Can we talk about the cover of this one for a minute? Because surely I was misled. I enjoyed Alex Grecian’s The Yard and I picked it up by chance because my holds at the library weren’t in yet. I work at a Historic Site in New Jersey and we are hosting a Steampunk event again this year so I try to read some Steampunky literature to get into the mood. I saw that particular scrolling typeface on The Yard’s cover; read the dust jacket to make sure it sounded interesting. Via Goodreads: “Victorian London is a cesspool of crime, and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives—known as “The Murder Squad”—to investigate countless murders every month. Created after the Metropolitan Police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper, The Murder Squad suffers rampant public contempt. They have failed their citizens. But no one can anticipate the brutal murder of one of their own . . . one of the twelve . . .When Walter Day, the squad’s newest hire, is assigned the case of the murdered detective, he finds a strange ally in the Yard’s first forensic pathologist, Dr. Bernard Kingsley. Together they track the killer, who clearly is not finished with The Murder Squad . . . but why?” and decided that this one was for me.

So about the cover – the scrolling, large, black capital letter only typeface has become short hand for novels in the Steampunk family. And I realized about 10 pages in, that this book is not steampunk at all, there is absolutely no anachronistic anything throughout. Now, it you want to talk about cutting edge technology for the time, the 1890s in this case, there is a great deal of time spent with the detectives and coroner talking about the new-fangled fingerprint technology and proper science of autopsy.

While not the Steampunk novel I was looking for, this is instead a good old fashioned historical fiction mystery novel. While this book is a bit hefty (432 pages for the Hardcover version) it covers three days in the life of the Murder Squad, somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 dead, and at least three different criminals. While occasionally hard to follow, the chapters are broken up by time following the finding of the murdered detective.  The narration also flows back and forth between third person narration from a few characters and then into italicized first person narration from one of the criminals. This is not a spoiler, since the character fesses up pretty quickly.

Was it a perfect story? No. There were perhaps one to many plots, one too many characters and one too many locations to make this a smooth work of fiction. Was I entertained? Absolutely.  This one was dense and intense and generally intriguing characters and a time period, the months immediately after the Ripper murders, which is perhaps underutilized in historical fiction. So if you’re looking for a Victorian murder mystery with no steampunk influences this is your book.

Early on, Rendell notes a shaky bannister on some tall steps. It’s like introducing a gun in the first act; you know it’s going to go off in the third. Sure enough, the bannister plays a part in a sudden death, but the victim is a surprise, as is the cover-up that follows and turns one character into Lady Macbeth. As for the St. Zita Society, it’s a loose club of the servants named after the patron saint of domestic help. The members meet at the pub to air their grievances until the disappearance of a soap opera actor who’s a regular Hexam Street visitor really gives them something to talk about. The well-orchestrated conclusion is stunning.

Emily Arsenault’s new mystery novel Miss Me When I’m Gone (Morrow, digital galley via edelweiss) sounds like it might be a country song, which is only fitting. Gretchen Waters had a surprise bestseller with her memoir, Tammyland, in which she explored her life in the context of country music stars such as Tammy Wynette and Loretta Lynn. After Gretchen is found dead at the bottom of a library’s concrete stairs, her family asks her college friend, Jamie Madden, to be her literary executor. A former reporter, pregnant Jamie is working as a part-time copy editor, and while pulling together pieces of Gretchen’s second book, she realizes her friend’s research into family history may have led to her death.

The story is told by Jamie, but is interspersed with chapters from Tammyland, as well as the notes and excerpts from Gretchen’s unfinished manuscript.  The whole is finely written and observed, as Arsenault delves into friendship, motherhood, identity, jealousy and violence. These same themes are reflected in the Tammyland sections, as Arsenault, via Gretchen, ponders how the messy lives of the stars spilled into their greatest hits. The only thing missing is a sound track.

Elly Griffiths’ mysteries featuring Ruth Galloway, an English forensic anthropologist and now single mom, just keep getting better. In A Room Full of Bones (Houghton Mifflin, library hardcover), Ruth’s examination of a medieval bishop’s coffin and of a small museum’s collection of bones from Australia are part of a complex plot of murder and superstition. Although it can stand on its own, the suspenseful book continues to reveal the personal problems of assorted series regulars, including archaeologists, police detectives and an enigmatic druid.

Open Book: You know me — why read read just three mysteries when you can read six or eight. I also enjoyed Jean Zimmerman’s rousing historical tale, The Orphanmaster (Penguin, digital galley via NetGalley), set in 1663 New Amsterdam — the future Manhattan; Cornelia Read’s involving Valley of Ashes (Grand Central Publishing, digital galley via NetGalley), in which former socialite Madeline Dare contends with toddler twins, a failing marriage, a part-time newspaper job and a series of arsons in Boulder; Meg Cabot’s fun Size 12 and Ready to Rock (Morrow; paperback review copy), featuring former pop star Heather Wells and her detective boyfriend caught up in a reality TV murder; Sara Foster’s chilling Beneath the Shadows (St. Martin’s, digital galley via NetGalley), in which a young mother returns to the snowy North Yorkshire moors where her husband vanished; and Alex Grecian’s gritty The Yard (Penguin, digital galley via NetGalley), set in a Victorian London still haunted by the Ripper and faced with the murder of a Scotland Yard detective. Now to start on Julia Keller’s A Killing in the Hills.

I have since discovered that the author is from the Midwest, and has never been to London.  Sigh.  Listen, I’m writing a historical fiction set in a similar time period in a similar place, so I’m not going to disparage the guy for his choice of setting. But he could have gone on a research trip, yes? I mean it’s not like you can step back in time and see the London you’re writing about, but you can see a lot of the same buildings. And there’s a feeling of the UK that you sort of have to see and sense, rather than read about or imagine.  Maybe that’s just me.

Anyway! I will start this review by humiliating myself and admitting that I didn’t get for the first 10 pages or so that this was about Scotland Yard. I knew it was a detective story, but for some reason I didn’t put the two together until it was explicitly stated in the text.  I was thinking the eponymous Yard was a prison or a particular place.  I don’t know why I thought that.  Oh well.  The plot of the book is your sort of classic detective story. It centers around 4 or 5 characters, all of whom work for the Yard, on the newly formed Murder Squad.  In response to the Jack the Ripper killings, the Metropolitan Police formed what was probably the first homicide department in the world.  This book takes place only a few years after the Ripper disappeared, in a London still very much preoccupied with his presence and what his existence might mean about the future of the (then) largest city in the world.  Much is made of the diminished public opinion of the police force, of their constantly being overworked and lacking necessary resources. We focus on Inspector Walter Day, new to the Yard from the country, as well as Dr. Kingsley, a self-appointed city medical examiner and forensics expert.  Since Kingsley was based on a true character, I won’t bring up any Sherlock Holmes similarities.  There’s also descent, hardworking Constable Hammersmith, raised in Collier, Wales to a mining family and escaping to the city to spend his life above ground. Look, the characters aren’t subtle.  Nothing in particular about the book is subtle.

The action opens when one of the Investigators of the Murder Squad is found murdered, his eyes and mouth sewn shut with thread, and stuffed inside a steamer trunk.  By the end of the action, there is one more officer dead, a small boy killed, a series of men shaved and then slit at the throat (or possibly the other way round), and a very disturbing kidnapping. Narrative shifts between the characters of the detectives, and even to the killer. It’s never confusing, however, as I suspect making it very readable was a priority more than making it particularly deep or thought-provoking.  And it is incredibly readable. I finished it in about 4 days time, and thoroughly enjoyed every minute, despite the flaws.

This is a book that purports to take place in the 19th century, but it doesn’t really.  Well, it’s as if modern characters are transplanted there and made to speak in British colloquialisms.  None of them belong to their time, and it’s not very believable in that sense. They seem to have sprung up there, but they are not of the 19th century, if that makes sense. And even the British colloquialisms they speak are mostly anachronistic and some utterly ridiculous–someone, a police officer, actually says ‘What’s all this then?’, like a bad Simpsons parody.  It’s not a well-done historical fiction. It could never pass for something that would have come of the period.  But that doesn’t make it a bad book.

It’s a quick, engrossing read. It’s a lot of fun to read, even though the killer’s identity and reasons are given to us fairly early on.  There is a lot of action, and it’s sort of the equivalent of the last few episodes of the season on 24. The action is pretty nonstop, so much so that it all sort of congregates and overlaps into a truly ridiculously fortuitous climax that is frankly unbelievable.  The resolution wraps every character into a nice tidy little bow. This is, I think, the sort of book other people read most often. Not challenging, not difficult, but fun and easy. It’s not the sort of thing I usually read, and if it weren’t set in 19th century London, I’m certain I never would have read it.  That being said, I enjoyed it. It felt a bit like junk food. You know you’re not getting nutrients, but you are enjoying the taste. And that’s okay! Junk food is okay every once in a while.

Also, as a side note, I do not for one second believe that Alex Grecian is his real name.

Click to view on Amazon

The Yard

by Alex Grecian

Fiction — Historical, Mystery
Putnam; May 2012
Hardcover
432 pages

From the back cover:

“Victorian London is a cesspool of crime, and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives–known as ‘The Murder Squad’–to investigate thousands of murders every month. Created after the Metropolitan Police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper, the Murder Squad suffers rampant public contempt. They have failed their citizens. But no one can anticipate the brutal murder of one of their own…one of twelve…

When Walter Day, the squad’s newest hire, is assigned the case of the murdered detective, he finds a strange ally in the Yard’s first forensic pathologist, Dr. Bernard Kingsley. Together they track the killer, who clearly is not finished with the Murder Squad…but why?

Filled with fascinating period detail, and real historical figures, this spectacular debut in a new series reveals the depravity of late Victorian London, showcases the advent of criminology, and introduces a stunning new cast of characters sure to appeal to fans of The Sherlockian and The Alienist.”

If you are a fan of graphic novels, you may recognize Alex Grecian as the author of the long-running series Proof. The Yard is Grecian’s first novel and it’s a good murder mystery set in Victorian London.

The Yard is split up into three major sections, one for each day that it takes Scotland Yard’s Murder Squad to figure out who is killing its men and to hunt the killer down. What makes Grecian’s novel a bit different from other murder mysteries is the revealing of the murderer to readers very early on in the book. To readers the book then becomes more of a thriller in which we watch the Murder Squad struggle to figure out what we already know before any more of them are killed. My first thought when the killer was revealed was, ‘Oh, man! This sucks. Now I can’t try to figure it out on my own. This book isn’t going to work.’ But it did work, and it worked very well. Knowing the identity of the killer didn’t at all take away from the thrill of watching the Murder Squad try to figure it out in a very limited amount of time (three days wasn’t a lot of time when the police officers of Victorian London didn’t have all of the resources and technology that our police officers have today). Additionally, other crimes are taking place in the city throughout the course of the investigation and the clues left behind during those crimes are getting (unknowingly) confused with clues from the case the Murder Squad is working on. This also adds to the angst the reader feels while watching the Murder Squad do its thing. All of the different plot lines come together to make a very interesting mystery/thriller that is very enjoyable to read.

