Minx Comics - Double Review!

The Re-Gifters
Mike Carey
Sonny Liew
Marc Hempel
Released: 06-13-07

Clubbing
Andi Watson
Josh Howard
Released: 7-11-07

I finally got around to reading the next two installments in DC's Minx line So let's get cracking!

Re-Gifters: This is definitely a book you don't want to guess the moral lesson by the cover or title. In fact the title is mostly just cleaver and has little to do with the main character and the life lesson's shes going to learn throughout the course of the book. Some times I wonder if Mike Carey is just toying with comic book readers and is actually better than he's coming off as. This book was good, it was not great and it was no P.L.A.I.N. Janes but it was still rather enjoyable. It's about Dixie a Korean American who is basically competing in a Hapkido (Korean Martial Arts) Tournament and her journey to get there. She's dealing with emotions of love, anger and fear as she tries to find her Ki (Soul) and win the tournament. The art is good and actually works really well for the story, due to the inking some of the characters become unrecognizable if they don't make another appearance until some pages later. My main grip with this book is that yes I know it's for a young girl but that doesn't mean you write down to your audience. Look at Harry Potter, it's written for children but she never writes down to their intellect. I think the editors probably got a hold of the script and said no dumb it down they'll never get what you're talking about and so we got a mediocre story trying to teach way to many lessons and no surprises because they had to be hinted upon so heavily that literally they took up several pages. Worth a read and for 9.99 it's still worth the buy if you're looking for a quirky love story with martial arts at the center. Score 8.0

Clubbing: Being a fan of not only Andi Watson but also of Josh Howard I became very interested in how this book was going to turn out... until I read it. The team up was great, the art and story complimented each other perfectly and I would love to see what they could do on a creator owned project rather than this heavily editor interfered project. The beginning was useless and by the way it's the catalyst to get us where we were going. Also the title is mis-leading since it's referring to a golf "club" owned by Lottie's (The Main Character) Grandparents. At the start of the story Lottie gets rejected from a club for using a fake ID and for some reason this gets her picked up by the cops, it's not really explained because I'm sure the actual story was way to long for the format the books are in and so we get a half ass beginning, good middle and way to short end. Basically Lottie has to stay the summer working with her Grandparents and mystery ensues. Also I don't think mystery books for young girls is Andi's cup of tea (There's a pun there since the book takes place in England) it really didn't take Nancy Drew to figure out this mystery since he practically tells you right off the bat. It was another prime example of writing down to the audience rather than just writing a good story that everyone could take something from. Some plus to the writing were the narration and dialog, and the Art was top notch Howard is really coming into his own and should be picked up by one of the big 2 or at least let loose over at Image. Overall I'd give this book a 6.9; it's in the parking lot, its just driving past a lot of good spaces.

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The Plain Janes - From Minx Comics

The Plain Janes

Written by: Cecil Castellucci
Art by: Jim Rugg
Published by: Minx Comics / DC Comics

Release Date: May 16, 2007

Hello Again, it's time for another review! Today's comic is actually considered a Young Adult Book so rub your nose in that! Any ways, The Plain Janes is the first from DC Comics Young Adult line "MINX" and they have quite a few books coming out so if you really like Young Adult stories or Manga, or your a girl, you might like these books. What? Oh that last comment came off as sexist? Nope sorry but each and every book coming out stares a girl and is geared towards capturing the female comic reader and why not? There's room for everyone to read comics, and kudos for DC for trying to be the first to capture it. Heck, if the rest of the books turn out half as good as Plain Janes did, then we might actually get some good stories out of their exploits towards women. Whoa! That paragraph took a lot out of me!

Allow me to sum the book up for you in the simplest of ways possible without directly plagrising the back of the book. Jane narrates the book for us as we follow her moving to a small town, to "Be Safe" as her parents put it. She was a victim of an attack while living in the city and now her parents fear for her safety. Of course doing what any parent would do, they move to the suburbs. Being the new kid Jane gets that free pass into the "Cool Kids Club" but turns it down opting to either A) be alone or B) sit with the rejects. Well it's not to hard to see where I'm going with this, she picks the cool kids... psyche! Not funny? Ah well any ways, she sits down at a table of three girls and begins ranting away (SEE SIDE) and what else do you do when meeting new people? You introduce yourself. Jane cracks up with laughter as she meets Three other Janes.

Now that introduces you to the book, that's the hook that they sell you on for the most part but it doesn't tell you anything about the book right? Well we have to go back to the attack that Jane lived through. See she saved a man's life, but this man didn't have a wallet or anything on him. Just a sketch book with the words, "Art Saves" written on the front. Unfortunately the man was knocked into a coma and having no I.D., became John Doe. Before moving away Jane would go and visit 'John' each day in the hospital and talk to him about her day and about Art. Let's go forward, Jane is having a problem getting the Janes to talk to her and finding her place in the school. After many failed attempts to join all the clubs all the Janes were interested in she quite literally stumbles upon an idea. Uniting the Janes, shes makes a 'Girl Art Gang' called P.L.A.I.N. (People Loving Art In Neighborhoods) They begin leaving 'Art' everywhere, starting with a vacant lot that's soon to become a strip mall. The Janes sneak out and pick up all the trash and rubble, making it into three pyramids and attaching a note. I don't want to ruin the note for you so you can just read the page to the side instead. They follow that by putting bubbles in the town fountain, Stuffed animals at the animal shelter; and wrapping ordinary objects all over town from mail boxes to statues.

On my own made up scale I would give this book a straight up 10.0 and highly recommend picking it up. The art fits the story perfectly and even though the book looks a little thick I read it in twenty minutes. It could be that it was just that good so I whizzed through it, but I have a feeling anyone willing to pick this book up will have a similar experience. Now as I said this book is predominately geared towards women, but that's what makes it great. Books like this and 'Blue Monday' always have these characters you wish you knew, I wish that I went to school with Jane. Then there's the romantic interest, the Male Character that you wish you were or knew. Everyone thinks they're that interesting 'Lone Wolf' at least once in there life and this book gives you that character that is actually cooler than you ever were. Please pick up a copy of this book and support it, it retails for just $9.99. That's like getting three comics and knowing each of them is going to be really, really good! Thanks for reading feel free to let me know if you picked up the book and leave a comment on what you thought about it!

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