Hello! My name is Lenny Schwartz and I am a playwright from RI and New York.
And I’m a life long comic book fan. I am so happy to write about comic books.
So without further adieu, here goes!
International Iron Man #1
Written by Brian Michael Bendis and Illustrated by Alex Maleev
Published by Marvel Comics
I love when Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev collaborate. Their Daredevil run is so classic, and so brilliant, it’s one of the high water marks in the history of comic books. Everything they touch, I need to read, as soon as possible. Scarlet, Moon Knight…they all hit strong. So, I was a little underwhelmed reading their new series. It may just be it being the first issue and these guys take a while to build. Or it could be that maybe they have nothing left to say together anymore.
The story begins with Iron Man defeated after a battle. The story then goes back in tie to when Tony Stark was in college. He meets a girl names Cassandra, and they spend the issue getting to know each other. Anddd…that’s pretty much it. It seems like nobody wants to write a single comic anymore and make that comic book compelling. They want to write for the collected edition. This issue certainly suffers from that. I wish Bendis would either write graphic novels or put more into the single issue…he certainly did when he was writing Ultimate Spider-Man for a time, and even Scarlet…but that Bendis seems gone now.
Maleev’s art is great though. He’s one of the best we’ve got. He elevates the sub par story to something palpable. His art actually may be getting progressively better. When this is collected I may take another peek at it. Maybe once I see the full story, it’ll be okay. It may work better then. Right now, it’s just an excuse for a trade paperback. As a single issue? Pick it up for Maleev’s art. That’s all that really works here.
RATING: C+
Patience
Written and Illustrated by Daniel Clowes
Published by Fantagraphics Books
Daniel Clowes is a genius. He just is. Everything he touches, I just go crazy over. So this review may be a bit biased. But I don’t care. This 180 page books took him five years to complete. Man, was it worth the wait. I’ll gush over this one. It’s worth it.
Patience is Clowes doing a science fiction story that we have never really seen before. It’s 2012 and Jack and his wife Patience are expecting a baby. One day, Jack comes home and finds Patience murdered. Of course, Jack is the main suspect. What follows is…well, I actually don’t want to spoil it. It involves time travel, craziness, and love.
Clowes has never been better, handling all aspects of the book, writing, drawing, lettering, even coloring. The result is a handmade book, the kind we don’t see anymore. Some people will say it isn’t as good as Clowes earlier work. I disagree with all of that. Clowes is at the top of his game here. This may be the book of the year, in fact.
Patience is a book I could not put down. When it was over I didn’t want it to end. That’s rare. Buy this book immediately. Stop buying crap you are programmed to buy and buy this instead. Most books are disposable ten seconds after you buy it. This one isn’t. In truth, this is one you’ll never forget. I certainly won’t.
RATING:A
Dept. H #1
Written and Illustraed by Matt Kindt
Published by Dark Horse Comics
Matt Kindt, who has one of the best beards in the business, is back! After his fantastic Mind MGMT series, he is back with this little gem, Dept. H. Kindt can be an acquired taste..but I like him. His art is unique and his storytelling is off the charts. This is the stuff of good comics.
Like most of Kindt’s efforts, Dept. H is a spy story that starts off as a mystery that turns into a tense race against time. The book is supposed to be set in real time. The whole series takes place in an underwater science lab that is slowly flooding over the course of 24 hours. The series is supposed to get more crazy as the series progresses and the characters try to stay alive. And I can’t wait.
The first issue is a great comic. I spoke before how it seems all creators want to do is write comics to make the eventual graphic novel. Kindt has that in mind sure…but he knows how to make a single issue satisfactory still. His wife Sharlene handles the watercolors on this book and it adds yet another dimension to the book. Thumbs up.
Kindt is one of the best we have. He is both a great writer and a great artist. Once again he shines here. I’ll be picking it monthly. You should too.
RATING: A-
Ivar: Timewalker Vol. 3: Ending History
collecting issues #9-12
Written by Fred Van Lente and Illustrated by Pere Perez
Published by Valiant Comics
And now for a book that saddened me. I love Fred Van Lente and I love Pere Perez. Van Lente has been doing fantastic work on the Valiant line. He has written some excellent Archer and Armstrong stories and made them classic. Even the last two Ivar collections have been pretty good. This however, doesn’t pass the muster. And it’s a shame it doesn’t.
Van Lente’s story involves history falling apart and only one man can help Neela Sethi save Ivar’s life…and time itself…and that man is…Ivar! Sounds wacky right? Well, it isn’t. It isn’t even that fun. The story plays out like a second rate Doctor Who. There are weird creatures and not much to grab you…Ah well.
Perez however is a fascinating artist. Pick it up if you must for the art alone. I always enjoy his work. I just wish there was something more compelling alongside with it.
RATING: C
Descender #1-11
Written by Jeff Lemire and Illustrated by Dustin Nguyen
Published by Image Comics
Descender is one of the best comic books on the stands. Hands down. It’s one of those that if you are not currently reading it, you should. Jeff Lemire is a very good writer (and artist on other books!) and Dustin Nguyen is doing artwork that is just off the charts. This is something I would recommend to anyone of any age. It’s that good.
Descender is the story of one young robot’s struggle to stay alive in a universe where all androids have been outlawed and bounty hunters lurk on every planet. Lemire writes characters that are unforgettable. He is a natural science fiction writer. Nguyen, again…his artwork is gorgeous (and he is one of the nicest guys in the business).
The design work especially will remind you of Star Wars. But it’s original, thought out, creative. This is a book to read now before they make a movie from it.
Descender is a book you should put at the top of your reading list. Nothing like it has appeared before. Nothing like this will appear again. Read it and enjoy. This is beyond excellent.
RATING: A
BURIED TREASURE PICK
DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN TPB
collecting issues #227-233
Written by Frank Miller and Illustrated by David Mazzucchelli
Published by Marvel Comics
With the new Daredevil series now on Netflix, now is the time to revisit these issues. I hope to god they turn them into a season on the show as this is the best Daredevil storyline of all time and one of the best stories in comic book history. I know everybody goes gaga over Frank Miller and Batman: Year One and The Dark Knight Returns…but in my opinion this is the best story he ever wrote.
Karen Page is a drug addict and a pornographic film actress in this story. She also knows Daredevil’s identity. She sells his identity for a fix. This information goes to the Kingpin and then all hell breaks loose. The Kingpin has Matt Murdock disbarred from practicing law, foreclose on Matt’s house, bombs the house…and that’s where the craziness begins.
Matt becomes unhinged and starts to fight back. The Kingpin keeps beating him down. And…well, read the damn book. You can’t beat it. It’s brutal and you won’t believe they got away with this in a Marvel Comic. Mazzucchelli’s art is out of this world, even better than his work with Miller on Batman: Year One.
This is a masterpiece. A classic. One of the best comic books you’ll ever read. Order one now. Or re-read it if you read it already. It shows what real comic book storytelling is all about. You’ll be glad you did.
And that’s it for another week!
Until next week, I remain…
Lenny Schwartz
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