Sunday, January 11, 2004

By Mark Russell

After a difficult past, comic books are finally coming into their own. Comics have achieved greater commercial success lately, particularly with many popular characters appearing in big-budget films. But even more impressive is the relatively recent revelation that comics are an important part of the literary canon.

More and more parents, teachers, and librarians are realizing the value of comics to young, developing readers.

Comics can provide "high interest-low level" reading: literature that is attractive to readers yet not too intimidating.

Also, the majority of comics have special appeal to a group notorious for its lack of interest in reading: young men.

These points may seem obvious, yet it has been difficult for comics to overcome past criticisms. The most potent attack on comics came from Fredric Wertham's 1954 "Seduction of the Innocent," in which comics were depicted as contributing to juvenile delinquency and inhibiting reading and language development.

An anti-comics crusade followed, leading to a severe set of censorship guidelines known as the Comics Code as well as the end of 24 of the 29 existing comic book companies at the time.

Studies today, however, are praising the comic book as an accessible, visually stimulating literary form that serves as a conduit to advanced reading, not an obstacle. Reading comics can lead to a better vocabulary and an appreciation of art.

"Ultimate Spider-Man: Venom" (Marvel Comics, $15.99, ages 10 and up) collects in one volume issues 33-39 of the ongoing "Ultimate Spiderman" series. This series is the flagship title of Marvel's "Ultimates" line, which offers contemporary interpretations of classic Marvel stories and characters to a new generation of comic book readers.

The writer is Brian Michael Bendis, who is predominantly known for his work on gritty, dialogue-driven crime comics such as "Torso" and "Jinx." Artwork on the title is provided by Mark Bagley, a Spider-Man veteran.

The plot of "Venom" is a classic Spider-Man story originally published in 1984 that introduces one of the series' most frightening villains. In what at first seems like a fortunate discovery, Spider-Man acquires, then rejects a black suit that enhances his already formidable powers.

The suit is then taken over by Eddie Brock, an acquaintance of Spider-Man's alter ego, Peter Parker, and together Brock and the black suit merge to become Venom.

Spider-Man is one of the most beloved characters in comics, and the challenge for Bendis is to provide a contemporary interpretation of this story without changing its fundamental character. Throughout this volume, he is perhaps a bit too enthusiastic in this project, indulging himself in radical plot derivations, extended voice-over narrations and epic monologues.

Bendis knows how to tell a good story, however, and he confidently works with a sympathetic hero and a strong supporting cast to maintain the reader's interest and emotional investment.

Bagley's style is particularly suited to capturing the mood with emotive facial expressions and kinetic action. The dynamic colors provided by Transparency Digital add extra flash, and when it all comes together, the effect is quite impressive.

Like "Ultimate Spider-Man: Venom," "Usagi Yojimbo: Duel at Kitanoji" (Dark Horse Books, $16.95, ages 12 and up) is also a collected volume of an ongoing series, issues 53-60 of "Usagi Yojimbo." Writer-artist Stan Sakai has been producing this series since 1984, and throughout the years he has won multiple awards for his labor of love.

In "Usagi Yojimbo," Sakai has created a fantasy feudal Japan populated with anthropomorphic animals. His title character, Miyamoto Usagi, is a rabbit samurai who has many adventures while wandering on the road to enlightenment.

This particular tale resolves an extended plotline involving a duel between Katsuichi, Usagi's teacher in the ways of the samurai, and Nakamura Koji, a wandering sword master.

The strength of "Usagi Yojimbo" is Sakai's masterful storytelling. While this black-and-white comic may not be as flashy as its contemporaries, its carefully drawn scenes and proportionate mix of action and character development make it at least the equal of any other comic in today's market.

The duel itself is an amazing sequence of panels, depicted in an intense series of stills from all perspectives that gives the impression of slow-motion photography. As always, Sakai invests a great sense of detail and historical accuracy in this tale.

Unlike the previous collections, "The Sandman: Endless Nights" (DC Comics, $24.95, ages 16 and up) is a self-contained work that did not appear first in serial comic form. While "The Sandman" was indeed an ongoing series, Neil Gaiman ended it at issue 75 in 1996.

Since then he has written best-selling novels and worked on screenplays. Luckily for "Sandman" fans, every now and then he writes a new story about his signature character, Dream.

"Endless Nights" is a collection of seven stories about Dream and his siblings Destiny, Desire, Delirium, Despair, Destruction and Death; collectively known as The Endless.

Each story focuses on one particular family member, and to tell these tales Gaiman has enlisted an impressive group of artists.

The most potent tale in this collection is "Fifteen Portraits of Despair," told by Gaiman with art by Barron Storey and Dave McKean. The sparse, heartbreaking prose exists amidst a series of gruesome, chaotic art panels, evoking simultaneous pain and beauty.

Certainly, this volume is not for the casual reader, and prior knowledge of "The Sandman" is helpful, although not necessary. The intensity and complexity of the stories may seem intimidating, but ultimately they are worth the investment.

Mark Russell is a library assistant at the East Liberty Branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.

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