TITLE: Wolverine #1
AUTHOR: Paul Cornell
PENCILLER: Alan Davis
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: March 13, 2013

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Pfft. Who says who can’t leave Wolverine alone with your kids?

The man called Logan is a bit in over his head when we open the first issue of this new ongoing series. A father has inexplicably gained possession of an otherworldly weapon that can disintegrate flesh. His son Alex can only look on terrified and dumbfounded as he leaves a trail of skeletons in his wake at a shopping mall. But our unlikely villain is ill equipped to combat Wolverine’s healing powers. Logan will soon be on the hunt for, of all people, Alex. The boy may hold the key to this bizarre killing spree…

Newer readers might be a bit put off by the Logan we see in this issue. The Logan we see here isn’t the angry, bloodthirsty beast fans are more accustomed to seeing. What we have here is the professional, the experienced hero. We see him working to calm Alex down and get him to safety, then luring the villain into a false sense of security, then taking action, then going through the debriefing process. He actually acts a lot like an off duty cop with mutant powers. During the debriefing they even have those styrofoam coffee cups we’ve seen Commissioner Gordon drink a million times.

Personally, I think putting Wolverine on the hunt for a child opens up some interesting possibilities, and offers us a bit of a departure from the norm. It’s not necessarily hard to find angry, stabby Wolverine if that’s what you’re looking for. He’s carving up humans and dinosaurs in the pages of Savage Wolverine and Wolverine MAX, not to mention all the X-Men and Avengers books. A story like this is a nice reminder that the character has more depth than casual fans sometimes realize. The man does run a school, after all.

Still, Alan Davis’ art does inject a bit more savagery into things than Paul Cornell’s script might have suggested. Obviously we’ve got Logan’s body literally falling apart on him. We’ve also got quite a bit of skeletons to look at in this issue. From Logan literally crawling out of a pile of bones, to the numerous skeletal remains that surround our villain as he admits he’s going to kill his own son. At one point we’ve also got naked, fuzzy, cave man looking Wolverine.

So although this issue may not necessarily satisfy a lot of blood lust, we can’t say it’s without Wolverine-ish elements. And I think the more predatory elements are coming, given our story is called “Hunting Season.” The premise of Logan hunting a child has the potential to give us an interesting juxtaposition of the man and the beast. Wolverine is in good hands with Cornell and Davis. And at the very least, we don’t have to worry about Shanna the She-Devil stealing Wolvie’s spotlight again. I mean hot damn, I’m STILL not over that one.

Front page image from newsarama.com.
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TITLE: SEX #1
AUTHOR: Joe Casey
PENCILLER: Piotr Kowalski
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASED: March 6, 2013

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

In an attempt to make this review as readable as possible, I’ve saved all my SEX puns for the end. So you’ll want to skip to the end for that sort of thing.

Simon Cooke was once the Armored Savior, superhero and guardian of Saturn City. But those days are over, and our former hero now heads up the Cooke Company. Or at least he does in name, as his colleagues have been waiting for him to step up and take a more active role in the company, particularly now that he’s back in Saturn City. But as we’ll extensively see in this issue, Simon has certain vices distracting him…

Understandably, the title of this book alone made some people uneasy (Apple actually banned it from its app store). And those folks aren’t going to be any calmer once they get to the second half of this issue. Casey and Kowalski give us some full on sexcapades between partially clothed, voluptuous women in masks and leather, while our main character watches. Well…what were you expecting, prudes?

Obviously this book isn’t going to be for everyone. But c’mon, it’s 2013. There’s room for this kind of material on the shelves. You can certainly argue about the objectification of women. But switch everybody’s gender in this issue, and I’d tell you the same thing. As far as I’m concerned, a long as it’s done well a book has the right to be as edgy or risque as it wants to be. It’s simply a matter of not picking up a book that doesn’t appeal to you. Sound fair?

