Diamond_Dynamo I mean, in the same way that a Christian is so into the tenets of his philosophy that he disregards the pointless sins of eating seafood or whatnot. Flag code is vital for officials but would be tyrannous micromanaging if enforced, and isn't ever really brought up in arguments except to defend flag burners or discredit people's freedom of expression.
No one reads the flag code. It's a long and tedious document that seems to be written for people holding events to host diplomats or important government figures at formal events. It doesn't make much sense outside of formal events or in very ritual oriented groups. Most people don't even know that the US Flag Code explicitly allows flag burning. It doesn't account at all for use of a flag in combat as a battle standard.
@@notjimpickens7928 No, its not a loophole its irrelevant. They DEFINITELY foresaw a flag as a weapon as a flag can be used on the battlefield as a battle standard, its carried in combat so its clear which nation that group of soldiers belongs to from a distance. Using whatever is to hand as a weapon in combat is forseeable. The Flag Code limits itself to a narrow set of circumstances like formal events.
Wow, this comic book is like the premier example of all the worst art trends in the early 2000's. Bad photoshopping effects, horrendous human anatomy (especially with women characters), the inconsistency or complete lack of black inks to create contrasts in light and shadow, and atrocious panel layouts.
Nine one one's aftermath saw many of these 'gems'. They all more or les follow the same flagsuited vengeance "guidelines". I'm surprised they aren't worth more on the market... yet.
The way you become Civilian Justice is the same way Tim Allen became Santa Claus in the movie Santa Claus. If you kill him or he's killed around you, well guess you're doing it now.
I know what I would do if I came across each of those artifacts: “Whoa! I’m Santa Claus! COOL!” “Hey, a beat-up flag mask! Just what I needed to wipe my ass after that burrito!”
'If you find this mask, it means I did not survive. Please continue my work in the name of Justice. Also, depending on how I died, you might want to add eyeholes.'
What I can't get over is how the terrorists are portrayed as GI Joe villains with all those costumes. For a comic attempting to be realistic, that's just ridiculous.
What bugged me was “Clint” was with his girlfriend, getting intimate, and he was still wearing his BACKWARDS baseball cap on the whole time!!! Couldn’t the artist draw hair?!
That's the man she fell in love with. If .. No! WHEN his adventures continue maybe that's how he can prove he's not Civilian Justice. As Jackie Chiles would say "No cap? No rap!"
"I would totally read a comic about extreme sewing." That'd probably be a manga. Wouldn't be surprised if they have one. They have extreme cooking and baking after all... 😂
I just keep thinking of that bit in "The Simpsons" where Lisa asked them what percentage of their material was recycled and the lady got really defensive and said, "0 is a percent". :)
Beside your usual funny and enjoyable exposition, this video is actually pretty informative for amateur comicbook artists as a reminder of some do's and don't's
That's why I love this guy, he's very charming but he can also educate novice artists and writers so they can make great things He's the type of person on TH-cam that's worth seeking out and supporting
What always bothered me is, if it had gone through as a Batman comic, that would've made TWO comics with that title and the original one was actually pretty good so it's rep would've been ruined by the other once.
Badre Bally It's been a bit since I've seen the video but it really seems a lot of the issues (as I recall) was just inexperiance. If the creator had consulted others, maybe people better skilled at art, someone to study his script and point out issues, etc... it could actually have been pretty good. It seems a lot of the issues (no pun intended) with indie comics boil down to people who don't know what they're doing and don't have any sort of feedback or oversight. Even showing your script to friends or family (who are going to be honest) can help, a lot of it feels like first drafts.
(Very late to the party here, just discovered your excellent channel) :) OK, it's bad. Very bad. The worst. But as someone who read a lot of comics back in that era, I gotta say, I appreciate the author's attempt to show blowback against Muslim Americans. The whole corny "Grrr, how dare they appropriate the PEACEFUL Muslim religion..." thing is poorly done, but I can recall a lot of revenge porn 9/11 comics from the era just going all-in on the anti-Islamic stereotypes, and the fact that this guy didn't wins some respect from me. Actually, I all-around hate this comic less than Frank Miller's Holy Terror .
Very true. I lived in Queens before, during, and after 9/11 and the feeling of malice on the streets wiped away that fleeting sense of unity and mutual support fostered by the attacks. I remember reports of Sikhs getting killed in reprisals - who aren't even Muslim - I'm not incredibly tan or anything but I have darker features and I could swear I was being eyed up every now and again, which felt so fucking bizarre. There was just a feeling of vague distrust and uneasiness, because this was also during a big demographic switch in my neighborhood, the Beltway Snipers, the Anthrax attack, it's incredible to think all of that happened in such a small time-frame. I had a couple West-Asian friends who were as American as you and I but they felt such anxiety (real or imagined, idk) that they took to wearing a cross necklaces or Italian flag t-shirts as a kind-of security blanket. It was so strange how quickly things seemed to change. A lot of us left the city not long afterwards, myself included. It was mostly born of ignorance. Even people who were well-meaning couldn't wrap their heads around the opaque enemy we were fighting - or rather that was fighting us - despite the fact that it'd been doing so since the fucking early 80's, at least. Even today a lot of people can't tell a South-Asian person (India, Pakistan, etc) from a person of Middle-Eastern descent. There was no distinction because for the majority of Americans it was black and white - USSR vs. USA, Communism vs. Capitalism. The 90's were supposed to be fucking Valhalla. We won. We fell asleep. A lot of us are still snoring.
Yes and I agree with you, but in the grand scheme of things, this is basically saying 'I hate surgery without anesthesia more than I hate getting kicked in the balls'. I mean. YES, obviously, one is considerably worse, but this is pretty bad too. Ideally neither of those things should have happened in our lifetime.
@@Liliputian07 I didn't know typing was the same as speech. Thank you for educating me. Now educate yourself on how many times the US government has false flag attacked it's own people and how the news is just a government run psy op.
@@roryscott2941Like that Wrestlemania(? Could've been Summerslam or something) billboard that had all the male wrestlers' nipples erased. I'll never be able to look at Big Show the same way again
two easy plot hole fixes: 1) his leather outfit includes the armor his dad and brother were talking about. He gets shot, but when the shooter comes over to see if he's dead, he knocks the guy off of his feet and gets up. 2) When the guy is about to stab him, the FBI agent shoots him. He goes over to pick up the flag, and the rest plays out normally. Or, better yet, his brother's an FBI agent and shows up instead of a woman in an undersized too-thin blouse.
I think the flaws you pointed out are really helpful for potential comic writers and artists to know about! Also, when I saw the cover it didn’t even cross my mind that Civilian Justice might be male!
Civilian Justice sounds like an unholy mix of Punisher’s vigilantism, Captain America’s patriotism, and Penace’s wangstism. Can’t believe somebody thought this was a good idea.
It's always tough taking the piss outta someone's passion project like this, especially when it wasn't backed by big names. But I think we gotta be okay with art criticism on all levels. This guy has a passion to tell a story. But he lacks the skills currently to refine them and do stuff for the benefit of a good story and not just...well...Mary Sueisms.
That's my thought exactly... The artist here does seem to have a mind for quality, but lacks the skill and experience for creating the desired product. This seems like Artist's first comic book project published to his church's youth group audience but on publication steroids. Its commendable that the comic was made... not all armature artists can claim they've finished a comic book... but you would hope the artist knew he would receive harsh criticism at his high school level of art skills. Here's hoping he took criticisms to heart and he's now producing far better quality pieces with his talent.
as a personal friend of Graig's, I'm actually grateful that rather than overdose the review with negativity, you actually went and pointed out the flaws in a concise, respectful yet firm manner! not many people out there in the reviewing business- comics, videogames, wrestling and so on- who can pride themselves on that! truth be told: when I first saw the title of this video, my blood did boil since I know the man professionally and personally; hell, he's even gone out of his way to try to help put my foot in the door of this business, so to speak, and most of what I know is through him, plus he's very devoted to his family... but upon checking out the video (call it 'benefit of the doubt"), you're actually right in a lot of these aspects! he's since improved in the craft- the series is now called "Codename: Justice"- well, in honesty the art's improved the most; the story's still in need of just a bit more polish... but all in all, thanks for keeping the fact discussion poignant and the criticism constructive. my best regards and keep up the great work!
