Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu Black & White One Shot – Review

By Jonathan Hickman (writer), Kody Chamberlin (artist), Mike Benson (writer), Tomm Coker & C.P. Smith (artists), Charlie Huston (writer), Enrique Romero (artist), Robin Furth (writer), Paul Gulacy (artist)

The Story: The good ol’ days of Marvel’s mighty, black and white grindhouse megazines are given a loving homage in this anthology starring the Master of Kung-Fu.

The Good: Being a shameless fan of grindhouse, kung-fu, and nostalgia, I found it hard not to enjoy this comic.  The design of everything from the expertly lettered cover, black and white pages, and hilarious faux advertisement on the back cover were all wonderful choices that really gave this the look and feel of those oversized magazines Marvel used to publish in the 70s. It’s also very refreshing to come across a comic that is so shamelessly committed to having a good time. Of the four stories comprising this retro-themed anthology, Hickman’s story “The Annual Race to Benefit Various And Sundry Evil Organizations And Also The Homeless. Now With Beer And Hot Dogs” (and yes, I swear to God that is the name of the story) is by far the most ridiculously entertaining one.  Granted, Shang-Chi plays second fiddle to none other than Deadpool, but what the hell, when Hickman includes a fully functional gameboard within his plot I’m willing to overlook paltry details like the absence of the main freaking character.  The other stories here were much more conventional, but every bit as satisfying.  Of those, I thought the story by Huston and Romero best captured the look and feel of the old Gulacy Shang-Chi stories, and the prose story by Furth and Gulacy was an unexpected delight.  This was a vastly different book than anything Marvel’s currently doing, and I was very pleased with the finished product.

The Not So Good: Although I quite enjoyed the retro design of this book, I can’t say that it’s going to appeal to everyone.  This comic utterly lacks the melodrama, spandex, and face-punching antics of the typical superhero comic, and that alone is bound to drive away tons of readers.  Benson’s story was an admirable effort, but didn’t quite resonate with me in the way I wanted it to.  The use of Chinese(?) characters in the dialogue balloons become quickly tiresome, and for me anyway didn’t add anything to the overall reading experience.  However, that being said, if Marvel should ever choose to do more Shang-Chi stories, I hope they’ll bring Tomm Coker on board, as his gritty, Sienkiewicz-styled art perfectly complimented this kind of story.

Conclusion: I was honestly surprised with how much I liked this book, and would love to see Marvel use this format more often to dust off some of their forgotten heroes.  Can’t go wrong with 48 pages of kung-fu goodness.

Grade:  B

-Tony Rakittke

Dark Tower: Fall Of Gilead #1 – Review

By Stephen King (creator), Peter David and Robin Furth (writing), Richard Isanove (parts), Dean White (color assists).

The Story: It’s the beginning of the end of Gilead as Farson’s forces, headed by the evil wizard Martin, have make their move against the Gunslingers. Roland deals with the realization of the matricide he has committed, while Cort makes a fatal stumble into one of Martin’s traps.

What’s Good: This is a “professional” comic, meaning, that there is an A list team onboard with experienced editors that have clearly worked out every nuance of this comic long before it has hit the shelves. Additionally, it is hard to go wrong with adapting an already legendary story, such as Stephen King’s Dark Tower. All that being said, this comic still rocks in and of itself.  It is masterfully written and conceived. Many scenes, especially with Roland and his mother, are unforgettable.

As always in the Dark Tower series, the art is beautiful. I’m not convinced that nothing is lost from the lack of Jae Lee on this arc, but Richard Isanove does a yeoman’s job filling in. His designs are very detailed and impactual. Roland’s expressions and overall  countenance are stark and powerful. You feel his horror and grief as wakes up to the reality of the murder he has committed.

What’s Not So Good: Well, Jae Lee is Jae Lee and him not doing pencils hurts this issue. Also, this issue veers away from Roland’s journey and basically just rehashes what we saw in the last issue of Treachery and in the Wizard one-shot. There is a lot of story to tell and spending a whole issue to get to one scene where Steven confronts Roland, is a bit wasteful. However, to be honest, I am nitpicking in finding things not to like in this issue as it mostly superb.

Conclusion: If you’re not reading this series, I recommend going out and getting the trades and jumping on board. With the exception of this not being a new creation, the Dark Tower series is comic book creating at its finest. I came to the Dark Tower series late and had to play catch-up, but it quickly became apparent to me that all the praise and rave reviews of this series is well warranted. The Fall of Gilead looks to be as strong as the previous installments. Whether it holds up the first arc, A Gunslinger is Born, is yet to be revealed, but I think it has the potential. I almost hate buying this series in single issue as it is very hard to wait to the next installment.

One last praise: Because of the extremely well crafted writing and gorgeous art, the Dark Tower series is, to me, highly re-readable. And this is what I ask for in a comic, the fact that it can be and needs to be visited again and again, rather than just a one and done like most titles on the shelf. Highly recommended!

Question for readers of the Dark Tower novels and comics: Would you want to see a comic adaptation of Roland’s adventures post-Gilead, i.e., his journey to the Dark Tower?

Grade: B+

-Rob G

Comic-Con 2008: Sunday Programming!

Sunday is Kids day! That’s good, because if it were a Saturday a lot of people would be pissed. Usually, Sundays has the fewer panels of the convention, but this year there are a lot of interesting ones to attend to.

Highlights include a Smallvile screening and Q&A, a Jack Kirby Tribute, Zuda Online Comics, Terry Moore, Dave Stevens Tribute, Supernatural screening and Q&A, Hamlet 2, Jeph Loeb, Len Wein, Mark Waid and Grant Morrison among others.

The one I’m not going to miss (and I’m sure it’ll be packed): The Life of Michael Turner Tribute Panel: — Celebrate the life and times of acclaimed artist, creator, and Aspen Comics president and founder Michael Turner, as Aspen Comics and a host of popular comic book creators pay special tribute to the creator of the best-selling titles Fathom, Soulfire, and Witchblade, and the cover artist behind the mainstream comic event hits Marvel’s Civil War and DC Comics’ Identity Crisis and Justice League of America. In honor of Turner’s tremendous spirit and body of work, as well as his countless contributions to the comic book industry, Aspen Comics will return the favor by remembering Michael Turner’s amazing life both in and outside of comics at this very special tribute event.

Check the complete lineup here!