PopCultureShock :: Comics : Games : Movies : Lifestyle &#187; Blackest Night

Hey there, true believers! Step right up and learn about this week’s hottest new releases, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 #32 (now with more superpowers!), Ultimate Comics X #1, Siege #2, Siege: Embedded #2, Deadpool Team-Up #896, Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #3, and Mass Effect: Redemption #2:

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Review: Green Lantern #50

Alex Zalben — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:53:43 +0000

GREEN LANTERN #50 (DC): This is a tough one for me. Doug Mahnke draws a hell of a comic, simultaneously channeling Brian Bolland, Pete Woods, and a little bit of Ivan Reis for the Blackest Night flavor. I really like his art, and in particular, the double page splashes in the center and end of this issue are killer. And Geoff Johns writing in his “action movie” mode, which is always a fun time. But… Well, there’s actually three “buts” here*.

The first is that this is far more Blackest Night #6.5 than Green Lantern #50, which is unfortunate. I’ve been loving how Johns has dovetailed the Green Lantern stories between issues of Blackest Night, planning out an arc for Hal Jordan than runs separately from the “main” series. And in particular how the GL stories have been more character based than the BN stories. So it’s a bit of a bummer to get a landmark issue that’s working more on one level (action!) than at least two (action and character!).

The second “but” is that, spoiler time, The Spectre has been taken over by a Black Lantern, and Hal Jordan’s immediate solution is to let Parallax, the evil entity that nearly destroyed the entire universe previously, free from his prison. There’s not even a ton of equivocation here. It’s like, to use the most awful example possible, if on the first day of World War II, America bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The reaction from the bewildered, horrified world would be, “Wait, what? You haven’t tried anything else yet.” Obviously I’m trivializing a sad day in world history by comparing it to a comic book, but given the import of Hal Jordan/Parallax to the DC Universe, I’d say it’s sort of the equivalent. I’m not going to say I have a million other solutions to the Spectre problem presented here, or that they should have stretched out this decision for a longer time than it took, but damn if it doesn’t come off as Hal Jordan kind of likes Parallax and was coming up with a lame excuse to see him again.

The third “but” is… Well, I actually kind of don’t want to say specifically what it is, in case Johns still has it up his sleeve. But years ago, when we first got that glimpse of Blackest Night at the end of The Sinestro Corps War, I smacked my forehead and said, “Of course! This means Johns can bring back [character], and finally bring to a crescendo the emotional arc of his entire run on Green Lantern.” And so far… That hasn’t happened. There’s still a few issues left, so I’m crossing my fingers and holding out hope, because if this character doesn’t come back, it’s a huge missed opportunity. It’s also, I understand, my own problem. It’s not up to me to dictate what Johns writes, and if he doesn’t do a story I want, just because I want it, doesn’t mean he’s wrong. It means I should get over it.

But, but, but… If he doesn’t at least have this moment, where [character] finally says… Something Hal Jordan has wanted to hear for a long time, at least since Green Lantern Rebirth, and mentioned several more times throughout the past 50 issues, it’s a real shame. I guess I’ll just have to stay tuned.

That all out of the way, though this issue is a little too two-fisted justice for my liking, there’s great art, fun fights, and ends with a cliff-hanger interesting enough that I’ll have to pick up the next issue. That’s probably an endorsement for this ish right there.

*Heh. Three butts.

DC Reviews: Joe The Barbarian #1, Starman #81, and More!

Alex Zalben — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:13:01 +0000

JOE THE BARBARIAN #1 (VERTIGO): Starting off a review of a new Grant Morrison title, and saying, “Well, that’s a weird one,” is like saying that hamburgers are delicious. Certain people will agree with you unequivocally, and know exactly what you mean; and other people are vegetarians and wrong. However, I don’t mean weird in the Morrison sense that everything is trippy and needs footnotes to even begin to parse; I mean weird in the sense that its so straight-forward. Surprisingly so. It’s accessible, easy to read, and the situation (which I’ll get to in a second) is completely easy to parse. There’s almost no mystery here.

The situation I alluded to not two sentences earlier is that teenage Joe, ostracized by his classmates, mourning the death of his father, and dealing with an emotionally absent mother, retreats into a possibly delusional fantasy land, filled with warring toys. Is it kind of like the recent Stuff of Legend? Yup. Is it like every other fantasy film ever made? Surely. Will it be ambiguous in the end whether Joe is crazy, or it was real? Well, probably. So what makes this worth it?

