Green Lantern #33

Yet another excellent issue, in the ongoing saga of Hal's origin. You would think that this could be dull and repetitive by now, I mean after all, how many times have we seen Hal's origin for Pete's sake? But you would be wrong, because in his usual inimitable fashion, Geoff Johns is dropping clues and hints and retcons all over the place.

Guess what? It turns out that Black Hand's parents ran a mortuary! How cool is that? It suddenly all makes sense now! Oh, and by the way, William Hand is a SERIOUSLY creepy young fellow!

Atrocitus is still up to no good, but you all could have figured that out. Turns out however, that he has a pretty good reason to hate the Guardians however.

Hector Hammond just keeps getting better and better, and by that, I mean weirder and weirder. I see that all of his little mind-whammy constructs are tinged in orange, which is interesting, along with his choice of words about Carol. "...no. You can't have her. She's MINE."
He's pretty much got young Hal on the ropes too, peeking into both his and Carol's thoughts and past traumas. It is rather fun to see Hal so inexperienced, he may have a lot of willpower, but he doesn't have much of a clue yet.



Fortunately for Hal, Sinestro shows up, and DOES know what he's doing. And furthermore, he does it very very well. With Hammond now incapacitated, Sinestro grabs Hal, and off they go, with Sinestro giving Hal a critique on his ring-slinging. Hal tries to defend himself, saying that Kilowog and Salaak have given him pointers, but you can almost hear Sinestro's derisive snort. Then Hal brings up the whole yellow problem, and they suddenly discover that in some things at least, they are kindred spirits

Together, they fly to Abin Sur's grave, and their proximity seems to trigger a message that Abin had left in his...now Hal's...ring for Sinestro. Abin tells them that he's been researching the secrets of life, and the whole Blackest Night scenario, and how the Guardians came up with the idea of using the Manhunters. For eons, the Manhunters worked just fine, until the massacre of sector 666, where a glitch was triggered, and the Manhunters suddenly changed their whole modus operandi. Suddenly they were convinced that order could only be maintained without life, and they wiped out the entire sector with the exception of five survivors...who became the Five Inversions, with Qull and Atrocitus among them.



Well! This certainly puts things in a whole new light! It seems as though the Guardians have a LOT to answer for, those impish little blue pixies!

Meanwhile, Atrocitus is on the hunt for William Hand, whose "...insides hold the doorway to absolute DARKNESS." That sounds ominous. Good thing that Sinestro and Hal show up to aprehend Atrocitus! Except that it doesn't exactly turn out that way, since Atrocitus' handly little gadget thingie turns out to have the power to drain THEIR power.

Oh, this is going to be good.

So, in Addition to having the Best Butts in the DCU...

...Apparently, the Green Lanterns also seem to have a hard time keeping their clothes on. Except for Guy, who except for running around half-nekkid as Warrior, manages to infuriatingly keep all his clothes on. And John usually is pretty dapper looking. But Kyle, and Hal and even some of the others just have a terrible time of it. Heck, even Soranik Natu back in Recharge got her outfit all ripped to shreds, and she wasn't even officially a Green Lantern yet!

Here's Soddam Yat. He's only been a Green Lantern for a little while, and he's managed to rip up his uniform practically every time he goes outdoors.



Then he ended up fighting Superbrat Prime, and got all mussed up again. I guess he figures it is one way to get Arisia's attention.

There's Ollie. He's not even a Green Lantern, but he does hang out with Hal, and he DID use a ring once. Poorly.



That's Ollie for you. The rest of them just have shredded costumes, but as usual, Ollie has to take things to the next level...and have NO costume at all! That's oneupmanship!

Kyle is pretty bad when it comes to being out of uniform. And being tied up. And running around in a loincloth.



But it has to be Hal, who is the king of ripped costumes. Naturally of course. Hal has to be the best at EVERYTHING!



He looks kind've cold in this particular one. Although not as cold as he was at the North Pole, when he was wandering around in a partly shredded outfit too.



This one is rather nice. All Parallaxed and everything. Hal is ROCKING that bare-chested look.



Actually, with this one, he's barely even trying, but he did manage to rip a few things.

Finally, we have a ripped up teamup!



The Sinestro Corp War was hard on everybody. I seem to recall Salaak admonishing them to show some respect and get their uniforms fixed...just before the final big Donnybrook, at which point, they all got pummelled and ripped up again. But at least they have Salaak around to remind them that dressing poorly is the worst offence.

How About that Alan Scott?

Ok, I received a request for some Alan love. It is a reasonable request. I like Alan, I just sort of forget about him when I'm busy drooling over the rest of the Green Lanterns. Alan may be an old coot, but then again, he's an amazingly WELL-PRESERVED old coot. Also, considering that he wears that cape, it is amazing how many butt shots there are of him, at least in the old days. Which just goes to prove, that magical powers or not, Alan has what it takes to be a Green Lantern.



Here he is, looking quite amazing, as usual. Alan may be the only person in the world who can carry off that particular color combination...and LOOK GOOD while doing it. He's also one of the few people that Batman actually respects, which has to be good for something.

He hangs out with the rest of the Justice Society, which is nice. I love the Justice Society, especially all the old farts like Jay Garrick, Ted Grant and Alan. It's nice to have Obsidian around, NOT being a villain. I even like Courtney.

Alan is important, because he fills the role of Paterfamilias to the rest of the Superhero community. I honestly can't think of a single hero that doesn't either like or at least respect Alan Scott...and that includes Hal. Heck even Guy gets along with Alan. I rather miss those days when they would all hang out at Warriors and play cards and tell lies. Goodness, even the old Superman from Kingdom Come respects Alan.

And that's a very very good thing.

For No Particular Reason...

I think I'll post about John Stewart today. For no particular reason that I can think of, except that even I get bored with Hal occasionally. And Guy is both hiding from Soranik Natu's constant nagging, and pining for Ice. Oh, and Kyle's off painting somewhere.

John always seems to be the afterthought for me, when it comes to the Green Lanterns, and I don't really know why that should be. It isn't because I don't like him, because I do. Maybe he's just not loud enough, obnoxious enough, or doesn't have hair like Hal's.

He IS awfully cute though.



Milk mustache!

I always got the impression in this issue that Hal was beginning to think that he'd bitten off more than he could chew. Which is a GOOD thing in my opinion. John DOES have this impish side to him, it's just that they don't bother to show it very often. And although he's been showing up more lately, and has been doing some pretty awesome things, they aren't showing off any of those little personality quirks that he has, like his lust for coffee, and appreciation of ABBA and Barbra Streisand. You just know that he's been to see "Mamma Mia" about twelve times by now. And that he's tried everything to get the rest of the Justice League to go and see it with him. I think that Superman and possibly Diana were the only ones who appreciated it. Hal was so horrified that he took off for Oa, and voluntarily started helping Guy and Kyle set up the bar. Roy begged Uncle Hal to take him too.

