This Week's Haul: So This is What it Sounds Like...When A GOD DIES!

Two weeks in a row my comics were delayed until Thursday. I can understand last week, because it was a Canadian holiday. But this week it was just a dumb American holiday and they held back on releasing the comics on Wednesday here just to be fair. Horrible!

Anyway, the agonizing wait is over. And it was worth it because there was a lot of fun between the covers this week.

Countdown Week 48

So...who doesn't know about Jason Todd's identity?

Like...this is concerning me. Bruce should really put a lid on this thing because it won't take a genius to figure out who Batman is if the whole world knows that Jason is an ex-dead ex-Robin. Jason's hero name seems to be Jason Todd, because more people seem to be calling him that than anything else.

Hey, look at what Jimmy can do!

Weird!

Karate Kid says something that you will never hear outside of a comic book:

And Lightray dies, causing Superman to speak in fonts:

That cracked me up. It probably wasn't supposed to.

Amazons Attack #2

Oh, those pesky Amazons.

Once again, the Amazons are HARDCORE:

Daaayummm!

I'm liking this, because Will Pfeifer and Pete Woods is a solid combination. And look at this thing:

There are battles, and then there are BATTLES. This, my friends, is as awesome-looking as an attack gets.

My boy Batman gets a starring role in this one. This is fun:

Oh, I have been waiting my whole life for someone to say that to me.

As much as I love me some Batman, I was kind of sad for Black Canary. I mean, who exactly is in charge here?!

Come on, Dinah! You're supposed to be the chairperson! Tell Batman to shut up!

Daredevil #97

I am finally caught up on this series. And what the hell took me so long?! It's FANTASTIC. I mean, obviously. You team up Brubaker and Lark and the results are always so good they actually frighten me a little. I mean, even if I didn't already think so, this series alone would tell me that Brubaker is the best writer in comics today. But he also happens to be writing, and has written, a whole bunch of totally amazing comics.

I mean, there are a lot of great writers working in comics right now, but Brubaker writes comics that I feel I can lend to anyone, whether they normally read comics or not, and they will not only love them, but they will understand them. His writing is very straightforward and engaging, and avoids getting tangled up in obscure references or overly complicated casts of characters.

Sometimes I'll just stare at one panel, re-reading the dialog and staring at the art forever. It's just so good. Daredevil is my new boyfriend. I mean, check this out:

Yeah. That's hot.

This was pretty surprising:

I hope Brubaker and Lark are doing the next 200 issues of Daredevil. And then Brubaker should write a new Daredevil movie that doesn't suck.

Blue Beetle #15

J. Torres!!!!

Superman was a really busy guy this week. He shows up in Hawkgirl, Countdown, Amazons Attack, and this as well as starring in a giant-size issue of Action Comics. It's a toss-up between this comic and Hawkgirl for most adorable cameo, but this was decidedly more entertaining.

I mean, first of all there's this page:

I just love the way he's holding both of those guys. Also, Livewire rules.

It gets really funny at the end because there's this whole Very Special Episode-style conversation between Blue Beetle and Superman:

That's just so...funny. "Go on, son. I'm listening." And then the sage advice and the whole "You did the right thing." "Thanks, Superman." exchange was just so delightfully wholesome. Superman!

And the art, by Freddie Williams II, was great too. Check out this facial expression:

I love this series.

Green Lantern #20

Everyone's favourite piece of meat is back in action this week. He's still dealing with that obnoxious Star Sapphire.

Hal does what he always does when faced with a problem. He makes out with it.

Pretty clever, Hal. When in doubt, make out.

This is what I like about Green Lantern comics. I'm just sayin', you're not going to see that in a Batman comic.

I love the art on this run. Everyone is all great-looking.

I like Cowgirl. But it doesn't look good for her, because guess what Hal just found out about Carol:

"Divorce?! That's my favourite word!"

Oh, Hal.

Justice Society of America #6

More Geoff Johns goodness!

"Insane? Wait, who are you again?"

Oh Starman. I love your crazy ass:

Aaaand I loved this:

Hee! I am really enjoying this Kingdom Come Earth development. I guess that what we are really learning is that all of the Elseworlds actually exist in the multiverse. It's fun.

