Introduction
Vertigo, an imprint of DC Comics, is known for offbeat titles usually targeted to mature readers. While it's been home to some excellent titles, such as Neil Gaiman's transcendent Sandman and Garth Ennis's sprawling epic Preacher, the imprint has in recent months been searching for a new identity. Many of its landmark titles have come to an end (Sandman and Preacher), or are about to (Transmetropolitan). Others have proved disappointing, and not in keeping with the apparent mission of the line, such as Codename: Knockout and the rote sci-fi actioner S.C.I.-SPY. Vertigo has launched a number of new titles that seem a good fit in recent months, and has just concluded one that was an outstanding representation of what the line should strive for. I decided to take a look at a few of these books, and after this straight line, we'll get right to it.
The Thessaliad #1-4
Written by Bill Willingham
Art by Shawn McManus and Andrew Pepoy
Published by DC/Vertigo
One of the most memorable and interesting characters in all of Neil Gaiman's incredible run of The Sandman was Thessaly, an ancient and staggeringly powerful witch who makes a delightful return in this recently concluded four-issue mini-series.
Bill Willingham is a name I remember from an independent title called The Elementals, published by Comico in the 1980s. An interesting superhero team book that seemed, if I recall correctly, to owe a lot to the art of Michael Golden. Willingham is working at Vertigo these days, and his script for the just-finished Thessaliad is tight and sharp, a delightful conversation/confrontation/flirtation between The Sandman's Thessaly and a ghost named Fetch who has been sent to summon Thess to her certain doom. Thessaly is almost never rattled, and the sardonic banter between the two under circumstances varying from a fascinating mystical train-ride to brutal, supernatural attack is never less than riveting. Willingham's grasp on both characters and their motives is sure and thorough, and the way the story plays itself out shows him to be a gifted plotter whose dialogue is equal to said plot.
This is essentially a quest, in this case for information about who is trying to kill Thessaly, and Willingham uses his understanding of myth and legend not only to craft his story but to adorn its outer edges. We see such well-worn gags as the Riddle of the Sphinx and such, but Thessaly's running commentary shows that Willingham understands not only the ancient need for myth but the post-modern need to explain and deconstruct it. His work here compares well to that of Gaiman himself in both his Sandman days and as the author of his sprawling epic 2001 novel American Gods.
The murder plot against Thessaly is the MacGuffin against which the real story is told, that is, the relationship between Thess and Fetch. A more delightful couple you won't find in any supernaturally-themed comic book, and as their dynamic shifts and bends from the first page of the first issue to the last panel of the final issue, I was completely caught up in their sometimes funny, always tense interplay. I especially love the fact that we see Thessaly's power and true age through her matter-of-fact approach to virtually every challenge that is thrown in her path. As we age, we realize how little most seeming obstacles truly matter, and Thessaly's nature extends this out to a supernatural extreme that is appealing and completely credible.
The art in the first issue is without flaw, with Shawn McManus lending a nice, organic feel to his illustrations. He is joined by inker Andrew Pepoy for the rest of the series, and while a slight bit is lost in the translation, the presentation is still excellent, with moments of hilarity and horror treated with equal care and skill. Thessaly, too, I have to say, is indeed the cutie that she is declared at one point, and I have to say that I'd be more than happy to lay down a couple-three bucks on a regular series by these same creators. I can't think of higher praise for a mini-series than that, so I'll stop now. Except to say, hunt this down while it's still available in shops, or definitely pick up the trade paperback when and if it becomes available. Grade: 5/5
Midnight, Mass. #1-2 (of 8)
Writer: John Rozum
Artists: Jesus Saiz and Jimmy Palmiotti
Published by DC/Vertigo
Topper meets Buffy The Vampire Slayer by way of The X-Files in this appealing gothic mystery adventure.
Adam and Julia Kadmon live in "Midnight, Massachusetts," a town that seems bathed in mystery, but not without a Starbucks to serve all your modern hot beverage needs. Their new assistant Jenny is our point of entry here, a young woman who goes to work for the paranormal-investigating couple but who is followed by a secret past of her own. Jenny is bright and appealing, in the way of many a classic horror-story heroine who walks into a world previously unsuspected.
