Gore Watch! 30/03/07

And it goes something like this.


Hell's teeth, I thought last week was slow!

Well, I suppose it's a good thing.

(See how quickly this pervasive violence has not only desensitized me, but has also actually given me an insatiable lust for super hero blood. I must resist!)

Onward! Onward!

Batman #664

Really only notable for having it's bloodiest moment on the cover where, completely out of context, Batman is beating the snot out of a police officer. The bloody, thick, plentiful snot.


But really, putting this issue in - an issue where Morrison shows some return to form after last month's dire prose piece - is an excuse to showcase Batman's new Bat-policeboots. You would think that even if Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art graduate Andy Kubert hadn't picked up that compositional error in the pencils, his dad - Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art founder Joe Kubert - might have while he was inking it. Who knows, perhaps it's his sly tribute to Mick McMahon. Anyway, I digress. Look at the blood!

Daredevil #95

Pop!

Pretty restrained headshot here, but what the hell is up with Marvel writers at the moment? Do they have some kind of "brain matter" editorial dictate?

MARVEL EDITOR: Ed, Ed, I'm lovin' this baby. But listen, listen. How about...wait...*snff*...how about we talk about some brains, yeah? Hittin' the floor, splatterin' on DD's face. Maybe call 'em something cool, okay? Like cranial jelly or whatever. Shit, I don't know. Whatever works baby. Hey, you're the writer, right? Right? You know what to do baby. *snff*

ED BRUBAKER: ...

Yes, in the world of my head, Marvel editors all talk like coked up Hollywood agents. But they're still good to their mothers, and donate heavily to charity.

Wolverine #52

Thank God for Wolvie. As you are no doubt aware, Wolverine has always been an odd choice for kids comics. A guy with claws prone to a berserk bloodlust, and who can have any amount of physical damage inflicted on him. Not a recipe for a Christmas hit, but still one of the most popular characters out there.

How his violent premise translates in the comics varies wildly depending on the creator: from the ridiculous "he doesn't kill anybody" approach (now largely abandoned), through the "offscreen maiming/killing" school (still used often), to the logical "fuck heroic ethics, I'm slicing you to pieces" approach (as first seen, I believe, in Havok/Wolverine: Meltdown). Observe:


When asked if he's going a little far, Wolvie replies that he's done this before, and we're treated to a flashback. If it's worth doing once...


The observant among you will notice that Sabretooth screams with one more "R" in his "YARRRGHHH" (say that three times fast) last time around. I presume this means either he was more sensitive to the whole "hand chopped off" thing back then, or Wolverine just makes a cleaner cut these days.

You probably also notice that he has the hand in the present-day panel, despite what happened in the commemorative plate edition. That's because, like Wolvie, he heals. So then, if you have a character who can't really be hurt, does violence against them count as real violence?

Yes.

There you go, you once again live in a world of moral absolutes. Glad to be of service.

Anyway, in keeping with modern comics violence not only do we get the money shot, but we get the linger shot too, bathing in the glory of some sheared bones.


Which kind of lessens the shock of the initial violence, no? Makes it feel a little more humdrum? No? Just me? Oh, and would it kill him to buy a shirt?

LOOK! PREHISTORIC WOLVERINE BEHEADING A FURRY!


Nuff Said!