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Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ Fatale gets a compendium this July

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The bestselling, contemporary classic comic book series Fatale—by multiple Eisner Award winning duo Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips with colorists Elizabeth Breitweiser and Eisner Award winning Dave Stewart—will be collected in its entirety in the upcoming Fatale Compendium. This complete collected paperback will include all 24 issues of the Lovecraftian-infused mystery noir story and be available in July from Image Comics.

The Fatale series first launched from Image in 2012 to instant critical acclaim and was rushed back to print several times in order to keep up with demand and was nominated for numerous Eisner Awards that year. It remains one of the most popular, consistently reordered titles in the Brubaker and Phillips oeuvre.

Fatale darkly blends American crime noir with unnamed Lovecraftian horrors. Readers jump from 1950s San Francisco—where crooked cops hide deeper evils—to mid-’70s Los Angeles—where burnt-out actors and ex-cult groupies are caught in a web around a Satanic snuff film—then back through the ages of time. At the center of it all is the mysterious Josephine—a curse woman with a hypnotic, supernatural power to die or kill for.

Fatale Compendium paperback (ISBN: 9781534327658) will be available at local comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17 and independent bookstores, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, and Indigo on Tuesday, July 30.

Fatale Compendium

Action Comics #1054 shows the heart of Superman

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Action Comics #1054

As Superman and Natasha Irons race to save Steel from the newly transformed Metallo, the Super-Twins are lost–and alone–against the nightmarish threat of the Necrohive! How will Lois and the House of El find them? There’s something rather quaint and relaxing about Action Comics #1054. While the comic is full of action, it also is very positive getting to the heart of what makes Superman super.

Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Action Comics #1054 has the Necrohive and Metallo causing terror and the people of Gotham not quite sure as to what to do. Some of the sentiment has turned against Superman and his family, a play off of the b xenophobic as well as general distrust of people doing actual good in our real world.

Metallo, much like today’s zombie online sheep, is being manipulated by someone else, driving the chatter against Superman no matter how clear he is in the right. And Johnson has Superman confronting Metallo in a solid fight that is full of eye-popping visuals and excitement. But, most importantly, Johnson has Superman stay true to himself. In spite of Metallo’s negativity and being convinced Superman will murder him, Superman reaches out his hand to help his foe. No matter how beat down he has been and the destruction Metallo has wrought, Superman remains true to himself in even helping his enemy. He’s the ultimate good doer. There’s an interesting reflection on the vitriol thrown at so many online and their willingness to turn the other cheek and attempt to still do good. Superman remains his positive self.

The art by Mazy Raynor, with color by Matt Herms, and lettering by Dave Sharpe looks great. There’s something about this series so far that has remained steady delivering a colorful, cheery look, no matter how brutal fights might get or how down moments might be. The look has matched the attitude of the comic. There’s some great visuals and the fight between Superman and Metallo looks solid.

Dan Jurgens continues to write and draw “Home Again” taking place some time ago in a “lost tale.” Jurgens is joined by Norm Rapmund with color by Elizabeth Breitweiser, and lettering by Rob Leigh. The story involves an alien princess trying to find Superman and instead finding Jon. It’s been entertaining though this chapter feels a bit predictable towards the end.

A new story also begins in “Steel Forged” which focuses on John Henry Irons. Written by Dorado Quick with art by Yasmín Flores Montañez, color by Brad Anderson, and lettering by Dave Sharpe the comic is a good one introducing John and beginning to set him apart from Superman. It adds a little depth to what I remember of his introduction way back in the “Reign of the Supermen” storyline. Where it goes should be interesting and feels like a nice way to spotlight more of the Super family.

Overall, there’s something rather nice in Action Comics #1054. The comic doesn’t have the doom and gloom of so much of what has been put out there and instead delivers the uplifting tale you’d hope from Superman. It has the action without the dark cloud hanging over everything. It’s been a while since I’ve really been into Superman and DC is delivering a monthly dose of positivity that’ll keep me coming back for more.

Story: Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Dan Jurgens, Dorado Quick
Art: Mazy Raynor, Dan Jurgens, Yasmín Flores Montañez
Color: Matt Herms, Elizabeth Breitweiser, Brad Anderson
Ink: Norm Rapmund Letterer: Dave Sharpe, Rob Leigh
Story: 8.25 Art: 8.4 Overall: 8.3 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – Kindle

Action Comics #1052 continues a super new direction

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Action Comics #1052

Metallo has attacked and done some damage. The crown jewel of Superman’s new Metropolis is in ruins, and the increasingly violent Blue Earth movement is keeping the entire Super-Family on their toes. Action Comics #1052 does a solid job of balancing the action from the previous issue, the family aspect that has returned to the series, and setting up a solid mystery regarding Metallo.

