comic book quickies 9/5/12

GREEN LANTERN #9

written by Geoff Johns art by Doug Mahnke

Well this was just lovely. See the main green lantern book can feel a little light on content some times like the past few issues haven't been all that amazing but this for me was like two issues JAMMED together. It was just so loaded with stuff is all with things finally happening. You know like Hal FINALLY catching on to the cold hard fact that the guardians are FUCKING INSANE. We also get a look into sinestro's back story in an attempt to make him more sympathetic which is cool I guess but I get the feeling it wont translate into actual character growth but lets wait and see shall we. Spoilers but the big goff lad really seems to be tearing through his multi lantern corps, first the sinestro corps went down and now it looks like the indigo tribes bit the dust. I really hope they aren't permanent changes as the multi coloured corps are what got me reading green lantern in the first place.

SUPERBOY #9

written by Scott Lobdell and Tom DeFalco art R.B Silva

Well there was a lot going on here this month. Well no that's wrong. There was an actual FUCK TON of characters here and not all that much going on. Now to be fair I am quite enjoying this wee teen super hero event. Why ? Well because of all the fighting ! Yeah its not the best fighting in the world and yeah it is just a tad repetitive in places but its fun and at times aware that it has way too many characters flying around all over the place. It dose do a pretty good job of letting you know who everyone is and what's happening ware so that's cool. Thinking about it the book dose do an actually good job of being the second part of a wee event by having a good balance between fighting and setting up plot points for future story's. Now the art dose start looking a little bit shakey in places but that's forgiveable what with all the charters ever running aboot.

FRANKENSTEIN AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E #9

written by Jeff Lemire art by Alberto Ponticelli

Its Frankenstein vs animal man ! Well not really. Well not actually at all. It's Frankenstein on the hunt for a disappeared animal man and his family. So yeah that's pretty cool. mystery stuff and all that. Now this issue was a LOT of fun. Its got franky being bad ass. And really that's all I ask of this book. There's a few bits this issue ware franky is channelling the god damn bat man and I mean that in the best possible way. The books doing pretty well for being in the shaky waters of post first arc guest star super heroes issues. I'm glad the new fifty twos not being so strict about writing for the trade type comics as it gives us story's like this that don't need five issues and an aftermath to tell.

BATMAN #9

written by Scott Snyder art by Greg Capullo

THIS COMIC ! This god damn comic. I say it every month but its so true. It just gets better and better ! How that's possible at this point I'm not sure. This book just has it all. It kicks things off with batman in power armour. BATMAN IN POWER ARMOUR. Aye just aye. Then it brings out a robot dinosaur AND makes it work without braking the tone of the book. Its also nice to see the court of owls mooks have a wolverine style healing factor as batman is taking no shite from anyone with every fight having him go for what would be kill shots on any other guy. He runs an owl mook down with the bat mobile at one point. FUCK YEAH. Like always the art's as awesome as the plot with not a noticeable drop in quality yet. And if that's all not enough for you there's a back up story staring Alfred's father. Damn fine bang for your buck lads. Damn fine. Go read this book now !

DEATHSTROKE #9

written and art by Rob Liefeld

Well look at this. The 90s LAD is BACK. Well to be fair I guess rob liefeld never really went away but then again I never bought any of his run of hawk and dove. Now I did mean to its just that when the new fifty two started there were so many actually good books to buy that I couldn't justify buying hawk and dove even for a laugh. Now when I herd the liefeld was being made writer AND artist for deathstroke I was like DUDE I'm in for that likes. Now yes the comic itself was probably pretty bad. I say probably because my brain cant except something that nineties being in anyway bad. So yes this comic is most likely bad in every way you can define bad. But its liefeld and I love it.

AVENGERS ASSMBLE #3

written by Brian Michael Bendis art by Mark Bagley

Now this was AWESOME. Really really surprisingly awesome. This issue was all fighting and surprisingly for Bendis he pulled it off pretty well. Yeah I know he's done a lot of fighting arc's in the past but for the last wee while he's been writing very talkie comics with sporadic awesome fights. This is also a very meaty comic which is gid what with most action heavy comics tending to fly by too fast. The villains the zodiac are sort of weak but I quite like that they have one unifying theme. So yeah I'm quite tempted to say that this book was well worth its $3.99 cost. Yeah the film cash grab comic is turning out to quite awesome !

AVENGERS VS X-MEN #3

written by team marvel art by Jr Jr

Yeah so captain America vs wolverine this issue ? Cool ? NO not cool ! I know wolverine has a history of switching sides ( dose he ? Or is that just in my head ?) but this is ridiculous. So now not only is Logan not on the x-men's side he' not even with the avengers any more. God damn it marvel. Really the cap vs wolverine fight is the main draw of the issue with the rest of the book being used for more set up and for moving characters around to set up fights in the tie ins which is a real shame as I was hoping the bulk of the event would take place fighting over x-men island. Cyclops is still being a bastard but this issue his utter insanity didn't get a chance to really shine. Sadly the arts still Jr Jr's B style. I'm starting think more and more that kick ass ruined that man.

comic book quickies 15/4/12

A surprisingly hefty week.

