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By Aaron Block, on February 2nd, 2012 Author: Courtney Taylor-Taylor and Jim Rugg
2012, Titan
Filed Under: Graphic Novels, Historical
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
5 |
| Entertainment..... |
5 |
| Depth..... |
4 |
| Visual Style... |
8 |
It’s not difficult to understand why the Red Army Faction, a leftist revolutionary sect that was founded in Germany in 1970 and existed in various forms for nearly 30 years, has inspired so many books, films, plays, songs, paintings, and other works of art. Young, politically minded people banding together under charismatic leadership, the journalist who puts her ideals into practice and co-founds the group, the campaign of violence, prison break, subsequent arrest and final fate of the leaders – the story is an a la carte menu for any kind of statement you’d want to make. And largely because of that appeal, it’s also easy to romanticize the group, and gloss over the consequences of the violent acts attributed to the them, which include 34 deaths. Even Uli Edel’s 2008 film The Baader-Meinhoff Complex, which effectively charts the group’s violent pathology, can’t resist a bit of mythologizing.
Courtney Taylor-Taylor and Jim Rugg’s graphic novel One Model Nation, originally published by Image Comics in 2009 and now republished by Titan Books, attempts a corrective to that dynamic, presenting the RAF as a frustration in the lives of four musicians who are trying to progress to the next stage of their career. But none of the criticism levied against the RAF, and Andreas Baader in particular, by the main characters amounts to anything more than insults like “assholes” and “turd.” They seem more concerned that their young fans’ sympathy with the gang has ruined some of their gigs and attracted unwanted police attention than with the RAF’s ideology, or the bombings and killings they commit. As an indictment of violent political action Taylor-Taylor’s story is toothless; it doesn’t fare much better as an account of a mythical band’s glory days. …
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By Sean Clark, on December 16th, 2011 Editor: Joseph Gordon Levitt
2011, hitRECord
Filed Under: Short Stories, Poetry, Graphic Novels
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
6 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
7 |
| Presentation.. |
9 |
As the name implies, this is a short little book filled with “stories” that are mostly less than a sentence. Each bite-sized story is paired with a drawing: in a way they’re almost like one panel comic strips, but also not at all like that. While some are funny, some manage to plumb some nice depth, especially for their size. It’s not an impossible thing to do. (The not-exactly-true tale of Hemingway’s shortest story–”For sale, baby shoes, never worn.”–comes to mind.) Most importantly this is a collaborative book, curated like a lit mag. The art is varied and interesting, and the range of the stories is pleasantly surprising. And yes, that’s the actor Joseph Gordon Levitt* who runs the show.
Here’s an example:
Tiny Stories is an attractive, if not substantive, little book; a nice thing to have on your shelf, or to leave out on a coffee table. To call it more than a diversion would probably be overdoing things, but it’s a good one. I wrapped up my copy to give as a Christmas present, but then decided to order another for myself. I can see myself quickly flipping through this many times before I’m done with it.
Similar Reads: Our own Eric Markowsky’s collaborative story, “Other Doors, Other Rooms,” over at Camera Obscura was in the same spirit as this.
[This book is currently being advertised on the site--that's how I found it.]
*more or less completely unrelated side-note, he’s the lead in a very smartly written movie titled Brick, a noir-style film set in a high school, which is one of my favorite movies of the last few years.
By Aaron Block, on August 31st, 2011  Creators: written by Jason Caiaramella, art by Zach Howard, based on the short story “The Cape” by Joe Hill
2010, IDW Publishing
Filed under: Graphic Novel
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
6 |
| Entertainment..... |
6 |
| Depth..... |
5 |
| Visual Style.... |
8 |
The Cape, a one-shot comic book released by IDW Publishing in late 2010, has an unusual pedigree (and no it has nothing to do with the ill-fated NBC television show of the same name). It’s an adaptation of a prose story by Joe Hill, which originally appeared in his short story collection 20th Century Ghosts. Hill (the son of Stephen King) is also a comic book writer, best known for the critically acclaimed Locke & Key, which is also published by IDW. He’s involved with The Cape as a creative consultant, working with writer Jason Ciaramella and artist Zach Howard to not only adapt the story, but also create a mini-series that explores the characters and their world.
