The books:
CRIMINAL #8: A perfectly kick ass chapter in the latest Criminal arc. Nothing wrong with it in any way.
BOYS #9: This was one of the weaker issues of the series so far: lots of word bubbles, not enough good comic.
BATMAN #667(w. Grant Morrison, a. J.H. Williams III)
Now that's what I'm talking about! Grant Morrison's "All-Star" Batman continues, but this time more in line with what I wanted and expected from this title. Last issue's 666 future romp was fun, but nowhere near as fun as this little gem. Batman grabs Robin and heads to "The Island of Mister Mayhew" where he and a bunch of other C-List crime fighters (Robin's words) have been called to a meeting. To do what you might ask? Well, to be trapped on the island to start, and then to get killed one-by-one of course. Good times for this reader! A big WELCOME ABOARD to J.H. Williams III too, who comes on and does what he does best: illustrate the shit out of a comic with his unique eye for panel and page design. Looks great, reads great; I think this is the best issue in Morrison's BATMAN run to date. My FAVORITE OF THE WEEK. (First time the title has won this since #656.)
X-FACTOR #22(w. Peter David, a. Pablo Raimondi)
Peter David is running on all cylinders here, on the heels of the last amazing issue he comes back just as strong. There is SO much going on in this series! The main storyline is of course Josef Huber approaching Madrox, where he begins to lay out some plans of his to protect the mutant population. The crux appears to be getting mutants to be categorized as an endangered species and therefore be protected by the federal government. Perhaps even getting a sanctuary when all is said and done. Its an interesting use of the current mutant predicament, and definitely one I didn't see coming (and that's always good). What else? Rahne and Rictor continue their entertaining little tryst, Rictor might have some of the Terregin crystals in his back, M and Siryn get smacked around by Solo* and Clay, and Layla not only didn't know about the pregnancy stick, but also didn't know that Nicole is about to try and kill her. Whoops. Another really good X-Factor, with really stunning art by Pablo Raimondi. This could be the best arc of the series.
*Is this the same Solo that was created by Erik Larsen? The Solo, that while he lives terror dies? SERIOUSLY:
Hahahahaha. AWESOME.
DMZ #22(w. Brian Wood, a. Riccardo Burchielli)
The latest arc comes to end and well, in good old DMZ fashion it's pretty darn good. In a story like this that's set up the way it was, you knew that the people were going to riot, you knew that it was going to get ugly again, but what you didn't know was, that it was going to end with the enraged people literally being tossed the soldier blamed for it all. It was like tossing raw meat to a pack of hungry lions. "Raw meat" that just might have been the only one telling the truth in it all. Matty tries to do the right thing and stop the gang, but its too late. Matty Roth has not only become an entertaining protagonist, he's become a guy I really like. He's admirable in what he is trying to do, and therefore I applaud the moments that Z and he stole amidst the chaos. Long time coming. This was a dark ending, but a satisfying one.
POWERS #25(w. Brian Bendis, a. Michael Oeming)
Powers has returned, and now with thicker paper stock and more pages! Good news I guess. It sounds like Bendis wants more room to play with his story and continue to have all the healthy back matter he likes. If the back matter continues to be interviews that I read on Newsarama, then I won't be sure why I'm paying an extra dollar, but for more story, any time. So what did happen here? Well, Deena has been AWOL since she found out about Walker that they've gone ahead and given him a new partner. So far she's okay, but not too much time is spent on her character. Whether she gets any might depend on whether or not she ends up a corpse before the end of the storyline, I suppose. Walker also has a girlfriend who loves it when he super comes. No, seriously. STUPID ALERT: We find this out by one of the most pointless two page spreads I've ever seen in a comic: a SEVENTY PANEL sex scene. Um, okay. Anyway, the main thing I'm interested in at this point, is Deena and Walker having a talk, or at the very least a confrontation. So in that respect the issue was treading water for me. Still, it was a good comic whose last page appears to be promising me what I'm looking for.
FABLES #64(w. Bill Willingham, a. Aaron Alexovich)
When this title was shown at the Vertigo panel slide show in San Diego the place lit up like a buzzer beater at a basketball game. I forget who, but someone was even trying to joke that their book was loosely connected to the Fables-verse in the hopes of gathering more readers. There is really no explanation needed either, as its a damn good funny book. This issue specifically takes a break from the main Flycatcher plot (damn) to take us to the farm where Snow, Bigby and the Kids take center stage (cool). Basically, its their 5th birthday and the 'rents have decided to let them in on Ghost, the invisible 7th cub of the littler. We also get some cute moments with the farm Fables preparing for war mixed in for good measure. All of this was guest drawn by Aaron Alexovich, which was really pretty good, even though everyone had really cutesy faces making characters like Rose Red and Boy Blue look a little younger than they actually are. Still it was nice.
NEW AVENGERS #33(w. Brian Bendis, a. Leinil Yu)
Two months into Skrull-watch and even though there has been some "Fuck You Bendis" thrown about, I think we are getting a really good comic here. There is a little more of the "Are you a Skrull?" questions, which means we are going to be moving along the paranoia coaster a little faster than I expected. Luke Cage especially is on edge; not only does he distrust Peter Parker, he is not too sure about his wife either as he has some pretty choice words to throw her way. All of this could be really annoying, but so far this is working for me.
