I decided to start the week in review with a review of two
new series tied together only by their title, but it was an odd coincidence
that book that both had Dream in their titles showed up the same week. Of
course we first need to give you the links for next week’s books. The clean
list is at Cosmic Comix, my store and the detailed list is at Midtown Comics.
This coming week is a little heavier on the big two. Of
course part of that is me filling out a smaller week by picking up and
re-trying a book or two. From DC I’m
curious to see Johns end his Green Lantern run, something I feel was
long overdue. The real highlight is Batman
Inc as we head into the home stretch of Grant Morrison’s epic run on Batman. Looking over my Marvel list I
would say the highlight is Daredevil.
Mark Waid is going down the Frank Miller path of tearing DD down,
let’s see how or if Matt gets back up. The Alternative press has a new Joe Casey book with Bounce #1 and the next issue of his
series Sex. Add into that mix the
next issue of Mind Mgmt and GI Joe Cobra and even on a light week
the alternative press shines brighter.
This leads into the reviews and first up is Dream Thief #1 (of 5) by Jai Nitz and Greg Smallwood. I loved this book. The narrative structure of the
book made it take me a few pages for me to get into the rhythm of the book. The
story is an introduction to the main charter John Lincoln. We get to learn
about who he is, are given some clues about how he is turned into the Dream
Thief. We also see how much crap these powers leave him in at the end of the
first issue. At the same time we are given a supporting cast. The narrative
structure that threw me for a few pages was the letter from his father. As we
are seeing this story being played out we are also being given snippets of the
letter. When we get to the end of the letter we are at the end of the story. Not
every page has a passage from the letter, but it was a very cool way to gives
some background on John and a possible connection between him and his father.
John is a bastard and probably one of the all time most
unlikable leads of all time. At the same time you are drawn into his story. He
apparently can’t hold a job, has little remorse about cheating on his girl
friend and is willing to get high in the middle of a museum. Somehow after
getting high John awakens with the mask on his face and remembers that he had
killed his girl friend. From there things get worse. Truly a fascinating start
to a series as the ending is even more f**ked up then him killing his girl
friend. I recognized Nitz’s name from other work at DC and elsewhere but this
is the first book that made me stand up and take notice of his writing.
The artist, Greg Smallwood is someone who was unfamiliar to
me. I was pleasantly surprised. Greg’s work is very professional, all the
characters are distinctive, emotions are played out well and page designs are
great and very innovative. It appears John is possessed by people and acting
out what they want done. As John is in midst of doing these thing we see both
John and the party in charge portrayed in a very cool fashion. Since we have no
coloring credits I will assume is was also Greg’s work and the muted noir
palette was a great choice
Buy it
Next up is The
Dream Merchant #1 by Nathan Edmondson
and Konstantin Novosadov. I like
Nathan’s work on “Who is Jake Ellis”,
The Activity and Dancer. Hell even Grifter at DC was okay, but Nathan and DC did not last long together.
Based on DC’s track record I’m putting that on DC. So it was based on Nathan’s
work that I give Dream Merchant a chance. I’m ambivalent about this series.
That means I need to read another issue or maybe two before I make a final
judgment call.
Our main character is Winslow, who seems to prefer living in
his dreams. So much so that he is locked up in a mental institution. We find
out that he appears to be connected to another reality and that other reality
has sent ghost like agents after him. Winslow also meets up with a mysterious
character that is dressed almost exactly like the bad guys, except he is trying
to help Winslow. Mixed up in Winslow’s adventures is Anne, a young woman who
had befriended him at the mental hospital. I know at this point Winslow and the
reader are not supposed to understand what is happening. Still the book was too
confusing at times and has not engaged me enough to be truly looking forward to
the next issue.
A big part of the problem is the art. Konstantin’s style is
very loose, light lined and almost borderline cartoon style. It certainly has
an ethereal feel to it, which enhances the “dream” idea of the story itself,
but it likes any real snap or pizzazz. Also his inability to make the bad guys
and the possible mentor for Winslow look distinct enough was a problem.
Leave it on the stands.
Part 2 Later Today.
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