Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 12/23/09

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

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

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 11/4/09

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.

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 9/16/09

I already reviewed Batman and Robin #4 over at Rokk's Comic Book Revolution so be sure to read so check out my review. Now time for the rest of this week's review.

Amazing Spider-Man #606

Creative Team
Writer: Fred Van Lente (Story 1 and 2); Brian Reed (story 3)
Artists: Javier Pulido (Story 1); Luke Ross (Story 2); Yanick Paquentte (Story 3)
Inkers: Rick Magyar (Story 2); Mark Framer (Story 3)
Colorists: Javier Rodriguez (Story 1); Rob Schwager (Story 2); Nathan Fairbairn (Story 3)

Stories – The Girl (Story 1); Models Stink (Story 2); Match.Con (Story 3)

Review
If I were to sum up Amazing Spider-Man #606 in a few words it would be that this is just another solid issue of Amazing Spider-Man. I know that a lot of Spider-Man fans were turned off by the whole One More Day and Brand New Day thing, but I am here to say that it is time to forgive Marvel for those two storylines and return to this title. Amazing Spider-Man has really returned to the form it once was back when I first started reading this title as it continues to turn in one good read after another. I would even say that for the past 6 months I have not read one issue of this series that I did not like.

This issue was a nice epilogue to what Fred Van Lente did with The Red Headed Stranger. Van Lente tied up some loose ends with this issue, mainly Peter's relationship with Michele, in the second story which was a nice story of Peter trying to ignore Michele the entire time. I will say that when Peter revealed that it was Chameleon, who was impersonating Peter at the time, that Michele actually made out with was very funny. And it was interesting that Van Lente left the relationship open between the two so that they may end up going out later on.

Also while the Raptor story in this issue was interesting I will say I am going to pass on the "Who is Ben Reilly?" arc that is going to happen after the Black Cat arc since I am not too interested in revisiting the Clone Saga again. And this is one of the nice things about this series right now as I am sure that I can skip this story and pick it up again for the Deadpool one-shot story and The Gauntlet.

The first story also did a nice job with answering some of the questions of what happened between Peter and MJ and what lead to them breaking up. I am glad that the Van Lente showed it wasn't simply the deal Mephesto that broke them up but that it was Peter continuing his life as Spider-Man that was the cause of them breaking up. By doing this it helps make the break up between the two more grounded and realistic as it is belivable that MJ would be frustrated by keeping Peter's secret of being Spider-Man and unable to deal with the constant worry of Peter's disappearances.

Also I liked that MJ got have a heroic moment in this issue as she showed she wasn't just some damsel in distress and was the one to save her then boyfriend. It was cool how Van Lente parallel MJ keeping Peter's secret with her boyfriend asking to keep his addiction to MGH a secret from the cops which lead her to breaking up with him.

The final story was my favorite out of the three. Brian Reed, in his first job as part of the Spider-Man Brain Trust, did a fantastic job mixing some great drama, comedy, and action in this series. And it actually was not an easy thing to do since the final story was yet another story about Peter and Harry's friendship and them trying to get some dates which has been told plenty of times the past year.

What made the story stand out was that it was more of a Peter Parker story than a Spider-Man one as the Spider-Man part of the story played a small part and used to inject some action into the story. It was great seeing Peter luck not working for him as he struggles to get a girlfriend, which nicely parallels his break-up with Michele. Also this nicely sets-up Black Cat's return as she is sure to cause even more trouble in Peter's love life.

Also I got to give Javier Pulido, Luke Ross, Yanick Paquentte for each providing some great artwork for each story. Javier Pulido had a nice Marcos Martin look to his artwork while Luke Ross art felt similar Phil Jimenez Spider-Man artwork. Though the stand out of the three is Paquentte who provide some of the best artwork I have seen from him. It was just great and kudos for all the great artwork the three provided.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.5/10 – Van Lente and Reed did a great job with the writing for their stories. The writing was a great mix of the drama, comedy, and action you expect from an Amazing Spider-Man issue.
Art: 8.8/10 – Pulido, Ross, and Paquentte all provide some great artwork that fit the feel of each story. Hopefully each one of these artist are given an Amazing Spider-Man arc in the future as they are a great fit for this series.
Overall: 8.65/10 – Amazing Spider-Man #606 was another solid read. If you have yet to give Amazing Spider-Man a try I highly recommend picking up this series up as this series has been solid for the past six or so months.

Batgirl #2

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 Two

Review
Just like Red Robin I want to like this series. But unlike Red Robin this Batgirl is not a badly written series. Bryan Q. Miller has a good handle of all the characters involved especially Stephanie. The problem with this series is that the story is just average and it doesn't feel like much is going to happen other than Stephanie becoming and being accepted as the new Batgirl.

