Coming Soon

Been lazy recently. Will be doing a couple weeks worth of reviews of comics, plus my views on the 30 Days of Night movie. Tomorrow, i swear.

That Time Again

Here's last weeks comics, reviewed in my usual stream-of-consciousness style.

Fables 66: Good to see Ambrose wasn't as naive as everyone thought. He knew ahead of time that Bluebeard and Shere Khan were up to no good. It was also fun to see the two of them get what they deserved. I am wondering if this spell Ambrose speaks of will be powerful enough to stop the Adversary's army. This is a big risk he is taking. All of this is also making me wonder when the comic became such a big story. I remember the early issues being equally good, but not having nearly the scope of the cuirrent stuff. Not complaining, I just wonder what hapopened to the smaller scale stuff.

The Umbrella Academy 2: Damn, but this is still a great read. i totally like where this has been, where it is going, and the possibilities it all holds. I do want to see more of the back story on these cahracters, and a bit of their solo adventures. All, of cousre, in later installments as they do not apply directly to this awesome that is this story arc.

Simon Dark 1: This was actually out a week earlier than I got it. I just had to hold off on it for a week due to lack of funds. Totally awesome and worth the wait. I am very interested in seeing more. Not sure what else can be said, as this was the usual first issue introducing everything important.

The Search for Ray Palmer: Crime Society: Absolutely nothing about the Challengers in this, really. It was all just a background for the Jokester (this reality's Joker). A fun read, and I would totally support a Crime Society ongoing if it remained this interesting...but not at all what the issue advertises with the "Search for Ray Palmer" title. Next issue willbe ffun with teh vampire Batman thing going on.

Shadowpact 18: Not much to say here. The Nightshade Dimension stuff was weak, but may have been improved with more coverage. Protoge is awesomely badass, being both an evil and self-centered bastard and a renegade son at the same time. The rest of the issue was nothing great. We need more Blue Devil and his tasks, pronto.

Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four 29: Another iffy issue from the weeks haul. The Fantastic Four fight the Hulk. It all turns out to be a set up to get more government grant money for research. In the end, the Hulk's identity is revealed and all is resolved in an unbelievable way. I would prefer a bit mroe continuity beweeen series in the Marvel Adventures line. Would be nice to have the standard Marvel Universe, the Ultimate universe, and the Marvel Adventures universe. Along with the other random realities (like Squadron Supreme).

Marvel Adventures Avengers 17: The first time I have been disappointed in an issue of this sereis. Each part of it felt contrived and out of character compared to how they are usually written. The Vision was cool, but the origin wasn't. Much more hard to take coming from this title, which so far has nbeen one of the better comics on the stands.

Penance Relentless 2: I am beginning to think that Paul Jenkins is a hack. I have not liked much of his writing since he did the original Sentry miniseries. Not sure if I will get the next issue of this. Probably, because it is loosly tied in to the Thunderbolts, and I am a sucker for that still.

THe Mighty Avengers 5: An issue I felt was almost good. If the next issue of this is at least as good as this one, I will continue to read it. The thought bubbles were less intrusive this time, and also less abundant. I still hope Bendis forgets this little experiment in bringing them back and either drops them, or uses them in the more classic way.

Captain America 31: So. Damned. Good. All the brianwashing attempts were fun to read, and a little disorintning. Seeing Captain America atalk and act that way, even knowing it was all fake, was really strange. Decent cliffhanger ending, though you can almost be certain that Bucky didn't shoot Sharon. As usual, cannot wait for more.

Ultimate Fantastic Four 47: Ultimate Red Ghost. Awesomeness! Reed being a dick, and then getting over it was kind of interesting. I was pretty much right in my thoughts about his obsession with the cosmic cube. Hope that will be followed up on in the next story arc, but not this one. I want more Soviet Super Bears.

Ultimate X-Men 87: Another issue that wasnt bad at all. The revelation of the whole thing was great, and I have to admit to liking this version of Stryfe better than the normal one. Best part, however, was the very last panel. I must know more on this. Hopefully next issue will reveal it to the reader, of not the rest of the team.

Terror Inc. 3: More violence. More gore. More humor. More surprises. Best cliffhanger ever. 'Nuff Said.

Superman/Doomsday

OK, so I recently saw this movie. Here's what I thought.

First of all, let me be clear that I have never read the comics this was inspired by. I have read the Funeral for a Friend aftermath stuff, but never actually had the opportunity to read the actual death or the follow up stuff with the replacements and the rebirth. This, of course, has an influence on what I felt about the movie.

I kind of liked it. I also kind of didn't like it.

The story itself was pretty fun. I know there were some pretty severe changes, and some similarities. The way I see it, the first half of the story was pretty good. The fight with Doomsday was sweet. The death and funeral bits had me tearing up. I didn't really like how the Superman/Lois Lane romance was handled. It seemed a little too risque for a Superman story in my opinion. Superman sort of sounded like a pervert at times there.

After the death, the movie suffered a bit. Toyman was lame. The return of Superman was lame. The complete lack of an actual Superman until the very end was lame. They should have opted for some additional time and used the replacements from the comics. I would have loved some Steel, Superboy, Last Son of Krypton, and Cyborg Superman action. Hell, even one or two of them would have been batter than what we got.

