Quickies 8/27/10

Hey guys! Sorry that the posts have been coming so sparingly, but I've been really busy getting the shop organized. Everything is all set now though, so I'll be updating this more regularly again. I also plan to eat more pizza than ever before! My goals are amazing.

Without further ado...

Green Arrow #3

I will say that I do love the cover for this issue. I know the image of Ollie with an arrow in his head stirred up a bit of controversy, but I think it looks pretty awesome. I thinks it's actually tasteful, as far as covers with the main characters with arrows in their heads go.

Speaking of which, Green Arrow has quite a bit of inner monologue going on for a guy with an arrow in his brain. He's also trying to speak! I don't know if the writer has ever been shot in the head with an arrow before, but usually those things tend to cease when something goes into your brain. Green Arrow must be a ridiculous tough customer.

This issue is okay, but I still have no idea where it's going. Is this book about the forest, the white lanterns, or Green Arrow's redemption? It could be all three, but I really don't know. It's that question, what's going on, that is keeping me from getting into this series and enjoying it. It makes things, like the introduction of Galahad (yes, as in the Round Table), less interesting and somewhat annoying.

This series still has potential, but the clock is ticking.


Guarding the Globe #1

Remember when Friends went off the air, but they had Matt LeBlanc star in his own series called "Joey"? Remember how god awful "Joey" was? It was really bad. I don't think Matt LeBlanc has done anything since that show tanked, so long ago. Oh well, I'm sure we'll see him on some Sy-Fy original movies soon. Let's take a look at this, long awaited comic, book spin-off.

The title of this book is not a typo, it really is called Guarding the Globe. You would think it would be called Guardians of the Globe, because that's what the teams name is, but you would be wrong. I guess they would rather name the book after what they're doing, as opposed to their name.

Since this book is set in the Invincible universe, it features a lot of the cast members of that series. While some spin-offs tend to lose the tone of their parent books, this one does not. That is mainly due to Invincible writer, Robert Kirkman, writing this book as well. Having him as the writer has kept the book full of the same energy, humor, and over-the-top action that you've come to expect from Invincible. If you enjoy Invincible, or fun super hero books, there is no reason why you wouldn't like this book.

Ransom Getty was a good choice for the pencils on this book. I do think he tries to emulate Ryan Ottley's work a bit too much, as I would like to see him really develop the characters on his own. He did a great job overall though. I really enjoyed it. Getting one inker and colorist would be a good idea for future issues. If you like on the inside flap, you see several inkers and colorists were used and it is a little bit jarring when reading the issue.

This book is a lot of fun, and great introductory story for these great characters. If you've wanted to jump into Invincible, but were not sure how, then this is the book for you.

I just checked out Matt LeBlanc on IMDB, and I'm sad to report that he really hasn't done anything since "Joey" was cancelled. Somebody hire this charming, funny, goofball. If you're reading this Matt, we will pay you one large pizza to come down and do a video for our store.

Here are books that I thought were cool this week. Black Widow #5, Captain America #609, Invincible #74, Justice League: Generation Lost #8, Prince of Power #4, Punisher: Happy Ending, Action Comics #892, Time Masters #2, X-Factor #206.

Image United #3

The wait is over! The comic that I have openly mocked on our coming soon board, with "??" as it's date for a release, is here! Image United #3 has finally hit the stands. After about nine months, is this comic worth the wait? Do amazing things happen? Do you ever remember what happened in the first two issues? The answer to all of these questions is no! What do I continue to hurt myself by reading this series?

I'm astonished that this comic took approximately nine months to produce. It's overall production is no better than any other issue of this series, even worse in some parts. It's as sloppy, and weird looking as ever. You would think with nine months, that this book would like better than it does. Better than a drunken monkey photoshopping a bunch of sketches together anyways. Someone could have had a baby in the time it took to do this issue. A freakin' human life!

