Avatar: The Last Airbender The Promise Part 3

Author: Gene Luen Yang | Illustrator: Gurihiru | Page Count:76

It's a new kind of world. There's no getting around risk.

Shit has hit the fan. The Harmony Restoration Movement is a failure and now multiple sides on the conflict are about to come to head. Aang is tasked with maintaining balance, but is now unsure how exactly that can be accomplished. Sticking to the rigid definition of it has only led to the current state that threatens the hard earned peace and has itself become a danger to the future of the people and Aang himself. Zuko faces a similar conundrum except that it is mostly an internal conflict in himself. Aang must manage peace between the 3 sides of the conflict which may involve invoking the titular promise.

That sounds pretty heavy, but this is Avatar we're dealing with so it is still that same adventurous, humorous and action storytelling that's to be expected that is still a light tone given its target audience. Toph and Sokka will provide any levity that readers may need. The story and action are great but come to a somewhat rushed and incomplete conclusion. To be expected as it is revealed that this has merely been a prelude to the next series of adventure that will presumably answer the question that readers came to this series hoping it would be answered; the whereabouts of Zuko's mother. But what is there is still entertaining, colorful and full of great character drama. A wonderful continuation of the series overall with great hints poking at future storylines.

4 fat guys and their inexplicably hot girlfriend out of 5

DC Comics: Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle (2010)

Authors: Various  |  Illustrators: Various  |  Page Count: 352

A giant sized book that attempts to present a history of DC Comics from its beginnings as National Allied Publications in 1934, through its change to Detective Comics in 1937, right up to the year of publication (the last entry is Batman #700, August 2010). It's not just an encyclopaedic list of characters; it also gives an insight into the company and its various imprints, TV and film endeavours alongside real life events that clearly influenced the consciousness of the comics' creators of the era. It's an ambitious undertaking that has no choice but to hurry over certain things, otherwise it'd be bigger than the coffee table it sits on.

It's split into chapters, one for each year, that offer memorable quotes, an overview of events, creator profiles and an extensive timeline of the complicated DC Universe. Each page is awash with colourful illustrations and faithful reproductions of original cover art. It's a treasure trove of information. I admit I skipped over some of the character entries. As with most reference books, not every entry appeals to every reader.

It's an attractive package housed in a very sturdy slip case, with two unique lithographs by Ryan Sook that some folks will likely want to frame and hang to better appreciate their beauty. Unless you're the type of person that buys this kind of thing as an investment, thereby negating its very purpose, to be read, then you’ll maybe find yourself returning to it time and again. I know I have.

4 history lessons from men in tights out of 5

The Manhattan Projects: Volume 1: Science. Bad. (2012)

Author: Jonathan Hickman | Artist: Nick Pitarra | Page Count: 144

'Circles within circles. Worlds within worlds.
He saw the door for what it was, and he threw it open.'

Don't judge a book by its cover. Everyone knows the idiom but there's no doubt that a good cover is the thing that first attracts the eye. The covers of TMP caught my attention instantly. The monthlies, not the one above. They were simple but striking, enigmatic and alluring symbols on a spacious background that held the promise of something different, something deep. What lay beneath the cover delivered on those assumptions... mostly.

TMP is a wild fiction built around the real life creation of the first WWII atomic bomb. The build is simply a front for what the militant project leader identifies as "...more important concerns." He enlists the troubled scientist Oppenheimer and a team of equally disturbed real life geniuses to fulfil a very different agenda. More than once I was reminded of Mike Mignola; they're a kind of reverse B.P.R.D. 

It's an engaging and far-reaching story that draws the reader in with hermetic secrets, drip-feeding future possibilities alongside some cryptic past histories.

However, holding back like it does made me question whether it'll come together in a satisfyingly cohesive manner. By the end of the book that question was still ringing in my mind. One thing is clear, though: it’s a bubbling pot with two lids, neither of which is able to contain the inevitable—there will be spillage.

Nick Pitarra provides art so successfully that it's hard to imagine the work being presented in any other style. He's not completely original, his influences are clear to see, but his vision gels with Hickman's wild sciences perfectly.

The colouring is as important as the art in getting the message across. It uses a palette of contrasting primary and tertiary colours that support the dualities present in the written word. It was so well presented that for a change I didn't mind the digital colouring methods.

The book collects together The Manhattan Projects issues 1–5.

3½ flirtations with reckless abandon out of 5

The Dark Tower: The Little Sisters of Eluria (1998)

Author: Stephen King | Page Count: 66

'She might be a good nurse, and fair, but Roland thought her a poor liar. He was glad. Good liars were common. Honesty, on the other hand, came dear.'

Before beginning the Dark Tower books King was primarily known as a horror writer. The Dark Tower was a departure from that. It's essentially a Western wedded to a traditional Tolkien-esque fantasy, wherein the journey is of more importance than the destination. The reason I mention all of that is because the horror that he used to do so well can be strongly felt in this short piece. It creeps in tentatively at first but takes hold quickly. It's a fantasy-western-horror novella, and it works. It feels like an experiment that really paid off. It's perhaps the freshest instalment he's delivered since the very first book.

I'm not going to bother with a synopsis because if you've read previous Dark Tower books then you'll already know if you want to read more. Nothing will change that. But if you're new to Mid-World, it'd be best not to start your journey here. It's primarily for readers with an existing knowledge of the series.

It starts out like a choose-your-own-adventure book that has had all the choices already made by someone else, but that's simply to get gunslinger Roland Deschain to where King needs him to be; the shorter format necessitates it. It also forces him to trim the waffle he usually spews, making this work a fast-paced adventure that left me wanting more.

