Catwoman (2002) #11

Presumably, regular writer Ed Brubaker needed someone to cover for him so he could work on Catwoman Secret Files, so Steven Grant fills in on the writing here–Brad Rader’s on pencils, with new-to-the-series Mark Lipka and Dan Davis on inks.

It’s an outstanding issue for Rader. The issue’s entirely action, with Catwoman breaking into a mansion and defeating its elaborate security systems so she can steal a cat statue. There’s a bookend about an FBI agent and his partner setting up the robbery victim—a female gangster—so they could also catch Catwoman. The bookend’s terrible, but it’s an okay sort of terrible.

The issue’s just filler. There’s no reason to read it outside being a Catwoman reader, not even for other Catwoman canon. There’s a nothing-burger previous relationship between Catwoman and one of the people in the mansion, there’s not great fighting, but Rader’s sense of action pacing for Catwoman escaping the traps is phenomenal. It’d be a great action comic if there were any stakes whatsoever, but Grant writes Catwoman as a carefree adventurer. It seems like thin characterization until Grant gets to the FBI agent who’s narrating. The ending’s silly and desperate.

At times, the issue feels like they’re doing a Batman: The Animated Series Presents Catwoman special—just change the costume—but then the overwrought FBI stuff makes it feel more like it’s just a not skeevy rendition of a Jim Balent issue.

Worth the twenty bits? Maybe not. But it’s nice to see Rader developing even when the story and the vibe are middling.

Rocky and Bullwinkle (2014) #4

Once again, Evanier seems to be running out of ideas–at least for what to do with his titular characters. Even the Dudley Do-Right story has Dudley reduced to a brief walk on appearance. Though the whole horse thing is back, which is awkwardly hilarious.

But for the feature, it’s Rocky and Bullwinkle against Boris and Natasha–this time it’s a hamburger war. Evanier spends forever setting up the scheme from the villains and then has to quickly wrap it up in the second half of the story without Rocky or Bullwinkle getting much to do.

I apologize for that lengthy sentence.

There’s nothing particularly great about the story or even the art. Langridge does a fine job and gets to do some variety, but there’s not a lot of enthusiasm. Or anything to get particularly enthusiastic about. Hamburgers aren’t visually exciting, no matter what.

It’s a decent finish.

Detective Comics (1937) #789

So Batman finds this rock Indiana Jones once lost and it turns you into a violent superman. While under its influence, he kills a helicopter pilot who’s being held hostage.

Bolles is such a crappy writer, he doesn’t even seem to acknowledge it once the helicopter explodes. Moments later, Batman has the good old “no, I’m not a killer” thing and saves the bad guy. That poor helicopter pilot’s corpse is, in the meantime, burning.

And then there’s the finish. Batman commits the mastermind to Arkham. Why? Well, she’s bad. Can he prove she’s bad? No, not at all. Bolles might be a moronic writer–with some of the worst exposition in a comic ever–but the editors okayed this crap.

The backup, about Batman’s costume manufacturer, is dumb too. A.J. Lieberman’s script starts decently, but once he gets to the plot it all goes to pot.

Awful comic.

Detective Comics 789 (February 2004)

148817 So Batman finds this rock Indiana Jones once lost and it turns you into a violent superman. While under its influence, he kills a helicopter pilot who’s being held hostage.

The backup, about Batman’s costume manufacturer, is dumb too. A.J. Lieberman’s script starts decently, but once he gets to the plot it all goes to pot.

Awful comic.

CREDITS

The Randori Stone, Part Two; writer, Paul Bolles; penciller, Mike Lilly; inker, Dan Davis; colorist, Jason Wright; editors, Michael Wright and Bob Schreck. The Tailor, Part One; writer, A.J. Lieberman; penciller, Jean-Jacques Dzialowski; inker, Dan Green; colorist, Giulia Brusco; editors, Nachie Castro and Matt Idelson. Letterer, Clem Robins; publisher, DC Comics.

Detective Comics (1937) #788

This issue doesn’t just have bad writing. Bad writing the art and pacing could probably surmount. Mike Lilly’s pencils aren’t the greatest, but Sean Parsons and Dan Davis give them a nice inking and it all moves pretty well visually.

But Paul Bolles’s script? It’s exceptionally incompetent. He writes all this third person narration, very hard-boiled (at least as he’s concerned) and it makes Batman laughable. Maybe because Bolles buys into the faceless avenging night demon thing, or at least excepts the reader to buy into it.

And for what? Some Blockbuster on the rampage story not even starring Blockbuster.

I had never heard of Bolles before reading this comic; I’m hoping I never do again.

Sadly, not even Rick Spears and Rob G.’s backup can cleanse the palate. It’s predictable–though Spears writes a good Joker–and disappointing. But far better than the incompetent feature, of course.

