1. The final page of Air #4 changes everything.
I'm a big supporter of G. Willow Wilson, and I think she's a refreshing new voice in comics (and, of course, I'm one of the mods on her discussion board), but I haven't been sold on Air after the first handful of issues. It's mostly M. K. Perker's art which really turns me off, but Wilson's strange characterizations -- her people don't act or react the way people normally would or should -- has baffled me. But the dreamlike aspect of the series has been growing stronger and stronger, and the final page of the newest issue puts everything in a strange and wonderful new context. It's definitely the best page Perker has drawn for the series so far, and now I'm looking forward to the next issue, definitely.
2. Joe Pokaski has come in as the writer of Ultimate Fantastic Four and, in a single issue (and an Ultimatum crossover issue, to boot) he's nailed the team better than anyone since Mark Millar.
Even Tyler Kirkham's artwork looks better (now that he actually has an inker), but Pokaski delivers a strong story in his opening salvo and he's great with pacing and dialogue. Forget the Mike Carey-written Ultimate FF of the past year or so -- this is now a comic worth reading again. Pokaski started with a bang on Secret Invasion: Inhumans, and it's nice to see him continue to produce quality work here. He is, by far, the best Heroes writer working in comics today.
3. I've always liked Amanda Conner's linework, but she's leveled-up in her work on Terra.
I can't believe how great Terra looks. It's a nice little series so far, decently written, but the art is fantastic. I think it's actually the best-looking comic of the last month. Amanda Conner has amped up her style, and it now looks to have echoes of Adam Hughes and Cameron Stewart or something. I know a veteran like Conner probably isn't aping other artists, but whatever she's done to her work has improved it dramatically. Maybe it's just because she's inking herself here, I don't know, but it looks gorgeous. I'd love to see her draw a regular DC title, though her upbeat style probably wouldn't fit the dreadful seriousness of most superhero comics these days. She's really, really good.
4 comments:
Three thoughts right back at you:
1. I'm a little disappointed that tomorrow's Thor: Man of War one-shot won't have Patrick Zircher and Khari Evans on art like the first two Fraction specials. The artists involved are pretty damn good, but I'd have preferred to see all three done by the same people.
2. I am so damn excited about tomorrow's issue of Batman. I can't remember the last time I was THIS excited, and I curse Glamourpuss not shipping last week as originally scheduled (granted, Diamond's "shipping next week" list IS tentative--Charlatan Ball fell off this week's list, so...), which prevented me from calling it for reviewing purposes. Ah well. That doesn't lessen my excitement one bit.
3. I didn't mention this in our column on Young Liars for some reason, but I had noticed before the most recent solicits that the image on the cover is always the shape/size of a CD cover. I love that. And I'm still annoyed at myself for not seeing the larger music relation.
Agreed on Conner's art, I;ve always liked it, but Terra looks fantastic.
Air...haven't gotten into it yet, prolly grab the first trade when it hits.
And as for Chad above me, Batman tomorrow. Hopefully fantastic.
Chad: Zircher's doing the second story, like usual. According to this credits page, anyway.
After doing some quick research, I see my problem is that I confused Thor: Man of War with Thor: God-Sized, which comes out next month (also written by Fraction).
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