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Comments
The Punisher 10: And the wonderful beginning of The Omega Effect takes a step down as in this issue Mark Waid drops off and Rucka's usual grittiness takes hold and the life Waid breathed into both Daredevil and Spider-man is unfortunately absent. I suppose it makes sense. After all, this is a Punisher comic, so it shouldn't exactly be smiles but it's just not as fun as Avenging Spider-man last week. It should be said, though, that Marco Checchetto's art is utterly beautiful.
Wolverine and the X-men 9: God, I hate events. I hate when events I dislike bleed into otherwise good comics. This comic is basically Wolverine dillying around wondering if he's going to side with the X-men (the crazy isolationist x-men, not the cool adventures in space x-men) There's some fun moments (Captain America in the danger room) and a lot of funny stuff happens but this comic is filler and it's a shame when such a strong book gets dragged down by editorial mandate.
Batman 8: This comic continues to be DC's best as the Court of Owls continues its war on Batman. It's not quite as the fist-pumpingly exciting as issue 6 but it's still undeniably awesome. Batman's been repeatedly attacked and this book shows itself to be a turning point to show that just as Batman didn't know Gotham, the Court of Owls doesn't know Batman as well as they think they do. The biggest problem I have is that this comic has pushed up to $3.99 to insert an inconsequential story about the rest of the bat-family (which includes the murderous Red Hood, perplexingly) to defend Gotham from the court. The book is still worth your cash. It's just not as good a deal as usual this month.
Hellblazer 290: John Constantine's in a feud with Lucifer and it's been awhile. Striking through Constantine's wife Lucifer works to get to him. If you know anything at all about Hellblazer, you're probably already reading this. It's certainly not on the level of Garth Ennis or Mike Carey but it's still a solid story for anyone who loves occult intrigue.
Wonder Woman 8: This is the best Wonder Woman has ever been. It's also probably the best thing Brian Azzarello has ever written. Armed to the teeth, Wonder Woman and Hermes have gone down to Hades to rescue Zola, who is bearing Diana's half-sibling. This comic is beautiful and is what I'm sure future students of literature will call 'metal as fuck'. It's also worth saying that I love the armor Wonder Woman wears going into Hell.
The Amazing Spider-man 684: Last year Dan Slott used the event Spider-Island to ask 'when everyone has the same powers as Spider-man what makes Spider-man special?' and this year Ends of the Earth asks 'in a team that has an unstoppable rage monster and a literal god what makes Spider-man so useful?' and the comic answers 'Peter Parker of course.' Despite the goofy football-player costume (which is not featured on the cover. CAN'T THINK WHY) Ramos' art is expressive and poppy and the action is creative. It's been a good past year for Spider-man.
The Invincible Iron Man 515: I beginning to see a repeated pattern in Fraction's Iron Man. Considering this is the second friend of Iron Man's in three years to need the repulsor tech installed into him, I'm beginning to feel a bit of a creative drain. This comic has a lot of action, but aside from Rhodey being nearly killed, not a lot happens. Hopefully, we'll get a satisfying finale like with Thor, but I really wish the otherwise great Fraction would stop writing for the trade.
The Defenders 5: See, this is what Fraction is truly capable of. This book is a lot of fun. It focuses on Namor the Sub-mariner and an adventure deep below as he and Red She-Hulk open a Pandora's box deep below. Each issue seems to be focusing on a different of each of the characters and it's been great each time.
As much as I really love the Defenders...fuck me...issue five was HIDEOUS.
Angel and Faith 9: Christos Gage has shown himself to be excellent at character work and here he shows himself to be significantly less excellent at wrapping things up. I'm still not certain How Angel's entire 'turn back the status quo' maneuver worked exactly. It really makes the resolution feel like... well, like a comic book solution. Angel and Faith isn't leaving without a recommendation. The art and character work are still great and it ends on a wonderfully bittersweet note, but I really wish a story in such well-contained universe (as opposed to those other two I'm going to talk about later) had more stories with more consistent logic and stories that didn't end with status quo restored.