And this was fun:

What about Black Lightning? He's cool! And he's standing right there! What wouldn't Diana like about a gold medalist decathelete?

Lovin' this cross-over. Get to the part where Barry Allan comes back!!!

Teen Titans # 47

I'll be honest. I only half-understood what was going on here. I'm making an effort to get to know the Titans but they are so damn confusing.

I did understand this though:

Robins! Ooodles of Robins!

Lordy those three boys all look the same. It's like Bruce has them manufactured or something.

Well, that was unnecessary, Tim. I expected better from you.

Action Comics #850

Now THIS was adorable!

A celebratory 850th issue of Action Comics that looks back at Superman's history via the Legion of Superheroes teaching Kara about her cousin. It's very clever and fun. And it's beautifully drawn by my new favourite person, Renato Guedes.

So, yeah. Brainiac 5 is testing out his new invention, the Chronexus, which allows people to view any point in time. He decides to use it to show Kara Superman's past. But first he has to find the correct past (read: the current origin and continuity for Superman; read: Birthright), which is fun. It takes him a few tries, which means we get awesome pages like this:

Everything is good about that page. "That hair! No."

Eventually Brainiac finds the right Superman and we follow him from birth on Krypton to present in a series of vignettes with snappy Legion commentary. And there are some really awesome and cute scenes, like this one after Clark's debut as Superman:

"Ah!" So cute.

His first date with Lois:

His first Justice League mission:

Barry! You're killing me! Look at his posture!

And here's a heartbreaking scene where Clark and Lois are talking about children:

Awwwwww.

This Week's Haul: Long Live Captain America

I scanned the list of new titles this week and was a little let down. Nothing beginning with 'Super,' 'Bat,' 'Justice,' or 'Green.' But that doesn't mean there weren't any good comics this week. Far from it. Let's have a look see...

The Spirit #6

You have to look at that cover for a long time to fully appreciate how incredibly awesome it is.

I love it when my interests overlap. So obviously an issue of The Spirit that involves an all-girl rock band is going to make me very happy.

It's like looking into a mirror!

Anyway, this comic rules and everybody knows it.

Oh, Denny. You're lucky you have women around you all the time.

I liked watching him easily beat up an entire club full of punk fans:

Ha! Take that, punks!

I really can't wait for next month's Summer Special. The cover makes it look like sexy good times.

Wonder Woman #9

This was a really nice-looking issue, thanks to the Dodsons and Alex Sinclair. I liked the washed-out colouring.

The humour is often kind of awkward in this series, but there were a couple of little jokes in this one that made me laugh. There's a cute little Batman/Superman scene here:

And a fun exchange between Wonder Woman and Circe:

But Nemesis seriously needs to shut up. I know that Picoult is probably aiming for a Han Solo-style cocky-yet-charming-and-sexy character with him, but he really is awful. I mean, really:

He's, like, 13 years old. The sexual tension between he and Wonder Woman is making me sad. It's like watching your best friend fall for a complete jackass. Don't do it, Diana! You can do so much better! Seriously! You're Wonder Woman! God, Booster Gold would be better. Plastic Man would be better!

Anyway, yeah. The Amazons are still attacking.

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Annual #1

I love annuals. I can't say no to one. I also like stories from the villain's POV. Sandman is all the rage these days, so Marvel decided to cash in with a brand new origin story written by Peter David and drawn by Ronan Cliquet.

This story gets into Sandman's childhood, which is a pretty depressing story. His abusive dad walked out, leaving him with his alcoholic mom. He gets beat up in school, until he stands up for himself and eventually becomes a big tough guy/football star. Then he turns to a life of crime, starting with the throwing of a couple of football games to help his friend make some quick money. I thought this was pretty funny:

He ends up in jail with...his old man! And we get a twist on why he named himself Flint Marko:

Oh, um. 'Flint' was the last name of his favourite grade school teacher.

It's a good read with nice art. And, like I said, I'm a sucker for villain stories. There's also a very touching back-up about a homeless little girl who loves Spider-Man. Her unconscious body is found by her hero and he takes her to the hospital, where she dies. Actually, this comic is a total downer. But she has some really beautiful dreams while she's unconscious, drawn by Colleen Doran:
Annuals!

