OWC (Obsessed With Comics) is a new regular feature from David Valjalo (aka V), our resident comic book expert who will advising us on the best, the worst and the most bizarre in the world of the “funny books”.

Kicking off the new column is his look at the All Star line of DC Comics and as a fairly semi-regular comic reader myself (I basically read just Batman, Superman and the occasional title that peaks my interest), I can say that these titles are extremely addictive.

And if you wanna see why Frank Miller is a dangerous entity to characters he didn’t create right now, just read the early issues of what he did with “The God Damned Batman”.

All-Star Batman and Robin: The Boy Wonder (Volume One available now, issues ongoing)

Frank Miller and Jim Lee’s run on the All-Star branded DC comics line has been controversial for two reasons: one is the deadline delirium that has plagued the title from the off, the other is that it’s… different. Different in the way The Dark Knight Strikes Again was different, but with less consistency and more shallowness. It’s easy to dismiss the title as a wash-out and a cash-in and it’s quite easy to back up those claims but there’s a little more going on under the hood here (for this critic at least). Frank Miller – at Book Expo 2005 – explained how the artist he teams up with can determine the resulting work, and with that correlation in mind it’s easy to take a fresh look at All-Star Batman and Robin.

Whereas most writer/artist team-ups rely on an artist perfectly capturing the writer’s approach to prose and syntax, what we have here is the reverse. In many ways Miller is writing for Lee’s art, capturing every punchy line and purposely setting up splash pages for Lee to revel in.

Up to this point the title has managed to be a relentless, slightly mindless, foray into the outlandish recruitment process of a young, broken Dick Grayson. Miller has taken the opportunity to ram-raid the DC vault of heroes and villains and it’s exciting to find him take chances like he did with The Dark Knight Strikes Again some time ago.

The cracks in the beautiful paintwork arise thanks to Miller’s choice of narration technique. Fitting between protagonists, the fragmented, confusing nature of the book’s flow is evidenced most with this latest issue (no. 10 is in stores now).

The “talkiest” of issues so-far is also one of the weakest. With the main players all barely introduced, it feels somewhat unfair for Miller to have to wrap things up in just 64 pages, but then surely good planning/plotting is at the core of a project like this.

Another problem arises in the tone of All Star Batman and Robin. Though the title, and Lee’s exuberant art, might draw in the younger reader, Miller’s stock grit and nourish grime is overtly adult and provides an odd paradox for a book that sits awkwardly on the watershed line.

The next two issues will make or break All-Star Batman and Robin: a major, gimmicky revelation may satiate the adrenaline junkies who’ve no doubt been indulging this book from the offing, but there’s a good chance serious comics fans will have switched off a long time ago…

You can purchase ALL STAR BATMAN AND ROBIN VOL. 1 NOW, Issue 10 of the series is now in comic stores.

ALL STAR SUPERMAN (Vol. 1)

All-Star Superman is a little easier to nutshell: it’s perfect. Hyperbole is rife in the world of journalism and that trend won’t be bucked by this review.

Now that Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely have completed their entry into the All-Star line it can be taken as a body of work and an installment into the overall cannon of Superman stories. All-Star Superman manages to achieve the perfect balance of retrospective homage and progressive reinvention. Grant Morrison’s story hurls ideas into a pot that never overflows with creative juice, instead simmering at just the right temperature to ensure the narrative flows coherently and simultaneously assaults the taste buds with entertaining snaps and crackles (the metaphor ends there, don’t worry).

The story of Superman’s mortality, his love for Miss Lane and his battle with Lex Luthor are the central themes (as ever) but there are side-quests here that bulk up the story to superhuman levels. A detour through Bizarro world (re-written as you’ve never imagined), a hilarious, vibrant approach to a future, playboy Jimmy Olson and a time sucking monster are just a few of the wonderful touches Morrison brings to the table.

Not to be spoilered here, each issue is a miniature classic, an exercise in supreme science-fiction and general story-telling. Accessible to all ages but typically cerebral enough to engage the most hardened, stale Superman fan, Grant Morrison has reached great heights with this series and it’s sure to be hailed as a benchmark as of… now.

Upon first reading it’s impossible to predict anything in All-Star Superman; it’s outlandish and confident and the only sure-thing with this work is that it hits its mark every time.

Go and buy it.

Please.

For those waiting who have suffered the various Superman on and off screen incarnations, this is the real deal right here.

You can purchase ALL STAR SUPERMAN VOL. 1 NOW

Next time: The Superman Graphic Novels You Should Have Read (Already)