The Best of Milligan & McCarthy review

This is a great collection from Dark Horse. Peter Milligan and Brendan McCarthy make up one of the best long-time collaborations in all of comics. They’re not as famous as other creative teams such as Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon or Joss Whedon and John Cassaday or Stan Lee and Jack Kirby but some people would argue they should be. I’m not entirely convinced of that but The Best of Milligan & McCarthy sure makes a strong argument for it. I think the collection isn’t as much a collection of the best as much as it’s the most comprehensive collection of the creative team’s work to date. That’s the reason I bought this collection because it collects some very hard to find and out of print works from this British duo. I’ve enjoyed they work separately before but this, I think, is the first time I read one of their comics-by-collaboration.

One of the better stories collected in this volume is Paradax!. The story is quite simple; a young unemployed man finds a superhero costume in a book. When he wears the costume he discovers that he has gained the ability to walk through wall and move his body through objects. Instead of deciding out of the blue that he will fight crime and uphold justice with the help of his new powers, he decides to do something altogether different: get famous. Paradax! is an honest satire of the superhero job and it revels it’s in hipster attitude and the slacker ways in which its hero prances around town and occasionally fights crime. I quite like McCarthy’s art here. The clear line work is very effective when combined with the bright, day glow colouring. Unlike other more famous comics of the late eighties, the colours aren’t dark and muddy; they’re very bright, boldly announcing the arrival of a new hero on the streets. It’s a shame that he’s not really up to much good but he doesn’t have to. There aren’t any rules governing the actions of people who stumble upon magic costumes. All Al Cooper really wants to do is drink beer, have sex with girlfriend and strike it big in celebrity circles.

Hands down my favourite comic in The Best of Milligan & McCarthy is Rogan Gosh. It’s a masterpiece. Rogan Gosh presents the reader with multiple paths than can lead to transcendence or maybe it’s the illusion of multiple paths as there is only one true way to achieve enlightenment. Some will chose to pursue other things in life, such as love and caring for the fellow man. Others will foolishly be tricked into thinking that a life spent in an extended dream state is the same thing as enlightenment. I could go on and give you a synopsis of Rogan Gosh but that would be pointless for me and you both. Besides, it would sound like gibberish because Rogan Gosh masquerades as a comic that isn’t really about anything beyond a collage of Indian imagery and bright colours. In truth, it’s a comic that is as rich and complex as the best curry dishes. It seemingly combines a few different storylines that are all really the same stories from different dimensions (reality, dreamscape, a combination of the two, etc), all of them occurring simultaneously, commenting and contrasting with each other to give the reader a single story that echoes beyond the panels with each additional passing page.

I liked to you. I’ll attempt a synopsis. It begins with Rudyard Kipling who is in India. Having just experience a difficult time in his life and amassing bad karma, he decides to find the legendary Rogan Gosh (the man, not the dish). Rogan Gosh is a Karmanaut, a type of person who specializes in getting rid of bad karma. Kipling visits an opium house because Rogan Gosh does not live is the physical world. Meanwhile, a young man is trying to order a meal at a curry house only to end up decapitated along with his waiter. The two are now bound for the spiritual plane where they embark on a journey of enlightenment. Rogan Gosh is trick bed the god of lies and his most recent body is growing old. He patiently awaits his next reincarnation while also trying to save himself from the curse of Kali. There’s also a pretty heart-warming story of a broken love that learns to heal but that’s not all. There are even more things happening within the pages of Rogan Gosh. It’s about many things and about nothing. Rogan Gosh is best described as an experience. They weren’t just being boastful with the title; this is truly the best of Milligan and McCarthy.

The last major work included in this collection is Skin. Skin had a rather controversial publication history. It tells the story of Martin Atchison, a skinhead during the 70s in England. Martin was born with severe birth defects after his mother was poisoned because she took thalidomide to relieve her morning sickness during her pregnancy. The story is pretty straightforward, recounting a regular day in Martin’s life and his interaction with the group of skinheads he hangs out with. The story spirals downwards after he experiences a traumatic series of events highlighting how he will never lead a normal life because of his disability. It’s violent, rude and kind of a dumb comic but it’s intentionally dumb, hiding a smarter narrative and a poignant critique of larger corporations taking advantage of consumers.

The art seems regressive compared to the artwork of others comics McCarthy’s illustrated. It’s obviously intentional and I believe it was done to make the art look as dumb as the story. It’s as if McCarthy is trying to show us how Martin views the world. Everything looks a bit strange because Martin sees the world differently than others. The colouring by Carol Swain makes everything look poisoned or sick which again alludes to Martin’s birth defects. The sickly colours are applied in a brush stroke pattern reminiscent of wax crayons. It’s a very peculiar look but it works in the context of the story. Much like in Paradax!, what makes this comic good, what makes it memorable, is how brutally honest Milligan and McCarthy are with their storytelling. They present their critiques of large corporations and wealthy fat casts in an unapologetic way which isn’t only refreshing, it’s also crucial to the quality of the comic and the message of the story.

