Batman #9 Writer: Scott Snyder Artist: Greg Capullo

This is exactly what a crossover should be. Every story is tied into the main story, and so far every tie-in has been better because of the main story. This is probably the first time I can say that tie-ins actually work with this type of story. Basically,  the Court of Owls is set to destroy Gotham City and all the main people that help keep it going. Important people die, pieces are put in place, and everything is set for Batman to seriously  kick some ass starting next month. This week also has tie-ins to Batgirl and Batman & Robin that focus on how each character deals with what’s going on. I’ve seriously been overwhelmed by how good this entire story is. Just… just read it. It’ll remind you why you like superhero  comics.

Fatale #5 Writer: Ed Brubaker Artist: Sean Phillips

What’s left to say about Fatale? What’s left to say about Brubaker and Phillips? The end of “Book One” hits with this issue, and I still can’t quite tell you what in the world is going on. It’s still absolutely beautiful to look at, and it is probably one of the best books artwise that you can find in this market. The pieces moved into some kind of end point place with this issue, and in Brubaker’s back matter (a short half page at the end of this issue) he thanks everyone for making this the highest selling book he’s ever written. What a difference being published by Image over Icon can make, huh? I’m totally the type of guy to try to sell you more, so don’t forget to check out Sleeper, Criminal, and Incognito. Those are all better than this book, at least so far, but I’m still completely invested.

Frankenstein Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #9 Writer: Jeff Lemire Artist: Alberto Ponticelli

What a difference an inker makes. The last 3 issues of this book have looked drastically cleaner, and I don’t know how I feel about that. The story has still been pretty good, but I believe Lemire is done after this issue. He’s put a bunch of things in place for Matt Kindt to take care of, and I’m excited to see where he goes with it. This issue very, very loosely ties into the story that happened with Animal Man. If you wondered “what happened to that police officer that got infected by the Rot and became all puffy?” then this is the book for you. It was good stuff, and Frankenstein is still probably the biggest surprise of the New 52.

Deathstroke #9 Writer/Artist: Rob Liefeld

Grifter#9 Writer: Liefeld and Rob Tieri Artist: Scott Clark

Hoo boy. So changes have been made to the new 52 books, and I can’t say that they’ve all been made for the better. The funny thing is that it’s not like either of these books were very good to begin with, so I’m pretty sure that their sales are going to go up with a Liefeld bump. Liefeld takes this opportunity to introduce more of the Wildstorm characters back into the New 52, and I can honestly say that I do not care. Hooray. Deathblow is back. If that’s a selling point for you, then so be it. I just figured I’d point out that this comic exists, and that’s all I have to say about that.

Mystery in Space #1 Writer/Artist: Various

Man, this is a damn strange comic book! It’s another eight dollar one-shot like The Unexpected from several months ago. They’ve been very smart about this by hiring higher-end talent to get things moving right along. It’s good quality sci-fi stories told by people who know what they’re doing. It switches in tone from Twilight Zone twists, to hyper serious, to odd comedy. It gets high brow when Ann Nocenti starts talking about cats; it’s pretty to look at when you get Kaluta art, you get Kyle Baker just being Kyle Baker… and it’s all topped off with Mike Allred drawing a story about conception. I’m not making that up. What’s not to love?

Uncanny X-Force 25 Writer: Rick Remender Artist: Mike McKone

Uncanny X-Force is a strange beast. The story is always solid, but it relies heavily on the art. The last story didn’t quite hit the mark, and a couple times I had no idea what was happening. This special overpriced 25th ‘anniversary’ issue moves a couple of characters around and uses McKone art. Now I personally love Mike McKone, but this all seems a little bit rushed. There’s also two extra stories in the back that are the first time that Remender and Opena worked together to do Wolverine and Deadpool. It’s a story that reads  just fine, but I expect better from this title.

And now, the quick hits!

Wolverine and the X-men #10 Writer: Jason Aaron Artist: Chris Bachalo: Plots move along, but I can honestly say I have no idea how this fits into the main story. Much like…

New Avengers #26 Writer: Brian Bendis Artist: Mike Deodato: Which establishes how some redhead is kind of Iron Fist, and all those SHIELD stories I’m reading are being destroyed by Bendis and I can’t stand this crossover and I’m writing a run-on sentence cause I’m so angry…

Green Lantern 9 Writer: Geoff Johns Artist: Doug Mahnke: Hmm, it appears that Mahnke is needing a lot of inkers, it’s still good stuff, but you never know what you’re gunna get on each page.

The Punisher #11 Writer: Greg Rucka Artist: Mirko Colak: This is a weird book that I find myself enjoying just enough to mention it. It’s good, but not quite great yet;  it’s improving.

Crossed Badlands #5 Writer: Jamie Delano Aritst: Leandro Rizzo: Well, this is pretty dark and weird, isn’t it? You know what you’re getting with Crossed, and this is most certainly no different.

The Ultimates #10 Writers: Jonathan Hickman & Sam Humphries Artist: Luke Ross: I love everything about this book, and I’m bummed for when Hickman leaves. Good stuff.

And that’s the week! With the Professor out of town I’ll be back again next week, so ya know, get excited!

“The” Dan Jacka

Avengers Movie Review first:  go see it.  A small series of misadventures left us walking into the theater halfway into the previews (so I missed the Dark Knight trailer), and meant we had to sit in the second row — but it was a 3D movie, and it turns out that’s the perfect spot for me; I’m nearsighted in one eye, and farsighted in the other, so 3D effects don’t work well, but when it’s that close they work fine. Even better, Harkins is wise enough to invest in good theater seats with comfortable headrests that lean back easily, so no stiff neck, and the movie engulfed me; the 2.5 hours just whizzed by happily, in a perfect summer movie rush. Who would have thought the Hulk, who’s on screen very little, would get most of the best bits (“Puny god”) ? Halfway through the credits is a scene that reveals the Master Bad Guy, whom long-time Marvel fans will recognize and have to explain to their seatmates; at the very end of the credits, there’s yet another small scene that plays off of an earlier line, silent and quick but note-perfect, and it’s worth staying for (only about a fifth of the theater I was in stayed for that one). The 12-year-old me would be very pleased that the world has progressed to the point where a movie like this can be made, and so believably and enjoyably that the whole world’s going to see it.

Free Comic Book Day Comics

I’ll mostly do the big main-company stuff, some of which is still out there, with a smattering of the smaller-press stuff that you had to brave the FCBD crowds to score….

