More Thoughts:
The Punisher - Barracuda #1: After reading Barracuda's appearance in Punisher, you just knew this extremely over-the-top character would be coming back. After surviving having his fingers cut off, getting shot, getting his eye stabbed, and being fed to the sharks by the Punisher, Barracuda is back to help a crimeboss make his hemophiliac, nerdy son look respectable to the others in his crew. The art is spot on for this type of book, and the dialogue works well with this Max miniseries. I was hooked with the original Barracuda storyline, and now I'm hooked with this miniseries. It might be the best book of the week. 10/10
Blade #6: This is a title just begging to be cancelled. I've read numerous books with Blade in them since the 70's, and this is the absolute worst. Even if the story was halfway decent (which it's not), the art makes you want to put it at the top of your burn-pile at home. (This artist really must love teeth. I've never seen an artist who's drawings of mouths and especially teeth are so distracting from the rest of the art in the panel.) In this issue, we meet Blade's supposed father and start to get his backstory on how he's survived so long. It's poorly told, and as I've said, I'm just counting down the days Marvel either signs a new creative team for this book or just cancels it. This probably is the worst book of the week...hell, even the month. 2/10
Superman & Batman Versus Aliens & Predator #2: In this final issue of the two-part miniseries, Batman and Superman attempt to save as many Predators and Aliens as they can, in order to shoot them off into space and back to their homeworld. That's the basic story, and in between the beginning and the end of the issue, Bats and Sups just try to stay out of the Aliens and Predators way. Kind of a big disappointment. It's sure not what you want out of an Aliens and Predator book. 6/10
Amazing Spider-Girl #5: As usual, May Parker must juggle her career as Spider-Girl, her obligations at school, and her deception of being Spider-Girl from her friends and family, all the while fighting with whatever bad-guy is guest starring that week. It's all very familiar, but the comic pulls it off well enough. I guess that's a partial gripe. You know what's going to happen issue after issue, and the clues on what will happen next are rather easy to pick up. (i.e. Jimmy wants Heather to dress up as Spider-Girl to sell his comic he's drawing at a local comic shop. Hmmm, I wonder if the advertising of Spider-Girl's appearance will cause a bad guy to show up in next week's comic? Of course!) I still like this book, but they really need to come up with some new plots. 7/10
Sensational Spider-Man #35: Part 1 of the 3 part story, in which someone is experimenting on people in an attempt to turn them into Spider-Man. Of course, things don't go as planned, as the procedure has undesired side-effects. Plus, Spidey is "Back In Black," but it's just a cheap publicity stunt by Marvel. The reasons for him being in the black costume aren't touched upon, and it just seems like another day in the life of Peter Parker. 7/10
Ghost Rider #8: Thankfully, the fill-in story and art from the previous two issues is over and we can get back to some good Ghost Rider action. This issue pretty much just sets up the events in a small town northwest of Chicago where some teenagers have been murdered, and Ghost Rider will obviously be getting involved. There is a Casualties of War logo on the cover; but, don't expect this issue to really tie-in with Civil War in any way. 8/10