Just as I enjoyed reading about historical New York City in Lyndsay Faye’s The Gods of Gotham, I enjoyed reading about Victorian London and the general feeling of its citizens in the wake of Jack the Ripper’s murder spree. I don’t know a whole lot about the evolution of criminology, so it was interesting to learn about one of the first branches of criminology to be made official by Scotland Yard and other law enforcement agencies. As happens with any new discovery or technology that people are unfamiliar with, the people who would benefit the most from the discovery of this branch of criminology scoffed at it and didn’t take it very seriously. It was funny to me to read about this particular method being made fun of when it is something that we take for granted today as one of the most widely used criminal tracking methods.

The characters in The Yard are well-written, although the book is obviously very plot-based. The bad guy is extremely creepy and makes my skin crawl. Walter Day makes a very good character for readers to follow through the rest of the series, provided that’s who the series continues to follow in the future. I also really like Dr. Kingsley and the man who becomes his assistant at the end of the story. I’m looking forward to reading more about all of them.

Alex Grecian knows how to write a good mystery/thriller with multi-dimensional characters and an interesting plot. The Yard is a real page-turner. I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction and mystery novels.

********************

(To learn more about Alex Grecian, please visit his website.)

**If you choose to purchase this title using the links below, I will receive a small percentage of the sale (to be used toward site maintenance and buying more books).

Amazon | Powell’s Books | IndieBound

(I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

I’m not quite done with the Zacks yet, but I’m a little disappointed in both, for opposite reasons.

The Yard feels a little amateurish; it’s drawing from an incredibly rich vein of material about nineteenth-century London police work, and yet its story-telling is both convoluted and a bit heavy-handed. It’s most successful in dealing (albeit with somewhat disingenuous, gee-whiz foreshadowing) with the birth of forensic science; I have my doubts as to the accuracy of the portrayal of, say, the the discovery of the potential use of fingerprints, but those scenes are at least highly entertaining. And I could have done without a few scattered flashbacks, which fill in background material we don’t necessarily need in a highly inorganic way. I’m interested in the period, but the book didn’t capture it well for me.

Island of Vice, on the other hand, tends to be a little dry, despite, again, incredibly rich material. The anecdotal level of the book is riveting—all the little day-to-day details and characters of life in NY at the cusp of the twentieth century, from the flower-sellers to the tricks played by the corruptest of the police to the sheer variety of debauchery to be found in Manhattan alone (solely because the other boroughs were not yet incorporated into New York city, not because they were lacking in vice). But although Theodore Roosevelt, in his time as police commissioner, had some qualities that make for entertaining storytelling (overconfidence, a bit of bombast, and a tin ear for political expedience), the balance of the book tips a little too much toward the micro-politics of the police commission rather than the greater NY scene for my taste. (Which is also perhaps to say, unfairly to Zacks, that Luc Sante’s Low Life retains a solid grip on my imagination of the period.) Island of Vice is a solid, engaging piece of history, but it’s not nearly as enjoyable as it could be.

It is my great pleasure to have New York Times bestselling author Alex Grecian with us today. A man with a truly varied career and celebrated author of long-running graphic novel Proof, Alex has just released mystery-thriller, The Yard. Today, Alex will be talking a bit about the power of history and the ways in which research can drive fiction. Alex–thank you once again for giving us your insights on the writing life (and on the intersection of history, mystery and fiction!)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

After leaving a career in advertising, working on accounts that included Harley-Davidson and The Great American Smokeout, Alex returned to his first love: writing fiction. He created the long-running and critically acclaimed graphic novel series Proof, which NPR named one of the best books of 2009. The series stars John “Proof” Prufock, a special-agent-sasquatch.

One of the Proof storylines is set in the 1800′s and inspired Alex’s debut novel The Yard.  It is the first in a projected series about the famous London Murder Squad. The second reportedly will focus on the development of photography in criminal investigation. You can find out more about Alex at his website, or you can follow him on Twitter @alexgrecian.

The Yard

I mentioned this book a few weeks ago on the Friday Fiction Feature. Bibliophile that I am, I just purchased the hard copy, too. It is sure to be a favorite with lovers of mystery and of Victorian England (yes, Sherlock fans, this means you).

1890, London.  Jack the Ripper’s reign of terror is finally over, but a new one is just beginning…

Victorian London is a cesspool of crime and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives – known as “The Murder Squad” – to investigate countless murders every month.  Created after the Metropolitan police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper, The Murder Squad suffers rampant public contempt.  They have failed their citizens.  But no one can anticipate the brutal murder of one of their own…one of twelve…

When Walter Day, the squad’s newest hire, is assigned the case of the murdered detective, he finds a strange ally in the Yard’s first forensic pathologist, Dr. Bernard Kingsley.  Together they track the killer, who clearly is not finished with The Murder Squad…but why?

For the history buff, please note: Alex Grecian offers a meticulously researched vision of the bustling city of London! Filled with fascinating period detail, and real historical figures, The Yard is a spectacular debut in a new series showcasing the depravity of the late Victorian city, the advent of criminology, and introduces a stunning new cast of characters sure to appeal to fans of Caleb Carr and Jed Rubenfeld. See the book trailer here!

Author Interview

1. I have always identified with the Asimov quote: “I write for the same reason I breathe—because if I didn’t, I’d die.” Does this describe you? Could you say a bit about your early writing experiences?

I don’t know that I’d die if I didn’t write. I imagine I’d become so utterly bored and useless that I’d fade into the wallpaper and be forgotten. But I’ll never know because I’ve always written and I’ll never stop writing. It’s something you do because it’s something you do, not a conscious choice. You’re wired for it or you aren’t. It’s a way of looking at the world.

When I was a little boy, my father used to collect old radio shows on giant reels of tape. He’d load them on an old reel-to-reel player and I’d listen to mystery/dramas like The Shadow and The Unexpected, Lights Out and Sherlock Holmes. Then I’d try to write my own stories for those shows that had gone off the air decades before I was even born. I knew they were old, but I had no idea radio plays weren’t a popular form of entertainment anymore. I wrote lots of stories about dinosaurs in subways (despite never having seen a subway) and vampires fighting Sherlock Holmes.

2. Not unlike many an author, I come from an academic background where writing fiction is a somewhat closeted affair. Can you talk about when you decided to “write for real”—that decision to write for publication and give this work the time and energy it so deserves?

I have always always always had an eye open toward eventually becoming a published novelist. I read The World According to Garp in high school and decided that Garp’s life was the one I wanted (except for the mutilations, adulteries, and sudden deaths). I wrote two novels that were absolutely terrible and put them away where nobody would ever see them. Then I wrote two more novels that I’m actually pretty proud of and hope to see published someday. I wrote dozens of short stories. Then I got the opportunity to write graphic novels and did that for a bit (I wrote seven of them, actually). When my agent told me that I ought to write this Scotland Yard idea I had as a prose novel, it was all the encouragement I needed.

Fiction shouldn’t be embarrassing or lesser-than. Sure, it’s meant to entertain, but it’s also a tool for navigating and understanding society. If a piece of fiction is good, it can inspire, uplift, teach, or even just provide a means of escape for a few hours. There’s real value to that, I think.

3. As an author and medical humanist, I am always interested in the intersections of history and fiction. Given your recent novel (set in the 1800s), can you say a bit about the relationship between research, history and the creative process?

I think you have to walk a fine line. A dry history text isn’t going to keep people turning pages. But you have to impart the right flavor to the work and that means you have to steep yourself in the history. You have to have a feel for the time and place that you’re writing about. I like to do as much reading as I can stand before I start writing. I need to have the broad overview. Then, as I write, I discover the details that I need to know. By then I know where I can find the information I need because of all the reading I did at the beginning. It’s the details that convince people. They want to feel like you know what you’re writing about. If you can convince your readers of that, they’ll go along with you and let themselves enjoy the story you’re telling. So, if you mention a pair of suspenders in your story, go in and make sure you know how suspenders are made, what they’re for, exactly, how they should be worn, who sold them, why your character wears suspenders instead of a belt… You don’t have to tell the reader all of that and you don’t have to know it all before you start writing, but you should be willing to figure it out along the way.

4. I know you began your career in a very different field of expertise—advertising. How has that shaped your approach to writing? To marketing your work?

I think I was relatively successful at the advertising game, but when I left it, I left it wholeheartedly. It was a job, nothing more. So now I don’t think I’m as good as I should be about hyping and marketing my work. That process feels false to me. I want people to enjoy what I write and tell each other about it. That said, I recognize how the book industry works and I recognize that I need to stand behind my work and make people aware of it. As proud as I am of the book, I want people to know that I’m sincere about it. I’m not pushing it, I’m genuinely happy that it’s out there. So I avoid hype, but I make sure to be available to talk about the things I’ve written. I hope that’s enough.

5. Proof was named one of the best books of 2009 by NPR—and is a graphic novel about a secret agent sasquatch. Can you tell us a bit about the process of crossing genres? Can you tell us about your experience as a cross-genre writer and what it takes to be successful?

I think having done Proof was important. It helped me develop my craft, it helped me better understand deadlines (although a few years working in advertising had already done a good job of hammering home the importance of deadlines), and it gave me a platform of readers who might be willing to follow me over and read my prose. That said, it’s a completely different industry and a completely different art form.

Of course, any time anybody says “secret agent sasquatch,” I feel like I have to explain that the book was basically Tarzan, turned on it’s head. It’s an ape-creature, captured as a child and raised by humans as one of them. Eventually, he becomes more sophisticated than the people around him, but he doesn’t really fit in with them and he wouldn’t fit in with other sasquatches either. It was his quest to find other creatures like him that drove the series, the quest for identity. And that’s, I think, the common theme in everything I write.

As far as being successful goes, I think that’s always a matter of doing the best work you’re capable of, no matter what the medium or genre. Everything matters. My name is on Proof and it’s on the Yard and so I have to be able to feel like I can hand anything I’ve written to someone and be proud and happy that they’re reading it.

6. Every writer has a different writing strategy—or so I tell my novel-writing students. How do you approach the writing process? Revision? Writers’ block?

I’ve always had a 2,000-word-a-day goal. For The Yard and its sequel, I settled for 1,000 words because there was more of a start-stop rhythm over the course of a working day. There was so much research to do that I had trouble hitting my original goal. Still, that daily word-count helps keep me focused. That way, no matter what distractions might crop up, I know I’ll still get a certain amount of work done. That’s comforting.

I tend to write in the morning, before the phone rings, before I have to pay bills or run errands. Before the real world intrudes and breaks the spell.

