Criminal # 1
Written by Ed Brubaker
Art by Sean Phillips
Published by Icon/Marvel Comics
Criminal is a very cinematic read. I say this about a lot of comics. But holy shit do I mean it about this one. Very often, I read, read, read the comic book, pause; and then go back and look, look, look at the art. (Rinse and repeat.)
Not so with this. One reason may have to do with the placement of the text and dialog. I’ve not read so many comic books that I can easily compare and contrast, but I do know that in a lot of the books I’ve read so far, very often the dialog is spread all around the pictures….and often down into it. (Usually for a particular effect.) That's just fine in those books. Here, in Criminal, it seems that generally if it was narration, the text was in boxes up and to the left, inside the frame (with an exception here and there), and if it was dialog, most of it was above the heads of those speaking – generally in the upper part of the frame. That way, it left the rest of the picture to be taken in with the eye. It was easy to take in the writing and the art at the same time. The pace of the storytelling was enhanced by this, and it felt nearly like watching a movie as well.
I loved the use of color, too. I mean, its no new thing to have a color palate. It was just done so well and so pleasantly. Just like film “locations” have a distinct color palate for each scene (I know this, actually, from doing an obscene amount of “Background” work on a film, and being told what colors to wear and what not to wear so that we are effectively mere Background.) Even though this is not new to art and story and film I still LOVE it when its done so well, yet so subtly. For instance, the scene out in the park is done in all blues, greens and browns (a sort of neutral/peaceful territory, where the implications of what’s being discussed do not have specific bearing on the moment); contrasted with the boxing ring full of blacks, browns and reds (violence and blood! Blood!) All generally dark, though, with a “noir” feel, but a definite thoughtfulness to the color palate.
And right along with the color palate, is the art itself. It, alone, could probably tell the whole story. I’d be interested to see the book without dialog and see if I could grasp the story. See, it's not just well drawn….the art is well planned. The art does its job so that the writing doesn’t have to do the explaining. The writing is free to explain relationships, ownership, blame, friendship, connections….things that are a bit more intangible and not so easily drawn.
There’s one frame that keeps coming to my mind as I write this. It’s the middle panel on the third page. A car, shot up with bullet holes, broken back window, dead man on the ground spilling out of the open driver’s door, two other men's heads inside the car, slightly slumped. We’ve seen, or rather, I’ve seen this shot many times both in fiction (Godfather Part II, illustrating Pacino’s new reign) and in reality (photo shown in documentary Lake Of Fire showing abortion doctor shot dead in his SUV, bullet holes through car, windows shot out).
These various still shots are always horrifying. Each one tells a full, terrifying story that, honestly, one doesn’t want articulated into words or speech. And in the case of Criminal it’s not. The aforementioned picture tells its story while the text does not try to express the emotion that the picture evokes. It simply says, “It was a house cleaning. A bloody coup that left no one standing in Hyde’s way.” Like song is used in good musicals to forward the plot, in Criminal art and writing are used in partnership; each doing what the other cannot, thereby constantly and consistently moving the story along like a swift moving train.
It’s a dark story. A story about the world of organized and not-so-organized crime, violence, civil rights and racism, friendship, loyalty, ambition, lust, love, classiam, growing-up, love, death and loss. It’s got it all. I was immediately immersed. And again pleasantly surprised how enjoyable sitting down and reading a comic book can be.
All-Star Batman & Robin The Boy Wonder # 9
Written by Frank Miller
Art by Jim Lee
Published by DC Comics
This comic was hilarious.
On the welcome page of my wedding website, my fiance and I have the following quiz: Which one of our favorite TV shows is yours, too? A. House, B. The Office, C. Project Runway, D. ______. Hilariously (I think), and in cohesion with the main character of the show, if one chooses anything but, A. House, the computer simply flashes “incorrect!” It reminds me, for some completely arbitrary reason, of a small child maliciously screaming, "WRONG!."
That’s right….at my house, I love House. And this comic? Totally like reading House if Dr. Gregory House were Batman. The amount I love quotes like “he’s got a POWER RING that can do ANYTHING he can IMAGINE – but that’s his whole problem. He’s got the IMAGINATION of a goddamn POTATO.” The amount! Of love! For that quote!
I love so many things about this comic its hard to merely list them all. Here’s one, though:
That on the title page, in complete snarkiness, I get filled in on everything I need to know about not only how Batman feels about Green Lantern , but also a quick recap of Green Lantern: his past choices, his super power (Power Ring), and his greatest weakness (anything yellow). Anything yellow? Is that really his weakness?
And so House, er, Batman….paints the entire place yellow. Hilarious. And, like, Green Lantern seems to not notice. (At first.) Again, hilarious. Its like Batman is so many steps ahead of, like, everyone. He’s thought it all through, even (SPOILER!) felt it all through, and acts superior because, well, he is. He’s not a slave to emotion (like House), or concerns about friendship (like House). He uses people to satisfy his own agenda (like, you guessed it, Doctor Gregory House), and believes he is 100% right, until he is sure he’s wrong (House).
And oh boy, do things go wrong. And once again, when they do….he figures out, nearly a little too late but not quite, why. You see his “humanity”, his Bruce Wayne-ness come through. He hates Green Lantern, but certainly doesn’t want him to actually be killed. He just wanted to enjoy his suffering. I mean, when you’re Batman….how else can you get your kicks? Right? I mean, TV isn't going to do it for you. And, hell, you can’t go bowling really. Paint an entire room Yellow to make an irritating super hero suffer, and offer him some lemonade (priceless!). Picking on people he doesn't like is probably his only form of entertainment. But Robin….little Boy Wonder….takes it too far. And only The Bats can truly figure out why. Because once again, he’s five steps ahead of us all in the life and living department. And he knows what his protégé needs to do.
Interesting how the comic goes form snark-o-rific to totally touching. Aside from the writing, the art goes a long long way in supporting (if not leading) all of this. Personally, the drawing of posture and musculature does it for me. The frame where Batman is crouched and hunched on the ground. Amazing. All the musculature there, all that power evident….yet with the posture of near defeat. An] pause to physically and emotionally get one's bearings . I say all that just from looking at that drawing of Batman, with slight remnants of yellow paint being washed away by the rain, sorta saying “game over.” Back to work.
And little Robin in Bats arms at the end. Sweet. And not overwrought.
Loved it.
-Nina Miller, 2008
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