New comics

 New comics!

New Gods 1-10

I’ve never cared for the New Gods, but I’ve been a fan of everything I’ve read from Ram V, so I thought I’d give this a shot.  I tried the first trade, and it was good enough that I picked up the next four issues.  I just found out it’s a twelve issue miniseries, and I’m definitely going to finish it off.  The art by Evan Cagle is absolutely phenomenal.  There’s a European look to it, stunning.  Sadly, I’m assuming it’s the crazy detailed nature of his art that necessitates the appearance of a guest artist doing at least a couple of pages every issue.  (And sometimes way more than that.)

The story isn’t bad as New God stories go.  I’ve just never cared for any of them aside from Barda and Scott Free.  

Assorted Crisis Events 1-5

Holy crap.  Issue 3 is one of the darkest things I’ve ever read.  And the rest of this anthology series isn’t a bucket of roses either.  Deniz Camp does what the best science fiction writers do; he takes a sci-fi conceit and then applies the darkness of humanity to it, so that it feels all too real and hauntingly terrifying.  Really glad I picked this up.

Wonder Woman 25

Not the biggest fan of this arc, but I’ll suffer through it.  Tom King and Daniel Sampere are still worth following.  

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring 3

Sam’s origin story.  This is so freaking good.  

Ultimate Spider-Man 21

Ultimate Mr Negative’s origin.  I’m so confused.  Is Gwen Stacy his sister?  Or been masquerading as his sister?  Or is he delusional?  Poor story telling by Jonathan Hickman.  (It’s finally caught up with him.)

DC vs Vampires: World War V 12

And so ends (presumably) this multi-volume saga.  Not as good as DCeased, but an entertaining, worthy effort by the always-dependable Matthew Rosenberg and Otto Schmidt.  

Detective Comics 1101

A new story arc.  Tom Taylor has really gone back to basics with Detective, self-contained adventures that are just solidly well-told.  I’m not complaining, especially if he continues to do it with Mikel Janin.  

Absolute Wonder Woman 12

If I could only read one comic a month, it would be this one. 

New comics

Battle Beast 5

Not enough fighting, but next issue looks to change that.

Deadpool/Batman 1

Marvel’s side of this inter-company crossover.  Nothing to write home about, but not horrible.  Actually, Frank Miller’s three pages were pretty horrible.  Is it safe to mark him as finished?  I’d be sad about it, but signs really point to yes.

Voyeur 1

A fun con comic with a sexy twist.  I’m in on this launch title from new publisher Ignition Press.  

Powers 25 1

Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming return, and boy is it nice to read Bendis again.  He disappeared from my radar after his DC tenure fizzled, and it’s nice to know that he hasn’t completely lost his stuff either.  

Short Game

I’m so happy to get more material from Mitsuru Adachi of Cross Game fame, but this collection of short stories isn’t nearly as good as his long work.

New comics

Batgirl 11

Batgirl and her half-brother fight the second Sword, then agree to go on a quest with the third one.  (Not sure why the three bad guys were lumped together, they weren’t working together at all.)  I’m done with this, there’s nothing that puts this above replacement level.

Free Comic Book Day: Fantastic Four 1

There’s a cute little FF story by Ryan North and Humberto Ramos here.

Absolute Superman 11

This is such an up and down series. This is a down issue.  The “brainwashing by running the subject through thousands of VR scenarios” story has been done to death, and this iteration doesn’t bring anything new.  The “push the hero to the dark side only to fail” thing has been done even more times, and Jason Aaron doesn’t make it all that interesting either.  Hoping he ends this arc on a high note.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 11

Things fall apart for the evil DA as the city rallies around the Turtles.  Cue the final fight.  Gene Luen Yang takes over w/ issue 13, I might actually stick around and give it a shot.

Absolute Green Lantern 6

I’m done.  This is all nonsense.

Mr Terrific: Year One 4

I cancelled my sub, but picked up this issue after it was pick of the week on iFanboy.  It’s fun seeing Bruce Wayne and Michael Holt interacting, but I don’t know if it’s enough for me to get the rest of the series.  I’ll flip through it in the shop next time around.  

The War 2

Garth Ennis is still bringing his A game after all of these years.  This is one of the darkest, grimmest things I’ve read in a long, long time, and it’s so so good.  I only wish Ennis didn’t bring in the armed intruders at the end.  The series is so strong because it’s grounded in realism, and this new element takes me out of that headspace.  

Cheetah and Cheshire Rob the Justice League 1-2

Another iFanboy recommendation, and it’s a good one.  It feels like I haven’t read Greg Rucka in a long time, and he’s as good as ever.  The titular characters are still gathering their crew, and it’s a fun ride so far.  

Absolute Flash 7

Not as bad as Absolute Green Lantern, but there’s not enough to keep me around.  I’m done.

Krypto 4

I appreciate the sadness warning at the beginning of the issue, but I’ve read sadder.  This has not been the best of series, but with only one issue to go, I’m going to play it out.

