PreviewScope June for August 2008

Previews Catalogue, booze, Last.fm and a long night ahead of us. It's been a long time since I've done this column. Let's give it a go.

MARVEL COMICS

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #567-569
VENOM DARK ORIGIN #1

A sexy sassy new female Kraven the Hunter stringing DD and Spidey up in chains? Did I guess right, Marvel? And a week later the beginning of the much-lauded 'New Ways To Die' storyline (6 issues do seem like a huge deal now after the excellent string of self-contained adventures), featuring the return of the Goblin (hey, he was already back last week in Thunderbolts), Venom/Eddie Brock (aww, the miss each other?) and the introduction of... Anti-Venom? Not sure if it's really front page news as the media treated it, but John Romita JR BAY-BEE!!


AMAZING SPIDER-MAN FAMILY #1
KING-SIZE SPIDER-MAN SPECIAL

J.M. DeMatteis is one of the definitive Spider-man writers of all time, putting a stamp on the best psychological thrillers involving the character (Kraven's Last Hunt, Spectacular Spider-man) as well as the genius behind Legion of Losers! So, J.M. pens the untold story of the day after Uncle Ben died; DeFalco with Frenz oddly enough write a spider-marriage story (huh? didn't we kill that?) with baby May (Mr & Mrs Spider-man); and either Giffen or Tobin bombast us with the team-up of the century: MJ, Jean Grey (is this the historic first meeting?), Shulkie and Hellcat vs the Enchantress. You know it's fun!


TERRY MOORE WATCH!



SPIDERMAN LOVES MARY JANE v.2 #1
RUNAWAYS v.3 #1
SPIDER-MAN LOVES MARY JANE OVER-SIZED HARDCOVER v.2

McKeever and BKV may have left Marvel, but noone better than Moore (STRANGERS IN PARADISE) to relaunch Marvel's greatest teen books. Marvel's wisely re-releasing the rest of the McKeever SMLMJ run on oversized hardcover to coincide with the launch. P.S. did I mention SPIDEY-KONG?


MARK MILLAR WATCH!



FANTASTIC FOUR #560
WOLVERINE #68
1985 #4

Howwwww? Mark Millar has a personal crossover event, linking his seemingly unlinkable titles all the way to December. Is this more than a sales ploy? Why not just write good stories? Why does everything have to be a big event? Could this save the abysmal sales on his FF? Should it?


JASON AARON WATCH!



GHOST RIDER#26
BLACK PANTHER #40
WOLVERINE: GET MYSTIQUE TPB

The definite best Wolvie story of this decade (then again there wasn't a lot of competition there) gets traded, Danny Ketch GR returns and J.A. continues his Marvel takeover with a guest-stint on Secret Invasion: Black Panther. He's got competition though:


MATT FRACTION WATCH!

IMMORTAL IRON FIST: THE ORIGIN OF DANNY RAND
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #4
SECRET INVASION THOR #1
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #22
UNCANNY X-MEN #501

Noone can stop the Fraction! The best new writer of his generation (I said it first!), Fraction is gearing up to write the entire Marvel U soon! Iron Fist is a reprint of the character's first appearance with a Fraction framing sequence; UXM starts a new storyline showcasing Pixie vs the Hellfire Cult (?); the big news is the Thor mini, continuing a series of great Thor stories from Matt, featuring Dougie Braithwaite (UNIVERSE X, JUSTICE) art and the return of Beta Ray Bill!


MARVEL ADVENTURES WATCH!



MA: FANTASTIC FOUR #39
MA: SPIDER-MAN #42
MA: HULK #14
MA: ADVENTURES #27
MA: SUPER-HEROES #2
WOLVERINE: FIRST CLASS #6
X-MEN FIRST CLASS #15
SKRULLS vs POWER PACK #2

It's the fun side of the Marvel U! One by one: the ultimate Ben vs Johnny prank show-down in 'silent but deadly'; Black Cat vs the Puma; PAD writing the Hulk in the Microverse; the last Jeff Parker Avengers story (!!!); Hulk, Iron Man and Spidey playing intergalactic frat sports, including KREE KARAOKE (??); Siryn & Kitty have a mutant sleep-over; the original X-Men vs Medusa; the Skrull Power Pack become teen gangsters?!


SECRET INVASION WATCH!



SECRET INVASION #5
MIGHTY AVENGERS #17
NEW AVENGERS #44
AVENGERS THE INITIATIVE #16
SI: INHUMANS #1
SI: THOR #1
SI: X-MEN #1
SI: SPIDER-MAN BRAND NEW DAY #1
SI: RUNAWAYS/YOUNG AVENGERS #3
SI: FRONTLINE #2
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #4
NOVA #16
INCREDIBLE HERCULES #120
MS MARVEL #30
CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND THE MI13 #4
X-FACTOR #34
SHE-HULK #32
THUNDERBOLTS #123
NEW WARRIORS #15
BLACK PANTHER #40
SKRULLS vs POWER PACK #2

No, seriously... TWENTY-ONE titles, Marvel? -sigh-

What? Plot details? Everyone fights these alien shape-shifter dudes. They're, like, invading. I didn't even know you could write 21 interesting Skrull stories. Let alone multiplied by 5-6 months. Highlights among the titles include: Bendis doing some good Avengers work for a change, Carey writing the full X-Men cast, Mar-Vell vs Marvel Boy (MA), the Skrull Kill Krew return in Initiative, Fraction writing Thor, Jason Aaron writing Black Panther, more Young Avengers, the return of Longshot (hurray), and the daughter of the Super-Skrull!




