Comics of the Week (9/4/08)

Adam Strange Special #1 - this tie-in to the Rann-Thanagar Holy War didn't thrill me as much as the Hawkman Special last month. I think part of it was because Jim Starlin did not do the art for this one. Also, the story seemed to mirror a lot of what Hawkman went through (past/future/mystery). The future stuff did reveal some big stuff will be happening with Adam Strange - either in the mini series or beyond.

Green Lantern #34 - I thought this issue ended the "Secret Origin" arc, but it appears we have one more issue to go. This one was okay but mostly just a big fight, nicely drawn by Reis. I'm ready for us to get out of the past on this title.


Trinity #14 - once again, the back-up feature was a bit more interesting than the lead. This whole side-trip to the Antimatter Universe was a bit too much of a diversion all the way around. Let's get back to the bigger story arc. I do like this last trio of covers with the Trinity battling their Antimatter counterparts. Changes things up a bit.

Ordinary People Change The World

What's this all about again?
Today is the official launch of The Siegel & Shuster Society, with a celebrity charity auction that'll raise money to preserve the home of Jerry Siegel, creator of Superman. When you go to Brad Meltzer's charitable website www.OrdinaryPeopleChangeTheWorld.com, you can:
- bid online for original Superman and comic book art and items by top writers and artists
- buy a Siegel & Shuster Society t-shirt (designed by the legendary graphic designer Chip Kidd)
- or just donate to the good cause.
The best way to show it is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25R2kcJxQuc
All proceeds of the auction go to the restoration of the Siegel house.

Who's involved in the auction?
This is a coming together of an entire community. The full list includes: Stephen Colbert, Jim Lee, Brian Michael Bendis, Brad Meltzer, Geoff Johns, Richard Donner, Joe Quesada, Neil Gaiman, Alex Ross, Dave Gibbons, Jeph Loeb, Murphy Anderson, Ed Brubaker, John Cassaday, Gene Ha, Greg Rucka, George Perez, Michael Turner, Adam Kubert, Andy Kubert, Judd Winick, Frank Cho, Eric Powell, Tim Sale, Walt Simonson, Joe Staton, Eric Wight, Dave Mandel, Mike Mignola, Rags Morales, Bill Morrison, Ivan Reis, John Romita Jr., Jason Palmer, Amanda Conner, Geoff Darrow, Ron Garney, Renato Guedes, Heroes, Dave Johnson, Chris Bachalo, Mike Bair, Allen Bellman, Dan Brereton, Ernie Chan, Travis Charest, and Ian Churchill, YOU, and even Jerry Siegel (see below).

How did this come about?
While researching his new novel, The Book of Lies, Brad Meltzer visited the boyhood home of Jerry Siegel in Cleveland, Ohio, where Superman was created. As Meltzer says, "The house where Google was founded is preserved. The garage where Hewlett Packard was founded is protected. But the house where Superman was born? I was in shock." After contacting dozens of comic book creators -- and thanks to the hard work of many in the city of Cleveland -- The Siegel & Shuster Society was created and is dedicated to commemorating and celebrating the creation of Superman in Cleveland by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. "I think sometimes people take things like this for granted because it started in cartoon form, but this is a house were modern mythology was created," Brain Michael Bendis adds. "Mythology that will never die away or disappear. There is no difference, to me, between this house and Mark Twain's house. We have to honor and exalt such creation."

What are the items in the auction?
You can win a walk-on part on Heroes, VIP seats to the Colbert Report, original Superman art (go see the art!), have your name in Bendis or Brubaker or Rucka's comic, or Meltzer's next novel. There's a rare original pre-Superman movie script from Geoff Johns, signed by Richard Donner. And Joanne Siegel told Meltzer that before Jerry Siegel died, he signed six Superman t-shirts that no one ever knew existed -- and then told her that if their family ever needed money, she should sell the shirts. Instead, she donated one of them to be auctioned off here. The signature is on a Superman: Quest For Peace(!) t-shirt. C'mon, baby, it's Jerry Siegel on a Quest for Peace shirt!

What can you do?
Forward and digg the video ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25R2kcJxQuc ). Go buy a Siegel & Shuster Society t-shirt. They're cool. They're designed by Chip Kidd. They can't be bought anywhere else. Bid on some of the auctions and spread the word by sharing the video, sigs, and www.OrdinaryPeopleChangeTheWorld.com auction with your facebook, myspace, and live-breathing friends.

