Adam Strange, Ame-Comi Girls, Aquaman, Arsenal Special, Aztek, Birds of Prey

Starting off DC Box number one!

Adam Strange 1-6

Pasqual Ferry does nice art, but Andy Diggle doesn’t succeed in making Adam Strange interesting to me.  I stopped getting this with two issues left in the mini. Upon reread, I don’t care at all about how it ended.  I’m really hoping Tom King does a better job with his upcoming series next month…

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Fine (Cutting)

Ame-Comi Girls 1

Amanda Conner is an amazing artist.  That is all.  

Her expressions are perfection.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Aquaman 1-12

Geoff Johns’ attempt to make Aquaman cool.  He only partially succeeds on that front, but he more than makes up for it with his depiction of Mera.  I stopped buying this title because The Others (a superhero team from Arthur’s past) bored me silly, but I’d happily buy a Johns’ series starring the Queen of the Seas.

She takes no shit from anyone, has a strong sense of justice, and thinks quickly on her feet.  (Realizing that the cops will take her to the scene of the crime, allowing her to save the day.)  More of her, please.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice

Aztek 1-7, 9, 10

I remember this being a lot better than it was upon reread.  The art by N.Steven Harris is passable at best, and the story by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar should be way better, given their talents.  And yet, I’m keeping it around for reasons that I honestly can’t explain. Maybe it’ll come back around in another 20 years.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: No

Rating: Didn’t suck

Arsenal Special 1

I love this comic every time I read it.  It doesn’t make any sense on the surface, this is basically a throwaway one-shot where Roy Harper goes on a mission, things go south, and he fights his way out of it.  It should be as forgettable as hundreds of other comics. But writer CJ Henderson puts in little touches that make it stand out - Forcing Arsenal to relapse by injecting him with heroin against his will; Writing the story like a Hong Kong action flick.  Artist Will Rosado isn’t the strongest of artists, but he gets the job done here, drawing the heck out of some great fight scenes. This is the ‘88 LA Dodgers of comics, a bunch of scrappy, not-the-best players coming together to accomplish something special.  (Ignoring Orel Hershiser. That guy was a beast.)

59 consecutive scoreless innings!

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Really good

Birds of Prey: Manhunt 1-4

Birds of Prey 1-24

Such a great concept for a book: Barbara Gordon, still in her early days as Oracle, teams up with Black Canary to fight the good fight.  Chuck Dixon is perfectly suited to write this kind of rollicking, fast-paced adventure book. Greg Land (before his phototracing got out of control) and Butch Guice do fine on the art.  The result is something that starts out fun, but is slowing down as the missions turn out to be ultimately forgettable. The dynamic between the co-stars is always a ton of fun, and I love that Dixon doesn’t let Oracle’s disability get in the way of her kicking ass.  But like many TV procedurals, the character moments aren’t enough to hide the thinness of the missions of the month.  

Somehow this issue goes for 50-90 bucks right now...

Love the homage by Yale Stewart.  Check out his JL8 online!

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice to Fine as the series progresses