Bought/Thought 8/15

[TheCorpulent1]

Works for me.

 

[DoomJester]

Thanks for the word on Annihilation. I guess I'll pick up the hard covers that marvel released. I didn't expect such strong feelings, I'm going to bump the book up to the top priority now.

 

[Doc Destruction]

I'll settle this:

Vibe, Guy Gardener, Steel, Booster Gold, Mr. Miracle and Oberon founded the JLA.

Oh and Martian Manhunter and Aquaman.

Well you'd have fanboy support with the last two!

 

[Doc Destruction]

You should change your name to "DC Destruction".

But I like DC

I don't wanna destroy them!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

But you're racist against doctors?

 

[Marcdachamp]

It does seem like Meltzer and Waid are fighting some kind of personal battle over who the founders were, doesn't it?

Yep. That's my biggest problem with Meltzer. On one hand, Identity Crisis was one of my favorite Non-Vertigo DC books. On the other, it's very obvious that DC is trying to cater too much to the man as a result.

I, personally, hate retcons. I do. Now, some might not like the whole "Black Canary as founding JLAer", but that retcon happened over 20 years ago. What's the point in re-retconning it? Let's move forward, not back. As much as I disliked Sins Past, I'm glad Marvel hasn't retconned it. I don't feel like reading a story that undoes it. Odds are, it will probably never be addressed again, so those that hated it can simply ignore it.

Besides, what does Metzer gain by undoing Waid's story? All it does is let him say that the crappy stories he read as a kid are now "back in continuity". I'd rather see a good story kept in continuity rather than bring back some campy stories simply for nostalgic value.

 

[Darthphere]

Meltzer wasn't responsible for the retcon as far as I remember, wasn't that Johns or the 52 guys?

 

[Doc Destruction]

But you're racist against doctors?

Doctor is a race now? Doc, please!

 

[RockSP]

Meltzer wasn't responsible for the retcon as far as I remember, wasn't that Johns or the 52 guys?

First place I saw it mentioned was Infinite Crisis.

 

[Tropico]

I'll settle this:

Vibe, Guy Gardener, Steel, Booster Gold, Mr. Miracle and Oberon founded the JLA.

Oh and Martian Manhunter and Aquaman.

Orale! Mira a este viejo chiflado!!

 

[BrianWilly]

Why did no one TELL ME that Checkmate came out this week?

I hate you all SO MUCH.

 

[Tropico]

Amazons Attack! #5: I have to agree with a previous review by another poster in that this issue further continues the total WTF?!'ness that this mini has been. Why the master tactician Batman didn't immediately use radio communication to tell the others (ESPECIALLY WW) that Circe is still alive is beyond me. Why didn't he capture what she had said to the amazon he ko'd on video or sound to show the other amazons...is...also beyond me. But, that is the nature of this series. The only kinda cool part was that they finally confirmed that Grace is part Amazon. The hints about her not being "human" without any payoff were starting to get annoying.

A.C.: Quasar #2: I'm sorry to say that this practically the weakest of the minis. It's not bad per se, but it's not as good as I thought nor would I consider it that good without any expectations. I guess Moondragon's portrayal here really irks me, especially when the Moondragon came back. I'm supposed to think Phylla is going all "Quasar SMASH!!" because of the bands and what Heather gets is...pms blues and cramps? I think she had more tears in this single issue than any of her other comic books. Combined. As in, her whole comics career. And she doesn't mention anything about how she was helping train Genis mentally to use the Cosmic Awareness?!............right.

Oh, and the nipples thing? I don't see the problem with it. According to the movie Showgirls they're supposed to ALWAYS be erect. ALWAYS.

Ghost Rider #14: I'm SO glad that they're finally killing demons in single panel flashbacks because even I reached my limit and want this done with. With all the cool possibilities we're seeing with the mystical side of Marvel it'd be a shame that this character doesn't get to delve into it. I get the feeling he's going to be more of the superhero crowd, but maybe something like that would give this title back some of pizazz it started with.

Shadowpact #16: Not a bad issue. Pretty surprised at Eve teleporting such a large amount of people and buildings, she had been having trouble teleporting too many people not too recently; new age of magic, I guess. Her "kingdom" of the Shadowlands not being a place that would almost drive people insane/horrified by just a small teleportational jaunt is certainly new. What started as some pretty cool developments for Blue Devil are now starting to stink thanks to the "You thought you knew, but the truth is I know something you don't know before you knew what you think you know." That, and the all too obvious "priest sent from the Vatican" to exorcise his demon that we know will turn out NOT to be a priest. Pretty sure I'm about the only one here that still reads this title.