Yea thats how you learn and get better, It's not easy to publish something and for what it's worth I enjoyed the story. I'm gonna check out some of his new stuff!
The first year's proceeds from the first book featuring the character, titled Civilian Justice, were donated to the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York, and the families from Windows on the World (ROC NY) HERE Fund, which aided victims and families of non-union workers who lost their lives in the attacks. (wikipedia)
Boy this comic looks terrible. The storytelling in the writing and the art is just awful. And things just happen like the guy’s gf dies on 9/11 and then he makes up a costume out of an American flag and some biker/bondage leather gear. And without any established special training he just knows martial arts and has all the equipment and skills to do some crazy detective work to hunt down these terrorists. But there is semblance of a good idea there with the guy becoming a hero after his gf dies in a tragic event. And I also have to give props to this comic for not simply painting all Muslims as rabid extremists who demand death to all infidels. I was so ready to see that in the story bc it was created as a reaction to 9/11 but it actually surprised me.
His fighting skills were (badly) established along with the detective/interrogation skills and the body armor material. All right in the first two speech bubbles.
"...so maybe he found a bigger window." Is easily the funniest thing I've ever heard when reviewing a comic. thank you for all your terribly true videos, the two panel spread of Civilian Justice coming back with the stab is pure comedy
I'm glad you mentioned the lettering. That stuff is no joke. The first time I ever self-published a comic it was the biggest thing that I (and I believe most indies) easily underestimated in terms of working to look remotely professional and on point. Before you even mentioned it, at first glance of these pages, I noticed a few lettering errors that more than anything else here would supposedly get this book flat-out rejected by Comixology Submit.
I have tried to look through a flag. When Greg paid me to dress up as civilian justice at comicon for his table. It didn't work very well. Somewhere I have a picture of me in the outfit.
Post 911 America specifically 2001-2004 was like a fever dream. Stuff like this wouldn’t even seem weird then. Remember freedom fries? For anyone too young to remember or who didn’t live in America around the year 2003, there was a movement to call French fries “freedom fries” as protest against France choosing to not aid America and the UK in invading Iraq. The irony there being that we emphasized freedom in the name of invading a sovereign country that didn’t attack us, lol. Man, America was just so strange during that time. Even normally sane and level headed people got swept into this hypernationalism that was pervasive everywhere
I thought that it was a woman until he said "if you look at those hips, they look kind of like ladies hips". and then I took a closer look and was rather suprised
Wow. This is awful. I mean, not coming up with some terrorist plan to foil, we don't even know why they're the Dos Equis gang? Or...anything? Just...wow! #711, everyone was dumb, but the comic worked. I do like the note in the mask, that's kinda cool.
I think he stole that idea from the Black Hood, a Golden Age character originally from Pep Comics which DC acquired in 1991. The Black Hood identity is adopted by a number of people, one after another, all of whom eventually die from the hood's curse. Each time the Black Hood dies, the next person to find and wear the mask becomes the next Black Hood.
11:33 - They probably used a font that had both styles, "normal" and "emphasis", separated between the lower and uppercase letters respectively. But the guy didn't know that or didn't realize he had to use one or the other, so whenever there's an uppercase character, it will appear as bold and italic.
I've made it a personal goal to write my first full length comic book issue. In doing so, I've discovered that I lack a lot in terms of anatomy, composition, story arcs, etc. If I can't do better than Civilian Justice, it's not going to be seen by the public.
Commenting on publishing/self-publishing is one thing, but my vote for worst comic ever has to be Charlton Bullseye #1 (the comic, not the magazine), published in 1981 and featuring a team-up with The Blue Beetle and The Question. With a plot credit to A. Committee and Dialogue credited to Anon O. Mouse, you really have to wonder what they were thinking.
A+ Insightful and funny review (though a touch harsh for an Inde self published book), but I cant stop cracking up at the "needle" comment, lol. I think the purpose of them showing the bullet proof thing at the family dinner scene is that the hero used it in his bullet proof flag, right? But why didn't the publisher point that out? C'mon publisher. Its like the connector scenes are missing throughout the book or something. The whole "we do not attack, we defend " has to relate to the "sparklers" coming out of the machine gun on the cover (which I think the artist intends to be a mussel blast coming out of the villain's gun on the cover as mentioned), hence the hero is "defending" against the villain firing, right? Though the coloring and art is wonky and over the top, I so miss that 90's classic Image Comics color explosion, makes me feel high, lol. So I like it but I think you're right though regarding it being a nice idea with potential but execution needs a lot of work, much of which you pointed out. I like that you try to point stuff out to be helpful instead of just bash like other reviewers/haters though a bit harsh in this review, but great tips. Can't wait for your next comic review.
dude if you like 90's style weird comics, check out my digital comic. my main style objective was to recreate that feel of 90's weird t.v shows/films/comics. the first issue is free :) www.50-50comics.com/
CJ felt very reactionary and at best - therapeutic for someone suffering from PTSD after 911, at worst - I was concerned that this was opportunistic given the atmosphere.
What can I say, art is hard and finding a really good artist who won't charge you an arm and a leg is nearly impossible. I've been looking for one good artist for ages now. The ones that are affordable, generally are terrible and the really good ones want a fortune, even if they've never done anything professional in their lives.
...that is kind of a nasty entitled thing to say. either you have a VERY skewed idea of what is "affordable" or a very sketchy idea of what constitutes as "professional"
I would say when you're a struggling artist, who has never been published in you life that maybe demanding the same wages a full on professional artist, even if you also happen to be really good, is a bit conceeded. It always reminded me of that bit in Seinfeild when George kept wanting to be paid the same as Ted Danson. I know as someone trying to get into the business, if the sitution was reversed and an artist came to me and offered expenses plus a precentage to put words to their art I would freaking take it and not demand professional level wages because it's a way into the industy and that's how it's supposed to work. Like with actors who take any job they can get to break into acting.
Wow - I just stumbled across a video a comic artist made about him meeting Steve Ditko - but his black leather jacket with red trim looked familiar for some reason - until I finally remembered seeing him before, he was the artist in THIS video! Still makin' comics!
25:00 When you say there're some panels missing, it reminded me of that scene in Robert Rodriguez 2007 "Planet Terror" when the protagonists are trapped inside the house and dozens of zombies are breaking in, only to have them later walking away talking how amazing it was the way they escaped but you never see it and they don't explain it. It worked in the movie because it was part of the joke.
This dude really looked at 9/11 in person and was such a black hole of charisma and emotion that all that came out was _"NO."_ Not "No!", not "Nooooo!!", not "...no...!", _"NO."_ He had the same reaction you get internally when you're asked if you're happy with your long distance carrier or if you've "heard the good news." Oh nvm, he hams it up a panel or two later
Fun Fact: The United States Flag Code states: "No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform." Abbie Hoffman was arrested for wearing a shirt made out of a flag.
@Parker Brown I'm pretty sure the code is talking about using pieces of an actual flag in the creation of those sorts of things, like Civilian Justice making a mask out of the flag he found, rather than a depiction or motif of one like what you're describing.
