Doc Savage Special 2014: Woman of Bronze

   As a big fan of the pulp hero Doc Savage, I sometimes make the mistake of picking up publications featuring the Man of Bronze without really looking over the contents.

   Like with this "Special."

   First of all, there's precious little of Doc in this issue - as the title indicates, it actually focuses on Doc's cousin, Pat Savage.

   Which would be fine, if there was an actual story going on here. Instead, Pat is assigned to babysit a young girl, is attacked by kidnappers, there are several fights, she chases them... you can guess the rest.

   The whole purpose of David F. Walker's story seems to be to find a reason for Pat's shirt to get ripped up (a problem her cousin often faces).

   I realize I'm a geezer, but my first thought as artist Kewber Baal offers up some lovely images of Pat's ample cleavage was: didn't women wear bras in the 1930s?

   As a regular issue of Doc's adventures this issue would be tolerable. Padded out into a "Special" issue, weighing in at $7.99 (for 46 pages), it's just not worth the investment.

   Even if you're a big fan (that should say: especially if you're a fan).

Grade: C-

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Justice, Inc. #4

   OK, I admit I had to look at the cover twice before I "got" it - the mobster in the front is actually the Avenger in disguise - a slap to the face has revealed his disguise. A surprisingly subtle cover by Alex Ross (who tends to go for the big and blustery instead) - but you should know that this scene appears nowhere inside the issue.

   Anyway, this comic features what seems to be an all-out battle between the three members of Justice, Inc. - Doc Savage, The Shadow and The Avenger - as they face two (or is it three?) of their deadliest opponents - John Sunlight, the Voodoo Master and a mysterious and unidentified third member. (if any)

   But it really isn't much of a fight - it's more of a flight - which is pretty disappointing, since these three heroes should be incredibly formidable (even if they're at the beginning of their respective careers).

   The story by Michael Uslan is all set-up, as it lays the groundwork for the final confrontation. The artwork by Giovanni Timpano is quite good, with strong character designs and clever layouts.

   I'm a mark for these pulp heroes, so I give this series lots of leeway for the occasional issue that's a bit off - but here's hoping the next issue is more on-target for this unlikely trio.

Grade: B

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Justice, Inc. #2

   This mash-up of three of the most famous pulp heroes is a bit of an odd mix.

   The story is still being sorted out, but Justice, Inc. features a (somewhat) new origin for The Avenger - one that incorporates The Shadow and Doc Savage.

   We also get some glimpses into the origins of The Shadow, a meeting between Docs past and present, and a quick meeting between a powerful enemy - and Howard Hughes.

   Writer Michael Uslan seems to be having fun working with these icons, and artist Giovanni Timpano is doing a good job capturing the time period (the '30s) and the likenesses of the heroes. His work only suffers in comparison to the amazing cover by Alex Ross.

   Two issues in, and we're still getting the team together - but so far, it's been entertaining to see these different heroes back in action.

Grade: B+

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Justice Inc. #1 (of 6)

   I've been a fan of pulp heroes since I first picked up one of the Bantam paperback reprints of Doc Savage in the early '70s.

   I also got hooked on The Shadow and The Avenger in the same way.

   It was only natural that their adventures should migrate over to comic books - after all, their exploits inspired more than a few of today's most popular heroes.

   But there's always a big problem with bringing those heroes to life in modern-day comics. Do you try to bring them up to the modern-day world - always problematic, because you have to explain with they're still young and vibrant - or do you set the stories in the 1930s and '40s, when they originally appeared?

   Which is to say, will modern audiences accept a story set 60 or 70 years ago?

   For Justice Inc - which is, I believe, the first-ever team-up of all three of these characters - writer Michael Uslan is taking the Solomon approach by using both periods.

   The story begins in the modern era, as Doc Savage (older but somehow still vital despite being, what, 100 years old) embarks on a remarkable experiment in time travel. He succeeds (to a certain degree), and the story reaches back to the '30s, when his career - and that of The Shadow - are just starting.

   The story also includes Richard (The Avenger) Benson, but it's set before the terrible event that changes his life - and his mission - forever.

   The whole thing is a bit confusing in places, but I trust Uslan knows where he's going.

   The art is by Giovanni Timpano, and it's solid stuff, with good depictions of each character. It only suffers when held next to the extraordinary cover by Alex Ross, with iconic depictions of each hero.

