Pulp Culture

Shiver in the Dark
Written and drawn by Stuart Sayger
4 stars

Indianapolis-based Sayger’s second volume of the story of greedy coed Grace’s extremely unwise theft of a magic book continues along sharply and smartly. This time around he expands his palette of influences to include Berni Wrightson-esque monstrosities and flashbacks that evoke (of all things) Archie and the Riverdale gang. The story is tightly focused around a very short time, perhaps an hour, and Sayger expands the timeframe with clockwork pacing, atmospheric suspense and nervous hilarity. I wasn’t a big fan of the writing in the first issue, but this one is smoother, with less clunky exposition and a more freewheeling approach.

The front and back covers are particularly appealing examples of Sayger’s art in color, but I’m glad the interior is in black and white. It reminds one of being under the covers with a flashlight, reading forbidden black-and-white thriller magazines that you think you can handle, until midnight comes and you find yourself sleeping with the lights on.

For more information visit www.shiverinthedark.com. And for more local comics keep an eye out at your shop for Tony Consiglio’s Artificial Flowers, Matt Fischer’s Joke Bank and the next issue of Howard Shum’s Gun Fu: The Lost City.

—Paul F. P. Pogue

Battle Royale Volume 1
By Koushun Takami and Masayuki Taguchi;
American translation by Keith Giffen
5 stars

Excessively violent, twisted and packing balls to spare, Battle Royale roars into America as one of the most daring concepts in manga. Essentially a riff on two early Stephen King ideas (The Running Man and Rage) and Lord of the Flies, and updated via our culture’s reality show fad, Battle Royale documents what happens when a group of 42 junior high kids are dropped on an island and ordered to kill or be killed for the sake of ratings. The first volume sets the stark tone early, as one young man decides to fight back and other classmates take to the task a little too easily. It’s a tough story, not for the weak of mind or stomach. The premise is fascinating, and I absolutely can’t wait for more.
—Troy Brownfield

Across the Universe: The DC Universe Stories of Alan Moore
Writer: Alan Moore; Artists: Various
4 stars

It’s no stretch to say that Alan Moore is the poet laureate of comics. He’s given us the vivid dystopian nightmares of Watchmen, From Hell and V for Vendetta, as well as the Justice League by way of lit class in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Still, even as he was redefining the medium, Moore found the time to do some truly creative work with DC’s mainstream super-hero titles. This collection highlights several of those stand-alone tales, featuring characters like Vigilante, Swamp Thing and Green Arrow. The real champ here is For the Man Who Has Everything, a terrific take on Superman; the Man of Steel is ambushed in the Fortress of Solitude by a villain that makes him believe that Krypton never exploded. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman, Batman and Robin work to save their friend from an opponent that clearly outmatches them. It’s great stuff, and a reminder that Moore is gifted with any type of tale.

—TB

Superman: President Lex
Various writers and artists
Publisher: DC Comics
3 stars

This is the latest collection of the current adventures of the Man of Steel. Diabolical Lex Luthor manages to get himself elected president by snowing the American public (who says comics are far-fetched?). Superman, torn between his duty to his adopted country, his inability to prove Lex’s misdeeds legally and his consternation over the choices he must face, really cuts an interesting character here. The emphasis is on the internal struggle, although there are a few old-fashioned fights. It’s an innovative take on the old standard.

—TB

Wigu: www.wigu.com
5 stars

Jeffrey Rowland’s daily comic strip follows the adventures of the Tinkle family, centering on 8-year-old Wigu and high schooler Paisley. Mostly ignored by their parents, they fantasize about their favorite cartoon characters and compose epic Broadway operas about cockfighting.

It’s postmodernism for people who think Daria wasn’t dour enough, The Simpsons aren’t dysfunctional enough, Invader Zim isn’t weird enough and that George Bernard Shaw’s clever wordplay would be even more fun if Shaw were hopped up on amphetamines. (“If I join, I could turn this rag-tag squadron into a NIHILISTIC SADNESS PLATOON … it could be legendary,” Paisley ponders. “It lampoons our hypocritical society with nihilistic overtones!”)

Rowland takes decompressed storytelling to high art; six months of strips are generally devoted to one improbably long and adventurous day. Jack Bauer never had it so weird.

Wigu is surreal, over the top and wildly funny. It’s got tacos, talking poison potatoes from outer space and a subversive cheerleading dance that starts with a simulated hanging and ends with a riot. I would promise it all makes sense in the end, but I would be lying.

—PFPP