I getting slightly off of the subject here. In fact, I think that I've forgotten what the subject was in the first place. Oh yes, John Stewart.

John is cool.

Be Still, my little Fangirlish Heart

It seems as though there has been nothing but good news coming out of San Diego lately. I knew that there had been numerous hints about some project that Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver were up to, together, but it has finally been revealed that they are going to do The Flash: Rebirth.



I am enthralled. Geoff's writing, Ethan's majestic artwork, and coloring by Moose Baumann! I missed you Moose! It's going to be lovely. And if it turns out as well as the Green Lantern, Rebirth of Hal Jordan, then it is going to be lucrative for DC as well.

Some people are thrilled that Barry Allen is back, and some people are disgruntled. I am firmly in the thrilled department. I like Barry. I've always liked Barry. Although Jay Garrett is my FAVORITE Flash, I like all of them pretty much, although I must admit that I really do prefer Bart as Impulse. Grown up, he was just too much like Wally. And frankly, if you can have multiple Green Lanterns, and Green Arrows running all over the place, then by God, you can have multiple Flashes. For that matter, there are a crapload of Bat-related characters, not to mention Super-people and Amazons.

Besides, I'm just wild for Barry's manly crew-cut. Roowrr.

And he's a CSI ! People actually know what that is now! Furthermore, I think that the Rogues will be delighted. Oh, they've enjoyed tangling with Wally over the years, and I think that they are genuinely sorry about what happened with Bart, but somehow, you just never get over fighting your first hero. I just think that Barry holds a special place in their black little hearts.

So...we have this to look forward to next year, along with the whole Blackest Night thingie going on in the Green Lantern Universe. It just makes my Fangirlish little heart go pitter-pat.

Oh, here's another Flash picture. No real reason, other than I like how it implies movement.


Nicely done.

Green Lantern Corps #26

And here we have it, the shocking finale to "Ring Quest", as written by Peter Tomasi, and pencilled by Pat Gleason...and it's a doozy.

As you all recall (of course) our heroes had all just been hit with Mongul's nasty little bioengineered Black Mercy plants, which changed from being your heart's desire, to your worst fears. Mongul is just nasty like that. Being Mongul, he has to gloat for a while, and then he threatens Mother Mercy,who really isn't such a bad sort, when you come to know her. He considers the Green Lanterns to be helpless...food for Mother Mercy's children, and plans to fly off and wreak havoc elsewhere. His hapless flunky, aka Duel, is torn between torturing the GL's or flying off with Mongul to torture NEW victims. Mongul makes the choice for him, by splitting him in two, which seems rather drastic, but efficient. You just KNOW that Mongul would make one heck of an Office Manager.

So, Mongul and one half of Duel fly off, probably cackling with glee. In an absolutely gorgeous two-page spread, we see the helpless Green Lanterns, all in the grip of their deadliest fears. The whole thing is framed in with black silhouettes and spreading vines, and it really is beautifully done. Kyle is consumed by a painting, Stel's body becomes evil, and he's helpless to prevent it, Iolande is torn between being Queen and being a Lantern, Vath is terrified of a universe without war, and therefore no place for a soldier. Isamot has feelings of inadequacy that are just horrifying, while Soranik is being autopsied by Sinestro and Bzzd fears being tiny and insignificant. Guy is last, and his worst fears are losing Ice again, and his friends, mainly Kyle, Hal and John.

While 1/2 Duel gloats, the Lanterns are slowly sucked beneath the surface to presumably be devoured by the Black Mercys. A lone Green Lantern ring pops up on the surface, to the delight of Duel. Too bad he doesn't get to enjoy it for long.



Wow! Guy's feeling a bit on the cranky side, and who can blame him? Really Soranik, sometimes you are SUCH a nag. Needless to say, the rest of them aren't in a particularly good mood either. Even Mother Mercy is pissed. They all fly off in pursuit of Mongul and the other half of Duel. Poor Duel, he was delighted to receive the Sinestro Corp ring all for himself. That lasted about two seconds before he gets blown into tiny little Duel bits.

The Lanterns all decide that they are mad as hell and aren't going to take it any longer, and they dogpile on top of Mongul, who isn't very pleased. There is a LOT of fighting, with everybody getting their licks in, as well as some more beautiful art, but Mongul does have a crapload of Sinestro Corps rings as well as his own powers, and they are getting pretty well trounced.

Until...



Woohoo! Go Bzzd! I literally started hooting at this point in the book. That's one mean little fly! Bzzd's attack gives the rest of the Lanterns an edge, and they all pour it on, blasting Mongul back into Mercy's orbit. Mercy is REALLY ticked at this point, and Mongul is in big big trouble.
Vath and Iolande are ready to go in and finish him off, but Kyle points out that Mother Mercy is taking care of that for them. It's interesting that Iolande is portrayed as being almos as hardcore as Vath, I didn't expect that from her, but it works.

They are all just pleased as punch with Bzzd. Unfortunately, taking out Mongul also took a lot out of little Bzzd, and he's dying. Oh No! Not Bzzd! He goes out like the hero that he is however. Man I really liked that little guy. Who will hang out with Mogo now?

Bzzd's ring flies off, and immediately picks Mother Mercy as Bzzd's successor. Oddly enough, she is ALSO picked by the yelllow ring of Duel! Now we are in a quandary. As she herself points out, she can both promote Fear, as well as ease Fear. Sea of Green had just been wondering the other day, if one person can have more than one ring, and I guess we found out the answer! Fortunately, Mother Mercy makes the right choice and choses the Green, giving the yellow ring to the other Lanterns as a gift for Salaak.

Finally, the Lanterns fly off home, with Mongul being (apparently) slowy digested, and taking a tiny little green coffin with them.

*sniff*

This was good. Really good, and definitely worth the wait. Tomasi really has a grip on these characters, and I think that he does a fabulous job of keeping them in character, as well as giving a distinctive voice to each of them. As is usual, Guy has the best lines, "Slam his ass to that small moon!" and "yum, yum, eat him up..." But they are ALL heroes. The artwork by Gleason is sensational as always. This is absolutely worth your while.

New Comics...Yay!

This was a relatively small week for me, not like the usual end of the month pile-on. I guess that happens when you have a month with five Wednesdays in it. But Green Lantern Corps FINALLY did come out.

Ambush Bug: Year None #1......Let me state for the record, that if you like subtle forms of humor, then this book is not for you. If on the other hand, you like being clubbed over the head with completely over-the-top silliness, then you are in luck! Fortunately, although I enjoy the former, I also simply adore the latter. This book was incredibly silly. Mind bogglingly silly. Frankly, I loved it.

It finally gave the REAL reason that Jean Loring "accidentally" killed Sue Dibny. It also has such a lovely description of Ambush Bug by his spurned arch enemy Argyle, "...and his feet are soft, and they don't perspire too much..." And apparently, the Phantom Stranger is a bigger player than I thought!

