Comic Book Resources

I'd say either Hellboy: Darkness Calls #1 or Spawn #167. Spawn's really been getting much better under Hine's run, and #166 was an all-around solid start to what looks like a promising new psychological horror spin on the title. If this one can offer anything like the payoff to #166, it'll definitely be worth the read. The only real drawback so far is that Haberlin's artwork seems slightly over-reliant on Poser at times, but even then it's a refreshing change of pace from the stable of being aping McFarlane's style that previously plagued the comic. As for Hellboy, it's Hellboy, come on.

I'd normally recommend Midnighter, but all the previews had was an action scene with the pages in reverse order to show how the Midnighter anticipates every move. I tend to find the characterization the best part of the Ennis issues, so I'm doubtful if even I'm going to want to recommend an all action issue by BKV, despite the Darick Robertson artwork.

Uh, I guess it's not too late to jump on board with Avengers: The Initiative.

It's an old school-styled, over the top, larger than life teen superhero book (with a good focus on the adults too) with cameos by every character imaginable, yet it's completely set in the post Civil War world.

You know. If Van Lente's writing that issue of Marvel Adventures Spider-Man that's a good pick. I just don't know without digging out the solicits.

Are you including trade paperbacks in this request? If so, try Fantastic Four Visionaries: Walter Simonson, Volume 1. Simonson produced the most energetic and lively run on the FF since Jack Kirby left - lots of mad ideas catherine-wheeling away. But this volume suffers from the fact that he only wrote, and did not draw, the first few issues.

I assume that you have tried and rejected Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Shazam! The Monster Society of Evil already, and don't want to start 52 with the final issue. Of the other periodicals, I'll take a flick through Alien Pig Farm in the shop to see if the humour overcomes the po' white trash stereotypes.

My three this week are 52 #52, All-New Atom #11 and Buffy the Vampire Slayer #3.

I seem to recall that you're not interested in Buffy, so that's one down. Ordinarily I'd recommend the Atom, but I'm holding off until this particular arc is over.

So that leaves 52. And I know you haven't been getting 52, but this is the last issue, and it's where they cash in a whole lot of stuff they've been setting up all year, or even longer. (Or at least I hope they do. Why wouldn't they?)

Here's the setup for the issue, you decide. The old Shazam villain Mr. Mind, the little green caterpillar with the Coke-bottle glasses and the radio around his neck, has been disguised as Booster Gold's sidekick Skeets and doing bad things, like eating the Phantom Zone and tampering with history and killing people. Booster Gold and Rip Hunter have been trying to stop him, to no avail. Now Mr. Mind has metamorphosed from a cartoony caterpillar into a quite disturbing tentacled butterfly, and I think he wants to eat the universe, or something. So Booster and Rip have to go back to the beginning (where 'the beginning' seems to be the multiversal flux that existed at the end of Infinite Crisis/beginning of 52) as a last-ditch effort to prevent him from screwing everything up.

This issue will presumably give us the final explanation for what '52' refers to, set out the scheme for the much-heralded return of the multiverse, and give us some kind of notion for what DC's got coming up for us in the near future.

The last reason why I'm recommending it? It's value for money; extra pages for a lower price.

I think it's gonna be good.

Wow. There's a lot good this week that you're not getting. My top recommendation would, of course, be Shazam: Monster Society of Evil. If you're waiting for the trade on that one, though, then make it Runaways. Princess Powerful vs. the Punisher. How can that be anything but brilliant?

I forgot to mention: I'm getting Jeff Smith's Shazam in the trade. It looks very keen.

Oh, wait; I didn't even think of trades. If trades are included in this, the first All-New Atom trade is out this week, and that's worth your time. It introduces Head, the Sensational Character Find of 2006! QQQQQQQQ! Is having The All-New Atom: My Life In Miniature! Help me buy my comics this week or death!

I would also recommend the Atom trade. Very fun "weird science" comics, and Ryan Choi is a surprisingly likable character.

Hellboy is probably the safe bet, though you've had many years to make up your mind about it. Should be interesting to see Duncan Fegredo on art.

Scalped took a big leap forward with #4, so #5 might be worth checking out. (4 was pretty self-contained; I'm not sure how accessible 5 will be)

And I'm kind of intrigued by Alien Pig Farm, though I know almost nothing about it. Probably make that decision at the store.

ASTONISHING X-MEN #21... the only X title that I find readable these days (aside from X-Factor, but that's not really an X title). note that this issue is the middle of a story arc

INCREDIBLE HULK #106... building up to the only comics event in recent history that I'm actually looking forward to

STRANGERS IN PARADISE #89... the penultimate issue! if you haven't been following this series, even marginally, then maybe it's not for you.

-r-

Jonah Hex.

Simple done in one stories...easy to review. Also, aside from AS Superman and the Spirit, its one of DC's best comics out there, IMO.

