Graeme Rocks The New Stuff....

Today should be the day the new Onomatopoeia comes out at CE, and as mentioned elsewhere, Mr. McMillan is the new shining star in our smudgy-colored-paper firmament. Graeme covers the New Comics and dispenses such wisdom as "A stay in Rhode Island may be enough for some to retreat into a catatonic state that deadens the mind and kills all creativity, but luckily Ron Rege, Jr. is no mere mortal," and "[Wolverine: Origins] is supposed to focus on all of Wolverine’s missing years between Origin and his joining the X-Men, which only narrows the focus down to, what, a hundred years or so? However will they make that last?" It's exactly the shot of kickapoo joy juice CEO needs as it heads into its eleventh(!) year of publication. If I have any regrets at all, it's just that there was a snafu and Peter Wong's column wasn't printed (we were this close to having three writers for our newsletter!) But other than that, I'm god-damned delighted and hope Graeme enjoyed the gig enough to do many, many more.

Like I said, if you get the chance, you should stop by the store and pick up a copy. It's fine reading.

I am Jeff Lester's Bitch: Graeme's reviews of 1/18 books

Ah, that’s more like it. This week was full of comicky goodness and hissy fits (the latter courtesy of The Comics Journal, where Michael Dean’s “Why Can’t Comics Websites Be What I Want Them To Be?” series has ruffled some feathers, to say the least). It’s also, if you’re anywhere near Comix Experience the store rather than Comix Experience the website, the week when the new Onomatopoeia came out with Jeff Lester making me sound much more interesting and mysterious than I actually am. But that’s enough about me! To paraphrase the scary woman out’ve the Overstock.com adverts, sometimes, it’s all about… the comics. ALL STAR SUPERMAN #2: Maybe what the All-Star line is all about is being some kind of rorschach test of the creators involved. All Star Batman shows Frank Miller having fun at the expense of the fans, by being “shameless” and giving them his idea of what they want. All Star Superman, meanwhile, seems to be all about Grant Morrison giving the fans the Superman that he wants – A character that’s full of love and calm in stories that avoid the traditional fight scenes for soap operatics augmented by science fiction ideas. It feels like nothing as much as the Silver Age Superman stories recently reprinted in the Showcase collection, right down to Superman’s soliloquy about his upcoming death (“How can I spoil her birthday with the news that I’m dying?”), but it’s more than just a retread. Obviously, Frank Quitely’s art helps there – his sense of space is second to none in comics, and his attention to detail makes everything feel more real – but Morrison’s at his playful best here, explaining the stories in coded form as he goes along in such a way that only a second read reveals. I worry that there isn’t really an audience for this book, beyond Morrison fans, but I hope that that’s me underestimating the world and that this ends up being so successful that Morrison and Quitely can continue past the initial twelve issues for however long that they wish… Excellent.

BIRDS OF PREY #90: First of two DC Universe books that reach their pre-One Year Later conclusions this week. This isn’t BOP’s official conclusion, mind you: There’s an issue next month, but it’s a fill-in by none of the usual creative team and so doesn’t really count. Gail Simone ties up all her loose ends in a surprisingly upbeat manner, happily, including Batman getting what Mick Jagger would call some girly action from one of the eponymous Birds. I’m astonished that there isn’t more an Infinite Crisis tie-in somewhere, but that isn’t a bad thing... (Aside to Elayne: The apparently-permanent new art team of Paulo Siqueira and Robin Riggs is easily the best this book has seen on Gail’s run, if not many years before that, as well.) Good, and here’s hoping that more DC books follow this lead…

EX MACHINA #17: Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris’s “He’s a superhero! He’s a political figure!” story reaches 2003, and America goes to war with Iraq, which proves to be somewhat unpopular in New York. Who knew? It’s a frustrating first part of the story, with Vaughan setting things up without remembering to add much of a plot. None of the scenes really add up, and as a result, everything feels more like a series of talking points set to pretty art (and Harris and inker Tom Feister’s art really looks good here, although the see-through top that Journal wears in one scene feels kind of gratuitious). It’s an OK opener, but it’d be nice to think that there’s going to be some forward motion in the book soon (Hmm. Both this and Vaughan’s Y The Last Man seem to have stalled recently. Maybe he’s become distracted by other work?). For those of you who really, really like JLA analogs, there’s also a preview of the upcoming Wildstorm series The American Way in the back of the book, which is fairly dull.

THE FLASH #230: ...And the second DCU book to meet its pre-OYL end. As had been fairly obvious for the last few issues, this final story was entirely filler material to keep the book alive until the character entered Infinite Crisis, and this last issue does nothing to change anyone’s mind, ending with such heavy-handed narration as to almost kill the reader (“My name is Wally West. I’m the fastest man alive… for now. If you stop and think about it, we all live in an inifinite universe, where anything can happen...”). The most interesting thing this Awful book has going for it is confirmation that there is indeed going to be a new Flash #1 in a few months. Just as I’m wondering whatever happened to the announced Darwyn Cooke-written Flash run a few months back, maybe I’ve found the answer…

HELLBLAZER #216: Ahhhh, Scottish writers, how I love thee. Denise Mina’s first issue of the long, long-running horror title starts things off with a short story about a man who gets himself in over his head with magic, which is fairly traditional around these here parts. It’s done well, though, and starts off a longer storyline which seems to be about some Scottish version of Constantine being a bastard to the Sting who manages the tantric without the sex. Leonardo Manco’s art is nice but unclear, and the whole thing feels like a Good but unspectacular start to something that has the potential to be much better. That said, what the hell is going on with Greg Lauren’s cover, with the leggy brunette in the background who seems to have no connection to the story whatsoever?

INFINITE CRISIS #4: A crisis so infinite that the creative team grows issue by issue. By this fourth issue, we’re up to three pencillers (Ivan Reis joining Phil Jiminez and George Perez) and seven inkers. Say what you like about the quality of the comic, that’s some infinite art team right there. The action’s picking up as well, as we find out who’s behind all of the Countdown mini-series, the Spectre plot (and related Gotham Central plot – Everyone who thought that it was going to be Crispus, give yourself a pat on the back) gets resolved, Batman tries to make some friends and influence people, a couple of heroes kind of die, Superboy goes apeshit, some more heroes definitely die, and, oh yeah, Crisis on Infinite Earths gets undone. All of that in 30-odd pages, proving that Geoff Johns doesn’t dig that decompression jazz. It’s been a slow burn getting to this point, but now that we’re halfway through the series, everything (kind of) makes sense and is primed for whatever big finale lies in wait, and the wait is almost justified by the entire issue of action this is. It’s probably in DC’s favor that I’m still unsure about what the outcome of this series is really going to be – From the April solicits, we know that there’s not going to be a big retcon button hit to undo the major damage that opens this issue, which is kind of surprising, but at the same time, I doubt that the status quo that occurs at the end of the issue is going to be around by the end of the series, either. As I’ve said before, this is a series only being done for those who are already DC fanboys, but it’s more proof than Geoff Johns is a writer who knows how to milk those fanboy-anticipated moments for more drama and excitement than you’d have thought they could provide, while also occasionally throwing in some things that make you go “Huh?” For those who know what Space Sector 2814 means, Excellent, but I still have no idea what a casual reader makes of all of this.

