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I, Vampire #5 – Review

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Joshua Hale Fialkov (writer), Andrea Sorrentino (artist), Marcelo Maiolo (colorist)

The Story: You’re one to talk, Batman—most people think you’re a vampire, too.

The Review: Throwing in any guest star of the Dark Knight’s caliber can be a risky business.  As a major character with an established, popular fan-base, people have certain expectations of him.  It’s something like wearing a sombrero at work; you can’t really go walking around, doing your normal thing, and not explain to people what’s the deal with the sombrero.  So it goes with Batman.  If you want to have him in there, you better have a good reason for it.

I suppose the fact that vampires have taken nest in Gotham is reason enough to get Batman involved.  More than that, Fialkov puts the caped crusader to good use, balancing both his hyper-competence with the fact that he’s mostly out of place with these particular foes.  Despite Andrew’s unnatural abilities, Batman’s able to hold his own, actually getting the vampire riled up.  At the same time, you know Batman only has an academic idea of what he’s up against, a frustration he expresses by being gruffer than ever: “You’re still a monster…  Fine.  We work together.  For now.”

Despite the presence of such a major icon in their midst, the regular characters keep their composure and make it clear this is their title.  While John does little more in the issue than try to keep a fight from breaking out among his companions, Tig actually attempts to incite one (“He’s a vampire!  He’s in love with the one who did all of this.  Kill him.  Better yet, let me.”).  If you hoped she’d be a force of cuteness, albeit a deadly one, in this series, you learn very quickly that she’s not taken in by Andrew’s charm, and she has a lot of resentment left to work through.
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle #6 – Review

Posted on February 2, 2012 by jmiddle3

By: Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz (writers), Dan Duncan (art), Ronda Pattison (colors)

The Story: Allez ninja, allez ninja, allez!

The Review: It’s been rather fascinating to watch the development of IDW’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Co-creator Kevin Eastman and script-writer Tom Waltz have been combining elements from the Turtle’s original comic series and the first cartoon show, as well as bringing in some new twists and concepts for this new on-going title. Yet despite letting the origin go on for five issues, many of the ideas have felt under-developed. I’ll get into the elements I think have been rushed in the Musings, but as I haven’t been reviewing this series until now, I think it fair to just review this issue on its own. And honestly, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #6 is pretty good.

The writing in this issue is very tight. The Turtles are out on patrol when they sight a pair of ninjas chasing a mysterious Frenchman. They follow, allowing us to see the brothers interact as a group. The chemistry between the four is great, and if there are some cheesy lines like “These dudes take their Ninja Vitamins today, or what?” and, “Holy guacamole…”, well, this is the Ninja Turtles after all. However, the Turtles are physically so close to their quarry during the chase that I found it hard to believe the ninjas never heard the Turtles banter. At the end of the chase, things turn deadly, and despite internal disagreements, the Turtles don’t step in to help either side. They’re left with an ominous warning from the Frenchman, and the lingering question of whether they did the right thing by not interfering.

In the aftermath of their run-in with the ninjas, the Turtles regroup with their sensei, and Donatello expresses some disbelief at Splinter’s account of their origin. Splinter claims they are all the reincarnated spirits of a feudal Japanese family, killed in an internal power struggle of the Foot Ninja Clan. The reader is left with the question of whether this is accurate, or a by-product of the psychotropic drug used on Splinter when he was a lab rat. It’s good use of dramatic irony, and a bold move to throw doubt on a character that has basically been portrayed as infallible since his creation.
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Blackhawks #5 – Review

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Mike Costa (writer), Cafu (penciller), Bit (inker), Guy Major (colorist)

The Story: Dogs on a satellite!  Hm…doesn’t have quite the same ring to it, huh?

The Review: Can you believe it’s been just about half a year since the new 52 premiered?  At what point do I stop calling it “new,” I wonder?  Anyway, quite a few titles I collected at the beginning have fallen by the wayside since then, so of course I’ve been scoping around for new ones to pick up in their place.  Blackhawks was one of those I heard quiet praise about, and once I saw Cafu switch over from Grifter, I knew I had to at least give the series a shot.

In any case, the Blackhawks, much as it’s weird to say so, is one of my favorite properties, or at least the concept of them is.  Now that the vast majority of heroes in comics have superpowers of some kind, it’s actually kind of a big deal to have a team composed of nothing more than ordinary humans demonstrating extraordinary aptitude in their particular skill-sets as they take on the big baddies of the world.

And that they certainly do in this issue, facing head-on the big momma of them all, the aptly named Mother Machine.  Like most mothers, this villainess is ruthless in her desire to take her charges under her wing.  To chastise the Blackhawks for their disobedience, she lays on all kinds of punishments: “I’ve also shut down the oxygen compilers and internal heaters.  You’ll slowly start to smother, but in the hours it takes for that to happen, you’ll also gradually freeze.  Or else, you would, except…I’ve just disengaged [this satellite] from orbit.”  What’s hilarious is she sees this grim experience or joining her as a fair choice.
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All-Star Western #5 – Review

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray (writer), Moritat (artist), Gabriel Bautista (colorist), Phil Winslade (feature artist), Dominic Regan (feature colorist)

The Story: Instead of seeing the situation as a death trap, Arkham, consider it an adventure!

The Review: I think the real fun of these buddy stories—although calling Hex and Arkham buddies is admittedly a stretch—is not only the misadventures they can get up to, or even the energy that comes from their interaction, but seeing how each one affects the other over time.  Obviously, that kind of thing works best when you have characters who are polar opposites, and you can’t get more polar or opposite than our two stars here.