New X-Men #41: This was a pretty cool story arc. While I dreaded the return of Magik (leave the poor girl alone, she earned her RIP, don't soil it), it wasn't as bad as I thought. I'm glad that some of the changes (the kids' changed appearances) have already been acknowledged in some of the other titles. What I would like to see mentioned is Piotr's reactions to his sister's possible return, the "closing statements" at the end don't really say much. A lot of people have complained about the amount of deaths in the title and other minutiae, but this title rarely disappoints me. This arc actually had a very old school "New Mutants" feel to it and it was awesome.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

Oh, and the nipples thing? I don't see the problem with it. According to the movie Showgirls they're supposed to ALWAYS be erect. ALWAYS.

Hey, I've got no problem with erect nipples. t:

Its just that I don't think this is the uh... proper venue to be showing them off.

 

[Dread]

Oh one last thing-- Annihilation-- is it worth the money? I know nothing about the characters but it seems to be pretty popular here. Please advise. Thanks.

It most definately is worth the money.

And I do enjoy WRAITH, although I don't deny he is SPACE EMO. When you literally need physical pain to recover memory/"to feel alive", that is the textbook definition of cliche emo.

I remember the end of Annihilation, and a new bug is indeed being created for him. And we also know that the new bug will even have the same memories, effectively being a perfect clone. But you're forgetting this is comics. What we know now can always change, and it always does. Like mentioned, the Kang/Annihilus alliance could come from a variety of reasons. Some of those reasons might not make sense now, but they will when we know the whole story (assuming I'm right).

True. Just in comics we usually like to try to look back at past connections to predict new stuff. Which is why the "out of left field" schtick can sink or swim. The concept of a Kang/Annihilus union could be the baddest thing ever...or complete crap. I really don't see what the two have in common, aside for common bedfellows against a common foe (the Phanalax).

Annihilus was just as out of left field. I remember everyone assuming Thanos or Galactus, and being completely taken by surprised by Annihilus.

Annihilus was out of left field because he'd been a C-List FF loser for a decade and because few thought to take the title of the event THAT literally.

I don't think it's vague. I'm just using the logic we've come to understand based on the last Annihilation. It's paint by numbers, really. And if it turns out that it's not Kang, then that only means that Marvel has decided not to follow it's own formula, which, so far it has been following.

On the other hand, they could have shifted gears to not be as predictable. And like I said, CONQUEST can be seen in many ways with many faces.

Just so long as Thanos stays dead; I felt he had a fitting end. Normally I don't say that for good villains, especially ones like him who can return from death billions of times (being an Eternal and all), but I felt it suited him.

I am hesitant if only because Marvel has a bad, bad, BAD habit on waiting on pipe dreams, or on creators/writers they shouldn't. The very FACT that Marvel seems to want to make more ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS. HULK comics means they can't take a hint. They are the same with Singer & Ultimate X-Men (a run that Marvel has been promoting for OVER THREE YEARS and is nowhere near fruition), and Heinberg's YA vol. 2 is one of those. They need to end this habit, but if they continue it, it may mean keeping Kang on a shelf until Heinberg does whatever with him. Quite frankly, I would rather he showed up in CONQUEST than do nothing for another two years.

 

[El Bastardo]

Pilot Season #1: Ripclaw from Top Cow, written by Jason Aaron and penciled by Jorge Lucas

I'm a sucker for a lot of stuff put out by Top Cow - I was reading City of Heroes when it first started (which didn't hurt that the first arc was written by Mark Waid), am a fan of Hunter-Killer, enjoyed VICE and was overly sad that it remains a single mini-series and didn't become an ongoing. I remember CyberForce from when I was younger, even if I haven't read the recent incarnation of it (only due to fundage point issues). But then, I'm a sucker for a lot of independent stuff. If I didn't read so much Marvel stuff, I'd say that I think i buy more indie stuff than "Big Two" stuff (although it's decreased recently, but it looks like that might be changing again).

Top Cow is releasing over the next few months a series of "pilot" books, involving a number of characters (listed as, on the inside cover, Ripclaw, Velocity, Cyblade, Angelus, the Necromancer, and Aphrodite IX), which will then be voted on by readers, with the top two receiving solo titles. Or put into a single book. I think the former, though.

