Morrison on R.I.P. and Beyond

IGN posted a pretty extensive interview with Grant Morrison the other day, and it's full of great nuggets like:

Morrison: The scripts are very detailed, as are the descriptions. But things go wrong. Like in the first issue of Batman RIP, the Joker wasn't supposed to have any blood on him at the end, because he's in an asylum cell having just had a fantasy that he projected on a Rorschach blot card. And the colorist didn't quite get it, so there's blood all over the place, [laughs] and a lot of people didn't understand that scene. Which is quite a simple scene, but a scene that people went online trying to explain in some of the most outlandish ways. But it was a coloring error. There shouldn't have been blood. It should have just been the Joker having a fantasy. The doctor shows the card to Joker, the Joker's sitting in his cell and he suddenly realizes that something interesting is up.

That coloring error completely changes the meaning of the scene, obviously. I interpreted it to mean that Joker killed the doctor (because what else could have possibly caused the blood), but apparently not. This color mistake points out the problems with authorial intent. When the writer is not the artist, the meaning of a work changes, and which is the "correct" meaning: the intended one never printed or the interpretation of the printed story?

Here's what Morrison goes on to say about the Black Glove:

There's a kind of pyramid of influence. At the bottom you have the Club of Villains who are working with the Black Glove. Then you have the Black Glove organization, which is a group of very wealthy people who we meet in the upcoming issue. And then above that you have the identity of the Black Glove, who is a person.

That explains the confusion about whether or not the Black Glove is an organization. Pretty much matches what I suspected.

When asked where fans should go back to his previous issues and look for clues, Morrison says,

Oh God – you've got to look at a few of them. I think you should definitely look at the three-parter where Batman is in the chamber, the torture story. That one's got some major stuff in it. The Club of Heroes has a lot of stuff in it. Pretty much everything. [laughs] I want everyone to go back and buy all of them. It all ties in. The difficult thing has been to try and lay red herrings, because to me the answer is so obvious that hiding it has been the real challenge.

If the answer--and by answer, I assume he means the identity of the Black Glove--is obvious, maybe it is Alfred or Bruce Wayne himself. Or maybe not.

An interesting interview, no? He goes on to talk a bit about Final Crisis and his plans to stick with Batman for yet another long story after "Batman R.I.P." You can read the whole interview starting here.

Fantastic Four #557 Hits THE SPLASH PAGE

I didn't feel like posting another image of Fantastic Four #557 here, since I just posted it along with a link to my CBR review. So here's FF #57 for your eye-pleasing delight. Giant Dr. Doom heads, surfing aliens, Wyatt Wingfoot?!? Now that's the Fantastic Four. So the question is: how good is this new Mark Millar/Bryan Hitch version? Why does Chad Nevett hate it so much? Why do I defend it? Does the final issue of the "Nu-World" story arc make any kind of sense? Are giant robots enough to make something friggin' awesome?

All of these questions and more, answered in the newest installment of THE SPLASH PAGE.

Sometimes people don't like clicking on the words, "The Splash Page." Maybe it's the ALL-CAPS scaring them away. If you're one of those people, you can read what Chad and I have to say about FF #557 by clicking here.

Incredible Hercules #117 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Incredible Hercules #117, about which I write the following sentences: "This is an excellent Marvel comic, full of wit and action, mythology and personality. I don't know what the sales figures on this comic look like, but I know that not enough people are reading it. But, really, it's more than worth your time."

Read the entire review HERE.

Scalped #17 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Scalped #17, about which I write the following sentences: "It's that precision, those moments which seem both specific and universal, that help make this series so impressive. If it were a typical crime comic, it would start and stop with its central conceit: an undercover FBI agent working inside a corrupt reservation. But that's merely the skeleton of a fully fleshed out world in this series -- a world in which the 'evil' Red Crow sincerely mourns the loss of Bad Horse's mother, while the 'good' Agent Nitz literally pisses on her grave. A world in which one son is silently zipped up in a body bag while another silently weeps on his mother's front steps. These aren't high-concept characters on a collision course with destiny. They are children, men, and women trying to claw their way through a violent and uncertain future."

Read the entire review HERE.

Project: Kalki #1 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Project: Kalki #1, about which I write the following sentence: "This comic is filled with religious overtones about salvation, but it isn't burdened by them. It's a pulpy story of mysterious characters, secret science, and the end of the world."

Read the entire review HERE.

Casey Blue: Beyond Tomorrow #1 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Casey Blue: Beyond Tomorrow #1, about which I write the following sentence: "Even though 'Casey Blue: Beyond Tomorrow' #1 doesn't break any new stylistic ground, it uses the traditional Act I structure wisely, establishing the characters and setting before throwing in the shocking twist at the end."

Read the entire review HERE.

Geeks With Issues #19: NYCC and Me

These guys do a cable access show in my hometown and even though I'd never met them before, they tracked me down at the New York Comic-Con for an interview. My bit comes in around the 20:30 mark, and you can see me talk about the Morrison and Legion books.

