Bought/Thought August 30th. (SPOILERS!)

[Doc Destruction]

Oh hell, that was adjectiveless...sorry about that.

 

[AndThePickles]

Don't really have a whole lot to say about Young Avengers/Runaways except that it was great, just like the first issue!

UXM Annual #2- SO glad that Dazzler is gone, I really didn't think she fit it well. I'm interested to see what Kurt will do when they wake him up, and I'm curious what Rogue saw in his mind. Very good read.

X-Men Fairytales #4- I was kinda ready for this mini to be over, but the last issue wasn't bad. Seeing Bishop with long curly hair was fun.

 

[Brainiac 8]

One thing that amazes me when it comes to a comic series, is how much difference a change in talent can be.

X-Men and Uncanny were both about two of the worst written Marvel books several months back. (Due to Milligan's droll storytelling, and Claremont's unorganized clutter.)

But they put new blood on them both, and WHAM-O! we get two titles that are now must reads. Brubaker assembled a team that has great chemistry, he is fleshing out what seems to be a great villian, and is reintroducing one of my favorite parts of X history....the Shi'ar empire, and the Imerial Guard. Billy Tan's art is just phenominal for Uncanny, and to think I hated...and I mean HATED his art on MK Spider-Man. The story is interesting to boot, and flows well. A huge Step up from where Uncanny was just four issues ago.

In the adjectiveless series, Carry did a complete 180 from what Milligan was writing. He also assembled a team that isn't expected and he is making it work. He is introducing new villians that are a mystery and quite interesting. He brought back Northstar and Aurora, and they are as menacing as you'd ever see them. Plus he is recognizing something that every writer seems to forget: Rogue is more than a southern accent, and Gambit's sad puppy. She in the past has proven herself a good leader, and Carrey is showing that now. She is using her abilities better than she ever has (With the diamond/optic blast shot) and she is being written as tough as she truly is. All the characters are within character, which is more than I can say for any of Milligan's writing of the same characters.

Great stuff...*Rant off*

 

[GNR]

O RLY?

Dude,a 12 issues maxi series equalling out to 160 pages?Come on now.

 

[MyPokerShirt]

why did noone tell me I couldn't get my comics today?? grrrrr. Anyway I got Slott's Two-Gun Kid. Actually not that impressed, but at least it's a fill-in for my She-Hulk fix

 

[Darthphere]

Dude,a 12 issues maxi series equalling out to 160 pages?Come on now.

Its the first 6 issues, come on now.

 

[Darthphere]

If you haven't picked up Shazam, try it out. THIS is how you tweak a character and make him more interesting without getting stupid about it. (I'm looking at you, Spidey)

You mean utterly destroy whats been charming and interesting about the character for years to fit a new darker/edgier motiff?

 

[BrianWilly]

And does that include that repeating panel in that Black Adam/Isis issue?

Yeah, I think that was the original event that got a lot of people wondering. I don't remember where it was said that it was there for a reason, though...probably in one of the newsarama interviews.

Or they could be covering their asses. Who knows? MORRISON WILL DO ANYTHING

.

 

[Colossal Spoons]

Oh, and Teen Titans and trials of Shazam were GREAT! Even with those annoying speedster twins showing up in a cameo. Damn, I just love Rose.

If you haven't picked up Shazam, try it out. THIS is how you tweak a character and make him more interesting without getting stupid about it. (I'm looking at you, Spidey)

I'm gonna pick up Shazam today. I'm still trying out DC books and I've always liked the character so it'll be fun to see these trials.

As for Rose. She's something else. Quite fiesty too

 

[Phaedrus45]

Another slow week, and it looks like next week will be even slower.

