Comics on the Rack, Quick Picks for Comics Due 02-03-10

COMICS ON THE RACK

Quick Picks for Comics Due 02-03-10

By John Judy

 

BLACKEST NIGHT: WONDER WOMAN #3 of 3 by Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott.  WW's had her world rocked from fighting Black Lanterns, being a Black Lantern and then becoming an honorary Star Sapphire.  But no matter things get, she makes it look good.

 

THE BOYS #39 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson.  New story arc kicks off here with everyone getting closer to knowing stuff they ought not.  Awkward moments galore!  Recommended.  Not for kids.

 

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #32 by Brad Meltzer and Georges Jeanty.  "Chapter One: Buffy Has F#@$ing Superpowers."  Worth it for the tribute cover alone.  Recommended.

 

CRIMINAL: SINNERS #4 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.  Ex-Army bad-ass Tracy Lawless has been busted by Uncle Sam, which leaves him almost as screwed as disappointing the gangsters he's been working for.  What's an AWOL royal executioner to do?  Highly recommended.

 

CROGAN'S MARCH HC written and drawn by Chris Schweizer.  How long has it been since you've read a good French Foreign Legion story involving flesh-eating monsters?  Too long, obviously!  From Oni Press.

 

DEMO #1 of 6 by Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan.  A series of done-in-one stories, each one sketching pivotal events in the lives of their unique protagonists.  From the author of NORTHLANDERS and DMZ.

 

DISNEY'S HERO SQUAD: ULTRAHEROES #1 by Riccardo Secchi and Stefano Turconi.  No, this is not the first Avengers comic under the Disney logo.  This is the all-ages adventures of Super Goof, the Duck Avenger, Eega Beeva and the Red Bat.  And they don't meet Wolverine until next issue.  From BOOM! Studios.

 

DOOM PATROL #7 by J.M. DeMatteis and Matthew Clark.  One of the greatest DP members ever, Crazy Jane, is back. But will she bring her multiple personalities and Morrisonian weirdness with her?  Plus, Metal Men!

 

GREEN LANTERN: SECRET ORIGIN SC by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis.  What it sounds like.  Collecting GL #29-35 with some nifty foreshadowing of the current "Blackest Night."  Recommended.

 

INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #23 by Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca.  Tony Stark remains comatose while Norman Osborn's assassin draws ever closer.  This one's got three variant covers so it must be awesome!

 

JUSTICE SOCIETY ANNUAL #2 by Keith Giffen, Matthew Sturges and Tom Derenick.  The JSA thinks Magog's responsible for a prison break and he's miffed.  Expect fisticuffs and zappage.

 

MARVEL HEARTBREAKERS #1 by Various Creators.  Four Valentine's Day tales featuring the heartache of hormonal heroines.  Starring Dazzler, MJ and Gwen, the Nextwave gals and Snowbird.  That's right, Snowbird!  You got a problem with Snowbird?  Take it up with Dazzler, I say!  Gotta look!

 

MILESTONE FOREVER #1 of 2 by Dwayne McDuffie and Many of Milestone's Original Artists.  In which we see the merging of the Milestone Universe with the DCU from the Milestone POV.  Gotta look!

 

THE QUESTION #37 by Greg Rucka, Denys Cowan and Bill Sienkiewicz.  Vic Sage is back from the dead and looking to mix it up with the new Question.  I loves me some Rucka but what a shame they couldn't get Dennis O'Neil to write it.

 

SCALPED #37 by Jason Aaron and RM Guera.  When last we left our heroes Chief Red Crow was voluntarily having his guts kicked out by the Hmong gangsters.  Is it possible they have him right where he wants them?  Highly recommended.  Not for kids.

 

SIEGE #2 of 4 by Brian Michael Bendis and Joe Quesada.  For some reason someone thinks it would be a fine idea to invade a city full of gods.  This in turn is guaranteed to result in an Avenger dying.  Tough break, Living Lightning.  (Note: I'm kidding about Living Lightning, but if Bendis did off him would people have to start calling him Dead Lightning?  Because that actually sounds cooler.)

 

SEIGE: EMBEDDED #2 of 4 by Brian Reed and Chris Samnee.  Y'know, you can't have a really great company-wide cross-over without a title devoted to the brave reporters who are covering all that stuff you've already read in the other titles.  Sorta goes without saying.

 

SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #12 of 12 by Greg Rucka, James Robinson and Pete Woods.  Supes and Adam Strange unravel the Kryptonian conspiracy but at what cost?  Plus, it looks like Brainiac is back for seconds.  Big finish!

 

TORCH #5 of 8 by Mike Carey, Alex Ross and Patrick Berkenkotter.  They should change the name of this comic to TORCHES because there's three of 'em in this issue.  Nobody can turn a one-shot into a maxi-series like Alex Ross!

 

ULTIMATE COMICS X #1 by Jeph Loeb and Art Adams.  So it appears Ultimate Wolverine has an Ultimate Kid or he's pretending to be dead while masquerading as a surly blonde teenager.  In spite of Loeb's recent output, this one merits a look because it is drawn by the great Arthur Adams.  And Loeb likewise always merits a look, if only to see if he's getting his game back.  Fingers crossed.

 

WOLVERINE: SAVAGE ONE-SHOT by Ryan Dunlavey and Richard Elson.  Wolvie's fighting monsters at sea!  Big ones!  Maximum choppage!

 

WOLVERINE WEAPON X #10 by Jason Aaron and C.P. Smith.  Nobody writes Wolverine better than Jason Aaron and this one introduces a new woman into his cursed life.  Good luck, lady!  And may god have mercy on your immortal whatever…  Highly recommended.

 

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Comics on the Rack (Quick Picks for Comics Due 01-06-10) by John Judy

The former Quick Reviews with a new name for a new year. Happy 2010!

COMICS ON THE RACK

(Quick Picks for Comics Due 01-06-10)

by John Judy

 

BLACKEST NIGHT: WONDER WOMAN #2 of 3 by Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott.  Diana must battle the Black Lanterns, a hot-tempered fish-woman and Death itself!  Did I mention the hot-tempered fish-woman?

 

BPRD: KING OF FEAR #1 of 5 by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Guy Davis.  The BPRD is gonna put the frog menace to rest once and for all!  And that's just for starters!  How can any red-blooded American resist?

 

THE BOYS #38 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson.  The secret origin of The Female, in the inimitable BOYS fashion.  Recommended.  Not for kids.

 

DOOM PATROL#6 by Keith Giffen and Matthew Clark.  This month features everyone who's ever been wrapped completely in radiation-proof bandages to keep from killing their team-mates.  Plus, the Metal Men.

 

JSA ALL-STARS #2 by Matthew Sturges and Freddie Williams II.  Big fights and loud arguments!  And that's before the bad guys show up!

 

LIFE & TIMES OF SCROOGE McDUCK , VOL. 1 HC written and drawn by Don Rosa.  What it sounds like, kids: The biography of the fowl plutocrat who makes Monty Burns look like a dude wearing a paper hat at the deep fryer.  Great for all ages.  Recommended.

 

MARVEL BOY: THE URANIAN #1 of 3 by Jeff Parker, Marko Djurdjevic and Felix Ruiz.  A little background on your favorite Agent of Atlas: bubble-helmeted saucer jockey, Bob Grayson, the boy who fell to Earth.

 

NATION X: X-FACTOR #1 by Peter David and Valentine DeLandro.  Yeah, so like Cyclops is asking X-Factor to move into Utopia with him?  And it's like, y'know, maybe it's too soon?  Cuz, there are still, like, issues?  And Cyke's a bit of a control freak and X-Factor likes their space.  On the other hand, he would totally pay for utilities!

 

ORC STAIN #1 written and drawn by James Stokoe.  I really just wanted to type the title.  From Image Comics.

 

PREVIEWS by Marvel and Diamond Comics.  "It's 2010.  Do you know what your comics are?"

 

SIEGE #1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Olivier Coipel.  This is the big one:  Norman Osborn versus the World.  Or is it the other way around?

 

STUMPTOWN #2 by Greg Rucka and Matthew Southworth.  Chronic gambler and private investigator Dex must be getting closer to her target because the bullets keep getting closer to her.  Good stuff, set in Portland, Oregon, one of America's great cities.  Recommended.

 

SUICIDE SQUAD: BLACKEST NIGHT #67 by John Ostrander, Gail Simone and J. Calafiore.  A one issue revival of a classic DC title as the Squad goes after the Secret Six, the Black Lanterns and anyone else that happens along.  It's a ruckus!

 

SUPERMAN WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #11 by Greg Rucka, James Robinson and Pete Woods.  Supes and Adam Strange uncover some shenanigans in their murder investigation on New Krypton.  Super-shenanigans!

 

UNCLOTHED MAN IN THE 35^TH CENTURY AD HC written and drawn by Dash Shaw.  A series of short stories from the creator of the acclaimed BOTTOMLESS BELLY BUTTON, plus some production material from his series airing on IFC.com.  Gotta look.

 

UNWRITTEN, VOL. 1: TOMMY TAYLOR AND THE BOGUS IDENTITY SC by Mike Carey and Peter Gross.  Collecting the first five issues of the breakout hit series that blurs the line where fictional characters end and real people begin.  Clever, scary stuff for mature readers.  Recommended.

 

WALKING DEAD, VOL. 11: FEAR THE HUNTERS SC by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard.  Collecting one of the creepiest story arcs yet, in which the flesh-eating threat is no longer coming from the zombies.  Rough stuff, even for this bunch.  Recommended.  Not for kids.

 

WEIRD WESTERN TALES #71 by Dan DiDio and Renato Arlem.  Come on, admit it, you've always wanted to see DC's old Western heroes rise from the dead as evil Black Lanterns!  Y'see where the "Weird" part comes in here?  Eh?  Eh?  Yippee-ki-yay, Black Lanterns!

 

www.johnjudy.net

 

Quick Reviews for Comics Due THURSDAY (not Wednesday) 09-10-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE THURSDAY (not Wednesday) 09-10-09

By John Judy

 

ADVENTURE COMICS #2 by Geoff Johns, Michael Shoemaker, Francis Manapul and Clayton Henry.  Superboy and Wonder Girl have "the talk."  So do Lightning Lad and his evil brother Lightning Lord, after a fashion.  Hijinks ensue.

