A short list this month as I've been busy with work and actually working on some other writing projects.
The Sacrificers by Rick Remender
"For the good of those we love, some of us must suffer. Some of us must hold on in that darkness ... some of us must sacrifice.
Pigeon's rebellion against the gods who demanded his life and countless others comes to an end. Freed from their tyranny, Pigeon and Soluna try to forge a new path forward for the people of Harlos - one that doesn't demand the lives of children every year to sustain it. While Pigeon and Soluna tirelessly struggle to create their new future, the people suffer under the insufficient light of a single god when accustomed to the rule of a pantheon. The people stage another revolution to overthrow Pigeon and Soluna's new rule, burning their temples and bringing war to their doorstep. Can Pigeon bring about the better world he and Soluna dreamed of for his children and his people, or will this new revolution end with his death to appease the people's rage, his fate sealed ever since he was chosen as a sacrifice all those years ago?
A story of revolution against a false paradise in the hopes of establishing a better world, Rick Remender's The Sacrificers comes to an end after 21 issues. In the final arc, Pigeon and Soluna finally overthrow the gods and free Harlos from their tyranny only to find creating a new order much more difficult and taxing than they originally planned. A new revolution seeks to oust the two from their rule as Pigeon tries desperately to heal a broken world without giving it anymore lives, especially those close to him. As much as we see revolutions as overthrowing a system, the final issue reminds the reader that, at it's heart, revolutions are still about the people within the system, which I really enjoyed as it made the story feel personal and connected and relatable. Though the middle issues felt like it meandered a bit (enough so that I'm happy issue 16 opened with a lore-dump to get the reader not only up-to-speed, but on the same track), I felt really satisfied with the ending in a way that I did not with some of his other work (Yeah, I'm looking at you Napalm Lullaby). All in all, I'm actually pretty happy I got these issues on my pull-list, or else I might've stopped reading somewhere toward the middle chapters. It was this last, six-part story arc that made the story worthwhile.
Despite the last 15 chapters being focused on Pigeon's revolution against the gods, these last six issues posed a different question: In order to thrive, who should be required to sacrifice? Having succeeded in their revolution, Pigeon and Soluna attempt to change Harlos so that families no longer need to surrender a single child in order for the people to survive. Change takes time, however, and while Pigeon and Soluna sacrifice their lives to their goal, the people of Harlos suffer waiting for the fruits of the labor. Going from giving up the life of a single child to watching all of their family members die, the people revolt against Pigeon's new order, ironically right at the moment he has completed his life's work. From Pigeon's perspective, the people simply needed to be more patient and willing to suffer a bit longer in order for their better world to come to fruition. The people, however, feel they've suffered long enough, and it is time for Pigeon and his family to sacrifice. With the god-like powers Pigeon's family posses, should they have been the ones to give-up more to ensure the people's survival and quality of life? Should the people be required to sacrifice while those with power work to better everyone's lives? In the end, both sides see each other suffering, sacrificing, and while people shouldn't be forced, they should be at least allowed to choose how much to sacrifice for a better world.
Assorted Crisis Events by Deniz Camp
"'Please, someone tell me! Is this how it really ends? I can't keep track."'
"'No, son. We could never be like them.'"
Collecting the first five issues of the Assorted Crisis Events series, the anthology presents five one-shot stories of people in crisis in a world where time itself is in flux and the world collapses around them. From the original blurb, I thought these would simply be a set of fun, multiverse stories from the way the book is described - and, holy shit, was I wrong. Instead, each story presents an interesting thought-experiment and gives a deep, meaningful story about people just trying to get by. Each one-shot story was such a good read, in fact, that I couldn't read two back-to-back, needing time instead to digest what I just read.
The first issue, Apocalypse Wow, which I first read as a single issue, I originally thought was just a fun story about the end of the world. Reading it again in this collection, I felt much different this time, and instead having a much more "Oh shit!" reaction. Ashley constantly experiences a different outside her home thanks to the movie filming outside her building while she just tries to live her ordinary life. But, if everyday is the end of the world, how do you react when it actually arrives? And how do you know if it really is the end? It's this desensitization to the chaos after being confronted with one horrible event after another, day after day, that really hit me reading this story the second time around, especially in today's times when, honestly, who knows which major event will actually cause the end of the world.
The other story I really want to talk about was Crisis on Hearth-II, a story of two nearly identical towns and residents. When Hearth-II experiences an apocalyptic event, the residents escape to Heath-I. Initially welcomed by their counterparts, the tragedies which shaped the lives of the people of Hearth-II soon lead to their ostracization by Hearth-I residents. Fear and misunderstanding take hold of both communities, leading to what could've been a peaceful merger turning instead into catastrophe. It's a powerful message in our current climate of fear and persecution of immigrants, especially those who are just trying to live better lives in a foreign place.
Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka
"'That bat they shine in the sky ... civilians think it's a call for help. The bad guys think it's a warning ... but it's more than that. It's something higher. It's a call to arms ... I've found my way to serve. I finally found a way to serve.'"
The covens of Gotham's Religion of Crime have chosen a new leader, and Batwoman is determined to meet her before she can get to work in Gotham. Her military career cut short, Kate Kane chooses to serve by donning the cowl and fiery red wig of The Batwoman. But is Alice truly as mad as they say, or is something else hiding beneath the surface?
In back-up story, Cutter, Batman and Batwoman investigate an abduction, side-by-side, with eerie similarities.
Chosen as this month's Book Club title, I was interested to read this mostly because I did watch a season of the CW's "Batwoman" show with the titular character portrayed by Ruby Rose (whatever happened to her?). Based on the blurb on the back of the book, it appeared this story influenced the show, and I like seeing how things are adapted from one media to another. This would also be the first time reading a graphic novel printed in DC's new "compact" book format. Not gonna lie, I really like the price point of about $10 vs the nearly $20 I'd usually pay for a collected trade paperback. I also like the size of the book being less than half the length of the typical trade paperback, making it easier to transport.
Published originally in 2009-2010 (I thought it was older), "Batman: Elegy" provides a clear origin story to the character introduced years earlier, as well as introduced an important antagonist - Alice aka Beth Kane, her sister. Knowing who Alice is to Batwoman, the end felt a bit anti-climactic (plus, you know the rule about comic book characters: If you don't see a body, they're not really dead). Also, I knew Gotham is a weird place, but now learning about the Religion of Crime secret society as well as a whole bunch of shapeshifters living in secret, it just makes the place even weirder. I do like that Kate Kane feels a bit more grounded and realistic as a character when compared to how Bruce Wayne operates as Batman: her training comes from her military background, her gear from stolen military tech.
In the back-up story, Cutter, Batman and Batwoman conduct seemingly simultaneous investigations involving kidnappings. I really liked that both were presented concurrently rather than back-to-back as it leads into the surprising reveal that they are actually years apart involving the same people. One point that stood out to me was the irony of Kate's cousin, Bette, asking her how to "let go" of her past when the whole point of anyone from the Bat Family taking on the mantle is because they can't "let go". The culprits, as well, are revealed to be unable to let go of their past, causing them to kidnap and mutilate young women in the hopes of recapturing that past.
The focus of the Book Club discussion was on the artwork (I know, something I'm notoriously bad at discussing). What was pointed out wasn't necessarily the artwork dedicated to the characters, but the care given to the panel layout and even to the panels themselves. Most comics focus on a standard grid-layout, white or black margins to show a clear separation between panels - and that's it. In Batwoman: Elegy, not only was care given to the panels themselves, but even to the layout of the panel. Rather than just your standard rectangles, we found some panels in triangles, circles, and even some which don't fit traditional shapes as they sliced into other panels to form something new. Rather than simple borders, some of panels were drawn with a sort-of filigree around their edges. The panel layout itself wasn't always your typical grid, but sometimes flowing like a river or snake across pages or even circling in on itself as a spiral, the flow adding to the storytelling itself. It's really cool, and not something seen often even in today's comic book despite this story being published over a decade ago.
Absolute Flash #13 - 15 by Jeff Lemire
Wally West and fellow youth mission resident, Linda, set out for clues on returning Wally's father from the Still Point zone. While searching Fort Fox, the pair are pulled into a mirror dimension swarming with evil clones hunting their original, and are more than willing to kill anyone in their way. The two are eventually pulled back into their own reality and given a hunt to locating Dr. Thawne, but first he'll need to seek out one of Barry Allen's former colleagues. Meanwhile, The Rogues are given a mission that could clear their names: hunt down an escaped Grood!
The next three issues find Wally on a new mission to rescue his father from the Still Point zone. With the mysterious zone being the focus, it seems, of the new story arc, I'm curious to see where it goes and what's revealed, and, especially, how it differs from the traditional "Speed Force" typically associated with The Flash and his powers. I'm also excited to see how The Rogues fare against not just Grood, but his father whom he recently reunited.
The Toll by Neal Schusterman
"Still, I wonder which is worse: to mimic nature in its cruel brutality, or to take it upon ourselves, imperfect as we are, to insert into death the kindness and compassion that nature lacks."
