What We've Been Reading: January, 2013

Alright, I'm going to make this quick to get all caught up to what we're reading now.  Christian and I were ridiculously sick over the holidays so we've been catching up on our lives ever since then.  But that doesn't mean we stopped reading comics!  What have we been reading?  Well, let's start with Colder, because I am still so freaking blown away by the last issue that I can't stop thinking about it.  Remember that issue I picked up on a whim back in November with the creepy cover?  Yea, this one:

Creepy, right?  Well, Christian and I are IN LOVE with this comic.  It's incredibly well-written--total page-turner.  I'm not even going to describe the plot for you because you should just go read it; it's THAT good.  We just read the third issue and it's only a four-issue run, so you need to get your hands on it before it's over.





What else have I been reading...let's see.  Well, I tried out Brian Wood's Mara but it was pretty lame, to be honest.  I picked it up because I played power in high school volleyball and I thought there would be some good old volleyball talk.  He missed out on all the good lines he could have used! Volleyball players like to get low and hit balls, for example.  Boy, was I ever disappointed.  I don't think this guy has ever watched a volleyball game before and neither had the artist, for that matter.  Everyone was very stiff and posed--the volleyball matches were skimmed over, although still managing to screw up the entire concept of volleyball.  What position does Mara even play?  They're playing indoor volleyball, not beach volleyball, so there is no way there would be ONE star player who gets to call all the shots and hit the balls.  You know who really calls the shots in indoor volleyball?  The setter.  Yep, that's right, the one who DOESN'T get to hit the ball.  Anyway, I'm getting all worked up again.  Oh, but the kicker was that she uses her new-found superpowers to CHEAT at volleyball.  So frustrating!

Batgirl, Batgirl, Batgirl...what to say about Batgirl?  Well, Gail Simone is still around.  THANK GOD!  So, I am back on the bandwagon.  And it's still awesome.  That is all. Oh but wait, what is under that bloody platter lid that the Joker is holding?  And what is going on with her brother??  Is her mother dead???  Did the Joker cut something off of Batgirl????  The next two issues will be written by someone else, which is sad-making.  But then Simone will be back.  And it will be good.





We've also been reading All-New X-Men (the younger X-Men time travel to confront their older selves) and Avengers Academy (Hunger Games with superheroes)--both good, both recommended, but I'll leave those for another day.  Right now, I'm going to read issue 7 of Fables, because I'm supposed to be doing thesis work.  A graphic novel about fairy tales totally counts, right?

Colder #1: "Like Lemons Frozen in Kerosene"

Colder #1 (of 5)
Writer: Paul Tobin
Artist: Juan Ferreyra
Letters: Nate Piekos
November 8, 2012
Dark Horse

This is not the kind of comic I normally pick up.  This is the kind of comic I look at from a distance and still have nightmares about later.  But instead, I picked it up and showed it to Christian:

"Look! What a creepy cover!"

-*nods*

"Oh my god! His finger is in his eye! Ew! I didn't see that!"  *puts comic back on shelf hurriedly, stares at it* ...*pick it back up, flips through* ...."Ok, I'm getting this one."

So, it was the art that sold me on this issue initially.  It made me think of Locke and Key, Stephen King stories, and Hellboy all in one.  The characters pop off the page and suck you into their world--particularly the villain--Nimble Jack.  You have to check out more of the art on Paul Tobin's blog: paultobin.net. Every time I see the cover, I get that uncomfortable feeling at the back of my neck.  Also, the color leaking out of the panels during the murder of a prisoner by Nimble Jack is brilliant.

Even though I was drawn to the art right away, I had no idea that the writing itself was going to be incredibly reminiscent of Joe Hill's Locke and Key, and I love Locke and Key. Colder has just the right mix of contemporary life (people videotaping Reece's mugging, rather than helping) and supernatural occurrences (Nimble Jack stepping out of a portal into an asylum).

Also, good on Reece for not going down without a fight!  She's feisty, and I hope that carries on into the rest of Colder.  She won't be such an easy victim for whatever's coming her way.

My only nitpick is that it seemed a bit strange for Reece to open up so much to the police officer.  I understand that it was a good plot device to explain to us why she has this blue dude in her apartment but it was a little too obvious about being a device.  Also, was the cop flirting with Reece? It was just an odd conversation, even though I was totally absorbed by the mystery of Declan.

By the time I reached the last few pages of this issue, I knew I was going to have to keep following the next four issues in order to get some answers.  Like, what is it that Nimble Jack smells on Reece?  Something that smells like "lemons frozen in kerosene! Forty degrees below zero! Forty steps beneath the basement! Forty winks!" (the poet in me really liked those lines).  What did Nimble Jack do to Declan?  What are Declan and Reece going to talk about?  Is there more to Reece than meets the eye?

If you're a fan of horror comics, you need to follow this series.  I went into Comic Readers yesterday expecting not to find anything new to follow and boy, was I wrong.  I'll be picking up the next four issues of Colder!