The Dangers of Ogling

While we focused on the folks who dressed up for Comic Con in these strips there was more to the show then fat Nightwing's and sexy Aquagirl's. Lots of family and friends stopped by our table and made our weekend a lot of fun. We met a bunch of cool people and made some new fans in the process. 

Our friends Darcy and Dylan were also at the convention. They are the creators of The Dark Museum comics which can be found at www.sordidfairytales.com. Please check out their work and show them some love. -$

Gint's 4-25-12 Pull-List Review

Nine books in the Pull-List this week. I'll try to make this quick.

Bonus Review

Swamp Thing #8

I'm finally caught up reading Swamp Thing and all eight issues have really been worth the scramble to get them read before the crossover with Animal Man starts.

The art in this book in tremendous. Marco Rudy and Yanick Paquette are in the same class as Travel Foreman when it comes to drawing some disturbing shit. Rotting moose, men with grotesque buffalo heads, baby heads atop walking spines... gruesome and also amazing.

This book seriously can't come recommended enough.

Eighth Place:

Superman #8

A cool-looking character does not a good story make. The first issue of Dan Jurgens and Keith Giffen's run was a good start, but this issue still had all the wordiness of the Pérez run, meaning, too much fucking talking!

Superman spends the whole time with Helspont (the guy on the cover with the flaming blue skull head) while pages go by where we could actually be building relationships with Lois/Jimmy and learning who these characters are and what they mean to each other.

I really don't want to NOT get Superman. But if I'm being honest, I'm just not feeling this book.

Seventh Place:

Justice League Dark #8

This book hasn't spoken to me. The art has. Daniel Sampere does good work on the interiors and I love Ryan Sook's covers. But the overall story seems to be missing something. I can't put my finger on it, but there seems to be some emotional attachment missing from this book.

The Dark League pulls itself together to save Andrew Bennett to confront Cain, the ultimate evil vampire. It looks pretty bleak but Andrew shows up in the end to give Cain a good zinger.

This crossover will end in the next issue of I, Vampire (see First Place in this review).

Sixth Place:

Teen Titans #8

New artwork this week by Ig Guara replacing Brett Booth on pencils and I have to say, I like Ig's work better.

Guara's work is closer to R.B. Silva's than Brett Booth's and if you've been following this space, you know I'm a fan of Silva. Everything is a little tighter and a little smoother. Inker J.P. Mayer does a great job differentiating thick and thin line work for a great looking book.

The Titans are in the clutches of Omen, also called Lilith. Apparently she's a throwback to the Titans days of old. Each Titan gets tortured individually while having their secrets exposed to the rest of the team. In the end they all get cool suits like Superboy's to apparently fight the Ravagers in the coming Culling storyline.

Fifth Place:

The Fury of Firestorm #8

Firestorm continues to be a good read though rumblings from the internet seem to suggest its not a strong seller.

Ethan Van Sciver does a great job on art duties as Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch have been split up. Jason, working for Zithertech and running into Britain and France's Firestorms while Ronnie was saved from torture by Pozhar, Russia's Firestorm. Oh, Ronnie also lost his left hand.

This book is pulling no punches and taking Ronnie and Jason places I didn't think the story would go. Its a shame more people aren't reading. These Firestorms are cool characters that need more love.

Fourth Place:

Green Lantern: New Guardians #8

This book has really made its own path. Though the Green Lanterns have become quite popular, I didn't see any need for this book. Tony Bedard and Tyler Kirkham have made it required reading though.

They've taken a member of each Corps and brought them all together, successfully navigating the rough waters of an ensemble cast. What's nice about this book is that the Universe is a big place. Sometimes on Earth you think, "how can this be happening and the Justice League not be there?" Not so in space. Anything goes and that allows this book to really stand on its own while keeping in touch with the rest of the GL mythos.

Also since Sinestro is a Green Lantern again, that's allowed for the Arkillo Corps. A nice twist in said mythos.