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #13: Finally, we reach the conclusion of the storyline that the book’s been following since it started, and… well, it’s kind of anti-climactic. There are some nice ideas in here, but the execution seems off (As it has done for the last three or four issues, after a near-faultless opening run). Despite some great scenes showing off the various characters in action and tying up plot threads that’ve been around since before the series debuted, it feels as if we’re cheated of what should be the emotional pay-off to what’s happened so far because the pacing is off, and some decisions seem to come out of nowhere and don’t get explained enough (Namely, what happens with Terror Firma, the anti-Legion of the series, which comes entirely out of nowhere despite being central to how the story resolves itself). As with the last few issues, there’s another pointless back-up story that doesn’t really add anything to the series, as well as another tongue-in-cheek letter column strip, which exhorts readers to read Infinite Crisis and the Day of Vengence trade paperback to find out if the Legion will take part in Infinite Crisis, before going on to also suggest “To Kill A Mockingbird” and “Pride and Prejudice” as other things that readers should check out. It’s moments like that, an openess to parody fanboyishness in a series that’s based on the same tendencies, that made the initial issues of this book so fun, and it’s something that I’d like to see the book return to now that the first main storyarc has been finalized. This issue was OK, but the series has been so much better up until now.

SEVEN SOLDIERS: MISTER MIRACLE #3: This book may be the un-Star Trek of Seven Soldiers, in that the odd-numbered issues are great, and the even-numbers are… less so. After a patchy-at-best second issue, Grant Morrison gets a new artist to complete his mini-revamp of Jack Kirby’s New Gods, Freddie E. Williams II (who actually helped finish out the previous issue), and suddenly the book is enjoyably off-kilter again. It helps that this issue is more coherent, storywise, than the last, as well. Kirby Koncepts like Anti-Life and Baron Bedlam get a makeover, and poor Shilo gets more than slightly tortured both emotionally and physically, as Morrison brings this book closer to the theme that connects all of the other Seven Soldiers series (What makes a hero?) if not the plot. Williams’ art is very cartoony, but fits the tone of the book arguably more than either of the book’s previous art teams, especially in his portrayal of the plastic people that buy into Dark Side’s worldview... It’s still the weakest of all of the Seven Soldiers books, but much better than the series had been up until this point. Good.

SGT. ROCK: THE PROPHECY #1: I’m not a fan of war comics in general (Although Showcase Haunted Tank in April? The goofiness of the idea makes me want that one) but, hey. It’s Joe Kubert. Ignoring the fact that the man can draw like none other – his art in here is still a million times better than almost everything else that will come out this month, despite his advanced years – he can also write a mean story, too. There’s something about the situation he puts Easy Company in, in this debut issue, that feels more authentic than something like Marvel’s Combat Zone book from last year; a lack of patriotism, and of good guys and bad guys or moral absolutes. There’s something chaotic about the writing here, in a good way: Exposition gets interrupted by explosions from an unknown source, new characters appear without explanation or revealing motives, and the only constant is Easy Company themselves. It’s a weird book, feeling both old-fashioned and contemporary, telling the story in a solid and non-flashy manner but with everything having an honesty and intensity that make you want to read further. In other words, Kubert is still pretty fucking good at what he does. Very Good.

X-STATIX PRESENTS: DEAD GIRL #1: Or, as it really should be called, Peter Milligan does a weird riff on Doctor Strange. It was, I think, Paul O’Brien who made the point that Milligan can write up a storm, but his takes on pre-existing characters generally seem to be somewhere out of character with the way they’ve previously been written. His take on Doctor Strange here is a case in point. By the time Strange says, “Since when have I started using words like ‘suffice,’ Wong? Who the heck says ‘suffice’ nowadays?”, you kind of know that this isn’t the normal Dr. Strange, who’s more likely to say “suffice” than he is “who the heck”, and wouldn’t discuss his hemorrhoids with anyone. That aside, this is a fun enough book as a depressed Strange has to deal with various dead Marvel characters returned to half-life who want to be resurrected just like Colossus, Elektra and Psylocke, even though he himself isn’t incredibly enamored with that whole “being alive” deal himself. Despite getting her name in the title, Dead Girl only gets one panel at the end of the book, alongside some other dead girls you might recognize. If I was being snarky, I’d suggest that this kind of book is aimed at the kind of self-loathing fanboys that Joe Quesada used to vocally complain about; they’re the only ones likely enough to both understand the injokes Milligan’s writing here and also find them funny. But as that describes me pretty accurately, I’ll shut up and say that this is pretty Good, but probably not something that can carry another four issues, as this series has to.

PICK OF THE WEEK is All Star Superman, because I am a Morrison groupie. PICK OF THE WEAK is the Flash, who deserved much, much better even for a pretend end of a book that announces its own return on the last page. For TRADE OF THE WEEK, I’m cheating entirely, because I think you should spend your money on the latest issue of The Comics Journal to read all the Eddie Campbell wonderfulness contained therein. It’ll make you look forward to his new book, The Fate of The Artist, whether you like it or not.

(And just when I go to post this, I see that Jeff's posted his reviews, and he picks exactly the same Pick of the Week, Weak and Trade that I did. Good Lord, man, do we share a brain or something? And apropos of your reviews: I think that the mystery room in ASS is done well, for my part; I'll explain more when I see you next, because to do so here would spoil the story for everyone who hasn't read it...)

Tagged Back In: Jeff's Reviews of 01/18 Comix...

It's kinda great being able to take a few weeks off without the site lying fallow. I'd like to say I did something meaningful with that time away, but me and the missus took in a couple of movies, I made my way through some of the sale books I picked up, and I followed just about every slothful urge as it occurred to me. T'was nice. Anyway, back to inflicting my opinions on everyone. But, first, if you haven't read Bri's latest Tilting at Windmills, you should check it out because it's an amazingly concise discussion of what the immediate challenges are for the direct market and an impressively open-minded explanation of how things got the way they are. Great stuff.

And but so:

ACTION COMICS #835: Some annoyingly cheap plot twists (the chick struck by lightning is the sibling of the psycho holding Lois hostage? And knows what he's up to? That's mighty goddam convenient, isn't it?) and art by Byrne that's dashed off makes me wonder if this was a hasty rewrite or done around the time G.S. & J.B. found out they'd gotten axed. I also presume I'm not the only one who can't tell if this was Livewire's first appearance outside of the Superman: The Animated Series context or not. Sub-Eh, although not Awful as much as a letdown.

ALL STAR SUPERMAN #2: I was pretty meh about the first issue but this was almost absurdly great, despite a glitch or two in the storytelling. (The mysterious room Lois sees has almost no drama or menace in its intial presentation, for example.) I still think, like the first issue, Morrison derives some drama from playing with long-term reader's expectations of what various relationships would be but this time, Thank God, that's not where all the drama--or the delight--comes from. The only other thing I'd want from the rest of this run would be answers to some of Lois's questions about Superman's dual identity--paranoid or not, they were pretty decent ones, I thought. This is right at the top of the Very Good rating--go get it, if you haven't already.

BIRDS OF PREY #90: I'm not sure if I followed the story as closely as I should, but I was so happy to get a genuine upbeat ending, I didn't mind. And if it also manages to be the last time we see Batman in the title, all the better. A high Good.

EX MACHINA #17: Oy, this book. "The morning after" scene was too coy, and then we get a see-through nightie scene eight pages later that seemed kinda anachronistic and unnecessary--as with other issues, the tone just seems all over the map. But the dramatic hook of a mayor trying to enforce a stance of impartiality in which he doesn't really believe is very sound stuff, one more likely to bring me back next issue than the actual cliffhanger. OK.