All Star Western 9: In this issue Jonah Hex gets into a pit fight with a sexy blonde who gets so turned on by the fight that Hex has to keep her from fucking him in front of a whole bunch of people. So yeah. After that I rightly assumed the -ahem- climax of the issue had passed. I mean, there's a doublecross that made no sense to me at the end and the back-up with Nighthawk and Cinnamon which gives Cinnamon the backstory of having trained under a blind wild-west-roaming samurai (named Ichi of course. DO YOU GET IT? LIKE THOSE KAWASAKI MOVIES?) but yeah, this is primarily a comic about Jonah Hex and a girl hitting each other so hard that they end up wanting to fuck.
The Flash 8: Flash is best when he's as far from a typical 'marvel' hero as possible. He's a character that was originally meant to teach kids science so it's at it's best when it's going through crazy soft science ideas and here we get a glimpse into what the speed force actually is beyond 'what gives Flash his abilities' and we meet a new character named Turbine who explains the rather wonky idea of speed force being a converge of all time (or something) and we also get our first new look at Gorilla Grodd. With all the 'forward thinking' re-imagining of characters, it's nice to see a book that is simply focused on being a good product.
Justice League Dark 8: And so continues the four-part multi-book epic of Justice League Dark or 'the licking of the balls of Adam Bennet'. Pretty much everything of consequence that happens in this book is just build-up for the conclusion in I, Vampire (and we'll get to that in a second) and the one thing that has any implications for the JLD itself is either phenomenally stupid or is going to be reversed in an issue or two. I love these characters and I hate seeing them job out to another character to boost book sales.
I, Vampire 8: This comic blows. The art is bland and lazy, the setting is a flimsy cribbing of Vampire: The Masquerade mythology, and Adam Bennet himself is a lazy mixing of goth subculture and Angel. The conclusion of Madame Xanadu basically magically taking away Cain's powers and giving them to Bennet so Bennet can smack him around. This really does feel like some sort of tie-in Original Character Vampire: The Masquerade novel and that's not a good thing.
I have to ask: Who is this comic for? One would probably point to the recent popularity of Twilight (a late bandwagon to jump on) but it eschews the modern incarnation for nostalgia of nineties-era vampire things like V:tM and Lost Boys. And if it's going for people who still like vampires in that demographic it's hard to think they won't just be picking up the vastly superior American Vampire book anyways. I really hate being down on a book that is in the mainstream that isn't a capes book, but when the product is this lousy and so trite that it could never be considered being an adventurous title then I see no reason for it to exist.
Daredevil 11: You know what I hate my stories having? Consequences! That's what's great about Daredevil 11! All the build-up and great character work and awesome ninja fights (not to mention the marketing build-up for this crossover) all add up to nothing. Nothing has been concluded with the flash drive arc and nothing was accomplished other than bagging a few A.I.M. and HYDRA thugs! That's how you do superhero comics! Keep your characters in cryogenic stasis to artificially lengthen high-selling stories! Worked for the clone saga, right?
More seriously, this is still a good comic. I don't think a writer has ever taken advantage of DD's powerset like Waid has and the way it would work and that's a treat. Still, it's really annoying when one of the things said on the last page of the comic is 'we're back to square one'.
FF 17: One's an urban superhero who grew up in Queens that learned with great power comes great responsibility! One's a living fire hazard that has Annhilus as a pet! If you smelled sitcom, Johnathan Hickman agrees with you. The issue is definitely funny but it's also such a jarring change from the hyper-science big idea stuff Hickman's doing. What's worse is that this is the third comic of the week I've read where nothing of any consequence happens.
That said, this idea does feel like it could make for a good bunch of back-ups, which Peter having to deal with Johnny being a terrible roommate. Too bad it ends with Johnny moving out.
The Mighty Thor 13: Man, Matt. I like you Matt. I loved your Ages of Thunder stuff. I liked you when you had Loki restored as a little kid. I like you when you had Odin bitchsmack Galactus. I even liked the God-eater story. This one... I'm not sure how to deal with it. It's obviously a re-introduction of the Enchantress but it's also turning Donald Blake into a jealous prick instead of the lame doctor who wanted to live his life in peace.
At the very least, this comic certainly isn't as slow as his last arc (which ended very satisfyingly) so hopefully the pacing will be better.
I DON'T CARE I STILL LOVE THIS COMIC
The character work is phenomenal. It's just that the resolution was lacking and I was grumpy when I wrote that.
