Red Review

What you need to know: Frank Moses is a a retired blacks ops agent, living a dull life of retirement when he is forced back into the spy game by an assassination attempt.

What you you'll love

The Cast: The cast is as star studded as they come, sometimes this can be a bad thing but it works in Red. Each heavyweight gets just enough time on screen. It's a juggling act done well.

Willis: If you're a fan of Mr. Willis then Red is the movie for you. Willis does a superb job with some very mediocre material. Every moment Willis is on the screen, Red morphs into a better movie.

Mary Louise Parker: I didn't know Parker was in the movie, she certainly wasn't a selling point on the trailers or posters. Despite this Parker steals the show, she provides the movie's only true moments of humor. The very definition of a scene stealer.


What you won't

Mindless plot: Red's plot is so mindless, so contrived that it defines comprehension. I couldn't help but think of the movie the Losers. The plot to the two movies are almost identical, yet the Losers with a small budget, and lesser know stars is everything Red tries to be and is not.

Uneven: Action comedies are tricky, you have to find the right balance. Structurally Red finds a healthy balance between its two genres. Where it struggles is in its tone. At times Red is very serious other times it's whimsical, it's not a good mix.

Over the top: To say that the use of machine guns in this movie is excessive, is to say that snow is cold. One of the first scenes in the movie has Willis' character attacked by a hit squad of roughly twenty men in the middle of suburbia. Supposedly these people live in the shadowy world of covert ops. I somehow doubt they'd open fire in the middle of the suburbs.


Bottom Line: Red is more overwrought Hollywood drivel. If you are big fans the actors involved you may find some enjoyment in Red,otherwise skip it or what for it to come to a Red box near you.

GRADE: C

Scalped 41 Review

What you need to know: Scalped revolves around undercover FBI agent Dashiell Bad Horse, who returns home to the fictional Prairie Rose Indian Reservation, to take down it's corrupt chief.

What you'll love

Opening scene: I cant remember reading a more gripping scene. There are times when I read this series and I literally hold my breath. There are other times that I feel like my eyes are going to pop out of my head. The beginning of this book is like going downhill on a roller coaster.

Universal Themes: Jason Aaron masterfully weaves classic themes in and out of his narratives. Scalped is a mediation of the human condition, as trite as that terminology may seem, it truly is. In this issue Aaron takes parenthood and delves into the darkness of it. The face of parenthood is rosy and sunny but underneath, there are many people that can't handle it. Aaron explores this aspect in detail. What results is an emotionally resonant work of art

Art: The art perfectly conveys the dark themes of the story. RM Guera perfects emotion and facial expressions on every panel. It's amazing given the tough content. Guera is the perfect complement to Aaron's writing. Several times AAron's script calls for silent panels, in these panels you can almost hear the sounds in them. They are rich and full of of life but at the same time exceedingly dark and desolate. Masterful work.

Intensity: Scalped screams of intensity, there's is not a book that invokes so much emotion during it's reading. It's violent,depressing, disturbing,sexy, entertaining and true to life all at the same time.

Realism: Scalped very rarely strains credulity. The way the characters interact is perfect in the context of who they are. Each one of them is well defined and three dimensional. A classic example this is the ending of the book. Aaron perfectly captures the awkwardness of two estranged lovers reuniting.

What you won't

Current arc: Scalped is always very good but this current arc hasn't progressed as fast as many would have liked. Last issue was especially disappointing(in Scalped terms, which is still better than 90 percent of the books on the shelves)

Better in Trades: I recently caught up with Scalped and have read the last four issues on a monthly basis. Like most Vertigo books, this book reads better in a trade, however this issue is one of the best single issues I've read in some time, if not ever.


Bottom Line: Scalped is a modern classic, and issue is 41 is Jason Aaron's finest offering to date.

Grade: A+ I'd give a higher grade if I could.