Not only were arrests like that found to be unconstitutional but the Flag Code (which is entirely voluntary to follow and isn't a real law for the average American) would classify a "stars and stripes shirt" the same as bunting, it is not a flag that was turned into a shirt, it was something made from original raw materials into something the style of the US flag. The flag code means a flag can't be turned INTO a costume like a real flag worn as a cape or cutting out the stars and handing them out as trophies to wear on a uniform. This is obvious if you've ever been to an event that does voluntarily adhere to the Flag Code (again, it's 100% voluntary, it's not a law) you'll see things like bunting and ribbons and flower arrangements and badges and billboards in the style of the US Flag and the Flag Code makes clear that it doesn't cover things like that because none of these things were ever a flag. The flag code is specifically for the US Flag and especially it's relation to the flags of other nations in matters of diplomacy because contrary to what many people think the US is a real country in the world and is going to have relations with other countries in the world, not exist as a continent by itself in between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans where it doesn't want to have anything to do with anyone else. Most of the Flag code is as much things like "when should a flag be lowered to half mast" and "wait, how exactly should the US flag be positioned relative to flags of other nations" it's literally about real flags, not about things reminiscent of the style of a US flag. It also doesn't cover the use of actual flags in combat. Flags are theoretically used in combat as a battle standard to lead troops. Anachronistic these days with radio communication and emphasis on camouflage, but he is using a real flag in combat. But Flag Code doesn't cover things like how US Army soldiers have a flag patch on their shoulder that's of both muted colors and "reversed" that's because of a convention unique to the US Army, that institution of the US army have their own rules and as this "superhero" is his own force he can make up whatever rules he likes for flag depiction on his uniform. Last tidbit: the Flag Code literally says you can burn the US Flag and that this is a dignified way to destroy a flag. Now this does say that this is for a flag that is "unfit for display" because it's faded or worn. It seems to be the symbolism of flag burning is very much open to interpretation, is burning of a flag a symbol of the destructive rejection of the concept of the united states... or is it a statement that the status quo is "worn out and unfit" and it's time to burn the old worn out flag and replace it with a new better one. For example when the US flag would officially change due to a new state becoming part of the union (so a new star), all the old flags would be ritually burned.
"But with the scent of vengeance so pungent in my nose... ... the taste so strong on the tip of my tongue - " Holy shit, that is some fucking AWFUL writing. My fucking jesus.
Lol I’m late asf to this party. The Anthrax part had me wheezing tho. I love that band - I’ve seen them 3 times lives so far, and hopefully I’ll see them again. They’ve literally been around since 1983, and that EXACT naming controversy actually did happen. In the midst of it, they came out on stage wearing biohazard suits. Each member had a word painted on, so that when they stood together it said “WE’RE NOT CHANGING OUR NAME”. Pretty sure they put a photo of the moment in one of their albums’ interior. And yeah, they’re still around, still called Anthrax.
Addressing the weird text tic, where the first letter of every sentence is emphasized: that comes from the all-uppercase comic book font, where pressing the Shift key (or Caps Lock) switches to a bold/italicized set of letters. I know this from making proprietary comic book fonts myself. Normally this is a useful feature, but in the case of this comic, the letterer was so careless that they didn't even notice/care that the letter type changed when they hit the shift key! Either that, or they simply copy-pasted the text from a Word doc and changed the font right in the image file...just another example of What Not To Do. To all you Indie comic book artists out there: details matter!
The line "my strength and speed surprised even me" goes beyond Mary Sue. It's like Mary Sue gleefully huffing her own farts. Kudos for not drawing additional attention to it for the unnecessary additional cringe points.
Very late here, but after 9/11 people held out hope their family members survived the attack. I remember there being missing posters all over NYC’s walls, bulletin boards set up in Times Square and near “the pile” when I was a kid. My mom’s friend lost her husband in the 2nd tower. She hoped he somehow got out because he saved this one women who escaped, she said she fell down a flight of stairs when her heel broke and she broke her leg. He carried her to the lobby then went back upstairs to look for more people. The last person who saw him was a women who had breathing problems he and a firefighter helped her get out. They never found his body so Monica hoped Micheal had gotten out and just had amnesia, so that’s why he didn’t come home to her. It’s been almost 20 years and she still misses him even if she remarried, she wears 2 wedding rings on her hand.
It's hard to say that a self published comic is the worst ever. Self publishing by definition means anything can get published. It is even worse when one of the big boys who supposedly have many levels of editing publishes a terrible book.
As dumb as this comic is, and for how poorly it's made, written, drawn, etc....I honestly commend the writer for not tarring all Muslims with the same brush. The writing is hammy as fuck, but he makes a deliberate note that the Jihadists are their own nasty can of worms and that they don't represent Islamic people as a whole. He could have been horribly unfair and prejudiced and cruel, but how does he portray Muslims? As innocent. The people lashing out in this comic against ordinary everyday Americans who happen to be Muslim are portrayed as misguided and cruel, and that's an impossibly important thing to note. I give Graig Weich massive props for pitting his character against what actually caused the problem, and not innocent people. It's a damn slight better than when Frank Miller did Holy Terror.
I love the absurd universally tragic way he portrays 9/11. One moment we see him with his girlfriend in their apartment, the next hes running against the crowd (because of course he is) while its exploding, and then his girlfriend just dies off panel somehow. It's so goddamn corny in how soap opera-esque it is.
Curiosity got the best of me and I had to look this thing up for myself. According to the Wiki page on Beyond Comics, this somehow won a Golden Panel Award from the NYC Comic Book Museum. A quick Google search only has one result for a museum with that name and it's an article from 2003. No mention of the "Golden Panel Awards" though. Also, it seems there are more Justice comics out there and God have mercy on your eternal soul if you go read them.
I probably would've bought this back in 2002. It looks like a 90's /early 2000's comic. I mean all the stuff you're mentioning probably would've never even crossed my mind. Although, that doesn't negate anything you've said here.
I can't decide which is worse: Civilian Justice or SuperPro. Just atrocious. But the bright side is, it should give every potential creator hope they too, can get their stuff published. The downside is, we'll probably end up with more crap like Civilian Justice.
Not many good fictional pieces of work really emanated from 9/11. Yet, this tragic event would make for a powerful origin story for a hero, provided that the historical context isn't utilized in a heavy handed manner. Let me try my hand on pitching an idea: Del Simmons is a promising firefighter of NYC. He's athletic, selfless, diligent, has an eye to spot dangerous hazards while progressing in the theater of operation and never messes up safety procedures. Off duty, he's a reliable friend. People generally feel compelled to look up to him as he has undeniable charisma. His Lieutenant, Elijah Johnson, see so much promise in him he subtly hints at him becoming a successor. Everything goes well for Del, until 9/11 happens. It's horrific. The firefighters are understaffed and overworked. As good as Del is, he is still green. Stress escalated so much, he refused to push further as his lieutenant and his comrades climb up another floor at search of people to rescue inside the World Trade Center... Right at that moment, he who had been fully in control so far, was struck with sentiments he never really experienced: gut wrenching fear and helplessness. He knew deep inside his companions wouldn't make it back. The events gave him right as he escaped when the building was about to crumble down. He managed to guide two persons back on his way. As chaos engulfed the scene, he cursed himself for being a coward and returned inside, even though it's a reckless move. Right after the event, he wakes from a coma at the hospital. He has scars, but his case of survival was unheard of. His colleagues pulled him out of the rubble. The shock on his brain seemed to have enabled a special power: he can sniff a charred smell everytime a building is about to go down in flames or explode in a near future. He also seems to have developed super human stamina and strength. During a couple of occasions, he first dismisses his sense of smell as traumatic shock, but then, he realizes that the buildings triggering it all get burnt out some minutes and sometimes some hours before. This is when Del decided to become a Vigilante fireman and crime fighter: he can no longer be part of his brigade because he believes he lost face, but he can still foresee disasters. He can save other lives in advance. He can prevent terrorist attacks. His only issue: when he enters a building fated to be destroyed, he gets trapped in a pocket reality where it's burning and collapsing. Outsiders are physically unaffected by the phenomenon as they don't have his superpower... That means Del must face his fears and uncertainties everytime he tries to do a heroic deed. His allies: his hacker brother who helps with investigation and one of the two persons he saved during 9/11, a rich benefactor who decided to back up Del on his quest. His arch nemesis are the terrorist Ibrahim Al Moqsada, a Saudi prince masquerading as a philanthropist, but in fact one of the lesser known brains behind the execution of the 9/11 attack and a Machiavellian serial pyromaniac of superior intelligence, nicknamed Gehenna.