   Quibbles aside, it's great to see these characters gathered together and given a worthy opponent. I'm in for the run!

Grade: B+

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Doc Savage #1

   I've written before about my love of the original Doc Savage pulp stories, which were reprinted in a series of Bantam Books paperback (I recently tracked down the last one I needed to complete my collection) - but Doc's track record in comics has been pretty shaky, so I approach each new series with fear in my heart.

   For my money, the only great comics adaptation of the character can be found in the pages of the black-and-white magazine published by Marvel in the '70s, as written by Doug Moench - mostly because they were set in the '30s and followed the classic formula.

   Which brings us to Dynamite's new comic about The Man of Bronze. (You have to love that Steranko-esque cover by Alex Ross.)

   I'm sorry to report that it's not great - but it is pretty good.

   As always, with a premiere issue, there's a lot of ground to cover, characters to introduce, and the story often suffers because of it.

   But give credit to writer Chris Roberson, who manages to pack in all the characters, including Doc and his five "assistants" - Monk, Ham, Renny, Johnny and Long Tom, and establish them as Science Heroes in the '30s.

   They're confronted by a mystery as groups of people in Manhattan inexplicably go insane - and Doc and his friends tackle this in a calm, scientific manner.

   It's a slow-paced story that never quite reaches the level of menace we might want - but it is faithful to the original style of the pulps, and while the story is "done in one" issue, it is obviously part of a bigger story that will spill out over future issues.

   The art by Bilquis Evely is good, with the look of Doc and his men harking back to the original look (more of a regular guy, and not the James Bama "skullcap hair" look)  - it only suffers in comparison to that Alex Ross cover.

   So, a fair start and I'm certainly going to come back to see where it goes from here. I'm not completely sold, but it's definitely a cut above all recent efforts.

Grade: B+

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Doc Savage #15

(Sorry to be running late with today's review, but your pal Chuck is way under the weather today, so this one will be very brief - expect tomorrow's review to be equally late and brief - but the good news is that I'm on the mend.)

I blasted the last issue of Doc Savage as being so bad that I would rather see the series canceled than see it continue like that.

The good news is, this issue's art is much better, as the reins are turned over to the capable hands of Dan Panosian, who delivers lots of solid action and prehistoric creatures.

The story by J.G. Jones is still a bit of a mess, but it shows signs of coming together. Maybe. Great cover by Jones.

Still not quite up to Doc's standards, but this issue is definitely a step in the right direction.

Grade: B-

Doc Savage #14

It's been reported that the Doc Savage comic book is being canceled (presumably they're going to wrap up the ongoing story first), and my reaction is - thank goodness!

It's not that I dislike Doc and his fellow adventurers - quite the contrary, as I have written before.

But I can't bear to see what they've done to him, and at this point canceling the comic is more like putting it out of its misery.

There have been (I think) three stories serialized in this series so far. The first one was terrible (story and art), the second one was a bit better (story and art), and the one running now is the worst yet.

I generally try not to be too negative about the work people do in comics - presumably they work hard and are doing the best they can under (possibly) difficult circumstances.

But wow, is this story terrible. Written by J.G. Jones, it just makes no sense at all. Doc and his allies Renny and Monk are (apparently) in an ocean somewhere near Egypt (I think) - I'm not sure, nor are we ever given an indication where they are in this issue.

They start the issue fighting crocodiles (in the ocean?), they are arrested, thrown in jail, survive an assassination attempt by the world's dumbest bad guys, they hop a jet to follow a woman who has stolen some kind of artifact from them (one the opening page seems to show being dropped into the ocean)... and that's about it.

In other words, I don't know what's going on, and there's no effort made to bring the reader up to date.

The art isn't much help, either. Drawn by Quig Ping Mui, the style is a revival of all the worst elements of the early Image Comics style - poor anatomy, terrible perspective, characters who are indistinguishable from each other (why do Renny and Johnny both have mohawk haircuts?) - you get the idea.

It's like this: if DC can't do a better job creating adventures for Doc Savage, I'd prefer they didn't try. Let's leave it to a creative team who has a handle on the character and the elements of basic storytelling.

We're not getting that here.

Grade: D

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First Wave #6 (of 6)

I hate it when a series I like is canceled.