Third Place:

The Flash #8

The astounding quality of The Flash took a hit this week. Granted only a small enough hit to land it in 3rd place, but a hit still. Its was kind of confusing. Even being a scholar of the DC Universe, the Speed Force is just one of those things that's supposed to be a mystery. Every writer has tried to define it. Its meant and been responsible for multiple things since it was created. But the only constant of the Speed Force is that I don't think its supposed to be defined.

Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato do a great job trying to reign it in, but I don't think they have to. They add WWII Tuskegee Airman, Turbine (who's been stuck in the Speed Force since 1944) to help explain it to Barry when he gets there. It also ties somehow into Gorilla City.

So what we learned in this week's Flash is that no matter how you try to define it, the Speed Force will always be confusing. And that's OK.

Second Place:

Aquaman #8

I love what Geoff Johns has done with Black Manta. He's taken a silly character with a giant helmet and made him honestly scary. Sure Lex Luthor and the Joker have killed a lot of people. But the stories always do it in such a way that you don't really SEE those characters ruthlessly gutting a woman. Black Manta is no fucking joke.

Ivan Reis and Co. are at their best drawing this issue. Aquaman joins up with Ya'wara, a member of The Others to go find the rest of The Others before Black Manta kills them. What's impressive is the subtle way Arthur's early story is told in brief flashbacks. Also is the subtle nature of the jealousy between Mera and Aquaman's maybe-old-flame, Ya'wara.

Aquaman continues to bring the heat in the New 52.

First Place:

I, Vampire #8

Well, I didn't see that coming. The set up was in Justice League Dark #8, but the payoff is right here in I, Vampire. The conclusion to Rise of the Vampires didn't disappoint. If you wanted a traditional good guys win/bad guys lose story, that's not what happens here.

Andrew dies, is reborn, kills Cain the big bad and takes over the Vampire army in his stead. Yikes. But Andrew is noble. If John Troughton thinks he has something up his sleeve, I believe him.

Andrea Sorrentino continues to astound with his artwork. This book has had violent moments. Sorrentino illustrates their fury, but not in the in-your-face way Paquette does on Swamp Thing. Its more subtle, but no less impressive.

Panel of the Week:

Young love... hovering in the air with batwings.

-Gint

Your Costume Sucks

 

Contrary to this strip's title, there were some sweet costumes at the Pittsburgh Comicon this year.

This was Mc$oss' first trip to the Con and we had a great time. We had the pleasure of our table being placed between some entertaining individuals: Mr. Alan Schell and Tom Lynch and his lady Anissa. It was a pleasure hanging out with them all weekend and meeting everyone that stopped by to talk nerdese and support Mc$oss.

Please check out Alan's work at http://aschell.deviantart.com/#

and Tom's webcomics at 30extralives.com and thecatwhoalwaysdies.com

They're good guys who deserve your support.

-Gint

$oss' Pull-List Reviews 4/25/12

Swamp Thing #8

Swamp Thing takes the war to the doorstep of Sethe, Lord of the Rot. I hate to say it but this issue left me very underwhelmed. The design for Flying Swamp Thing came complete with antlers and flowery wings. Kind of silly. We also met the newly transformed Abigail Arcane. She looked like a cross between Alien and the Tar Baby. Fucking awful.

I still love this book but I can't stress how disappointing this issue was. Hopeful next month Snyder and Paquette can get this great book back on track.

Justice League #8

This was a clinic on how to force feed a character to the reader. Not only did Green Arrow try to push his way into The Justice League by into the readers hearts. He fails at both. I don't know what DC is trying to do with this character. He comes across as horribly unlikeable. I miss the old Oliver Queen.

I don't care for the flashbacks to past adventures. Isn't this supposed to be a reimagining of The Justice League? Then why tell these new stories in bits and pieces. Don't give me a one page flashback, tell the story! Another month, another shitty issue of Justice League. 

On the other hand, Johns and Gary Frank have sparked my interest in the upcoming Shazam book. The bonus story more then makes up for the main tale. Billy Batson is a little asshole, but there is more to him then the brat he appears to be. Great art by Frank. He is a master of the expression. I officially can't wait for this book.