Avengers: Age of Ultron – Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Pencils: Bryan Hitch;  Inks: Paul Neary

It’s a reprint of Avengers #12.1, but it’s a free 31-page Avengers comic by Bendis, Hitch and Neary, which means it looks and feels great; Spider-Woman tracks an alien artifact to a cave, but runs into some bad guys, and one thing leads to another and before you know it, there’s a big Avengers/Intelligentsia fight, and then there’s Ultron. It’s a set-up for Bendis’s swan song on the Avengers, one he’s been teasing for well over a year now; Marvel’s marketing of this shows they learned some lessons from DC and Darkest Night, which  offered a similar slow, simmering build-up. As a way of goosing interest in an upcoming event, this book does its job very well.

Spider-Man: Season One – Writer: Cullen Bunn;  Pencils: Neil Edwards;  Inks: Karl Kesel

This one only offers 20 pages, reprinted from the graphic novel of the same name and showing Peter getting bit by the spider and starting to discover his powers, with the rest of the pages house ads and hype. It’s fine, but an often-told story, and one that it’s not clear needed to be told again;  in the competition for best modern retelling of the Spidey myth, it doesn’t look like it’s going to make Ultimate Spider-Man worry too much.

The New 52 — Writer: Geoff Johns; Art: Ivan Reis and Joe Prado; Kenneth Rocafort;  Gene Ha; Jim Lee

The first 11 pages, by the first three art teams, are the origin of Pandora, the hooded woman who’s been lurking in the background of most of DC’s books since their relaunch (yes, she’s that Pandora). That’s followed by an intro page from Lee, plus a four-page foldout, hyping the next big JLA event next year, “The Trinity War,” which presumably involves Pandora too, and looks to involve everyone fighting against Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. The rest of the comic is two-page previews for four or five of DC’s other upcoming books. That makes it more nakedly commercial than the Marvel books, although a four-page Lee foldout is nothing to sneeze at, especially for free.

DC Nation FCBD Super Sampler/Superman Family Adventures Flip Book

I swear, that’s how it’s listed in the indicia. This “Super Sampler” offers Green Lantern and Young Justice stories for younger readers, based on the TV cartoons; the GL is a 10-pager written by Art Balthazar and Franco, and illustrated by Dario Brizuela, and involves Hal Jordan and the GLC against Myrwhydden, a silver-age era space wizard. The Young Justice is just a 5-page promo of the YJ book, not enough to make an impression — but the flip side of the comic, the Superman Family Adventures, is by Balthazar and Franco in the style of their Tiny Titans; it’s a promo of a new monthly comic by that same team. Imagine the charm of TT, transferred to Superman, complete with Clark, Lois, the Daily Planet, Supergirl, Superboy and Krypto, and you can see why, even at just 5 pages too, this is the most welcome part of the giveaway.

Barnaby and Mr. O’Malley — Creator: Crockett Johnson

Fantagraphics’ FCBD entry touts their new reprint project. Barnaby lasted for ten years as a newspaper strip; the title character is a 5-year-old boy, and Mr. O’Malley is his fairy godfather, a cigar-chomping, amiable W.C. Fields-ish sprite who finds it hard to do much real magic, but knows so many ghosts, elves and other denizens of the fantasy world that he makes a great companion. The strip is a lost classic, and well worth a try; see if the free offer here doesn’t addict you to its quirky and endearing appeal, and make you pick up the expertly-packeged first volume of the book collection this summer.

FCBD: Star Wars/Serenity

The first Dark Horse FCBD entry starts with a Star Wars 10-pager starring Hans and Chewie, with a script by Zach Whedon and art by Davide Fabbri and Christian Della Vecchia; the Serenity tale, also 10 pages, has another script by Whedon (this one executive-produced by his father Joss, the creator of the characters), and art by Fabio Moon. There’s also the first two pages of a (very) short story involving the new teen-girl-fights-monsters fantasy series Alabaster, one that’s concluded in….

FCBD: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine/The Guild

Dark Horse’s second entry offers an 8-page Buffy-in-space story (courtesy of Spike’s alien ship), written by Andrew Chambliss and with art by Georges Jeanty and Dexter Vines; it’s also another flip book, with the other side being an episode of Felicia Day’s gamer-centric The Guild, drawn by Jonathan Case (and, nestled snugly in the middle, are the last two pages of the Alabaster story).  Dark Horse does licensed properties about as well as anybody ever has, and their comics-only stuff always offers well-constructed, imaginative alternatives to the same old superhero genres that Marvel, DC and Image have mined so thoroughly, so these two giveaways are worth picking up just because they’ll expose you to some entertaining books you might otherwise have missed (the whole point of this exercise for publishers, after all).

Yo Gabba Gabba

Oni Press offers four stories based on (obviously) the TV show; comics fans will want this because one’s an 8-pager with art by Michael Allred, and another’s 5 pages from Evan Dorkin and Sarah Dyer (who’ve also contributed scripts to the show itself).

Dinosaurs Vs. Aliens

This is a high-concept creation from Barry Sonnenfeld, the director of Men in Black, and would be unremarkable except for the fact that he somehow corralled Grant Morrison to write the thing; this FCBD book has seven pages from the graphic novel by Morrison due out this summer, with reasonably cool-looking dino art by Mukesh Singh, padded with a bunch of sketches and Morrison’s script.

My Favorite Martian

This wins the award for weirdest FCBD entry: it’s a reprint of the Dell first issue from 1964, a tie-in to the TV series starring Ray Walston and a very pre-Hulk Bill Bixby; apparently, Hermes is doing this to tout a hardcover volume reprinting the first five issues of the comic’s run. I mean, OK, the art in the first issue is by Dan Spiegel, and a later issue features Russ Manning, but… really? There’s a market for this? For $49.95? Take the free book, which offers 20% of the hardcover, and let’s call it a day.

Earth 2

Worlds’ Finest #1 — Writer: Paul Levitz;  Pencils: George Perez;  Inks: Scott Koblish

These books are inter-related, with Earth 2 best read first; as its name implies, it’s setting up the alternate DC Earth that contains a modern-day version of the Justice Society. The first issue, though, focuses on death instead of birth: it shows a world where the only super-heroes who exist are Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman — plus a Supergirl, and a Robin who’s Batman’s daughter. That turns out not to be enough to hold off an invasion from Apokalips (we see parademons and Steppenwolf, but Darkseid is never mentioned) — at least, not without the ultimate sacrifice from all three heroes, leaving a world without superpowers — until the last page, when recent college grad Jay Garrick gets a visit…. Robinson does a good job with this, hitting all the emotional buttons well (this is much closer to the quality of Shade than that horrible Justice League mini-series from a few years ago) and the Scotts handle the (literally) apocalyptic battles and quiet spots with equal elan.