Countdown Week 49

Elastic Lad Jimmy!

Well, that's exciting.

I also enjoyed this exchange between Red Arrow and Karate Kid:

Oh, Roy. As if a guy from the 31st century is going to get your stupid reference. Kids from this century don't even get that. KK definitely came out the victor in that battle of wits with his "the other five were actually in the history books" burn.

Hey, some sort of Black Adam is back!

Sklutch!

I dunno...is this some sort of alternate Earth Black Adam, or did he figure out his new magic word.

We get another piece of the Pied Piper mystery, and it's a very cute one:

Man, I just think that's adorable.

And finally we get some more Monitor chat:

Yeah. That's how I feel about the Toronto Maple Leafs. (zing!)

Hey look! It's Kyle! He's gonna get killed!

I'm glad they are doing a history of the multiverse back-up, because I can really use it. I am a real multiverse flunky. I need, like, puppets to explain it to me.

Birds of Prey #106

Rad cover. This issue had a big ol' sexy fight between the BoP and the Secret Six.

It was every bit as much fun as that sounds.

I like a little sexual tension between heroes and villains:

Oh, those two.

This was actually a really fantastic comic. Every tough lady ever in one big royal rumble. I love Barda and Manhunter being in this book. Fun times!

Marvel Adventures Iron Man #1

Yay! Another fun all-ages Marvel series!

I like that Stark Industries = Apple:

This was a lot of fun to read. It's just nice to have a comic where Tony Stark isn't a complete douche. Plus, the art is fantastic:

Yay! Iron Man is cool again!

Robin #162

A big A+ on this month's cover. That looks great!

This issue wrapped up a storyline that I wasn't too excited about. I just love Tim Drake so much, though. Batman wishes he was Tim Drake when he was Tim's age. The kid is awesome.

The highlight of this issue for me was Alfred rumpling Tim's hair:

Captain America #26

Oh man, this comic was so goooooooooooooood.

So, this is our first issue of Captain America, sans Captain America. You would think that wouldn't work, but you just have to trust in Brubaker. He makes everything all right.

I mean, look at this awesomeness:

Man, I really like seeing Tony Stark get slapped across the face.

Yeah, so at the top there we get the very interesting revelation that the Super Soldier Serum left Steve's body after he was killed, reducing him to that skinny weakling he was when he first joined the army. It also makes him look very much like Christ on the cross, which I am sure is no accident (Tony...Captain America died for your sins). I loved Sharon blurting out "What did I do?"

I loved the wake. I loved Rick Jones saying that he was going to be playing a set at the wake. I loved the secret wake with Team Cap members afterwards. And I loved that my new boyfriend, Winter Soldier, is back and ready to kick the ass of anyone who so much as looks at him. Dude is pissed, and he's found a new target:

I really love how we get that clip of Tony's attempted speech at the funeral. It's really very moving. But I can see why Bucky's angry. I do feel for Tony, though. As messed as his methods were, he had good intentions, and he's probably more broken up about Cap's death than anyone. Because he was totally in love with him. And who could blame him?

I also want to say that Bucky's new leather jacket is a brilliant costuming decision:

That looks so dope. It brings back the best element of Bucky's old costume.

I LOVE YOU WINTER SOLDIER! You should grow your hair out again!

This Week's Haul: Better Batman and Other Good Stuff

Comics other than All-Star Batman and Robin came out this week, and many of them were very good. Let's take a look:

Batman #665

I love that this came out the same week as All-Star Batman. Everything about this comic is so right.

When we left Batman last time, he had just been stomped on by a large Bane-looking guy in an ally. This issue opens with this fantastic page:

So funny. And then Roxy the prostitute gives the injured Batman a lift, which gives us another great scene:

Aw. The look on Batman's face!

Batman drags his battered ass up to the penthouse (which looks awesome) and calls Alfred. Alfred and Tim get over there and Alfred pumps Bruce full of drugs. Bruce wakes up later and is all freaked out. We get an incredible facial expression:

God that's awesome. He looks like he was left Home Alone.

