What You Should Have Read #67

Comic Books Released on May 1, 2013

It’s Thursday, so what does that mean? That’s right, yesterday was new comic day, which means that I stopped by my local comic book store (Rick’s Comic City…go there, it’s pretty awesome) and came home with a stack of four-color goodness. Let’s get down to it. As always, be prepared for spoilers, and all images are taken from the comics’ publisher’s websites unless otherwise note.

Aquaman #19 – (Variant cover scan grabbed from Things from Another World) I have no idea what’s going on in this book. I picked it up because my shop had a variant cover, and I seem to be a sucker for them. The cover image seemed to have very little to do with the book. The Ice King guy from “Adventure Time” is taking over? Is that it? While Mera met the icy guy, Arthur did not, in fact, have the chance to kneel before him. Oooh, is that it? Is this Aquaman’s Zod? I’m very uninterested in DC right now. I’m enjoying Batman, and I’m going to pick up Zack Snyder’s Superman book when it begins, but otherwise, blah. Also, this MAD variant is pretty ugly. I really need to reevaluate my purchasing criteria.

Earth 2 #12 – (Variant cover scan grabbed from Things from Another World) The only other DC series I’m enjoying is James Robinson’s Earth 2. It’s not Starman, which is kind of what I was hoping for, but it’s also not Justice League of America, which is good, because I thought is run on that title was pretty much crap. I’m enjoying his take on these “Golden Age” characters, though. We’ve got familiar names with familiar powers, but the similarities end there. And I like that Robinson is taking his time turning these characters into a team. They don’t just become a team, they’re pretty much forced to come together, and they’re slowly being formed into one. I like that. It’s natural.

Age of Ultron #7 – I was really hoping this series wouldn’t turn into a “What If” scenario. Do we need yet ANOTHER alternate universe to keep track of? Will we eventually get spin-off mini series set in this world? Age of Ultron: Secret Invasion? Age of Ultron: Kree/Skrull War? Age of Ultron: House of M? For the most part, I’m being entertained by this story. I’m a Bendis whore. We all know that. I just have a hard time caring about throw-away alternate universes.

Spawn #231 – (Cover scan grabbed from Things from Another World) I’ll be ho

nest, I only got this for the McFarlane cover. He was the first creator that I ever collected, that I followed from one book to another and for whom I frantically sought out back issues. I haven’t been getting all of the Spawn issues lately. Instead I’ve been picking up the ones that are homages to his earlier work. This one is, of course, an homage to his Spider-Man #1 cover. The thing is, he’s done this before. To his credit though, Toddy Mac didn’t just reuse the cover to Spawn #8 (which came out almost exactly 20 years ago, so that’s kind of neat).

All-New X-Men #11 – The big reveal of this issue was kind of ruined in last week’s Uncanny X-Men, but that’s okay. The treat here was the education of Jean Grey. Bendis is doing a good job of corrupting her pretty quickly. The Phoenix Force is gone, so I doubt we’re going to have another Dark Phoenix Saga, especially so soon after A vs. X, but might we not get Bendis’ take on the Hellfire Club’s brainwashing/corruption of Jean that originally turned her into the Dark Phoenix? I don’t trust her. I’m still on Wolverine’s side of this ever-widening schism, but I’m also on Emma and the Cuckoos’ side of the whole “We ain’t trust no Jean Grey!” thingamajig. The heart-to-heart with Kitty did nothing to reassure me.

Hawkeye #10 – Once again, this is a book I picked up because of the variant cover. I’ve got no idea what’s going on. This issue is NOT a good jumping on point for this series. I also feel I need to say something about my purchasing of variant cover. I know a lot of people hate these with a passion. They use the covers as proof that the industry is heading for 90s-eara crash. Hey, if you don’t like the multiple covers, don’t buy ‘em. I buy them because I’m a collector, not a speculator. I don’t toss these on eBay on Wednesday afternoons. I bag ‘em, board ‘em, and box ‘em with all my other comics. I like having a complete collection when possible. Now, I don’t get variants if they’re more than cover price. I’m lucky in that my shop occasionally sprinkles the regular issues with a couple variants. Sure, the prices on the really limited ones are jacked up, but I’m perfectly okay with paying cover price for a variant cover. Also, this “Many Armors of Iron Man” variant by Paolo Rivera is one of the better ones in the series.