NOTE: The short was released one year after Vol IV: Wizard and Glass (1997) but takes place before Vol I: The Gunslinger (1982). Does that make it the earliest of Roland's adventures chronologically? No, because it also confusingly takes place sometime after the events in Mejis, mentioned in Wizard and Glass. That places it prior the formation of the ka-tet, but after the Susan Delgado time period.

3½ thoughtful houses out of 5

God Save the Queen (2007)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: John Bolton | Page Count: 96

“Every girl’s meant to fantasize about being Alice.

But I think it’s mainly guys that get all hot about rabbit holes.”

God Save the Queen is an adult tale full of visceral imagery and harsh realities that merge the aesthetic of British Punk with the magical but equally fearful nature of the cautionary tale / fairy story.  Those two things on the surface would seem to have nothing in common but Carey makes it work.
You’ll meet characters from other well-known Vertigo titles, namely The Sandman, The Dreaming, and The Books of Magic, but the book exists on the fringes of all three titles so you don’t need to have read any of them prior to reading this.

The story revolves around Linda, a bored, alienated, self-absorbed and self-destructive young adult.  If trouble doesn't find her, she’ll actively seek out and embrace it.  The rebellion of the individual against society and family is concurrent with the catastrophic repercussions that follow when Titania, the Queen of Faerie, receives an unwelcome visitor to her realm.

It’s a joy to see Carey get to write some strong female protagonists because he’s so very good at it.  On the flip side, the depth of many of the lesser characters is sacrificed due to the short page count.

It feels directionless for a time but pay attention to the small things because the strands weave beautifully as it gets nearer the ending.

The book once more teams Carey with artist John Bolton.  Bolton’s art is a good fit for the dark themes on display.  His panelling is traditional but he’ll occasionally break out with a full page piece that teems with life; it’s clear he enjoys the freedom that brings.  His history of horror illustration brings an elegant darkness to the visuals which highlight the grimy and terrible nature of the environments, and the people.

3½ Midsummer ‘Red Horse’ Nightmares out of 5

The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole (2012)

Author: Stephen King | Page Count: 335

"I won't kill him, but you shall be there when he swings, and with my own hand I'll give you the bread to scatter beneath his dead feet."

Stephen King calls it book 4.5 of The Dark Tower series because it's set chronologically between Book IV: Wizard and Glass (1997) and Book V: Wolves of the Calla (2003). He also suggests that you can read it without having read any of the previous works, but I would strongly advise against doing that. It would nullify one of the most dramatic and defining moments in the early books. I feel it's best if you start at the series beginning or not at all.

The Wind Through the Keyhole uses the story within a story (within another story) literary device. The bulk of the book is taken up by gunslinger Roland Deschain telling his ka-tet self-contained stories from his past. The interpolated frame narrative used is so very brief that it draws attention to itself; it serves little purpose other than to enable King to slip the book into the existing continuity without upsetting it further. In doing so, it offered him the perfect opportunity to remedy the dramatic shift the reader experienced between Books IV and V (he had a near death accident in the interim—it clearly influenced the direction the narrative took in Book V), but there's no real attempt to smooth that transition. I'd hoped that distance and hindsight would've offered a renewed perspective.

Ultimately, I think a collection of shorts, removing the unnecessary frame and the three-tiered structure, would've been a better approach. Telling of Roland's youth and expanding upon his relationship with his family and his peers would've been preferable. It could've better explored the reasons for his actions in later books and offered a deeper insight into why he allows himself to be so utterly consumed by his obsessions. It could even have been the beginning of a series of prequels, offering King the opportunity to do the same for the other members of the ka-tet prior to their meeting Roland, enabling him to tell a different kind of story, one removed from the fantasy setting but still a part of it.

To his credit, though, he's crafted a story about storytelling and about the power of the imagination to create horrors or to stave them off. It's the written word but it captures a style of verbal storytelling that's almost dead now, and for a short time it comes alive once more. That kept me reading.

Ironically, the best part of the book is the story most removed from the Dark Tower mythos and its 4000+ pages of fictional but rigidly dogmatic continuity.

The author's addiction to Mid-World makes me suspect this won't be the last time he journeys there. I sincerely hope he makes the next one less awkward, because I'm a sucker for Roland’s way and I'll surely buy into it.

2½ throckets of bumblers out of 5

Avatar: The Last Airbender The Promise Part 2

Author: Gene Luen Yang | Illustrator: Gurihiru | Page Count:76

Who you choose to defend deserves to be defended simply because you chose them.

Aang is working to towards a peaceful resolution to the failure of the Harmony Restoration Movement while Sokka joins Toph in an effort to motivate her students and keep her new school from being usurped; two similar situations that may end up being resolved the same way just on different scales. Zuko takes the opportunity to learn how to be an effective Fire Lord from the only person he knows who has experience and regular citizens prepare for the clash that may be unavoidable as cooler heads may not prevail.

The characters introduced and then ignored in the first volume are now fleshed out and made interesting and my desire for more Toph was given and it is great. Her plot-line provides the most in character growth, humor and the action. The action is scarce in this volume as it is setting up for the concluding 3rd part, but if you actually like these characters then there is plenty going on to make up for it. The art is still crisp and vibrant and seems to be closer to the character models of the show though Zuko still looks off. Maybe it's just me.

More fleshed out characters and some little teases for long time fans are what fill this volume.

4 Immovable hats made of spears out of 5