Even better is Worlds’ Finest, because Levitz and Perez are about the best old-school team DC has to offer. Levitz is a subtle and expert writer (note the apostrophe placement in the title, making “worlds” plural), and this is the tale of the Earth 2 Supergirl and Robin, who end up stranded on the main DC earth after the events in Earth 2 #1, and become Power Girl and the Huntress. Perez, of course, is stellar as always, and there’s the added attraction of Kevin Maguire, who supplies the art for the Earth 2 flashbacks. Pick up both of these books; they’re entertaining and effective, and give a hopeful start to the next wave of DC’s lineup.

Daredevil #12 — Writer: Mark Waid;  Art: Chris Samnee

After the excitement of last issue’s Spidey/Punisher crossover, this is mostly a quieter issue, as Matt Murdock goes on a date with assistant DA Kirsten McDuffie, and tells her a story about how he and Foggy bested a law professor in their college days. The Samnee art is a treat, well-suited to the quiet humor of most of the book; it’s a sign of Waid’s talent as a scripter that he’s been able to lure so many letter-perfect artists to this book.

Action Comics #9 — Writer: Grant Morrison; Art: Gene Ha

A one-shot tale of the Superman of Earth-23, who’s… well, not exactly Barack Obama, but an African-American who’s also President of the US, so the comparisons are inevitable. Morrison eschews most of the obvious political commentary, though, and instead concentrates on world-building, showing how this character got where he is, and making us care about him and his supporting cast. It’s a nice change-of-pace issue, without the multi-episode complications of the regular book (although, Morrison being Morrison, I’m sure these characters will show up as part of some uber-plot somewhere down the road…).

Skeleton Key #1 (of 1) — Creator: Andi Watson

Schoolgirl Tamsin and her companion, the fox spirit Kitsune, have the magical key of the title, which opens doors to different worlds and eras; they’re lost and trying to find the right path home, and have various adventures along the way. This comic reprints three of their recent stories, from Dark Horse Presents #5-7, involving a graveyard dance troupe, a hotel haunted by a ghost, and an infinite museum. Imaginative and charming, these are wonderful little tales, and if you missed these because you were too cheap to drop $8 an issue on the DHP anthology (although that book is totally worth it, too), then spend the $3.50 to get them here.

Fury #1 (of 6) — Writer: Garth Ennis;  Art: Goran Parlov

The team responsible for the best and longest run in Punisher history returns for a Nick Fury mini-series, as the old warrior dictates his memoirs. This issue is set in Indo-China in 1954, and has all the political intrigue, grizzled war veterans, femme fatales and cynical maneuvering you could want; it’s like Terry and the Pirates, but with more swearing and all the innosence bleached out, and as with all of the best Ennis, it’s a lot of nasty fun.

Avengers Vs. X-Men #3 — Writer: Ed Brubaker;  Pencils: John Romita, Jr.;  Inks: Scott Hanna

Everybody’s trying to track down Hope, and Wolverine has a polite disagreement with the Avengers — not because he wants to sympathize with the X-Men, but because he wants to solve the Phoenix problem in a way neither team wants. Brubaker’s scripting somehow makes it work better than in the first two issues (the puppet strings over the characters, as they all do what the plot requires of them, are much less visible here), and the Romita Jr. art, as always, makes it all go down easy.

Garfield #1 — Writer: Mark Evanier;  Art: Gary Barker

Worth noting because comics that are kid-friendly and smart are rare, and because Evanier, who’s been the director of the Garfield cartoons since… well, forever, is the perfect choice to add sly comics-related satire, and get all the characters’ voices and personalities just right. Barker has been an assistant on the Garfield newspaper strip for a long time, too, and probably draws the fat cat and his supporting cast better than Jim Davies at this point, so this is a perfect package, whether you’re a fan yourself or want to buy something cool for a younger reader you know.

Stuff I bought but don’t have anything new to say about, so go look up earlier reviews in the archives if you’re interested:

Amazing Spider-Man #685 — Writer: Dan Slott;  Pencils: Humberto Ramos; Inks: Victor Olazaba

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #10 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: David Marquez

Defenders #6 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Art: Victor Ibanez;  Finishes: Tom Palmer and Terry Pallot

Invincible Iron Man #516 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Art: Salvador Larroca

The Boys #66 — Writer: Garth Ennis;  Art: Russ Braun

Popeye

Snarked #7 — Writer/Artist: Roger Langridge

Back in the ’70s, when I was first discovering America’s long, rich history of newspaper comics, E. C. Segar’s Thimble Theater, the strip that birthed Popeye in 1928, was one of my first encounters, and it was a revelation: tough, funny, adventurous and told with a sureness of line and vision that puts it in the top ten of everybody’s best-of lists. This new comic doesn’t reach that peak, but it comes closer than anyone else has since Segar’s death in 1938: Ozella gets the scruffiness of the characters right, and while he can’t quite match Segar’s fluidity, he handles both slapstick and suspense with equal skill (and gets bonus points for doing his own lettering, and nailing it, to add a retro charm to the words). Speaking of words, the bigger strength here is Langridge, an inspired choice for writer: he knows his history (Popeye’s first words here echo those of his first appearance in Segar’s strip, and the next panel name-checks Bill Blackbeard, the comics historian who wrote the introduction to that first book reprinting the one-eyed sailor’s adventures that I bought 40 years ago), and he gets everybody’s dialogue just right; he even duplicates Segar’s habit of breaking the speech into a series of small, self-contained balloons. Langridge also publishes his own series, Snarked, the charming Lewis Carroll-inspired adventure that owes something to Segar in its combination of comedy and adventure, and that’s out this week, too, but I’ve sung its praises before; if you’re going to try one new book this week, make it Popeye — just a look at that cover, and the careful way it pays tribute to Action Comics #1 while still being quintessentially Popeye (and, in addition, managing to get the colors and the logo exactly right), should be enough to seal the deal.

The Goon #39 — Writer/Artist: Eric Powell

Speaking of good covers… this one promises exactly what the book delivers: a takedown of mainstream superhero comics. OK, as a topic of parody that’s easy pickin’s, and a little ’90s to boot, but then so are superhero comics right now, in their endless crossover events and attempts to goose sales, and Powell is just the guy to cheerfully, and scatologically, eviscerate them.

AVX: Vs. #1 (of 6) — Creators: Jason Aaron/Adam Kubert and Kathryn Immonen/Stuart Immonen/Wade von Grawbadger

Uncanny X-Men #11 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Art: Greg Land;  Inks: Jay Leisten

New Avengers #25 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Mike Deodato and Will Conrad

Speaking of crossovers… here we have three Avengers vs. X-Men books. AVX: Vs. confused me at first, because I thought it was a reprint of the actual Avengers Vs. X-Men #1 (the logo makes it look like they did it on purpose to increase sales; if so, it backfired, because I almost didn’t pick this up at all). This is new material, though, and it’s actually a lot of fun: its purpose is to present two expanded fights per issue, ones the “real” story doesn’t have space to show; as the first page tells us, “This book is about AWESOME BRAWLING! You want PLOT? LOOK ELSEWHERE, CHUM. You want a KNOCK-DOWN, DRAG-OUT WHUPPIN’? WE GOT YOU COVERED.” The joke is that the creative teams are actually better than that — the Magneto/Iron Man fight in the first half is all action, but it’s not mindless; Aaron and Kubert make it clever and sympathetic to both sides. The Namor/Thing battle, while not as clever (and suffering from a “win” that doesn’t even last beyond the final panel), has the Immonens providing enough good dialogue and cool undersea art to zip it along nicely. If you’re enough of a fan to be following the main series, you’ll definitely want this too.