But I can't really say that about First Wave. I like the characters involved, and this story was good, the art was terrific - but it took far too long to get through it.

The first issue of this six-issue series was published a year ago, and given the long gap between issues, when I opened this final chapter I realized that I had almost no memory of the five previous issues - and that's always a bad sign.

But the concept was strong. The idea was to lump the pulp characters (Doc Savage, The Avenger) and other non-super-powered DC characters (Batman, Rima, The Spirit, The Blackhawks) into an alternate reality more in tune with their pulp origins.

This story included elements from early Doc Savage stories - the country Hidalgo and his recurring foe, John Sunlight - and added in giant robots, dinosaurs, a hidden city.

It was a worthy effort, but it all ends up in a hodge-podge of fights, explosions and swordplay.

I think this would have worked better if it had been published monthly - but now the line has apparently been canceled, so we'll have to wait for the next incarnation of these classic characters (except for Batman, natch).

I really like the art by Rags Morales (with Rick Bryant and Phil Winslade inking) - his characters are powerful, kinetic and sharply sculpted.

It's a shame this series (and the First Wave line) didn't catch on - it was a worthy effort at giving these characters a proper vehicle for their adventures. Hopefully the next attempt will be more successful.

Grade: B-

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Doc Savage #6

As I'm mentioned in previous reviews, I've been disappointed in DC's First Wave version of Doc Savage.

The first story arc was a mess, and the art was terribly uninspired (to put it nicely).

But with this issue, I feel a surge of hope.

For one thing, the art by Nik Klein is much more stylish and dynamic - Doc is a powerful figure here, often intense - and while his aides are still not quite as distinctive as I'd like, at least I can easily tell them apart.

The story by Ivan Brandon and Brian Azzarello is also a great improvement, as Doc is drawn into a mystery in the Middle East. A strange, child-like duo send a cryptic mystery to the U.S. Government, but is it a threat or a promise of something more?

Against his wishes, Doc is drawn into the mystery and makes his way to a strange land filled with danger and scientific miracles.

It really does "feel" more like a pulp adventure, and while there are a few improbable events, at least it's moving at a rapid pace and it has the promise of more pulp-style storytelling.

Here's hoping!

Oh, and there's an Avenger back-up in this issue that's quite good, too. Up until this issue, the back-up was the best reason to buy the book. This time, they're both enjoyable.

Grade: A-

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Doc Savage #1

Let me say that I'm thrilled to see Doc Savage back in publication, since I've long been a fan of his pulp adventures.

And we suddenly have a wealth of Doc comics, as the Man of Bronze also stars in the First Wave mini-series.

For those not familiar with the character, Doc is Dr. Clark Savage, Jr., the original "superman." He has no special powers, but through a lifetime of training he has honed his body and mind to near-perfection, and devotes his efforts to helping those in need, which often brings him up against fantastic menaces and powerful foes.

He's aided by his five assistants - Ham (an attorney), Monk (a chemist), Renny (an engineer), Long Tom (an electrical engineer) and Johnny (an archaeologist).

DC is not creating these as period pieces, but the creative team is going the extra mile to place the series in its own reality (much like Batman: The Animated Series did), where you can easily interpret the adventures as being modern - or set in a bygone age.

The story by Paul Malmont captures that pulp feel, as the story starts with an attack on Doc and accelerates from there as Doc's allies and his headquarters suffer a devastating assault from the sky.

The only thing about this comic that didn't work for me was Howard Porter's art - which is surprising, since I really liked his work on Justice League. But here his work seems thin in places, and the faces of the characters just seem too simple. Plus, I don't care for the visualization of Doc's aides - Monk just looks like another guy in a hat, instead of having simian features. Maybe it's just that I have my own pictures of the team in my head, and the art is different.

Still, complaints about the art aside, I enjoyed this issue and look forward to further adventures.

The issue also includes a backup feature starring The Avenger (no relation to Marvel's super-team), who heads up the team known as Justice, Inc.

It's a short feature written by Jason Starr with some excellent art by Scotty Hampton - and while it's too early to tell much about it, so far the story's off to a good start.

Grade: B+

First Wave #1 (of 6)

I should admit right up front that I'm a big Doc Savage fan.

He's had something of a checkered career in comics. I wasn't around for his '40s adventures, but in the early '70s Marvel gave him his own title, which was decent though not exceptional. The stories were mostly adaptations of the original novels.

