Comics - Return to The Walking Dead

I guess I worked myself up into a bit of a thing between listening to the Robert Kirkman episode of WTF and revisiting a comic post from the past. So I started reading The Walking Dead again. I'm a little over a year behind and I'm in no rush to catch up, so I've only read 2 issues so far. I'll probably not read more than two a week and for now, it's just the one series. I'm sure if I'm not careful I'll wind up with a full blown habit again, but for now it's just this one thing. Although, I was looking through some of the indie comics on Comixology and I've already seen a bunch of things I want to check out. At least doing it digitally it means I'm only buying as I read so with time being hard to come by, I won't likely be binging on anything, really.

Ok, I'm back.

Anyway, the last I had read on Walking Dead was the All Out War storyline, so I didn't stop in the middle of anything. And as a matter of fact, it turned out to be a perfect place for a hiatus since the next issue picked up 2 years after the end of the war. The survivors have now built up a sort of civilization and have developed techniques for driving away herds of walkers. The story in the 2 issues so far deals with a new group that they rescue and it's interesting to see the process of developing trust that we've seen repeatedly in the series, only from the other side. It's the newcomers that aren't sure if they should trust these people who have something that appears to good to be true, and therefore probably is And if we know anything about Rick at this point it's that no matter how good his intentions, he can be pretty intense, so seeing him older, slower and seemingly more at ease is suspicious even to me.

Meanwhile, the decision to keep Negan alive and in prison is bound to bite him in the ass. Carl goes to talk to Negan often, and apparently secretly, but still wants to kill him, supposedly. Still there's a certain mentoring going on there. I'm sure he sees some of his dad's old self there. Some of what he admired. I don't know. No matter how peaceful and boring this might seem, with everyone being excited about the success of learning to make bread and all, it's bound to go to shit soon. It always does. And then they rebuild again, stronger, until the next, even greater challenge comes along. So I'm back!

Podcatching: WTF - Robert Kirkman

On the Robert Kirkman episode of Marc Maron's WTF Podcast, Marc talked about being late to the party and it was like listening to myself. He was talking about comics, but it's a mentality I've had for some time. Hipsters are always bragging about being into things "before they were cool." I've been that guy. There's something to be said for that. But I'm also the guy that famously said to a friend once, just a couple of years ago, that I thought I was finally ready to get into Outcast now that the hype had died down. But then again I'm not the type that will like something just because it's cool or just because it's not cool. Not just because I'm old enough to not give a fuck, either. I've always been pretty fine with liking what I like. But still, the whole thing about hype is that it can sometimes ruin a good thing for me if everyone is constantly going on about how great it is or it's something that becomes unavoidable in the mass culture, like Outcast was for a while. So, yeah, Marc talks about how it's better to be late to the party because if it's still going on, then it was probably a good party. Truth.

Kirkman with his agent and manger.

So then Robert Kirkman, creator of The Walking Dead comes on and reminds me I haven't been reading the comic in far too long. I need to get back into it. I just have to find the time. I've heard and seen interviews with him before so I know he's funny, humble and amazingly down to earth. This interview demonstrated that in full force. I was surprised to learn that he didn't grow up watching horror movies and really only did so when he was in his 20s, which is what lead to his creating The Walking Dead. I guess I always figured he was a huge horror buff, but now that I think of it, it kind of makes sense, since his approach to explore the humanity more than the "horror" aspects.

But it was really near the end of his interview that it really hit me why these are two guys that every kid that wants to be an artist of any kind needs to listen to. They talked about how Kirkman, when he was struggling to get his career going, would just lay on the ground and shake because he was so deep in debt and had no way to get out. He had made a decision at some point to pursue this dream of being a writer. And yeah, he finally made it and it more than just "worked out" for him. But he also very clearly said that if he had to do it again he probably would not and would just go work in a bank or whatever. That he really truly just got lucky and it didn't have to go that way at all. And Marc seconded that. That message is so refreshing.

They're not walking now!

Our culture is obsessed with romanticizing struggle. We love the myth of the starving artist paying dues and emerging because of perseverance and talent. But the reality is that shit is crazy and for every success story you can think of there are thousands and thousands that were maybe more talented and also never gave up, but still got nowhere. Yet if someone were to stop and go the more conventional way in life, they'd be labeled a quitter or whatever. That's not even remotely fair. Sometimes you just have to know when enough is enough and that choice is up to the individual. There should be no shame in one or glory in the other. The glory for Robert Kirkman isn't that he struggled, it's that he's damn good. It's that he has something to say. Whether he struggled to get there or had it handed to him wouldn't change that one bit. Stop glorifying struggle is all I'm saying. Then again, isn't that what The Walking Dead is all about?  What the fuck. (See what I did there?)

