Panel discussion

The appeal of Scalped, the ongoing series from Jason Aaron and R.M. Guéra, runs deeper than the one-sentence Hollywood pitch often used to describe it: The Sopranos on an Indian reservation. But there’s still some truth to that summary—like the show, this comic book infuses all of its characters with a layered complexity that they themselves often seem unaware of. Its lead character, FBI agent Dashiell Bad Horse, comes back to his old res to work undercover, probing the corruption of chief Lincoln Red Crow by working as one of his cops. The chief is also the former lover of Dash’s mom, whose death in the series’s latest installment, Dead Mothers (Vertigo, $17.99), triggers violent bouts of soul-searching in the two men. Watching Dash and Red Crow work out their “issues” with one another makes for gut-wrenching yet addictive entertainment.

Hacked e-mail, identity theft, crippling computer viruses—it’s a truism that technology can fall into the wrong hands. In Invincible Iron Man: The Five Nightmares (Marvel, $24.99), a new enemy hell-bent on ruining Tony Stark’s life steals the billionaire superhero’s inventions, and then uses them to help fanatics commit suicide bombings all over the world. Suddenly, the 300-pound flying suit that Stark wears as Iron Man may not be enough to shut down the bad guys and deal with the ugly global repercussions. Writer Matt Fraction and artist Salvador Larroca’s portrayal of the billionaire superhero manages to balance his jet-set cool with an overdeveloped sense of responsibility, delivering a significant upgrade to the action and intimacy of last summer’s blockbuster film.

The most buzzed-about book at the recent New York Comic Con was Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe (Oni Press, $11.95). In the fifth installment of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s long-running series, adorable layabout Scott Pilgrim continues to do battle against his girlfriend Ramona Flowers’s seven evil ex-boyfriends, in order to keep on dating her. One challenge comes in the form of twin exes, who show up at a sucky party with a slew of killer robots. O’Malley gives his character a broad emotional range: He can kick mechanical ass and puzzle together a more mature relationship while he’s at it. Drawing on a heavy manga influence, the Canadian cartoonist weaves video-game tropes with aimless twentysomething angst, making the Scott Pilgrim books (soon to be a movie starring Michael Cera) hilarious, idiosyncratic gems.

Buy Dead Mothers on BN.com>>

Buy Invincible Iron Man: The Five Nightmares on BN.com>>

Buy Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe on BN.com>>

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