How much is the Siegel And Shuster Foundation trying to raise?
Depends on how successful we are. Phase 1 involves working on the exterior of the house: securing the roof, making sure the paint isn't rotting, doing the concrete work. That will hopefully protect the place from the outside. Joe Shuster's house (a few blocks away) was in such disrepair, it was torn down. The first goal is to collect $50,000 to deal with the outside. If we do that, then we'll go and tackle the much-needed-repairs on the inside.

Who lives there now?
The house is located in one of the tougher neighborhoods of Cleveland and is currently occupied by an African-American couple who have lived there for approximately 20 years, who have put up with all of us who have come visiting, but who don't have the money to do these repairs. Rather than kick anyone out on the street, the goal is to repair this place for them. Why? It's the right thing to do. In return, The Siegel & Shuster Society has the right to buy the house when it eventually goes up for sale.

Is there a long-term goal to make a museum?
The long-term goal is still being decided, and that's why you're invited to join The Siegel & Shuster Society and help us with those plans. Meetings are held monthly in Cleveland -- when you buy a shirt, they'll have your name. But one of the dreams is that one day, buses full of students will drive from all over Ohio, from Michigan, from any nearby state, and come to the fully-restored house -- covered and decorated with children's artwork inside -- and see where one of the world's greatest dreams was born. Go to www.OrdinaryPeopleChangeTheWorld.com to make it happen.

Comics of the Week (8/27/08) part 3

Justice Society of America #18 - part 3 of "One World, Under Gog" arc and the story continues to crawl. We see more of Gog's unique sense of justice and balance while the JSA members begin to quarrel among themselves. And, one of them gets an even more startling gift. The cast of this book is so large that it takes Geoff Johns so long to get this story towards its conclusion. And what I really wanted to see more of - Power Girl on Earth-2 - only got a page or two max. I hope things pick up soon as I do enjoy this cast a lot.


Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge #2 (of 3) - here Geoff Johns is moving the story nicely. I really liked how he tied this into characters that debuted in Gotham Underground earlier in the year. He has the best handle on the Flash's villains, and he truly shows why they deserve their place in the pantheon of DC's deadliest. A perfect issue. I can't wait for Johns to pick up the reigns on the main Flash title again - just so we can continue to see his well-fleshed out villains. Scott Kolins artwork is wonderful as well.

Comics of the Week (8/27/08) part 2

Ambush Bug: Year None #2 (of 6) - Giffen and Fleming continue with the usual mayhem and foolishness that is the signature of Ambush Bug. Lots of parody and poking fun and recent comic book concepts and stories. Probably only truly enjoyed by fans of the series. Still a fun read in these dark times of comics.

Trinity #13 - full on confrontations in both the lead and the backup feature. Busiek and Bagley continue to deliver week after week with a spanning adventure and a full cast. This book is more than just the big three - and folks really need to be picking this up (or wait for the trades next year).


DC Universe: Last Will and Testament - this one-shot by Brad Meltzer and the Kubert brothers is a nice character piece. The cover image is missing the lead star of the book which is Geo-Force. In the book, while Earth is on the eve of this "final crisis", he decides to seek vengeance against the man who corrupted his sister Terra. But besides this main plot, we also see how other heroes are handling this night before it all hits the fan. A good read and clearly an extension of what Brad was going for back when he did his year on Justice League of America. I enjoyed it a lot.

Comics of the Week (8/27/08) part 1

Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1 (of 2) - what the #*!@? is this about? I should have walked away when I saw Grant Morrison as the writer, but since it is only a two part tie-in to Final Crisis I kept it in my pile. BIG MISTAKE! The book was confusing as anything and gave me a headache (and that wasn't from reading it with the 3D glasses for some of the sequences - about the only decent thing in the book). Does Grant even know how to write coherently? I think not. Don't waste your money, people.

Reign In Hell #2 (of 8) - okay, on to another writer who can be a little confusing at times, Keith Giffen. Now, this was a bit easier to follow - there is a war going on in Hell and the mystic heroes are going to have to chose sides. Keith at least keeps the story moving and easy to follow. Some of his dialogue gets a little lofty but that's okay. The book is working. At least you get to know who some of these characters are, unlike in Grant's work.