The biggest problem with this week's comics are that most of them are taking place in the middle of a storyline. 52 #52 is sure to be the top book of the week for me, but without the buildup of the previous 51, you'll be in the dark a bit. The same goes for Astonishing X-Men, Increidble Hulk, and Runaways, which are also at the top of my stack. I'd say that Avengers: The Initiative #21 should be you next best bet, since you have only one issue to catch up from. But, if you aren't a fan of the current Marvel landscape, you may not like it.

My vote goes for Hellboy then. I'll pick it up in a trade to go with all of my other Hellboy books, but as long as Mignola has held on to this one, its bound to be great. Plus, if I'm not mistaken, Arcudi is on the art and the preview pages have looked phenomenal.

If you're not reading Jonah Hex by now, I'll assume you've tried it and not liked it. It's a consistently solid read, but definitely not for everyone and hasn't changed much since it debuted.

Slow weeks for me are usually the time I pick up a random TPB or two, so if your LCBS has it, I highly recommend the Star Wars: Legacy TPB coming out this week. No need to have any knowledge of the Star Wars mythos to get into it as it takes place far enough in the future that it can be considered on its own merits. Strong storytelling from John Ostrander and wonderful art from Jan Duursema, an old school comics team-up that beats the Wizard Top 10 any day.

PS: I really enjoyed Planet Hulk, and am cautiously optimistic that World War Hulk won't suck, but I wouldn't recommend it before seeing how it plays out.

My vote would for Hellboy: Darkness Calls #1.

I'll vote for Hellboy, but other notable releases include the Brian K. Vaughan-written issue of Midnighter, the Matt Fraction-written Sensational Spider-Man annual, Ashley Wood's D'Arain Aventure #2, Dark Tower Gunslinger Born #4, and Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #18.

Nope MA: Spider-Man isn't a Van Lente issue. And it has Night Thrasher. Scratch that.

Ah well. Let me see what else is out.JLU is a story with the original Crimson Avenger and Stargirl. It'll probably be good but I can't vouch for the writer.

Detective has a Terrible Trio issue, which would be a must buy if it was dini but it's not.

Oh just go with the Showcase TPB with the army men fighting dinosaurs.

Marvel Zombies/Army of Darkness

For the chin alone people. For that chin alone.

HELLBOY!

I would recommend one of two titles:

KINDAICHI CASE FILES Volume 15- Fantastic detective manga series from TOKYOPOP. The series follows a high-school age detective who is trying to live up to the reputation of his famous detective grandfather and usually succeeds. The series does suffer a little bit from the "Murder, She Wrote"-syndrome of their seemingly being dead bodies everywhere the main character goes, but the mysteries are usually pretty well put together and genuinely interesting. The fact that it's volume 15 shouldn't be discouraging either as the stories are all pretty stand-alone, with a recurring cast of characters that are always reintroduced or explained in every volume.

LOVE AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE OMNIBUS 2- Definitely helps if you've read volume 1, but this is an incredibly sweet and well told love story about an English teacher in Korea who falls for a beautiful Korean woman. J. Torres writes it, and does a great job of balancing drama and comedy.

i say Jonah Hex.

definitely one of the best - and most tragically slept-on - books on the market right now(even though i haven't been too crazy about Phil Noto's art in recent issues).

Why doesn't anyone recommend Runaways? I just recently got into it, and Whedon's work on #25 was top notch, very swift paced, so try it out.

Otherwise......
WORLD WAR HULK!!! HULK SMASH FASCIST IRON MAN, REED RICHARDS, and other FASCISTS who tried to blow him up. And instead blew up his entire planet, including his wife and friends. And subjects. He was happy. Now he's angry. HULK SMASH!!!
(This is the only event that I'm really looking forward to.)

As far as the other suggestions:

Hellboy, since it's a mini, really depends on who's writing/illustrating it.

The current arc on Atom sucks.

You don't like Buffy.

DO NOT buy the Initiative.

Don't bother with 52 - wait for the trades.

JLU is always a safe bet.

Detective only if written by Dini.

Spawn? Seriously?

The current arc on Atom is cool.

Whisper it. 2000AD.

You'll be happy to know, Anonymous, that I bought the last two issues of 2000AD this past weekend. I haven't read them yet, but Ian Gibson art makes me all warm inside.

It's probably a one-time deal, but Looney Tunes #150 has Peter Bagge, Scott Shaw, Chynna Clugston, Bob Fingerman, Aaron Renier, Stephen DeStefano and Mike Kunkel listed as artists. That sounds pretty cool to me.

Honestly, there's really nothing on my list to strongly recommend. Shazam! would be my pick, but you're already waiting for the trade on that one. 52 should be excellent, but reading the first 51 issues is kind of important. Teen Titans is mid-storyline, Green Lantern isn't particularly recommendable, and Astonishing X-Men is definitely not recommendable (although fun to compare with Buffy and Runaways to see how much Whedon has improved as a comics writer).

I'd have to go with either the Initiative or Loners. Both are only on their second issue, so jumping on now wouldn't be too confusing. I'll go with the Initiative. The first issue was pretty fun, so I'd say it's worth a try.

Nascar Heroes!

How could you possibly resist that?

Such a series must be the work of a brilliant creative team!