GREEN LANTERN #8

written by Geoff Johns art by Doug Mahnke

Well this was a pretty crazy awesome little issue ware not all that much happened. Crazy awesome in that both Hal and sinestro do some insanely cool things. Well Hal dose. Sinestros still stuck in psychopath mode when he should have mellowed out by now. The big goff man's still writing space Hitler as space Hitler. Which I guess is the right way to write a villain who's now a good guy against his will. Well it would be the right way to write him if sinestro had joined the justice league or some team like that but the problem is sinestro and hal are buddy cops and it's no fun to read when your sitting around waiting for space Hitler to mellow out. Now I don't want him to be laid back, no he is the bad cop of the the two but is it too much to ask for sinestro to roll around in a Hawaiian shirt ? Yeah so not that much happened this issue. Well nothing big. Well maybe something huge did happen and I just don't consider it that huge an event. I guess I'm just waiting for the guardians to make there move. Its been like eight months now. Hopefully shit will get real pretty soon.

SUPERBOY #8

written by Scott Lobdell art R.B Silva

So uh. Yeah. What the. What the hell happened last issue in superboy ? I genuinely don't remember. I started reading this issue and was like did I miss an issue ? I know superboy and the teen titans have a thing going on with one issue of one running into the next but I was a bit fuzzy on what happened last issue over in titans as well. Then I was like oh wells and just read the issue. It was pretty gid. Superboy fights this dude called grunge who's basically Kevin E Levin from ben 10 if he were a 90s anti hero. Which is cools. There seems to be a plot line devolving which sound like a super hero version of the the hunger games. That could be all right. My first read through of this issue I wasny digging it but now that I look back on it I'm quite likening it. Its mainly the 90s-nes of grunge that's doing it for me though it is nice to see that the book is at least trying to go some ware with its plot.

FRANKENSTEIN AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E #8

written by Jeff Lemire art by Alberto Ponticelli

Hmmm. Well this issue wasn't the barnstormer that I thought it was going to be. Now it was still pretty gid. It just wasn't as gid as I had hoped. See Frankenstein and his wife had to track down there evil son. And they did. And to me the son of Frankenstein was a wee bit of a let down. I'm not even sure what I was expecting but his design was just so bland. And weak. Now I can understand they way the issue went. It was more of an emotional story for fanky and his wife and there son was just there to put them though some charter development. I get that. I just felt a wee bit let down is all.

AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #2

written by Brian Michael Bendis art by Mark Bagley

So yeah I'm reading another avengers book written by bendis. Yeah I'm mentally ill. Its really not that bad but why the actual fuck is is bendis still writing the other avengers book ? You would have thought he would have just moved over to this book. But nope. Now this book is just a cash grab for the upcoming avengers film. I'm fine with that. It's what marvel always dose when there next film rolls around. Its kind of there thing. On the bright side it is Bendis and Bagley together again. Buddy cops that they are. The book dose suffer quite heavily from not being ultimate spider-man though. By that I mean Bagley has a noticeably different art style when he's not drawing ultimate spidey. The issue itself wasny too bad with the fights being well done and the plot getting a bit silly in places. Hawkeye dose refer to using the ultimate nullifier as the ultimate terrorist attack. Americans like.

FANTASTIC FOUR #605

written by Jonathan Hickman art by Ron Garney

Oh man. This comic. Manly tears. Manly tears for Ben Grim garp.

AMERICA'S GOT POWERS #1

written by Jonathan Ross art by Bryan Hitch

Let me just say this at the start here. This was really gid. Like really gid. It was just so .... battle city. Well I guess it was so hunger games meets running man. But yeah. Its a damn hefty first issue that's hella bang for your buck what with it basically being two issues slammed together. Plot wise it is just American idol with super hero's. Interestingly the book is filled with bastards like most mark miller-ish books ( and its very mark miller-ish) but the main hero isn't a bastard. Yeah he's not superman or captain America but so far he's shown to be not a bastard. Which to me was HUGE surprise. Now I'm sure he'll be corrupted as the story progresses but for now its nice to see he's not a bastard. I'm interested to see ware this book go's as I get the feeling these type of story's don't end happily. Oh and David tennant puts in a appearance Which is nice.