Wonder Woman #8

Hermes and Diana travel to the underworld to rescue Zola from Hades. Damn is this a creepy book. Hades isn't presented in the typical fire and brimstone manner which makes it all the more chilling. Hades is also not as you would expect, a small child with a burning candle melting down his face. I'll be seeing this in my nightmares.

I love the tone of this book. The color palette is all reds and grays, dark and foreboding. Azzarello and Chiang have been consistently great from the beginning. 

Batman: The Dark Knight #7

Batman: The Dark Knight has been a roller coaster ride of quality. While David Finch's art is always top notch the story has been all over the place. Bane is portrayed as a muscle bound brute and I hate that. I think all writers should follow the template used for this character in Secret Six. 

Lots of great splash pages in this book, but ultimately I'm glad this story arc is over. Overall I enjoy Dark Knight so I'll hang with this book for a few more months. 

Batman #8

The Court of Owls track Batman back to Wayne Manor. While Bruce and Alfred fight for their lives the most influential people in Gotham are attacked by the Owls. Bruce Wayne kicks a lot of ass in this book, all while in his bathrobe. Well.....until the final page when he confronts the Owls in an Iron Bat suit. Yuck. 

Night of the Owls looks to be an entertaining event. I'm anxious to see how the rest of Batman Incorporated deals with these undead ninjas in the coming month.

Avengers vs X-Men #2

The knockdown, drag out battle on the beach has begun. This is your standard slugfest but handled with care by the always amazing John Romita Jr. Lots of geek out match-ups here, from Red Hulk vs Colossus to Iron Man vs Magneto and the main event Captain America vs Cyclops. 

The captions were a little melodramatic for my taste "The Lord of Atlantis versus a man from Harlem with indestructible skin. Either would sooner die than yield. Today both will bleed." Damn Jason Aaron! Is this Hamlet or AVX? Other then this minor cheesiness AVX#2 is an outstanding read.-$

Panel of the Week: I hope the warranty isn't up on those bracelets.

The Collector

I haven't actually purchased the Katniss Everdeen Barbie Doll, yet. However I strongly believe that the only one noble enough to wed The Girl on Fire would be the leader of the Autobots. Sorry Peeta and Gale, The Matrix of Leadership has spoken.-$ 

Gint's 4-18-12 Pull-List Review

Being at the Pittsburgh Comicon all weekend has forced me to cram and read and review everything in one night. Challenge accepted.

Bonus Review:

Swamp Thing #6 & #7

Playing catch-up on Swamp Thing continues this week with issues 6 and 7. Issue #6 is drawn by Marco Rudy and #7 is done by Yanick Paquette. This is probably the most solid artist duo DC has right now. When Rudy fills in for Paquette the adjustment is minimal. The styles are so similar and they're both using the same designy page layouts. Great looking books.

Scott Snyder, after 7 issues finally introduces us to Swamp Thing. Alec Holland, under the threat of the death of Abigail Arcane and the Parliament of Trees, finally agrees to become Swamp Thing. But its okay because its his choice this time. The Green helps him make the transformation and Swamp Thing seriously murders some agents of the Rot to close the issue.

Looking forward to issue #8. Shits getting real.

 Fourth Place:

Supergirl #8

I haven't had a whole lot of good things to say about George Pérez. So when I saw he'd be drawing this issue of Supergirl I immediately expected a shitty issue. Much to my surprise, it was good.

Writers Mike Johnson and Michael Green rewrite the mythology for the Silver Banshee. I always like the old DCU Silver Banshee mythology so I was skeptical. They do a solid job but I miss the old Silver Banshee who I thought was way sexier. Sexy is very important. Also the mythology Gail Simone put into place in Secret Six with Jeanette was just genius.

A lot of my issues with George Pérez have been that his art seems to be trapped in the 1980s. Whether helped out by inker Bob Wiacek or colorist Paul Mounts, the art looked a little more modern. Granted there were some panels of straight up 80s-ness, but there were also panels that had some great detail and nice little touches to make everything feel real.