PATSY WALKER: HELLCAT #2

From the writer of the excellent MCP Hellcat stories and hot new talent David LaFuente. Patsy Walker tentacle porn!


YOUNG X-MEN #5

...sucks. Marvel seems to think otherwise in this cringe-worthy rose-tinted solicit, but oh well... Oh yeah, 'nothing will ever be the same again' and 'we know a lot of books make that claim, but [...] you nkow this one's for real'. Yeah dude, sure.




X-MEN ORIGINS: JEAN GREY

Sean McKeever returning to Marvel for a teen Jean oneshot with Mike Mayhew art!


X-FACTOR SPECIAL LAYLA MILLER

PAD promises to finally reveal the secrets of the Summer Rebellion from Bishop's future. Did anyone else even remember about this? All I care for is more wise-ass-ery from Layla!




ELEKTRA BY FRANK MILLER OMNIBUS

Collecting ELEKTRA ASSASSIN (with Bill Sienkiewicz), ELEKTRA LIVES AGAIN and one-shots. Absolute classic stuff.




YOUNG INHUMANS TPB

Collecting the entire 12-issue Tsunami INHUMANS run, McKeever first mainstream work for Marvel, starring the teen Inhumans (introduced in Jenkin's groundbreaking mini) moving to America to experience human culture (and campus life)!


ESSENTIAL MAN-THING vol.2 TPB
DEAD OF NIGHT FEATURING MAN-THING

Now how about collecting the DeMatteis/Sharp run to top off the Man-Thing goodness? :)

***


DARK HORSE COMICS

EMPOWERED v.4

As the fake Capey (Spandex-set Oscars) proclaims, this is the Suprahuman Most Deserving of Wider recognition. A super sex-ploitation fun romp starring a busty blonde airhead super-heroine whose powers depend on the integrity of her ridiculously easily-tattered skin-tight costume. Body issues, sex, peer pressure and lots - lots -LOTS of bondage scenes! Written and drawn (well, pencil sketched) by auter Adam Warren. Most Highly Recommended!




GHOST OMNIBUS v.1

Early Terry Dodson and Adam Hughes art in a smile-price package!




MISTER X ARCHIVES

The stylish cover got my attention. Referred to as a ground-breaking piece of work from 25 years ago, featuring early work from J. Hernandez, Dave McKean, Dean Motter and Seth! Priced in the Omnibus high range unfortunately.




THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY: APOCALYPSE SUITE HARDCOVER

An oversized hardcover collecting the entire mini plus the hard-to-find FCBD2007 issue and the never- before- published MySpace story along with tons of extras. A worthwhile edition of the breakout hit of 2007!


BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #17

Joss Whedon and Karl Moline (FRAY) on the Buffy /Fray team-up that noone expected to see!




HELLBOY: THE CROOKED MAN #2

Richard Corben drawing Hellboy!

***


DC COMICS

FINAL CRISIS WATCH!



FC: REVELATIONS #1
FC: LEGION OF THREE WORLDS #1
DC UNIVERSE: LAST WILL & TESTAMENT
FC: SUPERMAN BEYOND #1
FC: ROGUES' REVENGE #2

See? That's more sane. A tight grouping of tie-in titles, even in the gap month between issues 3 and 4 of the main event book. and look at the creator credits. This isn't random fill-in material. Rucka shoehorns his new Spectre/Question book into the FC event; Geoff Johns and George Perez continue the Superboyman Prime saga while making sense of the three different Legions running around; Brad Metzler and Adam Kubert take an intimate look at the heroes in the middle of the crisis (with a link to legacies, as hinted by the great cover); Morrison writes a team-up between every alternate reality Superman, with art by Doug Mahnke and a special 3D surprise section; the classic Flash team of Johns and Kolins return for the wrap-up of their Rogues saga. I'm buying everything. Shock!




TITANS #5

The now infamous 'Tacky Sex' cover. Ugh.




ALL-STAR SUPERMAN #12

Morrison and Frank Quitely wrap up the best Superman run of the decade.




SUPERMAN/BATMAN #51

Toddler versions of Batman and Superman invade our Earth! Superkid and Bat-tot ? I sure hope so!




BIRDS OF PREY #121
THE BRAVE & THE BOLD #16

The Birds of Prey versus Joker! Superman vs Catwoman... in bed? DC's best covers of the month!


INFINITY INC. #12

Final Issue for Milligan's under-appreciated and badly promoted look at the troubled teen survivors of Luthor's Everyman project.


BIRDS OF PREY: METROPOLIS OR DUST TPB

The complete collection of Sean McKeever's run on the title.Brief but brilliant!




DC COMICS GOES APE TPB

DC's answer to Marvel's recent 'Marvel Apes' convention announcement: 'We did it first, and we probably did it better too'. Collecting elevent self-contained ape-centric stories from DC's treasury.