Batman's all scared because he's pretty sure he is being visited again by the "three ghosts of Batman": a killer Batman, a bestial Batman, and a Batman who sold his soul to the devil. We already saw the killer Batman shoot the joker in the first Morrison issue, now we've seen the bestial one stomp on Batman's spine, and the third one will no doubt be showing up in #666.

I really liked Bruce talking about the "Black Casebook" of supernatural files:

Batman's got X-Files!

He doesn't let it get him down for long, though. He goes to the laudry basket and takes a whiff of the dress shirt he wore the day before during a board meeting at Waynetech to get himself psyched for battle. It's weird, but entertaining.

I love this series.

Action Comics #849

I liked this better than the first issue in this two-part story, but it's still kind of meh. Religion.

I like it when Superman fights guys that are about equal to him:

I like his "Hmph."

I like Superman enjoying this pretzel:

And I like the way his boots are all slumped over against the wall in this panel:

And that's about all I have to say about that.

Supergirl #17

I was actually really looking forward to this issue because I liked the last one, but I was kind of disappointed. I can't even say for sure why. What happened to Mark Sable? He was credited as co-writing this issue on the website, but not in the comic itself.

I still think Supergirl looks a lot better. With her new normal-length torso she is also a lot shorter:

Her skirt looks really good in that panel, but that was a fluke. It's still a curtain tie for most of the book. And she still has those heavy Turner-style eyelashes that I hate because they look like spiders.

I'll admit, I'm a little confused about what's happening in this series and how it fits in with DCU continuity. Does that mean it's on another Earth? An Earth where Robin looks fantastic?:

This last page was pretty exciting:

Now THERE'S a Supergirl everyone can enjoy!

Countdown Week 50

Team Jonah Hex writes this one, which is rad. This issue gives us a much better idea of what Countdown actually is than the first one did. This time we got a series of vignettes filling in a few holes we've seen in other DC titles, along with snippets of a larger Countdown story-arc involving Jimmy Olsen, and another with Mary Marvel. Interestingly, a lot of the scenes take place in New York, rather than one of the many fictional DC cities.

I love seeing Jimmy back in action, with his pal Superman helping him from space:

I loved getting to see that fight between Batman and Karate Kid that we never saw in the last issue of Justice League, along with an extended aftermath scene:

I love that tube of Bat-costume. Especially the placement of the gloves, making it look like it's trapped in there. The art, by the way, was really excellent on this book.

I like it. It's like a bonus feature disc full of deleted scenes. This could be a very fun series.

Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America #3: Captain America

I am just never going to like this series.

Guess what Hawkeye wants to talk about (after he introduces himself unnecessarily to Iron Man and the readers at great length):

Iron Man knocks him out and Hawkeye wakes up in a prison cell. This is where things get weird.

What? Ew! Keep colonoscopies and polyps out of my comic books! Gross! Iron Man has a new hobby!

Anyway, then they get to talking about The Death of Captain America.

It's a very big coffin.

I kinda enjoyed the Hawkeye talking to the Young Avengers part, but it was still sort of clunky.

For some reason this panel cracked me up. Maybe I'm a jerk, but a sad Iron Man is always funny-looking to me:

And, Jeph, repeat after me:

"I. Will never. Use the word 'diddling.' Ever again."

Diddling is like what pedophiles do. It's just below "porking" on the list of gross euphemisms for sex. Man, I'm so grossed out right now. What's the next comic?

The Flash #12

I checked this out because it was one of those issues with an ending that will change the Flash forever. It was a pretty good issue.

I liked Mirror Master coming out of Flash's shiny earpiece:

Pretty clever.

I liked the Rogues chatting about what they were going to do now that time had stopped (though it hadn't, really):

And the shocker ending? Yup...it looks bad for Bart. Almost as if he's going to be replaced...by someone who has been dead for quite some time...

Justice League of America #9

I like the teams being split into little groups, each going to a totally different place. We've seen Arkham, we've seen the Fortress, and now we see Gorilla City and Thanagar. Fun times.

But I think that Meltzer may be grossly overestimating the top speed of a cheetah:

But I don't want to nitpick. I want to talk about this double-page spread of awesomeness:

Power Girl and Hawkman sitting in a tree! That's hot! I love the personality that PG finally has in the new JSA series. I'm so pleased with this development that I'm not even going to complain about her stupid-looking shorts. Aw, she had her heart broken. Hook up with Batman, Power Girl! Doooo it!

