Comics of the Week (2/18/09)

Brave and the Bold #22 - Green Arrow gets cover billing but he does little. The Phantom Stranger is finally crucial to the story line, but the story for me was weak. I didn't care about the characters unique to the tale, and I didn't like how most of the heroes were portrayed either. Bleech. A waste of four issues for me.

the Outsiders #15 - following up from last week's special, Alfred tells the group that they must give up everything for the mission. What? Seriously? While I can see some of these folks willing to do it, I cannot see Black Lightning doing so. He's in the JLA for crying out loud. Why drop that to be an Outsider? It just doesn't work for me. I'll give the story the first arc to convince me otherwise, but I am not holding my breath.

Justice League of America #30 - turning their own shadows against the heroes? Yawn. Not a good issue at all. The Milestone characters mostly fade into the background and Dr. Light gets a souped up costume. That's it? I'm expecting more since Starbreaker has yet to rear his head. We'll see if the story can improve or not.

Tangent: Superman's Reign #12 (of 12) - it is finally over. Man, was that so pointless. Eleven issues build up to a full battle issue and it just ties up as the pages run out. This definitely should have been a shorter series - like maybe six issues. It was just too drawn out. Unless you have any interest in the Tangent universe, skip it.

Trinity #38 - another great cover to start off. Then we find the wayward six confronting the trinity in hopes they'll remember who they are supposed to be. On the backside, the evil arcana seems to be winning the war with one final battlefront left - Metropolis!

Comics of the Week (2/11/09)

Action #874 - the cover focusings on Superman saving Mon-El from the Phantom Zone, but this was not the majority of the issue. First we get some stuff on New Krypton, then stuff at the Daily Planet and then finally to the Fortress of Solitude and Mon-El. Of course, it is continued in the next issue of Superman, which I will have to wait for the library to get in to read. Since Geoff Johns appears to have left the writing on this title, it might be time to drop this crossing over title.

Batman and the Outsiders Special - Batman is gone but he leaves Alfred with a task, which is getting the "band" back together. In this case, it is mostly the original Outsiders line-up with a few more additions. This one-shot was okay but it mostly "see what hero is up to just before Alfred shows up to talk to him/her". I'm willing to see how this spills over into the regular monthly title though.

Booster Gold #17 - another solid issue by Dan Jurgens. This is simple, fun, time-travelling at its best. And Booster finds he has to insure a certain hero ends up getting his powers as is destined. The "Origins and Omens" back up was okay - mostly a recap but there were a couple teaser panels of upcoming stuff.

Rebels #1 - back in the 80's there was L.E.G.I.O.N., the 20th century version of the LSH. That begot R.E.B.E.L.S. Well, the concept is back as Vril Dox comes to Earth with his former organization on his heels. He contacts Supergirl who, unknowingly, has a very critical mission she's been on. It was an interesting start to a new book. I'm think I'll keep getting it for six months at least.

Trinity #37 - a stunning Wonder Woman cover as the tale of the three gods continues. In the back-up feature, Nigma and Le Fey decide they need a new 'Fool' for their arcana. And who is the best fit? The Joker! It is time for a wildcard to get thrown into the mix!

Comics of the Week (2/4/09) part 2

Justice Society of America #23 - Gog is defeated, and there is a shake-up for the team roster as well as the creative team too. Geoff Johns begins his last arc on the book with Jerry Ordway co-writing and drawing. Having Ordway back on the book harkens back to the beginning days of Infinity Inc. for me from the early 80's. I love it! The story is also dealing with Black Adam and Captain Marvel, which has nods to Ordway's work on Power of Shazam in the 90's. Who says you can't go home again?

Secret Six #6 - lots of revelations this issue - about Ragdoll's sibing, about Jeannette's true nature, about the person who hired the Six to begin with, and about how turns on the group for their own needs. Definitely the twists and turns and back-stabbing that I've grown to expect from Gail Simone. She does not disappoint. The six pages of "Origins and Omens" in the back gives a recap of the group and poses more questions about a certain former cast member. A good, solid issue.


Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #3 (of 5) - again, well worth the wait! Once more, Johns and Perez knock it out of the cosmos as the Legions three unite to battle Superboy-Prime and the Legion of Super-Villains. No one draws huge free-for-alls with hundreds of characters better than George Perez. The action is incredible and detailed, well worth the time it takes to really pause and check out everything in each panel. And the story too is packed, with characterization, with history, with such possibility for a follow-up ongoing LSH series. Johns knows his stuff and loves this team. And, finally, we get the tie-in to the "Lightning Saga" that ran in Justice League of America and Justice Society of America a couple years back - the pay-off works!

Comics of the Week (2/4/09) part 1

Adventure Comics #0 - This very cheap ($1.00) book reprints the debut of the Legion of Super-Heroes from the original run of Adventure Comics issue #247. I've read this story dozens of times over in the past and have it in various volumes. So, it was something I could skip reading again. The cover was a newly drawn interpretation of the first meeting of Superboy with the LSH. There was also six pages of new material in the back as part of the "Origins and Omens" event this month. In it, we get a teaser of what's to come for Luthor and Brainiac as well as a recently deceased character who will be making a return soon. The entire issue is a teaser for June's relaunch of the book at a new #1. If Geoff Johns is writing, I'm there.

Trinity #36 - the trinity "gods" are angry and throw down with one another. In the back, the battle of the altered world continues as a hero finds some unexpected allies. Kurt Busiek is clearly using the fifty-two issues to tell an epic tale which benefits greatly from the weekly installments. Some who aren't getting it might enjoy it when it starts to get collected into trade paperbacks in a few months.


Terror Titans #5 (of 6) - the penultimate chapter of this villainy-themed mini continued to deliver. There is a lot of action, a lot of betrayal and still a few questions to be answered in next month's finale. Definitely a fun book that tied loosely to Final Crisis without being ruined by that mini's faults.