Nov. 12-18: Image and Substance
By Michael Deeley
"Creator-owned" means exactly that—the trademark and copyright of the work in question is wholly owned by its original creator. The majority of the comics and graphic novels published by Image are creator-owned. While Image as a company does have some say in the promotion and distribution of the titles it publishes, it is done with non-creative interference to protect the company and maintain responsibility for our public image.”
-from the FAQ section of the Image Comics website.
“So, I guess Image doesn’t mind that Devil’s Due has left them, taking along their best-selling titles.”
-me
This week, I do an all-company review of Image Comics. Now Image is significantly different from other publishers. While Marvel, DC, et al. own nearly everything they make, Image is a collection of independent, creator-owned studios. Apparently, working at Image is like self-publishing, except you have the promotional budget and backing of a major publisher. Image does not own the characters it publishes; the creators do. But I imagine Image must take a cut of a book’s sales to stay in business.
This unique commitment to creator’s rights was laid down by the Image Comics Founders. 6 of Marvel’s hottest artists, and Jim Valentino, announced the creation of their own company in 1991. The first Image Comics were published in 1992. Rob Liefeld’s ‘Youngblood’, Todd McFarlane’s ‘Spawn’, Erik Larsen’s ‘Savage Dragon’, Valentino’s ‘Shadowhawk’, and Jim Lee’s ‘WildC.A.T.S.’ became instant hits. These books sold in the millions based on little more than their creators’ fame. These mavericks had done what many had thought impossible: beat Marvel and DC at their own game. The early success of Image proved that fans really did care who was drawing and writing their books. And since the artists owned everything they made, the founders became quite wealthy from the profits.
Then it all went to hell. Image’s success inspired other publishers to create their own line of superhero books. These comics were often cheap knock-offs of Image books and their artists’ styles. Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse responded with more new comics and outrageous stunts, (Maximum Clonage, Knightsend, Comics Greatest World). The summer of 1994 saw over 600 new comics released; more than at any other time in comics history. The market could not support so many products. And when collectors realized the comics they’d bought couldn’t be sold at a high profit (especially since everyone was buying the same books), they stopped buying comics altogether. Sales plummeted, forcing comic shops and publishers to close their doors. 10 years ago, the best-selling series moved 1 million copies a month. Today, the top sellers barely break 100,000.
But Image survived. By diversifying their line of books, Image provided stories that couldn’t be found at other publishers. Today, Image is best known for horror, humor, dramatic, and fantasy comics. It publishes so few superhero books, that publisher Jim Valentino has made a big push to attract attention to a developing “Imageverse”. But Image is still regarded by readers and creators as an alternative to Marvel and DC. It became the third largest comics publisher in America less than a decade after its founding.
All right, I sound like I’m gushing. That’s because I liked everything I read from Image. Seriously! The worst Image comic I read this week was ‘Spawn’, and even it was pretty stylish. I know Top Cow is a part of Image, but since every Image studio is independent of each other, one could argue they’re like separate companies. (Besides, the further Image distances itself from Top Cow, the better.)
Going into this, I did not know creators owned their own work at Image. (And if there are exceptions or limitations to that, I’m sure one of you will tell me!) So reviewing Image as a whole is like reviewing a random assortment of self-published books.
So let’s get started:
I’ve reviewed ‘Powers’ in the past, including its most recent issue. I recognize it’s good, but I just don’t “dig it” as much as others. I’ve never bought it, so I’ll keep giving it  until further notice.
Todd Nauck takes every superhero idea ever made and throws into ‘Wildguard’, a reality-TV show that follows young hopeful heroes as they audition for a new team. So far, mysterious alien invaders have captured over 100 of the contestants. Jun-Go, Ignacia, and Red Rover have stowed away on the alien ship. Issue #3 sees Producer X, revealed as international supermodel/hero Four, lead the remaining 20 contestants on a rescue mission. Along the way, Strong-Bot is revealed to be not a robot, but not powerless either, Jun-Go tells of how these aliens kidnapped the super-animals that raised him, and someone might be impersonating Astro-Girl.
This is like a great ‘Legion’ comic. Each character has a distinct personality that comes through. Freezerburn has only two lines of dialogue, but it’s enough to make me think his personality runs as hot and cold as his powers. Wannabe has different costume to inspire variant action figures. She clearly comes across as being a hero just for fame and fortune. Toughlon’s attempts at being lighthearted are interpreted by Four as being flippant. I even went to wildguard.com to vote for my favorite hero. (Red Rover. Half the guy’s body is numb and he still keeps fighting? Bitchin’! Plus, there aren’t enough dog-themed heroes in comics.)
‘Wildguard’ was a lot of fun to read. It moves fast, but you never lose track of the characters or where you are. I wasn’t a fan of Nauck’s art on ‘Young Justice’, but I like what he’s drawn here. Overall, a great comic.  .
‘Capes’ is the funniest superhero comic I’ve read since ‘Formerly Known as the Justice League’. This mini-series follows the doings of a superhero company. Its employees are all capes-and-tights types who get paid for fighting crime. In this issue, they round up crooks from a mass breakout to increase public support and federal funding. A hero thrown 10 years ahead through time learns he’s not getting any back pay. And there’s some fighting too.
