Comics Spotlight

           From time to time, mostly when I have nothing else to say, I will be talking about one of the primary passions of my life; comic books. This will probably happen haphazardly, sometimes more regularly, and sometimes not, depending on my mood. I will be talking about anything I am reading (both old and new) and just offering little tidbits about the book in question and in general, just blathering. First off, I figured I would start off with a book that I just started reading, but which has already become one of my all-time favorites, right up there with Starman and Legion of Super-Heroes. That book is Gotham Central.

           GC is a book that I had heard a lot about, but had always avoided for one simple reason: Batman. Now I love Batman as much as the next guy, but he's like the DC equivalent of Wolverine, meaning that he is everywhere, regardless of whether he fits the situation or not. I had thought that since this book was about the GCPD, appearances by ol' Bats would be numerous and frequent. Man, am I glad I was wrong. Batman has only shown up in the book's 30+ issues 2-3 times and even then purely in a cameo capacity. The book is about the cops, the people who live in the world which is populated by the villains that Batman faces every single day. Villains like Two-Face, Mr. Freeze, Joker, and Penguin. Villains who Batman takes on with ease, but who can prove to be more than a little disconcerting for regular people.

           Since this book involves a huge cast, I don't want to focus in on one single cop, but the characterizations by Greg Rucka and Ed Brubaker are fantastic. The characters feel real, and more importantly, face absurd situations with a strength of will that would put Batman to shame. The art-side is no different. Michael Lark is the regular penciller, but is joined regularly by artists who help make the book more real than words alone can. I cannot stress enough how much I like this book.

           Now, this time I was trying to encompass the whole series so the writing seems a bit...blocky to say the least, but from next time onwards I plan on pursuing this segment in the format made easy by Dave's Long Box, an excellent site, and one I visit often, because the guy is just plain friggin' hilarious. Do make visits to this site a regular deal, as it is perhaps one of the funniest review sites I have ever encountered.