New Comics 2/14

Yep, nothing like reviewing last week's comics the day before this week's books come out.

What I Bought:
Batman: War Drums TPB
Nextwave: Agents of Hate: This Is What They Want TPB
Batman #663
Justice Society of America #3
52 Week 41
New X-Men #35
Wolverine Origins #11
Superman and Batman VS. Alien and Predator #2
Astonishing X-Men #20
Ghost Rider #8

My last post put forth my views on Batman #663, so I won't go on any more on that, other than to call it a failure, if it was simply a noble experiment, or a blessing, if it was a last-ditch effort to get the book out on time.


Justice Society of America #3 - GOOD READ. Unfortunately, the best lines, belonging to the new Star-Spangled Kid, occurs on the first page.

This is an enjoyable issue, as it features several good fight scenes, including neo-Nazis ambushing a family picnic, only to be interrupted by Hawkman, as well as Vandal Savage (shaping up to be the lead villain) ambushing Wildcat, which leads to Wildcats son revealing himself to be some kind of anthromorph rather closely resembling the Wildcat from Kingdom Come.

Between that reveal, and the imbalanced Starman (who charmingly replies to everything with "52!"), it is interesting to see how Geoff Johns and DC are bringing this incarnation of the JSA to at least in part resemble the cast of Kingdom Come. Add in the Sandman, and it becomes even more interesting. I am also curious, since we haven't seen Starman at all in "52", how the end of that storyline will fit with what we've seen thus far.

Bonus points for Alex Ross's cover, an apparent Marilyn Monroe homage featuring the new Zephy- uh, Kid Cycl- uh, Cyclone.

52 Week 41 - I love love LOVE this cover. It shows Renee Montoya sitting in a meditative pose, with several other characters facing crises both internal and external reflected in the walls around her. This book continues to be worth buying for the covers alone (notice her ponytail), but the story is outstanding as well. This issue features Montoya hitting on Wonder Woman, Ralph Dibny hitting gingold and stealing wheelchair parts, and everyone's favorite planetoid Green Lantern saving Adam Strange and Starfire.

New X-Men #35 - This is one of the only books I buy for the art. I really enjoy Paco Medina's clean, smooth style, and his storytelling. For a book with a fairly large cast, he does a great job of really making all the characters look different. This is the third part of the "Mercury Rising" storyline, but unfortunately, I just don't care much about any of these characters and find myself on the verge of dropping the book. If this storyline doesn't really end with a bang, that's what will happen.

Wolverine Origins #11 - The "Wolverine Problem" - he appears in a half-dozen books each month, so I'm just not sure why they needed another one. The best part of this series has been Quesada's covers. The Omega Red storyline was a little bit interesting, if only for the allusions to the original Omega/Wolvie story of 15 or so years ago, but this current arc, featuring Cyber, looks to be a snoozer. The "Wolverine's Son" angle has potential, but already he is looking like a one-dimensional sociopath with lines like, "Can you see me...as I truly am? I am the inheritor of the earth. When all of your kind have gone to dust...I will remain." *YAWN* And why are his bone claws black? The weakest aspect of this book is the art. Steve Dillon just isn't dynamic enough for a Wolverine book. Most of the fighting is done off-panel, and the panels that ARE drawn mostly depict characters standing around talking.

Superman and Batman v. Alien and Predator - I bought the first issue of the Prestige-format book because I'm a sucker for anything that has the two of them together (Bats and Supes, not AVP). It's an interesting story and worth reading if for no other reason than the characterization is dead-on: Superman's unwillingness to take life intentionally, Batman's ruthlessness, the Predators' twisted code of morality are all accurately depicted. Ariel Olivetti's art looks overly computer-rendered, however, and that takes a lot away from the story.

Astonishing X-Men #20 - Again, Wolverine in a book (even though he's not the star). My complaint with the book is that aside from the final page, there was no real new information given to the reader - Colossus is prophesized to destroy Breakworld. We get it. Whedon's writing is great however, more for the interactions between characters, and sidebars like the "Tea Party" scene in this issue, than for any groundbreaking plots.

Ghost Rider #8 - This book is a hidden gem every week. For those of you not reading it, the story thus far is that Ghost Rider (the REAL one - Johnny Blaze) has returned to Earth, but he brought Satan with him. However, when Satan arrived, he was broken into 666 parts, each one possessing a dead body. GR has to travel the country, elminating the aspects of Satan. The catch is that when each one is destroyed, the remaining bodies increase in strength. After a two-issue arc with legend Richard Corben, regular artists Javier Saltares and Mark Texeira are back. Unfortunately, this one has "Casualties of War" Civil War tie-in banner at the top, although I'm not entirely sure why. There's a character reveal on the last page - perhaps he is one of the New Thunderbolts (though I don't think so).

That's it for this week - unless I get to the store tomorrow, there probably won't be a new comics post for two weeks (buddy's wedding this weekend). I should fit in some back issue posts between now and then though. Enjoy!