Iron Man #9 – I thought I was going to drop this book after the first storyline, but I wanted to see how/why Tony got into space. Then I figured I’d drop it after that storyline, but you know what? It’s a damn fine book. If I weren’t so confident in Gillen’s ability to tell an absolutely gripping story (he’s the only writer to ever make me give a crap about Thor’s cast of characters), I’d be a little hesitant with him retconning space into Tony’s origin. I’m also enjoying Greg Land’s art a lot more than I have in the past, so I was disappointed to see that Dale Eaglesham was taking care of the art in this issue. He’s not a bad artist, it’s just that I think he tends to make all characters a little bulkier than they should be.

Superior Spider-Man #9 – I’m not buying it. I refuse to believe that Marvel allowed Slott to fully kill off Peter Parker. I do not believe they would allow a non-Peter Parker Spider-Man to be swinging his way through the Spidey books while there’s a major motion picture being filmed. I’ve loved Slott’s take on Spidey since he started writing the Wall Crawler, and I’ve really enjoyed Superior, but I have issues with this issue. First, I get that Peter’s friends and family are his strength, but when Ock starts getting rid of them and he realizes he’s “more than just Peter Parker,” why didn’t he also pull the Avengers and the Fantastic Four out of his memory to fight Ock and his mind villains? Also, did Ock think this all the way through? If he gets rid of Parker and all of his memories, what will he access to convince the world he’s the same Spider-Man everybody knows and loves? So is he now just Ock in Peter’s body? I’m going to trust Slott and assume he’s got all his bases covered. I think he’s earned it. One thing I did like was how Ock viewed himself in his mind. He wasn’t the dumpy villain that we know he is. He wasn’t as slim and trim as Spidey, but his weight looked like muscle instead of chub.

X-Factor #255 – Peter David recently announced that this title would be ending this fall, and I’m okay with that. I’ve recently realized I have no attachment to this team. Instead, I have an attachment to David writing the adventures of this team, and if he’s done, then I’m done. Is it possible to really enjoy a piece of fiction without having any emotional attachment to the characters? Maybe? I find this realization somewhat disturbing. It’s obviously something wrong with me, because David has done a stellar job making each character unlike the other, giving them their own voices and personalities. I read each character differently, I just really don’t care what will happen to them when the series ends. I felt a twinge of sadness at the death in this issue, but it didn’t have the resonance for me that Ted Knight’s (Golden Age Starman, not the actor), Ultimate Peter Parker’s, or even Miles Morales’ mom’s death had. So I will not weep for X-Factor Investigations after I read issue 262. I will bag the book, board the book, put the book with my other books, and I celebrate this complete story that was told.

Next Week’s Anticipated Purchases

Batman #20

Avengers #11

Avengers Assemble #15AU

Avenging Spider-Man #20

That’ll be the tiniest week I’ll have had in quite some time.

What You Should Have Read #65

Comic Book Reviews

for the Week of June 20, 2012

This week’s issue of Avengers vs. X-Men is the best I’ve read so far. There’s enough dialogue to make this last more than a couple of minutes, and there’s a lot going on. I thought the hunt for Hope was pretty stupid. Leave Hope to Scott, and if you’re worried about the Phoenix, send your people to try and take care of it (which, yeah, that happened, but the whole Utopia strike team thing was ridiculous). It’s good to see the Iron Fist plot from New Avengers finally being brought into the main book. It didn’t clear anything up, but it’s good that those ideas are here. I’m enjoying the new art from Olivier Coipel. I have no problems with John Romita, Jr., but I find that his work doesn’t flow all that well. His panels look more like tiny pin-ups. Coipel is much easier to flip through. I knew the ending of this issue was going to happen, but I wasn’t planning on Cyclops being the one to utter the words. I was expecting it’d be Scarlet Witch. After spending the previous five issues wondering how disappointed I was going to be at the end of the crossover, I find myself a little excited to see where this is going to go.

