Hey kids, LAAPPAS is back from its one week vacation (and what a week to not write about comics, eh?)… or at least some of us are. Laura is still vacationing, but I’m back and we decided I should go on without her. A friend of ours, Brendan, will be pinch hitting for Laura this week. Be nice to him, especially since you might see him again in the near future (so I guess it’s actually BAAPPAS, this week). Laura will be back next week, and I’m sure she’ll have stories. — Adan

Buffy the Vampire Slayer #1

Adan: I tried watching Buffy on DVD, but I only got halfway through the second season before realizing it just wasn’t for me. I don’t really like vampires and I don’t really like girls named Buffy (actually, now that I think about it, getting that far into the show was something of a minor miracle). That said, this book was semi-decent. I had a friend give me a crash course on Buffy seasons 2-7 so that I wouldn’t be totally unprepared when reading this, but it probably didn’t help very much. I did know that Sunnydale was kaput, so the big hole in the ground didn’t surprise me. What did surprise me, though, was the U.S. Government’s interest in the hole. Whedon’s dialogue is still top-notch, but I’m still not convinced he can be trusted to string together a coherent story with his smarty-pants dialogue.

Brendan: I, too, am a non-Buffy guy. I have nothing against vampires or girls named Buffy, I just never got caught up in it. I decided not to research or prepare for this “Season 8,” just to see how the book held up on its own. I thought it did a passably good job. I understood the characters immediately, and the relationships were as familiar as they were on T.V. I thought they could have done a little better to explain how or why Xander is in charge of S.H.E.I.L.D. or S.W.O.R.D. or whatever giant operation it is, but I’m sure Buffy fans will just refer me to season seven of the show. I’m willing to wait around a few issues just to see Dawn and Buffy team up for a Fastball Special. Fans won’t be disappointed, but this book doesn’t seem to make any effort to expand the audience beyond that.

Civil War: The Confession

Adan: Was it worth it? That’s the question on Iron Man’s mind. Was it worth it: the broken trust, the superhero community at war, the dead friends. Was registration worth it? The funny thing about that question, it’s not just in Iron Man’s mind. At least, it shouldn’t just be in Iron Man’s mind. It should also be in the mind of every fan who purchased this mini-series and all the tie-ins associated with it, including this one. Was it worth it, guys?

Brendan: It was so worth it. Now Cap can join Elvis, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, and Chris Farley in that elite group of immortal icons. What is so interesting to me is that last week, Captain America really died. I’m not saying he won’t be back and I’m not a crazy person who thinks comics are real, but with the coverage the story got and the subsequent “Colbert Report,” appearances, it is as if we are living within Marvel’s narrative. Or maybe I’m just a big nerd. This issue, like the “Illuminati” special that launched us into this months-long war, showed Iron Man not to be a dick, but rather a smart guy in an unenviable position. It’s lonely at the top, and Iron Man is at the very peak of power very much alone. It sucks to be smart, and it can suck to be right. Civil War infused a real conflict into Marvel’s world and books cannot be the same ever again. What I love about Registration and what it means is the total inversion of what qualifies as a hero or a villain. Over the course of the crossover it became more and more apparent that there was no stemming the tide of registration. If the people want it badly enough, there was no way for the Secret Avengers to spin the argument. The needs of the many had to outweigh the needs of the few. There are a few hundred, maybe two thousand extra-powered humans on their world? And everyone else on the planet is collateral damage waiting to happen? Cap held to his morals, but he also forgot how scary it is to be a skinny little 4-F weakling with no control over the world around him. So in the end, like they said, somebody won and somebody lost. And Marvel books, across the board, are better and more intriguing than they were a year ago. So c’mon, you know you loved it. You know the inner nerd who wants to see pretty pictures and shit blowing up demanded you read Civil War the second the issues became available. Give it up. Admit it. Confess it, even.
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Adan: No, actually, I hated it. But everybody knew that already. I maybe, possibly would have bought this as a real change in the Marvel Universe if I didn’t already know that the status quo will just be changed again the next time there is a “sense-shattering” crossover. Planet Hulk, anybody? Notice also how Iron Man is just as big a crybaby as Captain America was. Wow, Tony Stark defies the laws of physics by being a dick and a pussy at the exact same time!

