Brian Michael Bendis and Identity Crisis.
Brian Michael Bendis by Miles Baker
When you need someone to write a crime story you turn to Brian Michael Bendis. When you need someone to write awesome swearing you turn to Brian Michael Bendis. When you need to sell 100,000 copies of your comic book you turn to Brian Michael Bendis.
I’m not going to tell you all his work for Marvel Comics is amazing, or even adequate, or even good-at-all. But when it comes to averages the man is spectacular. He pushes the medium of comics in interesting and exciting ways. His full-page spreads take full-page spreads to a whole new level. Not just for money shots of the Thing lifting a car, but as a way of getting the ads outside of your story and letting the artist experiment with wide panels, time, and balance. While he might write the occasional stinker he’s still a much more innovative storyteller than the majority of comic writers — even indie champs like Tomine, Clowes, or Watson.
Identity Crisis by Owen K. Craig
There’s been a lot of backlash to Brad Meltzer’s Identity Crisis since it ended a few years back. I’m here to say that not only do I like it, but it’s one of my favourite DC stories of all time. There’s one simple reason: character development. This story has it in spades. A writer has to care about a character to make them as interesting as this story made Ralph or Ray. For me the book is all about subtlety, like Ralph telling the story of when he first met Sue or the look Batman gives Robin when his dad is in trouble. There are moments of grandeur, but they’re balanced by the moments of subtlety. The ending works wonderfully for me, despite the criticisms others have. Some people wanted the killer to be a major villain, but instead this book took the route that worked thematically: it focuses on the price of being a hero. The price isn’t the villains — it’s the toll it takes on those close to you. End of story.