In the long run, it’s doubtful Hex will change much under Arkham’s mild-mannered influence, but we can see that this extended companionship with the bounty hunter has definitely opened the stodgy recluse of a doctor to a whole new world of experiences: the numbing horror of hard exercise, the value of violence in a pinch, the rush of excitement and hysteria that you only get when you know death is imminent.  It might be too much to hope that Arkham will take to these things as habit, but he should buck up after a while, and grow hardier for it.

Besides, it’s great fun to see his usual, intelligent composure completely undone as he tackles the sweatier side of the emotional spectrum.  In short order, he expresses paralyzing fear (“Oh God…I fear I’ve soiled myself.”), biting sarcasm (“I should have anticipated your keen intellect would factor into our liberation from this hellish…”), and screaming panic (“Hex?  Where are you?  HEX?!?!”).  Breakdowns are often entertaining to watch, and Arkham’s is no exception.

As it turns out, Arkham’s outbursts turn out to be the saving grace for both men at the bottom of Gotham’s cave network, although the sudden appearance of the Miagani (Grant Morrison’s tribe of Batman-inspired natives) doesn’t really seem as such.  On the other hand, you got a cowboy in Hex and now a passel of Injuns before him—can circumstances be any more perfect?  Palmiotti-Gray aren’t the most inspired of writers, but this scene is very clever, and quite enjoyable, too.
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WCBR’s Top Picks

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Ray Hilario

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: The Unwritten #33.5 – It’s nice to give a call out to this series that has been consistently “very good”, but hasn’t had a singularly excellent issue in awhile.  This was it.  Yay!  For the last couple of months, the series has double-shipped with the “regular” issues following the normal story and the .5 issues showing this fascinating set of flashbacks into some of the deep historical background of The Unwritten’s universe.  This issue showed us the nasty nun/puppeteer Ms. Toller/Rausch as a little girl in one of the Germanic kingdoms in the late 1700′s.  Given this girl’s childhood, it’s no wonder she turned out BAD.  The other thing setting this issue apart was the inking work done by Vince Locke.  I think if you looked back at this site (and other sites), you’d notice a direct correlation between Locke being present for inking duties and the reception to the issue.  He’s one of those artists who isn’t content to put down a smear of black ink or to do an ink wash…..it’s just him and his fine brush making a rat’s next of crazy lines when he wants a shadow.  It looks GREAT.

Most Anticipated: Rachel Rising #5 – This new(er) series from Terry Moore has been just splendid since he launched it a few months back.  It follows a girl named Rachel who has climbed out of a grave after being murdered (?) and the truly bizarre things going on in her hometown.  Weirdness is afoot as some kind of mind control is causing people to kill their loved ones.  Issue #4 really started to pull some disparate elements of the story together and while it isn’t clear where the story is going yet, the basic flavor and tone is becoming obvious.  And….of course….the art is glorious.  Not a lot of artists could pull off the type of art that Terry Moore is laying down here.  The wizardry of his work is in the subtle little expressions that allow him to say a LOT in a single panel without cluttering it with a word balloon.  Not only is he good…..he’s also confident that he can nail these scenes from an artistic standpoint.  It’s special….hop on now!  Plus, I think you can get it digitally via Comixology and that’s important because very few comic shops will order shelf-copies of this series.

Other Picks: I Zombie #22, Sweet Tooth #30, Alpha Girl #1, Fatale #2, Amazing Spider-Man #679, Uncanny X-Force #21

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Fantastic Four #602 – Epic space battles!  But the real beauty here is how the pieces are all coming together together beautifully and in massive scale.  This issue also passed the “chill test”:  if a book gives me chills, it’ll probably be pick of the week.  This book did it twice.

Most Anticipated: Winter Soldier #2 – As stoked as I am about Ed Brubaker’s other book this week, Fatale #2, I’m giving it to Winter Soldier.  This is simply one of those books where all the stars align perfectly.  It’s a team-up of two of my favourite characters (Bucky and Black Widw), written by one of my favourite writers (Ed Brubaker), drawn by the perfect artist for a book like this (Butch Guice), and colored by one of my favourite colorists (Bettie Breitweisers).  And to make it even more perfect, it’s $2.99!

Other Picks: Fatale #2, The Punisher #8, Animal Man #6, Swamp Thing #6, Uncanny X-Men #6,  Action Comics #6, Sweet Tooth #30, Amazing Spider-Man #679, Defenders #3

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Fantastic Four #602 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by paladinking

by Jonathan Hickman (writer), Barry Kitson (art), Paul Mounts (colors), and Clayton Cowles (letters)

The Review:  This issue of Jonathan Hickman’s Fantastic Four reminds me of those really badass episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine that I totally geeked out over as a kid…and then rediscovered years later in college, only to geek out over again.

It’s a gigantic space battle with tons of ships and multiple participants.  The result is epic, large scale combat that is everything a cosmic book should be.  Better still, like those great DS9 episodes, Hickman knows how to ratchet up the tension by bringing in new sides/participants to the conflict.  When the tide seems to be shifting one way, someone else shows up to the battle to change the dynamic entirely.  All told, it’s massive stuff with lots of action and, despite being a gigantic scale space battle, it feels emotionally meaningful.  In a medium full of hollow action scenes, that’s pretty significant.

As usual, Hickman does a great job of hitting his narrative high-points.  There’s a sense that he continues to up the ante and there are enough moments that, individually, will either make you smile, inwardly cheer, or, in a couple instances, give you chills of awesomeness.

