Book Review - WildStorm Summer Special (2001)

I wasn't a fan of WildStorm or Jim Lee back in his heyday, but after he sold his company to DC, a few titles caught my eye and I decided to get my feet wet in the WildStorm world.

WildStorm Summer Special is an anthology of comics book stories from Gaijin Studios. It is available as a 48-page Prestige Format comic book.

The Good

Orbital. This story by Warren Ellis, Cully Hamner, Karl Story, Brian Stelfreeze, and John Costanza is basically Jack Hawksmoor going for a jog across different cities on different continents using a "magic portal" type device. The words are narration in his head. While there isn't much plot, there is a lot of story exploring Jack and his view of his life and job. The art is really nice, and the format is different for a comic book.

Apple Read. This story by Brian Azzarello, Brian Stelfreeze, Karl Story, and John Costanza is a fun experiment in storytelling. The art evokes Oriental brushwork in a black, white, and red palette. The words are written in poetry, with the plot being as simple as Zealot buying an apple but the story containing much more. This is another fun experiment in storytelling.

Behind the Scenes. This section was the most interesting for two reasons. One, I didn't even realize there was such a thing as Gaijin studios and two of my favorite artists were part of it, and two, I love behind-the-scenes material. It's the reason I used to buy so many DVDs.

The Gallery. The gallery had some nice pinups of various WildStorm characters from several different artists that were fun to look at.

The Bad

Cover. The cover by Adam Hughes has some pretty colors that make it stand out, but otherwise is kind of a mess. There's no rhyme nor reason. Other than featuring a few characters from the stories, it has nothing to do with the issue. It's not particularly well drawn, and the design is poor.

Isolation. This story by Paul Jenkins, Georges Jeanty, Karl Story, Brian Stelfreeze, and Kathleen at Fishbrain is very disappointing, and this from a big Paul Jenkins fan. The art is fine, but the story reads like a bad erotic novel with no real point.

What I Would Like to Have Seen

For an anthology, this really had everything you could want.

Overall

WildStorm Summer Special is a really fun artistic experiment. It contains three stories of three different characters from the WildStorm Universe, with each story told in a different style both in format and approach. Two of the stories are great successes with beautiful artwork by Cully Hamner and Brian Stelfreeze. The pinup gallery and behind-the-scenes materials are great additions. I give this book 4 out of 5 eReaders.

   

Book Review - Gen 13: A Christmas Caper

Back in college I saw a small ad in the back of a WildStorm comic where writer and artist Tom McWeeney described the wonder and magic of Christmas specials (like Santa Claus is Coming to Town, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and other) growing up before the days of home video and cable television. They were only shown once a year so you had to check the TV Guide carefully and plan accordingly, or you would miss it and have to wait a whole other year. It reminded me of

Gen 13: A Christmas Caper by Tom McWeeney, Richard Friend, Jeromy Cox, and Todd Klein is a full-color 48-page Prestige Format comic book. It is available in print. I don't know why this isn't available digitally. It's a CLASSIC!!

The Good

Concept. The concept is Gen13 as small children used to lure Santa Claus to a black-ops base to punish him for the coal he delivered to a certain Director of IO. The purpose of the comic was to capture the magic of the classic Christmas specials from the 60s, 70s, and 80s. The writer/artist said he wanted to create something that would be classic, that readers would pull out and read every year, because it just wouldn't be Christmas without it. He succeeded. This book perfectly captures the feeling of those Christmas Classics.

Art. The art is beautiful. It looks very modern while incorporating elements of classic children's storybooks.

Writing. The writing is part classic poetry and part modern prose. There's humor, angst, fear, cheerfulness, romance, danger, and excitement. Even after nearly 20 years, it's still as fun and enjoyable as ever.

The Bad

Ummm...

What I Would Like to Have Seen

Tom McWeeney do more specials.

Overall

Gen 13: A Christmas Caper by Tom McWeeney, Richard Friend, Jeromy Cox, and Todd Klein is Christmas classic I pull out and read every year. It just wouldn't be Christmas without it. The writing, the art, and the overall presentation is as good as it gets. This is a true classic. I give this book 5 out of 5 eReaders.