Sean Murphy. Grant Morrison takes ample breathers in his script (which, it should be mentioned, is well written and observed, even while cliche) to just allow Murphy to draw. And he draws the crap out of this book, from two page spreads of cemeteries, the inside of a house both cluttered and beautiful, and a splash of warring toys straight out of any childhood fantasy. His style mixes ultra realistic with cartoony to gorgeous effect, and though I could be wrong, this is probably exactly why Morrison is writing this series as straight-forwardly as he is. He’s being gracious enough to step back from the curtain, and allowing Murphy to shine. So come for the writing, stay for the art. And always ignore my metaphors about hamburgers.

STARMAN #81 (DC): Can I call this comic “ultimately frustrating,” and leave it at that? No? Okay, fine. In case you aren’t up to speed, DC brought back some of its “dead” titles in Blackest night cross-overs. And there was no title that made me more excited than James Robinson revisiting Starman, one of the best comics ever written. There’s probably no way that Robinson can effectively bring back Starman, honestly, as with each year he’s flatly refused to let Jack Knight back into DC continuity, the more intense the urge to see him increases. Which, to bring it all around, is probably why Robinson won’t write more Jack Knight stories, and why this comic is, in the end, a tease.

We get to see almost every other Starman supporting character fighting a back-from-the-dead David Knight, reflexively playing on the opening (and entire run) of the Starman series. And it’s a real thrill to see The Shade, the O’Dares, and all the rest back and interacting. Robinson doesn’t miss a beat writing these characters, and it feels like going home, in a certain way. But the reason its a tease? Well, for one, they mention Jack Knight, but we never get to see his triumphant return. And more than that, it’s only one issue long.

I realize this is the “this soup is terrible… And the portions are so small!” problem, but it’s there, so there it is. It’s a good issue, filled with brutal fights and great character moments, but at the end of the day, I’d rather have a full throttle, new Starman run than this one issue tease. Don’t fondle the tip if you’re not gonna put it in, know what I’m sayin’? Yeah you do.

BLACKEST NIGHT: THE FLASH #2 (DC): …On the other hand, Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins back together on The Flash, even for three issues, is like crack injected directly into my brain. Every criticism I’ve had of Blackest Night, all the lack of emotional character struggle, sense of humor, sense of fun and danger lacking from the main series is right here in this issue. From a character shouting, “Everything is better with Gorillas!” (something like that), to Captain Cold completely OWNING the Black Lanterns, this is the kind of issue that makes you clap with joy as you’re reading it. I know I’m a little biased, as the Johns/Kolins Flash run is one of my favorites of all time, but I love the Blue Lantern Flash stuff, even though I thought it was silly at the end of Blakest Night #6; and the Rogues are so much fun to read, and so well written, I want — no, need them to get their own ongoing. This is why comics are made.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #44 (DC): Here, I’ll keep this short, because the rest of these have been pretty long: Peter Tomasi writes a hell of a comic book. Big, fun moments, mostly action. It’s a middle chapter, and it feels that way, but there’s a creative solution to the Black Lantern infestation of Oa that makes a lot more sense than some of the other temporary solutions we’ve seen in other books. I’m really looking forward to Brightest Day under Tomasi and Johns’ steady hands.

THE AUTHORITY: THE LOST YEAR #5 (WILDSTORM): See, that’s what I’m talking about with putting The Authority in the worst situation possible, and then trying to figure out how to get them out of it. Space monsters attack The Carrier in The Bleed, and our team desperately tries to stop them. It’s nice to have two good Authority series running at the same time.

FABLES #92 (VERTIGO): Taking a break from the ongoing Witches/Mr. Dark storyline back in the good ol’ USA, this issue we revisit Ambrose and the kingdom of Haven. There’s a fun riff on Casey at the Bat, and Willingham is clearly lightening things up for a bit here. Though, there’s still enough adult humor and dark situations to make this a non-disposable lark. Every issue of this series is always good. Always. It’s kind of weird.

STREETS OF GOTHAM #8 (DC): Main story? Oh wow. Wowee. Wow. Yipes. Manhunter back-up is awesome, though, as usual. Guh. I have to wash out my brain now.

