What I Read This Week

Once again, it's two -- two -- two weeks in one here at the Bunker!

The Phantom: The Ghost Who Walks #0 -- Moonstone relaunches their Phantom series with this special-priced retelling of the origin of the first Phantom, wherein he was shipwrecked by the Singh Brotherhood and helped lead the Bandar from captivity.  As a preview of things to come this is neat and worth reading if you are interested in the adventures of The-Ghost-Who-Walks.

Batman And The Outsiders Special #1 -- Setting up the new status for the Outsiders team, as well as introducing us to new members the Creeper and Owlman (sort of).  Tomasi seems to have a solidly defined plan on where he wants to go, and Kubert's work is every bit as nice as it was on Last Will And Testament, so it's a shame that he is not doing the monthly book (although I understand the rationale).  Top notch all the way.

Batman #686 -- Part 1 of "Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?" is different from what I expected it to be, but still really enjoyable reading.  I like Gaiman when he takes on "mainstream" superheroics and once more with the Kubert.  Stinks that I have to wait so long for the conclusion over in Detective!

Batman Confidential #26 -- Featuring the comic book debut of King Tut!  As they say in showbiz, "WILD!"  With a rash of murders taking place in Gotham City by a self-styled pharoah who tells his victim riddles as he does them in, Batman immediately suspects the Riddler.  But he is locked up tight in Arkham Asylum... right?  Really fun detective romp as Bats tracks down King Tut before he kills again.  I wouldn't mind this Tut becoming a regular part of the Bat Rogues.  (Maybe I should polish up my Shame story pitch?)

Kull #4 -- Kull and Brule go on the offensive against the Snake-Men, with predictably bloody results.  A bare-chested, blood-soaked S&S comic in the best tradition of the genre, this is a tale of two men putting aside their ancenstral grudges to kick snaketail and take names.  Nelson and Conrad are really hitting their stride, and I hope we see more of the Valusian King from these two.  This is a badass comic book.

Black Lightning: Year One #3 -- The new origin of Suicide Slum's defender continues, as we learn more about Gambi's history with Jefferson's father, and the 100 make their big move against Black Lightning.  I am still enjoying this fast-paced and fresh-sounding series, although it looks like my "Fire Man" prediction may have been wrong.  May have.

House of Mystery #10 -- "Love Stories for Dead People" comes back to where it all started as the mysteries of the basement are explained and Miranda and her nightmares take center stage.  The backup tale, depicting young Fig's adventures in the world where stuffed animals move on their own, is equal parts charming and heart-breaking.  Every time this title comes out, it makes me smile.

Invincible Iron Man #10 -- Tony Stark has to go on... the... run... zzzzzzzzz.  Someone wake me up when this coma-inducingly boring story is over.  So far we have had three issues of the exact.  Same.  Thing.  This title really is becoming the Iron Man title for people who are not Iron Man fans.  Even Larocca's art is starting to turn me off.  I had to wait two and a half weeks for Marvel to send me this?

War Of Kings: Darkhawk #1 -- Chris Powell is trying to put his life back together and overcome his dangerous anger issues.  But things look like they are taking a turn for the worse when an alien -- who looks a lot like his alterego of Darkhawk -- crashes into his Long Island neighborhood.  Cebulski seems to like the character and spends a lot of time fleshing out Chris and his issues.  I am not familiar with artist Harvey Tolibao beyond his work on the Iron Man Annual from last year, but his work is very flashy and effective. Also features a full-color reprint of Darkhawk #1, which I also enjoyed.  (I think that may be a longer post at some point, by the way.)

Futurama Comics #41 -- Fry, Leela, and the Professor volunteer at Amy Wong's soririty's (that is, Kappa Kappa Wong) kids summer camp, only to find that the camp is brainwashing kids to be President Nixon's new intergalactic army!  Hilarious effort from the fine folks at Bongo.

The Pick Of The Pile is Batman And The Outsiders.  I almost gave it to either House of Mystery or Kull, but the overall package of the Outsiders Special carries the banner this week with it's great mix of story, page design, and characters.

So, what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Captain Britain and MI13 #4 -- Hey, you know Doctor Who?  That show that used to be popular and then got cancelled and then came back and got even more popular, on both sides of the pond?  Everybody likes Doctor Who, right?  That would explain why this series is trying so darn hard to be Doctor Who.  After the really unethused reaction I had to the first issue, I said I would give it the first storyline to win me over, and it I have done that, and now am dropping the title.  Disappointing.

Tiny Titans #7 -- It's Titans in Space as Starfire is called home to clean her room!  But will her friends get in trouble for being away from home for days on end!  Plus, the debut of the Tiny versions of the Brain and M. Mallah!  The extra this month is a pinup page by Franco, which is a nice change of pace.  Very fun as usual, with a really funny cameo by some members of the Justice League.

The Pick Of The Pile is a no-brainer with Tiny Titans.  Some folks may enjoy the "Excalibur-via-Cardiff" take in Captain Britain, but I am not one of them.

So what did YOU read this week?

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?

What I Read This Week

Justice Society of America Annual #1 -- Last time in Justice Society of America, Gog sent Power Girl back to Earth-2!  But this is not the Earth-2 we all know and potentially love.  Who is the Justice Society Infinity, for one thing?  And why does Power Girl not remember how she "left" this world in the first place?  Johns and Ordway are game here, with Johns seemingly really pushing for a strong subplot for Power Girl as well as a way to address the new Earth-2 createsd in the wake of 52.  Ordway's pencils are nice in a classic sort of way, but don't always jive with the modern coloring techniques applied to them.  I was disappointed that this was the start of a mystery moreso than a homecoming, but at least it is an intriguing mystery.

Joker's Asylum: Two-Face -- Two-Face meets his opposite number in a man scarred in a remarkably similar manner to him, but instead of becoming a criminal, the man has become a respected member of society.  Harvey, of course, won't stand for this and sets up a social experiment of sorts to determine the true nature of the man, and by extension of Man himself.  Excellent "done in one" by writer David Hines and artist Andy Clarke, which does a great job of encapsulating just what the character of Two-Face is all about, both his neurosis and his philosophies.  The art is evocative, and really well suited to a dark, mean-spirited story like this one.  Fans who recently became interested in Harvey Dent via The Dark Knight will enjoy this story, as will more seasoned Two-Face fans like myself.

Project Superpowers #5 -- The Dynamic family moves to quash the return of the Superpowers on national TV, but the gambit backfires, forcing them to break out a different tactic -- swaying the public opinion.  The main problems with this title as I see it are that the characters which I am interested in -- who have some spotlight this time out, at least -- are not the ones which Ross (and thus Jim Krueger) is interested in telling stories about, so my interest wans as the series goes on.  The art, by Carlos Paul, remains very nice, and I am going to stick with this series until the end, but it's going to tale a big uptick in entertainment factor for me to continue with any of the spinoffs or sequels.  

Caliber #4 -- In what is becoming a theme, the art here is gorgeous, but the story is a big mess.  Very confusing (where did the trapped miners come from, exactly?) and hard to follow overall; I am hoping a read-through of the entire series will be more enlightening.

