El final de una era

Si el otro día os hablé del final de The Goon, hoy le toca el turno a Witchblade, la longeva serie de Top Cow que llevaba publicándose desde 1995, y que terminó el otoño pasado con el número 185. Al igual que hice con The Goon, en cuanto me enteré de que la serie terminaba, me hice con los dos tomos que me faltaban, y me los leí de un tirón para ver cuál era el desenlace de las aventuras de Sara Pezzini y el guantelete místico.

El penúltimo volumen, Borne Again, vol. 2, escrito por Ron Marz e ilustrado por Laura Braga, recopila los números 175 a 179 y continúa con la trama que se nos presentó en el volumen anterior: Sara Pezzini es la sheriff en un condado de Nueva York, y se dedica a resolver varios crímenes sobrenaturales con la ayuda del Witchblade. Pese a que Marz es probablemente el mejor guionista que la serie ha tenido, este tomo, pese a no estar mal, no es nada del otro mundo. Por otro lado, las ilustraciones de Braga, como ya dije al escribir sobre el volumen anterior, son competentes y me gustaron bastante, pero el coloreado de Betsy Gonia no acabó de convencerme.

El último tomo, Borne Again, vol. 3, recopila los números 180 a 185, y eso es lo más objetivo que puedo decir sobre el volumen. El guión corre a cargo de varios autores, con Marz escribiendo tan solo tres de los episodios (182 a 184), David Hine a cargo de los números 180 y 181, y Matt Hawkins escribiendo el 185. Los dos primeros cuentan la historia de cómo Sara termina matando a su eterna némesis, Jackie Estacado (The Darkness), los tres siguientes presentan el conflicto entre Sara y una vieja malvada de nombre Amaryllis; y el último narra la decisión final de Sara de deshacerse del Witchblade de una vez por todas, y lo que pasa entonces (que nos voy a destripar, obviamente).

Si os preguntáis por qué os he detallado cada uno de los tres mini arcos argumentales, es porque me sorprendió bastante que la serie no terminara con una historia épica en cinco o seis partes, sino que se presentaran tramas irrelevantes que bien podrían haberse narrado hace años. Pese a que sé que no sucedió así, casi da la impresión de que decidieran cancelar la serie sin previo aviso, y tuvieran que atar cabos en un par de números. Que ya sé que no fue así, pero lo parece.

Y luego tenemos las ilustraciones. Ah, las ilustraciones. Está claro que cada uno tiene sus gustos y preferencias particulares, y le gustan unos estilos y le desagradan otros. Para empezar, y esto es una manía mía, no me gusta cuando hay múltiples dibujantes en un tomo, y en este caso la situación se agrava al tener múltiples artistas en el último número de la serie. Así, los números 180 a 184 los dibujan Gabriel Rearte, Maan House, y Francesco Manna, y el 185 lo ilustran nada menos que siete artistas: Abhishek Malsuni, Michael Turner, Stjepan Sejic, Linda Sejic, Isaac Goodhart, Phillip Sevy, y Nelson Blake II. Y de estos diez artistas, la verdad es que sólo me han gustado las páginas del difunto Michael Turner, que están sacadas del legendario número 1 de la serie, y las dos de Nelson Blake II. Las de los Sejic no están mal, y las de Malsuni se dejan ver. Las demás... digamos que prefiero otros estilos artísticos.

O sea, que como ya os habréis podido imaginar, la recta final de mi querida Witchblade me ha dejado más bien frío, pero el raro debo de ser yo, pues las citas y reseñas incluidas al dorso del volumen muestran satisfacción y entusiasmo por doquier. A mí, personalmente, me ha decepcionado bastante, y aunque la historia termina, en mi opinión, como debería, la historia a lo largo del tomo me resultó inconexa y, en general, carente de interés. Pero al menos la he leído y sé cómo acaba todo tras veinte años de peripecias y aventuras. Ahora habrá que esperar a la inevitable reinvención del personaje y relanzamiento de la serie, pero hasta que ese momento llegue, podemos descansar y pensar en cómo han terminado las cosas para Sara Pezzini, la portadora del Witchblade que tan buenos ratos nos ha hecho pasar durante las dos últimas décadas. ¡Ya querrían muchos comics durar tanto!

