(No stickers, please.)
Here’s where we can discuss the new books that come out each Wednesday.
The Ongoing New Comics Thread
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Even I’ve read them and all I read is porn.
Shit, I meant X-men. All I read is X-men.
“The readers inside looked from X-Men to porn, and from porn to X-Men, and from X-Men to porn again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
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There really is little principle difference:
Skimpy costumes
Lots of banging
Power fantasies
Giant death robots
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Sorry B, but giant death robots is a pretty common staple of most modern porn.
Tiny gundams are more of a niche market.
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Even I’ve read them and all I read is porn.
Shit, I meant X-men. All I read is X-men.
“The readers inside looked from X-Men to porn, and from porn to X-Men, and from X-Men to porn again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”
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I do have a Gundam robo but he’s tiny.
Don’t shame his penis!
One of his wee missiles is missing
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A couple of reviews from… sometime in the last couple of weeks I guess (because who can tell exactly when comics are being released any more?).
The Resistance #1: this was an interesting but ultimately slightly unsatisfying read.
A lot of the reactions I’ve seen are focused on the viral pandemic elements of the story, and it’s true that it’s a weirdly coincidental premise for our times given that this was written and drawn months ago.
But it also ends up not really feeling like it goes anywhere despite taking up a lot of the issue, serving instead as a catalyst for a lot of other things to happen that the book seems more concerned with – like the rise of a fascist US government and the emergence of super-powered individuals among the survivors of the ultra-deadly virus (with echoes of previous JMS books like Rising Stars and Supreme Power).
The trouble is, we don’t really get to this stuff until late in the issue, so there isn’t enough time to invest in the stuff the book wants us to care about in the future. It’s almost like a #0 issue or illustrated sourcebook that digs into what happened before the story really starts, which is not a great feeling for a big launch issue like this one.
I’m also concerned that, as a six-issue limited series that forms the backbone of a new shared universe, the whole series is going to be like this: lots of setting up of ideas for other titles to play off, but not much meat to the story of this one. Maybe that concern will be unfounded but it’s what I came away thinking.
Luckily the art is pretty good, with the more delicate than usual inking for Deodato’s work bringing out the best in his lines and some strong colouring that’s atmospheric while still remaining relatively real-feeling and grounded.
But I don’t know if that’s enough to bring me back for a second issue, no matter how uncannily timely the underlying premise is.
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Undiscovered Country #5
This is one of those books that I feel like isn’t quite living up to its potential. It seems like all the ingredients are there – an interesting premise, a decent and varied cast of characters, a good artist and two solid writers. But it isn’t all coming together on the page.
Partly I think it’s the constantly-shifting focus from character to character that makes it hard to get a decent handle on who or what the heart of the story is. Partly it’s that the wider plot doesn’t advance very quickly, without a clear sense of exactly what the characters are trying to achieve. And partly I think it’s just not a very original or interesting setting in general, with a lot of the visuals feeling cribbed from the likes of Mad Max.
With Snyder and Soule both involved it really feels like this should be a runaway hit. But in the end it’s somehow ended up as less than the sum of its parts.
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Trees: Three Fates was a fine return to Warren Ellis and Jason Howard’s sci fi tale of human civilisation in the face of an unfathomable alien invasion. This five issue mini-series (vol 3) was a small town murder mystery that wouldn’t have been out of place in the Fargo tv series or similar. It has no obvious connection to the previous stories, as far as I can tell. It’s a very slight tale, but well told and atmospheric. I enjoyed it. I hope more is forthcoming.
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i feel like Ellis should tell his stories through small vignettes like Three Fates rather than an ongoing series. I really enjoyed this 5-issue mini.
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Trees was always a good buy; Ellis is a solid writer on his worst day, and Jason Howard knows how to draw an exciting story.
In my opinion….
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Yeah, Trees was always a good buy, provided you don’t mind waiting God knows how long for it to continue… I’m buying it now, but there’s always waiting a decade and getting the trades when the whole story is finished, Ben.
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I agree with everyone else. Trees is solid. It’s probably my favourite Ellis work in a while.
The initial storyline shipped so infrequently, and ended so obliquely, there remain a number of questions and plot lines that may never get resolved.
However, what we did get was so well crafted that it’s hard to ignore. Vol 3, as I said, is pretty much standalone too so can be enjoyed on its own right.