As far as the cheering/smiling bit goes, Hickman does a great job with Sue this month.  As he has done throughout his run, Sue is nothing less than a badass and Hickman never shies away from her very high power level and the unique uses her powers can be put to.
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Aquaman #5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Ivan Reis (penciller), Joe Prado & Eber Ferreira (inkers), Rod Reis (colorist)

The Story: Hey, Aquaman—talk about a fish out of water, huh?  …Please don’t kill me.

The Review: As a longtime reader of Johns’ work, I’m always amazed at the difference in effect his stories have depending on whether you read it in serial or in trade.  On an issue-by-issue basis, his writing often feels like two or three months pass before you really get anywhere in the plot.  When you put it all together, however, you discover how deliberate and strong his writing can be.  There just seems to be a slightly unfortunate conflict between his style and the medium.

And then you get issues like this one, where by some inspiration, Johns manages to craft a tight, rich story that can stand alone, leaving you satisfied at the end.  Perhaps this is by virtue of the plot itself; this issue acts as an epilogue for the first arc and a prologue for the next, so it feels less obviously like a part of a story, and more of a complete story of its own.

Maybe it’s the terrific pacing Johns delivers to the issue.  The opening, with Aquaman falling out of the clear blue sky and then crashing into the desert, definitely starts things off with a bang.  When you see him emerge from the crater he created, blade piercing clear through his thigh, the tension is already thick, and that sets a strong tone for the rest of the issue.

Among other habits, Johns tends to be very straightforward with his pacing, giving you a long chunk of action, then following it up with a swath of exposition.  This is a tried-and-true strategy, obviously, but it’s refreshing when he goes for something a little different.  Here, he breaks up the story not only by cutting between past and present, but also by interspersing the action and exposition in regular intervals, all of which makes for a much livelier, balanced read.
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The Flash #5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Francis Manapul & Brian Buccellato (writers and artists)

The Story: Apparently, Mob Rule has a strict literal bros before figurative bros policy.

The Review: Let me tell you about a friend I have.  He’s quiet, but good-humored, intelligent, hardworking, honest, makes a fine living, and is good to pretty much everyone he knows and many strangers besides.  In short, he’s so centered and balanced (in direct contrast to me, for instance), and so devoid of drama, that most people never talk of him but to speak his praise.

While all these qualities make for an excellent human being in the real world, it makes for a rather dry character in fiction.  And that’s exactly the problem—if you can call it that—with the supremely well-adjusted Barry Allen.  While it’s true the emotional and social hang-ups Geoff Johns gave our hero in the previous Flash series annoyed me, at least they gave Barry a platform upon which he could experience some conflict and, subsequently, change.

But as I noted in my review last issue, it doesn’t feel like there’s much room for Barry to develop as a character, at least in the traditional way of improving upon his flaws (of which there are few).  Furthermore, he has such a reserved personality that even when he’s being confronted, he tends to react rather passively, which makes a lot of the tension one-sided, much as Manuel’s (highly misdirected) rage at the Flash feels here.
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American Vampire #23 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by dfstell

By: Scott Snyder (writer), Rafael Albuquerque (artist), Dave McCaig (colors), Jared Fletcher (letters), Gregory Lockard (assistant editor) & Mark Doyle (editor)

The Story: The Death Race arc gives us a little background on our new vampire hunter, Travis.

Four Things: [SPOILERS]

1. This is a background issue. - Last issue introduced a bunch of brand new characters, so the creators had some background work to do.  They do a pretty nice job of showing us bits of that background in scenes that bounce back and forth with the titular “present day” death race between Travis and the vampire.  Honestly, this is a hard issue to pull off.  We readers DO need a little background on new characters, but getting that background can be like eating your vegetables.  The creators make those vegetables about as tasty as possible and remind me of a cooking truism: If you cook something in bacon fat and garlic, just about anything tastes good.  I’m not sure who of Snyder and Albuquerque is bacon fat and who is garlic, but the same truism applies.  Not only does the background give us information about Travis and the other characters, but it also opens up interesting mysteries for the creators to play with in future issues.

2. Very nice art. - As some of you know, I bind my single issues into hardcovers.  One really cool thing about that is you get to revisit early issues and appreciate how much an artist’s style changes over time.  I’d observed this in AV as Albuquerque’s style had changed a little by the end of the Ghost War arc.  But the art in this issue looks very much like what he was doing at the beginning of the series.  I almost wonder if he went back to revisit those first few issues and found himself inspired.  The characters in this issue go back to that smoother look that they had in the beginning and I like it.  There’s so much to love about Albuquerque’s work.  Just seeing the work he does with the brush on his backgrounds and the way he scatters ink and white-out (?) all over the place is kinda mesmerizing.
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Daken: Dark Wolverine #20 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by jmiddle3

By: Rob Williams (writer), Alessandro Vitti (art), Cris Peter and Rachelle Rosenberg (colors)

The Story: A romance for psychopaths.

The Review: This is going to be a short review. I picked up Daken: Dark Wolverine #20 because it’s a slow week for my pull list, and the last time that happened, I reviewed another book about one of Wolverine’s progeny that was slated for cancellation, X-23 #18. I liked that issue, though I felt I was not the target audience. I get the feeling that Daken #20 was not aimed at me either, but this time, I just cannot find anything to like.