El retorno del guantelete embrujado

La última vez que os hablé de Witchblade fue hace algo más de tres años, tras haberme leído el tomo que recopilaba los números inmediatamente posteriores al 150, el último escrito por Ron Marz e ilustrado por Stjepan Sejic. Aquel tomo, escrito por Tim Seeley con dibujos de Diego Bernard me dejó indiferente, y terminé la entrada sobre el mismo diciendo: "aunque no descarto volver a la serie en el futuro, no creo que vaya a suceder ni este año ni el que viene". Como podéis ver, y aunque no lo he hecho a propósito, no me equivoqué al predecir que no iba a apresurarme a volver a la serie, pues ha tardado tres años en volver a leerla.

La razón de mi regreso es doble. En primer lugar, Ron Marz regresó a Witchblade en el número 170, que es el primero que recopila este tomo, titulado Witchblade: Borne Again (números 170-174), y de todos es sabido que pienso que Marz ha sido el mejor guionista que la serie jamás ha tenido. En segundo lugar, Top Cow anunció que, tras veinte años de andadura, Witchblade iba a terminar con el número 185 el otoño pasado, y obviamente, dada mi historia con el personaje, no podía perderme tal evento, lo que significa que sin duda me haré con los siguientes tomos, que recopilan los diez últimos números de la veterana serie, en el futuro cercano. Estaréis de acuerdo conmigo, pues, en que ambas eran razones de peso para que volviera a leer Witchblade.

En cuanto a este tomo en particular, tras los sucesos acontecidos en los números 151 a 169 (que desconozco casi por completo), los lectores se encuentran con Sara Pezzini, la portadora del famoso guantelete místico, haciendo de sheriff en un pueblecito perdido de Nueva York. Según se nos va revelando a lo largo de la historia, Sara decidió abandonar el Witchblade de una vez por todas hace dos años, y desde entonces ha estado haciendo vida normal. Sin embargo, una serie de brutales asesinatos en este apacible pueblo la lleva -oh, sorpresa- a reencontrarse con el místico artefacto, y a aceptar que su destino está indisolublemente unido al guantelete.

Como ya he dicho, la historia corre a cargo de Ron Marz, quien nos regala buenos diálogos, personajes vivos y reales, y una trama interesante. El apartado artístico corre a cargo de Laura Braga (dibujos) y Betsy Gonia (color), dos desconocidas para mí pero cuyo trabajo, sin parecerme espectacular, me resultó de lo más agradable. El rotulado, sin embargo, me pareció algo extraño, pues tanto los bocadillos como las letras parecían provenir de la boca de un psicópata o un monstruo en vez de personas normales; pero a lo mejor el raro soy yo, no lo sé. Lo que sí sé es que este primer volumen de Witchblade: Borne Again me hizo pasar un rato de lo más entretenido, y a diferencia del que me leí hace tres años, me dejó con ganas de más. ¡Atentos, pues, al próximo tomo, que seguro que lo comentaré!

Renacer para decaer

Tras varios años trabajando en el título, Ron Marz y Stjepan Sejic terminaron su brillante colaboración en el número 150 de Witchblade, y aunque quería ser objetivo con el nuevo equipo creativo, sabía que me iba a resultar imposible no compararlo con Marz y Sejic, probablemente los mejores autores que la larga serie de Top Cow ha tenido. Empezando en el número 151, el carismático Tim Seeley y el para mí desconocido Diego Bernard tomaron las riendas del destino de Sara Pezzini, y su primer arco de cinco números, Unbalanced Parts, viene recopilado en el tomo Witchblade: Rebirth.