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I picked up Spawn #300 & #301 recently. Two glorious, over sized issues, celebrating Todd McFarlane’s slightly weird obsession with taking the crown for longest running independent comic book title. How weird, you ask? It’s literally the cover image of #301. That’s pretty fucking weird.
Anyways … like many people here I used to read Spawn back in the day. I don’t think, however, that I made it to #50. So, on the one hand, I had no clue what the hell was going on in these issues; but, on the other there was a huge level of familiarity too with Al Simmons still moping around, the Violator, anti-Spawns, the 3 TV anchors, etc., etc.
But, that’s not at all why I bought these two books out of the blue. I came here for the art. And, on that note it was pretty epic. Greg Capullo did the lion’s share of the work, bringing his distinctive style to bear on a fun confrontation with Violator. These were backed up with shorter vignettes, featuring rare sequentials from Todd himself and J. Scott Campbell, and others. Jerome Opena, however, was wasted on a handful of pages that made even less sense than the rest of the books combined.
The thing that struck me most, and I admit did make me smile, was seeing Tom Orzechowski’s distinctive lettering. Has he seriously been on this book continuously since #1? That’s amazing! His lettering is the best in the business, as far as I’m concerned. So clean and crisp.
I’m definitely not going to be buying anymore of this, but these two issues were fun. There’s something very primal about the whole Spawn mythos that I can’t quite rationalise, but is always appealing. McFarlance deserves congrats for hitting on this so many years ago, and making the property an enduring success ever since.
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Yeah, the Spawn anniversary issues were fun. I jumped on with #298 just to get up to speed and then back off again after #301.
The story is all over the place and burdened by the weight of the gigantic mythos that has built up over the years, but it’s still a great achievement to have kept it going this long and it was fun to step back into that world for a couple of issues. And great to see McFarlane back on sequentials as you say.
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The Robin 80th Anniversary 100 Page Super Spectacular was a total joy. Ten stories, from legendary creators synonymous with various Robins of years past – inc. Marv Wolfman, Tom Grummett, Chuck Dixon, Scott McDaniel, Devin Grayson, Tom King, Freddie Williams, Dan Jurgens, James Tynion, Pete Tomasi, Damien Scott, Jorge Jiminez, Judd Winick, Dustin Nguyen, and Mikel Janin. Whew! This was a hugely enjoyable nostalgic journey down memory lane. A well put together package, celebrating the history of the various characters who have fulfilled the role.
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Most of the other Legionnaires are pretty anonymous and interchangeable at the moment though, even after four issues. It’s as if Bendis can only work on one a couple of personalities at a time, which is a fatal flaw in someone writing the Legion.
That is putting it mildly, to say the least. I read these comics out of spite, somehow, but I’m done after issue 4. It’s too painful. Every character has the same voice. Everything feels extremely pointless, if not stupid. I’m convinced Bendis has stopped trying to write good stories and started writing only to leave his mark on the characters and properties he’s writing. I’m half-convinced he just skimmed a couple of issues of The Legion before deciding that he understands the core of it. I’ve never been a particularly big legion fan, but this is just unrecognizable garbage.
Superman started out good, and still has its moments, but Jon being needlessly aged up for this and now revealed to be “the one true superman”? It just feels like bad fanfiction.
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Moonshine, I feel, doesn’t get the praise it deserves. It’s a strange concoction of voodoo, werewolf tale, and prohibition gangsters; a potent mix, for sure, heady, wholesome and full of spice. The third arc of the book (#13 – #17) leans heavily into the Cajun, set in New Orleans where Lou and Delia are trying to escape the lycanthropy curse. Things, of course, don’t go quite to plan.
Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso’s latest book continues in fine form. This is a creative partnership as strong & consistent as any in comics; and this book is as good as, maybe better, than anything else they’ve done. Maybe not one to read issue by issue though, given the meandering story and Azzarello’s reluctance to spoon feed you detail.
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Wow – this thread’s on fire, ain’t it? Guess that’s what happens when there are no new comics for a few weeks.
Anyways, a couple or three thoughts on recent books:
Superman: Man of Tomorrow #1 & 2 – the weekly “Digital First” book from DC features full length stories from Robert Vendetti and Paul Pelletier. The stories are classic Superman tales, that you could hand to literally anyone at any time. Nothing revolutionary; just good, honest, comfort food. The artwork on the other hand is spectacular. So very good, clean and accessible. Well worth 99c per issue, folks!
