What a week the last seven days have been!!
It's been long week but, more accurately, it's also been a hard one. This is down to the fact that I've spent almost the entire time recovery from Saturday and my attendance to MCM Comic Con in London.
Now, I've written a piece on my thoughts about the day which will appear on Pipedream Comics in the near future, but to personalise the occasion a little, I absolutely loved the day. Sure, by the end my legs were exhausted and I could really have done with being a whole extra day (or two), but I got to see and meet a whole bunch of awesome people and witness some really excellent coaplayer as well as pick up a bunch of trades and comics that I just couldn't help but buy.
Unfortunately, I since then haven't been able to crack open any of these comics because I've still ve working through (and, in fact, finishing) John Ridley's The Other History of the DC Universe. This series, written by Ridley while the art was created by Giuseppe Gamuncoli, Andrea Gucchi and José Villarrubia, tells the history of the DC Universe (as the title implies) but from the perspective of Heroes from disenfranchised groups. Black Lightning, Renee Montoya, Katana, Mal and Karen Duncan and Thunder, all heroes who are not the white, straight male stereotype of superheroics, each spend an issue describe the trials and tribulations of their respective superhero journey against a backdrop of various historical and political events.
Ever since it was announced, this was a series which I seriously wanted, a fact which kicked into overdrive once this Black Label comic was released in its collected format. However, despite receiving the collection as a Christmas gift during the last festive period, I've continued to push this book further an further down river and instead opted for other (predominantly digital) comics on my to read list. The reason for this was, like many comics I REALLY wanted to read, I feared that it's content wouldn't live up to my expectation.
Thankfully, my fears proved unwarranted because after nearly two weeks burning through the Other History of the DC Universe, I discovered by the end how much I loved this book. I wasn't sure what to expect when i first read, at least not beyond the assumption that it was going to be a hard hitting read (because I expect nothing less than from the director of 12 Years A Slave). However, Other History had this very expose feel to it as I went through the issues, like I was reading multiple autobiographies or a sort of Panorama-esue exposure. Ridley certainly must have done an absolute tonne of research for this series as he really shone a light on events and situations which, while maybe innocuous from one perspective, when told through a these different lenses, it really gave a heartbreaking feel.
That said, while Other History gave centre stage to characters the superhero stereotype might usually ignore, it also gave focus to some great storylines throughout DC's history. From the Judas Contract to the formation of the Outsiders to the events of 52, this series touched on so many events which seeing them here in just a few references gave me greater interest in those stories. This is further helped by the art, which is consistently gorgeous throughout and helps provide the feel of the specific time period in each issue. That said, I did find it difficult to determine whether the art was original or simply utilised from the comic issues past. This is all because of a single image in which saw Renee Montoya dressed as the Question, which I'm sure was ripped direct from 52. Of course, it would certainly make sense if the images were taken from comics of the specific story/time period and it doesn't change how amazing it works.
Unfortunately, if the Other History of the DC Universe had one flaw for me it was simply the fact that this comic series was just so dense. Now normally, I would read a 24-30 page comic in 15-20 minutes. However, with the issues of the Other History, it felt like getting through a single issue was taking hours. This is maybe because the collected edition readore like a prose book with illustrations rather than a comix book, the out of text was that large. Also, while Other History was a captivating and engrossing read, it was a lot like 12 Years A Slave in that it's heavy subject matter made me think I might not return to reading it again (at least for a good while).
Still, despite its emotionally heavy content, the Other History of the DC Universe was, to me, an exceptional read that i kind of wish I'd checked out sooner (although glad I did it now after my recent break). And although I have just said I might not read it again for a while, it's definitely going on my shelf in the hope that I will return to it again one day.
Oh, and before I forget ...
I also thought the art was solid work, if a little inconsistent in places. That said, I still found it to be a lovely style and the rare inclusion of colour enhances the questions I have, thus making me want to return all the more.
So, if it this short statement (and the review) doesn't make it obvious, I really want to come back to this comic. I'm not sure if I can class it as good (although it can't be by much), but it certainly leaves me interested and very much wanting to see how it all plays out.
And so that brings the comics part of my week to an end, although I also filled my time with (like everyone else) the first three episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi. At this point, it feels I'm just preaching to the converted but I have absolutely loved the first half of the series so far. There has been so much great stuff, from episode two's very noir vibe, the casting of young Leia, a cameo in episode 2 and even the fact the Obi-Wan knows Aikido.
Of course, I like everyone else does have one story niggle, but it doesn't change the fact that I found this awesome series so far, with such a brutal end to episode 3 reallyaking me regret this weekly release schedule of Disney's.
Anyway, thats now officially the week done. A very physical comic heavy week what with what I read and all I bought. To be honest, this was a nice change of pace as I found myself drawn back to print comics (with help of Comixology, who recently announced that their comics could no longer be purchased through their app due to Google Play Store's high in app charge. Funny the same doesn't apply to the Amazon proper app). As such, I'll probably try and read plenty of print comics in the next few weeks.
Although, my planned read for next week might be some physical comics that have been out for quite a while.
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