The resolution was non-existent, not just lacking. But yeah, I'm following this comic because it has a broken Angel and a growned-up Faith and they are both on a redemption kick and we're learning more about Giles.
This comic is delivering exactly what I wanted it to, so I can forgive it for its' lack of resolution, so long as there's, you know, more after.
Iron Man 515: So here we are with Iron Man completely demoralized, his suit being given an off switch by his enemies, and everyone thinking his friend Rhodey is dead. Now Tony Stark has to strike back at the Mandarin through quiet channels. It's a basic build-up story, one assumes to conclude the Mandarin arc. I've honestly been enjoying this epic. It's a great reintroduction of a character whose initial introductions were kind of suspect, and makes him seem powerful enough to be able to command all the other villains without making them looked job out, as well as the problems with that particular powder keg.
Action Comics 9: Grant Morrison's Action Comics, while not exactly bad, has been underwhelming the past nine months. It took an issue like this to remind me why the idea of Morrison writing Action Comics excited me. This issues covers an alternate world where Obama is Superman. It's actually a perfect thematic fit for the idea of the story, dealing with the memetic qualities of Superman and the problems of making Superman more 'flawed' and 'relatable'.
Also, there's something hilarious about Luthor screaming. 'I am not a racist! It's everything else I hate about you!'
Animal Man 9: Birds fly, fish swim, Scott Walker molests cats, and Animal Man continues to be one the most amazing comics DC is releasing. It continues to do what it's been doing: expanding the mythos of the crazy world Animal Man and Swamp Thing are in as Animal Man looks for Swamp Thing who is the one man who could help them out. Oh, and evidently John Constantine's showing up so that's cool too.
Swamp Thing 9: Art is pretty intrinsic to comics and Swamp Thing is one of the prettiest books being released and it's a lot of fun to read. It's more similar to Moore's run of Swamp Thing than Lemire's Animal Man is to Morrison's original run, but it's still very much it's own thing, blending a mythological-feeling fantasy with action and horror and coming out incredibly strong.
The Defenders 6: I'm going to admit I've never really gotten into Iron Fist. I've heard good stuff about Brubaker's run on the character, but I've just never gone out of the way. This issue works as a good bridging-into point for the character and vaguely explains his mythology though it feels disconnected from the myth arc the series has been developing.
Hack/Slash 15: Thanks to that big Garish '20' on ever image comic to celebrate their anniversary, I keep thinking every comic Image has been releasing is their twentieth issue. In any case, this comic ends the not-Monster Island from the not-Godzilla movies with Cassie's not-boyfriend becoming a slasher again and Cat making friends with the giant Gorillaconda. Hack/Slash is always an acquired taste, being as inconsistent as the genres of horror and superhero it often cribs from but I dug it and the teaser for the next arc.
Amazing Spider-man 685: In many ways this Spider-man story has a lot of things I've seen before. Of course it's on a larger scale than before and it leads to Silver Sable asking an important question: Why are you so hung up on what over people think? Of course it also leads into Sable finally making a move on him (which has been about a decade coming) and him refusing because he's still hung up on Mary Jane, which is kind of frustrating. Even so Spider-man's been a predictably solid book and I've been enjoying these events quite a bit.
Daredevil 12: This story is basically filler, but it's great filler. It's a nice story that shows a bit of Murdock's time in law school. It's a simple story that ties itself into the omega drive plot near the end. It's not as great as some of the stuff Daredevil has had, but it's plenty solid.
He's certainly specieist.
Hey, I haven't been doing my part to mostly be the resident Marvel wonk here, so here goes.
Daredevil 12: Basically what Malk said, it's fun filler. Nice to see Matt doing some classic Phoenix Wright style bullshitting.... Can you have Daredevil, She Hulk and Pheonix Wright on the same team in one of the Marvel vs Capcom games? The all lawyer team would be great.