Pleasingly, Jenny's well-versed in the mythology and lore of such tales, but having not experienced such phenomena herself, has a delightful matter-of-factness about her both before and after she gets a glimpse of the world of the Kadmons. This may be because she's well-grounded and earnest, or it may be that she's seen horrors of her own. Future issues, no doubt, will tell.
The Kadmons are a bit of an enigma. We get to see quite a bit of the couple as they go about their business and personal lives, getting the sense that they've been dealing with the supernatural for quite some time and are used to the various gargoyles and supernatural, headless assassins that fill their workday. On the other hand, they have secrets they want to keep from Jenny, such as what's behind the door you must never open!
Saiz and Palmiotti's art is open and the storytelling is clear. The art has a bit of quirky character to it, reminding me a bit of Ernie Colon's more serious stuff. As he was always one of my favourite comics artists, this is not a bad thing.
Midnight, Mass's premise is well-established over these two issues, and lends itself to a wide variety of storytelling possibilities. The "big bad" introduced at the end of the second issue didn't scare me in the way perhaps that it should have, but I still liked the book enough to check out future issues and see where Rozum and Co. take it. Grade: 3.5/5
Fables #1
Writer: Bill Willingham
Artists: Lan Medina and Steve Leialoha
Published by DC/Vertigo
Willingham again, in a new ongoing title set to feature different artists illustrating different story-arcs. Mark Buckingham is waiting in the wings, as are some even bigger names that have me happily anticipating future issues.
Watchmen had a murder investigation amid a community of secretive superheroes; Roger Rabbit did the same thing with funny animals. Now, Fables takes the same premise -- an inbred community alienated from the "mundanes" of human society is rocked by murder -- and runs with it.
The title's conceit, that fairy-tale characters like Snow White, Prince Charming and Beauty and the Beast are all alive and well and trying to live post-ironic, 21st Century lives, is one that doesn't resonate with me. I can't ever remember a time in my life that the archetypes at play here held much interest for me. Despite that, Willingham's script mostly worked for me, as he plays the characters relatively straight and approaches the apparent murder from an interesting angle.
We aren't really even sure there's been a killing, despite obvious signs of a slaughter in Snow White's sister's apartment. Snow White herself is the Deputy Mayor of Fabletown, a hard-assed, bureaucrat who appears a bit bored by her duties, which include making sure that the "Fables" living among humanity keep their true identities secret. The most interesting element so far is Prince Charming, her former husband, whose characterization as a long-winded, self-proclaimed cocksman is quite entertaining. It should be interesting to see what kind of sparks fly when he meets up with his former wife, Snow White.
There's also some hint of an "Adversary" that once forced the Fables out of their homeland, wherever that is, but for now the main plot sticks to the alleged murder, and the scene of security officer Bigby Wolf investigating the scene of the crime is well-staged, a convincing indication that something awful has happened. And yet, it seems a little too well-staged, and all is probably not as it seems. The art, by Medina and Leialoha, recalls Gary Frank and Brian Bolland in places, and tells Willingham's story well.
It's a story, though, that is perhaps, a bit too conventional; these are beings of mythic proportions and mythic power, but the air of normalcy and even conventionality that hangs over the book had me wishing things would get a little more wild. The main spark for me in this first issue is from Prince Charming's amusing modus operandi, which provides the issue's funniest moment.
On the other hand, as I said, Snow White and the Big Bad Wolf never held much sway over me. Willingham (as demonstrated in his thoughtful text page) clearly is fascinated by the "Fables" he writes about here, and if you're similarly entranced by the idea of seeing them operating in the modern day, with modern problems, you might want to give Fables a try. Based on the strength of Willingham's Thessaliad work, I am definitely inclined to stick around and see where his imagination takes us. Grade: 4/5
My little visit to the dark shadows of the Vertigo corner had me regretting that I hadn't taken a closer look at their books before. I'm more inclined now to give new titles a chance when the creative team and premise seem right, and I'm definitely looking forward to future issues of these titles...even The Thessaliad, which currently has no future issues planned. But I'm keeping my fingers crossed.