Hiatus

Well, I am heading to Chicago this afternoon for business, to return on Friday night... to turn around Monday morning and fly back to Chicago for business again.  Somehow, in some strange parallel Earth, this makes sense.  So expect spotty posting, if any postings at all, for the next few days.  I should have some kind of internet access, but as we all know, that may or may not allow me to post!

Anyways, thanks and see you all again soon!

What Looks Good?

I'm getting ready to go flying a jet airplane to the Windy City, but that doesn't mean I can't pine away for this week's new comics from afar!

Batman Confidential #27 -- King Tut?  King Tut!  WILD!

Essential Power Man and Iron Fist v.2 -- SWEET CHRISTMAS!  Of course, I own nearly all of the comics contained in this collection, but still, this is pretty darn awesome.

Invincible Iron Man #11 -- Tony Stark?  Still the Most Wanted.

Marvel Apes: Speedball Special -- Shock the Monkey!  Okay, yeah, that was bad.

X-Men Manifest Destiny: Nightcrawler -- I haven't been following what is going on with the X-Men save for Havok and Polaris, but I've always liked Nightcrawler.

So, what looks good to YOU?

What I Read This Week

Strange Adventures #1 -- In the wake of the Rann-Thanagar Holy War, the face of the cosmos has be altered: with the population of Throneworld decimated by Lady Styx, and Rann now unihabitable, the two are now united as "New Rann."  But things are still unstable: Hardcore Station is as dangerous as ever, and the ruins of Old Rann hold vast technological wonders which many would kill to get their hands on.  Plus, now it seems that the stars themselves are starting to vanish!  All this and Deacon Dark and Bizarro!  Starlin's next DC cosmic adventure kicks off here, and it is a lot of setup, but the setup is excellent.  Manuel Garcia's pencils in the feature are a nice fit as well.  The backup, focusing on Bizarro, has art done by Starlin, which is a nice touch.  The backup's story, though, has some weird ramifications for Hawkfans, and I really want to see where Starlin is going with this.

War of Kings #1 -- War has begun!  When the expanionist Emperor of the Shi'ar Empire puts his eyes upon the newly crowned Kree King Black Bolt's space, the universe will shake with the fury of their combat.  DnA and Pelletier deliver the goods in this opening salvo of the next Marvel space opera, with a full-on battle between the Imperial Guard and the Kree.  About my only complaint here is that this issue spoils the conclusion of X-Men: Kingbreaker #4, but that is a relatively minor quibble in the scheme of things.  Great stuff from that "other part" of Marvel, which is far superior to the mainline stuff.

House of Mystery #11 -- Welcome to "The Space Between!"  With the mystery of the basement solved, now it is time to look into why the heck Fig's father is at the House, and why he seems to know more than he is telling.  Plus, we get to learn a little bit about those courageous Pathfinders who blazed the trails of magic throughout the known worlds.  Really, I don't know what else I can say about this series at this point -- it's a great book month in and month out.

Black Lightning: Year One #1 -- After throwing The 100 off his scent, Jefferson Pierce has to keep an eye on Garfield High's Regional Track & Field Expo -- no easy task when weird forces are twisted the minds of all in attendance, making them see everyone else as beasts and monsters!  An uptick from the previous installment, as the weirdness is a little more palatable.  This has been a fun series and I am eager to see how it all wraps up in the finale.

The Pick Of the Pile is a close one this week, as I really liked both Strange Adventures and War of Kings.  As I can't decide based on quality, I will do it based on value: for $3.99, Strange Adventures has more pages, including a backup, so that one gets the nod.  Although, I must admit that all four titles were really good this week.

And Now, Your Moment Of Cheesecake

She might have sloughed off the mortal coil, but the Aquagirl can still WORK THAT BADONKADONK.

SHAKE WHAT YOUR MOMMA GAVE YA, TULA!

(Confused?  Head over to yesterday's post over at Being Carter Hall, and things should become more clear.)

