So, What comics did you buy this week?

[Diabolical]

Kick Ass 2

Fuck! I knew I forgot something!

I'll get Secret Invasion next week because my LCS sold out and he even ordered extra.

[RoIIo Tomassi]

I got

Amazing Spider-Man
Booster Gold
Fantastic Four
JSA
Nova
Punisher
Titans #1
Transformers Focus on Decepticons


ASM sucked ass. I have no idea whats going on. All I know is that the story would be exactly the same IF HE WERE STILL MARRIED.

Booster was fun, as usual.

Fantastic Four is not living up to the hype of Millar/Hitch. It's good, but it's not FANTASTIC.

JSA. Holy Shit. 25 characters is TOO MANY.

Nova. Again...Warlock?? Really?? Warlock??

Punisher. Frank was hardly in the issue and it was still one of the best things read this week. I like the use of the 'book excerpts' in the story. Its gonna suck when Ennis leaves. Only four issues to go.

Titans. Ian Churchill draws Koriandr BUCK NEKKED. So this issue rocked.

TF Focus on 'cons. A shady way to get my $2.99 when you don't actually have any Transformers comics coming out. But the 8 page preview in the back was pretty good. I like Guido's art more than EJ Su's.

[jjreason]

FF & ASM for me this week. That's it. I'm usually a fan of Chris Bachalo, but the first issue of his arc was a little too Humberto Ramosesque to be part of the current Spidey-art cohesiveness.

[Diabolical]

Serenity: Better Days 2 - Same as last month: "My only complaint is the art. Will Conrad is the artist again - he has a good grasp on the character likenesses, but his plotting needs some work. Sometimes it takes you a bit longer than it should to figure out what just happened."

Criminal #2 - Haven't read it yet, but I'm sure its awesome.

Secret Invasion #1 - Gonna have to give this one another read. I may have been too drugged out of my head on cold medicine to follow it properly, but it confused the fuck out of me (and I think I have a general idea of what is going on in this whole Skrull invasion thingy).

Punisher #56 - Someone needs to tell that Fraction asshole that this is how you write a Punisher story with very little Punisher in it. But Mr. Tomassi said it best:

Punisher. Frank was hardly in the issue and it was still one of the best things read this week. I like the use of the 'book excerpts' in the story. Its gonna suck when Ennis leaves. Only four issues to go.

Word.

[Diabolical]

Fuck Grimlock.

Wolvergins #24 - Not bad for an entire issue that has a tied up Wolvie talking to Deadpool. And Wolvie's douchebage metrosexual faux-hawk havin' loser son is back. Next issue may very well be my last. I'm serious this time.

War Is Hell #2 (of 5) - More good WWI stuff, but the story really doesn't seem to be going anywhere...yet. This is an Ennis book, and if I've learned anything from his Punisher run is that that he likes to slowly set things up. Still not too sure why this is a MAX book - some cussin' and bit of violence (but nothing too extreme), and some non-graphic/nude sex.

Kick-Ass #2 - Thankfully my LCS got a reorder. Another solid issue and I'm really curious to see where Millar and Romita take the series.

[RoIIo Tomassi]

Here's what I got

Countdown 2, featuring someone of the most horrific Scott Kolins art ever. Blech.
Annihilation Conquest 6. Which was FUCKING AWESOME.
Captain America. Which is so awesome, if you haven't been reading this from the start, you are a tool.
Ghost Rider. Dropped.
Hercules. It's good. Hercules is actually entertaining. I know. I'm as shocked as you are.
Iron Man. The end of the Mandarin arc. Rocked.
Warbound. Decent.
X-Factor. Eh. Slipping.
X-Men Divided We Stand. Goddamn the X-Books. Seriously. never has so much nothing been printed in so many books, for such an extended period of time. How can the same editorial team responsible for Astonishing be allowing ALL the other books to suck for endless, endless months?

[anarky]

Two observations from an outsider:

1) It looks like they think at Marvel that Avengers outsells X-Men because of the whole "Disassembled" arc from a few years ago. I suppose it hasn't occurred to them that maybe it's because everything goes from crossover to crossover, and writers are afraid to develop characters, knowing that they'll be off the book in a few months and everything they did will be trashed.

2) Countdown looks like it's trying to turn the DCU into the 1960s DCU. Fucking Jimmy Olsen as Turtle Boy vs Darkseid? Come the fuck on!

[Rollo Tomassi]

Except Darkseid wasn't around in the 60's. But don't think Countdown or Batman RIP is emblematic of DC as a whole right now. I've been going through those DC books from the last six months. Blue Beetle, All New Atom, and Countdown to Mystery starring Captain Comet ( written by Jim Starlin) are REALLY great reads. And issue 4 of Green Arrow/Black Canary was really touching.

[anarky]

Well, aside from Darkseid. I've heard great things about Blue Beetle, but isn't it already cancelled?

I usually like Grant Morrison, but I'm not digging his Batman. Not at all. Between this and Hama's run, I'm thinking that great writers who established themselves elsewhere cannot do Bats properly.

[jjreason]

I think Jeph Loeb did pretty well on the whole HUSH deal.

My new comics for this week were Amazing Spidey, another copy of FF from last week as I managed to destroy my first one with water, Woverine Origins and Captain America. I'll read them and post thoughts later.

[anarky]

I think Jeph Loeb did pretty well on the whole HUSH deal.

Yousa point well seen.

There must be some other reason that two of my favorite scribes, working on my favorite DC character (or mainstream supehero, for that matter), have blown so badly.

[jjreason]

I haven't read Morrison's Bats since the first 2 or 3 issues and then the longer prose Joker issue (which was pretty good in a quirky sort of way). Are there large numbers of fans enjoying the run (suggesting that it's just your personal preference to not enjoy it), or is it like All-Star Batman where there's just no possible way it could blow.... but still does in pretty much everyone (except Diabolical's) opinion?

[anarky]

I just can't get into the entire "let's bring back all the Silver Age shit" trend at DC, for one. Sorry, fucking "Robin Dies at Dawn" may be a classic and historically significant, but it didn't happen to the modern age Bats. Two, although we always knew Talia bore Batman's child (unbeknownst to him), said kid showing up as a psychotic Robin wannabe is more wrong than if it turned out Dick and Bruce really were lovers. And it looks like he's going to retire Batman, which is wrong as fuck. Honestly, I'd rather Bats get killed.

I don't expect Batman to be a static, unchanging string of "Batman fights Joker, Joker goes to jail" tales. But there are ways to fuck with him in a manner that doesn't, well, make my skin crawl.

[Rollo Tomassi]

And it's a weak pitch. Any other writer can walk into DiDio's office and say "I wanna write Batman. i think we should get rid of Bruce Wayne permanently! it would make a great story!" and of course DiDio gonna say "ummm..no. Be more creative than that." but fucking Morrison gets free reign.

[jjreason]

It does kinda work with Dark Knight though - we'd finally have a point of reference for him going off the radar, allowing the gangs to take over the city.

I'm sure if they do retire Bruce it won't be for long. He came back after a snapped spine in what, 4 issues?