The star of this issue is colorist Brad Simpson, who makes so much of Piotr Kowalski’s work pop. This is especially true once we see Saturn City’s night life. The club is a beautiful display of every neon color on the spectrum. Then we contrast that with the dull, faded shades of Simon’s memories, which are intercut with the sex scene. It’s beautiful art, even if the scene itself offends you. Kowalski’s rendering of “the old man” is also a gorgeous piece of what must have been painstakingly detailed work.

In terms of story, SEX might keave a little bit to be desired, depending on how much you usually like from your debut issues. But it’s a good start, and there’s a decent amount of intrigue surrounding Simon. I’m interested to see how the story expands. And, you know…what kind of sexy stuff we get next time.

So all in all, I’d say SEX was good. I enjoyed SEX. It wasn’t the best I’ve ever had, but it was certainly more colorful than a lot of other experiences I’ve had recently. Would I give it another whirl? Absolutely.

Front page image from bloody-disgusting.com. Interior image from comicbookmovie.com.
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TITLE: Justice League of America #1
AUTHOR: Geoff Johns
PENCILLER: David Finch
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: February 20, 2013

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Years ago, before the New 52 obviously, DC tried something in the same ballpark as this new Justice League of America title. That effort culminated in a story called Justice League: Cry For Justice, a story with abhorrent dialogue, and a story that derailed Green Arrow and Red Arrow/Arsenal until DC hit the reset button in 2011. While JLA has no real connections to Cry For Justice, to an extent it’s awkward seeing the company try something like this again. But maybe that’s just me…

JLA sees skinny Amanda Waller recruit Steve Trevor to lead a new superhero team that has America’s best interests in mind. It’s the whole “if the League ever went rogue…” bit, with Superman and Wonder Woman’s recently blossomed romance as an extra incentive. Our roster consists of Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter, Hawkman, Green Lantern Simon Baz, Catwoman, Stargirl, Katana and Vibe. We close the issue with the mention of a familiar team of villains.

Truth be told, the novelty of David Finch’s artwork has largely worn off on me. His work on the New 52 version of Batman: The Dark Knight soured me on him quite a bit. Many of his scenes incorporate way too much black for my tastes. We can’t blame this on an inker or a colorist, as Finch handles all the art himself. Take the scene in Amanda Waller’s office. The shadows are all jet black. There’s a giant pool of darkness behind Waller’s desk, and both she and Trevor’s faces are shrouded in partial darkness, despite being in what is presumably a room with fluorescent lights. This effect is passable in Batman’s world because of the inherent “darkness” there. But it just seems like a style error here. Laying too much black on characters like Martian Manhunter and Hawkman robs them of some of the majesty that makes them worthy of a Justice League book. Lesser characters like Stargirl and Vibe suffer, too.

All Finch’s male heroes, including Steve Trevor, are giant body builders with really awkward bulging veins. And sadly, just like every other artist to work on her in recent memory, he oversexualizes Catwoman, plunging her neckline far below her breasts. Something about the way her body is positioned on the cover bothers me too. Stargirl and Katana make it out fairly unscathed in that sense, but this is only the first issue. I’m sure Finch will have a lot of fun with Stargirl.

On the plus side, Finch gives Stargirl braces. That’s adorable.

This issue does a nice job setting up our premise and giving us snapshots of almost everyone on the team. We don’t see Simon Baz, but we hear enough about him. Early on, Johns does a nice job establishing the merit for a team like this, ensuring we don’t see it as the product of paranoia. Or at the very least, we get the sense the paranoia is justified. From a writing standpoint, Waller, Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter and Catwoman come out looking fairly strong. Trevor does too for the most part, though he has an Empire Strikes Back reference that lands with a hard thud. Johns portrays Stargirl as something of a superhero pop star. She’s got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is deemed “the answer to Lindsay Lohan.” I’m interested to see where he takes this new version of the character he created back in the ’90s.

Despite my distaste for David Finch’s art, I’ll stick around for a few issues. The concept as me intrigued for now. Plus, clearly JLA is going to be an important read as we head into Trinity War, DC’s next big event comic. It doesn’t look like we’ve got something of Cry For Justice proportions right now. So I’ll be back.