We open on Daken preparing to assassinate the “Kingpin” of LA with a sniper rifle Daken seems to have stolen out of a Rob Liefeld book. Daken believes that by killing this guy, he’ll be able to take over LA. Not the best supervillain scheme I’ve ever heard, but I can work with it. He never get’s an opportunity for a clear shot, so he decides to try again later. The book moves on to FBI Agent Donna Kiel sitting alone in a dinner, waiting for Daken to join her. She and Daken have been through a lot together recently, and she’s kinda at the end of her rope. When a stranger flirts with her, she pulls out a gun, and puts it to her own head to let him know she isn’t interested.

Once Daken joins her, the rest of the issue deals with the pair trying to reconcile the attraction they have for each other with the repulsion they feel toward that attraction. To be fair to the creators, this issue is well done. Rob Williams provides a tight story which does great job of exploring Daken and Kiel’s romantic and violent insecurities. The pacing is great, the characters are well developed, and this really functions well as a one-shot. Aside from the over-sized gun I mentioned earlier, I have no complaints about the art, handled by Allessandro Vitti. The issue is dynamically drawn, shows our two antiheroes for the damaged goods they are, and matches the desperate tone of the script. I also want to applaud Vitti for actually drawing the characters so they look like real people instead of supermodels, and particularly for drawing Kiel in clothes that don’t appear to have been sprayed onto her body.
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The Unwritten #33.5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by dfstell

By: Mike Carey & Peter Gross (creators, writer & pencils), Vince Locke (inks), Lee Loughridge (colors), Todd Klein (letters), Joe Hughes (assistant editor) & Karen Berger (editor)

The Story: An origin of the nasty nun with the marionettes.

Four Things: 

1. These .5 issues are seriously good. - The biggest problem with the .5 issues of The Unwritten is how badly they overshadow the regular issues of.  These stories have so much meat on the bone.  You really feel as if you could catch some new filbert of information on the 5th reading.  And, they’re so involved in the background mythos of The Unwritten with how they keep touching on the power of story and “the whale” that is made up of all of us and eats stories.  When you compare to this deep and adult storytelling, it’s really hard for a story about a man with a magic wand (i.e. the regular issues) to not seem a little silly and lightweight.

2. Wonderful, self-contained story. - This was a great story.  We’ve seen bits and pieces of Ms. Toller and her marionettes over the last year or so in the pages of Unwritten, but it wasn’t really clear who she was.  Well, this gives us a great insight into why she’s such a nasty old lady.  Given her dark childhood and the scars visited upon her by her father, it’s no wonder that she has no trouble being a torturer or sorts for the Cabal.  This issue’s story is heartbreaking, violent and thrilling.
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Bulletproof Coffin: Disinterred #1 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by dfstell

By: David Hine (story/writer), Shaky Kane (story/art), Richard Starkings & Jimmy Betancourt (lettering) and JG Roshell (design)

The Story: Not exactly sure, but we get an origin for the Shield of Justice character.

Four Things: 

1. Just glad to have Bulletproof Coffin back! - The first 6-issue run of Bulletproof Coffin that ended in January 2011 was so much fun.  It was such a loving, campy homage to pre-comics code comic books that also layered in an interesting commentary on creator rights.  We readers get lots of great mini-series from Image, but it’s kinda rare to see a second act because the creators often move on to other projects.  For example: We’ll probably never see another issue of Cowboy Ninja Viking.  So, anytime the creators of a beloved creator-owned miniseries come back for an encore, we should cheer because you know they’re not getting rich doing this stuff.

2. Love how the flat colors pop. - I talk a LOT in reviews about wanting more flat, primary colors in comics.  Bulletproof Coffin is a great example of what I’m talking about.  These pages are just alive.  For anyone who doubts me, take a nicely colored Marvel comic (say, Fantastic Four colored by the reliable Paul Mounts) and open it up and do the same thing with Bulletproof Coffin.  Now walk to the other side of the room and see which comic can still catch your eye.  Flat colors just have a power to them that can never be matched by this highlighted crap.

3. Not really sure what it’s about yet. - I really struggled about what to write in “The Story” section up above because it isn’t at all clear what is going on (yet).  We DO get an origin for the Shield of Justice vigilante character that we met in the first miniseries, but how this relates to the opening scene of a naked man tunneling under a graveyard and coming up in the middle of other Bulletproof Coffin characters is beyond me.  Surely there is some meta-commentary going on here; I just don’t recognize it yet.
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Justice League Dark #5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Peter Milligan (writer), Mikel Janin (artist), Ulises Arreola (colorist)

The Story: Obviously, no one told Enchantress the importance of flossing.

The Review: If you’re going to gather a team of heroes, it seems fairly sensible to give them all something to do in whatever grand conflict you’ve concocted.  I mean, if all it takes is a couple people to solve the problem, why bother with a team at all?  This applies even more when writers use the fictional device of “fate” to bring the group together; if destiny has a part in leading each character to the table, doesn’t it follow that they must have some important role in the matter?

You may find yourself asking these questions a lot as you read through this issue.  I know I did.  Out of the six characters who show up to snap Enchantress out of her funk, only about two of them actually do anything particularly useful—and one of them is Mindwarp, who until this point you had no idea was even part of the team.  It’s baffling why Milligan spent so little time developing Jay Young, yet gives him an active part in the mission while the others dawdle.

What’s the rest of the team doing?  Shade, Zatanna, and Xanadu are too busy working through their personal visions, induced by Enchantress’ uncontrolled magic.  In the end, they never even get close to the witch, so their presence proves absolutely useless.  Deadman is hardly better.  His entire contribution is a failed attempt to possess John Constantine, actually hindering the only person doing anything productive to save the day.