You do realize that James Robinson's been working on a Hot Wheels movie, right? (though who knows if that's still accurate. It's been in IMDB limbo forever).

I'd go with Sensational Spider-Man Annual #1 as it is written by Matt "Future Of Marvel Comics" Fraction & Salvador "The Legend" Larroca. The previews say that it shows Romita-esque art in the flashback parts and it is a stand-alone issue so you don't need to know any previous story. Except that he is in the black costume of course.

Jonah Hex, JLU, Atom, or one of last week's books - True Story,Swear to God - because I forgot to recommend it last week.

Jonah hex was preeviously touted so all of the above reasons, plus it is a western and not a superhero comic so a little diversity is nice

JLU - because it is a fun, un-angsty JLA and I like that it still has a letters page and they show kids drawings

Atom - wierd horror, sci-fi, superhero blending

TSSTG - personal confessional, real life story-telling of a romance in the making, why not?

I'd recommend Zemo: Born Better #3, but the previous issue had such a good twist that it's worth waiting for the TP.

Soooo many good trades I'm not going to recommend because I'm not sure if you want recommendations for trades...including, I notice, a re-offering of three collections of Doctor Who comic strips from DWM (very cool stuff, and includes one of the cleverest twists you'll find in a Doctor Who story.)

So if we're plumping for the floppies (which sounds like some sort of disturbing sexual fetish), I'll go with recommending Avengers: The Initiative #2. Dan Slott had a good issue #1, even if he does seem to have written out one of the best characters already (Armory, not MVP. MVP's story is obviously not done yet.) And from what I've seen of the preview pages, he's a writer who's aware that Hank Pym didn't regularly beat Jan! Holy ****!

Scalped #5? Maybe?

this week I'm getting 52, Hex, Hellboy, American Virgin, 'tec, Superman, Tranquillity, and Ashtonishing X-Men.

As much as I love it, I am NOT buying this arc of Checkmate just because it's crossing over with my least favorite DCU book, the Outsiders. I'll continue Checkmate after the arc is done.

My suggestion:

JONAH HEX!!! JONAH HEX!!! JONAH HEX!!!! Why aren't you reading it yet!!!

Midnighter. It's got BKV writing AND Robertson art!

Yes. BKV+Darick Robertson=no brainer

Yes. BKV+Darick Robertson=no brainer

Matt Fraction's writing Spider-Man?!? Goodness just has to ensue. (I love reading this post cause funnily enough it usually helps me buy good comics)

As for my recommendation Jonah Hex is always very good, although I would like to see another multi-issue story arc, not because I don't like done-in-ones its just after (almost)18 of them they seem, I dunno? Inconsequential? That's just me though. Wonder Man has been quite good as well(PAD seems to be able to make me like almost any book, no matter how much apathy I felt for the character in the past), although it is up to issue #5 so maybe not.

Wait... I know! Go find the back issues of Scalped and then buy #5 because this series shouldn't be left for trades, its just too damn good.

Hellboy.

Mignola's writing, Duncan Fegerado is drawing and sure to have monsters.

Hellboy.

James Robinson did League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and it sucked big time.

BKV+Darick Robertson does probably ensure a good book.

This is my blog review about Incredible Hulk #105:

EXCELLENT. I've stayed with this title, even as it explored the themes of fantasy, which don't always quite keep my attention. So, month to month, I've browsed through it, skipping the fine details in favor of the larger story. And now, more than a year later, this storyline finally comes to a planet-shattering conclusion, and it's all those fascists Stark and Richards' fault. Over the past year, a world was built in which the Hulk could thrive and finally be happy. But of course it couldn't stay that way. What kind of seller would a book about complacency be? So Pak tears it all away from the Hulk in one fell swoop: his friends, his love, his kingdom, his planet. Now the Hulk is pissed and he's going to come to Earth seeking revenge. I, for one, truly hope that he finds it.

HELLBOY DARKNESS CALLS #1 (OF 6)

It's the first in a new Hellboy arc, even if it's not drawn by Mignola, I'm sure it'll at least be interesting. And Fegredo is no amateur either.

I would say the FF Visionaires Walter Simonson TPB. That run was great! And on that you'll see how Reed Richards would REALLY react to a Superhuman Registration Act...

Best,
Hunter (Pedro Bouça)

That is a sparse list you have. Of the recommendations, I'll be getting AXM, Hulk, Midnighter, Hellboy, & Jonah Hex; I'll look over the Spec. annual, TSSTG, Scapled, and Detective.

My vote: get Jonah Hex! I'm never quite sure what kind of story I'll get, even though it seems as if they share similar qualities. It's like there's a formula I haven't figured out yet.

I think I'd be more interested in that Spider-Man annual if Sacasa was writing it.

I like Fraction fine, but right now he seems like more flash than substance. He brings a great deal of energy to his comics, which is welcome in 2007, but it's not enough.

Yeah Greg, get TSSTG again. I want to see this site explode!

Yeah, I noticed the recommendation for True Story Swear to God. I tried not to chuckle. And, needless to say, I skipped buying it.