ncrl: june 27

A big week: 22 books. Been looking forward to X-Men #200 and any week there is a new Criminal, I'm stoked. Daredevil, Boys and X-Factor are other highlights.

dc:
CROSSING MIDNIGHT #8
JACK OF FABLES #12
WETWORKS #10
WONDER WOMAN #10

dynamite:
BOYS #8

idw:
FALLEN ANGEL #17

image:
INVINCIBLE #43
WALKING DEAD #38

marvel:
CABLE/DEADPOOL #42
CRIMINAL #7
DAREDEVIL #98
FANTASTIC FOUR #547
SHE-HULK 2 #19
SILENT WAR #6
THUNDERBOLTS #115
ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #43
ULTIMATE X-MEN #83
WOLVERINE ORIGINS #15
WORLD WAR HULK: FRONTLINE #1
WORLD WAR HULK: X-MEN #1
X-FACTOR #20
X-MEN #200

weekly loot: june 20

X-MEN: ENDANGERED SPECIES
(w. Mike Carey, a. Scott Eaton)
So as I’ve said a couple of times here in the past few weeks, I’m a pretty big X-Fan, and I’m excited for the year building up to the big crossover, and this is arguably the start of everything. So what happens? Well, it’s the funeral of a non-descript mutant where a lot of mutants show up, no matter how unlikely. I mean, I get what they are trying to do, a Mutant dying is one closer to extinction, but it was a stretch at times. There were conversations between New Mutants and X-Factor people, basically trying to hammer these points home. Sam questions Bishop about his foreknowledge, which I assume will be important in the future; Beast sets up the Endangered Species 20 parter with a joke-popping Jamie Madrox; and Wolverine and Cyclops have a seen-it-before conversation where they go on about how they have to keep fighting. All of this was good and all, but I would have liked to have seen these characters making conversation about other things: Havok missing, Xavier back (didn’t Cyclops kick him out?) and other important things. Still, not in the cards, I get that. The best conversation for me was Xavier and Shaw. Only because I enjoy the moments where the biggest baddest villains of the X-Universe just seem to want the same things as Xavier. An average issue, not good, not bad, but the good news is: Carey GETS the X-Men, and as we move into more action and build to more character moments we should be in good shape.

WASTELAND #10: Well, we got some answers. I think. I enjoyed it, but I may need to read it again.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #27
(w. Ed Brubaker, a. Steve Epting & Mike Perkins)
Well, Captain America is still dead. But who the hell cares, because we have BAD ASS BUCKY BARNES to take over the book. A few years ago this would have sucked, but right now, I couldn’t be happier. I love that Bad Ass is smarter and just plain better than everyone in the room. Poor Black Widow got steam rolled, though I guess that has extenuating circumstances. Sharon being almost suicidal is a bit much for me, but her and the Falcon together works for sure. To be honest, Brubaker is making it all look far too easy here, and I can’t wait to see where we go from here. Cap all of this with some sweet Epting and Perkins art, and you have yourself a BOOK OF THE WEEK. Brubaker is on fire.

INCREDIBE HULK #107
(w. Greg Pak, a. Gary Frank)
Now THAT’S a fucking fight. So far HERCULES vs. HULK wins in the World War Hulk fights. Gary Frank’s art was awesome here. I loved the use of the full-body shots during the punches and the close up reaction shots of Hercules. I FELT these punches. Awesome. As for the rest? Amadeus continues to be charming, as he plays everyone around him to some extent to get what he wants. I was also happy to see Namor addressed in all this, and to see Namora from Agents of Atlas get a cameo, so that those characters don’t go back into limbo. The only misfire for me was the stealing Angel’s money thing. And then he acts like it didn't matter. Huh? I doubt that Warren would have just moved along, but I guess they can write in later that Cho doubled his money while he had it, abusing the stock market or something. Fun stuff.

IRON MAN #19
(w. Christos Gage, Jackson Guice)
The first satellite World War Hulk book, and it was okay. I mean, in-between all the narration that is still working overtime to justify Stark’s actions, I actually really liked the approach to World War Hulk that this issue took. All of the others so far are from the Hulk’s POV, and this one had a more ground-eye view of the menace that is coming. The Hulk felt scarier here than in the other issues because of it. Aside from the fact that this issue was repetitive, it was entertaining. Guice’s pencils were good and I’m happy that Gage is getting some more mainstream play. I did miss the Knaufs a little, and the approach they’ve been bringing to the comic.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #110: Bagley’s penultimate issue, and it was pretty good. More next issue when the baton is passed for real.