Teen Titans #62 - the cover asks "Who Is Wonderdog?" and in this issue you meet him and find out about him. It also focuses on Wendy and Marvin, who Geoff Johns brought into the book a couple years back as supporting teen geniuses. I liked what was done with those two so far and was interested in an issue spotlighting on them. Well, we get that - and more! I won't spoil the book for readers here - but it went a direction I did not expect. Kudos for keeping me interested in a story that was easy to follow logically.

Total Drama Island

What combines two things I enjoy a lot - animation and reality shows? That would be Total Drama Island, an animated series that ran on Canadian television in 2007 and has been showing on US television this summer on Cartoon Network.

The premise of the show is this: a bunch of teens send in audition tapes for a reality show, but instead of being put in a plush mansion they have to go through the rigors of bizarre events in a backwoods camp. The show features a host named Chris who is sort of a swarmy version of Survivor's Jeff Probst. The camp's Chef who is mean and scary also puts the campers through their paces. Like Survivor, one camper each week is ousted at the marshmallow ceremony.

The show is a lot of fun. Both my son and I are enjoying it a lot. Sadly, I missed a few episodes at the beginning, so I am hoping for a huge marathon to catch up.

Update: Cartoon Network heard me! A marathon of the show will run Sunday September 7th from noon until 7pm. I'm setting the DVR so I can catch it all from the beginning. Good stuff.

Comics of the Week (8/20/08)

Batman and the Outsiders #10 - first, is this alien parasite one of those leftover from the Bloodlines annuals about a decade back? It sure seems to follow the same m.o. - feed one a host, some get super powers. Liked this issue okay but clearly you can see we're hitting the transition point when Chuck Dixon leaves as writer and a new team comes on. We'll see if the book remains good after that.

the Brave and the Bold #16 - another fun, done-in-one team-up written by Mark Waid. This time, Superman joins forces with Catwoman to investigate a huge underworld auction in Gotham. The story is playful and fun with a twist or two to keep it from being predictable.

Justice League of America #24 - a decent fight issue that shows that the women of the League are resourceful and a force to be reckoned with. My only beef with the issue - the cover had nothing to do with the majority of the tale. It would better have served as a cover for the next issue.


Rann-Thanagar Holy War #4 (of 8) - we hit the halfway point with this issue. Jim Starlin delivers a lot of action that does get slightly confusing mid-way - due to a tie-in with the Adam Strange Special which hasn't come out yet (should be soon before issue #5). Still, beautifully drawn and a good handling of a diverse cast. This book makes me actually interesting in knowing more about the Weird.

Tangent: Superman's Reign #6 (of 12) - halfway point of the mini series and things are stepping up nicely. A good amount of detail here about this world's Superman and his motivation. Interesting to see Batman pondering the ramifications of the whole situation. This is clearly not a clear cut, black and white situation.

Trinity #12 - definitely some major revelations in this issue as the JLA duke it out with the Crime Syndicate in the front portion. What is going on with GL John Stewart? And the back-up feature this time - absolutely perfect. Love the lead character, love what he finds, and love how the revelations regarding Enigma fall into place. I can't believe I hadn't figure that out totally. Nice job, writers! I'm continually impressed by the entertainment this weekly book brings.


Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #1 (of 5) - this was THE book I have been waiting for all summer. One of my current favorite writers, Geoff Johns, is scripting this epic and my all-time favorite artist, George Perez, is bringing it to life. Plus, it should finally be cleaning up the chaos of the Legion of Super-Heroes continuity for the past couple decades (with next year being the 50th anniversary of the LSH). I couldn't ask for a better book. The story so far is interesting, the threat level to face the heroes is the highest, and the character personalities show through. I love all the little touches Perez puts in the background, making this already dialogue and caption full book an even longer read. You can't help but look for all the little artistic Easter eggs in the backgrounds. That is what makes Perez the master he is. And Johns clearly knows and loves his Legion Lore - the book is chock full of details that long-time fans will eat up. A perfect comic. Even if the book doesn't come out monthly as first planned (due to Perez' health and requiring longer to draw each issue), it will be worth the wait every time!