Yearly Archives: 2011
Review: Punisher #2
With the second issue of the new series, writer Greg Rucka continues his tale of the wraith-like, silent Punisher and the investigation into the wedding massacre. Once again our focus is on NYPD detectives Celmons and Bolt, split with the continuing adventures of the killer, who is being stalked by the Punisher. We get a peek at the people behind the massacre (I think), but we’re no closer to discovering why everybody at the wedding had to die. Still, the series is rich, dark and fun to read.
Punisher #2
Until they blow the cliffhanger with a frankly silly new addition to the story!
But more on that later. For now, let’s start with the Punisher. Once again, Rucka gives us a Frank Castle who doesn’t say a word and doesn’t have an inch of internal monologue. Though no longer as spectral, thanks to the art, he still doesn’t say anything. The Punisher goes about his killing in utter silence, and there’s a lot of killing this issue. But I’m already getting tired of the silent act. The supporting characters are good so far, at least the detectives are. But I want to read about Frank Castle, not a bunch of nobodies.
Hopefully the villain they inject into the cliffhanger will at least get the Punisher to speak next issue. If only it wasn’t such a lame villain.
We start off following the killer from the first issue, the goateed guy who gunned down people at the wedding but survived the Punisher’s club massacre at the end of issue #1. This guy is running like hell through the streets of New York, trying to go to ground. But nobody’s willing to put him up. So he just keeps running through the dark, grimy streets of New York City. We’re treated to narration by two people named Stephanie and Christian, who we see a bit later standing on a rooftop with a group of other people. They’re dressed like rich people and are talking about the killer, and how the only reason the Punisher let him live is to track him, which would lead the Punisher to Christian and Stephanie.
And sure enough, that’s exactly what Frank Castle is doing. Though still in the shadows, Punisher is now drawn in such a way that we can clearly see his face. He’s no longer a stealthy ninja, as in the first half of the first issue. You may remember that issue #1 was split into two parts. In the first part, Punisher only appeared in shadow. In the second part, he was in the light. In this issue, all one story, he’s in the light again.
Because of my love of the Garth Ennis Punisher series, in which Frank Castle was a hard man pushing 50 with a lot of years on him, I’m not a fan of this young, handsome Punisher. But it’s not a big deal.
Handsome chap
Stephanie and Christian aren’t worried because they’ve hired someone to take care of the Punisher. We see this person only in shadows for now, and he has claws and glowing red eyes. Someone badass perhaps? Just you wait and see!
We jump to the daytime, with detectives Clemons and Bolt investigating the club massacre that ended the first issue. Oscar “Ozzy” Clemons is the Morgan Freeman guy, and he’s convinced that the Punisher is responsible. The kills are far too clean, far too precise. That’s Special Forces training right there. So now they’ve got the Punisher to deal with, messing up their case. They’ve got a job to do, doesn’t the Punisher understand that?
Speaking of jobs to do, in comes Norah Winters, a reporter for the Daily Bugle and a supporting character from Amazing Spider-Man. Now this was a fun cameo. One aspect of this Punisher series is that it’s firmly set in the Marvel Universe, complete with superheroes and mutants and whatnot. So it’s smart that, instead of making up some random reporter, Rucka just borrows an existing reporter character from Amazing Spider-Man. Norah’s fun and sassy in this issue, and has clearly worked with Clemons before. Unfortunately, their entire conversation is about Norah and we don’t really learn anything new about Clemons or Bolt. It’s an extended explanation into who she is and what she does. Hopefully that means she’ll be making routine appearance in this comic.
Being a newspaper reporter myself, having one as a character is always a hoot.
Young, perky and blonde; what's not to love?