FALLEN SON – SPIDER-MAN: Was it just me, or did Finch have some serious anatomy issues in this comic? Might be the best of the bunch so far, but still nothing “must see” here.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #541: This was a bit boring. Bring on One More Day.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #10
(w. Brad Meltzer, A. Ed Benes)
I repeat, DC doesn’t want my money. Hahaha. It was the end of the big crossover with JSA and I’m glad really. So much was going on with so many characters, that although I was doing a good job of following along, I didn’t get the inside jokes and plot threads that Johns and Meltzer were playing off of. I had no idea which Flash that was at the end, or even less who the people with him were, and it was all just lost on me. Whatever, what’s next? I’m with Meltzer’s run till the end, and the only reason I can come up with is because I really want to like the JLA.

AQUAMAN: SWORD OF ATLANTIS #53: Holy shit, Manta was over the top, but I’m still having a good old time with this series.

EX-MACHINA #29: Starting to gain some momentum again, as I’m back on board to see where this is all leading. Good issue.

SPIRIT #7
(w. Walter Simonson, a. Chris Sprouse)
(w. Jimmy Palmiotti, a. Jordi Bernet)
(w/a. Kyle Baker)
The least likely story of the three, ended up being my favorite. Simonson/Sprouse and Baker were the ones I was looking forward to going in, and Jimmy’s stole the show. This could actually be one of my favorite things that Jimmy has ever written, if I think about it. It had a lot of the old Eisner work feel, with a little playfulness in the panels and storytelling. Jordi’s pinup-y art was a lot of fun. The Simonson one was good enough, just feels like something I’ve read before (looked nice) and the last one, Baker’s Sin City riff, I just didn’t get. And didn’t it have horrible lettering? Looked like those comics that some 15-year old does locally and gives away for free at your local comic book store.

MADAME MIRAGE #1
(w. Paul Dini, a. Kenneth Rocafort)
I’m thinking really hard, trying to say some good things, but it really isn’t any good. Sadly, Madame Mirage and her sidekick, both scantily clad, fight a Big Evil Company that engineers bad guys. Here she chases a couple down, they are murdered and she disappears cryptically. Too much of a Top Cow vibe for me. The pencils are good, but the colors didn’t always work for me. It's really too bad, because I wouldn’t mind reading some regular Dini work, but with this and Countdown he’s just not doing it for me. No more for me unless I start to hear amazing things as the months go along.

MEGATRON: ORIGIN #1
(w. Eric Holmes, a. Alex Milne)
Blame this purchase on being hyped for the movie. Or rather, blame “being hyped for the movie” for me going out and buying every Transformer comic currently in the IDW-verse, and then blame that for this purchase. Did that make sense? Anyway, I recently got them all and it has been hit-and-miss (for another post), but I was kind of excited for the Megatron origin. In some ways, I think it’s the best Transformer thing I’ve ever read. It’s a good Megatron origin for sure. He began as one of many workers on a mine colony, who helps start a revolt when the Sentate (read: The Man) comes to shut them down. They are working hard to make his point of view a bit sympathetic, and although I’ve seen this kind of story before, for the most part it works. Transformer comics that I’ve seen don’t usually have this kind of pathos. The art was good, but at times it was muddled and it was hard to make out the characters from time to time.

MOON KNIGHT #11: I’ve been really patient with this book, but it's treading water. Huston’s run ends at 13?

STORM SHADOW #2: A lot better than issue #1, carried by its action, but still don’t know if I care about the story, especially Storm Shadow’s annoying anime niece.

ncrl: june 20

As a big X-Fan this is an interesting week with the release of Endangered Species, because as Marvel is hyping: this is the start of the rest of the year for Marvel's Mutants.

The list:

dc:
AQUAMAN: SWORD OF ATLANTIS #53
EX-MACHINA #29
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #10
SPIRIT #7

devil's due:
STORM SHADOW #2

idw:
MEGATRON: ORIGIN #1

image:
MADAME MIRAGE #1

marvel:
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #541
CAPTAIN AMERICA #27
FALLEN SON - SPIDER-MAN
INCREDIBLE HULK #107
IRON MAN #19
MOON KNIGHT #11
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #110
X-MEN: ENDANGERED SPECIES

oni:
WASTELAND #10

wizard world philly news

Let's see here.

