Another trip to the comic shop this week and I got four new comics. Conan #27, Red Sonja #9, Ex Machina Special #1, and The Black Coat #1. The first three are regulars and the fourth is something new to try. It looks like a spy/pirate/Zorro book that takes place during the American Revolution (1775). I’ll let you know how it is.
Last week’s trade that I tried, “Ring of Roses” gets a thumbs up but with a asterisk. It took place in an alternate world where the Church of England never broke away from Rome and England is still Catholic. The Pope is going to visit London (it’s 1990 or so) and all sorts of murder and political intrigue happens around his visit. The asterisk is because of the four comics which make up the trade only the last two are really good. Bad storytelling mars the first two issues mainly because the writer has the annoying habit of writing narrative that is different then the scene that is actually being drawn. It took me half a page of reading after a scene change to figure out who was talking. This was cleared up in the last two issues and things were fine. So if you can put up with the initial bad storytelling it is a good read.
I also found a cool site we all can appreciate:
http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/oddball/
2 weeks worth of books here:
Justice #5
This book is starting to get better. Captain Marvel saves Superman’s butt and Wonder Woman kicks Cheetahs ass. Great art. Decent story, so far. Check it out. The only thing I wonder about is the scene where Superman, in a weakened state, slugs Batman. Now, even in his weakened state, you’d think he would’ve literally torn Batman’s jaw off. Am I nitpicking? Who cares?
B+
Hellblazer #219
Constantine feels empathy for people. Apparently, this is a big deal. I still like this book after all these years.
B+
Angel: Old Friends #5
The art sucks and the story is just ok, but I miss the characters so I’ll continue buying these books. For fans only.
C-
Book of Thoth #2
This is an entertaining read despite the fact that Thoth,the main character, is so one-dimensionally evil. He has no redeeming shades of grey whatsoever. Like the Kelly Jones art, though.
B-
Man-Bat #1
I only picked this up because I was a fan of the character back in the 70’s. Thankfully, it’s not yet another “reimagining” of an old character, but a new story building on the old history. That being said, it’s not all that great so far, but I’ll give #2 a chance before dropping it from my buy list.
C
Bite Club: VCU #1
I only picked up the original series because of the sexy Frank Quitely covers, a practice the editor wisely decided to continue with series 2. Yes, that’s a pathetic reason to buy a book, but, simply, I appreciate gratuitous T&A. That being said, this series is nice and grimey. All the characters are out to screw each other (Literally and figuratively), and there’s not a whole lot else out there, lately.
B-
Batman: Year 100 #3
This is the best issue of this series so far. Which is akin to being the best hockey team in Mexico. I only recommend if you’re desperate for anything to pick up. Which I was a few weeks ago.
B-
BPRD: The Univeral Machine #1
Great art. Cool story. I highly recommend.
A
Desolation Jones #6
More nihilistic crap from Warren Ellis. At least he’s not pretending that any of these characters are sympathetic in any way. The art, it should be noted, rocks! I might go back and pick up 1 thru 5 just for that.
B-
Freak Show
This is a reprint from the 70’s that was originally published in Heavy Metal. I highly recommend as it features a good EC-style story by Bruce Jones and Art by Bernie Wrightson when he was at the height of his powers. Too cool.
A