The Brave & the Bold #15......This is the conclusion to the Nanda Parbat story from #14, and it does and excellent job of clearing up exactly why Ollie was being such a jerk. Which doesn't mean that Boston Brand lets him get away with it. Nightwing and Hawkman show up and save the day, and do so, quite handily. The reason that Deadman picks Nightwing is actually quite clever, and I loved the way that the two acrobats interacted.

My only quibble, was that the inking seemed very...thick. As there is no separate Inker listed, I assume that Scott Kolins did his own inking.

Green Lantern Corps #26....WOOHOOOOO!! Oh...damn!

Justice League of America #23.....This was pretty good. Wally had his moment in the spotlight, and handled things pretty well, although it might have behoved him to think about the whole Speedforce thing BEFORE he got his ass handed to him. Oh well, nobody ever said that Wally was the sharpest tack in the box. Vixen seems to be in trouble, and Zatanna got quite a surprise!

Superman #678....The second issue by James Robinson, and it's pretty good. I really enjoyed Clark and Lois's talk over breakfast. "I'm going to play with Krypto. In Space. Me and Hal."

Hee! Incidentally, I'm pretty sure that Krypto either pees on the rug, or chewed up Lois's favorite pair of black shoes, because he really seems to annoy her.

The Kirbyesque flashback sequences to Atlas are also a treat.

Trinity #8....This keeps plugging along, and it is still pretty good. I'm not enthralled, but I'm not repulsed either. Just decent standard comicbookery. The overhead shot of stately Wayne Manor is quite beautifully done, and I enjoyed the whole Bruce-hiding-from-his-guests thingie. Clark really enjoys dining out, and Diana and Etta shopping was fun.

Two-Face: Year One #1.....I wasn't quite sure what to expect withthis, but it was quite nice. Very nice artwork, and a compelling story. Good stuff. I really enjoyed the take on Harvey Bullock. It isn't that he's an honest cop, it's just that he's corrupt in a DIFFERENT way.

Wolverine: First Class #5.....This was good. I'm actually enjoying a Marvel book that isn't Hercules or Thor! This was a little more serious than the more recent issues, but there was a quite amusing bit with Logan patiently trying to explain the whole business of Canada having a Queen to Kitty. The ending was a bit of a downer, but hey, it is the superhero business, you don't win every time. I did snicker at the idea that the Professor was seriously pissed that Logan stole his plane...oh and a student too!

I hope you all enjoyed YOUR comics.

More Amazing Stuff

Man, is it me, or has there been some rather spectacular posters and artwork posted lately? Anyway, I stumbled upon this little gem, over at Newsarama, and had to show it.



It helps of course, that I'm a Neil Gaiman and Sandman fan.

The characters were drawn by some of the various artists that did the artwork throughout the series, which is rather nice. It's for the 20th anniversary of Sandman, which is making me feel rather old at the moment.

I am pleased to say that I knew ALL the characters with the exception of Gregory, whose name I couldn't remember, but I DID know that he was Cain's little pet.

Do YOU know all the characters?

Well, Fancy That!

Green Lantern Corps #29
Written by Peter J. Tomasi
Art & Cover by Pat Gleason and Drew Geraci

The lead-in to "Blackest Night" begins with the "Sins of the Star Sapphire". Catch a glimpse into
the beginning of the latest Corps being formed and what it will mean to the Green Lanterns. Plus Ice proposes to Guy Gardner!


Oh. Oh my.

I first saw this over on Geoff Johns Green Lantern Message Board this morning, and literally squealed with joy. And so, I imagine did all of the OTHER Guy/Ice fans. All twelve of us. Because we are FINALLY getting some Ice and Guy interaction, although I must admit that I have my suspicions about the August issue as well.

And I must also admit that I'm really hoping that they'll cut poor Guy a break for a change, and actually let him have a little tiny bit of happiness. Not to mention Tora has been having a bit of a tough time of it as well, what with being dead and all that.

That's rather an interesting cover, by the way. In addition to Guy and Tora, we also have the happy couple from Tales of the Sinestro Corp, Vath and some woman, and Kyle and Soranik.

Wait.

Kyle and Soranik? As a couple? That's interesting. It's true that Kyle hasn't had much of a love life lately, but they did play up his involvement with Donna in Ion and Countdown. I guess it fizzled. On the other hand, Donna is probably the only woman in the Universe who is immune to the famous Rayner "Kiss of Death". Seriously, being involved with Kyle is bad for your health. And dammit, I LIKE Soranik! I don't want her to die! I've also never noticed the least bit of interest between her and Kyle, so this could just be the start of things.

Oh, and Green Lantern Corps is coming out tomorrow. FINALLY!

Awwwwww...!!

This is just adorable. For a change I didn't steal it from Scans Daily. I stole it from Newsarama, but it is by Dustin Nguyen, who is a wonderful artist.



I think that Tim is just so CUTE! And I love the way that Alfred is standing there so stoically, holding the martini. I can believe that Bruce Wayne drinks martinis, but Batman? And yet...so much would make sense about Batman, if I can picture him in front of the Bat-computer tossing down martinis and plotting in a gin-induced haze.

It's too hot and muggy out to be clever today. I'm going for cute instead.

why DO we Hate General Glory?

Originally, I believe, I thought that the concept of General Glory was rather amusing. He was a rather heavy-handed parody of Captain America, and he certainly had his moments. I did enjoy that he would start going on and on about FDR at the drop of a hat, and that he did his best to drive Max Lord crazy. His dialogue was ridiculously overblown, and his decency was cringe-worthy.

He served as an odd Father figure to Guy Gardner, who at the time, probably desperately needed a little validation. Which didn't stop Guy from treating him outrageously at the beginning, when he was first buying that old General Glory comic book, and refused to let an old man look at it. Boy was HE surprised! General Glory, to the astonishment of the rest of the Justice League was actually able to exert a little bit of control and influence on Guy's behavior...making him say "Sir" and "Sorry". Both words had never been known to drop from Guy's lips prior to General Glory's appearance on the scene. He got Guy to calm down a little bit, which was probably a good thing. Guy even put up with his miserable dog, who pooped and peed all over the embassy and even swallowed him whole once.

But then it started to go downhill. I think that having to actually live up to General Glory's expectations started putting more stress on Guy than he could handle. There was that ridiculous boxing match of course, which went so completely, utterly, disastrously wrong. Frankly, considering how out of character everyone was acting in that little scenario, the strain of having to live with General Glory was putting a strain on EVERYONE. J'onn should have stepped in from the beginning and put a stop to it.

Then there was the fact that General Glory was running a soup kitchen out of his and Guy's shared apartment. There is certainly nothing wrong with charity and helping out others who are less fortunate than yourself, but to do something of that nature to GUY's place is just out of line. It almost broke Guy's spirit, but to his credit, he managed to rise above it. But it was just one more straw on the camel's back.