This was my first issue of Avenging Spider-Man, and I picked it up because it was the “Ends of the Earth” epilogue. It was bad, but I don’t think it was really necessary as an end cap. Except for the beginning and ending bookends, the story is a flashback where Spidey recounts a previously untold adventure with Silver Sable who, despite the lack of a body (also no Rhino body), is in fact dead. Never mind the fact that Sabra and Kangaroo also apparently bought it while helping out Spidey. Sable was a friend; the other two were just random international characters that were easy cannon fodder. There was one thing about this issue that made me sad. An editorial box said that this took place after Web of Spider-Man #72. I had that issue! Anyways, Spidey tells Sable and Strange that he can’t get married because he has a girlfriend. Web took place well after Pete and MJ got married, so why didn’t he say he was already married? Because that was scrubbed. It made me sad when I realized Pete and MJ never got married. It was a great nod to current continuity, though. There was also a member of the Wild Pack. Yay ‘90s!

Not a single member of the Dark Avengers appeared in the Dark Avengers this issue. Not a problem, though, because the issue was awesome. We finally find out why the Thunderbolts have been bouncing through time. There’s a wonderful guest star that is firmly rooted in current continuity. The story looks like it wraps up rather quickly, but I think the issue flows wonderfully. The whole thing centers around the Man-Thing, and this new version of him/it is terrific. I’d really rather read more stories about this team than the new team, the Dark Avengers. Of course, I have faith in writer Jeff Parker to flesh out this new team and get me to care about what happens to them.

Truth be told, I was a smidge disappointed in this week’s Invincible Iron Man. Stane was taken out like the chump he is. The hostage situation made absolutely no sense. Why didn’t Justine have her soldiers take out Doug from a distance? A good sniper with a head shot would be able to take him out with no harm to Sasha, correct? And Spymaster took the easy way out? Really? Still, the art by Salvador Larroca was as great as always, and the dialogue flowed wonderfully, but I can’t get behind the actual plot…except for the Tony/Bethany/Rhody stuff. I was totally okay with everything that happened there. Despite my disappointment, I do like that I have no idea where writer Matt Fraction is going with the story. I like to be surprised.

The best part of this week’s Journey into Mystery was the recap by King Arthur. I thought the bit in the club with Hellstrom was rather pointless, since we don’t see him actually doing the job that Loki tasked him with. Loki could have just mentioned his plan to Leah, and we would have gotten a bit more of their excellent back-and-forth. Of course, then we wouldn’t have learned about the Trashcan of Doom. I hope that comes into play by the end of the storyline.

Ah, finally an issue of New Avengers that isn’t utter crap! Sure, it’s still all about the Phoenix’s connection with K’un Lun, which isn’t explained, but we do get to see a red-headed Iron Fist who becomes the Phoenix. Also, this issue also actually has two members of the New Avengers in it, and it’s Spidey who brings the issue home. I love Hope’s skepticism at her reason for being at K’un Lun and her complete and utter turnaround once Spidey gives his speech. Granted, it’s a speech he’s given to himself plenty of times, but it’s a wonder when we get to see someone else’s reaction. So, yeah, great bit of story. And the art? Wonderful. When he first started out, I was not a fan of Mike Deodato. Not at all. But now, his work is art, not just lines on paper.

I’m giving X-Factor a second read because it was late when I started reading it and I really had to work at staying awake. That’s not a comment on Peter David’s writing. I was just really, really tired. Hell, I didn’t even notice that Jamie and Guido were talking over Longshot, who was laid out on a slab. While the last issue set up Rahne’s big journey, this issue set everybody’s new arc in motion. Rahne takes off with Rictor and Shatterstar to look for her abandoned son. Banshee and Havok head to Ulster, NY to see why it looks like Theresa is killing people. Maddrox continues investigating Far Sight’s death…right after he has a roll with Layla. And Lorna and Monet wait for Longshot to wake up. They have the easiest job. There was no action at all in this issue, but that’s par for the course with set-up issues. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a meaty issue. Dan Slott should be very happy with it. I know I was…on the second reading…when I was awake and alert.

My back issue purchases were Amazing Spider-Man #s 655 and 656.

Here are my planned purchases for next week:

Amazing Spider-Man #688

Spider-Men #2

Wolverine and the X-Men #12

What a gloriously tiny week. That makes up for the Ultimate Spider-Man Omnibus that I pre-ordered a month or so ago and received earlier this week.

