Brave New Worlds

Rucka’s run on Elektra was satisfying and perhaps no issue of his time on the book exemplified that more than issue 22, or Part 5 of “Everything Old Is New Again.”  Trying out the peace thing, Elektra finds herself torn between her old ways and new (of course)  and must make a choice in the ultimate showdown, for her, and some others as well.

I like Carlos Pagulayan’s pencils on the issue and am even inspired to go back and read the run after this issue.

The issue’s big bad is the Three – a trinity of the Hand, Shadow, Thought and Pain.  There final showdown with Elektra Natchios does not disappoint.

The second part of Joe Kelly-Max Fiumara’s Rhino story finished in this week’s Amazing Spider-Man (issue 625) and it was heartbreaking.  I know there are people that don’t like Kelly, and some who don’t like Fiumara’s art style, but what can I say, the two of them together on this story were awesome.

Of all the Gauntlet tales going through the web books, this is by far my favorite.  I think one of my favorite parts of the narrative was the issue was seen through the eyes of Norah, the will-she or won’t-she be the new lady love in Pete’s life.  I mean God forbid he actually dates someone again like a normal person.  But that might lead to marriage and we could not make two deals with the devil, could we?

There is also a nice Mary Jane moment in the opening pages that you should not miss.

Where Spidey was all about heart, Siege #3 was all about the spectacle.  And trust me, it does not disappoint.  The end of the Dark Reign occurs in this issue, and there is still on more story to tell, and that one promises to be truly remarkable (I hope, but in Bendis I trust).

Meanwhile, a new title caught my eye brought to us by the folks at Vertigo, who have been dropping some great new titles lately (Daytripper anyone?).  American Vampire #1 premiered this week taking another unique look at the creature of the night phenomenon.  And who better to write some of this tale than the master of the night, Stephen King.

King’s story was not even the best.  That honor goes to the book’s main storyteller Scott Snyder who teamed with Rafael Albuquerque for a fresh new spin.  Snyder’s story was titled “Big Break,” and for Hattie and Pearl, the old saying goes, be careful what you wish for.

Last but not least this week for me was X-Men Legacy #234.   This has been a take-it or leave-it title for me for awhile.  I know a lot of people love everything Mike Carey writes, and I am not a hater, its just, not doing it for me.  That said, this week’s issue read like a day in the life of Rogue, but for some reason it resonated with me.  Due to a convenient plot twist Rogue has to take on some of the Cuckoo’s powers and the results are quite revealing for Rogue and everyone around her.  It’s a nice issue that further develops what the character is experiencing as her role with the X-Men changes and she grapples with the new developments with her mutant abilities.

Enjoy!

This week’s selection was mined by one of our regular customers, Martin, who blindly pulled out Sandman #50 by Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell for me to review this week.

For the second-straight week I was able to relive a book that I had already read (back in the day of course when it was originally released).  Sandman #50 always stood out as a classic for me, titled “Ramadan,” I actually bought the Sandman statue based on Russell’s Sandman from this issue, and yes, still own said statue which resides on my book shelf.

The issue reads more like an illustrated novel than a comic, its that good.  Gaiman’s masterful story strokes are matched perfectly with Russell’s art, for that perfect storm that so rarely occurs in comics when both writer and artist are at the top of the game.

Originally published in April 1993, this gem is available for $15 (a true bargain) at Brave New Worlds.  Grab it now, before I do.

•Doomwar #2: I for one was not expecting much from this series. I haven’t been all that much of a Black Panther fan, though what I have read I have always liked, and hadn’t read any of the current iteration of the character, Lady Black Panther didn’t pique my interest at all. That being said I really enjoyed Doomwar issue #1. Though Doctor Doom may seem a bit overexposed in the last six months or so since Millar wrote that Masters of Doom story, that we have on our $12 Hardcover Rack, I liked him in the issue. His goals as of now seem to be that he’s after Wakanda’s Vibranium supply though I feel like he’s got something more up his sleeve! Now that the Black Panthers have gone out and recruited the X-Men, unofficially since Scott couldn’t sanction them attacking Wakanda, T’Challa wants to get his kingdom back and save his wife, and X-Woman Storm, from execution!

