Browsing: Review

Or “Oooh! Scary stuff kids! Blah! Blah!” Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Though most years I don’t ever follow through with the cool costumes that I conceive during the year (this year’s favorite was pro wrestler “Earthquake,” to honor the late John Tenta, who recently passed away), I always like to do SOMETHING in honor of All Hallow’s. Now that I’ve reproduced, I have a built-in excuse (“Oh, this is for Molly!”), but the whole point is for grown-ups to act like kids. Y’know, dress ridiculously, eat tons of junk-food, try to annoy and scare your fellow man.…

Best gets better on DVD While The Justice League had an awesome run on Cartoon Network, it wasn’t until Justice League Unlimited debuted that we really saw what an ensemble series could really do. Season One is out on DVD now, and is simply incredible.

Or “If They’re The Suicide Squad, How Come There’s So Many Of ‘Em Left?” There’s been a lot of talk lately about “realism” in superhero comics. Books like Ultimate Spider-Man have been able to look at characters and events in a more adult fashion, while maintaining the best of what Stan & Steve established for the character. Some books have been wildly successful with a more realistic bent (Astro City, for one), while others have actually created MORE ridiculous premises by taking “realism” to it’s extreme (Mark Millar’s brilliant “Wanted,” for example, does grim and gritty so well that it…

What Intergang Did The smell of fall is in the air, which can only mean one thing – the second favorite holiday in the US is upon the DCU. And with the little spooks and goblins playing make believe, real evil is vying for control. All this, and my biggest Crackpot Theory to date, inside…

In Which We Discover Hansel is a Bad Boy In the last several issues of the phenomenally good Fables, we’ve seen our heroes begin their invasion of the Homeland. The Adversary isn’t taking that lying down and sends someone to Fabletown that knows how to deal in the mundane world.

Or – “It’s Hard To Make Snide Remarks When You’re Pretending Not To Cry.” Birds of Prey has always been an interesting case study. The original mini-series seemed to spawn out of the “Bad Girl” craze of the 90’s, but it’s never been a T&A book. It’s been a book with two (sometimes three) female main characters, but it’s never really been a “chick book.” Heck, DC insisted forever on listing it among the Batman titles, though it’s never realy been that much of a bat-book. It’s kind of a strange animal, a four-color Pushmepullyu that isn’t easy to categorize,…

Or – “War! Hunh! Good gawd, y’all… What is it good for? Absolutely NOTHIN!” Preach on, Brother Beavis. This summer’s dueling crossover season has been brutal, in more ways than one. I’ve found that I’m reading more limited series, tie-ins, one shots, and reference materials than I am my regular titles. Some of them are good, some bad, some (like Civil War: Front Line) vacillate between awesome and embarrassing. So, how much damage does a tie-in issue do to a young series that has been mostly enjoyable?

Same world, new characters Viper Comics Dead@17, is one of those titles you will either love or hate, but given the chance you might find yourself scouring the bins for the back issues, and collected volumes. I was first intrigued by Dead@17, when I first came across Josh Howard’s artwork for the cover of the first issue on the Viper Comics website. A hot girl, in a school girl uniform, wielding an axe, killing zombies, and she’s dead? How can you not want to read it?

The New Justice League A world without a Justice League? That seems to be an area of consternation in the DC Universe. Without a Justice League is the world safe? If the big three are missing and no one else is going to reform the League, shouldn’t someone step up?

Or “To The Cafeteria… FOR JUSTICE!” I admit it. I’m a sucker for a supergroup. You give me six or eight guys with divergent powers and some sort of raison d’etre (which is french for “raisin bran,” I think), I’m a happy guy. This has led me to read some really horrifically bad titles over the years… Youngblood… The Retributors… Team Youngblood… Supermen of America… Extreme Youngblood… Dragging my way through comics that awful just solidifies why I love this book so very much. PS 238 combines all the conventions of the super-team genre with a highly specialized setting and…

Unexpected fun from limited series I just finished reading Tales of the Unexpected #1, and wow, you are in for quite a treat. It starts with Crispus Allen, and ends with a vampire. Unexpected indeed…

Or – “Flashback, Garth! Doodleoodleoot doodleoodleoot!” Anybody who’s anybody who reads Green Arrow has, at some point in the last few issues, asked themself that musical question: How in the name of Aiesha did Oliver Queen, best known for accosting the Guardians of the Universe about their percieved racism, utterly and completely dominate Slade Wilson, best known for killing everyone within arms’ length, in physical combat? After all, their facial hair aside, Ollie and Slade aren’t exactly in the same league. Deathstroke managed to tag The Flash with a knife, fer Pete’s sake. Answers are forthcoming, but not everyone will…

Villians revealed, a brother found, and powers transferred happen in this short week. T O Morrow, Will Magnus, Black Adam, Isis, Renee, and The Question all make appearances this week.

Or – “How many Batgirls IS this now, anyway?” When I started picking up the original Birds of Prey miniseries, (Good gracious, has it actually been ten years?) I did it with three thoughts in mind: First, to support a book with female protagonists. Second, because Oracle was a fave-rave character from her run in ‘Suicide Squad.’ And finally, because when a tall blonde woman wears a bolero jacket and fishnets, she has my undivided attention.