Secret Origins

Action Comics #0 (DC)
writer: Grant Morrison 
artist: Ben Oliver 
September marks DC's second ever Zero Month (the original being from 1994 in conjunction with Dan Jurgens' Zero Hour), and where else would I want to start but with Grant Morrison's Superman?  Since the launch of the New 52 a year ago, this has been the all-star of the crop, which is ironic, because of course Morrison also once gave us All Star Superman, which was as big-picture as the Man of Steel has ever gotten.  Action Comics has been small-picture from the start, a more intimate Superman than perhaps anyone not dealing almost exclusively with Clark Kent has ever gotten.  The redesign (two-fold in the New 52; the armor that the present version has, and the jeans-and-tee-shirt version in these pages, set five years in the past) has been a standout feature, and the origin of that t-shirt has been something Morrison has been teasing.  One of the things this issue does is settle that once and for all.  There's also the matter of the Kryptonian cape that's indestructible, and has also been a prominent element of the book.  It falls into the possession of a boy whose father has been terrorizing the family, and the effects are interesting enough.  But again, there's more to the issue!  The dynamic between Clark and Jimmy Olsen is another highlight.  (They're all highlights.)  The guest art of Ben Oliver (who's been crushing Batwing) is another.  The backup feature written by Sholly Fisch is another!  It's a riff on the Captain Comet story that Morrison has worked on previously, a secret origin that probably makes Captain Comet more interesting in a few pages than he's been in decades.  (Though one of the more memorable images from 52 involves him, though in pretty grim fashion.)

Cobra #16 (IDW)
writer: Mike Costa
artist: Antonio Fuso
I can never get over how awesome this book is.  It's been running for years, and has remained completely awesome, and redefined IDW's approach to the G.I. Joe franchise, and still doesn't have near the amount of awareness that it deserves.  It's awesome.  In the beginning, the focus was on a single Joe (Chuckles, in Chuckles' most relevant story ever) attempting to infiltrate the mysterious Cobra organization.  Recently the focus has shifted to the Joes working with Cobra defectors (some defecting a little more honestly than others).  It's a very post-9/11 approach to G.I. Joe.  Costa, who worked on Blackhawks for a few months and didn't do anything like his work here, has been one of the best writers of character in comics.  In this issue, he makes the mystique of Firefly pop off the page, and potentially another breakout personality to work with in the future.  The whole run has been filled with stuff like that.

Green Lantern #0 (DC)
writer: Geoff Johns
artist: Doug Mahnke
Speaking of the post-9/11 world, Geoff Johns gets to introduce his very own Earth Green Lantern this issue (has it really taken so long?!?) in the form of Simon Baz, who's in the midst of being mistaken for a terrorist when a green ring finds him in one of the most awkward pieces of timing ever.  It's hard to understand this development not being a bigger deal, though I guess Superman and Wonder Woman over in Justice League does tend to eclipse a lot of things (another Johns book, by the way).  Not only is it a huge twist in a series of huge twists in the Johns run on the franchise, but it's potentially the one with the longest-lasting effect (after all, each of the four previous humans to become Green Lantern are still running around, each of them decades old).  This is the equivalent of Brian Michael Bendis introducing a new Spider-Man.  This will be extremely interesting to follow in the coming months.  And there's also that whole Third Army business coming up!

Scalped #60 (Vertigo)
writer: Jason Aaron
artist: R.M. Guera
I haven't read this series in a couple years, but this being the final issue and all, the moment I learned the end was coming, I knew I was going to have to read it.  I actually had a conversation about it with the cashier at the store (I usually don't do that), who had never read Scalped.  I remarked that the end was about as inevitable as you can get in a story, something very bloody.  Inevitable in a good way, we both decided.  Dashiel Bad Horse in the lead character of the series, but the central figure of the issue is someone else, which is perfectly befitting of Aaron's style.  Jason Aaron has become a hotshot over at Marvel since he began working on Scalped, but aside from a short piece in a one-shot years ago, I've never found anything like the sheer amount of inspiration in his superhero work that he's consistently brought to one of the best comics of the past five years.  And just as I assumed, the issue was easy to appreciate and derive resolution from, even if I missed a good chunk of storyline.  Dash's story could easily continue, but Scalped has definitely concluded.