Of the other two tie-ins, Uncanny X-Men is the most connected to the main story. Gillen seems to be trying mightily to avoid the mistake of Civil War (for that story to work, the main heroes on the “government” side, Tony Stark and Reed Richards, had to act like complete buttheads, and then Marvel had to spend years fixing them, especially Stark) by showing Cyclops’ position as inevitable, given his responsibilities to his people — although when the Sub-Mariner spends the first few pages admiring your negotiating technique, you know you’ve left diplomacy far behind. At the same time, there’s a big Red Hulk/Colossus-as-Juggernaut fight, so the AVX: Vs readers have something to enjoy, too.

There’s no fight at all in New Avengers — instead, we get a lot of backstory connecting Iron Fist’s ancient city, K’un Lun, to the Phoenix Force and its propensity for red-headed females as avatars. This would be boring except for the intriguing connections it suggests, especially given the intricate, cool-looking art by Deodato — and if you’re tired of all the punching in the other two crossovers, it offers a good palate cleanser.

Daredevil #11 — Writer: Mark Waid;  Art: Marco Checchetto

The conclusion to the three-part connected story between this book, Spider-Man and the Punisher. Kind of annoying, in that at the end the status remains quo, but it’s fun to see the interaction between the three main characters, given their long histories with each other, and Waid delivers a good story as always. The art isn’t quite as good as it’s been, but the letters page says that Chris Samnee’s coming on board next issue, and that Paolo Rivera’s coming back, too, so there’s plenty of reason to continue buying this comic.

Super Crooks #2 (of 4) — Writer: Mark Millar;  Art: Leinil Yu

This looks like it’s evolving into a caper story — Ocean’s Eleven with super-powers — which is fine by me; Millar’s clever enough to make something like that work, although his propensity for cynical shock endings might screw it up, and with only two issues to go the gimmicks can’t be that elaborate. Yu’s turned into a good match for Millar’s style — see Superior — and the advantage of only two issues left is that it’s easy for readers to commit and see what happens, so I’m still on board.

Moon Knight #12 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Alex Maleev

The end of the book, and of Bendis and Maleev’s attempt to make MK popular — the multiple-personality hook kept me around, as did the gritty LA locale and the power imbalance between the hero and the main villain, but apparently not enough readers agreed. In retrospect, this will probably be most remembered for its death of a minor Avengers character and for its maguffin: the head of an Ultron, which looks like it’s helped to lay the seeds for Bendis’s Age of Ultron, his swan song for his run on the Avengers, coming… next year? With AVX in full swing, no one wants to hear about future events right now, but stay tuned….

Stuff I bought but don’t have anything new to say about, so read earlier reviews in the archives if you want to know why it’s good:

Mighty Thor #13 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Art: Pepe Larraz

All Star Western #8 — Writers: Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray;  Art: Moritat

Aquaman #8 — Writer: Geoff Johns;  Pencils: Ivan Reis; Inks: Joe Prado and Reis

Captain America #10 — Writer: Ed Brubaker;  Pencils: Alan Davis;  Inks: Mark Farmer

Spaceman #6 (of 9) — Writer: Brain Azzarello;  Eduardo Risso

America’s Got Powers

Ross is the former British talk-show host who’s a big comics geek, and has dabbled in writing them before (Turf, about Prohibition-era vampires, came out a year or two ago). Here, he’s snagged Bryan Hitch as artist, which helps his cause considerably. The comic itself is nakedly commercial: it’s a mashup of J. Michael Straczynski’s  Rising Stars (radiation from a mysterious meteor causes a bunch of kids whose mothers are exposed to it to be born with super-powers), America’s Got Talent (there’s a reality show wherein the kids compete, and the winners get to be on a JLA-like super-team) and The Hunger Games (the show is manipulated by evil government and political types, who make it deadly because they’d prefer the kids with powers all either die or get used for their own nefarious purposes). Tommy, the viewpoint character, is the only kid exposed who apparently didn’t get any powers. Apparently….  Anyway, all of this is the occasion for both media social satire and arena-style super-powered combat and adventure, and at 36 pages for $2.99 it’s a bargain: the Hitch art is expansive, detailed and cool to look at,and there’s a buzz of snarky energy that runs through the book, making it a fun, solid read that ought to become a hit.

Alabaster: Wolves #1 (of 5) — Writer: Caitlin R. Kiernan;  Art: Steve Lieber

The Secret Service #1 (of 7) — Writer: Mark Millar;  Art: Dave Gibbons

Two other first issues of limited series this week: Alabaster is about an albino girl who’s a monster-killer, prompted by an angel of vengeance to seek out and put down vampires, werewolves and the like. Here, she encounters another girl at a South Carolina bus stop; they talk and, eventually, fight, since the girl turns out to be more than she seems. There’s a riddle contest first, and both the script and the art deliver a Southern Gothic folk-tale flavor that’s both spooky and compelling.

Secret Service is standard Millar, about an aimless British teen whose uncle recruits him into a super-espionage agency. It’s just what you’d expect from Millar (the opening sequence, involving a kidnapped Mark Hamill and a botched James Bondian rescue, especially so).  While the main plot doesn’t move forward much in this first issue, the big attraction is the Gibbons art, and it’s as precise, clear and well-constructed as always; the scenes of the teen, trapped in his British lower-class life, are especially good.

Fantastic Four #605 — Writer: Jonathan Hickman;  Art: Ron Garney

Secret #1 — Writer: Jonathan Hickman;  Art: Ryan Bodenheim

Two from Hickman: the FF is a one-shot tale of Reed and his father time-traveling into the future to observe the long history of the FF (long as in the next 4000 years), but it really turns out to be about the Reed/Ben relationship, and it’s quiet, imaginative and just about perfect. Secret is one of his new creator-owned books for Image, and it begins a twisty, complicated and high-stakes game of industrial spying and global power and intrigue. The art is just OK — it’s got some nice panel layouts, but suffers from having most of its characters look too much alike (they’re all middle-aged, upper-class businessmen in suits) — but the story itself is right up Hickman’s alley, and looks like it’ll provide a lot of nasty fun.