The Pick Of The Pile is Joker's Asylum, which barely edged out JSoA.  Being self contained almost always helps an issue out in my book, and this issue did so in a very satisfying manner.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

glamourpuss #2 -- Dave Sim's schitzophrenic juxtaposition of high fashion, subversive satire, and the history of cartooning continues here, with more focus on our de facto star glamourpuss, plus an appearance by her evil twin, Skanko.  Sim's work has never been straight-forward in my experience, but this is really out there, ranging from glamourpuss talking about how a lot of the world's problems could be solved by beautiful women flying into hotspots and staring down the "mama's boys" until they cracked, to Sim examining how everything from the art styles Jack Kirby and Bruce Timm relate back to Terry And The Pirates.  Luckily, just because it's out there doesn't mean it's not good reading.

Futurama Comics #38 -- Trapped on a primitive jungle planet -- the only have dialup, for instance -- Leela becomes the queen of a tribe of nerds who ship books from the Amazon.  Meanwhile, Fry tries to avenge Bender's untimely destruction by wearing his body as a suit of armor in what may be the greatest parody of Tales Of Suspense #39 ever ("Get out of here, you owls!").  Your usual array of wacky Bongo hijinks and comic book riffs, including the blonde muscleman known as 56K-Zar, king of the jungle.

Two-Face: Year One #1 -- Mark Sable and Jesus Saiz team up to explore the early days of ADA Harvey Dent, working to shut down the mob in Gotham City and dodging allegations that he is the Holiday Killer, all while controlling his own inner rage.  I really enjoyed this story (admittedly, I am biased... I mean, Two-Face) because it ties into what has already come before -- namely The Long Halloween -- while still offering a new and different tale of the young and idealistic Dent.  (There's a funny bit which ties directly into a character's murder in Long Halloween which at first seems contradictory, but in the end makes sense.)  If you like Two-Face as a character then you should definitely check this series out -- stinks that we have to wait till September to get the second issue!

Captain Action: First Mission, Last Day -- In the 1960s, a secret government organization is convened to battle the silent alien menace of the Red Crawl -- the ACTION Directorate and their champion, Captain Action!  A "comic novella" (that is, a text story with accompanying illustration) of the original Captain Action, this reads like a Destroyer novel with lots of science fiction overtones.  Nicieza is game here, and his prose has a nice style to it which plants it firmly in the men's adventure genre, as I said.  The illustrations, provided by Ruben Procopio, are nice pinup style pictures, and provide a nice visual aid for some of the more outlandish images Nicieza describes verbally.  While I know that Moonstone is intending on using the young Captain as seen in their #0 issue as the star of their future stories, I would very much like to see more tales like this one featuring the original, "classic" Captain Action as well.  The only major drawback here is some confusing copy-editing problems in the text that really should have been caught in proofreading.  Other than that, very enjoyable.

The Pick Of The Pile is Two-Face: Year One.  Yeah, probably a bit obvious for me, but I really enjoyed that issue, which is saying something considering that all four of these were very, very good comic books.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Batman And The Outsiders #9 -- With Metamorpho back from his jaunt in space, the team has redoubled their effort to figure out just who benefits from Jardine's bizarre plan.  Meanwhile, bad things seem to be brewing back in Gotham as well.  As a pure superhero comic book, this title can't be beat; it is much like the original title in that sense.  I don't know if Dixon is going to have time to settle all of these plotlines, but I am interested in seeing where they all end up nonetheless.

Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge #1 -- In the wake of the murder of Bart Allen, the Salvation Run, and the death of the Trickster, Captain Cold, Heat Wave, Mirror Master, and Weather Wizard are in a bad way.  But back in Central City and looking to go off the grid, it looks like things are going to get worse before they get better.  The fan favorite team of Johns and Kollins revisits some of the characters they helped elevate to the top of the food chain in this tie-in to Final Crisis.  It looks like the stuff is really going to hit the fan in this mini, and I am eager to see where it goes.

Flash #242 -- With Iris suddenly aged and getting older, Spin falls to the backburner as Flash tries to figure out how to stop his daughter from being older than he is.  Then it's back to Gorilla City as we learn more about Spin and see Grodd's plan fall into place.  This comic is an odd duck.  It's not particularly bad, but it's not particularly good either.  Too slow and with a lot of exposition about a character who doesn't show up in the issue.  This story has been fun, but just like the fifth chapter in the last storyarc in this title, this piece feels like padding.

Tiny Titans #6 -- Say hello to Supergirl and Blue Beetle and his talking backpack!  Too bad his backpack can't remember to pack his lunch.  More adorable fun from Artie and Franco, including a glimpse into the homelife of Raven and Trigon.

Iron Man #31 -- Things are not going so well for Tony Stark.  He's got a nano-nuke terrorist trying to blow up a small former Soviet Republic, he's got Palladin using anti-Stark technology against him, and a rogue SHIELD agent has activated a doomsday device and delpoyed it against the Helicarrier for revenge.  "With Iron Hands" pushes to it's climax here, with seemingly everything going wrong at once for the Director of SHIELD, but Tony keeps cool under fire and doesn't back down.  Even with Stuart Moore filling in for the Knaufs, I still like this title better than Invicible Iron Man.

Moon Knight #20 -- As Marc Spector lays injured and exhausted in his hidey hole, he flashes back to an encounter with a racket running underground werewolf fights, and into the top dog himself, Jack Russel!  As a stand-alone werewolf fight, this is pretty decent.  But Knight and the Werewolf spend precious little time on screen together, and Jack himself has little to do until the finale.  I get that this is Moon Knight's title, but I was expecting a little more WBN action here considering.  And if this is a flashback how can this be the Werewolf's "reintroduction" to the Marvel U?  The Legion of Monsters story was much better.  Also features reprints of Werewolf By Night #32 and 33, featuring the first appearance of Moon Knight.

The Pick Of The Pile is Rogues' Revenge.  The return of Johns and Kollins, and working on the Rogues for that matter, is a difficult hurdle to overcome.

What I Read This Week

Final Crisis: Requiem -- The final moments and the final wishes of the Martian Manhunter play out in this one-shot special.  Tomasi and Mahnke deliver a really solid piece of superhero pathos here, as the brief death and funeral scenes from Final Crisis are fleshed out with a retrospective on the life and times of everyone's favorite Martian.  The ending got me pretty choked up!

Captain Britain and MI:13 #3 -- With the Magic Super-Skrull ready to overrun Great Britain's last lines of defense both mundane and mystical, only Pete Wisdom can unlock their savior.  Continues to improve from the inauspicious debut, with really nice art and a pretty compelling story.  Well, the main plot at least, I still don't like Faiza.  And the new Cap's costume looks an awful lot like the new Captain America's costume, don't you think?

Justice Society Of America #17 -- With the last remaining god of the Third World, Gog, committing blatant acts of peace all over the world, what are the Justice Society and Justice League supposed to do?  Demonstrating once more that heroes just can't handle when things go right, this is a slower, character-driven issue, but things pick up at the end, setting up where the story is turning.  Worthwhile.