Deadpool #1-4 – by Kelly Thompson and Chris Bachalo. This must be the twentieth relaunch or something, right? Doesn’t matter. It’s a whole new status quo, with Staten Island taken over by the Marvel Universe’s monsters on a legal technicality, Deadpool somehow becoming its king, and Kraven the hunter seeing this as big game season.
I only bought these for Bachalo, whose work I adore. The story was also a lot of fun surprisingly. I don’t think I will buy anymore, with Bachalo off to the new Spidey book (cannot f’ing wait for that one!), but I’ll certainly check out more of this on Marvel Unlimited at some point in the future.
Beserker Unbound #1-4 – picked these up in the ComiXology sale. A four issue mini by Jeff Lemire and Mike Deodato Jr. A Conan-esque barbarian warrior finds himself unwittingly transported to the modern world, where he befriends a local homeless person. That, my friends, is pretty much all that happens in this book. Literally. However, whilst light (so very light) on plot, there is some great characterisation here, and some gorgeous artwork from Deodato. Don’t buy this full price. You’ll feel robbed. But if you can get it for a good deal, there’s plenty of great artwork to admire here.
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Wow – this thread’s on fire, ain’t it? Guess that’s what happens when there are no new comics for a few weeks.
Yes, I’m looking forward to this picking up again.
You’ve reminded me though that I meant to post about the first couple of issues of Tartarus, which I picked up after the recommendation in a thread here, and in the absence of regular new books.
I wasn’t familiar with any of the creators so went in without expectations but I enjoyed this quite a bit. Plot-wise it’s a bit disjointed at first, as it throws you into the action and trusts you’ll pick up enough to get by as you go along. But it does all start to come together, especially by the second issue, and throws up a lot of interesting concepts along the way.
Plus the art is lovely – seemingly very Moebius-inspired but with a slightly looser vibe.
It suits the universe of the book well and brings to life the richness of this culturally-diverse society and the weird shape-shifting substance that plays a key role in the book. Plus there’s vibrant, vivid colour throughout.
I enjoyed it enough that I’ve already put issue #3 on my list.
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My delivery from the US arrived a couple of days ago, so I’m finally able to read a few things that wrapped up prior to the lockdown.
Witchfinder: Reign Of Darkness #1-5 was the latest mini- series from Mignola, Roberson, Mitten and Madsen. The 6th in this series. Billed as Sir Edward Grey vs Jack the Ripper, it’s not as dark nor gruesome as you may have expected; instead using that as a starting point for another occult endeavour to be foiled in the name of Queen and country. It does end in rather dramatic fashion, both explaining why the Ripper case was never solved and also upending Sir Edward’s life.
Of all the tertiary Mignolaverse books, Witchfinder is second only to Lobster Johnson in my eyes. So, I hope that this isn’t the end of the series, but if it is the finale, it’s a rather neat ending to go out on.
Punisher: Soviet #1-6 was the latest Punisher MAX tale by Garth Ennis, drawn this time by his Avatar partner in crime Jacen Burrows.
It’s exactly what you would expect this to be, given the prior work of the creative team. A cold and dark story of revenge; gruesome and unflinching in detail.
I hadn’t really noticed this before, but Burrows artwork shares a lot stylistically with the late, great, Steve Dillon’s. Maybe it’s just me, but there are a few bits here where you could easily mistake this for Dillon’s work if you weren’t paying attention.
This story isn’t going to make anyone’s list of favourite Ennis books, but it’s well told, cinematic in its pacing, and engrossing from the cold opening to the cathartic ending. Definitely worth a read if you enjoy the MAX iteration of the character.
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I hadn’t really noticed this before, but Burrows artwork shares a lot stylistically with the late, great, Steve Dillon’s. Maybe it’s just me, but there are a few bits here where you could easily mistake this for Dillon’s work if you weren’t paying attention.
