Showing posts with label kevin lau. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kevin lau. Show all posts

Friday, August 5, 2011

TEAM X 2000 #1 - February 1999

Paradox Lost!

Credits: Sean Ruffner & A. Smithee (writers), Kevin Lau (penciler), Sean Parson, Marlo Alquiza, & Cabin Boy (inks), Comicraft (letters), Kevin Tinsley & Sean Ruffner (colors)

Summary: While stranded in space, Bishop and Deathbird pass through a Jump-Gate. They arrive on a future Earth, ruled by the Shi’ar Empress, Alanna. After studying her aunt Deathbird’s journals, Alanna was inspired to kill her parents, Professor Xavier and Lilandra. Now, she rules the Earth, but a group of super-powered revolutionaries, the Morlocks, fights against her. While Deathbird is courted by Alanna, Bishop is recruited by the Morlocks. Deathbird sees through her niece’s deception and turns against her, as the Morlocks destroy a portion of Alanna’s palace. Deathbird decides to set an example by sparing Alanna’s life, inspiring Bishop to kiss her. Later, the Morlocks send the duo through the Jump-Gate and back to their timeline.

Continuity Notes: The team of superheroes (and Dr. Doom) united against the Shi’ar originally went by the name Team X, according to the flashback, which accounts for the comic’s name. What’s never explained is why they’ve now chosen to call themselves “Morlocks.” Regardless, the Morlocks consist of Cable, Wolverine, Falcon (killed in battle), Longshot, Dr. Doom, and Jubilee (who now goes by “Vertigo” in honor of her deceased mentor).

I Love the '90s: The story is set in the faraway future of 2018, giving Xavier and Lilandra enough years to marry and give birth to an eighteen-year-old daughter.

Production Notes: This is a forty-eight page, standard format, one-shot. The co-writer, A. Smithee, is presumably a reference to Alan Smithee, the pseudonym screenwriters used to adopt when they disagreed with changes made to their script.

Review: I remember this one getting a very icy reception, although I think most of the indignation was directed towards the art. Kevin Lau draws in the stereotypical manga style, the one imitated by ten-year-old Pokemon fans everywhere, which didn’t sit well with the traditional X-fanbase. I see their point; Deathbird has never had giant eyes, a pointy noise, pointy mouth, and pointy chin before, nor has she ever looked like a pre-schooler. I don’t know why Lau feels the need to rely on this generic face, but it’s the one he’s attached to all of the female characters; even Jubilee, who’s supposedly aged twenty years by this point. Oddly enough, Lau’s male characters have a heavier Western influence, which means Bishop looks essentially on-model from his previous Uncanny X-Men appearances. When Lau isn’t drawing those creepy-eyed, triangle-nosed females, the art’s fine, but it’s hard to find a page without those weird girls.

Considering the likelihood that this story was heavily rewritten, I was expecting a mess, but it actually hangs together fairly well. Ruffner’s chosen what appears initially to be an arbitrary cast of characters, but as the story goes on, it becomes obvious that in most cases, he’s pairing the Shi’ar Empire with Earth’s avian heroes and villains (Archangel is Alanna’s unwilling consort, Falcon is using his birds as spies against the empire, and Vulture and Sauron are Alanna’s flunkies). That doesn’t explain some of the random cast members, like Longshot (Although he does have hollow bones, like a bird, right?), and Jubilee’s capricious transformation into Vertigo, but it’s hard to complain about randomness in an alternate reality story. That’s just a part of the genre. Ruffner shows some understanding of the characters, and actually gives Bishop more resistance to a relationship with Deathbird than the preceding Uncanny X-Men writers ever did. I still think it was a bad idea, but I’m glad this story has Bishop acknowledging that he really should not be hooking up with a lunatic like this. Making Deathbird realize that she’s partially to blame for this world also provides some justification for her to reform, which is an aspect the earlier Bishop/Deathbird stories didn’t really have.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

X-FORCE #62 – January 1997

Human Nature
Credits: John Dokes (writer), Kevin Lau w/Adam Pollina (pencilers), Andrew Pepoy w/Norman Lee (inkers), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Leeann Clark (colorist)