With a main story written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Action Comics #1052 is interesting in that at first the story contradicts the recently launched Superman #1. Metallo is being manipulated but by who? He hears a voice telling him what to do and we’re led to believe it’s Lex Luthor up to his usual antics, even behind bars. But, in the newly launched Superman #1, Luthor is trying to help Superman. So what gives? That answer and more is here as Metallo’s plans see more questions raised but also a bit clearer at the same time.

But, what stands out about this new starting point is the focus on Superman and his family. It’s not just Clark, Lois, and Jon, there’s the extended family of other Superman characters and the refugees from Warworld. It delivers the heart and in a way grounded aspect of the series.

That’s all helped by the art of Rafa Sandoval. With color by Matt Herms and lettering by Dave Sharpe, the visuals feel bright and hopeful, even when things are dark. The art matches the tone and Sandoval has a talent of really highlighting moments of humor and heart and caring that really emphasizes what makes Superman and his family so great.

But, the super comic is super-sized featuring two back-up stories as well.

Continuing “Home Again,” writer Dan Jurgens continues this lost tale of a mysterious alien looking for Superman and has come across Jon. With art by Lee Weeks, color by Elizabeth Breitweiser, and lettering by Rob Leigh, the second chapter sets up more of the various points of danger to come but feels like chapter in an overall story as opposed to really standing on its own.

Power Girl’s adventures continue in “Head Like a Whole” written by Leah Williams, with art by Marguerite Sauvage, and lettering by Becca Carey. It does a solid job of having Power Girl and Supergirl clash in a way and getting it out there of the rather odd position Power Girl is in. She’s a member of the Superman family but not really treated that way. It’s an oddity and there’s hints the dynamic might be explored more in future chapters. It’s a nice chapter and really emphasizes the “family” aspect of the comic.

Action Comics #1052 continues the new direction for the series and Superman family and continues to do an excellent job of balancing things. There’s the action and long story but it also focuses in on what makes the Man of Steel and the characters around him great. There’s a warm, welcoming, aspect to the comic that extends to every story within making this a series that focuses on Superman as well as his extended family.

Story: Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Dan Jurgens, Leah Williams
Art: Rafa Sandoval, Lee Weeks, Marguerite Sauvage
Color: Matt Herms, Elizabeth Breitweiser Letterer: Dave Sharpe, Rob Leigh, Becca Carey
Story: 8.0 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle

Action Comics #1051 brings the family together for a super debut

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Action Comics #1051

I will admit I am not a regular Superman reader. I tend to check out new creative teams or events and then slink away soon after. It’s a character that I appreciate but with so much out there, there’s only so much time to read. Action Comics #1051 kicks off this year’s new DC publishing initiative, “Dawn of DC,” which brings in new creative teams and new directions for characters. It felt like the perfect opportunity to see what was going on with the Man of Steel and it might be enough of a start to keep me around for a while.

Action Comics #1051 is an interesting direction for the series which has at times focused on other members of the Superman family in that it does exactly that, focus on the Superman family. It’s everyone from Superboy to Jon, to Supergirl, and the Superman of China. They’re all here and more delivering a debut that delivers a vision of where the series is going to go and takes on an anthology spin. Not only is there a main story focusing on Big Blue and his pals but also two additional stories focused in on other members of team Superman.

Picking up from the previous issue, the featured story is written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art by Rafa Sandoval, color by Matt Herms, and lettering by Dave Sharpe. “Speeding Bullets” sees the return of Metallo as the Super crew are taking all that they’ve learned over the years in an attempt to usher in a new age of technology to help Metropolis and the whole world. There’s a treatise in a way, driven by Superman’s time on Warworld. The plan is to do more and we see this “team” attempting to do exactly that. This feels like the first time in a while that the Super-family is exactly that. They have a shared goal and vision and are going to do what so many of us has wondered why they haven’t, use their powers to “do more”. It’s also a chapter that has one of the best moments ever between son and mother that is both horrific and funny. But, most importantly, there’s a balance of a group of superpowered individuals that you can see the good in and want to cheer for mixed with some great action and a reflection on how a world might really react to them. This is the new status-quo and it looks like it’s going to be a good one. The art is wonderful with some great visuals that do a fantastic job of mixing those family moments with big explosions. This story alone is worth getting this issue.