I don't know if you can hear me above all the crowd noise, but you can see me gesture a lot.

Also, this video is squished in the improper aspect ratio--I'm not even close to that skinny.

Fantastic Four #557 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Fantastic Four #557, about which I write the following sentence: "Set aside the creepy sex and creepier politics, and you're left with a book that's actually pretty good."

Read the entire review HERE.

"Batman R.I.P." Begins: Batman #676 Annotations

Because I didn't get into many specifics in my review of Batman #676, here are my annotations for the issue. And by "annotations," I mean "stuff I thought about as I read each page."

Cover: People are griping about this Alex Ross painting because it looks like Batman's body is made out of cloth. "Where's his body?" they whine. It's called symbolism, folks. Batman, shrouded in inky darkness, looking ghostly. The arc is called "Batman R.I.P," and if you can't connect the dots between that title and the cover image, then maybe comics aren't for you. They can get confusing with their fancy pictures.

Page 1: My guess is that this image shows the Dick Grayson/Damian team as Batman and Robin. The red skies and the lightning allude to Final Crisis, and this might very well be a page straight out of that series, something that we'll see in a few months real time. Morrison threw some important Batman stuff in DC Universe #0, so there's definitely a link between his work on the crossover and his work in this series.

Pages 2-3: I like how gothic this flashback looks, and how it isn't really a flashback but a jump back to present continuity. Present continuity that looks like 120 years ago. The hunchback, Le Bossu, smashes a Victor Hugo vibe into a Sherlock Holmes vibe (with the panel of the dead man). What's with the "12712" tag on the carriage? And are all the umbrella-holders significant? I have no idea. But the "we are operators at the highest level" line sounds like something Daniel Plainview might say during one of his rants. "I drink your Bat-shake. I drink it up."

Pages 4-5: The Club of Villains, from left to right: Charlie Caligula (nemesis of the Legionary), King Kraken (nemesis of Wingman), El Sombrero (nemesis of the the Gaucho), Pierrot Lunaire (nemesis of the Musketeer), Dr. Hurt (who appeared in Batman #156 and #673 as part of the sensory-deprivation experiment, now revealed to have ulterior motives), Scorpiana (nemesis of el Gaucho--he gets two nemeses!), and Springheeled Jack (nemesis of the Knight). Although this group may be collectively known as "The Black Glove," which is what this issue seems to imply, I still suspect that the Black Glove is someone behind the scenes, either Alfred, Thomas Wayne Jr., or a schizophrenic Bruce Wayne. By the way, in my original commentary on the "Club of Heroes" arc I applauded Morrison's imaginative use of quick backstory by mentioning all of these evil counterparts of the Batman of Many Nations. I said that these characters would probably never actually appear, but it was just Morrison's way of implying a deep mythology. How wrong I was! Those names were clues. Who would have known? Not me. I said, "I doubt they are clues." Silly. Everything has meaning. I should have known better.

Pages 6-7: The parallels to Batman's origins are clear in this sequence as a young boy and his parents are held hostage by a criminal. But this is no Joe Chill--this is a post-Batman maniac who calls himself the Green Vulture since costumed madmen are all the rage these days. The Green Vulture is s supervillain fanboy who wants to be locked up in Arkham. His presence in this issue contrasts nicely with the portrayal of the "Clown at Midnight" Joker at the end. There's something called "Ganser's Syndrome," by the way, which is what you call it when someone pretends to be crazy. The Green Vulture acts crazy, but he's trying too hard. It looks like a case of Ganser's Syndrome. The Joker, on the other hand: he's crazy.

Pages 8-9: Batmobile! We saw the early hints of this version way back in the "Batman and Son" arc. Here it is in all of its sexy glory. I don't know anything about cars, but I'm sure this Batmobile is inspired by some real vehicle. Except, you know, this one has Bat-hubcaps and can jump down a flight of stairs. The graffiti next to the stairs says "Todd's" (Jason Todd's?) and something else I can't quite make out (X8e?).

Pages 10-11: I think Geoff Klock pointed out the "CD changer" line on his blog, and he's right. The Batmobile shouldn't sport out-of-date technology. Batman should be years ahead of the stuff we've got. (Although, his Bat-computer is a beast of a machine, so maybe he likes old-school tech after all.) Homeless people love Batman, apparently. In Morrison's Gotham City, Batman is down with the people on the street. He knows pimps and hookers by name, as we've seen in previous issues, and here he hands out money to Woodrow, Tracy Morgan's SNL homeless guy. I like Robin's line to the Green Vulture: "You're on bad drugs in a Halloween suit with about a dozen cameras recording your complete loss of self-respect." Batman and Robin don't need to smack this guy around, because the DC Universe has YouTube to do the job for them.