DC UNIVERSE ILLUSTRATED BY NEAL ADAMS vol.1 HARDCOVER

The first of three prestige hardcovers paying tribute to Neal Adams' stamp on the DCU, following the example of the DEADMAN COLLECTION.




KINGDOM COME TP - NEW EDITION

Reprint with a stunning foldout Alex Ross cover only available on the first printing edition. And the speculators go BOOM


WILDSTORM WATCH:



THE AUTHORITY: WORLD'S END #1
GEN13: WORLD'S END #21
STORMWATCH PHD: WORLD'S END #13
WILDCATS: WOLRD'S END #2

Yawn. So there's some sort of apocalyptic event going on in NUMBER OF THE BEAST. Is anyone even reading that? Why is everyone at Wildstorm editorial hell-bent on tying these titles so close together in continuity when it's clear they don't really fit well together. Authority relaunches once again with DNA on the writing helm and some newcomer on art - doesn't sound too awe-inspiring for the old chart-topper; Stormwatch returns but without Gage or Mahnke; the Wildstorm universe continues the downward spiral from the worst relaunch in the history of relaunches.


MINX WATCH:



EMIKO SUPERSTAR
JANES IN LOVE

Castellucci and Rugg's fan-favourite Janes return for their second album! Emiko Superstar doesn't have any info to grab our attention but still getting it on the strength of every Minx release so far.


VERTIGO WATCH:



AIR #1
FABLES: COVERS BY JAMES JEAN HC
ARMY@LOVE: THE ART OF WAR #1
SCALPED vol. 3 : DEAD MOTHERS
SCALPED #20
Y THE LAST MAN DELUXE EDITION BOOK 1 HC



Vertigo struggles along.
-The newest ongoing 'Air' doesn't look too promising. A vigilante group looking to take the skies back from terrorists? The preview pages have the same awkward storytelling and dialogue as the team's previous work, CAIRO. I'll be skipping this, despite the extra-pages deal on the first issue.
-FABLES takes a gap month, but releases a hardcover collection of James Jean's stunning covers.
-ARMY@LOVE (the book almost every fan and critic trashed) returns (why?) with a striking Mona Lisa cover.
-SCALPED remains Vertigo' best current series. New tpb and storyline wrap this month.
-Y THE LAST MAN gets collected in 10-issue hardcovers with new covers. Why not an actual absolute edition though? Keep your money for the eventual release.




WATCHMEN MOVIE: ACTION FIGURE ASSORTMENT #1

Expectedly dorky, as is the way with movie tie-in figures. Why not release them from Gibbons' designs?




THE JOKER POKER SET

Fun! A card deck 'defaced; by the Joker with manic scribblings on each card, and Joker-faced poker chips.






AME-COMI HAWKGIRL FIGURE

I wish these character designs would somehow make their way into an actual DC comic. They really salvage some dorky looking super-heroines

***


IMAGE COMICS

GOLLY #1

A carnival handyman fighting against a demonic invasion? The previews look sweet and the solicits call upon PREACHER and GOON. No you've caught my attention, let's see how you deliver.


GUERILLAS #1

A comic about Gorilla soldiers in Vietnam-- that DOESN'T have any actual monkeys on the cover? Did these guys miss Marketing 101? Monkey's sell ON THE COVER!




FRANK FRAZETTA'S DRACULA MEETS THE WOLF-MAN

A story inspired by a Frazetta painting (see Guerillas crew? these guys know how to drum up marketing out of thin air). Steve Niles is a guarantee on horror.


IMAGE MONSTER PILE-UP

A $1.99 comic featuring new short stories from the ongoing series PROOF, ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN, FIREBREATHER and PERHARPANAUTS in a clever cross-promotion event.




THE ROBERTS #1

By the great Wayne Chinsang (HEAVEN LLC). The Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer swap stories in their retirement home.


INVINCIBLE WATCH:

INVINCIBLE: THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION vOL.4 HC
INVINCIBLE #55
NOBLE CAUSES #37
SAVAGE DRAGON #139

The best way to experience Kirkman's best work. An affordable oversized hardcover of issues 36-47.
Plus a new monthly issue and two guest-star spots trying to rub off some of the character's popularity on the rest of the Image super-hero line.




MADMAN ATOMIC COMICS #12

Introducing MADGIRL! What, how can you resist that visual? BUY!

***

INDY PAGES

YOU'LL ALL BE SORRY MMPB
ABOUT COMICS p. 196

A must-buy collection of Gail Simone's humour columns from CBR, the material that made her famous and led to her amazing comics writing career. I was fortunate enough to be included as a proof-reader back in the final year of columns. History in the making here folks, and every single column a laugh-out-loud pleasure.


AMAZE INK/SLG WATCH: p. 200



THE BABYSITTER OGN
UBU BUBU #3
BIFF! BAM! POW! #1

Japan's first jet-pack superhero babysitter!
Jamie Smart's newest issue starring the demonic possessed kitty.
Evan Dorkin's DORK substitute offered again.