“Home Again” takes things back a bit. Written by Dan Jurgens with art by Lee Weeks, color by Elizabeth Breitweiser, and lettering by Rob Leigh, the story takes place a bit after Superman and Lois moved to California. They return to the home with Jon picking up after the story from The Death of Superman 30th Anniversary Special. It’s just a tease of what’s to come but Jurgen’s writing and the art delivers a story that feels like a bit of a classic in some ways. Jurgens has such a handle on the characters it’s a fantastic read with a slow build going in an unexpected direction. The art by Weeks, Breitweiser, and lettering by Leigh has an ominous feel to it creating an interesting mix with Jurgens’ storytelling style. It’s the perfect morsel to have you excited to see what’s next.

Wrapping things up is “Head Like a Hole.” Written by Leah Williams with art by Marguerite Sauvage, and lettering by Becca Carey the story ties into the current “Lazarus Planet” event going on. Power Girl’s powers have changed and she’s now working as a counselor helping heroes. There’s a bit of Heroes in Crisis to it but the story takes on a touching subject of helping Beast Boy after his tragic experience. It’s not all depressing. The colorful pop art mixed with some funny moments brings a levity to what could easily have been a downer.

Action Comics #1051 is a solid start to the series. With a new anthology focus, it has a little bit of everything making it easy to change things up and keep things fresh. The trio of stories each have their own strengths with a variety of styles and voices and a wide focus. Overall, a solid start to the “Dawn of DC.”

Story: Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Dan Jurgens, Leah Williams
Art: Rafa Sandoval, Lee Weeks, Marguerite Sauvage
Color: Matt Herms, Elizabeth Breitweiser Letterer: Dave Sharpe, Rob Leigh, Becca Carey
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle

Review: Sara

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NAZI OCCUPIED RUSSIA, 1942.

FIGHT HARD.
SHOOT STRAIGHT.
DON’T LET THEM TAKE YOU ALIVE.

A team of female Russian snipers beat back the Nazi invaders on the WW2 Eastern Front.

Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Steve Epting
Color Artist: Elizabeth Breitweiser
Letterer: Rob Steen

Get your copy now! To find a comic shop near you, visit http://www.comicshoplocator.com or call 1-888-comicbook or digitally and online with the links below.

TFAW
Amazon
comiXology/Kindle

Review: Sara

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NAZI OCCUPIED RUSSIA, 1942.

FIGHT HARD.
SHOOT STRAIGHT.
DON’T LET THEM TAKE YOU ALIVE.

A team of female Russian snipers beat back the Nazi invaders on the WW2 Eastern Front.

Writer: Garth Ennis (Punisher, Preacher, The Boys)
Artist: Steve Epting (Captain America, Velvet)
Color Artist: Elizabeth Breitweiser (Batman, Outcast, Kill or Be Killed)
Letterer: Rob Steen (Punisher, Nick Fury)

Order yours now https://tkopresents.com/

Review: Batman #53

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The jury in the Mr. Freeze trial is hopelessly deadlocked because one man won’t vote guilty-and that man is Bruce Wayne. Freeze’s defense is that Batman used excessive force, making his arrest illegal, and Bruce is the one man who actually knows for sure what went down between Batman and his ice-cold nemesis. And if Bruce is right, that means everything he’s devoted himself to as the Caped Crusader is a lie; he is hurting more than helping. With Dick Grayson putting the Batsuit back on to keep Gotham City safe while Bruce is sequestered, could this be the out Bruce needs to discard the cape and cowl forever?

There is something that few will discuss that have been on a jury, the fact you get to play god with someone’s life. Whether it’s letting them walk free, be behind bars for a time period, or decide on taking their life through the death penalty, as a juror, you have to make a decision that will make or break the future of the accused. I’ve sat on a jury for a murder trial, I was the foreman, and I can’t deny this concept crossed my mind on a few occasions during the few weeks of my experience.

Writer Tom King takes this head on but expands it to Batman as a whole who we are reminded is just a man, a fallible man. He’s not the god-like being that so many in Gotham has made him out to be since he has saved so many of their lives. And this case is made through the words of Bruce Wayne. Batman #53 is the conclusion of the story arc focusing on the arrest of Mr. Freeze and whether Batman made a mistake in doing so. But, there’s a bigger picture. It’s Bruce Wayne coming to grips with Batman, what he means in his life, and the recent event of being left at the altar. This is the closest we’ve gotten Bruce to confess to his reality in a while and it’s a heartbreaking one that’s worthy of a confession to a Priest. King has been deconstructing Wayne and Batman and by issue’s end we’re at square one going back to basics.