Front page image from dccomics.com. Image 1 from batman-news.com. Image 2 from ifanboy.com.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Green Arrow #17
AUTHOR: Jeff Lemire
PENCILLER: Andrea Sorrentino
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASED: February 6, 2013

If there was ever a book that needed a creative shake up, it was Green Arrow.

When DC revamped its continuity in 2011, most of what we knew about the old Oliver Queen went out the window. In his place was a younger hero who in essence answered the question: “What if Steve Jobs had been a superhero?” The new Ollie was the heir to Queen Industries, and the head of Q-Core, a tech division that has given the world Apple equivalents like Q-Pods and Q-Pads. But he was also the Emerald Archer, who with the help of his techie partners Jax and Naomi, fought to save the world from bad guys of all kinds.

Despite mass opinion to the contrary, I enjoyed the first several issues of Green Arrow. With J.T. Krul writing and Dan Jurgens on the pencil, I thought Ollie got a sleek new look, a nice new supporting cast, and he had a  voice that lacked all the baggage the old GA had, but still possessed the character’s trademark incorruptibility. But once Krul left the book after the fourth issue, it lost a bit of it’s edge. Then once Ann Nocenti and Harvey Tolibao took over, things really took a turn. Nocenti told a story about sexy supervillain triplets that was likely the victim of bad timing more than anything else. We were still getting to know the New 52 Oliver Queen and establishing his new status quo. Nocenti’s story took us away from some of that and Tolibao’s art wasn’t exactly up to snuff. In all honesty, I left the book on the stands after issue #9.

To have a subpar Green Arrow series right now is unacceptable, as Arrow is ideally directing traffic toward that book and vice versa. It also doesn’t help that Hawkeye is stellar right now. To fix the problem, DC wisely enlisted the help of their hottest writer not named Scott Snyder: Jeff Lemire.

Lemire’s agenda here is pretty obvious: Tear most of it down and start over. Jax and Naomi die pretty cheap deaths, as does Emerson, one of Ollie’s top antagonists since the first panel of the first issue. Ollie also loses his fortune and his company. As such, what we have hear is a bit of a remake. In the ’60s, Denny O’Neil famously stripped the character of his fortune and made him a more street-level character. That move paved the way for some of the best Green Arrow stories ever told, and DC is obviously hoping for similar results here. I don’t necessarily have a problem with this move, though I do wish Jax and Naomi had stuck around. Having them talk to Green Arrow on the headset gave the book a bit of a Birds of Prey dynamic (the old one, not the current one) that I liked. Did we really have to kill off the entire supporting cast? Couldn’t they have been kidnapped, so that one of Ollie’s motivations in the story was to come to their rescue? I’m just wondering if maybe we tore a little too much down.

Andrea Sorrentino’s art is different than most of what we’ve seen on Green Arrow titles in recent years (there’ve been like, three). But at times I was looking for more definition from his figures. There are certain points where a character’s face will look washed out (see the above close up of Ollie’s face). But to his credit, he’s able to raise the book’s coolness level a few notches, and he knows how to draw an epic Green Arrow pose or two.

Green Arrow #17 s a good start. By no means does the character have his groove back, but he’s got a much better chance of finding it under Lemire’s guidance than certain others. For now, the series has my attention again.

For more Green Arrow, check out Green Arrow/Black Canary: Big Game, Green Arrow/Black Canary: Five Stages, and Justice League: Rise and Fall. 

Front page image from dccomics.com. Interior images from comicbook.com.
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TITLE: Injustice: Gods Among Us #1
AUTHOR: Tom Taylor
PENCILLERS: Jheremy Raapack, Mike S. Miller, Axel Gimenez
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 15, 2013 (online), January 30, 2013 (print)

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

If nothing else, Injustice: Gods Among Us #1 has the distinction of being the first issue in quite some time to depict Lois Lane as a redhead. Man of Steel season is right around the corner, folks.

