What I Read This Week (A Little Late)

There's a lot of these, and my time is short at the moment, so this is a special "ES" edition -- that is, "Extra Short."

Final Crisis #3 -- I am really enjoying this series for it's depth and really unpredictable twists and turns.  The cliffhanger in this issue is one of the best ones I have ever seen in an "event" comic like this one.  

Hawkman Special #1 -- Hawkman has to face the perils inside of his own mind if he has any chance to survive.  Starlin has some definite ideas for the character of Hawkman, but it's a bit uneven on the whole.  I'll put more detailed thoughts over on Being Carter Hall.

House of Mystery #4 -- Fig learns what the "locals" do to unwind in the House, while exiled witch princess Daphne tells the tale of she and her white tiger bodyguard Floyd deal with the "real world."  Great fun in a very Vertigo manner.

Storming Paradise #2 -- The invasion plans begin to form up as the Allies bomb the Japanese beachfronts, and then the potentially most bloody landing ever takes place.  Harsh historical fiction, which should satisfy War comic fans.

Tor #4 -- Escaping from the subterranean tentacled beastie Tor and the female ran into last issue, it's out of the frying pan and into the fire -- then pack into the the frying pan.  Kubert's caveman epic is so timeless that it doesn't matter when he created it, the quality never slips or wavers.

War That Time Forgot #4 -- The GI Robot loses his diefied seat, while Colonel Jape finds himself under an apparent mutiny.  This series alternates between rip-roaring and slightly goofy, and this issue is the latter.

Invincible Iron Man #4 -- Tony Stark tries to put together a plan of action to deal with the rapidly mobilizing strikes of Ezekial Stane, while Pepper Potts recovers quite surprisingly from her injuries.  More of a quiet issue than the last few, but still pretty good.  Remains second-place to the senior title, which is of course why the senior title is changing format.

Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas #2 -- Tony meets up with Elsa Bloodstone as Fin Fang Foom is reborn in Sin City.  Very pretty Granov digi-painting covers a pretty lightweight story.

Venom: Dark Origin #1 -- It's a trip down memory lane as Eddie Brock has to deal with hsi desire for fame, his anger, his cowardice, and the pursuit of the "truth."  I really didn't care for Eddie being portrayed as a coward, and while the cartoony artwork was unexpected, it is not exactly out of style for the character.

The Pick Of The Pile is Final Crisis.  Obvious, perhaps, but sometimes the obvious choice is the right choice.

So what did YOU read this week?