Thursday's Reviews

Good Gosh Almighty, this was a pretty fabulous week, all thing considered! A lot of books came out, which always makes me happy. I even bought some of them!

Batman #l and #2

I had heard good things about Batman #1, but couldn't find it, so I was delighted to go in and find a second printing, along with the new #2. And I have to admit it...this was a pretty darned good Batman story. It's got some cool twists and turns, and it seems to be a genuine detective story, as opposed to just fighting the Joker again. Although I DID love the fight in Arkham. I may just have to keep buying this!

And by the way, that was one helluva ending in the second issue! It's not often that Batman's is wrong...and I'm loving it.

Neal Adams Batman:Odyssey #1

And speaking of Batman...dammit, but I've missed this book. It is just SO insane, and completely off the wall, that I love it to pieces. The plot...such as it is...jumps around, I really don't completely understand what is going on half of the time, it seems as though I've actually come into the middle of an existing story...and I Do Not Care. The art is insanely gorgeous, and oh heck...I'm just glad that this muddled crazy piece of genius is back in my hands.

Birds of Prey#2

This was ok. I guess. Katanna shows up. I'm not particularly warming up to Starling, no matter HOW much the author tells me how fabulous she is. I just find her a bit annoying, to be frank. They are still running around doing...stuff, and fighting the invisible guys, and Poison Ivy shows up on the last page.

I just...miss Zinda and Huntress. And Oracle.

Blue Beetle #2

Well, I've given this a chance, but I'm not particularly thrilled with this book. I can't forget, you see, just how insanely fabulous the LAST run of Blue Beetle was. And since it wasn't back in the misty olden days, but only a few short years ago, I didn't see the need for a reboot ANYWAY. I don't particularly like this new version of Jaime, I definitely don't like the new version of Paco, and the story just isn't grabbing me.

Jaime is charming. His family is quite honestly, sensational. His friends are great. Part of that charm, was that they all KNEW he was Blue Beetle, and did their very best to form a support system for him. And the Scarab itself, was endearing. This new version is just standard comic book stuff, and lacks the sincerity and sweetness of the former version, and I think I'll probably be dropping this. Unless Guy shows up.

DC Universe: Online Legends #16

I don't normally get this book, but what the heck, it had Sinestro on the cover in his old yellow outfit, and it has the entire Sinestro Corps fighting Brainiac, and the Guardians send the entire Green Lantern Corps in, to basically sit on the sidelines, and watch the two sides annihilate each other. It also has Guy sitting in a greet barcalounger eating green popcorn and enjoying the fight. What's not to like?

DC Universe Presents; Deadman #2

I enjoyed the first issue, and I'm enjoying the second issue. Poor Deadman is still wrestling with the meaning of it all, and is trying to get answers. Needless, he's not having a whole lot of success in getting them, but still...it's fun to see what he's up to. I'll definitely keep getting this.

Fables #2

We have the continuation of the several storylines that have been progressing. Who is going to succeed the North Wind? The other Winds have shown up and are less than enthusiastic. The little revolution in Oz continues, and the former Mrs. Spratt continues to learn to fence. She, I fear, is up to no good. Although I rather like the fencing master, Mr. Holt. Excellent as usual.

Green Lantern Corps #2

Things seem to be escalating in a hurry. More anon.

Justice League #2

Quite frankly, this was rather enjoyable in a weird sort of way. Superman thinks that Hal and Batman are bad guys because they show up with one of the Mother Boxes that he just had found. Hal and Batman think that Superman is being a gigantic douche. In a panic, Hal calls Barry Allen for help. Barry is being harassed at the crime lab, to stop working on the real crimes, and instead to look for evidence against the Flash. He's a bit annoyed to hear from Hal, but nevertheless shows up and manages to distract Superman. Barry gets a bit too full of himself however, and Superman does manage to surprise him.

Obviously Hal and Barry are already friends. They all manage to finally simmer down and start talking with each other, which is a step in the right direction. I love how Superman's base of operations is an abandoned printing press. Batman is shocked that he doesn't have his own lair, and that since he doesn't wear a mask, he OBVIOUSLY doesn't have a secret identity to protect. Meanwhile, Hal wants to just hang with Barry, and ditch those other two lame dudes. I get the feeling that Hal and Barry have a tree house somewhere, with a green glowing NO GIRLZ sign on the outside, a rope ladder and sit there and eat s'mores or something. It's rather...endearing.

Oh, and Cyborg shows up at his Dad's lab and whines about how he never comes to his football games. His father rather brutally informs him that football is for LOSERS, and he's NEVER going to go, because he has WORK to do...or something to that effect. Naturally, when the Parademons all show up, poor Cyborg is right in the way of the blast. I guess we can all see where this is going.

This is a little overblown, and a little bit hokey, but dammit, I don't care. The art is pretty, and Hal is SUCH an idiot, and I'm actually enjoying this.

Wonder Woman #2

Damn, but this is good. Hera really really hates being cheated on. Meanwhile, Diana has taken a badly wounded Hermes to Themyscira, along with the blonde girl from the first issue. The Amazons are just outraged that she's brought a MAN to their island, but calm down, when they realize that it is their Princess. Hippolyta is alive! And Blonde!

Hermes and the Blonde chick are talking, and he tells her the story of Diana's immaculate conception. Diana indulges in a little training exhibition with another Amazon named Aleka, and natually kicks her ass. Hippolyta is a bit nervous however, since they are unwillingly harboring one of Zeus's pregnant girlfriends, and she KNOWS just how cranky Hera gets. Then Hera's daughter Strife, whom she was talking to in the beginning shows up and tricks the Amazons into attacking each other. Diana puts a stop to that, but then learns some rather unwelcome news.

The art is simply exquisite, and the story is excellent, and I haven't enjoyed Wonder Woman as much in quite some time.

Journey Into Mystery #629

The tale of little Loki and his machinations continues. He uses the shadow of the sword of Surtr to rewrite a legend, and tells more about the Serpent, but still...things happen, and Thor still dies, and all sorts of really incredible things are happening, and heck, this is one great book. It's just about the only Marvel book that I am reading, but I'm still able to follow the gist of what is happening in the other Fear books, which is pretty admirable, all things considered.

So...a darned fine week.