My Wife: Is Breaking Marriage Vows She Didn't Even Know She'd Agreed To

Fury: My War Gone By #1
By Garth Ennis, Goran Parlov, Lee Loughridge
Published by Marvel Comics

I don't think that I'm as excited about this comic as I'm supposed to be. Or as it is hoped that I'll be.



You see, even though I've been reading a comic a week for about four years or so now, I'm still not all that hip to who's who, what's what, and which story arcs are a big deal. I have heard the name Nick Fury before, and I see from the first page that this series is going to be a walk through the mine field that is the Life & Times of Mister Fury....but that doesn't really "do it" for me if we're being honest. I know that particular story being written by Garth Ennis can have the effect of turning grown men into blubbery balls of (honestly) unattractive, overly excited pre-pubescent boys (complete with high pitched squealing), but all it elicits from me is a confused grunt. Urgh?

This comic is drawn really well. It definitely has the whole 007 vibe going on, where Nick Fury comes across like a bad ass mother fucker who clearly can accomplish whatever he wants, even if we aren't shown the evidence. But I still got irritated reading this. I got irritated by the girl.

What's that about, Nina?

I don't know. I really don't.

I mean, I know that her behavior is her whole schtick and that it is supposed to be obvious that she'd be attractive to these guys, and it kind of is. But she still bugs me.



I mean, first of all, you don't dress like a girl who wants who attention and then get annoyed when you get attention. Annoyed? That's too light a word. You can't go off half cocked when some dude hits on you. Granted, he was an asshole, no one should act the way he did. And no, I'm not saying "she asked for it". But seriously, if you're a woman and you want to go somewhere and not be noticed, then wear a sweat shirt and baggy pants and put your hair in a ponytail. And sit in a corner or something. 



Okay, so I'm playing dumb a bit, I know, this is just it this is on purpose. This is her weird brand of excitement. She likes this shit. I've had experience with this. I've had friends in the past who'd get all excited about our night out. We'd all get dressed for some flirting and partying and fun, and it always broke down into some HUGE drama. And the drama was always as a result of some action that these friends took. And I soon realized that to them, this was the fun, that drama was the point in the first place. It wan't a fun night until the cops came, until the screaming over-the-phone break up happened, until somebody cheated on somebody, and yes, the best way to end an evening out was when a huge fight ensued. These selfish friends of mine could never see how they ultimately ruined nights (and lives) with this behavior - they just got off on all the attention they'd receive, they got off on the "fuck those assholes" victim nonsense all the way home. That was just as important as the drinking, that bitching and moaning in the cab uptown.

That shit is TIRING. It's totally unfun. Reading about this chick just made me think of all that and it just made me tired. Do I have to read/watch as she and Fury get together and she creates a whole world of lame drama that could be totally avoided? I don't know. I know I don't want to take that chance, and she made up a good part of this issue. And then there's the big ex-Nazi.

Oy. It's like all the most annoying humans ever put in a story to irritate me. Nazis and drunk chicks? I don't think so.

So, as you can see, this comic did not float my boat. I doubt my reaction is the majority. I doubt it's even a  wide minority. And that's okay! Because I'm sure its a great comic book to many people. My reactions are wholly personal and, well, some times that happens, right?

-Nina Stone, 2012

Comments

[Jamaal30]

Nina,

Great review (and fantastic title).

I forget how much of a barrier the Marvel/DC universes are to non-readers, even if its not relevant to the story. Even if the reader doesn't need to know anything for a particular tale, the act of figuring that out is probably enough to take one out of the story.

I wonder if you'd have been more interested if this didn't feature characters from the Marvel Universe. Maybe not. I suspect that one has to be primed for this by a lifetime of reading similar stories (hard boiled stories about tough men doing tough things while smoking cigars and chugging whiskey).

I think this series was inadvertently ruined for me by Tucker's comparison to Ellroy's Underworld USA trilogy last week - made me realize how flat a lot of the characters in Fury are. Give me the continuing adventures of Pete Bondurant or Dwight Holly any day.

-J

[Nina]

Thanks, J!
Yeah, I think its definitely a comic book for comic book readers, much in the same way that some great Jazz music can only be appreciated by other Jazz musicians. Not a bad thing - just, perhaps, over my head....?

[mateo]

yep! Good!

thanks

[Tim O'Neil]

Don't feel bad about not liking FURY - I don't like FURY, and I know Tucker thinks less of me for that admission. Great art, though.

[Ales Kot]

Sacrilege