The Secret History of D.B. Cooper #s 4-5 (Oni)
writer/artist: Brian Churilla
Apparently these are the final issues of the book, depicting the inevitable conclusions of the first three, in which CIA agent D.B. Cooper is exposed for revealing secrets to the Soviet Union in his efforts to escape the program he's been blackmailed into continued participation in thanks to the kidnapping of his daughter, using an alternate dimension to carry out hits.  In that dimension, he's been hanging out with a teddy bear, and these issues reveal the bear's identity, as well as the fateful events that lead to the November 1971 plane incident that was only reported as a hijacking and dramatic escape by Cooper.  Yes, this is all fantasy, but Churilla handles it so brilliantly that you not only accept his conclusions as plausible, but invest it with real emotion.  Five issues is a pretty good haul for a small press book, but I would have loved to read this one for years.  It'll make a very nice trade collection for your bookshelf, though.

The Shade #12 (DC)
writer: James Robinson
artist: Gene Ha
The final issue of this series comes after a year's journey through the mind of experiences of a reformed villain who's lived centuries on the edge of ambiguity, and at last reveals his secret origin.  Perhaps not so surprisingly, it's more of that ambiguity, Richard Swift finding himself in a bad situation because of an ego that got out of control (which would explain why he's been so careful ever since, and is a rare villain who has managed to take himself out of that role).  Like D.B. Cooper and Scalped, there are obvious ways to keep the story going, but as far as the series go, it's the appropriate note to end on.  (Yes, it's odd in hindsight to have gotten all three issues at the same time, and coincidentally appropriate.)  James Robinson I hope has finally convinced some readers that his Starman reputation (for those who liked it; I received a comment from one visitor a while back that suggests not everyone shares it, and that's fine, too) isn't something that's been forsaken since that time.  He can still do that work.  It can sometimes be baffling when a creator does a different kind of story than what their fans know them for, but that doesn't mean the creator has suddenly lost the ability to do the work those fans recognize.  The Shade is in fact different from Starman, too, more intimate, more studied (though those are the very terms that fans of the latter would cling to; I'd use "legacy" and "expansive").  The resulting collection, with its various artists, may prove quite interesting to read.

Thanos Quest (Marvel)
writer: Jim Starlin
artist: Ron Lim
I must admit, my favorite part from this summer's The Avengers remains the big reveal in the credits of Thanos, the rock-jawed Titan whom some comic book fans might mistake for Darkseid (hey, it could happen!), star of the crossover events Infinity Gauntlet and Infinity War.  This book is a reprint prequel, revealing how Thanos acquired the Infinity Gems, basically talismans of power that fans of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine might find similar to the Orbs of the Prophets, in his efforts to woo Death.  To my mind, Thanos is easily the most fascinating character in all of Marvel, and Thanos Quest helps make that point.  He's Jim Starlin's baby, and I'm not sure Starlin has ever found a worthier subject for his talents.  This is classic, epic material.  Why Marvel's summer event involves the Phoenix rather than Thanos can only be considered baffling.  Did the company not know what Joss Whedon was planning?  Thanos is used so sparingly, though, and maybe that's what helps him keep his appeal.  But I'd seriously wonder if the House of Ideas still didn't have something for him by next year.

Quarter Bin #1 "DC Grab Bag"

One of the things I best like about comics is how random it can be to find and read back issues. There are so many years, so many creators, so many stories, it’s much more difficult than with books or movies to always have at least an idea of what to expect, and so many ways to search. Only music really compares. But this is not a music site. It is a comics site. And this particular column will detail my adventures with back issues, some of them coming from actual quarter bins (because there’s a certain thrill associated with those), others from any number of other origins, some that I specifically sought out. So this will be a pretty eclectic column.

The inaugural batch comes from a random assortment bought from Midtown Comics, a grab bag of DC titles, because DC happens to be my publisher of choice. Without further adieu, and in no particular order:

THE OMAC PROJECT: INFINITE CRISIS SPECIAL (DC)
From May 2006, there’s not a lot to say about this except that it was a special that was put out after the initial mini-series that helped launch INFINITE CRISIS. Written by Greg Rucka during his period of greatest influence with the company, it helped launch the modern Checkmate, which has since become a subplot for the resurrected Max Lord.

RANN-THANAGAR WAR #2 (OF 6) (DC)
From August 2005, this was obviously a companion series of the one that resulted in the above comic, from Dave Gibbons and Ivan Reis, during the period where DC really didn’t know what to do with Kyle Rayner after Hal Jordan’s return. Eventually, of course, Jade is sacrificed, which opened the door…to her recent return.