Guardians Of The Galaxy #3 -- The Guardians battle with the Universal Church of Truth's faith-powered bishops, while Mantis and Major Victory have their own problems back at Knowhere.  Fast paced and fun, this series is a blast to read without feeling like 4 Color junk food.

Invincible Iron Man #3 -- In the wake of Exekial Stane's latest attack, Tony Stark has to find a way to save his trusty Gal Friday Pepper Potts-Hogan, as well as figure out how Zeke is able to pull off these attacks.  Fraction and LaRocca deliver the goods here, with an unforseen twist involving Pepper which should yield a new type of status for the character.  A lot of this issue is recap for those of us who aren't newbie Iron Fans brought in by the movie (who Obadiah Stane was, how he controlled Stark International, and so on), but it's nice recap.  This remains a solid, healthy spin-off title.

Dead, She Said #2 -- PI Joe Coogan is in trouble.  Found at the scene of a murder by the cops, he is the only suspect in the case.  And did I mention that he is dead and currently rotting?  Wrightson's art is the perfect vehicle for Niles noir-horror cross-breed, with rain soaked alleys juxtaposed with bloodstained floors.  Very enjoyable from both sides of the coin, with a conclusion coming in the next issue; I cannot fathom how the two storylines are going to be resolved.

Iron Man: Legacy of Doom #4 -- Facing down a demon which would put super sentai monster Dora Algos (look him up) to shame, the mystically empowered Iron Man and Doctor Doom have to figure out how to use their new abilities to stop the eradication of the entire planet!  The finale to the Iron Man-Doom trilogy does not disappoint, as Layton, Micheliene, and Lim all turn in dynamite performances, making this series one of the most fun Iron Man stories in years.  Readers who want a sample of old school Iron action should definitely either pick of the back issues or wait for Marvel to collect this one.

Nova #15 -- Trapped on a dying planet, Nova faces some pretty ridiculous odds.  And even if he somehow is able to make it off-world, will he be able to survive the horror of Harrow?  Exciting space opera stuff, with Wellington Alves and Geraldo Burges both turning in beautiful pages depicting Galactus and his giant ship, as well as the true form of Harrow.  The cliffhanger pushes the title in something of a new path for the next storyarc, and I am very eager to see it.

The Pick Of The Pile is Final Crisis: Requiem.  Yeah, sappy of me I know, but the story of J'Onn J'Onzz's death and rememberance were really well handled, and the story stands completely on it's own outside of the larger event.  You should definitely check it out.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

House of Mystery #3 -- Fig discovers that there is a reason why all of these strange folks are hanging out in the House of Mystery, while gangster Joey Spats tells us a story about how there is always a way out of any situation.  Sturges and Willingham are building to a resolution of the first mystery very nicely, while exploring the dissimilar cast of characters in a very appealing manner.  There's some really obvious photo-referencing of King Kong Bundy in the short, but that's okay: it's King Kong Bundy, after all.  Overall this series reminds me of the "old days" of Vertigo when I was a younger man, and that's a good thing.

Storming Paradise #1 -- Chuck Dixon and Butch Guice take a look at a world which was only one misplaced decimal point away, as the Manhattan Project blows up in the US's face (literally), the Allies are forced to undertake the unthinkable invasion of Japan.  A straight-forward historical story, there is a sense of dread looming over the entire proceedings as we know that bad stuff looms on the horizon for pretty much all involved.  Dixon's flexibility shines in this "fictional non-fiction," and Guice's pencils look right at home.  Fans of War comics, or WWII in general should definitely check this series out.

Tor #3 -- Tor finds himself with a band of similar outcasts, and finds companionship for the first time that he can remember.  But a trip into a dark, dank cave finds something much more evil.  Kubert's work has a sort of washed out look to it which suits the prehistoric landscape perfectly.  (In a classy move, DC back-loaded all the ads, so the narrative is not interrupted at all.)  It's simple tale of survival and loyalty, but it's so elegantly handled (and has such a kicking cliffhanger) that you wind up drawn into it; Kubert's world is pretty darn-well realized, and populated with visually interesting flora and fauna.  It is odd, though, that this comic contains a topless woman for almost the entire length, but carries no warnings or anything.  It's not dirty, but still surprising.  If you are looking for something off the beaten path, then check this one out.

The War That Time Forgot #3 -- As the Volcano tribe sets out to rescue the Colonel, they pick up a new ally, but also face new and deadly peril.  Meanwhile, back at the home camp, someone is not showing all their true motivations to the others.  This issue just rocks it from beginning to end, with an exciting mix of humans fighting each other, humans fighting dinosaurs, and intriguing new developments behind the scenes.  This series, like Tor, seems to have nothing to do with anything, and is substantially stronger for that; it's a one-off tale filled with a mishmash of characters from different periods, all working together in a fun and interesting way.  Very fun comic.

The Phantom #24 -- With Bangalla tearing itself apart due to the introduction of the drug Manic into the air and water, the Ghost-Who-Walks tracks down the drug's creator, Ortega, to shut him down.  The biggest Phantom story Moonstone has ever told continues to get bigger here, as the Phantom confronts the first member of the conspiracy which has been destroying his life.  How exactly all of this is going to wrap up in the next issue is anybody's guess, but the adventure has been top-notch so far.

The Pick Of The Pile is The War That Time Forgot, which mixed history and dinosaurs and action and even a little intrigue.  But as a whole this was another great week, with every purchase being very enjoyable to read!  

What I Read This Week

The Phantom #24 -- Did not read, as this was shorted to Borderlands by Diamond.  Evidently, Moonstone's time with the series is drawing to an end, which stinks.

Final Crisis #2 -- Morrison and Jones continue their deconstruction (of sorts) of the DC Universe as Dan Turpin finds himself closer to the truth than he realizes, the Justice League investigates the murder of a New God, and deep-rooted evil plans are partially revealed.  All this and Sonny Sumo!  I don't see what is so hard to understand about this series, honestly, as I can follow it fine and I am not neither a "DC Historian" nor a "DC Completist."  (And perhaps I should add for completeness sake that I am not a "DC Apologist," either.)  I am very much enjoying this series so far.

Caliber #3 -- I wish I could say the same about this one, though.  More lovely art paired with confusing storytelling, at least the general plot is easily digestable this time.  But so far this great concept has barely been scratched, and with only two issues remaining I am left disappointed so far.  

Conan The Cimmerian #0 -- A short introduction to the next phase of Conan's life, this features enough blood and carnage in it's short span to satisfy most feature-length stories.  Truman and Giorello have a good grasp on the character (colorist José Villarrubia's bold choice for the blood is also applauded) and seem to relish the idea of transitioning him into the mercenary/pirate era.  I do believe I will be checking this series out.

Project Superpowers #4 -- The (re)introduction of some interesting characters -- namely, The Flame, Hydro, and Pyroman -- make this installment more fun than the last.  That, and a more readable script which seems to finally have a sense of momentum rather than a series of vignettes.  I have been on the fence about this title lately, sometimes enjoying it and sometimes not, but for this month I am falling into the "enjoying" camp.  It will be very interesting to see how this series wraps things up for the revamped "Superpowers" universe we have been promised from Dynamite -- as well as whether or not that wrap-up will have me interested enough to invest any further time and money into it.