Ultimately, Constantine solves the whole problem pretty much by himself, with zero help from the rest of the “league” (unless you charitably interpret their service as distractions).  This might have worked out fine, but we really don’t get much sense out of how Constantine figures out what’s wrong with June and Enchantress, nor how he sets them to rights again.  Milligan simply lets magic be the answer, which is always arbitrary and never satisfying.
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Teen Titans #5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Scott Lobdell (writer), Brett Booth (penciller), Norm Rapmund (inker), Andrew Dalhouse (colorist)

The Story: Oh, let them punch and electrocute each other—kids will be kids!

The Review: The first time a team comes together usually goes one of two ways: they may, by fate or fortune, surpass all expectations and work as a unit naturally, or (much more frequently) they barely manage to get through their scrape without major incident, usually questioning their communal future afterwards.

Of course, the Teen Titans fall into the latter category.  They’re young and raw, many of them having only just taken up their heroic identities, and they’ve got a long way to go in working out the kinks in their teamwork.  Most of the issue has each Titan taking on Superboy on their own, with the others either spectating or standing by to rescue their teammate when the clone eventually dispatches them.

With the fall of each Titan, you begin to wonder what the point of banding up for the sake of mutual protection was if their combined might doesn’t even seem to make Superboy break a sweat.  Even in the Justice League, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter give Superman a run for his money in the powers department.  Hopefully, this issue doesn’t indicate the team will someday turn into “Superboy and his Merry Band of Back-Ups.”

It’s true, however, that Superboy has gotten a lot more formal training than his opponents, and you can’t help noticing throughout the battle how much more honed and technical he is with his telekinesis now than he ever was in his previous incarnation.  The Superboy of old had a more hands-on approach with his telekinesis, as opposed to the Jean Grey school.  In a lot of ways, that helped keep him from becoming too powerful, since the applications of full-throttle teke are pretty much limitless, as he demonstrates here.  How can his colleagues hope to catch up?
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Voodoo #5 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Josh Williamson (writer), Sami Basri (artist), Jessica Kholinne (colorist)

The Story: Don’t be hating on me, brother—we’re all of the same people, right?

The Review: I think it’s only right that I tell you how much I hate research.  When I studied journalism in college, that was always my least favorite part of the writing process.  I’d read the news, and enjoy that, but I hated the meticulousness of having to sift through mountains of information to find the details I needed.  And now that life’s gotten so busy, I don’t even keep up with the news very well.

So it should be to no one’s surprise that I had no idea a new writer was taking over this title from Ron Marz up until I got this issue.  It hardly mattered, though; I could tell, just from reading through the first half, that something was amiss.  The thought that kept running through my head was, Man, Marz is having something of an off day, isn’t he?  So it goes without saying that the change in writing doesn’t feel like it’s for the better.

First off, Williamson is a great deal more liberal in his use of narration than Marz ever was.  Williamson fills whole panels with text, mostly exposition.  More problematically, he gives it all a whiny, plaintive tone this series never sported before now.  You can hear it wafting from Fallon’s recounting of her background: “Things were easier when I was a Black Razor.  Becoming the FBI liaison and tracking down extraterrestrial threats looked like a promotion.  Not I see it was really a punishment.  This job was my whole life.”

The dialogue has gotten more emotionally charged, too.  Marz always impressed me with his choice to make the cast as restrained in expressing their emotions as possible.  Whether you’re talking Voodoo or Agent Fallon or even Green Lantern, nearly every character on this series is a soldier or peace officer of some kind, so holding back their true feelings made a lot of sense.  I don’t know if this is Williamson’s style or if it’s the climactic nature of the issue, but it seems like everyone has decided to let all their inside stuff out: “You’re an abomination!  You must be annihilated!”  “You will not ruin…my mission!”  “Are you insane?!”  “All this power the Black Razors gave me—all that I can do—and I can’t stop a single woman half my size?!”
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Creepy #7 – Review

Posted on January 30, 2012 by dfstell

By: Joe Lansdale, Keith Lansdale, Dan Braun, Bill Morrison, Martin Salvador & Archie Goodwin (writers), Guus Floor, Patric Reynolds, Wilfredo Torres, Steve Skeates & Steve Ditko (artists) and Nate Piekos (letters)

The Story: Uncle Creepy is back with three new tales of terror and two old reprints from the Creepy archives.

Review: This isn’t a “bad” issue of Creepy, but it does commit the cardinal sin of an anthology: It doesn’t have a singular story that sets your socks on fire.  Probably the closest to excellence that this issue comes is with the second story: “The Shroud” by Dan Braun and Patric Reynolds.  This snappy little story involves a young couple that visits an auction and acquires a creepy shroud with a demonic face on it.  It’s kind of an evil-looking Shroud of Turin.  That’s just not going to turn out well!  Reynolds’ art is crisp and the only thing holding this story back is that it ended kinda suddenly.  My two cents is that they could’ve ditched a panel or two of people nagging the guy to get rid of the shroud and had another couple panels at the end.

The other two new stories aren’t bad, but don’t do anything to stand out.  ”Mud” was an interesting concept, but the art was too… well… muddy for me to really enjoy it that much.  ”Bloodsuckers” was also just okay.

Dark Horse gives us TWO old reprint stories in this issue.  On one hand, it DOES expose readers to the excellence of those old Warren Publishing Creepy magazines.  Whether you collect the single issues (like me) or buy the archives that Dark Horse is publishing, those are MUST READS for any horror fan.  On the other hand, neither of these two stories are picked from the A-list of old Creepy material and it seems a little cheap to sell us a “new” comic that is 40% reprint material.
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Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates #6 – Review

Posted on January 26, 2012 by jmiddle3

By: Jonathan Hickman (writer), Brandon Peterson and Esad Ribis (artists), John Rauch and Edgar Delgado (colors)

The Story: The Ultimates take a collective breath and say, “Oh, f#@&!”