#1. MESSIAH COMPLEX REVEALED
The fall/winter crossover for the X-Men Books is revealed. Well, the name and the way it is going to be published is revealed. The Messiah Complex will start with a One-Shot, then go 12 parts running through the four main titles. With Carey leading the way (and Brubaker and David), this old school crossover sounds like a lot of fun right now, as the mutants have been scattered all over the place for a while (Astonishing X-Men?) and it's always nice when these characters come back together. I jumped on board the X-Men right around the start of the 1991 X-Men, and The Executioner's Song was my first crossover. For better or worse, those were the X-Men I fell in love with, and this reminds me of that. Good news to me.

#2. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN THREE TIMES A MONTH
In theory, I’m all about Amazing Spider-Man three times a month. I’ve long thought that this would be an interesting thing to do for the three big solo franchises in comics (Batman and Superman being the others). Huge sprawling team books like the X-Men, Avengers and Justice Leagues make more sense based on the amount of characters, but for the solo heroes it always got a little hairy. Superman attempted this for the most part with their Triangle ditty a long time ago, but here we go again. I think ultimately, we will get just as good as the writers are. But I fear with subplots moving from arc to arc (writer to writer) the book is going to become more editorially controlled than before. But maybe I’m wrong.

#3. TERRY MOORE WRITES SPIDER-MAN LOVES MARY JANE
I’ve been looking to jump on this series to give it a try for months. Could there be a more perfect place?

#4. ULTIMATE ORIGIN
Holy shit – YAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWNNNNNN. This would have been the coolest thing in the world four years ago. Now it just seems tired and pointless. Mind you, I’m a sucker and I’ll pick up the first issue at least, but they shouldn’t have waited so long to do this.

#5. MCDUFFIE WRITES JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA
This is awkward news. A) I really want to collect the JLA. I like the characters, and because I don’t want to collect the entire DC catalog, seems like a good place to get most of them. B) The Meltzer run has been so-so, interrupted by a crossover and mired by continuity that I don’t know. So I’m debating on jumping off when he does. C) I really like the JLA and JLU cartoons, one of the things that made me interested in collecting the JLA in the first place, so this McDuffie thing should be good news. But D) I didn’t really know McDuffie’s comic work until the current Fantastic Four run, and that has been silly, stemming from a lame status quo that Civil War left behind, and McDuffie wanting to continue his Gravity character arc. SO, I’m really not sure if I’m going to continue with this.

#6. ADAM POLLINA RETURNS TO COMICS
This one is really exciting, actually. I’ve been following Adam Pollina’s work since his X-Force days, and I’ve really enjoyed his stylized look, especially as it has matured. The project itself, ANGEL: REVELATIONS could be pretty good. The preview pages looked pretty awesome. I’m yet to be completely won over by Robert Aguirre-Sacasa, but I’m willing to give the benefit of the doubt here. Can’t wait to see more Pollina.

#7. PAD ON SHE-HULK
I was telling people that the only writer that could take over for Slott that would get me to not drop the title would be Joss Whedon. And then they announce it will be Peter David instead. Wow, for some reason this never crossed my mind, but I love Peter David and what he brings to a title, especially over time. Needless to say, I will be staying on. Good show Marvel.

#8. MARK WAID TAKES OVER FLASH
Probably the biggest news of the weekend that I don’t care that much about in regards to anything I collect or want to collect. With all that said, I’ll probably get Issue #1, knowing me. Plus, I think Kerschl is awesome.

bonus news (not from con):

TRAVIS CHAREST BACK DRAWING
For right now it's just Captain America covers, but at one time in the mid to late 90’s, there was not an artist that got me more excited. At times his backgrounds are a bit sparse, but his figure work and overall aesthetic is ridiculously good. Can’t wait to see him tackle some interiors. A special mini or something.

weekly loot: june 13

This week:

WORLD WAR HULK #1
(w. Greg Pak, a. John ROmita Jr.)
First, let me say it, I LOVE John Romita Jr. I do, really. I will never be able to get a sketch from him at a con, because it WILL be awkward. For me, him, and my girlfriend. Let's see here, things that should maybe be annoying: Last time we saw She-Hulk (Incredible Hulk #106), she had been temporarily de-powered by Mastermind, right? But now she’s full-on She-Hulk again? When/where did this happen? Never mind that everything about Civil War is just “agree to disagree” so that Marvel’s Merriest can all come together. Iron-Man to Spider-Man, “Oh, but you’ll have to turn yourself in after this, you rascal!” All this aside, I really liked the issue for the comic romp that it was. I liked the opening with Blackbolt, I liked that Hulk got the better of him. And of course, I really like that Iron Man got the shit kicked out of him too, as well he should have. Good fun series to take the seriousness of Civil War out of my mouth. Quesada was definitely right about that.