In this prequel to the upcoming video game from NetherRealm, Clark Kent and Lois Lane are newly pregnant. As Clark is doing the nervous new dad routine, Lois is determined to maintain her career as a reporter. But that choice proves to be a fateful one, as tragedy is lurking around the corner. And for Clark and Lois, tragedy wears a great big smile…

Just for the heck of it, let’s take a look at a recently released story trailer for the game, so we can see where this book is leading us…

When you read this issue and watch this footage, it becomes apparent that they’re going for a Kingdom Come meets Flashpoint vibe. The Joker does something terrible to Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen, causing something fundamental inside of Superman to unravel. He then becomes a tyrant that takes over the world, teaming up (or hooking up?) with Wonder Woman in the process. There are also smaller similarities to Kingdom Come, such as Clark wanting Batman to be his child’s godfather, and Batsy’s bulkier costume is even slightly reminiscent of what the character wore in Kingdom. Most of these are points in the game’s favor, as its usually nice to see the comic book stories reflected in other media.

To an extent it’s surreal to see Clark and Lois together again. It’s been over a year now since their marriage was retconned out of existence, and now low and behold, it’s back. It kind of gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling doesn’t it? It’s like a small part of the old DCU came back for a visit. I hadn’t even realized how much I missed it. Taylor maximizes the few pages he has to get us invested in the pregnancy with a tender scene in Clark and Lois’ bedroom, and then an endearing little moment with Batman. All this pays off tremendously with the revelation at the end of the issue.

My problems with this issue deal more with the character costumes than anything else, which is more a point to take up with the game developers than  our creative team here. Batman’s suit is way too busy. Ditto for the Flash. But the worst offender is the Joker. I’ve talked before about my disdain for artists who give him those red lines on his cheeks in an obvious attempt to capitalize on the Heath Ledger/Dark Knight look, and how that usually doesn’t work in any world other than Christopher Nolan’s. It’s distracting, it’s obnoxious, and it just doesn’t work. Throw in the oversized orange bow tie, and the look is just a mess.

Still, from a writing standpoint this issue is better than I ever expected it to be. Even the revolving door of artists does minimal damage. I’m still on the fence as far as the game is concerned, but this story itself is certainly worth another look next month. I wouldn’t be opposed to Tom Taylor getting a crack at the regular ongoing DCU after seeing what he’s done here.

Front page image from dccomics.com. Interior image from dreamwidth.org.
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TITLE: Young Avengers #1
AUTHOR: Kieron Gillian
PUBLISHER: Jamie McElvie
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 23, 2013

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Young Avengers #1 introduces us to something Kieron Gillen calls “Action Scene as Music Video. Automythology.” It’s hard to do it justice on paper, but it makes for a damn fine comic book.

While Hawkeye (Kate Bishop) and Marvel Boy are dealing with a surprise Skrull attack, Teddy Altman and Billy Kaplan clash over Teddy doing some moonlighting as Hulkling, despite agreeing not to. Also, Loki (who is now in teen form) is up to something, but he’s got Miss America to deal with first.

We open the issue with Kate waking up in Noh-Varr’s bedroom, a charmingly familiar scene for anyone who’s ever woken up in a stranger’s bed. But the issue quickly explodes into one of Jamie McElvie and Mike Norton’s “music video” layouts, i.e. a two page blaze of energy and color, accented by captions that could easily double as pop song lyrics. It’s a delightfully fresh take on the superhero action scene. Young Avengers #2 will be worth the price of admission just to see what they pull out of the hat next.

McElvie’s characters exude a certain youthful emotion and energy, Whether it’s Kate seeing the Earth from a grander perspective out Noh-Varr’s window, Noh-Varr’s determination to take down the Skrulls, or Billy and Teddy’s frustration and vulnerability during their argument, everything looks very true to life. Or about as true to life as we can get in a book about teenage superheroes.

From a writing perspective, putting the exchange between Billy and Teddy after the sequence with Kate and Noh-Varr throws a huge wrench into the great momentum built in the scene with the Skrulls. But they had to slow things down at some point, didn’t they? The shift was obviously noticeable, but considering what we see in the scene with Billy and Teddy, I’m not complaining.

Throw in a hell of a variant cover by Bryan Lee O’Malley of Scott Pilgrim fame, and you’ve got a recipe for a series that may just give American superhero comics its purest and best dose of young justice.

