I’m stuck in the middle as far as this one is concerned. Once again, DC Comics is reaching out to their band of outcasts/misfits/freaks (just don’t call them MUTANTS!), The Doom Patrol. This time, writer Keith Giffen and artist Matthew Clark are taking a stab at the team that has proven difficult for many creative powers over the years. I’m inclined to give Giffen the benefit of the doubt, but so many have tried to twist this team around their collective fingers to no avail, it is certainly not an easy road he’s chosen to travel. On top of the many failures, anyone attempting a DP book has to contend with the ominous shadow of Grant Morrison looming over them, as Morrison’s take on the book can only be described as a masterwork.

So, here’s to the return of the Doom Patrol. May John Byrne never get near this book again.

Friday’s premier of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie prompted critic Roger Ebert to write:

Am I being disrespectful to this material? You bet. It is Hugh Jackman’s misfortune that when they were handing out superheroes, he got Wolverine, who is for my money low on the charisma list. He never says anything witty, insightful or very intelligent; his utterances are limited to the vocalization of primitive forces: anger, hurt, vengeance, love, hate, determination. There isn’t a speck of ambiguity. That Wolverine has been voted the No. 1 comic hero of all time must be the result of a stuffed ballot box.

Pretty harsh (the review doesn’t get any more complimentary as it goes) but it raises a legitimate issue. Why IS Wolverine so popular? Long before the idea of film franchises lit the eyes of Avi Arad, Wolvie was supremely popular among comic book fans. The team of John Byrne and Chris Claremont made the character an icon, and the Wolverine mini-series featuring art by Frank Miller cemented the deal. That said, here are our top reasons why Logan/Patch/James Howlett/Wolverine has such lasting appeal:

• The Beast with a Heart of Gold: And no – by “Beast” I don’t mean Hank McCoy. By now, everyone (and I do mean everyone) knows how Stan Lee transformed the comic book industry by creating characters who were more complicated than the standard 1960s fare. By the late 70s/early 80s, however, these once “fresh and complex” characters were becoming flat and lifeless once again, as the Marvel formula for superheroes became the de facto standard. Enter Chris Claremont and John Byrne, whose revitalized X-Men series ushered in a new age for comic book character development. If Lee added a second dimension to characters (rudimentary motivations for behaviors, guilt complexes, etc), Claremont and Byrne began adding a third. Their X-Men were friends first, teammates second, comic book superheroes third. By allowing characters to interact on a personal level, readers began to relate to these once iconic and godlike figures. Chief among these was Wolverine, whose tortured soul and misunderstood status appealed to the often-outcast comic book geek. Here was a sensitive character (who was physically short and often called “runt” by others) who could do more than just stand up for himself. Here was a more accessible Clark Kent for the masses. While less physically strong than Supes, he was nonetheless invulnerable/indestructible, and carried a six-pack of switchblades as well.
    
• The Past Shrouded in Mystery: It’s no secret that comic book fans love a good mystery, and Wolverine’s unknown origin has proven to be a cash cow for Marvel again and again. Bits and pieces have trickled out over the past thirty years, and not all of them have been consistent with one another. Still, Marvel was able to keep interest high in this character’s background for decades before finally revealing all (or at least most) with the Jenkins/Kubert Origin mini-series. It remains to be seen, however, if interest will continue to remain as high now that so much is known about the character. Is Wolverine inherently compelling as a character, or only when his background is largely unknown?

• The Super-Powers: Part Batman, Part Superman: The final part of the equation is that Wolverine is an intriguing amalgam of DC’s two iconic characters: Superman and Batman. The Superman connection has already been mentioned earlier in this article, but it bears mentioning again that comic book fans, notorious underdogs that they are (or were, depending on your view of the recent influx of comics-related culture into the mainstream), easily gravitate to characters who are physically impervious to harm. And, unlike Superman, Wolverine actually feels the pain of his injuries. He simply doesn’t die from them. As for Batman…well, no, Logan isn’t a normal fellow like Bruce Wayne (though “normal” is a relative term – how many multi-billionaires with murdered parents do you know?), but his brooding nature, coupled with his troubled past, gives him a strong connection to Bats. And while Wolverine doesn’t have a utility belt, don’t those adamantium-laced claws and bones count as gadgets of a sort? Is it any wonder, then, that a character with many of the appealing traits of two of the most enduring comic book characters should also garner popularity?

I agree with Mr. Ebert on a number of his points, as there are certainly weaknesses in Wolverine’s appeal, and hopefully I’ll be able to address those in the future. At this point it remains to be seen if the film will be as successful as initially hoped. Do comic book and movie fans of the character and franchise really want all of these mysteries revealed after all?

My fascination with Marvel’s Dark Reign continues this week with Hawkeye #1. I’ve never been a fan of Hawkeye (although recent events in Secret Invasion and Millar’s Old Man Logan arc are forcing me to re-evaluate that position), so it’s interesting to see what’s going to happen now that Bullseye is wearing the costume. I’m intrigued, at least.

Mike Grell also returns to the series that made him fanboy-famous this week with Warlord #1. I’m optimistic, and I hope this series can get Grell some recognition outside the traditional comic book arena.

Finally it’s worth noting that Green Lantern (or is that Orange Lantern?) #39 hits the streets this week. Some have expressed frustration at the “Rainbow Lantern” arc Geoff Johns is putting the series through, but I’ve enjoyed it thoroughly – and it’s about time someone did something different with the too-often-staid Green Lantern (and Corps).