The fact that Rob Liefield claimed that they were waiting on Todd McFarlane to finish this issue seems odd to me. From what we can tell, and extensive squinting was done by the whole staff, McFarlane did two large drawings in this issue. Nine months to do two pages is a bit extreme, but they are easily the best looking pieces in the book. Given that Liefield came out and accused McFarlane for causing this book to be late, they do have a love letter written about McFarlane by publisher Eric Stephenson, seemingly in an effort to smooth things over with the reader. It's a nice effort, but I really don't care guys. You lost me on issue 1, I can only imagine you lost most of your core readers seven months ago. So why write a letter that doesn't say anything except "Sorry guys, my bad" from McFarlane himself.

Do you remember when your teacher would give you a group project at the beginning of the semester? They would tell you this was your final, and you had the whole semester to work on it. What did you do in this case? You waited until the last minute, and churned out a pile of crap that resulted in a pity grade of C. I felt like a disappointed teacher, shaking my head, and wondering why I bother after reading this issue.

I would like to provide you with a less than, greater than equation to describe the wait for this book.

Who Shot Mr. Burns is answered < Image United #3 is released < Chinese Democracy by Guns N' Roses is releases < The Titanic pulls into port (still waiting)

Given the shipping schedule of this book, it's entirely possible that this series will finish mid 2012. This is under the assumption that the remaining three issues will ship nine months apart from each other. That is assuming that Quezocotal doesn't end the world before that happens. If I were a betting man, I'd bet on the serpent god before I bet on Todd McFarlane and company.

Hopefully the Image faithful (is there such a thing?) haven't completely abandoned this series yet. Maybe they can still turn this around with the three remaining issues. For their sakes, I certainly hope so. This series continues to be a huge, late mess.

Also, the Erik Larsen back up story is a terrorist attack on my eyes.

Quickies 8/11/10

Hey guys! I hiked Mount Washington this weekend, and it was insane! That's the highest point in New England for you folks that are not from my neck of the woods. There came a point, when I realized that I had 3 hours to go before I reached the bottom, that I wished I was the Hulk. I would have just leaped right off that mountain and been done with it. I would have then smashed open the Coke machine, and saved myself $2.25. That's an outrageous price for a soda!

Anyways, here are this weeks reviews.

Ultimate Avengers 3 #1/ X-Men #2

These comics must have been separated at birth, because they're nearly identical! They both feature Blade on the cover, are about vampires groups joining together to infect super heroes, and have a super hero turning into a vampire before the issue is over! Do you guys not have phones at the Marvel office? It would be pretty crazy if two different writers had the exact same idea for a story arc, have both stories approved by the editorial staff, AND have them both ship in the same week. Craziness!

Out of the two Blades, one being the Ultimate version, the traditional Blade in the X-Men book is cooler to me. Now don't get me wrong, I like this Dolemite: Vampire Hunter version of Blade in the Ultimates. He just can't compete with the traditional Blade's handlebar mustache. It's one of the most diesel facial hair styles in existence!

When comparing the stories, I'm giving the nod to X-Men #2 as well. Ultimates 3 #1 felt choppy and full of holes. The vampire slaughter in the beginning was fun, but it went downhill pretty quickly when they introduced the new Daredevil. The X-Men story was paced well and made sense. It also featured Cyclops telling everyone how it was going to be. I love those moments, as Cyclops is the man.

I'm giving X-Men the art nod as well. I'm not a huge Steve Dillon fan, as I find his work stiff. It's not bad, I think he's a great artist in terms of technique. It's just not something I'm into. Paco Medina's art in X-Men is fluid and full of energy. It's something that I really enjoy. It's an art style that I feel has been missing from X-books as of late.

So, if you've been looking for a super hero book about vampires coming together in an attempt to infect super heroes to bolster their ranks while Blade fights them... I would go with X-Men #2 this week. The Ultimates books isn't terrible, I just felt that X-Men #2 was a better issue overall.

