Crushing Krisis

Comic Books, Drag Race, & Life in New Zealand

comic books

Crushing Comics includes definitive comic book guides, essays about characters and titles, collecting strategies, comic reviews, and more!

Xavier Files: Hellion

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Back in February, fellow X-Men-obsessed blogger threw down a challenging gauntlet of an X-Men quiz on Twitter:

Let me tell you: these questions are some stumpers. I’m a tremendously large X-Men buff with a ridiculous mastery of mutant trivia, but my knowledge pales in comparison to folks like Xavier Files blogger Matt or Jay & Miles (which is fair, seeing as it’s their job to explain the X-Men).

Still, I’m always up for a challenge, so I spent a few minutes thinking, jotted down my answers, and threw my hat into the ring. And, lo and behold, I was the person with the most correct answers! I got a staggering six right, although I contest that the phrasing of one of them probably should have earned me a seventh point ;)

Nonetheless, to the victor goes the spoils – in this case, my choice of an X-character for Xavier Files to profile! I wracked my brain for my favorite B- and C-list X-Men who had histories worthy of a lengthy write-up highlighting their best stories.

Despite very nearly picking erstwhile Nightcrawler lover Cerise and hijab-wearing Muslim mutant Dust, I picked a young mutant who has been through a surprising amount of plot twists in the past decade – from young upstart to romantic lead to walking wounded to ne’er-do-well student.

That mutant is Hellion, and ! Once you’ve caught up, head to the Guide to New Mutants & Young X-Men to start reading.

Oh, did you want the answers to those trivia questions?

Click to expand the answers.

Comic Book Review: Iron Fist #1 by Brisson, Perkins, Troy, & Lanham – Strong artwork saves this slow start from being a total snooze

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Marvel has a brand new Iron Fist #1 out, hot on the heels of Netflix’s major dud of a white savior trope in the form of a TV show.

Yes, Iron Fist has been savaged by critics over the course of the last week for everything from its central trope to its lackluster script and boring fight choreography. It’s a shame to see Danny Rand’s good name tainted by the show’s performance (and by actor Finn Jones), as in comic form he’s always been a compelling character who has long since moved past his white savior beginnings to something more complex.

Forty years of comics continuity will do that to you!

Since his debut in 1974, Iron Fist has been a partner to Luke Cage, a Hero for Hire, an Avenger, and a Defender. However, his best story to date is definitely in the 2006 to 2009 series The Immortal Iron Fist. The series fleshed out the Iron Fist legend with a brand new cast of interesting (and mostly Asian) characters, and established the Fist as just one of a group of several Immortal Weapons – each with their own deadly martial arts superpowers.Iron_Fist_2017_0001

Since then Iron Fist hasn’t been great on his own, with a Kaare Andrews series that undid almost all of the interesting work of Immortal. While he’s been fun to read in David Walker’s Power Man and Iron Fist, we’re now approaching a decade without another definitive Iron Fist solo story!

Will a new written by Ed Brisson with art from Mike Perkins change that? Letterer-turned-author Brisson has a slim Marvel track record, but Perkins has the perfect kind grounded style to go with a strong Iron Fist story.

Is their first issue on the road to being as memorable Immortal Iron Fist or will it be a series I’d rather forget, like The Living Weapon?

Iron Fist #1 (digital)

Written by Ed Brisson with line art by Mike Perkins, color art by Andy Troy, and letters by Travis Lanham. Cover art by Jeff Dekal.

Iron Fist #1 is a quick read that feels more like a prologue than an exiting first issue. Luckily, artist Mike Perkins might have been born ready to draw this title. (Or, at least, he’s wanted to draw it since he was 10 years old, per his note at the back of the book). [Read more…] about Comic Book Review: Iron Fist #1 by Brisson, Perkins, Troy, & Lanham – Strong artwork saves this slow start from being a total snooze

Batwoman: The female, feminist, lesbian Caped Crusader you need to be reading

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Today I’m bringing you a guide to one of my favorite characters introduced in the past decade – Batwoman!

If you’ve never heard of Batwoman, don’t worry – I hadn’t either when I first picked up a comic she starred in back in 2011. I’m going to explain everything you need to know.

Batwoman: A Thoroughly Modern Bat-Hero

I was initially intrigued by Batwoman because of her bold visual design – the v-shaped slash of red hair centered about her black mask and chalk-white skin.

I had no idea she was much more interesting for two other reasons.

First, Batwoman is a rare female hero who shares a title with Batman as her male counterpart but has never been his “girl” (Supergirl, Spider-Girl), or a secondary “Ms” or “She” version (Ms. Marvel, She-Hulk).

Batwoman’s wealth and training rivals Bruce Wayne’s, as does a traumatic loss in her youth. That makes her a similarly aloof adult when she’s out of the mask, complete with a complex history of romantic entanglements.

The woman behind the mask, Kate Kane, is an out lesbian who was discharged from the Army in the Don’t-Ask-Don’t-Tell era. As you can imagine, that experience also informs her decision to become a costumed crime fighter.

Second, this  modern Batwoman was truly a brand new character when she debuted in 2006. There’s no lengthy history or different character versions to understand.

In fact, she has been used sparingly enough that you can easily buy all of her appearances and read them in just a week or two, and she has a brand new series that just started last week!  [Read more…] about Batwoman: The female, feminist, lesbian Caped Crusader you need to be reading

This week in comic book collected editions & graphic novels – March 22, 2017

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It’s another week of comic collected editions – both gathered single issues and original graphic novels.

So, what’s out this week? It’s not an easy question to answer. While DC and Marvel keep a relatively consistent schedule, other publishers aren’t as consistent – in fact, this week we have a pair of books originally professed to be out a month ago!

This post covers all of the collections out this week, explains what they are and what they contain, and provides easy links to Amazon, where you can either buy them or at least get more helpful info like their prices and ISBNs.

Publishers:

What are the must-read books this week?

None of the major label releases this week are particularly interesting to me (unless, of course, you’ve been waiting with baited-breath for some Bronze Age Justice League!).

However, one that caught my eye was The Interview by Manuele Fior from Fantagraphics, thanks to this description:

Set in 2048, The Interview is a science fiction novel from the author of 5,000 km Per Second that eschews outer space for inner space. It is a moving story about the passage of time, the commonalities and differences between generations, and on our changing society. “I tried to imagine the near future,” says the author, “where not everything is negative and catastrophic, where the end of the world does not come with a violent apocalypse, but rather an intimate and familiar context of daily life that keeps flowing.”

What else is out this week? Keep reading to find out! [Read more…] about This week in comic book collected editions & graphic novels – March 22, 2017