 

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #604 by Fred Van Lente and Barry Kitson.  In which we learn how wrapping yourself in web fluid can keep you alive and breathing for days in a vat of flesh and bone disintegrating acid while the Chameleon assumes your identity.  Also the Black Cat maybe shows up and acts all flirty.

 

DARK AVENGERS / UNCANNY X-MEN: EXODUS #1 by Matt Fraction and Mike Deodato. Big fight containing nuggets of plot and character.  Because you demanded it or something!

 

DARK REIGN: THE LIST AVENGERS ONE-SHOT by Brian Michael Bendis and Marko Djurdjevic.  "Clint Barton fans… you are not going to want to miss this one!"

 

DOOM PATROL #2 by Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, Matthew Clark and Kevin Maguire.  The DP fight a black hole and the Metal Men go into space.  That's right: Space!

 

KICK-ASS #7 by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr.  Four months after the last issue came out we finally learn what hideous fate awaits Big Daddy, Hit-Girl and that dirty traitor Red Mist.  You do remember Big Daddy, Hit-Girl and that dirty traitor Red Mist, don't you?  Come on, it's only been four months!  Quality takes time and so does KICK-ASS!  Stop whispering how the last time an issue of KICK-ASS came out Michael Jackson still had two months to live!  Just stop it, I say!

 

MARVELS PROJECT #2 of 8 by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting.  The best thing to happen to Marvel/Timely's golden age since THE TWELVE.  See how it all came to be with a little retroactive continuity polish.  Highly recommended.

 

PUNISHER FRANK: CASTLE MAX #74 by Vic Gischler and Goran Parlov.  It's a sign of just how low Frank has fallen when his survival depends on the punk he had doped up and stuffed in his trunk.  Featuring hulking hillbilly swamp cannibals.  Recommended.

 

SECRET SIX #13 by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott.  After last issue's brutal take-down of Wonder Woman you probably didn't think the Six could get darker.  Guess again.  The closest the DCU has to an old-school EC crime/horror comic.  Recommended.

 

STITCHES HC written and drawn by David Small.  The autobiographical story of how a young boy woke from a "harmless operation" to discover a major and unpleasant surprise.  No capes, but lots of action.  Highly recommended.

 

SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #7 of 12 by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. What alien race would be dumb enough to declare war on a planet full of super-powered Kryptonians?  Other than humans?  The answer may surprise you.  Or not.  Either way this thing is playing out much stronger than expected.  Recommended.

 

THUNDERBOLTS #135 by Andy Diggle and Miguel Angel Sepulveda.  The T-Bolts were backstabbing, corrupt and psychotic before DARK REIGN made it cool.  Let's see who ends up with the most steel between their ribs, shall we?  Recommended.

 

ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #2 by Mark Millar and Carlos Pacheco.  So Ultimate Red Skull is Ultimate Captain America's son and Ultimate Tony Stark now has an "older, richer, smarter brother" who we somehow never saw in his own series.  Oh, Millar…!

 

UNWRITTEN #5 by Mike Carey and Peter Gross.  A little stand-alone tale of Rudyard Kipling and how he fits in with Tommy Taylor's rapidly collapsing ficto-verse.  Highly recommended.

 

WEDNESDAY COMICS #10 of 12 by Various Creators.  Lots going on as the end draws nigh but seeing Superman and Hawkman getting ready to stomp alien monsters and dinosaurs respectively promises great fun still to be had.  Recommended.

 

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-05-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 08-05-09
By John Judy

ABSOLUTION #1 of 6 by Christos Gage and Roberto Viacava. John Dusk is a super-hero who decides to stop playing nice. Moral quandaries ensue.

AGENTS OF ATLAS #9 by Jeff Parker and Dan Panosian. Jimmy Woo has to fight his ex-girlfriend and her killer robot. Don’t we all?

ALL-WINNERS COMICS #1: 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL by Karl Kesel and Steve Uy. “Old Soldiers Never Die” especially at the House of Ideas! Zombies in Times Square! Who could tell? Fun stuff!

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #601 by Mark Waid and Mario Alberti. America’s favorite redhead is back and I don’t mean Danny Bonaduce! “Face it, Tiger, you hit the continuity problem jackpot!” (But it’s Waid so it’ll be fine.)

ASTRO CITY: THE DARK AGE BOOK THREE #4 of 4 by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson. Those Williams brothers are in a heap o’ trouble. Recommended.

BLACK PANTHER #7 by Reginald Hudlin, Jonathon Maberry and Will Conrad. The all-new, all-pretty Black Panther takes the reins now that everyone wants to mess with a Wakanda weakened by battle. Poor, dumb everyone. You think they would have learned….

BOYS #33 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The cold war between the Boys and the supes just keeps getting hotter. Not for kids. Recommended.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #27 by Jane Espenson and Georges Jeanty. Having stranded her Slayer-Submarine in the mountains of Tibet, Buffy must now place her fate in the hands of a werewolf. But it’s cool because it’s Oz and he’s, y’know, cool. We love Jane Espenson on this book and so do you. Highly recommended.

CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN #2 of 5 by Ed Brubaker and Bryan Hitch. The good guys and the bad guys race to get to Steve Rogers who is, unbelievably I know, NOT DEAD ANYMORE! Okay, who had “2 years, 5 months” in the pool? You in the Hulk sweatshirt? Right, you get the gift certificate, dinner for two at Wendy’s and our undying respect and love. But we’re all winners here, right? Get it? “ALL-WINNERS?” I’m here all week, folks…

DOOM PATROL #1 by Keith Giffen, Matthew Clark, J.M. DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire. The all-new adventures of DC’s favorite freaks! And if that ain’t enough you also get a back-up feature of the original Rock ‘Em, Sock ‘Em Robots, Doc Magnus and the Metal Men! Gotta look!

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: RUN #4 of 6 by Matthew Sturges and Freddie E. Williams II. “Trashy humor and unnecessary violence… property damage and hideous disfigurement…!” Okay! Recommended!

GHOST RIDERS: HEAVENS FIRE #1 of 6 by Jason Aaron and Roland Boschi. Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch have to save the Anti-Christ to save the world. And wouldn’t that be a great catch-phrase for a network TV show?

HULK #13 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. Wicked Norman Osborn sends Ares the God of War to puzzle out the identity of the Red Hulk (or “Rulk” if you must), although any fanboy who hasn’t figured this one out after last issue’s Ego the Living Planet-sized clue really needs to hang up their purple pants and go back to Komics Kindergarten. Or become a story editor at Marvel.

IRREDEEMABLE #5 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause. A little number from the author of KINGDOM COME about a good guy going bad. Really horrifyingly good. Recommended.

IRREDEEMABLE, VOL. 1 SC by Waid and Krause. The first four issues collected for you latecomers. Recommended.

JUSTICE LEAGUE: CRY FOR JUSTICE #2 of 7 by James Robinson and Mauro Cascioli. Hal and Ollie’s splinter group of pre-emptive butt-kickers gets their game on. Watch out, evil-doers! Here comes Congorilla and the blue Starman!

POLITICAL POWER #1: COLIN POWELL by Wey-Yuih Loh, Matt Flyer and Vinnie Tartamella. A little something different, a biography in comics form about a man who might have been President if he hadn’t been a Republican.

RED CIRCLE: THE HANGMAN #1 by J. Michael Straczynski, Tom Derenick and Bill Sienkiewicz. The first of the old Archie heroes gets relaunched here! He hangs people! Sometimes. Other times he prevents it. It evens out mostly. OK, honestly this one’s gonna be a tough sell, but it has The Great Straczynski at the keyboard so that’s a big plus.

SECRET SIX #12 by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott. The gang fights Wonder Woman.

SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #6 of 12 by Greg Rucka, James Robinson and Pete Woods. Someone gets shot on New Krypton. But everyone there’s bulletproof, so what’s the harm?

WALKING DEAD, VOL. 10: WHAT WE BECOME SC by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard. Collecting WD #55-60 in which the survivors of the zombie plague begin their trek to Washington D.C. and safety. Boy, if they only knew… Recommended. Not for kids.

WARREN ELLIS FRANKENSTEIN’S WOMB GN by WE and Marek Oleksicki. That nice Mister Ellis takes on Mrs. Shelley and her lad. Not for kids.

WEDNESDAY COMICS #5 of 12 by Various Creators. By now you’re either in love with this Newspaper Comics Section of the Gods or you’re not. If you’re not you can stop reading this now.

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-29-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-29-09

By John Judy

CITIZEN REX #1 of 6 by Mario and Gilbert Hernandez. “What compels life without a soul?” No, it’s not a biography of Dick Cheney. It’s a sci-fi adventure about a scandalized robot in a world he never made. For fans of LOVE & ROCKETS and good comics everywhere. Recommended.

DARK REIGN CROSS-OVERS by Tons o’ People. Let’s see, there’s HAWKEYE, HOOD, LETHAL LEGION, SINISTER SPIDER-MAN and YOUNG AVENGERS. Go completists, go! It’s feeding time at the DARK REIGN trough! Good luck!

DETECTIVE COMICS #855 by Greg Rucka, JH Williams III and Cully Hamner. Batwoman and the Question do the detecting thing and look really good doing so. Hey, if you’re gonna call yourselves Batwoman and/or the Question you better be at the top of your game. Otherwise people will talk.

FANTASTIC FOUR #569 by Mark Millar and Stuart Immonen. The Marquis of Death must pay for his treatment of Doom! And for being French!

GARTH ENNIS BATTLEFIELDS: TANKIES #3 of 3 by Garth and Carlos Ezquerra. It’s end-game as the lads must finally face the deadly German tiger tank. Riveting wartime adventure. Recommended.

GHOST RIDER: LAST STAND SC by Jason Aaron and Tan Eng Hut. Continuing Aaron’s run on this hellfire and booze-fueled cycle circus originally published in GHOST RIDER #26-32.

IGNITION CITY #4 of 5 by Warren Ellis and Gianluca Pagliarani. Mary Raven’s in the firefight of her life armed with naught but her dead dad’s raygun and her own spunk to see her through. Bet on the Ellis uber-chick.