Summary: Shinobi Shaw has kidnapped Nga Coy Manh and Leon Coy Manh, the siblings of former New Mutants member Karma. Shaw’s scientists are experimenting on them, hoping to find a way to neutralize the mutant x-gene (which will give Shaw power over other mutants, including his father). X-Force infiltrate Shaw’s base and are confronted by his henchmen, Clear-Cut and Mindmeld. While Clear-Cut duels with Shatterstar, Mindmeld forces Domino into Caliban’s mind and Meltdown into Sunspot’s mind. The team is taken into custody, as Domino and Meltdown’s unconscious bodies are taken away for experimentation. After Spiral takes Nga and Leon away, Shaw reveals that he knows Clear-Cut is a double agent. Mindmeld possesses him, which inadvertently returns Domino and Meltdown back to their own bodies. Domino uses the key Clear-Cut slipped her to free the others, and the team soon destroys Shaw’s headquarters and frees Clear-Cut. After escaping, Clear-Cut tells the team that his debt to Cable is paid.

Continuity Notes: Final Fantasy rejects Clear-Cut and Mindmeld appear for the first time. Clear-Cut claims that Shaw didn’t detect the mutant gene in his body because not everyone with special powers is a mutant (he has a magic sword that spontaneously appears, which is apparently his power). I’m assuming that his past with Cable has never been revealed. Mindmeld, who is outright androgynous, can possesses minds and transfer them to other bodies. Domino refers to Mindmeld as a she, but Meltdown refers to her as “Mr. or Mrs.”.

Spiral shows up for literally one panel to take the Coy Manh kids away, which is presumably a setup for the Beast miniseries that’s mentioned on the last page.

Review: Did you want more filler? I know I did. There are a few decent ideas here, but the story’s cluttered with too much nonsense and bad artwork. Kevin Lau returns with more of that generic manga look that gives virtually every character the same face and body type. I have no idea if Mindmeld is supposed to be androgynous, or if Lau just draw an extremely effeminate man and the writer decided to have fun with it. Adam Pollina is credited as co-artist, but none of the actual drawings look like his work. Some of the page layouts and poses on the final pages are definitely his, so I’m assuming he provided some last minute layouts, or very rough breakdowns.

The basic idea of the story has potential; a one issue story that has the cast trapped in one another’s bodies while an inside agent tries to stop Shinobi Shaw is fine. However, there are too many characters in the story, and no one is properly introduced. The mutants Shaw is experimenting on didn’t have to be Karma’s siblings (who were long forgotten at this point, although the story acts as if they’re recurring supporting cast members), unless this story only existed to setup the Beast mini in the first place. Clear-Cut and Mindmeld are treated as if they’re established characters that we’re already familiar with, and Spiral shows up with no explanation of who she is or what her connection to Shaw is supposed to be. Even if you’re already familiar with all of the continuity elements, the story still comes across as needlessly convoluted. This is the stereotypical “too complicated” X-story, the type that critics used for years to condemn the entire line.

Monday, February 9, 2009

X-FORCE #61 – December 1996

Ask Me No More Questions and I’ll Tell You No More Lies
Credits: Jeph Loeb (writer), Kevin Lau (penciler), Andrew Pepoy (inker), Richard Starkings & Comicraft (lettering), Marie Javins (colors)

Summary: Cable and Shatterstar fight Mojo’s troops as the world watches on television. Mojo sends the ambient energy the viewers generate to Mojoworld. During the broadcast, Mojo kills Shatterstar, as X-Force watches in horror. Spiral appears, and says she can save Shatterstar with Longshot and Siryn’s help. They leave, as the rest of X-Force faces Mojo’s arriving army. Spiral blocks Mojo’s signal and teleports Cable and Shatterstar’s body out of Mojo’s broadcast. In “another time”, Longshot, Siryn, Cable, and Shatterstar arrive with Spiral at the Weisman Institute. Siryn leads them to the room of Benjamin Russell, who is now a comatose adult. Cable hands Shatterstar’s body to Longshot, who then transfers Shatterstar’s soul into Benjamin’s body. Shatterstar awakens inside Benjamin’s body, which now has Shatterstar’s facial markings. Mojo suddenly arrives, and Spiral quickly teleports everyone back to Mojoworld. On Longshot’s order, Caliban breaks the television set inside Mojo’s palace. Breaking the connection between Earth and Mojoworld causes Mojo to get lost in the transmission signal. Shatterstar declares that he is whole, as the Gamesmaster looks on and laughs.

