A Few Thoughts on Comics from Last Week

I'm catching up! Sorta...

Avengers #1. The book gets relaunched yet again. Bendis and JR JR. Bendis has been criticized over the years for being whatever with the Avengers but this issue just FEELS big time. The building of the teams. The joy the characters feel for being in their 'proper' place again. Thor not hesitating to smack Kang around. Great art, good subplots, it feels like an old school Avengers comic and updated at the same time. I hope this is how it stays for awhile. Loved this.

Invincible Iron Man #26 continues the 'reboot' of Tony's life. 'Captain America doesn't do razzle-dazzle on my schedule.' Honestly, I can't beat that line.

Transformers - Last Stand of the Wreckers #5 is the end of the series. I can't say much without giving away the story but will point out that 'last stand' is in the title for a reason. Lots of things go boom.

Simpsons Comics #166 in which the Simpson men decide to join forces and cheat to win a local bike race. It's a reasonably well done plot, more character based than gag based. It actually could have used a few more gags. It was good but not as funny as I felt it should have been somehow. There should be a couple of really good lines in the story and there's maybe one. Homer breaks a bike during training and notes he needs a beer. Bart states 'I think what you need is a tetanus shot.' Combined with the visual it's amusing but it lacks a certain 'I ate all my caps.' repeatability.

Muppet Snow White #1 just wasn't coming together for me. Art that was a little too wacky, a story that was too close to the style of King Arthur rather than Peter Pan, I just wasn't feeling it... until we meet the Dwarves. It's the Electric Mayhem and they sing their song in the mine over a two page spread. I read it, got near the end of the pages, it clicked, I got shivers and reread it. The song is apparently titled 'Seven Dwarf Hop' and it's clearly meant to be to the beat of the Ramones' 'Blitzkreig Bop'. Animal yelling 'Heigh! Ho! Go! Go!' You have my attention again. Please continue. Oh yes and I need this song as a single. Now.

Music Monday - 'The Phantom of the Paradise'

You ever forget things? I do. I forgot that I had a lot of music in lossless format on my external hard drive. I started going through it the other day, putting it onto CD so I could travel with some of it. Amongst these things I found the soundtrack to 'The Phantom of the Paradise' and I'd forgotten how much I love that movie. Basically, it's a rock update of the Phantom of the Opera story with a heavy dose of the Faust tale thrown in. It's better than it has any right to be because the music is by Paul Williams who also plays the bad guy in the film.

...yes, that Paul Williams. Here's the trailer.



Talented writer Winslow takes his songs to publisher Swan and signs away his life's work. When Swan butchers those songs to maximize their commercial potential, Winslow freaks and attacks the record pressing plant (it was 1974 afterall), becoming badly injured but is believed dead. He resurfaces under a mask, haunting the concert hall, and demanding only Phoenix, whom he loves from afar, sing his songs. Swan talks him into rearranging the songs for her and, of course, gets screwed by the publisher yet again. It all get problematic from there.



Yes that was Archie Hahn.



The songs range from wickedly satirical, like the first song, to heartfelt love songs to mean spirited attacks. It's a musical and the music is good. Sometimes it's GREAT Music.



'If I could live my life half as worthlessly as you, I'm convinced that I'd wind up burning too.' Wow! That's a lyric!

Where's my DVD? I need to watch this again.

Phantom of the Paradise (Ultimate Edition) [Blu-ray]  Phantom of the Paradise  Phantom Of The Paradise: Original Soundtrack Recording

A Few Thoughts on Comics from Last Week or So

Siege #4! Finally the wrap-up to the storyline! Years in the making! Nothing can live up to all that and this didn't. It wasn't actively bad but the way the main villain is dealt with is meant to be a desperation move and a cool action moment but it comes across as a Russell T. Davies moment. Russell was the showrunner of Doctor Who, bringing the show back, but he had a few stories, 'The Sound of Drums' springs to mind, where the villain gets the upperhand and things are Very Serious Indeed and suddenly you get the impression he doesn't have a good way for the good guys to resolve the situation so it sort of fixes itself. I'd be more condemning of this but I have the bad feeling I just did it myself. This issue plays out as big action moments and excitement but there are a few 'really? that was the plan?' parts and apparently things are so serious that it's okay for Spidey to swear. I'm happy that we are where we are now in general. This wasn't awful but it wasn't as awesome as it might have been.

Dark Avengers #16 ends the book, wrapping up what happens to the team post-Siege. I rather liked this. It could have been two pages at the end of Siege #4 but it would have been rushed and not as effective. Good wrap-up.

Avengers: The Initiative #35 ends this book as well. The main characters are wrapped up before the book gets relaunched with a new title. Not as exciting as Dark Avengers but solid.

The New Avengers Finale wraps up the last of the storyline elements from Siege and lets the characters have a happy before this Avengers title also gets relaunched. It's a double sized issue and was a bit on the long side but, you know, this title has been known for stretching out its storylines so, really, why should the last issue be any different? Not sure Bryan Hitch knows how to drawn Wolverine out of his costume though. Besides all that, it was a good ending.

Web of Spider-Man #8 made me laugh out loud. While trying to flush out a bad guy, Pete creates a picture blog with Spidey 'bloopers'. At the bottom of the page is a panel with JJJ announcing it as the best web-site he's ever seen, written as if in a hushed tone. The main story was actually a good combination of funny, mysterious, and character based. Just as I was wondering how Pete had figured out how to do internet stuff as he's been portrayed as clueless in the past in this regard, we get a conversation with Betty when he thanks her for helping him set it up. Thank you Mr. Writer! Thumbs up.

Savage Dragon #160 is the final part of the Dragon War. Many Bad Things happen. Lots of characters die. I'm really wondering what's next.

The Marvels Project #8 was grand. In the Marvel Universe, the Axis attacked the Allied on a secret front the same day as Pearl Harbor. Somehow this works. The original Human Torch and Toro aren't enough to stop Pearl Harbor. The main characters are all but in a 'place' as they should be at the beginning of WWII. I really enjoyed the art and story in this miniseries. I would recommend getting it in trade paperback.

Prince of Power #1 begins a quest to bring back Hercules. That's all you need. Standard but fun storyline and clear crisp art. Solid comic.

Transformers - Ironhide #1 has, well, Ironhide in it. Except he's dead. Or not. There's a lot of flashback in this issue and it's not clear what's going on at this point. This would be bad if I didn't think that was the writer's goal. More solid robot art.

The Amazing Spider-Man #631... did the Lizard just do what I think he did? Oh my. That's not right.

Vincent Price Presents #17 has a great CGI cover picture of Vincent Price done by Pixar artist Bill Zahn. The story inside has scraggy art and a story that has more build than payoff. Not awful but not impressive either.

Iron Man Legacy #2 confuses me a bit. The story is fun and the art is good but is this set in the movie continuity or what? It's not quite clear and I don't know. Maybe I shouldn't worry about it. That would be wisest.