A great job by all and another successful issue of Supergirl.

Third Place:

Wonder Woman #8

There really isn't too much to say about this book other than its been incredibly consistent. Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang know what's what. Chiang draws the fuck out of this book. Every panel looks amazing including his dead man on a dead horse who are all exposed muscle. Gross and terrifying.

And apparently Eros pistols can penetrate Wonder Woman's bracelets. Someone should have told her that.

This book will be an amazing read once its collected. I'm already considering getting the hardback.

Second Place:

Justice League #8

This issue is quirky. Light on the drama, heavy on the comedy. But Geoff Johns places that comedy in all the right places. Its a fun read that gives you a glimpse of the relationships between the members of the Justice League.

Green Arrow wants to join the Justice League but the League doesn't want him. Mainly because Arrow has some past with Aquaman that's inferred and they tried inviting Martian Manhunter and well, that didn't go well. (see the Panel of the Week)

Carlos D'Anda does the bulk of the pencils and does a great job. I'd read a title with him as the full-time artist. Also, the inimitable Ivan Reis pitches in for some fantastic pages at the end. Again, see our Panel of the Week.

Issues 1-6 were kind of a bust, but we now seem to be on the right track.

Oh yeah, the Shazam back-up story was pretty sweet. Gary Frank is infallible in my opinion. Johns and Frank are throwing some twists and turns into the new Shazam mythos and its totally worth the read.

First Place:

Green Lantern Corps #8

What a great issue. This was classic Pete Tomasi Green Lantern Corps. Some great Guy Gardner moments as he disagrees with storing the Sinestro Corps power battery on Oa. Peter Tomasi knows these characters, dare I say, almost better than Geoff Johns himself.

The issue is basically the setup for the Alpha War storyline. John Stewart killed another Lantern to save the Corps. Well the Alpha Lanterns (the Green Lanterns Internal Affairs) have come to arrest him which looks like its going to divide the Corps. This should play in well with the upcoming larger Third Army storyline.

Fernando Pasarin draws the fuck out of this issue as usual and should really get more credit. I'll blow the Fernando Pasarin trumpet loud and clear in this space because he's a great artist that deserves more recognition.

Unrelated, I'm sad they made Horoq Nnot an Alpha Lantern because she used to be sexy. Now she's a creepy person/Alpha/robot hybrid. Only ugly Lanterns should be Alphas.

Panel of the Week:

Ivan Reis shows the threat that an unbridled J'onn J'onzz poses.

-Gint

Zombies and Playboy

The sad truth is that I didn't even actually buy this issue of Playboy. I pirated it as I have done with that magazine for the past decade. Sorry Kirkman and Hef.-$

$oss' Pull-List Reviews 4/18/12

Saga #2

Alana, Marko and little Hazel find themselves being hunted by the galaxy's most feared bounty hunter. No, not Bobba Fett. I'm talking about The Stalk.

Fiona Staples rocks out some of the craziest character designs in comics. The Stalk is a eight eyed, armless, topless woman with spider legs. Hot and disturbing, just what the doctor ordered.

Saga is worth the read just to check out all the crazy creatures that inhibit the planet in Landfall. Normally this book would be at the top of the pile but it was an outstanding week in comics.

Batman & Robin #8

Peter Tomasi has made Damian Wayne into one of my favorite characters in the DC Universe. As much as I am a Tim Drake fan Tomasi has made Damian feel like the most natural fit to fight crime along side the Dark Knight. 

This issue is chalk full of great emotional exchanges between father and son. It appears that Bruce is finally taking steps to heal the pain and rage inside of himself in order to save his son. Patrick Gleason's work is outstanding as usually. Batman and Robin is now neck and neck with Batman for the title of Best Bat Book.  

Swamp Thing #7

Scott Snyder is really taking his time to flesh out this book. After seven long months and some debating with The Parliament of Trees Alec Holland, or what's left of him becomes Swamp Thing. The transformation process isn't as cut an dry as you would think. Apparently The Parliament isn't very happy about how long it took for Holland to accept his role. Alec spends the majority of the book stating his case as to why he should be reincarnated as Swamp Thing.