Continuity Notes: In the previous issue, Cable and Shatterstar were inside a cartoon show. Now, their bodies are inexplicitly back to normal and they’re fighting in Shatterstar’s future. Cable claims that this isn’t reality, but a recreation.

According to Spiral, Benjamin Russell was “hurled into a coma” when his mutant powers manifested. How exactly he ended up in the Weisman Institute for the Criminally Insane isn’t explained.

Spiral also says that both Shatterstar and Benjamin Russell “mean more than all the world to me”. As far as I know, their connection has never been revealed. She’s helping X-Force defeat Mojo in this issue because she doesn’t want him to grow more powerful. Why she aided Mojo in the previous issue is unexplained.

Siryn is brought along to find Benjamin because of her time undercover at the Weisman Institute. However, she only saw a flash of Benjamin’s face on a computer screen, she never actually met him.

“Huh?” Moments: The entire issue qualifies for this tag, obviously. More specifically, one scene has Cable using his telepathic powers like Ben Kenobi in Star Wars. He has Dr. Weisman repeat “There’s no need to detain you, go on ahead” so the team can easily enter her institute. However, the art depicts Siryn repeating Cable’s line, not Dr. Weisman. Siryn even makes a remark in the next panel that she hopes Cable never uses his telepathy in that manner on her. There’s also the fact that Shatterstar’s body turns into a glowing orb that represents his soul once Longshot touches it, which is a nonsensical element that’s a major plot point.

Creative Differences: Jeph Loeb has apparently contended that this issue was heavily rewritten and is not the story he wanted to tell. It’s also his last issue on the title, which may or may not be a coincidence.

Review: Well, what can you say about this one? It’s largely unreadable, never answers the questions it set out to answer, and doesn’t even make sense in the context of the two issues that preceded it. Plus, the art style abruptly shifts into a full-on manga look, so now the cast suddenly has giant eyes, tiny noses, and pointy chins. I guess there is some significance here, as this is the first time an X-book was drawn in a direct manga style without being filtered through a traditional superhero sensibility. I hated the art in this issue as a teenager, and my opinion is only slightly less negative today, but this issue clearly has bigger problems.

The actual resolution to the Shatterstar/Benjamin Russell mystery is so bungled, even the editors have to cop to it in a future letters column. With all of the goodwill in the world, you can’t make any sense of this. Even if you ignore Shatterstar’s memories of being created in a lab in the future, the explanation of his connection to Benjamin makes no sense. If Shatterstar and Benjamin are the same person, how did they coexist? If we assume that the scenes at the Weisman Institute take place in the past, how do you explain all of Shatterstar’s appearances before his soul joined Benjamin’s body? Is this supposed to create a time loop, like the birth of John Connor in the first Terminator movie, where Shatterstar exists in the future because his soul was placed inside the body of Benjamin Russell in the past? If that’s the case, it’s certainly not explained here. Besides, a time loop would only work if Shatterstar went directly from Benjamin’s hospital room to a hundred years in the future, before he time-traveled to meet X-Force. And even then, you’d have to assume that Shatterstar had some type of amnesia that prevented him from remembering his time with X-Force (the more I think about this, the more I wonder if this actually was the original plan). Assuming that the Weisman Institute scenes don’t take place in the past, then the story makes even less sense. And what exactly is the Gamemaster’s role in all of this? Was Shatterstar really from the future or not? If not, how did Mojo get footage of him a hundred years in the future in the previous issue?

Even if you ignore the confusing continuity elements, you’re still left with a terrible Mojo story. His plan consists of drawing energy from couch potatoes on Earth, and he’s defeated when someone literally unplugs a TV set. The giant army X-Force is supposed to be fighting on Mojoworld appears and disappears in-between panels, and there’s no explanation of how Mojo finds Spiral and the others at the Weisman Institute, even when the story explicitly shows that she severed his broadcast a few pages earlier. It’s a mess all around, and it’s not even enjoyable as a trainwreck. It’s a dreadful storyline that’s deserves every bit of its reputation.

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