Three years pass eventfully as Citra and Rowan lie lifeless at the bottom of the ocean. Grayson Toller finds himself a prophet of sorts as the lone person still able to communicate with Thunderhead. Scythe Goddard, taking advantage of the turmoil and uncertainty following the sinking of Endura, crowns himself Overblade of all of the Murican scythes while seeking influence over the rest of the territories. Seeing the fall of his once reputable scythedom, Scythe Faraday and Munira seek out the hidden failsafe created by the world's first scythes. Upon returning to the world of the living, Citra once again dons her cloak as Scythe Anastasia to discover the buried truth that made the world what it is today. Meanwhile, Thunderhead reveals plans of its own in order to guarantee the survival of the human race. As all sides race to their conflicting salvation, what will become of the human race in the end?
The Arc of the Scythe trilogy comes to an end with The Toll. As mentioned previously regarding Book Two, Thunderhead, I was really hoping to find this in paperback, for reasons. I settled for the hardcover version after picking-up Thunderhead at a huge discount. Honestly, I'd actually been eyeing this exact book as it had been sitting on a shelf at Skullface for a while. As also mentioned regarding the previous two books, "How are these books in the Young Adult section?" I understand the characters are kids and it's set in a version of Earth that couldn't exist, but by simply dealing with themes of death and morality should put it into the Adult category. Definitely a book everyone should read (and a series that, if I ever invest in a proper bookshelf, I'd gladly go out of my way to repurchase in paperback).
One aspect of this book series I want to talk about is the practical effects of immortality. [Author's note: Could you imagine how long this fucking book report might've been if I presented the entire trilogy at once? Now that humanity has become essentially immortal, there will, of course, be those that pervert their unnaturally long lifespans to become shadows of their former selves. Upon meeting Scythe Dante, they find a man who has turned back the clock on his body so many times that his features no longer appear real, his flesh more like a poorly constructed mask. The body isn't the only victim as Thunderhead's nanites also allow backing-up of memories as well. While we saw this used horrifically in Thunderhead to restore Scythe Goddard into Tiger's body, it's also shown to make it harder for the living to let go of their deceased. After all, if Thunderhead can restore a person's memories up until the moment they are gleaned for the living to communicate with, is that person really gone? Knowing it would be impossible to fully grieve as long as one is able to visit the deceased's stored consciousness, Thunder head had to devise a near-impossible journey to access sites where these memories are stored. With the corruption of the scythedom into a gang of petty killers, Scythe Faraday sets out to find the alternative to humanity's current way of dealing with their immortality. Though I expected him to find a way to disable the nanites which grant humanity's immortality (spoiler - it wasn't), I guess you can't put the genie back into the bottle. So much of their society functions around humans no longer dying of natural causes that taking away their immortality would plunge the world into chaos. I do like the scraps of journal entries explaining why the First Scythes decided to keep death in the hands of humans, adding a personal, "human" touch to the action. It also appears they knew humanity's greatest weakness in their experiment were humans themselves as their contingency plan in case of failure was the opposite and deeply impersonal, based solely on chance and numbers.
Kill All Immortals by Zack Kaplan
"'Then let's go tear that tree down. And save father. And good luck to any gods who get in our way.'"
Frey simply wanted control over her own life when she cut down her family's eternal-life granting tree and drove her father, Viking Erik the Red, into exile. What she didn't expect was that they weren't the only family gifted with immortality. The Khans, headed by the Mongol conqueror Genghis Khan, strike at the Asvald family as the vikings are still learning to navigate life as mortals. Can Frey put together a plan to end the conflict before The Khans take her family's now-mortal lives, or worse, her father takes her brothers back under his rule?
I'd completely forgotten I'd put this title on my pull-list at the comic shop until they handed me the first issue of this new story arc. Despite not being impressed with the first story arc, I decided to give this one a chance and left it on my list (besides, cancelling it would mean talking to someone), and I'm glad I did. I liked this story arc so much more than it's predecessor, so much so that I was actually looking forward to reading the next issue the following month. I know I don't talk about art too much (if you've seen my drawings, you know why) but I really liked the use of double-page spreads as the panels allow the artist to construct a bigger scene - important for these big action scenes this book is filled with. Despite ripping away her family's immortality, Frey realizes she doesn't need to rebel against everything her family had to keep her independence, which I think shows growth in the character. She manages to take control of the family despite her father's attempts to once again take charge. I don't know if it is a retcon or not, but we also get scenes from Frey's past depicting a softer side of her father - not the ruthless tyrant shown in the first arc but more of a teacher or mentor. I really liked the expansion of the world by introducing other immortals and how they all appear pitted against each other, making me really excited for another story arc (Vlad the Impaler! Vampires, maybe?).