NEW AVENGERS #31
(w. Brian Bendis, a. Leinl Yu)
OHMYGODholyshitOHMYGOD. Ok, all that really isn’t that necessary, but really, fanboy expectations of the reveal aside, Elektra is a fucking Skrull, and the internet has been broken in half. AGAIN. What does this mean? First off, I hate the bullshit hype that it brings, because for the next 12 months, we’ll hear about this over and over, but it could be some fun while we get there. I’m definitely willing to give Bendis the benefit of the doubt to see how this plays out. The fight scene itself was pretty great, even though I think the deadlines are starting to catch up to Yu. (Just a bit, not hatin' yet.)

LOVELESS #18: This series has definitely become a lot more readable since its dense beginnings. Excited to see what the ramifications of someone knowing Ruth is alive will bring.

DMZ #20: I don’t have anything against Kristian Donaldson, but it's not as good as Burchielli. Good issue though.

FABLES #62
(w. Bill Willingham, a. Mark Buckingham)
Wow, another beautiful James Jean cover. The only bad thing about the cover is that it makes Buckingham’s version inside the book look like a kid's drawing. The Knight being Lancelot is awesome, because I love the Arthurian legends and it never crossed my mind to add all these characters to the mix. So this issue is basically the Knight telling his history (good) and Flycatcher, via a good close shave, becoming a hero for real (GOOD). Other than this, Prince Charming and Hansel have a pretty memorable scene. Hansel’s retaliation could be a ton of fun for sure. But a big BOOO to Willingham for the second issue in a row teasing me about a scene with Bigby and Snow. I’m sick of them being all happy up at the Farm. Another really good book from a good comic. What is down that well? Guess we are going to find out. And pleaseOHplease let me see Flycatcher kick some ass. BOOK OF THE WEEK (second time in a row for this book)

STORMWATCH PHD #8
(w. Christos Gage, a. Andy Smith)
Anyone still debating what the best title to come out of the Wildstorm re-launch is, has not been reading this title, right? And really might be dumb. A gigantic crossover between two super-powered teams, with over 15 characters meeting in a SUPERHERO COMIC and it somehow manages to be a really good character issue. Which is fucking awesome (coughCivilWarcough). I’ll take that any day, especially when it’s this book doing it. The moments going on between all of these different personalities in such a short space (only 22 pages for this many characters) is a pretty amazing feat. But this book took its first big misstep with me by giving us the SON OF HENRY BENDIX. I really didn’t need this. The resurrection of Winter, et al, was weird but I was dealing. Diva's "resurrection" was stupid too, but I never really liked the character (who came from the shallow Jim Lee days) anyway and hell, Gage with this issue is almost making her interesting. And I could even deal with the possibility of the Monitor cameo, even though as a Wildstorm fan, that is frustrating too. But SON OF HENRY BENDIX reeks. Maybe itis because he is the Magneto/Dr. Doom of Wildstorm, and I hate to see him used like this. I’d rather the real Henry Bendix still be running around (which Brubaker did) than this. Just seems stupid, anyway you cut it. And I wish Gage didn’t have to resort to this many callbacks to previous incarnations, to be honest. Still, I really like this book and the approach the crew is taking to the story. I'm warming up to Andy Smith, as I knew I would-- it was just that Mahnke brought a unique style compared to the one Smith does. Um, and yeah, Jackson King dying would be lame, because he’s too good a character, especially with his new mentor role making him look more bad-ass than any fight ever did.

This might be a schizo review, but man, I really really like the Wildstorm Universe and if it wasn’t for SON OF HENRY BENDIX we would be looking at my Book of the Week.

NOVA #3
(w. Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, a. Sean Chen)
Another really fun super hero comic, and I’m a bit bummed it's going full on into the Annihilation because I’m not touching that thing with a ten foot pole. Or at least, not until I get it all in quarter bins at the 2012 San Diego Pop Culture Con. I liked that Nova held his own with the Thunderbolts, but with his new power level, he should have kicked their asses. But I guess that isn’t in Marvel’s best interests with the new team. Still, it was a fun fight. Really good talk with Tony about how he doesn’t fit in anymore, and Nova’s meeting with Robbie especially hammered that home. I thought it was neat just to see how far the characters have gone from one another (my introduction to the characters being early New Warriors), and how far the Marvel Universe HAS really changed. All in all it was a really good three issues, and way better than I expected. The last two pages were perfect for the character right now, and for all those continuing into ANNIHILATION, have fun. I’m out. DROPPED.

PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #8: More of the same: if you love it you love it, and if you are like me, you are mildly entertained at times and wondering what the fuss is about.

