Crossed #0 — Writer: Garth Ennis; Art: Jacen Burrows
Avatar’s an interesting publisher — they get a lot of series from writers like Ennis and Warren Ellis, often quick-moving, B-movie-type tales, not as polished as the stuff they write for the mainstream publishers, but guilty pleasures nonetheless. This one’s no different; it’s a zombie riff, with a plague turning people into psychopaths and a small group of survivors that we follow as they struggle to fight off the murderous hordes, etc. Burrows is good at delivering the violence (a typical requirement for Ennis artists), and his gleeful, infected bad guys are just right. For a buck, this 11-page prologue is hard to pass up.
Special Forces #3 — Writer/Artist: Kyle Baker
This is apparently an ongoing series, since Baker talks in the editorial page about his plans for issues #5 and up. OK by me; the tone of this comic tends to careen around, not sure if it’s dramatic, satiric, or somewhere in between (seriously: the kick-ass female lead is meant to be over-the-top but reality-based, and yet there’s a psychic kid who shows up completely out of left field; I suppose any story that offers an autistic special-forces GI running a motorcycle up a statue onto a helicopter can probably stretch to accommodate him). On the other hand, his Eisneresque art, breakneck action and indefatigable protagonist/narrator make the book hard to refuse (and I’d bet that it would be popular with actual GIs in Iraq, too, although not so much with their superiors).
Final Crisis #3 (of 7) — Writer: Grant Morrison; Art: J. G. Jones
It’s funny how different this is from the slam-bang all-out war going on over in Marvel’s Secret Invasion — it’s much quieter, and moodier, with its small, precise scenes and its jumps between the major players like Wonder Woman and Green Lantern (who are faring badly) and Morrison’s own Seven Soldiers characters like Frankenstein and Mr. Miracle (who, while they aren’t doing that much, at least aren’t actually losing… yet). This series, right now, is fighting through some problems — inflated expectations, for one, while the Darkseid influence, and the last-scene jump into the future, recall one of Morrison’s earlier, similar JLA stories too closely — but I’m still optimistic that it’ll form a satisfying narrative, and a lasting stand-alone story, by the time it’s all done.
The Sword #10 — Writers/Artists: Jonathan and Joshua Luna
I’ve been on the fence about this title, but this issue’s full-length battle, and its full-page shift-the-perspective cliffhanger, have talked me into it. Through Ultra and Girls to this, the Luna brothers have honed their storytelling skills, and now they’re very good at taking standard superhero/fantasy elements, and recasting them into can’t-put-down reading (with their very human lead character here, and the way they blend mythology into the modern world, they’re reminiscent of Roger Zelazny, which is a very good thing).
Army @ Love: The Art of War #1 — Writer/Penciller: Rick Veitch; Inker: Gary Erskine
This is a step up from the earlier “first season” of this title, with an easy, imaginative narrative (the “what’s-gone before” summary, involving Veitch himself being questioned at Guantanamo Bay, is an especially nice touch), even more sex and satire, and confident, clear art. The blending of fantasy elements (a were-gorilla; messages from the future) with realistic, torn-from-the-headlines jibes at the military, government contractors and politicians is a recipe Veitch has been working on for decades, and here he’s got it just about right.
Invincible Iron Man #4 — Writer: Matt Fraction; Art: Salvador Larroca
Fraction’s managed the difficult feat of combining regular Iron continuity with some of the visual and character cues of the movie (Pepper is Tony’s assistant/romantic possibility, there’s a Stane causing trouble, and we have a white glowy chest thing as a plot element), so that this is reader-friendly for both old and new fans. There’s not much action this time, but assuming this is the fourth chapter of a six-part story, everything’s now set up for a two-issue climax battle that should bring a satisfying payoff, and justify readers’ faith in this new title.
Stuff I read and liked (and bought), but don’t have anything new to say about, so read previous reviews in the archives if you really want to know:
Echo #5 — Writer/Artist: Terry Moore
Criminal #4 — Writer: Ed Brubaker; Art: Sean Phillips
The Boys #21 — Writer: Garth Ennis; Art: Darick Robertson
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight #17 — Writer: Joss Whedon; Pencils: Karl Moline; Inks: Andy Owens
Phil Mateer