And if I can make a little gripe, DC also has the Infinite Crisis Omnibus HC solicited for next week. I’m not going to get it, but I wanted to check out what was included in it to make it an omnibus edition. The main mini itself wasn’t going to be big enough. Sure enough, it includes ALL of the Infinite Crisis minis…except the main one. If your book is called the Infinite Crisis Omnibus HC, shouldn’t you have the main series included in it? Or title it something slightly different?

If my LCS gets a Locke & Key Card Game in, I’ll buy it. That’s somewhat of an empty promise, though, because I’m 95% sure they didn’t order one “just in case.”

What You Should Have Read #64

Comic Book Reviews 

for the Week of June 13, 2012

I thought this week’s issue of Amazing Spider-Man was a good ending to the “Ends of the Earth” storyline. We got some good scenes with Mysterio. The Rhino with nothing to live for was truly a man to be afraid of. Doc Ock, as always, was defeated by his own hubris. Two things stuck with me, though. First, the Rhino. When did the Rhino stop being stupid? He was always just muscle that screwed everything up. He wasn’t a joke because he was so powerful, but I always got the impression that he could barely string two thoughts together. He was always a lackey, and his Russian background was either forgotten or ignored. Then, after Brand New Day, he’s VERY Russian and seems to be of average intelligence. What happened? I hit up Wikipedia, and it mentioned a Tangled Web story where he regained his intelligence but ended up having it taken away because it ultimately bored him. So really, what happened? The other thing had to do with the ending. Who exactly was Spidey upset about? He said, “Someone died.” By my count, there are four characters who might have died during this storyline: two from the Ends of the Earth one-shot and two from this issue. I guess that’ll be explained in next week’s issue of Avenging Spider-Man.

There is very little I’m enjoying about the Avengers side of the “Avengers vs. X-Men” crossover. This week’s issue of Avengers did nothing to change that. My complaints against focusing on Noh-Varr remain: nothing has been done with him to get us to care about him. Now he’s not allowed back on Earth. Big whoop. Also, why was he accepted so easily by the Kree? He’s not from this universe. I really liked Grant Morrison’s Marvel Boy mini, but the character has just been absorbed into continuity and left to grow stale. I’ll not shed a tear if we never see Noh-Varr/Marvel Boy/Protector again.

On to Avengers Assemble, which I AM enjoying. Maybe I’ve just got a soft spot in my heart for Bendis/Bagley collaborations. Although I don’t necessarily like WHY this specific team of Avengers has their own book, I am enjoying the story. My biggest gripe with this issue specifically ties into this week’s Amazing Spider-Man. In it, Thor, whose mind was being controlled by Doc Ock, could no longer lift his hammer. But in this issue, Hulk, whose mind was being controlled by Thanos, COULD lift Thor’s hammer. Bit of a continuity gaffe there, considering I don’t think Hulk has lifted Mjolnir even in his right mind.

There’s not much I can say about this week’s Batman without spoiling something that probably shouldn’t be spoiled if you haven’t read the issue yet. Personally, I loved it, but I can understand how long-time Batman fans might be put off a bit. This is a BIG thing, and I think Snyder is doing a wonderful job at making this Batman his own. He’s also done a great job of pulling his version of Owlman over into DC’s new continuity. I can’t wait to see how this ends next month. I ended up getting the regular cover for this issue, but I thought long and hard about picking up the Rafael Albuquerque variant. With as much as I’m loving this book, though, I’ve decided that it’s good enough to warrant me buying a copy of each cover in the future, as long as the variant is being sold for cover price.

I’m enjoying Robinson’s Earth 2, but I’m LOVING The Shade. It’s not a superhero book, although there are powers and “good” vs. “evil.” It’s not necessarily an origin book, although we are learning things about the Shade’s past. What this IS is a great story. It’s a great character on a quest. This is also Robinson at his best. Like I said, I’m enjoying Earth 2, and I really think it’ll get even better as the book goes on, but that’s a book that HAS to have some high-adrenaline action to keep it moving. Not so with The Shade. It’s a bit of a wordy book, but that’s perfectly alright. The words draw you into the wonderful pictures that adorn each issue. This issue had wonderful artwork by Frazer Irving. The faces are full of expression, the backgrounds are wonderfully textured, and the pages are expertly set up. I did have to go back to see if we’ve seen Dudley before, because it seems like we should know him, but I guess not. It just seems as if this is the Caldecott that’s gone after the Shade. I can’t wait to see WHY ol’ Dickie was targeted by his…great great grandson? I also bought both versions of this book, the Tony Harris cover and the Frazer Irving cover. If I can buy a variant cover for regular cover price, I’ll usually go that route unless I just really like the regular cover better. But in some instances, I want to lend as much support as possible to a book, so I’ll buy the regular cover AND the variants. I want the Shade to get another limited series after this, so I’ll buy all the covers as long as my LCS makes them available for cover price.