FLASH #230: Wow, that just sucked in a mighty big way. It sucked so much that not only will I look on another Joey Cavaleri-written book with suspicion, I'll probably feel the same way about a book edited by Cavaleri. Maybe he actually knows how to tell a story, but he didn't bother to try even a little. What a way to end a book. Crap.

FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN #4: I quite like the team of David and Weiringo and couldn't care less about the crossover they're participating in. (When did Spider-Man become so god-damn, I dunno, solipsistic? It's bad enough that one of his archenemies is a former set of laundry, but now we have to deal with a bunch of the spiders/man, as well? I mean, sure, The Vulture sucks, but jeeezis....) So this issue is pretty much a wash. A very well-done wash, but an eh-worthy wash, nonetheless.

GREEN LANTERN #7: I can't really hate on a story that brings back those awesome flowers from Alan Moore's Superman Annual, but once they turned up in the story, you knew was only a matter of time before they ended up on our heroes' chests. An OK issue, but like of a lot of Johns' recent work, seems a bit too rushed to really live up to its potential. We'll see where it goes next issue.

HELLBLAZER #216: Fuck, I really wanted to read this, and forgot to pick it up. Here's hoping Graeme McHarshypants does reviews this week...

INCREDIBLE HULK #91: The only unpredictable element of this story was it being even more dull than I thought it would. And I would've been much, much happier if the supership had blindly 'ported to another galaxy to escape being destroyed and taken Hulk with him. It would've been hackneyed but not nearly as dumb as Fury's "I'm such a bad ass I'll destroy someone who's finally become a potential ally" maneuver. Awful.

INFINITE CRISIS #4: A lot of big events happen (maybe too many, in fact) resulting in a very enjoyable pageturner that works great if you don't think about any of it too hard. I especially liked Superboy of Earth-Prime going all Kid Miracleman on everyone's ass (never trust anyone from Earth-Prime, that's my motto!) even if nobody bit it but Teen Titans from Dan Jurgen's run (I think maybe even Dan Jurgens himself gets ripped in half, I don't quite remember). And I admire the moxie in proferring the Psycho-Pirate as a possible out for all of the The Big Three's out-of-character behavior, and then not taking it. About as newbie friendly as a Black Mass, but Very Good stuff.

LEGION OF SUPER HEROES #13: Weirdly, I like the little stuff in this title so much more than the big uber-epic stuff. That illustrated letter page, for example? Pure gold. Good.

LITTLE STAR #6: I'll be really interested to see how the trade of this holds up--each individual issue was stellar (not a bad unintentional pun, if I do say so myself) but I don't know if the entire story might feel a bit too slight. I'll have to wait to see (because I'm too lazy to dig up all the individual issues now) but this is certainly a lovely and minimalistic work taken on its own. Very Good.

PLANETARY #24: This may well be one of those books well-served by long publishing delays. Because of them, I tend to take every thing the writer tells as something that's already been shown and since forgotten by me. The scene of Snow telling Jakita why she isn't his daughter felt very poignant, but maybe that's because I don't really remember the whole thing with Snow and Jakita's mother? Maybe there's some sort of extra suspension of disbelief storytellers get from readers when readers admit they're unwilling to dig through four longboxes to find the last nine or ten issues and will just take the storyteller's word on everything? Or maybe this is Very Good? Probably a little bit of both, I think.

SCHIZO #4: This could have been a fucking amazing comic and I'm really bummed that it wasn't. I could overlook (a) the high price; (b) the awkward format; and (c) the high ratio of strips-I'd-already-seen to strips-I-hadn't if Brunetti hadn't been so coy with the underlying theme; that of a miserable person obsessed with comics, women, misery and art who is somehow able to find the possibility of transcendence. (I keep thinking that one deconstructed comic strip is a brilliant formalist meditation on how a depressed person fixates on a singular event to deepen the depression, and the construction of the strip is an conscious acknowledgmeent of that fixation and so constitutes the beginning of constructing a new undepressed persona (and/or comic strip) but I think that's only just because I really want it to be so.)

Okay, so maybe Brunetti himself doesn't know if it was the paxil, or the meditation, or a new love that gave him a new lease on life--fair enough. But what's particularly frustrating is that Ivan Brunetti, a man not previously known for anything remotely like discretion--whose very brilliance previously resided in his absolute ability to explore misery far beyond where most would turn away and detail his discoveries with that hilarious lack of discretion--decides to exercise tasteful restraint (on behalf of his new wife, his job, his beautiful ex-girlfriend) precisely where we need it the least. The previous Schizos were ultra-dense affairs that explained quite precisely how the rest of the world was, at the very least, an equal co-conspirator in creating and maintaining Brunetti's unending misery. This issue of Schizo is a lovely and vacant affair that doesn't explain why or when the artist decided to let the rest of the world off the hook, and that leads me to suspect Brunetti hasn't let the rest of the world off--he's just realized he's got a better chance of being happy if he shuts up about it. And again, fair enough. But in that case, the book is too big, too expensive, has too many reprints, and I'm kinda pissed. Eh.

SEVEN SOLDIERS MISTER MIRACLE #3: I really wanted to follow up on that frustratingly one-sided review where Hibbs made it sound like I thought West Side Story was brilliant because of the New York gangs mileu and not the music. (And maybe also explain where most people writing Mr. Miracle go wrong with the character.) But this issue overshadowed all of that old stuff. Mister Miracle probably end up being the least liked of all the miniseries by everyone but me, and I'm okay with that. But I was skeeved out by this in a very good way and I'll be curious if the last issue is able to present the updated light side of Kirby's Fourth World saga as convincingly as they nailed the dark side. Man, I really, really hope so because this was as depressing as fuck. Up in the Good range.

SGT ROCK THE PROPHECY #1: Kubert can still draw an arresting image (his style was so pared down, it's much more impervious to age than that of his contemporaries) but the Kanigher era cornballery (when I saw the puppy on page one, I groaned aloud) is really, really far from our era's current post-Private Ryan take on WWII. Didn't work for me, unfortunately, but I liked looking at it. Eh.

SIMPSONS COMICS #114: Clever but not nearly close to the Boothby watermark. Really tried, though, and with a stronger ending to the main story might have really wowed me. OK.

TESTAMENT #2: A letdown after a surprisingly interesting first issue in that the Biblical parallels are a lot more forced and the current day situation gets a lot more fuzzy--what was happening to the kids at the end there? And there's a pretty big difference between Lot saving an angel sent to him by God and some kids saving a bum they see manhandled out their window even though it seems superficially similar. For example, superficially, this almost reads like a Jack Chick comic, except Jack Chick comics aren't boring and so they're really not the same at all, you see? Eh.

TRANSFORMERS INFILTRATION #1: Infiltrate what, a car show? I didn't read it to find out, unfortunately.

WALKING DEAD #25: Again with the lousy cliffhanger, but at least the rest of it seems back on track and highly readable. Good.

X-STATIX PRESENTS DEAD GIRL #1: I don't know if it's true or not, but it always seemed with Milligan and Allred's X-Force that Allred's genuine affection for the characters kept Milligan's genuine irreverance for the characters at bay. And maybe that'll be true in future issues, but for the most part, I read this going, "Yeah, yeah, Dr. Strange, you think he's sily. Got it." It was pretty great seeing Tyke again, though: bitching in death just as much as he ever did in life. Despite my crankiness, I'll call it OK.

PICK OF THE WEEK: All-Star Superman #2, no question. But there's plenty of good stuff out there this week.

PICK OF THE WEAK: Also, no question: Flash #230. Horribly lazy check-cashing on everyone's part.