Let’s stop here for a moment and look at that picture I just posted. This is a pet peeve that’s only going to bother someone like me, who is a crime reporter for a newspaper in real life. Just like most jobs, Hollywood and other media tend to exaggerate a reporter’s job. I realize that Norah is supposed to be a sassy and edgy reporter, but she’s all over the place in this issue. I realize she may just be joking with her friend Clemons, but when a homicide detective tells you that you can’t quote him on the details of a murder investigation, you don’t quote him on the details of a murder investigation. You have to maintain sources as a reporter, and to do that you have to maintain their respect. If they tell you something ‘off the record’ and tell you not to quote them, you don’t do it. That tends to piss them off. Bad enough she snuck past the police tape into an active crime scene.
Honestly though, I’m probably just being silly. It’s comics, not real life. And my dinky little city isn’t New York City, so maybe it’s different there. Still, it’s one of those things that will only make someone in my specific circumstance stop and shake his head.
This scene is awesome, though, because it name drops Phil Urich. Longtime readers of my blog will know that Phil Urich was one of My 6 Favorite Comic Book Characters. His current comics status quo is that he’s a cameraman for the Daily Bugle, who is making some cash and fame by filming himself as the villainous Hobgoblin and selling it to the Daily Bugle. Exactly like Peter Parker did when he took pictures of Spider-Man. So it’s awesome that Phil gets a mention in a Punisher comic. It means Marvel is really pushing him as a character that will stick around. What’s silly, though, is that Phil is being treated like a TV cameraman. They say that Phil is filming Norah doing her reports. I know the Daily Bugle is mostly an online newspaper now in comics, but do they really do more video than newspaper reporting? Norah can easily make the leap from anchorperson to writing reporter? Those are two rather different fields, especially when it’s clear that Norah prefers the writing.
Kind of an odd sort of crossing of wires in terms of what the Daily Bugle is doing these days. Still, woot Phil Urich!
But I digress. Back to the Punisher!
After the extended introduction to Norah, we jump back to the Punisher chasing the goateed killer. His name is Liam, by the way, and he’s found a brothel to hide in. The owner kicks him out on the street, tossing him into the gutter. Oops! Punisher’s right there, right outside! Liam scrambles to his feet and keeps running, while the Punisher decides to pay the brothel a visit. In silent fashion, Punisher lets himself in and starts blowing away the druggies and the gang-bangers – but he doesn’t harm the girls. Punisher doesn’t kill prostitutes, especially ones that are hooked on drugs like these girls. But he does kill the owner, even when the guy tried to take a hostage, and he kills the ‘madame’, who was using drugs to keep the girls in line.
The blood will wash right out, the punishment will last forever!
The art in this scene is clear and easy to follow, if a little scattershot. The panels are not square and gridlike, with a few experimental angles. What works great are the colors. The scenes on the street with Liam are blue and black, while inside the brothel we switch to a fuchsia. The rooms are bathed in fuchsia, and soon blood. The Punisher’s kills are sharp and bloody. One is especially cool when they just show the silhouette of the owner (in fuchsia, not black) and he’s got the detailed, bloody bullet hole in his head. Punisher leaves and the drugged out girls in the brothel are free. I guess.
We jump back to Clemons and Bolt, who have gone to visit the bride in the hospital. She’s practically the only survivor of the wedding massacre, and she’s finally woken up. It’s a quiet, soft scene in which she tries to remember what happened. Then she remembers everything…
A brilliantly silent page
In the end, Liam has made it back to his bosses, though not Christian and Stephanie from earlier, just some other people who were working with Christian and Stephanie. One of them is a pretty redhead named Dove. She kills Liam with a shotgun, and the Punisher watches from afar through the scope of his sniper rifle. Once Liam is dead, Dove turns to look up Punisher’s scope to tell him that she knows he’s there and she’s ready for him.
Enter cliffhanger villain…the new Vulture!
Are you KIDDING ME!??
What is this crap!? This character is a guy named Jimmy Natale, who used to be a mafia ‘cleaner’. But then the mob turned him into a murderous bird monster-man who now wants to get his revenge on mobsters, or something. Sometimes he works for the bad guys. He fought Spider-Man a few times as some kind of vicious freak. He has no connection to the classic Vulture though, nor to the Punisher. He’s just some monstrous new take on the classic villain created during the period when Marvel wanted to give Spider-Man some new villains to fight. But the point I’m trying to make is that this is the lamest, one-note, bottom-dwelling super-villain that they could possibly throw at the Punisher. They build up this hidden, surprise super-villain…and it’s the new Vulture?