NEW X-MEN #39: A couple more kids appear to have died, emphasis on the "appear" part, and Skottie Young continues to be perfect for all the different kids’ designs.

CABLE & DEADPOOL #41: If I weren’t reading this title, I would have been bummed to find out that THIS is where we find out what happened to Sabretooth after he disappeared in Carey's X-Men.

ELEPHANTMEN: PILOT

GEN 13 #9
(w. Gail Simone, a. Carlo Barberi)
So let's see, what happened in good ol Gen 13? Rainmaker comes out! Oh, it's not a big deal anymore? Oh, she came out in a very similar way in 1994? Well, anyway, Rainmaker did indeed come out and it was a bit awkward for some of our characters. And there were some odd moments, such as Rainmaker creepingly asking Caitlin to get naked in front of her when Caitlin has no idea that she is a lesbian? I mean, it's just a weird scene if you think too far into it. Regardless, the other characters have fun with it all and we get a little into Rainmaker’s head via narration. The real star of the issue is the young Lynch who admits to the kids being a reboot (ooooooh, for some reason I could get into Junior Lynch), and that they are slightly different then they should be. This is all kind of fun, but an odd way to handle all of this Wildstorm Version 2 if you ask me. I mean, why go out of your way to reboot and change things (for new readers, right?), if you are going to lead to a storyline where knowing the old continuity is going to be a necessity to fully enjoy? Ah, the joy of comics. Regardless, I’m kind of curious to see how all that plays out and this book appears to be one of the most affected (and important). Next: Tranquility.

GRIFTER/MIDNIGHTER #4: Best in the series so far, but not saying much. Grifter’s powers in the Rebooted WS Universe are definitely more powerful.

ncrl: june 13

So I guess the big news this week is the new MARVEL MEGA-EXTRAVAGANZA: World War Hulk. But with Romita Jr. on board, I'm kind of excited for this.

dc:
DMZ #20
FABLES #62
GEN 13 #8
GRIFTER/MIDNIGHTER #4
LOVELESS #18
STORMWATCH PHD #8

image;
ELEPHANTMEN: PILOT

marvel:
CABLE & DEADPOOL #41
NEW AVENGERS #31
NEW X-MEN #39
NOVA #3
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #8
WORLD WAR HULK #1

weekly loot: june 6

This was a pretty rockin' comic week:

LONE RANGER #6
(w. Bret Matthews, a. Sergio Cariello)
After a little delay in the last two parts, Dynamite’s excellent re-imagining of the title character comes to an end. And it is a satisfying one, for sure. After facing down the henchman from the first arc, all the pieces are complete as our hero now IS the Lone Ranger, complete with mask, horse, and catch phrase. A little odd, but it appears that Tonto was faking being captured and beaten all along so that Lone Ranger can face his destiny. A little disappointing, mainly because I wanted to see Tonto whup some ass, but it makes sense for the character, and frankly I’m glad, because he saves face with me since he was taken care of (or so we thought) rather easily. With that being said, the man behind the man Cavendish is still out there and our heroes are off to find him. Should be fun, and I’m in for the ride.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #4
(w. Joss Whedon, a. Georges Jeanty)
So the last issue of the first arc is over, and the verdict is? That it’s nice to get Buffy in my comics once a month, that’s for sure. I love the Whedon-y character moments, and I love the unlimited budget, and to be honest I don’t care one bit that it’s not on TV. After we are reunited with our old favorites from the TV show, with some nifty fight scenes, we settle down to the for the reveal of the Season 8 villains: humans. Humans that are scared of the army that Ms. Summers has put together since Season 7 ended. I can deal with that. For now. Though something tells me the reveal of the REAL “Big Bad” is yet to come. Or rather, maybe there will be a “Bigger Bad” that makes the Humans idiots for turning on the girls. Good comic.

SCALPED #6
(w. Jason Aaron, a. R.M. Guera)
Fuck yeah! I want more. Now. Aside from some minor “what the fuck just happened?” art in a gun battle, pretty much everything in this issue was spot on. There is officially TOO MUCH bad assery going on for me to properly express, but the two highlights in this issue were the reveals of yet another FBI Agent (what the hell?) and the Catcher’s mysterious little conversation with Bad Horse. Leaving Catcher firmly in the GREAT column with most of the other characters on the reservation. Seeing the larger mystery of how these characters are connected has been rad, and the present-day mysteries are getting more involved, which is even better. Jump on now, folks.