King is helped by artist Lee Weeks and colorist Elizabeth Breitweiser whose art gives us an arc that feels like a classic play in look. Taking place in the jury room, everyone discusses the case and their thoughts with panels focused on each character and their every movement. It’s the details here that stand out, like a cross around the neck. The coloring is limited with a style that reminds me of some of the classic Batman stories like “The Long Halloween.” Lettering by Clayton Cowles emphasizes keywords as if noting to the actor were to deliver the emotional punch.

This entire arc feels like a play with actors taking on roles and delivering an emotional punch. It’s a story that helps define Batman not as a god who is always right, but as a man who makes mistakes. It’s a realization of reality by Bruce. This is one hell of an arc and a story that I can go back to over and over to pick out the tiny details. A fantastic ending that launches both Batman and Bruce Wayne in a new direction and a dose of reality.

Story: Tom King Art: Lee Weeks
Color: Elizabeth Breitweiser Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: Batman #51

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After last month’s polarizing (not really a) wedding issue, writer Tom King reunites with his Batman/Elmer Fudd collaborator Lee Weeks and atmospheric colorist Elizabeth Breitweiser for a courtroom drama with a bit of twist ending in Batman #51. Bruce Wayne chooses to make a mockery of the legal system over awkwardly revealing his secret identity and sits on a jury where Mr. Freeze is being tried for the murder of three women, and, of course, was apprehended by Batman. It’s a fairly thought provoking look at how Batman fits into the larger legal system of Gotham, and at times, may do more harm than good. And far from being a mere procedural, King and Weeks use the contradiction of Bruce Wayne sitting on a jury in a trial connected to the actions of his alter ego (Or real personality.) to probe into the anger and guilt buried in Bruce/Batman. Never has a quick restroom visit been so chilling in Weeks’ violent pencil and ink strokes as he blurs the boundaries between billionaire playboy and creature of the night, who definitely isn’t an impartial juror.

King and Weeks juxtapose the relatively restrained setting of the courtroom and jurors’ quarters with dynamic, brutal beatdowns and classic chiarascuro lighting from Breitweiser in Batman #51. It starts with the relatively mild mannered Bruce Wayne arriving at the courthouse for jury duty and the Frank Miller-channeling fists on face beatdown that Batman gives Mr. Freeze, one of the more sympathetic members of his rogue’s gallery. The flashback sequence crescendoes into a close-up of Freeze’s face in anguish, his goggles flying that takes up the whole middle of the page. Lee Weeks is truly a master of pain and gives him a furrowed brain and slobbering mouth. All the while, Bruce Wayne is calmly lying about his connection and thoughts about the Batman to the district attorney in measured, almost sterile dialogue from Tom King. However, this calmness turns into guilt beginning with a darkly framed silent scene in Bruce’s hotel room where it seems like he might slip into his costume and play Dark Knight until court in the morning. It hits a breaking point when Bruce breaks a sink off in the bathroom as he is wracked by the fear that his actions as Batman might have doomed an innocent man.

Until the end of the comic, King and Weeks portray Batman as a hypocrite and even insert little asides like Jim Gordon’s testimony and the jury deliberations that show the city of Gotham gives his violent vigilantism too much of a pass. Mr. Freeze’s defense attorney makes the point that the women were considered to have died of natural causes until Batman did his own autopsy and connected them to Freeze because their brain stems were “cold” in a true leap of logic setting up a darkly humorous nine panel grid of Gordon squirming and finally stating that Batman doesn’t have the authority to conduct autopsies in whatever state Gotham is in. Batman basically framed Mr. Freeze and coerced him into making a confession, but the jury is already convinced that Freeze is an evil villain and Batman is a perfect hero so who cares about the laws of the land. There isn’t really time to do a 12 Angry Men and develop all of the personalities of the jurors in Batman #51, but King does the next best thing and has them share quick personal stories about how Batman helped them instead of evidence to decide a verdict.

Many arguments for vigilantes, Batman included, state that they can execute justice in a more effective way than the legal and judicial system. However, Batman #51 shows that this isn’t all the case as the deaths of three women from natural causes has turned into a full blown murder investigation and has probably taken the place of more pressing matters. Tom King, Lee Weeks, and Elizabeth Breitweiser venture into the real world a little bit in this issue and go into the actual court systems while still having stylized moments like Batman dangling Freeze off the roof top.

