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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 13, 2021 7:12:45 GMT -5
OFF THE RACKS!Where you'll find real reviews, no shills  What did you read this week? |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 13, 2021 8:06:14 GMT -5
Detective Comics #1039Written by Mariko Tamaki Art by Viktor Bogdanovic Summary: While Batman attempts to shepherd Lady Clayface to safety, Oracle pinpoints the source of the infections but is she in time?
Plot: With explosions still racking the city and now mobs of Joker and Bane inspired thugs taking to the streets the over the top feeling that began in the last issue sadly carries over to this one...but there is light at the end of the tunnel as instead of creating some new "event" from this chaos Tamaki moves things forward with a brisk pace that promises to finish the story by next issue. And while I wish it was over now instead of next month, it's heartening to see that Tamaki isn't too over-indulgent and is able to wrap things up in a timely fashion which sadly really can't be said of a lot of the writers working these days. It's not all bad though, the interactions between Batman and Huntress continue to be really well done and I love that Tamaki has brought back the Batman-Family feel to the book with Oracle coordinating responses across the city by Dick, Spoiler and Cassandra. For far too long Batman has been a loner in the main books so it's great to see him return to that team leader/ father figure roll and I hope Tamaki continues to build on that as she goes forward.
Art: Bogdanovic continues to have a lot of fun on this book, getting to draw all kinds of wonderful explosions and colorful goons running around. Plotwise all that may be eye rolling because we've seen that story a dozen times by now but artwise it has never been shown as wonderfully as it is here. "Gotham Burning" may be my least favorite story telling trope to emerge in the last twenty years but I have to admit that if that's what we're going to get atleast it looks fun.
Grade:6.5/10
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Post by majestic on Jul 14, 2021 18:06:23 GMT -5
I agree with thwhtguardian review of Detective Comics # 1039. It looks great. Overall I like the story however it does read a bit over the top. |
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Post by majestic on Jul 14, 2021 18:13:22 GMT -5
Thor # 15. Written by Donny Cates. Art by Michelle Bandini.
Revelations: part 1 of 3. Thor is a warrior with a hammer. However to be the best King of Asgard that he can be, he must give up this role. He goes to Capt America for advice. And leaves Mjolnir behind with Cap!
Cates continues to see a whole new side of Thor that he explores with great skill. He continues to impress me with each arc. His Thor is destined to be one of the best versions ever written IMO.
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Post by majestic on Jul 14, 2021 18:20:45 GMT -5
Flash Annual 2021. Written by Jeremy Adams. Art by Brandon Peterson & Fernando Pasarin.
The conclusion of Adam's first arc on the Flash.
This sets up the redemption of Wally West and restores his life from the crap that he has gone through the last several years. We also get a nice scene with Roy Harper that convinced me Adams could write a decent original Titans title.
It sets up a new status quo for the title with Wally taking on the main role and Barry taking a back seat for now. We also get great interactions between Green Arrow, Barry & Mr Terrific.
I hope this title continues to have the other Flash Family (Jay, Bart, Max, Kid Flash) make appearances.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 15, 2021 11:47:15 GMT -5
Black Hammer: Visions #6Written by Cullen Bunn Art by Malachi Ward Summary: Badgered by his wife Cthulhu-Lou goes out to try and support his family only to find that his previous "destiny" is still waiting for him.
Plot: Cthulhu-Lou is one of the many reasons I love the world Jeff Lemire's world of Black Hammer; he took the demonic mythology of H.P. Lovecraft turned it on its head and made it a joke...without it once ever feeling disrespectful. And Bunn continued that here, he plays with the ideas brought forward by Lovecraft but gives them a fun working class twist. There's nothing too deep or earth shattering to be found here, it's basically a slice of life story for Cthulhu-Lou; down on his luck with a baby on the way and no job prospects he strives to avert his destiny. It's light and fun and an absolute joy to read.
Art: Ward does a great job playing into the weirdness of Lovecraft's world while perfectly contrasting it with the everyday. He has a wonderfully cartoony look for Lou, but everything else is rendered in a very realistic, detail oriented style and neither is jarring which is fantastic.
Grade:8/10 |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Jul 15, 2021 12:32:55 GMT -5
Black Hammer: Visions #6Written by Cullen Bunn Art by Malachi Ward Summary: Badgered by his wife Cthulhu-Lou goes out to try and support his family only to find that his previous "destiny" is still waiting for him.
Plot: Cthulhu-Lou is one of the many reasons I love the world Jeff Lemire's world of Black Hammer; he took the demonic mythology of H.P. Lovecraft turned it on its head and made it a joke...without it once ever feeling disrespectful. And Bunn continued that here, he plays with the ideas brought forward by Lovecraft but gives them a fun working class twist. There's nothing too deep or earth shattering to be found here, it's basically a slice of life story for Cthulhu-Lou; down on his luck with a baby on the way and no job prospects he strives to avert his destiny. It's light and fun and an absolute joy to read.