Fantastic Four 3

The FF figure out a way around Doom’s video game save/restore machine, with Ryan North’s typical cleverness.  Lots of fun, how does this guy not run out of ideas?

Battle Action 6, 7, 10

Apparently real-world comic distribution problems created this gap in issues.  Issue ten finishes off this Johnny Red arc with a happily-ever-after.  Fine, but not up to Ennis’ best.  

New comics

Way behind on new comics.

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees: Rite of Spring 2

This is such a well-done series unlike anything else out there.  As with Hannibal Lecter, Sam is a serial killer that I’m rooting for.  An impressive feat of writing from Patrick Horvath, and his art is top-notch as well.

Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman 4

The youngest version of Trinity teams up with Alfred to chase down Damian-Corgi, and it’s utterly delightful.  Tom King packs this thing with cute moment after moment, and Belen Ortega illustrates them perfectly.  

Absolute Batman 12

We find out that Bane is the origin story for every other person in Absolute Batman’s Rogues Gallery; He brutally destroys all of Bruce’s friends, physically and psychologically crushing them into their twisted final forms.  It’s a stunning and heartbreaking twist of the mythology, especially given how close Snyder made this group.  Amazing execution by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta.

One World Under Doom 7

With Doom’s perfidy revealed, the final boss battle begins.  Reed Richards levels up to Scientist Supreme, but it’s still not enough.  (For now.)

CoRT 1

AKA Children of the Round Table.  The team of Seven Secrets returns in this all-ages title.  Very little happens here; the titular children find their unique weapons, each of which is possessed by the spirit of an original KotRT.  I’ll probably stick around for the full six issues, if for no other reason than to support Tom Taylor.

Absolute Wonder Woman 11

I don’t think I can love a comic book series more.  The final two pages are breathtaking.  Someone’s gonna get a hurt real bad.

Absolute Martian Manhunter 6

The plot so doesn’t matter with this comic.  It’s a tone poem through and through.  I’m enjoying it, but I still hope that this is a limited series.  I can only enjoy so much of this :)  (Ah, it’s going to be twelve issues.  I can handle that.)

Ultimate Spider-Man 20

The Parkers have a dinner conversation w/ the Stacy-Osborns.  MJ punches out Gwen.  This thing is rapidly approaching the endgame, and I’m all on board.  

Runaways 3-4

Nico discovers that her magic only works when she Wonder Twins-handholds w/ Gert.  Doombot returns to Doom to keep the kids safe.  It’s just fun to hang out with these kids.  Rainbow Rowell rules.

Fantastic Four Fanfare 1-4

An anthology series that I picked up on the recommendation of iFanboy.  The stories are mostly fine but forgettable.

Library books

Library books!

Time Waits

A moderately entertaining time travel action story by Chip Zdarsky, David Brothers, and Marcus To.  The art’s actually quite nice, with hints of Lee Garbett and Carlos Pacheco.  But it’s ultimately pretty disposable.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: Yes

Would buy: No

Rating: Didn’t suck

Rogues 1-4

Written by Joshua Williamson, drawn by Leomacs.  This is the last hurrah of the Rogues, set ten years in the future.  Captain Cold gathers the older, wearier Rogues for one final heist, targeting Gorilla Grodd and his supply of gold.  It’s really well done, if you’re into hopeless final stands that leave you feeling despair and questioning the point of it all.  I’m still undecided.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: Yes

Would buy: No

Rating: Pretty good

Marvel TV Shows

Eyes of Wakanda

Mindless, instantly forgettable animated action.  Prime “put on while I wash the dishes” material.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Didn’t suck

Ironheart Season 1

An especially disappointing show given how awesome of a character Riri Williams is in the comics (thanks to Brian Michael Bendis and then Eve Ewing).  Some quick thoughts:

• Riri is so unlikeable in this show.  She’s literally a bad guy, hooking up with The Hood to make money to build her suit.  Then she literally makes a deal with the devil to bring her best friend back to life.  As much as it pains me to say, I’d be perfectly happy to never see her in the MCU again.

• Zelma Stanton (Regan Aliyah) was a delightful surprise, and she stole every scene she was in.  Bonus points for casting Cree Summer as her mother.  Now that’s someone I want on the MCU Young Avengers.

• Sacha Baron Cohen was a nice bit of casting as Mephisto.  I’m skeptical that we’ll see more of him, though.  

• Looking through the cast list, no one else made much of an impression.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: No

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Stupid

Daredevil: Born Again Season 1

Overall, a really solid season of TV.  I’m really happy Disney decided to retool the series even after filming the bulk of it; Matt Murdock really needed to put the Daredevil mask back on for this series to work.  Some thoughts:

• Not a fan of killing Foggy.  It wasn’t necessary, and Elden Henson was perfectly cast in the role.

• Awesome Bulleye fights.