Fables #58

Adan: It’s part two of “Father and Son” in which Bigby, Snow, and the cubs go visit Mr. North, and the cubs get into a dangerous adventure. I love Mike Allred’s art in this arc, but really, I always love Mike Allred’s art. However, why is it Allred can only draw one werewolf? Bigby in wolf-man form looks exactly like the X-Statix’s Vivisector in wolf-man form, minus the glasses. Well, regardless, the art is awesome, and I especially like his renditions of the Wild Things. As for the story, I am quite enamored with Bigby and Snow’s cubs (and Bigby and Snow, for that matter), so anything that focuses on them is usually quite good (like the most excellent issue #50). The only other characters in this arc are Mr. North and the surprise guests at the end (which you’ll never guess), so it’s thirty-two pages of nothing but Wolf family action.

Brendan: This was an adventure for me. Hold your rotten fruit: I don’t read “Fables.” I tried the first few trades a couple of years ago, and I just wasn’t impressed. I looked at the 1001 Nights HC that came out a few months ago, but again I just didn’t feel compelled to take the dive. That said, I loved this issue. Like Adan said, Allred is awesome. His acting is spot on, and he does well to convey the power of the wolves and monsters. But the story was great. It even had a Fable-like ending! I knew little bits about this cast, so I wasn’t totally in the dark, but I was worried that a Vertigo book deep in its run would be totally inaccessible and frustrating. I’m frustrated, but only because now there is another book I need to read and catch up on. Damn you, quality comicbook stories!

Grifter/Midnighter #1

Brendan: This issue was a decided mixed bag. I thought Ryan Benjamin’s art was really great. In fact, I would go so far as to say Jim Lee should bow out of Wildcats, because Benjamin could fill his shoes without missing a beat. I didn’t quite get the purpose of this story though. Midnighter already has his own book, and so do the Authority, but they got the majority of the spotlight this issue. I’m pretty sure this is a follow up to a fight Midnighter and Grifter had in Captain Atom: Armageddon. Not that it is explained as such, but the whole soft revamp that Armageddon resulted in makes it so I can’t tell if we’re supposed to remember old Wildstorm comics or not. If you’re really hurting for some Authority and Wildcats action during these long delays, check this one out. If not, just flip through it so you can say you knew Ryan Benjamin way back when.

Adan: Yeah, I’m with Brendan. The story, so far, makes no sense except as set-up, and there is painfully very little Grifter in here to support top billing. It’s like when Ken Watanabe got top billing in Batman Begins for about three seconds of screen time. However, the art is superb. Ryan Benjamin has apparently done only a few comics in his career (original WildC.A.T.s included), but pick up the first Star Wars: Empire trade to see him sling a pencil but good. I hope Chuck Dixon gets to the point of this soon; he’s only got five more issues before he runs out of room.

Lone Ranger #5

Brendan: The Ultimate Lone Ranger origin nears its completion. I was blown away by the launch of this series, it took a character I had absolutely no interest in and made me interested. Using cinematic panel structure, and a decompressed pace, Brett Matthews and Sergio Cariello deliver an action story as good as anything the Big Two have to offer. Dean White does a fantastic job on colors, which are the secret ingredient to a great Western. Dynamite seemed to realize that the Lone Ranger property can serve as a great bridge from costumed heroes to the wildest west. The pace can feel deliberate, or even slow, (this is the first issue we see the full Lone Ranger getup), but the cliffhangers have been strong enough to leave you begging for more. This issue, though, the cliffhanger is a little ambiguous. I flipped through the 11 pages of Dynamite house ads three times before I realized it was over. If you’ve been digging this book, you’ll be happy with this issue, but if you’re looking to jump on, I’d recommend waiting for the trade, as the story really is structured for that type of read.

Adan: Whoda thunk that I would be a big ol’ western fan in my old age. I didn’t really dig cowboys as a kid, I never read a Louis L’Amour novel, and I haven’t even seen a Sergio Leone film yet (although I just got The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly on DVD, so don’t get your chaps in a twist), but these western comics are fantastic reads. Jonah Hex and Lone Ranger are two of my favorite comics, even though this issue featured a slight drop in quality. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still better than the entirety of Civil War, but when high caliber quality suffers, even a tiny bit, it’s easily noticed. If you’ve not read the four issues previous to this, then don’t read this issue because you’ll six kinds of lost. Either find the previous four (which shouldn’t all that difficult what with Dynamite reprinting them and all) or wait for the trade, which should be out sometime after the sixth issue, when the origin arc ends.

