Still on the Shelf #7 – Promethea
Still on the Shelf #7 – Promethea
Originally published May 6th, 2003 on www.ComiXtreme.com. This work is, of course, © Craig Reade.
Overview-
Promethea likely one of the strangest “super-hero” comics I have ever encountered. I started picking this title up from the very beginning, and right off the bat I was sucked into the strange world of Promethea. The stunning art perfectly complimented the story, which made each issue that much more appealing. Dropping sales have lead to the announcement of the cancellation of this title at issue #32, but with 7 issues to go, anything can happen in the comic world, as we all know.
Alan Moore and J.H. Williams III created this title, and they have worked on it through its entire 25-issue run to date. Moore has used this title as an outlet for the great wealth of knowledge he possesses in the area of magic and the occult, and Williams’s art is nothing less than stunning, and integral to the tale.
The Story So Far-
The legend of Promethea begins as she, a young girl in 411AD, Alexandria, Egypt, is faced with a crisis. Her father, a Hermetic Scholar, is murdered by a mob of Christian priests. He, before his death, bade his daughter to escape to the desert, where the gods would protect her. Thoth-Hermes (a blending of the similar Greek and Egyptian Gods) appears to Promethea, and whisks her to the realm of Immateria, where she will exist for all eternity as a story.
Sophie Bangs, a college student in “modern day” New York City, attempts to interview Barbara Shelley for a term paper she is doing on a legendary character, “Promethea,” who has appeared in various forms of literature, dating back to the 18th century. Barbara is less than receptive, and warns her that it would be best for her to drop the subject of Promethea before it is too late, and refuses to answer any more of her questions. They are thrown back together again later when a creature called a Smee, who believes Sophie to be the “next Promethea,” attacks Sophie. Barbara, who is revealed to be the current incarnation of Promethea, rescues her.
Barbara is wounded, and unable to defend Sophie from the recovering Smee, so she explains that a select few people have the ability to channel Promethea by writing about her. She tells Sophie to write, something, anything, about Promethea, in hopes that she can become the new Promethea, and defeat the Smee when it returns. It works, and the rest is history.
Thoughts-
One of the most interesting things about this title is the fact that very little seems to actually go on in New York, and most of the main plot is focused on Sophie’s inner journey as Promethea. While the actual events in New York take the form of a narrative by a futuristic television program called “TEXTure,” the real meat of the story usually takes place outside of New York.
While many may have found it interesting, Promethea may have suffered most from a rather long story arc (lasted 12 issues!), where Promethea was traveling through the realm of Immateria on what amounted to a quest of self-discovery. Even though there was a bit of action back on Earth (by way of Stacia Vanderveer, Sophie’s friend who had taken up the mantle of Promethea in her absence), it seemed that the very rich, imaginary world of this New York city had been abandoned by Moore in favor of a detailed lesson in the occult. Moore had it all- eccentric characters (including a mayor with dozens of personalities), wacky resident “science heroes” in the form of the Five Swell Guys, ready made opponents for Promethea to encounter, and an overall rich setting for any number of stories to play out. And while I personally thought that the entire arc was a masterful lesson in the world of Magic, it went on far too long for a great number of readers, and even I myself grew impatient with it. With so much potential for a great story with this new heroine, it seemed to be a waste to ignore all of that so soon after going through the pains of establishing the intricate world Sophie lives in.
Bottom Line-
Alan Moore has either gotten the hint from fans, or he is about to embark on what he had planned all along. That long, strange, story was tied up over the last two issues, Sophie has regained the mantle of Promethea on Earth (see the latest issue), and she is finally back in New York, where she belongs, for the time being.
I won’t spoil the story for those of you who are interested in checking this title out, but I must say that though this is an ideal place to give the title a try. I would recommend picking up issues #24 and #25, the two latest issues, to get you up to speed before launching into issue #26, due out in stores May 14th. Though very little real action has taken place in the “Earthly” realm throughout the entire run of the comic, minor noteworthy events have peppered each issue, making the world that Sophie has been thrust back into very intricate and unusual. This is, by no means, Spider-man’s New York, and it will take some effort to really understand what is going on, but it is worth the effort.