A week later than the rest of the western world, I finally got to see Watchmen. Every blog worth its salt from here to Antarctica has already posted comments, conundrums, cliches and controversies about the film, but I simply could not help but post my now-weeks-late thoughts, both pro and con. If you, like me, have waited a bit to see the film, or if you are waiting for the sure to be 10 hour director’s cut DVD, best skip what’s coming, as there be spoilers ahead!

The Good:
The opening credit sequence: A clever way to compress and cover many, many years and events without adding to the already-overloaded exposition. The use of tableaux was a nice choice, although the down side of this was that it further emphasized the static nature of the source medium.

The Voice of Dr. Manhattan: The CGI Manhattan was what it was. It looked close enough to the source material to not interfere with the audience’s willing suspension of disbelief. It was the character’s voice that really won me over. Billy Crudup has gained some deserved acclaim for his subtle performance, and a large part of that performance is due to the director who chose not to augment/deepen his voice to make him sound more “god-like.” Instead, the plaintive, high-pitched Manhattan seems even more of a paradox than he seemed on the printed page.

The Performances of Patrick Wilson and Jackie Earl Haley: So much has already been said about both of these performances, I don’t think I need to go into further detail here. Suffice it to say that they understood their characters and stayed intimately true to the intentions of the novel, and that Haley’s moment with the psychiatrist was one of the true high points of the film.

The Unforgettable Moment: Nat King Cole has never seemed quite so relevant or cool than when he was used as a soundtrack for this hyped-up fight sequence. I do not hold with the purists on this one. I understand that the death of the Comedian happens quickly in the book, but that has never made much sense to me, given his particular…ummm…skill set.

The Bad:

The Supporting Cast: Whether it was the horrendous acting of the prison inmates or the over-the-top performance of the reporter in the early Ozymandias sequence, it was obvious that many of the bit parts went to people with little or no experience acting. Maybe this was a way for someone, somewhere to repay a favor, but it certainly did the audience no favors. This, of course, leads to the next in my list, which is…

The Dick Nixon: Ok, so I GET the fact that this was a half-hearted, satiric stab at politics, but the makeup was horrible (when did Nixon become Pinnochio?) and the acting wasn’t much better. The frequent use of tricky Dick implied that Snyder REALLY LIKED this, which simply boggles my mind. Better to have used computer manipulated footage of the real Nixon (as in Contact) rather than this crude caricature.

The Songs: I applaud Snyder for staying true to the 80s-entrenched nature of the movie (and even including most of the songs referenced in Moore’s original), but could he have chosen a few less iconic songs for the remainder of the soundtrack? Ummm….Wagner has been used before and for better effect (and why try to reference a vastly superior movie? To reinforce the fact that Watchmen isn’t a classic?), and I just don’t think it was necessary to make Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah quite so…well…tawdry.

The Super Powers: I kinda thought one of the BIG points of Watchmen (the graphic novel) was that there was only ONE super-powered creature on Earth; why,then, are characters like the Comedian and Nite Owl taking huge chunks of wall, concrete and brick with them when their punches connect? Again, I get the larger-than-life nature of this world, but a human-to-human punch should not launch the bad guy yards away.

I’m sure I’ll add to this list as I think more and more about the film. Consider this a work-in-progress for a bit.

Last week was the real blowout in terms of books. This week, it’s another so-so showing. Secret Warriors is shaping up to be a book worth watching, Secret Six continues to impress, and the first (and best) volume of the oddball JLI series from Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire gets another reprinting.

Just in case you haven’t read Dark Avengers #1 yet, I won’t spoil the surprise. Having just read it, however, I have to say it looks like we’re in for a hell of a ride from Bendis/Deodato and company for the foreseeable future. The status quo of the Marvel Universe was less than a thrilling prospect following Civil War, but the aftermath of Secret Invasion has shaken thing up nicely, thank you.

I honestly thought Marvel would milk Civil War and its aftermath for much longer than just one year. However, I’m not complaining. Bring on the universe-altering events if this is what results.

(BTW – if you think everyone in the above photo from Dark Avengers is who they appear to be, you haven’t been reading too many comics lately.)

A long time ago (well, not THAT long ago – 1987) at a college costume party far, far away I had the bright idea to dress up as Rorschach. Never mind that only the geekiest of geeks read comics in those days (my times have changed, haven’t they?), or that no one I knew had even heard of, let alone read, Watchmen, I was committed to seeing the project through. The end result, alas, was lacking, but you gotta give me props for trying way back then.

So imagine my surprise to discover that Rubies is releasing a full line of Watchmen costumes for next Halloween. I’m generally not impressed (you have to see the Comedian costume to believe it), but I think some of them could be tweaked into something pretty decent. Take a full look by clicking the link:

Watchmen for Halloween

Here’s a nice little piece of footage from the newly launched New Frontiersman site showing a distinctly 1980s view of Dr. Manhattan. Didn’t know they had such good CGI back then, did ya?

Am I missing something? I just read Brian Michael Bendis’/Alex Maleev’s Dark Reign #1, and this is what Namor looks like. Now, honestly, I haven’t been keeping tabs on ol’ wingfoot probably like I should, but when did he turn into this. At best, he looks like an extra from Office Space. At worst, he looks like a chemo victim. In spite of John Byrne’s ridiculous take on Namor years ago, I’ve never thought of the character as a joke. When did he become one?