The Pick Of The Pile is Final Crisis, beating out strong competition in the form of Conan.  But Morrison and Jones' work is a superior effort and I eagerly await the next issue just to see what the heck is going to happen next, and that's a pretty ringing endorsement where I come from.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Iron Man #30 -- Stuart Moore is still handling the scripting chores as Tony Stark's history catches up with him in a tiny former Soviet Republic.  Meanwhile, bad things are going down back stateside as a mothballed SHIELD superweapon gets a little more super thanks to some outside interference.  Another solid issue in what is turning into an interesting two-pronged story, with action going down on two continents.  De La Torre's art pairs up nicely with the techno-thriller setting and Moore has a good handle on Tony Stark, both past and present.  If the Knaufs are leaving the title, Moore would be a good candidate to replace them based on this arc so far.

Batman And The Outsiders #8 -- Batgirl has to save her teammates from the Chinese army, with a little help from some friends.  With Chuck Dixon's exit, it seems that what I have dubbed the "Jardine Saga" (in fact, I recommend DC collect the story under that title, as "Saga" always makes things sound dramatic) will be his sole story arc on the title.  But that's okay, as I am enjoying it.  Outsiders is an action title, and that is what we get: action.  Lopez's art is dynamic and fluid, and a great fit.  My main complaint: Where's Geo-Force?  We saw him last issue, so we know he was out on the Navy ship, but he doesn't show up this time.

Guardians Of The Galaxy #2 -- Time, Adam Warlock tells us, does not necessarily repeat itself, but sometimes, it does rhyme.  Such a case happens here as the newly formed Guardians discover a certain familiar shield frozen in a block!  This title is quickly establishing itself as fast-paced and fun, with a good mix of characters and a wide-open concept.  And anything featuring a talking bipedal racoon and a Russian talking dog, who just so happen to be at odds with one another, is a winner for me.

Flash #241 -- Speaking of talking animals, Gorilla Grodd is in town, and a guy of his stature makes the new supervillian Spin seem pretty tame by comparison.  Plus, just what have Brother Drive and Brother Think done by kidnapping Jai and Iris?  I have really liked "Fast Money," and Peyer has a nice voice for all aspects of Wally West -- hero, father, and regular guy.  He spends a good amount of time this issue in examining Wally's thoughts on how he dealt with Inertia after that dweeb murdered Bart.  It's interesting stuff, but at the same time one does wonder how this ties into the larger story... well, I mean, I see how it does, but it's very circuituous.  Williams' art looks fast, which is a good trait for Flash.  I am liking this team on the title, but I am not sure how long they will last.

Captain Britian and MI:13 #2 -- With Captain Britian dead, the Skrulls pour into Avalon in an attempt to secure all of the Earth's magic for themselves, forcing Pete Wisdom to call in a favor of sorts from the fairie folk.  Better than last issue by a good measure, Cornell does a good job of putting over the loss of Captain Britian as a blow to the entire island, as well as to the magical community.  I'm still not sold on the series -- it's hard to tell in the middle of a "SI" crossover -- but I can see how this is a setup for a superteam that deals with threats both normal and supernatural... you know, like Excalibur.  I'm less enamored with the new girl taking the role of British Kitty Pryde at the moment, but I have to give that angle more time to develop.  Penciller Leonard Kirk's work is very nice, I must say.  

The Pick Of The Pile is Iron Man.  Yeah, I know, a bold choice for me.  But it really was the best book of the bunch this time out, continuing the trend of mixing superheroics with intrigue and political machinations, all without reading like a poly-sci major's blog.  I actually really enjoyed all of the comics I bought this week, so between that and HeroesCon, it was a good Four Color Week.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Iron Man: Legacy Of Doom #3 -- Fresh from escaping from Hell, Iron Man runs into Merlin -- whom he has not yet met -- and has to stop Dr. Doom from acquiring the scabbard of Excalibur, which will make completely unstoppable.  Of course, Doom has other ideas.  I know that this series is just a one-off, with no bearing on the ongoing title, but as far as I am concerned this is part of my so-called "personal canon" for Shellhead.  Bob, Dave, and Ron nail the classic tone and look of Iron Man and so far have really delivered on their promise to produce a third installment of the Iron Man-Doom trilogy which lives up to the others.  Top notch stuff which should make a good trade paperback in a few months.

Captain Britian and MI:13 #2 -- Did not ship locally, evidently.  Hopefully it'll be in this week.

Caliber #2 -- In the West, Arthur nearly runs into his lady friend Gwen, while his party runs afoul of the local law.  Meanwhile, the keeper of the great weapon finds his Chosen One.  This series has a great setup, but it's just confusing as all get out.  Garrie Gastonny's artwork is beautiful, but his storytelling is a little iffy, and his characters tend to look alike, so it's difficult to tell one from the other.  Sam Sarkar's script doesn't help differentiate them as much as I would like, either, so while it looks amazing, the overall effect is frustration as I try to puzzle out just what is happening.  Would probably benefit greatly from a second reading, or perhaps read in one sitting.  Still, I am going to stick with it.

Tiny Titans #5 -- Say hello to the Tiny Titans East!  Marvel at just how fast Inertia can run around the world!  Shiver at Enigma's nonstop knock-knock joking -- and Speedy's inability to escape it!  Witness the lamentation of Brainiac... I mean Psimon!  All this, and is it Robin or Nightwing?  Simply TOO CUTE for words.  It's fun and funny, and that's all I ask for from this title, and it consistantly and effectively delivers.

Robin/Spoiler Special -- Two tales from recently-destaffed scribe Chuck Dixon focusing on Spoiler, her relationship with herself, her relationship with Dr. Tompkins, her relationship with Robin, and finally, her relationship with her foot -- namely, driving it into punks' faces.  The first feature, with art by Rafael Albuquerque, details Spoiler and Robin have a "non-date" which ends with them tracking down a kidnapped little girl and laying some down some smack.  The backup, pencilled by Victor Ibáñez, flashes back to Stephanie's time in Africa with Dr. Tompkins, and her decision to return to Gotham City.  I picked this up on Lilbones' suggestion, and was very satisfied with it.  Doxon has a knack for writing the Bat-characters, and Steph and Tim are no exception.  As someone who came in with little-to-no knowledge of Spoiler, I walked away liking her as a character, and not adverse to seeing more of her adventures.  Ibáñez's art in the backup is smooth and eye-pleasing, while Albuquerque's is more of an urban take, harsh and immediate.  I like both of them -- Albuquerque's Robin has a sort of punk face which I would not like for Dick Greyson but looks great for Tim Drake -- and thought they both worked well for their stories.  As a one-shot, this is a solid pickup for Bat-fans or those who are interested in either Robin or the newly-returned Spoiler.

The Pick Of The Pile is a no-brainer with Iron Man: Legacy of Doom.  I had three really, really good reads this week (Caliber just didn't have it), but the combination of a personal favorite creative team with old school armored action that speaks to this fan specifically, I had to go with it.