Wednesday New Releases: Siege, Blackest Night, Solomon Kane

TFAW — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:45:17 +0000

Hey dudes! Our comics got here today, so this video is a bit late–and there’s no Josh, so for once, I don’t need to stand on a stool! Sit down and hear all about Supernatural: Beginning’s End #1, Marvel Siege’s Dark Avengers #13, Solomon Kane: Death’s Black Riders #1, Green Lantern Corps #44, and Blackest Night: The Flash #2:

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

Wednesday New Releases: Siege, Blackest Night, Solomon Kane

TFAW — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:45:17 +0000

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

Wednesday New Releases: Siege, Blackest Night, Solomon Kane

TFAW — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:45:17 +0000

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

Wednesday New Releases: Siege, Blackest Night, Solomon Kane

TFAW — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:45:17 +0000

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

Reviews: R.E.B.E.L.S. #12, Secret Six #17 and More!

Alex Zalben — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:00:57 +0000

R.E.B.E.L.S. #12 (DC): I’m shocked, amazed, and delighted that Tony Bedard has not only kept the quality running high for this title through twelve issues and an annual, but has managed to sustain an ongoing story that doesn’t feel decompressed. Every issue, big stuff happens, character relationships deepen, and things continue to twist and turn in surprising directions. This issue, we see the aftermath of the Blackest Night crossover; find out what’s going on with Despero’s severed head; and our anti-heroes start to take the fight back to Starro the Conqueror. Considering I could have cared less about both Starro, and DC’s space-set heroes before this title; and knew nothing about L.E.G.I.O.N., or most of these characters, Bedard has done a fabulous job balancing the cast and the plot, and allowing new readers an easy entry point in every issue. One of the best, most fun books DC is publishing today.

SECRET SIX #17 (DC): Is it any surprise that a cross-over (well, technically a crossover) between the Suicide Squad, and the Secret Six is a diabolically gratifying read? Especially with Gail Simone and John Ostrander collaborating, with artist Jim Calafiore on pencils, this is a must read issue in my book. The only downside is that I’d love to have seen the two teams clash without the Deus Ex Machina of the Black Lanterns, though even that element is fun to read. The real centerpiece of the issue, though, is the fight between Catman and Tigerface (no, I’m not going to look up his real name), which is as intense and flesh ripping as you’d want it to be. Plus, I had no idea that dude was just wearing a tiger head. Why would you wear a tiger head when you fight for a living anyway? Having worn animal costumes on occasion (calm down, it was just for this sex thing one time), I can tell you that the heads are heavy, hot, and hard to keep on. Makes no sense. That aside, a great issue as usual, and I can’t wait for the conclusion to this arc.

ADVENTURE COMICS #6 (DC): In retrospect, I wish this was a Superboy mini-series, as the team of Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul lasted only six issues (not even that… I guess only four or five?); and while I liked the Legion back-ups, I LOVED this Superboy story, it was a great way to bring Connor back into the DC Universe. This last issue is emotionally manipulative, but let me tell you: it manipulated my emotions. The ending may have felt a little rushed, or at least dangling, as it sets up plot threads Johns will most likely follow up elsewhere, but this is one story I can’t wait to read in a trade. Hopefully DC will do the right thing and release this as Superboy: Identity Crisis or something like that, rather than the Adventure Comics label. I’m eagerly awaiting what these guys are going to do with the Flash.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #31 (DARK HORSE): With all the hoopla about revealing the identity of the Big Bad this week, it’s easy to forget that there’s actually a Buffy comic book. And while knowing the identity (believe me, I tried to avoid it, but that didn’t work) is very, very distracting, that doesn’t take away from this being the best issue of this series in a good long while, and the best single issue Joss Whedon has written in a good long while. It brims with the trademark action and humor, and while this is the minor rest stop between arcs, it moves the characters forward like any good episode of Buffy would. I’m curious how well Brad Meltzer is going to fit into this tone, but for now, let’s feel good about a solid, enjoyable issue of Buffy, the way it used to be.

ANGEL #29 (IDW): With all the hoopla about the… Yeah, yeah, you know the drill. Anyway, most of this issue is far better than the first. Bill Willingham still has not quite captured the voices of the characters; they feel like things the Angel cast might say, filtered through Willingham-speak. But I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, that he’ll forge his own way once he gets the swing of things. And there’s at least one scene that’s nothing but talking heads… Fine for a TV show, not so fine for a comic book. However, those are smaller parts of the issue, which is filled with dark humor, and good action sequences. It may not be perfect, but it might get there. I’m sticking around to find out.

