InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "I am a fish (times 400)"

kingrockwell (kingrockwell) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-07-31 00:39:00

Entry tags:

char: question/renee montoya, creator: cully hamner, creator: greg rucka, publisher: dc comics, title: detective comics

My pulls for this week weren't all bad, at least

When last we left our intrepid detective, she'd investigated her way into a safehouse for a human trafficking ring, only to meet the occupants. So what does she do?

She stretches. She's ready as hell. And she's already taken a name before the first punch is thrown, having called out Varga.

And then she kicks their asses. Her snark certainly isn't Vic's, but lord the girl is trying and we love her for it. That she even loses her normally dour disposition in the mask is something I've always loved, like it was something Vic had ingrained in the identity so deeply that she couldn't help but pick it up. On that subject, Rucka said in 52 "As an aside, I discovered, quite by accident, that Renee became funnier (or at least tried to be funnier) once the mask was back on. That came out in the writing, rather than the planning, but it made such perfect sense; the mask is truly a liberating force, yet another secret that Charlie tried to share with Renee." I've always loved when that happens, when you get to know a character so well they write themselves, and I'd be hard pressed to think of a non-OC that Rucka knows better than Renee.
Weird detail here, notice she switches to English when she starts snarking? Translation convention always gets interesting with Rucka.

Anyway, she kicks more ass (the skinny one has a nunchaku, but not for long; the dog has a good memory, isn't having any of this) until she gets another name, the name of the place Louisa Soliz was taken. Chandless. Chandless handles shipping, so Renee goes to see Chandless in his high-rise office.

Now, I'm pretty sure I know what she's trying to do here, but I just can't help but see it as her hitting on the receptionist, who, in the last panel, is totally hook-line-and-sinker. She may not look it in the second-to-last panel, but that expression fits her words without quite debunking the idea. I mean, look at her her eye-line! There is no ambiguity here.
Also, love Renee's smile in the last panel (but you could tell that from the icon). Yes, receptionist lady, she knows you're checking her out.
'Nother also, note the jacket. The black tanktop is as Renee as the orange shirt plus tie was Vic, but otherwise, she's going Classic today.

She masks up and listens and Chandless' door, but suspense! Chandless' ape of a bodyguard tases her, leaving us with another cliffhanger! See you next month, Renee.

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	neuhallidae 2009-07-31 05:20 am UTC (link)
	The casual stretches, unf. And fellas, you live in DCverse. You should know by now that when someone's boredly bantering you while doing warmups, and you've got a gun on them while they do so, you're fucked. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	kamino_neko 2009-07-31 05:26 am UTC (link)
	They SHOULD know enough to FIRE. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 05:28 am UTC (link)
	Cocky street-toughs like them? Never. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	box_in_the_box 2009-07-31 06:11 am UTC (link)
	If that's not an entry in the Villain's Handbook, it should be. "If one of my henchmen says, 'He's just ONE MAN! What can one man do?', I will reply, 'This,' and shoot that henchman in the face." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

icon_uk
2009-07-31 07:55 am UTC (link)

That's more or less word for word what the entry is at www.eviloverlord.com except it has the rider

"If one of my henchmen says, 'He's just ONE MAN! What can one man do?', I will reply, 'This,' and shoot that henchman in the face. No, on second thoughts if one of my henchmen says, 'He's just ONE MAN! What can one man do?', I will shoot him in the face and THEN say 'This'."

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	ninjapeps 2009-07-31 11:06 am UTC (link)
	Terry Pratchett played around with that in Guards! Guards!. Vimes was all alone against a squad of palace guards who refused to attack him because he was alone. when the evil chancellor pointed out that Vimes didn't even have a weapon, they said that made it even worse. (Reply to this) (Parent)

khamelea
2009-07-31 07:50 am UTC (link)

Except for some concept art that was posted earlier here (and which was fantastic), every sample I've seen of the new Question has her without an actual jacket/coat to complete the costume. I mean, I know it's just coming off in the first scan here, but why does it have too? I guess the mask and the hat just makes much less sense for me without some measure of formality to the rest of the costume.

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	icon_uk 2009-07-31 07:56 am UTC (link)
	I think my issue is that the mask isn't blank ENOUGH. There's too much visible detail on it. It should be vaguer... IMHO. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	khamelea 2009-07-31 08:43 am UTC (link)
	Maybe in these scans, yes. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 12:28 pm UTC (link)
	I go back and forth on how much detail I like the mask to show, but the way Cully's been using Renee's expressions in amusing ways (especially the one on the last page of last month's story) I can totally live with. (Reply to this) (Parent)

psychop_rex
2009-08-01 07:54 am UTC (link)

I agree - that's an issue I have with a lot of modern Question appearances, really, Vic included. I think the mask is infinitely more effective if it's a simple blank than if you can see the outline of eyes, mouth, etc. underneath it. I mean, the whole reason that the mask works so well in the first place is that it gives the illusion of a creature without facial features, which is pretty damn creepy on a basic level - if you're trying to evoke a reaction in criminals, 'holy crap, he ain't got a face!' is much preferable to 'well, that's kind of a creepy mask. Wonder if it's bulletproof?'