The most successful Doc Savage comic (in my opinion, natch), could be found in the black-and-white magazines Marvel published after canceling the color comic. These were original stories written by Doug Moench, and they were very good indeed.

Then Doc reappeared years later in a solid run at DC Comics. Aside from a few appearances at some independent publishers, Doc's been pretty quiet - until now.

DC is relaunching that character as part of a First Wave series that will apparently fold a number of non-superpowered characters into its own, separate reality - which is, I must say, a terrific idea.

Especially since Doc Savage is the real inspiration for many of today's superheros - especially Superman.

I first saw the Man of Bronze on the cover of paperbacks in newsstands and book stores. I was attracted by the amazing James Bama art on the covers, and I liked the distinctive logo.

Finally, sometime around 1970 I gave in and picked up this paperback - "The Man Who Shook The Earth," the 43rd in the series of Bantam Book reprints.

At the time, I had no idea it was a reprint (though it's clearly labeled in the indicia as being originally published in 1934). It became obvious when I hit references I didn't understand, like cars with running boards and touring cars. My Dad had to explain about how cars had changed in 40 years.

By the time I reached the end of the book, I was sold - it was packed with adventure, danger, beautiful women, super-science, a group of colorful characters who worked with Doc, and the title character himself, an incredibly capable man who dedicated his life to helping others.

I spent years tracking down the rest of the Doc Savage books (quite a trick in those pre-Internet days), and my bookshelf is lined with that collection today (though I am still missing the last of the double volumes).

Which brings us back to the First Wave, which I have to mark down as a promising start. The art by Rags Morales is quite good - dynamic and heroic, and he evokes a period without being specific.

The story by Brian Azzarello is good, and he seems to be drawing on Doc's first adventure while incorporating other characters, most notably Will Eisner's Spirit, who has an odd supporting role here.

The only real complaint is that the issue is almost all setup, with little in the way of real action sequences. For pulp characters, it's all about moving the story forward at top speed, and this story's still stuck in first gear.

Hopefully it'll pick up speed in the issues ahead. It's a decent start, and I love the characters involved (especially the surprise appearance at the end), so I'll be anxiously following along.

Grade: B+

Batman - Doc Savage Special #1 (One Shot)

I should admit right up front that I've been a fan of Doc Savage for a long time.

When I was a teenager I started picking up the Bantam paperbacks, fascinated by those amazing painted covers by James Bama. Over the years I managed to track down all of them except for that last double novel, #125, which tends to go for ridiculous sums. (If anyone has a copy they'd like to sell, drop me a line.)

Doc is the prototype for Superman, of course (and Batman owes him a dinner, too). Created in the early '30s, Clark Savage, Jr. has trained his body and mind to near-perfection. With his five companions, each of whom has a specific skill, he roams the world, having adventures, solving mysteries and fighting evil. Did I mention that he has a Fortress of Solitude at the North Pole?

Doc has made the move over to comic books more than once, of course, with varying degrees of success. I thought the Doug Moench-written black-and-white magazines from Marvel were good fun, and DC had a decent run later on.

Happily, he's now back and appearing in a new line of pulp-based comics from DC called First Wave.

Sadly, the issue is all setup and little story. It's set in a unique world where there are apparently no superpowers, but plenty of colorful characters. It also seems to be set in a unique world - it's not the '30s or '40s, but it doesn't quite seem modern, either, despite the inclusion of cell phones and tape recorders. I'm not sure how I feel about that - we'll have to see how it pans out.

Here we meet a new Batman, one who carries pistols (just like a certain other shadowy pulp hero) and is just starting on his crime-fighting career, operating outside the law.

The Doc Savage we meet is very much in the style of the original - a reluctant celebrity who is a virtual force of nature. The scenes where he and Batman tangle are a treat - but sadly brief.

I like Phil Noto's art, although it's almost too clean for this kind of pulpish adventure. But it is creative and I like his visualization for both Doc and Batman.

It's the story that doesn't quite deliver - it's all just an excuse to have the two title characters meet. I was hoping for more than a mundane murder mystery.

Of course, this is just the beginning of the First Wave series, and the sketches in the back of the book hold a lot of promise for future stories. Hopefully things will get bigger and bolder from here.

Or at least pulpier.

Grade: B-