The Review: Goodness, I really love the concept of the Ultimates. I really think it’s fascinating to watch these imperfect men and women try to live up to the impossible ideals they define themselves by; it’s equally fascinating to watch the world react to these super-people in such a realistic manner. Obviously, this was not the interpretation in Jeph Loeb era, but I choose to ignore that run. Besides, Jonathan Hickman has really returned this book to its philosophical roots, and I’m delighted.

This issue opens on a conversation between Nick Fury and the retired Steve Rogers, discussing all the disasters that have taken place in the last five issues. The outlook is grim. Someone has set off a nuclear bomb just off the coast of Uganda; Southeast Asia has been taken over by mutant supremacists; and Reed Richards has conquered 200 square miles of Europe, destroyed Asgard, and now commands forces that far surpass those of SHIELD and the entire US Military combined. In the face of this, Fury asks Rogers to return as Captain America. But here’s the interesting thing: he’s not asking Captain America the super-soldier, because—let’s face it—there’s not a hell of a lot even Captain America could do about this. Instead, Fury is asking for the help of Captain America the political symbol, to reassure the public and to support Fury’s plans. The conversation displays a great understanding of who these characters are, and what values drive them.

The conflict of realism versus idealism is the driving force of this issue. From Stark facing the superrich he suspects of nuking Uganda, to the Braddocks coping with Captain Britain’s catatonic state, to even Falcon confronting his former colleague Reed Richards, the characters are forced to reconcile the way they would like the world to be, and the way the world is. It’s a powerful theme, and well explored. However, because Hickman is taking his time to explore these themes, it also means this is the second issue in a row with everyone just sitting and talking about what has happened. I’m fine with that, given the enormity of what has passed, but characters need to start being active again soon.
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The Walking Dead #93 – Review

Posted on January 25, 2012 by dfstell

By: Robert Kirkman (writer), Charlie Adlard (artist), Cliff Rathburn (gray tones), Rus Wooton (letters) & Sina Grace (editor)

The Story: Is this promise of a new colony a blessing or a threat?

Five Things:

1. How do you know who to trust?  - I really do like how TWD continues to be about everything BUT the zombies.  How do you know who to trust?  Clearly, no one can survive in this zombieland on their own, but where do you stop your circle or trust?  Rick’s gang has added new folks before: Michonne, Abraham, the Arlington folks…  Clearly, more people is potentially better, but only if it is the right kind of more.  If “more” means “more Governor” or “more cannibals” then it’s a bad thing.  And of course anyone who has survived this long in the apocalypse is going to be a little paranoid due to natural selection.

2. How badass is Rick’s gang? - Rick makes an interesting observation towards the end of this issue: His gang is pretty darn badass and maybe they don’t have to worry about running into bad guys because they’ll just kill them if they act funny.  How true is this?  What evidence do we have that Rick’s gang is all that tough?  Let’s see, they got smashed by the Governor.  They crushed the cannibals.  So, their record would be 1-1.  I guess they did take out that other group that attacked the Arlington compound about 10 issues ago, but that wasn’t really a fair fight with Rick’s group being fortified.  And, Rick’s group is clearly tougher than the original Arlingtonites, but those sheep are so wimpy that it kinda defies reason that they would have survived this long (it’s almost a plot hole).  I think it’s not THAT clear that Rick’s group is badass.

3. Adlard does great storytelling. - Simple storytelling excellence is easy to take for granted, but when you also review books like the GI Joe comics, you realize that you can’t just assume the the storytelling will be solid.  With Adlard, you rarely get anything flashy (although there are some pretty vistas in this issue), but you can always tell the characters apart and the action is always crystal clear.  There’s even a neat fight scene in this issue where Rick smashes a dude to the pavement and each panel flows from the one before.  That’s slick because we’ve all see countless comics that make you wonder, “how the hell did he land on the RIGHT side of his face if he was being thrown like THAT in the panel before?  Did he do a flip or something?”
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Justice League #5 – Review

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Jim Lee (penciller), Scott Williams, Sandra Hope, Mark Irwin, Joe Weems (inkers), Alex Sinclair, Gabe Eltaeb, Tony Avina (colorists)

The Story: I’ll give this for Hal—the kid takes a lickin’ and keeps on tickin’.

The Review: Look, I get it.  Even with a whole cast of perfectly formed, likable characters, you’re going to have your favorites.  That’s no crime.  At least, it’s not if you’re a member of the audience.  If you’re the writer, favoritism can lead to some messy issues in your story.  Not only must your pet characters carry the plot forward on their own, which can’t always work, you also have a bunch of others standing around as dead weight.

That’s the situation the League finds themselves in here.  Green Lantern’s presence in this series has been pushy from the start, and now he literally shoves himself forward to take up more page-time, at the expense of his teammates.  Most of the issue features Hal trying to take down Darkseid singlehandedly, and actually, you get a certain satisfaction watching the New God shut down the cocky pilot each time, hardly breaking a sweat.  And even when Hal’s not grabbing all the action for himself, he dominates the dialogue, leaving his fellow heroes little say.