AVATAR PRESS WATCH: p. 221



CROSSED #0
ANNA MERCURY BUST
GRAVEL: NEVER A DULL DAY SIGNED HC
WARREN ELLIS' SCARS TPB
ANNA MERCURY #5
DOKTOR SLEEPLESS #10
GRAVEL #6

-The most twisted book of Garth Ennis' career? Wow. Half the enjoyment of Ennis' books in Avatar is seeing what new absurd ways he can find to shock his audience. Promising.
-A beautiful bust starring Ellis' newest superheroine icon.
-A hardcover collection of all 24 Gravel issues and oneshots! Pity about that cover price though. Can we get an unsigned edition for cheaper? Limited to 2000 copies (no wonder the monthlies are running late)
-Three new issues of the regular monthly Warren Ellis titles.


SOUVLAKI CIRCUS HC
BUENAVENTURA PRESS p. 243

A series of pencil sketches featuring offbeat metaphoric anecdotes. I just really dig the name!


THE BOYS DEFINITIVE EDITION HC
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT p. 249

Ennis and Robertson's landmark ongoing collected in oversized 14-issue slipcased hardcovers! Sexy, although the price tag may hinder some.




HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL vol.1 GN
DISNEY PRESS p. 286

A graphic novel adaptation of the hit teen musical. Meh for me, but surely exciting for my friend Tyler and other teen girls. ;)


JAMILTI & OTHER STORIES HC
DRAWN & QUARTERLY p.288

A new collection of short stories from Rutu Modan (EXIT WOUNDS)


FANTAGRAPHICS WATCH: p. 298



GHOST WORLD: THE SPECIAL EDITION
ABANDONED CARS
SUBLIFE

-a 280pg hardcover release of the original 80pg graphic novel GHOST WORLD. That's 200 pages of 'DVD extras', in this case sketches, short stories, the Oscar-nominated screenplay. Drool...
-A darkly (daaarkly) pessimistic book that I seem to have fallen for inexplicably
-The cartoon adventures of two white supremacist brothers and their wacky household.




SIXTEEN MILES TO MERRICKS
FROGCHILDREN STUDIOS p. 304

24 page preview here.




THE VOYAGES OF SHEBUCCANEER #2
GREAT BIG COMICS p.312

The cover looks like the TAROT of pirate comics.. Then again, it features an unexpected attack from the Giant Mutant Cannibals of Atlantis. You know it has to be worth a look.


IDW WATCH: p.316



WELCOME TO HOXFORD #1
DOCTOR WHO THE FORGOTTEN #1
GALAXY QUEST: GLOBAL WARMING #1
FALLEN ANGEL #29

Too many great stuff!
-Ben Templesmith's newest horror story, set in a sanitarium
-Tony Lee (beer god and writer of HOPE FALLS) and Pia Guerra (Y THE LAST MAN) teaming up on the new DOCTOR WHO license
-My very best friends Scott Lobdell (X-MEN) and Greek superstar Ilias Kyriazis (ZUDA, DHP) starting an exciting comic book sequel to the GALAXY QUEST movie
-Newest PAD Fallen Angel


LOCAL HC
ONI PRESS p.334

A very affordable hardcover collection of LOCAL #1-12 from Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly, following a girl's life as she travels around America trying to find new roots, each issue taking place in a different year of her life.


I WAS KIDNAPPED BY LESBIAN PIRATES FROM OUTER SPACE #4
PLATINUM STUDIOS p. 340

Really. You really need me to tell you something else about this? It does what it says on the label.


RADICAL COMICS WATCH: p. 344



CALIBER #4
HERCULES #4
FREEDOM FORMULA #1

New issues for the Hercules epic story and the Western Excalibur (where the sword is indeed a gun firing lightning at the hands of a worthy sherriff). The launch of a new sci-fi futuristic story set in a world where pilots are genetically engineered and bred to race. Radical really is a major publishing force in the making.


SAM & MAX: SURFIN' THE HIGHWAY
TELLTALE INC. p.349

A reprint of the original Sam & Max comics from the 80s. Now (once more) a hit adventure game series.


I LUV HALLOWEEN - ULTIMATE TWISTED EDITION
TOKYOPOP p. 352

Boy am I glad I missed this the first time out. An affordable hardcover (what is it this month with hardcover indie reprints?) reprint of the first three Giffen/Roman freaky manga about a roving gang of evil trick & treater kids, only this time: in full colour! HA! Lovin' it.


MODERN MASTERS VOLUME 16: MIKE ALLRED
TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING p. 363

The ultimate Mike Allred interview jam-packed with hundreds of sketches and colour art reprints. The ultimate source for any Allred fan.


THE STRANDED vol. 1 HARDCOVER
VIRGIN COMICS p.379

The amazing 5 issue mini series from Mike Carey (X-MEN, LUCIFER) that's being turned into a Sci-Fi original TV series next year, collected into a... you guessed it: limited edition hardcover!



JOKER: LAST LAUGH T-SHIRT
p. 440

A chilling laughing Joker on black T-Shirt. I know I'll be proudly wearing it come August!

***

and ooooooof that's it for this month!

Pre-order and support your favourite struggling titles and indie publishers ;)
Read more!

Quick thoughts on Lost Season 4 Finale

Remember the RedShirts man!

ummm, SPOILERS AHOY

An enjoyable two-parter, but seriously padded out.

