Comic Review: B.P.R.D. Plague of Frogs 4

    Another volume of B.P.R.D. another part of the world irrevocably altered.  Actually two parts this time.  Germany and Indonesia…oh, and California.  Three parts.  A lot is revealed in this final volume of the mega-arc Plague of Frogs.  But of course there is more to come.  I don’t know what happens next, but considering how bad this arc has been, I have to think one called “Hell on Earth” is going to get dark before it gets light…if it ever gets light.

    So, this time around, the team is trying to figure out what’s going on with that dream/ghost Liz keeps seeing.  And like me, they’re trying to figure out why Lobster Johnson would hijack Johann’s ectoplasm and shoot it.  On the trail of this Memnan Saa, they also begin to unravel the secret of a sad and unloved occultist from the 1800s who orbited in the same social circles as the team’s new mummy member, Panya.  The quest takes them to Asia, where a member of the team is snatched.  Then to German, where they discover that the Frog threat isn’t as contained as believed and that it has become much more complicated.  And then to the frozen wastes of the Russian-Chinese border.  There is a return of an old enemy and that of an old friend…sort of.  And though I hardly think his tale is done, there is a kind of peace found for the Lobster.

    Abe and Liz go through absolute hell over the course of the volume.  Like Hellboy, Abe has never been comfortable with command, and it is weighing very heavily on him.  Both learn a great deal about themselves, and their place in the cosmic play that is unfolding.  These beings (heroes and villains) seem to be like gravity wells, attracted to each other and causing all sorts of damage as they pass, and massive destruction when the collide.  Even with the best intentions, Liz is a tremendously catastrophic force.  And if Abe found himself uncomfortable with command before, what fate seems to have in store for him will not be improving his outlook.  With Hellboy out of the picture, these two are coming into their own, and it may just spell the end of the world.  And through it all, there’s Kate.  Good, sane, steady Kate.  With all the flash and noise of these weird people it’s easy not to notice Kate, but without her, everything would be falling apart (not just lots of things but everything).

    Though this volume ends a story arc, it is not the end of the story.  And in a way, the Plague of Frogs is all just setting the stage for what comes next.  And by the end of this volume, you’ll have seen a few glimpses into what that may be.  And it’s not good.  Things have changed for our heroes.  Their lives are in constant upheaval, their losses profound and their gains sometimes fleeting.  But they press on, battling against the tidal waves of cosmic horror.  B.P.R.D. is a great series that takes its emotional cue from Lovecraft.  These brave men and women are not fighting for good or justice.  They may not even be fighting to win.  They’re doing everything they can to stop an unstoppable force, to delay it, to give the Earth just one more day of light.  The wave is coming.  And the only thing between us and the end is a team of weirdos who may themselves be the keys to our ultimate destruction.

B.P.R.D. Plague of Frogs 4
Authors: Mike Mignola & John Arcudi
Artists: Guy Davis & Dave Stewart
Publisher: Dark Horse Books
ISBN: 978-1-59582-974-0

-Matt

Brad's Week in Dork! (9/23/12-9/29/12)

This week started out strong with the thankfully excellent Dredd 3D, but after marathoning several films I discovered that my love for Steven Seagal has dwindled quite a bit.  Still love, love, love Hard To Kill but the other movies were a bit of a bore.  I'm happy to keep him out of Expendables 3.  The rest of the week was taken over by The Avengers blu ray release and a whole mess load of comic books.

MOVIES OF THE WEEK!

Dredd:  Karl Urban straps on the uniform, keeps the helmet on, and perfects the stern forwny face of Judge Dredd and it is beautifully badass. No cheeky one-liners, no SNL comic relief. Just brutality and bloodshed. Sure, this Dredd lets one too many punk kids live but he takes a strong stance on the homeless and he's not afraid to barbecue the baddies or toss them off the appropriate ledges. Lena Headey is disgustingly villainous as the drug pushing madame slumlord, and Olivia Thirlby is shockingly acceptable as the rookie Judge Anderson - there's an edge to her as well as a sadness not seen before.  But this is Urban's show, and as he stomps through the hallways of the Peach Trees complex I was overcome with giddy glee watching my favorite fascist dispense gory justice.  For those bemoaning this as a Raid rip-off, I say get over yourself.  1) Both went into production at the same time.  2) The world could use more Claustrophobic Kill Crazy Rampage flicks.