The comic I was most looking forward to this week was Spider-Men, and it didn’t disappoint. I never thought there needed to be a crossover between the 616 Marvel Universe and the Ultimate Marvel Universe, but so far I like what little interaction we’ve had with the 616 Spidey in the Ultimate New York. Bendis is a great Spider-Man writer, and I bet I wouldn’t have enjoyed his run on the Avengers titles as much had Spidey not been included, and now he’s finally getting his chance to write a solo 616 Web-Slinger story. The biggest question for me to come out of this issue is how long Mysterio has known about the Ultimate Universe (and tangentially, when this takes place in relation to “Ends of the Earth”). The best thing about the issue was the short interaction between Peter and the mugging victim he rescued. Bendis was able to get his “poor taste” running gag in the issue, and that was a gag I’ve loved in the new Ultimate Spider-Man book. Is it wrong that I want the next issue to consist of nothing but 9-panel pages of Pete and Miles talking with each other?

Ennis is really cleaning house with this last storyline in The Boys. Two of the team’s supporters are now gone, either directly or indirectly dispatched by Butcher. Hughie and MM are starting to piece together that Butcher has finally cracked and that some superpowered shit is hitting an incredibly massive fan. This isn’t shaping up to be a happy ending for anybody.

There’s a LOT of stuff going on in Uncanny X-Force. You’ve got two separate people after Fantomex, and I think it might be safe to say that they aren’t working together. Nightcrawler and Wolverine have been brought down by clones of Omega Red, and Wade, well, Wade has some fun with homemade assassin program at White Sky. Then you’ve got some X-kids on a field trip in Genosha, and it looks like they’re being tailed by Sabertooth. Also, Kitty’s father was in Genosha when the Sentinels destroyed it? Why? And it looks like Amahl Farouk is still alive and kicking, and I’d like to see that explained. I was under the impression that that body of the Shadow King was dead and gone. Also, bonus points for the Arrested Development reference. That’s quite a bit to absorb, but it’s still less confusing that the Otherworld adventure from a few issues ago.

My back issue buys this week were Amazing Spider-Man #s 661 and 662.

It looks like next week is an all Marvel week for me:

Avengers vs. X-Men #6

Dark Avengers #176

Invincible Iron Man #519

Journey into Mystery #640

New Avengers #27

X-Factor #238

And now for something a little different. I subscribe to a daily emailer called Daily Steal. They usually have some damn fine deals, although I haven’t bought much at all from them. A couple of weeks ago, though, they had a listing for some comic books. The pitch was 50-65 comics plus a handful of trading cards with a total value of $500…for only $29.95! Plus, it was Free Shipping Friday! Now, they had some stock pictures of various ‘90s comics (the only one that I can recall was Superman #75), so I knew not to expect much, but I was curious as to what this site thought $500 worth of comic books looked like. And, worst comes to worst, I bought a bunch of comics for $.60/book.

Here are my unbox videos from this purchase. Don’t expect this to ever happen again, because I generally don’t like these types of videos, but I wanted this experience recorded for posterity. And spoiler, there was nowhere near $500 worth of comics in this badly packaged box. Every single issue included would be lucky to find itself in a quarter bin at any reputable comic shop.

Also, huge apologies for the bad synching between the audio and the video. I have no idea how that happened.

