Name:
Location: San Jose, California, United States

Raymond Miller solves usability problems for a living. From UI text and error messages to flows and stories, he protects the user experience for Symantec’s retail SSL certificate consumers. Raymond lives in San Jose, CA. When not staggering through half marathons, he writes crime fiction.

Monday

Justice League of America: The Nail

There is a legend in which a kingdom was lost because of one battle, because one knight was absent, because that knight was thrown by his horse, because of a nail left in the road. Justice League of America: The Nail applies this legend with the question, "What if there were no Superman to provide the back bone of the Justice League?"

Why is this so good?
It wasn't until I read this book that I realized how important Superman is to the DC Universe. He provides more than a strong punch and x-ray vision. Superman is a symbol that people can look up to. Without him, people are just as scared of the heroes as the villains.

No one else can provide this symbol.

Though this is one of the better graphic novels available, it does have a few flaws. It is just too short. The ending seems rushed and a bit too contrived. But, this book has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader occupied and wanting more.

There is a sequel to this book, but it is not as good.

Sunday

Green Arrow: Quiver By Kevin Smith

Comic Book deaths are a joke.

I don't mind that comic book heaven has a revolving door. My problem is that characters come back with the silliest explanations. Something like: "Oh, that wasn't super-dude in that explosion, it was a clone," or "spider-guy was whisked away at the last moment by a passing wizard."

Sigh.

If I hate comic book resurrections so much, why would I recommend Green Arrow: Quiver?

Because, Kevin Smith writes such a good story. Green Arrow returns from the dead and... Well, I won't give away the plot. This is the kind of story that can be ruined by a well meaning review. I can say that by the first issue you will be dying to see what happens next and why it happens.

Phil Hester is the other half of the creative team. His art work is perfect for this book. Not too stylized or too simple. He is very good with both action and scenery, which is sometimes rare in comics today.

If you haven't collected comics in awhile, this is a great book for you. It has guest appearances by Superman, Batman, The Spectre, and Etrigan the Demon. If you are a long time collector and you haven't read this book, again, I say, shame on you.

Kevin Smith is the writer behind such movies as Chasing Amy, Clerks, Mallrats, and The Jay and Silent Bob series.



Friday

Spiderman: The Death of Gwen Stacy

Ok, true believers, I am sure you've seen the recent Spiderman movies with Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson. Everyone likes Mary Jane. She is smart, talented, and beautiful. She is good for Peter Parker.

But before there was Mary Jane, there was Gwen Stacy. Gwen was Peter's first love. She was literally the girl next door. The one he had a crush on for years until finally, they got together.

If you know anything about Spiderman, you know how Gwen died. If you have only seen the movies, you have a pretty good idea. But none of that matters really.

All you need to know is this: Uncle Ben's death was the defining moment for Peter Parker. The guilt of that death created the motivation that would stick with Peter Parker for years. After that Peter Parker lost Gwen too. For the Peter Parker, it was like a nightmare that would not stop. This is her story.


She was young, beautify and innocent. And She will pay for it all...with her life.


Wednesday

Batman: Year One (the inspiration for Batman Begins) by Frank Miller

Batman: Year One tells the story of Bruce Wayne's first year after returning from training to be a crimefighter. He does not have much experience and it shows. Readers get to see Bruce Wayne grow into the skilled hero we see today.

Frank Miller (writer) and David Mazzucchelli (art) make a great team. The art is perfect for this story. Mazzucchelli takes advantage of the kind of shadow and darkness that makes Gotham different from Metropolis or Star City.

The story is well paced with great characterization. No one handles Batman the way Frank Miller does. He has an understanding of the core elements of the Batman and his supporting cast. Commissioner Gordon, Alfred, and Catwoman are fleshed out better than many other stories out there.

Many readers balk at Catwoman's role in this book. Once you read it, please let me know what you think.

Interestingly enough, there is no Joker, Penguin, Scarecrow, and Killer Croc. There are none of the villains readers are used to. On the face value, it sounds boring, but this creative team handles everything brilliantly. Instead of super villains, Batman faces thugs and corrupt politicians. Villains in a real world setting.

If you enjoyed the movie Batman Begins at all you will love Batman: Year One.

In addition to this book, Frank Miller wrote The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Returns


Tuesday

The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman

Any one who knows me can tell you that I am a zombie fan. Don't get me wrong--I am not a fan of gore or meaningless violence. I am the other type of zombie fan. The kind of fan who loves well rounded characters thrust into the nightmare of zombie infestation.

