been thinking about widening the scope of Morgan Pielli’s Pile of Minis to include small press comics in addition to self-published minis. There’s some tremendous stuff being produced that, while it does reach a wider audience than self-published work, it is still largely unknown outside of the indie scene. When I saw that we got John Martz’s Heaven All Day in stock, I figured now is the perfect time to take the plunge.

I didn’t go into Heaven All Day cold. I had read most of the story when Martz was posting it on his blog as a web comic. After having read it online, I immediately took out my pens and spent several hours trying to recreate the breezy, effortless line with which he draws. Martz’s characters are amazingly expressive; particularly the robot protagonist who is able to convey a wealth of emotions with his single giant eye. There is a silent-film quality to this book; not just because it is a pantomime story, but also via the way the characters’ inner workings are brought to the surface through body language.

I was also taken with the subtle world-building of this book. It’s an easy thing to overlook in a comic that utilizes a classically-cartoony style. But there are great little touches throughout the book that give you a sense of what this near-future world is like; from the riot gear-clad security guards to the infinity-loop cult that prosthelytizes on the street-corner. Martz has put a tremendous amount of thought into this world, but nothing in the book feels labored or forced.

Heaven All Day is drawn with profound skill and confidence. But more than that, there is a trust in the reader’s intelligence. This is a quiet, thoughtful comic that takes the reader to some very, very interesting places. This is easily one of my favorites among the books I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing.

——————————————————————