comic book quickies 16/3/12

GREEN LANTERN #7

written by Geoff Johns art by Mike Choi

Sinestro trys to rope Hal Jordan into investigating just how INSANE the guardians have become but both he and Hal are kidnapped by the indigo tribe. See I genuinely thought this issue was pretty meh. Mainly because I felt we had done this exact same thing like six months ago. Sinestro forces Hal to be a green lantern again. Yeah the circumstances were a wee bit different last time but not by much. Hal not wanting to be a green lantern. Yeah that's just made of guhh. I get what the big goff lad is doing. Painting Jordan's use of the ring like a slight addiction. And him wanting a normal life on earth is a step forward for him. BUT THATS SOOOOOO BOARING. And of course it will never stick. The guardians are balls out insane but at this point am sure you all know that. At one point in this issue there all for killing one of there own lanterns because he might ask too many questions. Yeah. I was hoping for some buddy cop character development for auld sinestro but if I'm honest I feel he regressed a wee bit back into space Hitler mode. That was really the main thing that spoiled my enjoyment of the issue. I think Its fair to that we're all just waiting for sinestro to properly mellow out so we can have full on buddy cop action at last.

SUPERBOY #7

written by Scott Lobdell art R.B Silva

Superboy returns home to the facility ware he was created to bring the beat down to n.o.w.h.e.r.e. Yeah so superboy's pretty gid. Like iv said in the past its an oddly bipolar book. Both the plot itself and superboy as a character. One issue he's working for n.o.w.h.e.r.e and the next he's not. Though now that I think about it most issues he is working for them. Well it at least feels like he's flip flopping between working for the man and running away to freedom. He dies this week so aw well no worry's. He dose get better though. Then he dies again. But then he gets better again. So alls well with the world. Superboys not that mind blowing of a read but its still got plenty of action and that's all a really ask of a comic.

FRANKENSTEIN AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E #7

written by Jeff Lemire art by Alberto Ponticelli

Frankenstein and the creature commandos fight against the putties from power rangers and the prototype creature commandos. YEAH. So the the non sentient vaguely slave work force of shade the humanids rise up and are basically the putties from power rangers. I like this. What I don't like is shades response to this new life from that being they don't negotiate with terrorists. Meaning the just slaughter them without a second thought. Right guy I get that they tried to take over your base and that's a pretty uncool thing to do but I don't remember the humanids saying they were gonna take over the world or even if they killed anyone. Like at all. Well they probably did. But still. We all love to see putties getting beat down but shades response just seemed overly harsh and kind of set a weird tone for the issue. Like a wasn't rooting for franky and the lads. Mainly because they were being so un lad-ish.

FANTASTIC FOUR #604

written by Jonathan Hickman art by Steve Epting

Its the epic conclusion to the current mad space god saga. And I felt a little let down by it if I tell the truth. Spoilers all that happens is future franklin and Valeria save the day. That's it. To me that's just very lame. Yeah it is cool to see future franklin wielding galactus like a pokemon trainer and yes its nice to see that the world could only be save because the fantastic four are a family and if they wernt then they'd be doomed like the rest of family less reeds from other alternate universes. Its just I think we'd have all rather liked Dr doom to be the guy that saved every one. I get that doom cant do everything and be every ware. Its just that I look at the mad space gods and I'm like yeah doom could take them. Sadly the books still going for the doom is dead thing. Well he's been to hell before and we all know how that worked out. This issue was $3.99. Naw marvel. Just naw. Really don't be that guy.

AVENGERS #24

written by Brain Michael Bendis art by Daniel Acuna

Norman Osborn has all the powers ever. Lets see how that plays out for him. Well its the end of this unfortunately at times utterly hateful and insane arc. I say unfortunately because iv quite liked most of it there's just a few wee bits that just kill me. Like properly kill me. So giving Osborn all the super powers. That's really hateful. Giving Osborn the super adaptoids powers ? That somehow makes it fun. I don't know what to say. It just works. It turns him into pink hulk. Yeah that's kind of awesome. The avengers beat Osborn by touching him. That's somehow crazy awesome to me. Spider man gets a line in this issue that actually redeems this entire arc for me. Bendis you beautiful troll. As much as I loved super adaptoid pink hulk Norman Osborn I cant help wondering why marvel just wont let him be the green goblin again. Yeah the corporate pimp look sorta works for him but lex luthor has that look down to a fine art.

AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #1

written by Brian Michael Bendis art by Mark Bagley

Well there's a fourth team of avengers now and I really don't know why. Well its to cash in on the upcoming film but as of issue one thieve not yet given an in universe reason for the new team. Knowing bendis we'll find out by the time our grand kids enter high school. There was super villain that thought the hulk was only a myth. I read that and my head exploded. I don't really have any words for that. For now I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt. It is a new villain that I don't know anything about so its possible his back story involves living under a rock for most of his life. Its very pretty book and its always nice to see bendis and bagley together. Lads that they are.