blogging by Andrew Wickliffe
Steve Pugh
Dark Horse Presents 49 (March 1991)
Geier’s art on the Homicide installment is pretty weak, but Arcudi actually comes up with an interesting case. It is, of course, unfortunate then Arcudi relies on the art for the final panel. I had to read the page three times, staring at it, before I noticed the big reveal. It’s also too bad about […]
MoreDark Horse Presents 48 (February 1991)
Between Gaudiano and Pugh, this issue is just an art feast. Csutoras’s writing on the Gaudiano story, Harlequin, is decent, concerning a European living in the States, his loony acquaintances and some intrigue. Gaudiano makes the protagonist’s monologues atmospheric and the regular action somewhat continental in feel. The narrative is intentionally confusing, which may get […]
MoreHotwire: Deep Cut 2 (October 2010)
Pugh has some pacing issues but I think the big problem is… three issues isn’t enough Hotwire. He’s moving the series toward a close–and he’s doing an admirable job fitting a lot in (whether it’s Alice being well-liked or the stuff between the ghost soldier and the zombie)–but it’s clear he knows the end is […]
MoreHotwire: Deep Cut 1 (July 2010)
Hmm… I don’t like Pugh’s cliffhanger. I get the need for it, to establish the bad guys of this series as the mercenaries–not just incompetent but evil (did Pugh write this issue before or after Obama renewed Blackwater’s contract?)–but it’s not a solid ending. The issue opens with this amazing one-page retelling of the previous […]
MoreSuperman vs. the Terminator: Death To The Future 4 (March 2000)
Will Lex Luthor create Skynet? Will Lois Lane’s husband get jealous of her ogling Superman? Will Alan Grant get credit (and residuals) for coming up with the name Terminatrix? No to all three, I believe, unless Dark Horse and DC start doing these crossovers again. It’s strange the epilogue cliffhanger for the series–Lex Luthor is […]
MoreSuperman vs. the Terminator: Death To The Future 3 (February 2000)
Oh, no, will Superman be able to save the world from the Terminators? Crossovers like this one must be incredibly frustrating to plot because there’s no chance things aren’t going to be returning to the status quo at the end (I mean, did Dark Horse even have a regular Terminator series starring Sarah and John […]
MoreSuperman vs. the Terminator: Death To The Future 2 (January 2000)
Well, it’s not just Superman Pugh’s drawing funny–he’s inking himself here too–it’s a lot of people. Supergirl is who I’m thinking about in particular, Pugh gives her an expression like she’s just eaten a barrel of beans and is racing to the john. Actually, most of the art’s bland. Pugh’s probably racing through this assignment […]
MoreSuperman vs. the Terminator: Death To The Future 1 (December 1999)
I figured I was safe going into Superman vs. the Terminator without any continuity knowledge of Superman comics in the 1990s. Was I ever wrong…. While I did read “The Death of Superman,” I quickly lost interest and am pretty much completely unfamiliar with all the further nonsense following it–Steel, Superboy, Cyborg Superman, et cetera, […]
MoreHotwire: Requiem for the Dead 4 (August 2009)
And I’m not so much on board for the conclusion. Here’s an action-packed issue. Pugh has his villain revealed, who’s really just an aggrieved party and aggrieved parties make terrible villains to demonize, since their plight makes sense. But worst is how he takes the series away from Hotwire at the end and gives it […]
MoreHotwire: Requiem for the Dead 3 (May 2009)
This issue is Pugh’s version of an all-action issue. He fails, somewhat, because he’s still got a narrative going. It’s not just one huge action sequence, he takes the time to introduce characters and ideas, not to mention revealing the entire conspiracy (well, most of it) behind the comic book. It’s a fun issue. Not […]
MoreHotwire: Requiem for the Dead 2 (March 2009)
Ok, some of Pugh’s dialogue panels are a little static here, but otherwise, the art’s excellent. This issue moves the story… well, not quite along, but it reveals more of it. It certainly does do a good job expanding the supporting cast, which is an interesting move for the second issue of a four issue […]
MoreHotwire: Requiem for the Dead 1 (February 2009)
A friend of mine recommended Hotwire to me and, while I trust his opinion, I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into. It’s a very stylized, painted-like (is there a term for it yet, Photoshop-painted maybe) comic and he doesn’t like photoshopping or painted comics. But Hotwire‘s not really that genre at all–if […]
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