You Look Mahvelous!

David Liss & Colton Worely “The Shadow Now” (Dynamite, 2015)

I’m going to assume that you know some general things about the Shadow.  Pulp character, maybe the first “dark knight”, knows what evil lurks, etc etc…

The twist on this run is that it’s a setup to tell stories with the Shadow in modern times.  As the story opens he’s recently returned from the far east (where he’s gone for some mystical spa – he’s now a young man).  His organization is betrayed & he loses everything…

Basically this is a big soft reboot on the whole Shadow universe.  The story brings him into the modern era & sets him up for future stories.  There’s quite a bit of play with the “man out of time” motif, but without the humor that you may be used to seeing in that trope.

Worely’s art tends towards the realist look that is often used in Dynamite’s books.  I like it, although at times the dark palettes and heavy use of shadows made some details get lost.

On the whole I’m not sure that this reboot really works.  Like so many pulp characters, the Shadow has some problematic elements that are embedded deeply.  These elements need to be addressed, particularly if he’s going to be operating in the modern world. 

It's a Classic Team-Up!

Louise Simonson & Derek Charm “Super Secret  Crisis War! Volume 1” (IDW, 2015)

As a kid I remember being really excited whenever I picked up a superhero crossover book.  The JLA and the JSA team up to stop a massive team of villains!  Sure the tones didn’t really mesh, but who cared, it was all about excitement and action, action, action!

In so many ways, that is exactly what Super Secret Crisis War! is all about. Various classic Cartoon Network characters are brought together to find the most devious assemblage of villains ever!  The demon Aku organizes the villains who proceed to capture The Powerpuff Girls,  Ben 10, Samauri Jack, Dexter (‘s Laboratory), and Ed, Edd, and Eddy. 

Derek Charm does a great job of staying true to the artistic style of each character.  Somehow it works, in a mad collision of color & movement.

This isn’t some sort of heavyweight edgy comic.  This is an old school, fun for all ages affair.   People are always looking for good comics appropriate for kids.  This is a great one right here. 

So Read It Already!

NK Jemisin “The Inheritance Trilogy Omnibus” (Orbit, 2014)

I can name three new writers who have published major trilogies in the last decade or so. In each case, the originality and high quality of both the ideas and the writing are indicators that these women are to be taken seriously as writers in the field.  We will be reading their books for years to come.

One of those writers is NK Jemisin, and now you have the opportunity to get her trilogy in a single handy volume.  (With an additional novella!)

Jemisin has given us a richly detailed world where gods walk alongside mortals.  This is unlike any fantasy that you have ever read.  There is no chosen one, no quest to find or destroy magical objects.  This is a story about tyranny, freedom, colonialism, religion, power, romance, sex.  

If you don’t like fantasy because it all seems to be the same, this is for you.  If you love fantasy because of the strange worlds you can explore, then this is for you.

This is one of the major genre works of this millennium. If you are a fan of the genre, then you need to read these books.  It’s just that simple.