This issue was also important for the re-introduction of The Hood into the Marvel Universe. This time no longer a small time crook as in the Brian Vaughan mini-series, but a serious underworld threat that murders the competition to scare everyone. The victim here was The Owl, which I'm sure some people will be up in arms about, but Idoesn't bother me any. If the Hood is going to be built up to be this new Kingpin, then some thinning of the villain populace makes sense. My only complaint is with the Hood's design. I wish he would have been taken just a little bit more towards a super villain level. Brown pants and nondescript shirt? I mean, keep it simple, keep it street, but letting Yu slightly update the design would have been cool too. Some other items he's pickedup along the way maybe. Body armor, something sleek underneath the cloak. Whatever, I'll deal.
DAREDEVIL #99(w. Ed Brubaker, a. Michael Lark)
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Brubaker is quietly putting together a nice little run over here at Daredevil central. In fact, as much as I like the X-Men, his Uncanny run is probably his weakest book right now, because this, Cap and Criminal are definitely not it. This issue climaxes with the villains behind it all, The Enforcers. I have no idea who they are, but something tells me there is some old Marvel fan that is happy they turned up here. More shocking for me (and frankly, that's what it's all about here) was the climax with Milla, and her Lily-induced jealous rage that resulted in an innocent bystander being killed in the subway. Holy shit! She's gonna need a good lawyer, oh wait... Good issue.
STORMWATCH PHD #10: Back to good Stormwatch issues where I don't have to be annoyed with Gage for turning Christine into a peice of shit. Except for those couple of panels where they talk about it.
CASANOVA #8(w. Matt Fraction, a. Fabio Moon)
So far I have had a weird relationship with Mr. Fraction and this here book called Casanova. First, I genuinely think that Matt Fraction is a writer to be watched with a unique voice and all the jazz that goes along with that. Still, I couldn't help but be a little put off after I read the drug induced trip that was Issue #1. I did think there was enough there to give it a second issue, and in fact, I bought it from the man himself at Comic-Con 2006. I read it that night, and decided that this Fraction guy was trying too hard to be cool and that there really wasn't that much substance here. I moved along. After #5 came out, I had spent somewhere in the vicinity of three months hearing RAVE reviews, and as a guy that tries to read most good comic books (and Wolverine Origins), I felt like I had to give it another chance. So I bought the ones I had missed and jumped back on.
On second chance, the book definitely read better. It's still a drug induced trip, that's for sure, but an entertaining one. I finally caught on to the ride that Casanova Quinn himself was having, and was able to be entertained by the unique brand of Fraction crazy that for some reason was eluding me the first time I read the book. The issue with Coldheart island is probably my favorite. One thing must be said too: these covers are quickly becoming some of the best in the industry.
But what does this have to do with #8? Well, good news for die hard fans, and just fans like me, is that it is more of the same. Casanova continues to entertain, this time in a bit of a sleeker set. I mean, the story isn't AS complicated (read: all over the fucking place) and it had some good laughs while moving some plot forward. This comic is definitely a unique experience, and it will always get points from me in that regard. The only negative the book has, is the color hue. I think the greenish tints it had in the first storyline was a better aesthetic for sure, but the blue doesn't detract too much. I'm glad to have this comic back, all things be told.
GREEN ARROW: YEAR ONE #3: What a fun series this is turning out to be.
INCREDIBLE HULK #109: After last issue's emotional segue with the lame ass giant roach warbound guy, we step back into the "pretty solid Hulk book" realm.
G.I. JOE AMERICA'S ELITE #26: Pretty good issue, even though I was starting to get worried that Firefly might die. Mike Bear and team are really kicking ass on the art.
UN-MEN #1(w. John Whalen, a. Mike Hawthorne)
Its time for a new Vertigo series, and this time we have a title thinly connected to some characters that popped up in a Swamp Thing story. That doesn't matter however, because this is all new fun. The first issue is about an albino detective that is investigating the murder of a "freak", who until his death had been spending his time in Abberance, USA. Which is essentially a reservation of sorts for freaks to live on and have their own community. Abberance also doubles as a tourist attraction as well, and there are all sorts of politicking going on behind the scenes amongst the hierarchy. We even have a mad scientist running around making his own freaks! The issue of real freak vs. fake freaks (aka gaffs) appears to be another ongoing plot point. The issue was not great, but there is enough clay here to definitely mold a good story out of. So far, everyone at Abberance is pretty boring, but our main character Agent Kilcrop definitely had some moments. The art by Mike Hawthorne (Queen & Country) is pretty good, so there is no problems there. I'm back for #2, but this title will be on an issue-by-issue status for a bit.
GEN 13 #11: At last an explanation. Okay. But more importantly, how fucking cool was Kid Apollo? Um, REALLU fucking cool in case you were waiting for an answer.
WORLD WAR HULK: FRONTLINE #3: Nothing is sustaining my interest here. I like Martinbrough's art though.
PUNISHER: WAR JOURNAL #10:(w. Matt Fraction, a. Ariel Olivetti)
So a few books back I talked about my early confusion over Casanova, and I'm having that same kind of thing here. Except we are ten issues in now and I still don't like the book all that much. I'm an admitted fan of the Garth Ennis Max version and it clouds my judgment I think. In fact, Iif I'm honest with myself, it completely does, because over the past 7 years now Ennis has made the character his and that is the Punisher I want to read month-to-month. On the surface, there is not that much wrong here. Punisher gets in adventure with some Nazis along the border, he goes under cover, fights a bull and saves the day. Fun, harmless stuff, and you can see Fraction's intelligence showing throughout. And that's why I'm still reading. I will continue to read through at least the- fuck yeah- Cory Walker drawn issues and then I'll re-evaluate.
JACK OF FABLES #13: This book has a little crossover of sorts with the main title. Um, why doesn't Jack just return to the title? Maybe because this is Vertigo's second best selling title.
ULTIMATE X-MEN #85: Well this is a really odd thing to say: when does Jeph Loeb take over?
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