Disneyland report

I've been meaning to post this since I got back from Disneyland almost a month ago, but I haven't been in the mood. Until now, that is! I went for a weekend with my main squeeze Christine, who is the queen of all things Disney and was the main instigator of the whole trip.

We had more fun in two days than I thought was possible, thanks to the new fast pass system in place at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, which is right next door, and we both agreed had better rides than Disneyland proper.

Somehow we managed to ride almost every major attraction on both parks in two days, some of them twice! We even fit in the monorail and the train ride around the park, as well as the riverboat ride. We only missed a couple of second tier rides, but I was most bummed out about Space Mountain, which is undergoing repair work and is closed until July 15th. This made me sad, as it's my very favorite ride in the park.

Overall we had nothing but a good time, and not even a tenth of the time I expected to wait in line. California adventure was a nice surprise, as the lines aren't as long and the rides are all newer and better than Disneyland. But then again, they don't have Pirates of the Carribean!

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Justin G thinks comics are keen!

Aside from a major plot inconsistency (expressly stating that GI Joe is a strictly covert, classified, and top secret organization designed for counter-terrorism then two pages later sending them to a very public emergency management scene with no presumable connection to terrorism), this was a fairly engaging read (thanks to Joe Casey) with surprisingly cool and consistent pencils from Stefano Caselli. Priced beautifully at only 25 cents. As long as Devil's Due can keep the cast small, quality high, and avoid market saturation, this could really work in the still lingering 80's revival niche. Grade B.

Powers #11
Marvel Comics, Icon

Some things remain the same. Brisk dialogue. Quick moving scripts, sans dialogue. Reading better in trade format than single issues. Some things change. Great paper quality. Does Oeming's art look a bit rushed now? Why does it look grainy in spots? Obviously attributed to the attainment of powers, but wow is Deena's out of character behavior jarring. And why am I not enjoying the shameless self-promotion and no holds barred letters column like I used to? Is it me dear readers or is this title slipping a tad? Grade B.

Wildsiderz #0
DC Comics, Wildstorm

A little thin on story even for a $1.99 promo book, but looks fun enough. Pretty interesting interview describing Campbell's process of layering the holographic art page over the traditional pencils. Fans of Danger Girl, come on down! Grade B-.

Ex Machina #12
DC Comics, Wildstorm

This book just keeps getting better and better. Big fan of the Christopher Priest style headers that shift the narrative backward and forward in time. Loving the rhythm and cadence of the speech patterns: "It's not my fault the ****** threw his flare gun into the drink while I was landing his dumb-*** whirlybird!" Digging all of the strongly developed characters. Tony Harris' pencils are excellent. Inking and coloring is near perfect. The comic references, the nudity, the plots, the designs and backgrounds, the premise, the politics, and the cliffhangers. I am so on board with every aspect of this book. Brian K. Vaughan's strongest work. This book should be selling millions of copies. Yes, I'm talking about you. Buy it. Use the Hijinx Book Club and buy the first trade. Buy it today. Tell your friends to buy it. Give it to your Dad for Father's Day. Trust me, he'll love it. Mine did. Grade A+.

The Black Diamond: On Ramp
AiT/Planet Lar

Tired of selling less than stellar work, I admire Larry Young for taking matters into his own hands and just starting a (insert expletive here) publishing company. That creative entepreneurialism is so what the industry needs and he'll forever have my respect for that. But... aside from the initial Astronauts in Trouble books and selected issues of the recent Demo series, not much from AiT/Planet Lar has really clicked with me and this is no exception. Decent enough high premise, weak on execution. Great cover design and colors, really difficult to interpret pencils on the interior. The 60's Mustang Fastback suddenly morphs into a 1980's Mustang II. Really confusing inking in spots. Cool layout, but repetitive and boring interview. Young prides himself on innovative marketing, but leaves me confused. Is it a flip book, a promo book, a #0 issue, will it be collected in trade form, all of the above? The one title that looks really intriguing with a wonderful 9 page panel, Five Fists of Science, receives a mere two page spread. I'm not feeling it, but if you keep publishing Lar, I'll keep trying them all. Grade C.

Battle Hymn #3
Image Comics

This title represents the hope of the "new" Image to me. The Erik Larsen, let's try anything, we're-based-in-Berkeley-now-Image. Still a very engaging read, strong balance of 1940's era publicly hopeful posturing with a seedy and realistic underbelly. Grade B+.

Street Angel: Volume One
Slave Labor Graphics

This trade collects issues 1-5, the initial Princess of Poverty arc. So wonderfully eclectic that it nearly defies categorization, it rides the line between indie praise and mainstream critical adoration. Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca, who offered up the much loved Afrodisiac in Shock-A-Con in Project: Superior, really have something fun, unique, and insightful on their hands here. We'll be keeping our collective eye on the careers of these two. The best offering from San Jose-based Slave Labor Graphics. Ever. Grade A-.

War's End: Profiles From Bosnia 1995-96
Drawn & Quarterly

As far as I'm concerned, anything from Joe Sacco is worthy of attention and praise. Really, they should be using his books in collegiate level courses. The perfect mix of political commentary, documentary style, journalistic intrigue, travelogue, self-deprecating humor, and amazing art. I'm in love with his thick, lush lines and the overall non-preachy attitude of the material. Grade A.

Negative Burn: Winter 2005
Image Comics, Desperado Publishing

Like the Caliber Comics anthology that came before it, this volume of Negative Burn is a plethora of mediocrity seldomly punctuated by a piece that really stands out. I got that sinking feeling on the very first page when I discovered 2 typos in the intro piece that was written by anthology Editor and Desperado Publisher, Joe Pruett. In order of appearance, the pieces rated B, C, D, C, D, F, C, D, F, D, C, F, D, C, B, F for a grade point average of D-. And what's with the IDW-inspired front cover?

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