What You Should Have Read #61

Comic Book Reviews for the Week of May 23, 2012

I thought this storyline was going to have some consequences, but I was shocked that Dan Slott was able to flash fry half the world without some repercussions. That was a very ballsy cliff hanger at the end of the previous issue, but I enjoyed the way it was taken care of with this issue. The Chameleon is great, and his banter with Mysterio is refreshing. It’s nice to see the villains working together rather than bitching about everything and disrespecting the idea of teamwork. Of course, that doesn’t mean Spidey isn’t somewhat successful at picking off the lackeys before Doc Ock sends in his new big guns. I’m glad this is wrapping up with the next issue. The story is working well, but it’s starting to drag just ever so slightly. I’ve never been a huge fan of the longer storylines. Three to four issues does the job for me, especially if the powers that be are going to sub in another artist. I haven’t minded Humberto Ramos for the past couple of issues, but I’ll always prefer Stefano Caselli. There’s more of an intensity to it and a bit more realism, if something like that can be said about such a fantastical comic book.

Is it wrong that I liked it when Thori sort of saved the day by attacking Luke/Loki? He’s one of things I’ve been enjoying about Kieron Gillen’s run with the Asgardians. This has been a good crossover. You wouldn’t think that I title like The New Mutants and a title like Journey into Mystery would work well together, but they do. I didn’t like the ending of this issue, though. Gillen changed the nature of the Disir. They went from being evil creatures to nothing but a group of tragic, horny women. I don’t want to feel sorry for them. I liked them when they were evil Asgardian cannibal women (dibs on the movie title!). I hope this story ends satisfactorily next week.

And that’s it for my new comics. I picked up Ultimate Spider-Man #s 155 and 157 for myself and a random pack of comics for the kiddos that included an issue of Futurama, Tiny Titans, Marvel Adventures: Fantastic Four, X-Men: First Class and X-Men/Power Pack. I also finally broke down and got a hold box at my LCS (Rick’s Comic City in Nashville). I’m surprised it took me this long.

My anticipated titles for next week are:

Batman Annual #1

Amazing Spider-Man Annual #39

New Mutants #43

Wolverine & the X-Men #11

That’s a totally respectable week of purchases.

What You Should Have Read #47

Last Week’s Comic Book Awesomeness

Amazing Spider-Man #672 – Despite the absolute corniness of this issue, the script was extremely tight, as I’m becoming very accustomed to when I read this series. This story had what all the great Spider-Man stories have, Parker heart, Parker determination, and a great supporting cast. The quips were flying, and they weren’t just coming from Pete. MJ, the Thing and Kaine all got in some great lines. And although I took my first ever break from comics because of the infamous Clone Saga, I’ve really enjoyed Kaine’s story since his return. I assume he’s going to be the new Scarlet Spider that I’ve heard rumors about, and I’m interested to see where his story goes from here. Spider Island turned out to be a great event. Kudos to the whole team.

Amazing Spider-Man #673 – I swear, there wasn’t anything I disliked about this issue. Well, maybe I would have liked to see Mary Jane with spider powers for a bit longer. But taken from the beginning, we’ve got a wonderful homage to the cover of Amazing Spider-Man #50. I love cover homages, and this is a great one. I kind of wish Stefano Caselli would have acknowledged Romita’s cover, though. Isn’t that kind of standard in the industry? I loved all the nekkid jokes. “PANTS OVER HERE! We need pants for Hercules!” Nice. Jackal hinting at future plans. Pete and MJ sharing a couple of moments. Eddie Brock being a hero. Kaine leaving with a costume. Spidey getting respect from the common man…then from Jonah. Carlie’s reaction to realizing that Pete is Spider-Man. Spider-Man’s corny spell being voided. I seriously have not loved this series this much since David Micheline was writing it in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. I’m getting so much enjoyment from reading it.

Avengers Academy #20 – I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Avengers Academy from the beginning. I’m a sucker for well-written teen super teams. This issue was a good wrap-up for the first “era” of this group of kids. Veil is gone, Speedball and Vance are gone (New Warriors reunion!), the Academy is now headquartered West Coast Avengers compound, and enrollment has been opened to ALL super kids who want training, not just kids who were screwed up by Osborn. I think I’m going to enjoy the next chapter in these kids’ story.