Exiled 1: The first part of the New Mutants/ Journey into Mystery crossover for the next to months that I am really looking forward to, because both books are great for me. Journey into Mystery for Kid!Loki trolling everybody and New Mutants for getting that "outcasts adopting each other as family" dynamic that really works in classic X-men stories. So this story revolves around the Disir(cannibalistic undead valkeries of doom), which are a pretty fun addition to the Marvel Asgardian mythos, who last seen where stuck with Mephisto. in classic comic fashion the way they got something cool they wanted to use again out of exile, is by introducing a new guy with a previously unheard of claim. This time it was Sigurd, crashing as a creeper spying on his neighbors the New Mutants. At first I was worried it would be a bit Asgardian slanted for the crossover, but the ending of some magic shit normalizing Loki and the other Asgardians somewhat dispelled that worry.
Venom 17: I question the reasoning behind slapping "24 years of Venom" on the cover. Not because he is a bad character, but because they didn't pick an increment of five like they really do. Probably just to synch up with the 50 years of Spider-Man on the ASM books right now. Anyways, I really love the cover for this, and Remender doesn't pull any punches, showing how bleak the Symbiote and Flash's addiction to it have fucked up his life. Not too keen on the villains because they are mostly C-listers who Remender knows he can kills off or brutalize and not have people flipping out like if the same happened to Magneto or Dr. Doom. But the draw of this Venom series has always been Flash, so that's okay. And Eddie is back, forced into a murderous symbiote again. Man, that guy just can't catch a break. Why did Anti-Venom have to go away? Why? Well okay it was to provide a great resolution to Spider-Island, but man Anti-Venom was great in the "This is so ridiculous it loops back to cool" sort of way.
X-Men 28: Nice to see Pixie doing something. I feel like they gave her this spot on the team to fill out the teenage kid role that Jubilee was taking up(and hopefully when she eventually comes back, she will be a bit more mature). Not as much as I like her as when she is playing off younger mutants like in Generation Hope, but Pixie is still fun.
X-Factor 235: Mixed thoughts on this issue. On one hand it is great to see that Jamies isn't being sidelined by Havok and Polaris taking charge of the team again. But it is also frustrating to see them come back and not really do anything. Granted X-Factor is one of those books where the team plays off each other a lot, so they probably need a while to integrate. Ho-hum about the plot because they have been doing quite a bit of supernatural stuff for a while and it makes me wonder why they don't like have Doctor Strange on speed-dial. Or heck even Magick, you know the girl Rhane was friends with back when they were both kids at Xavier's school? But the highlight of this issue was Jamie and Shatterstar making fun of their old costumes.
Avengers Academy 29: Thankfully nowhere near as bad as the cover would lead you to believe(the mutant wearing inhibitor collars and being guarded by Sentinels), but still pretty grey. The mutant kids from Utopia are staying at the academy, but every step of the way they are being treated as potential threats, not kids who need somewhere to sit it out while the grownups fail to act like grownups and punch each other out a lot. Still seeing X-23 have a reunion with Dust again was nice, and the whole sports game, because I like seeing characters with superpowers find ways to dick around with their powers. And Sebastian Shaw is there... and managing to use a book to tunnel out of his holding cell. Take that Edmond Dantes.
A vs X 3: And in this issue the X-men use magic to troll the Avengers and get a head start on finding Hope and the Phoenix and Wolverine gets kicked out an airplane by Captain America. One thing that bothered me was they mentioned that the only functioning Cerebra is at the school in New York. Which is bunk since Emma and the cuckoos use the Cerebra on Utopia all the fucking time. All in all while the Avengers vs. X-Men idea is kinda dumb, it is dumb because they are having the Avengers not act like themselves. Instead of showing up to talk and find a way to work together to deal with the Phoenix, they show up at the X-men's door pointing a hellecarrier and the Avengers at them and demanding to take one of the X-men's family member into custody. No, just no. Come on Captain America, you should know better than that.
Amazing Spider-man 685: Solid book all in all. While the contrivance that the FF, the Defenders, the Avengers except this team and the X-men(all the X-men, all of them) were off world and couldn't help it is cool to see other heroes getting pulled into a global conflict. So of course some C-listers were called in, Kangaroo(one guess which country he is from) Union Jack(greatest costume), Sabra, Titanium Man and Big Hero 6. Highlight is like Malk said, seeing Sable ask Peter why he cares so much what other people think of him. Amusing point of the issue, Spider-mans mask inside a mask. Dude, Sable and Black Widow won't care that you are Peter Parker. Hell they are both super spies and probably already know anyway. One wonders if Mysterio and Chameleon might turn against Doc Ock, because hey they want money and can't spend it in a world that has been destroyed in a giant mad science existentialist temper tantrum.