Revisions are a tough slog for me because I’m always ready to put a piece of writing away and move on to the next thing. But I try to look carefully at what my editor is saying and, whether I agree that a thing needs to be changed on page 235 or not, I recognize that he saw a problem on page 235. So maybe I need to go back to page 148 and change something so that the problem on page 235 disappears. You have to step back and look at the book as a whole, as a timeline. There are no precious things on that timeline. No matter how much I love something on page 148, I might have to cut it out in order to make the rest of the book work better.

I had never experienced writer’s block in my life until recently. And that’s entirely because the real world has intruded in a variety of interesting ways. I’ll let you know how I end up dealing with it. But I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a matter of sitting myself down and doing the work because I need to do the work. (Lawyers and doctors don’t get to skip work for days on end because they don’t feel like going in. Why should we?)

7. As the mentor for a university writing club, I often preach to my students about the value of networking and workshopping. Could you say a bit about your own responsive readers and mentors? Your approach to criticism?

I have many writer friends and everybody’s mileage varies on this subject. (On most subjects, actually, but especially this one.) Some of them like to show a story around at every addition or revision, every step of the way. I’m at the opposite end of the spectrum. I prefer to keep my cards close to my vest until I have something I like. I don’t want people reading chunks of a book, and I don’t like to inflict multiple versions of the same thing on anybody. For me, knowing fellow writers who are going through the same things I am is enough. There’s a sort of invisible camaraderie there that I find comforting. Once I finish a book or story, I have a handful of people whose opinions I trust and I send it to them and cross my fingers. I know that one or two of them will like everything unreservedly and my ego needs their feedback in order to brace itself against the two or three others whom I know will pick a manuscript apart. I want it picked apart, I want to find the problems and fix them before everybody else in the world sees them and I’m not deluded enough to imagine that I don’t make mistakes. But a little unconditional love makes it easier to confront my fallibility.

Once my early readers have had their way with a story and I’ve fixed everything they’ve pointed out that needs fixing, I send it to my agent and editor and brace myself all over again.

8. Do you have advice for new writers on “breaking in” to the publishing world? Or upon the need/value of agents?

There’s a quote I sling around quite a bit: “Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” – Anonymous.

If you can give up writing and walk away, you probably should. But if you have talent and you don’t give up on yourself, eventually something will happen for you. I believe that.

That said, the publishing business is complicated. You can’t concentrate on writing and also develop the knowledge and contacts in the industry that you’ll need. At least, I can’t. I think it’s essential to partner with someone reputable, someonewho can take what you’ve done and get it in front of the right people. That’s not an easy thing to do and you need an expert to handle that part of the job for you. It’s important, though, not to settle for the first person who answers a query. Be patient and find an agent you click with, someone you feel comfortable working with, and someone who will deal with you promptly and honestly.

9. Who do you consider your inspiration? (Literary or otherwise?)

There are so many! Odd as it may seem, one of my biggest inspirations is the actor Jimmy Stewart. There are always disappointing days, days when things don’t go the way I’d like them to. I have to take a step back and remind myself not to give in to cynicism or depression or anger. I try to deal with everything in the most genuine and honest and heartfelt way I can muster and taking a couple of hours out to watch a good Jimmy Stewart movie is often the best way to sort of reset my attitude.

Also, there’s Graham Greene, Cormac McCarthy, Stephen King, John Irving, Grant Morrison, my wife and son, and many more.

10. Finally, are there any forums, books, blogs or other sites and services you would recommend to new writers?

Formatting and Submitting Your Manuscript by Cynthia Laufenberg, Stephen King’s On Writing, Terry Brooks’sSometimes the Magic Works, Anne Lamott’sBird by Bird, Michael Chabon’sMaps and Legends, Scriptshadow.com, Roget’s College Thesaurus in Dictionary Form (I have two copies; one next to my desk and one I carry around with me), The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. Lawrence Block has written five books about writing and they’re all good.
Read every author interview you can find. See if there’s anything you can take away from them. And every time you find an author who’s doing something you like, read everything she ever wrote. You don’t want to ape her style, but you might unconsciously absorb a little bit of what you like from her work.
And keep writing every day.

The Yard
By: Alex Grecian

1889 London is not a good place to be a policeman. The infamous killer, Jack the Ripper, is never caught and London citizens do not try to hide their disapproval of the officers who let them down. After the famous failure Scotland Yard creates the “Murder Squad”, but there are only 12 detectives to deal with the countless murders that occur every month. Despite public contempt for the Murder Squad no one expects a detective to be found brutally murdered. Walter Day, the newest detective on the Squad, is assigned to the case, and allies with Dr. Bernard Kingsley, the squad’s forensic pathologist.  Together they track the killer, hoping to catch him before he strikes again. At the same time, policeman Nevil Hammersmith is haunted by a case that he can’t seem to let go. With these two mysteries, The Yard draws you into a whirlwind of theft, prostitution, and murder.

I wasn’t expecting much from this book since it is Alex Grecian’s debut novel, but I really enjoyed it. The plot is interesting and Grecian goes about writing the book in a very unique way. He tells the story from different characters’ points of view; on one page you’ll be reading the story from Walter Day’s point of view, the next page will be the killer’s. The killer was revealed before the story ended, which made it more interesting since you could see what was running through his head and why he was killing detectives. It did get a bit confusing at some points, since there were various plots occurring in the book, but eventually I got used to the writing style. The Yard was entertaining and suspenseful and kept me up. After reading this I will definitely keep my eyes open for Grecian’s next novel.

Some minor plot spoilers follow, but I will absolutely NOT ruin the mystery for you.

The tale begins with the shocking murder of one of Scotland Yard’s detectives, who has been inexplicably stabbed to death and stuffed in a steamer trunk at a train station. While Scotland Yard has created a new murder squad of detectives dedicated to solving London’s homicides in the wake of the unsolved Jack the Ripper killings, ordinary citizens have mostly lost confidence in the police. And now one of their own has been killed.

We have three protagonists: Inspector Day, a newly-wed, inexperienced detective who has just joined Scotland Yard; Constable Hammersmith, a stalwart policeman who managed to escape from a childhood of desperate poverty; and Dr. Kingsley, a caring but absent-minded widower with a great personal interest in criminal forensics. They begin the novel working to solve one murder and end up investigating a series of killings, some only tangentially related to the rest.

THE YARD moves quickly and is engaging. The protagonists are well-developed (we even see some interesting tidbits from their pasts in flashback chapters) and the secondary characters interesting, quirky, and memorable. The novel’s plot hangs together coherently, an absolute must for a police procedural. Its also relatively complex, with lots of moving parts, but at no point does the plot become confusing for the reader. The criminology used to solve the murders, true to form, is rather crude and relies on lots of legwork and a bit of luck. It’s a very well put together story and I look forward to more from the author.

This is not to say that the work is entirely without blemishes. This is one of those police procedurals that provides the identity of the murderer early on, and includes periodic interludes from this individual’s perspective. If you don’t mind those, then this won’t be a problem, but I prefer for the villain’s identity and motives to be left uncertain for as long as possible. One of the protagonists, Kingsley, is a physician who is interested in the cutting-edge use of fingerprints to solve crimes. While it’s an interesting element, and shows his progressive outlook, as it turns out, the fingerprinting aspect of the case is almost entirely superfluous. As such, I’d have rather had it excluded. The main sub-plot – somehow related to a dead boy stuck in a chimney, an unpleasant physician and his wife, and two prostitutes who always seem to be lurking about – remains mostly opaque and unsatisfying. Either more should have been done with this sub-plot or it should have been left out entirely. And, I must admit, the crimes are wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly in the climax; this produces a finale that wraps everything up thoroughly, but in a slightly unsatisfying way. I’d have liked to see that complicated a bit. I don’t want to focus too much on these issues, as none prevent the novel from being thoroughly enjoyable. I am really just quibbling with a few of the author’s choices.

THE YARD is highly recommended to those who like period crime fiction. It’s well done, and a strong debut novel. It seems clear that there will be a sequel, and I suspect that Alex Grecian’s second effort will be even stronger. The cast of characters he has assembled have a lot of potential for additional stories, and the setting is ripe for further exploration. I’m looking forward to it.

Review copyright 2012 J. Andrew Byers

Summary from the publisher:
Victorian London is a cesspool of crime, and Scotland Yard has only twelve detectives—known as “The Murder Squad”—to investigate countless murders every month. Created after the Metropolitan Police’s spectacular failure to capture Jack the Ripper, The Murder Squad suffers rampant public contempt. They have failed their citizens. But no one can anticipate the brutal murder of one of their own . . . one of the twelve . . .When Walter Day, the squad’s newest hire, is assigned the case of the murdered detective, he finds a strange ally in the Yard’s first forensic pathologist, Dr. Bernard Kingsley. Together they track the killer, who clearly is not finished with The Murder Squad . . . but why?

This book first came to my attention via a lovely ad in Shelf Awareness, and I was immediately intrigued. I’ve always been fascinated by the early days of the police force, be it Scotland Yard or New York’s finest (and if you are interested in the latter, you must read the fantastic The Gods of Gotham by Lyndsay Faye), and this had the added interest of being set directly after the Ripper murders, when London was still reeling and morale at the Yard was extremely low. By the time I got to the part about a serial killer targeting police, I was sold.

And this book delivers. Grecian really captured the ambiance of Victorian London, from the wealthy neighborhoods, to the underbelly of the East End, to the rundown dwellings of the underpaid members of the Murder Squad. He also gave a great sense of the public’s attitude towards the police and how that contempt led the murderer to undertake a sort of vigilante justice. But the most fascinating part, for me, was watching the Murder Squad solve the case without the methods we take for granted, such as fingerprinting, which, at that point, was not an accepted science, and the sequestering of evidence—there was a moment where someone almost made off with the murder weapon that had me on the edge of my seat.

The characters are also absolutely winning. There was a fearful moment at the beginning where Day and Hammersmith’s paths felt slightly divergent, but Grecian brought them together masterfully, and I really loved watching them come into their own. Day, Hammersmith, and pathologist Dr. Kingsley make a great team that I will happily follow through future cases.

This was a solid debut mystery that had me riveted all the way through. I can’t wait for the next installment in the series!

As you know, I do not post many books reviews on my blog, but I am hoping this book becomes the topic of many conversations. If you have read it I would love to hear about it, and if you have an opinion on the role of editors I would love to hear that too.

Poor Walter Day, he may be well over his head when it comes to his new job. It is the second day for the newly appointed detective, he is unsure if he is qualified to be a member of Scotland Yard’s “Murder Squad”, the public no longer respects the police and now one of their own has been found murdered.

This the emotional setting Alex Grecian sets up in his debut novel The Yard.  The year is 1889, Jack the Ripper’s killings have mysteriously ended, but for Scotland Yard new terror is setting in. Grisly murders are on the rise and it seems to those involved in the seedy side of life England is becoming more and more dangerous. The police are under staffed and over worked, and forensic science is it its infancy; crimes are hard to solve, even as the public demands answers.