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #29 by Bill Willingham, Matthew Surges and Jesus Merino. A new creative team adds two new characters to the JSA roster. But will they last?

KID COLT #1 by Tom DeFalco and Rick Burchett. It’s a Tom DeFalco comic and a Western. That makes it twice as unusual in today’s market.

NEW AVENGERS #55 by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen. It’s a new issue and Brother Voodoo is still the sorcerer supreme. And you thought Bucky America was a lot to accept.

NORTHLANDERS #19 by Brian Wood and Danijel Zezelj. “The Shield Maidens” wraps up with the ladies inflicting some serious choppage. Highly recommended.

NORTHLANDERS, VOL. 2: THE CROSS AND THE HAMMER SC by Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly. Collecting Northlanders #11-16. An Irishman rebels against his Viking rulers. It’s awesome. Highly recommended.

PREVIEWS by Marvel and Diamond Comics. See what you’ll be reading, wearing and playing in three months time!

STUFF OF LEGEND #1 of 2 by Mike Raicht, Brian Smith and Charles Paul Wilson III. In 1944 a small boy is dragged into his closet by the Boogeyman. Now it’s up to his toys to go in and rescue him. Great fun for reading at bedtime, especially if the kids have been naughty. Gotta look!

SUPERMAN #690 by James Robinson and Renato Guedes. Mon-El: Still dying.

THUNDERBOLTS #134 by Andy Diggle and Miguel Angel Sepulveda. Be honest, did anyone ever think Songbird would be so tough to kill? I mean, her name is “Songbird” for crying out loud! And now it’s like Wolverine and Keith Richards had a kid and he wasn’t a tattooed, mohawked moron! I digress… Good comic, worth a read or three.

ULTIMATUM #5 of 5 by Jeph Loeb and David Finch. The last issue. Lots of people dead. For now.

ULTIMATUM: SPIDER-MAN REQUIEM #2 of 2 by Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley and Stuart Immonen. Ultimate J. Jonah Jameson continues his weepy eulogy for Ultimate Almost Certainly Dead Spidey.

WEDNESDAY COMICS #4 of 12 by Lotsa Awesome People. So ya say ya want Hawkman by Kyle Baker? Metamorpho by Neil Gaiman? A Kamandi adventure in the style of Prince Valiant? We have that and a lot more! Metal Men! Flash! Green Lantern! It’s a smorgasbord! Highly recommended.

WONDER WOMAN #34 by Gail Simone and Aaron Lopresti. It’s WW and Black Canary! What a pair! Recommended!

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-22-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-22-09

By John Judy

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #600 by Lotsa People, including Stan the Man, Mark Waid, Dan Slott and JR Jr. It’s an all-new, no reprints anniversary issue featuring 104 pages of web-slinging wonderment! Read it!

ARCHIE #599 by Stan Goldberg and the Gang. It’s the last one before #600, Riverdaliens! This one features three stories including “Return to Riverstock” in which the gang commemorates the 40^th anniversary of a certain music festival. Fun for all ages.

AVENGERS INITIATIVE #26 by Christos Gage and Rafa Sandoval. Norman Osborn is taking the old Mr. Miyagi’s Little Tree Initiative and turning it into the evil Cobra Kai Initiative. Because he’s EVIL!

BEANWORLD VOL.2 HC: A GIFT COMES written and drawn by Larry Marder. Collecting the final twelve issues of this unique and imaginative series.

BLACK PANTHER #6 by Reginald Hudlin and Mitch Brietwieser. The final battle with Morlun, Devourer of Totems! Please, god, let this be the final battle with Morlun, Devourer of Totems…

BOYS: HEROGASM #3 of 6 by Garth Ennis and John McCrea. A death at Herogasm! And not a little one either. Not for kids. Recommended.

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI13 #15 by Paul Cornell and Leonard Kirk. The final dust-up between Dracula and all the limey super-spies he hasn’t already killed.

CREEPY ARCHIVES, VOL. 4 HC by Various Creators. Collecting issues 16-20 of this classic horror series with a spooky/fabulous cover by Frank Frazetta. Nice!

DETHLOK VS THE GOON ONE-SHOT by Eric Powell and Brandon Small. No, it’s not the Marvel cyborg from the future. The Goon is mixing it up with the greatest American/Scandinavian death-metal band in the world, DETHLOK!!! Thank-you, Dark Horse. Thank-you Adult Swim. Gotta look!

FINAL CRISIS: LEGION OF THREE WORLDS #5 of 5 by Geoff Johns and George Perez. Hey, ya remember FINAL CRISIS? Me neither, musta been retconned out of my brain. Nevertheless, here straggling across the finish-line after all the other FC titles and cross-overs have showered, gone home, gone back to work, married and had babies is FCLOTW #5! Enjoy!

GREEN LANTERN #44 by Geoff Johns and Doug Mahnke. Black Lantern Jonn Jonzz is back from the dead and looking to eat what he kills. At least he no longer looks like a Skrull. Now he looks like Thanos.

HELLBLAZER #257 by Peter Milligan and Giuseppe Camuncoli. Featuring a cover by Simon Bisley suggesting John Constantine is now working as a greeter at Abercrombie and Fitch. Rated “A” for abs.

IMMORTAL WEAPONS #1 of 5 by Jason Aaron, Duane Swierczynski and Many Talented Artists. It’s the story of Fat Cobra so you want it! It’s by Jason Aaron so you need it! Highly recommended.

INCREDIBLE HULK #600 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. Spidey’s gonna try and find out who the Red Hulk really is. Yeah, he’s gonna try…. SPOILER: He’s Michael Jackson.

PROJECT SUPERPOWERS CHAPTER TWO #1 by The Alex Ross Factory. Because some of you still haven’t learned…

RICHARD STARK’S PARKER THE HUNTER HC written and drawn by Darwyn Cooke. Donald Westlake’s first Parker novel adapted by comics master Cooke. Yeah, you need this, especially if you enjoyed the movie “Payback” with Mel Gibson and Maria Bello. Highly recommended.

WEDNESDAY COMICS #3 of 12 by Various Awesome Folk. Now this is the weekly series DC should have been doing for the past couple of years! Beautiful, serialized stories presented in glorious tabloid format. Even my least favorite of the strips (“Wonder Woman! Cough! Cough!”) looks amazing. This is one to share with your friends, especially if your friends publish newspapers with comics sections. Highly recommended!

YOU HAVE KILLED ME HC by Jamie S. Rich and Joelle Jones. From Oni Press and the creators of 12 REASONS WHY I LOVE HER, this is a noir tale to remind all us hard-boiled private dicks why it’s a bad idea to take your ex on as a client.

YOU SHALL DIE BY YOUR OWN EVIL CREATION SC by Fletcher Hanks and Paul Karasik. This is the sequel volume to 2007’s deeply disturbing and entertaining I SHALL DESTROY ALL CIVILIZED PLANETS and completes the collection of golden-age writer/artist (and monster) Fletcher Hanks. Publisher Fantagraphics has generously provided a 13 page preview on their website http://www.fantagraphics.com/. Highly recommended.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-15-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-15-09
By John Judy

ACTION COMICS #879 by Greg Rucka, James Robinson, Fernando Dagnino and Cafu. Nightwing! Flamebird! Captain Atom! The reasons one buys ACTION COMICS!

AGENTS OF ATLAS #8 by Jeff Parker and Carlo Pagulayan. The AoAs meet the Hulk. Smashing ensues.

ALL-SELECT COMICS #1: 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL by Marc Guggenheim and Javier Pulido. The Blonde Phantom is “gorgeous, quick-witted and hard-boiled!” I think I used to date her. Nefarious schemes will be foiled, believe you me! Plus a golden-age reprint and Marvex the Super-Robot! Recommended.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #599 by Joe Kelly and Marco Checchetto. For some reason this has Richard Nixon on the cover. Hey, the last time Spidey had a President on the cover it went to seven printings or something. Marvel ain’t no dummy.

BATMAN: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE CAPED CRUSADER HC by Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert and Others. “Ummm, he got kilt?” It’s Neil doing his dreamy funeral thing. Looks good too. Plus other Gaiman Bat-tales. All good.

BLACKEST NIGHT #1 of 8 by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis. “The dead shall rise!” Or as we say here in Comics-Land: “It’s Wednesday!” If your favorite hero snuffed it in the past few years they’re probably here looking corpsey. Gotta look!

CAPTAIN AMERICA #601 by Ed Brubaker and Gene “The Dean” Colan. Those two names in the credits should tell you how good this book is. Highly recommended.

CREEPY COMICS #1 by Many Talented Horror-Meisters, including Angelo Torres and Bernie Wrightson. It’s back from the publishing graveyard and ready to eat your brains in glorious black and white! For fans of the original mag and those who weren’t even born back then. Featuring two painted covers by Eric Powell. Yum!

DAN DARE OMNIBUS VOL. 1 TP by Garth Ennis and Gary Erskine. Collecting the cult favorite mini-series that brought the British space hero out of retirement in every possible way. Good stuff.

DARK AVENGERS #7 by Matt Fraction and Simone Bianchi. The DAs throw down with the X-gang in San Francisco. Big fight.

INCOGNITO #5 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. The penultimate issue of this beautiful anti-heroic ditty. Too good to wait for the trade. Highly recommended.

LITTLE MOUSE GETS READY HC written and drawn by Jeff Smith. A children’s book from the creator of BONE, RASL and SHAZAM: MONSTER SOCIETY OF EVIL about a little mouse who gets ready. Tell yourself you’re getting it for your kid. Recommended.

MIGHTY AVENGERS #27 by Dan Slott and Khoi Pham. A new story of a king so vile he had to be written out of history, but only after he screwed up traffic all over LA with his memorial service. Dan Slott is rocking this title. Highly Recommended.

RASL #5 written and drawn by Jeff Smith. Our dimension-hopping science thief gets in even more trouble. This one keeps getting better. Recommended.

SCALPED #30 by Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera. Red Crow learns there’s an FBI agent on The Rez as Dash Bad Horse begins the countdown to Totally Screwed. Not for kids. Highly Recommended. Read it.

UNWRITTEN #3 by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. Tommy Taylor meets Frankenstein! How great is this book? Very-very! Highly recommended.

WALKING DEAD #63 by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard. The scary non-zombies are hunting our intrepid band. Let’s hope Michonne chops ‘em up good. Not for kids. Recommended.

WEDNESDAY COMICS #2 of 12 by A Pantheon of Comics Dieties. Tabloid-sized awesomeness every week to remind you of how great a newspaper comics section could be. No lie, this stuff could save newspapers if they picked up on it. Highly recommended!

X-FACTOR #46 by Peter David and Valentine DeLandro. Time travel and girl-fights, but the big news is that Rictor and Shatterstar are gay. In other news, water is wet.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-08-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-08-09
By John Judy

100 BULLETS, VOL. 13: WILT SC by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso. Collecting the final issues of the series, 89-100, in which questions get answered and secrets get turned over in their graves.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ANNUAL #36 by Marc Guggenheim and Patrick Oliffe. It’s a wedding in Spideyland and don’t those always go well? But who will catch the webby bouquet?

BATMAN #688 by Judd Winick and Mark Bagley. Judging by the cover of this book the new Batman appears to have been shot in the face with… something… And that’s really all I think I’m going to say about that.

BPRD 1947 #1 of 5 by Mike Mignola, Joshua Dysart, Fabio Moon, and Gabriel Ba. So, BPRD 1946 wasn’t enough for ya, Fanboy?! Well, how about THIS?!?! Featuring Nazis and other monsters.

DARK X-MEN: BEGINNING #1 of 3 by James Asmus, Paul Cornel and Humberto Ramos. Y’know, I hate to say it but the Dark X-gang sound like the most intriguing line-up of mutants I’ve seen in a long time. Except for Wolver-Lad, but few comics are perfect. Gotta Look!

GREEN LANTERN #43 by Geoff Johns and Doug Mahnke. The Black Hand is raising the dead to form his Black Lantern Corps. Guess who’s first? Recommended.

NO HERO #6 of 7 by Warren Ellis and Juan Jose Ryp. The continuing adventures of our tragic, castrated, largely psychotic super-chap from that nice Mister Ellis.

THE NOBODY HC written and drawn by Jeff Lemire. The Xeric Award-winning creator of THE ESSEX COUNTY TRILOGY re-imagines H.G. Wells’ story of “The Invisible Man” in graphic novel form. Recommended, especially if you miss the old rascal from LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN.

NORTH 40 #1 of 6 by Aaron Williams and Fiona Staples. An interesting look into what happens when some dummy uses a magic book without knowing what he’s doing and turns a Midwestern American county into Hell on Earth. It’s a lot like when Texas first elected Governor Bush.

PUNISHER: FRANK CASTLE MAX #72 by Victor Gischler and Goran Parlov. Frank vs. cannibal rednecks in the Bayou. The wild card appears to be a huge freakin’ alligator who eats frat boys on command. Anyone else wanna see the gator get his own book? Recommended. Not for kids.

THE STAND: AMERICAN NIGHTMARES #4 of 5 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Mike Perkins. This “End of the World by Super-Flu” story remains top-notch morbid entertainment. Stephen King should be writing this creative team a sincere thank-you note because they’re handling his novel better than any of the TV movies ever did. Recommended.

SUPERMAN: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE MAN OF TOMORROW HC by Alan Moore, Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson and Others. Don’t let the title fool you. This is not merely another re-printing of the title story, but also a deluxe hardcover including Moore’s other two Superman classics “For the Man Who Has Everything” from ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #11 and “The Jungle Line” from DC COMICS PRESENTS #85. Highly Recommended.

SUPERMAN WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #5 of 12 by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. You would think a world as advanced as New Krypton would have moved beyond caste systems and the death penalty. But you would be wrong. Typical behavior from people too dumb to listen to their leading scientist when he tells them the world’s going to end… Recommended.

UNWRITTEN #3 by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. Wow, is this a great book, mixing the best traits of the Harry Potter novels, Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman with a twist of mystery and illustrated to the nines by Peter Gross. Read it! Recommended.

WEDNESDAY COMICS #1 of 12 by Many, Many Amazing Writers and Artists. This one is too big to sum up in a Quick Review. Just trust me that this is the most awesome thing on the stands this week and you need to sell a kidney if that’s what it takes to add it to your stack. Highly Recommended Times a Million.

X-MEN LEGACY #226 by Mike Carey and Dustin Weaver. Some old X-Men return to San Francisco only to encounter the new Dark X-Men. You would think that a group calling itself “The Dark X-Men” would stir some measure of mistrust, but you would be wrong. Because this is America and we watch a lot of TV.

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-01-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 07-01-09
By John Judy

AGENTS OF ATLAS #7 by Jeff Parker, Gabriel Hardman and Carlo Pagulayan. Namor and Namora bring a bit of West Virginia to Atlantis. Eeewww!!! Recommended anyway.

ASTRO CITY: THE DARK AGE BOOK THREE #3 of 4 by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson. Oh, it’s getting busy in the Astro. Lots of stuff coming to a boil. Not to be missed.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #2 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. The Dynamic Duo faces off against the Circus of Strange. Old school. Highly recommended.

THE BOYS #32 by Garth Ennis and Carlos Ezquerra. The Female is down and the rest of the Boys have to choose fight or flight in the face of suddenly aggressive supes. Hey, they’re the Boys… Not for kids.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #26 by Jane Espenson and Georges Jeanty. “Jane. Espenson.” If these words don’t make you buy this comic there’s really no hope for you. Just sayin’. Highly recommended.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: REBORN #1 of 5 by Ed Brubaker and Bryan Hitch. Is Steve Rogers finally coming back? In the hands of anyone but Brubaker this would be pedestrian super-hero stuff. But Bru makes that pedestrian run! Gotta look!

DESTROYER #4 of 5 by Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker. The final adventures of a dying violent super-guy. It’s great. Recommended.

FANTASTIC FOUR #568 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. The new Doctor Doom a.k.a. The Marquis of Death brings it to Reed Richards. “Doctor Richards? It’s on !@#$” He gets that a lot now….

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: RUN #3 of 6 by Mathew Sturges and Freddie E. Williams II. The hateful Human Flame gets himself a new girl. No doubt she’s a real catch. Fun stuff.

THE GOON, VOL. 8: THOSE THAT IS DAMNED SC written and drawn by Eric Powell. The Goon versus Labrazio on the edge of Horse-Eater’s Woods. Must Have.

GREEK STREET #1 by Peter Milligan and Davide Gianfelice. The lads re-imagine the tragedies of ancient Greece set in the streets of modern London. Outrageous and no doubt deeply disturbing and absolutely highly recommended.

JUSTICE LEAGUE: CRY FOR JUSTICE #1 of 7 by James Robinson and Mauro Cascioli. Hal Jordan’s splinter JLA group gets medieval on the bad guys. Awesome wish fulfillment, but will there be consequences? One can certainly hope.

MARVEL DIVAS #1 of 4 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Tonci Zonjic. Hellcat, Black Cat, Firestar and Photon go all “Sex and the City.” And just like that show, you have to look even though you hate it.

SECRET SIX #11 by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott. The Six are in way over their heads and it’s time to swim for it. Count on waves. Recommended.

UNCANNY X-MEN #513 by Matt Fraction and Terry & Rachel Dodson. The X-Men become the O-Men as Norman Osborn takes over. That guy’s got his fingers in everybody’s pie! And it tastes good! Recommended.

USA COMICS 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL #1 by John Arcudi and Steve Ellis. The meanest hero of WWII cuts his way through Nazis, saboteurs and assorted no-goodniks with no pause for niceties. Yes. Also featuring a golden-age reprint from Back in The Day. Recommended.

WAS SUPERMAN A SPY AND OTHER LEGENDS REVEALED SC by Brian Cronin. A fine bit of sleuthing around the rumors and legends that have cropped up among Fandom in the last 70 years. A great gift for the geek who has everything!

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-24-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-24-09
By John Judy

ACTRESS AND THE BISHOP #1 written and drawn by Brian Bolland. Collecting Bolland’s little known humor strips about a duo that can most charitably be called “Politically Incorrect.” From Desperado Publishing. Gotta look!

ASTONISHING X-MEN #30 by Warren Ellis and Simone Bianchi. The prettiest X-book on the stands wraps up its first arc, “Ghost Boxes.” Recommended.

AVENGERS: INITIATIVE #25 by Christos Gage and Humberto Ramos. In which things go South for our heroes. That Norman Osborn is a bad egg to be sure…

AVENGERS INVADERS #12 of 12 by Alex Ross, Jim Kreuger and Steve Sadowski. Our long national nightmare is over.

BARACK THE BARBARIAN: QUEST FOR THE TREASURE OF STIMULI #1 of 4 by Larry Hama, Chris Schons and Rachelle Rosenberg. A humor title featuring a familiar figure. But will a comic book with President Obama on the cover sell? A bit of risk-taking from Devil’s Due Publishing.

DAREDEVIL #119 by Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark. Lady Bullseye and her hangers-on finally come out of hiding. Not good for heroes with horns and their fat sidekicks.

DARK AVENGERS #6 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato. Norman Osborn is hearing voices again. And they’re not keeping tempo and harmony.

DARK AVENGERS/UNCANNY X-MEN: UTOPIA #1 by Matt Fraction and Marc Silvestri. The Dark Avengers are sent to San Francisco to keep the hippies in line. Mutants too. Hijinks ensue.

DARK REIGN: SINISTER SPIDER-MAN #1 by Brian Reed and Barry Kitson. The evil Dark Avengers Spidey (who is really The Scorpion/Venom) is living life and eating people. Because somebody’s gotta do it!

DETECTIVE COMICS #854 by Greg Rucka, J.H. Williams and Cully Hamner. Oh sure, you think of this old war horse book of DC’s as another in an endless series of Bat-titles. But what if I told you this one had not one but TWO awesome creative teams and the book was devoted to the two most high-profile, butt-kicking lesbians in the DCU? Got your attention now, eh? Batwoman and The Question every month. Must Have. Highly recommended.

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: INK #2 of 6 by Eric Wallace and Fabrizio Fiorentino. Granted, it’s a spin-off series from a disappointing “event” book, but this one’s actually pretty durn good. A mostly reformed bad guy whose tattoos come to life to hurt other less-reformed bad guys. And it’s set in my new/old hometown of Washington, DC. Worth checking out if only to see if the new Tattooed Man goes after Marion Barry. Recommended.

GOLDEN-AGE STARMAN ARCHIVES VOL. 2 HC by Numerous Legends of the Comics/Sci-Fi Golden Age. Collecting ADVENTURE COMICS #77-102. Thousands of dollars worth of comics for a lot less than you’d pay on E-Bay.

GOTHAM CITY SIRENS #1 by Paul Dini and Guillem March. The adventures of Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn featuring covers that will make you hit puberty all over again. What more can one ask?

GREEN LANTERN #42 by Geoff Johns and Philip Tan. Green vs. Orange! Will power vs. Greed! Must say, on paper I’m betting on Greed. Good luck, Hal.

IMMORTAL IRON FIST #27 by Duane Swierczynski and Travel Foreman. The Final Issue. I guess his kung-fu wasn’t so tough after all. This was a good series and will be missed. Recommended.

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #28 by Jerry Ordway and Bob Wiacek. A Japanese spirit who’s still peeved about the A-bombs takes it to the JSA. Enter their old ally, the Spectre! Of course this is the new Spectre who’s a little less inclined to throw planets at people when he’s moody. Anything can happen. Read it!

NEW AVENGERS #54 by Brian Michael Bendis, Chris Bachalo and Billy Tan. Brother (I mean “Brudder”) Voodoo?!? Are you kidding me, Bendis?! Screw it, I’m rooting for Dormammu….

NORTHLANDERS #18 by Brian Wood and Danijel Zezelj. A Must-Have two-parter about the real story of the Norse Valkyries. “The Shield Maidens” begins here. Highly recommended.

PREVIEWS by Diamond and Marvel Comics. “Uncertain the future is.” Here’s everyone’s best guess for three months from now.

SUPERMAN #689 by James Robinson and Renato Guedes. A dying Mon-El decides to see the world before he cashes in his chips. And hit people.

THOR #602 by J. Michael Straczynski and Marko Djurdjevic. Loki continues rocking all of Thor’s nine worlds. Okay, that sounds dirty. “Loki continues vexing Thor with his/her mischief.” Eh, better. Thor still needs his head examined. Trusting Loki? Too many war clubs to ye olde noggin.

THUNDERBOLTS #133 by Andy Diggle and Roberto De La Torre. Osborne’s hit squad tries once again to take down Songbird. Only Andy Diggle and a few others could make this work. And he does.

UNCANNY X-MEN #512 by Matt Fraction and Yanick Paquette. Mutant chicks, time travel and the first Sentinel. I’m in.

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE WORLD OF TOMORROW? HC written and drawn by Brian Fies. A graphic novel by the creator of MOM’S CANCER. This one takes us through an account of growing up from 1939 to 1975 when technology was making promises its creators never quite managed to keep. Does not come with a jetpack, appropriately enough.

WOLVERINE: WEAPONX #3 by Jason Aaron and Ron Garney. Wolvie vs. the Adamantium Men. This is the good Wolverine book, folks. Aaron/Garney. Accept no substitutes. Recommended.

WONDER WOMAN #33 by Gail Simone and Aaron Lopresti. WW puts paid to her evil future zombie self and lots more. The final chapter, at least for some. Gotta look!

X-FACTOR #45 by Peter David and Valentine DeLandro. Madrox meets Doctor Doom. This could be the shortest issue yet.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-17-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-17-09
By John Judy

ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #12 by Greg Rucka and Pere Perez. Wow. Who knew ACTION COMICS was only 12 years old? Isn’t 1950 awesome? Anyway, this is the great Greg Rucka delving into the backstory on Nightwing and Flamebird. Guaranteed Rucka magic. Gotta look!

BATMAN: STREETS OF GOTHAM #1 by Many People. The new Batman is making his mark in Gotham and on the increasingly crowded comic book shelves of America. This will be interesting if only to see if all the different creative teams can keep their stories straight until Bruce Wayne returns. Also featuring a MANHUNTER back-up story by Andreyko and Jeanty.

BOYS: HEROGASM #2 by Garth Ennis and Peter Gross. Yes, I know we’re supposed to be rooting for the Boys against the Supes, but be honest, most of us would go to Herogasm if we were invited. Not for kids.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #600 by Ed Brubaker, Luke Ross and Many Others of Note. This one’s gonna make what’s left of The Papers. Plus, it’s awesome! Reserve your copy now!

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI13 #14 by Paul Kirk and Leonard Cornell. Vampires, Dracula! Doctor Doom and warm beer! It’s on!

EX MACHINA #43 by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris. Man, this comic looks great! It appears Mayor Hundred’s old enemy Pherson is back commanding New York City’s rats to kill everyone. It’s a zombie flick without the easy out. Way creepy and recommended.

INCOGNITO #4 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. Our anti-hero’s antics have been noticed by all the wrong people on both sides of the law. Consequences ensue. Highly recommended.

MIGHTY AVENGERS #26 by Dan Slott and Stephen Segovia. “Doctor Richards? It’s on, b****.” This is officially the Best Comic Ever and Dan Slott should be President. Highly recommended.

ULTIMATUM SPIDER-MAN REQUIEM #1 of 2 by Brian Michael Bendis, Stuart Immonen and Mark Bagley. Ultimate J. Jonah Jameson writes Spidey’s obituary. Sometimes dreams really do come true.

YOUNG ALLIES COMICS #1: 70th ANNIVERSARY EDITION by Roger Stern, Marcos Martin and Others. It’s Our Gang fighting the ratzis on the homefront in an original adventure starring Bucky, Toro and the gang, presented along with a golden-age reprint. Good on Marvel for doing this stuff. Heritage ought not to be forgot. Check it out.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-10-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 06-10-09
By John Judy

ACTION COMICS #878 by Greg Rucka and Fernando Dagnino. Meet Krypton’s own Bonnie and Clyde! Awe! Some! Recommended.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #597 by Joe Kelly and Marco Checchetto. Babies and weddings! It’s what you buy super-hero books for, right?!

ANGEL: BLOOD AND TRENCHES #4 written and drawn by John Byrne. Your favorite vampire with a soul continues his World War One adventures. This issue he meets Snoopy! (If only….)

BATMAN #687 by Judd Winick and Ed Benes. Winick and Benes have some tough competition from Morrison and Quitely over at BATMAN AND ROBIN. Still, let’s give each team their shot. Nothing wrong with having more than one good Bat-book on the stands each month.

BETA RAY BILL: GODHUNTER #1 of 3 by Kieron Gillen and Kano. He’s got the power of Thor and the face of a horse! He’s like Ann Coulter with muscles! He’s Beta Ray Bill and he’s back to fight Galactus! And that’s why it’s a mini-series.

BUCK ROGERS #1 by Scott Beatty and Carlos Rafael. The original Man Out of Time is relaunched for the latest generation. Featuring covers by Alex Ross and John Cassaday and nary a dwarf robot in sight. Lotsa jetpacks and blasters though! Gotta look!

FANTASTIC FOUR #567 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. The Marquis of Death is back to slap around his old Padwan Learner, Victor Von Doom. Yeah, that’ll work out well for all…

FLASH: REBIRTH #3 of 6 by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver. Barry Allen vs. Superman in a race to the finish. Oh yeah, it’s on. Must-Have!

JSA VS KOBRA: ENGINES OF FAITH #1 of 6 by Eric Trautmann and Don Kramer. The JSA takes on Kobra! Because GI Joe just ain’t hackin’ it, kids!

MISS AMERICA COMICS #1 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL by Jen Van Meter and Andy MacDonald. Featuring a golden-age reprint and a new story of Timely Comics’ biggest female super-star! Okay, she was no Wonder Woman but these 70th Anniversary issues are turning out to be a lot of fun, especially if you already have a soft spot for the old-timers. Recommended.

PUNISHER: FRANK CASTLE MAX #71 by Victor Gischler and Goran Parlov. The Punisher’s in Louisiana with something bad in his trunk. Do you really need any more info to know this one’s gonna rock? Not for kids. Recommended.

RED ROBIN #1 by Christopher Yost and Ramon Bachs. Someone’s wearing that old costume from KINGDOM COME and looking for Bruce Wayne’s carcass! But who?

UNCANNY X-MEN #511 by Matt Fraction and Greg Land. Well, well, well, look who’s back. She always comes back, doesn’t she? Gotta look!

UNWRITTEN #2 by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. This one’s heating up fast, kids. It’s the story of a guy who may or may not have been written into the real world and all that implies about other pop fiction characters. This is not your father’s Earth-Prime! Recommended.

WALKING DEAD #62 by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard. Okay, who were those creeps in the bushes? Not for kids. Recommended.

WOLVERINE #74 by Jason Aaron and Adam Kubert & Daniel Way and Tommy Lee Edwards. Two stories! Two creative teams! One left standing! Half-Highly Recommended!

X-FACTOR #44 by Peter David and Valentine DeLandro. A little number titled “Dirty Sexy Monet.” Oh, Peter David…..!

X-MEN FOREVER #1 by Chris Claremont and Tom Grummett. Ever wonder what would have happened if X-scribe Chris Claremont hadn’t been unceremoniously axed from the X-Men book he launched with Jim Lee back in the nineties? Me neither, but now he’s getting his chance to tell the story he always wanted, separate continuity and all. Hey, the guy built the foundations of a billion-dollar multimedia empire 30 years ago then got treated like a dog. I’m checking it out. Recommended.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE WEDNESDAY 06-03-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE WEDNESDAY 06-03-09
By John Judy

32 STORIES: THE COMPLETE OPTIC NERVE DEFINITIVE EDITION HC written and drawn by Adrian Tomine. A sweet collection for fans of Tomine and his comics, mini- and other. A handsome addition to any bookshelf. Recommended.

AGENTS OF ATLAS #6 by Jeff Parker and Gabriel Hardman. At last, it’s family reunion time for Namora and her cousin, the Sub-Mariner. Aquatic awkwardness galore! Recommended!

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #596 by Joe Kelly and Paulo Siqueira. Spidey breaks and enters, mostly the former. Big Fight!

ASTRO CITY THE DARK AGE BOOK THREE #2 of 4 by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson. The saga of the Williams brothers and their search for their parents’ killer gets wilder as only a game of super-cops and robbers can. Recommended.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #1 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. Don’t worry, it’s not the perennially late-shipping ALL-STAR version by Jim Lee and the guy who killed The Spirit for a generation. This is the dream-team that gave us ALL-STAR SUPERMAN among other things. It’s the new Dynamic Duo and their flying batmobile! Gotta look!

BLACK PANTHER #5 by Reginald Hudlin and Ken Lashley. Morlun the Devourer of Totems just chowed down on the Man-Ape (don’t ask) and now he’s ready for dessert. Time for the new BP to teach him when to say “when!”

THE BOYS #31 by Garth Ennis and Carlos Ezquerra. The supes finally decide to go after the Boys instead of waiting for the knock on their door. First up: The Female. Not for kids.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: TALES OF THE VAMPIRES ONE-SHOT by Becky Cloonan and Vasilis Lolos. A story of a small-town boy looking for a way out on the Fang Express.

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI13 ANNUAL #1 by Paul Cornell and Michael Collins. The long-lost Meggan is looking to get out of Hell. I suggest hiring a baby-sitter.

DARK AVENGERS #5 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato. Norman Osborne’s got trouble as the public is reminded of his past as the murderous Green Goblin. Stupid public! Don’t they know we’re looking forward, not back?!

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: RUN #2 of 6 by Matthew Sturges and Freddie E. Williams II. Okay, so far the FCA titles have been an extremely mixed bag in terms of quality. This one about a jerk who helped kill the Martian Manhunter trying to get out of Dodge is among the best. A great ride for those of us who like dark humor and well conceived anti-heroes. Recommended.

MIGHTY AVENGERS #25 by Dan Slott and Khoi Pham. Hank Pym decides to break into the Baxter Building. Because he’s Hank Pym! Recommended.

PUNISHER MAX: NAKED KILL #1 by Jonathan Mayberry and Laurence Campbell. Frank Castle has to take down a snuff film ring armed only with office and cleaning supplies. This could be the most awesome thing ever associated with Staples! Recommended!

SCALPED #29 by Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera. C’mon people, this is one of the best comics being published today. It must not be outsold by SEAGUY. Let’s all stop waiting for the trades and do our part. This is the conclusion to “High Lonesome” where cracked out undercover G-man Dash Bad Horse has to rob the casino. This is the one to buy for you and both your pals.

SECRET SIX #10 by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott. “The most brutal Secret Six story yet!” Well, after the whole Rag Doll family saga that’s a pretty high bar to clear. Gotta look! Recommended.

SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #4 of 12 by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. New K gets a visit from the Green Lantern Corps in the form of Hal Jordan, John Stewart and Sodam (swear to god) Yat. Hijinks ensue.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #133 by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen. The final issue? Well, it’s been a respectable run by a writer who reintroduced Marvel to the idea of making deadlines. Kudos to Mr. Bendis and the whole sick crew!

ULTIMATUM #4 of 5 by Jeph Loeb and David Finch. Almost over…. Just a few more characters to “kill….”

WOLVERINE REVOLVER ONE-SHOT by Victor Gischler and Das Pastoras. In which Logan is apparently fighting DC’s Man-Bat with claws that are now as long as his arms.

YOU’LL NEVER KNOW VOL. 1: A GOOD AND DECENT MAN HC written and illustrated by C. Tyler. The first graphic novel by artist and short story author Tyler concerning her quest to understand her World War Two veteran father. This one is getting high praise from creators like R. Crumb and Jim Woodring. Recommended.

www.johnjudy.net

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE THURSDAY (not Wednesday) 05-28-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE THURSDAY (not Wednesday) 05-28-09
By John Judy

(Note: Shipping delayed by Memorial Day.)

ALIENS #1 of 4 by John Arcudi and Zach Howard. They’re back, doing what they do. Where’s a Predator when you need one?

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #595 by Joe Kelly and Phil Jimenez. Spidey begins his crusade to take down Norman Osborn for good. Go get him, Tiger!

ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN #16 by Robert Kirkman and Jason Howard. Wolfie and Zechariah throw down once more, Nosferatu vs. Lycanthrope, no holds barred! OK!

AVENGERS INITIATIVE #24 by Christos Gage and Humberto Ramos. The kids are stuck in Wolverine’s old stomping ground fighting his old foes. Fortunately they’re among Wolvie’s lamest old foes and that’s saying something.

BATMAN IN BARCELONA: DRAGONS KNIGHT #1 by Mark Waid and Diego Olmos. Mr. Wayne puts on the cowl to solve a series of killings in B-town. Drawn by Barcelona native Olmos, but for some reason featuring a cover by Jim Lee. Go figure.

DARK REIGN: THE HOOD #1 of 5 by Jeff Parker and Kyle Hotz. It’s not easy being the demon-possessed crime-lord of New York City but the Hood makes it all work. Between his knocked up girlfriend, junkie cousin and momma in the nuthouse this one reads like a sitcom spec from Hell. Gotta look!

ETERNAL SMILE GN by Gene Luen Yang and Derek Kirk Kim. Three stand-alone stories ranging from classic fantasy to contemporary urban fiction from a pair of award-winning, eclectic creators. Well worth a look.

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: INK #1 of 6 by Eric Wallace and Fabrizio Fiorentino. Recovering bad guy Tattooed Man has a problem. His tattoos are taking him over. A cautionary tale to the illustrated whippersnappers of today. Now get offa my lawn and stop stealing from me!

GARTH ENNIS BATTLEFIELDS: TANKIES #2 of 3 by Ennis and Carlos Ezquerra. Tank runs over Germans. Germans shoot at tank with all kinds of bad stuff. Ennis writes it so it is truly a Must-Have. Seriously, most of Ennis’ war comics should be movies. Recommended.

GARTH ENNIS BATTLEFIELDS, VOL. 2: DEAR BILLY SC by Ennis and Peter Snejbjerg. Half-romance, half-war comic, all human tragedy this three-issue collection is a true heart-breaker as only the best war stories are. Tough to read in places but well worth it. Not for kids. Recommended.

GHOST RIDER #35 by Jason Aaron and Tony Moore. Beat-up and knocked down ex-Ghost Rider Johnny Blaze just wants to die in a Japanese monastery, but then a load of evil bikers shows up….. It’s written by Jason Aaron so you gotta look! Recommended.

GREEN LANTERN #41 by Geoff Johns and Philip Tan. Agent Orange, the villain powered by avarice, wants what he wants when he wants it! Agent Orange will make America great again if we just cut his taxes! Recommended.

IGNITION CITY #3 of 5 by Warren Ellis and Gianluca Pagliarani. Mary Raven gets closer to her father’s murderers even as they get closer to her. The zap guns will be a-zappin’ fer sure!

IMMORTAL IRON FIST #26 by Duane Swierczynski and Travel Foreman. Danny and the gang have to kung-fu their way out of Hell. I hope their kung-fu is tough…

INCOGNEGRO SC by Mat Johnson and Warren Pleece. The paperback of Johnson and Pleece’s powerful graphic novel about a light-skinned African-American reporter passing as white in the deep South at the height of the segregation era. Highly, highly recommended.

JOHN STANLEY LIBRARY: MELVIN MONSTER HC VOL. 1 written and drawn by John Stanley. Drawn and Quarterly is collecting the works of this under-appreciated silver-age creator who was best known for his work on LITTLE LULU. This first volume collects all ten issues of his stories about a misunderstood monster who just wants to be good. Great for the young at heart.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #33 by Dwayne McDuffie and Rags Morales. It’s Dharma vs. Starbreaker! With a little Justice League thrown in for good measure.

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #27 written and drawn by Jerry Ordway. The young JSAers have to rescue the old JSAers so they can steal from them and play on their lawns! And not listen neither! Recommended dagnabbit!

LAST DAYS OF ANIMAL MAN #1 of 6 by Gerry Conway and Chris Batista. It’s the year 2024 and being the man with animal powers is not what it used to be. Especially if you’ve been aging in dog years…

MY INNER BIMBO SC by Sam Keith and Josh Hagler. The adventure of a guy whose trampy feminine side suddenly manifests (no pun intended) in the real world. Gotta look!

NEW AVENGERS #53 by Brian Michael Bendis and Billy Tan. Who will be the next Sorcerer Supreme? The likeable boy next door? The openly gay glam rocker? Or the frumpy middle-aged lady who’s never been kissed? And why is Simon so mean all the time?

NORTHLANDERS #17 by Brian Wood and Vasilis Lolos. Two Vikings fight to the death in slow motion. Lots of time to contemplate that axe headed for your skull. Excellent stuff! Recommended!

PREVIEWS by Marvel and Diamond Comics. Your back-to-school comics featured here!

SPECIAL FORCES VOL. 1 SC written and drawn by Kyle Baker. Collecting issues 1-4 of the comic inspired by the corrupt recruiting practices of the US Military that put kids with autism in the front lines of the Iraq War. Seriously. This happened. Highly recommended.

SPIDER-MAN: SHORT HALLOWEEN #1 by Bill Hader, Seth Meyers and Kevin Maguire. A one-shot comic romp by two SNL stars and Kevin-freakin-Maguire! Highly recommended.

THE STAND: AMERICAN NIGHTMARES #3 of 5 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and Mike Perkins. Larry goes into the tunnel. Good times. Highly recommended.

SUPERMAN #688 by James Robinson and Renato Guedes. Mon-El’s having a hard time with the Superman stand-in gig, but then he loses his powers and, well, do the math…

ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS HULK #6 of 6 by Damon Lindelof and Leinil Francis Yu. The battle royale concludes as we learn how many pieces Ultimate Wolverine can be chopped into and still appear nonchalant.

WOLVERINE #72 by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven. “Old Man Logan” is back for the penultimate chapter of this dystopian future road movie.

WONDER WOMAN #32 by Gail Simone and Aaron Lopresti. Diana dukes it out with her hideous future-self once more. It’s enough to give one a headache before the first punch is thrown.

X-MEN LEGACY #224 by Mike Carey and Scot Eaton. Marvel sez: “Rogue and Gambit fans DO NOT MISS THIS ISSUE!” Yeah, I’m looking at both of you!

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-20-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-20-09
By John Judy

AGENTS OF ATLAS #5 by Jeff Parker and Carlo Pagulayan. The AoA vs. the New Avengers (the ones with Wolverine). Big Fight!

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #594 by Mark Waid, Barry Kitson and Mike McKone. Spidey’s non-stop campaign is catching up with him and so is New York Mayor J. Jonah Jameson!

BATMAN: BATTLE FOR THE COWL #3 of 3 by Tony Daniel and Sandu Florea. One of these goofballs gets to be Batman until Bruce comes back from the dead. Oops, did I give something away?

BOYS: HEROGASM #1 by Garth Ennis and John McCrea. The first-ever BOYS spin-off series, re-uniting Ennis with HITMAN co-creator John McCrea! What Secret, Final Infinite War-Crisis could be so earth-shaking that it requires every supe on the planet to gather for one common cause? And will it show up on YouTube? The trademark Ennis black humor is in full effect as the title suggests so this one is Not For Kids. Recommended anyway.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #50 by Ed Brubaker and Luke Ross. It’s Bucky America’s birthday! “Eighty-something years young!” Recommended.

EX MACHINA #42 by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris. Pushing the boundaries of what a superhero comic can be, Vaughan and Harris take a standard-issue guy who can talk to machines and build jetpacks and make him do something truly superhuman: Raising taxes on Americans and not lying or apologizing for it! “The Galactus Trilogy” now seems tame… Highly recommended.

FANTASTIC FOUR #566 by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. The gang has to fight the guys who taught Dr. Doom how to be a creep! And you thought he was self-taught…

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: DANCE #1 of 6 by Joe Casey ChrisCross. Japan’s “Super Young Team” follow up on their distracting and meaningless appearance in FINAL CRISIS with… a little soft-shoe, a little rumba, maybe some ballroom… I hear one of them does “The Robot” really well because he is one! A Must-Have for both of you FINAL CRISIS completists out there!

GOON, VOL. 7: PLACE OF HEARTACHE AND GRIEF SC written and drawn by Eric Powell. “We love Oprah droppings!” Almost as much as we love THE GOON and Eric Powell. Collecting issues 19-23, “The Return of Labrazio!” Highly recommended.

HELLBLAZER #255 by Peter Milligan and Goran Sudzuka. Fever. Delirium. Constantine appears to have Swine Flu. Awesome cover by Lee Bermejo.

HULK #12 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. The Defenders versus the Offenders (seriously) fight comes to an end with “a twist ending you will never see coming!” Most likely because it will make no sense whatsoever! The bad Hulk is red!

MARVEL MYSTERY COMICS 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL #1 by Tom DeFalco and Chris Burnham. A ten-page golden-age reprint plus an all-new story of the Human Torch, Toro, Namor, the Angel and…. The Ferret? Is that what they were calling Wolverine back then? Gotta look!

THUNDERBOLTS #132 by Andy Diggle and Roberto De La Torre. The T-Bolts recruit Mr. X! No, not the bald, indy guy with the glasses, the other one, the one who fought Wolverine.

UNCANNY X-MEN #510 by Matt Fraction and Greg Land. Big fight! “You won’t believe the ferocity! No one is safe!” Bad day to be wearing a red shirt to class!

WOLVERINE: WEAPON X #2 by Jason Aaron and Ron Garney. The Wolvie Dream Team of Aaron and Garney are back! They’re the ones who make the Wolverine comics that don’t suck! Read it! Please. Highly recommended.

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-13-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-13-09
By John Judy

ACTION COMICS #877 by Greg Rucka and Eddy Barrows. Nightwing and Flamebird versus Ursa, Round Two. Expect twists that will actually make you care about Nightwing and Flamebird. Because Rucka really is just that good.

BLACK PANTHER #4 by Reginald Hudlin and Ken Lashley. Morlun, Devourer of Totems is back to mess with the Black Panther and eat your tiki bar! Hope Spidey doesn’t find out because of all that radically altered Spidey continuity biz!

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI13 #13 by Paul Cornell and Leonard Kirk. More vampiric intrigue among the British super-set. Continually better than it has a right to be with strong characterizations and clever twists adding life and undeath to a bunch of folks who have never really popped like this before. Well-worth checking out.

DARK REIGN: HAWKEYE #2 of 5 by Andy Diggle and Tom Raney. Already well on its way to being a seriously guilty pleasure this mini focuses on the bloodthirsty assassin Bullseye not really even half-trying to pass himself off as the iconic archer of the Avengers. Recommended.

DARK REIGN: YOUNG AVENGERS #1 of 5 by Paul Cornell and Mark Brooks. I would normally not give this title a look, but it’s by Paul Cornell who’s doing such interesting things over in CAPTAIN BRITAIN. Anyway, “Evil kids take over the franchise from the good kids.” Let’s see what Cornell and company do with this.

DARK TOWER: THE FALL OF GILEAD #1 of 6 by Peter David, Robin Furth and Richard Isanove. Roland kills his mom over a grapefruit. It’s a magic grapefruit, you see… Stephen King really knows his stuff but why did he have to call it “Maerlyn’s frickin’ Grapefruit?” It just kills the moment, y’know?

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: ESCAPE #1 of 6 by Ivan Brandon and Marco Rudi. Wonder Woman’s boyfriend is being tortured, but when you’re Wonder Woman’s boyfriend that’s not so bad. Nope, not so bad at all….

LOCKJAW AND THE PET AVENGERS #1 of 4 by Chris Eliopoulos and Ig Guara. Somebody at Marvel lost a serious bet. Was a short straw involved? Will this result in mandatory drug-testing at Marvel? Questions and more questions….

PUNISHER FRANK CASTLE MAX #70 by Duane Swierczynski and Michel Lacombe. Frank really needs the antidote to that poison he’s been dosed with. It would be quite a shame if an army of punks, gangsters and lowlifes were to find themselves between Frank and his object of desire, would it not? Recommended, especially if you’ve ever lived in Philadelphia.

SECRET SIX #9 by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott. Two of our group join the Battle for the Cowl. They want to be the new Batman, you see. It’s sort of like Sarah Palin wanting to be President. Fun to watch.

THOR: TALES OF ASGARD BY LEE AND KIRBY #1 of 6 by A Couple of Guys Named Stan and Jack. Collecting the legendary back-up stories from JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #97-104, re-mastered with new coloring and six new covers by red-hot THOR artist Olivier Coipel.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #132 by Brian Michael Bendis and Stuart Immonen. MJ versus Kitty. Girl-fight at the end of the world.

UNWRITTEN #1 by Mike Carey and Peter Gross. The story of a guy who may or may not be a world-famous fictional boy wizard. Fun stuff but contains some of that famous Vertigo adult content.

WALKING DEAD #61 by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard. The zombie comic that urges you this month to “have a bit of priest!” Yum!

WOLVERINE #73 by Mark Millar and Steve McNiven. NOT!!! It’s actually a “70th Anniversary Issue” in honor of Wolverine’s first appearance in 1939. Okay, really “Old Man Logan” is taking a two issue hiatus to make room for two two-parters, one by Jason Aaron and Adam Kubert and the other by Daniel Way and Tommy Lee Edwards. I am torn on this because I hate fill-in issues and Daniel Way but I have a complete fan-crush on Jason Aaron. Recommended. Mostly…

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John Judy MAKES Star Trek

John Judy, who lets us run his Quick Reviews and was one of the key components of the early years of Big Planet Comics, would like you to know that he is now immortal.



That's him, the good-looking one, on the far left. Carrying Spock's bag.

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-06-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 05-06-09
By John Judy

AGENTS OF ATLAS #4 by Jeff Parker and Gabriel Hardman. A tale of two times: 1958 and the present day with the Agents throwing down hard in both eras. And one of them’s starting to lose his calm center. Recommended.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #593 by Mark Waid and Mark McKone. Okay, so last issue’s last panel probably had you scrubbing your eyes with lye. Now we find out how Spidey deals with the fact that Aunt May still has “a woman’s needs.” This never happened in the Lee-Ditko Era. Back then it was all wheat cakes and heart attacks…

ANGEL: BLOOD AND TRENCHES #3 written and drawn by John Byrne. An entertaining romp that succeeds in capturing the spirit of the much-missed TV show. It also begs the question of whether vampires ever fought on behalf of non-Germans in either World War. Y’know, except for good vampires…

ASTRO CITY: THE DARK AGE BOOK THREE #1 of 4 by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson. Kurt and Brent continue their epic saga of the Williams brothers, one a thug with a good heart, the other a conflicted cop. Oh, and there’s superheroes too. Recommended.

THE BEATS: A GRAPHIC HISTORY HC edited by Paul Buhle. What it sounds like: A history of the beat poets told in graphic form. Contributors include Harvey Pekar, Joyce Brabner, Peter Kuper and Trina Robbins among many others. Recommended, daddy-o!

BLAZING COMBAT HC by Archie Goodwin and a Pantheon of Sixties Art Gods. Collecting all four issues of the war comic that was so good it got put out of business by people who were afraid it would end the Vietnam War. Kudos to Fantagraphics for putting this together. Highly, highly recommended.

BOYS #30 by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. A bonus cover by Jim Lee marks the Big Three-Oh for our heroes as they each regroup in their way after the apocalyptic events of last issue. Not for kids. Recommended.

BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #25 by Doug Petrie and Georges Jeanty. This story is titled “Living Doll” but don’t worry. It focuses on Buffy’s sister Dawn and is NOT an awkward promotional tie-in with A Certain TV Show of Which We Do Not Speak.

CREEPY ARCHIVES VOL. 3 HC by Various Creators, including Frazetta Toth, Orlando, Morrow and Torres. The third in this series of superb horror reprints from Dark Horse Comics. Recommended.

DESTROYER #2 of 5 by Robert Kirkman and Cory Walker. Destroyer destroys stuff before he is destroyed. Hey, it’s still got more heft than the Wolverine movie! Give ‘er a look!

FIN FANG FOUR RETURN #1 by Scott Gray and Roger Langridge. Admit it, you’d want to know what Triple-F, Elektro, Googam and Gorgilla were up to even if it wasn’t hysterically funny. Me too. Recommended.

FINAL CRISIS AFTERMATH: RUN #1 of 6 by Matthew Sturges and Freddie E. Williams II. The story of the costumed moron who taped the murder of the Martian Manhunter on his cell phone. Meet the Red Flame. Everyone hates him so now he’s got to RUN!

FLASH PRESENTS REBIRTH #2 of 5 by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver. Barry Allen! Still fast and still not dead! Gotta look!

HUMAN TORCH COMICS 70th ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL by Scott Snyder and Scott Wegener. My heroes have always been flaming Golden-Age androids so I kind of have to have this. Comes with a new story and a classic reprint. And two covers to signify twice the awesomeness.

LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN CENTURY #1 (1910) by Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill. The lads are at it again. Hopefully they got their game back after BLACK DOSSIER. Significantly, this is the first LOEG from Top Shelf Productions, with Moore having now completely divorced himself from DC/Wildstorm/ABC. Gotta look.

MARVEL ZOMBIES 4 #2 of 4 by Fred Van Lente and Kev Walker. The Hood’s gonna make everyone zombies unless the Marvel monsters can stop him. There. A story. Nice and straightforward. Respect.

NEW MUTANTS #1 by Zeb Wells and Diogenes Neves. It’s a reunion of the old crew as done by people whose names make me suspect that they too are mutants. Zeb and Diogenes? Right, suit up and to the Danger Room with you! PS- Four covers!

POWER GIRL #1 by Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray and Amanda Conner. Um, I read it for the articles….

SUPERMAN WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #3 of 12 by James Robinson, Greg Rucka and Pete Woods. Superman’s a grunt in the Kryptonian Army, but he’s a sassy one! Expect to see Private El peeling a lot of potatoes. Hoo-yah!

Y: THE LAST MAN: DELUXE EDITION VOL. 2 HC by Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra and Others. Collecting issues #11-23 of this groundbreaking series in a beautiful oversized format. Recommended.

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 04-29-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 04-29-09
By John Judy

ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN #15 by Robert Kirkman and Jason Howard. Wolfie goes nuts in prison. How can this not be great? Also Vol. 2 SC is out, collecting issues 8-12 and his crossover with INVINCIBLE.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THEATRE OF WAR: BROTHERS IN ARMS #1 by Paul Jenkins and John McCrea. If you miss the real Cap, here’s him back in WWII, fighting Nazis and taking one of them captive behind enemy lines. Tough gig.

DARK AVENGERS #4 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato. Crazy Norman Osborn makes some adjustments to the roster. Ouch.

FINAL CRISIS: LEGION OF THREE WORLDS #4 of 5 by Geoff Johns and George Perez. Yes, I know FINAL CRISIS ended months ago and this title’s kind of taking its sweet time coming out. But the villian’s the Time-Trapper so you have to expect this sort of thing. Recommended anyway.

GARTH ENNIS: BATTLEFIELDS: TANKIES #1 of 3 by Ennis and Carlos Ezquerra. In WWII Normandy a lone British tank crew struggles to rejoin their mates while keeping one step ahead of the ratzis. Ennis war comics remain top of the line, but not for younger kids.

GREEN LANTERN #40 by Geoff Johns and Philip Tan. Hal Jordan must battle the leader of the Orange Lantern Corps, “the most disgusting, filthiest, vilest being in the universe!” It’s Green Lantern vs. Ann Coulter! To the death!

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #26 by Geoff Johns and Dale Eaglesham. Stargirl’s having a birthday. Party-crashers beware!

LITERALS #1 of 3 by Bill Willingham, Matthew Sturges and Mark Buckingham. A tough one to jump into if you’re not already up to speed on the whole FABLES universe. Put another way, this first issue is chapter 3 of 9 of “The Great Fables Crossover.” But if it’s what you like…!

MODERN MASTERS, VOL. 20: KYLE BAKER SC by Eric Nolen-Weathington. Certain artists in this series from Two Morrows Publishing arguably may not quite warrant the term “Modern Master.” And then you have Kyle Baker for whom the term is an understatement. Any collection of his work must rate a Highly Recommended.

PREVIEWS by Marvel and Diamond Comics. Comics and stuff in your future! It ain’t all on-line yet, kids!

RASL #4 written and drawn by Jeff Smith. Our interdimensional alkie art-thief has hard choices to make or else the lizard-faced killer will make them for him. From the award-winning creator of BONE and SHAZAM: MONSTER SOCIETY OF EVIL. Recommended.

SECOND THOUGHTS GN written and drawn by Niklas Asker. A story about a brief encounter between a novelist and a photographer and the repercussions in both their lives. Not exactly a Big Fight, but nothing’s perfect. Recommended.

SHERLOCK HOLMES #1 by Leah Moore, John Reppion and Aaron Campbell. Alan Moore’s daughter and her husband present their take on Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous creation. From the folks who brought you ALBION and WILD GIRL.

SUPERMAN #687 by James Robinson and Renato Guedes. Mon-El learns how hard it is to fill the Man of Steel’s big red boots.

THUNDERBOLTS #131 by Andy Diggle and Bong Dazo. Deadpool and the T-Bolts have a Big Fight! Bong Dazo!

ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS. HULK #5 of 6 by Damon Lindelof and Leinil Francis Yu. Ultimate Betty She-Hulk is in the mix! Could get awkward! Can’t believe this thing is actually coming out! Monthly too! Excelsior!

UNCANNY X-MEN #509 by Matt Fraction and Greg Land. It’s a mutant soap-opera on ‘roids and it’s working! Yes, this book is rapidly becoming the most consistently entertaining X-book on the stands. Who’da thunk it? Recommended.

WONDER WOMAN #31 by Gail Simone and Aaron Lopresti. Between Achilles and the creature called Genocide, our heroine has used up all her time-outs. Action-packed!

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QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 04-22-09

QUICK REVIEWS FOR COMICS DUE 04-22-09
By John Judy

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #592 by Mark Waid and Mike McKone. Quite a few surprises awaiting Spidey when he gets home, mostly courtesy of the Jameson family. Featuring an extra cover that looks like an issue of WOLVERINE as rendered by Salvador Dali. Recommended anyway.

ASTONISHING X-MEN #29 by Warren Ellis and Simone Bianchi. Are you ready for the secret of the Ghost Box? Well, you’d better be, because Warren Ellis waits for no man!

AVENGERS INITIATIVE #23 by Christos Gage and Humberto Ramos. Your monthly Big Fight is served up here.

BUCK ROGERS #0 by Scott Beatty and Carlos Rafael. It’s back to the future with comics’ original time-tossed spaceman! Guaranteed Gil Gerard-free!

DAREDEVIL #118 by Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark. Lotsa people want to kill the Kingpin. That’s always good for some laughs. Plus another Wolverine variant cover. Oh well. Recommended.

DC LIBRARY: BATMAN THE ANNUALS, VOL. 1 HC by Various Creators. Collecting the first three Bat-Annuals from the early sixties. Classic stuff!

DETECTIVE COMICS #853 by Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert. Part two of “Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader?” Recommended.

EX MACHINA #18 by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris. In which we begin to learn the true source of Mayor Mitchell Hundred’s power over machines. And our hearts…

FREAKANGELS VOL. 2 SC by Warren Ellis and Paul Duffield. Collecting the second arc of Ellis and Duffield’s post-apocalyptic web-comic for old people who like paper.

HELLBLAZER #254 by Peter Milligan and Goran Sudzuka. John Constantine plus The Wrong Girl equals reliable entertainment.

HULK #11 by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. Your other Big Fight can be found here. Along with four variant covers, one of which features Sir Cuts-a-lot, him, the one with the movie coming out. Sigh…

IGNITION CITY #2 of 5 by Warren Ellis and Gianluca Pagliarani. Mary Raven has made it to the IC in search of more info on her dead space-hero dad. There’s folks who don’t want that and they’ve got cool, retro zap guns. Good-looking comic.

IMMORTAL IRON FIST #25 by Duane Swierczynski and Travel Foreman. What?! No Wolverine variant cover?! What kind of rip-off is this?! I don’t care if he’s not in the story! I just want him on the cover of…. EVERYTHING!!!!

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #32 by Dwayne McDuffie and Frederico Dallocchio. Starbreaker wants what he wants when he wants it, especially when it’s a cosmic source of unimaginable power. Understandable really.

KICK-ASS #6 by Mark Millar and John Romita Jr. It does, you know. “Kick ass.” In its own special way. But it really needs a Wolverine variant cover.

MARVELS: EYE OF THE CAMERA #5 of 6 by Kurt Busiek and Jay Anacieto. This is a good, smart comic with characters I believe in and relate to. On the other hand its variant cover is merely black and white. No Canadian, serial-killing mutants. It’s like Marvel doesn’t even care anymore…

MIGHTY AVENGERS #24 by Dan Slott and Rafa Sandoval. So after the big reveal last issue about “The Scarlet Witch” things start to get very interesting. Great character work by Slott as usual. Recommended.

NEW AVENGERS #52 by Brian Michael Bendis and Billy Tan. You know the economy’s getting bad when even the Sorcerer Supreme is getting laid off. Worse yet, they’re making him train his replacement. I hope ol’ Doc Strange steals a ton of office supplies.

QUESTION, VOL. 4: WELCOME TO OZ SC by Dennis O’Neil, Denys Cowan and Other Talented Folk. Collecting issues 19-24 of this iconic eighties zen noir series, featuring fights, philosophy and facelessness. Worth a read even if you weren’t even born in the eighties and think Ayn Rand was nuts.

SCALPED #28 by Jason Aaron and R.M. Guera. In which we finally learn who greased those two FBI Agents in 1975. Must! Have! Highly recommended.

SCALPED, VOL. 4: THE GRAVEL IN YOUR GUTS SC by Jason Aaron, Davide Furno and R.M. Guera. Collecting issues 19-24 in which we learn exactly what Chief Lincoln Red Crow will and will not put up with in his quest for absolute power. Glorious stuff but not for kids.

THOR #601 by J. Michael Straczynski and Marko Djurdjevic. Thor’s out. Balder’s in. But will anyone care about the monthly adventures of The Mighty Balder?

VIKING #1 by Ivan Brandon and Nic Klein. A couple of 9th century Viking brothers decide they want to move up in the world. Think “Goodfellas” meets NORTHLANDERS. Cool.

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