UNCANNY X-MEN #487
(w. Ed Brubaker, Salvador Larroca)
Back on Earth, and its kind of a ho-hum start to another Morlock story. And I say that because I’m not that interested in the Morlocks. But really, I suppose it’s a major part of the X-Universe, and post-House of M, is worth checking into. Brubaker’s banked love from me on other series, and he still has it here, but I’m keeping a close eye on how story #2 plays out. As it turns out, I really like the inclusion of Hepzibah, even though the romantic hints with Warpath seem a little soon. Still, she’s visually interesting, and she very much comes from a place outside the X-Men’s world, so her point of view should be unique in mutant affairs. I’m also glad to see Storm back in an X-Book, even though she still name-dropped Black Panther (ugh), and for some reason she and her lips looked ridiculous in a couple of panels. What the hell, Larroca? Still, other than that the rest of the issue looked pretty great.

BLACK SUMMER #0
(w. Warren Ellis, Juan Jose Ryp)
Based on everything I read about the series from Ellis’ columns and preview pages, this issue was exactly what I expected. What I didn’t expect was that I was going to like this as much as I did. It obviously screams of some Warren Ellis past, but it floored me like Ellis’ Authority once did, and that’s a good thing. The design of our main character is a step forward in thinking for superheroes in only a way that Warren Ellis can deliver: A man surrounded by eyes is fucking awesome, there is no denying that. Ultimately, it's superheroes done dark with political overtones, but it's Warren Ellis style, and good at that. At this point in the Ellis game you either like this stuff or not, but for those of us in, this looks to be another book to watch. (Especially with Desolation Jones M.I.A.) Ryp’s art continues to grow and is pretty amazing in its detail here, but it is becoming what I expect from him and his Avatar books. Looking forward to a full issue.

DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER BORN #5: Waiting until #7 to talk about this again I think.

PUNISHER #48: Okay, maybe THIS was the birth of Punisherette. Last issue was just the origin.

INVINCIBLE #42: The comprehensive recap just reminds me how much has happened in 41 issues. Shit. Good stuff. Jump on, people.

NEW WARRIORS #1
(w. Kevin Grevioux, a. Paco Medina)
My reading of the New Warriors has been spotty over the years. Off and on for the first 50 issues during their first run (I think my biggest uninterrupted run is #21-38 or something). Then I didn’t touch it again until #1 of the most recent reality show mini, which was unique, but didn’t get me to keep reading. Still, I always have fond memories of the characters, and I’m glad that they keep getting a chance. Hopefully this one sticks around a bit longer, because it was a hell of a good start. My reading of New Mutants was spotty as well, but I liked Sofia and I’m always glad when characters like this (in her case, depowered mutant) are used and not forgotten. Her character seems to be a little more confident and sassy than I remember, but that doesn’t bug me. Time has passed for her and the Marvel Universe. Her trek through New York showed us an everyday person’s view of the new Marvel status quo, with Thunderbolts toys, Iron man registration posters and even everyday pro and con Stark people. As for the new concept, I love the idea of the New Warriors being an underground youth movement. Really gives this its own identity, and very cleverly spins the name based on the connotation it has in the Marvel Universe as pariahs. The New Warriors tag was a really nice touch too, since graffiti art is all the rage with the kids these days. Why isn’t it the logo though, huh? Marvel not thaaaat daring? Another nice gag was the “It’s a Mutant Thing, You Wouldn’t Understand” T-Shirt which I expect to see at least one of at Comic-Con. Other characters: I'm really happy that Beak has been brought back from limbo, even though I’m not too sure about his “hottie” look. I could care less that it appears Night Thrasher didn’t die in Civil War #1, because I always thought the character had more potential than has been exploited. His inclusion in the reality show always seemed at odds with his character, so maybe we’ll find out that that wasn’t him all along. All this AND there is a mysterious girl that is shrinking super villains. Good stuff. The Paco Medina art was awesome but unfortunately, it's not long for this level of book, because he will soon be gobbled up into A-Level status never to look back again. A really clean art style, with nice storytelling, good “acting” and topped off with a touch of J. Scott Campbell in the faces. I didn’t know Grevioux from anything but a big Werewolf in Underworld, but this was real good. Is it obvious yet? My BOOK OF THE WEEK.

AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #3: An odd issue yet again. Good art, and I like the inclusion of the Iron Spider suits.