Saga #2 — Writer: Brian K. Vaughan;  Art: Fiona Staples

This second issue continues its sf/fantasy tale about two Romeo-and-Juliet lovers and their baby girl, whom everyone in the galaxy wants for some shadowy reason — which means they’re moving from planet to planet, dodging bounty hunters and the like. Vaughan makes their bickering-but-loving relationship both attracrtive and realistic, and Staples continues to develop imaginative alien creatures and tender parental moments with equal ease; between Secrets, America’s Got Powers, Prophet, Supreme, and this (not to mention older titles like Chew and Walking Dead), Image is making a big creative splash this year, and if you aren’t looking at any of their books, you’re missing out on some of the best comics on the stands.

Journey Into Mystery #636 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Art: Richard Elson

The Mighty Thor #12.1 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Pencils: Barry Kitson;  Inks: Kitson and Jay Leisten

These books are linked because they’re both mostly about the retro-teened Loki, who continues to be one of the best and most complicated characters in the Marvel Universe.  JIM is really Loki’s book, and Gillen, who has a real knack for combining humor, angst and myth, is never boring (as a plot point, he provides a double-page centerfold D&D-type board game here that’s an unexpected delight). For his “.1″ issue of Mighty Thor, Fraction looks into the childhood history of Thor and his Asgardian half-brother, via a long conversation between Volstagg and Sif; you’d think that would be boring, but not so; it turns out Kitson gets a lot to do, not the least of which involves the story of how Volstagg became so voluminous. Add in the way Loki’s motivations are left unresolved (is he a hero now? The same old villain? Something in between?), and you can see why he’s such a far cry from the generic, Shakespearean-dialogued bad guy created by Lee and Kirby all those years ago.

Conan the Barbarian #3 — Writer: Brian Wood;  Art: Becky Cloonan

There’s not much to note here, except a recommendation to buy: Conan, and its story of his meeting with Belit, the pirate queen, and their hot-and-heavy relationship continues to benefit from Cloonan’s unusual-but-somehow-perfect art, and even someone who’s read a couple of hundred Conan comics (like me) finds it hard to resist.

Avenging Spider-Man #6 — Writers: Greg Rucka and Mark Waid;  Art: Marco Checchetto

Fans of the current Daredevil or Punisher series should get this, since it’s by the writers of those two books, and is the first part of a three-comic crossover. DD fans know that Matt Murdock has possession of an unstable-molecule data disk with incriminating information on all the bad-guy shadow organizations of the Marvel universe — Hydra, AIM, etc. — and that they’ve been teaming up against him to get it back, without much success. That’s the starting point for this story, and with those two writers involved, it promises to be a gritty, witty and brainy ride.

Crossed: Badlands #3 — Writer: Garth Ennis;  Art: Jacen Burrows

The end of Ennis’s arc on this ongoing series about a world overrun by psychotic… well, not zombies, but close enough. Just as downbeat as you’d expect, with the reader-centric attraction of all zombie apocalypse tales: what would you do in similar circumstances? Would you survive, or end up fodder for the other side?

Avengers: Assemble #2 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Pencils: Mark Bagley;  Inks: Danny Miki

New Avengers #24 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Mike Deodato, Jr. and Will Conrad

Two Avengers books by Bendis: Assemble has the team fighting a reformed Zodiac, who think they’re the good guys (although they’re pretty clearly getting suckered), and are chasing after a bunch of standard Marvel mega-powerful maguffins (there’s an Ultimate Nullifier involved in this issue, so there’s probably Cosmic Cubes and similar hardware close behind). Bagley and Bendis are a smooth team, after all those years on Ultimate Spider-Man, so both the action and the exposition click along smoothly and entertainingly. So too for New Avengers, where the Deodato art is similarly expressive and fun to watch. This is billed as an Avengers Vs. X-Men crossover, although it works a lot like those Avengers issues of the “Siege” and other crossover stories, not covering the main action but filling in the spaces between big battles; here, it’s a lot of Jessica and Luke Cage discussing what to do about their baby, since living with it at Avengers Mansion has turned into an increasingly hazardous idea. Should Jessica leave? Will Luke come with her? Will fate keep these two crazy kids together, or apart? It’s pretty sudsy soap opera, but with characters that Bendis has written (and, in Jessica’s case, created) over a lot of years, so it has more emotional impact than you might expect.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine #8 — Writers: Andrew Chambliss and Scott Allie;  Pencils: Cliff Richards;  Inks: Andy Owen

Winter Soldier #4 — Writer: Ed Brubaker;  Pencils: Butch Guice;  Inks: Stefano Gaudiano, Guice and Brian Thies

Uncanny X-Men #10 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Pencils: Calos Pacheco and Paco Diaz;  Inks: Cam Smith

Shade #7 — Writer: James Robinson;  Art: Javier Pulido

All four of these books are under the “not much to say that I haven’t said before, but I bought ‘em and liked ‘em” category. BTVS builds on its shocker from last issue (Buffy’s a robot? But with her brain?); Winter Soldier has typical smooth Brubaker/Guice action involving Bucky, the Black Widow, Soviet sleeper agents, Dr. Doom, the Red Ghost, a rogue Doombot and probably a few more pieces I’ve forgotten — you’d think it would be confusing, but instead it’s suspenseful fun; Uncanny X-Men has nice-looking art and Gillen, although it suffers from one of those the-bad-guy’s-so-powerful-he-can-do-anything plots; finally, Shade wraps up its current story-within-the-story featuring Shade’s daughter, and while it also suffers from a too-powerful character (Shade himself, who resolves things all too easily once he decides to lend a hand), the art is so nice-looking, and the dialogue and narrative so engaging, that it’s easy to forgive it.

Avengers Vs. X-Men

Bendis provides a Scarlet Witch story wherein Wanda (a) fights M.O.D.O.K., (b) talks to Carol Danvers, who convinces her to go to Avengers Mansion, and (c) actually goes to said mansion, wherein she meets the Vision (it’s a good idea to read Avengers #24.1 before this book, if you’re wondering what the Vision is doing there and why he acts the way he does), and things don’t go well. The Cho art is fun to look at, in its mildly cheesecakey way, and the story is typical Bendis; it’s there to establish Wanda as outcast from the Avengers, and does its job, although there’s a mildly cringe-inducing “even androids can cry” moment at the end.

