Indestructible Art # 39

Hello there, good looking reader(s). SDCC came and went and it was kind of 'meh.' Sure, we got Sandman by  Neil Gaiman and JH Williams III. Also, a ton of creators announced a ton of creator-owned titles. Oh, and some people won Eisners which they rightfully deserved. 

All in all, it is safe to say that SDCC '12 was the first Comic Con where comic BOOKS are no longer part of the equation. Granted, we weren't there but we've been following along for a number of years and it was looking sparse. Yes, there was a ton of great stuff that was announced but it is OFFICIALLY all about Hollywood. 

Oh well. There's always Chicago and New York.

In addition to talking about the Con on the newest episode of Indestructible Art, we discuss new Borderlands 2 goodness, the closing of Team Sora by Nintendo, playing games online (and the idiotic things other people say), and Planetary. 

It's Indestructible Art. 

Its about video games and comic books.

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Indestructible Art # 38

Another week, another episode of Indestructible Art. 

This one gets a little silly. The past two episodes saw one member missing from the show so having us all back in the same room together must have brought something out of us. I actually forgot to post last week's episode which had my friend Tony filling in for me but you already know that because you're totally subscribed and up to date with these things, right? 

Riiiiiiiight.

This episode we talk at ya about Marvel Now, the cloud gaming service Gaikai, the EU Court decision on reselling digital content, and something or other about a Scott Snyder doing something with the Joker. Other stuff, too. Plus, you get to hear us sing Wu-Tang, the Cranberries and Iron Maiden. Like I said, it's a silly episode. 

Listen. Like. Follow. 

Love,

Me & the rest of the IA crew.

Mind Mgmt # 2

You're high if you're not reading Mind Mgmt. Matt Kindt is putting out one of the most entertaining and engaging comics that is in stores right now. Mind Mgmt really dares the reader to pull at any and all threads of the tapestry that is being woven from page to page.


Its a mystery that surrounds a flight where all of its passengers, save for one, lose their memory mid-flight. Two years after the incident, Meru, a true crime writer, decides to break out of her sophomore slumb by investigating the strange disappearance of a particular passenger on the plane. Things get hairy when Meru runs into CIA agents and the 'Immortals' that are after both parties. Surrounding all of this, we are slowly introduced to members of Mind Mgmt, a clandestine group of psychics whose origins are tied to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand from the Great War. 


Bits and pieces regarding the Mind Mgmt and their motivations are given to the readers in the form of 2 page strips on the inside of the front and back cover and on the last pages of the book. The back cover of each issues teases one part of a six-part numeric code that will unlock a message at www.mattkindt.com/mind¹. And on every page of the main story, there is a line from a Mind Mgmt Field Guide, providing instructions to an agent which are related, if only sometimes tangentially, to the panels of that page.


For most of this issue, the protagonists are running from the Immortals, all while finding more questions than answers. Meru runs into the first member of Mind Mgmt, Perrier, one of two psychic twins, who appears to be mentally controled to peck away at a type-writer, producing cryptic messages which speak to Meru in a peculiar way. There's a suicide. 'The Futurist', Jake Duncan (who was introduced in the case file excerpt from Mind Mgmt # 1) makes an appearance where he ruminates over the course of events that took place in the issue for a brief moment before citing his retirement as a reason for staying out of it all.


Mind Mgmt is interesting, odd duck of a book. Kindt delivers a story that seems like a simple enough mystery that only gets more and more confusing the more you look into it. Who are the Mind Mgmt? Who are the Immortals? What type of strange game have Meru and her companion from the CIA, Bill, unwittingly found themselves playing a part of? What do these fake ads for 'Mindjuice' and 'Clearhed' on the back of every issue have to do with the story inside? And what comic creator is going show up next month in the letters column, spouting off who knows what kind of nonsense?


Its a fun, well executed romp that you should be reading today. Period.


¹ As of the date of this posting, the URL is serving up a GoDaddy 404 page right now. I imagine that will change once the 6th issue has come out. 

Avengers Vs. X-men # 7

I haven't said this out loud yet, but I thought the last issue of Avengers Vs. X-men was really, really, REALLY good.

Olivier Copiel came on to take over art chores from Jr Jr and it was gorgeous. And Hickman, his script really sold the story of what the Phoenix Force could do when wielded with the benevolent, albeit a little misguided, intentions of Cyclops & Co. I was pleasantly surprised by how much that one issue redeemed the entirety of the whole series up to that point.

If only Hickman and Copiel could finish the rest of this series out.

Issue 7 brings us a script by Fraction and everything feels off again. Scarlet Witch comes off like an ego-maniac. Cyclops seems to have lost his edge since the last issue where he said 'No More Avengers.' Tony Stark whines enough to get slapped by the Black Panther. Cap says 'Scramble' instead of 'Assemble', which isn't even right at all.

Copiel is still drawing a mean super hero but the fight scenes are looking a little muddled this time around. For a second, I double-taked on what the hell was going on. There are 3 panels in a row where all you see is the blonde hair of the White Queen flying around with the third panel depicting Hawkeye apparently kicking her. It's all very weird and confusing.

Despite the semi-baffling choreography of the fight scenes, Olivier Copiel, Mark Morales, Laura Martin, and Chris Eliopoulus are all doing a bang-up job. I only wish that I was left with the same feeling I had when I finished Avengers Vs. X-men # 6.

There is one very stupid question that is begging for answer at this point. If you have been following Bendis' runs on Ultimate Spider-man and Powers, then you know what I'm about to ask:

Dear Mr. Brian Michael Bendis,

When did you get such a hard-on for tidal waves?

Sincerely,

The Rest Of Us

John Cassaday's cover for Uncanny Avengers # 1

Classic.

Cassaday's rendition of the Uncanny Avengers is what the eleven year old Spencer imagined the comics that awaited him would look like as he rode his BMX bike to the comic shop every Saturday. Complimented by Remender's fantastic high octane approach to blending the present with the past, this is going to be a great, fun read.