I have to make it in time for the film!
*This Had Better Show Up Somewhere On the Packaging of the Absolute Edition Dept:
“…the most eagerly awaited 12-issue maxi-series since the already legendary Camelot 3000.”
- Len Wein, doing his best to hype the upcoming Watchmen in DC’s monthly Meanwhile… column, found in The Shadow #4 (of 4), August 1986.
*Just a heads-up for anyone who liked my Pineapple Army review from a few days back - I’ve updated it with some new information, mostly because I managed to obtain a copy of Viz’s 1990 compilation of the series, a lovely dustjacketed softcover tome that, contrary to what Amazon would have you believe, actually collects all 280+ pages of the original Viz release. Various used book merchants still have copies ready to roll for less than $4, before shipping. Amazingly silly book at times, but that Urasawa art, mmm boy.
*Quicker review than usual...
The Authority: The Magnificant Kevin #2 (of 5)
I clearly recall the prior Kev miniseries stumbling a bit at the very end, as writer Garth Ennis attempted to shoot for pathos and missed the mark by a bit. Still, the flashbacks to Kev’s life in the S.A.S. were decent entertainment, and it looks like Ennis is going for a fairly similar structure here, with copious flashbacks revealing yet more of the series’ star’s secret origins (yes, I know, The Authority also gets their names in the title - it might as well be Doom Patrol or the Justice Society of America for all Ennis seems to care). Get ready for the thrilling true tale of how Kev came to enter England’s proud armed forces, and learn how disclosing the details of your uncle’s recent suicide cannot stop the gale force of the teenage sex drive. That leering fellow on the cover? Not in this issue at all.
I’ve gotten a bit more used to Carlos Ezquerra’s art this issue; it captures something of a similar feel to Glenn Fabry’s prior work on Kev interiors, though in a lighter way. Odd then that this issue is more ‘serious’ than average. Sure, we still have Kev getting his ass smacked by a riding crop whilst fornicating with a hot-to-trot sampling of the idle rich, but there’s also betrayal, less-absurd violence than usual, straightforward male bonding, and a vengeful commanding officer straight out of those other pieces of fiction that feature vengeful commanding officers tormenting their hapless, stout-hearted underlings. It’s somewhat interesting, but oddly flat; the humor in these series tends to be rather vivid, and steering the material toward more traditional semi-dramatics appears to be leading Ennis down a more oft-trodden path, or at least one which he can’t quite traverse with as much panache given the materials he's bearing. Which isn’t to say Ennis can’t write good dramatics, just that such skill doesn’t seem to be manifesting itself here, an issue after the musical number and the vagina djinn.
Obviously, Ennis is going to get back to the wackiness later, though it appears next issue is going to have more flashback material. Hopefully there’ll be a bit more devouring of officers by wild beasts and less class-conflict flavored travails, or at least some fresher travails of the sort. Kev can do weightier stuff, I suppose, but I’d like my dramatics to resound at least as strongly as the masturbation jokes.
“…the most eagerly awaited 12-issue maxi-series since the already legendary Camelot 3000.”
- Len Wein, doing his best to hype the upcoming Watchmen in DC’s monthly Meanwhile… column, found in The Shadow #4 (of 4), August 1986.
*Just a heads-up for anyone who liked my Pineapple Army review from a few days back - I’ve updated it with some new information, mostly because I managed to obtain a copy of Viz’s 1990 compilation of the series, a lovely dustjacketed softcover tome that, contrary to what Amazon would have you believe, actually collects all 280+ pages of the original Viz release. Various used book merchants still have copies ready to roll for less than $4, before shipping. Amazingly silly book at times, but that Urasawa art, mmm boy.
*Quicker review than usual...
The Authority: The Magnificant Kevin #2 (of 5)
I clearly recall the prior Kev miniseries stumbling a bit at the very end, as writer Garth Ennis attempted to shoot for pathos and missed the mark by a bit. Still, the flashbacks to Kev’s life in the S.A.S. were decent entertainment, and it looks like Ennis is going for a fairly similar structure here, with copious flashbacks revealing yet more of the series’ star’s secret origins (yes, I know, The Authority also gets their names in the title - it might as well be Doom Patrol or the Justice Society of America for all Ennis seems to care). Get ready for the thrilling true tale of how Kev came to enter England’s proud armed forces, and learn how disclosing the details of your uncle’s recent suicide cannot stop the gale force of the teenage sex drive. That leering fellow on the cover? Not in this issue at all.
I’ve gotten a bit more used to Carlos Ezquerra’s art this issue; it captures something of a similar feel to Glenn Fabry’s prior work on Kev interiors, though in a lighter way. Odd then that this issue is more ‘serious’ than average. Sure, we still have Kev getting his ass smacked by a riding crop whilst fornicating with a hot-to-trot sampling of the idle rich, but there’s also betrayal, less-absurd violence than usual, straightforward male bonding, and a vengeful commanding officer straight out of those other pieces of fiction that feature vengeful commanding officers tormenting their hapless, stout-hearted underlings. It’s somewhat interesting, but oddly flat; the humor in these series tends to be rather vivid, and steering the material toward more traditional semi-dramatics appears to be leading Ennis down a more oft-trodden path, or at least one which he can’t quite traverse with as much panache given the materials he's bearing. Which isn’t to say Ennis can’t write good dramatics, just that such skill doesn’t seem to be manifesting itself here, an issue after the musical number and the vagina djinn.
Obviously, Ennis is going to get back to the wackiness later, though it appears next issue is going to have more flashback material. Hopefully there’ll be a bit more devouring of officers by wild beasts and less class-conflict flavored travails, or at least some fresher travails of the sort. Kev can do weightier stuff, I suppose, but I’d like my dramatics to resound at least as strongly as the masturbation jokes.
posted by Jog at 6:18 PM
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