Art: Ward does a great job playing into the weirdness of Lovecraft's world while perfectly contrasting it with the everyday. He has a wonderfully cartoony look for Lou, but everything else is rendered in a very realistic, detail oriented style and neither is jarring which is fantastic.
Grade:8/10 I read this and hadn't had a chance to comment. Given the nature of the series the quality is probably going to be variable, but this was a fun read. I really liked the humorous twist on the Lovecraftian mythos and I absolutely loved that Lou just wants to do his own thing instead of heralding in the Elder Gods. I'm just super happy to have more Black Hammer in any manner. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 15, 2021 13:26:58 GMT -5
Black Hammer: Visions #6Written by Cullen Bunn Art by Malachi Ward Summary: Badgered by his wife Cthulhu-Lou goes out to try and support his family only to find that his previous "destiny" is still waiting for him.
Plot: Cthulhu-Lou is one of the many reasons I love the world Jeff Lemire's world of Black Hammer; he took the demonic mythology of H.P. Lovecraft turned it on its head and made it a joke...without it once ever feeling disrespectful. And Bunn continued that here, he plays with the ideas brought forward by Lovecraft but gives them a fun working class twist. There's nothing too deep or earth shattering to be found here, it's basically a slice of life story for Cthulhu-Lou; down on his luck with a baby on the way and no job prospects he strives to avert his destiny. It's light and fun and an absolute joy to read.
Art: Ward does a great job playing into the weirdness of Lovecraft's world while perfectly contrasting it with the everyday. He has a wonderfully cartoony look for Lou, but everything else is rendered in a very realistic, detail oriented style and neither is jarring which is fantastic.
Grade:8/10 I read this and hadn't had a chance to comment. Given the nature of the series the quality is probably going to be variable, but this was a fun read. I really liked the humorous twist on the Lovecraftian mythos and I absolutely loved that Lou just wants to do his own thing instead of heralding in the Elder Gods. I'm just super happy to have more Black Hammer in any manner. More good Black Hammer is always a welcome thing. I love that being a plumber was ultimately what saved the day. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 15, 2021 16:41:29 GMT -5
Mouse Guard:The Owlhen Caregiver #1Story and art by David Petersen
Summary: After four long years Mouse Guard is back with three new short stories about compassion, kindness and understanding.
Plot: Before I jump into talking about David Peterson's triumphant return to Mouse Guard I think I need to first stop and talk about my comic buying habits. While digital comics have been a staple of my comics buying pretty much since their inception with the COVID shut down last year I went to 100% digital for my comics and even though the shops have long since opened back up I decided that actually going to shop just wasn't that big of a draw for me and that I just don't actually need physical books so besides a few special issues (like TMNT: The Last Ronin) I've been keeping with digital but this is just one of those books where actually holding it in your hands really is part of the experience. Like all the other normal Mouse Guard releases (the hardcover Free Comic Book Day books are in a different format) this book looks special right off the racks with its 8x8 size it just looks and feels differently than anything else out there. And it isn't just the look either as it reads differently as well, its three stories are more akin to the morality plays we grew up with as children in fairy tales that fiction seems to lose as it grows up but instead of feeling childish the messages of service and virtue is instead extremely comforting and endearing. And what's more exciting? Though only a one shot there are more to come, with a regularly released story coming in the not too distant future.
Art: Petersen's art takes great advantage of the 8x8 size of the book, with the symmetrically sized panels giving his work a picture-book like quality that fits perfectly with the warm and comforting themes the stories contain.
Grade:10/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 15, 2021 16:47:56 GMT -5
As an aside, though I'm normally against buying multiple copies of a book and especially avoid buying books just because of their cover art I did pick up a physical copy of the He-Man comic I had purchased digitally just last week when I went in to pick up Mouse Guard. The Mignola art was just too damn stunning to pass up: |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jul 17, 2021 10:31:09 GMT -5
I really need to get Mouse Guard one of these days... I have one of the trades, and it's really right up my alley, just so many things out there.
Lots of books for me this week (a couple from last week).. read a couple this morning:
X-Men #1 : I do not like Hickman. At all. He essentially ruined Avengers, which has yet to recover, IMO. His FF was decent enough, but didn't stick a landing, which seems a chronic thing. His X-Men big idea is great though... a mutuant country/society of it's own (of course that's been done a few times, but never this big). He actually started the ball rolling with how such a thing would effect the world. I'm not sure if he's still writing anything, but this book is the return of a formal superhero team.. the X-Men set up shop at an awesome new base near Central Park and stave off a alien invader, with a little high five from the Avengers and the FF at the end.
