Saturday, November 28, 2015

Episode 20: Ray of Light

Reviewing Black Canary #8 from the 1993 series, guest starring Green Arrow and The Ray.

Plus, listener feedback from episodes 18 and 19.

Bonus: Listen in for details on how you can win a free copy of the original graphic novel Black Canary and Zatanna: Bloodspell.

Flowers & Fishnets is available for download on iTunes by clicking here, or you can check out the show's RSS feed right here.


Sample pages from Black Canary #8 (1993) written by James Owsley and illustrated by James Hodgkins.





Also, pics of the sweet Black Canary print signed by Neal Adams that Darrin and Ruth Sutherland picked up for me.




Music this episode:
"Ray of Light"
Madonna
Maverick Records, 1998.

CLICK HERE TO PLAY EPISODE IN ANOTHER WINDOW.

15 comments:

  1. I don't have any of these issues so I am learning about them only from this site. One thing I have to agree with you, based solely on the pages you have posted over time, the art here is tons better than what Von Eeden was doing.

    I hadn't heard of Hodgkins before and have no books with his work in them in my collection. There something almost Giffen-like to this work, but the Giffen we saw in the beginning of the Baxter run of the Legion, not the smooth early stuff, not the coarser 5YL stuff, that stuff in the middle. It works nice here.

    I am intrigued to hear the reviews of the rest of this series after hearing your brief description of them. Reviewing bad issues of your favorite character can be hard business ... trust me, I know.

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  2. Another great episode. I have to say that even though there were problems with this issue (I had the exact problems you had even just listening to the synopsis) it's something of a relief to know that you got at least this one respite from the pain that this series brought you. Probably best to do the last few issues in one go and tear the bandage off all at once as it were.

    P.S. - Screw you man, I'm writing my Jessica Jones/Supergirl crossover fanfiction as we speak!

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  3. Glad that you found a story in this series really worth reading. Shame that this is the only one in the run. Look at the bright side ... at least the run was pretty short ???

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    1. Sure, if there is a bright side, it's that there are only a handful of godawful comics to suffer through.

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  4. Ryan,
    The show is awesome. Thanks for covering one of my top 5 heroes with so much care and detail.
    You're right about the print by Neal Adams. It's pretty spectacular. Surprisingly, so is that opening splash page of interior art. I don't really recognize Hodgson's name but Priest is another deal. That guy does have an extensive set of credits and I've generally liked everything I've read from him.
    Just a quick note. I've been enjoying the current Black Canary ongoing as well although I have to admit that I really prefer Annie Wu over Pia Guerra. Brendan Fletcher has knocked it out of the park on this one as far as I'm concerned.
    Thanks for your time.
    PS: I'm looking forward to the coverage of issues 9 through 11 despite myself because Nightwing is my favorite character of all time and the time Huntress and Dinah spent working together in Birds of Prey holds a special place in my heart.

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    1. Thanks! Yeah, I have been pretty happy with the current series, and I prefer Annie Wu's work to Pia Guerre's, but Pia's isn't bad.

      Issues #9-11 should be reviewed in the next episode. Plus, I *might* talk about them on another podcast in the near future, but no other word on that right now.

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  6. I chose Supergirl. Maybe it's because my 14 year-old son was watching with me, but I didn't make it past the first 20 minutes of Jessica Jones. I didn't like anyone, and I felt like I needed a shower. Maybe I'll try again later.

    This issue looks and sounds MUCH better than any of the previous efforts. And I looked ahead at the later covers and Dinah's new "look". UGH.

    So, I believe Dinah gives the Ray some mercy lovin' later on in his own series? I guess that starts here?

    Priest is an interesting character. I really enjoyed the Ray mini and the early issues of the ongoing, but dropped off at some point. I know he was a fairly controversial editor at Marvel on the Spider-titles, rifling the feathers of creators like Tom Defalco and Ron Frenz, and mucking with the Hobgoblin subplot for what some deem as just for spite. But the man can write some good comics.

    As much as I like podcasting with you Ryan, Cindy looks much better in a dress.

    Chris

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    1. Andy Leyland pointed something out on Facebook that is very true. Jessica Jones is not an origin story; it's a redemption story. By design, Jessica is at her lowest point when the show begins and we need to see her climb out of that pit. It takes a bit of commitment but she does get better as the series progresses.

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    2. I'm going to give it another shot this weekend.

      Chris

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  7. Another great podcast sir! I appreciate the divisive comment about Supergirl and Jessica Jones. Thanks for that and the review of the older BC book. I personally can't wait for your reviews of the current ongoing series. Keep up the good fight!

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  8. Oh, and that Adams print is fantastic! Way to go Sutherlands!

    Chris

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  9. I vaguely remember reading The Ray monthly series (at least a couple of issues) and while I remember Ray having a crush on Black Canary, I always thought it was more a mother/son dynamic in terms of their actual relationship. That to me was intriguing, as it is very rare (I'm not its ever happened to be honest) to have a female superhero with a young male sidekick. While I don't think it ever officially reached that level, the idea appealed to me. I never read more than a couple of issues though (comics were hard to get here back in those days) so I never knew how it worked out.

    As for Grell's Green Arrow run, I only recently read the Longbow Hunters which, while not great, was entertaining and I can certainly see the influences it had on the Arrow TV show. In terms of Black Canary's involvement in the series, I was surprised that there was so much tension between the two of them as most of the stories I've read about them before and after that era had them getting along pretty well with each other.

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  10. More than halfway through Jessica Jones, but having to take a few weeks off while my girlfriend's family is in town, because it's kind of porny and cursey and bloodletty. This follows another couple of weeks off when our TV broke down and the pause I took to finally finish Daredevil. I was favoring it over Daredevil but as the same season-long case drags on it has lost distance, and while I like both, I currently Supergirl.

    The Quesada mini-series that introduced the new Ray was written by Jack C. Harris, while Jim Owsley was perhaps auditioning for the ongoing series with Howard Porter, which he did write. Also, Owsley wasn't aware of the English novelist Christopher Priest, who authored The Prestige, before who took that name legally and to write comics. To differentiate, he goes by Christopher James Priest for his own novels.

    I agree with your assessment of Priest's work, and will add that he's also one of my favorite Martian Manhunter/JLA writers through his run on Justice League Task Force. But not Wonder Woman. He kept trying, but that was always a poor fit for his style. He's one of the few genuinely funny comic book writers, though, especially in the EXTREME '90s.

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