Lo de Renacimiento no es gratuito, ya que, tras eventos que transcurrieron tanto en la serie regular como en Artifacts (que no he leído), el primer capítulo de esta nueva era supone un cambio radical con respecto a donde Marz y Sejic dejaron las cosas en su último número. Sara ya no es policía en Nueva York, sino detective privada en Chicago. Su hija Hope ha desaparecido del mapa (creo que eso se explica en otro sitio), y Sara parece no recordar su existencia excepto por un momento en que ve una foto cambiar por un segundo para mostrar a nuestra heroína con su hija al brazo. Por fuentes externas (y un corto prólogo al principio del tomo) sé que ha habido algún tipo de cambio en la realidad del universo Top Cow, y las cosas, aunque parecidas, ya no son como eran. Como ya he dicho, creo que esto tiene algo que ver con los sucesos narrados en Artifacts, pero no estoy seguro.

Sea como fuere, Sara se encuentra, gracias a la pluma de Tim Seeley (de cuya soberbia Revival os hablé recientemente), investigando a un grupo de personas que parece llevar una versión orgánica del Witchblade y que está enfrentado a un grupo de brujas moteras con poca ropa y menos escrúpulos. Y aunque podría seguir explicando cosas, lo más importante es que, en general, la historia me dejó indiferente. Tanto la trama como los diálogos son competentes y están bien llevados, pero, sinceramente, el tomo ni me entusiasmó ni me dejó con ganas de más en lo que a las peripecias de la señorita Pezzini se refiere. Y los dibujos de Bernard son también sólidos y competentes (excepto por el típico síndrome superheroico en el que todos tienen la misma cara pero con distinto peinado), pero me dejaron tan indiferente como la historia. Los colores de Arif Prianto, por otro lado, me parecieron estupendos y, junto a las tremendas portadas de John Tyler Christopher, lo mejor del tomo. Una lástima, porque esos dos elementos no son suficientes para hacerme comprar el próximo volumen, pero qué se le va a hacer.

En resumen: que echo de menos a Marz y Sejic, y aunque no descarto volver a la serie en el futuro, no creo que vaya a suceder ni este año ni el que viene, que bastantes cosas tengo por leer. Pero si alguno de vosotros lee este tomo, no dudéis en decirme qué os parece!

Witchblade #135

The second installment in the three-part Almost Human story arc, ish #135 was as much fun to read as Witchblade always is. In my previous Witchblade entry I mentioned how old elements of the Top Cow universe were coming into play, and that is clearly on display here. Cyberdata is back, the S.H.O.Cs are back, and Sara finds out who (or what) Aphrodite IV is, what her deal is, and what is going to happen next. And what's going to happen next is lots of trouble for the Bearer of the Balance. I can't wait to read the next issue!

Witchblade #134

Issue #134 guest stars Aphrodite IV, who looks great in that black suit Stjepan Sejic drew her in. Aphrodite IV had already been seen in Witchblade a few moths ago, and this time she is back with a vengeance. This issue is the first part of the Almost Human story arc, which seems to revolve around Aphrodite IV. As Sara tries to determine who she is, more and more information is revealed, and different elements from the old Top Cow universe are brought back in a neat an interesting way along with some newer characters, such as Argent from Hunter/Killer. More on this soon!

Witchblade #133

My Witchblade issues had been piling up for the last three months, and I couldn't wait to get back to reading this outstanding series. I can't help but wonder what's going to happen to the book when Ron Marz leaves, so I hope he never, ever stops writing this book. If I see him in San Diego this year, I mean to beg him to stay forever.

At any rate, issue 133 is the conclusion to the two-part The Bridge story, and it doesn't end like I thought it would. As usual, Marz had a neat twist ready, and I don't know about you guys, but I did not see it coming at all.

Needless to say, Stjepan Sejic does a wonderful job illustrating the book, and I really liked his depiction of the troll under the bridge. As with Marz, I hope Sejic never leaves Witchblade, and even though I know never is a long time, a man can dream, can't he?

Witchblade #132

This issue is the first part (of two) of The Bridge, in which Sara and Gleason investigate the disappearance of three small children. There is a great scene with Sara and Gleason on vacation, and the creepy forest they find themselves in when they start investigating is rendered in beautiful cold colors that convey danger, mystery, and impending doom. I could go on and on describing the excellent work Stjepan Sejic does bringing Marz's script to life, but I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just go ahead and repeat my mantra: buy Witchblade already!