So many internet reviews lean on the shtick of an angry guy going over the top with hatred of sub-par media, but it's way more entertaining to me when a nice guy like Chris tries really hard to be fair to something that's just objectively total garbage.
I feel like the main problem with this story is that I couldn’t tell where any of the women’s nipples were. They just weren’t adequately indicated and I spent every moment wondering if even existed at all! How am I meant to immerse myself in this world unless I know for certain that every woman there has nipples?!??
Dang Comic Tropes. You straight up roasted this guy. I clicked on the thumbnail because I thought it was a SuperPatriot video. Unfortunately, this video was obviously not about SuperPatriot but story wise, Civilian Justice is just slightly worse than an image comics story. The art style I would say is slightly worse than Rob Liefelds. I think this artist/writer was just one semester short of being as good as the worst pros.
I enjoyed your thoughts on this comic, you were a bit harsh at times but based on what I saw, I do agree. It does appear to be a very flawed comic and stylistically speaking the creator made some very strange decisions that seem pointless in terms of payoff (I'm talking word balloons...if it's not broke, don't fix it). The thing about it is though, I can see potential there in the artwork, however, a lot more research on how to use imagery effectively and with clear intention within sequential art needs to be done by its creator before attempting to put another comic out. The story seems mental and very poorly conceived, for instance, the protagonist seems like an ass...and not like a loveable one, I mean like a mentally unstable, anger issue riddled, needs professional help, a few sandwiches short of a picnic Kinda ass. Also, the weird choices and inconsistencies within the artwork are things that should have never made it to a printed page. It seems as though there was never any quality feedback from others or honest self-evaluation used when making this comic, or if there was it must have been ignored (which, in a weird way kind of parallels with the comic's lead character.) If you get a chance I'd love for you to check out my digital comic and give me some honest feedback. www.50-50comics.com/
I bought a copy of Civilian Justice from Graig Weich. He autographed it for me. I don't know what I did with it. It's still somewhere in my house. I bought it as a curiosity more than anything else.
I met the creator of this comic. He's a total salesman at all times but under that actually a nice guy. His big selling point for his latest comic at the time was he got to use Ice T's wife Coco's likeness for a main character. He's got " major celebrities" in his books now!
16:16 and don’t forget about the teddy bear! 18:44 “Have you ever _tried_ looking through a flag? It’s not easy! I think he’s going to have a lot of adventures going down some stairs”. Lol 21:22 how could you miss the wonderful line “but with the scent of vengeance so pungent in my nose”?
Man, for a guy who's so into the US he becomes a vigilante, he sure doesn't seem to know much about the flag code, huh?
Diamond_Dynamo
I mean, in the same way that a Christian is so into the tenets of his philosophy that he disregards the pointless sins of eating seafood or whatnot. Flag code is vital for officials but would be tyrannous micromanaging if enforced, and isn't ever really brought up in arguments except to defend flag burners or discredit people's freedom of expression.
No one reads the flag code. It's a long and tedious document that seems to be written for people holding events to host diplomats or important government figures at formal events. It doesn't make much sense outside of formal events or in very ritual oriented groups. Most people don't even know that the US Flag Code explicitly allows flag burning.
It doesn't account at all for use of a flag in combat as a battle standard.
@@Treblaine thats a fair point, im pretty sure they never forsaw anyone using a flagpole as a weapon, so we got a loophole.
@@notjimpickens7928 No, its not a loophole its irrelevant. They DEFINITELY foresaw a flag as a weapon as a flag can be used on the battlefield as a battle standard, its carried in combat so its clear which nation that group of soldiers belongs to from a distance. Using whatever is to hand as a weapon in combat is forseeable.
The Flag Code limits itself to a narrow set of circumstances like formal events.
The same people who are self proclaimed experts of it typically like to burn the flag unceremoniously.
Wow, this comic book is like the premier example of all the worst art trends in the early 2000's. Bad photoshopping effects, horrendous human anatomy (especially with women characters), the inconsistency or complete lack of black inks to create contrasts in light and shadow, and atrocious panel layouts.
Nine one one's aftermath saw many of these 'gems'. They all more or les follow the same flagsuited vengeance "guidelines". I'm surprised they aren't worth more on the market... yet.
The noise of getting stabbed in the chest with a spear is . . . "BaDoom"?
SPLUT! or SPLORCH! work well I think
It was an explosive spear of course
MutuallySustainedHateBoner Inc “Stabbed with a hammer” Rlol.
Maybe like a shuk
That's a good point.
The way you become Civilian Justice is the same way Tim Allen became Santa Claus in the movie Santa Claus. If you kill him or he's killed around you, well guess you're doing it now.
I know what I would do if I came across each of those artifacts:
“Whoa! I’m Santa Claus! COOL!”
“Hey, a beat-up flag mask! Just what I needed to wipe my ass after that burrito!”
Even if you're a terrorist who shoots him, you have to put on the mask and become the new Civilian Justice. It overrides all terrorist instincts.
@@Nightscream72 Why?
its "The Santa Claus" the the kinda makes the pun, but yeah good read same rules
@@tinnitusthenight5545 it's actually 'The Santa Clause'.
'If you find this mask, it means I did not survive. Please continue my work in the name of Justice. Also, depending on how I died, you might want to add eyeholes.'
Good thing the kid wasn't wearing a Dead Kennedy's t-shirt.
Underrated comment 😂😂😂 !!!
underrated
At that point I doubt he's even say anything to the kid. He'd probably just pull the Bane backbreaker on him without warning.
What I can't get over is how the terrorists are portrayed as GI Joe villains with all those costumes. For a comic attempting to be realistic, that's just ridiculous.
@@pietrayday9915 The Talibum! The Trashman could take him, though.
Your right I don't get why any one else has a costume go
To be fair, I think that's what we all thought terrorists looked like back then.
What bugged me was “Clint” was with his girlfriend, getting intimate, and he was still wearing his BACKWARDS baseball cap on the whole time!!! Couldn’t the artist draw hair?!
The Backwards Baseball Cap stays ON for sex.
and a gold CHAIN 🤣🤣🤣
That's the man she fell in love with. If .. No! WHEN his adventures continue maybe that's how he can prove he's not Civilian Justice. As Jackie Chiles would say "No cap? No rap!"
@@basedeltazero714 "sorry babe if I take off the backwards baseball cap I become less of a man"
Don’t kink shame. 😂
"I would totally read a comic about extreme sewing."
That'd probably be a manga. Wouldn't be surprised if they have one.
They have extreme cooking and baking after all... 😂
Kill la kill
Cooking manga ftw! Food wars is soooo good.
Dafuq u think kill la kill was bruh
Also one about the board game Go. Lets not forget that
there are some. One is called " prince of sewing". I think i've seen others but maybe they are about fashion design etc..
Doesnt it warm your heart that a % of the penny you paid for this comic went to a 9-11 relief fund?
I mean, I have no idea which fund or how much they got but if it happened, I have no complaints about that!
.0001%
I just keep thinking of that bit in "The Simpsons" where Lisa asked them what percentage of their material was recycled and the lady got really defensive and said, "0 is a percent". :)
Did it though?
0% is a %
Beside your usual funny and enjoyable exposition, this video is actually pretty informative for amateur comicbook artists as a reminder of some do's and don't's
That's why I love this guy, he's very charming but he can also educate novice artists and writers so they can make great things
He's the type of person on TH-cam that's worth seeking out and supporting
Positive: It's not as bad as Holy Terror
John Porteous ,That's not saying much.