What I Read This Week

Justice Society of America #16 -- I am reminded of the line from Ghostbusters: "Ray, if someone asks you if you're a god, you say YES!"  The JSoA face down the true Gog -- god of the "Third World" who has re-emerged on Earth.  A pretty seamless transition from the previous story, Johns keeps things moving along and pushes in new and interesting directions.  New artist Fernando Pasarin does a good job rendering the towering Gog as well as keeping the look of the various colorful heroes at the same time.  Very enjoyable from start to finish, even if it does require you to know a few things about DC history to really appreciate and understand.  

Tor #2 -  This comic is many things, and almost of them good.  From the simple text on the cover to the pacing and progression of the story, from the timeless depction of Kubert's caveman to the feral visciousness of the saber-toothed cat, everything comes together very smoothly on this title.  For something which I would deem as "experimental" insofar as DC is publishing it now in 2008, this is a simple tale of survival and adaption, and making the most of what you have, even when you have nothing but your wits.  I wouldn't mind at all seeing DC getting Kubert to produce sporadic Tor minis or specials after this one wraps up.  Definitely worth your time to check this one out.

The War That Time Forgot #2 -- Ah, now things are getting good!  Last issue had a lot of setup to deal with, but this time we jump a bit more into the conflict, as we meet the other faction on the island and their strange diety.  The introduction of the Viking Prince and his friends on the side opposite from Tomahawk, Firehair, and Enemy Ace makes perfect sense, at least from the story standpoint, and sets up a very interesting dynamic.  I think that this series is really going to pick things up and just go bonkers.

Invincible Iron Man #2 -- Any comic with Advanced Genocide Mechanics and their leader, MODOG, automatically has a certain special something to it already.  Fraction pushes the "cool exec" mode just as hard as last time, and it's a good comic, but the artwork by Salvador Larroca did nothing for me.  For one thing, everything looks flat and static (a criticism levied often at Adi Granov that I do not share); for another, characters just look strange.  Pepper looks like a man for crissakes!  The Thor cameo will tickle fans of the Thunder God, but it smacked of more jobbing to this admittedly dyed-in-the-wool and paranoid Iron Fan.  Still, beyond those complaints, I really liked this issue, and this series is shaping up to be pretty fun.

Nova #14 -- Similar to above, any time Galactus and the Silver Surfer show up, generally, I am happy.  Throw it in with the awesome work that DnA have been turning out with this title, and Wellington Alves brutal pencils, and you have a recipe for success.  As Nova tries to appeal to Galactus to give him a few hours to get everyone off-planet, the Surfer shows why you don't mess with a Herald.  TI called this Marvel's answer to Green Lantern, and I mean that: DnA have the same affection for Nova and the Marvel cosmos that Johns has for the GL universe, and that affection shows on the pages.  

House of Mystery #2 -- The mystery deepens, as is appropriate.  Tig gets her bearings at the House and tries to figure out just how she got here, while the patrons hear a story from the greatest supernatural process server of all time.  Sturges and Willingham have a tight grip on their main story here, and while the introduction of the side stories does slow things down a bit, I don't mind; I like the idea of a broad backdrop of stories and characters to flesh things out.  The pacing and style remind me of Sandman, and that's pretty high praise from me.  The art in the main section by Luca Rossi retains that lmost minimalist, quasi-realistic quasi-fantastical look which I always liked on Sandman.  And Jill Thompson's art for the short is whimsical and fun, fitting with the narrator's tone.  All this plus the same awesome paper stock.  I think Vertigo has a winner on it's hands.

The Pick Of The Pile is a hard call this week, as everything was quite good across the board.  I am going to go a little out of the ordinary for me and go with Tor, which was exciting and intresting and just all around really well done.  But another good week from top to bottom, I must admit.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Well, it seems that the links below didn't work as well as I thought via email, so hopefully these will work out better!

Action Comics #865 -- After Lex Luthor and Brainiac, Superman's rogues gallery has traditionally not been the strongest.  A change to that staus quo starts here as Geoff Johns and Jesus Merino pull a "Rogue Profile" on Toyman.  Who is Winslow Schott?  Is he the gentle toymaker who was pushed into a life of crime?  Or the cold, monsterous child murderer?  Johns made these types of tales on of his trademarks on Flash, and it works equally well here, as we feel some sympathy for Toyman while at the same time not too much sympathy.  I really liked Merino's rendition of the grotesque "classic" Prankster as well.  About the only complaint I have from this issue is the cover by Kevin Maguire, which looks nothing like any version of the Toyman seen within.  Worth picking up if you like the classic Superman foes.

Justice League of America #21 -- I picked this one up on a recommendation from several people, including Lilbones.  And, I must admit, as a prelude to Final Crisis (see below), this is a pretty enjoyable comic book.  The talky bits with the "Big Three" were a little tedious, and somewhat hard to follow, but the balance of the issue, dealing with the Human Flame and Libra, were very well done; I'd have taken that part of the issue as a sort of Final Crisis #0.  McDuffie's script meanders a bit at first, but settles down in the second half, while Pacheo's style is well suited to the action elements.  Still not really an issue of Justice League, but otherwise worthwhile reading.

Final Crisis #1 -- Or, Grant Morrison and JG Jones Destroy The DC Universe.  Well, honestly it doesn't come to all that in the first issue, but as far as first issues of such things go, this one is quite good.  Beginning with Metron giving Anthro the gift of Knowledge (in the form of fire) and then following "Terrible" Dan Turpin hunting down some missing kids, and seguing into Libra demonstrating a sample of his power, I thought that this issue crammed a lot into it's page count and made me hungry for more.  And that's pretty much all I asked of it.  Two points.  First, the death which we have all known about for such a long time happened in such an unusual way that I was unsure what to feel about it, and still am.  I mean, I know it's comic book death, but the handling of it was a little... odd.  And secondly, DC is using the "low gloss" paper which has shown up on a few other projects I have seen from them lately, including House of Mystery.  This paper rocks!

Futurama Comics #37 -- Stuck on a farming plnet inhabited by giant robots called the (wait for it) Transfarmers, Fry and Leela, along with super-stud Zap Branigan, must find a way to escape or else end up as victims of a pest-control protocol.  Meanwhile, back on Earth, Bender has a few magnetic problems of his own.  Any comic which opens with a whole planet acting like Pac-Man, features a barn turning into a giant robot, and a plan by Zap Branigan to build an army though "making it" with the women is pure gold.  

Dead, She Said #1 -- Another pickup thanks to Lilbones' suggestion, this pairing of Steve Niles and Bernie Wightson seems pretty obvious after the fact.  Following gumeshoe Coogan, who seemingly had a very bad night, as he tries to find the guy who shot him, leads down a lot of weird alleys in the big city, as well as out in the coutry.  Some nice hard-boiled stuff, with big heaping helping of strange mystery on top of that.  So far, this one has a lot of potential for awesomeness.

