Graphic Novel Reviews

Silver Age adventures of the DCU's emerald archer, the Green Arrow.

A big black and white collection of fairly standard examples of late-50s/early-60s DC storytelling. The stories come from most of DC's writer's pen, but mainly Dave Wood, Ed Herron and Robert Bernstein, and the artwork is mostly by Lee Elias with a handful by Jack Kirby. The Kirby stories are not amongst his better efforts, and while Elias delivers a clean consistency he too has done better elsewhere. The stories have no major villains and aren't terribly clever or original... as with a lot of second-tier characters at DC during this era, the stories date poorly and are mostly forgettable. For hardcore GA fans and DC completists only.

reviewed by jdp

Will Eisner's adaptation of Moby Dick.

One of Eisner's short, full color graphic adaptations of classic tales. His efforts here, with Moby Dick, are a mixed bag: visually this is one of the better of these, particularly in the nuanced faces of Ahab and the Whale, but the short size naturally strips away most of the thematic depth that is central to Melville's classic. A pretty good piece for younger readers, or parents who want to get them a first taste of the classics a la Classics Illustrated.

reviewed by jdp

Art Spiegelman's autobiographical story of his father's recounting his experiences in the holocaust, and the effect those experiences have continued to have on the entire family, as told with animals as representatives of the players in this tale (Jews as mice, Nazis as cats, etc.).

Spiegelman's masterpiece is not only about the holocaust, but about his own life being raised with the spectre of the holocaust ever in the family's collective mind. Maus takes a deeply personal look not only at this supremely dehumanizing piece of history, but at the lingering effects survivors have passed down through the generations. One of the most important pieces ever created, in any medium, about this dark chapter of human history.

reviewed by jdp

A collection of weird short humor pieces by Mexican cartoonist Jis.

I hated this book. It’s probably unfair how much I hated this book, because it isn’t like there’s anything truly horrific about it, it just did absolutely nothing for me in that particular way that leaves you angry about it. I don’t think it’s funny and the artwork isn’t interesting or attractive or anything worth looking at. I’ve seen at least a hundred better, funnier, more inventive artists in this same general vein. Again, I’m probably being a bit harsher than necessary, but still… don’t waste your time.

reviewed by jdp

Never been one of my favorites. I am not sure majestic is appropriate - perhaps interminable, pointless, and annoying is more like it. I'm sure this is a basic, gut-level emotional reaction, but this whole series is a waste of paper. At the same time, it's not the worst thing ever done.

reviewed by DaveH

Absolutely dark and hilarious, this web comic delivers lots of laughs and beautiful illustration in a variety of styles. This may be the best web comic collection I've ever read!

reviewed by dan

Bigby and Snow's children are born as Fabletown and its inhabitants deal with the aftermath of the invasion attempt. Also includes Bigby's World War II adventures and Cinderella playing spy.

The Cinderella story is obvious filler material, and I can't say I care for Tony Akins art, but the rest of the collection is very well done. The WWII stories are those kind of fun "Nazis and monsters" type stories comics love to traffic in, and Akins' work is a bit better against the darker palette. The main storyline brings back Buckingham and features the birth of Snow's kids as the sole major plot point, with the rest of the arc devoted entirely to developing the characters and their relationships. Willingham does a great job of writing a transition story by making it about character, keeping us interested as he brings us into position for the next phase of the series.

reviewed by jdp

My favorite Batman story. The dialogue, the pacing, the feel for the characters, the art... it all comes together perfectly.

reviewed by rone

A pretty girl goes missing only to end up horribly murdered… but by whom?

Rick Geary’s series turns its focus to one of the great unsolved murders of the Victorian era, one which caused a sensation in its day but is now largely forgotten (at least compared to the subjects of prior volumes like Jack the Ripper or Lizzie Borden). Geary goes through all the horrific details in a way that combines the clinical, detached feel of a documentary with the darkly twisted humor of a slightly demented aficionado, and somehow the mix manages to be thorough without feeling graphic. The hook for this story is not only the shocking events themselves but the media circus which ensued, not so dissimilar from many modern killings. A great read.

reviewed by jdp

I love NextWave Agents of Hate and its irreverent, violent and largely plotless approach to the superhero genre.

The B-list superheroes bicker their way through their adventures. I especially love Machine Man, Aaron Stack, returning as a flesh-hating nihilist.

Bringing back Fin Fang Foom (first seen in Strange Tales #89 in 1961) as one of the antagonists was inspired. Having the Mindless Ones rented out to destroy the team was hysterical.

One on-line source quoted Warren Ellis as stating, "I took The Authority and I stripped out all the plots, logic, character and sanity." I can't verify the authenticity of this quote, but it's believable.

Even though I really like this book, I am somewhat offended that it's been released in TPB this early - why can't Marvel and others release some of the other niche products that I dearly love and consider classics (like the Jim Starlin Warlock sequence?).

reviewed by DaveH