I gotta give Snyder a lot of credit for his pacing of this arc. Another writer may have felt pressure to get the books star front and center by the third issue. Snyder allowed the story to come to a boil at it's own pace. When the Protector of the Green finally rises to life I genuinely felt my pulse quicken.

Yanick Paquette is the only artist I would want to see illustrate the transformation scene. Watching Alec Holland's tissue change into leafy greenery is vivid and disturbing. I'm very anxious to see how he handles Abigail Arcane when she emerges from her rotting cocoon next month-$

Panel of the Week: Swamp Thing rises.

A Blasphemous Proclamation

This actually happened. Well, not the bottle-over-the-head part. But the statement about The Walking Dead DID happen. $oss actually lost his mind after a few beers and said the show is better than the comic. Apparently he forgot about trades upon trades of can't-put-them-down storytelling. The matter has since been rectified and $oss has seen come back around.

-Gint

Gint's 4-11-12 Pull-List Review

Two Swamp Things and three regulars this week.

Bonus Review:

Swamp Thing #4 and #5

I bought two issues of Swamp Thing this week in order to get caught up with the impending Animal Man crossover coming around the bend.

And two damn good issues they were. Marco Rudy helps out on art for issue #4 and does a fair job of mimicking Yanick Paquette. From page layouts, to heavy blacks to general grody-ness in the form of decaying animals and dying people with their insides hanging out of their mouths.

Paquette is back on #5 with a STELLAR outing illustrating Abigail and Alec's faceoff with William. Paquette is in great form drawing up multiple headed boars and pigs. Fantastic stuff.

Scott Snyder gives the reader a lot in these two issues illuminating more of the Swamp Thing mythos. From the Parliament of Trees to how Alec and Abigail/William's powers work, everything including the scale of the threat comes into a little more focus.

A couple more issues and I should be fully caught up.

Third Place:

Superboy #8

This issue was a little bit of a mess. If you haven't been following Superboy and Teen Titans you're going to be confused. Shit, I DO follow those books and I was confused. They start out in the present and do a little recap halfway through the book of where we're at. But the recap is a little too late. A couple more pages closer to the beginning would have gone a long way to clearing up any potential confusion.

The Titans and Superboy have been captured by Harvest who is capturing and training superpowered teens for something called The Culling. The character Harvest is one of few characters that writer Scott Lobdell has created in the New 52 that isn't super lame. He looks somewhat like that thing from Pan's Labyrinth with the eyes on his hands and that creeps me the fuck out.

Iban Coello handles the bulk of the art instead of R.B. Silva which is disappointing. Coello does a decent job of mimicking Silva, but without the success Marco Rudy mimicked Yanic Paquette on Swamp Thing.

With part one under our belts, The Culling has the potential to be a pretty cool crossover.

Second Place:

Green Lantern #8

After a wonky start, Geoff Johns has brought this title back to its heyday with a couple great issues. The tone of the book, whether on purpose or not, feels like it did after the Sinestro Corps War when this book was really running on all cylinders.

Doug Mahnke is doing a great job illustrating and Johns has taken the story back to somewhat of a GL-only universe. This issue teaches us a little more about what the Indigo Tribe can do and who they are. They're apparently felons from various worlds who have been rehabilitated. And by rehabilitated, I mean brainwashed. The Indigo Tribe is apparently creepy as hell because you know they're dangerous, but don't know when they're going to snap and kill everyone.

Next issue is supposed to take us in to the real story behind who the Indigo Tribe is and their connection to Abin Sur. It's also supposed to set up The Third Army, the next Green Lantern event.

First Place:

Batman and Robin #8

Peter Tomasi can write the hell out of some shit. This issue, the final chapter of the Nobody storyline wraps it up perfectly. Its an impeccable epilogue to what's come before highlighting Damian and Bruce's difficulty understanding each other since they're so different. Tomasi can write characters. And write them well.