Doomwar #2, Jonathan Maberry/Scott Eaton, $3.99, 32 pages, full color, Marvel Comics

•Green Lantern Corps #46: Peter Tomasi has been a nice addition to the Geoff Johns helmed Blackest Night epic. His GLC has given us a wider view of the battle between good and evil waaaaaaaay out in space…and he’s even seen fit to kill off some much loved characters! This issue was such a big deal that the original solicit for the cover looked like this.  If you have been reading the series you know how much fun GLC has been and with solicitation information like this how can you not be excited?!:

“Blackest Night comes to its epic and stunning conclusion in this over-sized issue as the Green Lantern Corps descends on Earth to make their final stand against Nekron and the Black Lanterns!”

See what I mean!?

Green Lantern Corps #46, Peter J. Tomasi/Patrick Gleason & Rebecca Buchman, $3.99, 40 pages, full color, DC Comics

Finally a caped crusader issue that I could really rave about, plus my ongoing rants about the latest new thing by Vertigo this week.  Grant Morrison’s Batman & Robin #10 and Daytripper #4 were what I liked this week.

As soon as I turned the first page off the opening panels of Batman & Robin onto the splash with Damian running a meeting at Wayne Enterprises I knew this was going to be a special issue.  This title is really starting to pull together the plot threads Morrison has been planting since it began last summer and should culminate with the eventual return of Bruce Wayne himself.

That return will no doubt have a major impact on all the characters in the Bat World, none more than Damian, who is beginning to settle into his role as the new Robin  But of course, Mother dearest has other plans for her little spawn.  If you are interested in delving into the psyche of Damian, this is the issue for you.

As a plus, Andy Clarke has settled in as the books regular penciller and delivers a strong effort once again telling the story that Morrison has so brilliantly laid out.

Speaking of brilliance, if you are not reading Daytripper, you really need to start. Fabio Ba Moon and Gabriel Ba continue to bring it each month and the latest issue number four continues to excel.  Daytripper is only going to run for 10 issues, and continues to fly off the shelves.

Without giving too much away, each issue begs the question – how is this going to happen next?  However, more importantly is trying to figure out where it’s all going.  So far the ride is better than any episode of Lost ever produced.

Trust me, if you have not picked up this book, you are really missing out.

Let me paint a picture for you.  It was the mid 1980s and DC had just finished Crisis on Infinite Earths.  One of the many things that ground-breaking series accomplished was reintroducing to the world, one Blue Beetle.

If you guessed this week’s Random Retro Comic Review was going to be an issue of the Blue Beetle, you would have guessed correctly.  But this week’s classic is not just any issue, but the first of the Ted Kord run, Blue Beetle #1 from July 1986, “Out From the Ashes,” by Len Wein and Paris Cullins (of Blue Devil fame).

Since beginning the Random Review, this is the first time I pulled out an issue that I had read before.  And there was a lot going on for my money in this issue (which was three fat old quarters), as the issue explains how Kord became the Beetle, sets up three other story arcs, and also leaves a cliffhanger (invented before the Borg snatched Picard) with our fearless hero in peril.

It was a fun issue to relive even if Wein’s dialogue is tough to digest by today’s standards.  Kord comes off almost like a poor-man’s Spider-Man with all the quips, and the narrative of the villain Firefist (I know, lame), was also difficult to swallow.  But the seeds of Kord’s reign with the scarab (name at least) are all planted in this first issue.

Well welcome back to 2 Comics I Wanna Read Tomorrow. I took off last week ’cause it was my birthday & I was feeling lazy super busy. This week I’m back in full swing with a look at a few comics that are in my stack for tomorrow. Hit the jump to check ’em out! Read the rest of this entry »

Apologies for the delay on this one, but this week’s gem from the vault was just too good not to read several times.  I had to let it digest and simmer before I explained the awesomeness that was Green Arrow #32 (Volume 3).

