Supreme: The Story of the Year

Even if you've never read a book by Alan Moore you've probably seen a movie based on this graphic novels like From Hell staring Johnny Depp, V for Vendetta with Hugo Weaving and Natalie Portman and the forgettable League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. That's not to say that the incredibly dense with literary references League of Extraordinary Gentlemen graphic novel wasn't amazing. Regardless, I digress.

In Supreme: The Story of the Year Moore takes over the writing duties of Supreme. A character who was created by Rob Liefeld as a blatant rip off of Superman. However, with the introduction of Moore to this title he was able to throw away all of the past continuity of the series and reboot the title to pay homage to the Silver Age Superman.

In this revision of the comic the character Supreme is aware that he is being revised, in an early story he even visits a reality where all of the former versions of Supreme live. He also comments on how his memory is full of holes which is due to the fact that his back story is not written yet. Moore uses this quest where Supreme is determined to fill in his memory as an opportunity to add to the Supreme mythos while advancing the plot of the series. This concept of a meta narrative is continued throughout the entire book.

If you enjoy a book in which the characters are constantly breaking the fourth wall or if you are just a fan of the silver age of comics, Supreme: The Story of the Year is the book for you.

Casanova Volume 1: Luxuria

I'm a huge fan of Matt Fraction's work with Ed Brubaker on The Immortal Iron Fist so I decided to pick up the first trade of Casanova Volume 1: Luxuria.

What a strange ride! Let me see if I can sum it up. The series introduces you to Casanova Quinn who is the quasi criminal son of the head of his world's top cop. Then a pan dimensional baddie kidnaps him to impersonate his counterpart on another world where Casanova Quinn is his father's right hand man in law enforcement. At this point this really got weird but wonderfully enjoyable as Fraction skewers spy novels and time travel.

I can't really do it justice so listen to the Around Comics guys interview Matt.

Gabriel Ba's art and muted colours are bang on for this title.

Plastic Man: On the Lam

I originally heard about this book from Cory Doctorow on his blog Boing, Boing.

Kyle Baker re-imagines Plastic Man by way of MAD, Eisner and Animaniacs

I was intrigued by Cory's article so I did a quick check with the Ottawa Public Library to see if they had the book. They did and two days later it was in my grubby hands.

Up until this point my only experience with Plastic Man was Saturday morning cartoons as a kid. I don't remember liking very much but it was on right after the Super Friends so it had a great lead in.

The first thing I got a chuckle out of was that the cover of the book is plastic and not paper. And the laughs didn't stop coming. In fact I couldn't put the book down until I was finished.

This book is a definitely a fun read but the part that really strikes a cords with me is how Baker handles Plastic Man's internal dialog. Right from the start you can tell that he's not all there in the head.

When you think about it why would he be? The guy is made out of plastic and he can stretch himself into various shapes. I think if anyone of us was put into the same situation we'd have a hard time dealing with it. In Plastic Man's case you can see he is using humour as a defense mechanism, much to the delight of the audience.

Strangers In Paradise Pocket Book 1

I have been resisting picking up this book for a while despite Jamie D's, from Comic Geek Speak, love of the series. However, after listening to CGS interview the author, Terry Moore, on episode 263 I knew I had to pick it up.

Strangers In Paradise Pocket Book 1 is not a comic book there are no super-heroes in costumed spandex. It is a complex novel that interleaves dialog, art and prose. At its heart it follows the lives of two best friends, Katchoo and Francine. The characters are well developed and believable. The story progresses on many layers and it is crucial to remember that the decisions the characters make, have lasting impact on their future.

Luckily we can see what the future has in store for them in book 2.