Wednesday Comics #1 Review

What can I say about Wednesday Comics #1? When I first heard about the whole concept I honestly didn’t like it, but the absolutely gorgeous art previews and talent put together gave me some hope. And now, after buying it and holding it in my hands, I can honestly say this is one of the most fun and coolest things I’ve seen since I was 11 years old and bought my first issue of Marvel vs. DC.

First off, for anyone who didn’t buy this or is new to the concept I’ll quickly explain. We all know that in newspapers there is the “funny” sections where you’ll have some Garfield or other comics. Well back in the 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s (don’t know how long it went for) those newspaper comic strips used to have some comic book stories and heroes like Superman, The Phantom, and Flash Gordon, just to name a few. Well DC Comics for the next 12 weeks is printing a comic book in the same size and paper quality as a newspaper and mixing it with some old school classic feel comics along with some great modern art and characters. We’ve got everything from Jack Kirby’s Kamandi to new and modern Teen Titans. Each page tells part 1 of a 12 week story and in total there are 15 separate characters/stories.

And IT IS AWESOME!

Even as I bought the issue and walked out of the shop I wasn’t prepared for the roller coaster I had gotten myself into. I got home, cracked open a beer, and spread out the paper on my dining room table, and as I started to read and flip through the paper I said out loud, “This is one of the coolest things I have ever seen!” To go into detail and review all 15 stories would spoil the fun and make for a review way too long, so I’ll skim over some of the best parts and beg you to go get this if your haven’t already.

The Paul Pope Adam Strange one was my favorite. His ability to set up his story in 1 page along, with the classic Silver Age comic book feel, was fascinating. I it read 2-3 times. It’s got that Planet of the Apes type sci-fi feel and having it spread out in newspaper size was just too much. My other favorite was Kershi Fletcher’s The Flash; we got action, soap opera, and mystery all in 1 page along with some class pop art (where the coloring is done with little circles). I was gushing like a school girl when I read this. The Superman story was great (along with the modern art and silver age villain), The Batman story was classic, and you can’t beat some Kamadi, Methamorpho, and Metal Men (written by DC’s very own Dan Didio).

Overall this gets a big 5 out of 5

I want to keep writing but I have to stop. I want to a) hear other peoples thoughts and b) encourage to go buy it yourself and if you did, go read it again (I know I’m going to). Digital comics are on the horizon and ask anyone in the industry, print media is dying, but go to your local shop, pick this up, and take a step back in time to some of the best days of comics. The whole thing is nostalgic and should NOT be missed.