Under Siege:  Die Hard on a Boat minus the rapscallion charm of Bruce Willis plus the Kung Fu earnest of stern Steven Seagal. 13 year old Brad ate it up, but it's a little trickier to enjoy in these dark, post-Lawman days. Still, Tommy Lee Jones Two-Faces it up as the rock star terrorist road running his way through a myriad of Seagal slapfests. And Gary Busey as the cross-dressing Commander Krill! A walking nightmare! Under Siege is a solid squibber, but Seagal has hammed his way through better action fodder and his badass routine is not ridiculous enough to be entertaining.  This gets a rec for its bad guys - Jones, Busey, Colm Meaney.

Under Siege 2 - Dark Territory:  If Steven Seagal's kung fu enthusiasm was running thin in 1992 than it was completely used up by 1995. Die Hard on a Boat morphs into Die Hard on a Train and the result is a depressing mid 90s example of bland, unthreatening action. And the hooting Tommy Lee Jones is sorely missed after being replaced by the horrendously whiney Eric Bogosian. But I gotta give credit to the monster mashup train collision that climaxes the film; it's downright magical how Seagal escapes two exploding trains and onto the dangling helicopter ladder.  Impossible physics aside, the land of Direct-To-DVDs was totally ready for Seagal after this repetitive bore.

Hard To Kill:  "We're gonna win & I'll tell you why: Superior attitude, superior state of mind...we'll get 'em buddy...every fucking one of them." Hard To Kill is my go-to Seagal flick. It's utterly ridiculous and the majority of the dialog is laughably intense. You can't keep a good cop down. After capturing William Sadler's diabolical politician conflabbing with shadowy criminals, Seagal's top detective Mason Storm falls into a bullet-induced coma. Seven years later he awakens and using Kung Fu's special herbs & spices, Seagal recharges his ass kicking batteries, pushes the memory of his dead wife outta his mind, and falls face first into the cavernous lips of nurse Kelly LeBrock. Seagal takes Sadler to the bank...the blood bank, horrendously destroying a plethora of corrupt cops and slap happy goons.  Look no further if you seek the ultimate Seagal experience.

Out For Justice:  Man. This film has balls. Opens with an Arthur Miller quote about the otherness of neighborhoods and follows it up quickly with Seagal bashing a pimp through multiple car windows. Steven Seagal plays Italian copper Gino Fellino who gave up life as a wiseguy for the long arm of the law. He understands the mob and the mob respects him. But when made-man William Forsythe goes on a coke fueled killing spree, publicly assassinating a police officer as well as an unfortunate female road rager, than its cops vs mobsters all over the brownstones of New York.  Forsythe's coke acting is phenomenally shaky and agitated, but the film drifts when it should charge. Frankly, I could have used a little more Seagalisms and a lot more plain ol' shotgun violence.

Above The Law:  The film that introduced the world to the iffy Buddah Violence philosophy of Sansei Seagal, who developed, co-wrote, and co-produced the flick. From the jungles of Vietnam to the streets of Chicago, Above The Law pits Henry Silva's murderous Company Man against Seagal's patriot in a battle for America's soul. Thankfully, Silva's bones are brittle and Seagal seems impervious to heroin cocktails. The film is far too earnest to be laughably enjoyable and is more often boring than not.

The Avengers:  Ok.  Four times in the theater.  Three times on the blu ray.  I seriously can not get enough of this movie.  I'm still baffled by its existence, a true wonder of the geek domination of modern pop culture.  THANOS!  Cap, Thor, Iron Man battling it out in the woods.  Tony & Bruce's science banter - Tony's prodding for the Super Hero Hulk.  And the "I'm Always Angry" punchline; 7 viewings and it still gives me chills.  The blu ray looks great.  The special features are solid (kinda wish they kept the extended Cap intro).  And Joss Whedon's commentary is as entertaining as it is engaging.  2012 might be an overall crappy year for movies but I'm happy to have The Avengers at the top of my Best Of list.

COMICS OF THE WEEK!