Lots of tears for Jin, and surprisingly more tears for the Desmond-Penny reunion. I didn't know I cared! (ok, in Jin's case I didn't; I did care for Sun and was reacting to her devastation more than anything)

Anyway, the Redshirts! Or in this case, the anonymous mass of survivors. What happened to them?? Did Daniel transfer all of them to the freighter? If he did, then why aren't they shown on board the ship? We knew there was at least a couple more losties on board from his first run. Why does noone make a fuss when Jack decides it's just gonna be him and his 4 friends who escape the exploding ship? And if there's space on the chopper for Jin (so one more) why don't they rescue an extra guy off the ship before it goes kablooey? (Well, ok I didn't expect them to show a redshirt on the chopper, but they should have shown them getting killed or find another way to mend the hole)

Meanwhile, back on the island, is Juliette the last of the Losties to stay on shore? There's noone else on sight. From the dialogue that's the feeling I got. But then what about the other Losties? And what about Rose and Bernard? Didn't Rose want to leave the island? Why show her at all in part 1 for a bit line and then forget about her?

Finally, 'lie to protect them'. Them who? Juliette, Sawyer and Locke? There's no really anyone else left alive on the island at this point that they care about.

As for the casket reveal... Well we knew it was one of the two, and one is standing there... Can you spell resurrection in Season 5? ;)
Read more!

Wildly Popular 'Iron Man' Trailer To Be Adapted Into Full-Length Film

Wildly Popular 'Iron Man' Trailer To Be Adapted Into Full-Length Film
Read more!

Marvel Capsule Reviews Week 19 2008

Whoa. You turn your head around for a second and suddenly the world is upside down. So, Spidey is quippy and carefree, Bendis' Avengers don't suck no more, Secret Invasion is entertaining, and Iron-Man is not a prick? Ah, but cruel vengeful Karma, look what's happened to the darling X-books in retaliation... BOO!

Plus: Zombie Wolvie and Spidey vs H.E.R.B.I.E.(s)!

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #558

(Bob Gale / Barry Kitson / Mark Farmer)

It's catch-up time on your spidey subplots (and a big welcome to Modern Master Barry Kitson)!

Peter is moving out of Aunt May's (about time, and the old bird concurs), the Hollister campaign gets hit by Menace (the Goblin knock-off), the Fabulous Freak (the ever-adapting animalistic rodent villain) resurfaces - this time in full Armadillo gear- and spidey deals smack to save the day. Honest! It's thick-plotted, fast-paced and way full of quips, what's not to like?

7/10




AVENGERS INVADERS #1

(Jim Krueger / Alex ross / Steve Sadowski)

The Invaders are fighting the Nazis in WWII. Spider-man is fighting the Thunderbolts in 2008 (bloody brilliant quippage btw, get Krueger on a Spider-book fast!). Cue in an unexplainable time-warp and you get a royal Invaders vs Thunderbolts fight as a tasty warm-up to this sure-to-be-epic maxi-series from the creators of Earth-X. It's good to see the Invaders show up with some actual personality and team dynamic; I was disappointed with some of the wasted opportunities in this match-up: that's Baron Strucker's boy posing as Swordsman, not just any German... Sadowski is a prime choice for this and an excellent replacement for the usual team's artist Dougie Braithwaite.

(more)

8.5/10




CABLE #3

(Duane Swierczynski / Ariel Olivetti)

What's wrong with this title? Three issues in and not much has been revealed. Cable's in the future with the new mutant baby girl. Bishop's hunting him down like a raving/cackling 2-dimensional villain (seriously, is he a Skrull or something? How do they explain this personality lobotomy), throwing trucks and ammo around. This issue Cable gets bandaged up while Bishop is taken hostage. Is that all this title will be? A Road Runner chase with a baby strap-on in a vaguely-defined somewhat-bleak future? At least it doesn't take more than a minute to read through...

3/10




INVINCIBLE IRON MAN v5 #1

(Matt Fraction / Salvador Larroca)

...and suddenly Fraction's 5-year World Domination plan jumps into focus. I honestly couldn't be more excited for a creator jumping on a character like Iron Man. Millionaire playboy, recovering alcoholic, armoured super-hero, genius futurist inventor, and head of a super-spy organisation? Fraction juggles ALL of Stark's contradicting facets with ease, drops him into a real-life political plateau, and introduces an exciting (and interestingly disturbed) new technological opponent /slash/ (love doing that) arch-nemesis: Stane Jr or Iron Man v.2.0. Good days are coming.

8.5/10





IRON MAN VIVA LAS VEGAS #1

(Jon Favreau / Adi Granov)

A timeless Iron Man adventure, starring the boozing womanizing Tony Stark of yore, secret identity intact, Iron Man still posing as his bodyguard.

The mini... Hmm, what else... It's set in Vegas (duh), features art by Adi Granov (so you might as well be watching the movie Iron Man bursting through the page in realistic glory), sex, lizards and a giant honking big Golden Dragon --who seems to demand splash pages every time he makes an appearance. Divas...


It's not terribly interesting yet, and I can't wrap my head around the notion of a) Iron Man punching a C4-strapped air pirate through the hull of the airplane mid-flight, or b)noone figuring out his secret identity after Iron Man shows up (again mid-flight) after Stark loudly excused himself to the toilet -- but that cover and the art inside make up for any discrepancies inside. Woofta!