The Best of Milligan & McCarthy is a fascinating comic. It’s especially interesting if you’re familiar with the history of England during the eighties. Milligan and McCarthy really play up the satire in aloud of these comics. They really get that feel of oppression of youth and labourers and as significant as Margaret Thatcher’s time as Prime Minister has influenced culture during and after her time in office for the Vertigo line of American comics, it’s even more obvious in this collection. There is a raw energy to the comics and the satire reacts to what then was recent and immediate changes taking place in the country. These comics in this collection, which includes other shorter and less impressive works, aren’t just a visual feast, powerful satire of politics and superhero comics and ground-breaking stories, they’re all of these things combined. It’s not often that you get a chance to read comics that are historically important that also happen to be good comics and some are event great (Rogan Gosh). If you like any of these things, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of this book. 

Judge Dredd: The Garth Ennis Collection review

I keep forgetting Dredd is American.

I like these Judge Dredd collections that focus on a particular writer. I have one of the Mark Millar and Grant Morrison collections. I quite liked it. Have they done the same for artists? I know IDW published a big hardcover collection of Brian Bolland’s Judge Dredd work but do any others exist? It would be interesting to find out. I think it’s a good idea to collect Judge Dredd comics in this way since, to my knowledge, there isn’t a very large amount of longer storylines but I could be very wrong. Judge Dredd’s been published weekly since 1977! No matter, there is a Garth Ennis collection and I’m very pleased to own it.  

Fans of Ennis are sure to like some stories in here but not all. “Emerald Isle” and “When Irish Pies Are Smiling” most resemble the style of writing Ennis has become known for. There are severed body parts, dark humour, death by blunt trauma to the head, plenty of Irish flavour, interesting commentary on a variety of subjects and, even so early in his career, a pretty good grasp for dialogue.

This collect does offer a nice variety of stories. The stories here differ in tone, in artistic styles and, somewhat unfortunately, in quality. Like all anthology, and don’t be fooled, this is essentially what this is, there will be good stories and there will be bad stories. Some of these I didn’t like because of the art, one in particular I thought was borderline terrible, “Almighty Dredd” in which a some lunatics create the Church of Dredd and go about sacrificing people Dredd so that he can transform Mega City One into a crime free paradise. The story itself isn’t great but it does have a few humorous panels. It’s the art that really brings this down to level of throwaway story.

There are a few handfuls of well executed stories that don’t have much weigh to them once you’ve turned the last page. “Snow Storm” is a good standalone story that is well executed but I’m certain I’ll forget all about it once I’m done writing this review. Another standalone, “First of Many” leaves a more lasting impression because of the story being told. Other stories, like “Emerald Isle”, are fun and representative of Ennis as a writer. This collection opens with “Emerald Isle” and it has many of the Ennis staples, including long-time collaborator Steve Dillon who I must say has been a pro from the very start. I remember the first time I saw his art I didn’t have any strong feelings for it, whether good or bad. Over time I’ve come to absolutely love it. I have to look long and hard to find art by Dillon I don’t enjoy. As much as I enjoy the showcase of artists in most 2000 AD/Rebellion collections I’ve purchased, I wish this book had more stories drawn by Dillon.

Death by potato!

I got a little off track there. “Emerald Isle”, its good and fans of Ennis will enjoy it. Judge Dredd travels to the Emerald Isle which is, you’ve guessed it, the Ireland of the future. Ireland has become a theme park filled with Irish stereotypes and the locals hate it. Ennis introduces an Irish Judge and he has some nice back and forth happen between him and Dredd. This is probably one of the funnier stories in this collection and I’ll resist the temptation to share some of the better jokes with you here. It was a great way to start the collection and it’s also one of Ennis’s earlier Dredd stories from what I read online. Pretty great start for a writer who was still very green at the time this story was published.

Ennis’s usual dark and gross sense of humour is present nearly throughout. Only two stories in this collection try for a more serious tone.  The first one doesn’t work, “A Magic Place”. Its and unsuccessful mix of Ennis’s strange humour (there is character called the Blender who, uh, blends people to death) and a romantic story that is more serious in tone. I find serious stories can be difficult to pull off as a Judge Dredd, particularly so when the focus isn’t really on Dredd or even the romantic couple and the Blender’s presence just seems to confuse the whole thing. I guess what this story really lacks is focus.  Another reason why this story doesn’t work well is the artistic shift. The first chapter is expertly drawn by Steve Dillon but the remaining two are by Simon Coleby who’s art is blocky but still retains a cartoonish that wasn’t suited the story Ennis was telling. Still, I did appreciate the effort.

 

A young Dredd making his first arrest.

The other more serious story is “Raider”. It’s a science fiction noir tale set in Mega City One and staring a former Judge. Raider actually went to the academy at the same time as Dredd! Ennis gives us a story of what a man does after he voluntarily leaves the force. The art and the writing are very moody. I didn’t expect this from Ennis and I’m very pleased to have discovered this little story. It packs a swift, but long lasting, emotional punch and it’s the gem of this collection despite being the least representative of Ennis’s body of work.  

