It could be the sandman devotee in me, but I always find new beginnings from old comic book characters enticing. I’ve never been especially lucky with getting in on the proverbial ground floor with great books, I somehow always seem to miss the ones worth reading. Still, the kid in me who grew up with 3 digit numbers on most of his favorite books can’t help but empty my pockets for a promising #1 (or in some cases the goofy industry ploy of #0). With all the crossover madness and universe changes there’s been no shortage of the elusive digit, and I’ve decided to take some time and break down a few of them. A new ongoing Ghost Rider series from Marvel featuring the original Johnny Blaze, a Vertigo book entitled “Deadman” which so far has had no connection to the classic Boston Brand character, and the fanboy pick (‘cause I wouldn’t be writing about comics if I wasn’t one) DC’s return to “Justice League of America”.

“Deadman” Bruce Jones & John Watkins

Deadman has always been, in addition to a peculiarly endearing character, a bit of a anachronism. Despite being originally conceived in the late 1960’s the characters short attitude and bizarre nature has always, in my opinion, spared him from appearing like a goofy silver age antiquity. It’s because of this perception of the character that I was caught off guard by a reinventing of the character under the vertigo imprint. The book starts off with promise, opening with a series of odd and intriguing quotations beginning with an especially cryptic one from Albert Einstein. Throughout the first two issues writer Bruce Jones continually use physics and metaphysics and theories thereof as a storytelling device. It makes for an interesting perspective (especially when the theories are coming through the “hot professor” female lead), but the pacing is lousy pretty much from the get-go. I wouldn’t go so far as to call the issues unreadable, and the “life flashing before my eyes” set up of the first issue is a reasonable enough, if entirely unoriginal, establishing issue for a book called “Deadman”. The problems with the book really star springing in the second issue where it’s pretty much just more of the same shit. Physics, metaphysics, and a whole lot of “is this a dream?” for 22 pages, but no story direction whatsoever. I understand the need for exposition, and that the state of the industry is so good you can get away with taking your time, but two issues with no direction is too much. If this book hasn’t gotten moving and become coherent by next month, shit’s getting dropped.

“Ghost Rider” Daniel Way, Javier Saltares, & Marx Texeira

I was pretty excited about this book when I picked it up. I knew that Marvel had been working on a return to the superior Johnny Blaze Ghost Rider character for a while, starting with a Garth Ennis mini-series a little while back, and a new ongoing was the logical next step. An intial perusal of the the artwork only fostered more excitement. Texeira and Saltares have done a great job with the aesthetics, stylistically strong but rooted in realism; no footless freaks or oblong heads. Since he’s dealing with an established character Way jumps right into the story, it’s a refreshing opening. Blaze has always been one of Marvel’s stronger and tragically underused antihero’s, and I’ve always had a soft spot for him. Unfortunately, Way’s handling of the character lacks any definition. The writer can’t seem to decide if he’s out to give us a goofy gorefest, a modern and relevant story about a man perennially trapped in the grey places between good and evil, or an homage to the horror comics of the silver age. Any of the three would work and make for a satisfying run, but trying to juggle all three seems likely to end in disaster. Still, if way could tighten up his storytelling, and really find a means to pull off that balance, I think he could strike brilliance.

“Justice League of America” Brad Meltzer, Ed Benes, Sandra Hope, & Others

Let me come out and say it, I’ve been counting down to this book for months. That may put me into the role of biased fanboy, but with me anticipation is almost always a recipe for disappointment. Melzer’s work so far has flaws (chiefly the confusing juggling of too many plot seeds), but for the most part he’s coming through and meeting expectations that have only been heightened by time. Issue 0 is an well executed balancing act between relevant reflections on the history of the league and taunting glimpses into possible futures, all revolving around the DCU’s central axis of Batman, Superman, and Woder Woman, and closing with the three iconic character preparing to reform the league. Throughout the two issues that follow, he continues the extremely well penned dialog between the three as they discuss potential members, and it seems as though he’s using the conversation as a personification, to explain to fans, indirectly, his own selection process, It sounds silly, but Meltzer makes it work and his grasp on the relationship between the cornerstone characters is impeccable. Unfortunately, his attempts to break up the selection scene with set-ups for the coming story arc by following the paths of potential members is choppy and confusing; in most instances there’s just not enough page time allotted to make the scenes relevant to the reader. Even with the best executed secondary plot, a pinocchio syndrome spin on the Red Tornado character, it’s caught up in cliché and falls short of the emotions he intends it to evoke. Some of these scene almost seem like deliberate misdirection, however it just doesn’t seem to work. Still his ideas about what the league is and what it should be are interesting and the series has a lot of promise. My only lingering doubt is the fact that J’onn J’onzz, the only constant league member throughout the entire history of the run, is still as of yet absent. Still, with at least ten more issues in Meltzer’s run, the fanboy in me can forgive a few flaws and oversights and get excited about the prospect of a prospectively great run on an iconic book.

Mike Regrets

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