Heh: "I appreciate the size you think your testicles are." Power Girl is awesome.

Aquaman #52

I'm glad that, right in the first panel, we get an explanation as to why our heroes are in Sub Diego when we learned in WWIII that Sub Diego was lifted back above sea level. Well, it turns out not all of it was. So that answers that mystery.

I'll keep saying it: this comic is ridiculously fun. There's a word that I am searching for when I am trying to describe the writing, but all I can come up with is "informative, interesting and easy to follow." This is why I am not a professional writer. Maybe the word I am looking for is "good." Actually, do you know what I think makes this comic extra awesome? There very little narration. And when there is, it's a third-person perspective and it's very clear and informative and usually pretty funny. The story mostly depends on dialogue, which is delightfully snappy.

Funny!

This really cracked me up:

The Babe Squad! I love it! That lobster girl! Holy God!

Did I mention that the art rules on this series?

X-Men First Class Special

Well, this was awesome.

Three very funny and enjoyable short stories, and three even funnier mini-comics, involving the original X-Men line-up. Jeff Parker writes them all, and is joined by a kick-ass team of artists (including Colleen Coover! Woot!). The book has a sort of Bizzaro Comics feel to it, which means it's nothing but fun. Magento using his powers to grab the key for the bathroom at a coffee shop? Check. The X-Men battling a mutant beatnik's powers of persuasion? Check. Angel in a sailor cap?
Check.

Plus, there's this:
X-Men + Ducklings = Perfection.

Colleen Coover rules.

Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century #2

It's weird to see Timber Wolf in two comics in one week, being drastically different. And by weird, I mean great.

Timber Wolf, Robot Fighter!

SKREEEEE!!

Catwoman #67

If you aren't reading this series, you are cheating yourself out of one of the most consistently action-packed comics going. There is very little in the way of hanging around and chatting in this series. Even now that Selina is a mom, the violence never stops.

Team Lopez rocked the art this week. I love everything about this page:

I like that Selina has her own little Bat-family now. She has Holly as Robin, Calculator as Oracle, Slam as Gordon, and...Karon as Alfred. Sorta. Anyway, it's good stuff.

Catwoman is rad.

The Plain Janes

This was really, really good. I loved it. The writing, by Canadian punk rocker Cecil Castellucci, was very funny and very smart. I loved the little gang of high school girls being secret performance art guerillas. I loved how layered each of the characters in the book were, despite still having clearly-defined interests that shaped them. I loved the sports-obsessed tomboy who refused to shape her eyebrows but still had a girly crush on the captain of the basketball team. It's little details that change a character from being a one-dimensional stereotype to being real. It was just a really interesting and entertaining read, and it's fantastic to have another great book to recommend to younger readers. There are so many indie comics out there that would almost be perfect for younger teenagers, but have some element in them that elevates them to mature reader status. I know the Minx line is intended for teen girls, but I think DC would do well to just continue to publish well-written, well-drawn, all-ages books for both boys and girls. This line fills a definite hole that existed for those who aren't interested in superheroes, and also aren't old enough for, or interested in, Vertigo or most Manga.

Teen-appropriate indie comics. We need more of them.

This Week's Haul: I'm Already Confused.

It was a very light week for me, which is good after the mountain of comics I had to get through last week. Plus it gave me time and money to pick up the new Y: The Last Man trade. Next week looks like it's going to be another big week.

I tried to get caught up with Green Lantern Corps and Iron Fist before this week, but I wasn't able to. Next time.

Countdown #51

Flip cover! Whee! Look at all those characters!

So, this is confusing. I am glad this is weekly because I need this thing to unravel very slowly so I can follow it. Basically, and correct me if I'm wrong, I think all we are supposed to know so far is that there is a megaverse with 52 parallel universes. There are some characters that are anomalies and are jumping from one Earth to the next, and the Monitor bros. want to kill those characters. Or, at least, one Monitor brother does.

Anyway, the Joker's Daughter is one of those anomalies, so she is killed.