Even though Miller tries to show that Stephanie can carry her own series I just don't think Stephanie is that type of characters as she is more of a supporting character than a star of a series. Miller did do a good job trying to give Steph a supporting cast but so far none of them seem to be characters that will stick around.

Also I didn't like that Steph went in not asking any questions after her friend was given spiked punch. Instead Steph just took out her torn up Batgirl costume and took out the guy she thought was the one who drugged her friend without any serious backing to prove he was the person. Instead we see that she was completely wrong and it was Scarecrow who provided the drug. Steph needs to develop more detective skills as she is seriously lacking in that department.

The thing I did like about this issue was Steph and Barbara's conversations throughout the issue. I am starting to like the idea that Barbara has to mentor Steph even though she may not want to risk the life of another teenager. It puts Barbara in an interesting parallel to Dick's current situation with Damian as they both have to mentor someone who does not want to be mentored. I hope that as the series progresses Barbara starts letting people in as this whole distancing herself from people can get annoying, that is if I stay on this title long enough to see it. ;)

Issue Rating
Story: 6.3/10 – Miller provided some solid dialogue but it was nothing that convinced me of the longevity of this series.
Art: 6.7/10 – Lee Garnett provided some good artwork, though it was inconsistent in certain points of the issue.
Overall: 6.5/10 – Batgirl #2 was an average read. While fans of Batgirl and Stephanie specifically will enjoy this issue I am not sure this series has enough to draw in your casual fan yet.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #4

Creative Team
Writer: Paul Dini
Artist: Dustin Nguyen
Inker: Derek Fridolfs
Colorist: John Kalisz

Story – Business

Review
Paul Dini is really showing to be one of the best Batman writers as he has made Streets of Gotham the best out of all the Batman books currently published. Which is what makes it sad that Chris Yost will be filling in with the writing duties in the next issue as it feels like it kills the momentum of this series. But thankfully Dini will be back in December.

As for this issue this was my favorite comic book of the week. Dini continues to show that Batman does not have to be around the whole issue to make a Batman issue interesting. Like Morrison pointed out in this week's Batman and Robin Gotham City is a living, breathing city were something is always happening somewhere in the city. And Dini does a great job exploring this issue as he gives focus to Hush, The Great White Shark, Zsasz, and a new character in The Broker.

Even though Dick did not appear until the end of the issue as Batman it made his appearance in the issue feel more special and keeps to the whole keeping in the shadows thing Batman has going. It was great seeing Batman at the end of the issue to beat the snot out of The Broker to make him know that Batman knows what he is up to. Very good scene to show that Dick is becoming adopting more of the aggressive ways of doing things like Bruce used to do while also making him a different Batman than Bruce was.

All the villain scenes in this issue were great and I especially loved Hush part of the story with the Creeper watching him. They had a great interaction with one another. The only thing I wished was that we got to see Zsasz vision again.

The only real weak part of this issue was the Manhunter back-up. After the last back-up showed that the story had promise I thought this one was just average. I am still hopeful this back-up will get better.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Paul Dini gave us another excellent issue of Streets of Gotham. Dini does a great job showing the challenges Dick faces now that he is Batman.
Art: 8.2/10 – While I am not a big fan of Dustin Nguyen I have to say he did do a very good job with the main story of this issue. His art did a nice job fleshing out this issue that was mostly a talking heads issue.
Overall: 8.6/10 - Batman: Streets of Gotham #4 was another phenomenal read in what is the best Batman title on the market. If you have yet to pick up this series I recommend picking up this initial arc on trade paperback.

Captain America: Reborn #3

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

Story – Reborn part 3

Review
This is the first issue in this mini-series that I actually enjoyed. The first two issue have been okay but they have never been up to the quality that an Ed Brubaker written Captain America. While this issue wasn't at that level yet is was still a fun issue.

What made this issue better than the first two is that was the first time were I felt for Steve and his predicament. I am actually starting to wonder what Steve will do once he reaches the point when he is arrested and is taken to court. It will be an interesting choice that Steve will have to make most likely in the next issue.

Also I really liked everything that happened with Bucky in this issue. They were some nice scenes. I especially liked how Ant-Man got involved. And with the ending things should get interesting for Steve and Bucky.

What made this a good issue was how Brubaker explored some of the major events in Captain America's life during his life as part of the Avengers. What made these scenes great was Bryan Hitch's artwork which was the best it has been in this series. It was just phenomenal artwork that we got in this issue. This issue makes me hope that whenever Marvel has their next big event that they consider Hitch to be the artist as he provided some great artwork for the big Avengers events.

