You Shall Die By Your Own Evil Creation. Fletcher Hanks. Fantagraphics (2009)

This is a second collection of fascinating and very distinctive comics from Fletcher Hanks. Fletcher Hanks is one of the very few people who have written, pencilled, inked and lettered all his own work and his style is very distinctive regardless of the genre he was working in. For the most part he wrote science fiction, jungle adventure, lumberjack adventure and superhero stories. The lumberjack stories, featuring the adventures of "Big Red McLane, King of the Northwoods" are the most straightforward of the stories in the collection. Big Red fights a variety of gangsters who are trying to take over his business, he deals with them directly and wins by being better with his fists than any of his opponents. They are simple slices of pulp adventure.
When Fletcher Hanks wrote science fiction or jungle adventures he was considerably less constrained and the stories are extraordinary. The formal aspect to the stories is simple and repetitive, danger threatens the explorer "Space Smith", or the inhabitants of the jungle protected by "Fantomah, Mystery Woman of the Jungle", Space Smith escapes or Fantomah extracts some terrible vengeance of the trespassers in the jungle. Within this format Fletcher Hanks manages to create truly staggering villains and extraordinary ideas. The art for the villains is always much more expressive and forceful than it is for the somewhat bland heroes, the villains smoulder with rage, resentment and desire. They also meet the most gruesome and inventive ends.
These stories show the signs of the commercial pressures that were created under, they were intended to be disposable fodder with no intent beyond being a quick and exciting read, forgotten as soon as it was put down. This pressure and lack of real scrutiny meant that Fletcher Hanks could create savage, imaginative stories that are really unlike any others without being caught and stopped. These are wild explosions of imagination, fuelled by powerful passions in Fletcher Hanks and we are very lucky to have them. Editor Paul Karasik has done a superb job with this collection and its companion, I Shall Destroy All The Civilized Planets! Comics archeology at its best.

Borkmann's Point. Hakan Nesser. Macmillan (2006)

A very enjoyable and leisurely crime story. Two people are murdered in the same fashion, most likely by the same person, there is no discernible link between the two victims. Chief Inspector Van Veeteren, on holiday nearby is sent to the small town to assist with the investigation. The local Chief of Police is happy to have the Van Veeteren join the investigation, he is due to retire and would like to have the case closed before he does. A third murder takes place, again apparently the same murder and no clear link to the other victims. The story swirls around quietly as the investigation tries to gain some focus on the crimes, the reveals are nicely done and paced, the finale is thoughtful and satisfying.

The title refers to an investigative theory propounded by an old policeman, that at a certain point in an investigation everything required to solve the cases is already known, a good investigator recognises this and uses good thinking to resolve the case. The story allows the information to accumulate carefully and nicely describes the struggle of the very well realised cast to make sense of what they are seeing.

The plot is well structured, the real pleasure of the book is the cast. They are are well rounded and come to life with armed with a pessimistic professionalism that is not cynical or bitter. This gives the book a low key tone which makes it very easy to read and allows the emotional context for the events to arise naturally and frames the conclusion to excellent effect. A very enjoyable read.

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa. DreamWorks Animation (2008)

A very funny story about four animals from the New York Zoo stranded in Africa. Alex the lion (Ben Stiller), Marty the zebra (Chris Rock), Melman the giraffe (David Schwimmer) and Gloria the hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith) having found themselves washed up on Madagascar in the first film, end up in Africa in this one. The central story line in the film is a very funny take on the Lion King. To a large extent that is just a clothes line on which to hang a multitude of very funny set pieces, visual and verbal gags and the obligatory dose of life lesson sentiment that animated films are required to carry.

Because the four headlines are forced to carry the burden of the sentiment, they are somewhat held back, they are not allowed to be simply funny, they have to be meaningful as well. Ben Stiller and Chris Rock manage this with the lowest cringe factor, Jada Pinkett Smith has sufficient character in her vocal work to keep the sentiment under control, David Schwimmer drowns. He does make the most of the few opportunities he is given, the script is steadfastly stacked against him.

The real joy of the film lie with the supporting cast, where free from any need to be anything other than funny, the film makers make the most of their freedom. The group of penguins are show stealer's, their fast verbal gags and wonderful animated character work are fantastic. They are given very serious competition by a pair of monkeys, the most formidable little old lady in film and Alec Baldwin as the evil lion. They give the film tremendous force and momentum and are tremendously funny. As the lemur king of Madagascar who travels to Africa with the New York quartet, Sacha Baron Cohen is an unmitigated pleasure.

The animation is distinctive, it is nicely cartoony and very mobile and expressive, the expressiveness of the characters in motion is beautiful. Smart, very funny with top class animation, this film is a treat.