Interior image from bleedingcool.com.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Savage Wolverine #1
AUTHOR/PENCILLER: Frank Cho
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 16, 2013

I’m not sure if I’m any more of a Wolverine fan after reading the debut issue of Savage Wolverine. But I’m a Shanna the She-Devil fan for sure!

After Shanna and handful of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents crash into the Savage Land during a cartography mission, Wolverine is dispatched to save them. But the Savage Land lives up to its name, as Wolvie faces off against hostile natives, and even a few cranky dinosaurs.

Frank Cho’s amazingly gorgeous art is almost enough of a reason on its own to pick Savage up. His rendition of Shanna the She-Devil is pure cheesecake awesomeness. Particularly enjoyable was the full page, full body profile shot of our muscular and powerful, yet most definitely feminine heroine laid out against a page consisting largely of white space, with panels depicting the S.H.I.E.L.D group’s predicament almost extending from her body. It’s a gorgeous page. Though I’m not expecting my girlfriend (or anybody‘s girlfriend for that matter) to be much of a Shanna fan after this issue.

The way Cho plays with white space in his layouts is also very interesting. Whether he uses it to draw focus to certain things, such as the lovely Shanna in the aforementioned page, or simply as a way to guide readers through the layout, it makes for a very interesting visual journey.

The curious thing about the story being told, at least at this point, is that despite having his name on the book, Wolverine doesn’t really need to be there. Based on what we’ve seen so far, Cho could simply have made this a Shanna the She-Devil story about survival in the Savage Land. The only reason Wolverine seems to be there is to make the story more marketable to casual fans. Mind you, we’re only one chapter in. But that’s the vibe I’m getting so far.

The Logan we get from Cho juxtaposes the character’s trademark penchant for blood and violence with a relaxed, analytical side one might expect from a hero with this much experience. When we first see him, he’s analyzing his surroundings, drawing conclusions based on the climate and the presence of things like volcanic ash. Then he tangles with a dinosaur. Moments later, we see him label a group of natives as neanderthals based on the spread of their toes. And then he’s chopping their limbs off. It’s not necessarily what you’d expect from a book called Savage Wolverine, but it’s interesting to watch nevertheless.

Whether readers will enjoy this issue likely depends on their level of enjoyment for Cho’s art. For Cho’s fans, this is a can’t miss book. For Wolverine fans, the verdict is still out.

Front page image from apesandbabes.com. Interior image from author’s collection.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Superior Spider-Man #1
AUTHOR: Dan Slott
PENCILLER: Ryan Stegman
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 9, 2012

***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***

Ahhhh. See, now it all makes sense. Marvel baits the fans to freak out over the departure of Peter Parker as Spider-Man, only to swerve us on the last page and show us Pete’s still around, though in a different form entirely Yup, they got us. Or at least they got me.

Mere hours before what would have been his death, an ailing Otto Octavius transferred his consciousness into the body of Peter Parker, and then watched his old nemesis die in his place. But along with Peter’s body, Otto also gained his memories, and his sense of power and responsibility. Now the former Doctor Octopus must assume not only Peter’s identity, but Spider-Man’s as well. His first task will be taking on a new incarnation of the Sinister Six!

Dan Slott has a lot of fun in this issue playing with the idea of a mustache-twirling supervillain now trying to be a hero. He has Otto say things like “I get to win!” and “…witness their complete and utter defeat at my hands!” It’s fun to see Otto let loose a little bit, but Slott makes it clear that he hasn’t gone from black to white overnight. He’s still an egotist, offended by the existence of a new Sinister Six, and remorseful over the fact that Peter Parker will get credit for all he does from here on out. He’s also no less brutal, as he nearly murders Boomerang before being stopped by Peter, whose consciousness somehow still exists, though to a lesser degree, in his old body. The old Parker luck has indeed struck again, as Peter will at least temporarily be forced to watch as Otto does as he pleases with his identity. That opens some interesting doors for some drama, and an entirely different kind of “inner turmoil.”