Indeed, that's a very low bar.
Holy Terror has some legit style though.
What always bothered me is, if it had gone through as a Batman comic, that would've made TWO comics with that title and the original one was actually pretty good so it's rep would've been ruined by the other once.
Badre Bally It's been a bit since I've seen the video but it really seems a lot of the issues (as I recall) was just inexperiance. If the creator had consulted others, maybe people better skilled at art, someone to study his script and point out issues, etc... it could actually have been pretty good.
It seems a lot of the issues (no pun intended) with indie comics boil down to people who don't know what they're doing and don't have any sort of feedback or oversight. Even showing your script to friends or family (who are going to be honest) can help, a lot of it feels like first drafts.
(Very late to the party here, just discovered your excellent channel) :)
OK, it's bad. Very bad. The worst. But as someone who read a lot of comics back in that era, I gotta say, I appreciate the author's attempt to show blowback against Muslim Americans. The whole corny "Grrr, how dare they appropriate the PEACEFUL Muslim religion..." thing is poorly done, but I can recall a lot of revenge porn 9/11 comics from the era just going all-in on the anti-Islamic stereotypes, and the fact that this guy didn't wins some respect from me.
Actually, I all-around hate this comic less than Frank Miller's Holy Terror .
Very true. I lived in Queens before, during, and after 9/11 and the feeling of malice on the streets wiped away that fleeting sense of unity and mutual support fostered by the attacks. I remember reports of Sikhs getting killed in reprisals - who aren't even Muslim - I'm not incredibly tan or anything but I have darker features and I could swear I was being eyed up every now and again, which felt so fucking bizarre. There was just a feeling of vague distrust and uneasiness, because this was also during a big demographic switch in my neighborhood, the Beltway Snipers, the Anthrax attack, it's incredible to think all of that happened in such a small time-frame. I had a couple West-Asian friends who were as American as you and I but they felt such anxiety (real or imagined, idk) that they took to wearing a cross necklaces or Italian flag t-shirts as a kind-of security blanket. It was so strange how quickly things seemed to change. A lot of us left the city not long afterwards, myself included.
It was mostly born of ignorance. Even people who were well-meaning couldn't wrap their heads around the opaque enemy we were fighting - or rather that was fighting us - despite the fact that it'd been doing so since the fucking early 80's, at least. Even today a lot of people can't tell a South-Asian person (India, Pakistan, etc) from a person of Middle-Eastern descent. There was no distinction because for the majority of Americans it was black and white - USSR vs. USA, Communism vs. Capitalism. The 90's were supposed to be fucking Valhalla. We won. We fell asleep. A lot of us are still snoring.
Yes and I agree with you, but in the grand scheme of things, this is basically saying 'I hate surgery without anesthesia more than I hate getting kicked in the balls'. I mean. YES, obviously, one is considerably worse, but this is pretty bad too.
Ideally neither of those things should have happened in our lifetime.
Fuzzy Dunlop I think you guys have been snoring the whole time, it was your own government who did the attack!
@@Mambo.Canibal
If you don't have a brain, don't use your mouth
@@Liliputian07 I didn't know typing was the same as speech. Thank you for educating me. Now educate yourself on how many times the US government has false flag attacked it's own people and how the news is just a government run psy op.
When I read comics I always worry that I won't be able to see the nipples. Thank you Civilian Justice!
You would hate Marvel Strike Force. Namor and Hulk walking around without nipples. It's a weird choice
@@roryscott2941Like that Wrestlemania(? Could've been Summerslam or something) billboard that had all the male wrestlers' nipples erased. I'll never be able to look at Big Show the same way again
two easy plot hole fixes:
1) his leather outfit includes the armor his dad and brother were talking about. He gets shot, but when the shooter comes over to see if he's dead, he knocks the guy off of his feet and gets up.
2) When the guy is about to stab him, the FBI agent shoots him. He goes over to pick up the flag, and the rest plays out normally. Or, better yet, his brother's an FBI agent and shows up instead of a woman in an undersized too-thin blouse.
I think the flaws you pointed out are really helpful for potential comic writers and artists to know about! Also, when I saw the cover it didn’t even cross my mind that Civilian Justice might be male!
Yeah bro....I thought it was a chick too 🤦♂️
Civilian justice is a closeted trans girl
Civilian Justice sounds like an unholy mix of Punisher’s vigilantism, Captain America’s patriotism, and Penace’s wangstism.
Can’t believe somebody thought this was a good idea.
Wangtism?
Agreed, this godawful.....
@@thetruewisegamer Sorry for the late reply.
What I mean is that he is a crybaby.
@@BigK13372 ahhh though now i want to make that word apart of my vocab now remembering this
@@thetruewisegamer its in mine already
It's always tough taking the piss outta someone's passion project like this, especially when it wasn't backed by big names. But I think we gotta be okay with art criticism on all levels.
This guy has a passion to tell a story. But he lacks the skills currently to refine them and do stuff for the benefit of a good story and not just...well...Mary Sueisms.
That's my thought exactly...
The artist here does seem to have a mind for quality, but lacks the skill and experience for creating the desired product. This seems like Artist's first comic book project published to his church's youth group audience but on publication steroids.
Its commendable that the comic was made... not all armature artists can claim they've finished a comic book... but you would hope the artist knew he would receive harsh criticism at his high school level of art skills.
Here's hoping he took criticisms to heart and he's now producing far better quality pieces with his talent.
as a personal friend of Graig's, I'm actually grateful that rather than overdose the review with negativity, you actually went and pointed out the flaws in a concise, respectful yet firm manner! not many people out there in the reviewing business- comics, videogames, wrestling and so on- who can pride themselves on that! truth be told: when I first saw the title of this video, my blood did boil since I know the man professionally and personally; hell, he's even gone out of his way to try to help put my foot in the door of this business, so to speak, and most of what I know is through him, plus he's very devoted to his family... but upon checking out the video (call it 'benefit of the doubt"), you're actually right in a lot of these aspects! he's since improved in the craft- the series is now called "Codename: Justice"- well, in honesty the art's improved the most; the story's still in need of just a bit more polish... but all in all, thanks for keeping the fact discussion poignant and the criticism constructive. my best regards and keep up the great work!
Yea thats how you learn and get better, It's not easy to publish something and for what it's worth I enjoyed the story. I'm gonna check out some of his new stuff!
FYI Extreme Sewing seems like a very Manga like idea that they'd use as the base of a live action Japanese show.
RobotsPajamas Civilian Justice can do it with just one hand. He doesn't need leverage at all.
Well extreme ironing exists in real life so why not extreme sewing?
Kind of sounds, to me, like one of those weird niche channels desperate attempt at having an 'edgey' reality/competition show.
I will take some fabric ... A SEW IT!
I like to think that's what has to happen behind the scenes of Kill La Kill to make it work.
The first year's proceeds from the first book featuring the character, titled Civilian Justice, were donated to the Restaurant Opportunities Center of New York, and the families from Windows on the World (ROC NY) HERE Fund, which aided victims and families of non-union workers who lost their lives in the attacks. (wikipedia)
Boy this comic looks terrible. The storytelling in the writing and the art is just awful. And things just happen like the guy’s gf dies on 9/11 and then he makes up a costume out of an American flag and some biker/bondage leather gear. And without any established special training he just knows martial arts and has all the equipment and skills to do some crazy detective work to hunt down these terrorists. But there is semblance of a good idea there with the guy becoming a hero after his gf dies in a tragic event. And I also have to give props to this comic for not simply painting all Muslims as rabid extremists who demand death to all infidels. I was so ready to see that in the story bc it was created as a reaction to 9/11 but it actually surprised me.
Some Guy the artwork looks like a five finger death punch album, its so bad
His fighting skills were (badly) established along with the detective/interrogation skills and the body armor material. All right in the first two speech bubbles.