Avenging Spider-Man #1 – First of all, I’m going to talk about the art. I liked Joe Mad when he became a star with Uncanny X-Men. I did not stick around for Battle Chasers, but I did, unfortunately, read Ultimates 3, which featured his uninked artwork. It was pretty awful, so I wasn’t all that impressed when it was announced that he was providing the artwork for this series. But it’s a new Spidey team-up series, so I was going to dive in regardless of the art. I’m glad I did. It really fits the style that’s being used in Amazing Spider-Man, almost a combination of Humberto Ramos and Stefano Caselli, and that’s definitely not a bad thing. Now, let’s see if he can keep up a regular schedule. The writing by Zeb Wells was solid throughout the series, but it was the dialogue between Spidey and the Avengers that sold the issue for me.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 9 #3 – I’m not all that into licensed comic book properties. As much as I enjoy various TV shows and movies, I can’t seem to get into the continuing adventures in the comics. But Joss Whedon’s creations get a pretty good second life thanks to comics. While I haven’t been totally blown away by the Dollhouse or Firefly comics, I’m hooked on the Buffy and Angel adaptations. While I wasn’t totally thrilled with how Season 8 ended, that didn’t stop me from jumping into Season 9 with high hopes. Three issues in and I’m intrigued by where this new status quo will ultimately take the Scooby Gang.

Journey into Mystery #630 – Oh Volstagg, how I do love your stories. And I also love how you’re raising your children. Just because Hitler had a thing for Norse mythology, let’s not assume that any Norse myths wanted anything to do with him. I think I need to teach my kids how to say, “Death to Nazis!”

New Avengers #18 – Norman Osborn as written by Brian Michael Bendis is an incredible bad guy. He’s Lex Luther, but smarmier. Hmm, Oscorp = Lexcorp. Iron Patriot = Lex in his battle suit. Well, you get the idea. I like Norman’s new Dark Avengers, but I was a bit unsure about the new Wolverine. Was that Gorgon? He looked tinier.

Ultimate Spider-Man #4 – Dammit, Bendis! You brought up Parker’s funeral again, and with the little girl who asked if Aunt May was Spider-Man’s mommy? At least I didn’t tear up this time. But I like how Miles is being woven into Peter’s death. It works. It doesn’t feel forced. I also like how Bendis is pacing the new Spider-Man’s origin similarly to Peter’s when the Ultimate line was started.

Uncanny X-Men #1 – The first issue of X-Men: Schism must have been a fluke, because Carlos Pacheco absolutely killed it with this book. I don’t necessarily like the team or the attitude of the book, but the writing IS good and the pictures are purdy. Now, I think I need to read up on Mr. Sinister. The last time I saw him was…damn, when he released the Legacy virus? It’s been a while.

Wolverine and the X-Men #1 – If I have to choose between a serious X-Men book and one with a sense of humor, I’m going to pick the sense of humor one almost every time. With that in mind, I enjoyed the first issue of this book more than the first issue of the new Uncanny series. Well, as far as the writing goes. I’ll always choose Carlos Pacheco over Chris Bachalo. But yeah, where Pacheco killed on the art front in Uncanny, Jason Aaron nailed it here. I’ve been incredibly impressed with him since the latest solo Wolverine series started. He GETS the character, and I think he really gets this side of the X-Men. I like Toad as a janitor; I like the inclusion of Broo; I like the Danger Room being incorporated into the entire school (and the bathroom gag was great!), and I liked absolutely everybody’s characterization. The only thing I didn’t like was the inclusion of Kade Kilgore in the issue. I don’t like him. I think I made this clear in a Schism review. I had thought it would be a while before we would see these new villains again, give them time to really start something, but we’re hit with him a month after the split. But I guess having a kid fighting a bunch of kids is good for the story. I’ve got faith in Aaron, though, so I’ll be around for the long haul.

Also, in case you've forgotten: When I can remember to add this to the bottom of my posts, I’m going to whore myself out with an impassioned plea: click on the ads. PLEASE click on the ads. I don’t care if you exit out of it immediately or actually look around. This isn’t some professional blog where I believe in the products I’m shilling. These are automatic ads placed by Google. But when you click ads, I get a little bit of money, and as a single father of three, every penny from every source helps...especially with Christmas looming on the horizon. So I’m going to keep this tiny bit of begging at the bottom of my posts, and I hope you’ll take an extra 10 seconds after reading my blog to click on an ad. The only thing it costs you is time. :) Thanks so much!