And that's the death that kicks off the Countdown, I guess. Not very significant, but I think that's the point. Now we're going to see how the death of one seemingly insignificant character ripples across the megaverse and affects every character in it. Am I right so far?

Also, Jason Todd is a decent guy now. But...is this all on our Earth? This is where the Multiverse stuff starts to lose me. I guess that she is from another Earth, and is on Earth One illegally. Or whatever. I was five when Crisis on Infinite Earths came out so forgive me for being unfamiliar with this whole multiple Earths thing. I would recommend Andrew Hickey's Countdown Blog.

One non-confusing scene that I enjoyed was this one, where the Flash rogues gallery was getting together for a little party:

And the ending of this issue was pretty awesome:

It's going to be interesting...

Green Arrow #74

Only one more issue of this to go! Awww.

I hope you guys like Green Arrow and Black Canary doing it, because that's all this issue was.

It was weird.

Also, they apparently stayed in GA's bedroom for over 40 hours. Only breaking so that Oliver could ask his adopted daughter to bring him some chili.

Ok, eating chili while having sex? That's gross. I will remember this when I rate you as a super-hunk, Oliver.

Dinah finds out more about Oliver's supposed year of celibacy:

Y'know, I really wanted these two to get back together, but now that they are...I'm kinda grossed out.

There are some fun fight scenes in this issue, too:

Boxing glove arrow!

Plus, it was nice to see the gang all together.

Aw, they're like the Ninja Turtles.

The Amazing Spider-Man #540

Well, the cover is nice.

I wanted to give Spidey another shot, because it is pretty much the most popular series going, and I get a lot of questions about it in the shop. I feel like I should make an effort to follow it. So I gave this a quick read and, well...wake me when Straczynski is done writing.

Like, I already read Batman. I don't need Spider-Man to be Batman. Even Batman isn't being that Batmanish these days. Plus, who is that guy?! It doesn't look like Peter Parker. At all.

Thank God a fun Spider-Man comic also came out this week.

Spider-Man and The Fantastic Four #2

This book is so funny. I love it. Basically, these alien things are taking over the bodies of various humans on Earth, but seemingly only those who have normal DNA. Thus, Spidey and the FF are spared. A lot of heroes are now hosts to the alien parasites, though, and the leeching is making them sub-par heroes. Check out Doctor Strange:
Yeah. He does card tricks now.

Spidey and Johnny poke around to find out how various Super-Heroes are doing and report back to Reed:

"Daredevil's all bumping into things" is a hilarious line.

Reed's got to take off to fix stuff, so he makes Spider-Man the honorary fourth member of the team in his absence:

Hee! Lockjaw.

Betty & Veronica Double Digest #151

A historic moment, people. The day Archie comics got really creepy-looking.

This is part one of a four-part story that will be continued over the next three digests. It only takes up the first 25 pages or so of the book, and the rest is classic-looking Archie stuff. I hope we'll see more of the gang drawn in this realistic style over the next few issues. I really want to see Jughead.

So, they are trying two new things here: a new art style and a continued story. I say go for it. They aren't doing away with the old style, and I think they could make a spin-off comic using this new design. Although, the art is pretty bad. Not just because it's a creepy new look, but because it's not very good art. The girls do look like teenagers, though. Probably more so than in the old comics. But they are totally anorexic (with giant boobs). You can read the first few pages of the comic here. And while you're there, might I suggest the Jughead's Fashions virtual paper doll? He's surprisingly ripped with no clothes on.

Anyway, if you don't like the fancy new story, you can always skip to the old-style stuff, where you get lots of awesome panels like these:

Hot Mr Lodge Shower scene!

Grifter/Midnighter #3

I know I'm the only person on Earth reading this series, but it really is pretty good. I'm going to keep saying that until it proves me wrong. It looks great, the writing is decent, the story is fun, it comes out on time...no complaints at all. Of course, when you aren't expecting anything out of a series, any amount of quality comes as a pleasant surprise. But, seriously. It's good. Midnighter gets his ass kicked in this issue, and that's not something you see everyday. Grifter has to re-set Midnighter's jaw! And then Midnighter punches him!

Again, I still don't know anything about Grifter, but he's easy on the eyes and shoots people. That's all I need to know, really.