The team is most of the heavy hitters, but not exactly as you'd expect (Cyclops, Jean Grey, Rogue, Wolverine (X-23, not Logan), Polaris, Sunfire, and Synch). Duggan seems to have realized by having Synch on the team, you can literally pop in any X-Men ever for any mission, he just has to go hang out with them for a bit and come back. The story itself is good.. sets the team up, has a cool action sequence (they build a X-Mech!), and establishes the future. Apparently, other cultures out in the universe and worried that Earth has colonized another planet, and want to take the Earthings out before it gets worse. Sounds like the basis of Duggan's series will be new random alien threats (Though a familiar face was in the alien scene), which could be fun. The team seems pretty powerful, maybe too much so, but we'll see how that goes.
For now, definitely a worthwhile read, if it can be it's own thing and not get mired in crossovers.
Way of X #4 : I see now why this is called 'Way of X' and not just a Nightcrawler book. If this was the Silver age, Legion and Kurt would have their own separate stories I think... instead, they are (Slightly) integrated, but really they're totally separate.. Legion is hunting for ONslaught, and Nightcrawler is hunting for the soul of Mutantdom. Great issue on both counts, as Fabian Cortez presented Kurt a seemingly unsolvable problem that he fixes with his unique panache, and David goes to dad to help with Onslaught, with predictable results. It's too bad the nature of this story makes it a limited engagement.. I really like Si Spurrier's take on Marvel's Mutants.. I hope he writes something else next.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 17, 2021 17:12:41 GMT -5
I really need to get Mouse Guard one of these days... I have one of the trades, and it's really right up my alley, just so many things out there. Lots of books for me this week (a couple from last week).. read a couple this morning: X-Men #1 : I do not like Hickman. At all. He essentially ruined Avengers, which has yet to recover, IMO. His FF was decent enough, but didn't stick a landing, which seems a chronic thing. His X-Men big idea is great though... a mutuant country/society of it's own (of course that's been done a few times, but never this big). He actually started the ball rolling with how such a thing would effect the world. I'm not sure if he's still writing anything, but this book is the return of a formal superhero team.. the X-Men set up shop at an awesome new base near Central Park and stave off a alien invader, with a little high five from the Avengers and the FF at the end. The team is most of the heavy hitters, but not exactly as you'd expect (Cyclops, Jean Grey, Rogue, Wolverine (X-23, not Logan), Polaris, Sunfire, and Synch). Duggan seems to have realized by having Synch on the team, you can literally pop in any X-Men ever for any mission, he just has to go hang out with them for a bit and come back. The story itself is good.. sets the team up, has a cool action sequence (they build a X-Mech!), and establishes the future. Apparently, other cultures out in the universe and worried that Earth has colonized another planet, and want to take the Earthings out before it gets worse. Sounds like the basis of Duggan's series will be new random alien threats (Though a familiar face was in the alien scene), which could be fun. The team seems pretty powerful, maybe too much so, but we'll see how that goes. For now, definitely a worthwhile read, if it can be it's own thing and not get mired in crossovers. Way of X #4 : I see now why this is called 'Way of X' and not just a Nightcrawler book. If this was the Silver age, Legion and Kurt would have their own separate stories I think... instead, they are (Slightly) integrated, but really they're totally separate.. Legion is hunting for ONslaught, and Nightcrawler is hunting for the soul of Mutantdom. Great issue on both counts, as Fabian Cortez presented Kurt a seemingly unsolvable problem that he fixes with his unique panache, and David goes to dad to help with Onslaught, with predictable results. It's too bad the nature of this story makes it a limited engagement.. I really like Si Spurrier's take on Marvel's Mutants.. I hope he writes something else next. Mouse Guard is totally worth getting into, even if my interactions with David Peterson at cons haven't been great the books are among my favorite from the last 20 years. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jul 17, 2021 23:39:40 GMT -5
I also really liked The Cimmerian for this month doing the Man-Eaters of Zamboula. LOVE the art.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 18, 2021 10:14:39 GMT -5
I also really liked The Cimmerian for this month doing the Man-Eaters of Zamboula. LOVE the art. Yeah, it was a really fantastic read. The Frost Giant's Daughter (despite my feelings about her depiction) might still be my favorite so far but this was easily the second best. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 18, 2021 16:23:01 GMT -5
The latest issue of Silver Coin (#4) was a rare miss by Jeff Lemire for me. The futuristic setting just came out of no where for the book and it wasn't established well within the story itself. Worse than that, its ending didn't seem to fit the idea of the book at all, previously the titular silver coin gave the character some kind of wish fulfillment only to reveal a horrific price latter on...but nothing like that happened here. What the coin did for the girl was unclear and it didn't seem to doom her either...and there's no follow up in the next issue either as it goes in an entirely different direcion.
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