Current Reading.

GhostofMacbeth · Forum Member Joined: Sep 21, 2001 Posts: 619

Yep .. They need more shake ups and better sories all around. I normally like Warren Ellis. And good luck with Invincible. I liked it but I don't always like the best stuff.

palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

In fact, I've never thought of it quite this way before - I tend to think in characters' eras, rather than simultaneously - but why are nearly all superhero titles in the same tone and style? Why can't Batman's adventures be gritty and Superman's light-hearted, and so on?

IMP.
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GhostofMacbeth · Forum Member Joined: Sep 21, 2001 Posts: 619

They are to some degree but they fail a lot of the time because everyone seems to want to make things gritty these days. I like the Batman and Superman animated universe in a lot of ways. They have the unifying deco influence but the cites are different, the people are different but they can work together. I personally like Batman Detective a lot (in general) because it is more about the brain power than brawn. Let each book do what the character does best.

palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

Yes, I loved the early Batman Adventures comics by Ty templeton and Rick Burchett among others. Wonderful cartoon style, stories in classic mould.

Read Invincible. It's nice, but sooo slight. Five minutes' read per issue. Write more words, dammit!

IMP.
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lectatege · Forum Member Joined: Mar 14, 2006 Posts: 203

Why Palmers, I never realised you were so biddable...
To all who enjoyed AKIRA I would reccomend 'Spirited Away' a japanese anime that had a certain mainstream coverage a year or so ago. Beautifully drawn and although not as hard core as AKIRA not without its dark side.

Has anyone seen Ghost in the Shell btw? I only know it by repute but it sounds interesting

Vis a vis the gritty v fluffy debate I'm all for a bit of diversity of tone. There's too much soddin' doom and gloom in comic books and allied productions - as if we didn't have enough of that in real life.
The characters in the Matrix films for instance, what a bunch of po-faces.
OK fighting against machine oppressors in a souped up sardine tin possibly not a whole heap of fun but in real life even the direst situations bring forth gallows humour if nothing else.
Lets leaven the lump I say

GhostofMacbeth · Forum Member Joined: Sep 21, 2001 Posts: 619

Yep, they were a bunch of cool ones. I like the Rick Burchett ones a lot especially.

Invincible was a pretty quick read and I think he gets a bit more verbose later on but it is still pretty quick.

I liked Sprited Away but it can be kinda weird. I think I have seen Ghost In The Shell but there are a few versions and I am not sure which one you are talking about. The comic book is good but a bit light. The various animes are pretty fun too but I like the animeated one better than the CG one.

I like some gloom but there needs to be balance. If it is all gloom there is nothing to contrast it with. You need light to have dark etc.

lectatege · Forum Member Joined: Mar 14, 2006 Posts: 203

I have just procured a compendium of the Batman newspaper strip for 1945/6.
Some lovely black and white work there by Bob Kane but...
Batman and the boy wonder cross-dressers!
I'm shocked.
(Although Robin makes a lovely Marie Antoinette)

GhostofMacbeth · Forum Member Joined: Sep 21, 2001 Posts: 619

They did have a bunch of weird stuff in those old things :lol:

drugdoc · Forum Newbie Joined: May 07, 2004 Posts: 2

Interesting idea

electranaut · Forum Member Joined: Jan 03, 2004 Posts: 91

Just read 'Superman: True Brit' last night.

I thought it was quite a fun idea and it read okay but I reckon there was even more potential for the jokes about the culture differences than there actually was.

I've also got the graphic novel Smoke to have a gander at. I haven't started that one yet but I'm always a sucker for a satirical dystopian story.

palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

I think I mentioned True Brit a while back. Yes, the jokes about England seemed to be either from an American perspective (ie knowing nothing about Britain) or forty years old.

Don't know Smoke, except the book by Paul Auster.

IMP.
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electranaut · Forum Member Joined: Jan 03, 2004 Posts: 91

This Smoke GN I've got is written by Alex de Campi (?) and drawn by Igor Kordey. It was published in 2005 by www.idwpublishing.com (must look them up) and I know nothing else about it really, except it looked pretty well produced.

Haven't got around to reading it properly yet but I'm quite impressed with the first few pages.

palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

I know Kordey, some painted Marvel comics in the '90s.

IMP.
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palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

Just read Matt Wagner's Trinity. Nice, old-fashioned artwork (Superman looks like he was drawn sometimes by Shuster, sometimes by Boring), and a classic-style story, a little bit hard on Wonder Woman, but with some nice insights into the characters. I've read much worse.

IMP.
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RIVER: skin on the outside. First chapter FREE from www.ianmpalmer.com

palmers · Forum Member Joined: Jun 07, 2002 Posts: 379

Picked up yesterday a stack of cheap stuff, including some Crossgens which I want to try to read in order, some Big Bang - great fake nostalgia - and the second volume of Batman: Black and White. I was afraid this might be too stunty, but in fact it's brilliant: sharp short stories illustrated by great artists, including a Jorge Zaffino piece I didn't know about (amazing artist, died at 44 a couple of years ago). Fantastic book.

IMP.
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RIVER: skin on the outside. First chapter FREE from www.ianmpalmer.com