FIRST ISSUES: An admirable first issue must, above all
else, contain such matter as will compel a reader to buy the second issue. At
the same time, while provoking curiosity through mysteriousness, a good first
issue must avoid being so mysterious as to be cryptic or incomprehensible. And,
thirdly, it should introduce the title’s principals, preferably in a way that
makes us care about them. Fourth, a first issue should include a complete
“episode” — that is, something should happen, a crisis of some kind, which is
resolved by the end of the issue, without, at the same time, detracting from
the cliffhanger aspect of the effort that will compel us to buy the next issue.GIRL COMICS
Girl Comics No. 1 is,
I assume, part of Marvel’s “Women of Marvel” month in which tribute is to be
paid to women characters and women creators. So this 3-issue series features
only femininity in an array of short stories, most of which are highly
forgettable. It begins with the best part of the issue — a cover by Amanda Conner, who, with her usual
visual sense of humor, depicts She-Hulk winning an arm-wrestling match with Iron Man.
After that, the content deteriorates. The first so-called story, “Moritat,” is
written by G. Willow Wilson with
terrible, ugly art by Ming Doyle,
who can’t, evidently, draw attractive women. (So is unattractiveness an
element of the feminist agenda?) In an untitled piece written by Trina Robbins, Venus returns to earth
and gets her old job back at Beauty
magazine by means of some vapid feminine wile; art is color swatches without
outlines by Stephanie Buscema.
The
most remarkable instant in the issue takes place in this story: Mercury shows
up at Venus’ editor-in-chief bower, and she, reclining on a chaise lounge,
says: “Can you make it quick?” If this isn’t a hilarious satirical allusion to
the male propensity for shooting and running, I dunno what else it is. In “A
Brief Rendezvous” by Valerie d’Orazio,
drawn by Nikki Cook, the Punisher
poses as female on twitter to lure a guy to his presumed death. Sana Takeda supplies a pin-up of the
She-Hulk in which said heroine appears to be smoking at her nether regions.
“Shop Doc” by Lucy Knisley showcases
her simple lineart in a pointless comedy about Doc Och shopping in a
supermarket, using one of his eight arms/hands to get a box of breakfast food
off a top shelf. In “Clockwork Nightmare” by Robin Furth and drawn in a quirky fairytale manner by Agnes Garbowska, Franklin and Val
Richards show up in miniature as adorable li’l kids to play out an illustrated
text version of Hansel and Gretel.
“Head
Space” by Devin Grayson has the best
art in the book by Emma Rios.
Herewith, Scott is jealous of Jean’s apparent attention to Wolverine (and he’s
right to be jealous). I hope to see more of Rios, best known, according to the
bio paragraphs at the end of the book, “for her magazine illustration work and
self-published comics in Spain
before being introduced to the American market with Hexed from Boom!” Forthcoming from Marvel, Rios’ miniseries Strange and then Firestar. The only other good parts of this issue are the prose
appreciations of Flo Steinberg, longtime factotum at Marvel HQ, and Marie
Severin, a graduate of famed EC Comics (that she enhanced with psychologically-cued
colors) and, subsequently, artist and cartoonist. As a tribute to women
characters and artists, the book is marginal at best, insulting at worst. A
good idea, but badly executed. (“Thoroughly executed” might be more apt.)
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