This issue takes Ripclaw, who is more or less Marc Silvestri's rip-off of Wolverine at a glance, and runs with him. The issue doesn't do a lot, given that it's just a pilot (and looking at recent TV, even the excellent pilot episode of Burn Notice really only set the series up), but what Aaron does do, he does it well. He establishes (or perhaps reestablishes) Ripclaw's heritage as an American Indian, something that I assume is supposed to play into the character when he isn't being written as a generic Wolverine clone minus the adamantium. A quick prologue, and then we're into the main story, which involves Ripclaw hunting down a Japanese crime boss at the behest of a mysterious voice. Numerous bodies later, the mysterious voice is revealed as a zombie-rific corpse that's following Ripclaw, that only Ripclaw can see and hear. And then it's revealed why, in that a number of angry spirits who died violently swarmed him during a sweat lodge ceremony, and now he's stuck righting the wrongs of their deaths, while also carrying his own burden in a gym bag (said burden being a corpse).

It's not a breakthrough by any means. I mean, we've seen a similar plot before, I assume. The selling point, really, through the panels (and they're nice breakdowns, I'll give Lucas credit) of gore, is Aaron slowly revealing the mystery of what's going on and why it's going on. And even if a slight bit cliche, it's all in all a nice way to make Ripclaw more distinct than a generic Wolverine knock-off. Not to mention that the ending isn't simply "this guy killed me, so kill him back." The revenge is a bit more damaging than that.

Quite entertaining. But if what I've seen in First Born is any indication, I think one of my votes is going to be for the Angelus character.


Iron and the Maiden #1 from Aspen Comics, by Jason Rubin and Francis Manapul

This actually came out back on the first, but because my comics store didn't get it, I had to wait for it to come in from Aspen Comics directly with the rest of the order I placed. And then I forgot that I had it, and read it late. But what the hey, I'm gonna put it here anyway.

First off, Manapul is a great artist, which makes sense being that he comes from the Top Cow talent pool, and his art style works wonderfully here. Given that one of the character designers is Joe MAD!, it helps that Manapul's style is somewhat in the same vein - not as jarring as if, say, the evil that is Chris Bachalo drew this.

Rubin worked in video games previously (Crash Bandicoot, Jak and Daxter), and it shows here, both in the world he's created and how the action and narration flows. Essentially, we're looking at an alternate 1930s, mid-to-late, with no word of escalation into World War II. There's higher technology, but really nothing too bonkers (they kept a 1930s look, even if the cars can hover a la Back to the Future II), and at times it feels a bit steam-punkish, which is so rarely seen. The setting is "The City," at war between three factions: the Order (organized religion), the Government (coppers), and the Syndicate (organized crime). Really, this shouldn't be so surprising, as while it's an original series, a lot of it is an homage to older mobster flicks (and Escape from New York, which is never a bad homage).

The main character, Michael Iron, is a Syndicate enforcer and hitman. And he's huge, thanks to a drug known as "the rOid." When his negotiations with the main priest of the Order go south, which is followed by a gunning-down of numerous police officers, it makes Big Daddy (Syndicate leader and Iron's adopted father) a tad peed-off. Which in turn makes him give Iron some babysitters on his next mission, a simple collection. One of those babysitters, Sweet Joey Petunia, turns the collection into a hit, going out of his way to murder the collectee's family, as well as babysitter #2 and Iron. Except that Iron (losing his right arm from the elbow down) and the oldest daughter Angel (the title's Maiden) don't die. Joey makes sure to frame Iron for the murders, and tells Big Daddy a lie, ensuring that both the Government and Syndicate will be gunning for Iron if he resurfaces (which we know he will).

It's only a four issue mini-series, with an issue 0 prologue that was only available at one of the recent comic conventions. But it's a highly entertaining and good-looking read, and I have to assume that the subsequent issues will be the same (since it's not Mighty Avengers - boom! a random Bendis bash to get some attention). Possibly the best selling point, I think, is that the writer, artist, and publisher don't pull any punches or mind pressing buttons. At all. It's a violent atmosphere, and the gore is there - huge Iron punching one guy's jaw off, or numerous headshots with plenty of blood spurts, two dead children by the issue's end - but not at all senseless, given said atmosphere. Not to mention content (at least one penciled sexual reference) and language used. It's refreshing to see this, I have to say.

Oh, and the City? The scummy City is so vibrant. It's a wonderful contrast.

 

[Marcdachamp]

Meltzer wasn't responsible for the retcon as far as I remember, wasn't that Johns or the 52 guys?

Not sure where it originated, to be honest. It just seemed to me that DC was doing it to keep Meltzer happy. Johns had a few decisions forced on him by Didio, so it wouldn't surprise me.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Why did no one TELL ME that Checkmate came out this week?

I hate you all SO MUCH.

It was a pretty good standalone issue, too.