Right off the bat, I got to say, I love Bolt. He’s a decent family man, he’s a straight shooter, and he thinks fast on his feet. I want to see him star in a ‘Capes’ monthly series. Think about it: Superhero as working stiff. “Hill Street Blues” meets ‘JSA’. The right combination of the fantastic with the mundane is a perfect formula for comedy. Really, if you like laughing at superheroes, you’re going to love this.  .
Erik Larsen’s ‘Savage Dragon’ is considered a rock-solid book by its fans. The series has taken some odd twists and turns, including the creation of an alternate Earth when the Dragon killed a time-warping villain. In issue #112, the Dragon and his family have moved to this Earth. He goes on an obnoxious talk show to learn what became of this Earth’s versions of his friends. Then he learns Mako the shark man has kidnapped Dart, a woman he loved and kept for many years. Dart stayed with him because she believed she and Mako were the last people on Earth. Now that she knows different, she hates him. Sadly, Mako accidentally kills Dart during his fight with the Dragon. This sends Mako completely over the edge and he flees, swearing vengeance. All this plus the Dragon’s scientist friend is getting crazier, his wife feels guilty about killing a villain, there’s a back-up story about a woman who turns into a male hero, and a 1-page comic strip about kid heroes. All for $2.95!
Savage Dragon is one of only two Image’s “founding characters” to still be at the company. It has the look of a Silver Age Marvel book, with decidedly modern sensibilities. The Dragon comes across as a blue-collar, down-to-earth hero. He does what he knows is right, and never loses sight of what’s important. The series is chock full of old-fashion punch-ups, with enough sex and violence to make it edgy for today’s youth. If you want to get a pre-teen hooked on comics, give him this book. It satisfies at the basic levels for action, while engaging the mind with subtle character development, moving dialogue, and sharp humor. .
I’ve been hearing about how great ‘Rex Mundi’ is, so I decided to actually read it. Issue #6 is the seventh part of a mystery that’s been brewing since issue #0. Dr. Julien Sauniere has been investigating a series of murders in Paris, 1933. But this is a different world, one where feudalism and sorcery still hold sway. He’s discovered a man in white has committed these murders, and followed him to a strange temple in Paris’ sewers. A quick sneak into the archives of the Inquisition reveal this temple is based on Solomon’s ancient temple. But how is this connected to the Knights Templar? Better still, how is the Duke of Lorraine involved? And what of his claim that his family holds the throne to Jerusalem?
I’m not being vague on purpose. There really are a lot of clues that don’t quite add up. I barely knew who was who from reading the profiles in the front cover. Still, this is a very intelligent book. The art is detailed, expressive, and complimented by rich colors. It’s rare to find a comic book that has a genuine mystery, one that engages the reader’s mind, so I’m giving ‘Rex Mundi’ , and waiting for the TPB.
My brother and I used to collect ‘Spawn’ when it first came out. After 30 issues, we got sick of it. I actually dumped all my ‘Spawn’ comics into the recycling bin. Somewhere, someone dried their hands with paper towels made from ‘Spawn’ #1. Oh well.
‘Spawn’ #130 wasn’t drawn by McFarlane, but it looks like it was. Spawn and Detective Twitch go looking for Twitch’s son Max. Max was captured by vampires and rescued by Spawn. But they were in the process of “turning” Max, so he’s not quite alive. He’s been drawn to a lonely old house populated by other lost ghosts. One of them’s a little girl who wants to use Max’s gun to kill other people so they’d stay there too. Spawn and Twitch show up, are opposed by the ghosts, and the little girl shoots someone. Meanwhile, someone’s been killing women in NYC and leaving the message “Where’s Wanda?” This someone could be Jason Wynn under the control of Violater. Oh yeah, and Spawn’s alive now for some reason.
Well, it looked nice. The story’s not bad either, but I saw something similar in ‘Witchblade’ earlier this year. Not bad, but not great either. I feel sorry for the long-time ‘Spawn’ fans who had to wait all those months because the book was late. This really isn’t worth waiting for. .
Finally, we come the licensed nostalgia books: ‘Street Fighter’ and ‘G.I. Joe’. These will be published by Devil’s Due when they break away from Image next year. Meanwhile, these books ROCK!
I never watched “G.I. Joe” or played with the toys growing up. My parents were anti-military. So reading issue #23 of the comic, I knew nothing of G.I. Joe, beyond Cobra Commander had the same voice as Starscream from “Transformers”. In this issue, Serpentor, the product of a genetic experiment, has recovered his clones from the G.I. Joe organization, killing and capturing several soldiers in the process. He kidnaps Cobra Commander and explains how he subverted Cobra from within. Serpentor then sets G.I. Joe and Cobra against each other. This grows into an all-out war requiring both sides to call in every soldier and fighter they ever employed. Meanwhile, Serpentor is going to conquer the world.
