Week of November 28th, 2007
Was anyone else as disturbed as I was by how much their schedule was thrown off by the delayed release last week? Could it be my life is starting to revolve around comics…damn, I hope not. Anyway, another nice week, so let's get onward!
SPOTLIGHT REVIEW:
Sensational Spider-Man #41 (One More Day #3)
has done what is known in one of my professions as "burying the lead," a journalistic term for when you write a story that focuses on the least interesting part of what you're covering. The most interesting part of this story to me is the situation presented by the last couple of pages: what would you do if you knew your life would be the same for only one more day (or more importantly, what would Spidey do?). To me, this should have been the first issue, not the third. JMS and Joe Q similarly botched The Other by not focusing enough on what JMS said they would: exploring what Spider-Man would do if he knew he'd die soon. JMS himself has recently expressed displeasure over the OMD story, and if they really kill Mary Jane next issue, so will everyone else. Even those who want her gone will have to agree that trading MJ's life for another year (tops) of Aunt May's wouldn't be a decision any of the three of them could get behind. Anyway, it's all moot until next issue, but please, Marvel, don't be stupid; Warner Bros. stopped DC from killing Batman supposedly, and I actually find myself wishing that you had an interfering parent company right now.
FUN SIZE REVIEWS:
WWH: Frontline #6
left me flat, from its glossy treatment of alcoholism, to Sally Floyd's triumphant last-page assertion that she will be able to lie to Ben, she really will! And the twist about who funded their paper was pretty darn predictable, for real.
All-Star Batman and Robin #8
is getting more interesting. Frank Miller managed to resist taking any more "Goddamn Batman" pokes at his paying audience, which I appreciated, and as store owner Mike pointed out, this is guaranteed to be one of the most outrageous and entertaining (either from love or hate) books out there each time it comes out. I still hate it, but I admit it's the first thing I read when it's released…
Batman #671(Resurrection of Ra's Al Ghul Part 4)
contains one of the best Batman fights/quips in recent memory, as he determines how to beat the unbeatable foe, a martial arts master who trained as hard as Bats has, but for centuries instead of decades. Cool stuff, with a great last page that'll have you counting the days till part five comes out.
Gotham Underground #2
has a cover that features two characters (of three) who don't make any appearances. Instead, they should hype up the fact that this book contains Robin, Batman, Nightwing, Oracle, and Huntress, and has shaped up to be the Bat-Family book DC should always have published; that's more interesting to me than this "Gangs of Gotham" angle. On top of that, they don't spread their rogues gallery appearances out, they just throw them all in every issue. It's good comics fun, with a cast they should be hyping. Need proof? Next month Batman fights Mr. Zsasz while locked in a jail cell.
Countdown #22
is baaaaaaaaaaad. Really bad. Really. Are we really supposed to believe Piper and Trickster are hetero life partners at this point? I don't believe they earned that last page, nuh-uh, not one bit.
Plenty of other interesting stuff came out last week, but the one day off threw me like I said, so I'm going to tie up here and move on to next week's stuff lickedy split. If you have any compliments, complaints, or suggestions of how to spell lickedy split, reach me through my blog at astoriedyear.blogspot.com, or email me at skio84@mac.com.
<TOP>Week of November 21st, 2007
Phew! It's been two huge weeks of comics, one protracted job hunt with some success, and a major holiday since last we spoke, dear reader. Suffice to say, I'm exhausted, but I have just enough energy to type out a column before I pass out face down in the leftovers. We'd…better…get…onward…
SPOTLIGHT REVIEW:
The Spirit #11
is a must read. I can't write from the perspective of someone who's never read the book, since at this point it's among my favorites out of everything the Big Two are publishing, but I do think it would be nearly as impressive to someone who'd never read this book as it is to me. The story's title is "Day of the Dead," and it's set on November 2nd, the day, in Denny Colt's words, "The day set aside for undead freaks," like Alvarro Mortez, his undead rival, and like himself. Over the course of most good runs, you can see an artist or a writer tire of his material as the quality (as well as maybe the shipping schedule) starts to sag. Darwyn Cooke has gotten better with every passing month, putting together a truly memorable run. I don't want to give away any more of this story, so just go get it! If you haven't been reading the Spirit, get all of them, and thank me later.
FUN SIZE REVIEWS:
Incredible Hulk #111
will, supposedly, be the last issue of Incredible to feature the Hulk, as the book keeps the same numbering but switches over to the title Incredible Herc, starring Hercules and Marvel's new favorite kid genius, Amadeus Cho. Of course, anyone who's been reading this series knows the last arc has had little to no Hulk in it anyway; still, it's written by Greg Pak, who is rapidly gaining Ed "Read anything he writes" Brubaker status among Marvel diehards. I admit, I've liked this arc, which went deeper into World War Hulk than the event itself did. We'll see next month if Pak, like Bru, can take a book's main character out of it and still find success.
Countdown: Gotham by Gaslight Special
just smacks so loudly of gimmick that you can't hear yourself think, even if it is a decidedly cool gimmick (which it is). Maybe it's because I hate to see Greg Tocchini foul up Mignola's perfect Elsewords universe, or maybe it's because it's near impossible to like a book with Countdown on the cover, but I just didn't like this one. Semi-interesting browsing material, nothing more.
Detective Comics #838 (Resurrection of Ra's Al Ghul Part 3)
reminds me that I'm a total sucker for a good Batman crossover, and makes me glad someone's utilizing the Bat Family as a whole. This issue features a whole lot of martial arts, the writing of Paul Dini, as well as the worst art of the series thus far, delivered by Ryan Benjamin. It ends on a real cliffhanger, with Ra's asking Batman to make a Sophie's Choice between his adopted son and his biological one. Come back next week, same bat time, same bat store to see who he chooses. Let's just hope this event stays at a higher level than War Games…
Countdown #23
is only the second-worst Countdown book to come out this week, but it's still pretty bad, with the Superboy-turned-evil-Man torturing a somehow helpless Mr. Mxyzptlk (Microsoft Word doesn't recognize Mxyzptlk as a real word, by the way). Note to Countdown team: if you're going to spend 90% of your space on just the one story, more than this needs to happen.
I hope everyone had a perfect holiday with lots to be thankful for; I know I did, and as we sail into Christmas season I find myself less grumpy than usual. Maybe it's the effects of getting married three months ago, who knows? Anyway, next week's column will be a little bigger, and a lot better, and please remember books don't arrive until Thursday next week. Until then, you can reach me at skio84@mac.com or through my blog at astoriedyear.blogspot.com. Otherwise, see you in a few!
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