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PIPELINE COMMENTARY AND REVIEW #38
23 February 1998
by Augie De Blieck Jr.
http://www.nic.com/~augie/pipeline
"I'm Tired, So Very Tired..."
Thanks for sticking around. This column is a day late because I spent
literally all day Sunday working on a Computer Graphics programming project
due this morning. And, no, we don't do the Ray Tracing and the rendering
crap. Oh, no. We do the programming underneath that layer, learning how
to draw lines and pixels... UGH
So forgive me if this one is a little short and weak. I still have a paper
to write for Thursday and a test on Friday.
Sorry for all the whining.
It's left me too busy to keep up with USENET, let alone the wonderful
COMICS/ANIMATION forum over on CompuServe. I look forward to getting back
there again around, oh, May 24th - the day after graduation.
SUPERBOY #50 brings Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett back where they belong. It
is so good to see these two back together, particularly with Kesel inking
over Grummett. The story itself is completely "out there," apparently in
homage to Jack Kirby. Is this supposed to be a Kamandi riff? I don't
know; never read the stuff. (There are no cheap reprints of the stuff
available, or maybe I would.) But this is a curious and interesting
predicament, and I look forward to seeing what Karl has to offer in this
story. So far, the role reversal between "owners" and "pets" seems to be a
dominant thing. I just hope that doesn't overpower everything - animal
rights screeds get old real fast with me.
Erik Larsen is out with THE SAVAGE DRAGON #46. Now that Todd McFarlane has
all but given up the writing duties on SPAWN, Erik Larsen is the last one
left standing behind his own creation. And what does he get for it?
Sinking sales, for one thing. And this is all completely undeserved.
Dragon is still is fun and as witty as ever, with remarkable dialogue,
interesting characters and plots, and a cast of thousands. (It's fast
turning into the CEREBUS of Image...) This issue is a bit jumpy, but
things should settle back down next issue as we barrel towards the
super-sized 50th issue spectacular. I can't wait.
John Arcudi and Gary Frank take over as creative team on GEN13, and not a
minute too soon. I even skipped a couple of issues a couple of months ago
when the book seemed to totally lose its direction. Arcudi has put the
book back on track, and seems to be going somewhere. Frank's art is always
a joy to look at, and I hope he stays with it longer than a year.
And if you left THE INCREDIBLE HULK at any time during it's rough couple of
years between the time Gary Frank left and the time Adam Kubert came on
board, I'd say that it's safe now to come back. Peter David is writing
some excellent scripts, and Kubert actually tells a story, keeps characters
looking consistent, and all the while being an interesting artist.
-Augie
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