Posted Early, due to Veteran’s Day.
Still reading my papery prizes - Transformers #9 is good; the New Thunderbolts #1 intrigues me - having never read the original Thunderbolts run. Now working on Justice League Elite #5.
You mean you didn’t read Identity Crisis first? As soon as I get my paws on this week’s stack, I’m hunting for that one.
The only one I got other than Identity Crisis (which I commented on briefly in the appropriate thread) was JSA # 67. An Identity Crisis tie-in, and though Geoff Johns tried to make it a character-based plot, it felt flat to me except for the Power Girl-Superman exchange. The actual purported IC tie-in, the autopsy of Sue Dibny, was really not much of a factor in the book at all.
In the end, it was nothing more than what “Big Event” tie-ins usually are - an unwelcome interruption in the flow of story (excellent stories, in this case) in the regular series. The sub-plots are touched upon, but I would have been happy enough skipping the IC stuff, and following last issue directly with next issue.
AVENGERS FINALE-The art was muddy, I didn’t buy some of the “Their finest moments” bit, a ton of it felt like set-up, and the art was muddy as hell. Hey colorist–there’s other tones than grey! That said, it wasn’t all that bad. I still think the new line-up’s gonna suck, but I’m willing to give Bendis a few issues chance. (And eeeeeeeewwwwww. If I read the Quicksilver thing right, it means Claremont’s got his hands on Wanda. Eeeeeeeeeewwwwwwww.)
FIRESTORM-Thanks Mr Jolly–I haven’t been enjoying this book but I wasn’t quite ready to quit. But having a stupid, unnecessary cross-over with a book I’m not reading in the middle of a story I’m not enjoying featuring an unpleasant character? Keen! Perfect jumping-off point! Buh-bye. Call me when Ronnie comes back and the book gets a better writer.
JSA-As always, good stuff. I’m very intrigued by the set-up for next issue.
FABLES–one of the 5 best damned books published. If you liked SANDMAN and aren’t reading this, why not? I knew Willingham was a gawd, but this is his masterpiece. And if you’re not reading FABLES, this issue is a perfect jumping-on point.
BTW–obscure comic book question not related to this week’s books. What’s the current continuity on The Falcon–was he Street Punk/Pimp “Snap Wilson” until the Red Skull twiddled the Cosmic Cube or was “Snap” an alternate personalty OR was Snap a creation of the Cosmic Cube in an attempt to f*ck with Sam’s mind? I can’t figure out which origin is the current one. Thanks!
More as I read 'em.
Of course I didn’t start with Identity Crisis. Of course, this is obvious only to those who know my reading pattern.
Any Knights of the Dinner Table issues / Gamer comics are read last.
Next to last comes the indies - Powers, Fables, etc.
The first batch are the Superheroes (And GI Joe and Transformers), ordered vaguely from least interesting to most interesting. IC #6 was most interesting of the Superhero books, so it was the last thing I read before Fables (which was excellent as usualy) and KODT.
City of Heroes #6 came this week. I also got Avengers Finale, the ending of which was very touching; Action #821; JSA #67; and of course, Identity Crisis #6.
Walking Dead is still fun. Although the soap opera repeating every two issues is getting lame…
Indies?
–Cliffy
I was really looking forward to Avengers Finale just because of the artwork, but as soon as I flipped through it, back on the rack it went. You’re totally right, the coloring is even muddier than JLA’s was when it launched.
On a related note, Earth’s Mightiest Heroes #1 has been taunting me from the rack for over a week now, and the only thing keeping me away is the $3.50 price tag (for an 8 issue biweekly series? No thanks).
Did anyone pick up Marvel Team Up? I’m sort of interested in it just because I hardly read any Marvel these days.
I got, of course, IC #6, and I also picked up Justice League Unlimited #3, which came out a week or so ago (I really enjoy the series, and you get a lot of story for $3). I’ll probably go back and pick up JSA sometime this weekend. And thank god GL: Rebirth #1’s second printing is out next week. I will get a copy this time, dammit.
