Graphic Novels by Martha Cornog & Steve Raiteri
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graphic novels By Martha Cornog & Steve Raiteri DRAWN TO KILL in his introduction adapted by class act Darwyn Cooke. ßn'i- Pandora's Box. Vol. 3: Greed. 2010. ISBN to the excellent genre-denning The Mam- ten and Briilightly conjures an oddball PI 978-1 84918-019-1. tnoth Book of Best Crime Comics, comicsto- with a tea bag for a sidekick (see Graphic ea. vol: Cinebook. 48p. tr. from Freneb by rian Paul Gravett traces the genre's lean, Novels, L/3/15/10). Romance enters the Jerome Saincantin. pap. $11.95. F mean machismo to Chester Gould's 1931 mix from Alixopiilos in Mine Tonight, a The seven de.idly sins, plus hope, under- newspaper strip, Dick Tracy. A rival syndi- tongue-in-cheek fiction of queasy in- lie eight timely parables mixing mythology cate grabbed Dashiell Hammett to write terbreeding among social protestors and with modem life. Prii/c finds U.S. President Secret Agent X-9. and the "comic" was out profits during the 2004 presidential elec- Narcissus Shimmer grasping tor a medical of (most) comics fbrevermore, tion. miracle and secretly cloning a bone mar- DC Comics was first founded as De- Definitely off the beaten track: the hi- row donor to cure his leukemia. In Sloth, tective Comics, serving up its crime fight- larious and unique Chew: Taster's Choice, we meet Olympic sprinter Paris Troy, who ers in and out of costumes—from Batman introducing an investigator who must yearns for yet one more gold medal—per- to the officers of Gotham Central. DCs literally takes a bite out of crime (see haps possible through under-the-counter darkly realistic 100 Bullets recently fin- Graphic Novels, 1/3/15/10). And chug- steroids. Gurí/introduces Teze Egée, Ethio- ished its 13-volunie run, winning a slew ging into its third volume conies WIZ- pian orphan adopted by the health minister of awards, and the lately launched Vertigo ZYWÎG, Vol. 3: Fugitive, as Ed Piskor of France, who later appoints his grown son Crime line has received good reviews. drops us into a 1980s tangle of phone as director of a tbod safety agency. Unfor- Meanwhile, Marvel has unleashed noir- phreaking and computer hacking featur- tunately, Teze's efforts to control a deadly style versions of Spider-Man and his su- ing Houdini hacker Kevin "Boingth- outbreak of mad cow disease uncover a trail percolleagues. unip" Phrenicle. Piskor's entertaining and of profiteering implicating his adopted fa- ther. The remaining volumes are due for translation soon. VERDICT Alcante's con- siderable plotting skills consistently serve up unexpected outcomes, always tragic in some way yet satisfying, and the clear line- style color art showcase the stories well. This series makes excellent fodder for ethics dis- cussions in and out of classrooms, since no pat solutions may be interred for any of the characters' dilemmas. With strong language and a few sexual allusions; reconiniended tor high school age and up.—M.C. Austen, Jane & Seth Grahame-Smitb (text) & Cliff Richards (illus.). Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: The Graphic Novel. Del Rey; A parable well plotted, the "unmentionables" a la line drawings, and like à Japdnese Fhenäs Ballantine. 2010. 178p. adapted by Tony Lee. ISBN 978-0-345-52068-5. pap. $14.99. Comics starring the debonair and informative series may be previewed and F/HUUOR never-die Sherlock Holmes date back at ordered via www.edpiskor.com. It IS an increasingly popular supposition that least to 1944, and last year's Hound of the But lest we forget that crime exists in a story acclaimed through best-sellerdoni Baskenñlles from Sterling gives the keen- very real life, consider the Real Cost of should do well as a graphic novel, c-specially eyed detective full-length due. Sterling Prisons Project, begun in 2000 to politi- one as action-rich as Grahame-Smith's Re- has more Holmes hijinks in press. cize mass incarceration. Lois Ahrens's The gency niashup. With zombies invading Aus- Some hot newer titles vary the Real Cost of Prisons Comix (PM Pr., 2008) ten's plot, numerous elements take on new menu. In the noir tradition comes Rich- should be required reading for anyone relevance. Kitty and Lydia's beloved mili- ard Stark's Parker: The Hunter, a tale of willing to go beyond the safety of fic- tia regiment has quartered in the Bennets' a revenge-seeking stained soul superbly tion—and perhaps even more so tor those neighborhood to dispel attacks from the unwilling.—M.C. "unmentionables." Elizabeth must fight her Martha Cornog is a longtime reviewer for LJ way through the undead to visit the ailing and, with Timothy Perper, edited Graphic Aleante (text) & Didier Pagot (illus.). Jane at Netherfield and so has senous justi- Novels Beyond the Basics: Insights and Pandora's Box. Vol. 1: Pride. 