Bought:

Alan Moore's Lost Girls Hardback Collection
Bone: The Collected Works
Wizard #180
Kabuki #7
Marvel Spotlight: Ed Brubaker/Billy Tan
All-New Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe
Marvel Mythos: Hulk #1
X-Men: Fairy Tales #4
She-Hulk #11
Jack Kirby's Galactic Bounty Hunters #2
Young Avengers & Runaways #2
Cable & Deadpool #31
Black Panther #19
X-Factor #10
X-Men #190
Ultimate Fantastic Four #33
Ultimate X-Men Annual #2
Age Of Conan: Hyborian Adventures
52: Week Seventeen
American Virgin #6
The Trial Of Shazam #1
Justice #7
Action Comics #842
American Way #7
All-Star Superman #5
Battlestar Galactica #1
Marvel Previews #37
Showcase Presents Batman Vol. 1

Thought:

Showcase Presents Batman Vol. 1: I'm really trying to understand DC's thought process in putting out their Showcase editions. Sure, it's great to finally get a Batman version of Essentials; but, they start it out with comics from '64-'65. The comics are very campy, and while it's nice to read some of the old stories, it doesn't make for very fullfilling reading. You can only stand about one or two comics at a time. (Kind of like trying to listen to a Sting CD. He's a decent songwriter, but I can only take him in small doses.) And, they don't even start at the beginning, giving us the first Batman stories. To me, either give me the first issues, or do what Marvel did with their first Essentials that spotlighted the X-Men (which started with issue 94), and give us some of the stories that came from the late 70's. I will point out that on the back cover, DC does state, "The stories that inspired the Batman TV Series." And, that's just what this is. 6/10

Marvel Previews #37: I know that the Marvel Previews gets talked about in a seperate thread on The Hype; but, I love to find out about the new comics from the actual issue, and skip over that thread each month. The few things that got me excited are: 1) Avengers Next coming back, and making Spider-Girl's Universe more expansive. 2) Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes II returning again. At last, I can get away from the crappy New Avengers, and read a story I will probably really love. 3) Essential Captain America Vol. 3, featuring the Falcon becoming Cap's first full-time partner since Bucky in the 40's. I first got into Captain America and The Falcon waaaay back in the 70's, and these issues were some of my favorites. But, something I've been dying to see more than this is 4) Essential Man-Thing. Oh, man, I've been begging for this book to come out. While I have many of these issues, I hate to unbag them, and reading them on the computer just doesn't have the same feel as kicking back in a nice chair.

Alan Moore's Lost Girls Hardcover Collection: Ok, now I knew this book was going to be graphic....but, even I was totally shocked when I pulled out Vol. 1 of the three book series, and the first thing I saw was the back cover with a rendition of two ladies assisting a third on a very large *****, all very nude and very, very graphic. After that initial shock, I figured, "well, Alan Moore has done some great work, and we'll see how this goes." Let me just say, this is not vintage Alan Moore. This is more like "Alan Moore's Junior High Comic." So far, there is no real story that I've read. I'm almost done with Book 1, and am very unimpressed. In fact, I would go so far as to say it's total crap.

I've been trying to pinpoint what makes this book so bad, and I think one major factor is that Alan Moore is a man, and he's writing about these sexual fairy tale women from how a horny, adolecent boy would picture them. It's like a story from Penthouse Forum, where a lady writes into the magazine; but, as a reader, you just know it's been probably written by some man who thought this is the way women must behave. The reader doesn't come away with an insight on who these three main female characters really are....just, that they are filled with so much sexual energy that they will screw practically anyone. I'm really hoping this book gets better, but for now, my review stands at 4/10.

Marvel Mythos - Hulk #1: I'm trying to stay objective in my review of Marvel Mythos, but I couldn't stand the way they changed the origin of The Hulk to make it more modern.....and, it didn't have to come across that way, except they choose to make Rick Jones an intern with this highly classified government project and having him listening to an ipod while painting the detonation area. After that, my interest really faltered, and I could tell it had really biased me towards the comic. For me, stick with the original Hulk comic. It still holds up today, and you get a lot more Hulk for your buck. 6/10

All-New Official Handbook Of The Marvel Universe #8: Nothing much to say that hasn't been said for the last seven issues. If you are a humongous Marvel fan and love to know about all things Marvel, this is the series of books for you. I've always considered the Handbooks a must-have for any Marvel collector, and this series does it just how I like it...from A To Z, just like the original series. 9/10