CATWOMAN #83 (DC): Tony Bedard writes a solid issue of a resurrected Catwoman, pitting Selina against the Black Mask, the one man she ever killed. The solution to defeating the Black Lantern is smart, and the issue ends on a menacing note, but definitely not the most essential of tie-ins. This is well done, but unless you’re a Catwoman superfan, you’re not going to miss anything by not picking up this issue (note: I am a Catwoman super-fan).

RED HERRING #6 (WILDSTORM): This series, which sadly ends with this issue, was as cool as slow jazz. Multiple plot-lines and elements flowed through each issue, intertwining, but never quite meeting. Narration flitted in and out, changing points of view whenever necessary. And just like the title implied, the thing you thought was important definitely was not, and only distracted from the items of real importance. David Tischman wrote a series that demands to be read at least twice, so you can sort everything out (if there’s really any sorting to do), and Philip Bond’s pencils are cartoony and expressive, perfectly matching the Dr. Strangelove meets X-Files vibe of the book. For anyone who’s ever considered that a conspiracy theory might be true, this book deserves a read… Because you’ll learn that they are all, most definitively not true… And also true. At the same time. Hey, it’s just that kind of series. Pick it up, and you’ll see.

Wednesday New Releases: Blackest Night, Buffy #31, Spider-Man

TFAW — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 23:56:07 +0000

Hey everyone! We’ve got an exciting Wednesday New Releases blog for you today, chock-full of delicious options: first up, we have Die Hard Year One #4, followed by Daytripper #2, Angel #29, Captain’s Log: Sulu, the Blackest Night-resurrected Catwoman #83, Amazing Spider-Man #617, and Buffy Season 8 #31. We know there’s a lot of controversy out there about Buffy Season 8, but rest assured: there are no spoilers about the identities of any Big Bads in this video!

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

DC Reviews: Suicide Squad #67 and More!

Alex Zalben — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 14:00:14 +0000

SUICIDE SQUAD #67: During January’s skip month for the Blackest Night event, DC had the cheeky idea to “resurrect” a few titles from the dead. Most are well beloved comics that many feel were canceled too soon, or fan favorites that aren’t currently getting a Blackest Night tie-in mini-series. One of these is Secret Six, Gail Simone’s consistently excellent book, which is ostensibly the Suicide Squad, without the government interference, or explosive chips in the villain’s heads. So it’s perfectly fitting that Simone and Suicide Squad writer John Ostrander have teamed up to bring the Squad back for one more issue, and pit them against their intellectual progeny in the Secret Six. Plus, somewhere in there? Zombies.

Along with the always reliable Jim Calafiore on art, this issue hits every single note you’d want it to hit, from Secret Six decadence, to Suicide Squad angst; a hard as nails Amanda Waller, and double crosses aplenty. If there’s one thing that brings it down, it’s the dual narration aspect between some character named Yasemin (sorry, never heard of her), and Black Alice. It’s a nice bit of parallelism, and I’m guessing an effort to bring out both author’s voices using a character on each team. But since it’s more of a side aspect to the issue, the idea never really coalesces. Beyond that quibble though, and the fact that you’ll have to follow the story back to Secret Six (which you’re reading anyway, right?) this issue is chock to the brim with action and humor. Plus? Barely any Blackest Night whatsoever! Which is kind of awesome!

THE MIGHTY #12: Though I’m sad to see this series go, I’m glad it got to wrap up in such a spectacular, emotional, and pretty much perfect manner, telling the full story (I think) that Peter J. Tomasi, Keith Champagne, and Chris Samnee on art wanted to tell. The story of a Superman gone bad isn’t a new one; in fact it’s also being told over at BOOM! with Mark Waid’s Irredeemable. Which, for the record, is also pretty darn good, but how glad am I that the two stories are completely different, and completely successful in their own ways. I won’t spoil this issue for you, but suffice to say that this is a personal conflict between Alpha One and Gabriel Cole played out with huge action set pieces, and smart character moves. Plus, there’s a few tantalizing teases of where this series could go next (though, sadly, I don’t think we’re going to get any more of it), and a beautiful, perfectly writ last page. Do yourself a favor, and when the inevitable trade comes out, don’t hesitate to pick one up for yourself, and one up for a friend. This is one of those comics series you’ll kick yourself for not picking up in the store.

SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #11: If I had one large criticism of this series, and I may have to eat my words next issue, it would be that there’s no overall arc from issue one to issue twelve. Series writers James Robinson and Greg Rucka played this like an ongoing, which worked wonders for slowly building the, er, world of New Krypton and its inhabitants, but in the span of twelve issues, didn’t really create an overarching narrative. But, quibbles! This is the best and most original a Superman book has been a good long while (main continuity, please; I’m not talking All-Star Superman) without splitting Supes into different colors, or giving him a mullet.

Pitting Superman’s essential goodness against governmental bureaucracy, the one thing he can’t actually beat with his super powers, has been great to read, and I’ll sorely miss it when it’s gone. Plus, Pete Woods art kills every time. Though I’d love to see him on almost anything, his slick, almost metallic looking art works perfectly for the future world of New Krypton, and I’d be happy to keep him on Superman until the end of time. Or 2013, when DC loses to the rights to the character, either one.

BLACKEST NIGHT WONDER WOMAN #2: Okay, I swear to god, there better be a mass resurrection at the end of Blackest Night, or I am NOT okay with the death in this issue. Side note: I was also not okay with Kyle Rayner’s “death,” too, but this one seems far more permanent. Otherwise, we get another issue of Greg Rucka focusing on the space between scenes in Blackest Night, and again, it’s a well structured, well arced story, well drawn by Nicola Scott. But it still feels like this is more of a side story. It’s a little hard to put my finger on, but both issues, while good reads, feel like “Oh, we’re putting out a Blackest Night: Superman, and Blackest Night: Batman, we should probably do Blackest Night: Wonder Woman, too, right?” And then they decided to throw something together, and accidentally got really good creators to do the series. I guess a shorter way of saying that is, it feels resigned to itself, if that makes sense. I don’t know. Anyway, reverse that death ASAP or else. Update: I queued this post to go up this morning, and then thinking about this issue overnight, it occurred to me that maybe this issue was some sort of dream sequence, particularly as *spoilers* Wonder Girl gets killed, Bruce Wayne Batman shows up, and Wonder Woman flits around the world without rhyme or reason. Especially as the action of this issue would impossible within the confines of Blackest Night #6. Regardless, I stand by the latter criticisms, just wanted to point out I’m wrong on the death thing.

CINDERELLA: FROM FABLETOWN WITH LOVE #3: Chris Roberson fits into the Fables Universe without missing a beat, and while it lacks the wild creativity of the main series, or Jack of Fables, it can be excused for that, as it delivers a perfectly charming (no pun intended) spy story set in a world of magic. Cinderella and Aladdin are hot on the tail of illegally smuggled magical artifacts, and manage to fit in a good degree of flirting along the way. This isn’t the most groundbreaking of mysteries, but it flows well, and Roberson allows in some cultural commentary along the way. Meanwhile, back in Fabletown, things are getting wacky at the shoe store. I like this A Plot/B Plot structure quite a bit, but I’m hoping the two tie together in some way. Otherwise, we’re just getting comic relief for comic relief’s sake, which is a bit of a waste, when we could be finding out more about Cinderella’s world. Worth a pick-up if you’re a fan of Fables, but I wish it was just a little more insane.

Wednesday New Releases: Blackest Night, Mass Effect, Marvel Siege!

TFAW — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:06:01 +0000

Phew! It’s our first Wednesday New Releases blog entry of the year, and our resolution this year was to profile only the most badass comics and more for you! This week: mission accomplished, with reviews of Blackest Night Wonder Woman #2, Weird Western Tales #71, Suicide Squad #67, Mass Effect: Redemption #1, Siege #1, Siege: Embedded #1, the World of Warcraft Lich King Epic Stein, and new action figures from Resistance 2! Roll tape!

Questions? Comments? Post them below!

The Best Comics of 2009: Matt’s List

Matt Bergin — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 21:30:14 +0000

I may be outgunned but I won’t be outdoned by the Comic Book Club. Here are my comic picks for the year:

Best Ongoing Series: Regular, ongoing comics will always have their ups and downs–creative inconsistencies and other assorted hiccups on the road to long-term serialized storytelling–but a few titles had me hooked all year long. My pick for the best is a three-way tie between Walking Dead (simply my favorite monthly), Fantastic Four (Millar and Hitch kicked ass in “The Master of Doom,” and Hickman and Eaglesham’s “Solve Everything” blew my mind up) , and Batwoman: Detective Comics (gorgeous, sexy, badass…and that’s just the artwork).

