Diana and Rex

Three weeks of comics are now in my hands. It was a thicker pile than in quite a while, with many favorites.

Wonder Woman 14
Written by Gail Simone; Art and Cover by Terry Dodson and Rachel Dodson

As I've mentioned, I'm not as steeped in Wonder Woman lore as many comic fans. I know she is the premier female icon, but other than the Lynda Carter show and my underoos, I don't have the same connection to WW. But with Gail Simone now writing the title, I am now on the journey. I think she hit all the right notes: the grand sweeping superhero statements and the funny moments she is so good at writing. I loved when the Grodd gorillas were using her as a 'test' before fighting Superman-- that was great. I think WW suffers from a lack of a recognizable villian-- Cheetah only goes so far. Captain Nazi in this arc should make for an interesting fight, if not a historic one.

WW 15: Who tried to assassinate her on the night of her creation? Special Agent Diana Prince may not live to find out, as she faces a brutal Captain Nazi alone, unable to use her powers. And the re-forming army of the Society of Super Villains hunts her mother on Paradise Island!

Rex Libris 9
I hope more than librarians are reading Rex Libris. Just as Grey's Anatomy is only slightly about being a doctor, the crazy adventures of Rex are just in name only being a librarian. It's the most literate and intricate comic I read, with at least a few big smiles or laughs each issue.

New The Boys, Un-Men, BOP, The Sword, Justice League, DMZ, and more. With the freezing rain and cold maybe I can catch up soon.

Shoreturtle and I have also read the whole Dexter series of books (3) in a row. It's been a while since I was thrilled by a series read.

The holidays chock full the calendar. Lunch in south Jersey Fri and Saw a lot of college friends Sat in North Jersey, back to work and the dang weekend is over!

Wonder Simone

Friend R sent me this NYT article about our favorite redhead writer, Gail Simone!
Wonder Woman gets a new voice

I have to add, thanks to Shelly,
the winners of the Wonder Woman wardrobe war contest from Proejct Rooftop

Some awesome designs and illustrations for WW- even Gail comments on these!
Boots, pants, headbands, togas, and weapons...

Birds and Bats

Slowly getting back to reading my comics. I think Dave at YACB blogged about the lackluster year for comics- there have been series I've continued to enjoy, but nothing knock my socks off in 2007.

Finally read the last Gail Simone Birds of Prey 108 (Swan Song). I have to say it was very touching with the cape friends coming as backup, Oracle's fight with the Spy Smasher - even in a wheelchair she summons Batgirl!- and the final scene with Misfit left me choked up. I'll miss Gail's writing and wit on BoP. I'll read her new Wonder Woman, but she's not the touchstone character for me that she is for others. I did have the WW underoos though.

I read much less of the Showcase Batgirl than I thought on the plane or beach- but the 3 stories I did were just a hoot! Just reached one where Supergirl and Batgirl team up to take away Superman and Batman's powers...just funny. Yes, the cover is stupid, and a lot of the dialogue is the pulp-y "dare-doll" stuff, but I like it.

Continuing the Batgirl theme here, Jim Lee's Batgirl in Batman and Robin 6 is really adorable. She's Barbara Gordon at 15, and while her 1/2 inch sliver of a mask won't hide anyone's identity, it's a cute part of the story. Black Canary has a part too, and the fishnets and bustier are a bit too revealing, it is BC. Jimmie Olson and Vicki Vale (that's 3 redheads in the book!) had a few pages too- although Vicki's part was entirely to take off her hospital gown. Does anyone get distracted by Frank Miller's capitalization? Ex.: "It's been the kind of night DREAMS are made of." or "on my way to the DOCKS.."

I will post Cali pics later - they are at home.

lead Bird flying the coop

Hey it's my freckled arm with Gail Simone on the official DC slideshow!
All the NYCC DC Comicon slideshows

One of the biggest announcements coming out the DC Nation column is Gail Simone leaving Birds of Prey, with Sean McKeever coming on. I have really loved McKeever on Spider-Man loves Mary Jane, and like his dialogue and emotional engagement. So while it's a shock and a finger-cross that things continue to go well in BoP, I like her replacement. Rumor has it her "dream job with dream artists" is on Wonder Woman-- maybe I'll actually read WW if she is writing.

