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Stray Bullets (Single Issues) #5-8
Stray Bullets, Vol. 2
Paperback
First published June 30, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 22, 2018
Drifting forth not with lassitude but (in lieu of such) a correspondingly stony level of disorganization and labyrinthine plot(s) development are seemingly cast out as a mechanism to leave the reader d/hazed and confused. Already drifting in space (‘ladies and gentlemen) some old faces return and new personae replace the recently unseen. Again, for the umpteenth time, a phat smattering of Pulp Fiction references manifest first and then inform second up to the point of over-saturation. Even with only gossamer threads of reference and repetition to barely tie the stories together (at least chronologically), we’re still not treated to a particularly proportional tradeoff: never really setting on an idiosyncratic camera-point, not character, nor plot, or even action become the plane(s) of focus; but a visual homunculus held together far more by tone and style than anything else somehow pulls itself forth. Not to say that this is an emperor with no clothes but rather to simply call the (black) kettle black: Vol. 2 does not stack.
The scatological form of fun developed by Tyler Durden at the theater in Fight Club, represents not just a tepid dip into the rip-tides of Post-Modernism but another apparatus in the mental tool box of all *woke Po-Mo-People(s) (evidently author included). Pulp Fiction indubitably acts as the central source material yet, this deliberately Po-Mo flared chop/shop operation operated far better (ironically enough) within the adamantium encrusted closed loop of a ~2 hour Hollywood film production rather than something aiming for a different medium and far longer time span. No matter how much the philosophical screed diatribes otherwise, meaning is tethered to an external reality that we all are partaking in. Within, an internally coherent story (like Pulp Fiction), will remain able to be properly sequenced upon a proper uncoiling.
The further one reads into the series of Stray Bullets, but the more the title itself feels apropos. I am currently imagining this to be the masturbatory project of Lapham’s evidently declining mental health: more like a b-sides album tied together with a thin smattering of adhesives, the author’s lack of vision shines through ~30 years later. Seemingly collecting up spent cases of half-baked ideas to somehow be repurposed, re-prepared, and re-baked into a new illustrated cast iron sequence to be titled: Stray Bullets, the series seems unable to rise above it’s own whirlpool of internalized muck.
The scatological form of fun developed by Tyler Durden at the theater in Fight Club, represents not just a tepid dip into the rip-tides of Post-Modernism but another apparatus in the mental tool box of all *woke Po-Mo-People(s) (evidently author included). Pulp Fiction indubitably acts as the central source material yet, this deliberately Po-Mo flared chop/shop operation operated far better (ironically enough) within the adamantium encrusted closed loop of a ~2 hour Hollywood film production rather than something aiming for a different medium and far longer time span. No matter how much the philosophical screed diatribes otherwise, meaning is tethered to an external reality that we all are partaking in. Within, an internally coherent story (like Pulp Fiction), will remain able to be properly sequenced upon a proper uncoiling.
The further one reads into the series of Stray Bullets, but the more the title itself feels apropos. I am currently imagining this to be the masturbatory project of Lapham’s evidently declining mental health: more like a b-sides album tied together with a thin smattering of adhesives, the author’s lack of vision shines through ~30 years later. Seemingly collecting up spent cases of half-baked ideas to somehow be repurposed, re-prepared, and re-baked into a new illustrated cast iron sequence to be titled: Stray Bullets, the series seems unable to rise above it’s own whirlpool of internalized muck.
October 14, 2021
#ThrowbackThursday - Back in the '90s, I used to write comic book reviews for the website of a now-defunct comic book retailer called Rockem Sockem Comics. (Collect them all!)
From the June 1998 edition with a theme of "Crime Comics II":
INTRODUCTION
It's time to return to the mean streets.
Yes, let's get down into the gutter with the gray- and black-hearted souls that inhabit the world of crime comics. These are stories told from the criminal's point of view, be he a petty thief or a cold-blooded killer. "Crime doesn't pay," goes the old saying, but it sure can entertain.