Spider-Man: The Reign #4

Adan: First off, what’s up with that cover? Kinda gory, no? At least there are no penises in this issue. Spidey’s impersonation of Dark Knight Returns comes to a close with hundreds of symbiotes running loose in New York, and the Sinister Six trying once and for all to rid the world of one hard-as-hell to kill bug. Spidey fights all of this, plus his own personal demons. Unfortunately, there is still no Spider-Tank, but I guess we’ll have to make due with the female kid sidekick of sorts. I’m saying this should have been better, that’s what I’m saying.

Brendan: I can see how this book gets approved by an editor. It seems like the easiest pitch in the world, “Okay… it’s DKR… but with SPIDER-MAN. And wait, there’s more…We’ll use the villains from the upcoming movie and it will be totally sweet!” It’s easy to pitch, but it seems to be difficult to execute. Throughout this series I felt confused and behind. To be successful in an homage, there needs to be a clear purpose. You need to have something to say both about the original work you are commenting on, and what has changed that necessitates the change. There were some really cool Spider-man moments in this series, and in this issue, but in the end it just didn’t say enough to warrant such a long Frank Miller love letter. Plus, that whole Sandman sequence this issue felt SO forced.

Teen Titans #44

Brendan: Oh man was this book average. After endless hype and lead in, the Titans East finally meet the Titans West. And they fight. A lot. I guess I was just expecting more from Geoff Johns’ last arc, but this issue didn’t even make sense to me. The art was awful. There was no sequence to this story, everything just seemed to happen. A large part of why scenes didn’t seem to “carry” was the total lack of backgrounds. There was an establishing shot of the Titans East tower to start the issue, and from there on out it was up to us to remember where each member was. I love the Titans, I miss Conner, I’ll miss Johns, but I may skip next month’s issue. Johns’ seems to be going the way of a passive break-up; instead of just cutting the cord he’s acting like an asshole so now when we do break up it won’t even matter. That sucks.

Adan: Yeah, Johns is totally phoning it in on Teen Titans, which makes me sad because it’s currently my favorite Johns book (except for Justice Society of America). I had to read the issue twice to try to figure out why the Titans were suddenly all in the same place at the same time. Last issue, they were scattered to the four winds. Did it really take Ravager and Jericho that long to see the Titans East Tower and then to actually go in it? Because in the interim, three teenagers were taken from San Francisco clear across the country to New York, and two other Titans were nabbed in Louisiana and also taken north of the Mason-Dixie line and also deposited in New York. I mean, holy big-ass plot hole, Batman! Please stop phoning this in, Johns.

Thunderbolts #112

Brendan: This is my favorite post-Civil War book. It has such a unique place in the new Marvel Universe and the Ellis/ Deodato team up suits it perfectly. Just think, they team up on “Thor” for a few issues and BAM! Ten years later they’re revamping the US government’s all villain hit squad. What I love about the book is how unapologetic it is, and how Ellis is fully exploring the warped minds of all these classic Marvel characters. I’m still upset Marvel resurrected Norman Osborn, but at least this is a truly new story that returns him to his tortured and obsessed roots. The dark pen and inks, along with the skewed panel layouts perfectly match the warped justice the Thunderbolts dole out. Check this one out, if only for the greatest Stan Lee guest spot of all time. No exaggeration at all.

Adan: Awesome Stan Lee cameo aside, I still think this book is nothing but a shabbily-dressed Suicide Squad knock-off that isn’t done anywhere near as well as that old Ostrander stuff. Sorry, Ellis, but if you’re going to steal ideas, either have the decency to pretend like you didn’t steal it, or write it better than the source material. You’ve managed to do neither here. Yes, the wonky layouts when Osborn opens his mouth make for a good effect, but I seem to remember Osborn shooting an Atlantean delegate on national television only a short time ago. Now he’s the head of a super-powered force tasked with apprehending rogue supers? Where’s the explanation for that? The Marvel populace can’t be this laid back. For fuck’s sake, they just forced supers to register because they accidentally blew up a city, but a convicted mass-murdering crazy running a highly sensitive military operation is perfectly fine? You must be joking.

And Others…

Adan: Wonder Woman #5 is out this week, and I’m fucking confused. The last issue ended in a cliffhanger in which Diana was about to face off against all her magically-souped up rogues, but this issue has her checking out a women’s shelter? Even more confusing, the “next time on…” blurb at the end of the book says Jodi Picoult is taking over on issue six. Is there just not gonna be a “Who is Wonder Woman?” part 5? Are we to suffer an unfinished Wonder Woman arc? I, for one, am very interested to see who will end up being Wonder Woman. I’m on the edge of my seat.