Comic Book Coffee Break #51

 Thanks for joining me on my Comic Book Coffee Break!  This morning I had Yuban Coffee with cream and Irish Creme syrup.  Good stuff.

DC Comics

My copy of the DC Pride anthology came in just in time.  I'm loving these DC anthologies. Standouts for me were the Green Lantern/Alan Scott story and Flash vs. Reflek. It was also cool to see Dreamer make her way to comics. I'd love to see more from that character.

Continuing with New 52 Superman, I read Batman/Superman: Truth Hurts. Look, I am loving this whole arc. I don't care much about Jim Gordon Batman, but it worked well in this collection.  Plus Superman teams up with Batgirl, Dick Grayson & Jason Todd as if it were a gift just for me.

Marvel

I got back on track with Cap and Falcon, reading Marvel Masterworks: Captain America V. 10.  This set of issues from 1976 sees Jack Kirby return, this time as both artist and author.  I love and will continue to love Kirby, but his complete disregard for the story that came before is pretty bold. He did the same thing with Black Panther. I loved seeing the Kirby style return, but I was digging the contemporary 70s stories that came before and this felt like an unnecessary disruption. (More on Kirby in a minute)

Other Stuff

We were working on a "Tales & Tails" Summer Reading Program over at the library so I picked up some of Erin Hunter's Warriors series.  I read the first novel Into the Void, then picked up a three-volume manga series called Graystripe's Adventures. The book was a little too serious for my taste, but I had a pretty good time with the manga. Basically a wild cat and a house cat (or "kittypet" as they are called) opt to hit the streets and returns to the Warriors home in the forest.  The story is pretty straightforward they have highs and lows, they save a group of barn cats and then continue on in their quest. It's written by regular comic book writer Dan Jolley, and he does a nice job of adapting the series. I probably wouldn't read more, but this was a fun little excursion nonetheless. 

Finally, back to Kirby. I read The Simon & Kirby Library: Crime.  This is made up of mostly true-crime stories from the 1940s.  They were a little do similar to read back to back like this, so I'm sure that colored the experience.  My main complaint is similar to one I had with the Science Fiction volume. There just isn't enough editorial content.  You're given an into and then you're off.  I would have liked it if the issues had more commentary or were broken up into sections.  As is it just felt like a content dump and it wasn't a particularly enjoyable read.  Still, as a fan of early comics history, I'm glad to have read it. (My copy has a bookplate signed by Joe Simon, so that made it extra cool.)

Next Time...

I'm in the home stretch with New 52 Superman so I will check back in when I finish that. 

Oh, also, I guest hosted an episode of 90s Music Got Me Like.  You can find it here or wherever you get your podcasts. 

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You can find back issues of the video version of Comic Book Coffee Break here.
The audio version of Comic Book Coffee Break is over there. 
You can find me as the co-host of 9021 Here We G0: A 90210 Rewatch Podcast and This Endorian Life, both for the Radio Meanwhile Network. 
I also host Howe's Things, the podcast and radio show of the David A. Howe Public Library. 

Comic Book Coffee Break #49

Thanks for joining me on my Comic Book Coffee Break. Home again and back to the Folgers Noir.  It doesn't solve gritty mysteries, but it is a dark roast. 

Let's talk Comic Books!

This was the last week of Asian American and Pacific Islanders Heritage Month so I read The
Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen.  Ultimately this is about a son trying to come out to his mother.  It interweaves their lives with the folktales they share to come to a point of openness.  It looks great and serves it's purpose well. I would read more by this author.

Marvel Comics

While on vacation last week I stopped at Chautauqua Comics and picked up a random Cap comic called Captain America & the Korvac Saga by Ben McCool and Craig Rousseau.  I wasn't really familiar with the original story that this is inspired by and I found this 2011 version to be a little dull. Basically Cap and Guardians of the Galaxy go into the future to fight (?) Korvac.  I grabbed this because it looked self-contained and I loved the smaller size.  It worked fine to sit in an Airbnb and read, but left next to no impact.

DC Comics

Back to my Superman New 52 reread. I picked up Superman V.6: Men of Tomorrow by Geoff Johns and John Romita, Jr. This was a lot of fun to revisit. I think Johns' sensibilities and Romita Jr.'s style came together well to make the first truly good Superman story of the New 52 era. I've enjoyed a few stories here and there, but this might be the fist of this run that I'd recommend to someone. It looks cool and the story actually manages to feel unique. We'll done fellas.

Other

I picked up One Trick Pony by Nathan Hale.  It's a YA graphic that's an homage to the Pied Piper.  We are doing a Fairytale Adaptations theme over on Howe's Things, so I grabbed a few to read.  This was quick and distinct.  I really liked the limited use of the colors and the overall design. Check it out!

Finally, I read Kirby: King of Comics by Mark Evanier. This is a biography of Jack Kirby, interlaced with art, comic excerpts and even full stories. I really loved it.  I knew the broad strokes of the story, but I found this to be immensely readable and very informative. This was a gift from my old co-host Eric Mikols.  Thanks Buddy!

Next Time...

I'm still chugging away at my Simon/Kirby Crime collection, plus more Superman, more Fairytale adaptations and some retro Captain America. 

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You can find back issues of the video version of Comic Book Coffee Break here.

The audio version of Comic Book Coffee Break is over there. 

You can find me as the co-host of 9021 Here We G0: A 90210 Rewatch Podcast and This Endorian Life, both for the Radio Meanwhile Network. 

I also host Howe's Things, the podcast and radio show of the David A. Howe Public Library.