@@morganmcpherson4332 You make a great point! The album covers are much better, though. Higher quality.
Love that cover. I can't tell what's going on with that terrorist and the hero looks like he has a woman's torso.
You're like the Yoda of what not to do when creating comics! You run a mighty fine channel, my friend. I'm totally obsessed.
"Extreme Sewing" sounds like the name of a reality competition show. Like something you'd see on cable right after Iron Chef.
Damn, I just said that. You beat me by a whole year. :)
"...so maybe he found a bigger window." Is easily the funniest thing I've ever heard when reviewing a comic. thank you for all your terribly true videos, the two panel spread of Civilian Justice coming back with the stab is pure comedy
I'm glad you mentioned the lettering. That stuff is no joke. The first time I ever self-published a comic it was the biggest thing that I (and I believe most indies) easily underestimated in terms of working to look remotely professional and on point. Before you even mentioned it, at first glance of these pages, I noticed a few lettering errors that more than anything else here would supposedly get this book flat-out rejected by Comixology Submit.
From the makers of Simon Says here comes *JUSTICE SAYS*
I have tried to look through a flag. When Greg paid me to dress up as civilian justice at comicon for his table. It didn't work very well. Somewhere I have a picture of me in the outfit.
Post 911 America specifically 2001-2004 was like a fever dream. Stuff like this wouldn’t even seem weird then. Remember freedom fries? For anyone too young to remember or who didn’t live in America around the year 2003, there was a movement to call French fries “freedom fries” as protest against France choosing to not aid America and the UK in invading Iraq. The irony there being that we emphasized freedom in the name of invading a sovereign country that didn’t attack us, lol. Man, America was just so strange during that time. Even normally sane and level headed people got swept into this hypernationalism that was pervasive everywhere
There's blue LITERALLY everywhere in this... This comic takes all the visual quirks of the 2000s and exaggerated to the point I hate it...
What If... Tommy Wiseau made comics
Don't equate the creator of Civilian Justice to Tommy Wiseau... Mr. Wiseau's comic would at least involve saying hi to doggies, football and spoons.
Magnus McCloud I was gonna say tommy wiseau would make a better comic then this
At least his would be entertaining and endearing in his disastrous way.
Did you hear about his attempt to add a “vampire car” to The Room? 😂 If not you should watch Fact Fiends video on it
Tommy Wiseau having a baby with Ed Wood, and then that baby fell down. a flight of stairs.
16:20 There are 4 times 6 stars on the flag. Somehow, I always thought the USA had more than 24 states ...
All thems other states is those liberal states and thems commies and aren't to be considered merican
I thought that it was a woman until he said "if you look at those hips, they look kind of like ladies hips". and then I took a closer look and was rather suprised
Wow. This is awful. I mean, not coming up with some terrorist plan to foil, we don't even know why they're the Dos Equis gang? Or...anything? Just...wow! #711, everyone was dumb, but the comic worked. I do like the note in the mask, that's kinda cool.
I think he stole that idea from the Black Hood, a Golden Age character originally from Pep Comics which DC acquired in 1991. The Black Hood identity is adopted by a number of people, one after another, all of whom eventually die from the hood's curse. Each time the Black Hood dies, the next person to find and wear the mask becomes the next Black Hood.
Surprisingly not as rascist as Holy Terror.
Holy Terror wasn't racist though
@@gabbar51ngh I am not one of those guys, but Holy Terror seemed pretty racist actually, thanks to Frank Miller's personal expression on muslims.
@@baconingbad islam isnt a race.
@@gabbar51ngh I know, but shit he said and how Holy Terror itself came off sure ain't leaving a good taste in the mouth.
@@gabbar51ngh Okay, fine. "Not as assholish as Holy Terror". There. Happy now?
"We do not attack... we defend"
Well that aged like milk now didn't it?
Are you kidding? It aged so poorly it was spoiled while it was still in the cow.
11:33 - They probably used a font that had both styles, "normal" and "emphasis", separated between the lower and uppercase letters respectively. But the guy didn't know that or didn't realize he had to use one or the other, so whenever there's an uppercase character, it will appear as bold and italic.
I've made it a personal goal to write my first full length comic book issue. In doing so, I've discovered that I lack a lot in terms of anatomy, composition, story arcs, etc. If I can't do better than Civilian Justice, it's not going to be seen by the public.
This creator had an unbelievably bad web site back in the day with live action vfx demo reels that hopefully are not lost to the sands of time
“Good luck finding it!” ....challenge accepted
Ha! That's a great attitude. It probably fits in the "so bad it's good" category.
The extreme sewing comic would be about Edna mode
No Capes!
Commenting on publishing/self-publishing is one thing, but my vote for worst comic ever has to be Charlton Bullseye #1 (the comic, not the magazine), published in 1981 and featuring a team-up with The Blue Beetle and The Question. With a plot credit to A. Committee and Dialogue credited to Anon O. Mouse, you really have to wonder what they were thinking.
A+ Insightful and funny review (though a touch harsh for an Inde self published book), but I cant stop cracking up at the "needle" comment, lol. I think the purpose of them showing the bullet proof thing at the family dinner scene is that the hero used it in his bullet proof flag, right? But why didn't the publisher point that out? C'mon publisher. Its like the connector scenes are missing throughout the book or something. The whole "we do not attack, we defend " has to relate to the "sparklers" coming out of the machine gun on the cover (which I think the artist intends to be a mussel blast coming out of the villain's gun on the cover as mentioned), hence the hero is "defending" against the villain firing, right? Though the coloring and art is wonky and over the top, I so miss that 90's classic Image Comics color explosion, makes me feel high, lol. So I like it but I think you're right though regarding it being a nice idea with potential but execution needs a lot of work, much of which you pointed out. I like that you try to point stuff out to be helpful instead of just bash like other reviewers/haters though a bit harsh in this review, but great tips. Can't wait for your next comic review.
dude if you like 90's style weird comics, check out my digital comic. my main style objective was to recreate that feel of 90's weird t.v shows/films/comics. the first issue is free :) www.50-50comics.com/
@CW Not harsh enough, imo.
5:58 That's no "random terrorist!" That's nose hammock dude!
CJ felt very reactionary and at best - therapeutic for someone suffering from PTSD after 911, at worst - I was concerned that this was opportunistic given the atmosphere.
I'm not a professional comic artist but this makes me want to redraw some of these panels.
Not to diminish how correct you are in judging this as sucking horribly, but I have seen just about all these faults in various mainstream comics.
It's not that much worse than the worst of the comics of that time (90's and early 2000's).
fair though i must say, sub-sandwich thighs were mostly the domain of women and spiderman in the mainstream so it is at least novel here XD
What can I say, art is hard and finding a really good artist who won't charge you an arm and a leg is nearly impossible. I've been looking for one good artist for ages now. The ones that are affordable, generally are terrible and the really good ones want a fortune, even if they've never done anything professional in their lives.
...that is kind of a nasty entitled thing to say. either you have a VERY skewed idea of what is "affordable" or a very sketchy idea of what constitutes as "professional"
I would say when you're a struggling artist, who has never been published in you life that maybe demanding the same wages a full on professional artist, even if you also happen to be really good, is a bit conceeded. It always reminded me of that bit in Seinfeild when George kept wanting to be paid the same as Ted Danson.
I know as someone trying to get into the business, if the sitution was reversed and an artist came to me and offered expenses plus a precentage to put words to their art I would freaking take it and not demand professional level wages because it's a way into the industy and that's how it's supposed to work.
Like with actors who take any job they can get to break into acting.
And on top of all this, the comic was selling for $3.99...
Wow - I just stumbled across a video a comic artist made about him meeting Steve Ditko - but his black leather jacket with red trim looked familiar for some reason - until I finally remembered seeing him before, he was the artist in THIS video! Still makin' comics!