Interesting comparison. I do not disagree. I really liked how every single character, even background characters, had different facial features and was easily recognizable. Reminded me of how Nicola Scott drew different faces and body types for all the amazons in the relaunch of Wonder Woman, a couple of years back.
the cathartic ending
The extraction of revenge, this very moment; “Now. Skin him.”, caught me off guard. It was gruesome and graphic in a fashion typical for Ennis, but it didn’t feel gratuitous. It was a very fitting revenge. “Tell them the Punisher made you do it. See how far that gets you.”
The epilogue was pretty damn good too, and as I said a couple of weeks back Frank having his first drink since 1976 doesn’t work with the continuity of Punisher MAX since he’s shared at least one bottle of Whiskey with his SAS buddy in Afghanistan back in the original run, but I don’t mind pretending that it never happened as this is such a fitting end to this story.
I want Ennis to write at least one Punisher MAX miniseries every year. He’s just so damn good.
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Lol. I was looking for your post, Anders, to respond earlier; but I couldn’t find it. I agree that line in the epilogue felt a little off (although it’s such a long time since I read the earlier series I could just be misremembering), but it was otherwise such a great ending I was happy to let it slide.
Hopefully we’ll get the “Get Fury” Ennis/ Parlov mini-series before too long. Virus and Parlov’s health issues permitting.
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Hopefully we’ll get the “Get Fury” Ennis/ Parlov mini-series before too long.
ENNIS Returns to PUNISHER & NICK FURY With Two New Titles
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I completely forgot about that. Fury: My War Gone By by the same team is one of the best comic books I’ve ever read so this is indeed something to look forward to!!
And Vikram, I think you didn’t find my post because it was in either the trades or old comics thread.
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I’ve missed this feeling. The feeling of…
New Comics!
Blade Runner 2019 #7
This penultimate issue of the book’s second story arc feels like it’s finally getting back to being the type of book that it was in the first arc – a Blade Runner comic, basically.
The time jump between the first and second arcs was initially jarring, but now that we’re at this point in the story I can better appreciate how it’s made for a good story. There’s still tension and intrigue and action here, but it’s a different kind of story and one that sits well between the two Blade Runner movies, given what we already know from them of that interim time period.
The art continues to be great – detailed enough to feel like it really brings the world of Blade Runner to life (especially during the street-level interrogation scenes this issue) but loose enough to be dynamic and expressive.
Pushing the story arc forwards into interesting new places while also returning to the classic Blade Runner vibe, this is a great penultimate chapter for the second arc that features a great closing twist that has me interested to see how things wrap up in #8.
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More ‘new’ comics.
Batman: Curse of the White Knight #8
Sometimes it can be frustrating reading a miniseries that tells a complete single story in monthly, chapter-sized chunks. What works as a whole doesn’t always function in equal-sized small slices and there’s often a feeling that you’re better waiting for the trade.
Then there are books like Curse of the White Knight, which takes that potential pitfall and makes it a virtue, delivering a final issue that’s free of the complex plot machinations of the rest of the series and is pure climax, filled with action and fighting and twists and turns and even a tease of what’s to come in future. And it’s exhilarating.
The art is just wonderful (I think I could see Murphy draw the ’89 batmobile forever – and wait until you see what it does in this issue) and the story is all tied up nicely, with things falling into place better than I expected in the end.
I still don’t love the twist that this series delivered about Bruce’s heritage, but other than that this has been an enjoyable read – even if it hasn’t come close to topping the original mini, which is a tall order.
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Giant-Size X-Men: Nightcrawler
This issue seems to exist solely to give Alan Davis something to draw, which isn’t the worst reason to make a comic but at the same time leaves it feeling a little bit inessential.
The plot is thin and although there are a couple of minor revelations, it’s impossible to say if and when they might actually have a bearing on the larger story Hickman is telling (which seems to be a theme with his X-Men run at the moment).
Still, nice art and a pleasingly old-school style of comic which I’m sure will be enjoyed by older readers especially.
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X-Men #9
This was better than last issue, but only just, and that isn’t saying much as it is.
Having deliberately stopped reading the current iteration of New Mutants because I wasn’t enjoying it, I’m a bit peeved that the cast of that title have now barged their way into the main book too, bringing a similarly mediocre story into a book that has the potential to be so much better (and has occasionally even delivered on that).
I really run hot and cold on this title and have come close dropping it a couple of times, but a recent reread of HoxPox combined with a couple of decent individual issues like the Davos adventure convinced me to hang on. Now I’m wondering whether that was the right decision.