TRADE PICK: Not really a trade but ends up listed there: The Comics Journal #273. Interviews with Eddie Campbell and Junko Mizuno? Fuck, yes! Also, I have to admit, Heidi's review of Dragon Head (and maybe also a positive word earlier from Bryan Lee O'Malley somewhere on the Web?) got me so amped up, I went out at lunch to bookstore and bought the puppy rather than waiting for Hibbs to order it. (Sorry, Bri.) It's a creepy and intense pageturner and I'm digging it.

Arriving 1/18/2006

Here's this week's list of what we're recieving -- much better week than last!!! (I have reviews, below this, too)

7 DAYS TO FAME #2 (OF 3) A G SUPER EROTIC ANTHOLOGY #26 ACTION COMICS #835 ALL STAR SUPERMAN #2 ARCHIE #563 ARCHIE DOUBLE DIGEST #167 BATGIRL #72 BETTY & VERONICA SPECTACULAR #73 BIRDS OF PREY #90 BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL #109 CHICANOS #3 CONAN #24 DEMI HARDCORE #3 ESCAPE OF THE LIVING DEAD #3 (OF 5) EX MACHINA #17 FIRESTORM #21 FLASH #230 FRESHMEN #5 (OF 6) FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN #4 GENERATION M #3 (OF 5) GIRLS #9 GREEN LANTERN #7 HAUNTED MANSION #2 HELLBLAZER #216 INCREDIBLE HULK #91 INFINITE CRISIS #4 (OF 7) IRON GHOST #5 (OF 6) IRON MAN THE INEVITABLE #2 (OF 6) JSA CLASSIFIED #7 LEGION OF SUPER HEROES #13 LITTLE STAR #6 (OF 6) LIVING IN INFAMY #2 (OF 4) LOSERS #31 LUCIFER #70 MAD MAGAZINE #462 MANHUNTER #18 MARVEL KNIGHTS 4 #26 MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN #22 MAZE AGENCY #2 (OF 4) NEW MANGAVERSE #1 (OF 5) NIGHTWING #116 NOBLE CAUSES #16 PATRICK THE WOLF BOY HAPPY BIRTHDAY SP PHANTOM #9 PLANETARY #24 PS238 #14 PUNISHER VS BULLSEYE #3 (OF 5) REAR ENTRY #11 RED SONJA #4 REX MUNDI #16 RUNAWAYS #12 SCHIZO #4 SENTINEL SQUAD ONE #1 (OF 5) SEVEN SOLDIERS MISTER MIRACLE #3 (OF 4) SGT ROCK THE PROPHECY #1 (OF 6) SIMPSONS COMICS #114 SPIDER-WOMAN ORIGIN #2 (OF 5) STAR WARS REPUBLIC #82 STRANGERS IN PARADISE #79 TESTAMENT #2 TRANSFORMERS INFILTRATION #1 UNCANNY X-MEN #468 VAISTRON #3 VICE #4 WALKING DEAD #25 X-STATIX PRESENTS DEAD GIRL #1 (OF 5)

Books / Mags / Stuff ANIMATION MAGAZINE FEB 2006 #157 AVENGERS ABOVE AND BEYOND TP BACK ISSUE #14 BANANA GAMES VOL 2 GN COMICS JOURNAL #273 DAREDEVIL VS PUNISHER TP FLASH ROGUE WAR TP GLAMOR GIRLS OF DON FLOWERS TP HARDY BOYS VOL 4 MALLED GN JOE LANSDALES DRIVE IN TP KABUKI VOL 5 METAMORPHOSIS TP(NEW PRTG) MAD CLASSICS #5 MEOW BABY GN NANCY DREW VOL 4 THE GIRL WHOWASNT THERE GN PENNY ARCADE VOL 1 ATTACK OF THE BACON ROBOTS TP SAMURAI EXECUTIONER VOL 8 TP SECRET FILES SERIES 2 INNER CASE ASST SHOWCASE PRESENTS GREEN ARROWVOL 1 TP SWALLOW BOOK TWO TEEN TITANS OUTSIDERS INSIDERS TP WARREN ELLIS APPARAT VOL 1 TP WEAPON X DAYS OF FUTURE NOW TP X-MEN KITTY PRYDE SHADOW & FLAME TP YURI MONOGATARI VOL 3 GN

ASSHAT OF THE WEEK: Originally due for December of *2004*, everyone say hello to JOE LANSDALES DRIVE IN TP!

What looks good to you this week?

-B

Hibbs reviews some 1/11/06 stuff

No, see, I DO do reviews, sometimes. Course, I had to pick the worst week for comics out of the last 52, right?

ELFQUEST THE DISCOVERY #1: How long has it been since a new Elfquest story saw print? And how long since it was actually WaRP doing it? Probably too long because I really couldn’t follow this very well – it was like halfway through the issue before I saw a character I remembered/recognized. The Discovery, for me, is that, huh, I don’t care any longer about this world and these characters, once oh so beloved. I’m probably being harsher than I should be, but, ugh, AWFUL

ED THE HAPPY CLOWN #4: Last one I “reviewed” was issue #1 which really bothered me for being way over-priced on toilet paper. Checking back in here, yup they fixed that problem, and I remembered how fond I am of this absurdist story of dead vampire girls and Presidential penises. We’ll probably all be happier when this is available in book format again, but this really is wonderful, VERY GOOD, stuff.

BATMAN LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #199: Nice end to a nice little story. Won’t win any awards or anything, but it felt a lot more like Batman than anything else I’ve read lately. GOOD.

GREEN ARROW #58: Here’s the thing, I don’t really care how often you say he’s a bad-ass, Dr. Light just isn’t a fearsome baddie. And this way-too-dragging story (What? It STILL isn’t over?!?) isn’t doing shit to change that impression. Hint #2: Meryln isn’t scary, either. A big, yawny EH.

HAWKMAN #48: or, as Graeme put it “The Rann/Thanagar war is over so the Hawks fuck!” Yup, that’s pretty much it. I pretty strongly don’t care about that either. AWFUL.

JLA #124: And on and on it drags, with everyone insisting there isn’t a JLA, but they’re all working more-or-less together. Feh and more feh. The Grant Morrison version of The Key was only interesting when written by a head, and even then, not really. The end of the story is all sidetracked by the out of left field appearance of a 7 Deadly Sin (Despite them all being recaptured last week), and the whole thing feels like it was plotted by pulling scraps of paper out of a hat. CRAP, al a mode.

VERONICA #167: I want to echo Graeme a bit here – the last time I read an Archie comic was at least a decade back, and I sure remember them having more plot and characterization than this. Perhaps only notable for the appearance of the band “The Veronicas” who Archie Publications just finished suing. Talk about rubbing salt in the wounds! Anyway, I don’t really expect much from an Archie comic, but I gotta tell you, based on this sample, I think it will be another decade before I try again. Totally AWFUL.

BOOK OF LOST SOULS #4: I find myself oddly bored by this – maybe it is the feels-too-much-like-better-Vertigo-comics presentation, I don’t know, but I still don’t have any real sense of the protagonists or their motivation or why I should care, really. My customers seem to be at the same conclusion, as we’re only selling about 4 copies an issue at this point (down from 20 of #1). I guess I think there’s a real passivity to the set-up and characters, and what this needs is a more dramatic forward-momentum through line of plot like MIDNIGHT NATION had. Very very EH.