Witchblade #131

It's taken me a couple of months, but I finally got to read Witchblade #131. This is the first post-war issue, and it's basically a recap of the status quo so that new readers feel comfortable picking up the series. However, Ron Marz is an old pro, and he does this with grace and flair and the reader never feels like he's being told stuff he already knows. Marz achieves this by having an ongoing conversation between Gleason and Julie throughout the whole issue, and even though we can "hear" them the whole time, we can only see them some of the time. When they are not featured in the panels, we see what Sara is up to, and her actions blend seamlessly with what Gleason and Julie are saying about her. This way, Marz gets to both show us and tell us what's going on in an original way that's neither talking heads nor captions explaining what you can already see on the page. Tricky to pull off, but that's why Marz is the man. Plus, he nicely sets up the Angelus miniseries that spins off Witchblade this month, and that will also be masterfully illustrated by Stjepan Sejic. Buy Witchblade already!

Jam Piece

This awesome picture is a jam piece by Marc Silvestri and Whilce Portacio. Those of you familiar with the artists will immediately realize that Silvestri drew Witchblade and Portacio drew Dane, and those of you who don't really know the artists can just look at the signatures to see who drew what character.
This illustration is being auctioned on ebay as we speak, and the money will go to help the Filipino comic artists who lost their homes and property when Typhoon Ondoy hit. As inker Gerry Alanguilan says on the auction page, the remaining funds will go to the Philippine Red Cross, so this is your chance to get your hands on a great piece of original artwork and help those in need at the same time. The auction will end on October 23rd, so start bidding now!

Director's Commentary

Hungry for behind-the-scenes information regarding the great War of the Witchblades story arc? Then head to CBR.com and check out this long article in which Ron Marz and Stjepan Sejic reveal lots of juicy information about the earth-shattering confrontation between Sara and Dani. Enjoy!

The End of the War

I finally got to read Witchblade issues 128, 129, and 130 --the second half of the War of the Witchblades arc written by Ron Marz and illustrated by Stjepan Sejic, whom I met at the San Diego Comic Con last July. As it's always the case, these books are great, and the end of the war is, if not completely unexpected, at least sprinkled with a couple of surprises and promising beginnings. Once again, I must urge you readers to pick up Witchblade, because it is an outstanding series. I can only hope Marz and Sejic will want to stay for many, many months to come!

Witchblade #127

If last month's issue ended with a great (if not completely unexpected) cliffhanger, ish 127 knocks it out of the park. Come on, guys! Read Witchblade! I want somebody to talk about this book with! Why aren't you buying it? Maybe you don't like superb writing and spectacular artwork? Sara and Dani get to talk to each other about the Witchblade, and their little chat quickly becomes something else entirely. Like a flurry of accusations and blows, of punches and kicks and bloodshed. And then we get to the end of the issue and… And you'll have to buy it to know what happens next. I, for one, can't wait to get my hands on ish 128. I need to know what happens next!

Comics, Hotties

It turns out that Megan Fox wanted to be a comic book artist, and she actually knows how to draw. Even better, she is a fan of Witchblade, Fathom, and Gen13, and her favorite artist is Jeff Scott Campbell. Doesn't she sound like the woman of my dreams? At any rate, check out this interview with her in which she reveals all this interesting information. Enjoy!

Witchblade #126

Ah, Witchblade, why do I love you so much? Is it because the outstanding writing by Ron Marz, or is it because Stjepan Sejic's artwork puts almost everything else on the shelves to shame? Is it because of your compelling characters and great stories, or because of the crafty mixture of the normal and the supernatural that brings to mind the best of The X-Files? Could it be that I am being rhetorical and love you for all of the above? Perhaps, perhaps.

