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Snapshots for 7/2
There's no way that Don and I can cover all of the material we have for review in full reviews, so these capsule reviews will offer some brief comments on other recent releases.
100 BULLETS #46
by Brian Azzarello & Eduardo Risso (DC Comics/Vertigo imprint)
 I've spent the last week watching the DVDs of Oz Season Two, so I was in the mood for a little prison soap opera, and Azzarello and Risso are conveniently providing the same in the current "Chill in the Oven" story in 100 Bullets. Like Oz, "Chill in the Oven" features some fairly disturbing and outrageous prison politics based on violence, machismo and a skewed sense of what's important, but this story is more about a couple of people than a prison as a whole. It's also, as this issue reveals, about the organization known as the Minutemen, and some of the players on the outskirts of the Minutemen-Trust war whose loyalties make them pretty much free agents. It's interesting that Lono, Shepard and Loop are all wild cards in the war, but in very different ways, and I loved both the revelation of why Graves was interested in Loop and Loop showing a bit more smarts and manipulative skill than he has shown previously. 9/10
ELEKTRA #25
by Robert Rodi, Sean Chen & Sandu Florea (Marvel Comics)
 It seems that the tact that Rodi has chosen for Elektra is to use her as a basically interchangeable assasin figure, and to hang the stories on developing her targets for a couple issues before she kills them. I'm a little uncertain that it's a good idea to spend all of the story time developing characters who are going to die within a couple of issues, and even more uncertain that the "how does Elektra get past security and kill this person?" isn't going to get repetitive. I'm more certain that moving Elektra back to the role as faceless killer is considerably less interesting than the groundwork Rucka was laying for the character. But the change of direction has been set, and at least the artwork by Chen and Florea is more consistent and keeping in tone with the book. It's pretty clear to me that this new take on Elektra is not for me, but Rodi's targets for Elektra are interesting enough and those seeking stories of a fairly generic assassin killing new people every couple of issues will probably enjoy it. 4/10
JSA: ALL-STARS #3
by Geoff Johns, David Goyer, Barry Kitson & Darwyn Cooke (DC Comics)
 Three issues in, I think I've got All-Stars figured out. It's all about guest creators (most of them pretty impressive) and character-building that can't fit in the pages of JSA. Unfortunately, the stories don't really seem strong enough to support an issue on their own, and so in general it seems like these talents aren't getting a chance to really show what they're capable of. In this particular issue, he first story is all about the familiar (but not unwelcome, at least for me) cliche of showing a hero his own tragic future, thus starting the clock ticking on the "when will we see these events in continuity?" and adding another mystery to the main book. The second is part tribute to the hokey storytelling of the Golden Age and part super-hero/horror blend by one of my favorite artists, Darwyn Cooke. Neither is particularly stand out, but they're both decent reads with impressive artwork. Good for fans of the JSA looking for more, but not for those looking for something particularly different or new. 6/10
STRAY BULLETS #32
by David Lapham (El Capitan)
 Lapham is a master of the acceleration from seemingly meaningless event to cataclysmic life-changer. He's also got a way with children getting in over their heads. Like many Stray Bullets of late, this is a nice done-in-one story, establishing a bad man and a bad kid and putting them together to interesting effect. I like that a simple thing like making faces or talking shit can lead to this spiral of fear and danger until eventually a psychotic makes someone pay much more than they owe for their minor social transgression. It's a formula we've seen before in Stray Bullets, but it never gets old, in part because Lapham is so effective at humanizing both the put-upon victim and the psycho he or she gets involved with. As always, the book is just visceral, whether it's the brutal torture scene in the beginning, the maniacal anger in the face of "The Finger" or the absolute stark terror on Lorry's face as he gets in deeper and deeper. There's also a nice EC horror style structure going on, with a shock ending that sort of comes up suddenly but pays off nicely from what we've seen before. As always, this is a dark book, maybe not for everyone, but those seeking crime and especially true-to-life crime should definitely check it out. 9/10
SUPERMAN: BIRTHRIGHT #1
by Mark Waid, Leinil Yu & Gerry Alanguilan (DC Comics)
 Here's a big question facing most Smallville watchers: What happens next? Given the changes in the Lex-Clark-Lana dynamic alone, it seems impossible that the Clark Kent of Smallville will ever really become the same Superman. Waid, however, seems to be taking off from the Smallville mythos and telling a television-style story of what Clark might do after he's grown up and left the farmtown. To be honest, I was hoping for a little more Superman epic and a little less guy without costume doing good deeds in secret, but that doesn't seem to be what Birthright is about. Instead, it's a perfect follow-up for those who like the strong characterization and relatively low-power version of Superman on display in Smallville, nailing the heroic nature of the character without all the big blue trappings (at least, so far). And with Yu and Alanguilan, whose last work (High Roads) was so visually spectacular, you know the book looks great. 6/10
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