DAUGHTERS OF THE DRAGON #1: Surprisingly entertaining for me – unlike Lester and McMillan I never really carried for Power Man and Iron Fist and their supporting casts. It ain’t Shakespeare, but it was definitely OK

GHOST RIDER #5: Pretty padded, but pretty nonetheless. OK

MARVEL MILESTONES BLOODSTONE X-51 and CAPTAIN MARVEL II: Wait, why did I order this again? Was this a joke? Joke’s on me!

SHE-HULK #4: Actually, I sorta wished they switched the numbering over to #101 with this one – that would have been funny. A profoundly unfunny issue of the funny super-hero book, but as a continuity implant it worked fine. OK, though on the lower side.

ULTIMATE EXTINCTION #1: I was with this until the long-ass sequence with Ultimate Misty Knight. Too long! Enjoying the ride, otherwise. OK

DESOLATION JONES #5: Too much info-dumping, but I at least enjoyed the flashback portion of the info-dump. God damn gorgeous art, however, makes this at least a GOOD.

DMZ #3: Reads like a final issue, actually. Not really sure how/if this should continue, but this was basically OK.

FABLES #45: anti-climactic, if you ask me, but done with skill. OK

CAPTAIN ATOM ARMAGEDDON #4: Meet someone, fight, meet someone, fight. Lather, rinse, repeat. I was wondering why this was 9 issues, and not say 4, like the plot seemed it demanded. And the reason why is puh-puh-puh-padding! Not badly done, but still pretty dull, EH.

X-MEN THE 198 #1: “Mister M” is, actually, not a very interesting character. No, really. EH.

PICK OF THE WEEK: Hm, let’s go with ED THE HAPPY CLOWN #4, that shows what kind of a week this was… a decade+ old comic wins "Best of 1/11/2006"!

PICK OF THE WEAK: So many choices…. But, nah, going with JLA #124.

BOOK/TP OF THE WEEK: a big part of me wants to say KNIGHTS OF THE DINNER TABLE BUNDLE OF TROUBLE VOL 14, but I know it is a specialized taste, so I’ll be more crowd friendly and go with DC UNIVERSE THE STORIES OF ALAN MOORE, despite it missing the “This is an imaginary story” caption in “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?” story, AND despite it closing with “The Killing Joke” (WHttMoT would have made a MUCH more satisfying close) – on the plus side it is on MUCH better paper than its previous no-WHttMoT&TKJ version, plus that cover makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

What did you think?

-B

Seven Days of Dull: Graeme's reviews of 1/11 books.

Well, that may have been one of the more underwhelming weeks in recent memory when it comes to what shipped in the world of comic bookery (Unless you’re a 2000AD fan – in which case you’d be in Thrill Power heaven, what with Prog 2006, the new Dredd collection... Borag Thungg, Earthlet Cash), especially with the non-appearance of Hellblazer despite what DC’s website claimed. As a result, Lester and Hibbs decided that it was time to give me a random selection of things to read that normally I’d ignore on my way to the Grant Morrison Worship Aisle. So blame them for the selection of this week’s review subjects. ARES #1: It’s all very competently done, and the art is nice and all, but still. There’s something that makes the whole thing a rather Crap affair, and that’s probably down to the dull generic quality of the plot. How many times has this “dangerous soldier has settled down only to be brought back into action when his child is kidnapped” plot been done? Mike Oeming, Marvel’s current go-to guy when it comes to God tales, sticks to what’s expected without invention or humor here (Intentional humor, at least; I was amused at the “I had sworn off being the god of war, which is why I kept this fully-stocked armory hidden in my house” scene). Certain parts of the story don’t seem fully thought out - If neither Ares nor his son’s social security numbers are real, shouldn’t someone have noticed by this point? His son’s school, maybe? - nor subtle (The numerous scenes of warfare on TVs and elsewhere), and the dialogue is to the point and unmemorable. Ares is apparently going to be the next big player in the Marvel Universe, so this mini-series isn’t really about the story as much as it is reintroducing the character to the audience before sticking him in New Avengers or whatever, and in that case, it does its job. It’s just that it doesn’t seem to want to do anything else.

CABLE AND DEADPOOL #24: Jeff Lester’s guilty pleasure, apparently, and part of me can see why. I’ve never even been vaguely tempted to pick up this book before, mostly because Cable as a character makes me have terrible flashbacks to when I was buying Peter David’s X-Factor and it had that X-Cutioner’s Song crossover. Oh, the pain. Especially when it comes to remembering those X-Force issues. That said, I’ve always had a sneaking liking for Fabian Niceza for some reason, and there’re some lines in here that back that up, mostly coming from Deadpool (although Nick Fury appears at the end with the line “I want talk, I’ll call Oprah. I want some @ss kicked, I call… Captain America!” Old school superspies should talk like that all the time). Plotwise and artwise, the book feels like nothing as much as the kind of mid-90s Marvel book that spawned both title characters: The plot seems to revolve around mysteriously named organizations and artifacts that don’t get explained, and Patrick Zircher draws a Spider-Man that not only does whatever a spider can but also can dislocate his legs to get a dramatic pose. But that’s probably just down to knowing what the audience wants, and there’s a tongue-in-cheek quality to everything that makes it easier to swallow, and forget afterwards. It’s not going to change the world, but it’s Okay at what it does.

EXILES #75: Remember when 75th issues were big deals? They’d be double-sized or something, and it’d be the end of some long-running storyline that provided some level of dramatic payoff to the long-term fanbase while also giving new readers some bang for their buck and fooling them into thinking that it’d be worth picking up the next issue as well. Sadly, Exiles doesn’t seem to remember that at all, as their 75th issue just seems to be the latest episode in a long-running storyline that’s aimed entirely at longtime fans of defunct imprints from ten years ago. Fresh from their visit to the New Universe – which I was very tempted to try, purely because I have fond memories of the carcrash of Green Lantern and Jim Shooter’s midlife crisis that was Star Brand – the Exiles end up in Marvel’s 2099 universe, where they’re apparently chasing an X-Men villain who died 20 years ago, and it’s about as good or bad as it sounds, depending on your level of investment in these characters. If ever there was a comic that was aimed entirely at the core fanboy audience, it was this one, right down to the Chris Claremont-esque dialogue (“How can you remember what love feels like… and still be such a monster?!”). If this were a DC book, I’d probably be all over it, but I’ve never really been a Marvel geek, so it’s just Eh to me.

SON OF M #2: I admit it, I missed Son of M #1, if “missed” happens to have a new definition along the lines of “saw it in the store and decided that I didn’t really need to read the adventures of Quicksilver being depressed because he doesn’t have any powers anymore.” Luckily for me, I managed to get #2 and have all my preconceptions blown away and replaced by the concrete knowledge that I had been entirely right the first time, after all. In either an ironic twist or clever metatextual conceit, the story is slow as hell, and the art an awkward but not entirely unattractive Arthur Ranson-esque European thing… I’m not sure if this is the kind of thing that the House of M fans would really want from their spin-offs, but perhaps I’m underestimating them. Crap, anyway. When the most interesting thing in the book is Tom Brevoort’s own personal revamp of Bullpen Bulletins – “[W]e in the Brevoort editorial office want to make it your one-stop location for information and insight into what’s coming up in our little line of books,” Brevoort explains, adding in the next line, “The rest of the Marvel editors? Fuck them! This is all about my books.”* – with a Who’s Who of Marvel at the bottom of the page that includes Mark Gruenwald as “Patron Saint of Marveldom,” which manages to be both touching and grave-robbing at the same time, then you know you’re in trouble.