INFINITE CRISIS SECRET FILES & ORIGINS (DC)
From April 2006, this special was anchored by an account of how Earth-3 Alex Luthor tricked Earth-2 Superman and the soon-to-be eeeevil Superboy-Prime into causing Infinite Crisis, thanks to Marv Wolfman, Dan Jurgens, and Jerry Ordway. Whatever happened to these Secret Files specials?

NORTHLANDERS #13 (Vertigo)
From February 2009, this is a comic I never read on purpose, and I guess I don’t really care to, even with this sample, even though it’s had good buzz. I saw nothing in this issue to change my opinion, anyway.

TINY TITANS #12 (DC)
SUPERGIRL: COSMIC ADVENTURES IN THE 8TH GRADE #3 (OF 6) (DC)
BILLY BATSON AND THE MAGIC OF SHAZAM! #3 (DC)
SCOOBY-DOO! #139 (DC)
DC SUPER FRIENDS #10 (DC)
Ranging from February to April 2009, I guess for some reason Midtown either thinks these grab bags are being bought for family consumption or they really think the persons purchasing them want a complete survey. Either way…

MIRROR’S EDGE #3 (WildStorm)
Based on a video game, but not really that bad.

STORMWATCH: PHD #18 (WildStorm)
From March 2009. The recent shuttering of WildStorm caused a few people to unleash some laments about how little the studio was appreciated, especially because of that period where it was responsible for a whole slew of comics inspired by SQUADRON SUPREME (not that they were ever described that way), and Gen-13, which was extremely popular for about fifteen minutes. Otherwise, WildStorm really was just responsible…for another superhero universe. I would wager to say no real loss.

BANG! TANGO #1 (OF 6) (Vertigo)
From April 2009, this was a Joe Kelly project that was somewhat hyped by Vertigo at the time. My verdict? If Howard Chaykin had provided more than just the covers, it probably would have been relevant.

WONDER WOMAN #26 (DC)
From January 2009, this was the start of Gail Simone’s “Rise of the Olympian” storyline, which was the beginning of a very swift decline in quality for her work on the title. It was basically a very, very uninspired version of “Doomsday.” I honestly don’t know what she was thinking. Or perhaps what Aaron Lopresti was thinking, assuming he designed the horribly designed villain. Lopresti is usually better than that. But at least Simone is finally off this book.

100 BULLETS #98 (Vertigo)
From February 2009, this was one of the final issues of this acclaimed series. Personally, I didn’t really see the point of it.

THE WINTER MEN WINTER SPECIAL (WildStorm)
From February 2009, this was pretty interesting. I remember reading it when I originally got this random collection, but it is definitely worth revisiting, so I will probably do that. That, ah, means it’s probably worth looking at in general.

SUPERMAN/SUPERGIRL: MAELSTROM #4 (OF 5) (DC)
From February 2009, aside from a terrible title and a worse logo, is part of the strong push Supergirl got into being a legitimate member of the modern Superman franchise, from Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray, with art by Phil Noto.

SCALPED #24 (Vertigo)
From February 2009, the conclusion to the “Gravel in Your Guts” storyline. I was a semi-regular and then a regular reader of this Jason Aaron book (his best work in comics to date), but I got a little tired of things pretty remaining status quo indefinitely, like a bad TV procedural. I’m not saying this series isn’t worth reading, because it truly is one of the best comics being published today, but that it’s simply not something I can read on a regular basis.

52 #31 (DC)
From the week of December 6, 2006, a series I followed religiously when it was originally published, and still contend is a seminal work of modern comics. This particular issue centers on the horrors of Lady Styx, who admittedly didn’t really develop into anything special, but does feature the grizzly end of Captain Comet. Captain who? Well…exactly. That’s why that particular character was sacrificed during this series.

DRAGONLANCE #15 (DC)
From January 1990...based on a role playing game.

HAWK & DOVE#15 (DC)
From August 1990, and the married Kesels, who for years tried to make some incarnation of this DC duo relevant. Hey, so at least one version is technically relevant in the pages of BRIGHTEST DAY…

That’s the twenty comics included in the grab bag, and thus concludes this inaugural edition of this new incarnation of my Quarter Bin column, which if you were wondering if the origin of the “QB” in the QB50 ranking from last week. From here on out, I’ll be alternating between talk on new comics, spotlighting (as currently planned) one title or creator per week, and new editions of Quarter Bin. This is the only Midtown grab bag I’ve gotten so far, but as always, because that’s how I am with back issues, it may not be the last…