The Pick Of The Pile is a tough call, mainly between Final Crisis and Dead, She Said.  I am going to give it to Final Crisis just because of the anticipation that I have had for it, which the issue itself did nothing to deflate.  Dead, She Said was quite cool as well, and a very welcome surprise since I knew nothing about it going in.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Batman And The Outsiders #7 -- Metamorpho is trapped on a mysterious space station, and fighting for his life to boot, while Grace, Green Arrow, and Katana are trapped in a Chinese prison, with Batgirl trying to free them. A "middle chapter" type of comic, where one subplot gets resolved and another moves to a climax, but the overall, larger story still continues. I like the pace Dixon is using on this series, but this is a lesser issue. Still enjoyable, but really only for Outsiders regulars.

Iron Man #29 -- Stuart Moore steps in to spell the Knaufs on Shellhead's senior title (De La Torre remains), and we see Iron Man leading a SHIELD team on a mission to find a tactical nuke which has been deployed in a small former Soviet republic, while a dangerous SHIELD artifact is reactivated. Moore has a good grasp on the modern Tony Stark, and does action and technology well. I think that this issue did a good job of differentiating the subtle difference between this title's "techno-thriller" alignment and Invincible Iron Man's superheroics. After the massive (and massively awesome) Mandarin story, this should be a nice change-up.

Flash #240 -- In this space, I have previously stated that a comic featuring a guy in a costume using his powers to rob a museum and then bedevil the Flash is the epitome of Flash comics. To that I must add: talking apes. Gorilla Grodd shows up because he's Gorilla Grodd, dammit, and the bananas really hit the fan for Wally West. Plus, just who are Brother Think amd Brother Drive, and what do they want with the "forever people" called Iris and Jai West? Peyer is all over the place in this issue, and while (similar to BATO) the major storyline doesn't get resolved or even really moved along that much, new subplots are introduced which are entertaining and intriguing. And Williams draws one sweet version of Grodd.

Justice Society of America #15 -- In the midst of a brutal, knockdown, drag-out slobberknocker with Gog, part of the Justice Society is transported to the Amazon along with their opponent, where an even more bizarre fate awaits them. Johns and Eaglesham deliver the goods in what initially appears to be just a blow-off brawl to the "Thy Kingdom Come" story (with a few little character bits pepper in there), but the end really is just the start of something bigger. It's funny, but even as Justice Leagie of America seems to meander from one event to another, JSoA just keeps right on trucking, delivering truly modernist superhero stories with a twinge of nostalgia ever month without missing a step. As a bonus, we also get a teaser page, revealing more big things coming in the next year of the title, as has become one of Johns' trademarks.

STEEL WATCH: Nathan really gets into the action this time out, going toe-to-toe with Gog and slamming him into an air-combo with Judomaster (*swoon*), plus taking Gog's best shot right in the chest and pulling his best Juggernaut impression. Aw yeah, Steel!

The Pick Of The Pile is a tough call, coming down to Iron Man and JSoA. I am going to give it to Iron Man, but only by a very slim margin; both are quite excellent and seem poised to remain that way.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Given the number of titles here, yeah, these are going to be a little on the short side this week.

Tiny Titans #4 -- It's intense babysitting action as Wonder Girl has to take care of the Little Tiny Titans! As usual, this is too cute for words. I especially liked Starfire's new hairdo and Lil' Jericho's choice of clothes for Lil' Wildebeast.

Captain Britian and MI13 -- With the UK under Skrull invasion, it is up to Captain Britian and the combined might of all the British superheroes to defend queen and country. Very disappointed overall in this debut, which left me cold and unnethused. This title is on the watch list.

The All-New Iron Manual -- Part technical manual, part sourcebook, the new version of the Manual coveys lots of information about the Golden Avenger and his corner of the Marvel Universe. Some odd choices (I like Mrs. Arborgast, but she gets a profile over someone like the Controller?), but overall worth the money for an Iron Fan; others need not apply. There's a few errors and typos which are pretty noticeable, sadly. Also worth noting is that apparently Enter The Mandarin is in continuity.

Guardians Of The Galaxy #1 -- In order to prevent Annihilation Wave-level events from reaching that point, Peter Quill pulls together a group of adventurers to defend the cosmos. Great fun from DnA, this series looks like a worthy successor to Annihilation Conquest, with a hell of a stinger at the end.

Iron Man: Legacy of Doom #2 -- Lots of fans on message boards have demanded that Iron Man go to Hell, so I guess this answers that request. "Old school cool" from Michelinie, Layton, and Lim, with twists and turns and doublecrosses galore.

The Phantom #23 -- The Ghost Who Walks faces threats to Bangalla on all sides as his enemies all conspire to sow unrest and anarchy. The plot builds very nicely, but the action is a little light this time out.

The War That Time Forgot #1 -- An American Navy pilot finds himself stranded on an island filled with dinosaurs, and other anarchronisms. A little slow on the setup, but as this is 12 issues and not 6 as I had thought, I guess that is to be expected. Right now I am just marking out for all the war characters.

Invincible Iron Man #1 -- Tony Stark, in full "cool exec" mode, must leave the countessa in his bed to respond to a strange new terrorist threat. Very impressive all around, as this title manages to be a different animal from the senior series while covering similar territory.

Project Superpowers #3 -- Probably should have read this one before the FCBD Special. Anyway, the fighting reaches Shangri-La, and more of the Superpowers spill out of the urn. I really hope Ross and Krueger have a goal in mind here, because things are still somewhat jumbled.

House of Mystery #1 -- Go see last week's Weekly Dose of Weird for a recap. A tremendous new spin on the old classic. Also, I really like the non-glossy paper -- DC, please use this more often.

Tor #1 -- Joe Kubert's classic caveman is back for more prehistoric adventure. Tor runs afoul of a tribe of ape-men and interrupts their ritual sacrifice, with predictable results. This title is a throwback in more ways than one, but in a good way.

Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas #1 -- Jon Favreau and Adi Granov deliver a Shellhead comic which looks really, really nice (Granov can do tattoo babes like nobody's business), but this is really much too vapid for the price.

Nova #13 -- As Nova helps save the population of a world which has been targetted by Galactus, he discovers a spectral psionic being named Hallow using the opportunity to cause chaos. This title is essentially Marvel's answer to Green Lantern, and I mean that entirely as a compliment.

The Pick Of The Pile is Invincible Iron Man, unsurprisingly. The surprising thing, actually, to me about this title was how much it reminded me of the early-middle run of volume 3, almost like a less-jokey version of a story Frank Tieri would have written. (That's not a knock on Tieri, by the way -- I like his work.) Other strong features were more unusual or outlandish work like HoM and Tor, trad fare like GotG, Nova, and Legacy of Doom, and Tiny Titans is always a treat. Overall, a highly above-average set of titles over the last two weeks.

What I Read This Week

...Or, The Last Week I Got To The Comic Shop.

DC Universe #0 -- The DC Universe is set up for the next year or so in this 50-cent come-on comic. I think it owes a lot more to Brave New World than it does to Countdown to Infinite Crisis insofar as it is a series of previews of upcoming titles with a somewhat weak through-story rather than the other way around. Still, I enjoyed it, and seeing all the big, epic storylines planned all in one place was nice, especially for the cost. Johns and Morrison are obviously having a blast working on this event, and the various artists give the work a broad feel -- the transition isn't jarring because of the wide range of previews inside.

