TPBs Bought/Thought Thread

[Elijya]

Hard Times was written by Steve Gerber. Have you ever read any of his Howard the Duck stuff? it's genius

I'm almost done with volume 2 of DC: The New Frontier. This book is pure beauty, Darwyn Cooke did a fantastic job, and I'm left with a deeper appreciation for these characters.

 

[Anubis]

I was gonna get to Howard the Duck eventually. It's not really on my to do list at the moment. Catching up on Fables is becoming a priority once I've finished up on Starman. Two Volumes to go with that one.

And DC:New Frontier was great. Cooke moved up to one of my favorite artists with that one. Can't wait for his Batman/Spirit and then Spirit ongoing.

 

[Elijya]

That's news to me, but I can't wait, either

there's only two Howard the Duck trades to worry about: Essential, which collects most of his 70's series. It's almost out of print, though, it's getting a little hard to find and the price is going up (not alot, but more than the other Essentials)

and the other is a collection of the MAX miniseries, which was ****ing hysterical

 

[Anubis]

What was the MAX mini about?

 

[Elijya]

hard to descibe. For the most part, it was just about getting howad back in the spot light, and an uncensored one at that, after so many years. There's a slight overarcing story, but for the most part, each issue is kind of stand alone. Whole sequences are parodies of other books like Witchblade and Preacher, and the last issue he has a heart-to-heart with God. Everything's hysterical.

Oh, and he actually spends most of the series as a rat (as a parody on mickey mouse, since disney used to give them **** back in the day about him looking to close to donald duck) And there's an appearence by DR. BONG! who I sure you're familiar with at the least from joking around about him on the board

 

[Anubis]

Heh, Dr. Bong, okay, you convinced me. I'll put it on the list.

 

[Elijya]

you've read Transmet, too, right? cause that's another one that's parodied

 

[Anubis]

I got the first three volumes in trade.

 

[Elijya]

and you stopped!?!?!?

 

[Anubis]

Yeah. Nothing really blew me away, though I was still interested. Then I got really into Starman and it just kinda fell to the wayside. I'll grab the rest eventually. But Promethea's been so good lately....

 

[Elijya]

ABC books have been on my list for a long time...

 

[Anubis]

Took me awhile to get around to it too. Sure I had gotten all the Top Ten stuff, but I held off on stuff Like Tom Strong and Promethea. Now, after having read the first two volumes, I'm tempted to go and try all the other stuff I missed out of the ABC line.

Anyway, I'll get the last too reviews out of the way.

Fables volume one- Now, I tried to get into Fables some time ago. I bought the storyarc when the advasary invaded Fable town or whatever? And they were trying to mount a defense while keeping everything a secret from the Mundys, and, well, I couldn't get into it. So I figured, if I'm gonna see what all the fuss is about, I may as well start at the begining. And all I can say is, why was I such a dumbass? This book rocks. Big Bad Wolf, sorry, Bigby Wolf f**king rocks. Like if the Question was a werewolf. 10/10

Doom Patrol: The Painting that ate Paris - Morrison's Doom Patrol, probally one of the weirdest most insane works ever in comics. I mean, the guys gotta be nuts. But damn can he write. The whole thing was good, from the actual story that covered the title, to Robot Man going inside Janes head and finding out what tramatized her so much that she developed all those personalities. But by far, the most disturbing, was the last bit when The Brain and Monsier Mollah try to steal Robot Mans now senient body. I always figured something was up with those two, but, I really didn't need to see it. Anyway, 8/10.

 

[Lackey]

Like if the Question was a werewolf. 10/10

I like that comparison


If you like Bigby now, you're gonna like him even more as the series goes on... there's even a great story Willingham throws in later on about Bigby helping the allies during WWII.

 

[Anubis]

Which Volume or issues did that happen in?

 

[Elijya]

it was a two-issue arc in #28-29, collected in vol 5

 

[Anubis]

I just got Sandman: Vol 6, Starman Vol 9 and 10, and Death: The High Cost of living. I already read the first half of Sandman, and it was great as usual. I'll get back to review the rest when I finish reading them.

 

[Anubis]

Okay, so I finally finished some of the books I recently purchased. I'll start with a full review of Sandman Vol: 6: Fables & Reflections.

This was probally one of my favorite Volumes of Sandman. And thats saying something because all have been top notch. But this volume I think puts Gaimen over the top in my opinion as the absolute best in the medium. Better than Morrison. Better than Moore. Just, the ability to write stories that go to multiple genres, and intertwine with extablished continuity of the DCU, and take stuff from like the Bible and the Quron and make an epic short story out of it. Just, incredible. THis particular volume was basically a group of short stories. Mostly dealing with storys of folklore and such things. Each of them was very good in there own right. There was Three Septembers and a January. Which was a story about a bet between Dream and some of his siblings. About how Dream could keep him out of there persepctive realms. The sibs being, Despair, Desire, and Delirium. All Morphous did was implant a dream within the man. A dream that could out shine anything they threw at him. He was the Empreror of America. crazy sure,but he was as sane as any.