Grecian plunges his readers into the heart of Victorian England, from its dirty streets, to poverty stricken inhabitants, he leaves no gritty detail out. All too often authors pick a place or time for their setting without doing much research. Grecian has done his homework, you cannot help but feel the grime and hopelessness of the era.

The characters Grecian introduces to us and well flushed out, though my favorite is not his main character, William Day, no I was for more interested in Dr. Kingsley a self appointed medical examiner who is at the forefront of forensic science.  If this series is to continue I hope Grecian recognizes that Kingsley may be a better  protagonist than Day. It is really Kingsley who drives the story along.

I picked the book up on a Friday and had it done by Saturday night; this is not a book that is easy to put down. The action  is set at just the right pace you don’t feel exhausted yet it keeps you hooked , you will want to keep reading if only to see the killer(s) come to justice.  If you start this book late in the day be prepared to read long into the night. I was up late because I just had to finish it!

There has been some talk regarding Grecian’s decision to quickly let the readers know who the killer is. I had no such qualms, as I found the killer to be creepy; he gave the book its edge. My problem with the book is that as we enter deeper and deeper into the killer’s mind, we are given clues that there is more going on. We have to ask, who else has he killed? Sadly, this is not resolved to my satisfaction. The one other issue I have, is when the killer and the detective meet. If you think you may have missed something rest assured, you did not. This is an error on the editor’s part. I have come across this when editing a book. The author may know how it is two characters find themselves in the same place but fail to write about it. It is up to a good editor to point this out.

There are a few scenes that did not work for me, but without getting into spoiler alert territory, which I hate, I can’t go into. Again, a good editor could have warned Grecian he was turning some of his characters into Keystone cops; the killer at times seemed to be crying out “catch me” but the police fail to put the pieces in place.  Having said this, I still highly recommend the book, if nothing else for Grecian’s flawless look at Victorian England and the birth of modern police forensics. I am looking forward to his next adventure.

Thank you to Putnam Books and Librarything’s Early Reviewer program for allowing me to review this book.

This column is later than usual, as I was a little preoccupied earlier this month, but for all those still madly wondering about what October 2011′s comics had to offer, here we go…

BEST #1

Spaceman #1
Writer: Brian Azzarello
Art: Eduardo Risso
Publisher: Vertigo

I’ve read only a fraction of Azzarello and Risso’s acclaimed 100 Bullets, which ran for ten years from 1999 to 2009, but one needs no familiarity with their past work to be immediately sucked in by the opening chapter of Spaceman, their new nine-issue mini-series from Vertigo. It takes place in a weird, sad future, just a few monsters and flying cars away from the one in Joss Whedon’s Fray. Our protagonist is Orson, a monkey-ish man genetically engineered to travel to Mars, a trip the human race never got to make. Orson and his low-class friends speak in bizarre, disjointed slang; “okee” is how they say okay, and they actually say “LOL LOL LOL” instead of laughing. In this first issue, Orson has ominous spaceman dreams and becomes involved in the kidnapping of the adopted child of reality TV stars. Eduardo Risso’s art is terrific, Brian Azzarello’s storytelling immediately compelling. Choice line, as Orson’s alarm chirps “New day, new day, new day” while he opens the door on a bleak, cloudless future: “Why, you lyin machine…it’s the same fuck old day it always is.” (Plus: $1!)

MOST WELL-TIMED SNOWBALL

Uncanny X-Men #544
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Art: Greg Land (pencils), Jay Leisten (inks), Justin Ponsor (colors)
Publisher: Marvel

Of late, big things have been afoot for Marvel’s once-merry mutants, with Schism splitting the team into two factions: one in San Francisco whose members don’t mind that Cyclops trains children to be brutal soldiers, and one with Wolverine in New York whose members do mind. I missed the Schism mini itself, but the Regenesis one-shot showed the team breaking apart (with a really weird tribal framing device), and the new ongoing Wolverine and the X-Men is a fun look at what happens when Logan tries to run a school. The most important development, though, may be the fact that the original, 48-year run of Uncanny X-Men is coming to a close. The renumbering is merely symbolic; as of this writing, Uncanny has already returned as the Cyclops half of the new pair of flagship X-books. As the denouement of a decades-long story, this issue is merely decent. The Mister Sinister stuff might be set-up for a future storyline, but it still feels like filler, and the rest is mostly Scott being an asshole, something he excels at. However, there are a few grace notes: the opening page is the opening page of the first-ever X-Men, with Jack Kirby’s original art but different dialogue; there is a stellar two-page spread featuring most of the major developments over the course of the series; and the most well-timed snowball in comics history. Scott spends the whole issue reminiscing about what the X-Men used to be and brooding about their future, then exchanges some curt words with Hank, before turning to leave. “Hey, Scott!” calls a departing Bobby. He turns around, and a snowball hits him in the face. Cyclops is unamused. Bobby, smiling: “You’re not that different.”

BEST ANTHOLOGY

The Unexpected
Writers: Dave Gibbons; G. Willow Wilson; Alex Grecian; Josh Dysart; Jeffrey Rotter; Matt Johnson; Joshua Hale Falkov; Brian Wood; Selwyn Hinds
Art: Dave Gibbons; Robbi Rodriguez; Jill Thompson; Farel Dalrymple; Lelio Bonaccorso; David Lapham; Rahsan Ekedal; Emily Carroll; Denys Cowan
Publisher: Vertigo

The $8 pricetag is hefty, but for twice the cost of some mediocre regular-sized comics, you get 70-some pages of stories that are macabre, thoughtful, and provocative. The nine stories in those pages are unusually consistent; as with any anthology, some are weaker than others, but The Unexpected doesn’t contain a real clunker. Even the closing story, designed to hawk the forthcoming Voodoo Child, works as an interesting short on its own. Legends like Dave Gibbons and Jill Thompson chip in with stories about an unfaithful escape artist and an uncommonly intelligent zombie, respectively, and G. Willow Wilson, whose Mystic I’ve been raving about, writes an intriguing story which imagines a world in which dogs rise up and confront the humans who mistreat them. My two favorite stories, though, are by talents largely unknown to me. One is “The Land,” about a Mexican rancher in 1950s Texas who knows far more about the nature of a local child’s death than the authorities could hope to. Both Josh Dysart’s writing and Farel Dalrymple’s art are spare and evocative, the result a haunting story that also acts as a reflection of the current racial troubles in America. My other favorite is “Americana,” written by Brian Wood with art by Emily Carroll. It also comments on where our country is right now, imagining a dark future from 2012 to 2100. The storytelling is so economical it’s genius, and the ending feels genuinely profound. Unexpected, indeed.

BOOK WHOSE ART IS THE BIGGEST OBSTACLE TO ENJOYING IT

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #2
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Art: Alberto Ponticelli (pencils/inks), Jose Villarrubia (colors)
Publisher: DC

In theory, I should enjoy this book. Frankenstein heads up a squad of monsters including a mummy, a werewolf, and a Creature from the Black Lagoon type. Father Time is a little girl. Weird, fantastical set pieces abound. Jeff Lemire, currently writing the hell out of Animal Man, is the mastermind behind it all. And yet…Alberto Ponticelli’s art is…well, it’s not very good. It’s not awful, or even bad, but I would say it’s less than “just okay.” Ponticelli is capable of rallying for a big moment, as the splash of Frankenstein jumping from a helicopter attests. Unfortunately, his art can be scratchy and ill-defined elsewhere, the flashback to Agent Mazursky’s transformation into a monster a particularly good (or bad) example. Lemire’s writing, while not on the level of his Animal Man, is funny and exciting. Frankenstein is appealingly gruff in a Hellboy kind of way, and his standoffish interplay with the rest of the team is entertaining. If only J.G. Jones, who has been doing very good covers for the series, were drawing it. For a better example of this kind of thing, check out Marvel’s new Legion of Monsters mini.

COMIC THAT MOST SNUCK UP ON ME

The Punisher #4
Writer: Greg Rucka
Art: Marco Checchetto (pencils/inks), Matt Hollingsworth (colors)
Publisher: Marvel

The Punisher, much like Venom, is one of those characters who seem totally badass when you’re a kid, but kind of boring and one-note once you grow up. Venom has recently undergone some radical changes, first when Eddie Brock became Anti-Venom, then when Flash Thompson started using the symbiote on black ops missions for the U.S. government. The Punisher, too, has undergone some changes, though more in terms of tone than concept. Frank Castle is still a stoic killer out to avenge the slaughter of his family by taking out as many criminals as possible. What’s different here is Greg Rucka’s approach. So far, the Punisher has been more of a mysterious force of nature surrounding the story than a central presence. Rucka, whose past work on titles like Gotham Central and Queen & Country shows he clearly knows his way around complex crime comics, focuses on Detectives Ozzy Clemons and Walter Bolt’s investigation into a slaying at a wedding reception whose only survivor was the bride, a Marine sergeant. It’s just that the Punisher has a habit of killing their leads, exacerbated by the fact that Bolt is actually leaking info to Mr. Castle. Daily Bugle reporter Norah Winters is trying to write a story about the Punisher when she finds him bloody and beaten in an alley. Over four issues, the Punisher has said maybe a dozen words (most of them here). Instead of the kind of silly “grim ‘n’ gritty” story the Punisher used to star in back in the 80s and 90s, what we have here is a damn good detective story in which Frank Castle actually emerges as a compelling character for the first time in years.

MOST UNEXPECTEDLY TOUCHING ENDING TO A MEDIOCRE EVENT

The Amazing Spider-Man #672
Writer: Dan Slott
Art: Humberto Ramos (pencils), Victor Olazaba and Karl Kesel (inks), Edgar Delgado (colors)
Publisher: Marvel

In the first “Last Month’s Comics” column back in September, I called the “Spider-Island” event “ridiculous” and “severely underwhelming.” Nothing  much happened to change my mind, though there were some enjoyable mini-series and one-shots on the periphery. All six issues of Amazing that comprised the main storyline were busy and cluttered, confusing tons of frenzied action and talky exposition with good storytelling. There were clones and queens and heroes galore, but little that actually seemed to mean anything to the characters. The truth is that, like those before it, this issue isn’t much good. However, at the end, there is a moment which so perfectly embodies who Peter is and why he does what he does that it’s kinda beautiful. With all the heroes gathered to battle the Spider-Queen in Union Square, Mary Jane makes Peter realize that he won’t be of any use in this fight because everyone has his powers now. Instead, he needs to use that big brain of his. So he puts on Doc Ock’s old control helmet, sends out millions of Octobots to drink up the cure, and starts delivering it to the infected. The unrestrained glee on his face as he shouts, “I’m going to save everybody!” couldn’t help but put a smile on my face. MJ whispers that she loves him and the issue ends with them being all cuddly atop the Empire State Building. Can we get these two back together already?