Comics of the Week

The best comics can sometimes seem to be all over the place. Invincible #80 picks up where the last issue left off and by the time the last page comes, it feels like you've read 3 issues. And that's not a bad thing. The story organically flows between being personal, funny, tense, meta and heavy on action, ending in a world shaking moment that you don't see coming. It really feels like you get your money's worth out of this issue, as with most issues of Invincible. What's always made this book great is that because it takes place in it's own universe, anything can and does happen. Continuity, a topic that has been hot this past couple of weeks, doesn't bog anything down here. And yet, it flows through the book at the same time. Kirkman even takes the time to poke fun at the rebooting of comics directly as well as the not very well thought out motivations of super villains. The humor in this book is refreshing and what's great is that Kirkman can use it without giving up the right to get serious. 

Another book that brought loads of humor and fun this week was Batgirl #22. This issue has Stephanie Brown being called to London by Batman where she takes a detour with Squire, the British equivalent of Robin. They stumble upon a case and hilarity ensues. It's just good times, and interestingly ends with a promise that it will be continued in the pages of Batman, Inc. A lot has been written about the DC reboot and particularly the fact that Stephanie won't be Batgirl anymore. But, if her story continues in the Batman, Inc book, then maybe Steph will have a place in the new DC continuity after all.  As for Bryan Q. Miller, I don't remember seeing his name on the list of writers and that's the real crime because he's been delivering a consistently fun book here.

And then, there's Grodd. . . This book was over the top, violent and really, just crazy fun. For a one shot, event tie in book, Flashpoint: Grodd of War managed to tie into the main book and actually build towards a confrontation that I want to see explored in the pages of the other Flashpoint books. Gorilla Grodd has managed to take over the entire continent of Africa but he's grown bored. He bemoans that the world doesn't even know his name even though he's slaughtered more than Aquaman and Wonder Woman combined. By far, the best part of the book involves a group of would be assassins, which Grodd easily defeats. But he spares the life of one, setting up a future confrontation that would be on par with Kill Bill, when the Bride makes that speech to Vernita Green's daughter, only Grodd takes it to a whole other level. By the end of the book, Grodd has decided to go after Europe, which means Aquaman and Wonder Woman. I wish this was more than a one shot.

Comic Moment of the Week - Parenting

The thing about The Walking Dead is that these characters are all selfish by necessity. It's reality. The last page of this month's issue brings us back to this reality after a time where they were trying to build a community. This moment is about survival and that's not a community activity.

The Walking Dead #82

As a parent, this is about as real as it gets. There's no doubt that Rick has, and likely will, given up a lot for the good of the group. But never at the expense of Carl and always, clearly, only as far as it is in Carl's best interest to do so. I recently was thinking about this very idea and how as a parent, your decisions are really very simple to make. It's always about what's in the best interest of your child. Of course, because it's easy to make the decisions, it doesn't make it easy to carry out. The reality of possibly leaving a bunch of good people you care about to die in order to save your child is something I'm sure will be explored by Kirkman in Walking Dead.

Manga for the Comics Guy - Gantz Vol. 2

Gantz Volume 2 picks up exactly where Volume 1 ended, which is to say, in the middle of an exploding body. Again we get the various angles of the moment, evoking slow motion in a way that I don't think I've ever seen in a comic book. The attention to the small details is what sells these lingering shots. It may be that I'm more into the story, but I really feel like the art is much better in the second volume than in the first. There were several panels I just stared at for a while.

It all starts coming together, particularly for Kei Kurono, who chose to wear the special suit provided in the room. It turns out the suit gives him super-human abilities. In the process, we learn more about his past as an adventurous and daring kid. A past he seemed to have moved away from, but quickly recalls in the middle of his hero moment. While the first volume gave us lots of atmosphere, this volume also adds action to the mix.

Also in this volume, we get some more indication of what's going on. After what is basically a bloodbath, there are only 5 survivors: Kei Kurono, Masaru Kato, Joichiro Nishi, Kei Kishimoto and the dog. We also learn that this is some sort of a game, and that Nishi has been at it for some time. And that while they can return home after each round, life is not the same.

I'm still struck by the dialogue being kind of clunky. This is obviously due to the translations and cultural differences that don't come through very well. But as a result, I can't really see comparing this to Western comics in any fair way. American comics would just come off as better written, dialogue-wise, by default. But if we look at the writing just from the point of view of plotting and getting points across, it's pretty even. The pacing is different, with the Manga relying more on the relationship between images, I think. The reason the drawn out scenes of people just standing and not saying anything work is because they come after panels of intense action that is equally extended. I think modern American comics tend to fall back on dialogue or one big image to convey these things. Obviously, there are exceptions. However, I feel characters tend to be more real (within the context of the story) in American comics, perhaps because of the more extensive use of dialogue. Of course, these opinions will likely evolve as I delve deeper into manga, but we'll see. The point is, the arguments about one being superior to the other are silly. The fact is, they are basically the same thing and have influenced each other too much to be considered separate.

Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming

Today is new comics day. Out this week, Walking Dead #82, by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard. Here we have a book that uses dialogue effectively, but also uses long drawn action/inaction and crafts a very real, very cinematic world where the characters drill into your subconscious. You should be reading this book.