Haunt of Horror: Lovecraft #1 (of 3) — Adapter/Artist: Richard Corben Corben doing Lovecraft: that either excites you or it doesn’t. Me, I’m there; that’s exactly the kind of moody horror he’s built his career on. Adding the text of the actual stories and poems being adapted is a welcome, classy touch, too. Not everything works — the whole “hideous creatures that words can’t describe” bit makes them hard to draw, too — but what other artist (not named Mignola) could tackle this project so well? The Boys #19 — Writer: Garth Ennis; Art: Darick Robertson Still motoring along, and … Continue reading →

Nova #14 — Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning;  Pencilers: Wellingtom Alves;  Inker: Scott Hanna In a week where the good stuff was really good and the not-so-good stuff… wasn’t, this is one of the few unbought books that at least came close.  Abnett and Lanning are good at this space opera, as all their Annihilation work has shown, and their take on the Silver Surfer and Galactus is well thought out; the Surfer’s personality makes sense, and the cliffhanger ending on the dying planet is suitably eerie. The bad guy seems to have wandered in from SF Cliche Land, … Continue reading →

All-Star Superman #11 (of 12)  — Writer: Grant Morrison;  Penciller: Frank Quitely;  Inks/Colors: Jamie GrantIt’s Grant Morrison week at DC, and this one is, by far, the best comic.  He and Quitely operate at an almost-psychic level, art and story meshing seamlessly, reinforcing one another and creating an effortless sense of wonder; everything works, from the Luthor-gets-the-electric-chair opening to Superman’s cleaning of the Sun-Eater’s stable to Luthor’s niece, Nasthalthia’s, calculated response to the lures of old media, and it’s a joy to read. Final Crisis #1 (of 7) — Writer: Grant Morrison;  Art: J. G. JonesSince the first panel features … Continue reading →

Thor #9 — Writer: J. Michael Straczynski; Penciler: Olivier Coipel; Inkers: Mark Morales, Danny Miki and John Dell Loki-as-woman is suitably subtle, and spookily sexy, and a scene with one of the locals trying to court an Asgardian reminded me of Walt Simonson. However, despite a stray frost giant or two, most of the book is people standing around a drafty castle talking, and, in pamphlet form at least, it could stand to move faster. If the characters were still speaking like Shakespeare. the appropriate quote would be from Hamlet: “More matter, with less art.” Teen Titans #59 — Writer: … Continue reading →

The Mighty Avengers #14 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Penciler: Khoi Pham;  Inker: Danny Miki Another “background” piece of Secret Invasion, focusing on the Skrulls’ plans for the Sentry (including a clandestine meeting of the Earth-Skrulls that shows the Jarvis-Skrull, the Elektra-Skrull, the Pym-Skrull, and some others), and even shows some real-time events synched into Secret Invasion #2. Standard disclaimer: if you’re buying this to get an actual Avengers story, forget it, but if you’re looking for a significant piece to the S. I. puzzle, this won’t disappoint you. Fantastic Four #557 — Writer: Mark Millar;  Penciler: Bryan Hitch;  Inkers: … Continue reading →