Zombies. (Always watch for zombies.) They are the worst creatures that can show up to ruin your picnic.

Think about it. With a serial killer, werewolf, vampire, or mummy, you can be safe at some point in time. A serial killer is only human and can only be in one place at a time. Werewolves and vampires only come out at night. And there is only one mummy or even if there are 1,000 mummies, there is still a limit to where each mummy can be. Plus, there is safety in numbers. 1,000 mummies are not going to attack 10,000 of us! We'll kick there half dead a**es back to where ever mummies come from. And then, and only then, we will get nasty.

What about Freddy? Who cares about stupid Freddy! There is one of Freddy and thousands of us. Even if we have to sleep together, we could put some hurt on Freddy. Safety in numbers.

Zombies are different. Safety in numbers doesn't apply to zombies, neither does being safe at some point in time. Zombies come at you at all hours of the day or night and in ever increasing numbers. They are slow and dumb, but relentless. They just keep coming and coming and coming. Zombies are the only creature that can turn our safe world into Armageddon in less than a month.

That's right. 30 days from now your world could come to an end.

In the perfect zombie movie, the characters fight and struggle to survive. They become closer to perfect strangers than they have ever been with their own parents, spouses and children. They must etch out a living with nothing more than their wits and backs and fingernails. They are hungry, scared, and angry, but they survive. They have no choice but to survive.

The Walking Dead is so far the perfect zombie book. I just finished reading Vol:1 Days Gone Bye and I am hooked. The main character Rick Grimes is a cop... well, he was a cop. The story starts much like the movie, 28 Days Later, with the main character awakening from a long coma. His thoughts are only of finding his wife and son. And the ride begins from there.

The author, Robert Kirkman, writes in the introduction (I am paraphrasing here) that the worst part of a zombie movie is the end. Just as things are getting good the credits start rolling and you never find out what happens next. The writer promises that this book will follow Grimes as he navigates through this world gone undead.

I recommend this book because it is an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something very, very special.

JLA: A League of One

There is an argument among comic readers: who's the number #2 heavy hitter in the DC universe. Number one is easy: Superman. Mr. Push-the-Moon back into place himself.

Number #2? Not so simple. The list includes, but is not limited to: Shazam, Supergirl and Superboy (the Kryptonian ones), Powergirl, the Martian Manhunter, and Wonder Woman.

Personally, I vote for Wonder Woman. If you read JLA: League of One, you might agree with me.

What's it about?
When a dragon surfaces in Europe, the Oracle at Delphi predicts that the JLA will defeat the dragon, but perish in the attempt. Believing this, Wonder Woman unilaterally decides that she must face this threat...alone.

To save the lives of her closest allies, she must defeat them. Wonder Woman takes out each member of the Justice League one by one, including Superman, Batman, Flash, and Green Lantern.

If you are a Wonder Woman fan, I guarantee that you will enjoy this book. If you are not a Wonder Woman fan, this book will make you one.

Diane is strong and cunning. A peaceful person, but a formidable warrior when the cause is just...or when the cause is just enough.

Don't be fooled by the JLA in the title. This is a Wonder Woman book and its one of the best Wonder Woman books you will read.



Crisis on Infinite Earths

The very first Superman comic book was publish in 1938. By the 1950's, there were so many inconsistencies that the editors decided to create an Earth 1 and Earth 2 to explain the differences. It was a great idea.

Over time however, DC had to add more worlds to explain away the inconsistences: an Earth for Shazam and his family; an Earth where Lois Lane married Lex Luther and together, they fight an evil version of the Justice League; and an Earth in which World War II never ended.

The different groups met in various Crisis on Multiple Earths specials until finally DC decided to relauch in one universe.

Crisis on Infinite Earths is the only time in comics that a company has had to clean up so much history. By the time DC took on this task, they had about 50 years to work with. To their credit, the staff at DC was able to decently represent almost every character with special attention to Superman, The Flash, Batman, Wonder Woman, Shazam, and their respective families.

The Story
Two god-like creatures, the Monitor and Anti-Monitor, fight a war in which they are equally matched. The Anti-Monitor finds out that he can increase his powers by destroying whole universes and begins to systematically wipe out all existence. The heroes must find a way to stop him.

Why is it so important? Warning: Spoilers Ahead!
DC decided to do their relaunch in a big way. Characters die and for the most part, stayed dead. I don't want to give too much away, but the death of Supergirl is one of the most heartful scenes you will read and though they tease us with it, the Barry Allen Flash is not coming back.