Kidding.  The cover explains the entire issue titled “Boy’s Night Out,” as Roy and Connor are seen looking through a pair of legs – and those would be stripper legs.  Turns out Red Arrow’s idea of a good time is going out to a gentleman’s club.  This is what readers paid #2.50 for just six short years ago.

A Judd Winick-Manuel Garcia joint production the issue does have some redeeming qualities.  It is a good bonding issue between Roy and Connor, as Connor especially comes to understand the differences and similarities between himself and the man he would come to refer to as brother by story’s end.

And just in case you were worried that this was a get in touch with all your feelings episode, Winick threw in a store robbery for the new dynamic duo to foil, out of costume and with no quivers.  But the story was never about that, it was about Roy and Connor becoming, brothers.

There is a little bit of something for everyone in this week’s stuff that tickled my reading bone as I selected DC’s First Wave #1, Buffy the Vampire Slayer #33 and JSA All-Stars #4 as my stone cold locks of the week.

Bryan Azzarello and Rags Morales welcome readers into the world of pulp with Doc Savage, the Spirit and the Blackhawks in First Wave #1.  A mystery is brewing (because that is what happens in these pulp stories) and will deepen in subsequent issues as Bruce Wayne’s Batman joins the ranks.

Morales art serves as a perfect compliment for this lived-in world of real people doing the spectacular.  First Wave book one introduces a mystery and to the characters of Doc Savage and the Spirit, who appear to be heading to a head-to-head meeting, from different directions, ‘natch.

Meanwhile over in the Joss Whedon universe, Brad Meltzer continues his masterful story strokes in Twilight Part Two in Buffy the Vampire Slayer #33.  Twilight is finally revealed (although due to internet leaks a lot of people already know his identity) and the mystery that is Twilight just continues to deepen.  Personally I am still trying to figure out the endgame, but knowing Whedon I will never have seen it until its staring at me in the face, in print and pictures.  I’m a little thick.

Finally if you have not given JSA All-Stars a chance, I recommend jumping on that bandwagon.  Granted All-Stars does not contain the powerhouse lineup of the Justice Society of America, but it is still filled with riveting characters, especially in the hands of Matthew Sturges and Freddie Williams III.

JSA All-Stars #4 this week sees its opening story come to a head as Sand joins the book with some revelations about the battle to come with Johnny Sorrow.  I have to admit, I am not a big JSA guy but decided to give this book a chance when it started four months ago and have been nothing but entertained since its launch.  And I am really curious to see how the gang is going to stop Sorrow, who is really putting Stargirl through the hoops in this arc.

It was a Marvel week for the taste buds as two titles rose above everything else – Thor #607 and Ultimate Comics Enemy #2.  Obviously I can not go a week without gushing over something that Brian Michael Bendis wrote.  Anyway …

I loved Straczynski’s run on Thor and was a little worried about Kieron Gillen assuming the mantle.  After a couple of issues, I finally found my self excited over an issue Gillen penned – Thor #607.  A Siege tie-in, this issue finally caught us up with the whereabouts of Volstagg since he inadvertently started the latest Marvel event.

This issue serves like the current New Avengers books, bringing readers up to the point where Siege began, and Thor really delivered this week on that account.  The wickedness and diabolicalness of Loki is on full display as he continues to manipulate Balder and his fellow Asgardians as war is about to come.

Meanwhile, in Marvel’s other universe – the Ultimate ‘ verse, Ultimate Comics Enemy is shaping up into an interesting read.  The mystery continues in issue two this week (by Bendis) as Nick Fury and Spider-Woman are tangled in the web of a an unknown enemy seemingly bent on their destruction.  What the ultimate goal is, no one knows, but its engaging enough to keep me wanting more.  It just seems like the assault on the Ultimate ‘verse is continuing, and the death toll just might keep increasing.

That’s all I have this week, until next time, enjoy …