Patrick Gleason does a fine job illustrating all of it. From Batman and Robin's leaving Nobody's flaming boat to the quiet moments of Bruce and Damian having a heart to heart about everything that's happened and each other as the sun comes up.

Tomasi's Bruce Wayne is the Bruce Wayne I've been wanting to see for quite a while. A Bruce that doesn't wallow in the shadows, but one that tries to embrace the positives and light side of life despite the darkness he knows he needs to do what he does best.

Tomasi and Gleason have restored any faith in Batman that was lost when Grant Morrison took over. Well done, sirs.

Panel of the Week:

The entire art team of Patrick Gleason, Mick Gray, John Kalisz, Guy Major and Pat Brosseau get credit for this one.

-Gint

The Only Girl For Brizzle

While the rest of the Mc$oss crew is busy falling in love with mutants and banshees Brizzle has a more traditional crush, music and movie star Jessica Simpson. I can only imagine how many copies of Elle Magazine he has piled up in his apartment by now.-$

$oss' Pull-List Reviews 4/11/12

Animal Man #8

I'm not shocked by much in comics but this book really had some crazy shit in it. (SPOILER ALERT) I was genuinely freaked out when Maxine is ripped to pieces four pages in and then returns as a hybrid fox-human. I honestly never saw THAT coming. This book continues to take the reader further down the strange path Jeff Lemire has laid out. 

I have successfully made the transition to Steve Pugh's art. This book features some pretty gruesome shit and he handle's it all with ease. If you still aren't reading Animal Man you are really missing out on a great book.

Avengers vs X-Men #1

Now this is more like it. After last weeks Avengers vs X-Men #0 I was less then enthusiastic about Marvel's summer crossover event. Thankful this first installment answered all my nagging questions in quick fashion. 

Intergalactic police officer Nova comes to Earth, badly wounded, to warn The Avengers that a cosmic shit storm is on it's way. After running some tests Iron Man discovers that said shit storm is the Phoenix Force. Captain America and the gang head over to Jean Grey's School for Higher Learning to see if Wolverine can lend a hand. Back in Utopia it appears that Hope Summers is beginning to exhibit some of the Phoenix's trademark powers. Cyclops takes this as a sign that the mutant race will now be able to rise from the ashes like... well you get the point. When Cap and the Avengers show-up to take Hope with them the situation gets uncomfortable very.

I love the premise that The Phoenix could be either the salvation of the mutants or the destruction of the humans. Both camps will have their reasons to fight and it looks like Wolverine as well as his students will have to pick a side. I even like that this could include those goofballs from Marvel's space related books. Maybe if more writers included them in standard Marvel U stories I would feel like they were actual part of this universe and not some weird IDW comics.

John Romita Jr. tears it up this time out. I can't get enough of the characters he draws. He handles smaller emotional moments just as well as the bombastic large ones. This is a great start to what could be a solid summer crossover.

This book is also the first to feature Marvel's new Augmented Reality technology. You can download the free Marvel AR app from iTunes or Marvel.com to any device that has a camera. Activate the app and hold your device over the comic as if you were taking a photo. Each page that features the AR logo will spring to life with a video or fun fact about the making of the book. There is a clip with EIC Axel Alonso where he walks onto the page and gives a brief rundown about AVX. Brian Bendis is in a clip talking about the creative process that went into this story. A few pages show how this comic was build from pencils all the way to the finished product. There is also a trailer at the end of the book. This is new technology so there are some bumps to work out, and it was difficult to use with my iPad but I'm certainly excited to see what Marvel can do in the coming year with this app  -$

Panel of the Week: When your grand daughter has the power of The Phoenix it would be wise to answer her question. 

Armageddon It

 

I don't know what Brizzle's subconscious conjures up in the watches of the night, but with the regularity that he watches Armageddon (not to mention Backdraft and The Shawshank Redemption) its no wonder Harry Stamper and probably Kurt Russell as Stephen "Bull" McCaffrey show up for a little twilight hootenanny.