(* - Okay, he doesn’t come out and say those exact words, but still.)

ULTIMATE EXTINCTION #1: Yet another continuing storyline that I haven’t been following. But here’s the shock: It didn’t matter. By halfway through the first issue, I felt like I’d caught up on everything I needed to know, and wanted to know what happens next. Yes, Warren Ellis is on autopilot a bit here, but just like Jarvis Cocker, he’s a professional, bringing in Ultimate versions of unexpected characters – Misty Knight, and is that bald woman Moondragon? – and giving the whole thing an underplayed foreboding atmosphere miles away from things like House of M or Infinite Crisis. Brandon Peterson’s art is a glorious thing, too, offering up a realism that’s not entirely hooked on photo-reference like other Ultimate artists called Greg Land. Here was me thinking that I didn’t dig those Ultimate books so much, but now I’m wondering whether the other trades in this series would be worth looking out for… A surprise Very Good.

VERONICA #167: Guest-starring “the Singing Sensations from Down Under,” the Veronicas, and with a “new single free inside,” according to the cover. This copy, sadly, didn’t have any kind of single anywhere to be found. I suspect that Brian Hibbs is keeping them all for himself. The cover for this comic in general kind of freaks me out: It’s got Veronica – the cartoon one – and the Veronicas, the band, and behind them, Archie grinning like a creep, “Wow! Three Veronicas? It must be my birthday!” Oh, Archie. I didn’t need to hear that. For those who don’t pay attention to news about Archie comics or Singing Sensations from Down Under, the Veronicas, who are a real life band named after the title character of this comic, were sued at some point by Archie Comics for infringing copyright, before the case was settled out of court. Apparently, part of that settlement involved ruining the band’s chances for success by getting them involved in really shitty comics like this, as well as getting to call them Singing Sensations from Down Under, as if Archie’s front cover blubs were written by someone from the ‘60s.

(The indica for the book says that “the individual characters’ names and likenessess are the exclusive trademark of Archie Comic Publications, Inc.” I wonder if that’s an oversight, or if the Veronicas now belong to Archie after the settlement?)

In my younger days, I was a secret fan of Archie books, which seemed harmless and old-fashioned, but kind of sweet nonetheless. Maybe it’s just nostalgia talking, but I remember those stories having plots, unlike the three stories in this issue (First story: Veronica helps the Veronicas get to a concert… And they get there! Second story: Veronica and Midge say that they like to go skating and snowmobiling… And do neither! Third story: Veronica says she’s going shopping… But she’s actually helping disadvantaged kids to learn!). I’d really like to think that this comic seemed so dull because I’m just not the audience that it’s meant for, but… nah. This really is just lazy work. Surely everyone deserves stories that have some story to them, after all. Being used to Dan DeCarlo’s Archie work, the current art team of Dan Parent and Jim Amash seems to be lacking as well, with every character seeming to be more flat and generic than I left them. Archie comics have never really been at the cutting edge of comics – I’m not sure that they were even at the cutting edge of comics aimed at kids, for that matter – but they were definitely much better than this, once upon a time. Overall, pretty Awful, really.

X-MEN: THE 198 #1: The fourth sequel to House of M to explore the aftermath of “M-Day” (behind the Decimation one-shot, Son of M, and Generation M), and by this point, I give up. Wouldn’t it have been nice to have all of these stories be told in one title, preferrably one of the core X-Men books? This series, which shares a writer with Son of M and a concept – what happened to the other mutants in the wake of losing their powers? – with Generation M (Yes, I know that this book focuses on the mutants that still have their powers, and Generation M on the mutants that don’t. But still, it’s the same basic idea, and one that probably would’ve been stronger if each group’s story could be contrasted with the other), has no real reason to exist, and that vapidity is at the heart of this introductory issue. Minor characters get into trouble, sentinels attack, and I lose interest and wonder how many new series an event that was meant to reduce the number of mutants can spin off, instead. Crap, with special mentions for the eyecatching cover by Juan Doe and the ugly interior art by Jim Muinz.

See what I mean about it being a weak week? And that’s without my again complaining about what’s become of JLA, which I’m skipping because I did that last week and there’re only so many times that you can say “Really, it’s barely professional editorially-directed filler” before it gets boring. PICK OF THE WEEK is Ultimate Extinction, the book that makes me reconsider how dumb an idea Ultimate Galactus is, and PICK OF THE WEAK is Veronica, because it makes me sad in my comics lovin’ heart. Give the book to Bryan Lee O’Malley and Cameron Stewart, tell them to make comics for teenage girls and see what happens, says I.

It’s not all doom and gloom, however, because the TRADE OF THE WEEK is Essential Avengers Volume 5, and it is a thing of wonder. Roy Thomas in his prime starts off the collection, before giving way to Steve Englehart, who brings the X-Men, the Defenders, and Don Heck along for the ride. These are comics so good that they’ll make you want to talk like Stan Lee for days afterwards. 500+ pages of 1970s Marvel Madness for less than $20, effendi! Nuff Said!

Whoops! What's arriving 1/11/06 (Today!)

See, I'm so late, I have no commentary this week, see you soon with reviews.... 100 BULLETS #68 2000 AD PROG 2006 AMAZING JOY BUZZARDS VOL 2 #4 ANGEL OLD FRIENDS #2 (OF 5) ARES #1 (OF 5) BATMAN LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #199 BATMAN STRIKES #17 BOOK OF LOST SOULS #4 CABLE DEADPOOL #24 CAPTAIN ATOM ARMAGEDDON #4 (OF 9) DANGER GIRL BACK IN BLACK #3 (OF 4) DAUGHTERS OF THE DRAGON #1 (OF 6) DESOLATION JONES #5 DMZ #3 ED THE HAPPY CLOWN #4 (OF 9) ELFQUEST THE DISCOVERY #1 (OF4) EXILES #75 FABLES #45 GHOST RIDER #5 (OF 6) GI JOE AMERICAS ELITE #7 GREEN ARROW #58 HAWKMAN #48 JLA #124 JLA CLASSIFIED COLD STEEL #2 (OF 2) JUDGE DREDD MEGAZINE #239 (C:4) MARVEL ADVENTURES FANTASTIC FOUR #8 MARVEL MILESTONES BLOODSTONE X-51 & CAPTAIN MARVEL II NEW THUNDERBOLTS #17 NEW X-MEN #22 NEXT EXIT #7 SCOOBY DOO #104 SHE-HULK 2 #4 SMALL GODS #12 SON OF M #2 (OF 6) STAR WARS REPUBLIC #81 SUPER BAD JAMES DYNOMITE #1 TALES FROM RIVERDALE DIGEST #8 TALES OF TEENAGE MUTANT NINJATURTLES #18 TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #25 ULTIMATE EXTINCTION #1 (OF 5) ULTIMATE X-MEN #66 VAMPIRELLA REVELATIONS BECK CVR #2 VERONICA #167 WILDCATS NEMESIS #5 (OF 9) X-MEN THE 198 #1 (OF 5)

Books / Mags / Stuff ADRIAN TOMINE NEW YORK SKETCHES 2004 SC BACTER-AREA GN BATMAN HUSH RETURNS TP BATMAN ILLUSTRATED BY NEAL ADAMS VOL 3 HC (RES) CINEFANTASTIQUE JAN 06 VOL 38 #1 DC UNIVERSE THE STORIES OF ALAN MOORE ESSENTIAL AVENGERS VOL 5 TP FRANK JIM WOODRING DVD FRANK PUPSHAW & PUSHPAW LUTE STRING HEAVY METAL MARCH 2006 JAMES BOND COLONEL SUN TP JANES WORLD VOL 4 TP JUDGE DREDD TOTAL WAR TP KING OF CROOKS FEATURING THE SPIDER HC ED KODT BUNDLE OF TROUBLE VOL 14TP LEES TOY REVIEW JAN 2006 #159 MARVEL KNIGHTS 4 VOL 4 IMPOSSIBLE THINGS HAPPEN EVERY DAY TP METAL GEAR SOLID VOL 2 TP MODESTY BLAISE VOL 1 GABRIEL SET UP SC (DEC032663) NIKOLAI DANTE COURTSHIP OF JENA MAKAROV TP RED SEAS UNDER BANNER OF KINGDEATH TP SEVEN SOLDIERS OF VICTORY VOL1 TP SPIDER-MAN VS SILVER SABLE VOL 1 TP TOYFARE ALEX ROSS DC HEROES &VILLAINS CVR #103

What looks good to you...?