Ryan Stegman doesn’t play around with Spider-Man’s physicality very much in this issue, i.e. how Otto would swing or fight in the suit compared to how Peter would. He does, however, do plenty with that of civilian Parker. It’s almost too much, the way he plays with Peter’s expressions, posture, body language, etc. Some of it’s more subtle (the exchange with Grady Scraps), and some of it ventures into “how can you not call him out?” territory (the dinner date with Mary Jane). But in any event, it’s fun to watch.

The initial intrigue of seeing what Slott and Stegman do with Doc Ock in the hero role is enough to bring me back for more on this one. They got me once. Who knows? Maybe they’ll get me again.

***

TITLE: Star Wars #1
AUTHOR: Brian Wood
PENCILLER: Carlos D’Anda. Cover by Alex Ross.
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASED: January 9, 2012

Brian Wood is as capable as anybody else of giving us an old school Star Wars throwback as anybody else. And as far as Star Wars throwbacks go, this one’s pretty good. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty good.

Set two months after the Battle of Yavin, this issue sees Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Wedge Antilles scouting new locations for a Rebel base. But when the Empire intervenes, there is fear that a spy may be in their midst. Now Leia must assemble a team to weed out the spy and find the Rebel Alliance a new home.

Dark Horse is hyping this book as something Star Wars fans of any calibur can jump on to. Thus, the simplicity of the story is a good thing. Characters we all love, with an easy-to-understand objective: Find the base, find the spy. It’s an easy transition from A New Hope.

We’re given a pleasant surprise right on the first page: Leia flying an X-Wing alongside Luke and Wedge. That’s an important move in terms of, if I may, giving Leia some balls. Despite being a captured princess, at her core the Leia character has always been an anti-damsel. Putting her in a starfighter alongside the boys conveys an important message in terms of her place in the midst of everything.

Incidentally, I was also impressed that Wood and D’Anda didn’t use the easiest parlor trick possible in a Star Wars book: Turning on a lightsaber. We see Luke’s more than once, but it’s not used as a weapon. The only ignited lightsaber we see in the issue is on Alex Ross’ gorgeous cover, as Darth Vader strikes a pose reminiscent of a classic poster for the original film.

D’Anda gives a strong performance here. His detail on the spaceships we see in this issue is impeccable, and his shots of Leia in the X-Wing cockpit are wonderfully done. My biggest complaint with his art, and the entire issue, is the way Darth Vader is drawn. D’Anda dips Vader’s headpiece too low, which at times turns the mask into a cartoony looking scowl. The character also appears to be doing an awkward, runway style strut in the image on the left. I’m also not crazy about D’Anda’s C-3PO, whose posture looks awkward.

Still, Wood gets the essence of the characters right. Vader is foreboding and menacing, yet deep down a once proud warrior now reduced to the Emperor’s lapdog. Princess Leia is a hardened leader wise beyond her years, but not without her own femininity. Han Solo, while perhaps a bit more soft-hearted than we saw him in A New Hope, is still a calculating mercenary. And now that Luke Skywalker has had his first taste of the universe outside his uncle’s moisture farm, he’s beginning to question things, and grow into the more seasoned rebel we’ll see in The Empire Strikes Back. I’m hopeful Brian Wood will be able to give us a fun Star Wars adventure which serves as a nice throwback, and possibly the last big hurrah for the Dark Horse’s over 2o year run with the Star Wars license before it moves to Marvel.

Front page image from complex.com. Interior mage 1 from comicbooked.com. Images 2 and 3 from unleashthefanboy.com.
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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Mara #1
AUTHOR: Brian Wood
PENCILLER: Ming Doyle
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASED: December 26. 2012

Before he takes on the Star Wars universe at Dark Horse next month, Brian Wood tries to sell us something even more far fetched than worlds of wookies, ewoks and droids: That America will one day embrace volleyball as a major national sport. And yet in doing so, he manages to give us a story that, at least at this point, is high on intrigue.