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	kingrockwell 2009-08-01 10:25 am UTC (link)
	Well, to be fair, the mask ha been known to have varying levels of detail every since Ditko, it isn't just a modern thing. Oh, and you're trying to collect the whole O'Neil run, yeah? After some ebaying, I've ended up with a bunch of doubles I'll prolly be selling off, if you're interested. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	psychop_rex 2009-08-01 08:38 pm UTC (link)
	True, but it's a detail that bugged me then, also. And I WILL be trying to collect the whole O'Neil run, when I have cash to spend - right now, I'm penniless. Thanks for the offer, though. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	kingrockwell 2009-08-01 09:10 pm UTC (link)
	Well, when that time comes, eBay's definitely the place to look. These fifteen extras I got for $2.99, and I have the entire O'Neil run (Q 1-36, annuals 1 & 2, Q Quarterly 1-5, Q Returns, the Tec 88 annual and Green Arrow 88-90 annuals) in the mail now for $16. Sure, it's before shipping, but there're some real gems for low prices when you're lucky! (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	psychop_rex 2009-08-01 09:16 pm UTC (link)
	Yow, that's pretty good! I generally tend to go for the TPBs, because they're easier to store and less likely to get lost, but that's pretty damn cheap, all right. Thanks for the tip! (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

kingrockwell
2009-08-01 09:38 pm UTC (link)

I actually bought the first TPB before I decided it'd be too much of a cash-sink. $19.99 for six issues, and they've only released four so far with the fifth coming out in October, so at that rate they'd have at least three more to go (assuming they plan one for Q Quarterly), and little room for the annuals. If you do go that route, I couldn't recommend it in good conscience unless you're getting them for some kind of discount.

Oh, and I forgot I have three more O'Neil-penned Vic-featuring issues to track down still. Azrael #10 (has Vic and Lady Shiva chatting in the audience at some fighting ring), Azrael Plus #1 (Plus The Question, that is) and Showcase '95 #3 (Rick Burchett art!). Long as I remember to keep 'em on the list.

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psychop_rex
2009-08-01 10:23 pm UTC (link)

Well, given that I very rarely order such things for myself, price is not really all that much of an issue, especially given the 'new and used' option on Amazon, which can really cut down on the price - I've seen stuff worth ten or fifteen dollars sold for about two or three on there. So, yeah, I guess that would count as a discount. Basically, I can't really afford to be a collector regardless of what deals I get, so I pick things up piecemeal - a little bit here, a little bit there, a stroke of luck here, a christmas present there... Patience is the name of the game.

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	darklorelei 2009-07-31 09:23 am UTC (link)
	After she stops flirting with the secretary she puts it back on and is wearing it to the end of the issue. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	khamelea 2009-07-31 09:27 am UTC (link)
	Like I said, I did gather from the scans themselves that she was wearing it in some other part of the issue. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	darklorelei 2009-07-31 11:20 am UTC (link)
	Then I guess I don't understand your question? (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 12:18 pm UTC (link)
	Actually, that same post I made for last month's issue that had the concept art had a scan of her wearing a jacket. Vic himself actually went without his suit pretty often, a thing like that could be pretty awkward to fight in (and it gives us the lovely scene of her casually taunting the goons). (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	khamelea 2009-07-31 06:13 pm UTC (link)
	Good point. About the previous scans, I mean. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	parsimonia 2009-07-31 12:47 pm UTC (link)
	Ha, I knew somebody was going to scan that last bit! But yeah, some definite flirting going on there. Also, I kind of want that hat. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 01:01 pm UTC (link)
	It's the "pressing matters" juxtaposition. It's a totally golden moment. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	thebigapricot 2009-07-31 03:00 pm UTC (link)
	Again I have an issue with the practicality of the belly shirt as part of her costume. Her look in the last panel would be much more appropriate. But overall I am liking this. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	danielolsen 2009-07-31 03:51 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah. You know I could probably fill a post with superhero comic artists midriff fetish rant. But I'm really bad at ranting on the internet and would fail at making it entertaining. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	foxhack 2009-07-31 04:34 pm UTC (link)
	It operates on the same principle as distraction boobs, e.g., a distraction. (I know, I know. But it's a valid theory and I'm sticking to it!) (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	comicoz 2009-07-31 05:15 pm UTC (link)
	Sorry, did you say something? I saw some boobs and got a bit distracted... /typicalmaleresponse (Reply to this) (Parent)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 04:48 pm UTC (link)
	Well, if you want to argue practicality, then I could say she doesn't get clothing resistance when bending at the waist, at least. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	halloweenjack 2009-07-31 04:53 pm UTC (link)
	Beats the crap out of that Members-Only-jacket-on-steroids that Vic rocked in the 80s, is all I gotta say. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 05:12 pm UTC (link)
	Hey, the Members Only jacket was a world of improvement over the leisure suit! (Reply to this) (Parent)

	jlbarnett 2009-07-31 09:05 pm UTC (link)
	from what the sketches looked like she's going to have lots of different costumes (Reply to this) (Parent)

	foxhack 2009-07-31 04:35 pm UTC (link)
	I shouldn't say this, but uNF, baby. Dang. (Reply to this)

	darkknightjrk 2009-07-31 07:18 pm UTC (link)
	Thank God I wasn't the only one who thought Renee was hitting on that receptionist. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	kingrockwell 2009-07-31 07:29 pm UTC (link)
	I shouldn't have to remind you of our primary motto now, should I? (Reply to this) (Parent)

kali921
2009-07-31 08:30 pm UTC (link)

Chiming in to agree about the belly shirt being stupid. If anything, I think Renee's less funny in the mask - she's down at Kate Spencer levels of Incompetent Banter 101, but at least Kate's aware that she's not good at banter. Thus far, sad to say, the Renee backup stories have read to me as dull and flat - she's sounding to me like Generic Street-Level Hero. Except for the part where Renee punched the dobie last issue and then puffed out her chest about it, which made me actively dislike a character that used to appeal to me greatly. I was expecting better from Rucka - and here's hoping that it does get better.

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