Do Not Siege Walled Cities - 277
Doing what for Moloch?
HOPE YOU’RE WELL
New record is out and we just did a couple record store shows to promote it. Thank you to anyone who came out for those. I typically blow my voice out on underpowered monitors and sound like a badly damaged audio cassette. Didn’t seem to matter a ton to the people in attendance, but not easy to watch on Instagram later!
Go buy the record if you haven’t. Tryna lift ourselves outta poverty on this one.
Played three festivals in the past few weeks and I gotta say, it’s crucial we all take care of our bodies. I was around a few guys who are truly cashed at age 50. Like put them on an ice raft levels of spent. And it sorta hurts to watch, because there but the grace of God go I. Age catches up to all of us, but I’m looking to have at least decent mobility as I round that corner.
WAS THERE A TRAGEDY OF SOME TYPE?
In other news, did comics run out of creators? I ask because I’ve been contacted by publishers the past few weeks and that’s not normal. I have the publishers I enjoy working with and that’s sorta my world. I’m not doing much schmoozing out here. So for me to get hit up means something has happened. Was there a tragic accident? Mass casualty event on a convention party bus?
Whatever the case, thanks for stepping out the way, injured creators. It’s good for my self-esteem. And don’t anyone take this as a humble brag, because these are minor inquiries many years into my career. Some of my peers got offers before they had written a comic!
TEASER
Covers. I’ll just reiterate what I’ve said here before: I’ve never been terribly motivated to play the variant game. But doing a title with beautiful women as the protagonist and antagonist has made it so much easier.
Here’s a detail from an upcoming cover. Artist to be announced. Is the character slightly off-model? Maybe. Is the work supremely fun and that’s the thing that matters? Confirmed.
SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT CRITICISM
I’d only recommend you watch the whole video below if you don’t plan on reading THE VIGILANTE, as it is essentially a point-by-point breakdown of the series. But you should definitely watch it up through the point where it reviews the criticisms of the series.
“It’s a THE PUNISHER rip,” is somewhat valid. At least in the respect that it is true. But anyone who reads periodical comics knows that iteration is the real craft, so just ignore this glassful of haterade.
It’s a “middle-class fantasy” is also true. But, so what? This is the type of criticism I find tiresome and, at its base, anti-art. Because this assumes the writer was manipulating the characters to convey a message, and, uh oh, the critic does not agree with the message. But any writer worth a damn is manipulated by his characters. If there is any message at all it’s because the characters have made ‘logical’ decisions based on their individual moral compasses and impulses and accidently arrived at something you could call a ‘point.’
“The character’s motivations don’t result in efficacious outcomes” is among the dumbest and least self-aware of criticisms. It assumes characters in fiction should be something more (or perhaps less) than human. “The Vigilante’s actions don’t actually stop crime!” Do you hear yourself? This makes you sound like you’ve never interacted with a real-life human being. Nobody does anything because it’s the wisest and most well-advised option. They do it because it makes them feel good or satisfies some, typically, short-term need. The Vigilante wants revenge on the criminal elements of society. Because he wants it. Are you dumb?
I bring this up because comics criticism is broken. Every bit of it I read or watch in 2024 is fixated on meaning rather than aesthetics. How little faith we must have in our ability to clock good work that we must instead worry about the ‘purpose’ of the work. It feels like we’re children talking to children about childish things.
“It’s a middle-class fantasy.”
Oh? Is it good?
“The character’s behavior amounts to a fascist display of power.”
Really? Does it portray it effectively?
A promise I make to the critics in my readership: Your opinion on the meaning of a work is ephemeral nonsense. It’s a baby spitting into the wind. What you take from a thing in one reading or one viewing is worthless non-data. It’s just your lens in the moment and I don’t recall paying for that.
What you can provide is the basics. Is this thing well-constructed? Does it have any aesthetic virtues? Does it accomplish something (even if you don’t like what it accomplishes)?
Lit professors are scum. You were lied to. The artist and the art are what matters. Any effort to center the critic is malignant. Get out of here. You clutter the conversation with ‘takes.’
IS IT GOOD?
There is only one question.
IS IT GOOD?
Just answer the question.
THE BLOOD-BRAIN BARRIER
DC is struggling, according to retailers.
Which is discouraging. Because even if most titles are not for me, the publisher is infinitely more creative than its competition.
So what’s the takeaway? Be less creative?
I honestly don’t know. I guess it’s “be creative in a way people actually like.” But again, this reveals that Marvel -so bland right now that even newborns would reject it- is rewarded by readers for not challenging them on any level. And what can you do with that knowledge?