COUNTDOWN #47
(w. Sean McKeever w./Paul Dini, a. Al Barrionuevo)
So this is my last issue. I’m trying to give DC my money, I really am. But I said after five issues that I will make the call, and really, it has to be dropped. It suffered, to my admittedly Marvel reading butt, in the most important way: It wasn’t that interesting. Sucks, too, because in the last couple of issues I had finally been intrigued by the Jimmy Olson arc, but I got this issue and it got pretty much a one-page lip service. Kind of lame. I don’t want to be waiting for 2-3 issues to get back to the one storyline that is worth a damn. It should be said that everyone seems to hate the Monitor back-ups, but for someone that was jumping into this series almost completely blind, I almost kept getting them just for the history lesson. Might sneak a read in at the stores if I remember. Good luck Jimmy. DROPPED.

EXTERMINATORS #18

WELCOME TO TRANQUILITY #7

G.I. JOE: AMERICA’S ELITE #24
(w. Mark Powers, Mike Bear)
First, two things: A) I’ve really really enjoyed this storyline so far, and B) I really kind of like the status quo at the end of the arc as well (even if Cobra Commander appears to be a bit too powerful), but JESUS, I kind of really hated the sloppy ass writing to get there. First we have a gunfight with automatic weapons in a small room and NO ONE dies? These are the best of the best, hell, MOST of them would have died if this was handled COMPLETELY realistically. It just took me out of it, and I felt like Powers was working for 3 issues to build up some serious realism that was tossed out the window. What a horrible action sequence. But nevermind that, because that was the lesser of two sins here. Destro fucking AGREES to give up MARS and HIS OLDER SON for the price of his younger son? Um, excuse me, WHAT?! I mean, not that any of that is enforceable, right? And all of this under the threat of a gun? Suddenly Destro thinks someone can actually hit something in this room? Whatever. And the Joes basically got played by the characters and the writer, which was a bit sad. Snake Eyes must be getting old. Bad ending. I’m still a bit excited for World War III, but Powers and Co. have shown some kinks now. Still really enjoying the feel Mike Bear’s art brings to the series, even if it’s a bit clunky at times

MIDNIGHTER #8: Some silly but fun stuff, which I think is a perfect way to be handling a Midnighter series.

IRON MAN #18: Dammit, I wanted more Mandarin.

FEAR AGENT: THE LAST GOODBYE #1
(w. Rick Remender, Tony Moore)
Fear Agent starts over with a new publisher and a new format with a series of mini-series. This first one comes at us as mostly a flashback to when aliens first invaded Earth and Heath started on his way to being the surliest last Fear Agent there ever was. So basically, this story doesn’t resemble anything at all that we’ve seen from this series in its previous incarnation, and that's a-okay with me. Fun little action book that is just starting to heat up as the last page splash reveals. A good old fashioned war comic. IN a sci-fi comic. Awesome. Nice to see some of Heath’s skeletons, and I’m sure we’ll get more. As always, it's nice to have T-Moore back on art duties. Good job here.

JACK OF FABLES #11

LONERS #3: Not doing it for me. The covers really are the best thing.

STRANGE EMBRACE #1
(w/a. David Hine)
Richard Starkings opened up the book with an introduction that basically said: who knew that Hine was so bad ass? And you know what? Yeah, he was right. I’ve read and enjoyed District X, X-Men: 198, Son of M (my favorite) and the currently running Silent War, but none of those are anything like this. Strange Embrace lives up to the hype I’ve seen, and really stands out as a nice piece of comic book work. Sukumar is one of those kids-- you know the ones: bored, dreamy and destined for something great, while all he does is deliver food for his dad. One day while delivering to an eccentric patron (or so we believe), he is interrupted by a mysterious man who leads him to an even more mysterious place, where he shows him odd mushrooms, his ghostly mother and starts to tell the story of his upbringing. I assume we will catch up to present day and, as promised, get how Sukumar is connected to it all. So far, it appears like it will take its time getting there, and that’s fine with me. Hine has paced this slow, and it allows him to be rich with the art (yeah, Hine can draw too! Who the fuck knew THAT?) and creative panel transitions. The story of Quesada hiring Hine on the spot might have sounded far-fetched before, but after reading this, I believe it. The best is yet to come from Hine, and Quesada would be wise to get him an Icon title before he creates a hit over at Vertigo. Nicely done. (and it was the last book I read too!)

ncrl: june 6

Scalped, Lone Ranger and Buffy are the highlights for me this week:

avatar:
BLACK SUMMER #0

dark horse:
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #4

devil's due:
G.I. JOE AMERICA'S ELITE #24

dc:
COUNTDOWN #47
EXTERMINATORS #17
MIDNIGHTER #7
JACK OF FABLES #11
SCALPED #6
WELCOME TO TRANQUILITY #7

dynamite:
LONE RANGER #6

image:
FEAR AGENT: THE LAST GOODBYE #1
INVINCIBLE #42
STRANGE EMBRACE #1 (maybe)

marvel:
AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #3
DARK TOWER: THE GUNSLINGER BORN #5
IRON MAN #18
LONERS #3
NEW WARRIORS #1
PUNISHER #48
UNCANNY X-MEN #487

weekly loot: may 31

This week:

USAGI YOJIMBO #103: After last issue’s emotional climax, our poor little hero really needs a break. And break he does, as other characters take center stage, giving Usagi a breather as Stan likes to do from time to time.