-B

If You Think That Our Dance Is All In The Hips: Graeme's reviews of a lot of books.

Rosario Dawson is going to save comics! Or something. I’m sure that Ms. Dawson is a wonderful person and everything, but the announcement of her new comic from Speakeasy sounds less like Speakeasy breaking new ground and more like the time that Marvel said that Freddie Prinze Jr. was going to write Spider-Man for them to me. Still, good luck to her, if only because I thought Josie And The Pussycats was a great movie. Because I’ve been away for the last month or so, I’m not reviewing this week’s books as much as various books from the last four weeks that I managed to get through this week, in between long stretches of work and more long stretches of work. It’s a fairly DC-centric list, but at least I’m avoiding the three DC trades that I got for Christmas, so as to not bore those who don’t understand the brilliance of ‘50s and ‘60s DC superhero books. Those who wish I was reading more indie things, recommend stuff to me for when I’m done catching up.

BIRDS OF PREY #89: Call me a sucker, but I was glad to see that the DC solicits for March didn’t follow through on Gail Simone’s hints that Birds of Prey would have an entirely new cast after the One Year Later jump. Never mind this issue’s fanboy thrill of Ex-Commissioner Gordon finding out that his daughter is Oracle and then telling her that he’d always known that she was Batgirl, there’s just something comfortably dependable about this book; Gail’s proven herself to be a writer (much like Dan Slott over at Marvel, for that matter) that brings characterisation, action and snappy dialogue far better than the B-list characters that she works with deserve. As with most DC books right now, this issue is pretty much closed off to new readers nonetheless, as it’s tying up loose ends before Infinite Crisis hits, but it’s done with heart and humor. Okay, if you can follow what’s going on.

THE FLASH #229: Talking of Infinite Crisis, this book’s still vamping for no immediately apparent reason before cancellation. Given that we’re one issue away from the end and the story still feels like the product of the fill-in team that it is, I’m still not sure why they didn’t just end the book with the last issue of Geoff Johns’ run. What’s that, you say? “Money”? Oh. Crap.

GOTHAM CENTRAL #39: Hello, heavy final page foreshadowing of depressing ending: “He believed in what you did, in what he did… And I do too, Renee… Right now, I have to… What choice do I have? Because if I don’t… Oh, Lord, if I don’t, Renee… Then my husband has died for nothing…” And with that, any hope I had that the book wouldn’t end with a “The law isn’t enough” conclusion flew right out the window (Not that I had that many hopes for that, considering the hints about Montoya’s downward spiral continuing in 52 that’re flying around the place these days). Nonetheless, this is the best that the series has been in years, with a plot and quality that mirrors the story that launched the book, maybe because it feels like there’s a direction again after so many issues of Plug In The Generic Batvillain. Kano and Stephano Gaudiano provide some nice art, too. All round Good, really.

GREEN LANTERN #6: I’m sure there was a coherent story somewhere in here, once upon a time. Geoff Johns probably just got really really distracted while he was writing it or something. Simone Bianchi’s art is a thing of strangely-European-comics-of-the-70s wonder, as Hibbs mentioned through Lester way back when it came out, but even it can’t save this from having the feeling of having been written by someone who’s not sure what to do with a favorite toy now that he owns it. Eh, eh and more eh.

INFINITE CRISIS #3: Is it wrong of me to be loving this as much as I am? The reveal of who the second Lex Luthor was made a strange kind of sense, and I’m wondering if the obvious Earth-2 Superman Represents Geoff Johns And He Hates Today’s Comics of the first couple of issues is all a set-up for Earth 2 Superman Is Old And Easily Fooled, If You Didn’t Like Identity Crisis Then You’re Old And Easily Fooled Too further down the line, which’d be fun. Batman having a breakdown! Superboy being a whiny bitch! A page of neon This is the new Blue Beetle signage! Yes, it’s preaching to the converted, but what superhero book coming from Marvel or DC that isn’t written by Grant Morrison isn’t these days? For what it is, it’s Very Good, but you can have the argument that what it is isn’t a good thing in the long term, if you want.

JLA #123: By contrast, Crap. So, Brad Meltzer’s going to relaunch this with Ed Benes, apparently, which means that, in a few months, we’ll have a decently-written if Gerry Conway-worshipping Justice League book that looks as if it was drawn in the ‘90s. I can’t wait.

…

Okay, I can.

SEVEN SOLDIERS: BULLETEER #2 / SEVEN SOLDIERS: FRANKENSTEIN #2: And the second wave of Seven Soldiers continues, as Grant seems to explaining everything after all. Bulleteer feels like Old Friends Week, as we get a direct follow-up to Seven Soldiers #0, as well as an indirect follow-up to Shining Knight #3. Both are welcome, but both also rob the book of its own feel or identity a bit; instead of a book in itself, it feels like it’s the exposition book where Grant had an idea for a character, but not a story. Frankenstein, on the other hand, brings back a character from Klarion and possibly explains what he was up to all along, but in a story that feels like it could only have happened in this book. It’s an entirely different feel from the horror movie of the first issue – this one is a big budget sci-fi movie – but it works; perhaps this is the series where Grant’s going to tackle mainstream movie genres each issue. Bulleteer: Okay, Frankenstein: Excellent.

SUPERMAN/BATMAN #23: I get a lot of shit for being a fan of this book, and it’s around this point where I start thinking that I may be deserving of it. We’re four months into Jeph Loeb’s phoning it in, with a plot that substitutes dramatic reveals for substance or logic and dialogue that’s entirely injoke or cliché. What makes it different from the times where this book has worked for me – Ed McGuinness’s first run on the title, or the Carlos Pacheco run – is the lack of big stupid idea fun. Yes, there’s a half-chuckle at seeing the Maximums poking fun at the Ultimates, but that joke’s old within a few pages, never mind a few issues, and there’s nothing behind it to make it last. Kryptonite Batman? Great, but make it something more that him hitting Superman for a few pages and then going away with no explanation. The return of Red Son Superman and Batman Beyond? If they were there for any reason, sure. I don’t know; there seemed to be some internal logic to things like the Giant Composite Superman Batman Robot, or the Zombie Justice League, in the past that’s lacking here. It’s as if whatever gonzo credibility the book had has been abandoned in the rush to the finish line. Ed McGuinness’s art is still the bouncy castle of the superhero world, though. Eh.