7/10


LOGAN #3

(Brian K Vaughan / Eduardo Risso)

That's something new: Zombie Logan! Just in case you were wondering what happens when an undying incorporeal Hiroshima survivor rips out Wolvie's heart and eats it... All-out mindless berserker rage action to wrap up a very special mini-series.


8.5/10




MARVEL ADVENTURES SPIDER-MAN #39

(Marc Sumerak / Ryan Stegman)

Peter tours his Latverian foreign exchange student buddy Kristoff around NY until they get blindsided by the Fantastic Four! Worth a look for the Latverian eye view on the NYC cityscape and Spidey fighting a horde of H.E.R.B.I.E. robots!


6.5/10




MIGHTY AVENGERS #13

(Brian Bendis / Alex Maleev)

In yet another flashback vignette, Bendis reveals the secret origins of the new hush-hush secret Howling Commandos (shouldn't they be the Whispering Commandos then?):
Daisy (from Secret War, which I still haven't read)
Phobos (Son of Ares, fear powers)
Yo Yo Rodriguez (Daughter of the Griffin (?), can run to anywhere in the world for a bit before getting slingshot back to start. cute)
J.T. (Grandson of the Western Ghost Rider/Phantom Rider)
Layla Miller (of X-Factor fame)
Dr Druid Jr (guess)
Jerry Sledge (?).

All of them (?) super-powered legacies, with Bendis making it a specific point to address in each case that none of them are actually mutants although born with powers. Why the hatred, Brian?

It's a recipe team book intro issue with a central figure going door to door, spouting their origins in their face and recruiting them for a shady leader figure. They do make for an interesting mix of personalities, can't wait to see more.



7.5/10


PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #19

(Matt Fraction & Rick Remender / Howard Chaykin)

'Jigsaw' part 2.

Fraction's run on this book has been building up to this. Jigsaw is back, draped as the Anti-Punisher and surrounding himself with his own Punisher family, shooting down criminals and civilians with alarming frequency, pinning everything on poor Frank. Jigsaw is a pleasure to read, with the distinctive voice and mannerisms Fraction has coloured his speech with. Unfortunately all things come to an end, as signalled by this issue's introduction to Rick Remender as co-writer in the middle of an arc, slowly starting to pull a guards switch. And ''yo yo check it out'' (sorry too much American Idol) Howard Chaykin is doing the art. I mean... Do you really need more reason to pick this up? Goferit.


8/10


SECRET INVASION #2

(Brian Bendis / Leinil Francis Yu / Mark Morales)

Holy! This might not turn out to be a mess after all.

The combined Avengers teams encounter a ship full of lost 70s and 80s heroes in the Savage Land. We're talking a Who's Who of 'Skrully' heroes specifically selected to mess with these Avengers' (and the readers') heads. From last issue's reveal I didn't really expect to actually find myself baffled and involved in this 'who do you trust' game. But then this is why this is the issue that won me over to this SI buzz.

Some of the 'invaders' are obvious red herrings: Phoenix, 80s Emma, 70s (pre X-Men!) Wolverine, Avengers Beast, web-pits Spidey, Thor, Cap, Invisible Woman... These would be too 'loud', the reveals would be too staggering for the Marvel Universe (and would simply shit all over a lot of beloved stories).


On the other hand, superhero Jessica Jones, Hawkeye, the original Ms Marvel, Mockingbird, Vision, Iron Man, Scarlet Witch, 'fro Luke Cage... I would totally see some of these working. Bendis picks the perfect candidate to seed doubt into my non-believer mind, with Mockingbird, an old favourite character I would LOVE to see returned.


The battle flies hard and fast, I do wish we got to see more of it elsewhere. There were some quick highlights, but so many other wasted opportunities. Shouldn't someone question all these characters? Wouldn't Wolverine freak over Jean returned to life? Shouldn't someone acknowledge Wolvie was replaced by a Skrull once before? Did Cage not notice his wife up there? Wonder-man versus the Beast?

Leinil Yu finally proves he's earned his super-star status, returning to an earlier tighter and defined line style but infusing it with the fluidity of his New Avengers work. This is the sort of artwork I'd like to see from him on Avengers from now on.


p.s. what's going on with this page? Leinil has had storytelling mishaps before, but I'd have hoped the editor to be on top of these for their mega-event:


8/10



X-FACTOR THE QUICK AND THE DEAD

(Peter David / Pablo Raimondi)

It's an X-Factor issue by the series regular creative team showcasing Quicksilver in enjoyable PAD-esque deconstruction fashion; Pietro's found himself in jail, having finally hit rock bottom, hallucinating about his father, sister, wife, kid and that wise-ass Layla Miller, trying to make sense of his situation and climb back up again. and that he does. It's a redemption issue, as a pay-off to all the work David and Hine have done with Quicksilver since House of M. Why this isn't dealt with in a normal fill-in issue of X-Factor (other titles ship bi-weekly for a month on a random basis) is a mystery, as this special is sure to sell less than the title's normal numbers.


7.5/10




YOUNG X-MEN #2

(Mark Guggenheim / Yannick Paquette)

How stupid are these kids?