THE BOYS #7
(w. Garth Ennis, a. Darick Robertson)
As much as I roll my eyes at this comic, I seem to be laughing with it just as much. Ennis and Robertson fire back with the first part of a new storyline, and basically, its second verse is similar to the first. What I mean is, if you were on board and entertained when Wildstorm/DC was publishing it, you are like me, and happy that it is back. If you hated it, then you are an idiot masochist who should have known better than to buy this. Or third option: you accidentally bought this with no idea what it is, and now I feel sorry for you, because the new plot centers around a super hero that just can’t stop fucking things. Everything and anything, pretty much for laughs. But rest easy, reader, The Boys are back and they are going to make these sick super heroes suffer with maximum pain for being twisted nasty bastards. And it makes me smile. Hughie, the “normal guy” in the middle of all this, continues his descent into the dark super hero world, and really, without him this book would not have as much of as my attention as it does.

DAREDEVIL #97
(w. Ed Brubaker, a. Michael Lark)
Is this the forgotten Brubaker book? Well, maybe right now. Criminal (at least on the online community) is hot, and Uncanny X-Men and Captain America definitely have higher profiles. What does that mean? Well, it just means that Daredevil is quietly doing really good comics. The series got a little flack for “re-setting” what Brian Bendis had done, and I can feel some of that, but it is time for a new direction anyway. And a lot of the former storylines are still being felt, so it's not like they were completely forgotten. Lark is drawing some really cool action scenes, as the fights with Gladiator were intense and hard hitting. It's funny, because what I like about Daredevil right now is that the book seems to be in its own little pocket doing its own thing and not affected by the Marvel Universe proper. What I don’t like too much is that one of Daredevil’s girls is in peril AGAIN. Buuuut how creepy was the last page? My BOOK OF THE WEEK (two weeks in a row for Bru).

CROSSING MIDNIGHT #7

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #6
(w. Geoff Johns, a. Dale Eaglesham)
When I first decided to get this crossover, I was a bit annoyed that I had to figure out a whole new team of heroes (JSA) to read a Justice League story. Turns out, there were TWO, since this is pretty much a Legion of Super Heroes story with the JLA and JSA as guest stars. At least I know what is going on, if not all the characters. I’m sure Meltzer and Johns are adding a ton of fun little inside bits, but those are going over my head. Really, four parts out of five and this has been pretty underwhelming. I wonder how the average DC fan feels about it. Also, it has been a long time since I’ve read a book with Dale Eaglesham art in it, and I just have to give him a sports like smack-on-the-ass for a good job. He’s improved a ton since I’ve seen him last and has turned into a real nice super hero artist. The double page spread with all of the heroes in battle was great.

COUNTDOWN #48: I don’t know who that New God is, or even care that he died, but Jimmy Olson’s story is the first thing that has been interesting in Countdown.

NEW AVENGERS ILLUMINATI #3: The Beyonder is an Inhuman? Um, okay.

FALLEN ANGEL #16: I think this series is really starting to miss Juris as Magistrate and as the main foil. Also, I’m not interested at all in the Shi crossover thing.

DEATHBLOW #5: Basically, the only Azzarello book that doesn’t totally work for me.

SILENT WAR #5

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #42
(w. Mike Carey, a. Pasqual Ferry)
Just a couple of months ago I wanted to rant about how this book was pointless, but with the 616 (take that Brevroot!) book all over the place as far as cast and plot goes, this one suddenly looks like it's on solid footing. First, I’m a little bummed that Ben is no longer blue. I thought that was a fun thing to do, at least for a bit. There was some jokes to be had there. Regardless, I like that the first part of this book follows directly from the previous (flawed) story, and has some real repercussions. What is going on with Reed’s sister? I definitely like that revelation. And as much as it bugs me that the Silver Surfer is only in this story right now because of the movie, I’m oh so glad that Ferry is back on art. He is making a name for himself for sure, and his time on a second rate Ultimate title must be coming to an end. Give him an Avengers title or something.

WOLVERINE #54: What the hell is this anyway? Here you go Mr. Loeb TV writer sir, do whatever you want. This is bad comics.