For the skeptical, let me take a number from the politician’s handbook and cite some statistics.  Superman gets all of five lines total this issue, including his exit, “Arghhhh!”  The Man of Steel gets beat by literal man of steel Cyborg, with six.  Wonder Woman happily flaunts her three lines, and poor Aquaman has to settle for a measly two.  It’d be one thing if Johns at least made the most of their brief speaking parts, offering some golden character moments to make up for their brevity.  But more frequently, he gives them just about the most nominal bits of dialogue you’ve ever read in a comic, with Aquaman (not having suffered enough, apparently) getting the stingiest: “Let’s ask him,” and “And?”

The vast, vast majority of the issue fixates on Green Lantern, with Batman and the Flash chiming in not so much as equals, but as supporting players so Hal has actual humans to talk to.  Even here, it feels like the Barry does little except remark on the obvious (“Dammit, I can’t fly.”).  Only Bruce really exerts his own voice into the mix, calmly talking over Hal’s—there’s no other word for it—bratty exclamations to keep things focused on what’s at stake.

At least Johns has made Darkseid into a plenty formidable figure.  In contrast to his crack-of-doom introduction last issue, now he says nothing at all as he swats the League around, which makes a lot of sense.  When you’re a god, why would you deign to speak with the specks you’re crushing?  You have to love that once he bowls them over (using Hal as the ball, to my delight), he just walks on, never giving them a second thought.
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FF #14 – Review

Posted on January 25, 2012 by paladinking

by Jonathan Hickman (writer), Juan Bobillo (pencils), Marcelo Sosa (inks), Chris Sotomayor (colors), and Clayton Cowles (letters)

The Story: Doom makes the ultimate sacrifice.

The Review:  Jonathan Hickman’s calling card seems to be his labyrinthine plots, composed of a great deal of moving parts, all leading to an increasingly massive scope.  This can at time lead to some mystifying issues here and there and a constant lingering dread that it’s all going to collapse beneath its own weight, yet you can’t help but admire the ambition and craft.

However, now and then, Hickman’s approach leads to fantastic comic books like this issue of FF, where everything comes together like a meticulously assembled jigsaw puzzle.  Put simply, this is an immensely satisfying issue if only because all the pieces come together and they all fit so very well.  Better still, this is accomplished thanks to, not in spite of, flashbacks and time travel elements.

I loved how Val and Nathaniel, through their tinkering with future possibilities, end up taking something an authorial position.  Through them, Hickman lets us peak behind the current so that, not only do the pieces all come together, but we see exactly how and why they come together as they do.  In seeing Val and Nathaniel’s master plan behind the scenes, get to see a good part of the greater structure that Hickman has assembled in both FF and Fantastic Four.  Really, it’s cool seeing Nathaniel and Val in this sort of meta scene (fittingly, in a different time and place from the rest of the comic and all the other characters), but it also leads to a real appreciation for the mad scientist elegance of Hickman’s craft.
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WCBR’s Top Picks

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Ray Hilario

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Batman #5 – It seemed that all anyone wanted to talk about with this comic was the twisting orientation of the pages, and it was an interesting gimmick, but behind this trick was a really great comic book.  It takes a really gifted creative team to effectively sell madness and insanity, but that’s what we got in this issue.  You really believe that Batman is cracking up!  And the Court of Owls is much more interesting than any of the established Batman rogues just because we don’t know what to expect from them.

Most Anticipated: The Walking Dead #93 – After a slow story arc, Robert Kirkman uncorked a promising new concept in his last issue that may jiggle a status quo that has become stale.  I’m pretty intrigued by the idea of clusters of survivors remaining separate and interacting with each other like the old Greek city-states.  Plus, you just know that something BIG will happen this summer in issue #100 and it’ll probably start building now.

Other Picks: Creepy Comics #7, American Vampire #23, The Unwritten #33.5, Bulletproof Coffin: Disinterred #1, Elephantmen #37, Captain America and Bucky #626

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Batman #5 – Basically, this comic was insane.  Which is good, given that its story was the gradual loss of sanity. Great art, creepy as hell atmosphere, and a really cool use of the physical medium really made this a comic to remember.  Snyder’s ability to deliver creeping horror is really something to behold.

Most Anticipated: Justice League #5 After one week’s delay….well, after that last page in Justice League #4, I really couldn’t pick anything else. I mean, it’s Darkseid.  I cannot wait to see what happens as the JLA meet their first adversary in the new DCU.

Other Picks: The Flash #5, Aquaman #5, American Vampire #23, Fantastic Four #602, FF #14, Mighty Thor #10

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Fables #113 – Review

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Too many to list—check out the review.

The Story: Sit down, kids, and prepare to grow old, as I tell you about the olden days.

The Review: Bill Willingham likes to throw out these semi-out-of-continuity issues from time to time, which is all well and good.  He largely does a good job with them, and an excursion from the general flow of story can be a relief every now and then.  That said, I’m not so sure it’s entirely wise to throw in essentially a bunch of filler right after a Christmas issue that was itself a bit skimpy on the plot.  Hasn’t it been quite a while since we checked in with Bufkin?

But let’s set that aside.  Like I said, Willingham does write these sorts of things very well.  What we get is a handful of short stories, each of varying length and degrees of importance to overall Fables continuity, and with a different guest artist on each one.  Each tale has a great deal of charm, and there’s something to be said for stories that don’t require a lot of familiarity with continuity to enjoy them.