In case the tough guys of ROAD TO PERDITION, STRAY BULLETS, and SIN CITY glorify crime a little too much and give some of my readers inappropriate ideas, I'm throwing in CUCKOO to give everyone a reminder that crime has consequences that echo through society long after the clank of the cell door and the final sizzle of the electric chair have faded away.
FROM THE BACKLIST
STRAY BULLETS #1-14 (El Capitan)
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR #1-6 (Dark Horse Comics/Legend)
Two of the better crime comics being produced today happen to be polar opposites in approach: substance versus style. Comparing David Lapham's STRAY BULLETS to Frank Miller's SIN CITY is not dissimilar from comparing Quentin Tarantino's PULP FICTION to John Woo's FACE/OFF. But hey, I review comics not movies, so I'm not supposed to compare PULP FICTION to FACE/OFF. Instead, I shall compare STRAY BULLETS to PULP FICTION and SIN CITY to FACE/OFF, then compare STRAY BULLETS to SIN CITY. These are all legitimate, comic-centric comparisons. I, the comic reviewer, hereby deny any responsibility for conclusions drawn by readers with an understanding of the transitive property.
Though I'm sure Lapham must be sick of the comparison by now, the parallels to be drawn between STRAY BULLETS and PULP FICTION are irresistible to reviewers such as myself. How am I supposed to ignore the fact that two incredibly talented individuals have chosen the same genre and techniques to tell a slew of riveting stories? Both Tarantino and Lapham use non-linear chronology to tell closely interwoven tales of crimes and the people who perpetrate them. Just as Tarantino's three stories jumped hypnotically back and forth through time -- allowing a character killed in the middle of the movie to appear hale and hearty later in the film -- the fourteen issues of STRAY BULLETS skip all over the calendar: starting in 1997 with #1, jumping back to 1977 with #2, and erratically staggering through the late '70s and '80s as Lapham slowly works his way back to the '90s. That Lapham and Tarantino both write rat-a-tat dialogue, create vivid and complex characters, and use shocking violence to maintain a heightened tension simply clinches the comparison for me.
Woo and Miller, on the other hand, share more intangible qualities. They are masters of larger-than-life, style-over-substance maelstroms of action and violence. Both employ fantastic plot elements or outlandish coincidences to keep the story racing at a fever pitch, and both feature heroes who, while presented as everyday joes with down-to-earth concerns, are capable of nearly superhuman feats in a running firefight. Both Woo and Miller utilize tough guy talk and action sequences so over-the-top as to nearly fall into the abyss of campiness, but the grim seriousness of the characters and situations keep Woo and Miller from plunging over that edge. Ultimately, the plots and character are secondary to the charged atmosphere and dazzling visuals these two artisans create. Just as Woo redefines action thrillers with his ballet of bullets in FACE/OFF and his earlier films, Miller pushes black-and-white comics to a whole new level with his stark penwork on A DAME TO KILL FOR and his other SIN CITY sagas.
Whenever I think of Miller's work on SIN CITY (or any of his other comics for that matter), immediately several extremely cool images pop into my head. Only later do I start dwelling on some interesting bits of dialogue or an engaging plotline. This is probably because Miller started out as a superb artist (DAREDEVIL) and then turned out to be a rather good writer and writer/artist (DAREDEVIL, ELEKTRA, BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, BATMAN: YEAR ONE). On the other hand, when I think of STRAY BULLETS I immediately start thinking of the characters and the plot. This is probably because Lapham started out as a good artist (SHADOWMAN, HARBINGER, RAI, WARRIORS OF PLASM) and then turned out to be a rather superb writer . . . though still only a good artist.
STRAY BULLETS began with a bang. Come to think of it, STRAY BULLETS #1 may be the one of the best first issues ever, telling a chilling and brutal tale of murder, insanity, and unrequited love. I don't want to tell any more about it, for fear of ruining it for any newbies in the audience. Suffice it to say, the story is set in 1997 and features a character, Joey, who appears as a boy throughout the rest of the series. In some ways, the series is about this lad and the unfortunate events that shape the man he becomes.