Get your spacesuit on, buddy. A.J. Frost likes it when you call him Affleck.

-Gint

Gint's 4-4-12 Pull-List Review

It was a 50/50 kind of week from the Pull-List. Can't have Aquaman and The Flash every week now.

Bonus Review:

Swamp Thing #3

I'm still getting myself caught up on the wonderful book that is Swamp Thing. I'm glad I was able to procure the first so many issues to get on track because its a damn good book.

Regular artist Yanic Paquette gets an art assist from Victor Ibáñez in one of the most impressive fill-in roles I've seen in a long time. Not only does Ibáñez very closely mimic Paquette's work, but its also excellent in its own right.

The story really ratchets up the creepy as the young William Arcane finds his connection to The Black and kills three kids and a doctor. The doctor was killed by having what looked like either his intestines or his lungs pulled out of his mouth. A truly disgusting and well done illustration by Ibáñez.

I really dig superhero/horror stuff. Supernatural, Hellboy and now the new Animal Man and Swamp Thing. Bring on the gruesome.

Fourth Place:

Red Lanterns #8

The story of the Red Lanterns continues to plod on somewhat unnecessarily. Eight issues in and the basic rundown of this book hasn't changed: some is really cool, but most is just dragging on to... well... we don't know where.

Atrocitus apparently tried creating the first Red Lanterns from the remains of marooned travelers. These guys turned out pretty gross and were buried then disinterred and repowered by some new master who is yet to be revealed.

Sometimes I give a shit about this book and sometimes I don't. If it was among the next round of cancelled New 52 books, I don't think I'd mind too much.

Third Place:

Action Comics #8

Oh, Action Comics. You got off to such a great start before devolving into your basic Superman story.

Grant Morrison and Rags Morales wrap up the first arc on this book with more of a whimper and less of a bang. Superman defeats Brainiac and saves the bottled cities of Kandor and Metropolis. He also gets a new sidekick in Mrs. Nixley (his landlady) who knows his secret but won't tell anyone. That's REALLY strange.

I don't know. Lex Luthor's strange OCD attitude, Lois being essentially unnecessary, just a really odd opening arc the further we got through it. Maybe this is one of those deals where it's a better read when you read it all at the same time?

Better luck next arc.

Second Place:

Voltron: Year One #1

The success of Dynamite's Voltron title has spawned Voltron: Year One by the same writer. Brandon Thomas is in charge of reshaping the Voltron mythos for a more adult audience. So far he's doing a great job.

Craig Cermak is on art and does a great job. Its a great looking book. All the panels are drawn with care. Foregrounds and backgrounds. That's a particular distinction because Ariel Padilla on the regular title doesn't care much for backgrounds or details.

Year One starts before Space Explorer Squadron #686 is put in charge of the Voltron robot. Sven is in charge and Lance is 2nd in command. Keith is just tactical support and the Princess is nowhere to be found. Since Thomas is in charge of both books, I expect some cool bits showing up in one from the other.

Thomas has a big job ahead of him. So far so good.

First Place:

Animal Man #8

Jeff Lemire does it again. Lemire, with the help of Travel Foreman and Steve Pugh makes Animal Man the book to read these days.

And its such an easy read. Every panel and piece of dialog is used with such efficiency that you can breeze through this book and still pick up all the little nuances and subtleties that make this book great. 

Steve Pugh, taking over from Travel Foreman has been an adjustment, but I think I'm adjusted. He's really good at drawing some horrifying stuff. He also does a great job this issue of making Buddy Baker an awesome power. Lemire writes it so Buddy really cuts loose this issue and Pugh really makes Buddy pretty intimidating and scary.

Oh, and (SPOILER ALERT) Maxine, Buddy's 9-year old daughter get killed by a pack of wolves and resurrects herself in the body of a fox before transforming the flesh to look like her former self. WHAT?! Yeah. This is an amazing book.

Panel of the Week:

A beautifully creepy image. Well done, Yanic Paquette.

-Gint