Pages 12-13: Morrison's never been afraid to mix pop music, pop culture, and superheroics, and Alfred's line about "an 'American Idol' era of equal opportunity supercrime" is classic Morrison. Morrison from the Zenith days. But it's a good line, and since Morrison foreshadowed the reality TV craze a decade before it became a reality (in Doom Patrol with the Sunburst character), I think it's only fair that he gets to use the line even if the concept's a bit stale. It's also Alfred saying it, and not only might he be evil (if he's the Black Glove), but he's a old fogey like your grandpa. The kiss with Jezebel Jet would have been 78% cooler if Bruce had the cowl on, circa 1971 Neal Adams--the no shirt, just pants and cowl look--but it's still a very Neal Adamsish panel anyway. It's more Batman/Talia than Batman/Silver St. Cloud. Hey, maybe that's a clue! Maybe Jezebel Jet is the Black Glove! Nah, probably not. But you never know.

Pages 14-15: This is a ton of exposition, a good way not to scare off readers who jumped on board for the "Batman R.I.P." event. It gets everyone basically up to speed on the whole Nanda Parbat situation and the Damian problem. It also shows that Tim is still rational in an increasingly irrational world. Plus, Alfred's really into Batman. He understands the pressure Batman is under, trying to be the perfect everything. None of this points to Alfred being the Black Glove, and if anything it seems to show that Batman's fractured sense of self might be causing all the problems. But, whatever. It's a lot of talk for the new readers (and the readers who have trouble figuring out where Batman's body is on the cover).

Pages 16-17: Page 16 reads like a scene out of a Batman movie: "What happens when you've finally won? When they're avenged at last? How will you know?" That question , and the complete LACK of a response by Bruce Wayne, is the essence of this character. He cannot answer it, because he knows he can never win. He can never get his parents back. And on page 17, we're reminded that Batman is, in fact, a detective. He's connecting the dots, slowly. The fourth panel seems like a bit much as Bruce Wayne does a spit take when Jezebel reads the Black Glove invitation. A spit take? Hold it together, Bruce! Maybe now that Jezebel knows his true identity, he doesn't have to act tough anymore. But you've gotta play it cool around the ladies, Batman. Come on.

Pages 18-22: In the foreground of the Arkham establishing shot, we see tulips infested with centipedes. Morrison uses insects to signify the "other," the strangeness from outside, and here they provide a bit of uneasiness as we descend into the blood-drenched hallways. The "Clown at Midnight" Joker, seen only in Batman #663 and DC Universe #0, is now getting the spotlight. "The comedy's in the timing" says Joker, as we get black and white and red images of the murdered Tim Drake, Commissioner Gordon, and Dick Grayson. Although it's apparently all a hallucination as the blood on the floor connects to the rorschach inkbot. The entire sequence is fragmentary and it's difficult to discern reality from insanity. Apparently, Le Bossu arrives to offer Joker an invitation from the Black Glove, but we don't see that take place. Is it another hallucination? The Joker is covered in blood when the lights come back on, and we can only assume that the doctor administering the rorschach test is dead. But it's all implied. Fiendishly implied and the image of the Clown at Midnight licking his lips at the end, saying "another pretty flower" is far more disturbing than anything we saw in Batman #663. It's also the first time green is introduced into the color scheme of this sequence, which was all about red and black (even in the DC Universe #0 scene). Red and black. Red Hood and Black Glove. What's the connection?

Morrison Batman comics are good.

Superman #676 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Superman #676, about which I write the following sentences: "It has that inconsequential feeling, and the story fails to offer much in the way of a new perspective on Superman. If anything, it not only reads like an old fill-in, it reads like old writing, full of clichés and characters who declare everything out loud."

Read the entire review HERE.

Batman #676 Review

Recently reviewed by me at CBR: Batman #676, about which I write the following sentences: "Much of 'Batman' #676 is spent laying groundwork, and guiding the reader through what has already been implied in previous issues, but it is a good comic nonetheless, and it sets things up for what will be one of the most memorable Batman stories in history: 'Batman R.I.P.'"

Read the entire review HERE.

Grant Morrison: The Early Years Not Available Much Longer

I don't know if I'm supposed to officially announce this or not, but my first book, Grant Morrison: The Early Years, will soon be available through Diamond and ONLY through Diamond. After it goes through the whole Previews catalog this summer and ordering that month and into comic shops in November and all of that, it might be available again via other venues, but that won't be until late 2008, or early 2009. I'll have more details about ordering via Diamond once that gets ironed out, but if you've been waiting to buy my book, you only have a short time to order it through Amazon (just click on the picture of the book on the right of this blog), otherwise you'll have to wait and ask your local comic shop to get it from Diamond.

Note: In other words, this is the last chance to get the first printing of the book. The Diamond version will be slightly different, with a revised cover design, a few minor rewordings, and a new appendix in which I discuss Morrison's first "Future Shocks" story. So it's up to you: get the original version now, or wait until late 2008 to get the slightly revised edition. Just so you know what's what.

Also, the Teenagers from the Future book is still in the pipeline, and we haven't finished the completely final version yet, so if you got one of the advance copies at NYCC you're lucky, because the rest of the world may not see it for a few months. That book may or may not end up with Diamond as well. I'll keep you posted.