WORST COMIC

Avengers 1959 #1
Writer: Howard Chaykin
Art: Howard Chaykin (pencils/inks), Jesus Aburtov (colors)
Publisher: Marvel

The premise of this five-issue mini-series is interesting: In 1959, Nick Fury puts together the first Avengers team, and they go on international espionage missions. The team consists of some surprising individuals, including Sabretooth, Kraven the Hunter, and Namora. Unfortunately, this extremely cool idea is wasted on a clichéd script and terrible artwork. Howard Chaykin is a legend in some circles, but he has not grown better with age. His faces look big and squishy, and his hands are distractingly awful. Seriously, just on the first page alone, there are like five examples of awkward-looking hands that are splayed out uncomfortably in a manner that a double-jointed person would pull off if they were trying to freak someone out. (And I should know, I’m double-jointed.) Jesus Aburtov’s dull, glossy colors don’t help matters. There’s really not much else to say about such a boring, poorly-executed book. Except I want to know what Howard Chaykin’s hands look like.

BEST COMIC

Ultimate Spider-Man #3
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Art: Sarah Pichelli (pencils/inks), Justin Ponsor (colors)
Publisher: Marvel

Oh, Bendis. You make this look so easy. The man is writing what feels like half the books in the regular Marvel universe, most of them good-to-great, and then on top of that he’s writing this effortlessly brilliant reinvention of Ultimate Spider-Man. Three issues in and there are still no tights in sight, just plenty of adolescent insecurity and ambivalence. Miles Morales may not be sure that he wants these new superpowers of his, but he saves his first civilians when he puts his life on the line by jumping into a burning building. The rest of the issue is largely spent talking things through with Miles’ best friend Ganke, who’s becoming more and more of an invaluable creation on Bendis’ part. If Miles isn’t excited about his newfound abilities, Ganke sure as hell is, and his proclamation that he “sculpt[s] with Legos” while wearing a Howard the Duck shirt guarantees you’ll love the kid. The issue ends on a sad note that shows where in the story we are and hints at what might spur Miles into full-fledged superheroism. In short: if you’re not reading this series, you have severe problems.

OTHER COMICS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT

I’m going to try a new approach to this section, since there are so many other noteworthy comics I’d like to recommend. It’ll be more like a comics roll call, but still in alphabetical order so as not to be all biased ‘n stuff.

Another super-short mini comes to a close with Abe Sapien: The Devil Does Not Jest #2 (Dark Horse), filled with more supernatural spookiness;  Angel & Faith #3 (Dark Horse) continues to be the stronger of the two Buffyverse series on the shelves right now; I thankfully read Animal Man #2 (DC) on my new Kindle Fire the other day, just in time to tell you how fucking great it is, like best-of-the-New-52 great; The Avengers #18 (Marvel) continues to show why Bendis is the funniest, most naturalistic superhero writer on the block; Batwoman #2 (DC), with dazzling artwork by J.H. Williams III and co-written by Williams and W. Haden Blackman, makes a compelling case for itself as the best of the new Batbooks; you likely won’t read a more moving comic having to do with the Holocaust this year than Captain America & Bucky #623 (Marvel); Casanova: Avaritia #2 (Icon) is more off-the-wall insanity from Matt Fraction and Gabriel Bá; Daredevil #5 (Marvel) continues the highly successful return to DD’s swashbuckling roots; FF #s 10-11 (Marvel) are dense, complicated stories about war in alternate dimensions that are just plain fun to read; Invincible Iron Man #509 (Marvel) is the conclusion to that series’ “Fear Itself” tie-in; after Mystic #3 (Crossgen), I can’t believe there’s only one issue left; Secret Avengers #18 (Marvel) finds Shang-Chi kicking some serious ass alongside Steve Rogers and Sharon Carter; Severed #3 (Image) is some seriously creepy, engrossing stuff; Spider-Island: Cloak & Dagger #3 (Marvel), featuring beautiful art by Emma Rios, is easily the best thing to come out of that whole event and hey, give those two their own ongoing, for Pete’s sake; Swamp Thing #2 (DC) continues to appeal with its plant-based intrigue (I don’t know what that means, but this book is really good); and The Walking Dead #s 89-90 (Image) are, what else is knew, brilliantly dark and depressing.

Join me next month to talk about this month’s comics!

But it was a great day for comics and not only did I spend a paltry $30.91 on comics but most of them were awesome and a few really surprised me.  Sure some were subpar, but as a whole my #Newcomics were great.  So what did I get?

Doesn't Zabu look terrified here? Weird.

The Incredible Hulks #625
I think that Dale Eaglesham has it in him to draw a great Hulk book, but he needs to really fine tune his pencils.  Some panels that rely heavily on a sense of movement have characters hanging in the air instead of careening to the ground ready to smash.  The movement lines are there but the bodies don’t convey any motion.

That being said I like Eaglesham’s Hulk anatomy and the page where the Green Goliath rides into battle wearing the carapaces of Miek’s insect minions, looking like some savage insectoid samurai, was simply stunning.  Unfortunately even in such a great page the awesomeness of the Hulk is downplayed by the more eye-catching red tendrils of the creepy worm beast he’s riding.

Also for whatever reason the facial anatomy of the Hulk is a bit too perfect in a few panels and he just looks creepy.  I wasn’t too impressed with this little story line.  I don’t know if it’s because I don’t really enjoy the remnants of Planet Sakaar or what but I’m looking forward to Hulk going toe to toe with Betty in the next issue.  The cover looks amazing!
Rating: 2/5

The All-New Avengers

Age of X Universe #1
Alright, so none of the characters included in this Age of X offshoot have any personality besides the Hulk and Sue Storm, something I hope the next issue will hit us with when they’re in the thick of battle with the muties.

The leader of this band of Avengers and the narrator, Captain America, or whoever he might be, comes off about as appealing as cardboard while tormented souls like Banner grab the spotlight.  What this tale does well though is set a stage for the Age of X arc, revealing a little more of the world that Magneto and his fellow mutants are fighting in.  That was great but Mr. Spurrier, why did you have to beat down two of my favorite mutants, Maggot and Marrow?  Is this some sort of personal vendetta?  What did I ever do to you?

After seeing what Khoi Pham did on The Incredible Hercules and Chaos War the work he’s done here is unacceptable.  Maybe he was burnt out from doing such an awesome job on those titles that he didn’t have enough for this book.  Maybe he just wasn’t feeling inspired, but whatever the case he can do better.  I’ve seen it.  HOWEVER he did end up drawing one of the straight up creepiest Sabretooths I’ve ever seen.  Honestly, Creed’s a train wreck.  I couldn’t look away.

The Spider-Man tale was a little better, if shorter, simply because it worked with what we already know about the character, didn’t try to throw us any curveballs, and added to our knowledge of the Age of X universe.
Rating: 3/5

Avengers #11
I will say one thing, John Romita Jr. knows how to pull off epic.  Each page in this issue is it’s own spread, harkening back to such earth-shattering events as Superman’s fatal clash with Doomsday way back when.  It adds a gravitas that’s enhanced by Uatu’s solemn monologue.  What’s most important?  It doesn’t feel like a gimmick.  While I didn’t like Bendis’ first Avengers arc I’m really digging this one.
Rating: 4/5

Cyclops One-Shot

Cyclops One-Shot
There have been some depressing Cyclops tales churned out by Marvel in the past but this one-shot, by Lee Black and Dean Haspiel, shrugs off the shackles that burdened its sad predecessors and gets one thing very right: fun.  It’s such a simple word, so small and unassuming, but it’s just what Cyclops needs and just what Black and Haspiel deliver.

Black reminds us that Cyclops was a kid once, but even then he was a wet blanket, and that’s half the fun here. With beautiful colors by Jose Villarubia, Cyclops is thrust into a vibrant world of capes and clowns as he does battle with the Circus of Crime.  Of course he’s got Sun Tzu’s The Art of War with him (When doesn’t he?) but the ancient war text snippets add a bit of misplaced seriousness to the levity on the page that meshes well with Haspiel’s pencils and the light-hearted tone of the issue.

The fights with the Circus are well realized and I caught myself smirking at some of the details, like the Clown passing a little glass after Cyclops blasts him with his crimson force beam. Dean Haspiel does a wonderful job keeping the art uncluttered, focusing on details when necessary, but giving Villarubia enough space to ply his wonderful color magic to his pencils.  If you’re on the fence as to whether or not you want to purchase this book, just get it, you’ll be glad you did.
Rating: 4/5

Dead End for Elvis?

Proof: Endangered #4
I’ve gotta say that Proof surprised me this week.  It was a decent issue, and brings quite a few things to a head to be resolved next month, but I’m wondering what hold Death has over Grecian and Rossmo’s characters?  Someone dies here, maybe, but I won’t ruin the surprise.

What I really wanted to talk about is the two character biographies at the back of the book.  Colonel Dachshund and Mi-Chen-Po are spotlighted and I’ve gotta say I’m a sucker for that sort of stuff.

When an author and artist go out of their way to expand the backstory of their universe… it just makes me happy.  I love to know how much thought goes into the characters and world their characters live in and with so many great personalities waiting to be fleshed out in Proof this is a big step in the right direction.  Keep it up guys!

I also picked up Scalped #47, Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8, Black Panther The Man Without Fear #516, and Ultimate X #4.  Of those I really enjoyed Scalped, some of Guy Gardner’s lantern constructs in Emerald Warriors were awesome to behold, Black Panther needs to get his shit together and take down Vlad, and Ultimate X needs to come out more regularly because I like Blob’s son.  For some reason, after only being in one issue, he’s the character I like most.

PEACE!

PROOF: ENDANGERED #4

story ALEX GRECIAN, art & cover RILEY ROSSMO

32 PAGES, FC, $3.99

“ENDANGERED,” Part Four
Proof has been fighting monsters for more than 200 years. Now somebody finally dies. Proof’s running out of friends and may have to turn to his enemies for help.

RETAILER WARNING: MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES

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A comic staring Bigfoot and an agent named Elvis, that right there sums up Proof Endangered #2.  I have no idea how the hell to describe the series.  It’s crazy, over the top, and most importantly, fun.

The plot as far as I can tell involves the gathering of fictitious beings, but they exist in this world, but I missed the first issue.  But, really there’s giant worms, and again Bigfoot in clothes kicking ass.

I don’t even know how to describe the rest of the series.  It’s just fun, over the top, the X-Files on crack really.  The art is solid as well with some great character designs.

The series third issue has just come out, so it’s a perfect time to grab a few issues and check out a solid series you’re probably missing out on.

Plot: Writer Alex Grecian has a completely whacked plot, and I like it.  Bigfoot as some kind of agent?  Big giant worms?  There’s a lot here and like some other mash-up series, this one pulls it off quite well.  Rating: 8.5

Art: Artist Riley Rossmo has a great style and that’s backed up by colorist Frank Zigarelli.  The designs are top notch, and there’s some great action and spreads and use of panels.  Fantastic work that I want to see more of.  Rating: 8.25

Overall: The concept is over the top, the action is fun and the art is solid.  This issue is solid and enough so I want to see what’s next and check out the issue I missed.  Fantastic work.  Overall rating: 8.5

Recommendation: Buy

Page count: 24 pages    Price: $3.99     Release: Out Now

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with an advance copy of this issue for FREE for review.