DC is throwing old home week against the wall. Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee on a Batman title. I saw some real excitement about this online. But I also got a wave of revulsion from creators. “Why don’t we do anything new?” was the sentiment shared in private messages and Discord servers.
Maybe there is nothing new to do. Sales were middling when we let the usual hacks do their thing. And sales were even worse when the new breed of hack was brought in. What now? When Millar suggested bringing in the top talent of yesteryear to goose sales, I was critical of it. That’s not forward-facing. Not growth in the real meaning of the word. It’s mining the past. Which by definition is diminishing returns.
But this will work at least in the short-term. So how does anyone dislodge the idea from the corporate mind? Can’t.
I am concerned. I know these are two creators people love and they’re excited to see new work from them. Ok. I’m happy for them and not tryna shit on anyone or anything. But I’m concerned that the only things the market cares about is old things. Concerned about what that means moving forward. Because can you move forward facing backwards?
Do we want new things at all? And if so, how is the message not reaching the brain? If there is interest in new properties or new approaches, what is the weak link in the creator-to-reader chain stunting the DEMAND?
ABSOLUTE BATMAN drops this month and I’m hoping that’s got some new flavor. How new? Hard to say, as it does still have a man dressed as a bat. But of course I wish it luck and hope it’s good.
Comics call for something new even as we run into old arms. I don’t know what the solution is here. A mix, sure. But month after month publishers like Image offer new work from top talent. Some of it takes and some of it doesn’t. But creator-owned work needs greater buy-in from retailers RIGHT NOW for a title to go BIG. Because the walls of the Big Two well are getting slimy and nothing is making it outta there. What’s the line from The Thing?
Nobody trusts anybody now, and we're all very tired.
WHORING AFTER MOLOCH
Is Moloch a deity or a practice? I have no idea why this was recommended to me, but I enjoyed it. For fans of ancient history, Bible lore, and The Exorcist.
If it gives you any idea how much of my brain is dedicated to comic books, when I heard the definition of a ‘Moloch Problem’ which is “locally optimal solution with broader deleterious effects” I could not help but think of variant covers.
THE REVENANT FOR HYBORIA
Andrew Krahnke’s BLOODRIK is one of those titles that essentially reskins a familiar character and tells a story on the creator’s terms.
Does it need a writer? I dunno. The book is clearly what Krahnke wants it to be, so I guess it’s a matter of what you value. It’s certainly an anecdotal piece of work. So very much in the HEAVY METAL lane in that regard. Is that fulfilling? Your milage is gonna vary. But I will say it may be a more honest thing than shooting for profundity.
And it looks fantastic, with hi-energy figure work, fun layouts, and a few tricks. It’s cool. And I mention it outside of my usual Weekly Media Consumption space because I think it’s an example of how a familiar thing (Conan) can be put through an art-first lens to great effect. Hopefully Dragotta is commandeering the same amount of creative space on that ABSOLUTE BATMAN title.
WEEKLY MEDIA CONSUMPTION
There is not a bad thing to be said about this stylish action film with a strong setting. Other than, “social issues sorta suck. And don’t add anything to personal stories.”
I know this is a controversial topic the past ten years, but I’m gonna need some trust from you that my views aren’t easily filed nor taken wholesale from any pundit. Ready?
Not everything is bigger than you.
Sometimes you really are the hero of your OWN story.
This was a revenge film that midway through becomes about wealth inequality. And it feels… I dunno… not forced because I believe the people involved wanted it to be such. But… perfunctory. Like someone felt this movie “should” only exist if it says something more than one man’s thirst for revenge.
And that’s just not true. It’s never true. The character is the only thing that matters. His or her headspace and those motivations are LITERALLY ALL THAT MATTERS. Making this about anything other than revenge for a personal wrong feels like the part in Marvel movies when someone says, “and that will mean the end of the world!!!”
The personal is not political insofar as our hearts are concerned.
So, is it good? Yeah. It’s good. It’s just more than it needs to be, which is actually less.
And regarding the type of critique I’m offering here: it doesn’t track that this character would put the planet’s sins on his shoulders and become the Christ child for India’s underclass. It doesn’t follow. And that’s a knock.
OK I START A TOUR THIS WEEK
If you’d like to see my band, there’s a strong chance we’ll be in your area over the next 30 days.
Hope you have a productive and rewarding week. Spoke to a young man the other day whose wife was just diagnosed with cancer. Comes for all of us at some point, so stop being petty losers to each other and focus on things that fulfill you. Do for self.