The Fart Party. Volume 2. Julia Wertz. Atomic Book Company (2009)

Julia Wertz's talent, humour and superb editing skills make this collection of autobiographical strips a treat. The single biggest obstacle to any autobiographical material in any medium is that most people's lives are barely of interest to themselves let alone to strangers. Turning the small change of an ordinary life into readable web or print content for readers who have no direct connection to the protagonist is very difficult. It takes tremendous skill to edit and shape the material so that it will sustain an audience and at the same time not drift too far from the details of the source.

Julia Wertz manages this task with a cranky charm and understated skill. The art is apparently unsophisticated and suits the single page format very well, while the level of expressiveness achieved shows that the artistic choices are thoughtful and considered. Her graphic persona is lively and very engaging, the true tales of living that are told in the strips are very nicely judged and often sharply, indeed painfully, funny and ring true. The editing skill that Julia Wertz brings to her work is extraordinary, these strips are not self indulgent nor maudlin.

The sections of stick figure travel diaries are just as good as the more finished sections, The writing is superb and the more limited drawing showcases it very effectively and the art itself has a lovely energy and tremendous charm. This is a great volume of strips by a very talented creator.

Blood On The Tracks. Bob Dylan. Columbia (1975) CD.

This is one of the collections of songs that always open up fresh and crisp every time I listen to it. Any collection that opens with Tangled Up In Blues and follows that with a Simple Twist of Fate is announcing big ambitions and possibly setting itself up to fail. The collection goes on to fulfill those ambitions and even exceed them. There is a huge lyrical density in the songs in this collection, not only are there a lot of words, they are complex and twisting. They create a significant burden for the singer and the listener. They are also interesting and intriguing, they take the listener seriously and require attention.

The music partners with the lyrics in a most unusual fashion, they do not frame the lyrics nor do the counterpoint them. The music propels the music, they lift them and add to the meaning and the emotional resonance. There is a genuine partnership at work which is not often achieved. This is where the craft of songwriting blends into art, that mysterious creative force that communicates directly with us.

While I love Shelter from the Storm and think that Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts may be one of my favourite spaghetti western, the stand out song for me is If You See Her Say Hello. There is a impossible yearning in this song, to repair what has long been broken that just catches me. An astonishing achievement.

The Perry Bible Fellowship Almanack. Nicholas Gurewitch. Dark Horse Books (2009)

This collection of strips manages to be extremely funny without ever being humorous. The difference between comedy and humour has never been more starkly illustrated than in the strips written and illustrated by Nicholas Gurewitch. This is savage, biting comedy that will make a reader laugh out loud, it will never make a reader comfortable.

The content of the strips is varied, it is unified by a very bleak sensibility and a wonderful talent for compression. There are usually three or four panels to each strip and the set up and pay off have to be very skillfully composed to be effective within such a small space. The way that the strips impart the information that essentially lies between the panels is extraordinary, each strip has an unseen context that gives it an extra flavour and greater impact.

The figures are frequently white, mostly featureless, and human shaped. While this should drain some of the emotional content from the strips is manages to emphasise it instead which gives the frequently brutal pay-off an greater comedy impact. The strength of the writing is very impressive, the strips are all very tightly written, the ideas are unfurled with a strict economy of words and image and the pacing is crisp.

The layout of the book is excellent, there is a single strip per page so that each one is both of a size that is easy to read and none of the strips compete with each other. This is a great collection by a very talented creator, savage unconformable comedy with a bitter aftertaste that is truly and unforgivably funny.

The Rainbow Orchid. Volume One. Garen Ewing (Writer & Artist). Egmont UK Ltd. (2009)

Excellent, fast paced and very well cast period adventure story. Julius Chancer is an assistant to Sir Alfred Catesby-Grey an Ancient and Historical Researcher. They become involved with a famous silent film actress, Lily Lawerence and her father Lord Reginal Lawerence. Lord Reginald has made a foolish bet with a mysterious businessman Urkaz Grope regarding a flower exhibition. A search for the fabled Rainbow Orchid, a flower mentioned by a Greek philosopher thousand years ago, which may have been located in India much more recently by an acquaintance of Sir Alfred. The plot develops at a steady pace, the reveals are nicely paced and done and the action is fluid, the ending is nicely set up to lead into the next volume.

The art and structure of the book has a deliberately nostalgic feel that adds greatly to the enjoyment and atmosphere of the story. The possibilities period setting, post World War I, have been utilised very well. It is a period when an adventure with trains, boats and the Mysterious East is credible and non-ironic. The plot is nice developed with a variety of threads introduced and promises of further development implied. This gives the story a nice context with the suggestions of greater plots afoot.

The cast are varied and have nicely distinctive personalities and voices, the art is clean and inviting, it suits the period and the style of the story very well. There is a lighthearted sense to the story that is very welcome. This is a very engaging story, well worth a read.