Captain Britain and MI13 – Secret Invasion

Leonard Kirk and Paul Cornell

Captain Britain has a very serious pedigree. Created by Herb Trimpe and Chris Claremont, luminaries such as Jamie Delano and the legendary Alan Moore have since had a go at this British equivalent to Captain America. In saying that, magic, mysticism and the matter of Britain all feature strongly, compared to the simpler Captain America.

I was unsure what to expect from Cornell. Here he is starting a new superhero comic, and straight away the comic is part of a huge Marvel event, known as Secret Invasion, where the Skrull – a shape shifting alien race – are, essentially, invading. Not exactly the perfect start to a new title and I was a little off put by the way the media captured the hook of Gordon Brown appearing in the comic. All making me a bit wary.

I should not have been concerned. Cornell states that 'he'd become a byword for whimsy and I wanted to make him a straightforward hero again.' This first collection offers the four issues that make up the war being fought in the UK. We are pitched straight into battle, and the magical and mythical are brought to life quite quickly, it’s like a sudden submergence into the mythology around Captain Britain, and yet, it’s so fast paced one doesn't realise you have been through a quick 101 session.

It’s also not really just Captain Britain, Cornell has brought together a team, as all British Super Heroes are now under the authority of MI13, and he eschews the well-trodden route of naming the comic Excalibur, in that for many years the X-men related Super Hero Team emanating from Britain have always been known as such.

He has an interesting variety of characters, returning with Black Knight and Spitfire, while also introducing Faiza a Muslim female character, who is also a doctor and fights in a non-harming way. While updating the setting to reflect a modern Britain, Excalibur, Merlin and the magical world of Avalon all feature, and in these four short episodes, Captain Britain is definitely reinvented, in more ways than just his costume. An excellent return.

Batman: The Killing Joke - 20th Anniversary Edition

Alan Moore and Brian Bolland.

The Killing Joke is an interesting book. The two creators who worked on it are considered to be the best in their respective field. The comic sold immensely well and was hugely popular with readers, who felt it was a very insightful and mature look at the relationship between the two main protagonists in a mythology spanning at the time nearly fifty years.

This edition, hard back and recoloured by Bolland himself (the original was coloured by Watchmen colourist John Higgins), also has an additional introduction and short story.

Interestingly, it’s as if bad feeling rolls down hill, Moore has described it thus; 'I mean, Brian [Bolland] did a wonderful job on the art but I don't think it's a very good book. It's not saying anything very interesting.' and then Bolland himself expressed dissatisfaction with the comic in his introduction to an Alan Moore DC collection, saying 'the end result wasn't quite what I'd hoped', resulting in the recolouring one surmises.

Despite the creators’ lack of confidence in the story, it provides in flashbacks a very adept origin, while also giving the reader an excellent short story. The Joker sets out to give Commissioner Gordon a 'Bad Day' that will drive him over the edge and into insanity, in an attempt to prove that even the most upstanding citizen can be driven insane. Its gritty stuff, as Gordon's daughter is shot and paralysed, and then, while caged, Gordon is forced to endure images of his semi naked daughter in pain.

Subsequently, the interaction between the Joker, who wishes to draw parallels between his own insanity and the unhinged element in a man who dresses as a Bat, who he also reckons had a Bad Day, is quite brilliant, ending in a Joke.

This is still a hugely influential work, and has been cited as such by the likes of Tim Burton and Christopher Nolan, and when the Oscar winning Heath Ledger was asked whether a comic had been given to him to research the character for his role in The Dark Knight, he responded 'The Killing Joke was the one that was handed to me. I think it’s going to be the beginning of The Joker. I guess that book explains a little bit of where he’s from but not too much.'

This edition is neat and tidy, the colouring, introduction and extra short story are all nice editions, although in comparison with the original, one can find reasons to favour either rendition.

The story is key here, and despite the writers disquiet, it is quite excellent.

Judge Dredd Mandroid

By John Wagner, Kev Walker, Simon Coleby and Carl Critchlow

Mandroid shines a light onto a different side of the night stick wielding, authoritarian Judge Dredd.
We see some doubt both in the system and in his usual knack for spotting a criminal creep into his usual flawless character. This collection gather together two distinct chapters.

In the first we meet a veteran of the Space Corps, Sgt Nate Slaughterhouse who was mortally wounded and subsequently was saved by his wife and commanding officer. The life he is left with is soul-destroying. Being emasculated and grafted to a cyborg combat body, known as a Mandroid, leaves him feeling sub-human.

His depression and self pitying mindset result in his leaving the Corps to return to Mega City with his wife and son – a serious culture shock. He soon becomes a victim of circumstances, and in the crime filled science fictional city, he completely fails to throw off his depression. It effects his marriage and, ultimately, his own behaviour results in a feud with the mob and the destruction of his family. He sees that he himself has been the cause of this misfortune and sets out to commit acts of vigilantism.

Throughout this story, it is the way he spar's and interacts, even briefly, with Dredd which really allows the reader to get into his head. Dredd's reckoning of the situation (he is not unsympathetic and in actual fact is seen as caring, to a degree) also provides an insight into his character.

In the second part, Nate is broken out of jail, and the reanimated corpse of his wife is used to manipulate and utilise the power that Nate or rather the cyborg killing machine has to offer, in an attempt by another dissatisfied veteran, General Trig, to overthrow the judges themselves.
Mind play is important in this part of the story but not quite as strongly as in the first part. This is a fine example of mature storytelling, in one quick volume.

To watch out for:

In February, DC published the first part of 'Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader' in issue 686 of Batman. The second part will be published in the April issue of Detevtive Comics. Writer Grant Morrison had wanted to really twist the Batman world, with a character’s death, and he has done so in the Batman RIP arc, which tied in with comics across the Batman universe.

Yet, it was Neil Gaiman who was asked to write a eulogising last issue of Batman and Detective. The comic title is a reference to Alan Moore's story of the end of the silver age Superman, 'Whatever happened to the man of Tomorrow', which also allowed a recreation of the character. Gaiman is teamed up with Andy Kubert, who provides the art, and it is a dream team, to say the least. A hardback version is already listed on Amazon, so when this gets a collected release, do consider picking it up.

April will see the release of the first part of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Century 1910. This will be the first comic from Moore and O'Neil since they moved from DC/Wildstorm to Top Shelf/Knockabout. Mina Murray, Alain Quartemain and Orlando are joined by Thomas Carnacki, The Ghost Finder, and the Gentleman Burglar, A.J. Raffles in this adventure, set in 1910.

Brecht's Threepenny Opera, is an influence, while the occult epitomised by Aleister Crowley features strongly in this episode. The next two issues, due later in the year, are set in the sixties and current times respectively.