Witchblade #126, the second part of the War of the Witchblades storyline, gets things rolling after all the (amazingly well written) talking ish 125 packed. It's hard for me to talk about this book without revealing too much, so you'll just have to take my word for it: it is great, and the way Sara's side of the story merges with Dani's at the end of the issue makes me salivate in anticipation of issue 127. Go buy Witchblade!

War in Progress

I don't know about you, but I think the War of the Witchblades logo is really cool. Imagine therefore my surprise when I came across this article on CBR in which the creator of the logo, talks about the creative process behind the design. Check out the article and read about the different ideas and alternative designs that didn't make it in the end. I found the article fascinating, and I hope you'll enjoy it too!

Witchblade #125

The War of the Withcblades begins… with a lot of dialogue. It's a good thing Ron Marz's dialogue is as awesome as it usually is, and I didn't care one bit there was barely any action in this issue. Plus, Stjepan Sejic's amazing artwork makes for a very special landmark issue. A hundred and twenty-five issues! Who would have thought this series would last for this long? I, for one, am glad it did.

Also, this issue boasts four different covers, and this is the first time in comic book history in which I felt compelled to get a book twice just to get two different covers. I usually make fun of people who fall for this cheap trick, but I love Witchblade and I like to support Top Cow whenever I can, so I thought what the hell, and bought the two covers by Chris Bachalo. The only problem is that Sejic's cover is also great, but I had to stop myself. At least for now...

War of the Witchblades

The War of the Witchblades is about to explode! Check out this interesting interview with Ron Marz in which he talks about the storyarc without actually spoiling anything. You know I love Witchblade and that I eagerly anticipate each issue, but after reading this interview I just can't wait! Issue 125, which is the first part of this storyarc, is about to hit the stands, and I, for one, am dying to read it!

As for the illustration accompanying this post, doesn't it remind you of the Medusa? Stjepan Sejic continues to deliver the goods, man!

Witchblade #124

Witchblade #124 came out shortly after my last visit to B&M Amusement, but I couldn't wait to see what happened next after the last scene in issue 123. Therefore, I stopped by the comic book store on my way to see Coraline, and got it. And, as usual, it was great.

Starting with the awesome cover, this issue is packed with sweet artwork by Stjepan Sejic, the regular artist on the series who keeps delivering month after month. I remember him saying he couldn't wait to prove everyone wrong about him not being able to draw the book monthly, and so far he's been doing exactly that. Perish the naysayers!

Ron Marz's script is, once again, a great read that offers compelling characters and the most realistic dialogue I have ever read in a comic book. As for the story itself, ish 124 serves as an epilogue for the Crown Heights story arc that does indeed continue the aforementioned last scene from Witchblade #123 with unexpected results and soon-to-come cataclysmic consequences.

This book sets the stage for the War of the Witchblades storyarc we've all been dying to read, and that will begin next month with issue 125. And if you haven't been dying to read it, it means you haven't been following the best ongoing series out there, buddy. So it's about time you paid attention and started buying Witchblade. You will make both Top Cow and yourself really, really happy.

Witchblade #123

After reading atrocities such as The Ultimates 3, it is truly a pleasure to read something as well written as Witchblade. Ish 123 is the third and last part of the Crown Heights arc, and it is as good as the previous chapters. Ron Marz once again delivers some great dialogue (the scene with Sara and the voodoo lady is particularly impressive), and even though the Crown Heights murders are somewhat solved, there are still some things that remain unexplained. But even more interesting than the confrontation between Sara and "the bad guy" (no spoilers, sorry) is the last scene, in which Danielle helps Finch like she promised she would. What happens then is obviously leading toward the War of the Witchblade storyline that we'll get to read soon (not soon enough, though). Personally, I can't wait to see what happens, even though I doubt anyone will die. (Anyone important, that is.)

Regarding the artwork, Stjepan Sejic knocks it out of the park once again, and the way he draws "the horse" is really amazing.