Silver Surfer #1 – The story here is pretty good stuff.  It isn’t the best story ever regarding the Surfer, but a very solid story involving Earthly affairs with a surprising guest starring role from the High Evolutionary.  This action seems to dovetail with the High Evolutionary story occurring in the Iron Man – Thor miniseries from Abnett & Lanning.  What really puts this issue over the top is the art.  Stephen Segovia and Victor Olazaba do an awesome job drawing and inking (especially inking) the Surfer and Wil Quintana contributes great cosmic colors.  I am trying to pare down my “non-essential” Marvel titles, but this display of art will probably have me sticking around.  Grade: A-  — Dean Stell

Wolverine & Jubilee #2 - This is a great series so far that casts Wolverine in his best role: as mentor to a younger hero.  Not only is this my favorite role for Wolverine, but it has always been the best way to bring new members into the X-universe.  Jubilee isn’t new, but she is in a new “role” as she adapts to her vampiric powers (which we learn more about in this issue).  Kathryn Immonen even works in some very funny bits such as Wolverine’s revelation that one can apparently get one’s tongue stuck to Colossus if it is really cold outside.  I DEMAND that that story be in the next Strange Tales!  This issue is also telling a neat story that shows Logan and Jubilee finding zombies in Siberia and it would have gotten a better grade if not for a wholly confusing final page.  Seriously, the final page made me wonder if there was a printing error and I’d missed something.  Phil Noto’s art is again wonderfully pretty.  He draws such pretty eyes on his women.  Grade: B+  — Dean Stell

Venom/Deadpool #1 – No character but Deadpool could pull off a comic like this, and I highly doubt that many writers other than Remender could have written it. This fourth-wall slaughtering romp through the Marvel U is a great deal of fun, with in-jokes, creative references and absurdity to spare. The artwork is big and bold (as well it should be for this kind of a tale) and the story itself–Deadpool is on a quest to find the Continuity Cube, thus making himself the single most relevant character in the Marvel Universe–is a very funny concept that both Remender and Moll execute very well. I must admit, I’m glad I bought the single, $2.99 comic rather than trying to piece together the four mini-chapters that were spread out over four different books. The story is good enough, and fun enough, that $2.99 feels just about right. Any more cost–or effort–than that would be a little much though, even for a ‘Pool-addict like myself.  Grade: B    — SoldierHawk

Justice League of America #54 – What a difference new art makes!  Bagley’s time on this title was pretty drab, but I really, REALLY like the work that Brett Booth is doing in this issue.  Booth’s classic figures (with a beautiful fine line from inker Norm Rapmund) combines really well with Andrew Dalhouse’s understated colors.  I so enjoy this muted color scheme to brilliant and shiny colors.  The story is pretty good too showing Eclipso coming “back” and beginning to recruit shadow-powered villains.  Very little actual JLA in this issue, but that’s fine.  Hopefully this is the arc where James Robinson’s turn on the series finds its footing.  Very promising.  Grade: B  — Dean Stell

Captain America: Man Out of Time #4 – This series continues to be a wonderful character showcase for Steve, and a more overarching look at his current relevance to the Marvel Universe. I especially like Cap’s being forced to face the less-savory parts of American history he’s missed (rather breezily–or perhaps, very calculatingly–passed over by Tony Stark’s version of the temporal tour.) I am and always will be a huge Tony Stark fan, so the contrast we see between his America, and General Simon’s America, was fascinating, and a lot of fun to read. My only complaint is that, in this issue especially (and mostly for the sake of pushing the story along), Steve seems awfully naive. I understand that both he and the 40s are supposed to represent a more innocent and morally straightforward time, but…c’mon. Cap’s a soldier. He fought the Nazis for crying out loud. He’s seen the absolute worst of what humanity has to offer…and he’s really THAT shocked by the fact that, yes, crime and Bad Things still exist in America today? I do understand why he might be disappointed, but Waid and company spend far too much time milking that for the sake of a larger message.  Grade: B-   — SoldierHawk

Uncanny X-Force #5 - What a difference art makes!  While I think I did really enjoy the first story arc dealing with Apocalypse, there is a chance that what was really hooking me was Jerome Opena’s art, because in this issue he is replaced by Esad Ribic and I found that I couldn’t remember what this story was about as I type this review 2-3 days after reading it.  I think the problem is that Ribic and the rest of the art team are trying to keep the look of the comic consistent with the first arc and the same inking and coloring just doesn’t work as well with Ribic’s style.  Sothe upshot is that the art isn’t bad, but if you loved Opena, you’ll be disappointed.  The story itself started strong with some fallout from the last arc (with Deadpool being upset that they killed child-Apocalypse last issue), but tapers off as the new arc starts to focus on Fantomex and Deathloks.  Grade: C+  — Dean Stell

Generation Hope #4 - Not without its high points as the 5 “Lights” that Hope and Rogue have gathered up from around the world (in a story weaving from Uncanny X-Men into Generation Hope) are returned to Utopia.  The fun all comes from trying to figure out what these kids can do and them getting settled on this island.  Great scene of the feral kid offering Wolverine a peace offering of a fish after getting the worst of a fight.  Another great scene with Dr. Nemesis and the speedster kid.  Now the problems:  One, this series simply shouldn’t exist.  The problem with the X-titles is too many titles, too many mutants and not enough cohesion between the story lines and titles.  Simply stated, we didn’t need 5 new mutants to watch when there are TONS of young mutants who aren’t having stories told about them (Armor, Rockslide, Pixie, etc).  And the art isn’t anything special.  Not “bad”, but it isn’t a book that I’d pick up just to get the art either.  That leaves it as a very average superhero book.  I kinda wonder how long this title will stick around.  Sales aren’t great and all of the LCSs that I’ve been into WAY over-ordered and have lots of the earlier issues molding on the shelf.  Grade: C   — Dean Stell

Twilight Guardian #2 – I enjoyed this issue quite a bit more than the first.  The #1 issue wasn’t “bad”, but it was a little too slow paced.  I’m not sure the pacing picks up in this issue, but the story is fun enough to make up for it.  Basically, out heroine who is just a regular woman (perhaps slightly insane) who is a major comic fan takes to patrolling her neighborhood for crime.  In this issue, she is invited to a meeting of similarly minded individuals with the meeting taking place at a comic book convention.  It’s kinda a neat idea when you think about it: What if some of those cosplayers are really slightly insane people who fancy themselves superheroes?  A lot of the fun from this issue comes from the action at the convention, which most comic fans can relate to like posing with a co player or finding that back-issue that you were looking for.  However, I still feel like this series is waiting to do something and I’d like it to happen a little sooner.  Grade: C+  — Dean Stell

Proof Endangered #3 - I want to like this so much more than I am.  I like cryptids, I enjoyed the first run of Proof and I LOVE Riley Rossmo, but the package just isn’t pushing my buttons this time.  That’s not a bad thing, but it could just be that the story of Proof has run its course?  Not every story needs to (or should) continue onward to issue #500.  The story is basic Proof stuff, but I’m not sure it is all that new-reader friendly.  Nothing bad here.  I’m just kinda indifferent at this point.  Grade: C  — Dean Stell

Daredevil Reborn #2 – Ugh! This was not good.  The basic story is a little too predictable: Matt Murdock goes on walk-about after Shadowland, not even sure he wants to be a hero any longer, but when he runs into a city full of corrupt cops where people need him… Well, Matt can’t just turn his back, can he?  I fell like I already know what will happen at the end of issue #4 and even if I end up being wrong, the problem is that the story feels predictable.  There is some groan-worthy dialog in this issue too.  The high point is the art.  While I’m not sure it is correct for a Daredevil story, this art team could do an issue of Scalped sometime and it would be pretty good.  Grade: D+  — Dean Stell

Vampirella #3 - I’ve given this series more than a fair shake.  I didn’t love the first issue, but due to the blessing/curse of pre-orders, I ended up with the first 3 issues coming my way.  Sometimes that extended trial helps a series find its footing, but not in this case.  My fundamental problem is still that this isn’t Vampirella.  There is no campiness and no red swimsuit.  99% of people who pick this up are going to expect that Vampirella and will be disappointed.  What we’re left with is a an uneven vampiric detective story with dark art that makes the story a little more confusing that it should be.  Grade: D  — Dean Stell

PROOF: ENDANGERED #3

story ALEX GRECIAN, art & cover RILEY ROSSMO

32 PAGES, FC, $3.99

“ENDANGERED,” Part Three
The war on Proof escalates as one of Proof’s closest friends betrays him and The Lodge is burned to the ground, setting free the monsters.

Uncanny X-Men #532 – We begin the handoff of Uncanny from Matt Fraction to Kieron Gillen.  Fraction had his high moments with the Utopia and Second Coming events, but the rest of his run was pretty uneven and this issue illustrates a lot of the problems that I have.  There are three story lines in this issue, but none feel very important.  First you have Emma, Fantomex & Kitty Pryde fighting with Sebastian Shaw.  I’m very unclear on what this story is supposed to do.  It isn’t interesting and if they just wanted Shaw back in circulation (which is a good idea), there surely are more entertaining ways to do it than this.  Two, we have Lobe and the Sublime Corp who have engineered mutant pills so that regular joes can gain mutant powers.  That just isn’t interesting or threatening and it has a lot of the pseudo-science that Fraction likes to use, but doesn’t pull off very well.  It’s very much what happens when someone who doesn’t know science tries to write something that is very hip about current science topics.  Three we have this Collective Man story that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.  Unclear why this title can’t copy the formula that makes Uncanny X-Force so kick ass.  And Greg Land’s art is just bad.  I don’t mind his art the first few times I see it, but he’s been on this title for a while and we know his tricks now.  Marvel would be best served to just rotate him around their titles.  Grade: D — Dean Stell

2nd Opinon: There’s a clever idea to be found in the character of Lobe, but I’m not sure that it’s being used to it’s full potential.  A character who genuinely doesn’t hate mutants but merely wants to exploit an untapped natural resource is a nice change of pace, but the entire melodramatic quarantine gambit and the cookie-cutter personalities of his wannabe X-Men are somewhat sabotaging a story with lots of potential.  Throw in the obvious space-filler of the Collective Man sub-plot and the going-on-way-too-long side-plot concerning Emma Frost’s mission to disappear Sebastian Shaw (I’mnotgoingtopickontheGregLandartI’mnotgoingtopickontheGregLandart…) and I unfortunately found myself with a strong urge to go reread this week’s issue of Uncanny X-Force. Grade: C- — Joe Lopez

