Saturday, July 03, 2004

STREET ANGEL DOS

I have a theory.

I've been writing on pop culture for a long time now, even some academic papers, and it seems to me that all really standout pop has at least one thing in common: it has an extended arm and a raised middle finger pointed squarely at other boring or just flat bad pop culture.

It's a very, very good theory. Think about it. Think about films like DEEP BLUE SEA, for instance. Not only did it have an almost laughably dumb premise (super smart sharks), but it only had one "name" actor in the cast (Samuel L. Jackson). And at the very moment that Jackson's character is giving the standard "If we all stick together, we'll survive" speech, a shark breaks the water and swallows Jackson whole, leaving the viewer laughing his fool head off and applauding. Not only did the film flip the bird to a very bad cliche, but it also gave a winking nod to the concept of "jumping the shark." Other moments of "fuck you" raised along the way, and that made DEEP BLUE SEA an immensely entertaining B-movie.

I want pop culture to give me the finger. I want as much pop as possible to rise above its roots and strive to be something better. I want it to challenge me to pay attention, I want it to stir my brain, and I want the people who are making it to just give a shit.

STREET ANGEL #2 came in my mailbox, I brought it home, and it immediately flipped off the stack of comics I had sitting on my bookcase. It even used both fingers.

I reviewed issue one in my MoviePoopShoot column a couple of weeks before it came out. It was an exhilarating breath of fresh air, a piece of such perfect pop that I worried that the creators would not be able to sustain their momentum. Thankfully, I had nothing to worry about.

The brilliant creative team of Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca have let loose another blast of brilliance upon the comics scene. Incan pirates from the past and an Irish astronaut from the future are dragged through a time warp and land in Jesse Sanchez' Angel City. Their landing gets the local ninjas involved as well, and a melee ensues.

At every step, the plot of this book is so insane that you can't help but giggle and snicker with glee. Plus you get beautiful gags like the ninja house having an alarm designed specially to go off if pirates show up...

Like I said: a brilliant giving of the finger moment.

STREET ANGEL is so good that it's almost scary. Both issues have become instant classics, and it is my sincerest wish that Rugg and Maruca are able to keep up the quality of the book without jumping the shark.

Of course, reading that, they're probably flipping me off.

Marc Mason
P.O. Box 26732
Tempe, AZ 85285
Marc@MarcMason.com

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