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So, it’s reckoned Murphy’s doing a White Knight trilogy?
Yeah he’s said there’s at least a third planned.
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Yes. He’s doing a take on Batman Beyond for the third part. Not officially announced, but almost guaranteed at this stage. He’s going to work on it after his next creator owned book.
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I’m likewise a bit up & down on Hickman’s X-Men, although suspect overall I’m enjoying it more than Dave. I think that may be tested with all those crossovers coming up with books and writers I have no interest in reading.
Yeah… I think they have too many X-titles, and odd ones at that. Fallen Angels? Marauders? It just seems kind of scattershot, where there are a bunch of teams with random characters on them, in order to fit in all of the characters. I think it might have worked better with something like Uncanny X-Men, X-Men, X-Force, X-Factor, Excalibur, Wolverine. There are enough mutants to handle two teams of X-Men.
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I’m likewise a bit up & down on Hickman’s X-Men, although suspect overall I’m enjoying it more than Dave. I think that may be tested with all those crossovers coming up with books and writers I have no interest in reading.
Yeah… I think they have too many X-titles, and odd ones at that. Fallen Angels? Marauders? It just seems kind of scattershot, where there are a bunch of teams with random characters on them, in order to fit in all of the characters. I think it might have worked better with something like Uncanny X-Men, X-Men, X-Force, X-Factor, Excalibur, Wolverine. There are enough mutants to handle two teams of X-Men.
How would he have lined up the release order to spell XMEN then??? Did you think about that?
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The Resistance #1 by JMS and Deodato
Holy fucking shit, this art is good. Deodato should marry the inker. Wait… he did it himself? Day-um! Keep doing it, Mike!
That said, the story is so-so. However topical the idea of a pandemic seems, this doesn’t quite gel together the way I want a first issue to do. It should’ve been edited down a bit, perhaps? Or make the first issue a 48-pages? My point is, this somehow feels like half an issue even though it was 36 pages. However sceptical I may be, I’m very curious where this is going and there’s just no way I’m giving up on this art. I’m in!
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Punisher Max: Hot Rods of Death
You know you’ve read too much military SF when your first thought is this is about Frank taking on someone who’s gotten control of an orbital bombardment weapon and not, you know… cars.
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Punisher Max: Hot Rods of Death
You know you’ve read too much military SF when your first thought is this is about Frank taking on someone who’s gotten control of an orbital bombardment weapon and not, you know… cars.
It is abundantly clear that you’ve been reading just the right amount of military SF and that the rest of us is lagging behind.
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Punisher Max: Hot Rods of Death
You know you’ve read too much military SF when your first thought is this is about Frank taking on someone who’s gotten control of an orbital bombardment weapon and not, you know… cars.
And that’s the clean version of that joke.
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I’ve rad all the MechWarrior novels as well
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Green Lantern Season Two #3
Having found the first couple of issues of this second season of TGL to be slightly lacking, this felt like a bit of a return to form.
It’s a decent story that draws on Hal’s test-pilot background and involves some dazzling action as well as a compassionate climax that wouldn’t feel out of place in a Doctor Who episode (and not for the first time in this series).
It’s a good mix of grounded earth-based stuff and cosmic weirdness, which is where this book excels under Morrison.
Also, there’s an interesting new art approach from Sharp this issue that adopts a more fully rendered style throughout, with a couple of exceptions in certain panels (which I’m still tying to decipher the meaning of). I’m not sure I’d want to see it every issue but it worked for this story.
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My LCS is still shut, but I ordered a copy of The Dreaming #20 online. The finale to the rather wonderful Si Spurrier & Bilquis Evely run.
Coming full circle, Spurrier returns to the somewhat pretentious lyrical style he used in the early issues of the book. Yet, knowingly subverts that with a meta twist at the end that left me smiling.
Most plot threads from the series are tied together in a nice bow, leaving the decks clear for the incoming creative team. I hope, however, we see one or two elements pop up in his Hellblazer at some point. That would be nice.
Evely’s art is the star of the show. There are some stunning splash pages here. Every panel lovingly rendered and exquisitely detailed. Her growth as an artist over two years on this book has been phenomenal. I’ll definitely keep an eye out for what she does next.