Swamp Thing 9: I'll echo what Malk said and agree it is a pretty book. I love the bit with the peach seeds because that is a total Synder moment(where he rambles about some cool little bit of trivia in the comic proper). Abby smack talking the Rot is right up there with Thor smack talking... well anybody. Not as boisterous, it is very restrained, but that is some powerful smack talk she is laying down. And the panel where Alex and Abby hug is so shojou it hurts.
Animal Man 9: This issue is as gorey as you can get without actually having gore, you know? Nice to know that Morrison's run on Animal Man is apparently still remembered by the character to some degree, and I really dig the goat/ape guy who is guiding Buddy though the Red. The issue does make me curious to what the Rot's overarching plan is besides fuck shit up. Because as the entity possessing Buddy's body pointed out, the Rot can't do anything unless there is some Red or Green for it to fester in. Unless the plan is to utterly take those things over and bastardize the renewal of life for the Rot. Kinda reminds me of the Cancer-verse from cosmic Marvel.
Ooh ooh idea. Would it be cool if I occasionally throw in bits about trades or collected comics I've read? I kinda want to throw in a few cents about Asterios Polyp since it is the first thing in a while to make me scream at how the bullshit all fits since Giant Robo, and this is the best thread I can think of for it.
Lin, I think you saw me flip out over IRC at the ending. We've talked about the show a bit and how it is blah blah blah the legacy parents leave for their children. And I screamed at my computer over the denouement. Because it was just so ARRAGH!
Also:
Well the recall election is today and hopefully Scott Walker will be ousted by one of the democrats running against him. I'm hopeful, but I ready to be disappointed when his supporters show up in droves to keep that jackass of a crook in office.
Edit: Not quite. Today was just the gubernatorial primary for the Democratic challenger. Looks like Tom Barret was the winner, so I can vote for him in June to try to oust Mr. Cat Molester.
Also that was like the best part.
I guess this is the best place to post this, since it's where all the comics people are >.>
So I decided to get into DC comics (not that I particularly dislike Marvel, but they actually have good movies about more than one character, so I already get a decent dose of them). To that end, I made an account on Comixology and downloaded some free stuff that I recognized the names of. Specifically, Blackest Night #0, 52 week 1, The New 52 Justice League excerpt/preview thingy, and Infinite Crisis #1.
Of those, Infinite Crisis was the only one where I felt like being an outsider was really holding me back from enjoying it fully, so I'll hold off on getting more of it until later.
As for the rest:
So, yeah, that last bit's why I'm posting here. I'll be reading 52, and maybe one of the new series. Any advice on which of the reboots is good to start with?
EDIT: Read 52 week 2. Continues to look pretty good, but I have to wonder what the point of the somewhat rambling exposition dump by someone I knew and continue to know nothing about tacked onto the end was. Not that it got in the way of the main story, being separated as it was; it was just odd.
Batman is really the best reboot I've read so far.
Blackest Night is a pure nostalgia-mobile of sorts ("Hey, remember all those guys from old stories that died?!? Well, here they are again!") and a lot of it is supposed to be kinda closure-y (As it was the end of a trilogy of sorts which starts with Green Lantern: Rebirth)
As for 52, it's really damn good for a weekly comic. And the Donna Troy's thing is mostly there as foreshadowing, as 52 is supposed to drop a big bomb about what the DCU is.
By Batman, do you mean the Batman series actually called that, his reboots as a whole, some specific portion of them, or...?
Good to know about Blackest Night. I just thought it sounded pretty cool >.>
Ah, okay, that makes sense. I figured the whole Donna Troy thing would be important later, since it didn't really explain anything about the main plot, so the options were that it was foreshadowing or that it was there for absolutely no reason.
Batman as in the Batman series written by Scott Snyder.
I'm not saying you shouldn't read it, but simply that you should be forewarned about the fact that you'll see a lot of old characters you might or might not have heard of.