What Looks Good?

No amount of snow is going to stop the inevitable tide of new comic books that come shipped fresh to your local shop every week!  Esepcially not when 95% of it melts a day after it falls!

Black Lightning: Year One #5 -- Things got a little weird last time, and I don't expect that to change any time soon!

House of Mystery #11 -- We're out of the basement!  But new terrors await in the rest of the house!

Strange Adventures #1 -- Jim Starlin being Jim Starlin!  Adam Strange!  Comet!  Bizarro!  AND THE DEMIURGE, BABY!

War of Kings #1 -- DnA being DnA!  Black Bolt!  Emperor Vulcan!  Blastaar!  AND DARKHAWK, BABY!

So, what looks good to YOU?

What I Read This Week

Justice Society of America #24 -- With Billy Batson kicked off the Rock of Eternity by Black Adam and Isis, he turns to his old friends in the Justice Society to help get back.  But even he cannot predict the way events are going to spiral out of control!  After the insane build-up and payoff of the Gog storyline, this new story (Geoff Johns' last with the Society for the time being) is something of a let-down.  The real star here is Jerry Ordway.  His big shining moment is the extended flashback sequence detailing the murder of Billy's parents by Theo Adam.   But otherwise, this issue is lackluster.

Sgt. Rock: The Lost Battalion #4 -- Easy and their compatriots are still pinned down, and even attempts to air-drop supplies in turn out catastrophic.  Help is coming in the form of the Nisei, but will anyone be alive by the time they reach them?  Tucci's war epic continues with the Lost Battalion still surrounded in what seems a hopeless situation.  Good mileage is made this issue with a focus on the Nisei themselves, including the ridiculous predjudices they have to face despite their bravery in putting their lives on the line.  A sequence involving a tank ambush against Easy is among the best I have ever seen.  This is definitely a series which will be read in one sitting once it is complete.

Unknown Soldier #5 -- Dr. Lwanga seems on the road to recovery, leaving the orphans in good hands and reuniting with his wife.  But everything is shattered when the rebels show up in their camp.  This series is a tough nut for me.  I really enjoy it, but it is so harsh and brutal that it is hard for me to read in a monthly format.  I am seriously thinking about moving to reading this in collection.  Of course, a Vertigo title dropping readers is not a good thing.  So I am torn.  

The War That Time Forgot #10 -- Everything is starting to come off the rails, as the warriors have to not only deal with dinosaurs both real and mechanical, but now a swarm of mutated insect-men!  Is there any way to escape this experiment or will mankind's true warlike nature win out?  Developments progress about as you would expect considering the endgame being in sight, but this series has remained a good read for me.

Nova #22 -- The Worldmind is recruiting new Centurians at an alarming pace, which concerns former Nova Richard Rider.  The Worldmind thinks that Richard has started to go crazy from the strain of his duties, and Richard has begun to doubt his sanity as well.  But things are rarely ever that simple for Richard!  Fun "middle chapter" of the new Nova Corps saga, with some nice "I'm not crazy, you're the crazy one!" give and take.  DnA are clearly building to something big, and Di Vito's pencils are a strong match.

War Machine #3 -- Rhodey faces what might be his toughest challenge ever in the form of the war god Ares!  But what does this battle-crazed madman want with War Machine and his quarry?  High octane, over-the-top violent fun, which is this title's fortay.  This actually is the only time I can think of where I have actually enjoyed Ares' presence in a story.

The Pick of the Pile goes to Nova, although I really liked Sgt. Rock this week as well.  War Machine also continues to have a really strong launch, far outclassing it's stable-mate Invincible Iron Man.

So, what did YOU read?

Snow Day!

Not the way I expected to start March, especially in South Carolina!  After the snowstorm yesterday, which pretty much kept me and my wife at home watching Charmed, things are a little hectic today at work.  I should have some content for you later on today, but for now, please accept this lame apology instead!