Even at his most free-flowing, Willingham’s knack for making connections between stories still pops up in the most surprising places.  He starts off with one of your classic “magic spell as a lesson” parables, though the substance is a little more sophisticated than your usual fairy tales.  It’s standard practice for people to go through some kind of physical transformation in these things to catalyze their spiritual transformation, but rarely is their soul—or entire race—at stake.  P. Craig Russell draws the feature with a fitting cutesiness, which Lovern Kindzierski’s pastels complement well.  Just as appropriate is Ramon Bachs’ cheerful, cartoonier linework (and Ron Randall’s vividly golden colors) as a father and son discuss the strange physics/superstition of their world, one which has a delightful link to the tale above.
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Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #5 – Review

Posted on January 24, 2012 by jmiddle3

By: Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Chris Samnee (art), Justin Ponsor (colors),

The Story: Uncle Aaron learns not to trust other criminals, and Miles stops his first mugging. They grow up so fast!

The Review: When I first started reading comics, Ultimate Spider-Man was the first Marvel book I picked up. The promise of fresh stories not mired by decades of continuity drew me in, but it was the quality and charm of that book hooked me. I have been a fan of the series all the way through its run, and have really appreciated how classy and mature Marvel has been about the death and replacement of Peter Parker with Miles Morales. I eagerly awaited each issue of our new hero’s introductory arc, and savored each one. However, after reading Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man #6, oddly, I am beginning to miss Peter.

Before we get to that though, let’s talk about the issue on its own merits. Honestly, it’s pretty good. While I miss the absolutely gorgeous work of Sara Pichelli, Chris Samnee does a fine job as fill-in artist. His style is far more cartoony than Pichelli’s, but he misses none of the nuance in the script, he gives the action great fluidity, and really captures Miles as still a kid figuring out the whole super-hero gig. Samnee also manages to give intensity to the more serious parts of the story, like Uncle Aaron’s encounter with the new Scorpion and Miles’ confrontation with his Mom about his family’s troubles with the law. There are some minor flaws, however; in a few panels, Miles appears to be about forty rather than thirteen, and for some reason when we see an image of Peter Parker, the spider symbol on his costume is upside down.

I’m also conflicted about the colors, courtesy of Justin Ponsor. Personally, I don’t care for such flat colors in this title. I can’t help but feel that more vibrant choices would have better matched both the inks and the tone of the story. But to be fair, Ponsor does succeed in producing an urban vibe in this issue, allowing the tones of concrete and brick to dominate the page. Also, this dull quality is actually pretty effective in Aaron’s scenes, helping Samnee’s art communicate a more sinister and unwelcoming atmosphere.
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DC Universe Presents #5 – Review

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Minhquan Nguyen

By: Paul Jenkins (writer), Bernard Chang (artist), Blond (colorist)

The Story: I have a question for y’all: why ask the question?

The Review: Wow, hard to believe it’s been five months since I first considered the merits of applying a story-arc format to this showcase title.  I’ve tried to reserve my judgment along the way, but now that we’re at the end, I believe we can say conclusively that this has been largely a waste of the format.  If the purpose of this series is to brighten the dimmer stars of the DCU, then it’d be difficult to consider this story a success.

To follow the recurring motif of this issue, consider this question: would you consider Deadman any more appealing a character now than he was at the beginning of the series?  After all he’s been through, and all the information he’s gleaned from various sources, both human and divine, Boston has failed to learn anything of permanent value, and certainly nothing that’s changed him in any significant way.  He first appeared to us a wise-cracking rebel, and he ends on pretty much the same note.

The first problem is so much of what he’s learned has been plot-focused.  His encounters with the Son of Morning and the demon-angel who guarded his book of life yielded much to deepen his suspicions of Rama, but little to affect his outlook on life.  By the end of the issue, it’s hard to assess exactly how much he’s accomplished.  While he’s forged a new deal with Rama, presumably with better terms, the fact remains that he is still, for all intents and purposes, her servant, and his mission is essentially the same as before.

Perhaps the only difference in his renewed contract is that he’s no longer attached to the souls he possesses, or at least those he’s possessed before.  Jenkins tries to pass this off as a major point, but he’s failed all this time to explain what, exactly, is the peril in having Boston’s fate connected to his many lives.  He vaguely states these people “deserve to go on with their lives,” maybe implying that they now exist in some kind of purgatory, but considering how many of them are still counted among the living, this explanation doesn’t entirely work.
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Hack/Slash #12 – Review

Posted on January 24, 2012 by dfstell

By: Tim Seeley (writer), Daniel Leister (art), Carlos Badilla (colors), Crank! (letters) and James Lowder (edits)

The Story: The Hack/Slash crew goes to South America, searching for a cure to the disease that causes slashers.

Four Things:

1. Funny. – This is a comic for people who like jokes about bodily functions.  If you roll your eyes at that kind of humor, I’m not sure that Hack/Slash is the book for you.  But if you’re one of “us”, there are some great moments in this comic.  The humor is in small places and a lot of it comes from timing, which is a hard thing to have in a comic.  For example, at one point, after landing on this monster island, Cassie goes into the bushes to go to the bathroom and gets attacked by water zombies.  Since they’ve been in the water, they’re soft and they pop when she hits them.  Soon she is covered in green blood and guts.  When she comes back to the group, one of the others says, “Whoa! You really had to go!”  I mean….that’s funny.  Then I giggled again when I realized that the name of the motion picture studio that shoots films on monster island is “Monster Bait” studios.  Heh.

2. Whacky ideas all over the place. – Not only is it a funny comic, but it’s kind of an idea-a-minute issue.  There’s the nature of the monster island and how it relates to those awful 50′s era monster films.  There are attacks by about 10 different types of weird monsters.  There’s a possible link to Nazi science.  I dunno why the mysteries of Nazi science are still so fascinating, but they are.  There’s also a possible link to the slasher disease.  It’s all good stuff.
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