Indies = Independents, translating to “outside the mainstream” in this case, not necessarily something produced completely independent of the system. (Similar to how the term has come to be used for movies these days.)
Pretty much anything Vertigo goes in that category for me.
I suppose you could describe those books as outside the mainstream (tho’ I wouldn’t), but I don’t really think you can describe books published by Marvel and DC as indies. Indies are things published by Oni, Avatar, and Kinko’s.
–Cliffy
Again, I use the term as it is used for the film industry.
Wow. The Avengers Finale is the first comic in a long time to make me cry. Those last six pages by George Perez did it, Cap’s litle speech, then the exchange of toasts, and finally the crowd out front. Damn, that was good.
And the dark coloring was perfect for the tone of the story.
Other than Identity Crisis, I wasn’t too impressed with what I read so far this week …
Aquaman #24: Well, John Ostrander did a nice job writing after Will Pfeifer left the book. A shame he only stuck around for two issues though. I did like the Sea Devils resurfacing. I wonder what happend to the other original members.
Wild Girl #1: I was VERY intersted in this as Alan Moore’s daughter, Leah is writing this WildStorm 6 ish series. Sorta an “Animal Man” teen girl, but too soon to tell what’s going on yet. The heroine looks like Chance Falconer. I woulda liked a text page about the creators and what inspired them. I don’t think I’ve ever known a little girl who wished she could have some special sense to communicate with animals.
Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #185: Very sloppy! The “Part 1 of 5” cover blurb scared me of the bat. Another long bat arc so soon? This is the start of a “new” Riddler. I’ve always thought bat-writers tougher challenges is to write a decent Riddler story. The riddles given here certainly weren’t complex, and there’s an absurd moment when the new commissioner tells Batman to give full cooperatoin to a Metropolis reporter for an article she’s doing. And on the third to last page, a character’s name is spelled “Mr. Koughun” and ONE panel later spelled “Mr. Koughon.” Tsk!
Spectacular Spider-Man #21: Speaking of absurd moments, Kingpin joins some heroes (including Spidey, natch) for a game of poker. However, I’ll allow writer Paul Jenkins a bit of leeway. Funny moments, predictible ending, but I still couldn’t help but enjoy it and smile.
Nightwing #99: Nothing really to see here; more “War Games” mop up. The next issue blurb mentions a “final showdown” between Nightwing and Tarantula. After there was a “final showdown” between Batman and Black Mask, eh, we’ll see. This title really suffered and slowed due to “War Games,” just as it was getting good.
Iron Man #1: Pro: Warren Ellis. Con: “Part 1 of 6.” I kinda hoped for a little more on the table story-wise. Still, the art was really good. I thought Stark’s ID as Iron Man was now publicly known, but I got the impression that it seems secret here. I kinda have to wait and see if I can tough out 6 months for the story to get told.
JSA #67: An IC x-over that has the spirit of IC in story-telling. I thought the inks on Dave Gibbons looked a bit heavy and it reminded me of Win Mortimer. I’m looking forward to the Alex Ross covers coming up.
Green Arrow #44: More of the “Mia is H.I.V. positive” is delved into; no confrontation with Brickface. The cover sorta looks like a wanted poster & there’s a lot of guilt as Ollie and Conner have different approaches on how to interact with Mia. Well-handled, IMO.
Yet to read: Marvel Team-Up, Avengers Finale, Batman Strikes!, Firestorm, Gotham Central, Smallville, Challengers of the Unknown, Justice League Elite, Plastic Man and New Thunderbolts.
I think his ID is secret again in the aftermath of Disassembled, but I can’t remember how or why.
I was considering picking up Iron Man, but I just can’t stand that artwork. It just looks static and bland to me (and the colors don’t help, either).
He commented in Finale that the public once again thinks that Iron Man is someone else.
Everyone’s still aware that Tony Stark once wore the suit himself, but since just about anyone can climb in there, there’s never any certainty about who’s in the armor at a given moment.