What a chump!
I can only hope they needed to find some bargain bin super-villain for the Punisher to kill. For you see, that’s the problem with bringing the Punisher into the normal Marvel Universe. If you want to have him go up against costumed super-villains, he’s going to want to kill those super-villains. That’s why Garth Ennis’ Punisher took place in its own separate world. And why when they brought Punisher back to the Marvel Universe during Civil War, he almost immediately killed Stilt-Man.
R.I.P.
So I guess Marvel’s just throwing out some lame super-villain who, in theory, will be able to put up a fight. The character of the new Vulture is that he’s vicious and monstrous. So it could very well be a brutal battle in issue #3. I’m sure he’ll definitely give the human Frank Castle some problems. He’s just a laaaaaame villain.
All-in-all, it’s a good second issue. The story continues along on both fronts, though not very far, I’m afraid. We meet the bride who survived, and we meet the people who were behind Liam and the killers. So the story is moving. Unfortunately, we don’t get to really know anything more about the protagonists. Punisher remains silent, ‘speaking’ only with his guns. He kills and moves on, as the Punisher does. He continues to be badass, but this silent treatment isn’t going to be as much fun if it continues much longer. Detectives Clemons and Bolt are back, but their character development is brushed aside so that we can be introduced to Norah Winters.
While it’ll be fun to have Norah in the book, if she sticks around, we didn’t really get to know anything more about the two detectives, who we know will be the main protagonists. Bolt, especially, was in the background this issue, while he was the main character in the last issue. So while the story may have progressed, the characters did not.
At least the art was once again phenomenal. The right mix of action and gritty, street-level talking heads. I love realistic art in my comics, as opposed to silly superhero fantasy, so I’m enjoying the art. This is definitely a book to keep reading. I’m going to try to keep going with every issue, since I’ve had the luxury of starting with issue #1.
What do you all think? Should I keep reviewing the Punisher?
Game of Thrones is Awesome. There, I said It.
I just finished watched Season 1 of HBO’s Game of Thrones, and I have to say that it more than lived up to the excellent and exciting hype! The show was marvelous, the characters were well-rounded and fun to watch and the cliffhangers for Season 2 were downright brilliant. Amazing, amazing show. I’d thought about doing a full, in-depth review, but I wouldn’t want to spoil anything for anyone else. I’m glad now that I have not read the books because I wouldn’t want any of this spoiled.
Especially that final scene!
Boromir no more!
Like I said, I won’t get into spoilers. But I can talk in general about the show and hopefully you’ll be willing to give it a chance. HBO has created some fantastic shows. Though I’ll admit I’ve never seen a single episode of The Sopranos. Maybe now’s a good time to start. But I saw Carnivale and loved it. Anyway, Game of Thrones is a medieval tale about politics and personality, with a bit of fantasy thrown in for fun. It’s based on the book series A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin, and is really popular, from what I get off the Interwebs. Though I’d never heard of it until the show started.
Let’s start with an overview. If you take my advice and watch this series, you can use this to better understand what you’re looking at. I know I was a little lost, at least in the beginning.
We find ourselves on the continent of Westeros, with our hero, Ned Stark, played excellently by Sean Bean, of the Lord of the Rings. Ned and his family, Clan Stark, rule over the town of Winterfell far in the north. Ned is a decent and honest man, beholden to the law and trying to do right by his people and his children. His wife Cat is noble and loyal, herself from a lording family. Their children are just as good as their father, not a schemer or villain among them. Rob is the eldest, learning well his father’s lessons. Jon Snow is Ned’s bastard son, and Cat can barely stand to be in the same room with him. But Jon is a good man, and one of the stars of the show. Daughter Sansa is princess-like and regal, while youngest daughter Arya is a spitfire who doesn’t like the idea that she’s destined to just be married off and pop out children. Young son Bran is known for being a good climber, and then there are a few younger children who don’t do much.