If you’re a fan of Ellis you’re sure to find something to like in this collection. You might be a bit put off by some of the growing pains. This is, after all, a collection of some of his earlier work not only on Judge Dredd, but also in comics. Fans of Judge Dredd may have already read some of these stories in other 2000 AD/Rebellion collections but there are some undeniable classic Dredd stories here. Make sure you don’t own these stories in another trade before you go out and buy this comic. If your Judge Dredd collection is just starting off, like mine, this would make a nice addition, particularly if you like Garth Ennis’s style. It’s on full display here, growing pains and all.

Hondo-City Law review

I’ve never read anything by Robbie Morrison but I’m glad I’ve read this. I’ve been a Judge Dredd fan for a short while now, ever since I picked up The Complete Judge Dredd Case Files volume 1 which is a huge black and white collection of the earliest Judge Dredd stories. It’s a fascinating read, I really enjoyed it. The dollar per page ratio is excellent and made even better by the talent of the artists involved and the fact that it’s a slab of comic history. It was also with that collection that I discovered the writing of John Wagner, co-creator of Judge Dredd. Anyway, as a whole this also served as my introduction to 2000 AD (I was going to say to British comics but I honestly don’t think I’ve read any titles outside of 2000 AD). Since then I’ve read Nemesis, D.R. and Quinch, the Judge Death collection and a few others I can’t think of because they’re packed away in boxes and I can’t see them.

I’ve picked up smaller Dredd collections and in one of the stories by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar there were Judge from other Mega Cities around the world! What?! Cool! Then I saw this collection at my local comic shop featuring Judges from Hondo-City with an excellent cover by Frank Quitely and inside art by Quitely, Andy Clarke and Neil Googe. For a reason unknown I didn’t pick it up but it’s been in the back of my head ever since and finally I ordered it. As always, it sat on my shelf for a little while and I’ve finally read it. It was good and the art was very good.  

The first story is written by John Wagner and painted (I think) by Colin MacNeil and they introduces Hondo-City and their city Judges. The story is mostly forgettable except for the fact that it’s narrated in broken English which seems like a poor decision on Wagner’s part.

The rest of the stories are written by Morrison. The second and third are drawn by Frank Quitely and the art is excellent. Again, the story is more interesting than the one by Wagner. Morrison and Quitely introduce Judge Shimura and Inaba, a Judge in training. By the end of this first story Shimura becomes a ronin and Inaba becomes the newest Hondo-City Judge. The third story is about models who are also criminal and Judge Inaba takes them down. The most noteworthy elements of these stories is the art by Frank Quitely. Don’t get me wrong, Morrison’s stories are good and well scripted but the art is just that excellent.

The next two stories are drawn by Andy Clarke who has a very clean and very detailed art style. His style my even be too detailed since some of the characters looked stiff in certain panels. It’s not simply scratchy lines to give the illusion of details though, its actual detail. I know this is a poor appreciation of his art but I’m not quite sure how else to describe it. It’s very good, though, so focus on that.

Neil Googe draws the last story. It’s probably Morrison’s weakest story in the collection. It has robots, stuff blowing up, and good times. Googe draws it very well though. I’m not a big fan of his style. I’ve only read one other book drawn by him, Welcome to Tranquility written by Gail Simone, but if I remember correctly his art was not nearly as cartoony and manga inspired as it is here. Not’s not a bad thing though, he art styles fits for a story set in Hondo-City especially because he doesn’t go over the top with it. It’s clean and coloured quite brightly which gives the whole thing a bouncy feeling.

Hondo-City Law does present a very nice variety of art styles and panel presentation though, which was quite nice to see. Since most of the stories are written by Morrison, you get to see just how much impact an artist has. The differences found in the art of Quitely, Clarke and Googe is fascinating. I have my favourites but they are all worthy of praise.

I have to talk about Quitely’s art for a moment. He’s one of the best comic artist and there are two reasons that are demonstrated in two stories he illustrates. He’s so incredibly dynamic. His characters look fluid and fleshy in a heightened reality sort of way. Some people do not like this fleshy look but I do. His characters look like they are in movement and it’s nice to see such freedom of movement in sequential storytelling because we see too much stiff poses and pin up type are in genre comics. It’s an action comic and Quitely’s art reflects that. He’s also one of the best artists when it comes to integrating sound effects on the page. It’s not just slapped on; it’s part of the art. It’s integrated directly into the action. There are some strong visual examples of that here in his early work. Unfortunately, it’s not something I’ve seen much of in his mid to late nineties work in American comics. The only other book I can remember him doing this is in is the opening arc of Batman and/& Robin (confirm!) which is a shame because I can’t think of any other artist that does it half as well.

The execution of each story is very good, especially those drawn by Quitely and Clarke. The most interesting part of this collection is the discovery and the development of Hondo-City and its characters, specifically Inaba and Shimura. It’s not a Judge Dredd collection, past the first story the focus is not on him though he is present in nearly every story. Inaba is a really interesting character and I’d like to read more stories about her in the future. Shimura is also interesting and they have a very interesting dynamic. Morrison had a good idea to develop the mythos of Hondo-City and its Judges  and to stay away from Judge Dredd who’s already been in hundreds (probably more like thousands) of stories by now.