Yes she can: First lady's first comic a smashing success

If there is any doubt that

President Obama

is a celebrity, one need look no further than the comics industry, where he has begun rivaling

Wolverine

in terms of number of guest appearances. More importantly for comic publishers, the books he appears in see increased interest from the general public and spikes in sales.

With the release of "Female Force: Michelle Obama" from Bluewater Comics, the question many asked was whether that popularity and buzz would transfer to a biography on his wife, the first lady.

As the book has sold more than 57,000 copies to date - more than most Marvel or DC books - the answer is in the affirmative and our President's fist-bumping partner has a following all her own.

Writer Neal Bailey does a commendable job of portraying Michelle as her husband's partner in almost every aspect of their lives. Indeed, though Bailey is an admitted liberal who gushes over the scene where Obama wins the presidency and what it meant to him personally and to the nation, he makes it clear that beyond an extremely well-run campaign, "white guilt" and the myriad of other reasons given for Obama's reaching the mountain top, he asserts that the most important factor of all may have been Michelle.

According to the biography, the fact that she, unlike her husband, was a direct descendant of slaves helped give credibility to a man who many African-Americans early on felt was "not black enough." At the same time, her blue-collar, middle-class roots made her husband more relatable to "average Americans" of all races who might otherwise have dismissed him as elitist.

The author goes so far as to say that without Michelle, "Barack would never have had the support structure he needed to become an agent of change."

Bailey gives us a thorough, detailed and refreshing look at Michelle Obama and the events that would shape her and, eventually, her husband. From growing up as the daughter of a janitor, to riding buses to work, to graduating salutatorian of her high school class, we see someone who wasn't handed success and wasn't given a free ride, but earned everything.

Comics Guy started to develop a new appreciation for Michelle Obama as we see how she developed her love for children, struggled to fit into social circles, had her love of the law molded by events like the Robert Bork hearings, and took extraordinary interest in the working poor, to the point where she sometimes worked pro bono for them.

Of course, a huge reason she is a household name today is that Obama took an extraordinary interest in her when she was assigned to advise and monitor him - something she likely didn't realize she would be doing for the rest of her life.

We learn that early on Michelle had no desire to date Barack. The reasons were numerous, including that she thought of him as nerdy, had two years experience on him, didn't want to fall into the stereotype of blacks only staying with blacks and felt uncomfortable social pressure being with him. She was so determined to avoid him, she even introduced him to other women to scare him off.

The future-president realized quickly he was dealing with a woman who did not suffer fools and expected excellence. Instead of being deterred by her high standards, Barack decided to better himself to them - and we all saw how that has worked out.

The rest of the book focuses on the Obamas' courtship and marriage and the strain Barack's political career would put on their relationship - plus numerous other obstacles, tragedies and controversies. The recurring theme is that she proves the old adage "behind every great man there is a great woman."

One major nit to pick. Though he decides to defend Michelle for her now-famous "For the first time in my adult life I am proud of my country" line, Bailey doesn't simply argue that the line was taken out of context, he gives a snapshot of events in the past 26 years to justify her statement. These include Iran-Contra, the impeachment of a president and both Gulf Wars.

Though the Comics Guy could argue all day about the merits of each and also provide a vast list of incidents that should make Americans proud, what really was insulting was Bailey including "the catastrophic deaths of three thousand Americans" during 9/11 on the list.

What? The aftermath of 9/11 forged a national unity - and the deaths of 3,000 Americans in a terrorist attack hardly seems a reason to be ashamed of your country.

In the end, Bailey chalks Michelle's statement up to being a gaffe. But the real gaffe seems to be his reasoning in defending it.

That said, this is a book that will entertain you while you learn about and better appreciate the first lady. Comics Guy recommends it.

Radical Publishing announced at San Diego Comic-Con that Len Wiseman has signed on to develop and direct the motion picture adaptation of its "Shrapnel" comic.

Wiseman was co-creator, director and producer of the "Underworld" franchise.

"Shrapnel" takes place in a dystopian future in which imperialism has laid siege to the solar system and Venus stands as the last free colony of humanity. Caught in the middle of this interplanetary war is Samantha "Sam" Vijaya, a soldier in self-imposed exile recovering from service in the military. When war once again crashes into Sam's life, she must choose either to remain on the sidelines and watch a colony's destruction, or risk her physical and psychological well-being to intervene.

"I'm really drawn to the reluctant-hero story." said Wiseman, who said that the last hero he directed, John McClane, in "Live Free or Die Hard," fit that archetype.

"'Shrapnel' is a story about making choices and rising to the occasion," said Radical's president and publisher Barry Levine. "I enjoyed it so much that I made this Radical's biggest commitment to date. Len was my top choice for adapting this perfect balance of action and drama and I'm glad to have him on board."

Developed as a live action film (possibly in 3-D), "Shrapnel" will be produced by Levine, Wiseman and Mark Gordon with Jesse Berger, Mark Long and Josh McLaughlin attached as executive producers. A video game of "Shrapnel," from Zombie Studios, is set for release in the near future. *

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