I think that the strain of having to live with General Glory, and to live up to his completely unrealistic values was one of the things that made Guy snap when Hal showed up to retake his place as Earth's Green Lantern. Guy was under a TON of pressure, and unfortunately, he snapped. Hal's bullying was just the final straw.

So...there is Guy, ringless, friendless and jobless, wandering around in his old uniform and trying to find the shreds of his dignity...and General Glory's reaction is to offer him the role of sidekick. SIDEKICK! General Glory really didn't a clue about what made Guy Gardner tick. He was more than willing to accept Guy's hero-worship, and he was carelessly kind to Guy...but he didn't understand a single thing about him.

The final blow of course, was the reaction of General Glory after Guy had returned from his kidnapping by the Draal, only to find that his evil clone had murdered a man in cold blood, and gone on a rampage. His other teammates were understandably confused by his reappearance, but took it more or less in stride. I've always thought that Wonder Woman's reaction was the best. She didn't even need her lasso, she just KNEW who was the real Guy. Guy shows up ringless, but with a really cool gun, and manages to take out the Bad Guy. So everything should be just fine and dandy...right?

Wrong. General Glory not only refuses to believe Guy, he refuses to even TALK to him! It takes Wonder Woman's magic lasso, which she used at Guy's request, to finally convince General Glory, that Guy WASN'T a homicidal maniac. I think that this is what finally broke Guy's heart. In a way, it was even worse than the spat he had with Tora. They were going through a bit of a rough patch, but at least they were talking. But when the hero that you have worshipped and trusted since childhood turns his back on you...man, that hurts.

So, I was glad, GLAD when they got rid of General Glory. They even killed him off eventually, and I was glad about that too. Because, in the end, he was just an old blowhard. And Guy had to learn that his old hero had feet of clay, and that was a tough tough lesson to learn. I wonder if they ever all talked about it later on, when Guy had the Bar, and Alan and John and Kyle used to come over and drink beer and tells lies about Hal.

So yeah. I hate General Glory.

But I love Guy Gardner.

Let's Try this Again!

I was in the middle of typing the title, and my little finger slipped or something, and next thing you know, I have posted yet another in my series of scintillating "Oopsies" series. Oddly enough, I always get tons of comments on those. Oh well.

What I was PLANNING on doing today, was making fun of Snapper Carr. I find Snapper Carr to be so very very mockable. Not Kalinara though. Kalinara LOVES Snapper Carr.



Look, even the Justice League thinks that he's a joke. That has to be the slowest run towards the Bad Guys that I've ever seen, by the way. J'onn isn't even trying, he's just shuffling at the most. That's not a run, that's a jog..at the MOST! But the point is, that Ollie can't even keep the grin off of his face, as he's discussing young Snapper.



Hah hah! Hawkman loses again. And so is born, his deep hatred of Green Arrow...who WASN'T stuck babysitting Snapper Carr. I also know which finger I would have used.



Call me crazy, but I think that Wonder Woman is being JUST a tad insincere here. Especially in light of the fact that the rest of them are just bursting with ill-concealed mirth. It also looks as though she's lifting his wallet.



For the last time, Snapper! Nobody wants to see your birthmark!

Sheesh!

Wherein I Mock

Reviews

Well, this was a fairly small week for me. And STILL no Green Lantern Corps, dammit! I also completely forgot to pick up the Punisher, so I guess I'll have to wait until next week.

This weeks books were :

Birds of Prey
Checkmate
The Flash
The Incredible Hercules
Rogues Revenge
Tangent: Superman's Reign
Trinity
Zorro

Birds of Prey was pretty good. Manhunter and Black Canary spar a bit, and Canary holds back while Manhunter learns a little bit of respect. Dinah is pretty pissy to Barbara however. And Infinity shows up, someone who can walk through walls and be invisible to cameras and such. And you'll never guess who shows up at the end! Well. You'll probably guess.

Checkmate continues the story of Chimera. This is starting to lose me. As Shelly points out, there isn't a whole lot about Checkmate in there. I want to see spies and shenanigans, and Black Kings and White Queens, and mainly, I want to see Fire. Not a lot of that going on, just rather confusing monster battles. Meh.

The Flash was certainly surprising. Iris is aging...rapidly. Wally does manage to get rid of all the bad emotions, and takes that little white gorilla back to Gorilla City. Things however, do not work out well. I am strangely ambivalent about the ending.

In the Incredible Hercules, things do Not Go Well. And apparently, you should never trust cute adorable coyote puppies with glowing green eyes. I'm really trying to stay out of the whole "Skrull" stuff that is going on, but this book is pretty good. Lots of stuff blows up and fights and more stuff. Too bad about Snowbird. Turns out that she had the map, and you just KNOW that the rest of them (being guys) won't EVER stop for directions on the way back.

Rogues Revenge was great. Geoff Johns does a very nice job portraying a world-weary Captain Cold. I have to say that I like this bunch of ne'er-do-wells a lot. A whole lot. And I'm so glad that they punched out that snotty little faux Trickster. Also nice to see Piper. And Libra IS an ass. And Zoom is wicked scary. I'm quite looking forward to the subsequent issues of this.

Tangent: Superman's Reign. I keep forgetting that I'm getting this, and then it turns up in my pull box. It does have an awfully pretty Hal Jordan on the cover, which is a plus. Hal, Flash, Batman and John are all stuck in the Tangent Universe fighting against the Tangent Superman who is a bit of a dillweed. They get their butts handed to them rather easily by the Tangent Power Girl...a fact that is noted by an increasingly exasperated Batman. And there is a nerd version of Guy Gardner, that I simply HAVE to keep reading about. So this is fun in a weird sort of way.

Trinity was pretty darned good. It seemed to get going a little slow at the beginning, but things are picking up now, and including the Justice League is always a nice thing to do. Hawkman shows up too. And John Stewart and Firestorm take a little jaunt down memory lane with Krona which was great.

Zorro came out, which was nice. We are still working on Don Diego's origin, which seems to be stretched out...waaaaaaaay out, but I don't mind. There are sword fights!

Rogues Revenge seems to be my pick of the litter this week. It's really really good.

But I STILL want Green Lantern Corps!

I've Been Paying Way Too Much Attention To Hal

Time for a little Guy love. Hal has been stealing the spotlight far too often lately. In his defense, he DOES make it very easy to make posts, what with the ego, the head-bashing, and general dimwittery. But I haven't talked very much about Guy lately, or Kyle OR John, and they are just as...nay MORE than as important as Hal buffoonery.

As much as I enjoy the way that Guy Gardner is currently being written...and I DO...I have to shamefacedly admit that sometimes I miss his old-fashioned assholeishness. Granted, a lot of writers seemed to take his general air of cussedness a little bit TOO far, but you have to admit, that love him or hate him, Guy always was and is, an interesting character.

That...and he's just plain fun.

His relationship to Hal is also...very interesting.



Sea of Green, over at the Hooser Journal of Inanity, has been having a fine old time lately going through all of her stacks and stacks of old books, and picking out and posting the gems of her collection, for US! Her adoring fans thank her. She's had some great ones of Wally, during his time with the Justice League, International that have gotten me to thinking.