Marvel Spotlight - Ed Brubaker/Billy Tan: I really like this series of books, but my two complaints about it still stands: 1) Since this book is mainly a promotional piece from Marvel to try and get us interested in new books and have us buy some back issues from two of their artists/writers, they should price it accordingly at $1.99 or less. And, 2), they need to include the artists/writers full accomplishments, not just the "Marvel Library" in the book. If I'm interested in Ed Brubaker, I want to know what other comics he has done for the Distinguished Competition. If Marvel is really interested in promoting some of their people, they need to promote all their work. 8/10

Kabuki #7: I've been collecting Kabuki for a while now, but haven't read a single issue. I've been trying to get all the back issues first. But, I will say I love the visuals in this book. I find myself opening every issue, and just looking at the art. The good thing is that I've found quite a few of these books in the quarter bin.

X-Men - Fairy Tales #4: So far, this miniseries has been one of the worst that Marvel's offered all year; but, at least the final issue offers it a little redemption. This alternate, What If?-type tale is done nicely, with a story of old time New Orleans centered around Rogue and Gambit. The only complaint is that the ending seemed very rushed, and many of the things that happen in the tale aren't really explained. In a day where most stories are told in 3-6 issues, this one could have at least gone with two. In fact, they could have scraped the first three issues, and focused all their time on this one story, expanding it a bit more. 7/10

Bone - The Collected Works: This large pocket trade paperback collects all the Bone comics in one great edition, and is really one of the best deals you can find. Costing only $39.99, you get one of my favorite comics of all time, and one that if you love fantasy comics, like Elfquest, you will want to have in your collection. To me, if you want to get someone interested in comics, this is the book to buy them. 10/10

 

[Doc Destruction]

You mean utterly destroy whats been charming and interesting about the character for years to fit a new darker/edgier motiff?

Where the hell did you get THAT? Fighting a giant frog monster and summoning a TV in the rock of eternity...yeah, really edgy

 

[Marcdachamp]

Amen Dread,amen!This book doesn't get as much as praise as other bi-monthlies like ASS and AXM,but it's certainly the most deserving.

Marcdachamp!The story dragging?You shall be flogged!

Hey, I enjoy it quite a bit. It's a hell of a lot better than Infinite Crisis, if you ask me. It's just that the number of characters and the overall scope, coupled with the bi-monthly schedule, really makes it hard to keep track of everything.

Speaking of IC, Wizard's review of the trade really pissed me off. They reviewed the issues versus the "corrected" pages of the trade. DC, are you listening? If so, **** YOU. It's one thing to add bonus material, it's another to re-do things you feel weren't up to par. That's utter garbage. It's disrespectful to fans and the artists, too. I paid good money for issues that they released knowing that they weren't as good as they could've been. I would've taken a delay (a la Civil War) over that any day. Next DC event, count me out.

BrianWilly, Marvel Boy's been tampered with and in custody since the end of his mini, if memory serves. So this really isn't the Pro-registration being bastards.

 

[Doc Destruction]

Really? Well I wasn't planning on buying the IC trade, so who cares? It's just extra stuff for people who want it. Like an extra 40 hours of crap on the LOTR trilogy.

That is NOT better than BS delays. No way, no how.

 

[Kool-Aid]

I might get it. I've been on a HC cover kick lately. Can't wait for Absolute Sandman.

 

[BrianWilly]

BrianWilly, Marvel Boy's been tampered with and in custody since the end of his mini, if memory serves. So this really isn't the Pro-registration being bastards.

The fact that they're involved with it and is actively supporting this, ie using an unwilling soldier as a tool -- or as they call him, a "maggott" -- in their little plan makes them just as much bastards as the people who originally caught him. As it said in the issue, Tony Stark himself sanctioned this "unconventional" course of action. Maria Hill is doing this to avoid public outcry over the fact that they are aiming weapons at and kidnapping other underaged individuals. However you look at it, this is just another example of the pro-registration side to "do whatever it takes," where "whatever it takes" is usually categorized as "act like utter bastards." Narratively, it's blatantly clear just who exactly we're supposed to sympathize with here.