Best Mini Series: Old Man Logan. I had more fun with each issue of this over-the-top, masterfully drawn post-apocalyptic, super-powered spaghetti western than I did with any of my favorite ongoing titles, and it was certainly better than watching Wolverine: Origins or reading Young Man Logan in Fraction’s Uncanny X-Men or Bendis’s New Avengers.

Best Event: Blackest Night has certainly been a doozy–a zombie action movie in sequential print form–but I’ve also been loving the flagship book in Marvel’s “Dark Reign” event, Dark Avengers, and the epic tangents from that storyline in Invincible Iron-Man and Captain America. Let’s just call it a tie and hope both events lead to more quality storytelling from their respective publishers in 2010 and beyond.

Best Job of Pulling Me Back In: Amazing Spider-Man. I hated One More Day and the idea of the Brand New Day reboot, and I don’t exactly appreciate the cost of keeping up with a weekly title, but a love for the wall crawler (my own and the obvious love the rotating legion of creators on this book have for him) and some top-notch storytelling made this one of my favorite titles in 2009. The possibility of some serious long-term payoffs to the One More Day mess in the coming months could mean good things for the series in 2010, as well.

Best Hero: Barry Allen almost ran away with this honor for me when he started to outshine Hal Jordan and the rest of the Green Lantern Corps in their own event, and the new Dynamic Duo of Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne would have had a chance at sharing this title had their series not sputtered after two issues and become irrelevant after DC announce the return of “the real Batman” in 2010. Norman Osborn has certainly worked hard to make people think he was the hero of the year, but we’ve got a better category for him coming up. So, back to Blackest Night and the color war going on across the DC Universe, the best hero of 2009 has got to be Green Lantern. The excitement and build up from Blackest Night leading to the upcoming live-action GL film would be enough to set Hal above the rest of the superhero landscape, but the main GL book and Cry for Justice have helped to cement him as a powerhouse character deserving of the same recognition as DC’s “Trinity” of the always awesome Batman and…those other two far less compelling characters.

Best Villain: Doctor Doom had a big year, but it involved him being eaten by a prehistoric shark, being labotomized and imprisoned by an army of Reed Richards across multiple dimensions, and getting bitched repeatedly by the Green Goblin’s secret identity. And Norman Osborn would have taken this title for that very reason, if not for a brilliant stroke of villainy from the big bad to our best hero. Blackest Night’s architect of evil, Nekron, revealed himself in a major way, claiming responsibility for the revolving-door afterlife of the DC Universe and control over the souls of all of the major ressurected DC heroes–not to mention a galaxy-spanning army of nigh-invincible zombie Black Lanterns. We won’t know how it all plays out until 2010, but DC’s intergalactic demilich ended the year with some seriously big evil.

Best Graphic Novel: Stitches. Under almost any other circumstances, I wouldn’t have cared enough to read it, and my man Jay, the Mayor of Bookville, wouldn’t have even thought to give an advance reader copy to a mainstream superhero fanboy like me. But there was something extremely comforting about reading a comic about one family’s drama surrounding cancer, strained voices, and a gnarly neck scar right when my own family was coping with my own of the same. This book also wins the honor of being the only comic my wife read this year…and possibly ever. (Confirmation on that, babe?) Here’s my original review.

Best Anthology: Doctor Dremo’s Taphouse of Tall Tales and Short Stories. Obviously.

Best Comic-Related Meme: Marvel by Disney!

Most Important, Best-Reviewed Book I Have Not Read and Probably Won’t Unless You Lend it to Me: Asterios Polyp. I can’t even spell Dave Mazza…Mazzi…Mazzu…Mazzucchelli…ah ferget it!

And with that, on this Palindrome Day 01.20.2010, may your New Year be filled with much sequential joy and hardboiled happiness!

DC Tuesday Teases: Power Girl, Supergirl, Blackest Night, Warcraft

Norimaro — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:46:02 +0000

Yes, it is I, Norimaro — James Bond of videogame girls and comic book babes — here with my top secret, patented single page peeks at this week’s new DC releases! Fear my elite scanner skillz!