The Aaron story focuses on Hope Summers, as she (a) fights the Serpent Squad and (b) has a discussion with Scott and Emma about the Phoenix Force, and how it’s coming to Earth to get her. Same Cho art; Aaron does his job at establishing Hope as a badass, and also someone apprehensive about her future — there isn’t the nice turn of phrases in the dialogue that Bendis provides, but then again there aren’t any crying robots either, so it probably evens out. Nothing AvsX-y actually happens, but the pieces get moved into place, and as a taste of Marvel’s big summer event, this accomplishes its goal If they really wanted to promote that series, Marvel should have made this $2.99 instead of $3.99, but let’s not get started on their insane pricing policies right now — we have a lot of other books to review. For example:

The New Deadwardians #1 ( of 8 ) — Writer: Dan Abnett; Art: I.N.J. Culbard

Vampires and zombies in Victorian England; what else do you want to know? Abnett’s story sets things up efficiently and establishes its quietly-mannered detective main character well enough, and Culbard’s art offers a clean, clear, fine-lined style that reminds me of Javier Pulido; that’s enough to bring me back for the second issue.

Hawken #3 — Writers: Benjamin and Timothy Truman; Art: Timothy Truman

Fans of Truman’s Scout or Jonah Hex should seek out this indy title; it has that same blend of late-1800s Wild West setting and Clint Eastwood hardcases, seasoned with just enough mysticism and fantasy to make things interesting. It’s drawn in his usual gritty Western style and written by his son; $3.99 for a black-and-white book would be pushing it, except that the lush art looks so good that way that the lack of color isn’t a problem.

All-Star Western #7 — Writers: Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti;  Art: Moritat

Speaking of Westerns… Jonah and company are in New Orleans, not Gotham, this issue, to track down a killer — except that Jonah gets sidetracked into an Ultimate Fighter/gladiator arena kind of deal, and fights the inevitable Great Big Guy, after which the also-inevitable tiny ass-kicking girl appears. Moritat makes it all look really good; this is one of those books that’s always near the top of every critic’s “New 52″ lists, and if you haven’t tried it yet this first part of a new story is a great place to start.

Spaceman #5 (of 9) — Writer: Brian Azzarello;  Art: Eduardo Risso

Events continue apace, as the noble-but-flawed main character continues to try to do the right thing, surrounded by others out for the main chance instead. With the series at its halfway point,  you’re either buying this already or you’re not, but it’s keeping my interest; I like how the nine-issue format is going to force the creative team to end the thing before it gets too drawn-out (100 Bullets, I’m talking to you); although I still have some doubts about their ability to deliver a satisfying ending, but am more than willing to stick around and see.

Unwritten #35.5 — Writer: Mike Carey and Peter Gross;  Art: Gabriel Hernandex Walta

Carey’s been adding a lot of these “.5″ issues, wherein we don’t see the main characters, but get side stories and filled-in details about the Unwritten world instead. This one introduces a deus ex machina that can pop up conveniently later in the series when a rescue is needed; otherwise, it’s a story about a little guy who gets caught up in vast events, the kind of tale that Carey and Gross do very well.

The Mighty Thor #12 — Writer: Matt Fraction;  Breakdowns: Giuseppe Camuncoli;  Finishes: Klaus Janson

Finishing up the title’s second big story arc, as the title character returns and things are put right. The best part is Loki, who narrates and, both here and in his own book,  Journey Into Mystery, continues to be the most intriguing part of the New Asgardia: simultaneously the smartest, the most naive, the sneakiest and the most conflicted godling in the room.

Snarked #6 — Creator: Roger Langridge

If you liked Langridge’s Muppets (or his writing on the charming but short-lived Thor, The Mighty Avenger), you’ll like this cheerful, adventurous romp about a young princess and her brother searching for their lost father, accompanied (and pursued) by various Lewis Carroll characters like the Walrus, the Carpenter, etc. Langridge just uses those names as jumping-off points for his own kid-friendly (but sometimes dangerous) fantasy world, and this issue, like the others before it, shows why he’s a creator worth following.

Daredevil #10 — Writer: Mark Waid;  Pencils: Paolo Rivera;  Inks: Joe Rivera

The second of a two-parter with the Mole Man, so get #9 first, and have fun with Matt’s complicated-but-fascinating life, one that’s redeemed whenever he gets to put on his costume and swashbuckle around town. Most of this issue takes place underground, which cuts down on the swashbuckling, but there’s the Rivera brothers’ art (look at that cover!) the fine coloring by Javier Rodriguez, and, as always, Waids’s clever, compassionate scripts. I just finished sorting out back issues of DD this week, and this new incarnation of the title is a certified hit: we’re just about sold out of the first eight issues, as everyone slowly discovers its charms, and they’re hard to find everywhere. See what the excitement’s about now, while this team is still going strong; there’s no sense on missing out on any more of it.

New Avengers #23 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Mike Deodato and Will Conrad

Avengers #24.1 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Brandon Peterson

Moon Knight #11 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Alex Maleev

More Bendis stuff, as if his chapter on AvsX wasn’t high-profile enough. The New Avengers wraps up that title’s part of the Norman Osborn continuity, as the Dark Avengers get wrapped, bagged, tagged and filed away until next time. Avengers is a Vision return (the current “I’m done repairing myself since She-Hulk ripped me into little pieces” one), and offers some setup on the Vision/Scarlet Witch relationship that leads into AvsX #0. Moon Knight is, I think, the penultimate chapter of Bendis and Maleev’s run on that title, and is mostly a fight with Madame Masque over the head of Ultron (yeah, it sounds stupid to me, too, but it’s likely setting up Bendis’s last big Avengers story with that adamantium bad guy, so you’ll probably want to check it out for that, if not for the pretty-looking Maleev art and the typically-fun Bendis character bits).

Of course there will be lots and lots of FREE Comics, free refreshments and free balloons for the kids.

Events include an autograph signing by two of DC Comics hottest creators, DC writer, Adam Beechen and DC Artist, Dustin Nguyen.  Adam and Dustin will be at All About from 11:30 am  to 1:30 pm  and 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm.  AABC will have plenty of comics available that Adam and Dustin have worked on. See below for more information on the works of Adam Beechen* and Dustin Nguyen*

Bring the kids between 1pm and 4pm and they can get their faces painted like a super-hero!  A Balloon twister will be on hand to entertain and hand out fun Twisted Balloons as well.

This years Charity Fundraiser is for Hospice of the Valley in memory of a good friend of Alan and Marsha’s that just lost her battle with cancer. Donations will be taken in any amount, but donations of $5.00 or more will get you 15% off your purchase. Help us raise money for Hospice of the Valley while enjoying a day of fun at All About Books and Comics.

