Somebody’s First Comic Book: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? #2

Wondering what Somebody’s First Comic Book is all about? The explanation is on this page!

TITLE: The No-Class Classroom (or) Carmen’s Big Brain Drain

CREDITS:
Writer: Barry Liebmann
Art: S.M. Taggart
Letterer: Tim Harkins
Colorist: Rick Taylor
Editor: Laura Hitchcock
Publisher: DC Comics

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE: Carmen Sandiego! I played this game when I was a kid. Watched the game show, too. She steals stuff and hides all over the world. Awesome.

IMPRESSIONS: It seems that Carmen isn’t exactly the main character of this book. The story begins with her complaining about the sub-par performance of a bunch of other villains who have failed to steal important geographical artifacts. Then we see “Acme’s Finest Detective,” Evan Sawyer, preparing to track down an enormous Menorah that was stolen from in front of the parliament building in Israel. Evan sets off to track her down.

This is a weird comic book. Both the writing and the art style are really off-the-wall. Body shapes are wild, sight gags are crazy, and the puns… oh, the puns just don’t stop. The writer also really packs it in on these pages. Eight or nine panels to a page sometimes, and virtually every panel is crammed with word balloons. Granted, this is the first comic I’ve ever read (cough cough), but it seems like an awful lot of text. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing – Barry Liebmann does manage to work in at least a little educational content here – but most of the comic is played for laughs. And not great laughs, either.

There’s really not enough content in here, considering how many words we get per page. Both the video games and the TV show were pretty educational, but this comic only brushes up against  the learning content. Plus, for a book with her name in the title, there’s precious little Carmen Sandiego to be had in this comic. She shows up at the beginning, then we follow the rather bland Evan Sawyer and his gang as they try to crack the case.

The comic is easy enough to get into – you know everything you need to know to read the book – but that doesn’t necessarily make it a good comic. The grade is based mostly on how easy it is to read cold, but it’s definitely not going to make me want to track down any other comics with Carmen Sandiego.

GRADE: B

The Thanos Imperative #3

August 28, 2010

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Art: Miguel Sepulveda
Colorist: Jay David Ramos
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover: Aleksi Briclot
Editor: Bill Rosemann
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The Cancerverse is continuing its war on our universe, and an ever-dwindling army of cosmic heroes is doing its best to toe the line. But there’s hope from the other side – the Cancerverse’s counterparts to robotic heroes like the Vision and Machine Man have resisted the influence of Mar-Vell, and may provide the key to victory… if only Drax can put aside his hatred of Thanos long enough to win the war.

Abnett and Lanning have been telling war stories with these characters for some time now, going back to Annihilation, but they’ve never gotten stale in their telling. The Cancerverse concept itself is wonderfully warped and twisted, making for some dreadful villains for our heroes. We’re seeing Nova really have a chance to step up and demonstrate the depths of his own heroism, and the Guardians of the Galaxy have their own opportunity to shine.

There’s been some speculation about a “Cosmic Avengers” title spinning out of this event, and while that idea may have a little merit, the “line-up” we’re presented with this issue wouldn’t really sustain an ongoing. Quasar, Nova, and even Beta Rey Bill would work well together, but the Silver Surfer doesn’t really come across as a team player, and Ronan and the Gladiator are both kind of bland characters – powerhouses, to be sure, but not necessarily the sort of characters that make for interesting protagonists on an ongoing basis. (Both of them, honestly, are more interesting as antagonists, even if they’re fighting on the right side.) Hopefully if that does turn out to be the case, we’ll see a slightly different team.

Miguel Sepulveda’s artwork has a different kind of flavor to it, a clever mix of high-flying science fiction and superhero adventure, blended with the Cthulhu-style horrors of the Cancerverse. They mix well under his pencils, and give us a good-looking book.

This issue ends on a dandy little cliffhanger that actually calls the title of this event into question. It will be fun to see where the writers take us next.

Rating: 7/10

Robin (1993 Series) #122

January 18, 2004

Quick Rating: Fair
Title: Bad to the Bone

Robin’s encounter with a smuggler leaves him with a tough choice.

Writer: Bill Willingham
Pencils: Rick Mays
Inks: Aaron Sowd
Colors: Guy Major
Letters: Ken Lopez
Editor: Michael Wright
Cover Art: Jason Pearson
Publisher: DC Comics

While I’m still waiting for Bill Willingham to wow me on this title the way he does each and every month in Fables, this issue is a step up from his debut issue. Last issue ended with a cliffanger, Robin with a gun held to his head by a crook smuggling a mysterious object from S.T.A.R. Labs. He handles that situation with the usual aplomb one would expect from someone trained by the Batman, but our crook du jour makes a couple of stupid moves that leaves the hero dumbfounded.

As we learn more about the “mysterious object” in this issue, it is evident that Willingham is using a supernatural menace in his opening story arc. While Batman stories dealing with mysticism almost always seem forced and inappropriate, for some reason, the same menaces are a lot easier to take in a Robin story. Perhaps it’s because the character himself isn’t as grim or serious, so you can accept seeing him fight with a dark magician or magical artifact. Willingham seems on his way to crafting a major new villain, although whether he will be a one-time threat or a new addition to Robin’s rogues gallery remains to be seen.

We also get the return of Spoiler in this issue – an in-costume return, which is sure to ruffle Batman’s… um… feathers… but which readers will welcome. She’s a great character and really has become integral to Robin’s mythos.

I’m still not sold on Rick Mays as the penciller for this title. While there’s nothing technically wrong with his artwork, he’s a good storyteller and draws good superheroes, he doesn’t feel like a good match. His characters have a very manga-esque feel, particularly in the eyes, which just doesn’t feel right in a Batman-family book.

This issue probably won’t win any new readers, but it will satisfy old readers enough to keep them around through the end of Willingham’s first story arc. Here’s hoping by then he pulls out that “wow” moment we know he’s capable of and keeps us all around.

Rating: 6/10