In a way, I think that Wally was supposed to be a bit like Guy, except in Europe instead of New York. He was always lusting after Power Girl, being insecure, and picked on a bit, and generally portrayed as a bit of a dweeb. The analogy can't go TOO far, because with all of his faults, Guy was NEVER a dweeb. They were similar in that they both had to try and live up to a previous incarnation of their name and powers however. Wally is far more of legacy to Barry of course, being a former sidekick and all. Guy was never a sidekick, but he still has to live and function under the very large shadow of Hal Jordan. They used to bicker like crazy, but every once in a while, there was a little bit of understanding.



Awwww. They did manage to find an common bit of ground. For a little while anyway. I don't think that there has been any interaction between Guy and Wally since the latters return and that's a darned shame. That is the only problem with having Guy and Kyle bouncing around Spaaacccce, they don't have any contact with the rest of the superheroes. However, I'm sure that will happen eventually. Probably during the whole "Blackest Night" event that is looming on the horizon.

It would be nice if they could work in a little mention of J'onn's death in Green Lantern Corps somehow. Both Guy and Kyle were in the League with him after all. J'onn served as the head babysitter for the JLI, and Guy actually minded him once in a while. I think that J'onn at least handled Guy better than Batman. It is a good thing that Bats is smart, because his people-skills are pretty piss-poor.

This is all starting to meander a bit, which I suppose is what happens when you are typing in a purely stream-of-conciousness manner. But I do have one more scan of Guy.



And now we know all about that haircut. Isn't that cute?

It's STILL not out?

I just looked at the list of new books that are coming out on Wednesday, and for the second week in a row, Green Lantern Corps is missing. Is this true? Did I just misread the list? Is there a mistake of some kind? I'm starting to hyperventilate.



I NEED MY FIX!

Dammit.

I've been to Pat Gleason's site, and there is a gorgeous black and white picture of either the cover or the first page, with Mongul gloating and all the Green Lanterns flat on the ground with Black Mercy's attached to them. This is the big one! The finale to the current arc! I haven't seen Kyle or Guy in a month and a half, and I'm starting to twitch!



I know exactly how J'onn feels. I wants my Chocos, and I wants them...NOW! On the other hand, since Peter Tomasi was the writer for Final Crises: Requiem, did that cut into his writing time on Green Lantern Corps? If that is the case, then I suppose I should just stop pouting and walk it off.

Still...it just makes me want to...punch something. Or someone.



Ahhhh. That's better.

Batman Confidential #19

Good Grief, I've been doing a lot of reviews! And yet, this one is just so good, that I can't resist. As you all know, I'm not too much of a Bat enthusiast (although I MUST say, that he's actually been tolerable this week) I do like a lot of the Bat supporting cast however. And I LOVE Kevin Maguire, so I've been gobbling up this book like crazy.

When last we left our doughty heroines, Catwoman had stolen Commissioner Gordon's notebook from Barbara. Barbara, as Batgirl has done her level best to retrieve it. Catwoman had to admit that the reason she stole it was to save a life, which of course makes Barbara (to her chagrin) just HAVE to help her now. They are also pinned down by sniper fire at the junk yard, and Catwoman is falling to her death. Good thing that she has that tail. Batgirl manages to snag her just before she hits the ground, and they end up in a dumpster. Poor Catwoman. She's practically beside herself with disgust at having to be rescued...and rescued by an obvious "newbie" at that.

Batgirl manages to find a broken mirror and takes a peek at it. With disdain practically dripping in her voice, Catwoman assures her that "...no really, you look great." Batgirl really needs to mirror to try and see if she can discover who it is that is shooting at them. It turns out to be a very large VERY large Russian gentleman, and the two of them take turns pummelling him, which turns out to be mostly futile, since he seems to be enjoying it.

He does take off, and they manage to track him to a nice abandoned warehouse, which is of course the Bad Guy's Lair. Catwoman negotiates with the offer of a translation of the notebook in order to save her friend, while Batgirl turns out the lights. Things actually go according to plan except that their VERY large Russian friend is back, and he just Won't Go Down.

Then the Bad Guys blow up their lair.

Obviously, the two ladies are getting just a tad fed up about this point. But that's ok, it's about to get worse.

Oh, so much worse.



Again, Kevin Maguire is a genius when it comes to expressions. But his action just flows so smoothly, and his panels just go so beautifully together, you barely even need the narration or the dialogue...the art is just that good. Which is why I almost swallowed my tongue when I read a different review and some bozos were whining because Batgirl and Catwoman weren't "sexy" enough.

It's moments like this when I just want to beat my head against the desk.

Booster Gold #1,000,000

Awwww...I can't believe this is the last issue by Geoff Johns and J Katz. But they certainly go out with a blaze of glory. I believe that there are going to be two issues by Chuck Dixon, and after that, it is anybody' guess. I've loved this book from the very start, and I hope...I really really hope, that they can maintain the excellence.

As you all recall, time was all messed up because of Booster's rescue of Ted Kord. Ted of course, does the heroic thing, and sacrifices himself to save the time stream and the lives of his fellow JLIers...which is of course, exactly the sort of thing that Ted Kord WOULD do.

*sniff*

The effect of Ted's sacrifice however, has sent Booster and Skeets tumbling through space and time, until, highly confused, they show up in the far distant future, where they are confronted by the spectacle of ...Peter Platinum! Peter it turns out, is a ridiculously over-the-top charicature of Booster, a "Hero" of the future, who has taken Booster as his role-model, but improved upon his example. He berates poor Booster when he shows up and starts yammering about how fabulous he (Peter) is, how much he really hates the adoring crowds, and generally shows us all what an ass he is. Booster is properly horrified and revolted...as much as he may have sometimes pandered to the crowd, his heart at least, was in the right place.

Fortunately, Rip Hunter shows up in the Time Sphere, and picks up Booster and Skeets, while leaving Peter Platinum a little example of his high regard. Heh. It has all been the very last straw for Booster however, and once again, he quits. The next day, he ends up in Las Vegas, STILL in high dudgeon, when, wouldn't you know it, he comes across the Royal Flush Gang, robbing a casino. With an audible sigh, Booster starts fighting the gang, when he's suddenly "rescued" by none other than Green Lantern and Green Arrow. Since it is Hal and Ollie, they DO have to make jerks of themselves about it. Booster has had about all he can take, when he gets a sudden message from Batman of all people, and he is out of there.

Booster shows up at the Batcave, in a pretty foul mood, and who can blame him. He's about to stomp off in a huff, when Batman shows him a bunch of photographs, that leave him stunned. They turn out to be pictures of him fighting the Joker, from when he went into the past and tried to rescue Barbara Gordon! In typical Batman fashion, Bruce found the photos, and kept them, all these years. He didn't tell anyone, because when Booster first showed up, he was younger and wearing a different uniform. So he waited...until he grew up.



