Comicsgirl

Dotter of her Father’s Eyes Buy at Powell’s

Comics are personal.

To me, more than any other medium, there’s an immediacy and an intimacy to comics. At their best, comics feel less like something I consume and more like something I experience. It’s not just words and pictures on a page — it feels like a conversation between me and the creators.

And because of that, I think Dotter of her Father’s Eyes (Dark Horse Comics, 2012) is either a conversation you want to be having or one you’re just overhearing. If it’s the latter for you, you’re still going to get something out of it, but for me, it was absolutely the former. This is a book where I find it impossible to pull my own personal experiences out of how I reacted to it. And to me, that’s why this book is so powerful.

One part memoir, one part biography, the stories that Mary M. Talbot and Bryan Talbot are telling aren’t unique on their own, but there’s a grace and thoughtfulness to the way in which they tell them. There’s light and humor to balance the darker moments.

But let’s be clear — while this book is credited to both Mary and Bryan, this is Mary’s story. Even when the book recounts Lucia Joyce’s life, it still feels like it’s absolutely Mary’s voice telling it. Bryan just seems to be along for the ride — he’s less the driver and more the vehicle. That’s not at all to discount his art. This is Bryan Talbot we’re talking about, after all, but he does have the good sense to use his art to compliment Mary’s story. It’s a charming and loving collaboration (of course, lest you forget that it is Mary’s tale, she points out in a footnotes some of the things Bryan got wrong in his artwork. That’s pretty adorable).

Bryan’s art does give the stories told here some structure. Colors help place the action — full color for the brief modern-day scenes, sepia tones for Mary’s childhood (and neatly, as Mary gets older, more and more color is added into the scenes) and cold blues for Lucia’s life. Except for the scenes in the present that frame the book, panel borders are usually soft or nonexistent as images flowing into each other much like memories.

The stories are both told in a mostly lineal fashion. Mary starts off with her childhood and Lucia’s childhood and progress forward from there, but the shifts between Mary’s life and Lucia’s life feel natural and give the book a strong pace and a sense of drama.

While there are obvious parallels between their lives — they were both daughters of troubled fathers who were looking for their place in the world — Mary doesn’t necessarily push the connection. She clearly relates to Lucia, but she also understand Lucia’s story isn’t hers. It was just one Mary wanted to tell so she could better understand her own life.

I wasn’t left with the impression that Mary necessarily forgave her father, but I don’t know if she needs to. More, I think she just accepted that he was a part of her life.

And that’s where it did get personal for me. Mary’s story isn’t mine, but it’s still one I relate to all too well. I admire her strength and honesty in telling it. When I finished the book, I knew someone else in this world understood what all of this feels like. I know don’t spend all my time thinking about these things, but I also know I still carry it with me.

I’m glad that Mary (and Bryan, let’s not forget!) shared these stories with me. Through this book, I feel like I have a new friend.

In Luc Besson’s The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec (2010), our heroine, played by Louise Bourgoin, spends a good portion of her time sighing in exasperation. You see, Adèle absolutely does not have time for everyone’s stupidity (and, clearly, there are many stupid people around her). She has very important things to take care of and doesn’t need anything standing in her way.

Based on Jacques Tardi’s comic series of the same name, this movie is absolutely ridiculous and charming. I did not expect to have this much fun.

Adèle is a 25-year-old journalist/novelist from early 20th century France who travels the world in pursuit of stories. Allegedly. She’s more in pursuit of her own ends — currently, a mummy of an ancient Egyptian doctor who should provide the key to saving her catatonic sister. Back in Paris, there’s some trouble with a professor who can revive the dead and a pterodactyl. I really hope, at this point, you are thinking “This sounds like the best movie ever.” It’s not quite that, no, but it’s delightful all the same.

When you get down to it, the plot doesn’t make that much sense. It pulls from both “Adèle and the Beast” (or “Pterror Over Paris” as it’s called in the Fantagraphics edition) and “Mummies on Parade” although with liberties. While Adèle’s motivation to save her sister is definitely heartfelt, it’s more of just a plot device to put her in crazy situations.