For what is worth, while it is foreshadowing, it really is pretty skippable, but nonetheless it helps if you're a trivia nut (It's also Mark Waid displaying the fact that he loves the DCU and has been reading comics since he was a kid
)
Right, read Batman #1. Quite a good story. Established some stuff for new readers (yes, everyone knows who Batman is; I mean other stuff :P), did some charactery stuff, then set up the first story arc with a cliffhanger that's really obviously not going to be what it looks like, but is still interesting because I don't know why it's not going to be what it looks like yet.
Not sure I'm the hugest fan of the art, but it's not bad either, so no big deal.
Yeah, I'll read it. But given that I'll likely be reading 52 and Batman for the moment, I probably won't give it top priority.
Which cliffhanger? All I remember about the first issue is them finding a corpse and talk about Batman not knowing what Gotham is.
As for Greg Capullo's art, you take that back >
it's pretty nice. I think it's some of the best art the batbooks have seen, outside of Daniel and Lee.
In the last panel, Alfred identifies the DNA that's supposedly the killer's and it's Dick Grayson's.
And looking back at it, it's not the art as a whole that actually bothers me; most of it's very nice. But Bruce Wayne's face, on closer inspection, is built around looking like it would fit well with the Batman mask which is perfectly reasonable, but makes it look kinda odd to me when he doesn't have the mask on. Now that I know what it is, it won't bother me as much.
Oh. Yeah, that's an interesting plotline alright. Of course, you're right in assuming that it won't play out the most obvious way.
It's interesting because my issue with Capullo's Bruce is that he really doesn't look like any other Bruce iteration I've seen (His chin and jaw are much more rounded, I think) but once I got over that, I think I liked it more. Although I think it's because I really love the way Capullo draws worn-out!Batman.
That too.
Anyway, read issue two, because I'm home alone and a bit bored. It was good. I feel like the ratio of Bruce Wayne to Batman is the correct one, and I think the business with the guardian statues was pretty cool, and helped make this story its own story despite being a continuation of the larger arc.
And yeah, the cliffhanger that's supposed to make you want to buy this issue was of course not what it looked like, but it was interesting and moved the plot forward, so no complaints there.
Screw it, I'm buying the third too.
One of the more interesting parts about Scott Snyder's run so far is that, in contrast to Morrison, Snyder doesn't ignore the fact that Batman also has uses for being Bruce Wayne and putting on a public face.I also like how Snyder puts a big emphasis on the story of the Waynes in relation to Gotham.
Yeah, the setting-building is very good, and has a lot of stuff that runs from issue to issue. Just little things, like mentioning offhand the number of railways that enter Gotham then having it be a minor plot point in the next issue, that indicate a good deal of planning. I feel almost like Gotham itself is just as much the main character as Batman is.
Anyway, issue 3...did its job of making me have to buy issue 4.
Pretty much all of Snyder's Batman stuff has been excellent and Court of Owls is the best of a great bunch.
As for New 52 Justice League... well, I have a rather particular opinion about it
This Week in Ink proper coming in a bit.
Issue 4 was also excellent, for all the same reasons the first three were.
I do feel the need to comment on the ending, though. It was kinda...abrupt. "And now, Batman, you must face our giant DOOM MAZE!"
Not that I'm going to stop reading. Snyder has four issue's worth of goodwill built up with me, so I trust he's taking this somewhere more interesting than the last panel there makes it look.
Sadly, though, I can't buy issue 5 now. Why not? Well, I arbitrarily declared that I wouldn't spend more than $10 per week on comics. And I've spent 9. Which means I only have enough for the first issue of a New 52. Any recommendations for what it should be?
Animal Man, all the way, bro
If you want horror, go for Animal Man
If you want fantasy, Demon Knights.
High concept action sci-fi, Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E.
And here's This Week in Ink!
Also, the Doom Maze is actually amazing, since it feels like an episode of the Prisoner except with Batman and thus a million times more awesome.
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 9: And Lemire brings in more cross-connectivity as he ties Frankenstein into the Rot arc that is also the driving force between Swamp Thing and Animal Man (The latter also written by Lemire) It's interesting that, at least in the mystic part of the universe, DC is pushing their continuity pretty hard. The connections between JLD, Frankenstein, and other comics is almost reminiscent of the crossover happy days of the bronze age. It's a fun book that you'll dig if it's your thing. It's also nice to see how Frank's getting his character development, in small bites of angst about his role rather than extended brooding. It makes the small quiet moments more poignant. Unfortunately, the art is still pretty iffy and I don't know when that will change.