I missed The Cape entirely when it was originally released, but stumbled upon the “Legacy Edition” that IDW published a few months ago to coincide with its 2011 Eisner nomination for Best Single Issue (it didn’t win, but Joe Hill was awarded Best Writer for his work on Locke & Key). The reprint also includes Hill’s original story, which is really the occasion for this review. While the comic was somewhat disappointing, reading it back to back with Hill’s short story brings the strengths and limitations of the comic book medium into relief. …
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By Sean Clark, on August 10th, 2011 Author: Hans Rickheit
2009, Fantagraphics Books
Filed Under: Graphic Novel, Sci-Fi, Horror.
Get the book.
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
6 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
5 |
| Visuals... |
8 |
This book is pretty messed up. I’m not even really sure what it’s about, but it’s pretty messed up.
Edward and William are two very smart little rich kids living off their father’s inheritance. As a hobby, they make steampunky musical instruments out of animal carcasses and phonographs and sundry things. There’s a crazy woman known as Pig Lady, and they somehow have a cavernous workshop hidden beneath the house their father left them. There’s their odd mother, and a girl named Morgen who gets banged in what I can best describe as a snail sorter. And there’s this: …
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By Aaron Block, on July 20th, 2011 [This comic book history/treatise/memoir is a C4 Great Read. Find it and other C4 favorites on our Great Reads shelf at Powell's.]
 Author: Grant Morrison
2011, Spiegel & Grau
Filed under: Memoir, Nonfiction, Graphic Novel
Get this book
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
8 |
| Entertainment..... |
10 |
| Depth..... |
9 |
In Supergods, a nonfiction exploration of superheroes as a fictive phenomenon, comic book writer and artist Grant Morrison argues that Superman is humanity’s greatest accomplishment. From anyone else that might be considered a cynical statement; of all the scientific and artistic achievements, across centuries, nothing scores higher than a gaudily costumed, flying strongman born in a medium that’s not even 100 years old?
But Morrison is absolutely sincere—he contends that superhero comics are not just entertainment for children and fodder for blockbuster movie adaptations, but windows into a separate reality populated by gods that fight intensely pitched battles for good, of which Superman is the best and brightest.
Morrison’s is a delightfully optimistic premise, doubly refreshing when considered next to the daily articles and blog posts about the imminent death of the comic book industry. Those writers worry (rightfully so) about relevance, demographics, and market share, while Morrison knows that the stakes are actually much higher. How appropriate that a book about the history and potential of superheroes aims to save the world. …
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By Marc Velasquez, on May 18th, 2011  Author: Wilfred Santiago
2011, Fantagraphics Books
Filed under: Graphic Novel, Nonfiction, Biography
Get it at Powell’s
| C4 Ratings...out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
5 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
6 |
| Art Style... |
9 |
My father loved baseball. When I was young, he told me stories of his favorite players as if they were superheroes. He held none in higher esteem than Roberto Clemente. As a result, I believed Roberto Clemente had superpowers. I believed he floated through the outfield and flew between the base paths. I believed the ball exploded off of his bat and that he had a cannon for an arm.
In the years since, I have read as much about Clemente as possible. And while each article or book reinforced my belief that Clemente was both an incredible ballplayer and incredible human being, none of them seemed to satisfy the childhood fascination I had for him. I should have known, given the superhero aspects of the image in my head, that I needed a comic book. With his graphic novel, 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente, Wilfred Santiago delivered exactly what I’ve been waiting for.
Take, for instance, one of the book’s first pages: …
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By Sean Clark, on February 7th, 2011 Author: Yoshihiro Tatsumi
2008, Drawn & Quarterly
Filed Under: Graphic Novels, Short Stories.
| C4 Ratings.....out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
5 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
9 |
| Art Style... |
6 |
This is a collection of nine short stories told in a pre-pop-manga comic format. Penned (but not occurring) in the early 70s, these vignettes are serious, dark, and downright sad. The first things that probably come to mind to most Americans when they hear Japanese comic are probably giant robots, or cyber-ninjas, or cat-eared girls, or tentacle-rape hentai. According to the brief introduction at the beginning of this volume, those are probably closer than the themes of Tatsumi’s work to the modern Japanese reader’s consciousness as well.