2008. ISBN fication for a muddy frock. And with many Issues for Libraries (Libraries Unlimited, 978-1-905460-81 6. of the characters skilled at martial .irts, their 2009). Steve Raiteri is Audio-visual Aleante (text) & Vujadin Radovanovic (illus.). exchanges go way beyond verbal sparring. Librarian at the Greene County Public Pandora's Box. Vol. 2: Sloth 2009. ISBN Indeed, the most satistying sequences come Library in Xenia, OH, where he started 978-1-84918-006-1. when Lizzy responds to Darcy's original the graphic novel collection in 1996 Aleante (text) & Steven Oupré (illus.). proposal with a well-aimed kick to his gut 64 I LIBIUVRYJOUIJ-NAL | MAY 15.201(1 WWW.LIBRARYJ0URNAL.COM REVIEWS. NEWS. AND WORE and later dispatches Lady Catherine's ninja strips from 1939 to 1940, with Sunday pages layered flashbacks, we learn first about lan's guard before disarming the Lady herself, in wonderful full color. Domestic comedy tragic death (presumably) and then about disdaining to kill her honorably. VERDICT predominates in the book's first half, with liis earlier trips from his native Australia to Buff]' veteran Richards does lovely, period- the second seeing the pair touring America England and thence to America, searching detailed line work, and his panel designs along with their beautiful daughter, Nora, for his sister and more broadly for emotional and action sequences work welt. But the and her new husband, clueless British aris- home and connections. As the slices tumble black-and-white drawings have .m unfin- tocrat Lord Worthnotten (McManus's pun- out, clues accumulate unexpectedly about ished teel, and—like Marvel's Pride and ning names are one of the strip's delights). lan's wildly dysfunctional family. Oddly, Ian Prejudice—many women characters look VERDICT McManiLs and a.ssistant Zeke Zek- seems consistently sweet and able to inspire too much alike. No nuitter. however, since ley fill the Sunday pages with Deco-inspired affection and trust in strangers, if not among the bewiiLliing Elizabeth and swoonwortliy design and marvelously detailed landscapes, his own relatives. VERDICT With deceptively D.ircy carr)' tlic ii.irnitive. For zombie fans, city scenes, and crowds (often ofjiggs's wide simple art that decries the title, this comes older toetis and up,—M.C. circle of friends). Starring a harried husband out a small classic of sidewise storytelling flill of humor, this is both historically impor- coupled with oddly likable, if mostly un- Butler, Tracy J. Lackadaisy. 4th Oimension tant and enjoyable; for all collections.—S.R. sympatbetic, characters. For older teens and Entertainment. 2009.96p. ISBN 978- up.—M.C. 0 9819599-0-0. pap. (order from www. One, Natsume. Not Simple. VIZ. 2010. 316p. 4thdimensionentertainment.com) F ISBN 978-1-4215-3220-2. pap. $14.99.F Pratchett. Rhianna (text) & Matthew Dow It's always a treat to watch a master cartoon- Ten years after shonen and shojo manga Smith (iltus.). Mirror's Edge. DC: WildStorm. ist sell us a ridiculous premise and get away took American teens by stonn, we are see- 2010. 144p. ISBN 978-1-4012-2522-3. pap. with it. Sweet, vampy Mitzi May takes over ing more diverse titles beyond ninjas and $19.99. F the Lackadaisy speakeasy after her husband panty flashes. Drawing on traditions from As an innovative videogame, Mirror's Edge is mysteriously murdered. But getting botjze the \9Hh¡^kiga (Japanese for "dramatic pic- lets players enact dramatic parcour-style ac- can be dicey, what with other purveyors tures") movement, this slice-of^life story robatics over the rooftops. Lead character competing for limited supplies. So no sur- itself comes in slices fbr readers to assemble Faith is a runner in a band of outlaw couriers prise that Rocky, sent out tor a liquor run, into a coherent picture. And an ugly picture delivering messages among revolutionar- is nearly Rattened by a train when bootleg- it is. Waifish Ian and bis Boswell. tbe Amer- ies in a highly controlling society, taking ging farmers try to put bun out ot business. ican writer Jim, sit at the center. Jim claims the sky route to avoid omnipresent cameras Rocky decides to settle the score with a little to be writing a piece about Ian. perhaps and wiretaps. The comic miniseries col- well-placed arson, but the farmers attack an article, perhaps a novel. Through multi- lected here presents A prequel to the game the Lackadaisy. Meanwhile, Mitzi May has been sweet-talking a local mining magnate in an attempt to find backers and customers, while her flirty goddaughter-in-l.iw puts heavy moves on Rocky's innocent younger cousin. What makes these picaresque go- ings-on both unusual and winning is the adorahle cast of anthropomorphic cats in detailed, historically inspired Prohibition outfits, VEROICT This charming und sassy sepia-toned webconiic (www.lackadaisycats, com), enlivened by Butler's absolute com- mand of body language and facial expres- Tnc firet graphic novol sion, bas been only rarely matched in the .•<illi'i.'tion lit Inc cnlically Ullited States for cute plus hilarious.