Since Tuesday night I have been reading my comics for the last two weeks. Due to a commitment to cleaning my home and late nights as usual at work and working out, I still don't have the whole pile read. This is both thrilling and a bit scary, as I am a super fast reader. I guess at this point I will embrace it.
Because I haven't done reviews for awhile, I thought I would pop in and do some quick takes. Without further ado, let's jump in, shall we?
Final Crisis #1 (of 7): Grant Morrison has done his usual schtick of layering plots and being mysterious, so after one read, I still have no idea what the hell is going on. Villains are at their nastiest, there is strange goings on at the Darkside Club. The worst kept secret in comics goes down as a beloved character is killed. There is a great deal of subterfuge, to say the least. I did really dig the art by J.G. Jones and I trust Morrison, so I am cautiously optimistic. Grade: B-.
Batman #677- Morrison is up to his tricks here. Batman is going down in no uncertain terms. I have to express the fact that I am completely glued to this one, waiting to see what happens next. Tony Daniels is a decent artist, but it was hard to top the cover by Alex Ross. Grade: B+.
New Avengers #41: Spotlight on... Ka-zar and Shanna??? It's all about the Savage Land and the back story contained therein. Interesting tale, but I am not sure how it fits into an Avengers book. Grade: C-.
Mighty Avengers #14: Spotlight on... Sentry. After a lot of mysterious, flaky behavior, it is time to see what makes the Sentry tick. This story was more filler and backstory, but it was is obviously setting up something huge for Secret Invasion #3 or #4, right? Grade: C.
All Star Superman #11: Wow, this is a Grant Morrison extravaganza, isn't it? I love this freaking book and issue #11 was no exception. Morrison and artist Frank Quitely go together like peanut butter and jelly. They produce tasty work, and it leaves me hungry for more. I can hardly wait for issue #12 to come out, so I hope Quitely gets his butt in gear and gets it done! Grade: A.
Uncanny X-Men #498: The countdown to issue #500 is kicking into gear. After the whole "Xavier gets shot in the head" deal, the X-Men are scattered all over. Emma and Scott are in San Francisco trying to get to the bottom of why it feels like the Summer of Love all over again while Logan, Peter, and Nightcrawler are tortured by the Russians. Groovy. I am enjoying this book like the guilty pleasure that Ed Brubaker has made it into. Grade: B.
Justice League of America #21: If I have ever seen an issue that is nothing more then a set-up for a big event, this tops it. Villains are meaner and nastier, and the JLA is trying to get their heads around it. Some folks are going to die before this is over- shocking! At leat Dwayne McDuffie gets a nice script in and I get to enjoy the eye candy artwork of Carlos Pacheco. Bless you DC for that. Grade: C.
Fables #73: What a great book. Fables continues to grow more textured and richer as the War finally begins. Everything that this series has been building up to is here. The Adversary and his kingdom are in deep doo-doo, and the tables are about to turn. I can't wait to get to issue #75. Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham have created a fantastic place for the characters of my youth to evolve into. Grade: A.
Huntress Year One #2 (of 6): Where did DC get Ivory Madison from and can they chain her to a desk and keep her there? Her scripting is incredible. I have really enjoyed this mini-series thus far, and have decided that Madison needs to take over the writing chores on Birds of Prey stat! Grade: A.
Daredevil #107: Luke Cage guest stars as Matt completely loses it. Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka are a team supreme here. I also appreciate the ferocity with which artist Michael Lark works a pencil. The flow in this issue is perfection and has me eager to follow Matt on this story arc's journey. Grade: B+.
She-Hulk 2 #29: Oh, I get it now. After a few issues of feeling lost, the story behind Jennifer stopping her practice of law is revealed. Fascinating and quirky, much like the storytelling of writer Peter David. Thank God this book is back on it's game. I was getting impatient. Grade: B.
Incredible Hercules #117: I love this book. Writers Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente and artist Rafa Sandoval display amazing synergy in a title that both excites and intrigues. The last thing I would have ever expected is to embrace this book as fully as I have, but I can't help it. Great storytelling doesn't lie and that is the case here. If you aren't reading this book, you are missing a treat. Grade: A.
That is it for now. I still have several titles to peruse, so I am off to go have some reading fun. This DCBS thing has worked well so far in that I have several days of books to read rather then one or two nights.
What do you think of the books I just reviewed?
4 comments:
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who read Final Crisis and felt a bit lost after!
I read it saying, "wow - that was good - I think." I liked it, but wasn't entirely sure what it all ment or what was going on.
Nope, Final Crisis out and out sucked major poison gas. Ugh. If I see one more "special event" kick off with cavemen or primitive people, I am going to quit completely the company that did it. And frankly, they made the character that bought it, so unstable, so unlikeable in the last couple of years, I simply DID NOT CARE. It was like seeing an old friend crippled and brain damaged beyond coming back from it nastily put down. The old remains of the fan I was of the character was upset, but after they destroyed him and made him unlikeable, nope, almost completely numb.
And the rest, I did have to bail out of nearly all my books for the last year or so and have felt lost picking up any new issues. I also felt the same way about the beginning of the Batman RIP story arc, totally lost. I last read the book during the "Son of the Batman" story and dropped the book after nearly an unbroken line of reading going back to 1985. It was just bad writing as well as finaces. And I was bewildered by all the sudden changes. Who's the chick kissing Batman, who is fully plugged into the Batman Universe? Batman died?! I am totally lost and apparently you have to either be totally up on the books or forget it. I guess I'll stick with the JSA since they have been quality since day one...
Lisa, after seeing Grant Morrison's interview on Newsarama, it is pretty obvious that DC editorial is as confused as we are! LOL!!
Carl, once again, I am speechless.
Take care, my faithful friend!
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