Detective Comics 788 (January 2004)

148816 This issue doesn’t just have bad writing. Bad writing the art and pacing could probably surmount. Mike Lilly’s pencils aren’t the greatest, but Sean Parsons and Dan Davis give them a nice inking and it all moves pretty well visually.

And for what? Some Blockbuster on the rampage story not even starring Blockbuster.

I had never heard of Bolles before reading this comic; I’m hoping I never do again.

CREDITS

The Randori Stone, Part One; writer, Paul Bolles; penciller, Mike Lilly; inkers, Sean Parsons and Dan Davis; colorist, Jason Wright; letterer, Clem Robins; editors, Michael Wright and Bob Schreck. The Dogcatcher, Part Four; writer, Rick Spears; artist, Rob G.; colorist, Guy Major; letterer, Janice Chiang; editors, Nachie Castro and Matt Idelson. Publisher, DC Comics.

The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 4 (March 1994)

I’m sadly unimpressed with de Vries’s finish to Eternal Vows. It’s all supposed to be this great love story about this sailor and his squeeze in this little town. I thought de Vries was actually going to kill MacReady or something.

I swear I read these Thing comics back when I was a kid and they were a lot more sensical.

Gulacy does a fine job with everything. Davis continues to be a good inker for him. It’s too bad there wasn’t much to do. The monstrous aspects of the Thing are sort of tame in the comic book form. Without slime, it just doesn’t work.

It’s also unfortunate de Vries ran out of ideas and did yet another blood test with the flamethrower and the dishes. He moves the action to an anchored ship and rapidly repeats the same tropes.

The finale’s a disappointment. It seemed to be improving….

CREDITS

Writer, David de Vries; penciller, Paul Gulacy; inker, Dan Davis; colorist, Matthew Hollingsworth; letterer, Steve Haynie; editors, Randy Stradley and Bob Cooper; publisher, Dark Horse Comics.

The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 3 (February 1994)

For someone who really likes explaining things, de Vries doesn’t go into how MacReady has become an international Thing hunter.

But while his presence is narratively ludicrous, de Vries uses the character well. Oh, there’s some lame dialogue, but the issue’s sort of good. de Vries cuts back a little on how the Thing operates and behaves, but only on the telling part. He still shows this one Thing spread its control over a town. The problem is with the infected having autonomy. It doesn’t fit with the movie, or even the previous comic books. Instead, it’s Body Snatchers with tentacles.

But sort of good.

Gulacy is a fine asset on the book—he brings some professionalism to it, but it’s still a difficult plot to visualize. The Thing in a small fishing town. It’s not a particularly interesting setting.

As a mix of action, suspense and horror, it works.

CREDITS

Writer, David de Vries; penciller, Paul Gulacy; inker, Dan Davis; colorist, Matthew Hollingsworth; letterer, Steve Haynie; editors, Randy Stradley and Bob Cooper; publisher, Dark Horse Comics.

The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 2 (January 1994)

Turns out de Vries has the reverse problem of John Arcudi on The Thing. de Vries is better with MacReady around.

MacReady shows up—in a private helicopter, in sunglasses and maybe with a laser gun. Gulacy loves sunglasses. They make no sense in the context and it’s not particularly good art, but it’s an amusing misfire.

All the exposition about the Thing’s society and purpose is somewhat interesting. de Vries decides each creature makes a little society for itself, never letting a piece get more important than it. It’s probably laying groundwork for a Thing to team up with MacReady so who cares…

But at least de Vries is thinking.

It’s a shame this information is presented to the reader in goofy narration or bad expository dialogue.

Oh, and I was mistaken before, it takes place in New Zealand, not Australia.

Hopefully it’ll get scary soon; it’s not now.

CREDITS

Writer, David de Vries; penciller, Paul Gulacy; inker, Dan Davis; colorist, Matthew Hollingsworth; letterer, Steve Haynie; editors, Randy Stradley and Bob Cooper; publisher, Dark Horse Comics.

The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 1 (December 1993)

Eternal Vows is the Thing comic I had expected from Dark Horse. Not a direct sequel to the movie, but some lame story set in the “same universe.”

David de Vries sets this one in Australia (presumably because it’s close to the Antarctic location of the movie, but he doesn’t explain) and it’s a murder mystery in a small fishing town. Or dock town. Something.

It’s Paul Gulacy on pencils and Dan Davis does a fine enough job inking him. This art is Gulacy-lite, a little earlier than I’m used to seeing it, but it’s still competent enough Gulacy.

What de Vries does though, in an amazing move, is give the “Thing” thoughts. He apparently didn’t realize if you go into the mind of the monster, you get the converted from Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

Besides the gross out horror, de Vries totally misses the point.

It’s bewildering.

CREDITS

Writer, David de Vries; penciller, Paul Gulacy; inker, Dan Davis; colorist, Matthew Hollingsworth; letterer, Steve Haynie; editors, Randy Stradley and Bob Cooper; publisher, Dark Horse Comics.