* Adam Beechen

Currently writer of the New York Times Best-Selling DC Comic Batman Beyond, Adam Beechen has been one of the most sought-after writers of comics and animation of the last decade. He has also served as regular writer on such popular titles as Teen Titans, Robin, Batgirl, W.I.L.D.C.A.T.S., Justice League Unlimited, Countdown to Adventure, his creator-owned Killapalooza miniseries, and DC’s major “event” comic, Countdown to Final Crisis. In animation, Adam currently serves as Executive Producer for the Hub’s hit pre-school series, The Adventures of Chuck and Friends, and has worked as Story Editor on such series as The Pink Panther, Edgar and Ellen and Hi Hi Puffy Amiyumi. Adam has also written multiple episodes for such acclaimed series as Ben Ten, Ben Ten: Alien Force, Teen Titans, Secret Saturdays, The Batman: The Brave and the Bold, The Batman (for which he received an Emmy nomination) Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, X-Men: Evolution, , Little Bill, Jackie Chan Adventures, Static Shock and Mucha Lucha, as well as the live-action kids’ series Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide, Out There, and The Famous Jett Jackson..

* Dustin Nguyen

Dustin Nguyen is an American comic artist whose body of work, for the past 10 years, includes flagship titles for both DC Comics and Wildstorm. His past projects include Wildcats v3.o, The Authority Revolution, Batman, Superman/Batman, Detective Comics, his creator owned project- Manifest Eternity, Batgirl, and Batman: Streets of Gotham. He is currently exclusive to DC Comics, writing as well as illustrating Justice League Beyond .  Aside from providing cover illustrations for the majority of his own books, his cover art can also be found on titles from Batman Beyond , Batgirl, Justice League: Generation Lost,  Supernatural and Friday the 13th, to numerous other DC/WS titles.

Saga

Vaughan’s last extended series was Y: The Last Man, so he’s got a reputation to uphold, and this debut issue does so nicely: it’s a fantasy/Star Wars/Romeo and Juliet mashup, with all the sprawl its name implies — but this first issue focuses very tightly on just two characters, and the third one they produce. It’s very well done, and Staples brings enormous talent to the drawing: she’s just the kind of artist I admire, able to work with small human expressions and double-page city-destroying splashes (with giant turtles added!) equally well. Get in on the ground floor with this book: it’s part of a current Image renaissance (with, say, Prophet), and it deserves to become a hit and have a long life; you’ll want to brag that you were one of the perceptive ones there from the beginning.

Conan #2 — Writer: Brian Wood;  Art: Becky Cloonan

Yet another book this week with an indy-honed, skillful writer and a female artist who can draw emotion and action equally well, in a style like no one else’s: what are the odds? I’ll bet there will be fans who won’t like this book — Cloonan’s Conan won’t be… Conany enough for them — but they won’t be looking hard enough: this is a great version of the character, as compelling in its own way as Barry Smith’s, and the long Belit story is the perfect showcase for her and Wood’s talents; as with Saga, get in on the ground floor of this ride, before the books sell out and you have to wait months for a trade version.

Fantastic Four #604 — Writer: Jonathan Hickman;  Pencils: Steve Epting;  Inks: Rick Magyar with Steve Epting

This wraps up a number of plotlines from… geez, over three years of Hickman’s work on this title and FF, so even if you haven’t been keeping track it’s worth a look: it’s very cosmic, in the classic FF mode, combining Celestials and time-travellers and massive power outlays, but, as the best FF stories do, it all boils down to family and loyalty in the end. I haven’t been as huge a fan of Hickman’s work on this book as some others — I’ve found a lot of his plotting too open-ended and scattered — but I have to admit that he stuck the landing on this one just right.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine #7 — Writer: Andrew Chambliss;  Pencils: Georges Jeanty;  Inks: Karl Story

Buffy and Spike interact, as our heroine continues to deal with the aftermath of the death of magic from Season Eight, plus more personal crises that loom just as large — including a twist ending that is both completely unexpected and typical for this series. Even without Whedon providing a script (but still listed as “executive producer”), the comic continues to be reliably entertaining, especially to fans of the show — who should buy the book just because they’ll appreciate the quiet but striking Phil Noto cover so much.

Crossed: Badlands #1 — Writer: Garth Ennis;  Art: Jacen Burrows

The original creative team returns for the first arc of this now-ongoing series about a not-quite-zombie apocalypse.  It’s nice to see Burrows’s steady, clear art again (its simple lines somehow give the graphic horror more impact), and of course Ennis is welcome, and yet this doesn’t feel much more than average — Ennis is so known for his over-the-top violence and weird humor, especially in this title, that it’s hard for him to startle or engage readers at this point; watching a hefty Scottish woman wearing nothing but a belt of human heads split open her two companions’ faces with an axe, and then get crushed by a log in a stream and strangled by a boot through her mouth, is just business as usual. When some depressingly existential musings by the narrator character are the only things that stick after reading a comic like this, you know the law of increasing expectations is haunting it even more than its monstrous title characters.

Avengers: Assemble #1 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Pencils: Mark Bagley;  Inks: Danny Miki

Avengers #24 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Daniel Acuna

Powers #9 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Michael Avon Oeming

Three by Bendis: the new ongoing Avengers is, of course, a book for potential fans of the movie, and he and Bagley provide a suitable introduction, requiring little prior knowledge of continuity. Scorpio is kind of a boring opponent, frankly, and $3.99 for 21 pages of story (plus that Avengers vs X-Men preview that you’ve already seen, since it’s in every other freakin’ book this month) is pushing it, but the creative team has such an easy rapport that it all goes down smoothly enough.  The “regular” Avengers is the climax of a months-long Norman Osborn plot, and, after all the build-up, seems to end too quickly and easily, with a overload-the-system trick that’s been used many times before (and, hey, what about New Avengers? Shouldn’t it have come out before this book?); it, too, is made better by Bendis’s light touch with dialogue, and ability to juggle dozens of characters and big secret-society conspiracies at once. The better comic is the simpler Powers, which just focuses on its three weary cops and their attempts to deal with both standard procedural police-department red tape and cosmic problems like somebody killing god-level superheroes; it’s Bendis’s longest ongoing title, a clear labor of love, and, while this is the middle chapter in an ongoing story, he and Oeming make their affection for its characters and their intertwined lives so obvious that readers can’t help but be swept along.

Wolverine and the X-Men #7 — Writer: Jason Aaron;  Pencils: Nick Bradshaw;  Inks: Walden Wong, Norman Lee and Nick Bradshaw

Journey Into Mystery #635 — Writer: Kieron Gillen;  Art: Richard Elson

Shade #6 (of 12) — Writer: James Robinson;  Art: Javier Pulido

These three titles are linked only because they’re the least cookie-cutter, and therefore the best, of the week’s superhero titles. Wolverine and the X-Men was always going to be a hit, but it’s been an unexpected delight because Aaron has shown such a flair for both humor and interwoven continuity in chronicling the lives of all these characters: between Wolverine and Quentin Quire trying to scam an intergalactic casino, Kitty dealing with a nano-Brood infection that mimics pregnancy (plus a Fantastic Voyage-like attempt to cure her), and the ongoing troubles of Broo, the intellectual mutate from that savage race, there’s enough action, fun and angst, all in just the right amounts, to please any reader. Journey Into Mystery is Kieron Gillen continuing his seemingly-impossible task of making Loki into a sympathetic, complicated and clever protagonist, and doing it with an intriguing supporting cast, suitable villains (Nightmare, in the current story),  lots of sympathetic characterization, and very good writing. We just covered Shade a few weeks ago; suffice it to say that the art and coloring still make this one of the most striking books on the stands, and Robinson continues to redeem his work on that awful JLA mini-series by showing just how subtly good his writing can be when he’s working with material that’s more suitable to his talents.