Credit also has to go to Butch Guice who helped give this issue a similar grounded look that Captain America has had throughout Brubaker's run. This issue makes me hope that whenever Marvel has their next big event that they consider Hitch to be the artist as he provided some great artwork for the big Avengers events.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.3/10 – While still having some rough moments Brubaker delivered a much better read in this issue. All the dialogue was really solid in this issue.
Art: 9.5/10 – Hitch and Guice combined to deliver some incredible artwork in this issue. They are giving this mini-series a big event feel to it even though Marvel is saying it isn't.
Overall: 8.4/10 – Captain America: Reborn #3 was a very good issue as the story begins to move and sets things up for the final two issues to be great.

Ultimate Comics Armor Wars #1

Creative Team
Writer: Warren Ellis
Artist: Steve Kurth
Inker: Jeff Huet
Colorist: Guru eFX

Story – Ultimate Armor Wars Part 1

Review
Just as Warren Ellis showed in the Extremis storyline a few years ago he writes a great Tony Stark. And with everything going on with the 616 version of the character it is great to read the Tony I have been reading since I was kid. This is the Tony that is most interesting. I just don't know why 616 Tony can't be like Ultimate Tony because this is the version of the character everyone should be reading.

Now this first issue of the newest Ultimate Comics series, though just a mini-series, was mostly a set-up issue. But Ellis does a fantastic job setting up all the pieces for the story to make this mini-series a fun action packed series. What I liked most about this issue is how Ellis gives this series feel like I am reading a big budget movie and is almost Bond-esque in how it is set-up. We meet the love interest, an enemy is quickly shown, an important artifact is stolen and our hero will save the day while having a drinking martini.

Steve Kurth provides some great artwork in this issue and he makes this feel like an Iron Man book as he does a great job drawing all the tech and the various characters involved in this series. And with this being the first time I see Kurth's artwork he really impressed me with how well he drew everything and am wondering why I've never seen his artwork before. Also credit to his inker and colorist Jeff Huet and Guru eFX, respectively, for giving his artwork a nice clean look to it.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.6/10 – Ellis did a fantastic job setting up the pieces for his story. He writes one of the best Tony Starks around and he really nails the character in this series.
Art: 8.8/10 – Kurth did a great job on the artwork for this issue as he gives this mini-series a big blockbuster feel to it.
Overall: 8.7/10 – Ultimate Comics Armor Wars #1 was a great read. I highly recommend picking this four issue mini-series up as it looks to be a highly entertaining mini-series. Now if only Invincible Iron Man could be this good.

Legen-wait-for it-dary Comic Book Highlights of the Week 8/5/09

There won't be any highlights to this weeks War of Kings #6 on account I wasn't able to get it because the issue did not ship to any of the comic shops in Las Vegas. The one issue I was looking forward to reading this week is the one that I couldn't get, just my luck. Oh well, on to this weeks highlights.

Cover of the Week: Amazing Spider-Man #601

Who doesn't like J. Scott Campbell artwork especially his covers. And somehow this it is hard to take your eyes of the Spider-Man symbol.

Amazing Spider-Man #601 Highlights

Even when Peter finds a way to get a girl in bed he messes it up. Good work Mr. Parker.

Before this issue there was no spiderfail.org but not anymore as Kirk Warren, from Weekly Crisis, bought the URL and now spiderfail.org is up and running and already has some great stuff on it.

Does anyone know what the Reilly's are saying? I sure don't.

BURN! Nice burn on Peter, Betty.

So does she or doesn't she know Peter is Spider-Man? The next few issues should be very interesting.

Ouch. No milk with cookies is a harsh way to get your revenge. Nice work Michelle.

Just a great spread by Joe Quesada. Makes me wish he would have illustrated more of the fight between Spider-Man and Sandman.

So is Jessica going to go back to using this identity?

Captain America: Reborn #2 Highlights

People who say they want to relive the past should talk to Steve Rogers.

I can't believe Captain America cursed in front of the President. Not cool, not cool.

Having to relive the past, knowing everything that will happen, and still you can't do anything. Sucks to be Steve.

Ouch! Norman really is an evil bastard.

Invincible Iron Man #16 Highlights

Aw sucks for Norman. How is it that Norman is just now figuring out that he is not as smart as Tony.

So are we suppose to call Tony "Monsieur Mask" now?

All I wonder is how Peppers hair turned form being red to being blond? Ow well, Chick Fight!