Arya Stark has enough awesome for all the children. Remember that.
Ned would like nothing more than to take care of his people and prepare for the coming winter. For you see, in Westeros, the seasons aren’t like here in the real world. They’re split between Summers and Winters, both of which can last years on end. And years of harsh, cold, dark Winter can be brutal. Hence Clan Stark’s catch phrase, “Winter is coming.”
Life will always get harder.
Especially when politics come into play.
In the first episode, Ned gets a visit from his old friend King Robert Baratheon. Nearly 20 years ago, Ned, Robert and their allies dethroned The Mad King and took over rule of Westeros. Robert became ruler of all seven kingdoms, but mostly the land split into different towns and castles, each lorded over by the various family Clans. When they deposed The Mad King, Ned, Robert and their allies split power through various arranged marriages.
Westeros - Click to Enlarge
Robert’s wife is Queen Cersei of Clan Lannister, played by Lena Headley, the queen in 300. She’s a cold, scheming woman whose marriage to King Robert was never anything more than a political move. Clan Lannister is the richest and therefore one of the most powerful clans in all the kingdom. They are known for their blonde hair and their catch phrase, “A Lannister always pays his debts.” The main conflict of the show is between the Lannisters and Starks, with King Robert caught in the middle. The Starks are good, honest people, while the Lannisters are cruel and conniving. Guess which one has more luck in the realm of politics, otherwise known as the Game of Thrones?
Queen Cersei has two brothers: the handsome knight Jaime and the wickedly smart dwarf Tyrion, played with extreme brilliance by Peter Dinklage. He is the standout character of the show. Tyrion is smarter than everyone else, and he knows it. Because he’s a dwarf, he’s always been looked down upon, especially by his father, the head of Clan Lannister. So he’s had to work extra hard to get everything in life, made much easier by his wit and his charm. You can never tell who’s side Tyrion is on, but in a good way. He may be a schemer and a Lannister, but you can sort of tell that Tyrion is a good person. So watching his journey through the show is one of the best parts!
Awesomeness squared
At any rate, King Robert has come to visit his old friend Ned Stark because he needs Ned to serve as his right-hand man in the capital, King’s Landing. The old right-hand man died under mysterious circumstances, or so Ned begins to discover once he moves into his new home. The show follows the adventures of Ned and his two daughters as they try to fit in at King’s Landing, while the rest of his family continues to preside over Winterfell. If you love political drama, this is the show for you. There are many schemers and more treachery than you can shake a fist at. There are a lot of surprising twists that I didn’t see coming, and all of the characters seem fully-rounded with depth and opinions. Nobody’s intentions are truly clear, which makes for an exciting show to follow.
Along with the political drama, there are two side-stories that add fantasy and barbarian elements to the show. The first is The Wall, located at the northern most tip of Westeros. The Wall is simply that, a giant, manmade wall that separates the continent from the mysterious and fearsome north, a wintery land where giants and monsters are rumored to dwell. A thousand years ago, the people of Westeros repelled an invasion by the White Walkers, and ever since, the noble brotherhood of the Nightwatch has guarded The Wall. But a thousand years have passed, and the Nightwatch isn’t the proud group it once was. They’re made up of criminals, runaways and only a few true knights.
So what are they going to do when the White Walkers return?
And what’s the kingdom going to do? The White Walkers don’t give a shit about all the petty bickering and politics. There are some really awesome scenes towards the end of the season, when the threat beyond The Wall starts getting more real. Because what does the game of thrones really matter when literal monsters are going to start invading the land?
The barbarian saga comes from across the sea, where the last two children of The Mad King were exiled. Fair-haired Daenerys Targaryen and her conniving brother Viserys long to take back their rightful throne from King Robert, but they’re just two people. So Viserys, a truly evil man, force-marries his sister to Khal Drogo, the barbarian ruler of the horselords. Viserys intends to use the horselord army to go back across the sea and fight King Robert’s armies. But the meek Daenerys quickly takes to barbarian life, and by the end of the season, she’s got a few surprises up her sleeve.
