Last Week’s Comics 8/3/2011
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Ghost Rider: Fear Itself #1
(Marvel – writer: Rob Williams; art: Matthew Clark)
After having so much fun reading Daredevil last week, I thought I’d give another untouched series a try. So, I turned to Ghost Rider for no apparent reason, other than to see if I could forget the awful Nicolas Cage movie.
I know about Ghost Rider. I understand what he is, but my understanding is tenuous as best. What I learned is that Johnny Blaze has been freed from the Ghost Rider spirit, and that a different person is now a host to the spirit of vengeance.
And it’s a woman.
This may be old news to everyone else, but it’s new to me. And while I didn’t understand everything going on in this issue, I did enjoy it, and I may go back for more.
Fear Itself is about different hammers inhabiting characters from the Marvel Universe. These hammers turn good people – like the Hulk and The Thing – into merciless monsters driven to obliterate humanity. In this issue, Deathwatch and Blackout – two characters about whom I know nothing – are enjoying the destruction around them (as beautifully depicted by Matthew Clark; one of the highlights of this issue is his art).
That is, until Ghost Rider arrives.
After she deals with her enemies, two children emerge from the rubble to thank her. And in what is one of the coolest moments of the book, Ghost Rider turns and peers at them over her shoulder and simply says, “You will pay for your sins.”
As an introduction to the series, I thought this did a nice job of quickly pulling readers up to speed. While the issue is loaded with action, a lot of character development occurs in the midst of the chaos.
The issue also has a secondary story that gives readers a quick background into the woman who is now Ghost Rider, but the story is jumbled and hurried, lacking any real explanation. It doesn’t do much to aid the first half of the comic, and it would have been better to leave it out and save the explanation for a later time.
But for what it offers, Ghost Rider: Fear Itself #1 is worth the read. What turned me towards this issue, partially, was that I’ve heard in the Ghost Rider movie sequel, Ghost Rider pees a stream of fire. So I went with the comic.
My advice? Stick with the comics, friends. They’re a lot less shitty.
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The Search for Swamp Thing #2
(DC – writer: Jonathan Vankin; art: Renato Arlem)
I didn’t like the first issue of this series and it turns out, there’s plenty for me to dislike in #2. I’ll make this review short. I have to emphasize that the thing that seems to be lacking from this series is an overall understanding of character. The characters do questionable things, don’t adhere to their own guidelines and exhibit none of the qualities that make them cornerstones of the DC Universe.
I’ll start with Batman. After being attacked last issue, John Constantine sought out Batman to help him get rid of the “fungus” on his hand. We learn Batman’s solution in this issue. He tells John Constantine to seek out Superman in order to burn it off.
Now, Dick (we learn it’s Dick Grayson in this issue) knows that John Constantine deals in magic. He also knows that Superman’s biggest weakness, besides Kryptonite, is magic. So what does he do? He sends John Constantine to find Superman.
That’s like finding out someone’s allergic to peanuts, and then sending a peanut vendor their way.
So when Constantine finds Superman, Big Blue tells him that if he were to use his heat vision on the fungus, it would burn Constantine alive. Yet later in the issue, when Constantine is in the tentacled grip of a host-less Swamp Thing, Supes uses his heat vision anyway and burns the fungus off Constantine’s hand.
This lack of editorial foresight is baffling.
In addition to its issues in pacing, poor panel construction and weak resolutions, Brightest Day: Aftermath does nothing to make me care about the conclusion of this story. This has been a disappointing series, and I see nothing redeemable coming in the final issue.
I thought maybe I was being too harsh, but after searching around to find other reviews of this series, I see I’m not alone. Everyone agrees this is a terribly constructed story with no clear purpose. We know it’s an attempt to reunite Swamp Thing and Alec Holland, but why? What’s the point? The answer that awaits will probably be as uninspired as the previous issues.
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