To those of you who haven’t yet given this series a chance, or maybe are avoiding it because it’s not by Gaiman himself, I strongly urge you to give it a read. It’s a more than worthy continuation of the mythology.
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Transformers/The Terminator #1
This is one of those books that by rights should be shit. And it kind of is. But it’s kind of fun too.
It slams together the two franchises without too much preamble and just gets on with it, with relatively little in the way of flab and plenty of nods and winks to keep fans of both franchises happy.
The art isn’t mindblowing but is decent enough, and overall it straddles the tone of the two properties pretty well too. I’ll buy issue #2 at least to see where it goes.
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Might look that up, I love me some Transformers and with the Terminators in the mix the inevitable robotic violence should be good.
I just read the latest issue of Venom, was it #25?
Donny Cates has quickly gone from “Who?” to “Wow!” in my books. While I don’t like the hyping-up of the coming threat by the end by just saying over and over how dangerous, mysterious and inter-connected it is going to be (someone tell Cates about “show, don’t tell”), the issue itself was nicely framed; The ending to the current arc was done as a flashback where Eddie “comes clean” to the Avengers about his actions of both late and since he got the symbiote in the first place, his view of himself as a her/anti-hero/villain and his willingness to do the right thing. It sets him up nicely to actually become a hero and make it last.
I believe Cates has some interesting plans for Venoms future, and the fleshing out of Eddies character in this title has rendered me… well, I haven’t been this interested in Venom since I was a kid. Admittedly, he was just evil-spider-man-with-teeth back then, but still…
Also it’s got Bagley on art. Pretty, if a bit rough sometimes.
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Yeah, I read the first Cates Venom trade and was really pleasantly surprised by it. I have the second one in my Comixology to-read stack.
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The art isn’t mindblowing but is decent enough,
I really liked the character designs for the future Transformers in issue 1
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Oh I thought you meant the dead ones! Yeah the Terminator mashup stuff was fun.
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I also read some of DC’s “Digital First” books, by Mark Russell. I think these are the first of his work I’ve ever read, but he’s definitely now on my “to watch out for” list.
Swamp Thing: New Roots #1-4 by Russell with artwork by Marco Santucci is a great throw back to the feel of the classic Wein/ Wrightson era on the book. Stories set in the Bayou of Swampy’s ongoing entanglement with the Sunderland corp. Enjoyable, and well worth £0.79 an issue.
Batman: Gotham Nights #4, 5, & 6 are where it really gets interesting though. Forget the “Michael Grey” pseudonym hype of the earlier issues; Russell comes on board with #4 and immediately brings in a nicely subversive twist on the mythos. Asking some pointed questions about Bruce’s wealth and privilege, and whether or not dressing up as a Bat and fighting criminals is making a difference or not. It’s not a stretch to say that this is some of the best “done in one” Batman work I’ve read in years.
Wildstorm alum Ryan Benjamin drew #4 and #5, with a nice but looser Jim Lee style. Viktor Bogdanovic drew #6, and along with Jonathan Glapion’s inks, draws a book that you could easily mistake for Capullo’s work. It’s not original, but it’s very well done. I hope he’s back for more next week.
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I also read some of DC’s “Digital First” books, by Mark Russell. I think these are the first of his work I’ve ever read, but he’s definitely now on my “to watch out for” list.
Flintstones and Snagglepuss Chronicles Vik – they’re great.
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Dark Kniggits: Death Meals on Meth wheels
It’s not bad, but I got very tired reading some of the more text-heavy bits. It’s not good either, but I’m not ready to drop it just yet. I just came out of reading this somewhat annoyed… This reads like Secret Wars (the Hickman one) without proper lead-up. It doesn’t gel together as well as I imagine it does in Snyders head. My main gripe is with the text-heavy bits.
Okay, maybe I wasn’t in the mood for comics today. Or maybe I was just expecting something different. Something a little more straight-forward and not so word heavy. I seem to remember being promised something bonkers and action heavy. But I might be misremembering. I probably wouldn’t have minded so much if I didn’t read digitally…
I made a simplified version of a double page spread. I’m trying spoiler tags on an image, but in case it doesn’t work – Very mild spoilers ahead:
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I rarely buy 2000AD these days, but I tend to try the “jumping on point” issues if I can, so I picked up Prog 2184 to give it a shot.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I found the whole thing a bit underwhelming. The Chris Burnham written and drawn Future Shock was a silly bit of fun, and the Dredd story was ok (if basically just a long teaser), but the rest of it just didn’t grab me at all.