The Party starts at 6 pm with CAKE and Discounts! Get 25% off ALL Back Issue X-men and Avengers Comics (including consignment!) Get 10% off all other X-men and Avengers items, including T-shirts, Pint Glasses, Coffee Mugs, Statues and more.

At 8 pm the Avengers Vs. X-men #1 will go on sale, including ALL variants and incentives! We are officially an Avengers Team Store, but we will have ALL of the Variants including the X-men Team Store Variants.  Come in Tues.  night to be sure to get the exclusives, Avengers Team Store Variant, X-men Team Store Variant, Stegman Variant, Stegman Sketch Variant (one per store), Romita Jr. Variant and Blank Variant. These will be in limited supply so come in Tues.night if you don’t want to miss out.

This is Marvel’s biggest  launch of the year. They have brought together 8 of the best creators in the industry, Brian Bendis, Jason Aaron, Ed Brukbaker, Jonathan Hickman, Matt Fraction, John Romita Jr, Olivier Coipel, and Adam Kubert. This story involves the entire Marvel Universe and will set the stage for a seismic shift in the Marvel Universe that will tie into all Marvel ongoing titles! AVX will ship twice a month from April through Sept.

Stay tuned for more info!

Usagi Yojimbo

I’ve sung the praises of Sakai’s long-eared samurai before, and this issue is a good example of why: it’s the conclusion of a two-part story involving rival soy-sauce breweries. Sound boring? Not so: Sakai wraps careful research into this ancient Japanese staple (there’s an improbably-fascinating essay about it in the back of the book) around a plot involving a noble businessman, a lazy cop, a loyal employee, murder and poetic retribution, all in his clear, suspenseful, action-packed style. As always: if you’re missing this, you’re passing up one of the best monthly comics out there, one that’s been patiently telling its compelling tales for over 20 years.

Spaceman #4 (of 9) — Writer: Brian Azzarello;  Art: Eduardo Risso

The 100 Bullets team continues their mini-series about a down-on-his-luck, mutated ex-spaceman and his encounter with a kidnapped reality-show tot. Azzarello’s intriguing combination of sf and noir offers the flawed-but-noble hero of the latter, plus the Clockwork Orange-like slang and gritty future-tech of the former, all leavened with little-kid gangs, rocket-ship flashbacks, femme fatales and lots of bad guys out for the main chance; Risso, of course, is perfect at rendering all of this horror, action and sex in his trademark shadowy style. Don’t expect a happy ending, but do expect a wild, entertaining ride.

The Shade #5 (of 12) — Writer: James Robinson;  Art: Javier Pulido

Robinson continues chronicling the adventures of the immortal reformed villain from his  Starman series, and it’s a welcome homecoming: his scripting pops and crackles and offers snarky, philosophical  little asides in The Shade’s narration, and reminds us all why Starman was such an unexpected delight. This is one of the best-looking books out there, too: the main character’s Dickensian top hat and cane make him a striking figure, and between his Darkness-like powers, the exotic Barcelona locale, and the introduction of a half-vampire girl (who’s more than a sidekick but less than a costar), there’s plenty of opportunity for Pulido to showcase his cool-looking art (fans of Chris Samnee should give this book a try). Special mention to Hillary Sycamore, whose vivid but just-right coloring helps to make this one of the best-looking books on the stands.

Justice League #6 — Writer: Geoff Johns;  Pencils: Jim Lee;  Inks: Scott Williams with Sandra Hope, Batt and Mark Irwin

The end of the first story, in suitable-cinematic fashion (there are five splash pages, and four double-splash pages, most of them chronicling a big fight with Darkseid). There’s no need to push, or even describe, this book — you’re all buying it anyway — so I’ll just say that, after a slow start, I think it hung together well, and was just the kind of introducing-the-band story that we all wanted; it’s probably as good as the Grant Morrison/Howard Porter New World Order story that launched a similar JLA reboot in the ’90s (what it gives up to that story in scripting, it makes back on the art), and its inevitable book compilation should delight readers for a similarly-long time.

Batman: Odyssey #5(0f 7) — Creator: Neal Adams

This continues to be a gonzo roller-coaster ride — but, interestingly, not quite the train wreck we all predicted; it’s actually been coming out on time, and is 11 issues into its 13-issue run.  The dialogue is still all over the place (this issue’s clunky highlight is “Blast you, boy… you scared the string out of my knees!” What??), and the cartoony gnomes seem to have wandered in from a totally different book, but Adams is clearly having fun, doing exactly what he wants, and between the dinosaurs and the fights and the dozens of guest stars, it’s a fascinatingly-flawed extravaganza, impossible for comics fans to keep off their bookshelves.

New Avengers #22 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Mike Deodato and Will Conrad

Avengers #23 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Daniel Acuna

Moon Knight #10 — Writer: Brian Michael Bendis;  Art: Alex Maleev

Three from Bendis — the two Avengers books are each the penultimate chapter of their part of the Norman Osborn Siege sequel (it doesn’t matter what order you read them in; they’re taking place simultaneously), and offer plenty of action, crosses and double-crosses and triple-crosses, and the requisite insanely-powerful-but-brilliant adversary; you can’t ask for much more than that in a standard-issue superhero book. Moon Knight is more quirky, thanks to Maleev’s art and the title hero’s multiple personalities; it’s both dealing with the death of a major (well, OK, semi-major… kind of C-list, actually) character and setting up Bendis’s last huge story arc for later this year (the head of Ultron is involved), so it’s worth a look too.

Amazing Spider-Man #680 — Writers: Dan Slott and Chris Yost;  Pencils: Giuseppe Camuncoli;  Inks: Klaus Janson

Spidey in space! Colonel John Jameson is up on a space station and has his communication cut off, so Our Hero corrals Johnny Storm into flying up to check it out… and, of course, complications occur. Camuncoli doesn’t seem like an obvious standard-superhero choice (his shadowy style is a better fit for darker books like The Punisher or Daken), but the Janson inking makes a surprisingly-effective combination, and Slott and Yost are a good team, too: this gives the Spidey fan just the combination of adventure, humor and pop-culture references (there’s a callout to Walking Dead) that the book requires.