DC Reviews: Blackest Night Flash

Alex Zalben — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 15:01:36 +0000

BLACKEST NIGHT: THE FLASH #1: I’ve been going back and forth about the whole Blackest Night event, and this issue crystallizes, and answers, three of my problems with it. The first is that there’s two Geoff Johns writing these books: the one writing the main series is the big dumb action movie Geoff Johns who’s trying to please all of the people all of the time, but sadly doing that using DC minutiae that only the continuity trolls can keep track of. The other is the Geoff Johns who’s writing Green Lantern, clearly cares about the characters in there, and has managed to balance action moments with character pay-offs. You know, good writing?

So there’s that, and then there’s the second problem I’m having with BN, which is that the side titles and mini-series are essentially held in a sense of stasis. They can’t discover anything new about the Black Lanterns, or at least choose not to; and every single one has that “big” moment where a character discovers their dead friend, and can’t believe it’s happening, and then tries to get through to them. It worked in Blackest Night #1, and then… That’s it. It starts to get repetitive, and these mini-series feel like they don’t matter. They’re the second act of a story, rather than the first or the third, and that essentially makes them unimportant to the characters, and the over-all tapestry. Caveat to this: I realize that Blackest Night: Titans was awkwardly jammed in to Blackest Night #5. But, emphasis on “jammed” and “awkwardly.”

The third problem I’m having with Blackest Night? It’s not fun. I’m all for emotional payoffs, and treating characters like human beings, and working in real world problems to comics… But come on, multi-colored rings are flying all over the universe raising super-zombies, and I’m not having any fun reading it. There’s something off there.

All of that is prelude, of course, to actually talking about Blackest Night: The Flash, which has some real clunker panels in there, including an info-dump about the end of Flash Rebirth that makes reading that particular story moot, sadly. But overall? It has emotional payoffs. It feels like it’s moving the story forward. And most of all, it’s f-ing fun.

Johns writes the characters he cares for the best, and I’m not talking about Barry Allen, who is in the midst of running around the world yelling exposition at everyone. I’m talking about The Rogues, the best developed characters Johns has ever built up. They only get some teases in here, though they’re great ones, and it’s wonderful to see Johns and Scott Kolins working together, again, on these characters they know so well.

But the highlight of the issue is easily the most fun, and that’s Barry Allen heading to Gorilla City, the stupidest place in the DC Universe, and finding a super-intelligent zombie gorilla tearing the place up. And then he has to fight him. That’s freaking awesome, and anyone who tells you it isn’t doesn’t have a fun bone in their body. Not only that, but Johns finds a new twist on how to deal with Black Lanterns, and even gives some emotional resonance to the zombie-gorilla that’s a little heartbreaking. Johns is literally the only writer, ever, who has made me care about these gorillas. So bully for that.

Anyway, I’ve gone on far too long about this issue, but part of the reason is, I feel like people – sorry, reviewers – are being far, far too kind to Blackest Night, almost as if they’re scared of saying something bad about the one big-selling title in the comic book industry, and helping hemorrhage readers even more than the Big Two do on a regular basis anyway. Suck it up, people. There’s nothing wrong with being critical, and we don’t have to be cheerleaders. That’s not your job as a critic. On the other side of things, creators, suck it up, too. There’s nothing wrong with criticism, and not everybody is going to love everything you do all the time; that doesn’t mean we hate you, your work, or don’t appreciate the amount of time and effort that goes into things.

I may not like Blackest Night, but that doesn’t mean it’s badly made. Johns is still a better writer than most people, and Ivan Reis a better artist than most people. When you have people that are good, and have shown you they have the possibility of being excellent, you naturally have to hold them to a higher standard. It’s a smaller sliding scale, and you can pick on panels and dialogue choices, rather than having to address the bigger issues, like inability to connect action, or move a plot forward.

So that’s my little soapbox. In case it wasn’t clear, this issue of Blackest Night: Flash was fun, pick it up. The end! Goodbye!

New DC Reviews: Blackest Night and More!

Alex Zalben — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:00:23 +0000

BLACKEST NIGHT #5: Okay, so… Every time I trash Blackest Night, I get flamed, because clearly Blackest Night is the most important thing that’s happened in the history of forever. It heals the sick, causes the lame to walk, and separates those cats and dogs that are always sleeping together. It’s Christ risen in comic book form, so lets just all move past that, and call it what it is: a very silly action movie. I’m not saying this is necessarily in a bad thing. In the span of comics history, some of my favorite events are high-concept, broad brush strokes books that flit in, let Atlantis attack, and that’s pretty much it. The problem is, I expect more from Geoff Johns, and I think he’s starting to get pulled thin by the amount of work he has.