This book is brilliant, and even if an increase in sales would not save it, I would like to see Promethea go out with a bang, rather than fade away. If you like what you see after sampling an issue, all of the past issues are available in trade-paperback and hardback, with a new compilation taking you through issue #25 set to be released. I know that many collectors are on a tight budget, but I firmly believe this title is worth the effort.
I highly recommend Promethea to any reader looking for something different, but magnificent in both art and storytelling.
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April 8, 2003
Still on the Shelf #3 – Sleeper
Still on the Shelf #3 – Sleeper
Originally published April 8th, 2003 on www.ComiXtreme.com. This work is, of course, © Craig Reade.
Overview-
Sleeper is a relatively new title from DC’s Wildstorm label. Right on the cover of each issue, you can find the words “Suggested for Mature Readers.” I would heed this advice- it is certainly not for the kiddies. The story takes place in a pretty brutal world of criminals- not the “secret layer,” or invincible fortess type of supervillian hang-outs, rather a more modern, more dirty world of sleaze bars and criminal subculture that seems a lot more realistic. You have drugs, sex (of many flavors), murder, and of course, super powers. And not a drop of it is gratuitous.
Holden Carver, otherwise known as (only once, as a matter of fact) as the Conductor, is a member of an underground criminal association of “post-humans” (mutants, superhumans, whatever you want to call them). Mind control seems to be among the most common of powers up to this point, but Holden is a bit unique in that he is completely immune to mind control. His power derives from an alien artifact that was absorbed into his body, acting as a parasite. This parasite absorbs all of the pain and trauma that Holden is exposed to, and allows him to redirect it at other people. There is a pretty telling scene in the second issue where Holden asks to be shot, so that he could then direct that pain to an out-of-control colleague, to snap him out of a killing frenzy. On the more personal side, it seems this parasite also prevents Holden from feeling pleasure, or any other emotions for that matter. This leaves Holden despondant, and he often experiments with different things (sexually and otherwise) to simply feel SOMETHING. Far from a superhero story, this title is all about espionage and the criminal underworld. It just happens to take place in a world where super-powers are a very real thing.
The Story So Far
Tao, the leader of the International Association, the criminal organization which Holden belongs to, starts off the first issue explaining to Holden that he believes that a fellow agent is a spy for the government, and he sends Holden out to asses the situation. A series of events and flashbacks inform the reader that Holden himself is indeed the double agent, imbedded by a man named Lynch and the International Orginization, a security agency described as more top secret than the CIA. It seems that while Tao is highly successful in his endeavors, the government, when it comes down to it, has no idea what Tao is trying to accomplish. Holden is placed in the organization in hopes that he will be able to work his way up the ranks, and try and discover the method behind Tao’s seeming randomness. So, for the last several years, Holden has been operating as a criminal, waiting for the time when he can be of use to the I.O.. Only, as the story pregresses, it becomes clear that he has become less-than-fond of the “Good-guys.”
Thoughts
Personally, I am a story guy when it comes to comics. And while I really feel that Sean Phillips did a superb job with the art (this is a classic example of when the art matches up to the comic perfectly), it was really the story here that grabbed me. Ed Brubaker weaves a very intricate story here, and having heard absolutly nothing about this title before reading the first issue, i was sucked right in. As Andrea Speed mentioned in her Advance Review of Sleeper #1 (this was also posted on comixtreme.com), Brubaker offered a personal, money-back guarantee on the quality of the story in this book. I can see now why he was so confident about that- and it is pretty clear that he will not be paying out too much money to unhappy readers.
While the tale is filled with sex and violence, it is only appropriate considering the nature of the story. And rather than using it gratuitously, Brubaker uses it tastefully, for depth. The most graphic of sex scenes are used to depict Holden’s desire for feeling of some kind, the violence serves the purpose of advancing a major stoy idea, or adding further depth to character’s like Genocide, Holden’s sometime “partner” in the organization who he has become friends with.