Ultimate Spider-Man #152 – Bendis continues his great second wind on this title this month as we simultaneously discover just what Black Cat was doing during his battle with Mysterio many months ago and , in the present day, watch as Iron Man nearly outs Peter’s secret identity to all of Forest Hills, Queens.  There are plenty of standout moments in this issue, ranging from Aunt May’s reaction to Stark’s entrance gaff to the “Amazing Friends’” reunion with the just-returned Gwen Stacy.  Peter’s conversation with Gwen was particularly touching and felt honest and real in a way that most complicated relationships in fiction fail at.  While I do have to admit to being slightly annoyed that after three months of teasing, we still haven’t seen any actual super-hero schooling, Bendis hits the rest of the notes wonderfully and has gotten me one more invested in this comic’s cast.  Extra kudos have to go to penciller Sara Pichelli whose work here has improved greatly.  I’m not sure if it’s just a matter of her having become comfortable with the characters and their world, but this felt like an issue of Ultimate Spider-Man in a way that is usually reserved for one produced by a more regular artist.  Great stuff.  Grade: A — Joe Lopez

Thunderbolts #152 – This has been a superstar of a title over the last year.  Jeff Parker always keeps the title clicking along at a swift pace.  No drawn out, overly long 6 issue story arcs from Parker.  Here the action builds on a storyline that has been in Hulk (also by Parker) having to do with some mega-monsters that are escaping from a MODOK island and wreaking havoc on Japan.  I love how the Tbolts are all such a neat team, yet you never know when one of them might turn on the others.  Great action in this one as they fight the mega-monsters and deal with a new threat form Hyperion.  Kev Walker’s art is really tight too and perfect for this book with lots of oversized, hulking characters. Grade: B+ — Dean Stell

Secret Avengers #9 – While the kung-fu pulp element is dialed way down this month, this issue is solid if only because it’s one where the Secret Avengers live up to their namesake.  It’s shadowy superhero covert ops stuff with Steve Rogers and John Steele dueling one another.  In other words, it’s a pretty good time.  There’s even a superhero trade that almost seems like a spy-swap of sorts.  More than that though, Rogers looks particularly clever this month and truly feels like the leader of a covert squad.  If anything, the superspy tone makes for an Avengers book that has its own clear identity and, in some ways, it’s own little corner of the Marvel Universe.  It’s a unique read with solid writing and solid art.  The only thing wrong with it is that I’m finding John Steele a bit bland in concept and appearance as a bad guy.  There’s really just not that much to the guy, and certainly not much at all that we haven’t seen before.  Max Fury is far more compelling.  Grade: B — Alex Evans

Ultimate Doom #2 - While I’d normally be extremely excited about getting two doses of Ultimate Spidey this week, I have to admit that I’m not too involved in this miniseries.  It’s certainly more of an Ultimate Fantastic Four story in plot, and I have to admit to having never been a big fan of that iteration of the characters.  Bendis does deliver a subtly chilling scene that retroactively foreshadows Reed Richards’ sinister intentions at the beginning but otherwise there are just a bunch of characters running around and fighting while lots of things blow up.  Coming so soon after the bad taste of Ultimatum, a big blockbuster Ultimate event is not what I’m really looking for.  Grade: C- — Joe Lopez

Ultimate Avengers 3 #6 – This issue pretty much cemented my inkling that Mark Millar is just writing on autopilot at this point.  Let’s ignore the unfortunate similarity between the X-Men vs Vampires event with this Ultimate Avengers vs Vampires event (Both with Blade, no less!) because that would just be picking on this series.  (Well, I kinda just did there, didn’t I?)  There really is absolutely no character development in this issue, or this entire series, at all.  This comic is literally filled with “bad-ass” moments and action sequences and glaring and gritted teeth from front to back.  I have no clue what happened to the Millar who penned the first two magnificent Ultimates series that managed to juggle Hollywood-like pyrotechnics with emotional development, but he’s clearly on vacation.  At least there was some decent Steve Dillon artwork to stare at.  Sigh.  Grade: D — Joe Lopez

Fables #101 - First things first: the art is awesome.  I was bit bummed upon discover the lack of Mark Buckingham, especially given how well he did with Bufkin’s adventures last time out, but Shanower’s work is really detailed and generally awesome.  His shift between the dark business office and psychedelic Oz is magnificent and his facial expressions are well done.  Yes, Bufkin does end up in Oz this month, which was a real welcome surprise and was just the right amount of goofiness.  The folks he meets there are adorable and, at times, mind-bending.  It also leaves the door open for some really interesting and fun Bufkin related adventures in the near future.  That said, aside from the art and the promise is fun future issues, I actually am sad to say that I found this issue a little, well, boring.  That’s a damned shame given how much I loved reading Bufkin’s exploits in the recent past.  But there’s just not much here.  It’s just a whole ton of yammering in the office, including Frankie pummeling the dead horse that is the “genius” joke.  Even the Magic Mirror seemed off, coming off as strangely suspicious, even malevolent.  But yeah, until the last bit in Oz, this issue ends up being a bunch of fairly dry chatter and this also leads to far too little time spent in Oz.  Grade: C+ — Alex Evans

Skullkickers #5 – Fun!  That’s the best way to describe this issue and comic.  After the final page of this issue is a note from the creators saying that issue #5 was going to be the final issue, but since it has been selling well it is now an ongoing.  That’s nice because we can use more fun from this still nameless duo of huge bald guy and irascible dwarf as the hack and shoot their way through a fantasy setting.  Highlights of this issue include the subtitles for the bad guy who was mumbling incoherently because he’d gotten his teeth bashed in by the good guys and the continued funny notes in the art about what is going on (“Losing grip!”).  Keep it up Jim Zub and gang.  Grade: B — Dean Stell

Punisher: In the Blood #3 – Punisher has discovered that his wife has been resurrected and is basically the sexual plaything of the Jigsaw brothers.  Even worse, it seems she’s going along with everything willingly (I can’t wait to see how they’re going to explain that!).  So, Frank does what pretty much exactly what you’d imagine he’d do.  He wages holy hell on the criminal underworld in order to find the villains.  And therein lies the problem.  We’ve read this too many times before.  Frank is wronged, goes ballistic on everyone and finally finds the baddies.  Sure, there’s a cliffhanger so it doesn’t end there, but by that point I was already disenchanted.  Say what you will about the whole weird Franken-Castle storyline, but at least it was different.  This?  This is same ol’, same ol’.  Pass. Grade: C — Joe Lopez

Proof: Endangered #2 – This was another enjoyable issue of Proof.  The first issue of Volume 2 for Proof mostly was a reminder of who the characters are and this issue was mostly arranging the game pieces on the board, so this wasn’t a bad issue, but it’s just hamstrung by where it falls in the story.  Rossmo’s art is again awesome and a huge attraction for me on this series.  He has this unique rough and visceral style that is very unique.  Plus, how can you fail to have fun when you have a Bigfoot ripping the head off a huge Mongolian Death Worm?  I’m expecting big things from this issue next month.  Grade: C+ — Dean Stell

Magneto #1 – Howard Chaykin decides to tell a “lost tale” of Magneto’s first trip to New York City, before he decided to start recruiting sociopathic criminals and trying to murder high school teenagers and handicapped guys in wheelchairs.  Basically, when he was just a man who was on the fence about whether he’d be a “villain” or a “hero”.  There’s the germ of an interesting story here, as Chaykin seems to want to explore whether or not Magnus could have just as easily become a super-powered protector and not a terrorist, but instead he allows himself to be distracted with giving the guy’s costume an origin  (Because we needed that!) and having him fight giant creatures created from the mind of a little girl who – You know what?  I actually have no clue how what was going on with that monster and that little girl.  He then hits on his seamstress (Yeah, seriously.)  and after getting shot down, walks off, presumably to go become the scourge of millions.  I mean, can you blame the guy?  Getting shot down can be pretty harsh.  Believe me, I know. Wait, what was I talking about? Grade: B — Joe Lopez

X-23 #5 – I want to enjoy X-23 because I like the idea of the character, but this series has been close to the chopping block for me.  I’m hanging in there because Ryan Stegman is coming on to do art for an arc in a few issues and I don’t want to miss that.  But this was a MUCH better issue than the previous four.  There was a lot less introspection, some action, some mystery and the reveal of the Big Bad.  I think there is a good story here, it just needs a shot of adrenalin.  Probably not Ms. Liu’s fault as Marvel is notorious for these 6 issue stories that really should have been 3-4 issues.  The basic story of X-23 and Gambit coming into conflict with Ms. Sinister has promise to lead into a whole bunch of interesting stuff about the nature of cloning.  I thought the art was really sharp, but Ms. Sinister is flashing a little more skin than I like to see in a Marvel comic.  I read non-Big 2 comics for that stuff.  Grade: C+ — Dean Stell

X-Men: To Serve and Protect #3 – This is the 3rd of 4 issues in the latest X-Men anthology series.  The X-Men are a perfect place to have a semi-regular anthology series because even though they have 5 main ongoing titles, they all kinda focus on the same characters, so an anthology is a great place to catch up on the Rockslides and Anoles of the world.  This issue has another installment of the aforementioned Rockslide and Anole fighting crime vigilante style in SF and this is the highlight of the issue.  Another interesting bit is that we learn that Blink is still alive after the events of Necrosha over a year ago.  Who knew?  The biggest problem is that this issue just has 4 “solid” stories.  What I’m looking for in an anthology is that one singular story from an creator you may not be familiar with that makes you say, “Wow!  I want more stories from that guy.”  None of that in here, but solid.  Grade: C — Dean Stell

Chaos War: X-Men #2 – Ugh.  This was really bad.  Probably one of the worst stories that I’ve read in the last year or so.  The story was just confusing as Thunderbird, a few Madrox dupes, Banshee and some dead Cuckoo girls end up on Muir Island to fight the Carrion Crow who is in league with the Chaos King.  The story was just incoherent and didn’t matter at all to the Chaos War event at all.  The only saving grace was that Doug Braithwaite’s art looked really nice.  Why does Marvel keep having Chris Claremont write X-books to fulfill his lifetime contract?  It’s clear that just isn’t happening for him anymore, so why not let him take a whack at something else?  Let him go make up a new hero or something.  It couldn’t be worse than this. Grade: D- — Dean Stell

Twilight Guardian #1 – This comic focuses on a slightly mentally ill young woman who is patrolling her neighborhood Kick-Ass style.  She has no powers, but wants to do something good, so she dons a mask and hoodie and wanders the streets at night.  This issue is really well written, but the problem is that it is boring and nothing happens until the final page.  That is a possible harbinger of better things, but this issue by itself just wasn’t anything special.  The art was pretty nice.  I’ve noticed a lot of folks online and in the podcast community giving this raves, but this was one time where I shook my head and wondered if they were getting free copies or are close friends with one of the creators because I just didn’t get it.  It isn’t remotely anything bad and has a promising ending, but the issue itself is a bit drab.  Grade: C- — Dean Stell

New Mutants #21 - This title is always teetering on the brink of my pull list and it is because of issues and stories like this one and that’s a shame because Zeb Wells was really trying to do something epic with the New Mutants and tie up a lot of old continuity at the same time.  I’m usually a fan of that, but in this case it didn’t click because… well… it’s the New Mutants.  The biggest problem I have from with the story is the perception that the New Mutants are the B-list, minor league team for the X-Men.  They’ve never shed that image in my mind, so it seems wrong for them to be facing dangers that threaten the whole Earth.  It would be like watching your local minor-league sports team suddenly win the World Series.  New Mutants are supposed to fight muggers and B-list villains and promising members can outgrow the team to get called up to the X-Men.  That’s what I want to seem from a series like this.  I feel like we need to see them “graduate” to taking on this level of threat, but they don’t do that when the X-Men show up at the end and then Legion comes along as a plot device to save the day.  This was another story line that was longer than it needed to be in order to fill up a trade paperback. Grade: C- — Dean Stell

By: Alex Grecian (writer), Riley Rossmo (artist) & Frank Zigarelli (colors)

The Story: Bigfoot is back as Proof gets started again, picking up pretty much where it left off.

