Girl Comics (2010) #3

Girl comics 3

Colleen Coover does another lame intro for issue. It seems better than usual, probably because of the atrocious first story, from Marjorie Liu and Sara Pichelli. It’s a Wolverine and Jubilee talking heads story; Liu’s dialogue is indescribably bad.

Next is another stupid Power Pack story from long-time writer Louise Simonson. June Brigman and Rebecca Buchman’s art is nearly okay, but clearly not ready for prime time.

Lea Hernandez’s attempt at being “cute” with Wolverine and Magneto is lame.

Ann Nocenti and Molly Crabapple do a Typhoid Mary story. The indie art doesn’t fit the poorly written story.

Even Kelly Sue Deconnick’s story is weak. The dialogue’s good, the narration’s not. And Adriana Melo and Mariah Benes do nineties Image imitations.

Carla Speed McNeil has Kitty Pryde and Wolveine go to a superhero bar. It’s pointless, but better than anything else in the issue.

Girl Comics is a debacle.

Girl Comics (2010) #2

Girl comics 2

It’s another terrible issue. Is Marvel trying to say all female creators can do are trite stories? Colleen Coover annoys with her opening…

Oh, wait. The Jill Thompson Inhumans story is fine. It’s predictable to the point I think I’ve read it somewhere before (Lockjaw getting a bath) but the art’s good and the writing’s inoffensive.

The next one is awful—it’s about a superheroine beauty parlor, from Coover with Kathryn Immonem writing. The uncredited letterer screws up the dialogue pacing but it wouldn’t be much better with competent word balloons.

Stephanie Buscema has a weak Doctor Doom two pager.

Faith Erin Hicks’s Nextwave story features a superhero killing teenagers. I guess that’s cool. You know, for a Disney comic. But it’s otherwise weak.

Abby Denson and Emma Vieceli’s superhero personals (starring Mary Jane) is lame.

Finally, Christine Boylan and Cynthia Martin’s Doctor Strange is well-illustrated but poorly written.

Girl Comics (2010) #1

Girl comics 1

Marvel should have tried harder with Girl Comics. It’s way too easy just to say, Girl Comics is bad comics.

The opening from Colleen Coover is weak. It’s so trite, the story featuring Nightcrawler getting saved by a nameless woman (writing by G. Willow Wilson, art by Ming Doyle) doesn’t seem so bad. The writing’s weak, but the art isn’t.

The next story, a Venus story (which breaks Atlas continuity), is okay. Trina Robbins’s script is okay and the Stephanie Buscema retro good girl art is nice.

Valerie D’Orazio and Nikki Brown then do a surprisingly effective Punisher tale. It’s contrived, but also sort of great.

Lucy Knisley has a cute Doctor Octopus cartoon.

Then it’s Robin Furth and Agnes Garbowska doing an illustrated text adventure for the Richards kids. Garbowska’s art is fantastic, making up for the rushed text.

Devin Grayson and Emma Rios’s X-Men finale is awful.