Ultimate Spider-Man #15 - So since I'm not really following the United We Stand books outside of Spidey I don't really get what's happening to America.  This is the first issue I've read that alludes to some sort of National catastrophe and the result is the temporary shutdown of Miles' school.  Maria Hill makes her Ultimate Universe debut as the detective in charge of The Prowler's accidental (?) death at the hands of Spider-Man and the book climaxes with Miles knocking on the doorsteps of the Triskelion.  Is he ready to join up?  Will Fury have him?  Will Cap?  I hope so.  This could provide for some great new avenues in this series.

Spider-Men #5:  It's The Ultimates vs Mysterio for the battle of dimensional domination!  My fear was that five issues was not enough to wrap up this epic storyline and I definitely would have preferred this book stretched into 12 issues, but for the most part I found the conclusion to be satisfying.  You gotta feel for Mysterio, he's a super hero punching bag no matter what universe he's in or whatever Scarecrow tricks he's got up his sleeves.  And he's just no match for these web heads.  But this book is all about that cliffhanger.  Where oh where is this massive loose end gonna get resolved?  Spider-Men Part II?  Can't see it happening in Ultimate Spidey or Amazing Spider-Man.  As long as Bendis is writing I'll be reading.

Lobster Johnson - Caput Mortuum:  June, 1932.  A group of Nazi scientists plan a chemical air strike on NYC but they quickly learn to fear The Claw when Lobster Johnson hijacks their Zeppelin.  This is definiltey one of the better Lobster Johnson one shots but I'm still waiting for that quintessential tale.  And maybe it's the presence of the airship, but this felt very Rocketeer to me - which of course, is high praise.

Archer & Armstrong #2:  After a little bickering in the first issue, it appears that Archer & Armstrong are seeing eye to eye on who belongs to an evil cult and who doesn't.  Like the other Valiant books, this is some fun stuff but not quite the Must Read level yet.  Frankly, my favorite bit of the whole book is the Next Issue caption: "The Existence of God Proved (or Disproven)!  Plus: Ninja Nuns!"  Yes!  I want this book to reach Preacher levels of absurdity.

Godzilla - Half Century War #2:  Stokoe's art continues to amaze even when I'm a little underwhelmed by the plot.  Our fearless soldier follows Godzilla into Vietnam where we get our first bit of Kaiju on Kaiju action.  Like the first book the climax comes quick and we're on to a new issue and a new decade.  Still waiting to see the big picture here, but I'm seriously enjoying the ride so far.

Talon #0:  Spinning out of Batman - The Court of Owls, this first issue introduces us to Calvin Rose the only Talon to escape the brain washing of Gotham's secret society.  Frankly, I'm not interested.  Keep the Court in the shadows.  I want to see Snyder explore this new angle in the main Bat book.  I do not want it watered down here.  Calvin Rose is another circus boy orphan and his costume is ridiculous.  Not bothering with this series unless I hear good things from reliable sources.

Winter Soldier #11:  More of the same.  Frankly, I'm tired of writing about this title.  Hawkeye & Bucky get closer to The Black Widow but I'm so bored with this hunt.  Again, I'm seeing this book till Brubaker's departure but I'm really looking forward to jumping ship.

The Goon #42:  It's been too long since I've read this title.  So much silly fun.  We've got a fixed fight, dynamite stuffed zombies, creepy ass Twilight Zone mannequins, a giant sewer beetle, and prophecies of doom.  Plus, The Goon tries on Franky's tighty whities.  Just weird goofy and ugly fun.  Eric Powell brings smiles to all us sickies.

Happy! #1:  What starts off as a bit of wannabe Garth Ennis vulgarity quickly transforms into genuine Grant Morrison crazy.  Nick Sax is a professional hitman slaughtering his way through the underworld until one day he takes a near fatal bullet and awakens to the cartoony horror of a flying blue unicorn named Happy the Horse!  What.  The.  Hell.  That's weird, sure.  But is it good?  Time will tell.  Not won over yet but I'm game.