Avengers: The Initiative #12 -- Uh, wasn't this supposed to be a face-off between Iron Man and War Machine? If so, why did they have about 3 lines of dialogue between each other? I guess if you were reading Initiative already this might be alright, but other than some fun at the expense of Henry Gyrich, and some nifty use of thought baloons, the whole thing falls flat. The whole point that Slott and Gage are making ("The Initiative is bad... mmkay?") kinda seems ill-advised considering the title of the book, and Uy's art is poorly suited for a superhero title. I feel like a sucker for buying this.

Caliber #1 -- In the West, a great conflict is brewing between the new settlers and the established natives, and only a weapon of great and fantastic power can stop absolute chaos and lead civilization. This Weird-West-Meets-Round-Table update is, first off, beautiful; the art by Garrie Gastonny is lush and does a good job of capturing the "wide-vision" landscape (an interesting contrast to Cboins work in the first few issues of Graveslinger). The story, by Sam Sarkar, wanders a little bit and struggles to get it's footing, but by the end becomes clearer and sets up what should be an appealing adventure. Definitely worth checking this one out, especially with it's reduced price point ($1.00).

glamourpuss #1 -- I don't think anyone is ever really quite sure what Dave Sim is going to produce except for Dave Sim himself, and glamourpuss seems to contradict even that. This comic starts out as an examination of the "photo-realistic" cartooning style as used by Al Williamson and his disciples for newspaper strips decades ago, with Sim trying to recreate this "beyond noir" style through the liberal use of lines and black ink. But then it seemingly starts to get away from him, descending into a sort of narrative about high fashion model glamourpuss, in a series of satirical jabs at the fashion industry and publications such as Vogue and it's ilk. It's all very strange but also quite captivating -- the kind of off-the-wall thing most expect from Sim considering that we are all living in the "Post-Cerebus" era, so to speak. Definitely not for everyone, but check it out, you might be surprised.

The Pick Of The Pile this week is a tough call. DC Universe was a lot of fun, but really not overly substantial; Caliber was exciting and very pretty, but had some unclear bits which required a second look; and glamourpuss was challenging and fun, but still pretty far out there. In the end, I am going with Caliber, which set the ball rolling for what promises to be a rolickingly Weird Western.

So what did YOU read this week? (And the one before that, I guess.)

What I Read This Week

Iron Man #28 -- The finale to the ongoing Mandarin story which has been brewing pretty much since Tony took over SHIELD, the Knaufs De La Torre deliver the goods in all the double-sized goodness the story demands. We see Tony on trial at the UN, the return of a beloved old armor, and the (final?) showdown between Western Technology and Eastern Mythology. If you haven't caught on by now, let me repeat: this title is simply amazing.

Batman And The Outsiders #6 -- Dixon keeps the pedal to the metal as the Outsiders move directly from their failed mission last time to trying to hijack a rocket of their own! The only problem? That would be the fact that the rocket in question is deep in Mongolia. One thing which I am really enjoying about this series is how Dixon is portraying each character -- everyone's voice is distinct and viable, from Geo-Force's slightly dim arrogance to Green Arrow's overconfidence to Grace's cynicism. It also helps that Batman's role in this series is not entirely different from his role in the old title: the taskmaster and general, directing his troops like a chessmaster. Rodriguez's art is a great fit for the action heavy crew, a mix of frentic dynamism and solid storytelling. This is not the most high profile title DC publishes, but I do very much look forward to it each month.

Iron Man: Legacy Of Doom #1 -- The dream-team working on this miniseries alone would be enough for most fans to pick it up, but the set-up is priceless as well: Doctor Doom summons Iron Man to help him storm Hell itself! Only things don't go so well for our hero, as the inevitable double-cross leaves him between a rock and a hot place. Way-cool retro action from Bob&Dave, with Ron Lim ably handling the pencils. As a final chapter to the Iron Man-Doctor. Doom trilogy, so far this is shaping up quite nicely. Bonus for Iron Fans: A variant version of the classic Space Armor, this time sporting a solid fuel rocket!

Flash #239 -- Flash must fight a public relations battle as Spin steps up his efforts to turn the good people of Central City against their hero. I like where Peyer is mining here; taking shots at fear-mongering "news entertainment," while addressing some questions we'd all probably be asking if we lived in Central City ourselves. I do have to wonder, though, is Wally simply in denial, or did some things not happen the way I remember them? Still, another good issue with a twist on the classic Flash-motif. I liked the cameo from Red Arrow, but I feel bad for him at the same time.

Annihilation Conquest #6 -- Or, the spit really hits the fan. As Ronan the Accuser prepares to rain death upon his homeworld up in the orbit around Hala, down on the planet, it's a desperate fight with Star Lord, Bug, Rocket Racoon, Adam Warlock, and Quasar (plus a few surprises) against the unending legions of Ultron. Everything just gels here, from the return of a few heroes who have been absent to the final showdown and quiet epilogue; this is grand space opera in the best sense. It's been a heck of a ride once again, and with Guardians of the Galaxy continuing it, it looks like the trend will continue for the time being.

Superman #675 -- Kurt Busiek's final outing on the title isn't exactly subtle, as Big Blue and power-siphoning baddie Paragon have to fight a trio of fanatical Daxamites clerics who want to capture the heretic Lar Gand. It's big and bombastic, as I imagine you pretty much have to be when you have a golem made of outer space show up. A bit too long, but otherwise a fine and fun story, which also acts as a nice capstone for Busiek's run, as he ties it back to the "growing darkness" predicted by Arion all those months ago. Super-Fans could do a lot worse than this one, and Robinson's upcoming run (coinciding with Johns' work on Action) looks like it's going to be quite cool as well, even if budgetary reasons are forcing me to drop the series.

Captain Action #0 -- When your world is being invaded from within by microscopic, mind-controlling alien parasites, who do you call? Captain Action! But with the invasion defeated, and the world grown complacent thanks to the emergence of the superheroes, what good is an anacrhonism like the Captain? That's the philosophical question Fabian Nicieza and Mark Sparacio ask here; at least, before the midway point when everything comes off the rails. The world, I mean, not the narrative! With the old ACTION Directorate destroyed, and Captain Action dead, everything now hinges on his son, heir to the title. As a setup, this is pretty standard, but it's done in a good way. The Captain seems to be played as a mix of 60s super-spy with a Nemesis-esque master of disguise, which works for me. I really like Sparacio's clean, smooth lines for this property. This preview was good enough to convince me to check out the upcoming "novella" First Mission, Last Day, and we'll go from there.

The Pick Of The Pile goes to Annihilation Conquest, just edging out Iron Man. Both are insane, double-sized, action-packed blowoffs to major stories, but AC eeks out a victory this time.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Justice Society of America #14 -- I find it hard to complain too loudly about a series as good as this one, and now I can add the fact that my main complaint -- far, far too many characters -- is an ongoing plot point, so really, in the words of Skeets, "I got nothing." Johns and Eaglesham pump it up here, with an extended cameo by Infinity Man of all people!