Not the least of which is boobs. There's a lot of nudity in this show
So that’s the show in a nutshell. Again, I highly recommend you watch. They’re already working on Season 2, so you know it’s going to be around for awhile. The politics are great to behold, with some truly surprising twists and turns. The characters are really fun, especially Tyrion the dwarf and Arya the youngest daughter. Even subplots that don’t seem to be very interesting in the beginning, like The Wall and the horselords, turn out to be truly awesome in the end.
There are a lot of characters and a lot of names that one has to try and remember, and it can be difficult at first. But if you pay attention, you’ll get the hang of it. Like any fantasy world, such as Lord of the Rings, it’s not difficult at all to immerse yourself in the goings on of the world. Strange and volatile Westeros may be, but it’s an awesome place to visit.
I Approve of All Things Awesome…Such as This
Busy day for me today, so not gonna have a big new post until this weekend. So to tide everybody over, here’s a new official promo picture for the Avengers! It looks pretty badass.
Definitely badass
Finally, I’ve Learned How to Share
Hey everybody! After all these months and Google searches, I’ve finally figured out how to add a ‘share’ function to my blog posts. At the bottom of each post, you’ll find the icons that allow you to share my posts with Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, digg, etc. Doing so is only one click away. So if you’re enjoying my blog, let other people know about it! Thanks!
Superman Has No Underpants!!
This just in from the world of superhero journalism, beloved hero Superman is not wearing any underpants. At least he won’t be in both the upcoming movie, Man of Steel, and the new DC rejiggering this September. The hearts of Internet fanboys everywhere are all a flutter at the prospect that Superman will no longer be wearing his classic, traditional red trunks over the top of his blue costume. You’ve heard all the jokes in the world about how superheroes wear their underwear outside of their pants, well Superman is saying, “No more!”
And I don’t particularly care.
DC is in the process of rebooting Superman so that he can appeal to a wider audience…I guess. I don’t really know what DC’s plan is for Superman, or at least the reasoning behind it. Superman is freaking Superman! Everybody knows him. How wider of an audience can you get? But in the comics, he’s no longer going to be married to Lois Lane, he’s going to be more of an outsider and he’s going to get a new costume. A costume without the underpants on the outside.
Shazam!
First of all, it should be noted that ‘underpants’ is a hilarious word. I vote that it replace ‘underwear’ as the preferred word.
Second of all, this isn’t a big deal in both directions. Nobody cared that Superman, like a lot of superheroes, had briefs on the outside of his costume. And nobody should care that DC is going with a new look. It doesn’t change anything about Superman except for the color of his pelvis. Yes, Superman is very iconic. VH1 did a list of the 200 greatest pop culture icons, and Superman was #2! Oprah was #1. Not even Superman is greater than Oprah (though I beg to differ). But his iconic status has nothing to do with his pelvis. His costume as a whole, sure, but give it a few months and I’m sure nobody will even notice the difference.
But Internet people are the world are up in arms. I’d link to some articles, but I don’t really want to call anybody out. There have been a few candid set pics of the Man of Steel movie released, and there too he’s not wearing the briefs.
I once did an entry saying I hate these types of photos. Damn me!
But it’s not a big deal, in my opinion. Granted, Superman is far from my favorite character, but I still don’t think even Superfans should be worried. At the very least, let’s wait and see what DC does with the character before anybody gets up in arms about his costume. It’s still the iconic red, blue and yellow Superman costume. They just tweaked it a little. Perhaps DC wanted to get away from that joke about underwear on the outside. Mother Goose and Grimm can be brutal.
Oh the humanity!
Fun Fact: Did you know that superheroes wearing their briefs on the outside was taken from old circus strongmen from the turn of the century? They’re the sort of briefs that professional wrestlers now where. It’s not just a silly, cosmetic thing. They actually wore those briefs for a reason. And now you know.
Henchman-4-Hire 