The big article is the Gail Simone interview at Newsarama:
It put the lie to the idea that male readers wouldn't read a book with a female cast, and it stayed one of DC's steadiest selling and most critically acclaimed books


Well, issue #104 is probably the biggest response to a single issue we've ever done, and it actually gets a bit crazier. And the climax of this story is going to put monster smiles on the faces of every Birds of Prey reader, I believe. It's the Six vs. the Birds. It's Tora Olafsdotter returning. It's Hawkgirl, and a still-to-be-revealed final member of the Six, and finally, it's Oracle having a friendly chat with Spy Smasher that's going to be quite memorable.

Sean McKeever, says Gail Simone 'spreads very kind lies about me'

"She can steal the magick of anybody"

Four titles starring female characters from DC! I know I am drawn to these books, but there are more female-led comic books in the last few years. These, along with She-Hulk and Spider-Man loves MJ on the Marvel side are on my pull list.


Justice Society of America 3 April 07
Geoff Johns, Dale Eaglesham

Stargirl helps Maxine create a costumed identity. While she's very cute, she could get a side job as an elf at the Macy's Santa display. The women of the JSA are playing a significant role these days, from Power Girl to Stargirl to Maxine. Yes, sometimes their depictions are comicMaxim, the fear at an ambush and the growth of the female characters still makes JSA a good read. I also like the positive moments, in the dark and moody gloom of many of the other titles I read.
Not to say there isn't the very serious storyline of murdering descendents of former JSA members by Captain Nazi and crew.

The Helmet of Fate: Black Alice 1
Black Alice (Lori Lechlin) made a recent dramatic appearance in Birds of Prey, I was interested in her own storyline. She's a goth outsider at her high school, trying to resist using her powers against the jocks and people who torment her. She's lonely, her dad is drunk and angry recently, and her mother was brought back at nearly zombie level. This title involves the "be careful what you wish for" moral, where Black Alice is granted her darkest desires by the Helmet of Fate. This character has a strong potential future-- she's like the Hot Topic superheroine of the day. "She can steal the magick of anybody"

Birds of Prey 102
Mismatch

Oracle's backstory with the Spy Smasher Katarina, of two brilliant and driven women who compete at academics and on the track, was a good one. I like the intimate connection to Oracle, who only orchestrates her team against the villians. Here, the line of morality of what Oracle is and how the Spy Smasher considers the consequences to her bad deeds then does them anyway. The team still has rough edges, and I guess Manhunter will be out soon.

Catwoman 64
"I suppose that's why I like Gotham so much. This place on the other hand...It's just too damn sunny." Catwoman goes to Metropolis to steal a snow globe for The Calculator; hidden under steel and concrete at Lexcorp. Her jaded observations of Gotham vs. Metropolis are witty, and coming up against Luthor is an interesting ride. The Halle Berry Catwoman movie was on last night- I've never seen nor do I want to. I'll stick with Pfeiffer's Catwoman here.

Bloggers recover from NYCC bender

Wow, I've just started getting the weblog feed while I am overwhelmed with 200 or so posts, I see a lot more gossip and turmoil than my normal looks at my blogroll and the occasional jaunt to newsarama or The Beat.

Can someone in the know lay out which three female bloggers ? I guess one is Ronee (popcultureshock?) Heidi (The Beat?) I try to read the positive women bloggers at Comics Fairplay and Shelly's

And my beloved Gail Simone and Rick Olney (who is he? as a con organizer, I saw this about his cancelled con)

Another good thing is reading many NYCC blogposts as we all recover from that weekend bender. Started working on some panel notes.

Phillygirl and I rushed up to Paul Dini to tell him how she would skip class and watch Batman: The Animated Series, and how we love Harley Quinn. He was polite, and perhaps overwhelmed by two fangirls, but I was glad we met him.