Batman 9: What can I day about Scott Snyder's Batman the a thousand other reviewers and I haven't said a hundred times before? It's the best of the New 52. It's intelligent, dramatic, and badass as hell. Snyder is a master of combining the comic book silliness of Batman with his grim Nolan-esque mood. If you like Batman at all, you should have started reading this months ago.
Demon Knights 9: Demon Knights is a book I'm constantly paranoid is going to get canceled. It's a witty, pretty, cool book but it's also not about superheroes. That said, this issue moves away from the besieged town to move towards a more Games of Thrones-y intrigue and backstabbing story as people try to find the identity of Merlin's killer while the Demon Etrigan has his own plans. It's a good move to get us even more properly acquainted with these characters in a slower plot, after the break-neck pace of the last more action-oriented arc. My main gripe is that Al Jabr reveals that he has abilities beyond basic scientific prowess, but it's very unclear what the power he shows is, since we only get a panel of it. It's probably intentional but the confusion felt a lot more to do with poor communication in that one panel than from a twist.
Wolverine and The X-men 10: I've been liking this comic, but damn does the event drag it down. The problem with this comic is how most of it is lacking in consequence because it has to build up to the proper AvX book. The scene of the X-men teachers all saying they're going to side with Cyclops instead of the Avengers is pretty painful and annoying and the passive aggressive sniping between Kitty and Emma (while not out of character) was pretty groan-inducing. The students get off better, particularly the interactions between Genesis and Angel, with Genesis' fears of becoming Apocalypse and Angel's loss of a sense of self. The scene of Idie begging Wolverine to keep Hope safe is also pretty touching. It's such a mixed bag and it's pretty obvious that the kids get off better because they're not tied to a moronic event comic.
Avenging Spider-man 7: There's actually not a lot to say about this comic, since it's a good example (though not the best) of what has made Avenging Spider-man a great book. Instead of the connecting between Spider-man and Cap (or the terrible terrible stroking of Hawkeye's ego) this comic is pretty much pure farce, which tends to be the best vehicle for a character like She Hulk and anything geeking out over Egyptian mythology is fun.
Fatale 5: Or as I call it 'the issue where shit gets weird'. In this issue the occult undertones become actual aspects of the narrative with lovecraftian monsters showing up and such. It's easily the most action packed issue, but it doesn't lose that noir feeling. It's the ending of the current arc and I'm very curious to see where it's going from here.
Buffy The Vampire Slayer 9: Riddle me this, true believers! What has a robot Buffy, Spike controlling a steampunk spaceship filled with demon bugs, a rocker punk slayer, and somehow still is incredibly boring?
Megaman 13: I picked this up because a new arc had just started and I'd been hearing good things, and those good things translated into what I'm pretty sure is the best all ages comic on the stands. A big part of this is that, like any good tie-in material, is that it doesn't let its source keep it from telling a human story and it doesn't let its prime demographic be talked down to. The prime focus of this issue is a debate between Dr. Light and Dr. LaLinde about whether there was virtue in creating robots on the human level of people like Megaman (with the civilian name Rock, which is a cute touch) And the thing is the debate doesn't actually tell us to pick sides. It's simply a dialogue that gives no absolute answers. It's a gutsy move for a kids comic about 'jumpin' and shootin' man' and its the very kind of stuff that makes writers like Gibson compelling as well as what made a good deal of Data-centric episodes of Star Trek so emotionally resonant.
And this all from an aged franchise that Capcom itself has all but given up on. The Megaman comic is the best thing to come from Megaman since the first X game
So...I looked at them both, and they both sound pretty cool.
I wound up having to flip a coin, and it went with Demon Knights. I'll pick up Animal Man next week. I'll post my thoughts on Demon Knights soon.
Sidenote: Comixology is basically Steam, for comics, without having to download a client (until I get that Kindle Fire for my birthday), and I love it.
I'd use Comixology if my bank account wasn't the equivalent of a money black hole right now
Comixology is great but I have a specific attachment to physical copies, though I think it's great that people around the world can get comics now. When I was a kid, having no comic shop for 60 miles put a crimp in my comic following.