What’s Good: You don’t often get “jumping on points” with ongoing, creator-owned titles (i.e. Image, Vertigo, etc.).  One of the beauties of those types of comics is that they are telling a story rather than a series of adventures where nothing really changes (see: all Marvel & DC superhero comics).  That faithfulness to the story is the best and worst thing about such comic series: They are way more rewarding to read long term, but if you get left behind it is very hard to pick up in the middle and it can feel daunting to “catch up”.  So, it is a neat thing that the creators of Proof have given us this issue that really serves as a jumping on point for new readers.

“New reader” describes me pretty well for this series.  I was aware of the premise, have always enjoyed reading about cryptids and had read a few issues on Comixology, but was nowhere near “caught up”.  There was nothing in this issue that made me feel like I was being left out and the story did a nice job of laying out who all the characters are, what they’re up to while also continuing the ongoing Proof story (or at least seeming to) and laying out new story material.  That’s a lot of tasks accomplished for a single comic issue!

If you have read Proof or Cowboy Ninja Viking, you’ll be familiar with Rossmo’s art and it is on fine display here.  One of the things I really enjoy about his art is that you can see his pencil work in the finished product (lots of artists either erase all of the pencils OR clean it up digitally).  I’m not sure what his artistic process is like, but the end result is a pretty unique look and “unique looks” are part of the reason I enjoy non-Marvel/DC comics as much as I do.  Rossmo also shows in a few panels a great mastery of human anatomy that I really enjoy seeing (especially if you’re sick of seeing superheroes bulging with muscles that don’t really exist in nature).

What’s Not So Good: If you are an established Proof fan, I have a feeling that this issue is going to feel a little remedial to you because it was a little heavy on introductions.  But, that is forgivable.  The circulation of these sorts of comics is (sadly) very small, so given the choice between being a little repetitious for the few thousand committed readers of the series and trying to lure in a few new folks, you can understand why creators do this and should allow them this every 20 issues or so.

Also, because it was a “get acquainted” issue, it wasn’t all that exciting nor filled with huge character moments.  If you picked this up because you had heard that Proof was a lot of fun and are excited to have a jumping on point, then this probably won’t bother you.  But, if you picked this up randomly off the shelf at the comic store, you might not be that jazzed for another issue.

Conclusion: If you’ve been looking for a place to jump onto Proof, the creators have given us a nice starting point that probably isn’t too much review for existing readers (who are probably just happy to have the series back).  So dig in and enjoy a fun story about Bigfoot and Rossmo’s uniquely good art.

Grade: B

-Dean Stell

Issue: Proof: Endangered #1
Writer: Alex Grecian
Artist: Riley Rossmo
Colors: Frank Zigarelli
Publisher: Image comics
Release Date: December 2010
Pages: 24
Price: $3.99

“THE CULT HIT SERIES RETURNS! A mysterious organization threatens The Lodge, and John ‘Proof’ Prufrock is on the run, hunted by the government he once worked for.

He has found information that, after 200 years, could finally tell him who he is and where he came from, but he has to turn for help to a teenager who claims to own Proof’s body! This is where it begins all over again!”

Artwork: 4.5 out of 5
I’m going to start off this time with the summary of the artwork, GORE-geous! If you have not had a chance to see Riley Rossmo’s work before, I suggest just taking a look at the cover for this issue. You get good stylized characters that kind of have this stylized gritty look to them, which only adds to the overall of the book. The colors are great from page to page, and there are even some cool little hidden gems that can be found in some of the panels. Just a great looking issue.

Story: 4.0 out of 5
For people who have not read Proof before, this issue does a good short job of bringing you up to speed. I honestly loved the quick recap, because it laid the foundation but didn’t throw too much at me. The story in this issue lives up to the hype of this title as well, it takes so many myths and creates this almost unending world of wonder around them. The only downside to this first issue was that I felt there may have been too much going on. Good plot points are made, but were there too many to begin with? Only time can tell.

Dying Breath: 4.0 out of 5
This books looks good and reads great. Proof is a book that contains nothing but intrigue and fun. This issue grabs you quickly with some action and then begins to build on what will be happening in the coming issues. I also love that fact that I don’t necessarily have to say you need to go back and read the first volume. This is a safe jumping on point, that I think you should try to check out.

If you would like to buy or know more about Proof: Endangered #1 you can find it at http://www.imagecomics.com/

What I’m loving this week:
-Narcopolis #2, by Jamie Delano, published by Avatar Press
Jamie Delano has been a thrilling rediscovery for me in recent months.

Narcopolis, by Jamie Delano

Narcopolis tells the story of a thought-police cadet, complete with compellingly real Newspeak dialogue. Not a mere aping of or sequel to Orwell, but certainly intentionally building on ideas from 1984, Delano’s comic brings a high, literary sensibility to the comic stands.

-Incognito #4, by Brubaker & Phillips, published by Marvel Comics
This fantastic comic just keeps getting better, with real twists and turns that I truly do NOT expect, and a story told from a truly unique perspective. Brubaker is fast cementing his place in my top five favorite comics writers.

-Olympus #2, by Nathan Edmonson & Christian Ward, published by Image Comics
A well written comic with a story similar to Neil Gaiman’s American Gods, and more of what seems to be the hot new trend in comic art: expressionism! Cool!

-Proof #20, by Grecian, Rossmo, & Casey, published by Image Comics
Speaking of expressionistic comic art, no one’s doing it better right now than Riley Rossmo on Proof. Truly mind-blowing stuff. The great story telling by Alex Grecian makes for a complete package.

See what I mean?

-The Unwritten #2, by Mike Carey & Peter Gross, published by DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint
Wow! ANOTHER literary comic! I’m not sure what I mean when I call a comic literary, (Alan Moore’s been doing it for years,) but I know one when I see it. Or read it, as it were. And this book is it! … leading me to believe we’re seeing a trend in comic writing these days as well, and that’s GREAT news! This book deals with the young man who’s the inspiration for a Harry Potter-esque series of books, but just may be a real life boy-wizard himself, all the while dwelling in the post-narrative world explored by Grant Morrison and Terry Pratchett among others.

What I’m reading this week:
-Ultimatum: Spider-Man Requiem #1, published by Marvel Comics
Meh. Mediocre book. As with many critics and fans, I’m pretty peeved at the pitiful ending of the Ultimate Universe comics. Ultimatum never made sense to me, and the main title book was a piece of crap. Ultimate Spider-Man always remains on my list, however, and managed to showcase possibly the best single issue of its entire run in this stupid crossover story. This requiem issue is supposed to help wrap things up, but really all it does is act as a placeholder while we wait to discover that Spider-Man’s not really dead after all! Eureka! And with really shoddily phoned-in art by Mark Bagley, who I had really been looking forward to seeing again since I never really warmed entirely to Immonen, the Requiem book was pretty lame, though requisite reading.

-The Walking Dead #62, published by Image Comics
As always, compelling, but plodding.

What I’m thinking of dropping:
-Savage Dragon #149, published by Image Comics
Hm. I check this book out every few years, and it always seems immediately interesting again, but then shortly loses that interest. I’ll take a look again in another few years. Here’s to Mr. Larsen for keeping at it though.

What I’m dropping:
-Billy Batson and the Magic of Shazam! #5, published by DC Comics
Mike Kunkel left the book, other than the cover, (or at least he isn’t doing all the issues now,) and his replacement team of Art Balthazar and Franco don’t even come close to capturing the magic he made so exciting and fun.

-The Muppet Show Comic Book #3
-Muppet Robin Hood #1, both published by Disney’s BOOM! KIDS
I reaaaaaaally wanted to like these Muppet comics. I’m a HUGE Muppet fan. But they just aren’t very good. Disney seemed to think it had a Muppet artist, so why bother looking for someone else when they wanted to launch a new book. But while Roger Langridge’s heart is in the right place, I just don’t think he’s a terribly skilled cartoonist, nor does he quite get the Muppets. Likewise with Beedle and Villavert on the Muppet Robin Hood book.  Making this all the more tragic are the ads in the backs of the books for apparently alternate covers by other artists who TOTALLY ROCK! I would LOVE to see some of these artists doing these Muppet books, but that does not seem to be the plan. Sigh…

Just imagine what it could be like…

The Muppet Show Comic #1 with the AWESOME alternate cover by Dave Alvarez

John “Proof” Prufrock and his partner, Ginger Brown, are agents for the Lodge, a secret government organization that is tasked with the cryptozoological investigations of the creatures of myth and legend that exist in the world today. By the way, Proof is a sasquatch.

In this issue, part five of what is obviously a graphic novel tailored story, Proof and Savage Dragon (whose presence in this issue felt contrived and unnecessary) are in Illinois investigating the existence of thunderbirds, while his partner Ginger is searching for a missing golem named Joe, who has ventured off with a mysterious yeti named Mi-Chen Po.

In Grecian’s hands, Proof and Ginger are likable characters; there’s a sense of a Mulder and Scully dynamic to their relationship that has probably been enjoyable to longtime readers. However, I was disappointed to see how little they actually appeared in this issue.  I was also irritated with Grecian’s “Cryptoids” caption boxes of irrelevant trivia that stick out like sore thumbs. Furthermore, Rossmo’s art is very out of place here. His characters appear scratchy and unfinished, as they have no sense of life and look like little more than mannequins positioned on the page; leaving it to Grecian to convey the emotional arc through the dialogue alone.  I could picture Rossmo’s style on a title like Warren Ellis’s Fell, but here it’s simply painful to look at.

Proof seems to fall somewhere between comparable titles like The Perhapanauts and B.P.R.D, yet the latter two are so much more fun to read.  If Image is going to charge me a whopping $3.50 an issue for this, I need a more satisfying reading experience, and they did not deliver that here.

Grade: C-

-Tony Rakittke