You’d think he’s concentrate the hardest on this title, as it is the biggest thing since sliced bread, but the writing is, as I stated earlier, just too broad, the action just a little too big, and we’re losing the characters in the middle of this. The surprising thing about this not quite working is that…

GREEN LANTERN #48: …Green Lantern is great. The clarity of focus Johns brings to this issue balances out the two-fisted action of Blackest Night perfectly, bringing creativity, good fights, and great pay-offs to character moments issue after issue. I’m trying not to get too caught up in labels here, but Green Lantern is the spine of this event, not Blackest Night. Which makes no sense. Anyway, one out of two ain’t bad.

SUPERMAN SECRET ORIGINS #3: Oh, except Johns has three books out this week, so there’s that. I wasn’t crazy about the first issue, especially coming so close on the heals of the fabulous Superboy story in Adventure Comics, which covered a lot of the same ground. The second issue did a bit to win me over, and I’m happy to say, I liked this issue quite a bit. Enough that I was a little bummed we’re just getting a greatest hits collection from Frank and Johns, rather than a total reboot of Superman, or something. Gary Frank continues to be the reason for this series existence, perfectly capturing Superman, Clark, and Lois, as well as iconic images of the rest of the Daily Planet staff. And Johns’ script harks back to the history of the character and the movies so seamlessly, that I’ve completely forgotten which was which. Anyway, best issue so far, pick ‘er up.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #39: I think what Blackest Night needs is more heroes standing around wondering what’s happening, and then seeing their dead relatives, and then freaking out about it. That would be nice. Sarcasm aside, it’s a thrill to see Mark Bagley drawing the JLA, and he’s the book for me on this book, at least until Robinson gets his team together, and us out of cross-over land. Oh, one other thing, and this drives me nuts: just because Dr. Light raped one person doesn’t mean all he likes to do is rape. I’m not saying sympathy for the rapist or anything, its just that there has to be other aspects of his character. I like to read comics, but it’s not like that’s all I talk ab– Oh wait.

ARKHAM REBORN #2: We’re certainly not breaking any new ground here (oh no! Arkham’s director is kind of crazy! oh no! a breakout at Arkham!), but David Hine turns in a solid enough script, and intriguing enough ideas that I’ll definitely be picking up the next issue to see where this all ends up.

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #33: Really solid, fun, super big fight scene in this issue. But it all doesn’t amount to a whole lot in the end, and the splitting up of the JSA feels totally unearned. Though, it is nice to see a great Shadowpact villain back in the mix.

WONDER WOMAN #38: I love Gail Simone’s writing, and she’s perfect for WW, but I feel like maybe I need an annotated version of this book. Simone clearly has this well plotted, and is pushing Wondie to some new places, but I just can’t keep track of all of the characters, what their motivations are, or their relationship to each other. But hey, release a $3.99 version of Wonder Woman each month with footnotes, and I am so there.

GOTHAM CITY SIRENS #6: Well, this is just delightful. Can we keep Paul Dini and Guillem March telling Harley Quinn stories forever? Thanks.

WORLD’S FINEST #2: Though I wasn’t in love with the first issue of this team-up series, I like Sterling Gates writing enough to tune in for the second issue, and I can confidently say I’m not in love with this one, either. As usual, Gates turns in a solid, tight script, but there’s something about it that’s just not grabbing me. I do really like than Ramon F. Bachs draws Damien as an actual little kid, though.

BATWOMAN: DETECTIVE COMICS #859: This title shows the potential of the comic storytelling medium as art, and that’s entirely due to J.H. Williams III’s spectacular art, along with Dave Stewart’s stunning colors. Greg Rucka’s script is also excellently paced and involving, as we learn more of Batwoman’s origin, but its the art that makes this one of the best titles of the year, if not the decade.

SUPERMAN #694: It’s nice that Javier Pina draws Mon-El differently than Connor Kent, because I feel it would be easy enough to draw both characters the same way. I wish I knew why everyone in Metropolis loves Mon-El so much, though.

Wednesday New Releases: Criminal, Blackest Night, Chew

TFAW — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:29:35 +0000

Hello everyone! We’ve got a special Blackest Friday edition of Wednesday New Releases! We’ve got Blackest Night #5 and Justice League of America #39, which both come with special Blackest Night Lantern rings (green and red!), as well as Criminal Sinners #2, Chew TPB Vol. 1, and Amazing Spider-Man #613. Watch and see!