'Cyclops' shows up on their doorsteps and he's assembling young untrained teen mutants to make a killing squad for his former students who have all suddenly and inexplicably turned evil.

Uh-huh.

So he has the kids train in a 'Danger Cave' (which can emulate Moonstar's psionic attack? I'll just let that slide) and then splits them into two groups, sending them (unsupervised! with two very expensive private jets) to kill the New Mutants?

Ok, we get it, Cyclops is Donald Pierce in disguise, Cerebro isn't picking up his signal, this whole mission is a fib. What I still don't get is why we had to get deprived of the fan-favourite New X-Men roster just when it was starting to shine to get saddled with this mismatch of idiots.

p.s. a Danger room sequence? Are we already playing that lame plot card? sheesh

3/10
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The Fag Hag Anthem

...dedicated to Katia ;)



So I'm shamelessly stealing off the excellent Greek "Ravin' Bitches" blog this week, but I do it with looooove.

One, two, ready go
I'm tired of boys who make me cry
They cheat on me and they tell me lies
I want a love who'll never stray
When he sees other girls, he looks away
And if he never kisses me, well that's alright
'Cos we can just cuddle all night

Gay boyfriend, gay boyfriend
I don't really care that you are queer
Gay boyfriend, gay boyfriend
I never feel lonely when you are near

It'll be a great romance
We'll go shopping and buy tight pants
You don't care how big my ass is,
just how fabulous my dress is

Gay boyfriend, gay boyfriend
I don't really care that you are queer
Gay boyfriend, gay boyfriend
I never feel lonely when you are near

One, two, ready go
You cry at movies, on our dates
Romantic comedies sure are great
But when you're sad I'll dry your tears
'Cos I'll always think that you are fierce
I like cigarettes, and that's no gag
But you'll always be my favorite fag
You'll always be my favorite fag
You'll always be my favorite faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag

My gay boyfriend, gay boyfriend...
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Disney's Desperate Housewives

Source: unknown

I found this cartoon traversing the blogosphere at light-speed, but noone has been sourcing this to its creator. Kudos whoever you are :)
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NYC: the Sci-Fi Menace Tour

Peter Parker touring young Kristoff (a Latverian exchange student) around NYC. Yeah Latveria is a pretty high-risk fake Balkan dictatorship.

Source: Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #39 (Marvel Comics)
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Radioactive Gas

Source: Avengers / Invaders #1 (Marvel Comics)
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DC Capsule Reviews Week 18 2008

What? No more Countdown issues this week? What am I going to bitch about now? A fast and fun 'acne' week with four (count'em FOUR) Teen Titans family titles, three (3!) Legion of Super-Heroes spottings and a look at teen Green Lantern origins!


DC UNIVERSE #0

(Geoff Johns & Grant Morrison/ various)

ACTION COMICS #864

(Geoff Johns / Joe Prado)

Remember how we were told DC Universe #0 was designed to be the bridge between Countdown to Final Crisis (what a misnomer in the end) and the actual Final Crisis. Why does it now read suspiciously like a collection of trailers for each of the upcoming Final Crisis-related projects while making no mention at all of the Countdown dangling threads.

Even more puzzling, why does Action Comics #864, out the same week, actually fulfill all of DCU #0's promises in its place? Geoff Johns brings together every dangling plot line from the past year (the multiple Superman appearances in JSA/Countdown/Sinestro Corps; the crossovers with pre- and post- Waidvamp Legion in Brave&Bold, Action Comics and JLA/JSA; the death of Karate Kid and Una; Starman's cryptic mission from JSA; the recent adult Legion story in Action Comics) and merges them together, revealing indeed (!) a greater plan and feeding all the storylines into the Johns' helmed 'Legion of Three Worlds' Final Crisis tie-in.

All the while, he provides an entertaining rapport between Superman (who's reverting to a gleeful teenager as he reminisces with: ) Lightning Lad (who's visiting from the Legion's future and has a major dislike for: ) Batman (who is simply being Batman, and maybe a tad jealous that Clark has another super-buddy now).

In Geoff Johns we trust.

7/10

JSA CLASSIFIED #37 (Featuring Wildcat)

(B. Clay Moore / Ramon Perez)

'Forward Through The Past' part 3. Wildcat and Catwoman bust a mercenary/thug training club during their practical graduation exams. Heh. These two have great chemistry and this creative team feels more and more appropriate for the eventual Catwoman relaunch. For part 3 of a storyline, this issue is again surprisingly self-contained and new-reader-friendly, all the while laying the groundwork for the over-arching storyline involving a group of cat-nappers. Solid action, but still the spotlight is stolen by the brief flashbacks done in a fake pulp magazine scratched paper style.


7/10


TEEN TITANS #58

(Sean McKeever / Carlos Rodriguez)

When McKeever announced he would be spotlighting each Titan in their own issue while building the larger Terror Titans attack story, this was the one I was dreading the most: the Miss Martian issue; arguably the dullest Teen Titan since the #1 relaunch, Megan Morse (fun fact: named after the girlfriend of Nexus founder Ben Morse, now an editor at Marvel.com) peaked at the catchy-yet-unexplored revelation that she in fact a White (eeeevil) Martian masquerading as a benevolent Green one. There was no background information given, her personality remained harmlessly perky, and she formed no worthwhile relationships with anyone in the team.