Before this, Supergirl was a joke. DC created her to be almost as fast and as strong as Superman, but when it was time to fight the good fight, she was off saving treed cats or dating the cute boy in school. And this was when Superman was Mr. Push Planets. So, she should have been at least number 3 or 4 in power and strength over everyone else. For once, just one time, in this series, she lives up to her full potential.

Speaking of Mr. Superman/Push Planets...

After this series, DC relaunched their titles from the beginning. Among other things, Superman is no longer able to push moons and travel through time. His powers are manageable. He is vulnerable to magic and kryptonite. Superman becomes less super and more man. And that is just Superman. This series touches almost every DC character in one way or another.

This is great book for long time fans and those new to comics.


Wednesday

Y: The Last Man

Y: The Last Man is one of those books that is just different. The story revolves around a man named Y. (His sister is named Hero--their father was a Shakespeare fanatic.)

Y is the last man on Earth. All other men were killed in a plague that lasted about five minutes. Y is now left with about 2.5 billion women. On the surface, this may sound like the plot for some bad B-movie with an extraordinary amount of frontal nudity. It is not.

The writer, Brian K. Vaughan is too smart, too respectful to the reader to mess around like that. This book is about the last man on Earth dealing with the best and worst women have to offer.

Why is this so good?
The characters are everything. Not only is Y interesting (he is an exceptional escape artist and owns a monkey), all the other characters are very well drawn.

The women must deal with a huge hole in modern society. Kind of like when your grandfather dies and your grandmother realizes that there are hundreds of things she needs to educate herself to do. Sometimes the women do a great job, sometimes not, but it is always entertaining.

Check out Y: The Last Man.















Friday

This week's comics: August 3, 2005

Justice #1



Alex Ross is the artist/writer who brought us Kingdom Come and a about six mega-sized graphic novels based upon DC characters. His books are literally painted by hand, a process that makes his work above and beyond most others in the industry.

The story so far is interesting. There is a threat on the horizon that our heroes will not be able to defeat. What could possibly be more powerful than the combined might of Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, and Shazam? We don't know yet.

Both heroes and villains are having nightmares of the Justice League failing to save the Earth and dooming us all! The villains are ready to do something about it.

I recommend this not only based on the Alex Ross art, but the story seems interesting, especially the way they handle Aquaman. Check it out!

1602: New World #1 (minor spoiler)

1602 is a follow up to 1601. This is one of those "What if" type of series that when done well is as good as a Twilight Zone episode. What if the heroes were born in the 1600's instead of today. Having the Avengers, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and Spider-man set in near Shakespeare times was a lot more entertaining than I thought it would be.

Where we have science to rely on to explain the things we see, these people only have superstition and their best guesses. For example, in the 1601 series, there is a funny exchange between Mr. Fantastic and Dr. Doom in which doom in which Doom refuses to believe that light has speed.

New Avengers #8

Personally, I believe New Avengers is the best book on the market. Taking a page from DC's Justice League, Marvel changed the Avenger's roster to include the most popular characters instead of the most powerful. Actually, except for Shazam, all of DC's most powerful characters are in the Justice League. Ok, forget all that, let's just say that the most popular Marvel characters are now in the New Avengers.

Spider-man is written almost perfectly. His science background is downplayed, as is some of his experience, but his wise cracking awkwardness and inexperience as part of a team is done to perfection. Every time he opens his mouth, I end up on the floor laughing.

Wolverine has been done and re-done by so many writers it takes some effort to get him wrong. Except for Spider-man, he is the most popular character in the Marvel Universe. His hasn't worked with this group much so there is an incredible amount of tension and miscommunication.

Captain America and Iron Man are the veterans of team. Iron Man provides the money and day to day needs. Captain America is...well, he's Captain America.

Spider-woman and Powerman. Ok, I will say it. You have to have at least one woman and one minority in the Avengers.

Or do you? I mean, the problem with quotas is that sometimes the woman or minority IS the best person for the job. Think about it. Marvel obviously wanted a fresh team. None of these individuals have been as Avenger and with the exception of Wolverine, none of them has been on a team for any length of time.

Of all the loner characters in the Marvel universe who is more popular than Powerman and Spider-woman? Better yet, who has been around since the 1970's and retained the same kind of following? Exactly. Yes, there is the Punisher and Ghost Rider, but um... for some reason, I don't think they would fit in the Avengers.

At any rate, this issue deepens the mystery surrounding the "Superman like" character of Sentinel.

Ultimate Iron Man #3
Orson Scott Card writes a comic book. That is all I need to say.

What! You don't know who Orson Scott Card is! Pick up a copy of Ender's Game at your local used book store.