Phil's Reviews — Stuff I Read and Put Back #44

The Vinyl Underground #2 — Writer: Si Spencer; Penciller: Simon Cane; Inker: Cameron Syewart
Hipster 20-somethings in London solving occult crimes. Not bad, but it continues to be derivative of early-’90s Vertigo (you get the feeling that the creators grew up reading and admiring those books, particularly Morrison’s The Invisibles and anything by Peter Milligan), and it seems more repetitive than cutting-edge (of course there are scenes of dancing at clubs; of course there are evil skinheads; of course the police detective is a chain-smoking, bald black woman, etc.). It’s readable, but there’s nothing new about it, no “Oh, crap!” moments that would reach out and demand that the reader buy the book.

Supergirl #23 — Writer: Kelly Puckett; Penciller: Drew Johnson; Inker: Ray Snyder
Surprisingly decent — it’s the first episode in a while that might actually intrigue a 12-year-old girl, and not embarrass her parents. It doesn’t explain a lot about what’s going on, but it treats the character (and the reader) with respect, throws in a decent Batman bit, and sets up a screw-up-and-then-redeem-yourself plot that promises to pay off nicely next issue. If it does, it’ll jump to the buy list.

Robin #168 — Writer: Peter Milligan; Artist: Freddie E. Williams II
Labeled as part one of the Ra’s Al Ghul Batbook crossover comeback, although there’ve been two parts already (comic math: you have to love it). Milligan’s always worth a shot, but here he seems to be bored — Damien comes to Gotham City, and he and Robin end up in a contrived, perfunctory fight that serves only to mark time until the next episode. Is there anyone who actually cares whether R.A.G. is dead or alive at this point?

Howard the Duck #2 (of 4) — Writer: Ty Templeton; Penciler: Juan Bobillo; Inker: Marcelo Sosa
This book exists because Marvel has to occasionally publish the character to maintain the trademark/copyright/whatever, yes? Given that, it’s OK — and the Bobillo art continues to be weirdly intriguing — but the standard HTD curse (if it ain’t by Steve Gerber, it don’t work) continues to apply.

Super-Villain Team-Up: Modok’s 11 #5 (of 5) — Writer: Fred Van Lente; Penciler: Francis Portela; Inker: Terry Pallot
This turned out to be a clever, well-plotted series (a good thing, since as its title suggests it’s a caper film at heart), with attractive art and bright coloring, and a sure hand with its C- and D-list villains (Puma, Armadillo, Deadly Nightshade, and so on, down to Rocker Racer at #11). I’m not sorry I read it, but with those characters it needed to be way above average to end up in the permanent collection, and it just didn’t quite make the final cut.

Countdown Presents: The Search for Ray Palmer: Red Rain #1 — Writer: Peter Johnson; Pencils: Kelly Jones, Eric Battle, Angel Unzueta; Inks: Kelly Jones, Derek Fridolf, Vicente Cifuentes, Jonathan Glapion
Let’s be honest: they aren’t finding Ray Palmer; this is just an excuse for DC to zip through its various alternate Earths and showcase them. Here, it’s a what-if-Batman-was-a-vampire conceit, and if Kelly Jones had drawn the whole thing it might have been worth it. Sadly, he only contributes a few pages (most of the vampire-Batman scenes), and while they’re nice — particularly the last-page splash — the rest is just standard Countdown crap, with uneven art and no resolution. If Jones’ art and the concept look interesting, go buy the actual Red Rain graphic novels instead.

Nexus’ Greatest Hits — Creators: Mike Baron and Steve Rude
Just what the title says — a clip show, with selected scenes from the book’s 25-year history. If you’ve never followed the character (and skipped the recent Nexus #99), then it’s worth it, because there’s enough here to showcase Baron’s careful characterization and sly philosophizing, and Rude’s absolutely gorgeous art. Most of the series’ back issues are still (relatively) cheap, and if this spurs you to search for them, so much the better.

Countdown to Final Crisis #25 — Writers: Paul Dini with Tony Bedard; Story Consultant: Keith Giffen; Pencils: Ron Lim; Inks: Jimmy Palmiotti and John Stanisci
Last issue’s actual linear story was a glimmer of optimism, but now we’re back to the same old cut-and-paste fragments — the Rogues get chased by Deadshot, Mary Marvel meets Darkseid, etc. If watching Ron Lim draw Karate Kid and Firestorm (they get the most pages this time) excites you, then be my guest, but I’m going back to sleep for, oh, at least the next 20 issues.

Phil Mateer

About Phil

With 40 years of experience in comic reading, collecting and reviewing, English Professor Phil Mateer has an encyclopedic mind for comics. Feel free to ask Phil about storylines, characters, artists or for that matter, any comic book trivia. He will post your questions and answers on the AABC blog. His knowledge is unparalleled! He is also our warehouse manager, so if you are looking for that hard to find comic book, ask Phil!
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