Looks like space is warped and time is bendable in this comic.
25:00 When you say there're some panels missing, it reminded me of that scene in Robert Rodriguez 2007 "Planet Terror" when the protagonists are trapped inside the house and dozens of zombies are breaking in, only to have them later walking away talking how amazing it was the way they escaped but you never see it and they don't explain it. It worked in the movie because it was part of the joke.
Wow!!! I'm so thankful for your thoughts on this comic. There are so many things to consider when it comes to creating this kind of work.
I swear I remember them making a movie of this comic starring Donald Faison ( the guy who played Turk on Scrubs). Must be the Mandela Effect
It dawned on me halfway through this that, while I'm laughing at the awful artwork, I don't think my own work is even half as good...
Ouch.
I had the same moment of realization. But, I admit that constructive criticism is necessary to keep improving.
If it makes you feel better, my work is very likely much, much worse than yours.
Welp there goes my dream of ever writing my own comic
Just learn good storytelling techniques, particularly as they apply to the comics medium. And take life drawing classes and study up on anatomy.
Don't give up on it! Just don't let Civilian Justice happen to you lol
Just write a few drafts before you spend the time illustrating it. Maybe have some people critique them.
Also what Polite Q said.
I’m writing scripts for a comic of my own- problem is I can’t draw, so I need to find an artist.
Hey, you can always start up a webcomic until you got all you need to get it on the shelves
This dude really looked at 9/11 in person and was such a black hole of charisma and emotion that all that came out was _"NO."_ Not "No!", not "Nooooo!!", not "...no...!", _"NO."_ He had the same reaction you get internally when you're asked if you're happy with your long distance carrier or if you've "heard the good news."
Oh nvm, he hams it up a panel or two later
Fun Fact: The United States Flag Code states: "No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform." Abbie Hoffman was arrested for wearing a shirt made out of a flag.
@Parker Brown I'm pretty sure the code is talking about using pieces of an actual flag in the creation of those sorts of things, like Civilian Justice making a mask out of the flag he found, rather than a depiction or motif of one like what you're describing.
Not only were arrests like that found to be unconstitutional but the Flag Code (which is entirely voluntary to follow and isn't a real law for the average American) would classify a "stars and stripes shirt" the same as bunting, it is not a flag that was turned into a shirt, it was something made from original raw materials into something the style of the US flag. The flag code means a flag can't be turned INTO a costume like a real flag worn as a cape or cutting out the stars and handing them out as trophies to wear on a uniform.
This is obvious if you've ever been to an event that does voluntarily adhere to the Flag Code (again, it's 100% voluntary, it's not a law) you'll see things like bunting and ribbons and flower arrangements and badges and billboards in the style of the US Flag and the Flag Code makes clear that it doesn't cover things like that because none of these things were ever a flag. The flag code is specifically for the US Flag and especially it's relation to the flags of other nations in matters of diplomacy because contrary to what many people think the US is a real country in the world and is going to have relations with other countries in the world, not exist as a continent by itself in between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans where it doesn't want to have anything to do with anyone else.
Most of the Flag code is as much things like "when should a flag be lowered to half mast" and "wait, how exactly should the US flag be positioned relative to flags of other nations" it's literally about real flags, not about things reminiscent of the style of a US flag.
It also doesn't cover the use of actual flags in combat. Flags are theoretically used in combat as a battle standard to lead troops. Anachronistic these days with radio communication and emphasis on camouflage, but he is using a real flag in combat.
But Flag Code doesn't cover things like how US Army soldiers have a flag patch on their shoulder that's of both muted colors and "reversed" that's because of a convention unique to the US Army, that institution of the US army have their own rules and as this "superhero" is his own force he can make up whatever rules he likes for flag depiction on his uniform.
Last tidbit: the Flag Code literally says you can burn the US Flag and that this is a dignified way to destroy a flag. Now this does say that this is for a flag that is "unfit for display" because it's faded or worn. It seems to be the symbolism of flag burning is very much open to interpretation, is burning of a flag a symbol of the destructive rejection of the concept of the united states... or is it a statement that the status quo is "worn out and unfit" and it's time to burn the old worn out flag and replace it with a new better one. For example when the US flag would officially change due to a new state becoming part of the union (so a new star), all the old flags would be ritually burned.
Huh? What about characters like Nuke and Homelander
Captain America: Wait a minute...FUCK
@@Treblaine Kid Rock Poncho style.
And I thought my linework is bad 😂
"If you find this mask"... it's a flag. Civilian Justice (Todd? I wanna say his name was Todd) sewed it into a mask. Before then, it was a flag.
"But with the scent of vengeance so pungent in my nose...
... the taste so strong on the tip of my tongue - "
Holy shit, that is some fucking AWFUL writing. My fucking jesus.
I am triggered by the number of flag code violations
I am in a self publishing class. I sent a link to the video to my instructor. This video gives important advise to anyone who will self punish.
"How dare you deface their religion with your twisted sense of raucousness!"
Lol I’m late asf to this party. The Anthrax part had me wheezing tho. I love that band - I’ve seen them 3 times lives so far, and hopefully I’ll see them again. They’ve literally been around since 1983, and that EXACT naming controversy actually did happen. In the midst of it, they came out on stage wearing biohazard suits. Each member had a word painted on, so that when they stood together it said “WE’RE NOT CHANGING OUR NAME”. Pretty sure they put a photo of the moment in one of their albums’ interior. And yeah, they’re still around, still called Anthrax.
Addressing the weird text tic, where the first letter of every sentence is emphasized: that comes from the all-uppercase comic book font, where pressing the Shift key (or Caps Lock) switches to a bold/italicized set of letters. I know this from making proprietary comic book fonts myself. Normally this is a useful feature, but in the case of this comic, the letterer was so careless that they didn't even notice/care that the letter type changed when they hit the shift key! Either that, or they simply copy-pasted the text from a Word doc and changed the font right in the image file...just another example of What Not To Do. To all you Indie comic book artists out there: details matter!
This was incredibly hard to watch. I constantly waited for Chris to fix his hair, and *he-just-wouldn't-do-it!!*
I believe this putrid book really took it's toll on poor Chris.
There is too much text in the balloons, especially in the scene with the father. Turgid phrasing and the balloons then take up too much of the frame.
This episode six years later is still a hood classic
The line "my strength and speed surprised even me" goes beyond Mary Sue. It's like Mary Sue gleefully huffing her own farts. Kudos for not drawing additional attention to it for the unnecessary additional cringe points.
Very late here, but after 9/11 people held out hope their family members survived the attack. I remember there being missing posters all over NYC’s walls, bulletin boards set up in Times Square and near “the pile” when I was a kid. My mom’s friend lost her husband in the 2nd tower. She hoped he somehow got out because he saved this one women who escaped, she said she fell down a flight of stairs when her heel broke and she broke her leg. He carried her to the lobby then went back upstairs to look for more people. The last person who saw him was a women who had breathing problems he and a firefighter helped her get out. They never found his body so Monica hoped Micheal had gotten out and just had amnesia, so that’s why he didn’t come home to her. It’s been almost 20 years and she still misses him even if she remarried, she wears 2 wedding rings on her hand.
My local comic store tried to take Weich to court for using the name Beyond Comics Inc. since that has been the name of their store since 1996.
Instead of “CIVILIAN JUSTICE “ he should have called himself “MAGA GIMP” 😂🤣😂
Thank you for making me laugh so hard my ribs creaked. Also, ow.
Gelus Venn you are more than welcome my friend😆
😂😂😂
It's hard to say that a self published comic is the worst ever. Self publishing by definition means anything can get published. It is even worse when one of the big boys who supposedly have many levels of editing publishes a terrible book.
Thank you, sir. Your analysis of this disaster was infinitely more interesting than the comic book could ever be.
this is like the “American Sniper” of comic books
This is genuinely painful. Thank you for suffering for us.