That...that is SUCH a Batman-like thing to do! For the second time this week, I'm actually liking Batman. Who'd a'thunk?

Feeling a bit better about himself, Booster flies off to find Rip, and to tell him that he's back in. Rip is busy writing enigmatic clues on his chalkboard again. Azrael fans should be rejoicing! And a possible hint about the Blackets Night. And Ralph! And Booster receives one of the biggest shocks of his life, when his dead sister Michelle shows up, alive and kicking!

Booster if flabberghasted of course. Rip explains that he figured out a way to pull her out just before the explosion killed her. When Booster wonders why Rip was able to save Michelle but not Ted, he explains that since Michelle was also from the future, the rules were different. Things in the past are SET in the past, but the future is malleable...or something. I don't think that Booster cares. After all the crap he's gone through, something has finally gone right.



Oh Rip! Suddenly you just got a whole lot more interesting! I can't WAIT to find out who his mother is!

And that's how the Carter family came to found the Time Hunters. Booster and Michelle go off to Paris for lunch, and Skeets wears a beret. Oh, and a mysterious dark figure with a scarab, breaks into Kord Industries. Uh oh.

As is his wont, Geoff Johns leaves us with some intriguing hints about future storylines. I know that MY appetite has been whetted!

Woohoo! New Comics!

Finally! As usual, there were some real gems to be found, and only a few clunkers. No Green Lantern Corps this week however, which makes me rather glum. Oh well, something to look forward to, I suppose.

For the second month in a row, I have actually broken down, and bought Action Comics. Geoff Johns is writing, and Gary Franks is doing the art, and frankly, they are an excellent combination. Superman interacts beautifully with Supergirl, who for a change doesn't annoy me. There is a nice bit with his parents, and a hysterical bit with Steve Lombard...

<

Batman Confidential continues to delight and enthrall. Kevin Maguire's art is just so much fun. Batgirl and Catwoman have finally realized that they have to team up, in order to save Catwoman's friend, and end up fighting the Russian Mob. Oh, and somebody shows up at the end, that they would probably just as soon not have to deal with. *snicker*

For a reason that I can't really explain, I ended up with a copy of Detective Comics, which had Hush in it. I don't know much about Hush, and Batman doesn't seem to be running around in a drug-addled daze, which I was rather expecting. Eh.

Booster Gold on the other hand was fabulous! More tomorrow.

Green Arrow and Black Canary was ok. It is more or less one long fight scene. Batman and Plastic Man show up. Cliff Chiang is only on the cover, not the inside art. Not bad, but nothing that knocked my socks off.

Huntress #5 continues to be enjoyable. Bruce Wayne is pretending to be a buddy to a mobster, in order to get the goods on him, but Huntress doesn't know that...and then Batgirl blunders in. Meanwhile Helena's one true Love, is married to another, but then his father dies, and she realizes that he's not quite as adorable as she thought.

JSA is nice, lots of shots of GOG doing godly things. The heroes remain sceptical, but some of them are becoming hopeful. Gog gives Sandy a good night's sleep and removes Dr. Midnite's blindness, not to mention sending Power Girl on a trip, and making Starman coherent...which automatically removes most of the comedy. I'm getting just a wee bit bored with the whole Gog/oldfartSuperman story line...but it's still pretty decent.

Final Crises: Requiem was probably my favorite book, along with Booster Gold. In Final Crises, Martian Manhunter was killed off quite unceremoniously, almost casually. In this book, we get to see that he actually DID fight back, and almost...almost succeeded. The heroes of Earth have gathered together on Mars to give J'onn a proper sendoff, and it is quite touching. J'onn also manages in his final moments to send the history of his planet, people and himself into the minds of Superman, Black Canary, Gypsy, Hal Jordan and Batman.

There are a number of surprising people present, and a few people absent that I would have liked to see. Like Fire for instance. She WAS in the JLI. Not a whole lot of JLI representation really, although I suppose that's because most of them have been arbitrarily killed off. Harumph. Ice, Booster and Guy do show up, which is nice. So does Aquaman. With short hair, and in his classic orange and green, which delighted me to no end. I can't really explain how he's able to be there, and it is interesting that nobody seems to interact with him, but by God, he IS there, and that is how it should be.

I suppose it is the final page that was the most affecting. The Funeral is over, and everyone turns to leave, but Batman, with his cowl removed, stays, looking down at J'onn's body...and then places a Choco on the top of the coffin. I'm not too embarrassed to say that I teared right up.

It...it was perfect.

Trinity was decent. Not a whole lot happened, but they did do a lot of explaining their different approaches to life, and there was some nice introspection by all the characters.

Wonder Woman was pretty darned good. She's still wandering around with her motly crew, but she's finding it more and more difficult to remember who and what she really is...even starting to hallucinate a bit. Oh, and Nemesis gets to fight the white apes in her apartment, which is a whole lot of fun.

So it was WORTH it, waiting the extra day!

Meandering

Still wandering around in a comics-deprived state of depression. It ain't pretty. On the other hand, a thunderstorm and a cold front came through last night, to relieve the OPRESSIVE heat and humidity, and today is just gorgeous, so my mood is improving. Slightly.

On a totally different note, does anybody watch HGTV other than me? In addition to an unwholesome addiction to Green Lantern comics, I ALSO simply adore moving furniture around and hunting for antiques. So I keep watching those silly decorating shows on television. I have to admit however, that I'm beginning to wonder if some of these shows are the main cause for the Housing meltdown and Mortgage Crises that we are currently facing. There is one show, the name of which escapes me, but it probably has the word "House" in it, but the premise is that some woman comes in with a Realtor, and they sneer at the decorating job the homeowners have spent untold thousands of dollars on. The homeowners then shiver with anticipation as the Realtor tells them how much he or she could "list" their house for. The homeowners then burst into tears, or jump up and down, and go and refinance for every last penny they can wring from the bank, to put in MORE home improvements.

Notice, the key word here, is the price that the Realtor can "list" their house for. Not "sell" their house for. There is also the rather peculiar supposition, that no one on the planet can sell their house, unless there are granite countertops in the kitchen and a triple showerhead in the bathroom. I also don't really think that mortgaging your house up to...and beyond...the absolute hilt, is a particularly fiscally prudent move to make. And you wonder why there are so many foreclosures.

I'm redoing my kitchen. I've been redoing my kitchen for months. I have the wallpaper scraped off the walls, and that is how they have been sitting..for quite some time now. Some day I'll even spackle and paint them. But I refuse...categorically refuse...to put in granite countertops. Because I know that the minute I do so, they will immediately go out of style, and we'll all stand around and sneer at them like a 1970's style den. I'm not buying a restaurant style stove either. My stove is almost 50 years old, and works just fine.

Well! That was refreshing!

Now I'll go out and buy my new comic books. And ENJOY them!