Each character thus far has had his or her own brand of sickness and depravity- they are villians, after all, but Brubaker allows that to exist while still putting the focus on the character’s themselves.
Bottom Line-
Get this book. Now. Sleeper #1, #2, and #3 are available for sale now. Sleeper #4 is due out April 27th. Right now, this book has it all. I am not so sure about the long-term, however, since the whole focus of the story seems to revolve around taking Tao down from the inside. Once this occurs, it is tough to see where Holden will go, so the book could really suffer at that point. But, that is a long way away (and any number of twists could occur by then), and by all accounts, this is the best new book I have read in a while.
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March 31, 2003
Still on the Shelf #2 – Birds of Prey
Still on the Shelf #2 – Birds of Prey
Originally published March 31st, 2003 on www.ComiXtreme.com. This work is, of course, © Craig Reade.
Birds of Prey is one of the lesser of DC’s Batman-related books. Oracle and the Black Canary are the focus of this title, but it is not uncommon for characters like Huntress, Nightwing, Spoiler, Blue Beetle, and others to be injected into story arcs, due to Oracles well-known “network of connections,” and other personal relationships. One of the best things about this title is a trait that many of the other of these lesser Bat-titles share: the motivations and experiences of Batman’s chosen circle, without the big guy himself around. It helps to establish a solid, independent foundation for these characters that makes their interactions with Batman himself that much more interesting. For that reason alone, this title is worth an occasional read.
Last issue-
Not a lot of action occurs in Birds of Prey #53, but they did lay a lot of groundwork for the continuation of this story-arc. Dinah and Barbara take a much needed vacation (smell the literary cliché), and while about, Dinah meets a gentleman by the name of Tom, who sweeps both Dinah and Barbara off of their feet over the course of the issue. This leads to the both of them analyzing their current, respective relationships. Dinah seemingly emerges from this crisis of the heart more firmly entreanched in the notion that she is making the right choice by remaining with Oliver Quinn, while Barbara is left much more confused about the state of her relationship with Dick Grayson. And, as all tales of this nature go, no matter how ideal Tom seemed, we are given a hint at the end of the issue that he may have some very shady connections indeed, which will no doubt pop up to cause trouble in the next issue.
Thoughts-
This is a title that I feel suffered a great deal when the “Birds of Prey” television show was introduced on the WB. As anyone who gave the show a shot already knows, the premise of that show was a hodgepodge of concepts from throughout the history of the “DC Universe,” some of which quite blatantly contradicted the current state of affairs in the comic book realm. While this is not unusual, it did lead to some changes in the Birds of Prey title that I found to be pretty distasteful. A lot of the depth in the story was tossed out in favor of some much more shallow, “Hot Chicks fighting crime”-type action, and the whole book was given a feel that would be of much greater appeal to fans of the TV show. This proved pretty disastrous to the quality of the title itself, and it has seen a pretty steady drop in sales over the last few months.
With the cancellation of the television show, the creators of Birds of Prey seem to be very actively engaging in damage control, as pretty evident by the last issue, #53. Some pretty wide gaps in logic were filled in (like how could someone break into the Clocktower so easily?), and stronger ties were reestablished to important characters to both Dinah and Barbara, namely Nightwing and the Green Arrow.
Bottom Line-
Birds of Prey #54 comes out on April 23rd- this is a pretty good time to jump in, since it is the second issue of the new story arc. If this title returns to its focus from a few months ago, it should return to being a very solid book. The art is great, and so long as the story catches up with that, again, all should be well with the title. At this point, I would say that Birds of Prey is definitely worth a look- judging by issue #53, they are laying the groundwork for a solid upswing. Gail Simone and Ed Benes are set to take over the title beginning with issue #56, which should be a real boost to the recovery of Birds of Prey. Gail Simone most recently worked on Agent X (and Deadpool prior it its cancellation). I really enjoyed the work she did on that title and have very high hopes for what her addition to Birds of Prey will mean for the quality of the story.
Next week, I will be taking a look at Sleeper. As always- I appreciate any suggestions you might have for titles you would like to see covered here. See you next week!
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