Instead, these stories paint a serious and fairly grim picture of a society in flux, of a generation of postwar Japanese tethered to two different Japans, yet belonging to neither. Most of the characters in this book are aging men, survivors of World War II trying to maintain a sense of identity while navigating newfound luxuries and freedoms and simultaneously trying to adhere to traditional Japanese expectations and mores, especially those concerning gender roles. …
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By Aaron Block, on December 6th, 2010 
[This is the last entry in our 2010 Best Books Series. Find all the other entries here. We've also compiled all our best books in one easy-to-browse page; find it by clicking the stamp, at left or anywhere else you see it on the site.]
The Second Annual Aaron Block Awards, Celebrating Excellence In the Comics I Read This Year, Presented By Aaron Block
“Most Awkward Purchase” Award – Black Kiss, written and illustrated by Howard Chaykin
 My local comic book store, Comicopia in Boston, displays the “adult” themed books on the top shelf of the new releases rack, usually with plastic bags and carefully placed stickers to hide the naughty bits from sensitive eyes. I didn’t even think to look there when the newest hardcover collection of Howard Chaykin’s poison-pen letter to Regan’s America, Black Kiss, though I was eager to pick it up. I’d heard it was controversial, but didn’t think it would be stocked alongside more overtly pornographic comics. When I finally did find it, I realized that it wasn’t the explicit sex that kept it on the adult shelf, but the pitch-black worldview Chaykin presents.
For all the horrible things that happen within its pages, Black Kiss is remarkably frothy. You can almost hear writer/artist Chaykin laughing to himself as he detailed each panel, knowing the furor and outrage it would engender. That anarchic spirit seethes in every element of the book, from the knotted, hard-boiled plot to the cast of morally bankrupt Los Angeles archetypes, and even Chaykin’s rough, sketchy but heavily detailed style. The book is so dense with death and perversion in the first issue alone that any titillation or lurid appeal is quickly numbed, replaced with a morbid fascination with how deep in the gutter Chaykin is willing to tread.
Reading Black Kiss is fun, even though it shouldn’t be. Chaykin is rumored to be working on a sequel, but I wonder if an update could be as powerful as the original, given how much of this book shock-matter seems to be front and center in mainstream culture? …
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By Aaron Block, on June 8th, 2010 [This graphic novel is a C4 Great Read.]
 Written and illustrated by David Lapham
Vertigo, 2007
Filed under: Graphic Novels
| C4 Ratings.....out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
9 |
| Entertainment..... |
9 |
| Depth..... |
8 |
| Visual Style..... |
9 |
David Lapham’s 2007 graphic novel Silverfish reads like an illustrated screenplay for a never-filmed John Carpenter-style suburban thriller. And while writer/illustrator Lapham is clearly familiar with (and fond of) the conventions of such films (Chief of Police father, bratty, rich-girl best friends, overly nice strangers with terrible secrets, etc.), he isn’t merely paying tribute to a lost genre, but reviving it in a separate medium.
If cinematic horror has largely abandoned atmosphere, suspense, and character, why shouldn’t comics pick up the slack? It’s not the novelty of “cinematic comics” that makes Silverfish such an exciting read, though; any comic that uses wide panels and dramatic visuals can make the same claim. Urgent pacing, realistic (if supernaturally tinted) danger, and a bold visual style set Silverfish apart in a field flush with predictable plots and flat characters. …
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By Sean Clark, on April 6th, 2010 
Author: David Petersen
2008/2009 Archaia Studios Press
Filed Under Graphic Novels, Fantasy
| C4 Ratings.....out of |
10 |
| Language..... |
6 |
| Entertainment..... |
7 |
| Depth..... |
4 |
| Art Style..... |
8 |
I used to love Brian Jaques’s Redwall series when I was younger (and I’d probably still love it if I went back now to read it, which I now may), so when I saw the cover of Mouse Guard Winter 1152 depicting the cloaked and armed mice trudging determinedly through the snow, I couldn’t help but get it. This review is actually of two books, Winter and Fall, both quite short. …
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