No Comics Today

Due to the selfish desires of UPS men to have a weekend off, the books won't be coming in until Thursday. You would think that celebrating our Nation's Birthday was more important than Comics!

Anyway, we all have to wait an extra day, and I'm a mite on the cranky side. Well, that and the fact that it is about 90 degrees out, and humid as hell. I really am one of those weird people who prefer cold weather to warm. I always look forward to September with a deep and bittersweet longing, right about July and August.

In addition to not having my books to gloat over today, I just received a letter from the AARP telling me that I'm eligible to join their ranks. This does not really excite me as much as they may have thought. True, the thought of getting old Fart discounts is appealing, but I don't really WANT to go to Denny's for the Early Bird Special. Although I DO find staying up past 11:00 to be quite difficult anymore.

But speaking of old farts...!



This is what the meetings at the Justice Society have degenerated into. You just KNOW that trying to get everyone to pay their fair share AND the tip is a royal pain. Poor Jay is just so desperate. And Johnny Thunder is thinking about sneaking out and leaving the Genii stuck with the bill. AND, they all drink decaf.

I think I'll go sit on my veranda and yell at the kids.

Let's all take a Whack at Hal

Yes, I'm at it again. This is the sort of thing that happens when I can't really think of a single thing that is witty or inciteful to say. I fall back on that most precious of crutches...Hal Jordan getting Whacked



And Boy Howdy, is he ever!

I'm not completely sure where I found this particular scan, probably either Scipio or Sea of Green, but that sure looks a lot like Wildcat and Hourman taking their sweet time giving poor old Hal the once-over. What is REALLY strange, is that they are apparently laboring under the assumption that they are actually beating up Alan Scott.

They may both be Green Lanterns, but really, if you can't tell Alan from Hal, then there is definitely something wrong with you. Alan may have a weakness to wood, but Hal certainly doesn't. What Hal has a weakness for, is women, marriage proposals and yellow ceiling tiles.

Oh, by the way, Blue Beetle #28 was Good

It may take me a while, and the replacement of my keyboard, (which no longer typed the letter "C", which makes it rather difficult to blog about COMICS), but I do eventually get around with gracing all of you with my opinion of the latest Blue Beetle issue. I have heard a rumor that this will be Will Pfeifer's last issue, which I find rather surprising, as I thought he was supposed to be taking over for more than just a few books, but what do I know?

Anyway, to cut to the chase, this was a nice little issue. While it didn't have some of the jaw-droppingly funny moments that John Roger's version had, it was still a nice done-in-one episode, that stayed true to the characters, and had a nice little twist at the end. I find that rather refreshing with all of massive cross-overs that are currently infecting the comicbook scene.

We open with a nice little flashback to Dan Garrett as the Blue Beetle, and the menace at a local bank. We then cut to one of Jaime's buddies grousing about a fried computer, who coincidentally gets chased by none other than the menace from the flashback! Or...is he?

Jaime gets to fly around El Paso looking for clues, and trying to calm down the irate citizens. For a monster, there doesn't seem to be too much damage actually, and what damage there is...is rather odd. Tires chewed up in a Tire Store, tripe stolen from a Butcher Shop, and a garden destroyed. Hector, the kid chased by the monster is somewhat on edge still, but Jaime just can't seem to find anything out of the ordinary...just some old guy walking his dog.

Then of course, Peacemaker busts in. Kicking open the door with his foot. Now, I can only assume that this the way that Peacemaker ALWAYS enters a room...kicking open the door with his foot. He knows perfectly well that it's just Jaime and his friends behind that door, but gosh darn it, he LOVES to make an entrance. The blank-eyed stare that he gets from Jaime, Paco and the rest of them is quite amusing. Anyway, Peacemaker has Dani Garrett with him, and they have evidence that The Menace of Doctor Mephistopheles Has Returned! Which cues another flashback of Dan Garrett battling the Menace of Dr. Mephistopheles and his Giant Green Furry Monster! The good Doctor looks properly menacing, rather like a slightly plumper Dr. Sivana, I mean, he has the bald head, big glasses and menacing white smock thing down perfectly.

Peacemaker and Dani seem a whole lot more worked up about the return of Dr. Mephistopheles than anybody else does. Poor Peacemaker can't even get anyone to take him seriously until he mentions the monster, which at least makes Hector's ears perk up. So, Jaime suits up and goes out searching again.

After QUITE a while, he actually does come across the monster, and rather to his surprise, it is suitably menacing. It even throws a car at him. While he's not completely thrilled to have a car thrown at his head, Beetle does realize that something is a little bit...off. The monster seems to be a lot more playful than he had anticipated. While the original Blue Beetle, Dan Garrett had destroyed the monster, Jaime is more reluctant to use lethal force, and good for him. He does have to do something to contain the monster however, and he's giving it a good zap, when the old man who was previously seen walking his dog runs into the field of fire. In a rather lovely intertwining of the flashback with the present, we see Dr. Mephistopheles AND the old man pleading.



Well! That was a bit of a twist! It turns out of course, that the old man IS Dr. Mephistopheles, who gave up crime after Dan Garrett killed his first monster, and has been bumming around the country for years with his dog. He settled in El Paso, well...because he's old, and it's warm there. It's also probably a whole lot cheaper than Phoenix. Fortunately, since Jaime pulled his punches, the monster/dog is just fine.

Peacemaker shows up of course, breathing fire and vengeance, but Jaime, bless his heart stands up to him and points out that the old guy has been punishing himself for a heck of a long time, and he's not going to pick on an old guy and his dog. Peacemaker is slightly taken aback, but goes along with it, I am sure, to Jaime's relief.

And that is that. Short, and rather sweet.

And Where do you Get Yours?

I am wondering where everyone gets their books? Online ordering? Off to the bookstore every Wednesday? Other versions of the bookstore? I go to Matt's in Enfield, Connecticut every Wednesday (blessed, blessed Wednesday) and enjoy myself thoroughly. I'm a regular, and hardly anyone stares at me anymore. It's light, bright, and has something for everyone. If I don't find something, he offers to get it for me.

So, I put it to you all. Where do YOU get your books?

Happy Fourth of July!

The rest of my crew is out marching in a parade, while drumming their drums and fifeling their fifes, all dressed up in ruffled shirts and tricorne hats. They look adorable. I am meanwhile, trying to get into the spirit of the day.

Stars would be nice.



Gosh, here's Booster Gold, all shiny and pretty! Sure, he's a bit of a huckster, but he's a huckster for AMERICA!

In addition to parades and stars, what else goes nice on the Fourth of July? Beer of course.



Why thank you, Guy. I WILL have another.

And finally, simply because I have had Fire and Ice on the brain lately, one of my favorite pictures of them, by Adam Hughes, I believe.



Because, gosh darn it, we need more of Fire and Ice in the books lately. I even miss Bea's old costume...it was just so...so...BEA. The new one for Checkmate, just doesn't float my boat. Tora's of course, is perfect as it is.

