The Super-Ultra-Tiny Critic: May 1st, 2002 By Brian Hibbs

Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends.

I aplogize for being late this week, and I apologize even more for this being a super-ultra-tiny Critic.

You’ll understand why by tomorrow, I hope. There may even be some news tonight. Check Rich Johnston’s All The Rage (http://www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com/rage/index1.htm) to see...

Here is a list of all of the comics that Comix Experience received this week:

100 BULLETS #35
ALIAS #9
ARCHIE AND FRIENDS #57
AVENGERS CELESTIAL QUEST #8
BETTY #112
BETTY & VERONICA DOUBLE DIGEST #106
BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL #66
BTVS #44
CANNON GOD EXAXXION #6
CHASTITY CRAZYTOWN #2
CITIZEN V & THE V BATTALION EVERLASTING #4
CRUSADES #15
DAEMONIFUGE SCREAMING CAGE #2
DC FIRST SUPERMAN LOBO
DEADLINE #2
DETECTIVE COMICS #770
DOOM PATROL #8
DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS TEMPESTSGATE #4
EXILES #13
FANTASTIC FOUR #55 (fine standalone issue)
FATHOM #14
FINDER #26
FRAYED ENDS #1
GI JOE #6
HAWKMAN #3
HELLSPAWN #12
HIGH ROADS #2
HIGHWAY 13 #6
INFINITE KUNG FU #2
JACK STAFF #8
LAQUE NOIR
LOONEY TUNES #90
MADMAN PICTURE EXHIBITION #1
METABARONS #16
ORIENT SEXPRESS #1
POPBOT #2
POUNDED #2
SCI SPY #4
SHUCK #1 HALLOWED SEASONINGS
SLOW NEWS DAY #6
SPARK GENERATORS TP ERRATTA INSERT
SPECTRE #17
SPIDER-GIRL #47
STAR WARS EPISODE II ATTACK O/T CLONES PHOTO CV #3
STAR WARS JANGO FETT OPEN SEASONS #1
SUGAR AND SPIKE FACSIMILE ED
SUPERMAN #182
SUPERNATURAL LAW #33
TERRY MOORES PARADISE TOO #7
THOR #49 (nice art)
TIGERS OF LUFTWAFFE #7
TOM STRONGS TERRIFIC TALES #3
TOWER #1
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #22
ULTIMATE X-MEN #17
ULTIMATES #4
UNCANNY X-MEN #406
UNTOLD TALES OF EVIL ERNIE RELENTLESS #1
YOUNG JUSTICE #45

And, for even MORE completeness sake, here’s a list of books, TPBs, GNs, magazines, and other things that CE got this week. I generally haven’t read any of this by the time I post these reviews. Though I generally attempt to give at least one recommendation amongst the TPBs each week, since I HAVE read the material at SOME point.

2000 AD #1284
2000 AD #1285
APEX TREASURY BEST OF BIJOU FUNNIES TP
COWBOY BEBOP COMPLETE ANIME GUIDE #4
CRISIS GN
FRENCH KISS #2
FURY TP
HOGANS ALLEY #10
INITIAL D VOL 1 GN
JUDGE DREDD MEGAZINE VOL 4 #10
LOVE HINA VOL 1 GN
MARVEL MASTERWORKS THE SUB MARINER HC
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM 0079 VOL 4TP
NAMES OF MAGIC TP
POISON ELVES LUSIPHUR & LIRILITH TP
SCREEN POWER THE OFFICIAL JACKIE CHAN MAG VOL 4 #3
SKIZZ GN
SWAC 2003 18 MONTH WALL CALENDAR
TRANSFORMERS VOL 3 TP PRIMAL SCREAM
TUESDAY & THURSDAY GN
WALKING TOUR OF THE SHAMBLES SC

This Week’s TPB recommendation is: Though releasing it a few weeks ago when the anniversary of ET came might have been more appropriate, let’s go back to the dawn of time and recommend Alan Moore and Jim Baike’s Skizz – while some of the other early Moore Titan work like DR & Quinch didn’t age as well as I thought it might, I still have a fondness for this story of aliens and childhood.

Pick of the Week: If you had told me a year ago that the best example of super-hero comics was an Avengers title, I would have laughed in your face. But Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch are at the absolute pinnacle of their game with The Ultimates #4. Next month looks to be a Big Fight, and Bryan has the chops to do that, of course, but for ideas and characterization and cleverness, this is the book of the week to beat. Might even be the book of the month.

Pick of the Weak: Comic-wise, nothing was really THAT bad (well, OK, the end of Avengers Celestial Quest was pretty heinous), so I will go out a little into the "related" category and proclaim that I give the pick this time to the Spider-Man movie.

Actually, I liked it the first time I saw it.

In 1989.

When it was called Batman.

Everywhere it didn’t steal shamelessly from that, it stole from Raimi’s own Darkman, but I guess that’s fair enough.

Tobey Maguire is as wooden as a log, and while he had the physicality of Spider-Man down pat (or, at least, when it wasn’t a stunt-man in the suit), I thought his emotional reading of Peter was flat and detached.

I was truly bothered by the near-misogynistic attitude towards MJ – EVERY male character in the film is an ABSOLUTE JERK to her all the way through. Check out that ending! Treating her like that AT A FUNERAL? Yikes.

I also thought the CGI was sub-par. This is my own fault: I now judge all CGI against that of Lord of the Rings. If you’re not THAT good, then, really, what’s the point? Especially for a character that was BORN for CGI like Spidey.

Only one CGI scene worked well for me: the armored car scene. That was wicked awesome... probably because the camera was locked down and not suffering from Raimi-excess ("OK, when Spidey swings to the left, jerk the camera REALLY hard to the right!")

It’s not that the movie sucked, per se – it was respectful to the character and all that (JJJ ruled!) – but it’s a good example of why I just don’t go to the movies any longer. I walked out of the theatre thinking "well, there went two hours of my life"

Only good thing was the screaming babies in the theatre (WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE THAT THEY BRING INFANTS TO THE MOVIES??!?!?) – I complained, and I got a free ticket to another movie. So it didn’t actually cost me the $8.

Anyway, next week: probably another micro-Critic. Hopefully the week after, I’ll be back to regulation-size reviews....