 

[Marcdachamp]

Really? Well I wasn't planning on buying the IC trade, so who cares? It's just extra stuff for people who want it. Like an extra 40 hours of crap on the LOTR trilogy.

That is NOT better than BS delays. No way, no how.

Imagine if George Lucas made the Special Editions four months after Star Wars came out and only released them in theatres. Wouldn't you rather Lucas waited and made the "corrections" before releasing it?

The LotR movies are vastly different. They're Director's Cuts of an already disgustingly long film for those obsessed with Tolkien. Added features are one thing, altering parts of a story because they "weren't up to par" is insulting. Marvel is giving Mcniven time to make Civil War look better than the final issue of infinite Crisis. I'll take a delay over being sold something the publisher KNOWS is inferior anyday.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Star Wars vs. LoTR....I'm thinking about a Clerks 2 now.

 

[Darthphere]

Where the hell did you get THAT? Fighting a giant frog monster and summoning a TV in the rock of eternity...yeah, really edgy

Just wait a couple of issues.

 

[Doc Destruction]

Imagine if George Lucas made the Special Editions four months after Star Wars came out and only released them in theatres. Wouldn't you rather Lucas waited and made the "corrections" before releasing it?

The LotR movies are vastly different. They're Director's Cuts of an already disgustingly long film for those obsessed with Tolkien. Added features are one thing, altering parts of a story because they "weren't up to par" is insulting. Marvel is giving Mcniven time to make Civil War look better than the final issue of infinite Crisis. I'll take a delay over being sold something the publisher KNOWS is inferior anyday.

Actually, he DID do JUST THAT. He's remade those damn movies FIFTEEN TIMES.

 

[Darthphere]

Speaking of IC, Wizard's review of the trade really pissed me off. They reviewed the issues versus the "corrected" pages of the trade. DC, are you listening? If so, **** YOU. It's one thing to add bonus material, it's another to re-do things you feel weren't up to par. That's utter garbage. It's disrespectful to fans and the artists, too. I paid good money for issues that they released knowing that they weren't as good as they could've been. I would've taken a delay (a la Civil War) over that any day. Next DC event, count me out.

Well that sucks. Funny thing is, if Marvel did this, wide spread *****ing would commence.

 

[Doc Destruction]

You guys are over-reacting. If you don't want the extended stuff, don't buy it. If you want Civil War...OOPS! GOTTA WAIT!

I never buy the extended stuff unless it seriously upgrades the original (Daredevil director's cut on DVD for instance). Otherwise, who cares? If you have the money, then go for it.

 

[Darthphere]

You guys are over-reacting. If you don't want the extended stuff, don't buy it. If you want Civil War...OOPS! GOTTA WAIT!

I never buy the extended stuff unless it seriously upgrades the original (Daredevil director's cut on DVD for instance). Otherwise, who cares? If you have the money, then go for it.

I dont think you read Marc's post AT ALL. Hes complaining that those really crappy rushed art pages in IC #7 have been redone and put in the book. Therefore, people who buy the hardcover will get the high quality IC pages for #7 while the people who helped DC rise to #1 buying the single issues got shafted with the crappy rushed pages in IC #7.

 

[BrianWilly]

They did warn us right from the solicits for the IC trade that they were going to do this. At least they were honest about their intentions from the first day and didn't wait for the last minute to spring it on everyone.

If the art is all that's changed about it, then I certainly don't mind. It's not as if we'd be reading a whole different story.

 

[Doc Destruction]

Exactly. And the art in IC #7 didn't bother me anyway, so moot point.

 

[Darthphere]

Exactly. And the art in IC #7 didn't bother me anyway, so moot point.

*sigh* To you, but it bothered a lot of people, and its a ****ed up move, if youre complacent with ****ty art, good for you.