Showing posts with label Le Beau Underwood. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Le Beau Underwood. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Injustice: Gods Among Us #17 - A Review

Several months ago, a rather prominent American lobbyist declared that "the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun."  Now, ignoring the opinions of various self-defense experts, professional hostage negotiators and avowed pacifists regarding the inaccuracy of that statement, we are still left with the problem of how to easily identify "the bad guy" and how very quickly a good person can become perceived as a bad one.  This dilemma lies at the heart of Injustice #17,  with the question of how one defines evil posed by our point-of-view character for the week - Catwoman.


Ignoring gender specific terms, is Catwoman a bad guy?  She's a law-breaker, certainly, but by some standards so are most of the superheroes who use a mask to hide their identity.  She's a thief, though she goes out of her way not to steal from anyone who would be truly harmed by the loss.  And as we see in this story she is not against playing Robin Hood pro bono to help those who have been stolen from by the thieves who hide behind the law. 

If one can justify the act of killing as accomplishing the greater good of saving an innocent life, why can't one justify the act of theft if it is used to help the needy?  This is some heady political stuff for an ordinary graphic novel - much less what was meant to be a simple video game tie-in comic!  Such as Tom Taylor's writing that he can weave this discussion into a story that's primarily devoted toward Superman trying to get Catwoman to seek out a Batman in need of a friend.


The wonderful script is backed by some equally amazing artwork.  David Yardin handles the penciling duties once more, while also supplying some of his own inks.  Le Beau Underwood and Jonas Trindade also offer some definition to the artwork with their own inks.  Usually I worry about any book that features more tha one inker but you'd never know it from the finished project.

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Arrow #26 (Web Comic) - A Review

The blurb on Comixology for Arrow #26 asks "So what happened between Tommy and Laurel during the five years that Oliver was presumed dead?"  Well, the answer is nothing shocking.  He bummed off his rich father.  She got her law degree.  And the two of them had a lot of sex, all while insisting that each time would be the last time ever.


The script by Tiffany Williams and Mary Iacono offers no broadening of the characters and no new information.  There's nothing of value here, save to an obsessive fan seeking to build a perfect Arrow timeline that tells us precisely when Laurel earned her law degree.  The artwork by Allan Jefferson and Le Beau Underwood is equally shapeless and undefined.


Arrow #26 is an ultimately unnecessary story that does nothing to advance the larger story of the show and tells us nothing about its' characters that we didn't already know.  If I were to sum it up in one word, I would choose "skippable".  Spend your $1.00 on another web comic.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Arrow #19 (Web Comic) - A Review

Arrow #19 tells a tale that was hinted at in last week's episode but has yet to be expanded upon.  The story focuses upon ASIS agent Slade Wilson and his partner Billy.  Sent to Lian Yu (a.k.a. The Island) to retrieve Yao Fei, the two are shot down and captured by Eddie Fyers and his men.  Tortured for the better part of a year, Slade is finally able to escape the camp with Yao Fei after Billy turns traitor and signs on with Fyers.


The script by series writers Lana Cho and Ben Sokolowski is fast-paced and informative, though we still know nothing of Slade's motivations in seeking out Yao Fei in the first place.  The only real new information we glean from this story is the name of Slade's partner - Billy Wintergreen.  This is an interesting nod to the original comics, where William Wintergreen is Slade Wilson's most loyal companion.
 

Sadly, the artwork by Allan Jefferson and Le Beau Underwood doesn't match the script in quality.  Jefferson's pencils are uneven, with characters losing detail in the middle and far distance.  Underwood's inking is similarly eratic, with some panels featuring objects that are barely outlined, with no detail on the interiors.  Despite that, this issue should be of interest to Deathstroke fans interested in learning more about an alternate-universe take on the character.