In Batman #51, King, Weeks, and Breitweiser go beyond inserting Batman into the court room drama genre and use the trial of Mr. Freeze to probe into his anger and pain and the roots of Bruce/Batman’s sense of justice. Lee Weeks’ naturalistic approach to figures and faces really helps as most of the denizens of this book are ordinary citizens and not superheroes or villains.

Story: Tom King Art: Lee Weeks
Colors: Elizabeth Breitweiser Letters: Clayton Cowles
Story: 8.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: Kill or Be Killed #20

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In the final issue of Kill or Be Killed, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Elizabeth Breitweiser get gutsy narrative-wise by killing off their protagonist Dylan on the opening page, trying a kind of alternate ending, and then switching narrators altogether towards the end of the book. It’s unreliable narration at its finest, and Phillips and Breitweiser turn in some final snow blown New York vistas while Brubaker finally unpacks the book’s message in dramatic fashion, which is basically, “Everything and everyone is screwed”. And, in connection to the real world, this message makes much more sense that when the comic first dropped in the relatively halcyon days of August 2016. In a country where children are separated from their mothers and put in cages, women’s reproductive rights are on the chopping block, and there doesn’t seem to be much to be excited for on 4th of July, Kill or Be Killed’s observations about the unbeatable nature of evil sadly ring true. It’s not something that be thrown in jail or gunned down with a shotgun, it simply is.

Continuing a trend that has permeated the series, Ed Brubaker gives the protagonist, Dylan, some great valid points , but when it all boils down to it: he’s a white male gunning down people. The “imaginary” sequence narrated by him from the afterlife where he has a relatively stable life, is in a relationship with Kira, and acquaintances with the police officer who has been hunting him down the whole series culminates in him killing a corrupt cop and continuing to be a vigilante. (Although, he changes his outfit and M.O. every so often to keep the press, criminals, and NYPD off his trail because everyone’s genre savvy beyond the grave.) Brubaker, Phillips, and Breitweiser riff off superhero comics for a bit in these scenes calling Dylan’s vigilante activities “an unsustainable fantasy version of life” and having the images of a masked man gunning down criminals or brooding on a rooftop ring hollow. The ever present snow helps.

Up to this point, I’ve been qualifying Kill or Be Killed #20 and the series as a whole as having a message or point, and it sort of does: the cycle of evil and the futility of violence to stop it. But, to its credit, Ed Brubaker isn’t preachy in the series using the unreliable narrator device to cast doubt on if Dylan is a sympathetic protagonist, and he and Sean Phillips even play to the lizard brain part of humans and give him a kind of “happy ending” that seems unearned and is ripped away for a path of pain and actual consequences. In what constitutes the comic’s third act, Phillips and Elizabeth Breitweiser relax the stylized panel compositions and dark greys, reds, and blacks for something more neutral and slice of life. Kill or Be Killed has gone from the New York of Death Wish to the New York of the “New York, I Love You” episode of Aziz Ansari’s Master of None although it forgoes its diverse POV for the perspective of a dead white man and a white woman. It’s almost like Brubaker and Philips are apologizing for unleashing Bernhard Goetz 2018 edition on 2018’s New York City.

However, this vibrancy is short lived as Brubaker switches narrators one final time from dead, omniscient Dylan (On a craft level, Kill or Be Killed proves that omniscient narrators still work in comics.) to Kira, whose emotions are filtered out in beautifully lettered captions that are like Todd Klein’s elaborate letters on Batman Year One, but on Sticky Notes. She’s angry that her best friend was ground down by his mental health issues, society around him, and his violent coping mechanisms and coupled with men cat-calling her at every corner, it leads to a breaking point and a literal mirror image of the possibly supernatural inciting incident of Kill or Be Killed. It also made me think about how even more fantastic this series would have been if Kira was the protagonist…

After an action heavy penultimate issue, Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips, and Elizabeth Breitweiser use Kill or Be Killed #20 to play around with traditional narrative expectations and look at how life is both terrible and precious from a beyond the grave perspective. And, in closing, Dylan’s vigilante activities were definitely not commendable, and he needed psychiatric help much earlier than the final arc, but he made some excellent social observations throughout the series.

Story: Ed Brubaker Art: Sean Phillips Colors: Elizabeth Breitweiser
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.3 Recommendation: Buy 

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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