"so what do you want him to look like?"
"let's go for pinhead, but a bit more full-on"
As dumb as this comic is, and for how poorly it's made, written, drawn, etc....I honestly commend the writer for not tarring all Muslims with the same brush. The writing is hammy as fuck, but he makes a deliberate note that the Jihadists are their own nasty can of worms and that they don't represent Islamic people as a whole. He could have been horribly unfair and prejudiced and cruel, but how does he portray Muslims? As innocent. The people lashing out in this comic against ordinary everyday Americans who happen to be Muslim are portrayed as misguided and cruel, and that's an impossibly important thing to note. I give Graig Weich massive props for pitting his character against what actually caused the problem, and not innocent people. It's a damn slight better than when Frank Miller did Holy Terror.
Agree.
This feels like the a character Alan moore would make to parody nationalism
I love the absurd universally tragic way he portrays 9/11. One moment we see him with his girlfriend in their apartment, the next hes running against the crowd (because of course he is) while its exploding, and then his girlfriend just dies off panel somehow. It's so goddamn corny in how soap opera-esque it is.
This honestly cracked me up. I'd love more bad comic reviews
Curiosity got the best of me and I had to look this thing up for myself. According to the Wiki page on Beyond Comics, this somehow won a Golden Panel Award from the NYC Comic Book Museum. A quick Google search only has one result for a museum with that name and it's an article from 2003. No mention of the "Golden Panel Awards" though. Also, it seems there are more Justice comics out there and God have mercy on your eternal soul if you go read them.
Civilian Justice: I'll stop these bullets with my flag!
Me: FUNNY VALENTINE YOU ARE NOT!
dojyaaan
I remember seeing the ad for this comic in Wizard Magazine. I thought the cover and tag line were terrible.
I’m working on my own comics and shows like this and atop the fourth wall are basically homework for what not to do.
Well, 0% is still a percentage... I guess.
And the American flag-themed gimp suit was the first thing that I noticed. Yeesh.
I probably would've bought this back in 2002. It looks like a 90's /early 2000's comic. I mean all the stuff you're mentioning probably would've never even crossed my mind. Although, that doesn't negate anything you've said here.
This sounds like the typical "we're Murica and we can do no wrong cuz we're Murica!"
I can't decide which is worse: Civilian Justice or SuperPro. Just atrocious. But the bright side is, it should give every potential creator hope they too, can get their stuff published. The downside is, we'll probably end up with more crap like Civilian Justice.
Not many good fictional pieces of work really emanated from 9/11. Yet, this tragic event would make for a powerful origin story for a hero, provided that the historical context isn't utilized in a heavy handed manner. Let me try my hand on pitching an idea:
Del Simmons is a promising firefighter of NYC. He's athletic, selfless, diligent, has an eye to spot dangerous hazards while progressing in the theater of operation and never messes up safety procedures. Off duty, he's a reliable friend. People generally feel compelled to look up to him as he has undeniable charisma. His Lieutenant, Elijah Johnson, see so much promise in him he subtly hints at him becoming a successor. Everything goes well for Del, until 9/11 happens. It's horrific. The firefighters are understaffed and overworked. As good as Del is, he is still green. Stress escalated so much, he refused to push further as his lieutenant and his comrades climb up another floor at search of people to rescue inside the World Trade Center... Right at that moment, he who had been fully in control so far, was struck with sentiments he never really experienced: gut wrenching fear and helplessness. He knew deep inside his companions wouldn't make it back. The events gave him right as he escaped when the building was about to crumble down. He managed to guide two persons back on his way. As chaos engulfed the scene, he cursed himself for being a coward and returned inside, even though it's a reckless move. Right after the event, he wakes from a coma at the hospital. He has scars, but his case of survival was unheard of. His colleagues pulled him out of the rubble. The shock on his brain seemed to have enabled a special power: he can sniff a charred smell everytime a building is about to go down in flames or explode in a near future. He also seems to have developed super human stamina and strength. During a couple of occasions, he first dismisses his sense of smell as traumatic shock, but then, he realizes that the buildings triggering it all get burnt out some minutes and sometimes some hours before. This is when Del decided to become a Vigilante fireman and crime fighter: he can no longer be part of his brigade because he believes he lost face, but he can still foresee disasters. He can save other lives in advance. He can prevent terrorist attacks. His only issue: when he enters a building fated to be destroyed, he gets trapped in a pocket reality where it's burning and collapsing. Outsiders are physically unaffected by the phenomenon as they don't have his superpower... That means Del must face his fears and uncertainties everytime he tries to do a heroic deed.
His allies: his hacker brother who helps with investigation and one of the two persons he saved during 9/11, a rich benefactor who decided to back up Del on his quest. His arch nemesis are the terrorist Ibrahim Al Moqsada, a Saudi prince masquerading as a philanthropist, but in fact one of the lesser known brains behind the execution of the 9/11 attack and a Machiavellian serial pyromaniac of superior intelligence, nicknamed Gehenna.
Yours is a certainly better pitch than what Citizen Justice had. Definitely potential there.
It really doesn't make that much sense for him to become a superhero in your story.
To be fair, I’ve seen a few modern Marvel Comics that look that bad.
29:07 wouldn’t it be funny if it turns out that his girlfriend has been alive this entire time?!
So many internet reviews lean on the shtick of an angry guy going over the top with hatred of sub-par media, but it's way more entertaining to me when a nice guy like Chris tries really hard to be fair to something that's just objectively total garbage.
9:18 The smile on that portrait in the background remind me of those grins in Howard Chaykin's artwork.
I feel like the main problem with this story is that I couldn’t tell where any of the women’s nipples were. They just weren’t adequately indicated and I spent every moment wondering if even existed at all! How am I meant to immerse myself in this world unless I know for certain that every woman there has nipples?!??
Dang Comic Tropes. You straight up roasted this guy. I clicked on the thumbnail because I thought it was a SuperPatriot video. Unfortunately, this video was obviously not about SuperPatriot but story wise, Civilian Justice is just slightly worse than an image comics story. The art style I would say is slightly worse than Rob Liefelds. I think this artist/writer was just one semester short of being as good as the worst pros.
I enjoyed your thoughts on this comic, you were a bit harsh at times but based on what I saw, I do agree. It does appear to be a very flawed comic and stylistically speaking the creator made some very strange decisions that seem pointless in terms of payoff (I'm talking word balloons...if it's not broke, don't fix it). The thing about it is though, I can see potential there in the artwork, however, a lot more research on how to use imagery effectively and with clear intention within sequential art needs to be done by its creator before attempting to put another comic out. The story seems mental and very poorly conceived, for instance, the protagonist seems like an ass...and not like a loveable one, I mean like a mentally unstable, anger issue riddled, needs professional help, a few sandwiches short of a picnic Kinda ass. Also, the weird choices and inconsistencies within the artwork are things that should have never made it to a printed page. It seems as though there was never any quality feedback from others or honest self-evaluation used when making this comic, or if there was it must have been ignored (which, in a weird way kind of parallels with the comic's lead character.) If you get a chance I'd love for you to check out my digital comic and give me some honest feedback. www.50-50comics.com/
I bought a copy of Civilian Justice from Graig Weich. He autographed it for me. I don't know what I did with it. It's still somewhere in my house. I bought it as a curiosity more than anything else.
I met the creator of this comic. He's a total salesman at all times but under that actually a nice guy. His big selling point for his latest comic at the time was he got to use Ice T's wife Coco's likeness for a main character. He's got " major celebrities" in his books now!
16:16 and don’t forget about the teddy bear!
18:44 “Have you ever _tried_ looking through a flag? It’s not easy! I think he’s going to have a lot of adventures going down some stairs”. Lol
21:22 how could you miss the wonderful line “but with the scent of vengeance so pungent in my nose”?