BPRD Hell On Earth - The Return of the Master #2:  On the Hunt for The Master, the Bureau encounters a rather horrifying monster/ghost in the hills of Scotland, while back at homebase the Zinco Corporation tricks Kate & Johann into lending out their clone.  Plus, Fenix has another vision of the Apocalypse involving comatose Abe and that gross ass Russian mutant continues to taunt his bottled vampire.  The series is building to its 100th issue and that means more terrible catastrophes for the people of Earth.

The Sixth Gun #25:  The Winter Wolves have Becky & Drake entrapped in Fort Treadwell.  Gord & Kirby strike a deal with the mummy Asher Cobb.  And The Sword of Abraham continues their hunt for the six guns.   This latest arc hasn't grabbed me in the same fashion as some of the previous stories, but The Sixth Gun is still the best blending of the horror and western genres I've seen in recent years.

Batman Incorporated #0:  Disappointing.  Not a bad single issue, but if you've been following Morrioson's run on Batman from the beginning than there really is nothing new here.  And that's my general feeling about most of these zero issues.  Lets just get on with the rest of the show.

JLA by Grant Morrison Volume 2:  There is some seriously unfocused crazy going on in the second volume of Morrison's Justice League book and even if I find some of it to be a bit of a slog I do really appreciate its gung ho attitude towards the DC Universe.  The first storyarc focuses on Lex Luthor's InJustice League creating Hard Light duplicates of the JLA in an effort to take down their Moon base watchtower.  This leads leads into a future story in which Darkseid has enslaved the earth thanks to a fat Flash, Metron's chair, and a cyborg Green Lantern.  And oh yeah, don't forget about Death The Black Racer.  WHAAA?!?!?  Honestly, I don't know what's going on half the time with Superman suddenly gone electric, Wonder Woman R.I.P. or not?   And The Wildc.a.t.s cross dimensional team up.  This book is all over the place and it's definitely interesting, but this is also nowhere near the quality of storytelling I was hoping for.  I'm gonna push forward with Morrison's JLA run but I need to take a break for a bit.

Get Jiro:  The fourth selection of my wife's Graphic Novel book club, Get Jiro is quite the departure after last month's Habibi.  Celebrity foodie Anthony Bourdain co-writes this story of a future society in which chefs are the world's highest commodity.  Taking its structure from Red Harvest/Yojimbo/Fistful of Dollars/Last Man Standing, two rival gangs go nuclear after some not-so-subtle manipulations from the titular sushi chef.  Can't say that I hated this book but I really came away unimpressed.  Some of Langdon Foss' art is cool with some very meaty violence and a couple of great character stares, but the story is slight and the structure played out.  But I do have a strong craving for California Rolls.

--Brad

Comic Review: Hellboy (Library Edition) Volume 4: The Crooked Man & The Troll Witch

    I know I’ve written about this before, but Mike Mignola and Hellboy are largely responsible (with the instigation of writer/publisher/former boss/long suffering friend Dan Fleming) for me being a comic reader of any seriousness.  Oh, sure, I’d flipped through the occasional stapled together bit of fluff, typically purchased out of the bargain bins because some element of the art struck a note with me.  And sure, I read Heavy Metal here and there.  But other than a brief time in my youth reading G.I. Joe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (the Archie series, even!), comics just weren’t my thing.  Superman?  Batman?  X-Men?  Blah!  They might make cool movies (sometimes), but weren’t anything I enjoyed reading about, even with pictures.

What?

    So, when Dan kept after me about comics, I’ll admit, I was a tough nut to crack.  He finally did it, though.  With a barrage of Crossgen, Metabarons, Tom Strong, and the real secret weapon, Hellboy.  I first read The Conqueror Worm, and that was it.  I was in for the long haul.  Lovecraft, pulp heroes, occult obsessed Nazi villains, European folk tales.  If he’d thrown in some naked ladies, he’d have had pretty much everything I like to read about, all in one package.

