Criminal #6 — Writer: Ed Brunaker; Artist: Sean Phillips Best comic of the week, and a great jumping-on point for new readers, since it’s the start of a completely new story, with new characters. Settle into the seedy story of Tracy Lawless, AWOL from the military and looking for revenge for the death of his kid brother, a petty criminal who died under mysterious circumstances. He’s the protagonist of the story; “hero” would be pushing it, since the first time we see him he’s killing a man who, while far from innocent, probably doesn’t deserve it. Phillips’ art is effectively … Continue reading →

Wisdom #6 (of 6) — Writer: Paul Cornell; Pencils: Manuel Garcia; Inks: Mark Farmer The final issue of a mini-series that could never quite find an audience — maybe because of the obscure character, or the British setting (although it was one of the few series set in England that actually felt like it was England, as an actual place), or just because it kept throwing out so many concepts and ideas that it was hard to follow. That’s true here at the end, too, as it’s revealed that one of the character’s sons is destined to become Killraven, from … Continue reading →

All-Star Batman and Robin #5 — Writer: Frank Miller; Penciller: Jim Lee; Inker: Scott Williams I know a lot of readers have problems with this book. I hate them. I hate their stinking guts. I hate them so much I could puke. Puke my guts out. Then I’d be gutless. Gutless like them, gutless even though I hate their guts. They think they know so goddamn much. How can they not see how fun this book is, with its look at the raw early versions of these characters? Wonder Woman has spent her whole life being told how worthless and … Continue reading →

Local #9 — Story: Brian Wood; Art: Ryan Kelly A story about the death of a parent, poignant and wise, all the more impressive because it ends up being about mothers and daughters (generally a much different relationship than fathers and sons), and yet Wood’s able to nail it. He’s really found his voice with this title; the last three or four issues have all been great stories, each more confident and smoothly told than the last. In a week with long-awaited titles like All-Star Batman and The Ultimates, it’s got the best pure writing of any of them. Countdown … Continue reading →