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Comic Round Up
The Week of April 7

Mini-reviews on the good, the bad, and the fugly in new comics.

GHOSTBUSTERS #1 (88MPH Studios)

Talk about anti-climactic. The new Ghostbusters limited series has been delayed for weeks, and now after reading issue #1 all I can say is... hohum. I mean it's great to revisit these classic characters from the film, but in the hands of writer Andrew Dobb, it's hardly the Venkman, Ray, Egon, and Winston we know and love. Issue #1 finds the Ghostbusters six months after defeating Gozer the Gozerian and about to launch a number of Ghostbuster franchises across the country. I don't like how the comic moves away from the spirit of the movie by introducing more drama; having Ray suffer from depression is a bit much to swallow (as is the idea of Rick Moranis' character becoming a celebrity). I'm also not bowled over by the artwork either. Steve Kurth's pencils are strong, but the inking is too heavy and the colors oversaturated. Still there are a few choice moments that leave hope for improvement in future issues.

ALPHA FLIGHT #2 (MARVEL)

The recent relaunch of Canada's finest, Alpha Flight, hasn't garnered much fanfare which is a shame since the past two issues have been winners. In a direct homage to the origin of the seventies New X-men, orange fuzzball Sasquatch has assembled an "all-new, all different" Alpha Flight to rescue the original team. Where the first series tended to have an air of tragedy (They blew up Guardian in issue #12 for Christ's Sake!), the new series is a more humorous, witty affair. Clayton Henry and Mark Morales are fine in the artwork department, but it's Scott Lobdell's wry prose that'll bring a smile to your face. From his evisceration of the page one comic intro to the lengths Sasquatch has to go to convince anyone to join the Flight , Lobdell subverts the concept of the superhero team. I have a sinking feeling though that sales aren't going to be too hot for Alpha Flight. Hopefully, I'm wrong as it appears to have the moving parts necessary for a classic series.

HARD TIME #2 (DC)

Part of DC's Focus line spotlighting "normal" people imbued with not so normal powers, Hard Time started off good. Teenager Ethan Harrow is sent to prison after taking part in a Columbine style attack on his high school. He also has the power to project energy of destructive force which makes for good defense against shanks and shower rape. The first two issues demonstrated Steve Gerber's talent for drawing blood with his pen, but issue #3 finds him treading water storywise. I kept on waiting for one of those hard hitting scenes I'd gotten used to, but to no avail (about the only time I got excited was seeing the Jim Lee rendered Superman in the advertisements). Also, Ethan's increasing cockiness doesn't ring true for a kid just shy of a week in jail. Especially since only until the last couple of pages does he finally realize he has super powers. Here's hoping the other Focus book Kinetic doesn't take a nose dive into the toilet like Hard Time.

UNCANNY X-MEN #442 (MARVEL)

With new title Astonishing X-Men and a rehauling of the current X-Books on the horizon, we 're beginning to see the wheels moving in Marvel's 2004 Mutant Agenda. Before the rebirth however, there is (cue mood music) the darkness... The X-Mansion, much of New York, and Jean Grey have been laid waste by Magneto- the same dead Magneto Professor Xavier feels the baffling need to take home to Genosha for a hero's burial. This somehwhat large lapse in Xavier intelligence is not lost on the other X-Men especially Wolverine whose great monologue puts Prof. X to shame. Also, Polaris joins mutantdom's most dysfunctional family when she tells Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch that Magneto is her father too. Chuck Austen, Salvador Larroca, and Danny Miki are doing double duty on both Uncanny and New X-Men, and I can see why. While many fans are still lamenting the loss of super scribe Grant Morrison, the present and future appear to be in good hands with this creative team.