Don and Randy visit with a legendary monkey king and a vampire from outer space, both courtesy of Harris Comics.
Don:
We hear from the most interesting people in this reviewing gig. Harris Comics editor-in-chief Maureen McTigue dropped a couple of previews in the mail to us, giving us an advance look at the beginning of a new series -- Xin: Legend of the Monkey King -- and the beginning of a new story arc -- Vampirella #15.
Randy:
I'm only a little familiar with both of these properties, but McTigue gives us plenty to become more familiar with. In addition to some text pieces that fill us in on the history of the characters, creators and projects, she sent along black and white preview copies of both books, although it's worth noting that Vampirella isn't quite complete, being pages of unlettered artwork with accompanying dialogue sheets. There's plenty here to give us an impression, though.
Xin: Legend of the Monkey King #1
written by Kevin Lau, Erik Ko & Jay Faerber
illustrated by Kevin Lau, Omar Dogan & Udon
lettered by Comicraft
edited by Maureen McTigue
Don:
Xin is a powerful warrior in the realm of light and darkness... perhaps the single most powerful one there ever was. But he's also greedy and arrogant, and he returns to face off against his one-time comrades in the fight for good -- the Saints. The Saints must endeavor to prevent Xin from taking the title, power and responsibility of the Guardian of the Light for himself, as he is clearly not ready for it yet. But that may be easier said than done.
Randy:
Especially when the lead character is as talented as he is boorish. Xin, as presented by Lau, Ko and Faerber, reminds me of renegade Green Lantern Guy Gardner at his height, an obnoxious loudmouth who is all the more annoying because he can back up his bravado with skill and power. I mean annoying in the sense that he would annoy other characters, however, because he's quite a bit of fun to read about.
Don:
Now while this book is pretty much all action and little plot, it boasts quite a number of unique strengths as well. I was delighted to discover that the title character is the antagonist of the book (at least, he is in this first issue). He's definitely the focus as well, but the reader isn't liable to cheer him on. He's arrogant, and one can't help but hate him a little. That's pretty unusual, and it made for an entertaining read.
Another strength is the strong degree of accessibility at play. Faerber's dialogue clearly identifies each member of this fairly large cast of characters, and the plot is clearly defined.
Randy:
I found it interesting that this story is based on a Chinese myth that sounds as universal as the folk tales and children's stories most of us grew up on. As you note, it certainly doesn't seem like you need to know this original myth to get into the new story, though, as this reads more like a super-hero comic with a Hong Kong action twist. The fight scenes in particular are very modern, drawing as much from modern day Chinese cinema as ancient Chinese stories.
Don:
I know Kevin Lau was the creative force behind Vampi, the manga take on Harris's Vampirella property. I never read it, as neither Vampirella nor manga are creative concepts and approaches that appeal to me all that much. I have to admit, though, that Lau's work, which puts one in mind of some highly energetic anime, was a delight to drink in. I suspect that due in no small part to the folks at Udon Studios. The backgrounds are stunning, and even in black-and-white, one can see how much their computer coloring effects add to the visuals.
Randy:
Yep, the artwork here is downright gorgeous. Along with the black and white copies, we did get a full-color preview issue that was sent to retailers, giving us a glimpse of the colors that Udon will be doing to accompany Lau's beautiful artwork, and I expect those who have enjoyed the work that Udon has done at Marvel will be even more impressed by Udon's colors over Lau's pencils on Xin.
Vampirella #15
written by Jay Faerber
illustrated by Matthew Clark & Ron Randall
edited by Maureen McTigue
Don:
In part one of "The Pack," something's making a mess in the woods, and the mess consists of the body parts of campers. Two bodies are discovered by a group of corporate executives on a company retreat, and they alert the police. But in addition to the cops, someone else is investigating as well... a certainly bikini-clad heroine from the planet Draculon.
The supernatural horror atmosphere and plot points of this story are well done, but they're also familiar. Faerber ventures into some pretty standard horror-flick territory, although he's added a new element: a blood-sucking super-heroine. In the spirit of the genre, he even goes so far as to include a group of would-be victims who don't bother to heed the obvious danger.
Randy:
While I can see what you're saying, I wouldn't call this standard horror-flick territory. The inclusion of a police investigator and a super-heroine (which is what Vampirella is being played as in this story) turns it into a blend of horror and crime, and it's not really playing up the scary or gory elements of the story so far. Instead, it's playing up the investigation of a crime with horror tinges, as well as having a little fun with the potential victims and the cop who is out of his league in trying to deal with the confident and sexy Vampirella.
Don:
The real star of this book is clearly Matthew Clark's artwork. I loved his work on Wonder Woman a couple of years back. And while his work on the more recent Felon limited series was good as well, it wasn't quite as focused and strong. Here, we see the return of Clark's richly detailed, realistic style. He manages to elicit the proper dark, foreboding atmosphere as well. And, of course, he maintains the title character's sex appeal.
Randy:
I was actually pretty disappointed with Clark's storytelling on Felon, and I had some problems with it here as well. Some odd choices of what gets included in the panel, and where the focus is, often leads to a striking panel, but it's not always one that seems like the best choice to tell the story. That said, I will agree that the detail is beautiful, and while I may have trouble with the storytelling quirks, you'll never find me complaining that Clark's work is anything but a joy to look at. He also, as you note, does a damn sexy rendition of the lead character.
Don:
Of course, that sex appeal -- mostly attributable to her skimpy outfit -- is distracting... and not in a good way. In the midst of this horror story, Vampirella looks out of place, even silly. It's an inherent problem with the property, one for which the creators can't be blamed, though.
Randy:
Here I must agree with you. I actually thought Vampirella strolling into the crime scene and hypnotizing the man who noticed her into thinking of her as a profiler was a cute moment, but I couldn't help but think it could have been easier if she had dropped the bikini and dressed in more plain street clothes. You're right to place the blame where it belongs, though, which is with the property. If the creators did remove Vampirella from her trademark skimpy red outfit, there would probably be howls of outrage from most of her fans; unless of course they didn't put her into another outfit instead, but that's a whole different kind of comic.
Though neither Xin nor Vampirella are books that I was highly anticipating, it's clear that the creative talent, from editorial on down, have put a lot of themselves into the work, and the results are fun to read. Xin in particular strikes me as the kind of fun and light action comic that many comics fans would probably enjoy, even if they haven't sampled the work of Harris Comics or Kevin Lau before.
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