What I Read This Week

Flash #2 -- Flash faces down the Renegades, who have arrived from the future to arrest Flash for a murder he is going to commit!  Johns continues to build up how Barry's adventures are going to work, showcasing how he can (very) temporarily hold onto a lot of knowledge, and giving some time to the Crime Lab and the Rogues.  Manupal's art continues to impress.  One quibble: the Renegade Top's name is... Top?  Solid second chapter.

Human Target #4 -- Christopher Chance has his charges in Switzerland to retrieve another set of ledgers and avoid another set of assassians.  Then, he explains the origin of another scar.  The main story is a riff on the opening of The Spy Who Loved Me, but if you are going to rip something off, ripping off the best is the way to go.  I wish this book was monthly, or at least monthly until the show comes back in the Fall.

The Shield #9 -- Lt. Huggins and his team are in Happy Harbor to stop a Black Seven weapons deal, but things come off the rails!  Then, the Fox continues his war against the Yakuza!  The lead is pretty strong, with Shield working with the JSA (great bit: Shield's suit initially cannot "see" Mr. Terrific at all, but starts to break down his defenses after a while) to run a sort of black op against Black Seven.  It's a nice change of pace from the usual run-and-gun stuff.  The backup feature is sort of suffering from being scattered.  Fox gets his true costume here, which is nice, but this seems more like a series of vignettes than a true story.  Still, good issue, and with one last one to tie up these loose ends before the Mighty Crusaders stuff we should get some satisfying conclusions.

Superman: War Of The Supermen #2 -- New Krypton has been destroyed, and Zod wants to return the favor to Earth!  Continues at much the same pace as the previous issue, with Zod's troops taking out Lane's Mars base (does Martian Manhunter know about this?) while Superman and Supergirl try to break up the fight.  Lane's next line of defense making for another insane cliffhanger!  Great comics all around!

Iron Man 2: Public Identity -- Tony has to go into the political hotspot of The Congo to rescue the pilot of Justin Hammer's junky warmech!  I am very eager to sit down and re-read this whole series as it makes for a very strong installment in the Shellhead film continuity as well as being a pretty nifty Iron Man story in it's own right.

Iron Man: Legacy #2 -- Tony's campaign in Transia continues, much to the chagrin of the American government.  This issue is a lot less blatantly 90s than the last one but this is still clearly set during the Heroes Return era.  And its the kind of adventure Shellhead would have had during that peroid.  Fun, fast-paced armored action, this issue makes for a nice counterpoint to the more quasi-political, "heavier" stuff over in Invincible Iron Man.

New Avengers: Luke Cage #2 -- Cage continues to run down the made men in Philly, including his old foe Lion Fang!  Canete's artwork remains an intensely good fit for Cage, especially as he tangles with Lion Fang's trio of big cats.  The flashback to the original tussle between these two is a nice touch for those of us who have read (and own...) that particular issue.  This issue did a good job of scratching the old school Hero For Hire itch which Bendis doesn't seem to really "get;" at least not in the way I am looking for.

Re-Read Pile: Flash, War Of The Supermen, Iron Man 2: Public Identity, Iron Man: Legacy, New Avengers: Luke Cage.

The Pick Of The Pile is War Of The Supermen, which was just as high-octane as the first issue.  Overall a great week!