The main character of STRAY BULLETS, however, is Virginia Applejack. Introduced as a young girl, Virginia's life becomes a long sequence of escalating troubles after witnessing an alleyway murder. Schoolyard violence, sexual molestation, domestic abuse, and family tragedy all contribute to Virginia's need to run away from home. Her wanderings bring her into contact with Orson, Beth and Nina. This trio, whose backstory gets as much "screen time" as Virginia's, consists of three young, confused adults on the lam from a crime boss and his thugs with two suitcases of stolen cocaine. Obviously, involvement with the trio is not going to improve Virginia's quality of life. Virginia's only outlet from her awful reality is through stories she writes of her futuristic outlaw doppelganger, Amy Racecar. (Feature-length Amy Racecar stories appear in issues #6, #10 and a color special.) For me, the point of the series boils down to one question: Will Amy Racecar and Virginia's own sensibility keep Virginia from travelling the same troubled path as Joey?
The story in SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR is not nearly as hard to describe. A down-on-his-luck photographer, Dwight McCarthy is lured by a married ex-girlfriend into a plot full of sex, betrayal, murder and more betrayal. I'm talking tons of hot babes and hotter action here, boys. Literally every other issue features defenestration. (Before those without dictionaries get too hot and bothered, I should point out that defenestration is an act of violence and not a sex act.) For fans of the original SIN CITY mini-series, its protagonist Marv shows up in a supporting role since A DAME TO KILL FOR takes place in time just before and during the events of Marv's own ultra-violent feature. The story is actually pretty irrelevant, but the artwork looks amazing, the narration features wonderfully hard-boiled monologues, and the dialogue is crisp and biting. While the plot is not entirely riveting, Miller's obvious love for the material is sufficiently compelling.
Visceral or cerebral? Which is your pleasure? Frankly, I want them both whenever possible. For me, that's why PULP FICT- . . . um, STRAY BULLETS, I mean, wins in this showdown. Sure FACE/O- . . . ahem, SIN CITY is exciting to look at while I'm reading it, but once I've put it away in a box I don't dwell on it. STRAY BULLETS, however, stays with me. It has the thrills and violence to keep me on the edge of my seat while I'm reading it, it has the complexity that challenges me to unravel its secrets, and it has the themes and ideas which linger in my brain long into the night. Now, if only Frank Miller would consent to draw STRAY BULLETS under Lapham's scripting I think I'd be in heaven. (Tarantino and Woo together might not be too bad either . . . )
STRAY BULLETS Grade: A+
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR Grade: B
From the June 1998 edition with a theme of "Crime Comics II":
INTRODUCTION
It's time to return to the mean streets.
Yes, let's get down into the gutter with the gray- and black-hearted souls that inhabit the world of crime comics. These are stories told from the criminal's point of view, be he a petty thief or a cold-blooded killer. "Crime doesn't pay," goes the old saying, but it sure can entertain.
In case the tough guys of ROAD TO PERDITION, STRAY BULLETS, and SIN CITY glorify crime a little too much and give some of my readers inappropriate ideas, I'm throwing in CUCKOO to give everyone a reminder that crime has consequences that echo through society long after the clank of the cell door and the final sizzle of the electric chair have faded away.
FROM THE BACKLIST
STRAY BULLETS #1-14 (El Capitan)
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR #1-6 (Dark Horse Comics/Legend)
Two of the better crime comics being produced today happen to be polar opposites in approach: substance versus style. Comparing David Lapham's STRAY BULLETS to Frank Miller's SIN CITY is not dissimilar from comparing Quentin Tarantino's PULP FICTION to John Woo's FACE/OFF. But hey, I review comics not movies, so I'm not supposed to compare PULP FICTION to FACE/OFF. Instead, I shall compare STRAY BULLETS to PULP FICTION and SIN CITY to FACE/OFF, then compare STRAY BULLETS to SIN CITY. These are all legitimate, comic-centric comparisons. I, the comic reviewer, hereby deny any responsibility for conclusions drawn by readers with an understanding of the transitive property.