Well ,thank **** for McKeever for stirring the pot here and bringing out her hidden potential by accentuating her inherent dichotomy: a nice girl battling her evil nature. Only now her evil nature has a face and voice inside her head: those of the future all-evil all-sociopath her from the previous storyline. Is she really merged with Megan. Has she just gone schizo? Megan is suddenly a pleasure to read and precious in all her reactions to Evil Megan's taunts (fluffy puppy attack? aww).

The pacing is exemplary, all individual spotlight stories neatly fitting together as the Terror Titans' plot comes together and the players start affecting each others' stories.

7.5/10





TEEN TITANS YEAR ONE #4

(Amy Wolfram / Karl Kerschl / Serge LaPointe)

A harmless done-in-one featuring the Teen Titans (minus fearless leader Robin) attending their first TV interview and getting ambushed by an unnamed Ant villain. Kid Flash attempts to grab the spotlight in Robin's absence (in an endearing teen jerk-wad way) but Wolfram decides to brush his aspirations away and return the spotlight to Boy Wonder saving the day and justifying his importance to the team. It's a cute story showcasing the two characters' differences. Amy Wolfram deserves her own ongoing Titans title (hint hint), while I surely wouldn't mind seeing the entire art team taking over McKeever's Teen Titans title. They have an amazing take on these teen characters.

7/10


TEEN TITANS GO! #54

(J. Torres / Ethen Beavers)

You can never have too many Wonder-Girls! Cassie Sandsmark makes her bratty animated debut in the tie-in title, crashing Donna Troy's (rather narcissistic) 'Who Will be the next Wonder-Girl' contest. Seriously, you just rig a contest you know you're gonna win just to show off? Ew. I can't stand this tall lanky version of Donna so I did root for the Cassie edition (adapted from her rag tag Young Justice origins than the current bitchy horny widow mode). As a whole the story didn't do too much, tackling too many things at once but not managing to wrap them all before the end; did Torres really just forget about the race half-way through the issue? What was the point of it? Why didn't he have Cassie show up earlier so we could see her compete with Donna? Wasted opportunity for a fun tale.




4.5/10


ESCARABAJO AZUL #26

(Jai Nitz/Mike Norton)

Jamie toma a la novia Traci13 para encontrar a su familia. El problema no es ningunos de ellos habla una palabra de inglés y de nadie incomodada para proporcionar esos soportes convenientes de la traducción en la edición. Sí, la cubierta doesn' la mentira de t, ésta es una español-lengua all- cómica (español del bien, muy bien, cerca de 99%), siguiendo la barbacoa y una batalla contra Parásito (aún toda de la familia de la sorpresa en español). Ahora, sé solamente bastante español para entender 'hija' , 'novia' y 'el escarabajo azul'; la edición leyó tan rápidamente como un cómico silencioso confuso. A mi relevación había una guía completa de la traducción en la parte posterior de la edición que es aún más diversión a leer en sus los propios, como un cómico sin descripciones, las ilustraciones o narración, apenas diálogo, burla ingeniosa de la acción y los efectos sonoros. ¡Afilado amelocotonado!

8/10

(aaaaand translation: )

BLUE BEETLE #26

(Jai Nitz / Mike Norton)

Jamie takes girlfriend Traci13 to meet his family. Problem is none of them speak a word of english and noone bothered to provide those convenient translation brackets in the issue. Yes, the cover doesn't lie, this is an all- spanish-language comic (well, ok, about 99% spanish), followig the family barbeque and a surprise slugfest against Parasite (still all in spanish). Now, I know only enough Spanish to understand 'daughter', 'gilfriend' and 'el escarabajo azul' so the issue read fast like a confusing silent comic. To my relief there was a complete translation guide in the back of the issue which is even more fun to read on its own, like a comic with no descriptions, artwork or narration, just dialogue, witty action banter and sound effects. Peachy keen!

8/10

(pardon me the horrid Babelfish translation above)


GREEN LANTERN #30

(Geoff Johns / Ivan Reis)

Origins part 2.

The absolute jumping-on point for new Green Lantern fans. Johns retells the story of Hal Jordan discovering Abin Sur's crashed plane and donning the Green Lantern ring, infusing it with clues and hints for his overarching storyarc leading to 'the Blackest Night'. This story is easily turning me into a GL fan, and I'm impressed with the flawless pacing of the story, moving along like a traditional comics story, but still allowing time for a series of breath-taking splash pages at just the right moments to bring out the key moments of the mythos.

8.5/10

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #41

(Jim Shooter / Aaron Lopresti / Matt Ryan)

'Enemy Rising' part 2.

No glaring problems like last issue's, yet a sense of discomfort lingers as I make my way through this newest issue. Maybe it's average; maybe it feels like it doesn't really belong in 2008; maybe I can't find myself caring for the characters anymore; maybe there are way too many things happenning at the same time; maybe that misleading cover is just weak and pointless (really, is it a tribute? a gag?); maybe I still don't see the point in continuing the revamped title when the writer is clearly set on reverting everyone back to their original incarnations anyway. Maybe I won't even bother finishing this rev--

5/10


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