Who's who in the Comics Bulletin Universe - Update 2009
Who is... Michael A. Diaz?
Michael Diaz lives in Michigan, but don't hold that against him.
There he works as a Sys. Admin. while fostering dreams of one day becoming a "real" writer.
Most importantly, Michael is seriously addicted to comics, something that his wonderful wife tolerates with the patience of a saint.
He also writes this weekly column that people occasionally read.
"[O]ne of the most positive
and entertaining columns going."
- Gail Simone (Birds of Prey, Villains United)
WLG #283: The 2:10 To China!
Another short week this week, but what can you do?
Sometimes that's just how the comic book cookie crumbles.
Also, and this has nothing to do with the column (thank you DVR!), remember that V is on ABC tonight. Sweet? I hope so.
Enough banter.
To the comic book column!!! Let us see What Looks Good:
GREAT TEN #1 (OF 10) $2.99 (Tony Bedard / Scott McDaniel)I have to say, this title is a curiosity for me. We have a team here that comes from the mind of Grant Morrison, who, let's admit it, has some pretty wild ideas at times. On top of that, the team is from China, which really, makes all kinds of sense.
Sure, comic book superheroes were born in the U.S. so it makes sense that most of the heroes we see in comics also come from the U.S. (and, apparently 90% of those come from NYC as both Marvel and DC are based in the Big Apple). As ever comics reflect the times that we live in. During the Cold War (and especially during the 80's) a lot of Soviet heroes came around, characters like The Black Widow, The Crimson Dynamo, and the Rocket Red Brigade (and many more). Such were the products of their environment.
And now really isn't so different.
Let's face it, with billions of people Asia is going to be in the news and on our minds over the next several years, with both India and China leading the charge. China is the most populous country in the world, so really, I'm kind of surprised that we haven't seen a Chinese superhero team before now.
With a team that is a Chinese version of the Justice League/Avengers and controlled by a Communist government I am quite geeked; also, though I know Tony Bedard has been around for a while, I haven't read his work in a while, but this seems like something that is right up his alley. During his CrossGen days I thoroughly enjoyed his writing on both Negation and Route 666 and I'm eager to see what he has in store with this team.
Interesting.
ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #4 $3.99 (Brian Michael Bendis / David LaFuente)I think I said this last issue, but I have to hand it to Bendis because he's been writing this character for well over 100 issues now and it's still good and fresh, and perhaps most importantly, full of surprises. I don't want to ruin anything for anyone that hasn't read the book, but doing what he did to the Kingpin, well, that took some balls. I realize that the rules for the Ultimate Universe aren't the same as those for the "616" Marvel Universe, but still, that was a really good surprise.
Also, I have to hand it to the team for creating a new Mysterio that doesn't look like some dude with a massive fish bowl on his head. I realize that the original is a product of the 60's, but this updated version is much creepier and foreboding in my opinion.
Combine all of the above and you've got a solid book issue after issue that leaves the reader guessing without getting stale or trite.
GOOD STUFF!!!
What comics did you get geeked out about this week? Just stop by the WLG message boards (see link below) and share!
See you next week!
Peace!
-Diaz
Were Diaz's picks on the mark?
Have your say on What Looks Good at the Looking Good message board.