Is this indicative of the current standard of 2000AD, or were they having an off day?
Also I have to sympathise with them for releasing an issue with that cover the same week as the police clashes worldwide (I got it by post so it’s a little late). Unfortunate and obviously completely accidental but still poor timing.
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Lol. I just said pretty much the exact same thing in the 2000AD thread. I’m partway through the next issue at the moment. It’s marginally better, now that the stories are in flight.
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Lol. I just said pretty much the exact same thing in the 2000AD thread.
Ha, I just replied to you with something similar in that thread.
Glad it gets better but I’m not sure it’s for me at the moment – I like some Dredd stories but this one seems more geared to longtime fans.
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New Comics!
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Is anyone else reading Undiscovered Country?
I noped out after the second issue. Fun idea, but I decided to wait it out to see if it keeps being all over the place. Might have a look at it later. When it’s finished.
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Is anyone else reading Undiscovered Country?
I bought the first arc, but I found the storyline to be uninspired despite some interesting concepts. I’m probably not going to try the next arc.
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I’ve been picking it up after the ComiXology price drop, so don’t have #6 yet. I like it, but not enough to commit to in paper form (so it’s very much a 2nd tier book for me). I’m curious enough about the story, and like the creators enough to continue buying it long term.
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Batman 93.
Eh the eh? I feel robbed. After Tom King I just wanted a Batman story. I thought this was it but wouldn’t you know it – it was just a prelude to Joker War or some shit. Selina? Dead? The designer? An animated corpse controlled by the Joker. Somehow. YEAH! I wish I was making this up. There you go Al-X, Joker is the nemesis you wished for. Oh, and he has bazillion dollars now too. Blegh.
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Harley Quinn: Black, White & Red #1
I picked up the first issue of this new digital-first book from DC as it’s by Stjepan Šejić, and essentially functions as a short-story sequel to his Harleen, which was one of the best new DC books I’ve read in a long time. And it’s pretty great! If you liked that you’ll enjoy this, and at 79p/99c it’s a steal.
The format echoes the “Batman: Black and White” shorts and this particular story revolves around the significance of the colour red specifically, as Arkham psychologists try to get to the bottom of a mystery with Harley’s help.
As short stories go, it’s a nicely constructed yarn with a decent beginning, middle and end, and it doesn’t necessarily go in the direction you expect.
Šejić’s art is as wonderful as ever, and really seems designed to take advantage of the horizontal format. Layouts like this one work really well:
I won’t say more about it as I don’t want to spoil what’s only a short story, but if you like Šejić’s work and especially if you enjoyed Harleen then this is worth checking out.
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I made a simplified version of a double page spread. I’m trying spoiler tags on an image, but in case it doesn’t work – Very mild spoilers ahead:
I haven’t read the original but I am 99.9% sure that your dialogue is better.
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I made a simplified version of a double page spread. I’m trying spoiler tags on an image, but in case it doesn’t work – Very mild spoilers ahead:
Wait, this wasnt Geoff Johns?
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I wrote a long review of Kirkman and Samnee’s Fire Power Volume 1 – Prelude. I hit “Submit” and it got lost between there and here. I’m not going to write it all out again.
Here’s the TL; DR version: it’s basically a retelling of Iron Fist’s origin; Chris Samnee and Matt Wilson’s work is worth the price of admission; $10 for a 150+ graphic novel; don’t forget to pick up the free #1; awesome launch strategy; really enjoyed this!
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To be fair Kirkman also has a habit of taking a familiar premise and then skewing it off somewhere else. Invincible took liberally from bits of Spider-Man and Superman but became very much its own thing.
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Latest issue of Batman: Not bad. It followed up on the not-too-great Designer arc pretty good. I was prepared for an epilogue and lead-in to Joker War but this was better than that. Hardships are raining on the Batman and I really like the conclusion.
It ends with Batman having some sort of epiphany. “Yes, Alfred. I shall become a better Bat.”