Then there was Thermidor. This story stared Lady Constantine. An ansestor of John Constantine from the Hellblazer series. Her she was asked by Morphous to retrive his son's head from France during the French Revolution. Also a great story and gets us in the mood for the coming story of just how Orphous ended up just a head.

Following that Came Hunt. This story was about a Grandfather telling his Granddauther a story of a young Man's journey to find love. The young man just so happens to be a

Spoiler

Werewolf

. Also a good story. Starring Dream and his Librarian.

Then we have August. A really good story following a day a young dwarf actor spent with the Emporor of Rome, Octavian Augustus. I liked this one. Really put the whole Roman Empire into persepective.

Soft Places. This was a decent read. It was about Marco Polo getting lost in the deseart, and ending up in one of the "Soft Places". Parts of the world that interconect with the Dreaming.

Then you got the biggest portion of the volume, Orpheus. This was the story of how Orpheus ended up a talking head. Most people should know the story of Orpheus. Went to Hades to get back his dead wife. Told not to look back, and right at the end like an idiot he does. But this fills in the blanks. Like what happend before and after. ANd how it ties in with the Endless. Very good. Best story in the bunch in my opinion.

Then you have Parliament of Rooks. This is a story involving Daniel. The young boy who would one day become Dream. He wanders into the dreaming where he is found by Morpheus's Raven, Matthew. He takes him to Cain and Ables and along the way they meet up with Eve. They take turns telling stories to the baby. Very good this one was.

The last was Ramadan. This was a good one as well. Made better by the art of P Craig Russell. I read some of this online a while back but it's good to read the whole thing. Basically the Caliph of Bagdahad requests an audience with Dream. (By Force really) He simply wants to give Bagdahad. His Bagdahad. Bagdahad at is most beautiful. THe golden Age of this magnificent city, to Morpheus in exchange for him keeping it that way always. Beautiful story.

Well that was pretty much it. I give it a 10/10. Best volume I've read yet.

 

[Anubis]

Starman: Vol: 9 and 10

This was the last two volumes of the series. I have to say, I'm really gonna miss it. I think I started reading Starman about a year and a half ago. Buying Volumes here and there. I first heard about it here at the Hype. I was trying to fill out an order at about 50 bucks so I went ahead and added volume one. ANd I've been hooked ever scince. This whole series was great. But the last two really were just amazing. Starman comes back from his adventures in Space, and has to deal with a possibly evil Shade, the return of the Mist, (the crazy daughter of the original and Jacks Baby Momma.) and a ton of other villians in a dasterdly plan to take Opal city into the Shadow zone. This was great, and I wont give anything away in case anybodies interested, but it's got a ton of twists and turns. The end though, was a tough one. Really got to me man.

The last volume tied up all the lose ends. Who was the Starman of 1951. How was it that David Knight was able to visit with Jack after his death, and other things. There was a conversation between Jack and Superman. It was pretty sweet. They were talking about what Jor El was like, whom Jack met while he and Mikal Thomas were in space and got bounced around in time. Touching. Just, a great end to a great series. I give them both 10 out of 10's, and the series gets a 10 as well. Now I gotta find something else to read. I guess I'll work on getting the rest of the 100 bullets, Fables, and Lone Wolf and Cub volumes.

 

[yenaled]

Glad you've read an enjoyed Starman, it was a truley fantastic series. The best the 90s had to offer.

I recently read Morisson's The Filth; fantastic. Fantastically mind blowing but such a good and surprisingly emotional read.

Greg/Ned is one of the best heroes in current comics.

 

[Anubis]

I been meaning to check that out. What was it about?

 

[Emerald Knight]

I recently acquired Geof Johns's Flash TPB's: Blitz, Ignition, and Secret of Barry Allen (can't find the first or third anywhere though )

I'm hoping to get his JSA run as well.

 

[Anubis]

Get it, John's JSA is one of the best Team books i've ever read.

 

[Emerald Knight]

Get it, John's JSA is one of the best Team books i've ever read.

yeah, I just got Darkness Falls, I've already got Blackreign and Lost...Princes of Darkness is on hold at Borders...and all the rest of the trades are at the same borders store...I'm going to go broke sooner or later.

 

[yenaled]

I been meaning to check that out. What was it about?

There is a man Ned Feeley who likes his cat, Tony, and he likes to masterbate to porn. He then finds out that he is actually a special agent Ned Slade working for a government organisation The Hand, who are basically garbage men for society, getting rid of every single bad thing in the world to keep the world in Status Q. He has been redrafted in to stop former agent Spartacus Hughes who is trying to disrupt Status Q.

And that's kind of where liniar storytelling stops. Because it is Morisson it is full of themes such as fractal realities, art affecting life, postmodern blurring of the fourth wall, the world as a single living organism with humans as the cells that compose it, giant sperm, artifical life, and a love from a man to his pet cat.

It's a heavy read and confusing but well worth the effort, and amazingly completly open to interpretation.

 

[Anubis]

Porn? Fractal Realities? Porn? Postmodern blurring of the Fourth Wall?........Porn? I am so there.