expatNERD

Tag: Steve Dillon

  • 31 – The Meeting

    31 – The Meeting

    Ahh yes. The so-called ‘climax’ has been reached. Curt and Garth Ennis met and it did not turn out like Curt expected. Now granted, this is from Curt’s point of view and I have had the pleasure of meeting many Irishmen in my day. I can say that they were all very clean speaking and I can’t remember one using a swear word. At least from what I could understand at the time. Indeed, the Irish are charming and I’m sure Garth Ennis was/is as well.

    Now, I think the shock probably had something to do with Curt’s choice of cosplay. When ‘Arseface’ first appeared, it was a very (one of many!) shocking moment for me in Preacher when I read it in real time, for the first time. I remember lifting my head up, looking out into the distance and allowing that epiphany to inject itself in my brain. ‘This is what comics can do. And perhaps what they are meant to do.’

    Ennis and the late legend Steve Dillon really did not hold back on this series. They pushed the envelop, and just when you think they couldn’t push it anymore, they pushed it even further. And just when you thought the envelop would fall off the table, you realized there wasn’t a damn table to begin with. That’s how good this series was.

    I don’t recommend Preacher for everyone. But it is a highly entertaining and easily digestible series. Also, because it is so darn popular you can find many printings of this series. I know DC will finish up its new printing of Absolute Preacher when the third and final volume is released in October or so. And as I said, it shows you what comics can do and why they can do it better than other forms of entertainment out there today. Preacher lives rent free in my head and I’m glad to see it does for Franka as well.

    For Curt? Well, I don’t think he understood it to begin with. But let’s keep reading to find out!

    Ciao,

    -Marv

  • Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon

    As you may have noticed, our Curt storyline is also a Garth Ennis tribute. And we cannot mention Garth Ennis without also mentioning the late legendary artist that will never be forgotten, Steve Dillon. So with that I thought I would give some recommendations from their work.

    Now I could do the obvious like Preacher, John Constantine Hellblazer, the Boys, Demon, and Hitman. I think if you know your way around comics you probably already know of these. So I thought I would go off the beaten track and focus my recs on things that you may have missed, especially if you are an American audience, and some of Ennis’ most recent stuff. Because yes, the magician is still producing magic.

    First off, is Ennis’ run on Judge Dredd that also features a lot of Steve Dillon. This run cannot be understated because he basically followed in the footsteps of both John Wagner and Alan Grant who were writing ole stoney face as a team. And he was young, and that took some Eier. He also collaborated with the likes of Judge Dredd co-creator Carlos Ezquerra. So one could say these stories are ‘the beginnings.’

    Interestingly, Ennis doesn’t seem to be too fond of his writing of Dredd, at least he said as much during his conversation with Mark Millar on Millar’s YouTube video series, Millar Time. I included the embeded video below and the whole thing is definitely worth a watch.

    But I, for one, loved Ennis’ run on Dredd. In particular, his and Steve Dillon’s Emerald Isle storyline. Now if you are a Judge Dredd fan and are reading this, you are going to either love or hate me from now on. But I just cannot help it. It introduces Judge Joyce, created by Ennis and Dillon, who has to accommodate the hard-ass Judge Dredd, and Joyce is just charming as hell. Plus, it’s just full of comedy and Irish stereotypes. And because Ennis is Irish, he nails the little accents and what not.

    Emerald Isle can be found in 2000 AD Progs #727–734 and is also collected in Judge Dredd: The Complete Case Files – Volume 15. It’s worth hunting down, especially if you want a glimpse of Ennis and Dillon before they became Ennis and Dillon. Which is not entirely true because if you look at Dillon’s Dredd, he seems to always have been good.

    Next week I’ll have another recommendation. Is this Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon month? It doesn’t exist. But it damn well should.

    Tschüss,

    -Franka