How fucking deluded is Batman? My favourite way to interpret him is “the complete madman” and this surely delivered. There is no way that “becoming a better batman” is what Alfred would want for him. I just can’t see it. Alfred would want him to retire and kick back somewhere where he can chill and make sweet love to Selina. Have some Bruce Juniors. Don’t get shot in front of them, ya know. Going even harder into Batman mode is the last thing Alfred would want. But sure Bruce, if you need a second wind (and it sure looks like you do) why not dig deeper into the insanity.
I’m not having a dig at it. I’m actually enjoying it. Speaking of enjoyment:
The Batman’s Grave keeps on keeping on. The attempts at humor, the ellisisms, are trite at this point but the story is still good. And Hitch is always enjoyable.
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Well, I’ve always thought Batman has always behaved eminnently reasonably, sensibly and sane.
Now excuse me while I go put massive fins on my car for no reason.
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Now excuse me while I go put massive fins on my car for no reason.
Spoiler alert!
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Yeah, might do one of those too
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Wonder Woman: Dead Earth #3 was pretty incredible. I thought the central fight scene was amazing and the various twists were wonderful – I didn’t see them coming. This evoked prime-era Frank Miller for me – definite DKR vibes to it. Wonderful.
(Can’t believe we have to wait until October for issue #4 though!)
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Now excuse me while I go put massive fins on my car for no reason.
Spoiler alert!
This might be my favourite pun I’ve seen all year.
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Young Justice #15 was the epilogue to all the crazy dimension hoping hijinks that have plagued this book since the first issue, finally explaining how Connor Kent’s Superboy managed to make it into the DC Rebirth universe.
Young Justice #16 does the same for Bart Allen’s Impulse, whilst also providing him with the sort of character growth he has never really been subject to before.
Maybe it is too soon to say, but I think the addition of David Walker as co-writer on this book has really saved it. These last couple of issues have seen a marked improvement from the kitchen sink craziness of the earlier issues. I’m really looking forward to the next couple of issues now. They almost seem as if they were written just for me.
Action Comics #1022 starts “The House of Kent” and further explores the implications of Connor Kent’s return. The DCU in general seems to be recognising that there’s something strange going on with their timeline and the multiple reboots they have been subjected to over the last few years. It’s fascinating to see some of the greatest minds in that universe try to wrap their heads around this all, in continuity. It all gets a bit meta.
But, what really got me in the feels, was Connor going back to the farm in Smallville, meeting Jonathan, and reuniting with Ma & Pa Kent.
Danny Miki takes over from Klaus Janson on inks with this issue, giving the art a sleeker look. But, for my money, Romita Jr’s artwork still looks better here than on any other DCU book he’s worked on to date.
Superman #22 brings Bendis’ “Truth” arc to a messy end. The ramifications of Clark’s admission almost become background noise to a huge fight with the tedious Mongul. Kevin Maguire’s artwork was nice tho’.
Superman #23 follows that up with an issue that really asks a few questions about Clark’s mental health, which puts a different spin on events. An interesting and new angle that I hope Bendis does something with.
Meanwhile, in Gotham, Batman #93 and #94 wrap up James Tynion’s first arc on the main book in dramatic fashion. There’s huge stuff happening here, that I feel must inevitably end in wibbly wobbly timey wimey continuity reboot. Toys are broken that cannot be easily fixed, and more carnage is promised in the upcoming “Joker War” starting next issue. Really enjoying this book at the moment. It’s a nice change of pace.
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Yes, I agree. Maybe there is or was something to those persistent 5G rumours that Johnston has been peddling all year.
I also read Batman’s Grave #8 and find myself increasingly frustrated by the series. Hitch is certainly at the top of his game here, but the story is just so “meh”. Ellis is writing his own, clearly damaged, version of the title character, that doesn’t really line up with any version seen elsewhere. Which is disappointing, as it definitely makes the series feel inconsequential and throwaway, instead of essential reading.
Greg Rucka’s Lois Lane #10, #11, and #12 finish up the series. I really don’t know what to say or feel about this book. It’s expertly written, well crafted, and gives Greg the chance to vent on some of today’s most pressing issues (pre- virus, at least). It co- stars Renee Montoya, who I have a lot of affection for, and has notable cameos from the World’s Finest. It even ties in ever so slightly to Rucka’s superb Checkmate. But, it also ends up being about the DC multiverse and witches and … that just makes for a really odd disjointed mess. I don’t know. I think I may need to re-read this one some day to really make sense of it.
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