And finally, Blue Beetle, and Jonah Hex were great, as were a bunch of other books out this week.

Manhunter #32

Well, Howdy Doody, this was good. I MISSED you, Manhunter, and I'm so very glad that you are back.

When we last left our doughty heroine, she had just made a grisly discovery in the desert near El Paso, when she was interrupted by none other than El Paso's Number One Super Hero! (Also El Paso's ONLY Number One Super Hero) Why, it's Blue Beetle!

Kate is actually rather pleased to see Blue Beetle, but unfortunately for her, Jaime's Scarab is none too happy to see her. And why is that, you may ask? Remember that little antipathy thing that the Scarab has going with the Green Lanterns? It turns out it has the SAME antipathy thing going for the Darkstars...except even worse. I can sympathize with the Scarab on this, because I couldn't stand the Darkstars either. Cheesy GL wannabees!

But it all leads to a classic misunderstanding, in proper Comicbooky fashion.




Heehee!

The two of them finally do come to a compromise, and even have a bit of bonding over the fact that neither ONE of them has a suit that came with an instruction manual, and that basically, the two of them are just "winging it". Frankly, I think that they were MADE for teaming up together!

With the preliminaries out of the way, Kate shows Jaime the body of the woman she just found, and poor Jaime reacts by ralphing all over the desert. Kate is rather surprised that he's so young, but Jaime rather huffily assures her that he does indeed know what he's doing. He wants to help, but Kate starts acting all motherly, and wants to keep him out of it, since it is pretty nasty. But he does give her the name of La Dama.

Meanwhile, Ramsey is experiencing some bonding with the grandparents...or rather GREAT grandparents, and acquires a cute puppy. A cute ROBOT puppy! Oh, and Dylan is in BIG trouble.

La Dama is surprisingly helpful, and even hospitable. She gives Kate some decent information, mainly that she should get a hold of the Department of Extranormal Operations. Oops. Thnis of course leads to a rather uncomfortable confrontation with Bones, who is busy denying everthing, and Kate trying to hit him where it hurts. Amanda Waller's name is mentioned. Heh.

Kate does make her way down to Vesetech Industries, which is the place that the young girl from last issue went missing, and runs the gantlet of pissed-off Texans who are busy picketing and insulting people. One of these gentlemen makes the mistake of insulting Kate, which turns out poorly for him. Kate does manage to get some solid information, but the young girl who was attacked last issue is in for a rough time of it.

This is nicely written and nicely drawn, and if you aren't reading it, you should be.

Oh, not again!

I know, I know, I've babbled about this before. That feeling of utter hopelessness as you stare at a computer screen, knowing that there isn't a single thing in your head to write about. How do professional columnists and writers DO this? Maybe I can mumble about the Green Lanterns for a while.

Or maybe, just maybe, for a change of pace, I can mumble about OTHER heroes. Like, when are they going to bring Aquaman back? The REAL Aquaman. Like Superbrat Prime, I know that the REAL Aquaman doesn't have a stupid sword. There have been rumbles and rumors coming out of DC that they are going to bring back the REAL Aquaman, but like most children, I have limited patience. I want him NOW, dammit.

I not only want the REAL Aquaman back, but I want him back in all of his green and orange glory. And short hair. Really, the long hair may have looked all bad-assed or whatever, but I can't imagine that it would have been very practical underwater. And I want him talking to fish again. Because in the long run, that is actually a very handy sort of power to have. And while I rather like Namor, Aquaman is NOT Namor, and they shouldn't try to make him act or talk like Namor. Although a certain amount of rolling of the eyes at the drylander's obtuseness is allowed. And the giant seahorse would be a plus. And the octopus.

J'onn J'onnz is dead. Now bring him back. He can hang out with Aquaman! They always seemed to enjoy each others company.

It's nice that Spoiler never died, I'm not much of a Stephanie OR Bat fan, but she got a pretty raw deal. For that matter, it's nice that Dr. Leslie has had her reputation redeemed. It's nice I suppose that Batman realized all of this, but what does it say about him, that the doctor was willing to go to the lengths that she did to teach him a lesson? I don't know if her tactic worked, he seems pretty blase' about the whole thing. For being so bloody fantastic all of the, Batman never seems to have the basic humanity or humility to actually learn a lesson from the bad things that happen. He's probably back to planning how to take out the Justice League again.

I would be in heaven, if somehow, Fire and Ice could join the Birds of Prey. It's not that I don't like Huntress or Zinda or even Misfit, but Barbara could use a bit of new blood. I just miss having them together. Fire doesn't seem very happy over at Checkmate, and Ice just isn't being used enough. They don't have to go on every mission, but it would be nice to have them interact a bit. Plus, I think that Huntress and Fire's personalities would be...interesting together.

When are Guy and Ice going to go on that date? Or did they go on that date when they ended up helping out Blue Beetle against the Reach?

Oh look! It's time to go and buy my comics! And there are certainly some goodies out there this week, such as Fables, Blue Beetle, Manhunter and Nightwing!

Mary Worth has gone to the Bad

Strange things have been happening in the ranks of Newspaper comics lately, my friends...STRANGE things. Firstly, I have to commend Folded Soup on his post, over at "the Want List", with an oddly transfigured Garfield. It's HILARIOUS!

But then I started thinking. Have the Skrulls invaded the newspaper comics as well? I'm pretty sure that Anthony from "For Better or for Worse" is a Skrull. Possibly Liz as well. But the one that has REALLY caught my attention is Mary Worth.

She's been behaving...oddly.

It was bad enough when she drove Captain Kangaroo to his untimely death a few months back. If anybody could drive a man to suicide, I would imagine it would be Mary Worth. Man, that is one aggravating woman! But now, seduced by the white-haired allure of a sleezy politician, she has turned her back upon her long-suffering boyfriend, Doctor Jeff. She'd rather go out and have dinner with this new guy...and this is AFTER she quietly smothered his mother in the hospital! Well...actually, I made that last part up, but I wouldn't put it past her.

All poor Dr. Jeff does is question whether or not she should be giving so much "advice" to the newly bereaved son. Mary gets quite miffed. Nosy old buttinsky that she is, she HATES it, when people actually notice that she's a nosy old buttinsky. She goes out and has dinner and gets photographed with this Town Council Member, or whatever it is that he is, and when Jeff is understandably a little irked, she starts having hysterics all over him. He even calls her up to apologize, but she just sits there, with a smirk on her face, as he pours his heart out to her over the phone. This is all after she managed to convince his son to go and help people in Vietnam or something, in order to get over HIS broken heart.

The woman is a menace.

I can hardly bear to see what she's done today.

But if she is a Skrull, then the whole thing can be easily explained. Because even the Skrull army knows that setting the REAL Mary Worth against them is a fate too horrible to be contemplated.
This woman makes Maria Hill look like an amateur. She makes Tony Stark look like a kindergardener. She could drive Captain America to tears, for God's sake!

Maybe I should stick to reading Blondie.