In an nation apart by war and racial divides, 17-year-old Mara Prince is the biggest sports star in the world. She’s “a global celebrity and commercial brand, worth more than she could ever spend.” Then, something happens during a game. As a result, Mara’s life and career are tarnished forever (or at least that’s what we can assume at this point). In this high-tech age of global turmoil and economic chaos, what happens to a sports superstar when she falls from grace? In any event, Mara’s life will never be the same.

To an extent Mara is very much a mirror into our own culture, not just in terms of sports heroes, but celebrities and public figures in general. Once your image is tarnished, it is often tarnished forever. In sports alone, we’ve got names like Tiger Woods, Pete Rose, Mike Tyson, and perhaps the most despicable of them all, Jerry Sandusky. Those are rather extreme examples compared to what we see in this issue, but it’s the same sort of theme. Wood and Doyle also explore the idea of sports as escapism, which is as prevalent today as ever. When we open the issue, Wood gives us some newscast dialogue, then tosses in some sportscast dialogue and gradually shifts the balance completely in that direction. It creates the feel of flipping channels back and forth until settling on the escapism, instead of the grim reality.

Ming Doyle is also in great form here. There’s an absolutely wonderful full page shot of a swimsuit clad Mara in a Sports Illustrated or Esquire-style photo shoot pose. Her cover is also very well done, with the blemish on Mara’s face obviously serving as a metaphor for her now blemished reputation.

Mara is one to watch. Obviously, there are a variety of ways any book could go wrong at this point. But I have a good feeling about this one.

Front page and interior images from comicbookresources.com.

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By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Joe Palooka #1
AUTHOR: Joe Antonacci, Matt Triano, Mike Bullock
PENCILLER: Fernando Peniche
PUBLISHER: IDW Publishing
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: December 20, 2012

You’d think one of the first (if not the first) MMA comic book would kick a lot more ass than this. Sadly, that’s not the case.

Quick history lesson: Originally, Joe Palooka was a comic strip that appeared in roughly 900 newspapers at its peak. It made its debut in the ’30s, and went on to spawn a radio series, a set of short films, and a syndicated TV show. The main character was a boxer who represented upstanding moral values, and had a tight-knit supporting cast.

This new Joe Palooka, re-imagined by MMA ring announcer Joe Antonacci and co-writers Matt Triano and Mike Bullock, is a fighter whose real name is Nick Davis. When he finds himself in the center of a bank robbery, Davis takes action and winds up shooting not only the robbers, but  a security guard. Our hero flees to Tijuana, where he takes part in a tough man competition to earn money. The ring announcer in his first fight gives him the name “Joe Palooka,” and the name sticks. But regardless of what his name is, our hero is a wanted man…

There’s some good stuff to be found in this issue. But the glaring problem with it all is that it goes by too quickly for us to really appreciate it. This writers essentially tried to cram the character’s entire origin story into this one issue. The whole thing feels rushed as a result, particularly once Davis jumps the border and heads to Tijuana. We’re given a standard sports hero scenario where our main character is put up against the territory’s top dog, and has to take him down to establish himself. Considering this is an MMA comic, you’d think they’d use this fight as an opportunity to give readers a nice action sequence. Instead, the fight is over after two punches, an elbow and a sleeper hold. The “Aztec Champion” doesn’t even get a single offensive maneuver in. What little tension the scene had to offer instantly evaporates.

Thankfully, the writers did manage to salvage some of Joe Palooka’s “upstanding moral values.” We see how devastated he is over what happened during the bank robbery. Also, a good amount of the money he wins goes back to his sister in the States so she can attend college. To this end, our main character is at least a likable guy, and we have a reason to root for him. He’s not just some muscled up douchebag who likes punching people and wants to get to the top of the MMA industry, as he could easily have been.

The art is decent, though nothing to get too excited about. Standard, over-muscled characters who will occasionally make exaggerated cartoony faces. Based on what little combat we see, it looks like Peniche will be able to offer us some decent action. But it’s a little early to judge in that respect.

From a PR standpoint, Joe Palooka makes for a nice story. A ring announcer takes a classic character and helps reimagine him as an MMA guy. But readers hoping to see the rugged brutality of the UFC translated into a comic book will, at least initially, be disappointed.

Images from comicbookresources.com.
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