Browsing: Review

Or – “Wouldn’t Somebody Have Noticed That SHIELD Was HYDRA Before This?” And does anybody else think that New Warriors was axed to avoid confusion with this title?

As the followers of Nyarlathotep continue to gain strength, the king begins to have problems with wars abroad.  And this is a concern to his brother and high priest of the continent.  This issue moves away from the mystical and into the political as Fall of Cthulhu: Nemesis continues to reveal the final days of Atlantis.

What’s missing from some of the super hero comics out there? A huge smack down drag out fight that spans an entire issue? No, as there have been a few titles recently that feature this kind of action (Power Girl). A villain that is much stronger than the hero? Again, it’s been done in other titles. The notion that the hero may finally be out-powered with his life on the line? It’s a comic book, and when the title character is fighting it out for his life, there is little chance he’s going to die, but in the case of…

The action between the lords of the Gotham underground has heated up to the point where villains are taking down villains, buildings are blowing up left and right, and the… what?  You don’t remember seeing much, if any, of that action in the pages of Batman: Battle for the Cowl?

Yes, Free Comic Book Day was weeks ago, but dang it, I’ve been busy with stuff (super secret stuff), and I only just made it to my FCBD stash in my ever growing comic book stack, which is relatively small when compared to my ever growing comic book collection that has not been bagged, tagged, and boarded.  It’s all on my to do list, just like this Mini Retro Review of Red 5 Comics’ Free Comic Book Day Atomic Robo issue.

Or – “By Hook, Or By Crook, We WILL.” Tom Tresser has spent a lot of time in a lot of different portions of the DC Universe.  Those who only know him as Wonder Woman’s beau have missed a lot of things, including his war against organized crime, a couple of runs in Amanda Waller’s Suicide Squad, and a general badassery that many heroes could only wish they commanded.  After the events of Final (really more of a Penultimate) Crisis, Tom Tresser is about to wake up in the worst situation he’s ever faced…

Elementary, my dear brother!  The Raven did it. When Boom! Studios sent me an advanced copy of Poe #1, I was certain it would fall into some boring tale of a writer gone mad, so I was not too interested in reading the series.  However, a mere two pages in, and something amazing happened; I discovered a kickin’ story that brings Sherlock Holmes to America.

Or – “Bucky Barnes’ Birthday Bash A Go-Go!” World War II is a watershed in almost every comic book continuity, from DC’s JSA to Marvel’s Namor and Cap, to the various unlikely heroes of Americomics, Project Superpowers, or even Image’s Super-Patriot.  The problem we run into is that the war now ended over SIXTY YEARS ago, and the ties to that long-forgotten time are looser than ever.  (Heck, even Frank Castle’s Vietnam was 40 years ago now…)  So, when your body is eighty, and your mind is twenty, but your robot arm is 55, you can imagine it makes holidays a…

Face your fears, and put them in a bottle with that thing that makes you cry IDW Publishing’s Locke & Key: Head Games continues to move at a brisk pace as the Locke kids continue to explore the powers each of the house’s magic keys bestow up on the wielder.  But what happens when you remove your fears, and the thing you fear the most is right next to you?

Purple explosions in the middle of a watery hell Even though we haven’t heard much about it lately, all hell is still breaking loose in Marvel’s Ultimate line.  For Spider-Man it’s a never ending trial to try and plug the leaking damn, and the Hulk’s inadvertent smashing of the Sanctum Sanctorum’s great seal doesn’t help matters.

There have been many unthinkable acts carried out by agencies and forces bent on instilling fear in their enemies.  But what if the enemy we think we know, is really the friend we thought we knew?  And what if those friends took our ideas and did something unthinkable with them?  That’s the premise behind the latest thriller from Boom! Studios, and darn it, if it doesn’t strike a little close to home.

Or – “OH, GNAAAAAAAAAAARRRRLY!!” It’s so easy to blow up your problems, it’s so easy to play up your breakdown.  It’s so easy to fly through a window, it’s so easy to fool with the sound.  Life’s the same, I’m moving in stereo…  Life’s the same, except for my shoes.  Life’s the same, you’re shakin’ like tremolo.  Life’s the same, it’s all inside you.  Life’s the same, I’m moving in stereo…  Life’s the same, except for my shoes.  Life’s the same, you’re shakin’ like tremolo.  Life’s the same, it’s all inside you!

Or – “The Long And Winding Road…” I know that I’ve used that title before, but I make no apologies.  In fact, I can pretty much guarantee I’ll do it again.  As the Beatles last single, their last #1, and the song recorded during one of, if not the last sessions that the band did together, (the day after the legendary concert on the roof of Apple Records)  that record pretty much serves as my touchstone for when things inevitably end.  I used to try and play it as the last song of the last shift of each semester in college radio…

Or – “Wars Which Are Secret And Infinite Earths In Crisis…” The arrival of a new issue of issue of Astro City is always a pleasant surprise for me, as Kurt Busiek’s magnum opus seldom, if ever, hits a false note.  This issue officially takes us into the second half of the Dark Age maxi-series, as the story of the Williams brothers starts moving in a rather unexpected direction…