Most of the fun is watching Bourgoin. This movie is firmly on her shoulders and she’s clearly enjoying herself. While she’s absolutely gorgeous, she also doesn’t seem to mind looking silly on occasion (Adèle dons various costumes in several failed attempts to break someone out of jail). She easily transitions from high comedy to quieter moments. She’s charismatic and playful in the role.

The special effects look fairly cheesy — despite being computer generated, they have a stop-motion look, but it works for the sort of movie this is. Other than some brief, non-titillating nudity when Adèle takes a bath and an off-screen decapitation, this could almost be a kid’s movie (and honestly, no worse — and in some ways, more tame — than Raiders of the Lost Arc, for example). I doubt the costumes or sets are overly authentic, but they’re beautiful and do go far in creating the world this story takes place.

I also really appreciated there was no tacked-on romance. While Andrej (Nicolas Giraud) has a sweet, harmless obsession with her and does prove to be helpful, Adèle isn’t interested, mostly because she has better things to do at the time. That was refreshing.

This is supposed to the be the first of a trilogy, but we’ll see. The ending is either cruel or open-ended on that account, but I’m not worried about Adèle’s ability to get out of whatever situation she finds herself in. She’s a smart, resourceful and clever woman. I have the comics but I wouldn’t mind seeing more of her on screen.

(This seems to be out everywhere except for the U.S. … but if you’re resourceful, you can find it pretty easily and cheaply. And legally.)

Avatar: The Last Airbender The Promise Part 1 Buy at Powell’s

Gene Luen Yang made a comic clearly explaining why he had no interest in the Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action movie. A lot of people like to bring up that the cartoon was created by a couple of white men, but the Asian influence is clearly respectful and thoughtful. Yang understood those things about the series and that’s why he loved it (and that’s why most of us loved it, actually).

So it was delightful news when it was announced that Yang would be writing the Avatar: The Last Airbender comic book series that will bridge the gap from the end of the animated series and the upcoming The Legend of Korra (not upcoming fast enough, but that’s another issue). It seemed like he’d do right by Avatar.

And it should be to no one’s surprise that he did.

Yang, along with artist duo Gurihiru, Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Promise Part 1 (2012, Dark Horse), has created a pitch-perfect comic that is a wonderful extension of the animated series.

No, if you haven’t watched the series (and why haven’t you?), you’re going to be pretty lost, despite a quick catch up in the first few pages. Despite the defeat of Fire Lord Ozai by Aang and Zuko taking his place, there are still many issues to sort through in the four kingdoms. Among them are the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom. After the “Harmony Restoration Movement” is announced, the action picks up a year later. And obviously, not everything is going as well as planned. Zuko and Aang have to face their old conflicts as well as growing up.

Most of the action here focuses on Zuko, which is fair (Avatar: The Last Airbender was as much about his journey as it was Aang’s, after all) but the other characters aren’t neglected. Sokka tosses out a few good lines as he expresses his horror over the fact his sister, Katara, and Aang are now a couple. Toph has started a school for metalbenders, which I’m guessing we’ll see more of in the next book.

Gurihiru does a masterful job of capturing the look of the series while still giving it their own style. I love how subtly the characters have aged — they still look like themselves, but everyone’s taller and Aang’s a bit more muscular, Katara a little curvier and Zuko’s face is slightly more angular. Likewise, Yang writes these characters as older and more mature without sacrificing the personalities we’ve come to know. It’s a wise transition as these character approach adulthood and will continue to face more adult decisions.

The action scenes are beautifully-paced and definitely capture the feel of animation on the static page. There’s still humor throughout, even as the story begins to take a darker turn. (It’s still appropriate for the ages that Avatar: The Last Airbender was appropriate for, however, so no worries there.)

Unlike many other comic continuations or adaptations of TV shows, Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Promise Part 1 is completely satisfying. Gene Luen Yang’s and Gurihiru’s love for the original shows through. I’m already eagerly awaiting part 2.

Advance review copy provided through NetGalley.

