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We've been reviewing quite a number of comics, trade paperbacks, and original graphic novels on the Comics boards lately. Judd Winick's Pedro and Me is one of the best of these, at least according to Dave's review:
Judd Winick has been steadily building a career for himself in underground comics, and he's currently the writer of DC's Green Lantern title, but he is probably still better known to the public at large as That Guy From The Real World. He combines the two "careers", as it were, in Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss, and What I Learned, the story of his friendship with fellow castmates Pedro Zamora and Pam Ling. Since Pedro died of AIDS shortly after the San Francisco season of the show finished production, this had the potential to fall into the trap of being A Very Special Comic, but it doesn't.
Part of the reason is that Winick is a really good writer. Because the book relies heavily on narration and because so much of the story is about relationships and communication, the dialogue has to carry the book a great deal, and Winick is very good at that. He has to cover a wide time frame in one book, so he has to get the personalities of the main characters across in a few vignettes, and he does. The relationship between Pedro and Judd, for example, comes across as very real -- they seem like guys that became close buddies in a hurry. And they both have great wit and humor, which comes across clearly in the dialogue and narration. At the same time, the conversations between Judd and Pam as Pedro's death draws nearer are very human, emotional without becoming cloying or overly dramatic. (And I just noticed I seem to be using "Judd" to refer to Judd Winick as a character in the story and "Winick" to refer to Judd Winick as the writer/artist of this book. I'm going to take that as a sign of how well the writer/artist got me to connect with the people in the book.)
I don't want to take away from Winick's skill as an artist, though. He definitely has a cartoony style that has its roots in the newspaper strips he admired and aspired to draw, but it works well at showing emotion and expression on people's faces. His facial expressions, in particular, are outstanding, and while the art is for the most part straightforward, he does take advantage of the comic form to illustrate some of the thoughts and images he had in his head at the beginning of his Real World experience -- I particularly liked his visualization of his fear that he'd be living with "HIV with legs".
This is not just a book for comics fans, although it's a good example of the autobiographical comic. This is a book for anybody who likes to read about real people in circumstances we all pray we never have to face.
We tend to pay a lot of attention to folks who may be stepping into comics for the first time, but Brian Thomer wanted to call attention to books that appeal to longtime followers of the artform in the Good Comics No Matter Who You Are topic:
Alright we've already discussed good comics for first time comic readers, but what about the rest of us, "the veterans?" We like good comics too, well at least I do. So here's my pick:
The JSA. Damn good book. I won't lie, it's got some confusing history, but hell not many books don't these days. And the creative team is doing one hell of a job of clearing that history up, as well as, telling some damn good new stories. So those continuity problems pale in comparison to the rest of the great stuff in the book. It's got old classic characters, new takes on old classics, and some all around new characters, so it's got something for everyone. And well if you're like me, you like when things don't always go honky dory for the good guys, and it doesn't here. Not that it's a big depressing book mind you. Quite the opposite actually, the team's like a big family, so when the bad stuff does go down they have the people closest to them in the world right there to help them through it. So, hey, go pick yourself up a copy.
Speaking of people new to comics, BJ tried to explain Dragon Ball Z on the Good Comics Reading If You've Never Read Comics Before topic, but then our heads started to explode -- thanks for the attempt, though!
Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z are also great comics. Now you might be saying "This guy reads Dragon Ball? What a loser." You can't be more wrong. True Akira Toriyama worte the comic long ago, but Viz Comics is reprinting them and they are great. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, Dragon Ball is about a boy with a tail named Goku. Found by an old man named Son Gohan, Goku begins a search for mystical balls called (you guessed it) Dragon Balls. When all seven are gathered, the Eternal Dragon is summoned and grants the person one wish. Dragon Ball is mostly comedic with some seriousness. Dragon Ball Z takes place about 5 years after Dragon Ball and follows Goku and his friends through more serious adventures. Goku is found out to be from an alien race known as Saiyans. Being only one of the few left, his brother comes to recruit him in order to help destroy earth and conquer other planets. Once he refuses, he gets into a battle and... well, you'll just have to read it for yourself. Or watch it on Cartoon Network during the Toonami block at 5:00 pm EST on the weekdays, 12:30 am weekdays, and 11:00 am (I think) on Saturdays. Believe me, it is a great series.
To find a comics store near you, check out The Master List.