    When Dark Horse started releasing Hellboy in their “Library Editions,” handsome hard cover volumes collecting two previously released trade paperbacks each, along with some notes and sketches, I knew it was a series of books I’d have to have for my bookshelves, and I’ve not regretted a one (while constantly looking forward without much patience, to the next).  It felt like volume 4 took forever to come out, and annoyingly, when it did, my comic reading had hit a kind of deep lull.  I’d gotten into a kick of reading about technology and medieval history (with a few forays into the roaring 20s and the wretched 30s) and while new graphic novels kept springing up on my shelf, few came back down to be read, and most of those were very short, quick reads.  Volume 4 sat there, still wrapped in plastic, promising me something special, but also giving me pause, which I don’t fully understand.  I think something broke a week or so ago when I found out from co-Dork Brad that volume 5 had a release date.  I had my excuse to crack the plastic, and this morning I did just that.  I ate my breakfast, drank my cup of coffee, and sat down with the book, thinking to just read the introduction and maybe the first story.  Two hours later, found me flipping through the last few pages of sketches and commentary with a smile on my face.

    It all starts with The Crooked Man, set in the horror haunted hills of the American wilderness, in 1958.  Hellboy’s still a young man, not yet aware of the terrible destiny set before him.  So, when he wanders into some backwoods devilry, he’s an innocent, afraid of nothing.  Meeting another, less innocent wanderer, a quick and easy friendship is struck, with the common goal of righting wrongs.  Heavy dread and the shadowy antiquity of early weird tales lend the story strength.  A horrible figure of evil, witches, and ancient secrets try to consume all.  But Hellboy and his friend have other ideas.

    Following a couple very short stories, we get to one of my favorites, The Troll Witch.  It’s a sad story rooted in Norwegian fairy stories, but with typical Mignola twists.  I like how the series so often features brief glimpses of hope and joy, even when the overall essence is of impending, grinding doom.

    A few stories later we find Hellboy visiting a haunted house in Long Island.  The crazy twist in this one is beautifully right of the series, but I won’t reveal it here.  Suffice to say, long time readers should not be taken aback by what he finds when he opens that mysterious door.

    The last two stories, The Chapel of Moloch and Makoma make for a strong finish.  Moloch captures not only Mignola’s own feelings of artistic frustration (it was his first time drawing Hellboy in some time), but that loss of control and sense of otherness Lovecraft often associated with artists of various sorts.  The sculpture, squatting like a horrible toad, could easily have been in Pickman’s basement studio.

    All together there are ten tales of varying length contained in this book, spread over many decades of Hellboy’s career.  From Europe to Southeast Asia to the hill country of the States, Red is where the action is, even if he doesn’t know why.  This is the first of the hard covers to feature artists other than Mignola.  Richard Corben, P. Craig Russell and others all put their mark on the series, but none bends too far away from the overarching spirit of pulp infused horror and grimly humorous musings before the Apocalypse.  With two introductory essays and a concluding one, as well as the amusing commentary throughout the sketch pages in the back, one learns a little more about how the stories and the volume itself came about.  All very cool background for long time fans.

    If you haven’t read Hellboy yet, this probably isn’t the best place to start, though the story The Crooked Man might be a nice intro for fans of old time American folk tales.  But for those familiar with Mike Mignola’s creation, this is a must read, must have.  The Library Editions should find its way to your bookshelves, as these are works you’ll take down again in the years to come, to pore over the beautiful art, haunted characters, and grand adventure.

    Hellboy continues to be among my very favorite comic literature.  Reading it makes me want to read history, folk tales, pulp novels, and classic weird tales.  It makes me want to write and makes me wish I had some talent in drawing.  It makes me want to absorb more information and it inspires me to tell stories.   Mignola has crafted something special, built it upon the broad red shoulders of a doomed hero, and infused it with wonder and horror and so much joy.

Hellboy Volume 4: The Crooked Man - The Troll Witch
Author: Mike Mignola
Artists: Mike Mignola, Richard Corbin, & others
Publisher: Dark Horse Books
ISBN: 978-1-59582-658-9
Pages: 311


-Matt

Lobster Johnson Returns!

Yes!  I love Hellboy as much as the next guy, but Mike Mignola's Lobster Johnson is a close second when it comes to Dark Horse Heroes.  He's already had one mini-series and a novel, but I'm still waiting for the GREAT story of The Claw. Not sure if this is gonna be it, but Dark Horse Presents # 9 is going to have a new short story titled "Tony Masso’s Finest Hour" hidden within.  No real word on the plot other than it deals with the mob and Mignola himself says that “Lobster Johnson takes a beating!!!”  Sounds good enough to me.

--Brad