My real life has kept me preoccupied for the past couple of months. There are comics I want to review (and to those of you who sent me stuff a couple of months ago up until now — I’m going to get to it! I promise I promise I promise!) and other things, but the end-of-the-yearness has set in. Unless something really exciting happens, this is likely it for me until 2012.

This year is already kind of blurry. It was certainly dominated by Small Press Expo for me but I’m OK with that. It was an incredible amount of fun and I’m already looking forward to next year (we’re already working on it!).

I also read a tremendous amount of comics. There were plenty I loved — many I didn’t expect to — and I still get a thrill picking up new comics. Yes, there was certainly some silliness with regard to the DC reboot, but Wonder Woman has me hooked (in a lazy way — I read it when I remember). It was also an amazing year for indie comics — I am awed by all the talent that’s out there.

I didn’t get to travel to shows as much as I would’ve liked to — most of that was a money issue, but I was feeling pretty burned out on the usual ones. I didn’t attempt to go to the MoCCA Festival or New York Comic Con; KingCon III was postponed and as much as I would’ve loved to have gone to Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival, the timing just didn’t work out. SPACE was fun but I don’t know if I’d go back. I always love the Baltimore Comic-Con, but that was more of just a hanging out opportunity for me this year.

(I will totally take sponsorships if people want to send me to Stumptown or Alternative Press Expo next year. Kids Read Comics Celebration is taking place in Ann Arbor on my birthday weekend and that’s a definite possibility. It may end up being mandatory.)

For some reason, in 2011, I expanded my “media” “empire.” I started up a Tumblr account (or started using it?) and a Facebook page. I also appeared on local show Fantastic Forum and Rusty and Joe interviewed me during SPX (I need to learn to speak into the microphone better. Also? No real idea what I said).

I was also greatly honored to be a part of Big Planet Comics Podcast #17 and I do hope they invite me back at some point because it was a great deal of fun (you should always listen to the podcast — even when I’m not on it).

And the photo on this post? Well, that’s me sorting through Dean Haspiel’s minicomics. Now, everything is going to the Library of Congress (I believe all are in the LoC’s possession now), but Warren Bernard just wanted to do an initial sort/inventory before we sent them off to see what was there. And certainly, it’s fresh in my mind, but when I think about all the things I’ve been privileged to be able to do this year, this felt like one of the bright spots. It was thrilling seeing all these incredible comics, even if I didn’t get to keep any of them.

I am lucky to know such amazing people who let me do so many cool things. I hope that continues in 2012.

Yesterday I was hanging out at the comic book store (like I do) and a couple of teenage girls came in looking for issues of Spider Island they were missing. They joined in our conversation about how digital comics aren’t a replacement for print (one of them said she had the issues on her iTouch but she still wanted to have them). I am clearly a fan of teenage girls in comic book stores, so this was all fun.

After they left, my friend said to me “Those girls give me hope, but I do worry about the boys they’re going to scare once they get to college.”

A few weeks ago, there were an episode of the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory where the plot involved one of the main characters, Leonard, meeting a young woman named Alice in the comic book store (you can see her in the screenshot above).

Now, there are probably some things to complain about here — I personally found the whole meet-cute over an issue of John Byrne’s Next Men a little too insidery, but it wasn’t a big deal. And yes, to a large extent, they played up the male characters’ awkwardness at seeing a hot girl in their comic book store.

Still, even with her scant screen time (although I’ve read Alice may be back), I found Alice refreshing. I may be projecting a bit too much here, but I didn’t feel like Alice thought she was a novelty. She wasn’t going into the comic book store so nerdy guys could fawn over here. She was just going there to buy comics. (Later in the episode, we find out Alice makes her own comics, which is also a cool thing to see on a popular sitcom.)

Comic book stores can still be uncomfortable places for women sometimes and women creators are still under-represented at Marvel and DC. These are problems. But gross as that Starfire stuff was in Red Hood and the Outlaws, to me, that’s quickly going to be irrelevant.

The teenage girls in the store yesterday? They absolutely are the future of comics. As are all the young women filling up sequential arts classes to the point where they’re outnumbering the men. In that way, I think a sitcom showing a young woman choosing to go into a comic book store to buy comics for herself is a pretty big deal.