• VIncent D’Onofrio is one of the best Marvel villain actors, but I’m pretty sick of Kingpin at this point.  Can’t Daredevil fight someone else?

• Along with that, I didn’t expect the season to end on a complete cliffhanger with no semblance of resolution.  Not a fan.

• I will always be happy with more John Bernthal’s Frank Castle.

• Ditto Deborah Ann Woll.  It took me a while to come around on her portrayal of Karen Page, but I’m all on board now.

• While Heather Glenn isn’t as pathetic as she is in the comics, she serves a pretty nothing role in this as well.

I hope season two brings back more of the Netflix Defenders.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Nice

Updated MCU TV rankings

1. Hawkeye

2. She-Hulk

3. Wandavision

4. Daredevil: Born Again

5. Ms Marvel

6. Falcon/Winter Soldier

7. Loki

8. Agatha All Along

9. Echo

10. Ironheart

11. Moon Knight

12. Secret Invasion

Stuff I watched

Lincoln Lawyer Season 1

Another show I started watching thanks to the Instagram/Youtube algorithm.  And another show based off of a series of novels, this time by Michael Connelly.  It’s solid, and I really like Manuel Garcia-Rulfo in the title role.  The problem is that I like all the side quests, the cases where he does something clever in order to win.  The main case that runs the length of the season’s ten episodes isn’t as interesting, and that’s a problem.  I got halfway through the first episode of the second season before calling it quits.  However, I wouldn’t be averse to returning to this sometime in the future.  

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: No

Rating: Pretty good

My Dead Friend Zoe

A nice, quiet little movie about one soldier’s struggle with PTSD.  It stars Sonequa Martin-Green (Burnham from Star Trek: Discovery!) and the always wonderful Natalie Morales (Lucy from Parks and Rec!).  It’s elegant, entertaining, and moving, definitely worth a watch.  Maybe it’s because I watched them so closely together, but this is a nice companion piece to Taking Chance, showing two examples of the aftermath of war on our vets.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: Yes

Rating: Good

Light and Magic

Season 2 of the documentary about Industrial Light and Magic, this time taking the story through the Star Wars prequels.  As with the first season, this is an awesome tour behind the scenes of the first and still one of the premiere VFX studios in the world.  The people who worked and work here are magicians, and have brought me some of the purest joys I’ve experienced in my life.  I’m thrilled that some of them have a chance to shine in this series.

Regret watching: No

Would watch again: Yes

Would buy on DVD: Yes

Rating: Good

Library books

Here I am on vacation, determined to clear the massive backlog of random media I’ve consumed but not written about.  Let’s see how I do.

You Must Take Part in Revolution

Borrowed from the library, this is a graphic novel by Melissa Chan and Badiucao is about a dark near future where China and the United States are on the brink of nuclear war.  Not hard to imagine.  It follows a small group of friends figuring out how to best fight and survive against the Chinese regime.  The concept is solid (which is what led me to borrow it in the first place), but the execution is lacking.  Not something that leaves a lasting impression.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: No

Would buy: No

Rating: Boring/Stupid

Phantom Scientist

Borrowed from the library.  I keep trying graphic novels by the non-major publishers, hoping for something good.  I’m so rarely impressed, but I can’t keep myself from persevering.  Phantom Scientist, by Robin Cousin, is another unfortunate miss.  Like You Must Take Part, the elevator pitch hooked me.  A collection of top-level scientists is called together at a remote facility to conduct whatever research they want.  But something about the scenario has been engineered to inevitably fail with catastrophic results, a la the multiple iterations of Zion in The Matrix.  

It’s a great setup, but the mystery ultimately dissolves into a nonsensical ending with no satisfying explanation.  I felt like my time was wasted.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: No

Would buy: No

Rating: Disliked

Beast Boy

Beast Boy Loves Raven

Robin

Starfire

I’d heard so many good things about this YA series by Kami Garcia and Gabriel Picolo, it was an easy borrow when I saw Beast Boy on the shelf at the library.  The subsequent volumes were easy borrows (though I didn’t care enough about Raven as a character to go back and start from the first book).  

This is a well-told reboot of the Teen Titans.  By spreading out the story across multiple books, Garcia and Picolo have time to give everyone their time in the spotlight, making them sympathetic and likable (even Damian).  That’s said, it’s very light fare, and I’m unlikely to revisit these unless I think my daughter will want to check them out in a few years.  At which point I’ll happily pick them up.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: Yes

Would buy: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

I’m Not Starfire

Is the Supergirl mini-series the only thing from Mariko Tamaki that I love?  Have I been hopelessly searching for the next thing from her that resonates as deeply with me?  Or have I completely outgrown stories about kids in high school?  I hope it’s not either one.  

With I’m Not Starfire, I’m not a fan of the moping, emo daughter of Starfire.  Don’t like Yoshi Yoshitani’s art either.  I hope this isn’t in continuity w/ Garcia’s work.

Regret reading: No

Would read again: No

Would buy: No

Rating: Didn’t suck