I’m not sure what happened, but it was exciting. This felt like the third act of a war movie. Had I read earlier issues, I would have had an easier time following the action. As it was, I enjoyed it.
‘Street Fighter’ is based on the “Street Fighter” series of video games. Let me say right now that “Street Fighter II” is a classic! It is the Pac-Man of fighting games! It was the first to have unique characters, sets of special moves, a story, and multiple endings depending on which character you used. I can still remember the moves for Ryu, Chun-Li, E. Honda, and Blanka.
If ‘Street Fighter’ the comic only got one thing right, it’s the fighting. It looks great! Each character’s unique moves and style is captured perfectly. Plus, their moves are easy to follow. Just watching them go is worth the price of the book. But there’s more! Since the art is by Udon studios, the coloring is fantastic. The art is in perfect modern manga style. And the story develops naturally, while keeping in the spirit of the video games.
In issue #2, Ryu and Ken have come to Japan to avenge the death of their master. Ryu thinks he was killed by Akuma, their master’s evil brother. Little do they know they’re being followed by agents of the Shadaloo criminal organization and its leader, M. Bison. Interpol agents Chun-Li and Guile are also following Ryu and Ken, hoping to learn what the Shadaloo did with Chun-Li’s father and Guile’s partner. Bison sends Vega, the vain Spaniard, to find Ryu. He mistakenly finds E. Honda. After Vega hands Honda a humiliating defeat, he comes across Ken and his wife. Plus, Adam Warren does a back-up story about the day Chun-Li’s father was kidnapped and she was beaten by Cammy, one of Bison’s “bees”.
Damn, this was a great book. Of course, that could be because it reminds me how much I liked the old “Street Fighter” game. On the other hand, this book had great action, a solid story, good pacing, a main story, a back-up, and a funny one-page strip. It’s a Japanese version of ‘Savage Dragon’. So ‘Street Fighter’ gets . Go read it. It’s fun.
And that is that for Image comics. I know, they make a lot more, like ‘Leave it to Chance’, ‘Invincible’, ‘Noble Causes’, and a dozen others. But I’m just one man! I couldn’t possibly read everything a company publishes. Not unless it puts it all into a convenient and inexpensive trade book on a monthly basis.
So, Image comics: They don’t make big, dumb superheroes any more. Go check them out.
It was during this week that I read the following books for my Diamond Rankings column: Avengers/JLA #2, Ultimate X-Men #39, NYX #2, Amazing Spider-Man #500, Superman/Batman #3, 1602 #3, Batman #620, and Micronauts #11.
My normal reading included:
Ultimate Six #4 -
The President tells Nick Fury that if he can’t recapture the villains, he takes all the blame. Osborn tells his cohorts how and why they’re going to get away with this, then attack the Triskellion. Cool.
Negation #23 and #24 - each
I don’t know how I got #23 late. Anyway, Javi and his Ligis-bearers catch up to Kaine and Co. Javi summarizes what happened to him in the ‘Mark of Charon’ mini-series and informs them they’re all going to die. Javi drains away all of Evinlea’s power making him even harder to kill than before. Kaine’s people are able to hold their own against Charon’s creatures thanks to Kaine’s leadership and teamwork. But Javi can heal and refresh his team as often as needed. I am SO looking forward to Javi’s death.
Cerebus #296 -
Cerebus receives a dream from God that says he’s dead meat. The visit from his son Shep-Shep will be permitted only if Cerebus signs a statement supporting the opposite of everything he believes to be true. Also in this issue is “My mom was a schizophrenic” by Chester Brown, notes on the piece with updates from brown himself, and part two of Dave Sim’s interview with Brown. That’s a hell of a lot for $2.25 US! The nominees for the third annual Howard Eugene Day Memorial Prize are also announced in this issue. Congratulations to Pittsburgh artists Jasen Lex for ‘The Gypsy Lounge’, (www.books.com), and Dick Troutman and Brian Maruca for ‘Street Angel’, (www.awefulbooks.com). I reviewed them both earlier this year. They’re great books. Buy them now.
Battle Royale v3 -
The manga about the world’s most violent reality TV show returns with even more heartbreak, sex, and violence than before. One student reveals he was the winner of last year’s “contest”, another tries unsuccessfully to hack the control center’s computers, and we see just how far one girl has gone to destroy a man. This is a sick, disturbing, gut-wrenching work of human drama and misery. Every human being needs to read this masterpiece!
And finally, filling out the week:
Rout 666 #17; Uncanny X-Men Annual #15; Bacchus Vol. 9; Adolf: A Tale of the 20th Century; and the Millennium Edition of Wonder Woman #1 (1987).
You know, I’ve been reading a lot of old Silver Age stories lately in DC’s 100-page Super Spectacular. I think next week’s column will be about how those old stories look through modern eyes. Or maybe I’ll talk about the different formats one can read comic books in, including websites and DVDs.
This Thanksgiving week, I’ll be reading full runs of comics. That’s every issue of a cancelled monthly series, every issue by a particular creator, or any long story told in more than 12 comics. That’s the column after next.
Until then, load up on turkey: Watch the “Spawn” movie!
QED
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