Morning Glories #1

Now this is how the school system should be. If you break the rules, you should be attacked by a purple, psychic, ghost man. I just think that's how it should be... I'm entitled to my opinion.

Nick Spencer does something that is always fun in this book. He takes high school students from various regions, social groups, and tax brackets and puts them under one roof. What will the rich boy say to the poor one? I bet something sassy and demeaning! Will the cheerleader and the goth girl get along? Haha! Nope! It's solid gold every time!

While mixing up groups like this is interesting, the school itself is the real story. Morning Glory Academy appears to be a prestigious prep school on the outside, but it quickly becomes evident that something sinister lurks within these halls. It's so evident, that it doesn't take our characters very long to realize that something is amiss.

This book is really interesting, and it does a great job of sucking you in at the very beginning. Joe Eisma's art is solid in this book. He does a great job of conveying the emotion of these characters, helping them come to life more. This was a great first issue.

This is another book that I would suggest you start reading, before it gets turned into a movie. I would like to note that there are no actual morning glories in this book. Fans of the flower will have to look elsewhere.

Here are other books that I thought were cool this week!

Birds of Prey #4, Daredevil #509, Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #1, Incredible Hulk #611 (touching father and son moment ..sniff..), JL: Generation Lost #7, Shadowland: Blood on the Streets, Ultimate Spider-Man #13, Thanos Imperative #3, Thor: The Mighty Avenger #3, Transformers #10, Walking Dead #76, Dark Wolverine #89, and Zatanna #4

Quickies 8/4/10

Marvel Universe Vs. The Punisher

Don't be confused! This is not the same book as the Punisher Kills the Marvel Universe. This book is totally different, because in this one The Punisher kills the Marvel Uni.... Damnit! Okay, so maybe it's similar, but it is definitely a different story! I swear!

Frank makes an unintentional booboo in this one guys. He shoots up some mobsters that were carrying a dangerous chemical. That chemical gets into the water supply of NYC, and seven months down the road everyone starts turning into cannibals. They are NOT zombies though. The book makes that very clear. I'm assuming they made that distinction because of the over-saturation of zombie stories in comic books nowadays. How do you stop a global outbreak of cannibalism? By shooting the crap out of it, of course! It's a good thing that the Punisher enjoys doing that, so convenient! If you're curious as to why he's immune, read the book. I'm not going to tell you everything that happens.

While this book does borrow heavily from two other popular Marvel stories, it still felt fresh when I read it. I'm really enjoying how they have been putting Frank Castle in different situations, than he would be used to. Adding science fiction elements to his stories has really captured my attention, and made me appreciate the character more.

This introductory issue is brooding and interesting. Jonathan Maberry, the writer, acknowledges that this story is similar to PKTMU and Marvel Zombies. This helps make the story more palatable to older comic fans, and less like a rip-off of classic stories. It flowed really well. I was firmly behind Frank by the end of this issue. The art, by Goran Parlov, compliments this book nicely. It helps Maberry's writing seem even more tragic. This is a good mix for a creative team.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I first saw this issue was coming out. I'm happy to report that I really liked it. I think if you're a fan of Marvel Zombies or Punisher Kills the Marvel Universe, then you should dig this story. If you enjoy the Punisher shooting the crap out of psychopaths, then you should dig this book as well.

Crossed: Family Values #3

Dear David Lapham and Javier Barreno,

What the hell is wrong with you? Did I seriously just read an issue full of mutilation and incest, only to have it end with a young girl ripping her unborn baby out of so she can eat it? Do you guys need a hug or something? Did your Dad not show up to your little league games? Seriously, this is some pretty #$%&'ed up stuff here guys.

Go fly a kite or something, chill out.

Best Regards,
Action Chad

Okay! That's it for this post! Here are some other books that I thought were cool this week!

Brightest Day #7, Captain America #608, Doomwar #6, Gorilla Man #2, Shadowland #2, SHIELD #3, Amazing Spider-Man #639, and Ultimate Avengers 2 # 6 (loved the ending to that issue).