THE THING #2: It really is just Marvel Two-In-One, isn’t it? Not that that’s a bad thing, but there’s something incredibly old-school about this book in writing and art (I have no idea why Andrea Di Vito has the reputation that he does amongst some fans – His work is generic and workmanlike to me, as if he was a fill-in guy on Nova or something in the ‘70s. Which, bizarrely, makes sense on this series) that’s both comforting and disturbing at the same time: Yes, it’s nostalgic and everything, but shouldn’t it be more, somehow? It’s Good, but I feel as if you should get more for your money, for some reason.

WONDER WOMAN #224: I know that it’s extremely anal to care about things like continuity and things like that, but the editors of this and Infinite Crisis need to be reminded to care about such things anyway. For those who haven’t seen this issue, it theoretically expands upon the six-or-so page scene in Infinite Crisis #3 where the Amazons bring out the Purple Death Ray, use it, and then leave Earth forever. And, in theory, that’s okay, because it’s a massive change to Wonder Woman’s status quo and should be seen in her own book so that people who aren’t reading Infinite Crisis know what happened. The problem is in the execution, as the two different versions of what happened are miles apart. It’s not just the dialogue which is, of course, different. It’s that neither book could agree on the sequence of events - Wonder Woman’s version adds in a confrontation between Brother Eye and Diana that’s missing from Infinite Crisis. Infinite Crisis has an appearance of Diana’s Gods that’s missing in Wonder Woman - or what the Purple Death Ray is – In Infinite Crisis, it’s a giant cannon, in Wonder Woman, a handgun attached to a backpack (Also, nowhere in Wonder Woman do they explain what the Purple Death Ray is. They use “PDR”, and “death ray”, perhaps because Greg Rucka felt suitably embarrassed at having to type the words “Purple Death Ray”). Like I said, I know it’s anal to care about things like that, but there’s such a difference between the two different versions of what’s meant to be the same thing that it just seems as if no-one cares enough to pay attention to what anyone else was doing. And to make matters worse for Wonder Woman, Infinite Crisis’s version was better, purely because it was lacking the overwrought dialogue and narration by Rucka. The end, and subsequent relaunch, of this book can’t come fast enough. Awful.

Y THE LAST MAN #41: The secret origin of 355 that has something to do with biting people and cannibals, but still ends up being kind of dull. I don’t know if it means that I’ve read/seen the “trauma in childhood leads to self-destructive impulses in teenage years that get harnessed by secret organization” thing too many times, or if it’s just that I’m feeling burned out by the lack of of forward motion in the story over the last few issues, but this was the most Eh the book has been since it started.

YOUNG AVENGERS SPECIAL #1: It’s pretty, but pretty vacant, as Jonathan Rotten once wrote in an early issue of The Comics Journal about the work of Barry Windsor Smith. Allen Heinberg’s tendency to be earnest overwhelms his tendency to be funny as he writes his way around a non-plot full of flashbacks to each character’s origin, each one illustrated by a big name artist slumming it just a little, and a small part of my love for the regular Young Avengers title dies as a result. With two exceptions, the flashbacks are either pointless or things we already know, but the two exceptions are worth mentioning – Kate’s flashback has her being attacked and, it’s implied, raped, which hopefully will be followed up at some point in the main title if only to make the inclusion of it here less gratutious (Yes, I know, Marvel heroes are born of tragedy and bad things, but still), and Billy’s flashback has him meeting the Scarlet Witch, which seemed interesting considering her current status in the Marvel Universe. The third bit of foreshadowing has a young Kang watching the team while a character comments “I don’t think there’s anything they can’t handle,” which is about as subtle as Greg Rucka’s Gotham Central thing above, and depressingly suggests that no story will ever just end in Young Avengers, but instead lead into reappearing characters and angst. For a comic that has no reason to exist, it’s Okay, but you can skip it and not miss anything you probably won’t catch again in the regular YA title.

PICK OF THE LAST FEW WEEKS THAT I’VE FINALLY MANAGED TO CATCH UP ON is Frankenstein, while the PICK OF THE WEAK is Wonder Woman, because it is very, very bad indeed. Tradewise, all I’ve been reading this week are old DC comics: SHOWCASE PRESENTS JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA, CRISIS ON MULTIPLE EARTHS: THE TEAM-UPS and that one about the greatest imaginary stories ever. But if you’re looking for a TRADE OF THE WEEK, I won’t believe anyone who says that Essential Official Handbook of The Marvel Universe isn’t what the world has been waiting for.

Next week: I continue to catch up on things, and Glaswegian Denise Mina takes over Hellblazer, which makes me homesick and hopeful for cruel Scottish weirdness on a monthly basis.

Last Post For The Day, I Promise....

But Brian gave me new photos of Ben to put up months ago, and I finally got around to putting them up today. So if you're a fan of der vunderkind, or just want to see that scary photo of Garth Ennis again, have at you!

CE Sale: Part XIII (of XIII)

Finally, I had to close with this picture, just to show how serious Brian is about taking care of some overstock. A Sandman trade on sale at Comix Experience? I never thought I'd live to see the day frankly. And there are also Matt Wagner Grendel trades--also insanely hard to wrap my brain around. I just think this is a very decent sale and, again, the bargain pricing being offered to Savage Critic readers gives you a real edge on picking some great stuff at great prices.

There. My blatant shilling is through. We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog.

CE Sale: Part XII

I was a little worried my beloved Beck was going to be in this pile--but there's plenty of other selections in there--again, some that don't sell, and some where the overstock got a bit high. Like those volumes of Battle Royale, for example. There's actually a volume I need to bring my BR collection up to date, in fact, in the sales bins. If Hibbs will let me have that price break on manga that he's offering to the blog readers, I may just walk off with huge handfuls of the stuff on Friday.

CE Sale: Part XI

I was really shocked to see this and several other volumes of the Classic Conan trades in the sale bins. Again, there are some books that I think sell pretty well for us that Brian is putting in there so as to open up space in the store and in our storage areas. (Sorry I blew the focus out on a lot of these, by the way. The price on this, and I'm assuming the other classic Conans, is eight bucks).

CE Sale: Part X

There's all sorts of cool stuff in the oversized bin like this. I'm a little surprised sales on this were sluggish enough on this book, for example, that it made the sales bin.

CE Sale: Part IX

I think interest has waned on Frank Cho's Liberty Meadows work, but do I think they'll be a number of people willing to pay twelve bucks for the hardcover? I do.

CE Sale: Part VII

This is pretty rare--an item in the clearance box I didn't even know we had in the store. I'd say you have until Friday to pick this up, or else I'm taking it home!

CE Sale: Part VI

Most of the Escapist issues were in there at three dollars a throw. I picked this one because of the awesome cover. By the way, Mignola fans, Brian also put some Hellboy trades in there. That kind of surprised me.

CE Sale: Part V

Three bucks for that Batman/Judge Dredd compilation? I know the coloring is a bit dark but that's a pretty great way to get a lot of insane Bisley art for cheap.

CE Sale: Part IV

Yeah, a lot of Star Wars trades that weren't moving. I'll be curious to see if they sell even at these prices.

CE Sale Part III

There's another Kevin O'Neill trade in there somewhere, but yeah. The first Marshal Law trade for under ten bucks? (And again, that drops by 30% if you buy four more books?) I hope some of the regular customers who take the time to give me grief in the comments (yes, I'm looking at you, BrianE) make it a point to stop by the store before Sunday.

The CE Sale: Part II

Here's Debbie Drechsler's Summer of Love, which normally retails for $24.95 (I think?). It's here for $9.95. Buy that with four other trades and that's, what, a shade under seven bucks? Yikes.