Mysterius the Review

Hey,

So I've been reading comics. I haven't mentioned much about them and I probably should. But I did want to mention this graphic novel I picked up the other day and really enjoyed:

Mysterius the Unfathomable written by Jeff Parker and illustrated by Tom Fowler. I'd heard good things about this series but the art kinda put me off for some reason. Finally, I spotted the trade paperback and plunked down for it and I'm glad I did.

On the one hand, it's a pretty straight up urban occult story. World-famous stage magician Mysterius the Unfathomable is actually a paranormal investigator and wizard. Ella is a small-time reporter covering one of his seances that goes wrong and winds up becoming his assistant. Together they solve magic crimes. It seems pretty bog-standard stuff, but Parker takes things in a pretty fresh direction and the artwork that I was a little "meh" about proves to be ideal for a story that weaves together stage magic, groovy sixties satanists, diabolical childrens' books and a modern-day fertility ritual (along with a few trips to hell along the way).

It's good stuff and if you're a fan of Unknown Armies, you'll really get a kick out of this.

In other comic news:

Power Girl's only problem is the costume. Fix the peek-a-boo window and you could really get somewhere with her. I'm pretty sure I could even make her convoluted backstory work, although I approve of how the current series just washes its hands of the whole affair and gets on with the heroics. The current series is really pretty good and if the costume were fixed (and the writers remembered that she has super-speed) it'd be a total win.

Joe the Barbarian -- this series just gets better by the issue. A kid starts having an Alice In Wonderland adventure with his toys...or maybe his blood sugar is crashing and he's hallucinating. The thrashing back and forth between fantasy and reality is well-done and it just ratchets up the tension.

Orc Stain -- This has got a 2000AD/Ed Roth/Tank Girl vibe going on with the art that I'm really enjoying. The story has been a touch slower to get up to speed, but there's lots to look at on the way. Short form: In a fantasy world the orcs are becoming united under a fierce warlord who's taking over everyone else. Meanwhile, a one-eyed orc with a talent for finding the weakness in everything is doing a little grave robbing and backstabbing.

Thor and Warriors Four -- It's a Thor/Power Pack team-up story with a back-up Hercules/Power Pack team-up story by Colleen Coover and if that doesn't sell you on this comic, I weep for the barren emptiness of your soul.

Siege: Loki -- So I try real hard to avoid "event" comics and their tie-ins. If it weren't for the fact that these super-events were the only sources of new Young Avenger stories, I'd probably stay out of them altogether. Siege is...I dunno, the Green Goblin is invading Asgard which is in Oklahoma for some reason and...I've spent more time thinking about this than I want to. But this one-shot by the writer/artist team behind Phonogram is a character study of Loki and it's really kind of awesome. In a sense, nothing really "happens" in this book, it's just Loki being a dick. But oh man, it's a really great portrait of a dick god being a dick. My inner Amberite was really pleased.

That's all I have off the top of my head.

later
Tom

Mysterius the Review

Hey,

So I've been reading comics. I haven't mentioned much about them and I probably should. But I did want to mention this graphic novel I picked up the other day and really enjoyed:

Mysterius the Unfathomable written by Jeff Parker and illustrated by Tom Fowler. I'd heard good things about this series but the art kinda put me off for some reason. Finally, I spotted the trade paperback and plunked down for it and I'm glad I did.

On the one hand, it's a pretty straight up urban occult story. World-famous stage magician Mysterius the Unfathomable is actually a paranormal investigator and wizard. Ella is a small-time reporter covering one of his seances that goes wrong and winds up becoming his assistant. Together they solve magic crimes. It seems pretty bog-standard stuff, but Parker takes things in a pretty fresh direction and the artwork that I was a little "meh" about proves to be ideal for a story that weaves together stage magic, groovy sixties satanists, diabolical childrens' books and a modern-day fertility ritual (along with a few trips to hell along the way).

It's good stuff and if you're a fan of Unknown Armies, you'll really get a kick out of this.

In other comic news:

Power Girl's only problem is the costume. Fix the peek-a-boo window and you could really get somewhere with her. I'm pretty sure I could even make her convoluted backstory work, although I approve of how the current series just washes its hands of the whole affair and gets on with the heroics. The current series is really pretty good and if the costume were fixed (and the writers remembered that she has super-speed) it'd be a total win.

Joe the Barbarian -- this series just gets better by the issue. A kid starts having an Alice In Wonderland adventure with his toys...or maybe his blood sugar is crashing and he's hallucinating. The thrashing back and forth between fantasy and reality is well-done and it just ratchets up the tension.

Orc Stain -- This has got a 2000AD/Ed Roth/Tank Girl vibe going on with the art that I'm really enjoying. The story has been a touch slower to get up to speed, but there's lots to look at on the way. Short form: In a fantasy world the orcs are becoming united under a fierce warlord who's taking over everyone else. Meanwhile, a one-eyed orc with a talent for finding the weakness in everything is doing a little grave robbing and backstabbing.

Thor and Warriors Four -- It's a Thor/Power Pack team-up story with a back-up Hercules/Power Pack team-up story by Colleen Coover and if that doesn't sell you on this comic, I weep for the barren emptiness of your soul.

Siege: Loki -- So I try real hard to avoid "event" comics and their tie-ins. If it weren't for the fact that these super-events were the only sources of new Young Avenger stories, I'd probably stay out of them altogether. Siege is...I dunno, the Green Goblin is invading Asgard which is in Oklahoma for some reason and...I've spent more time thinking about this than I want to. But this one-shot by the writer/artist team behind Phonogram is a character study of Loki and it's really kind of awesome. In a sense, nothing really "happens" in this book, it's just Loki being a dick. But oh man, it's a really great portrait of a dick god being a dick. My inner Amberite was really pleased.

That's all I have off the top of my head.

later
Tom