Finally, the letters column is also quite interesting in this issue, especially the Letter of the Month. It's funny, because the guy that wrote it was really unhappy with the way Marz solved Broken Trinity a few months ago. Marz, as usual, is a class act and explains his point of view and the choices he made respectfully and eloquently, and he is very convincing. However, the angry reader had a valid point: I doubt anyone was surprised with who "died" in the series. Broken Trinity was a fun read, and it introduced a couple of cool characters, and two of the Thirteen Artifacts (and, unlike the unhappy reader, I'm in no hurry to see the remaining items revealed), but I could have told you who was going to die even before reading the first issue. So maybe Broken Trinity wasn't the big event it was made to be, but who cares? It was a great companion to the superb Witchblade, and Witchblade is all we care about here in Sunny Jhanna, is it not?

Collecting Comics

I’ve recently found myself thinking what a diverse bunch of comic books I collect. I got tired of superhero comic books a long, long time ago, so I started reading some of the “other” stuff. The good stuff.

I’m looking at the titles I follow, trying to find a pattern, something in common. Something that assures me that I am not completely random. However, I do admit to having a very eclectic taste, and I usually like things that are complete opposites. Am I afflicted by some kind of mental illness? I don’t think so. I guess it’s just that I like pretty much everything. And still, by looking at these series, I think I can actually discern some patterns, some common elements: great stories and great artwork.

You could argue that’s very subjective, and you'll find no argument here. I like things most everyone hates, and I despise lots of things everyone else thinks are incredible. Am I weird, then? Well, I never tried to deny that.

These books have other things in common, though: humor, horror, and hotties –the three H’s. (Wouldn't that be a great title for a series?) And I guess that makes sense, since I like those three elements a lot. So let’s see what comic book series I am following, and why I love them.

Witchblade
Month after month I tell you about the best book on the shelves right now. Witchblade, written by Ron Marz and illustrated by Stjepan Sejic is the perfect marriage between great stories, phenomenal dialogue, and eye-popping artwork. Throw in mystery, the supernatural, monsters, and incredibly vivid and realistic relationships between the characters, and the result is mind-blowing. Not a lot of humor, though.

Empowered
Written and drawn by Adam Warren, Empowered cracks me up every time a new volume comes out. Warren’s artwork has really grown on me, and now I’m dying to find some of his original pages for sale somewhere. Lots of humor, terrific dialogue, fantastic plays on words and ludicrously great speeches, alliterations, and references show what an avid reader Warren is, and how much fun he has working on his creation. Plus, Emp and Ninjette are uberhot and scantily clad all the time. I just can’t recommend this book enough.

The Goon
Eric Powell’s brilliant book is a great mix of horror, drama, and humor, and his artwork is both gorgeous and disturbing. There are zombies, monsters, and other strange creatures, all living in a retro world that is both fascinating and impossibly compelling. The jokes and humor in this book hit you like an unexpected hammer and make you laugh at things only to leave you wondering what kind of despicable, twisted bastard would laugh at something like that. Pure genius.

World of Warcraft
I told you about this series recently, so I won’t talk too much about it. If you like fantasy, solid characters, and exciting adventures, you should buy WoW. And the artwork in the first seven issues is really cool. After that, not so much.

The Dark Tower
I’m not sure if I should consider this book a limited or an ongoing series, since it kind of is both. Each story arc starts with a new number 1, but the overall story follows closely from one series to the next, so it really is just an ongoing series broken into separate miniseries. The story, written by Peter David and Robin Furth, is based on Stephen King's series of novels, and it captures the strangeness, the weirdness, and the mindbending combination of elements King offers in his books perfectly. There is blood, horror, disturbing creatures, and an overall oppressive darkness that unsettles the reader, a feeling coming both from the words and the great artwork by Jae Lee and Richard Isanove. A really cool series. Not too much humor here, either.

Uncanny X-Men
I know I said I was sick of superhero books, but the current artistic team of Greg Land and Terry Dodson makes this book a no brainer. Plus, the new direction that kicked off with issue 500 really is interesting. Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction are doing a great job writing this series. Let’s see how long it lasts.

So there you have my schizophrenic choices, which don’t look all that different once examined. Let me know if you decide to give any of these books a try!