Though I'm sure Lapham must be sick of the comparison by now, the parallels to be drawn between STRAY BULLETS and PULP FICTION are irresistible to reviewers such as myself. How am I supposed to ignore the fact that two incredibly talented individuals have chosen the same genre and techniques to tell a slew of riveting stories? Both Tarantino and Lapham use non-linear chronology to tell closely interwoven tales of crimes and the people who perpetrate them. Just as Tarantino's three stories jumped hypnotically back and forth through time -- allowing a character killed in the middle of the movie to appear hale and hearty later in the film -- the fourteen issues of STRAY BULLETS skip all over the calendar: starting in 1997 with #1, jumping back to 1977 with #2, and erratically staggering through the late '70s and '80s as Lapham slowly works his way back to the '90s. That Lapham and Tarantino both write rat-a-tat dialogue, create vivid and complex characters, and use shocking violence to maintain a heightened tension simply clinches the comparison for me.
Woo and Miller, on the other hand, share more intangible qualities. They are masters of larger-than-life, style-over-substance maelstroms of action and violence. Both employ fantastic plot elements or outlandish coincidences to keep the story racing at a fever pitch, and both feature heroes who, while presented as everyday joes with down-to-earth concerns, are capable of nearly superhuman feats in a running firefight. Both Woo and Miller utilize tough guy talk and action sequences so over-the-top as to nearly fall into the abyss of campiness, but the grim seriousness of the characters and situations keep Woo and Miller from plunging over that edge. Ultimately, the plots and character are secondary to the charged atmosphere and dazzling visuals these two artisans create. Just as Woo redefines action thrillers with his ballet of bullets in FACE/OFF and his earlier films, Miller pushes black-and-white comics to a whole new level with his stark penwork on A DAME TO KILL FOR and his other SIN CITY sagas.
Whenever I think of Miller's work on SIN CITY (or any of his other comics for that matter), immediately several extremely cool images pop into my head. Only later do I start dwelling on some interesting bits of dialogue or an engaging plotline. This is probably because Miller started out as a superb artist (DAREDEVIL) and then turned out to be a rather good writer and writer/artist (DAREDEVIL, ELEKTRA, BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, BATMAN: YEAR ONE). On the other hand, when I think of STRAY BULLETS I immediately start thinking of the characters and the plot. This is probably because Lapham started out as a good artist (SHADOWMAN, HARBINGER, RAI, WARRIORS OF PLASM) and then turned out to be a rather superb writer . . . though still only a good artist.
STRAY BULLETS began with a bang. Come to think of it, STRAY BULLETS #1 may be the one of the best first issues ever, telling a chilling and brutal tale of murder, insanity, and unrequited love. I don't want to tell any more about it, for fear of ruining it for any newbies in the audience. Suffice it to say, the story is set in 1997 and features a character, Joey, who appears as a boy throughout the rest of the series. In some ways, the series is about this lad and the unfortunate events that shape the man he becomes.
The main character of STRAY BULLETS, however, is Virginia Applejack. Introduced as a young girl, Virginia's life becomes a long sequence of escalating troubles after witnessing an alleyway murder. Schoolyard violence, sexual molestation, domestic abuse, and family tragedy all contribute to Virginia's need to run away from home. Her wanderings bring her into contact with Orson, Beth and Nina. This trio, whose backstory gets as much "screen time" as Virginia's, consists of three young, confused adults on the lam from a crime boss and his thugs with two suitcases of stolen cocaine. Obviously, involvement with the trio is not going to improve Virginia's quality of life. Virginia's only outlet from her awful reality is through stories she writes of her futuristic outlaw doppelganger, Amy Racecar. (Feature-length Amy Racecar stories appear in issues #6, #10 and a color special.) For me, the point of the series boils down to one question: Will Amy Racecar and Virginia's own sensibility keep Virginia from travelling the same troubled path as Joey?