Steel Watch: Nathan gets a great scene here, as he saves two of his teammates from getting run over by a semi by shoulder blocking it, reminiscent of Ben Grimm's move from the first Fantastic Four.

Tiny Titans #3 -- The immortal question is asked: are the Titans heroes or sidekicks? Plus, witness the unending anguish of Dr. Light, Sidekick Elementary's long-suffering Science Teacher, Rose's turn at Show And Tell featuring her kid brother Jericho, and a visit to the Batcave, filled with rocket-powered penguins from "that movie." The activity page is a great pin-up of Aqualad in a "find the object" game. Luckily for us, rob! from The Aquaman Shrine was kind enough to scan this great piece for us. Great fun from Art and Franco, with the Jericho short being the funniest thing I have read in months.

The Pick Of The Pile is a tough call. Tiny Titans is just so much fun, I find myself actively pining for each new issue to come out. And by the same token, JSoA is just a phenomenal superhero comic, delivering the goods month in and mouth out. So, as the grand high poo-bah of the Bunker, I am calling this week a DRAW! The Titans and the Society are just going to have to share the honors this week.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Tiny Titans #2 -- Finally got this one, which is good, since the third issue comes out pretty soon. Like, this week. Anyway, it's more adorable adventures from the Tiny Titans, including meeting up with those bullies the Fearsome Five, "mean girl" Terra, and the hot-headed (literally speaking, of course) Kid Devil. Too cute for words, this is more good clean fun that is fun for kids and fanboys alike.

Freddy vs Jason vs Ash #6 -- Got this one as well, apparently it was delayed by a week locally. Much like the film that this is a sequel to, the final setpieces are gruesome and over the top, with a crazy back and forth bloodbath of a fight between our three principles. Craig's art is good, but you can see the toll his health problems have had on his work. It's disappointing, but you can't do anything about it, and frankly it still looks good. As a follow-up to Freddy vs Jason, I think this satisfied everything I was looking for, so I am calling it a success.

Project Superpowers #3 -- Krueger and Paul's rendition of the return of the Golden Age takes a bit of a turn here, with a little action up front but then a more staid approach for the balance of the issue, which works pretty well. Black Terror's bloodlust is tempered a little bit, and then we get a peek inside, and things make a little more sense. We also get the return of the Death-Defying 'Devil, The Flame, and Samson, and nifty concepts such as the F-Troop and the modern hero the Scarab. There's a lot of interesting ideas kicking around in here, and things gel somewhat better this time out, but I am still waiting for this series to fire on all cylinders.

Trials of Shazam #12 -- The finale and blowoff to the long quest for knowledge and power plays out here, with Freddy Freeman facing down his rival Sabina for the power of Zeus. Cascioli's psuedo-painted style is put to good use here, as we get a large brawl between the Justice League and the Shadowpact and a legion of demons. And Winnick delivers the goods and ties up Freddy's new status quo nicely enough, leaving it open for whomever wants to take the reins from there. All in all I enjoyed this series, depite it's flaws. It's a different kind of Captain Marvel story, admittedly, but the vitriol directed at it is excessive. The DCU has a new magical protector, and his name is Shazam. Whether we see much more of him or not, however, remains to be seen.

The Pick Of The Pile is Tiny Titans, because it made me smile and laugh, and I really needed that. The other comics were good, but nothing was great.

So what did YOU read this week?

What I Read This Week

Well, I managed to get the Weekly Dose and Links posted (early, even!) but a mix-up at work left this post unfufilled until today. What a revoltin' development.

Tiny Titans #2 -- Started to get annoyed now, as Borderlands still has not received copy one of this title.

Freddy vs Jason vs Ash #6 -- This one was not on the Diamond list for last week, nor did I see it, but evidently it was released. Hopefully I can find it this week.

Batman And The Outsiders #5 -- Moving on to comics I actually did manage to purchase, we catch up with Batman's covert crew in the South American jungle, trying to prevent the mysterious Mr. Jardine from making his space shot. A lot of action this time out, as the Outsiders have to deal with Jardine's mercenaries, including the heavy hitter, Militia, and the trigger happy Gunhawk and Gunbunny -- luckily they get a timely assist from an unlikely duo. Dixon is working on his own pace here, and it's a pretty enjoyable read for it. Lopez's pencils remain eye-pleasing and solidly rendered for the action sequences, although Katana's torn costume -- revealing juuust a bit of cleavage -- was a little gratuitous. I do have to wonder how the team is going to get out of this cliffhanger, and that's a sign of a good team book, I think.

The Flash #238 -- New series writer Tom Peyer joins Freddie Williams II to introduce the newest member of Flash's Rogues Gallery -- Spin, who is able to amplify the public's fears into a mind-numbing paranoia and terror. And a slip of the tongue by Wally West is poised to make him Public Fear No. 1. Peyer impresses in his debut, both in his ability to pick up the strings of Waid's arc (Keystone City's infastructure is in danger due to the removal of water content thanks to the alien invaders, the kids' aging dilemma) and even Keith Champagne's fill-in (Wally is unemployed) as well as writing a true Flash story. I mean, there's a guy with a costume and a super-power stealing something! And then using his power to put the Flash in a bizarre bind! That's Flash comics, people! Williams' art shines; he's a really good fit on this title. And Spin himself is a very interesting villian, from his visual to his powers to his voice, he has the potential to cross over into the DCU at large in addition to giving the Scarlet Speedster headaches. If you were not thrilled with either The Fastest Man Alive or the Waid relaunch, then you should definitely pick up this series again. And if you liked them, well, then you are already reading.

Futurama Comics #36 -- The Planet Express crew travels to the planet of New England, populated entirely by robots (no, it doesn't have oceans of clam chowder, that's New New England!) and gets embroiled in the mystery of the notorious Jak The Deleter! Meanwhile, Amy, Hermes, and Dr. Zoidberg try to have an adventure of their own, without much luck, sadly. Silly and enjoyable Futurama-y goodness, although the art is a little iffy in places. The wide range of British jokes alone makes this worthy of pick-up.

The Phantom #22 -- Without time to mourn from the events last issue, the Ghost-Who-Walks throws himself headlong into the investigation of the terrorist attack on Bangalan soil. As the Phantom works on one end, we see the machinations on the other, as all sorts of bad people are involved in a scheme which threatens far more than the Deep Woods, or even the African continent. The pace slows down here as Mike Bullock sets up the big conflict, which draws on a lot of the last few years of Moonstone Phantom stories. It's a different place for this title, which normally goes pretty all-out -- due, in no small part, to the fact that this is the first 5-issue story for the title. As such, it's a bit of a letdown from the normal jaw-smashing action. There's just not that much for Szilagyi to draw. Still, it's a good read, and there is the always popular sense of impending doom hanging over the entire affair, which is good, and the cliffhanger promises more chin-checking next time out.

The Pick Of The Pile is a title which hasn't gotten that honor in some time, and that is The Flash. Peyer's debut is a fresh read, with script that manages to be clever without being cute (a rare trick indeed). Combined with Williams' continuing on pencils, the title has been given a shot in the arm, and, retroactively, "The Wild Wests" now looks more draggy than it was.