DR. MANHATTAN #2: Jon Osterman continues to observe his younger, pre-accident self and the decisions he could have made in his life. It all revolves around taking the left turn or the right turn and there is even a wonderful story about Erwin Schrӧdinger’s cat theory of quantum observation. When all is done, Dr. Manhattan wonders what it is he has actually done.
MINUTEMEN #4: Hollis Mason goes to Maine to visit Byron Lewis, in an attempt to explain his book to him. The former Mothman is a catatonic mental patient unaware of his old friend even being there. This leads to a flashback to 1946 to Silhouette's murder. Drummed out of the Minutemen after her lesbian relationship became public, she remained as a team with Nite-Owl, and Mothman to find the "Friend of the Children" murderer. In turn, the women are butchered by the Liquidator. The Minutemen proceed to track down the Liquidator but its Silk Spectre who captures and beats him to death. She quits the team. At Silhouette’s graveside, Sally Jupiter reunites with the Comedian, who has become a war hero. He tells of being injured and nursed back to health by a local woman and her son. He also reveals how the Comedian took his revenge. When his commander found out, he ordered an artillery strike that killed the pair. Later, Nite-Owl and Mothman listen to an audio tape Nite-Owl had taken from Gretchen’s apartment. It reveals how Gretchen met Ursula and her sister Blanche at an orphanage in Linz. The women fell in love and planned to escape with Blanche to the United States. The Nazis took Blanche Away and despite a rescue attempt, Blanche had been killed during experiments. The issue ends with Hooded Justice dreaming about being lost at a circus and he wakes up screaming.
NITE OWL #4: Rorschach is chained to a pile of corpses, courtesy of Reverend Taylor Dean. It seems the good Reverend began his career of murder by killing his mistress and from there went on a one-man campaign to kill the sinners. Now he is about to cover up his handiwork by burning the place down and taking Rorschach with it. Even as the flames lick at him, Rorschach breaks free and heads upstairs, where Twilight Lady is battling the Reverend. Just when it seems like the masked girl will fall, Rorschach arrives and impales the clergyman with the THE END IS NIGH sign. Before the book is finished, Dan permanently takes over for Hollis Mason and we learn that Rorschach killed his own father. Unfortunately, Dan’s crush on Twilight Lady is never reciprocated and, even during his relationship with Laurie, he is troubled because she could never fall in love with him. The book ends with Walter walking down the street carrying his sign.
This book never came up to the level of the rest of the series. J. Michael Straczynski just didn’t quite get up to the places his compatriots did and the death of Joe Kubert certainly didn’t help the timeliness of the title. With son Andy providing the pencils and Bill Sienkiewicz providing the inks, it is a shadow of the book it could have been. To say the whole series was a kinky, nudity filled mess would be an understatement.
OZYMANDIAS #4: Ozymandias origin story continues. He meets President Kennedy and acts as an advisor of sorts during the Cuban Missile Crisis, recommending that Dr. Manhattan is used only as a last resort. Later, he watches the Kennedy assassination as it is played out on the multiple screens within his Fortress. He ends up following the careers of Rorschach, Night Owl and all the other heroes of the day. He is there when the first and last meeting occurs and he decides that he must save the world from itself.`
Len Wein and Jae Lee continue weave the tale of the mastermind behind the Watchmen. The smartest man in the world proceeds to his ultimate motives and this is a beautifully crafted tale of his rise to that point. The one thing that can be said about this series is that it features some of the most amazing art in comics today. Well done.
SILK SPECTRE #4: Greg breaks up with Laurie and she wants to come home, even though mom is still giving her grief over the phone. Hollis Mason continues his search for Laurie and ends up hooking up with Greg and company. Back at their “pad”, Hollis and Greg argue about Sally Jupiter and the way of the world. Laurie comes home to find the place trashed by a fight between Hollis and two of Gurustein’s girls. Having completely had her fill of Gurustein, she puts on her costume and heads to his place. There she finds some executed loose ends with the Chairman of the Board on his way out of town. A brawl ensues and she ends up stabbing him in the throat with one of her high heeled boots. Staggering into the street, he becomes the hood ornament of a city bus. Soon after, there is a going away party and Laurie and Hollis head back home. Not long after, she finds herself at the first meeting of the Crimebusters where she meets Dr. Manhattan.
This was a very interesting and violent end to this mini-series. Darwyn Cooke and Amanda Conner through four great issues that didn’t disappoint truly captured the feel of the Sixties and did so in beautifully illustrated fashion. I have always felt that Amanda Conner was a truly great artist who was totally underappreciated by the masses. This book proves how incredibly talented she is. Suffice it to say, I think this is some of her best work to date.
COMEDIAN #4: Eddie is back in Viet Nam, fighting the good fight. But the wear and the carnage, even is he is responsible for much of it, begins to take it’s toll. Rumors circulate the Robert Kennedy is running for President and Eddie tries desperately to get in touch with him to no avail. Leaving his house boys behind, aptly named Hearts and Minds, he heads out on a mission, fueled by LSD bearing his happy face symbol.
As much as I hate to say it, we get another totally boring issue from the creative pen of Brian Azzarello. His dialogue is wonderfully rhythmic and I love that part of it. but the story itself is boring to the point of disgust. If I wanted a long drawn out sequence in Southeast Asia, I would just go watch FULL METAL JACKET or APOCALYPSE NOW. It won’t be long now when the news of the assassinations of 1968 come through. Heck: maybe Eddie is responsible for those also. J.G. Jones art can’t save this title, which only has two issues left to go.
MOLOCH #1: Moloch’s life story is not a pretty one. Born a misshapen freak named Edgar William Jacobi who was scorned by everyone from his family to his classmayes, he went to the circus and discovered magic. Learning tricks from Mr. Fantasico, Eddie soon learns enough to dazzle his classmates. One in particular, Marie, becomes the object of his affection, until she betrays him and her lover Dave pays for it with a rather gruesome death. At bthis point, Eddie hits the road, performing on the vaudeville circuit under the name of Moloch the Mstic. He was also honing his craft as a bank robber by using his various tricks to get away. He and his gang had beigger and better heists and evengtually ran afoul of the Minutemen. and gets arrested This happens over and over again until he eventually finds God while in prison. When he is at least released, he is greeted by Ozymandias who has a proposition for him.
This two issue mini-series is brought to us by the talented team of J. Michael Straczynski and Eduardo Risso. And, as much as I would like to love it, I find it boring. Moloch’s character is a poor, mistreated child who uses his talent to become a poor, mistreated evil man. If you k now WATCHMEN at all, you can see where this is headed: Ozymandias hires Moloch somehow to play a part in the grand scheme. Been there, done that. However, Risso’s art is dynamite!
And, as a continued bonus, each issue, with the exception of NITE OWL #2, which shipped so late that the installment has not been included, has two pages from John Higgin’s pirate drama(as he is now writing and illustrating) THE CURSE OF THE CRIMSON CORSAIR. RORSCHACH concludes the Evil That Men Do arc and DR. MAHATTAN #2 brings us a new arc. Wide Were His Dragon Wings. In it, our hero seeks the second piece which will set him free and, in doing so, survives ritualistic cultists and even encounters and old acquaintance.
No comments:
Post a Comment