The story in SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR is not nearly as hard to describe. A down-on-his-luck photographer, Dwight McCarthy is lured by a married ex-girlfriend into a plot full of sex, betrayal, murder and more betrayal. I'm talking tons of hot babes and hotter action here, boys. Literally every other issue features defenestration. (Before those without dictionaries get too hot and bothered, I should point out that defenestration is an act of violence and not a sex act.) For fans of the original SIN CITY mini-series, its protagonist Marv shows up in a supporting role since A DAME TO KILL FOR takes place in time just before and during the events of Marv's own ultra-violent feature. The story is actually pretty irrelevant, but the artwork looks amazing, the narration features wonderfully hard-boiled monologues, and the dialogue is crisp and biting. While the plot is not entirely riveting, Miller's obvious love for the material is sufficiently compelling.
Visceral or cerebral? Which is your pleasure? Frankly, I want them both whenever possible. For me, that's why PULP FICT- . . . um, STRAY BULLETS, I mean, wins in this showdown. Sure FACE/O- . . . ahem, SIN CITY is exciting to look at while I'm reading it, but once I've put it away in a box I don't dwell on it. STRAY BULLETS, however, stays with me. It has the thrills and violence to keep me on the edge of my seat while I'm reading it, it has the complexity that challenges me to unravel its secrets, and it has the themes and ideas which linger in my brain long into the night. Now, if only Frank Miller would consent to draw STRAY BULLETS under Lapham's scripting I think I'd be in heaven. (Tarantino and Woo together might not be too bad either . . . )
STRAY BULLETS Grade: A+
SIN CITY: A DAME TO KILL FOR Grade: B
November 8, 2019
Orson witnesses a hit-and-run in broad daylight. He gets seduced by an older woman at the scene. She later offers to sleep with him, but he puts it off because of family gatherings. She invites him to a party where many drug and alcohol addicted people attend. He gets into the rythm with everyone else, but on the next day he rejects Rose and leaves the partying behind. Still, the experience changes him.
Amy Racecar's story is a funny one, though it's not real. Her descent into violence leads to the destruction of the world.
More of Ginny's past is revealed. She never got along with her mother. Her father is dying of cancer and the story ends with him being rushed to the hospital after a violent caughing fit.
Orson and Beth met after his failed encounter with Rose. They are on the run and hiding out in a trailer park after stealing money and coke from Harry. While this suits Orson just fine, Beth is on edge and she starts a fight with him. Her state of mind finally gets to Orson and he loses it. This gets Beth interested in him again.
Amy Racecar's story is a funny one, though it's not real. Her descent into violence leads to the destruction of the world.
More of Ginny's past is revealed. She never got along with her mother. Her father is dying of cancer and the story ends with him being rushed to the hospital after a violent caughing fit.
Orson and Beth met after his failed encounter with Rose. They are on the run and hiding out in a trailer park after stealing money and coke from Harry. While this suits Orson just fine, Beth is on edge and she starts a fight with him. Her state of mind finally gets to Orson and he loses it. This gets Beth interested in him again.
March 28, 2015
This edition starts out slow but plants the seeds for the later stories in this edition which are powerful and unforgettable. Not as strong as our introduction to the characters in volume one. Which was more stark and violent. Yet it had to be to get you indoctrined into that world. Here we are welcomed back though more continuing the characters stories in new climates. So far next to sin city. This is one of the better continuing noir stories and chapters that keeps going. Though not as hardcore as those can be nor as much as the CRIMINAL and Ed Brubaker graphic novels.
January 10, 2016
It didn't quite grab me in the same way as vol 1, one of the stories was weak ( the truth machine) but it was good to see more of Virginia and I do like the way the stories are starting to weave together.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews