Comic Book Legacy

Time For The Revolution To Start

2010-01-14T08:46:00.000-08:00

In what is both a happy and sad announcement this will be the last post that I will be posting here on my blog Comic Book Legacy and begin writing for the new website www.comicbookrevolution.net. As you all know last summer I joined Rokk's Comic Book Revolution last summer and have been posting reviews. For a while I have been pulling double duty writing both here on my blog and over the Revolution. It has been a lot of fun writing for both as I have been able to write reviews in two different styles. But yesterday I got a very cool e-mail from Rokk informing me and the rest of the members of the Revolution that the website he and Shawn have been working on for a while now is finally up and ruining. Both Rokk and Shawn have been working very hard on the website and now the website is ready for everyone to visit. It has been a lot of fun writing reviews here on my own blog and I want to personally thank everyone that has been reading my reviews and commentary. I have had a great time here and I am certain it will be just as fun writing at the new website.

I will be leaving this blog still open so that it will be working as an archive to all the post I have written up the past two years and you will still be able to view all my old post I have written. Again, thank you to all my followers.

Now hop over to www.comicbookrevolution.net to get new reviews, commentary, and interviews from me and the rest of the Revolution members. Thank you.

Legen...wait-for-it....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 1/6/10

2010-01-08T12:06:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Blackest Night #2 Variant Cover

Not the strongest week in terms of covers but this cover for Blackest Night: Wonder Woman does stand out. I just like the dual nature of Dianne and her Black Lantern version self.

Red Robin #8 Highlights

This is the opening for Tim to hand the Council of Spiders a can of whoop ass.

After destroying Ra's hideout and defeating the Council of Spiders Tim gets a kiss from Tam as a reward.

Since Tim destroyed his hideout Ra's has decided to destroy Wayne Industries. An eye for an eye.

Siege #1 Highlights

Time to rally the troops or in this case warriors against Asgard and who better than the God of War.

I am guessing the President (Obama) does not like the idea of an attack on Asgard.

Well that is a heck of a phase 1 to start the war with Asgard.

And in only three pages Thor is taken down. Down goes Thor. Down goes Thor.

I am guessing Steve is not happy with what Norman just did.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #6 Highlights

Meet Peter's cousin Johnny Parker and Bobby Parker. Though with his new haircut Iceman looks more like Bobby Hill from King of the Hill.

Ah, the old spider-sense never fails.

See told ya. Never doubt the spider-sense.

Kitty is Shroud. Called it. Now let see how long she can keep this a secret from her friends.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 1/6/10

2010-01-07T23:50:00.000-08:00

Siege #1

Creative Team
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Inker: Mark Morales
Colorist: Laura Martin

Story – Siege on Asgard

Review
Brian Bendis last two events, House of M and Secret Invasion, have been very underwhelming. Also Bendis work in the core Marvel Universe over the past couple of years have been average, but his Ultimate Spider-Man even in the relaunch has been spectacular. The biggest reason for Bendis producing average work in the core Marvel Universe is because he has been focusing his attention on writing the Avengers books even though his strength is solo books and not team books with a large set of main characters. Because of all of this I have largely stayed away from all of the Dark Reign titles with the only title that I have read that deal with Dark Reign has been Invincible Iron Man along with one story arc in Amazing Spider-Man ("American Son") and Diggle current use of Dark Reign backdrop on Daredevil. So coming into Siege I have very low expectations for this event since, unlike Blackest Night, I have not be immersed with all the build up to the Siege.

And after reading Siege #1 I am going to give Bendis credit for making this as new reader friendly as possible as a reader can come in knowing the basics of this event being Norman and Loki teaming up to get Asgard off Earth and understand what is going on. Even though Bendis and Marvel have said that this event has been seven years in the making you don't get that from this issue which can be seen as both the strength and weakness of this issue.

And I am going to give Bendis credit for writing a very good version of Norman Osborn and Loki. I liked how Bendis wrote both characters in Siege: The Cabal and he continued that here. From the get go we know who the villains of this story are, their motivation, and their endgame all in the first issue. For a event that is only four issues long I am glad Bendis is not wasting time presenting all of these ideas as he has been known to do with most of his titles in the slow burn approach he usually takes. The way he used Norman and Loki was a big factor in this issue being much more faster pace issue as the villains were the focus of this issue and not the heroes.

The problem I did have with how Bendis used Norman and Loki was the narration of the incident at Soldier Field. It was just such a forced event, and I do not mean Norman and Loki orchestrating the incident to happen. I should dislike it for being a blatant copy of how Mark Millar started Civil War but what I hated about this opening scene was Norman and Loki narrating the incident.

Unlike Millar opened Civil War this opening scene in Siege does not feel like it is happening in real time and Bendis does not give any dialogue about Volstagg and him being the sacrificial lamb. Also we do not see any of the people who are killed in this incident so we are just told that many people died instead of seeing it. A big reason that the opening scene in Civil War had such a resonance with me was because we actually saw all the people especially the children that where killed because of Nitro blowing up. And Bendis does not provide such a scene as Norman and Loki prove to be more of a distraction from what happened in Chicago than helping the scene.

Now going beyond the opening scene, like I previously mentioned, I did like how Bendis wrote Norman. Outside of showing his motivation and endgame to make sure he stays in power we also saw that there are plenty of weaknesses in Norman's plans. Bendis quickly showed that what Norman is doing is not something that is for the better of the country but for himself and for him to keep his power. As we saw the President (Obama?) has no tolerance for Norman. With the meeting the President had with Steve in Who Will Wield the Shield? I am going to guess that somehow the President will help out Steve, secretly, to take down Norman as the President does not like that Norman is doing without his approval.

Also I did like that Bendis had Ares play a semi-big role in this issue. I have always liked Marvel's version of Ares since the Ares: God of War mini-series from a few years ago. And Bendis used the character very well in this issue by having him lead Norman's Avengers and the Initiative into battle against all of Asgard. Norman doesn't have a better man or woman to lead his troops against god-like characters than Ares and I really liked his speech to all of the troops and how he called them Warriors was great.

Now I think the biggest weakness of this issue is the Siege on Asgard, specifically how quickly Norman and the crew he gathered took down Thor. After spending so much time on setting the battle against Thor up in not only this issue but also in Siege: The Cabal Bendis just completely rushed things at the end. While it was cool to see Thor just swat away Sentry like he was nothing it is hard to believe that Norman and a bunch of D-list characters, none of the Dark Avengers where in the scene of the battle Thor, could take Thor out so quickly.

Bendis actually took away all of the build-up away and made the first two-thirds of the issue feel like his typical Bendis-speak as Thor should not have been taken down so quickly. And Steve appearance at the end felt so forced. I know that this even is supposed to revolve around the big comeback of Marvel's Trinity in Tony, Steve, and Thor but that is no excuse for making one of the most powerful characters in the Marvel Universe look like he was nothing. It is almost similar to the way Bendis has been using Sentry in the Avengers books and how DC typically uses Superman in their events by taking out the heaviest hitter the heroes got very quickly in order to convey the threat the villain poses. It is just a weak way to move the story forward that someone of Bendis's talents should not be using in his big event that he has preach has been building for 7 years since Avengers: Dissassembled. It is just weak writing. I would have preferred seeing the battle extended instead of getting the "bonus" content of Norman's secret meeting with the Dark Avengers which I did not care for what so ever.

Also I really dislike how Bendis seemingly does not care about what other writers in Marvel have been doing with various characters and just using characters as it benefits his stories. I hated how we saw Steve in his Captain America costume even though Brubaker clearly showed that Steve passed down the mantle of Captain America and the shield to Bucky to wear in Who Will Wield the Shiled. Also he spoiled what is going to happen in Fraction's "Stark Disassembled." And with this issue I have actually decided to drop Invincible Iron Man not only because of it being spoiled but because of how slow and boring that story is, as was the previous "World's Most Wanted," that I already know that Tony will be waking up in Siege and not at the end of "Stark Disassembled."

Now as for the art, I am going to say I am a bit disappointed in Oliver Coipel's artwork in this issue. The first half of this issue looked like he was rushing through his pages and did not have the same epic look as his work on Thor did. I will say that his artwork did get much better in the latter half of the issue. I did like the subtle things that Coipel added to the issue to show Norman is not completely in control like the small bits of sweat on his face and his expressions. It was subtle but a very good addition to the early part of the issue. My favorite part though was his artwork at the end in the battle at Asgard as the fight look, even though it was a brief action scene.

Issue Rating
Story: 5.3/10 – Though Bendis makes this issue new reader friendly and did some nice work with Norman and Loki the flaws in this issue where many compared to the little strengths this issue had. Also his Bendis speak got in the way of this issue that made the last half of this very rushed.
Art: 7.2/10 – The art at the beginning of the issue looked very rushed and not up to the standard of Coipel's artwork that he set in Thor though the art did get better as the issue went on.
Overall: 6.25/10 – Siege #1 is the example of how not to start an event that is said to be 7 years in the making. The issue was just too rushed. Though the issue had its good parts the flaws of this issue outweighed the strengths the issue had. Still Bendis did an good enough job that because this is only a four part event and now only three issues to go I will stick around to pick up the last three issue of Siege.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #6

Creative Team
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Lafuente
Colorist: Justin Ponsor

Story – The New World According to Peter Parker: Part 6

Review
Will you look at that two Bendis issues in one week that I pick up. I don't remember the last time that happened.

Anyways, this issue ends this first arc of the relaunch of Ultimate Spider-Man and Bendis did a fantastic job yet again on this issue as he has done in every issue of Ultimate Comics Spider-Man and most of his run on Ultimate Spider-Man. And this issue was just some great characterization by Bendis as he has Aunt May's house basically become the home base of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends with Johnny Storm and Bobby Drake officially moving in and getting secret identities. Aunt May has really become the MVP of the Ultimate Universe and I love how Bendis continues to show that Ultimate Aunt May is a much stronger version of the typical frail 616-version of the character.

I love how Bendis has returned to building Peter's supporting cast as the best aspect of a Spider-Man book has always been the great supporting cast the character has. The only thing that has really been missing has been Jonah and the cast at the Daily Bugle which I am not bother that we have yet to see in this relaunch though I would like to see them return soon.

In any case Bendis does a great job making the additions of Johnny and Bobby feel natural and not just forced into the title. The interactions between them and Peter was awesome especially when revealing Johnny and Bobby's new secret identities of being Peter's "cousins." There is a lot of stories that can be explored with these two now added to the supporting cast especially with both characters having to go to a public school which Bendis previously explored, albeit shortly, in the "Superstars" arc in USM. It is actually new ground for both superhero characters and like the addition of Kitty to Peter's school it will be fun to see where Bendis goes with this idea

The addition of these two characters allows Bendis to show the differences between Peter and the other heroes in the Ultimate Universe. Unlike Peter Johnny and Bobby were in places where they could freely use their powers, Baxter Building and Professor X's mansion. For Peter he has had to hide his Spider-Man identity from the rest of the school, save for MJ, Gwen, and Kitty. Bendis showed this difference in upbringing for the young heroes with Mysterio's Spider-Slayer attacking the school with Peter having to tell Johnny and Bobby not to jump in and use their powers in front of the school as they would reveal their identities. This is an interesting situation for Peter to be in as for once Peter will have to take on a leadership type role and show Johnny and Bobby how they have to act in their new surroundings.

And to make things better not only does Bendis do an excellent job with quality character work but he also perfectly mixes in some action to serve as a perfect balance between strong character work and fun action sequences. And I am going to admit that I have always been a fan of the Spider-Slayers and I like that Mysterio has used them to find out who Spider-Man is by using Spider-Man's DNA and implanted them into the Spider-Slayers to find Spider-Man. The action and destruction the action caused the school was fun.

Also, we finally found out who the Shroud is as we see that it is actually Kitty, which I completely guessed it was going to be. The only thing that I question is how Kitty got super strength because when she saved MJ from some muggers a few issues ago she clearly crushed the car the muggers where in when she jumped down on it. In any case it will be interesting to see how long Kitty will be able to keep this a secret from Peter and their friends.

Again David Lafuente's manga influenced artwork continues to be a standout of this series. His artwork gives this title a very distinct look that allows the stories that Bendis is telling to feel fresh and new. Lafuente does a great job with both the talking heads and action scenes in this series as well as having a great chemistry with the writing of this issue. The transitions between not only scenes but panels is great as there is a natural flow to the look of the issue.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Bendis continues to turn in one great issue of UCSM after another that continued his great writing in USM. This opening arc did a great job in building up Peter's supporting cast for this new relaunched title.
Art: 9.6/10 – Lafuente's artwork continues to be just awesome. Lafuente makes this issue one of the better and dynamic looking comic books on the stands.
Overall: 9.3/10 – Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #6 was another spectacular issue. Both the writing and artwork continue to be top notch on this series. Ultimate Comics Spider-Man is one of the best comics on the stands right now. I look forward to seeing what happens in this series next month as Takeshi Miyazawa comes in to fill in on the art duties.

Legen....wait-for-it.....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 12/30/09

2010-01-03T19:05:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Blackest Night #6 (Variant Cover)

This is the 1:100 variant cover for Blackest Night and this cover actually makes Nekron look like he is a threat to bad he only appeared in all of one panel in the issue. And what big bad guy of an event only appears in one panel in the latter issues of the event?

Blackest Night #6 Highlights

Even though the story in Blackest Night is very weak Johns knows how to write most of the characters. And I loved this one between Hal and Sinestro.

This looked very impressive with Flash being able to outrun the Black Lantern rings chasing him and Hal.

Didn't we get this in Green Lantern #49? One thing of note that I did not notice when I read the issue is that this page may have spoiled the story going on in Tomasi's Green Lantern Corps as Kirk from The Weekly Crisis pointed out.

Never thought we see Mera vs. Wonder Woman. Even though we did not see their fight in this issue I expect that this fight will be expanded on in Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #2. Too bad I am not going to pick that issue up.

Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps Ganthet.

Must resist making Power Ranger joke.....Must resist........Must resist........okay I am good but I think this video sums up what happened in the last eleven or so pages of this issue.

Blackest Night #6 Review

2009-12-31T01:04:00.000-08:00

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Ivan Reis
Inkers: Oclair Albert and Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair

Story – The New Guardians

Review
Yeah I know I said earlier that I was not going to be able to get Blackest Night #6 but somehow found myself going to the comic shop after having a very busy morning. In any case I got this 6^th issue of DC's big event and like the other five issues of this event Geoff Johns seriously disappoints with another issue. This issue more so than the last five issues relied heavily on Ivan Reis's artwork to deliver the "WOW" moments.

I am going to be honest in saying that the last part of the issue where each one of the leaders of the 7 different Lantern Corps choose seven different heroes of Earth was entertaining more so for the fact it was something I was hoping would happen in Blackest Night than what it means to the story. Johns did a very good job giving the reader a reason why each character was chosen to be a member of their respective Lantern Corps. The only weird one I found was Wonder Woman as I have never seen her as the DC character who symbolizes love but that is more because I have never being a fan of the character and have never actually read her ongoing series.

The one thing I will praise Johns for is his characterization of the various characters he is handling. Each of the leaders of the Lantern Corps was all great. I especially liked how they acted when Ganthet revealed that all of the Lantern rings have the power to clone a ring and give the power of a Lantern to one person. Also I did like the scene with Barry going into the future by two seconds in order for the Black Lantern rings that were chasing him and Hal to stop.

The problem with what Johns wrote, however, is that there is absolutely no plot progression in the first half of the issue. The first half of the issue was just one giant recap of what the reader already knew and all the scenes we got where just recycled scenes from previous issues. And with us being in the latter part of this event and only three issues left in this event I should not feel like I read most of these scenes before. It is just unacceptable for Johns to continue to do this after we already got five issues of the same thing, not counting the Green Lantern tie-in issues.

Also because the first half of the issue felt like a recap what happened in the last issue with the resurrected heroes who were turned into Black Lanterns had absolutely no consequence in this issue. The roles Johns gives the various heroes turned Black Lanterns in this issue could have been taken by any of the Black Lanterns, even the ones without a connection to the heroes on the scene. We never see the Johns play up the emotions that Hal, Barry, Wonder Girl, the Titans, and the JLA that are on the scene actually react to what is happening. The heroes that where turned into Black Lanterns is yet another example of Johns employing flashy cliffhangers and spread pages that don't add anything to following issues as he instead continues to waste page space on scenes we have seen in other Blackest Night issue and in Green Lantern.

Also though I liked the explanations that Johns gave for deputizing the various DC characters as temporary Lanterns I did think that was a waste of pages as well. I probably would not have felt that way if the first half of the issue did not feel like a bunch of recap BS. But after Johns dedicated half the issue of recapping what the reader already knew to waste another 7 pages on just choosing the characters felt like Johns was again wasting time.

Another good example of Johns providing us nothing but filler was the scenes with Atom and Mera in the Black Lantern ring fighting Jean and John Stewart heading to Earth. Those two scenes were just recycled material of what happened in Green Lantern #49, which came out last week. And though I can understand why the scene with John heading to Earth may have been needed the scene with Atom and Mera did not anything to move the story forward and was just felt like Johns was trying to fill the page count.

And honestly the only plot progression we actually got in this issue was Ganthet introducing the fact the leaders of the Lantern rings can clone their rings, which was about two pages, and the last page which gave us a two page splash page of the seven new Lanterns. That is a total of four pages of development if you count the splash page as two pages. That is unacceptable at this point in the event. And the reason that the last page got me excited for the next issue was more to do with Reis's artwork than Johns writing.

The other problem with this issue is the other problem I have had with Blackest Night so far aside from the poor plotting. And that is that there is no sense of the epic scope of this event. Even though I was not a big fan of Grant Morrison's Final Crisis the one thing I thought he did very well with the event was portray how big and devastating what Darkseid was doing had huge ramifications for the entire DC Universe and the Multiverse. For all of its faults at least in Final Crisis I understood why it was such a big event as it had huge ramifications for the DC Universe if the heroes were unable to stop Darkseid.

That is what Johns fails to do here as Blackest Night feels more like an event that only affects the Earth and not the entire DC Universe. Even with the involvement of the other leaders of the various Lantern Corps it feels like they are just there to save the Earth and not the entire universe. If anything Blackest Night feels like a Justice League story and not one deserving of a company-wide event. And what hurts Blackest Night the most is that even though this is supposed to be the main book Johns and Peter Tomasi have done a much better job making this event epic in Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps than this main book.

Which makes for another case why this event should have stuck to being in Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps and not its own mini-series event. But in the end Blackest Night has just turned into what Secret Invasion turned into over at Marvel last year with the main story being told in what are supposed to be side books while the main mini-series is nothing but popcorn for the brain.

And that brings me to my final point, what the hell happened to Nekron and Black Hand. They did not even appear in this issue. For the two characters that are supposed to be the end bosses of this event they have done very little to make them a true threat. Johns has done nothing with the characters to make them come across as deserving villains for our heroes to band together to fight them. Nekron himself continues to come of as nothing better than a B-List villain at best.

As has been the case with Blackest Night so far the one part that does not disappoint is Ivan Reis gorgeous pencils. Along with his inkers Oclair Albert and Joe Prado and colorist Alex Sinclair they turn in some stunning artwork. For all my complaints about the story what helps Johns snail-like paced story out is Reis's artwork. Without Reis this event would have been even worse.

Reis is near perfect with all of the artwork and with all of the spread pages and action Johns gives him to draw Reis is able to make Blackest Night at least look like a big event. From Barry running two seconds into the future to the choosing of the various DC characters to become Lantern Corps members to the final spread page the issue looks absolutely fantastic.

The only complaint I had against the art of this issue is the uncreative look of Lex Luthor's Orange Lantern costume. It just looked like Sinclair colored Lex's kryptonite suite orange. But that is just a very minor complaint as Reis artwork looked incredible throughout the issue.

Issue Rating
Story: 5.2/10 – Again Johns provides very little in terms of plot progression even though now he only has two issues left in this event. Though I still will give Johns credit for some quality characterization even though it did not equate to making the story any better than the previous installments of this series.
Art: 9.6/10 – Outside of one character design Reis's artwork was incredible yet again. Reis and his inking and colorist crew are really the one's carrying this event. The artwork is just awesome.
Overall: 7.8/10 – Blackest Night #6 was another disappointing issue by Geoff Johns as he continues to stretch out the story to fit the eight issues of this series. The snail like pace that this event has been moving at is just unacceptable. Those who are waiting for the trade paperback of this event made the right choice as this event might read much better in one complete sitting than in single issues. Though because of all this recapping that Johns continues to makes me wonder about how it will read as a trade/hardcover.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 12/23/09

2009-12-29T00:18:00.000-08:00

Amazing Spider-Man #616

Creative Team
Writer: Fred Van Lente
Artist: Javier Pulido
Colorist: Javier Rodriguez

Story – Keemia's Castle

Review
Sometimes saving the day does not always mean that the hero and those he or she saved get a happy ending. That is what Fred Van Lente and Javier Pulido reminded us with Amazing Spider-Man #616 that ended this short Sandman arc. It is a refreshing change of pace when a comic can give us this type of ending instead of a cliffhanger type ending that leads into another arc that has become common place during this modern era of comics.

What makes the ending that we get at the end of this issue is that it plays up the old Peter Parker luck. Even when Peter does something good it somehow turns out bad for Peter and making him look bad as himself or as Spider-Man. And I liked what Carlie told Peter after he saved her job in saying that making the tough choices is what makes a person a hero which is a great way for Van Lente to sum up why Spider-Man is amongst the greatest of heroes.

Fred Van Lente did a great job in creating a very fun, classic feeling two-part Sandman story. Sandman, like other classic villains from Spider-Man Rogue Gallery, has been underutilized over the past few years. It is a shame to since Spider-Man has one of the better Rogues Gallery in comics which is why this Gauntlet overarching story arc running through Amazing Spider-Man has been fun to read so far. Van Lente prove that you can take a villain like Sandman and give him a story that as a reader I will remember and still enjoy when I read it again in the future.

Also, Javier Pulido and Javier Rodriguez deserve a lot of credit for this two-part story as well as they combined to deliver some great artwork. I really enjoyed all of the art for the Spider-Man vs. Sandman. The fight was a lot of fun as Pulido and Rodriguez combine to deliver a great looking comic and the art in these two issues is amongst my favorite artwork we have gotten on this title up there with Steve Ditko, John Romita Sr. and Jr., and Marcos Martin.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.5/10 – Fred Van Lente knocks another issue out of the park as he is proving to be one of the better writers on the Spidey Brain Trust.
Art: 8.8/10 – Pulido and Rodriguez combined to deliver a great looking Spider-Man book.
Overall: 9.15/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #616 was another great read in what has become one of the most consistently well written comics on the market. It is great that I am able to say this about Amazing Spider-Man again. I have said it before but I am going to say it again, if you haven't been picking up Amazing Spider-Man because of all the OMD/BND stuff than you need to come back to this title because it has gone back to being a great title.

Captain America: Who Will Wield the Shield?

Creative Team
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artists: Butch Guice and Luke Ross
Colorist: Dean White

Story – Who Will Wield the Shield?

Review
Before I say anything about this issue let me get this out of the way. Marvel seriously mishandled the return of Steve Rogers. Sure it was obvious that Steve would return in Captain America: Reborn, it is in the freaking title, but that is no excuse for how Marvel spoiled the hell out of the ending of Brubaker's story before it was even done. And if my memory is correct Reborn has only missed one month since the start and Marvel even added an extra issue to the series meaning the story would end in January. Something like this is known by a publisher for a while which should allow them to tell their writers like Fraction and Bendis, both of who spoiled Reborn's ending in Invincible Iron Man and Dark Avengers Annual, to tell them to calm down Steve's return story is still not officially over. Just some common professionalism for both the writer, Brubaker, writing Steve's return as well as the readers reading the story is all a fan asks for especially when comics are coming out on time with little to no delays. Just a poor management job by Marvel's editorial team.

Alright, now that mini-rant is done. As for this issue even though the recap page spoiled how the Reborn ends by giving us most of the details of how issue #6 will turn out Brubaker, Guice, and Ross turned in a very good issue with an unexpected twist at the end. Like many I expected Steve to take back the Captain America mantle even though I have like Bucky being Captain America much more than when Steve was in the role. I was glad that didn't happen as Brubaker gave us a valid reason for why Steve is not ready to take back the role upon his return to the Marvel Universe.

Bucky in many respects is in the same position that Dick Grayson is currently in over on all the Batman titles as he has taken over the role of his mentor. The big question in comics when it comes to sidekick characters has always been when are we going to see them take over for their mentors. But because of how comics work when a sidekick is allowed to grow he usually takes another separate role instead of taking his mentor's role, like Bucky becoming Winter Soldier and Dick Grayson becoming Nightwing.

Because of that the work Brubaker has done to make Bucky a fully realized character as Winter Soldier and when Bucky took over the role of Captain America is so great. Brubaker has shown that there is a way to allow a former sidekick to actually take over the role of his mentor and make it be an accepted change of the guard to many fans. And that is what Brubaker does a great job in reinforcing Bucky has been doing a great job as Captain America in this issue.

I like that the way Brubaker chose to reinforce this is by having Steve in his Captain America costume watch Bucky, in his Captain America costume, fighting Hyde and his crew. Even though Steve was still trying to recover from the events he just went through you could tell through his inner monologue that he was proud of Bucky, like a father is of a son when the son grows up. Even though Steve did feel weird watching someone else as Captain America he knew that for now it is for the best that Bucky continues being Captain America as it is has become an important part of who Bucky is now.

And I am curious to the image of the future that Steve did see at the end of Captain America: Reborn #6, which has yet to come out. It is clear that it played a part in why Steve didn't want to resume being Captain America and with his meeting with President Obama I do wonder what kind of role Steve will play in Siege. From the covers to Siege and all the related material to the event I kind of figured Steve would be leading all of the heroes as Captain America in their fight against Norman Osborn but now I am not sure.

Issue Rating
Story: 8/10 – Brubaker provide a great story that showed why Bucky is still going to be Captain America while Steve takes on a different role.
Art: 9/10 – Butch Guice and Luke Ross combined to deliver some excellent artwork that is very similar to their and Eptings work on Captain America. Though I am enjoying Bryan Hitch's work on Reborn the artwork by Guice and Ross is more of the look I expect now from a Captain America book.
Overall: 8.5/10 – Captain America: Who Will Wield the Shield? was a great read that would have been better if Captain America: Reborn was over before this one-shot came out. But you can chalk it up as another one of Marvel's editorial screw ups in how they have handled Steve's return to the Marvel Universe. Still a must read if you are a Captain America fan and have been reading Reborn.

Green Lantern #49

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artists: Ed Benes, Marcos Marz, and Jerry Oroway
Inkers: Ed Benes and Luciana Del Negro
Colorist: Hi-Fi

Story – Sempte Fi; The Birth of Nekron

Review
Aside from a few brief appearances in Green Lantern here and there John Stewart has become the most underutilized member of the Green Lantern Corps post-Sinestro Corps War but finally Geoff Johns gives John some much deserved screen time. This whole issue was a look at what John is up to during Blackest Night as we see him fighting a planet filled with Black Lanterns.

After being neglected for so long Geoff Johns did a very good job writing John Stewarts character and reminding readers why he is a Green Lantern. Even though John was against all the odds facing down a planet filled with Black Lanterns that have even given all of Earth's heroes and the Lantern Corps trouble he stood up and fought back with a vengeance.

And I really dug the flashback to John's time in the war was a good way to inform readers unfamiliar with John's history and show give some background why he creates military constructs with his ring. The final few pages with John creating his own military with his ring and then leaving the planet he is on only to see he is right by Earth was great. This actually has me looking forward to Blackest Night in hopes that Geoff Johns is able to pick up on this plot thread in an effective way.

Ed Benes provided some solid artwork. He did a very good job with showing how powerful John's will is and I especially like the moment when Jon made his own military corps. And the artwork Marcos Martz provided for the flashback scenes were equally impressive even if there was a noticeable difference in art styles.

The only problem I had was with the back-up feature that was a month to late. The art by Jerry Oroway was good the back-up didn't do much other than give us a look at something that happened before. Though I am interested to see what role Deadman will play in Blackest Night #6 with his appearance at the end of the back-up.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.6/10 – It was good to see John Stewart's character gets some attention as he showed why he is a Green Lantern.
Art: 8.1/10 – Even though we have three artists working on this single issue Benes, Martz, and Oroway combined to provide a great looking comic as there were three different stories being told in this issue.
Overall: 7.85/10 – Green Lantern #49 was a nice spotlight issue on John Stewart. And again this Green Lantern issue was a good lead into Blackest Night as there seems to be big things that will be happening in that issue. Now I just hope Geoff Johns can follow up this development and actually deliver with Blackest Night #6.

Wolverine: Weapon X #8

Creative Team
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Yanick Paquette
Inker: Michel Lacombe
Colorist: Nathan Fairbarin

Story – Insane in the Brain

Review
It is a shame that I have not been able to review Weapon X often because Jason Aaron has been doing a spectacular job with this Wolverine series. Aaron has reminded me why as a kid Wolverine was one of my favorite superheroes. What is great about Weapon X is that Aaron is going back to making Wolverine a great character by not being brought down by the whole Wolverine remembers his past that the character has been stuck on since House of M.

And this "Insane in the Brain" arc is something new for the character as I never expected Wolverine to end up in the type of setting Aaron puts him in. It is a great idea placing him in an insane asylum. Aaron is doing a lot of quality character work as he is exploring the characters psyche in these past three issues.

And he has really created some interesting characters in this setting that are as awesome as they are creepy. Aaron shows he has the creative mind to create some new characters in a story and instantly make them a threat. It is always good to see a writer take time to create new villains with depth and that challenges the title's hero in a new way instead of the usual villain that gives the hero something else to fight (cough*Rulk*cough).

Yanick Paquette provided some excellent artwork in this issue as he has throughout this arc. This is some of Paquette best artwork. He does a great job putting a lot of detail into the issue and with this arc being mostly talking heads and very little action he has done a great job with all of the characters facial expressions. He does an especially great job with the doctor's lab in making it just a creepy mad science lab.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.6/10 – Aaron continues to prove that he was born to write Wolverine and that he is still able to find new stories to tell with the character.
Art: 9/10 – Paquette again provided some spectacular artwork especially for a story that has been mostly talking heads.
Overall: 9.3/10 – Wolverine: Weapon X #8 was another great read. Weapon X is one of the better comics on the market and if you are interested in reading stories about Wolverine than pick this title because it has been great. Aaron is telling some of the best Wolverine stories that I have read in a long time.

Legen...wait for it...dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 12/23/09

2009-12-27T02:15:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a great Christmas. Because of the holidays I haven't been able to post much these past few days but I am working on putting together the reviews for this past week's comics which hopefully I will have up later. Also even though I know that Blackest Night #6 will be coming out next week I am actually going to hold off on getting that issue until the following week. So because of that I wont be posting any reviews after next week. Instead I am going to writing up a couple post to make up for it. Also as a quick mention if you haven't yet be sure to read my review for James Cameron's 'Avatar' movie up now over at the Revolution.

Cover of the Week: Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #58

Skottie Young's covers on Marvel Adventures Spider-Man are always awesome and this one in particular standouts to me this week, which truth be told didn't have many standout covers. In any case I love the dark mood of the cover as Spider-Man is standing in front of a billboard of him saying "Wanted" as it is raining.

Amazing Spider-Man #616 Highlights

Spider-Man gives out some advice to the reader on how to take a beating while he gets the snot beaten out of him by all of the Sandmen.

Sandman has some serious self-esteem issues as he beats himself up and letting Spider-Man escape.

Captain America: Who Will Wield the Shield? Highlights

When I think of Captain America I think of the star shield and the wings on his mask but that is just me.

Hey why mess with a costume that works.

See even Obama didn't like Bush's Superhuman Registration Act. Now the question is how are they going to sold the Norman Osborn crisis while also working on the health care stuff. I say bailouts just like how we have solve everything else.

Fantastic Four #574 Highlights

Spider-Man brought his clone to Franklin's birthday party.

Ah, Johnny always having to trie and diss Spider-Man just cause people like him more even your nephew.

I always new our universe was created by some kid under his sheets.

Green Lantern #49 Highlights

I am guessing John Stewart has a military background. Just a guess. Though I still wonder what the point of making a sniper gun is for. The armor/military gear makes sense for protection but a sniper gun not so much.

Green Lantern Corps move out.

Guardians of the Galaxy #21 Highlights

Have I ever mentioned how awesome Drax is. Well these two pages sum that up.

Legen...wait for it...dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 12/16/09

2009-12-21T22:24:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Green Lantern Corps #43

I always like it when a cover actually gives you a slight preview of what to expect from the issue and this cover for Green Lantern Corps #43 tells you all you need to know about what happens in the issue. Simple but powerful.

Amazing Spider-Man #615 Highlights

I always enjoy scenes between JJJ and Robbie when they start talking about the past and serious current topics. There is just a different air about their conversations that you know it is something important between these two long time friends.

Hey even Spider-Man needs to wear some winter clothes. And how can you not smile at the winter Spider-Man costume.

Javier Pulido artwork was great in this issue as these two pages show he has a very good Steve Ditko and Marcos Martin style in his art while still adding his own style to the artwork.

Batman #694 Highlights

It was good to see that Dick is actually trying to teach Damian something other than fighting and playing nice with others. It actually feels more like a Batman and Robin relationship as Dick is having Damian in the cave doing some detective work.

Things just keep getting worse for Dick in the first few months as Batman. But the bigger the challange the greater the hero Dick will be as he deals with the mountain of problems he faces and overcomes them.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #7 Highlights

Ouch! Felt that burn all the way here.

Will you look at that, Damian is a real boy.

What a great final challange to face.

Manhunter has some explaining to do.

Captain America: Reborn #5 Highlights

See kids Uncle Skull says it is okay to lie. Lying is good.

It is good to see MODOK back. Have not seen MODOK in a while.

While this is a good way to end the comic it is to bad Marvel has spoiled the hell out of this mini-series as we know both Bucky and Steve are alive and are both Captain America.

Daredevil #503 Highlights

Man, Master Izo and Matt never have a civil conversation.

Gotta love Wilson's plan to take back his kingdom and regain his rightful title of Kingpin of Crime.

Green Lantern Corps #43 Highlights

Rage is not your friend kids......

unless you want to kick some serious ass as Guy takes out a bunch of Black Lanterns and, as this image shows, a Sinestro Corp member.

You know things are getting serious when Mogo is ready to kick ass. Time to lay a planet size smackdown on the Black Lanterns.

Realm of Kings: Inhumans #2 Highlights

What better way to catch up with an old friend than bashing a bunch of skulls of an enemy.

It is never easy to talk to your ex. Pietro really stuck his own foot in his mouth in his discussion with Crystal that lead her to say she is much happier with Ronan than she ever was with Pietro.

DnA continue to do an impressive job with Medusa's character. And they did a very good job here with Pym's character.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 12/16/09

2009-12-17T19:51:00.000-08:00

Amazing Spider-Man #615

Creative Team
Writer: Fred Van Lente
Artist: Javier Pulido
Colorist: Javier Rodriguez

Story – Keemia's Castle

Review
Amazing Spider-Man #615 was another solid issue from this series that has been very consistent in providing good reads almost all of 2009. There have been very few times I have been disappointed by an issue of Amazing Spider-Man which is great for me as a Spider-Man fan. And what I like about this issue in particular is that Fred Van Lente reminded the reader that Peter does have a science background with Peter using his brain to figure out the mystery of this issue, creating some new web fluid to fight Sandman. Also it was cool seeing Spider-Man using the web parachute that I haven't seen used in a while.

Though the mystery of this story arc is pretty obvious of who did the crime's and is setting up Carlie to take the fall Van Lente did provide a good mystery for Peter having to use his brain instead of just going into different places and punching people to get answers. It has become rare to see Peter actually solving a mystery using his science background and Van Lente did a solid job showing that Peter is a guy with a master's degree in bio-chemistry. I especially liked him using specific web fluid to battle Sandman as it is something that I am surprised is not used more often in all the different situations he is in as Spider-Man.

Also I liked how he Van Lente wrote the various interactions of Peter and his supporting cast in this issue whether he was working or as Spider-Man. The interaction between Spider-Man and Betty as an interesting little development seems to be happening with Betty and her starting her own "newspaper" by using a her own blog and using Bugle old information data banks. It will be interesting to see where this is taken in the long-term for Betty as a character as I originally thought she was just going to join Peter by working at the Frontlines but I am digging this new development for her character.

My favorite interaction for this issue was between JJJ and Robbie. These two always have great interactions with one another and it is always great to see them have scenes together. Van Lente did a solid job in the scene between these two in the aftermath of the Daily Bugle being destroyed.

Javier Pulido provided some very good stylized artwork in this issue. The issue had a more old school look to it with the issue being drawn in a similar style to the early Amazing Spider-Man issues. I especially liked Pulido drawing Spider-Man wearing some winter clothes because of the time of the year. It was a very nice touch to set up the time of the year the story is taken place in.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Van Lente provided a solid mystery to re-introduce Sandman into the series as well as providing some great character interaction.
Art: 7.7/10 – Pulido gave some very good artwork with this issue having an old-school Amazing Spider-Man look to it.
Overall: 8.45/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #615 was another solid issue of this consistently fun series. If you're an Spider-Man fan this Gauntlet story arc is a great way to get back into the series as the Spidey Brain Trust are doing a solid job so far introducing characters like MJ, Black Cat, Electro, and Sandman back onto the Spider-Man universe.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #7

Creative Team
Writers: Paul Dini and Marc Andreyko
Artists: Dustin Nguyen and Cliff Richards
Inkers: Derik Fridolfs and Art Thibert
Colorists: John Kalisz and Nick Filardi

Story – The Bleak Midwinter; Face Off

Review
Paul Dini returns with this issue after Chris Yost filled in with a good filler two-part story and Dini continues what he was doing with the first story arc by continuing the story arc with Zsasz and the man in the trench coat. Dini just continues to provide his excellent characterization in this issue with Batman (Dick Grayson) and the cast of this series.

And what is shocking about Streets of Gotham is how much emotion is out into this issue. This was a very emotional issue with the scene we get between Batman, Robin, and Humpty. That scene was very touching and revealed a side of Damian we have not seen before. I will even say that Dini gives us the best version of Damian out there.

As has been the case since Dick became Batman the interaction between him and Damian continues to be the standout of every issue where both characters are together on the pages as Batman and Robin. Though the relationship is suppose to have a mentor and protégé feel I like that Dini is adding the fact that both of these characters are brothers and is portraying Damian as the snobby younger brother while Dick is the more experienced and educated big brother. And the scene with Humpty's "orphanage" was great in developing both characters and humanizing Damian especially.

Dustin Nguyen provided some great artwork. While I am not a big fan of Nguyen style I have started to come around and am enjoying his art style on this title much more than I did in the first issue. He does a great job capturing the mood of this title and I especially like how he drew the last few pages that lead up to a very horror-esque image of Zsasz.

The Manhunter back-up to the issue continues the solid job that Marc Andreyko and Cliff Richards have been providing throughout Streets of Gotham. The battle between Manhunter and Two-Face was good and I will be interested to see how Batman and Robin factor into the story.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.6/10 – Dini returns to provide another good issue of Streets of Gotham. Andreyko was also a solid back-up to Dini's story.
Art: 8.1/10 – Nguyen artwork in this issue was great and perfectly captures the mood of the story Dini is writing.
Overall: 8.35/10 – Batman: Streets of Gotham #7 was another great read. If you haven't picked up Streets of Gotham yet than do yourself a favor and pick this series up if you are interested in reading a Batman title as it is the best one on the stands right now.

Daredevil #503

Creative Team
Writer: Andy Diggle
Artist: Roberto De La Torre
Inker: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth

Story – The Devil Laid Low Part 3

Review
For the past year I couldn't think of an ongoing title that has been better than Daredevil. And Andy Diggle is continuing the work done by Smith, Bendis, and Brubaker on this title and just continuously progressing the character to his limits both physically and mentally. Diggle's work so far on this title has been very impressive so far and issue #503 continues that strong start from the previous two issues.

What I am enjoying the most that Diggle is doing is how he is taken a slow burn approach in order to show us the new status quo of Matt. Daredevil is one of those titles you do not need a bunch of action at the beginning and Diggle understands this. Everything he is doing on this title is setting things up for future stories where we will no doubt get a lot of action. And as a long time fan of Daredevil I really appreciate this approach from the new creative team as the changes that have happened to Matt and his whole supporting cast are huge and they need to take time to develop everything.

These first three issues specifically have been a great study of Matt's mentality as he is continuously questioned by those around him how far he is willing to go as the leader of The Hand. Tarantula and White Tiger do a great job presenting both sides of the argument for what Matt should do and you can see that at times being The Hand's leader is taken its toll on Matt. It is great thing to question as it is still unclear where everything is going to go which adds a great suspense to what is going on that does not exist on many titles.

And as always the standout scene of this issue is between Matt and Master Izo. Izo is has really become the standout character of this series as his ominous words to Matt are always great to read. He is a character that you never know what side he is on as he could be manipulating every character in the series and we will not know until the end of the story.

The scene in Kingpin's place was perfect. It is just awesome to see how Wilson Fisk is getting back his empire by manipulating the current situation of Norman Osborn being in control to his gain. Wilson is really going to be a character to watch after Siege because it really seems that Diggle is setting up the character to have a much bigger presence within the Marvel Universe after Dark Reign ends.

Roberto De La Torre artwork continues to improve with each issue. De La Torre is perfectly capturing the noir aspect of this title and Daredevil has never looked better. He is just able to breathe so much life into each scene, whether it is outside in a pier, in Kingpin's office, or The Hand's secret lair, it all looks great.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.4/10 – Diggle continues to be a great follow up to all of his predecessors. The story of Matt being in control of The Hand feels original and fresh while still having the same noir this title has had for a very long time.
Art: 9/10 – De La Torre artwork is just freaking awesome. His art style is just a perfect fit for Daredevil.
Overall: 9.2/10 – Daredevil #503 was another phenomenal read. Diggle and De La Torre continue to make Daredevil one of the best comics on the market. If you haven't given this title a try yet do yourself a favor and pick up this title from #501 as there are some great stories being told on this title.

Green Lantern Corps #43

Creative Team
Writer: Peter Tomasi
Artist: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman and Tom Nguyen
Colorist: Randy Mayor

Story – Red Badge of Rage

Review
As has been the case with Green Lantern Corps for the past year this issue continues to explore the concept of the War of Lights and Blackest Night much better than the main title and the main event. In everything Geoff Johns has failed to do with Blackest Night, the main mini-series, Peter Tomasi is able to do with Green Lantern Corps. Reading this issue gives me a great sense of how big this event is and how far it reaches where Blackest Night only makes you believe the even affects the Earth.

Tomasi's continues just to show that characters like Kyle, Guy, Soranik, and others are just so much more interesting than Barry, Mera, Atom, and all the other DCU heroes that are dominating Blackest Night. Guy's transformation into a Red Lantern would have been an awesome moment within the event and Tomasi proves that this development is much more interesting than anything we have gotten over in Blackest Night so far. Seeing Guy tear up the Black Lanterns and the Sinestro Corp member was insanely fun to read and watch. A lot of credit has to go to Patrick Gleason for that scene as it just felt like an epic moment.

And though it feels like it was too quick to bring back Kyle I am glad he is back to lead the charge of all the secondary Lantern Corps members from the other Corps. His return also helps to further validate his relationship with Soranik is not just a quick fling but is a real relationship. I just hope that his return does not mean Guy will not be a Red Lantern anymore as it was a very interesting development and no character better fits in with the Red Lanterns than Guy.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – I don't know what else I can say about Tomasi's writing on GLC that I have not said before. Tomasi is just telling the story of Blackest Night in a far superior way than the main mini-series.
Art: 8.8/10 – Gleason's artwork continues to be superb. He does a good job capturing the big event feel of Blackest Night.
Overall: 8.9/10 – Green Lantern Corps #43 was a phenomenal read. If you are reading Blackest Night GLC is a must read. It has been far superior than the main mini-series that everyone should be reading the great work Tomasi and Gleason are doing on this title.

Realm of Kings: Inhumans #2

Creative Team
Writer: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Artist: Pablo Raimondi
Inker: Andrew Hennessy
Colorist: Adriano Lucas

Story – High and Mighty

Review
Though I have been mixed on Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard I loved the first issue of Realm of Kings: Inhumans. This second issue of Inhumans continues the fantastic story DnA started in the first issue. DnA just understand how the Inhumans tick and giving us a great look at the politics behind the Kree and Inhumans post War of Kings and Black Bolt's disappearance.

And what is great about DnA's writing is that unlike most other writers who become intimidated with a large cast of heroes DnA relish in it and even bring in more heroes to write into their stories. Even though I am not reading Mighty Avengers DnA did a very good job catching me up on why they are in this issue. Having the Avengers appear also help to give the reader a new point of view to show that the Inhumans are not the Inhumans of old. Instead they are a race of powerful people that have more power and control of their lives than they have ever had.

Hercules and Gorgon's interaction at the beginning of the issue in the big brawl did an effective job showing this. Hercules barely recognized Gorgon even pointing out that Gorgon seemed different. And It was fun seeing the two characters busting heads of the attackers of the Kree homeworld.

Another great interaction in this issue was between Crystal and Pietro. The scenes with them added a nice closure to the relationship of the two and showed that Crystal is much happier being with Ronan. It also helps to reinforce the fact that Crystal is not the shy scared woman she used to be and is now a very brave and strong woman. I am interested to see what Luna has to say about her mother as she seemed to want to speak up when she saw her mom and dad talking.

But yet again the standout character of the issue is Medusa. DnA have been doing a great job writing Medusa showing that she is a very powerful and imposing figure. Her interaction with Hank Pym showed that she is not messing around anymore and that Black Bolt's disappearance has affected her in becoming a much more cold character than she was before. Medusa is really becoming my favorite among the Inhumans as she has a lot of things going on in her head than just the cold stare she has been giving everyone. It will be interesting to see her interaction when she finds out the Kree have found a sign that Black Bolt may still be alive in the Fault.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.2/10 –DnA continue to weave an excellent story filled with action, strong characterization, and politics. They are really building up the Inhumans into great A-list feeling characters with the empire they have built for themselves.
Art: 8/10 – Pablo Raimondi artwork was very good in this issue. He provides very consistent art and does a great job with both the action and the talking head moments in this issue.
Overall: 8.6/10 – Realm of Kings: Inhumans #2 was another great read. This title is doing a great job in the aftermath of War of Kings. If you have been enjoying the Marvel cosmic titles than pick this issue up as DnA continue to work their magic on the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe.

Legen...wait for it...dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 12/9/09

2009-12-14T15:33:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Invincible Iron Man #21

Even though I did not like Invincible Iron Man #21 (as you can read in my review here) I have to admit this cover for this issue is just awesome. Love the color scheme used on the cover.

Amazing Spider-Man #614 Highlights

Sucks to be Bennett. See kids it does not pay trying to get one of your enemies killed. It always backfires on you as it did to Bennett when he sent JJJ to go inside The DB.

Never expected to see this happen. Looks like The Frontline is now officially the newspaper of the Marvel Universe.

Batgirl #5 Highlights

Come on Batgirl, this is Gotham after all. It is all about Batman and Robin.

Oh snap! Barbara went there.

Oh Damian you crack me up.

Invincible Iron Man #21 Highlights

And Marvel again spoils another one of there big stories by showing us that Steve is in control of his body.

Is it me or does it look like Steve was cut and pasted on to this splash page?

Red Robin #7 Highlights

Red Robin to the rescue.

And Ra's is dead yet again. What is that the 10th time he has died this past decade.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 12/9/09

2009-12-11T01:35:00.000-08:00

Amazing Spider-Man #614

Creative Team
Writer: Mark Waid
Art: Paul Azaceta
Colorist: Dave Stewart

Story – Power to the People Part Three

Review
After two average episodes Mark Waid steps up and delivers a very entertaining ending to this Electro story arc. Though the last issue improved on the first issue this final issue of this arc was a huge improvement over the first two issue of this arc. Though this is not Waid's strongest effort on Amazing Spider-Man it was a solid ending.

What I liked was that Waid was able to show Electro is much more powerful than he was before. Electro has been a villain with some nice potential that I have felt has never been tapped into. Even with his powers he was still nothing more than a street punk trying to get a little money by stealing which does not fit with the supposed unlimited power he has. But Waid changed that a bit by tapping into some of the characters potential by giving him a bigger scope.

I am going to say that I would have liked it if this "power to the people" thing sticks for Electro. It felt a little forced to make Electro bigger and did not fit with his previous portrayals.

Still, this new development for Electro did lead to a very entertaining fight between Spider-Man and Electro in the Daily Bugle. The only thing is that I still am not digging Kraven's wife and daughter gathering Spider-Man's Rogues Gallery together.

The fight itself was good but what made it better was seeing Bennett and JJJ in there fighting and Bennett trying to get JJJ killed only for it to backfire on him. It was a good interaction between the two characters that has been a long time coming.

And with what happened to the Daily Bugle at the end of this issue I kind of wonder what will happen to the Daily Bugle now. The newspaper has been a mainstay within the Marvel Universe for a while now though over the past few years the Frontline has taken that position. But with the Daily Bugle now gone I will be interested in seeing what happens with Betty Brand as well as how this affects the Frontline.

The other problem I had with this issue, and arc, is the art by Paul Azaceta. If this was a Daredevil or Punisher book his art may fit but his art just does not fit well with Spider-Man. The issue felt like flat at times with the art though this is more about his style not being a fit for this title than the art itself.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.6/10 – Waid turned in some enjoyable dialogue and he did a great job with the interaction between Bennett and JJJ.
Art: 6/10 – Azaceta provide okay artwork but his art is just not a good fit with a title like Amazing Spider-Man.
Overall: 7.3/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #614 was a fun read. If you have been enjoying the last few arcs on this title than you will enjoy this issue, but if you haven't than you might. Personally I liked this arc and can't wait to see what the Spidey Brain Trust has in store with this Gauntlet over arching story arc.

Batgirl #5

Creative Team
Writer: Bryan Q. Miller
Artist: Lee Garbett
Inkers: Sandra Hope and Oliver Miller
Colorists: Guy Major

Story – Batgirl Rising: Core Requirements Part One

Review
Even though I said I was dropping Batgirl after the last issue did not 'wow' me I forgot to tell my LCS to take it off my pull list and I did not realize I bought Batgirl #5 until I got home. That is what I get for being in a rush. Oh well!

With that said I have to say Bryan Miller did a great job with this issue as he turned in his best issue of Batgirl so far, which I know is not saying much but it is. This was the first issue of this young series which was fun to read. Miller keep this issue moving at a great pace with no awkward transitions or scenes that felt out of place as in the first arc. Miller is quickly proving to be one of the bright young talents at DC and DC better not let Miller get away from them like they have in the past with other up-in-coming writers as he has done good work on this title and his short stint on Teen Titans.

I think a big reason this issue was a success was that we finally saw what Dick's reaction was to Barbara letting Stephanie be Batgirl. The two have always had an interesting relationship and I am not surprised that Dick snapped at Barbara for doing this behind his back as he has a lot going on with having to deal with so many problems in his first few months as the new Batman. Having, as Damian put it, an unexperienced and not well trained person under the cowl like Stephanie is not something Dick can deal with now as it is just another thing he has to worry about. It will be interesting to see were Miller takes this new rift between Dick and Barbara.

Also I enjoyed seeing Damian and Stephanie paired up together. Their interactions throughout the issue were great and I loved how Damian basically pointed out why Steph should not be under the cowl. It was a good moment for Steph as she was able to defend why she wears the cowl and why she should be the new Batgirl. Like with Dick and Barbara, I hope that we see Damian and Stephanie interact more in future issues of this series as they have a fun little relationship.

Besides that Miller did a solid job writing both Barbara and Stephanie's characters. This was the first issue where it felt like I was reading the proper versions of these two characters. They did not sound awkward as they did in the first arc of this series. Instead both were more confident and in line with previous portrayal's of each character.

The only thing I did not like about this issue was the weak ending that we got. The ending felt way to forced almost as if Miller ran out of pages to write a whole issue and just quickly threw together a cliffhanger at the end. It almost felt like a non-ending with how rushed it looked.

Issue Rating
Story: 8/10 – Miller provided some great dialogue in this issue and I hope he continues that with all future issues of this series.
Art: 7.3/10 – Lee Garbett's artwork was okay. There were some inconsistent looking panels but overall the art look good but it was just not great.
Overall: 7.65/10 – Batgirl #5 was a solid issue and convinced me to stick around for at least one more story arc. If you'd been enjoying this series so far than you will probably love this issue.

Legen.....wait for it....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 12/3/09

2009-12-06T13:08:00.000-08:00

300th post!!! After a year and a half I finally reached the number 300. Nice!! And what better way then presenting highlights of this past week's comics.

Cover of the Week: Blackest Night: The Flash #1

This was a pretty weak comic book cover week with no one true stand out. But this one for Blackest Night: The Flash #1 was interesting in that it is the first time I can remember we have a homage cover to a cover we just got a few months ago. Still this is a nice cover with the Reverse Flash.

Nova #32 Highlights

Nova isn't the lightweight he was in the past.

Was not expecting this whatsoever. Should be interesting to see were DnA go with Namorita return.

Siege: The Cabal One-Shot Highlights

Norman is losing it which means we may get Green Goblin back. Sweet!!!

BUUURRRRRNNNNN!!!!!

Doctor Doom continues to burn Norman as he tells him how things work now.

The Marvels Project #4

Up until this point Dr. Erskine's murder has always been seen as a pure bad guy but this was a great letter that humanizes the guy and you can sympathize with him somewhat.

How many times have we seen the creation of Captain America now?

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #5 Highlights

This is just a great sequence by Lafuente. The transition from panel to panel is just phenomenal.

Ultimate Barry Allen really let himself go.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 12/3/09

2009-12-05T00:38:00.000-08:00

The Marvels Project #4

Creative Team
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Steve Epting
Colorist: Dave Stewart

Story – Chapter 4

Review
Brubaker and Epting yet again do a fantastic job showing the beginning of the Marvel Universe with The Marvels Project #4. Though I am not familiar with much of Marvel's history before the appearance of the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, and the X-Men this team of Brubaker and Epting are doing a great job catching me up.

The best thing about what this creative team is doing is that outside of the brief origin of Steve Rogers before he became Captain America that we get in this issue this series has been dominated by characters like the original Angel and Human Torch. These are character I have very little knowledge but after reading about them in these four issues I am fascinated to learn more about them.

The slow and methodical approach Brubaker is taking with this series is very appropriate in the WWII context that he is telling this story in. Other than seeing a guy in a costume and another one igniting on fire most of this story is being told through the eyes of the people involved in the war. And with the approach Brubaker is taking he has allowed us as readers to learn much more about all of these figures in the Marvel Universe that were important in shaping the current era. A great example of this is learning much more about the person responsible for Dr. Erkskine's murder the moment after Captain America was born. It is a great character study that adds more depth to Steve's origin story.

Speaking of Steve's origin story it was interesting to learn that before he was chosen to be part of the Super Soldier experiment that he was originally going an artist. I don't ever remember this part of Steve's past ever being mentioned and I am actually surprised someone like Steve was ever any sort of artist, but was a cool thing to learn.

To go along with the wonderful story that Brubaker is writing a lot of credit for this mini-series to be such a wonderful read is because of Steve Eptings phenomenal artwork. Epting is the only artist I can think of that is able to make this story feel like it is taking place in the real world during WWII. He captures the mood perfectly of the era. His artwork makes this story into a much more powerful read especially when this series focus more on the people of the streets of New York City. I especially liked the short scene with the firefighters in this issue as he showed us who the true heroes of this world are.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.7/10 – Brubaker continues to do a great job in both writing the start of the hero age of the Marvel Universe while also making it feel like the story is taking place in WWII.
Art: 10/10 – Epting artwork was just phenomenal. His artwork is a perfect fit for the tone of the story and I could not think of another artist who would be able to provide us with such a great looking comic that also looks like it can take place in our world.
Overall: 9.35/10 – The Marvels Project #4 was a great read. This mini-series is making a case for being the mini-series of the year. Brubaker and Epting are knocking it out of the park with this series and I can't wait to see what happens next even if I know how the story ends.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #5

Creative Team
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Lafuente
Colorist: Justin Ponsor

Story – the New World According to Peter Parker

Review
With the event that will not be named long behind us it is great to be able to have Ultimate Comics Spider-Man return to the quality it once was at before that event. Even after writing over 140 issues of this series, counting annuals, Brian Michael Bendis continues to not miss a beat and provide one fun issue after another. And Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #5 is probably the strongest issue of the new relaunched series so far.

More so than the previous four issues Bendis was able to balance the Spider-Man action and Peter's personal life very well with each being given half the issue. This is the first time Bendis has been able to split the issue in half like this since the relaunch. By doing this he does a great job showing the reader why Peter's personal life and Spider-Man life are equally interesting to read about.

The battle between Spider-Man and Mysterio did a good job building up the threat that Mysterio is as the new Kingpin of crime. And I like that Spider-Man was unable to take Mysterio on by himself and needed the help of the mysterious Shroud to defeat him. Bendis has done a great job building up Ultimate Mysterio as the Ultimate version of the character has become much more interesting than his 616 counterpart ever was.

Also I like that Bendis continues to play up the mystery of who Shroud actually is. This issue eliminated Kitty from being Shroud as some were expecting it to be. Personally I still think that Shroud is Tandy Bowen as Bendis has always said back during the first volume he wanted to introduce the Ultimate version of the character and even made her the president of Peter's school. And it would be cool to see Bendis give the character a new identity especially after teasing her appearance on the series for so long.

But again, what stole the show, story wise, in this issue was what is going on in Peter's personal life. Bendis has a wonderful handle of Peter and his supporting cast that even the addition of Bobby (Iceman) to the cast feels like a natural fit. He gave a very good and believable reason for Bobby to be a part of this series. And as a fan of Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends cartoon I love that vibe Bendis is giving this series as now we have Kitty, Johnny, and Bobby as Peter's super powered friends. Also having the rest of the Fantastic Four on call Peter really has his own Avengers team under his roof. And I like that Bendis has made Aunt May the mother hen for all of these characters as the Ultimate version of the character is being shown to be a much more stronger character than the weak fragile 616 version of the character.

David Lafuente's artwork continues to be just plain awesome. His anime/manga art style gives this series such a unique look that it stands out from all other titles on the stands right now. Also the transition from panel to panel is very well handled. And throughout the issue he gives a wonderful energy that everything feels like it is one constant motion which works well with this series. Also the facial reactions he gives the characters are great.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.5/10 – Bendis continues to do a wonderful job with the relaunch of this series. He just understands how to write all of these characters that even additions to the cast feel like a natural fit to the series.
Art: 9.5/10 – Lafuente's artwork continues to look awesome. His artwork makes this series even more fun to read especially with how he draws the action and character facial reactions.
Overall: 9.5/10 – Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #5 was another phenomenal read. This is just a fun comic to read and if you have picked this series up I highly recommend picking it up if you like superhero comics. This is just one of the best pure superhero comic book on the stands right now and one of the best overall comics you will currently find.

Legen...wait for it....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 11/25/09

2009-11-28T12:38:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Green Lantern #48 (Alternate Cover)

DC has had the habit when it comes to Green Lantern covers to releasing the alternate covers of this title along with the solicits to each issue and using a different cover for the regular cover. And it is to bad we didn't get this as the regular cover as this is just a beautiful cover showing off Saint Walker the rich world the Blue Lanterns are located. Just an awesome cover.

Amazing Spider-Man #613 Highlights

I guessing Michelle is not a morning person.

I have the power!

Blackest Night #5 Highlights

Dragonzord, Tyrannosarus, Saber-Toothed Tiger,......Woops wrong costumes. I like how while all the leaders of the Lantern Corps recite their respective oaths Larfleeze is in the back wondering what is going on.

Mmmmmmm...Tasty dessert.

Let seee we got the Superman family, Flash Family, Wonder Woman family, Titans, and JLA but no one from the Batfamily. What up with that?

Hal and everyone are trying to give Scar a color change as black just isn't her color.

Doesn't black cancel out every other color? Plus mixing all of these colors together will just make black anyways so would this actually work?

Bruce has seen better days.....

as has the rest of the DCU heroes who have died though I have no clue when Wonder Woman died. I only remember the Golden Age Wonder Woman dying in Infinite Crisis.

Fantastic Four #573 Highlights

Neil Edwards draws a great Human Torch. If Johnny ever gets another ongoing or mini-series I hope Edwards is one of the ones considered for the job.

Don't lose your head over it Psionic......Was that to mean?

Green Lantern #48 Highlights

A Gonzo and Scrooge reference in one panel. Have never seen I writer do that. Kudos Geoff Johns!

So now we are getting to the meat of the matter of where Sinestro's hate towards Hal comes from.

Attroticius does not look good as a Blue Lantern. Something about this image just doesn't look right.

Great spread page of all the Lanterns together.

Guardians of the Galaxy #20 Highlights

I wouldn't mind if the artist did the recap pages instead of getting the few paragraphs of recap at the beginning of the issue. Brad Walker did a great job with the first page of this page of Guardians of the Galaxy recaping what happened in the last story arc.

Invincible Iron Man #20 Highlights

Tony has suddenly entered the Terminator: Salvation world. And to make things better the guy saying 'Tony' is his father.

This is the first two pages of what turns out to be a six page video will Tony made up before he decided to turn himself into a vegetable but these two pages sum his will up as he tells everyone "He was right all along and everyone else was wrong."

This was the first time I thought Pepper was given a proper characterization by Matt Fraction.

Ultimate Comics Avengers #4 Highlights

I think Ultimate War Machine is much more of a kick ass character than his 616 counterpart.

I have said it many times before but these two pages reinforce the fact Ultimate Captain America is a badass. Using a kindergarden class to stop War Machine was a brilliant move by Ultimate Cap as he knew he could not fight War Machine one on one.

Red Skull + Cosmic Cube = Big trouble for the Ultimate Universe

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 11/25/09

2009-11-28T02:30:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I know I loved all the food. Too bad we didn't get great football to watch. Oh well, it was still a great day and hope everyone enjoyed that day as well.

Now I'm sorry I have really been falling behind on my reviews these past few weeks. But this past month has been crazy for me with all of the projects I have had to work on which has left me very little to no time to do anything. Luckily I gave my final college presentation and paper a few days ago and am mostly done with all of my projects so I can now relax a bit. All I really have left is finals in two weeks and that is it for college. After that graduation baby!

Enough of my self-promotion and time to hit this week's comic book reviews:

Amazing Spider-Man #613

Creative Team
Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Paul Azaceta
Colorist: Dave Stewart

Story – Power to the People: Part Two

Review
The last issue started off the Gauntlet storyline, which is the big overarching story taking place in Amazing Spider-Man over the next few months. And the first issue of this story involving Electro did not blow me away as it was an average read. This week's issue was a big improvement on the last one as Mark Waid handled both Spider-Man and Electro much better in this issue.

Now though this issue was an improvement the story of this story arc still feels weak with people turning against the Bailout. It feels as though it is not only to late but a very lame way to get people to hate what the government is doing. Also this story doesn't have much longevity since if I ever decide to pick up this issue again I will probably think of how 08 or 09 this story is and will just not hold up well with what Waid is trying to reference.

With that out of the way I will have to give Waid much more credit as he gave a much more believable reason for Electro to all of a sudden turn from no good thief to anti-government. The last issue it was hard to believe the 180 turn of the character but the reason for Electro doing so in this issue gave his turn a bit more validity and sort of stays true to who the character is. And I liked how his power-up made him a bigger threat especially with how Spider-Man ends up at the end of the issue. Though I am still not feeling this whole "Power to the People" thing he continues to have.

I did like how the Thinker was involved in this issue. He has been a rarely used character that does have a lot of potential so I hope we see more of him in the future.

I continue to enjoy the Peter/Michelle dynamic especially with how Peter unintentionally pissed off Michelle by testing out his new device on their apartment's power. It paid off when we got to see Aunt May and Jay back from their extended honeymoon in a funny scene.

With all that said I continue to find Paul Azaceta artwork to just not be a good fit with ASM. His style would be much more fitting in a noir based character like Daredevil but not ASM. There is actually nothing wrong with the art, it is just that Azaceta's artwork is not a good fit in this title.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.2/10 – Waid writing improved over the dull first issue of this story arc. He did a good job re-establishing Electro as a major threat to Spider-Man.
Art: 6.6/10 – Azaceta provide good artwork though his talents just do not fit in well with ASM.
Overall: 6.8/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #613 was a good read. While I can't recommend this issue to everyone, this was still a good solid issue that Spider-Man fans will enjoy.

Blackest Night #5

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Ivan Reis
Inkers: Oclair Albert and Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair

Story – Nekron Rises!

Review
The best way I can sum up Blackest Night #5 in a few words is that this was both the best and most frustrating issue of this event thus far. The first time I read through this issue I was just confused with how all the Lantern Corps were already together when we have only been shown that the Green, Violet, Indigo, Yellow, and Blue Lanterns have teamed up. And honestly this should have been an issue were Geoff Johns and Dan Didio had a small editors note on the first panel telling the reader this issue takes place after Green Lantern #48. Because unless you did read Green Lantern #48 before this one you would not really know what went on at the beginning which also makes me actually wonder how Blackest Night will be collected in the future as the Green Lantern issues are mandatory to read Blackest Night.

Before I continue to talk about the negatives about this issue I will admit that this is the first issue of this event that I actually enjoyed parts of it. And were most, if not all my, enjoyment of this issue came from was when all of the main members of each Lantern Corps were on the page. Whenever they weren't I was not very interested in what was happening. Johns just did a great job writing each character and how each one of them sort of balances out the other. Even though Hal's inner monologue at the beginning of the issue was lame it was a nice way to introduce how they were brought together in a humorous manner, though I am not sure if that was Johns attention.

Getting to see all of the leaders of the Lantern Corps together also proves my point in that these are the characters who should have been the focus of this event from the beginning. I apologize to any Flash, Aquaman, Hawkman, and Atom fans but those set of characters are just not what I am reading this event for. And honestly they aren't as interesting as Sinestro, Carol, Atrocious, and the others because those characters really stole the show in this issue. It was just fun seeing them on screen after having to deal with characters that I could care less about with how dull their personalities together were.

And Johns did plenty of good character work with each one of these characters to show new readers why they are so interesting. Each character complimented the other and I will admit I got a bit excited at seeing Hal, Sinestro, Carol, Indigo-1, Atrocious, and Saint Walker each reciting their oaths. What made it even better was that Larfleeze was in the background not saying anything as he is the only one without an oath. Even better was when Hal just forced his face into the Orange power battery.

It is too bad that Johns continued to focus on the Earth. While I understand the importance of Earth to the DCU it is not the only planet that is being affected by Blackest Night. But if you are only reading this main series you would not believe that to the case as Johns has yet to move this event from this planet and show the ramifications that the Black Lanterns and Nekron have to the universe. Thus far this has yet to show me why this event is nothing but a self-contained event that only affects Earth. Even though we saw all the leaders of the Lantern Corps on another planet that was a short scene that didn't do much but show us that they have all teamed up.

Also as mentioned previously I still continue to find Barry and all of the Earth's heroes to be the most boring part of this series. After five issues of seeing them battle the Black Lanterns I have become bored of them and the Black Lanterns. Both sets of characters just aren't interesting enough to follow for another three issues as that has been the whole focus of this series. And honestly after Final Crisis I am not up for the mood to see Barry outrun death yet again.

I also don't understand what the meaning of seeing Lex Luthor in the last issue and not getting to see him at all in this issue. While it was a short one page scene I thought it was going to be picked up on in this issue in order to give some variety to seeing heroes vs. Black Lanterns. Actually seeing the villains of the DCU go up against some of the people they have killed or were responsible for killing would have probably been more interesting than seeing the rehash of the same thing we have seen for what is now five issues straight.

And even with the appearance of Nekron the Black Lanterns are not anymore interesting than they were in the previous four issues. As someone not to familiar with who Nekron is other than his Wikipedia entry I don't really see why he was picked for being the main villain over say Anti-Monitor. And honestly I do not see the difference between him and Black Hand, who is much more of an interesting character.

Speaking of something that had less impact than it should have (Spoiler Alert) Bruce's appearance did not feel as important as it should have. One of the reasons for this is because we see all of the heroes who have appeared in the Blackest Night tie-in issues, Superman and Titans, but we do not see anyone from the Batfamily in the scene. I honestly do not understand the reasoning for having Bruce appear and leave out Dick and Tim, especially Dick as he is Batman now. While having some of the big guns of the DCU and also some of the smaller characters but not include the person who is the new Batman in the issue. Honestly I do not understand it because having Dick along with Superman and Wonder Woman would have been much more impactful to Bruce's return than seeing a bunch of characters who were not even close to Bruce other than Superman and Wonder Woman.

Also Bruce's appearance in this issue also contradicts what Morrison is doing over in Batman and Robin. Just a few weeks ago Morrison showed at the end of the Red Hood arc that Dick has Bruce's body hidden under the bunker with no one's knowledge. And that story arc does take place before Blackest Night since the next story arc in Batman and Robin is suppose to tie into Blackest Night so I don't know how the hell Morrison and Johns are going to explain Bruce's body appearing in two different locations at the same time.

Now I can continue to rant about the problems I had with this issue but honestly if you have read my reviews for the previous issue all the problems with this event that I have pointed out are still around. Though I am going to say that the ending of this issue was the first time I actually liked the hook ending of Blackest Night as I am interested to see what happens next issue. It is just too bad that this issue failed for the most part to keep my interest like that last page did as it faced the same problems as the previous issues. So far this event is nothing but DC's version of Secret Invasion especially with how heavily Johns is relying on other titles to tell the complete story of Blackest Night.

On the positive side Ivan Reis's artwork continues to be the best thing of this event. Reis along with his inkers Oclair Albert and Joe Prado and colorist Alex Sinclair provided some breath taking artwork. And honestly if it wasn't for the art I probably would not have put down this issue before finishing it because Reis and his crew are just doing an awesome job making this event look important though the story Johns is writing doesn't make it sound that way.

Issue Rating
Story: 5.6/10 – Though this issue was better than the previous four entries it was only because of the great first four and last pages. Everything after that Johns failed to capture my interest as he continues to rehash the same thing that has happened in the first two issues.
Art: 9.5/10 – Reis continues to be the bright spot of this event. He really makes the story feel epic even with the weak story that is being told.
Overall: 7.55/10 – Blackest Night #5 was an improvement over the previous issues of this event but it was still a disappointing read as Johns continues to move the story very slowly even after reaching the halfway mark. And it does not help future issues that the villains of this series continue to be as dull as dirt. Hopefully things will change with that final page.

Fantastic Four #573

Creative Team
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: Neil Edwards
Inker: Andrew Currie
Colorist: Andrew Currie

Story – Adventures on Nu-World

Review
After the stellar debut story arc by Jonathan Hickman I am sort of disappointed with this one-shot story that followed up that first story arc. Though this was still a good read it was missing some of that greatness of the first issue. I think the biggest disappointment is that we didn't get the fun story on Nu-World that we were promised by the solicit and the cover for this issue.

Nu-World was a very interesting concept that Millar and Hitch introduced and Hickman continued that good development of this world. Hickman did a nice job showing that this is a world that is still very much underdevelopment as the people of the world still have a ways to go before they can establish a proper society. It is understandable that there would be chaos in the way the Nu-World is run as it is still a very young planet.

And Hickman provided plenty of solid character work for Johnny, Ben, Franklin and Valerie as he continues to show he has a great handle on these characters. Each one was well handled though it was sort of a basic approach to these characters and Hickman doesn't flesh these characters out as much as he did with Reed in the first story arc.

Now, though the story in Nu-World was good I will say that it was not as interesting as I thought it would be. There wasn't much in developing this world other than showing there is still work to be done on this world. The characters that inhabit this world were not really shown to be as interesting as the Fantastic Four who traveled to the world. This brief visit really did not help flesh out the world and felt more like a filler issue until the next issue dealing with Franklin's birthday.

Though I am disappointed that Dale Eaglesham was unable to provide the artwork for this issue Neil Edwards provided plenty of quality artwork. His artwork was very similar to Eaglesham that I barely noticed it was a different artist. Edwards did a very good job in this issue and I hope I see his artwork in other issues down the line

Issue Rating
Story: 7.2/10 – Hickman provide a good one-and-done story but it felt like to much of a filler story.
Art: 8/10 – Edwards provides some very artwork as he does a nice job filling in for Eaglesham in this issue.
Overall: 7.6/10 – Fantastic Four #573 was a good read. While not as good as the first story arc by Hickman it was still a good read though not required reading. If you are FF fan you will enjoy this issue but if you are not you may not enjoy it as much but still a solid effort by Hickman and Edwards.

Green Lantern #48

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Doug Mahnke
Inkers: Christian Alamy, Doug Mahnke, and Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb

Story – Gimme a Break!

Review
After reading this new issue of Green Lantern I am amazed that the same writer is writing both series. There is a clear difference in Geoff Johns writing in Blackest Night and Green Lantern as I get the feeling he is more free to tell his own story the way he sees fit and is not mandated to write in Flash, Superman, and all the other DCU characters. Johns just seems to be restricted with Blackest Night but in Green Lantern he is telling the story he wants to tell as he allows the characters that should be the center of this event take the center stage in this issue.

Hal, Sinestro, Carol, Atrocitus, Saint Walker, Larfleeze, Indigo-1, Sayd and Ganthet all get their own moments to shine which is how Blackest Night should be like. Each character has their own voice as they show why they are so interesting which goes to the credit of Johns talent as a writer of building so many great characters. And what is great is how each character balances out the other to show how different each Lantern Corp is as the difference between all of them is not just the color.

Johns created some showed off the interesting dynamic the various characters share. The best one was the scene between Hal and Sinestro. These two long time rivals have not hidden the fact that they don't like each other and this issue just reinforces that fact. Sinestro telling Hal that he is the reason everything has happened reinforces the fact Hal is suppose to be the main hero of this event. And Johns also used this short scene to also build up some future drama after Blackest Night as Hal tells Sinestro upfront that he will not be following the Guardians anymore.

The other interesting dynamic was with Larfleeze interaction with Atrocitus and Saint Walker respectively. Larfleeze really shined in this issue and was a better written in this issue than he was in the Agent Orange story arc. He was fleshed out much more and it will be interesting to see what happens to him especially with what happened towards the end of the issue.

Doug Mahnke artwork continues to be great. He did a lot of work to give this issue a big event feel even if it is not the main book. His art especially shines when it comes to drawing action scenes. The last page was especially well done with the various Lanterns appearing on it.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Johns writing in this issue was very strong and is much better than what he has been doing in the Blackest Night main series. He showed he has a great understanding off each of the characters in this issue.
Art: 9.3/10 – Mahnke artwork continues to impress. It is great to be treated to Mahnke's artwork on a monthly basis.
Overall: 9.15/10 – Green Lantern #48 was another great read. This was the best issue of Blackest Night related material that Johns has written so far and I highly recommend picking this issue up if you reading the event. Both the writing and art are top notch.

Guardians of the Galaxy #20

Creative Team
Writer: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Artist: Brad Walker
Inker: Victor Olazaba
Colorist: Wil Quintana

Story – Fault Lines

Review
After all the death that happened in the last issue of Guardians of the Galaxy DnA slow things down a bit in order to give the surviving characters some time to reflect as well as get some much needed rest. DnA provided plenty of solid character work for all of the Guardians. As has been the case with DnA's work with the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe even the slower issues have a very good pace that does not feel slow or fast. And this issue also did a solid job being new reader friendly especially with the first page that served as the recap page with Brad Walker providing different images of what has happened in the previous few issues.

There really isn't much I can say about this title that I have not said before. This issue was just a lot of fun to read as DnA prove that there are plenty of stories to be told in the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe. Even with everything that has happened it is clear there is still a wealth in potential stories to be told with these characters.

The characters each have their own unique voices. Even my favorite character, Rocket
Raccoon, was given some solid character work even though he did not spout out any awesome jokes in this issue. After all the intense stuff this group has been through it was fun to just see them take a moment and just have some drinks like friends and not just figuring out what they need to do next with defeating their enemy.

Also DnA did a great job fleshing out Moondragon out in this issue. Before this issue she wasn't a very interesting character as she wasn't given many scenes to show herself off as a character worth following. But now with the cast being cut down and her being the only psychic on the team it seems more attention will be given to her character. And this issue proved she is a character with plenty of potential.

It was also good to have Brad Walker back in this issue. Walker provided some good artwork that works well with this title. I hope that he stays on this title on a permanent basis as he does a good job with both the talking head and action scenes.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.3/10 – DnA continue to prove they have plenty of stories to tell and they have begun a nice foundation for future issues after what happened in the previous issue with the team.
Art: 8/10 – Walker provided solid artwork throughout the issue to complement DnA's writing.
Overall: 8.15/10 – Guardians of the Galaxy #20 was another fun issue. DnA continue to do a wonderful job with all the Marvel cosmic titles and GOTG is no different. If you haven't tried this series out yet pick this issue up as this is a nice jumping on point to this series.

Top 25 Anime Characters: #1 - Kenshin Himura

2009-11-24T19:41:00.000-08:00

#1. Kenshin HimuraCreated by: Nobuhiro Watsuki

First Appearance: Ruroni Kenshin Episode 1 - Handsome Swordsman of Legend: A Man Who Fights For Love
Voice by: Japanese - Mayo Suzukaze; English - Richard Cansino

Yep! That's right the number one anime character on my list is none other that Kenshin Himura. I am a sucker for stories about samurais. In my book you will not find another character that is able to balance dark and light moments as well as Kenshin Himura. Though Kenshin has a basic samurai character look, what makes him a great character is that we are able to get moments and episodes where Kenshin plays the straight man, or the comedic foil, but when push came to shove he can pull of the dark moments like no other character. When we get to see Kenshin's eyes go from their usual color to the yellow/gold you know that you should not be anywhere nearby. With his Hiten Mitsurugi-style Kenshin is basically unstoppable as he is able to move at god-like speed with no other character being more dangerous with a sword than him.

I will admit that I am not a fan of how Kenshin's story ended in the anime OVA, as I thought it was a very sad death when Kenshin, after all the crap he had been through, deserved a happier ending. Personally, I prefer the we got in the manga and it sucked that the anime was never able to do an anime version of the final arc in the manga. I really liked the last arc. Though it wasn't as good as the Kyoto arc it was awesome to learn all of Kenshin's backstory.

And even though the anime never did reach that point they did a great job revealing enough information of Kenshin's past during the Kyoto arc made him still a character you can sympathize with. I would rank the Kyoto arc among my favorite stories told in anime as the series really picked up the intensity in that arc which it never was able to reach with the filler arc that happened afterwards. Kenshin was faced with impossible odds and it was great watching how he was able to face his past and did not allow the Battosai personality overcome him anymore as he was able to let go of that past of being Man Slayer.

Also Kenshin participated in three of my favorite anime fights. His fights with Saito, Aoshi, and Shishio in the Kyoto arc were just pure awesomeness with all the sword action. I would put any one of those three as my favorite anime fight. Kenshin really proved his worth in each of these fights as each opponent did what they were supposed to do when fighting the hero: pose an actually threat and challange/ None of these fights never felt like they were forced on to Kenshin as each one of these fights were well developed that in the end, while knowing Kenshin would win, had me wondering how he would pull of the win with all the intense action going on.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #2 – Jimmy Kudo/Conan Edogawa

2009-11-22T11:52:00.001-08:00

#2. Jimmy Kudo/ Conan EdogawaCreated by: Gosho Aoyama

First Appearance: Case Closed Episode 1 – The Big Shrink
Voiced by: Japanese: Kappei Yamaguchi (Jimmy) and Minami Takayama (Conan); English: Jerry Jewell (Jimmy) and Alison Viktorin (Conan)

You want to talk about one of the most popular series around than you do not have to look in farther than Detective Conan, also known as Case Closed. The series has been running for 15 years collecting over 700 chapters that have been collected in 66 volumes and around 550 episodes with 13 movies with no signs of slowing down both in the anime and manga. I think if you show that to anyone that is an impressive resume that no other fictional character can say they have. And what is more impressive is that even after 15 years of writing Detective Conan Gosho Aoyama has still been able to keep the story just as interesting as it was when it first came out. Each mystery we get is fun to watch Jimmy try and figure out.

As a life long comic book fan I highly respect Gosho Aoyama for his ability to write interesting mysteries as not even comic book writers are able to write a series that comes out once a month for a few years without it getting stale or having boring arcs. And I have always felt that Detective Conan was given an unfair shot when it aired here in the States as I think many anime/manga fans would love.

Taking a look at the star of this series, Jimmy Kudo, or as he is also known Conan Edogawa, is the modern age Sherlock Holmes. Though he has yet to catch the men who turned him into a kid again Jimmy is always able to figure out the cases he is given. And even as a kid he is just as sharp as he was as a teen and with some help from devices that are James Bond-esque he always catches the criminal. Though Jimmy doesn't have the fighting prowess of a lot of the characters on my Top Anime Character list he more than makes up for it with his mind as he is able to figure out any case he is given on his own.

Also what makes Jimmy's situation even more interesting is that he has to hang out with his girlfriend acting like her little brother as he does not want to put her in danger if she found out Jimmy was turned into a kid by a dangerous organization. Behind all the mysteries is the great love story were Jimmy really wants to admit to the love of his life that he loves her but is unable to do so because of his current situation.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #3 – Vash the Stampede

2009-11-21T08:00:00.000-08:00

#3. Vash the Stampede

Created by: Yasuhiro Nightow

First Appearance: Trigun Episode 1 – The $$60 Billion Man

Voiced by: Japanese - Masaya Onosaka ; English - Johnny Yong Bosch

When you talk about cool anime looks it is hard to get better than Vash the Stampede. With the blond broom head type hair, the long red trench coat, some nice shades, a killer gun, and even better robotic arm that transforms into an even bigger gun that can destroy whole cities what else is there not to like about Vash. And when you add to it that Vash has a $$60 billion dollar bounty on his head it doesn't get much better.

Trigun is similar to Cowboy Bebop in that it combined the western, comedy, action/adventure, and sci-fi genre, with more of a heavy reliance on the western genre, into this one show and made it work. So like Cowboy Bebop the anime and manga work on a lot of levels. This is probably my favorite series that had a western/post-apocalyptic look to it as Yashiro Nightow made everything look great as well as creating a great story.

To make things more interesting was as the anime progressed we started to learn more about Vash's past and why he had a bounty of $$60 billion on his head. I think what really sets it home of how much of a tortured life Vash has lived is seeing all the scars on his body. Though on the surface Vash is a goofy acting character underneath there laid a complex character who had everything taken away from him by his "brother." You add in the western look of his world Vash is great character who you do not want to mess with especially when he uses his gun.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #4 - Goku

2009-11-20T08:30:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the short break between post for my Top 25 Anime Character list. I have been side tracked with working on some projects the past week which has left me very little time to blog. But I am back on track to give everyone the Final Four of my list for top anime characters by continuing with #4:

#4. Goku

Created by: Akira Toriyama

First Appearance: Dragon Ball Episode 1 – Secrets of the Dragon Balls
Voice by: Japanese – Masako Nozawa; English – Sean Schemmel

Admit it. You thought Goku was going to be number one on my list didn't you. When I originally was thinking of this list I actually had in mind Goku being number 1 on the list but after going through everything I moved him down a bit. Still there is no denying the phenomenon that is Goku. Like many, the way I was introduced to anime and manga was through Goku and his adventures in Dragon Ball. Though the series lost my interest after the Cell Saga it was good when it lasted. And Goku was center stage of the phenomenon as he had some crazy power ups as a Super Saiyan he could easily destroy the world with a Kamehameha.

And it is easy to see Goku being #1 on many list of top anime and manga characters. Goku is probably the most influential anime character in the popularization of anime and manga here in the USA. He basically is Japan's version of Superman, Wizard Magazine even ran a somewhat controversial article of the two fighting. Even though the Dragon Ball franchise has been long since over we are still getting video games every year starring Goku and his cast. With Goku's it is surprising that he isn't on the flag yet as when you think of Japan. Goku is synonymous with the country to many anime fans in many countries.

What also makes Goku a great character is not only being a mainstay in the mainstream even now but also how he has become the influence of the creation of many popular manga/anime characters today. If you ask some of the biggest manga creators such as Eiichira Oda (One Piece creator) and Masashi Kishimoto (Naruto creator) than you will know that their main characters are based on Goku's core personality. So when it comes to Goku it sort of shows that sometimes keeping it simple in character personality works just as well as creating a complex character.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #5 – Edward Elric

2009-11-16T07:45:00.000-08:00

For the final five in my top list of my Top 25 Anime Character list I've decided to make an individual post for the final five. So to start things off here is #5:

#5. Edward ElricCreated by: Hiromu Arakawa

First Appearance: Fullmetal Alchemist Episode 1 – To Challenge the Sun
Voiced by: Japanese – Romi Park; English – Vic Mognogna

When it comes to the topic of religion it is a very delicate subject to talk about, whether in a positive or negative light, without offending somebody. That is where Fullmetal Alchemist comes in as it not only questions religion but will sometimes bash it which in all accounts should make the show not very enjoyable but it was one heck of a show. In truth Fullmetal Alchemist will go down as one of the best animes we have had and that is with it deviating from the source material halfway into the anime as the anime got so far ahead of the manga that it the writers of the anime had to create its own ending. And to show the how popular Full Metal Alchemist is there is even a new series were the anime completely retcon everything from the beginning in order to tell the story from the manga called Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, which hopefully makes it to the states sooner than later.

And the center piece of the series is Edward Elric who is the one's eyes we see everything through. At the start of the series Ed is already matured because of the events that happened when he and his brother, Al, tried to bring back their beloved mother to life. But even with that maturity he gained he still has a little man complex as he burst in anger whenever some comments about his short stature, which is where much of the comedy of the series comes from.

Fullmetal Alchemist is really about Ed's coming of age as we see him grow from a young boy to a mature young man. And it is the growth that we see the character go through as he and his brother have to see many horrific things and Ed struggles' the most as he tortures himself over what he did to his brother. Getting to see such a dark story happening around makes you realize that there is a lot of questioning of which is right: science or religion? That really isn't a big part and anytime it does appear it only is in the proper context of the story that is going around Ed who goes through a lot when the anime is done.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #10-#6

2009-11-15T09:25:00.000-08:00

#10. Shotaro KanedaCreated by: Katsuhiro Otomo

First Appearance: Akira Anime Film
Voiced by: Japanese – Mitsuo Iwata; English – Cam Clarke

If you take a look at Shotaro he isn't very impressive in his look. The design of the character is very basic anime. Also his core personality is your typical street punk. And those two things may have kept him from making any sort of Top List. If anything Shotaro would probably be at best a one shot villain for most animes. It isn't until you pair him up with his iconic red motorcycle that the coolness of the character is shown. Team that up with probably one of the most iconic anime movie posters and you got a character that is an instant win. And it helps that Akira is one of my favorite anime movies. ;)

Tribute Video:

#9. Arsene Lupin IIICreated by: Kazuhiko Kato
First Appearance: Lupin III Episode 1 – Is Lupin Burning….?
Voiced by: Japanese: Yasuo Yamada; English: Sonny Strait

Want to talk about the Bugs Bunny of Japan you don't have to look any further than Asene Lupin III. After not only dodging but also tricking and outwitting the police for 40 years Lupin is unquestionably the #1 thief in the world. Even though you know that Lupin will somehow outsmart his foes it is always fun to watch how he gets himself out of any situation he is in. Watching Lupin is just like watching Bugs Bunny since we always knew that both Lupin and Bugs would win out in the end.

And in the 40 years Lupin and his crew have been around he has gathered some great directors along the way to give him even more credibility to why he is so popular. And of all the directors it is interesting to note that Lupin is where the legendary animator Hayao Miyazaki got his first major project. That of in itself should prove how much history the character has

Tribute Video:

#8. AshitakaCreated by: Hayao Miyazaki
First appearance: Princess Mononoke
Voiced by: Japanese – Yōji Matsuda; English – Billy Crudup

When thinking of some of the most creative minds we have Hayao Miyazaki-sama is right up there on any list. And to this day I will always remember when I first discovered the brilliance that is Miyazaki-sama with Princess Mononoke. Though Spirited Away is my favorite Miyazaki film, Princess Mononoke will always hold a special place in my heart both for its brilliance and all in all fun ride.

Leading the pact of Princess Mononoke is the hero of the story Ashitaka. Though this entry really belongs to the entire Princess Mononoke film and cast Ashitaka is really the stand-out, outside of the great animation. Ashitaka is a great hero to follow as he fights for his town while afflicted by a deadly disease that both gets worse and gives him superpowers. And it helps that Ashitaka was not just a great character with plenty of depth but also the story he was placed in was truly epic, like all Miyazaki films feel.

Tribute Video:

#7. Spike SpiegelCreated by: Shinichirō Watanabe

First Appearance: Cowboy Bebop Episode 1 – Asteroid Blues
Voiced by: Japanese – Kōichi Yamadera; English – Steven Blum

Part western, sci-fi, action, and comedy Cowboy Bebop worked on many levels as it was able to take parts of each genre, which really shouldn't happen but it did. And Spike is what made the show so fun. There are very few characters that define cool like Spike does. With his business casual suit he is always wearing, always drinking and smoking, and all in all sounding very aloof he defines cool.

To make things even better is that while each character in Cowboy Bebop has their own story everything always goes back to Spike. Even with all the interesting stories his comrades have to tell it is Spike story, specifically his past, that was the most interesting to watch play out. And from beginning to end everything goes through Spike and what happens to his character at the very end of the story. Which is what made Cowboy Bebop so much fun to watch back in the day.

Tribute Video:

#6. LCreated by: Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

First Appearance: Death Note Episode 2 – Confrontation
Voiced by: Japanese: Kappei Yamaguchi; English: Alessandro Juliani

When it comes to finding Japan's version of Superman it is not very hard to figure it out as Goku is the obvious choice. That choice is not so simple when it comes down to figuring out their version of Batman. That was until L. L's personality is almost identical to Bruce Wayne as he has the whole dark, brooding personality down. He is also a master detective and only lets his allies in on what he is thinking on a need to know basis just as Bruce treats his fellow superhero allies.

And you know that a character is big when a story never reaches the same level it was when said character was alive. That is very true when it comes to L. Though Death Note was still a lot of fun to watch even after L died the series just felt as it lost some of its magic once L died. And to show how intensely popular L is the writers of the live-action films did not only have L actually beat Light in the end of the second movie but also gave him his own film that was set in the last 30 days of his life, after defeating Light. And you know watching L makes me feel like having some sort of sweets like a strawberry shortcake. Weird huh?

Tribute Video:

Legen...wait for it....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 11/11/09

2009-11-14T16:11:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man #611

I've said it many times but I love Skottie Young's artwork and his cover art is always great and this cover with Spider-Man and Deadpool is just all kinds of awesome. It is an great preview of the fun you are going to get inside the comic.

Amazing Spider-Man #611 Highlights

Hey at least Marvel tried something new and fun for the recap page of this issue with even Deadpool joining in with the rest of the editors to recap what's been going with Spider-Man.

Gotta love the Looney Tones-esque joke here with Deadpool playing the role of Bugs Bunny and Spider-Man playing the role of the unexpected Elmer Fudd.

I don't think I have to say much about why these two images made the highlights of the week. The image of Spider-Man and Deadpool trading Yo Mama jokes speaks for itself of how awesome this issue was.

Batman #693 Highlights

Helena makes for one heck of a "wingman" especially with what happens in the next image.

Barbara is not going to like that.

Told ya. That is one mean stink eye.

He's back!!!

I dig Dick using different versions of the Batsuit with this version looking like it integrates the Winger-tech from his time as Nightwing.

Batman and Robin #6 Highlights

Batman and Robin tell you to talk too the hand.

What I would like to know is how much of what happened to Bruce during Batman RIP does Dick knows as it seems that maybe he and Bruce talked about Zur-En-Arrh since no one knew about that but Bruce and Black Mask.

Also I want to know why Dick is keeping it a secret he does know Bruce is alive from Tim and everyone.

Daredevil #502 Highlights

As always your exs haunt you in your dreams. There just is no escaping the wrath of your ex.

Yep Izo is okay. Just give him a beer.

Green Lantern Corps #42 Highlights

Just a gorgeous splash page of the Black Lanterns heading towards the Green Lantern Corps main power battery.

If you are going to give a hero a proper death this is how you do it. Kyle was give the proper hero death even though he will probably come back by the end of Blackest Night, if not sooner.

Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard #1 Highlights

Now that is how you make an entrance.

If it can't be done right by others than just do it yourself as Gladiator did here.

Top 25 Anime Characters: #15-#11

2009-11-14T10:30:00.000-08:00

Time for another batch of my Top 25 Anime Characters with #11-#15. I was unable to embed the Speed Racer video to this post so if you want to check out the tribute video just click on the link I provided for it. Now #11-#15:

#15. Speed RacerCreated by: Tatsuo Yoshida

First Appearance: Speed Racer Episode 1 – The Great Plan
Voiced by: Japanese – Voiced by: Katsuji Mori; English – Peter Fernandez

If you want to talk about the ultimate car you want how can you go wrong with the Mach 5? Just like the entry with Astro Boy earlier, what elevates Speed Racer is how he help usher anime to the states. Even 40 years later you can mention Speed Racer and there will be plenty of people who will know who you are talking about. Like most anything we watch or read we know that the hero would win but it was always fun to see what Speed would be able to do with the Mach 5 to pull out the win and how Racer X would help him win/survive the race.

Tribute Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AMh2Ho346c

#14. Naruto UzumakiCreated by: Masashi Kishimoto
First appearance: Naruto Episode 1 – Enter: Uzumaki Naruto
Voiced by: Japanese – Junko Takeuchi; English – Maile Flanagan

In terms of popularity you won't find a more popular series than Naruto here in the states with the manga making it in the Top 10 best selling list in TPB and manga whenever releases a new volume. And recently Disney XD started showing the Part II of Naruto called Naruto: Shippuden. I still question why Cartoon Network allowed Naruto to escape their grasp especially since the series has yet to reach its best as the Part II of Naruto is even better in the manga and the anime should follow suit.

But enough of my bitching on that subject. Naruto Uzumaki on his own right is probably a character if I was making this list 10 or 20 years down the line would most likely break my top 5 favorite anime characters. Even though it has been shown that Naruto isn't the most popular character of his own series I actually prefer him over Sasuke, who is the #1 fan favorite character of the series.

Naruto is a much more relatable character as everything he does and accomplishes is through hard work and dedication. He has to earn the respect of everyone in his village that has vilified him since he was born because of being the container of the Nine Tailed Fox. Throughout Part I of the series he work hard to get that respect and now in Part II we see how much Naruto has matured so far as he goes from being a kid looking for respect to a young man out to protect his friends and village. Though Naruto: Shippuden has only started up if the manga is any example the anime should only get better as there are a lot of great fights that Naruto and everyone in the series get into.

Tribute Video:

#13. Lelouch Lamperouge

Created by: Sunrise
First Appearance: Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Episode 1 – The Day a New Demon was Born
Voiced by: Japanese – Jun Fukuyama; English – Johnny Yong Bosch

For those who have read my reviews of Code Geass you will know I questioned how rushed the story in R2 as well as a lot of the character development that happened at the end of the series. But the one thing that always kept the anime series enjoyable was what Lelouch Lamperouge did throughout the series. Even though many of the characters around him become very unwatchable due to how the writers of the series developed them in the latter half of R2 Lelouch was still the well writing master strategist until the end. And throughout the series, from beginning to end, it was a mystery of how Lelouch's story was going to end as there were many ways it could have gone. And man when we got to the ending it was a jaw dropper.

What is interesting about Lelouch is that it is a bit hard to describe him as he is a mix of Light Yagami and some of your typical Sunrise heroes like you'll find in the Gundam series. And if you take a look at his murder record he is probably only beaten out by Light Yagami. But still unlike Light who is the villain of his series Lelouch is unquestionably the hero of Code Geass. Everything Lelouch did was not necessarily for himself but to create a much better and safer world for his sister and friends he cared about.

And there are many interpretations of if Lelouch actually did die at the end of R2, with some believing him alive and others believing him to be dead. I myself fall under those who think he did die as it is a much better ending for his character and think it is actually cruel to think that he is alive in the end making his little sister he cared so much about think he was dead. Also his death really gives a lot more weight to what his character did and why he should be seen as a true hero who put others above himself as he committed the ultimate sacrifice by sacrificing not only his life but his name in order for the world improve and work together to make better tomorrow.

Tribute Video:

#12. Monkey D. LuffyCreated by: Eiichira Oda
First Appearance: One Piece Episode 1 – I am Going to be King of the Pirates
Voiced by: Japanese – Mayumi Takana; English – Colleen Clinkenbeard

As I mentioned earlier with Roronoa Zolo it is a shame that One Piece never got a shot at catching as it is my favorite manga and anime's. And if you want to think of who is this generations Goku it is Monkey D. Luffy. Luffy has just about the same simple and overeating personality that Goku have. And you think I am lying about this than go try and find the Cross Epoch one-shot manga crossover between Dragon Ball and One Piece that was written by Akira Toriyama , creator of Dragon Ball, and Eiichira Oda. Also if you can find the one-shot anime that both Luffy and Goku appeared in that was only shown at an event over in Japan.

Even though Luffy is this generations Goku he is a great character in his own right. It helps that I am a sucker for stories based about pirates, which is why I love the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. One Piece is an epic story centered around Luffy's trying to become Pirate King. And like any great character Luffy does have a great supporting cast in his crew The Strawhats. Each character is a great balance for Luffy's simple personality.

Also like most a lot of Goku-type characters, even though Luffy has a simple personality he is pretty smart when it comes to fighting his opponent. With his powers from the Gum Gum Devil's Fruit his elastic ability, that is similar to Mr. Fantastics powers, make him a very unpredictable fighter. And unlike his second mate, Roronoa Zolo, Luffy is one of those that creates' attacks as fight goes along and is a great improviser in fights. And because of this it makes his fights fun to watch.

Tribute Video:

#11. Light YagamiCreated by: Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

First Appearance: Death Note Episode 1 – Rebirth
Voiced by: Japanese – Mamoru Miyano; English – Brad Swaile

For me there has never been a show that had me more captivated and on the edge of my seat waiting to see what was going to happen in the next episode more than Death Note. This is largely takes to the protagonist of the series Light Yagami. It is a rare thing to have the protagonist of a series to also be the villain and it's even rarer for it to be so much fun to read and watch. But in the case of Light that is what happened as I tuned in every week to see what was going to be the next brilliant idea and strategy to outwit his nemesis, L.

Though Vegeta was the original bastard character, the king of bastard characters is Light. No one else took more pleasure in killing people of he judged as not worthy to be part of his world where he thought himself as God. And the only reason he would allow people to live on for as long as they did was just to use them for his own master plans (cough*Misa*cough). And though we are all thought that murder and death is wrong watching Light do his thing by planning out his next brilliant strategy to really become the God he already was in his own mind.

Tribute Video:

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 11/11/09

2009-11-13T15:48:00.000-08:00

The Top 25 Anime Character countdown is going to be taking a small break. It will be back on Sunday with #11-#15. Instead it is time to review some of this week's comics. This week's reviews I will take a look at Amazing Spider-Man #611, Batman #693, and Green Lantern Corps #42.

Amazing Spider-Man #611

Creative Team
Writer: Joe Kelly
Artist: Eric Canete
Colorist: Andres Mossa

Story – This Man, This (Expletive Deleted)

Review
Though Amazing Spider-Man #611 wasn't as great as I was expecting it to be Joe Kelly still provided a very good issue. This issue makes me wish that Kelly would write a team-up title with Spider-Man and Deadpool or at the very least a mini-series. It is actually incredible that we haven't had more issues with Spider-Man and Deadpool meeting up in the past as it just seems like a natural team-up with how great both character's play off one another.

As Kelly has done anytime he has been penned to write a story on Amazing Spider-Man he just showed why he is one of the best Spidey writers on the Spider-Man Brain Trust. And at the same time he showed a great handle of a character he is long been familiar with. The two characters had a great chemistry. And I really like how Kelly choose to open the first scene between the two with a Looney Toons-type joke. It was really great way to open up the rest of the scenes between the two for the rest of the issue.

Also of note were the jokes about Blackest Night joke and the need for internal monologue. But what really sealed the deal was the yo mama jokes in the basketball courts. Because seriously how can you not laugh at "You mother's so stupid she thinks cheerios are donut seeds," or "Your mother's so fat, Hank Pym had to beat her up in the back of a Quinjet." Great stuff by the two of them as Kelly really did a fantastic job with all the jokes in the issue.

What sort of took steam out of this issue was the artwork. Even though this issue with Spider-Man and Deadpool needed an artist that could draw more in a more cartoony style Eric Canete artwork was just way to inconsistent. There were points in the issue were the characters just look distorted which does take you out of the issue at times. It also seemed that the art was rushed and not much effort was put into this issue.

Also another thing that I did not like was the unnecessary need to tie it into the Gauntlet storyline that is going to start in the next issue. Though we saw that something was going to happen to Maddie with the preview of things to come during ASM #600 it just felt out of place in this issue. It just felt that Kelly forced the Gauntlet storyline in even though he did not need to as we have in this issue which had a very light and humorous tone.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.2/10 – Kelly turned in some great writing with Spider-Man and Deadpool. The only thing that kept it from being a perfectly rated story is the unnecessary insertion of the Gauntlet story line.
Art: 5.7/10 – Though Eric Canete artwork had an interesting cartoony look the inconsistency, which at times lead to characters looking distorted, really hurt this issue's story in certain parts.
Overall: 7.45/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #611 was a fun issue to read. Even though some of the weaknesses of the issue did hurt the story this was still a fun issue to read. If you are a Spider-Man or Deadpool fan I highly recommend picking this issue up as Kelly does a great job writing both characters.

Batman #693

Creative Team
Writer and Artist: Tony Daniel
Inker: Sandu Florea
Colorist: Ian Hannin
Story – Life After Death Part 2: Charades

Review
Though I was not blown away by Tony Daniel's second turn at writing Batman I was impressed with how much his writing improved over his work on Battle for the Cowl. The previous issue of Batman was actually a fun read with my only complaint in that issue was the turn to a Nazi type character that Dr. Death became. Daniel continues in this issue what he did in this issue by giving us another solid issue.

And what was good about this issue is that Daniel placed Dick Grayson in a situation where he really hasn't been in since becoming Batman: a social party with all of Gotham's most well known and richest people. Though it felt Daniel could have milked it a bit but it was a nice change of pace for Dick's character as it is a different situation finds himself in. By being in this type of social situation it kind of takes Dick out of his comfort level of being a performer.

I would like to see him in more similar social situations just as Dick Grayson as it can help evolve his character into really being seen as the heir to Bruce's throne as he not only has to handle wearing the cowl, as he is already doing, but also dealing with Wayne Enterprise which hasn't dealt with much. And these types of situations are made more interesting with the use of Hush still posing as Bruce Wayne.

What made things more interesting was the choice for the wingman that Alfred choose for Dick being Helena, aka Huntress. I don't know but originally I actually thought it was going to be Barbara that Dick was going to go to the event with but the choice of Helena made things much more interesting. Daniel did a very good job building up the love triangle since both Helena and Barbara have had relationships with the former "boy wonder." This is nice sub-plot that I hope continues even after this storyline is over.

Also, it was good to see Daniel had Dick used different versions of the Batsuit to fit the situation Dick was in. His Batsuit he used at the end of the issue looked like it integrated the Winger-tech as it looked very similar to the Wingers Dick used when he was Nightwing. Though I did think the ending was a very cliché ending and did not really hook me for the next issue.

Issue Rating
Story: 8/10 – Daniel provide a solid second issue to his return arc to Batman. He told a very fun story throughout the issue though the ending was a bit to cliché.
Art: 8/10 – As always Daniel provide some great artwork though some of the pages in this issue felt rushed and not the typical Daniel artwork he has done in the past.
Overall: 8/10 – Batman #693 was a solid issue. If you are a Batman fan this is a very good issue to read as there was a good balance between Dick's personal and Batman life. Daniel is building a very good story that is a massive improvement to his work on Battle for the Cowl.

Green Lantern Corps #42

Creative Team
Writer: Peter Tomasi
Artist: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman and Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb

Story – Hungry Heart

Review
Green Lantern Corps #42 was another great issue, and as was the case with Green Lantern #47, also showed that the quality between Blackest Night and Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps is incredible. Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps continue to show that there really is a story that Blackest Night has failed to do with the event. Tomasi also continues to show why GLC is really one of DC's premier titles as he just makes this a fun action packed issue with plenty of character development/interactions.

GLC #42 is actually my favorite issue of Blackest Night so far. Tomasi just kicked so much butt with this issue that he really has set the bar high for what he is going to do with the next issue and what I expect from Geoff Johns in Blackest Night and Green Lantern. It was just a fun read from start to finish as he packed this issue with a ton of emotion to go along with all the action that was going on in this issue.

I really liked Kilowog's depressed look on his face as he looked around at what was going on in Oa. It was a very powerful scene as Kilowog has always shown to have a tough exterior as he has been the tank of the Green Lantern Corps. And to see such a warrior with a very depressed look on his face effectively showed the how much emotional weight Blackest Night has to the universe.

What really did it for me in this issue was how Tomasi portrayed Kyle Rayner. Tomasi did an incredible job showing why Kyle has the heart of hero and is seen as one of the best Green Lanterns in the Corps. His intense willpower and bravery to do what is right is second to almost none. The ending with him carry the power battery and taking out most of the Black Lanterns with him was the best scene we have had so far in Blackest Night. And the last page of this issue carries a lot of ramifications for what may happen in Blackest Night.

Patrick Gleason provided plenty of quality artwork with a lot of kudos to his inking and coloring crew. He provided some of his best artwork on this issue. I especially liked his artwork in the last half of the issue was awesome. And those last few issues of Kyle making the ultimate sacrifice were just incredible and will definitely make my Highlights of the Week.

Issue Rating
Story: 10/10 – Tomasi provided an incredible story in GLC #42. He just packed this issue with so much incredible writing that it will be interesting to see how he, and Johns, can top this issue.
Art: 9.2/10 – Patrick Gleason provided some great artwork. His artwork was great for this emotional and action packed issue.
Overall: 9.6/10 – Green Lantern Corps #42 is the best issue of Blackest Night we have had so far. If you are reading the event than do not miss this issue as it was an incredibly well done issue both in the writing and art. This is just a must buy.

Top 25 Anime Characters: #20-#16

2009-11-12T07:10:00.000-08:00

Time to continue my Top 25 Anime Characters with #20-#16:

#20. PikachuCreated by: Satoshi Tajiri

First Appearance: Pokemon Episode 1 – Pokemon, I Choose You
Voiced by: Ikue Otani

Who ever thought we would get a rat that would become more famous than Jerry from Tom and Jerry? Not me. But this is where Pikachu and the billion dollars franchise known as Pokemon comes in. Even 13 years after throwing red and white balls at creatures known as Pokemon the franchise is still going and only getting stronger with games being released every year since its first release. And seriously who didn't play the video games as a kid of the 90s.

The one leading the charge of the Pokemon phenomenon is Pikachu. He/She is the poster child for Pokemon and it is incredible that the character and series are still around as kids are still playing the games. And how much bigger can a character get when you appear as a Thanksgiving float. You are an icon when you get your own float which is what Pikachu has been able to do.

Tribute Video:

#19. Astro Boy

Created by: Osamu Tezuka
First Appearance: Astro Boy Episode 1 – The Birth of Astro Boy
Voiced by: Billie Lou Watt /Mari Shimizu (1963); Patricia Kugler Whitely / Mari Shimizu (1982/1980); Candi Milo /Makoto Tsumura (2004/2003); Freddie Highmore/Aya Ueto (2009 Film)

After successfully having an anime that lasted almost 200 episodes Astro Boy has been a series and character that has tried to make a comeback a few times now since the 60s anime though never reaching the success of the original. Even now Astro Boy is trying to make a comeback with a CGI movie from Imagi Animation Studios that was recently released.

And Astro Boy is an important character and series to the US as it has the distinction of opening the door for anime to enter the US. Astro Boy is a character with identical origins to Pinocchio as he was created by a scientist to trying to recreate his son after his son was killed in a car accident only to be abandon by said scientist to the circus since Astro could not replace his son. And that is where we see that this is just not boy robot as he does have a heart of gold willing to fight evil to protect those who reject him because he knows it is the right thing to do.

Tribute Video:

#18. Motoko Kusani

Created by: Masamune Shirow
First Appearance: Ghost in the Shell Anime Film
Voiced by: Japanese – Atsuko Tanaka; English – Mimi Woods (film), Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (anime)

When you want to talk about anime woman you do not want to mess with is Motoko Kusani. Who doesn't like a good anime that is set in a futuristic time period? Ghost in Shell is an awesome anime and Motoko is a great character.

As a cyborg you just do not mess with this Terminator/Robocop. And what sets her apart from other cyborgs is that the only real part that is human about her is that she has only a human brain and spinal cord, the rest is full robot. Which brings in an interesting question of what does a cyborg/robot need to be human. Through this question and the setting and job Motoko has undertaken it makes her adventures in Ghost in the Shell fascinating to watch as we see you don't need much to be human.

Tribute Video:

#17. VegetaCreated by: Akira Toriyama
First Appearance: Dragon Ball Z Episode 4 – Goku's Unsual Journey
Voiced by: Japanese – Ryo Horiwaka; English – Christopher Sabat

Though there are plenty of bastard anti-heroes like Light Yagami and Lelouch Lamperouge but not many are better than the original Vegeta. Even though Vegeta himself feels ashamed that he lost to Goku in their first battle he did technically win with Goku being the one that had yet to beat Vegeta in a straight out fight. It was Vegeta's intense pride of being the Prince, though never King (weird!?), of Saiyan's that never let that loss he thinks he suffered in his first encounter with Goku to let him get over it. And after that first fight were Vegeta was stronger than Goku he was never able to surpass Goku's power level only match it.

And it was his anti-hero personality along with all the hard work he put himself through that made him a great character. Even when Vegeta reached what at the time was the pinnacle of strength for the Saiyans he was never really able to surpass Goku. All of that made his transformation into Majin Vegeta during the Buu Saga even better as we finally saw the rematch between him and Goku. Though things weren't settled it was a great fight. And though we never saw a true conclusion to the fight it was good seeing Vegeta's life come full circle as he settled down with Bulma and started a family at the end of Dragon Ball Z.

Tribute Video:

#16. Amuro RayCreated by: Yoshiyuki Tomino
First Appearance: Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 1 – Gundam Rising
Voiced by: Japanese – Toru Furuya; English – Brad Swaile

Who doesn't like seeing a bunch of giant robots fighting. The king of all giant robot series is the long running mecha anime Gundam. And when you talk about Gundam you can't go long without talking about one of the best, if not the best, Gundam pilots out of the whole series Amuro Ray. He along with the original Gundam set the stage for the rest of the franchise that is still going on to this day. And even with the various universes Amuro Ray still stands out as the pilot all other Gundam pilots will be compared to.

Also what helps to elevate Amuro from the rest of the pilots in the other Gundam series is that he had the greatest rivalry/enemy in the Gundam franchise in Char Aznable. As they say, a hero is only as good as his villain and for Amuro he did have the greatest enemy in the franchise. All in all Amuro is and will always be what other pilots will compared to.

Tribute Video:

Top 25 Anime Characters: #25-#21

2009-11-11T11:45:00.000-08:00

As followers of the Legacy know I am a big fan of anime. My love for anime, and manga, matches my love of comics. Though anime did not really become popularized here in the US until the 80s with animes such as Dragon Ball and Mobile Suit Gudam anime has a had real deep and rich history in Japan with hundreds, if not thousands, of different anime's. One of the things that set's anime apart from what we know as cartoons is all the different styles of animation they have. Each series has its own distinct look and going back to the early anime's you can really see how anime has evolved from when it began. And for me that is what adds more to my love of anime as I can watch things like Death Note, Naruto, Dragon Ball, Gundam, and other animes and see that they all have their own style of anime. So because of my love of anime I decided to create my own list of my favorite Top 25 Anime Characters.

For this new post I will be revealing five characters everyday from my top list counting down from 25 until my #1 favorite anime character. And for my Top 5 I will reveal them all in a single post to those characters. Along with providing some brief info about the character and why I picked them I will include a tribute video to the character or the series.

#25. Roronoa ZoloCreated by: Eiichiro Oda
First Appearance: One Piece Episode 2 – Roronoa Zolo: Pirate Hunter
Voiced by: Japanese – Kazuya Nakai; English – Christopher Sabat

One Piece is one of my favorite manga's running today and I was extremely disappointed when the anime did not continue to run here in the States as the story of One Piece gets much better as it moves along. Still we do have the DVD's to look forward to. And probably my favorite character of the series is Roronoa Zolo. This guy is the ultimate badass when he wields his three swords at the same time.

While Zolo lives in a world where there are a bunch of people with extraordinary powers thanks to the Devil's Fruit he is the biggest example of hard work. Everything he is able to do is through all of the painful and growling hours he puts into training. Though his abilities are inhuman, especially his stamina (he has lost more blood than any other anime character I've seen), you got to respect a man who is as dedicated as Zolo is to be the best at what he does, swordsmanship. And who else can say they can wield a sword in their mouth and still banter with your opponents?

Tribute Video:

#24. Selena Tsukino/Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon)Created by: Naoko Takeuchi

First Appearance: Sailor Moon Episode – A Moon Star is Born
Voiced by: Japanese – Kotono Mitsuichi; English – Tracey Moore, Terri Hawkes, Linda Ballantyne, and Jenifer Cihi

Though I have never been a fan of Sailor Moon even I have to recognize the impact this anime and the character has had here in the USA. While there are plenty of magical girl series out there none of them come close to what Sailor Moon did. Selena Tsukino and her group can be credit for bringing in the female demographic, specifically young girls, into the world of anime and manga. Selena Tsukino is sort of the Wonder Woman of anime as she is a strong individual character who saves the day and her boyfriend. And there are very few female character oriented shows that have found the balance and popularity Selena and her crew have reached.

Tribute Video:

#23. MugenCreated by: Shinichiro Watanabe
First appearance: Samurai Champloo Episode 1: "Tempestuous Temperaments"
Voiced by: Japanese – Kazuya Nakai; English – Steve Blum

When it comes to wielding a sword there is no one that is more unpredictable than Mugen from Samurai Champloo. His combination of various martial art disciplines along with some breakdancing and basically making things up as he fights there is no anti-hero more unorthodox than Mugen. Plus he has one wicked sword.

Along with his skills what really sets Mugen apart from many anime characters, especially those set in older eras of Japanese culture, is his take no shit attitude. Taking a look at the character his personality would probably be more in line with characters that are in the modern era. And when you pair him up with his comic foils in Jin and Fuu there are some comically gold moments for Mugen.

Tribute Video:

#22. Ichigo KurosakiCreated by: Tite Kubo
First Appearance: Bleach Episode 1 – The Day I Became a Shinigami
Voiced by: Japanese – Masakazu Morita; English – Johnny Yong Bosch

Ichigo is sort of the stereo typical bad boy hero type who actual is a caring individual when it comes to his friends and family that you get in Shonen Jump series. But add in a huge sword along with some great opponents to face it is hard to find a better action hero in the current running anime.

And when it comes to big fast paced action Bleach is the anime to watch. Throw in some wicked sword designs straight out of the imagination of Tite Kudo what else can you ask for. And it doesn't get any better than Ichigo and his huge butcher knife-like sword. With his large amount of spiritual pressure (power level) Ichigo is one guy you don't want to mess with especially when he yells out Bankai and transforms into the Tensa Zangetsu form of his release.

Tribute Video:

#21. Alucard

Created by: Kouta Hirano
First Appearance: Hellsing Episode 1 – The Undead
Voiced by: Japanese – Nakata Joujo; English – Crispin Freeman

With Vampires being all the rage right now due to a specific franchise it is hard to escape that craze. And when it comes to vampires in anime you don't get any better than Allucard. This is one sadistic anti-hero who loves do dish out pain to his enemies. When facing off against this character you would be lucky if he killed you the moment you looked at him as he loves to torture his enemies before killing them. And what makes Allucard so cool now especially with the typical moppy vampire we get now is that he is just so sadistic that it is hard not to root for this anti-hero.

Tribute Video:

Preview of the Week’s Releases for 11/11/09

2009-11-09T18:32:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned earlier in my reviews for last week's comics I have been working on a new post and am about done writing it up. And this new post is my own Top 25 Anime Character list. Starting on Thursday I will be posting my list of favorite anime characters by revealing five characters each day, with the top 5 being revealed in their own posts. Also I created this banner for this new post hope everyone likes it.

Now on to preview this week's comic book releases.
Comics
Amazing Spider-Man #611 – After taking a break from Amazing Spider-Man this past month I am back to picking up this title. And this issue with Deadpool is an issue I have been looking forward to reading. We get Spider-Man and Deadpool in the same issue written by Joe Kelly what else would you want. This should be just a fun issue.

Batman #693 – Though the I wasn't blown away by Tony Daniel's first issue I was impressed with how much his writing improved from the work he did in Battle for the Cowl. I am glad that he brought back the Falcone family but at the same time I still am not digging Black Mask. Still, I am looking forward to reading this issue to see if Daniel can give us another solid issue of Batman.

Batman and Robin #6 – The last issue of Batman and Robin was highly disappointing. It was Morrison's worst issue on this title which has so far been enjoyable. Though I am interested to learn about the Flamingo and how Dick and Damien will get themselves out of the situation they have found themselves in last issue.

Daredevil #502 – For the past six or seven months Daredevil has been the comic I look forward to reading the most. This series has been on a role and Andy Diggle did a fantastic job with his first issue on this series. The last few pages from the last issue were freaking awesome and can't wait to see more of Matt as the leader of The Hand.

Green Lantern Corps #42 – The last issue of Green Lantern Corps issue was nothing but popcorn for the brain with some it being completely dominated by the fight between the Green Lantern Corps and Black Lanterns, but I enjoyed it. While I don't expect things to change in this issue Tomasi always provides some solid character work so this should be another fun issue.

Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard #1 – I have become a complete sucker for everything related to the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe. And I loved War of Kings. DnA did a fantastic job with that event and I can't wait to see what they have in store with Realm of Kings, though it is weird that Imperial Guard is coming out before the Realm of Kings one-shot.

Legen....wait for it.....dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 11/4/09

2009-11-08T14:12:00.000-08:00

Cover of the Week: Deadpool Team-Up #899

Who doesn't love a good keg party. This cover makes me wish I picked this issue up.

Assault on New Olympus #1

Know that Zeus has pointed out that Jocasta is naked how long until we get the first offended mother protesting about this being bad for her kid?

This is one of those times were its all about power not speed.

Reunited again and it feels so good, well unless you are buried under twenty cars like Spider-Man is in the background.

It''s team-up time.

Captain America: Reborn #4

Not many artist draw Dr. Doom better than Bryan Hitch. Just an awesome look.

Talk about your life passing you by.

You know this isn't going to end well.

Wonder were this goes in the next issue?

Nova #31

Philo has become one of my new favorite cosmic characters. Loved how he showed up the new Nova Corps recruits.

Well that is one way to learn about the Brotherhood of Raptors.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #4

Want to make your presence felt? Just jump on top of a car and crush it.

Looks like Johnny may regret his decision now that he has to do some chores.

Gotta love the drama of high school especially when it is Peter Parker.

Awkward!

Mysterio got his payback for Spider-Man making him look like a punk in the last issue.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 11/4/09

2009-11-07T01:14:00.000-08:00

Sorry for not making many post these past few weeks. It just seems as though when I think I can relax something comes up to take up my time. Still while I have not posted to often I am working on a special post that I will hopefully be able to start post next week. Now with all that said on to this reviews of this week's books.

Captain America: Reborn #4

Creative Team
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Bryan Hitch and Butch Guice
Colorist: Paul Mounts

Story – Reborn Chapter 4

Review
After a slow start Brubaker has really been on his game these past two issues. Issue #4 is the best issue we have gotten so far. One of the great things that Brubaker has done with Captain America: Reborn is that, like War of Kings, this feels like it could be the big event for Marvel this year. The way it has been competing with Blackest Nights in the sales chart it very well could be considered Marvel's big event. And with Bryan Hitch's artwork this book looks like a big event while also reading like one.

While this mini-series does have a big event feel with the involvement of some big names within the Marvel Universe it still has a has a sense of this being a self-contained story that is just an evolution of the stories Brubaker has been telling since he started his run on Captain America. With what happens between Steve and Red Skull it just seems as though this is where the Cap has been building toward. And depending on how Brubaker handles the ending of this issue there is a ton of potential stories for Captain America and were Marvel can go with Siege when it starts at the beginning of the next year.

Outside of the ending the other standout of this issue is how Brubaker writes the three big bad guys of Red Skull, Dr. Doom, and Norman Osborn. Any time there is more than one big A-list villain into an issue and an arc a writer will usually sacrifice some of them to make another one look like the ultimate badass. But Brubaker handles each character wonderfully.

Each character was completely in line with how a reader expects them to act. Norman Osborn is perfect in his super political mode with wanting to use Steve Rogers to further his credibility among the American people. For Dr. Doom it is all about being a man of his word and showing himself to be one of the top scientists in the universe, on par with Reed and Hank. And then there is the Red Skull who is just as well written as Brubaker has been writing the character throughout his run. When you see these three big villains working together in such a cohesive manner it makes you wonder how the hell the heroes can fight them.

And not to let the villains dominate the issue, even though they did, Brubaker did a fantastic job writing all the heroes in this issue. From the scenes with Reed, Hank, and Vision to Bucky's to what is going on with Steve it was all well written. Brubaker just does a great job writing these scenes and showing us the desperation with each character as they try to find a way to save Steve and the sadness in Steve's inner monologue of reliving his past. Just some great stuff all around.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.6/10 – Brubaker has really stepped things up on Captain America: Reborn. With the ending of this issue I can't wait to see where the story goes from here.
Art: 9/10 – Bryan Hitch's artwork continues to be great. His artwork does an awesome job making this mini-series into a big event.
Overall: 8.8/10 – Captain America: Reborn #4 was great. Brubaker and Hitch are moving this story in a great pace. With that said this mini-series will read much better in trade than in single issues so I definitely recommend picking up this mini-series when it ends.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #4

Creative Team
Writers: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Lafuente
Colorist: Justin Ponsor

Story – New World According to Peter Parker

Review
With the dark age of the Ultimate Universe over, with the event that will not be spoken, it is great to have Ultimate Spider-Man return to being a top quality book it was for over a hundred issues. And Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #4 is probably the greatest example of how great this series can be when Bendis is allowed to do his own thing, and without having to write with the limitations of an event pulling in this series into it. This just had everything a Spider-Man comic should have: action, comedy and drama.

Peter Parker/Spider-Man has always been the one character whose life is like a soap opera which Bendis has a great hand for writing. Case in point the scene between Peter, MJ, and Gwen could have easily been awkward and very forced love triangle type situation. But Bendis just has a great feel for writing each character that all the dialogue feels fresh and never a rehash of what he himself has written in the past on this series.

It's actually fun seeing how things are now and even though I am still not a fan of Peter and Gwen being together it is clear that Bendis put the characters together in order to mine the story possibilities of Peter and MJ apart. And I am hoping the Kitty is thrown into the mix sooner than later as it seems she has sort of disappeared.

Also I enjoyed the addition of Johnny to the cast of this book. It just seems like a great fit in this book as it gives Peter a male best friend. And I it was funny hearing Johnny talk about getting a secret identity and later his surprise about doing chores. With Kitty already on this title it seems as though Bendis might be going for a Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends type story telling which should lead to some great stories. Personally I can't wait for when Spider-Woman(-Girl) shows back up on this title just so we can see Johnny's reaction to finding out the girl he has a crush on is actually Peter's female clone. Should be hilarious moment and issue.

Not to be outdone Peter's Spider-Man life gets some attention in this issue as well. The balance between seeing both Peter's personal life and his adventures well balanced in this issue. And after being made out to look like a bit of a loser in the last issue it is cool to see Mysterio show himself off as being a big threat like he showed to be when he killed Kingpin. It should be interesting to see how Spider-Man gets himself out of this situation as he look pretty messed up in the final page.

David Lafuente continues to provide some excellent artwork in this issue. I completely dig his work on this series as I think Lafuente's anime/manga style of artwork is a perfect fit for this title. He gives each panel a certain energy and life you don't see in most comics. The art is very distinct and stands out from any other art style you will find in a comic. It is just great work by Lafuente and his colorist Justin Ponsor.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Bendis continues to work his magic on Ultimate Comics Spider-Man. The three different stories of the love triangle, the mysterious Shroud character, and Spider-Man's fight with Mysterio were a lot of fun to read.
Art: 9.3/10 – Lafuente and Ponsor combine to deliver some phenomenal artwork. The art just makes the story even more enjoyable to read.
Overall: 9.15/10 – Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #4 was another fun read. There is just nothing bad I can say about this issue or series. It is just a blast to read. I highly recommend picking this series up, whether in sigle issues or in trade paperback, as it is one of the best comic books on the market.

Blackest Night #4 Review

2009-10-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Ivan Reis
Inkers: Oclair Albert and Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair

Story – Gathering

Review
After reading Green Lantern #46 a few weeks ago I really believed that Geoff Johns was ready to actually shift the story of Blackest Night from the neutral position it has been since the end of issue one into the next gear. But sadly after reading Blackest Night #4 it seems that all momentum that Johns built with that Green Lantern issue was thrown to the side a bit. Instead of moving the story forward this fourth issue of Blackest Night is more of the same that we have gotten in the first three issues: Slow, boring story with little to no plot progression.

And after reading Green Lantern #47 it is clear that Johns is falling into similar trappings that Brian Bendis fell under during Secret Invasion. In truth Blackest Night is nothing more than DC's version of Secret Invasion. Almost everything that is important to this event, if not everything, is happening in the main tie-in books of Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps. Hell, even the Batman and Titans mini-series revealed more about this event than this main series has so far in its four issues.

This supposed main series actually reads more like a tie-in. It reads like it should have been re-titled to be called Blackest Night: Earth and cut down to four or five issues. This whole issue focuses on what is going on Earth. At no point do we see how the rest of the galaxy is handling the Black Lantern situation along with the War of Lights that is going on.

Other than knowing that the Earth is in danger there is no real sense that this event will contain the darkest days of the whole universe. This continues to be an event all about Earth with no true difference to other events that we have seen DC do were in the end Superman comes in and beats the big bad.

Now while I am complaining a lot about the story I will give Johns credit for his solid writing of all the characters involved. Johns has a great handle of Barry, Mera, and Atom as well as the other of Earth's heroes he uses in this issue. Even Lex Luthor does get his own moment in this issue. It was all solid dialogue if this was a story and event that only affected the Earth.

But again this event is not taking place just on Earth. This is supposed to be an event that looks to shatter the whole universe in pieces. Even though Johns is providing solid dialogue with all of the characters there is just no clear plot progression. Even the ending felt like it was more of an ending for the second issue.

The real story of Blackest Night is actually being told in Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps. Green Lantern #47 had more plot progression in that one issue alone than these first four issues of Blackest Night. It is freaking amazing reading the clear discrepancy in the quality of storytelling between the two GL books and this series that is supposed to be able to stand alone without relying on other titles to help it.

I would even say that the Batman and Titans tie-in mini-series were much better told, and that we actually found out more about what the Black Lanterns are in those tie-ins. I was actually surprised that Batman (Dick Grayson) and Dove did not play a more important role in this issue as they both found out key information to helping the rest of the hero community on Earth.

Finally, the whole ending with Nekron showing himself to be the big bad to Barry at the end was just the ultimate 'meh' ending. Thanks to early spoilers on DC and Johns part the Nekron reveal wasn't much of a reveal, as it was expected to be coming into these last two issues. Honestly while having Nekron be revealed as the supposed big bad of the series that controls the Black Lantern Corps may hold more weight with older DC fans for me, as a casual DC reader, this does nothing to excite me. When I got to the end of this comic and saw Nekron appear I couldn't have cared less for a villain who, from what I've been told and read, is a D-list villain, at best.

I think what hurts this ending more is actually not that it was spoiled a few months ago or that I don't care about Nekron. What really hurts this reveal is that after four issues the Black Lanterns are boring villains. Johns just continues to hit the same note with the Black Lanterns that have made them very dull villains, and because they have dominated these four issues along with the two GL books and tie mini-series that this event needs more. And that is where the War of Lights would have helped this title much more as then maybe the Black Lanterns would not have become so dull by the midway point of this event.

Now the saving grace of this issue, and this whole event, is Ivan Reis phenomenal artwork. Even with a dull and slow story involving the Black Lanterns he continues to shine with all of his artwork. And a lot of credit must also go to his inkers Oclair Albert and Joe Prado and colorist Alex Sinclair for making the art look so great. Even though I couldn't have cared less about the Nekron reveal at the end Ivan Reis and his crew did a great job at least making him look like a bad ass at the end of the issue.

Issue Rating
Story: 3.7/10 – While Geoff Johns provides some solid dialogue he does a poor job creating a story that is interesting. So far this has been a perfect example of good dialogue does not equal good story. Johns is making each passing issue of this main book more boring than the last.
Art: 9.6/10 – Ivan Reis continues to be providing this event some great artwork. His great artwork, with the help of his inkers and colorist, is able to breathe some life into what has been a dull and slow story.
Overall: 6.65/10 – Blackest Night #4 was yet another disappointing chapter in DC's big event. This event just continues to be one slow moving story with villains that have already become boring. Johns is going to need more than just the Nekron reveal in the last half of this event to make this a much more interesting story.

Previewing the Week’s Releases for 10/28/09

2009-10-27T21:40:00.000-07:00

After some light weeks Marvel and DC seem to have decided to release almost all of their books in one week, or at least most of the comics on my pull list. With eleven titles this week this is probably the most comic books that I am getting in one week.

Comics
Batman #692 – Tony Daniel did not impress me with Battle for the Cowl. His work on that mini-series was very amateurish. Still I have been enjoyed the new direction of all the Batbooks and seeing Dick as Batman. And because of that I have a bit more positive outlook to Daniel's story arc that begins with this issue.

Blackest Night #4 – So far Blackest Night has been an utter failure in my eyes. While I have enjoyed the Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps tie-ins to this event Geoff Johns has made me less and less interested with each passing issue. And I hope that the Nekron reveal from a few months ago is not the big secret revealed here as I don't care about that character. Here's hoping Johns can turn things around in this make or break half-way point issue.

Blackest Night: Titans #3 – This mini-series has been surprisingly good. Though I know not much may happen in this issue I am still interested to see how this mini-series ends and how it will be integrated into Blackest Night.

Fantastic Four #572 – Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham have been awesome so far on Fantastic Four. They have brought the fun back to the Fantastic Four. I can't wait to see what Hickman and Eaglesham have up their sleeves with the Reed Richards Corps and how the rest of the Fantastic Four will be involved in this storyline's finale.

Green Lantern #47 – The last issue of Green Lantern freaking rocked. It was the best issue of Blackest Night related material Geoff Johns has written so far for the event. Hopefully the momentum of that last issue will be carried over to this one, and Blackest Night #4.

Guardians of the Galaxy #19 – DnA have been doing a fantastic job on all things cosmic in the Marvel Universe. And Guardians of the Galaxy has been a role with the last few issues. This title just continues to be one of Marvel's best titles.

Nova #30 – See my comment for Guardians of the Galaxy. Great title that is among the best on the shelfs today.

Teen Titans #76 – Felicia Henderson did a solid job in her first issue of Teen Titans. It was nothing impressive but nothing horrible at the same time. Though I am not a big fan of yet another story with Raven and Trigon. Usually makes for a boring read this past decade.

Ultimate Comics Armor Wars #2 – The first issue was just a blast to read. Warren Ellis did a very good job nailing Ultimate Tony Stark's character and setting up a 007-like story in this mini-series. Expecting this to be a fun and fast paced read.

Ultimate Avengers #3 – Ultimate Comics Avengers has been a great read so far. Sure it may be more popcorn for the brain blockbuster movie than a deep and intricate story but it is one fun blockbuster comic. Miller just knows how to write a badass Captain America and love his version of Ultimate Red Skull. Can't wait to see where he takes the story next.

Wolverine: Weapon X #6 – While I am disappointed that Jon Garney is off this title I have to say Yanick Panquette is a great choice as an artist to follow up Garney's work. And the story that Jason Aaron looks to tell in this new story arc feels new ground for a character like Wolverine. Should be another fun entry into the Wolverine: Weapon X series.

Trade Recommendation
Wolverine: Old Man Logan Hardcover – Even with the long wait between issues Old Man Logan was still one of the best Wolverine stories we have had in a very long time. Millar told a fantastic story of an old Logan who has given up his former ways only to go back to the ass kicker we all know and love. If that isn't reason enough to get this hardcover than just get it for Steve McNiven's gorgeous artwork as his artwork in this story was not short of amazing. Truly great stuff from the Miller/McNiven team.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 10/14/09

2009-10-17T02:33:00.000-07:00

Batgirl #3

Creative Team
Writer: Bryan Q. Miller
Artist: Lee Garbett
Inkers: Trevor Scott and Sandra Hope
Colorist: Guy Major

Story – Batgirl Rising: Point of New Origin Part 3

Review
Batgirl #3 is more or less the same as the previous two issues. Bryan Q. Miller is doing a solid job on the writing but it is just not impressive. And most of that falls on Stephanie as a character and not the writing of this series. After three issues it just does not feel that Stephanie as the new Batgirl is enough to carry an ongoing title.

Even inserting Barbara into the title in the mentor role hasn't helped. In many ways this series feels like a Birds of Prey re-launch but with just Batgirl in the group. But it just feels that Stephanie is not enough to keep this title from lasting more than a year since she feels like more of a supporting character than a star of her own book.

As a fan of these characters I think what this series needs is more of a supporting cast to make it more interesting as the Stephanie and Barbara dynamic isn't enough to carry this book. I think this title needs characters like Huntress and Misfit to play recurring roles on this series to give it something extra and keep it from going stale.

Now I will say that Miller does do a solid job with creating a nice master and student dynamic with Barbara and Stephanie. In many ways Stephanie is like how Barbara was in her early days of Batgirl. Miller does a good job paralleling the two characters in this issue, while showing how Barbara has changed.

With her battle with Scarecrow in this issue it is clear Stephanie has a long ways to go before being capable as a solo hero and Barbara should help her become her own character than just being known as Tim's girl. Though I think the whole candle ceremony thing was a bit much and should have just been Bruce and Dick's thing as it was special to the dynamic between Batman and the first Robin.

Issue Rating
Story: 6.6/10 – Miller provides some solid dialogue as he shows he understands both Stephanie and Barbara as characters. But supporting character feel of the star, Stephanie, makes the story feel very average.
Art: 6.7/10 – Lee Garnett again provides some solid artwork but nothing to impressive.
Overall: 6.65/10 – Batgirl #3 was an average read. While I would like to continue to read this series to see if Miller can make this a better read but with things like Realm or Kings and Siege coming up I am dropping this title. Still if you are a fan of Stephanie and Barbara this is the title for you as Miller has done a solid job setting up this title to improve with later storylines.

Blackest Night: Batman #3

Creative Team
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Artist: Adrian Syaf
Inker: Vicente Cifuentes
Colorist: Nei Ruffino

Story – Who Burns Who: Conclusion

Review
In what has so far been the best story of Blackest Night, Peter Tomasi does an excellent job finishing up Blackest Night: Batman with this final issue. The thing that has been killing Blackest Night is that the story has been very thin with every ones reaction to the Black Lanterns has been "Oh no it's my dead friend. What do I do? They are about to kill us if we don't do something." That has been Blackest Night as a whole, save for Green Lantern #46, which has made the story a thin and boring read.

And while that theme is in this issue what really separates this issue and mini-series from Blackest Night is that we are actually seeing the emotional toll it takes on the characters, in this case Dick Grayson and Tim Drake. Tomasi perfectly nails how these characters would react to seeing their parents back alive. It is something that hasn't been shown in Blackest Night as all the characters reactions so far to the Black Lanterns has been the statement I said before.

I like how in the beginning Tim thought seeing his father again was his second shot at saving them and Dick tried to be the voice of reason telling Tim that they weren't his parents. Then when Dick looked into his father's eyes he let himself go in the moment just like Tim and was the twelve year old kid who performed in the circus with his parents again. This paralleling of Dick and Tim is a good reminder how similar these two brothers are and how their history is similar to Bruce's tragic history with his parents.

Then the scene were Dick and Tim come face to face to the ones responsible for the deaths of their parents was great as it is a very different way of having characters reach an emotional breaking point as Dick and Tim were filled with rage. It is much different to how other Blackest Night titles have used to make the characters reach their emotional breaking point.

Adrian Syaf helped make these scenes especially more powerful with his artwork. He showed a great range to illustrate emotion in the scenes with Dick and Tim seeing their parents. This is the first time I am exposed to his Syaf's artwork and he impressed me very much. I hope I see his artwork on something like Batman again as he has a good style to fit with Batman.

It was cool seeing Etrigan involved in this issue as Dick had Deadman go get him for back-up. It was an effective plan and shows that Dick knew that the situation he and Tim were in was not something they could get out of alone. Also we got to learn that there are certain magical creatures that don't register on the Black Lantern radars. Hopefully this means Etrigan plays an integral role in taking down Black Lanterns but he probably won't from how Geoff Johns has been telling the Blackest Night story and the characters he is using.

Also it was good to see Dick take up more of an aggressive approach with Damian as he made Damian listen to him and not try to act on his own. It is a good way to show the master/student relationship the two are having with Dick finally taking the role of the master while trying to make the cocky student, Damian, listen to his instructions.

It was also interesting to see that the Black Lanterns can't see people unless they have some emotion as they could not see Dick and Tim in front of them since they froze themselves. It adds another wrinkle to the Black Lanterns concept as works similarly to how infrared vision works as they need people to show some sort of feelings in order to see them or else they don't see those people, even if they are in front of them. I hope that this means that Batman will play a bigger role in Blackest Night as it would be good to see how Dick as Batman handles the first big Crisis as Batman and stands side-by-side with Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Tomasi again shows why he should be helming a Batman title as he writes the best version of Dick Grayson and the entire Batfamily. I am hopeful DC wakes up and sees how great a story he wrote here, and with his Nightwing work, and actually gives him a one of the Batman titles starring Dick Grayson as Batman to write.
Art: 8.5/10 – Adrian Syaf provided some great artwork in this mini-series. He did a great job with all the action and the wide range of emotion that the characters in this issue showed.
Overall: 8.75/10 – Blackest Night: Batman #3 was a great issue and ending to this mini-series. This mini-series has so far been the best story from Blackest Night and I hope that with what was learned of the Black Lanterns is used soon in the main series and it is not pushed to the side. If you are looking for a fun action packed story with some emotional depth than I recommend picking up Blackest Night: Batman as it is a solid three issue mini-series by Tomasi and Syaf.

Green Lantern Corps #41

Creative Team
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Artist: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman, Keith Champagne and Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb

Story – Hungry Heart

Review
In another Tomasi written Blackest Night tie-in Green Lantern Corps #41 continues the current battle between the Green Lanterns and the Black Lanterns on Oa. For the most part Tomasi presents a very well told story. Still there seemed something off about this issue.

Before I get into that I will admit the thing that Tomasi effectively presents here is the chaos that the Black Lanterns appearance has on the War of Lights. In many ways Tomasi shows why the stars of Blackest Night should not be the heroes on Earth but the various Lantern Corps especially the characters we have gotten to know through GL and GLC titles like Kyle, Guy, Killowog, Arisa, and Soranik. Even if we have seen a lot of battles with the Black Lanterns already happen in Blackest Night it feels like the Black Lanterns pose much more of a threat when battling one of the members from one the Lantern Corps.

And similar to what he did in this week's Blackest Night: Batman issue the thing he nailed in this issue is the emotional toll the dead rising from the grave as Black Lanterns. It was great how we were shown Guy, Killowag, and Arisa each overcoming their own battles with the Black Lanterns. It drives home why they are part of the Green Lantern Corps as they push through anything that is thrown at them and have the willpower to overcome even their dead loved ones.

What helped these battles out was Patrick Gleason's great artwork. He continues to do a great job on this title and making each battle feel epic and bounce of the page. And the scene with the Black Lantern children was effectively creepy.

Also I am interested to see were Tomasi takes Kyle and Soranik's relationship after their battle with Black Lantern Jade. It looks like Kyle may be in the dog house after Blackest Night is over.

Now the thing that keeps this issue from being great is that it suffers from the pitfall that has made Blackest Night into a boring read which is that the Black Lanterns are dull and uninteresting villains. This isn't really the fault of Tomasi but more the execution in which the Black Lanterns are presented. Other than being different dead characters all the Black Lanterns are the same. There isn't much of a difference from the dead heroes, villains, and characters loved ones coming back as Black Lanterns. They all have the same personality.

And this is very bad for Blackest Night as we haven't even reached the midway point of the event and the main villains of the series are already becoming stale. It makes me question the choice of making the event eight issues long even more. With how Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps are proving to be important tie-ins to Blackest Night I think the main series should only have been issue long as there isn't enough material to justify eight issues.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.4/10 – Tomasi continues to do a superior job in telling the Blackest Night story than what Johns has been doing over in the main Blackest Night book. With that said the story suffers from the main villains of the story, the Black Lanterns, being dull and uninteresting characters.
Art: 8.2/10 – Gleason along with his inking crew, Rebecca Buchman, Keith Champagne and Tom Nguyen, and colorists, Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb, do a great job presenting the chaotic feel of the Black Lanterns presence in the War of Lights, which had already thrown the universe into chaos.
Overall: 7.8/10 – Green Lantern Corps #41 was a very good read though it suffers from the main villains of the event being very boring. It would have been better if we could have seen other Lantern Corps members involved in this issue other than just the Green and Black Lanterns.

The Marvels Project #3

Creative Team
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Steve Epting
Colorist: Dave Stewart

Story – Chapter 3

Review
In what has been the surprise of the year, Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting continue to tell a very enjoyable and intricate story of the origins of the Marvel Universe. The reason I choose to pick up this mini-series was only because of me being a big fan of Brubaker and Epting's work, specifically Captain America. But I did not expect to enjoy reading the beginning of the hero age in the Marvel Universe as much as I have been.

The big factor that is making The Marvels Project such a wonderful read is that Brubaker and Epting aren't telling a parody story of the early age of the universe that is now filled with super powered individuals. Most of the time that is where most writers do, they try too hard to imitate the way people spoke during that time period making it hard to take the story seriously making it feel like a parody of that time period.

But Brubaker and Epting aren't necessarily trying to imitate the time period. Instead they are taking a serious look at the 1940s and how people acted in a time of uncertainty and fear due to the war and the first super powered individuals appearing out of nowhere. It is really an amazing look as Brubaker nails the tone of that era in our history making this story feel like an extension of the story that he was telling in Captain America.

Brubaker is able to show both the wonder and fear in the people's eyes as they witness the first battle between super powered individuals in Namor and the first Human Torch. That is where Eptings fantastic artwork comes into play as his artwork perfectly captures the mood of the time period and also making the battle between Namor and Human Torch feel like an epic showdown. Even though we have seen similar and even bigger fights happen in both the Marvel and DC Universe this battle feels like it has more of an importance as it is the first recorded battle between two super powered individuals.

And the tone of the time period is not the only thing that Brubaker nails but also all the dialogue in the various scenes we get. Whether it be Human Torch, Namor, Angel, Nick and his crew or the people on the streets all of the dialogue has a natural flow to it. Nothing feels like it being forced in for dramatic effect. It is just great character with the development of the early stages of what shaped what we know now as the Marvel Universe.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.3/10 – Brubaker continues to do a great job building the origins of the Marvel Universe and making me care for characters I had very little knowledge of before this mini-series.
Art: 9/10 – Eptings artwork is continues to be incredible. His artwork for the Namor vs Human Torch scene was especially well done as the inking and coloring for the scene make it stand out from every other scene in the issue.
Overall: 9.15/10 – The Marvels Project #3 was another great read. This mini-series continues to be one of the best written comic book on the market. Brubaker and Epting continue to build a wonderful tale of the beginning of the Marvel Universe. I highly recommend picking up this mini-series when it comes out in trade paperback format as it will read even better in TPB form than in individual issues.

Previewing the Week’s Releases: 10/12/09 – 10/18/09

2009-10-13T21:25:00.000-07:00

Comics
Batgirl #3 – This new title starring Stephanie Brown as the titular character hasn't been bad but it hasn't been good either, it has just been average. Still with Batman and Robin supposedly appearing in this issue maybe Miller can save this series from being cut from my pull list.

Batman #691 – I have actually been enjoying the latest Judd Winnick run on Batman. While it hasn't blown me away this is still a solid story with Dick Grayson growing into the role of Batman. And with a Batman vs. Two-Face to wrap things up for this storyline I'm interested to see conclusion of this story.

Blackest Night: Batman #3 – Tomasi has done a great job so far on this Batman tie-in to Blackest Night. Even though I have not been a big fan of Blackest Night this Tomasi has done such a great job that I look forward to reading this issue as he writes the best version of Dick Grayson and the current Batfamily.

Green Lantern Corps #41 – So far the tie-ins have been doing a much better job with the Blackest Night story than the main series has. And Tomasi delivered a great issue in GLC #40. So I fully expect this issue to be another solid issue.

Red Robin #5 – The only thing that is keeping me from dropping this series is that I am a big fan of Tim Drake's character. Chris Yost just has not impressed me so far in this title. I am still hopeful that Yost can turn things around on this title.

The Marvels Project #3 – Brubaker is really taking a slow and methodical approach to this mini-series which I has made this a very enjoyable read so far. This is really the first time I am reading a comic that actually takes place in this time period of Marvel's history and not just some flashback from an ongoing series. So I look forward to seeing what Brubaker and Epting do with this story, even if we know how it ends.

Video Games
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – I just started playing the first Uncharted video game and suffice to say I've love the game so far. And from the trailers for Uncharted 2 and early reviews this looks like not only a great game but also visually one of the best looking games that have come out. Will probably have to wait for Christmas to get this game but it looks forward to the day I get my hands on it. Highly recommend this series for anyone that has not played the first game yet.

Legen-wait-for it-dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week 10/7/09

2009-10-12T08:46:00.000-07:00

Cover of the Week: X-Babies #1

This is another Skottie Young cover that he knocks out of the park. This cover makes me wish I got this issue. Really like the chibi look of all of the characters.

Batman and Robin #5 Highlights

What happened to being able to fight blindfolded Damian? See this is why Robin should always listen to Batman.

So Jason finally decides to stop dye his hair. Somehow it makes him even less interesting than he was before which isn't saying much now.

Got to admit Flamingo is a cool new villain Morrison has created.

Batman Annual #27 Highlights

Good to see that Dick's gymnastic background has not been forgotten. Damian can learn a thing or two.

Love the Little Gotham back-up. The spread by Dustin Nguyen is just awesome.

This is not something you want to wake up to.

Nice extra to for this annual. Gives us some more information of the new Batmobile.

Daredevil #501 Highlights

This is one of the best single pages I have seen. Just an awesome job by Robert De La Torre.

Interesting approach Wilson Fisk is taking to get back on top of the crime world. Hopefully his rise to being the Kingpin of Crime comes sooner than later.

Nice comparison to Batman. Definitely felt as though Andy Diggle was channeling his inner Frank Miller in this scene.

The punch heard around the world.

All hail Daredevil.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #3

Ah, got to love the drama that comes with every high school relationship.

Giant spiders attacking the city. This would be the final straw for me and I would move out of the city with all the crazy stuff that happens in NYC every day.

Funny way to find out the spiders aren't real.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 10/7/09

2009-10-10T01:22:00.000-07:00

Batman Annual #27

Creative Team
Writer: Fabian Nicieza; Derek Fridolfs; Mandy McMurray
Artists: J. Calafiore; Dustin Nguyen; Kelley Jones
Inker: Mark McKenna
Colorists: Nathan Eyring; Michelle Madsen

Story – The Eighth Deadly Sin; Off Rogue Racing; Darker than Blood

Review
It has been a while since the Batman Annuals have delivered. These annuals haven't been completely horrible they have been forgettable stories. And this annual is no different.

I am going to admit that I have never been a big fan of Azrael. Just something about the character has never clicked with me and I don't really care about his return. While Fabian Nicieza tries his best to make the character interesting I just don't see his return as a big deal and still unusure if this new Azrael can carry the series.

What I did like about the story is Nicieza continuing the development of Dick and Damian's relationship as he builds upon what Morrison, Dini, and Winnick have been doing with the new Batman and Robin. This was actually the first time we see the two go on an undercover mission together and Dick teaching Damian some detective skills. It was good that Nicieza picked up on the development of the new dynamic duo as we see Damian slowly growing respect for Dick.

Also it is interesting to see the different approach Dick has with his willingly working with the Gotham City Police Department which is the opposite approach Bruce used to take in his undercover mission. It continues to show that while we have been seeing Dick adopt a much darker and direct approach in his transformation to fully adopt his new role as Batman he still has much more people skills and is willing to work with others to catch the bad guy.

Now the real reason to get this issue, for me anyway, is the Lil'Gotham back-up story. While it was only one spread page Derek Fridolfs and Dustin Nguyen it was still a very fun little, pun intended, story that could be a fun mini-series by the two. The race between Batman and all his villains had a very funny ending and I can't wait to see more of this concept.

Also I was surprised that I did end up enjoying the second back-up that involving Barbara solving a case with a mysterious killer. The story was something I was expecting from The Oracle: The Cure mini-series as it does more of an effective job using Barbara's skills and showing how she is just as capable by herself as when she working with others.

Issue Rating
Story: 7/10 – While the stories individually weren't that great put together this is was a nice collection of three stories with each writer doing a nice job developing the two part story.
Art: 7.4/10 – The art for this issue was average with Dustin Nguyen artwork for the Lil'Gotham story as being the stand out with its unique style.
Overall: 7.2/10 – Batman Annual #27 was a good issue to start this two part story that will conclude in Detective Comics Annual next week. While the main story involving Azrael didn't really interest me in getting the new ongoing series involving the character I did like seeing the development of the new dynamic duo and the Lil'Gotham story in this issue that made this issue from being a complete loss.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #3

Creative Team
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: David Lafuente
Colorist: Justin Ponsor

Story – The New World According to Peter Parker

Review
After two issues of dodging the question of what exactly happened between Peter and MJ after Ultimatum we finally get some answers in this issue. Though Bendis does dodge the actual reason for the break-up he does a fantastic job as usual writing the two characters and showing that it was MJ that ended the relationship.

Even though it is annoying getting the Bendis speak pop-up in the New Avengers it is really at home here on Ultimate Spider-Man. This title has always been more about being a character driven title than just being about Peter's adventures as Spider-Man so Bendis is quick writing makes this a very fun title to read. The argument between Peter and MJ was just perfect way to show the drama that is a high school romance. And even though MJ does come off as a bit bitchy in that scene Bendis does an effective job using that scene along with an earlier scene in MJ's news club at school to show that she is a strong independent character even without Peter in the room by her side.

Also, while not as good as the fight Spider-Man had with the Bombshells in the last issue his fight with Mysterio in this issue was fun especially when Spider-Man faced off against the fake skyscraper size spiders. The way he discovered that the spiders were fake was hilarious. And I am really enjoying this version of Mysterio and Bendis did a great job reimaging the character for the Ultimate Universe. It shows when done right writers can make old characters that have been around for a long time into distinct characters in another universe that is just as interesting if not more in a new universe.

I also really liked how Bendis continues to seamlessly add more characters to Peter's supporting cast. In other titles having another big hero join the title of another big hero would usually feel forced somehow in this issue it only feels right that Johnny would join the cast of this book. Like Bendis did when he added Kitty to the supporting cast something about having Johnny around just feels like a perfect fit. Having him around should make things even more difficult for Peter which should lead to some fun character interactions.

Also the short scene between Peter and Sue Storm was great. It is one of those scenes were less is more as Bendis uses minimal dialogue to make what happens in the last page even more effective. Also it leaves the door open for the other Fantastic Four members to be recurring characters in this title.

David LaFuente's artwork was again spectacular in this issue. I continue to enjoy the anime/manga feel he gives this title. It gives this title a distinct look that separates itself from all the other titles on the market. His artwork gives Bendis story a lot of energy and does a great job with the facial expressions of the characters.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.2/10 – As has always been the strength of this title Bendis does a great job with handling all of the characters in this title and gives us some fun dialogue while also inserting some good action into the issue.
Art: 9.2/10 – LaFuente's artwork continues to be spectacular as he gives this issue a lot of energy in both the action and talking heads part of the issue.
Overall: 9.2/10 – Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #3 was another great issue. This is one of the most enjoyable comics on the market. I highly recommend picking this series up either on an individual issue or trade paperback as it will read well in either form.

Previewing the Week’s Releases: 10/7/09

2009-10-06T15:00:00.001-07:00

Comics
Batman and Robin #5 – Morrison has been doing a great job so far on this title. I've never been a big fan of Red Hood but I am interested to see what Morrison can do with the character

Batman Annual #27 – I've never been a fan of Azrael so I could care less about the characters return. And originally I wasn't going to get this annual but after seeing images for the Lil'Gotham back-up I am going to get this, and the Detective Annual, just for the back-up story alone.

Daredevil #501 – With Matt becoming the new leader of The Hand Andy Diggle has been given an interesting place to begin his run. It should be interesting seeing were this title goes with the new direction.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #3 – Cover price aside Ultimate Comics Spider-Man has been one of the most enjoyable series I get each month. Bendis has really returned this title to the brilliance it once had and I can't wait to see what happens with Mysterio and a few other things.

Legen-wait-for it-dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week for 9/30/09

2009-10-03T18:35:00.000-07:00

After a a couple weeks of not being posted the "Legen-wait for it-dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week" are back.

Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man #607

Do I need to give a reason for this cover being this week's cover of the week. It's another great J. Scott Campbell cover. Nuff said.

Amazing Spider-Man #607 Highlights

Even Peter gets lucky every once and a while.

That couple should burn those sheets.

Nice job slipping the tongue while giving Black Cat CPR Peter. Very subtle.

How many times have we seen this kiss happen since it happened in the movie.

Blackest Night: Titans #2 Highlights

Never let a zombie bite you. That is Zombie 101. Hasn't Donna ever watched a zombie movie?

When will DC let Starfire move on from her old relationship with Dick. I think I need to write a whole post about this topic. It is getting freaking annoying and makes me hate Starfire now, which is sad since she used to be one of my favorite Titans.

So we have had Black Lantern JLA now we have Black Lantern Titans. All we need is Black Lantern versions of the JSA, Outsiders, and Shadow Pact and we will have our new protectors of the world.

Green Lantern #46 Highlights

Always knew Hal was a cheapscape. The Guardians don't even pay minimum wage.

Was not expecting to see these two powering the Violet Lanterns.

You do not interfere in Sinestro's fights.

This is why Sinestro is such a badass. You do not mess with this guy.

Teen Titans #75 Highlights

Why isn't Raven ever chased by a cute bunny or something when she re-appears in a Titans book? That is what Raven must be asking herself.

Ah the good old days. Note to DC: Please release a Teen Titans Omnibus from Marv Wolfman and George Perez's run on Teen Titans.

Wolverine: Weapon X #5 Highlights

Will you look at that sunset. Such a beautiful day to die.

Reminds me of Shark Week. Those eyes are freaking hypnotic with how much killer intent it has.

This is the worse way to die.

Weekly Comic Book Review for 9/30/09

2009-09-30T17:21:00.000-07:00

Green Lantern #46

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Doug Mahnke
Inkers: Christian Alamy, Tom Nguyen and Doug Mahnke
Colorist: Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb

Story – Feared

Review
This is what I am talking about. Even though I have probably been the biggest critic of Blackest Night it is not because I don't want to like the event but that it is not up to the quality I expect from the event and of Johns. The story has been slow and pondering on the same position it has been since the first issue. But if this issue is an example of where the event is going it looks like the series will finally be moving forward for the first time instead of backwards.

So far the tie-ins to Blackest Night have been much better and more effective in telling a more compelling story than the main series itself and Green Lantern #46 was another example of this. I think the thing that is making these tie-ins to Blackest Night better than the main series is that the writers are free to focus on the story than trying to make the stars of the DCU stand out above others, specifically the Black Lanterns JLA. This issue is an example of this as he is able to focus not on only the Black Lanterns and the threat they present to the universe but also on other members of the various Lantern Corps than just Hal Jordan.

And as this issue also shows Hal is an interesting character when he is interacting with characters like Sinestro, Carol, and Indigo-1 who each have their own distinct personalities and not a similar like Barry has. Johns did a very good job balancing the dialogue between the four characters as each one plays of the other very well. The dialogue was what carried the first half of this issue and kept things moving at a great pace as we entered the main event of this issue.

What was interesting to see is how we already have four of the seven main characters of the Green, Violent, Yellow, and Indigo Lantern Corps members together very quickly. It was stated that one of the other Lantern Corps members is needed to mix their "light" with the Green Lantern "light" to destroy the Black Lanterns and it was fun seeing it being shown with Hal and Carol combining their powers. The next main Lantern Cops member that will probably join the group of Hal, Sinestro, Carol, and Indigo-1 will be Saint Walker. That is if Sinestro stays with the group. It will be interesting to see if Agent Orange and Attrocius will join the ranks since those are the two that will be hardest to convince that they must join forces to defeat the Black Lanterns.

The best thing about this issue was of course the last half of the issue that gave us the main event fight of Sinestro vs. Mongul. The fight was properly brutal and epic as it has been built up to be in Tomasi's "Emerald Twilight" story arc that happened just before Blackest Night. Even though Mongul dominated most of the fight the fight really showed why Sinestro is a badass character. The way the fight ended was awesome and is another example of why Sinestro has become one of the best and most interesting characters in the DCU.

The only problem I had with this issue is how slow and little attention is being paid to John Stewarts sub-plot that has been running through Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps. Each issue of GL and GLC for the past few months have only given us a page or two showing us what John is doing and it is getting very boring. Personally with how little attention Johns, Tomasi, and other writers have paid to John this past year he has become the least interesting of the four Earth Green Lanterns as I haven't found a reason to care what happens to the character.

Doug Mahnke's artwork was again spectacular. He gives this issue the big event feel that Ivan Reis is giving the main series. The fight between Sinestro and Mongul was the highlight of the issue and Mahnke perfectly captured how epic the fight between two titans was. The only problem I had with the art is the inkers by committee this issue had. There were a few panels that had some inconsistent art.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.4/10 – Johns does a great job with all the dialogue in this issue and I hope we get more quality dialogue and storytelling like we got in this issue in the main series that Johns just has not provided.
Art: 8.7/10 – A few minor inconsistencies aside Mahnke's artwork was phenomenal. Mahnke's artwork did a nice job helping Johns dialogue by carrying the last half of the issue with the big fight we were given.
Overall: 9.1/10 – Green Lantern #46 was a great read. This is how Blackest Night should be written. We got some great dialogue and artwork that moved the overall story forward more than the main series has so far. Hopefully Johns carries this quality storytelling ability to the main series.

Teen Titans #75

Creative Team
Writer: Felicia D. Henderson (main story); Sean McKeever (back-up)
Artist: Joe Bennett (main story); Yildiray Cinar (back-up)
Inker: Jack Jadson (main story); Julio Ferreira (back-up)
Colorist: Rod Reis

Story – Wyld Thing

Review
After a great arc by Bryan Q. Miller we get yet another writer change for Teen Titans. Even though McKeever was on this title for a while before Miller and now Felicia D. Henderson came onto this title, Teen Titans has had a problem with major inconsistencies with the stability of the team. And I think that was one of the best things about Miller's story arc as it felt that we finally had a permanent Teen Titans team.

For her part Henderson did a nice job carrying what Miller started. This is Henderson's first comic book writing job with having previously only written for TV shows Fringe, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Family Matters and other shows. While she does not blow me away with her writing in this issue she definitely showed potential for growth as she transitions to being a comic book writer.

Henderson did some nice writing with the team chemistry as we see Aquagirl and Bombshell's antagonistic relationship, Blue Beetle and Static showing themselves to be the stand outs of the team, and what looks like Miss Martian having a new crush. There were moments where the dialogue wasn't very good but overall Henderson has a nice handle of each member of the team. The best writing Henderson provided was for Blue Beetle and Static as both continue to grow as their own characters with Blue Beetle especially standing out in this issue with the lecture he gave to Beast Boy at the end of the main story.

The problem Henderson faced in this issue was with re-visiting the Raven being controlled by her father or some demon. This storyline is old and has been told before and it feels like every time Raven appears this is the way a writer introduces the character to a title. Though the one part of this story I did like was Joe Bennett's artwork as he was able to flex his muscle with some crazy things to draw.

Also I did not like how Beast Boy was written. If Henderson is trying to convince the reader that he is the new leader of this team she needs to portray him as a much more confident individual, which he showed a few times in the issue. Beast Boy came off as an immature school girl with how he acted anytime someone said something about Raven.

The Ravager back-up for this issue was probably the best we have gotten so far. McKeever showed why Ravager is a badass character. While I am not sure what this will do for the overall character.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.2/10 – While Henderson did not blow me away with the dialogue it definitely showed potential. The only problem I had with her writing was how she wrote Beast Boy.
Art: 7.6/10 – Bennett provided some solid artwork with the best being the dinosaur, tiger, gorilla, bull, hawk, and wolf hybrid monster.
Overall: 7.4/10 – Teen Titans #75 was another solid issue with the new creative showing some potential on this title. The only problem this story arc faces is it feeling "been there, done that" with Raven being possessed for the hundredth time.

Wolverine: Weapon X #5

Creative Team
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Ron Garney
Colorist: Jason Keith

Story – The Adamantium Men Part 5 of 5

Review
After the last issue giving us one of the most entertaining Wolverine issues we have gotten in a long time it was hard to see how Aaron and Garney would top what they did. And the truth is that this issue doesn't reach that level which is a bit disappointing.

Even though this has been an action centered story arc this issue disappointed as it felt like the Aaron tried too hard to finish the story quickly. I would have much rather preferred it if we saw more action with Wolverine and Maverick fighting the rest of the Adamantium Men. The way Wolverine took them out with a helicopter felt to quick and not up to the standard set before it.

What I did like about this issue is that Aaron continued some strong characterization of Wolverine and giving us a strong supporting cast for the character that aren't just the X-Men. Wolverine does come off the badass he should always be and the one person you do not want to piss off. While I didn't like that the story was ended to quickly after thinking about it I did like how Wolverine took the methodical approach to take out the people after him instead of risking certain death in a fight that he probably would have lost.

Also this approach he took was made better because Aaron took Wolverine's healing factor back to basics. His healing factor has become ridiculous over the years with how fast it is as he has become almost invincible. And I like that with his fight in the last issue Aaron showed Wolverine's healing factor does have a limit again. Hopefully this limit is used more as Wolverine gets involved in bigger fights in this series.

The ending was very good as it set-up future plotlines with Maverick and Wolverine going against Norman Osborn. Aaron wrote a great Norman Osborn and it would be interesting to see Wolverine go up against him and the Dark Avengers which we might get in the Dark Reign: The List –Wolverine which is also written by Aaron.

Issue Rating
Story: 8/10 – Though Aaron does not reach the level he did with the story from the last issue his characterization of Wolverine was again very strong which made up for the lack of action.
Art: 8/10 – Garney's wasn't given much action to draw in this issue but it was still some solid artwork. His artwork is a great fit for this title.
Overall: 8/10 – Wolverine: Weapon X #5 was another solid read. This title feels like the old school Wolverine stories we used to get. Aaron and Garney have brought back the character to being the awesome and less convoluted character he once was. I definitely recommend any Wolverine fan and fans of action oriented titles to pick up Wolverine: Weapon X.

Previewing the Week’s Releases: 9/28/09 – 10/4/09

2009-09-29T21:20:00.000-07:00

Comics
Amazing Spider-Man #607 – I first issue of this two part story with the Black Cat was great. I can't wait to see were Joe Kelly takes the Spider-Man/Black Cat relationship and how MJ's reaction to the big kiss will be handled.

Blackest Night: Titans #2 – The first issue of this three part mini-series surprised me with how food it was. The first issue had some nice old Teen Titans nostalgia for me and it should be interesting to see what other dead Teen Titans come back as Black Lanterns since there are hundreds of them.

Green Lantern #46 – I haven't been the biggest fan of Geoff Johns work on Blackest Night so far but I did enjoy the last issue of Green Lantern. This issue is suppose to add the Mongul subplot along with what is going on with Sinestro and Carol so this should be an interesting issue.

Teen Titans #75 – I liked the last story arc of this title but I am not sure about how well Felicia Henderson will do on this title since she has only co-writing credits on TV shows. But hey she may be a hidden talent DC has found, which they desperately need.

Wolverine: Weapon X #5 – This has quickly become one of my favorite titles. This is how a Wolverine title should be writer. Aaron and Garney are doing an excellent job on this title and this final part to the Adamantium Men should a fun conclusion

DVD/Blu-ray
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies – Jeph Loeb's work on Superman/Batman was the last work of his that I enjoyed and Public Enemies was his best arc on the title. It should be fun to see how DC Animation adapts this story arc that was honestly built to be an animated feature. DC Animation has done a good job so far with their animated movies so far so this should be another fun movie by them.

Video Games
Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days – I love the Kingdom Hearts franchise. And I just recently finished playing Re: Chain of Memories for PS2 and it was a great game. This time around we are going to see the story being told from Roxas, Sora's nobody, point of view and what he did in his time with Organization XII. I am interested to learn more of Roxas backstory of his days in Organization XIII since it felt underdeveloped in KH 2. And it will be interesting to see how Square Enix works around the limitations of the DS game cards as this series has been known for some great graphics and music to go along with the story.