Frankly, the Luthor clone Superman didn't work anyhow. An exact clone, with the Luthor programmed memories, that suddenly turns from a regular Superman into a "Justice lord" style Superman didn't work in the time they had. It felt sudden, and contrived. Just an excuse to have Supes fight himself, really.

I also didn't like the complete and unexpected change in Jimmy Olsen. I have a hard time imagining the death of Superman making him suddenly become a materialistic, sleazy tabloid photographer/paparazzi wannabe. More like the exact opposite, I would think.

I also had issues with the animation style and the voice actors. While the actors did a decent job, I really wasn't feeling it. I kept thinking how the character sounded wrong. I wanted the JLU versions. The animation was the same. It was just close enough to what I am used to with the DC Animated Universe that it felt familiar, while just different enough to kind of make me feel something was off. Superman looked old. Luthor looked too thin. Lois looked sleazy. Toyman looked like a pedophile. I want my regular animated universe versions back.

Now, the good side to the whole thing is that this weekend, when I get my comics, I am totally going to pick up the trades of the Death and Rebirth of Superman, as well as attempt to dig out my Funeral for a Friend issues to see what I was missing out on.

Also, the DVD extras included a brief preview of what the New Frontier movie will be like, and that totally has me psyched. It also had a documentary on the creation of the Death of Superman story from the comics. That was the best part of the whole DVD. The how and why of the story planning, the stuff I never would have noticed (the use of the number of panels on a page to show the severity and scope of the battle). I would almost buy this movie just to have that documentary.

I guess, all in all, the movie was fun and entertaining. It just wasn't quite u[p to the level of the usual DC animation stuff.

Marvel Two-in-One

So, the last couple weeks have been hellish at work. Among other things, I managed to put in a 23 hour day. That's 23 consecutive hours. So, yeah.

Anyhow, I did manage to pick up my comics despite the fatigue. Here's what I thought.

The Weapon 4: Good ending to a good series. I like how our hero managed to use his supposed weakness (the time limit on his writ things) as a strength. I also like how he didn't mind killing him some bad guys. The "surprise" betrayal wasn't really a shock or anything, other than I was not expecting the duplicate to be identical. I look forward to the next mini, or an ongoing.

Zero Killer 2: As with the first issue, I am totally into this world. Not only is this series a good read, but it is fully fleshed out in the background. The extras at the end, something I always like but occasionally skip over, have been awesome to read. More information, in character, for the story. Awesome.

Stormwatch: Post Human Division 12: By the way this ended, I assume the series is ending as well. I don't remember hearing about that anywhere. Guess that's ok. I liked the series, but not enough to feel any real loss if it goes away. Have to admit, though, the way the team worked together to take out the villains in this was awe inspiring. Made me feel like i could totally take a super on.

Faker 4: So, I was right in my assumption last issue. Great to know I got that before the actual reveal. Usually I don't catch on that soon. I do wonder how this is going to go on for 2 more issues, as the selling point was the mystery they already revealed. I hope this remains good, and doesn't loose the crazy-cool it had going so far.

Jack of Fables 15: HAHAHA! Jack is such a dick, and I love him for it. Quite a fun origin for Jack and John and all that. Jack is too clever for his own good (let along anyone else's). The further revelation of the origin of Kevin, Revise, and Gary is totally getting me intrigued. Finally, Babe totally needs his own miniseries...except his bits wouldn't actually be able to carry a full comic let alone many issues.

The Exterminators 22: Nothing needs to be said here. This series maintains the odd storylines and crazy pace. Beyond that, wow.

Justice League Unlimited 38: Aw, Giganta loves Flash. Flash, being a guy like myself, totally doesn't get it. Once he finds out, it is too late. Best bit was the "Rosenbaum and Associates" billboard. The picture on the billboard looks like Michael Rosenbaum playing Lex Luthor in Smallville, and Rosenbaum voiced Flash on JLU. Nice touch.

Metal Men 3: I don't get it, but will keep reading. I think.

Infinity Inc. 2: I wish they would have gotten to the missing Natasha thing in this issue. More Kid Empty was nice, though. Will keep reading for now, because I am curious.

Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Cyborg Superman: I enjoyed some of this. Never knew the full origin of this character, so seeing it recapped was cool. But, the rest of this was lame. So far, these side stories are 0 for 2.

Green Lantern Corps 16/Green Lantern 24: Oh my god, but these have been so awesome. On the one hand, I don't want this event to end because I am enjoying it so much. On the other hand, I do want it to end so I can save a bit of money by not buying these anymore. I know that when it ends, it will likely end well. I just am sad at the thought of no more war.

Suicide Squad 2: This one wasn't quite as much fun as the last issue, but it sounds like it will pick up again next issue. Still pretty dang good.

Batman Detective Comics 837: The triumphant return of Paul Dini. And what a return it was. Having the Riddler use Harley and replacement Catwoman do an investigation was incredibly fun. Seeing how Riddler was trying to play Bruce Wayne, who was really playing Riddler was beyond compare. This is why I read this series.

Marvel Adventures Hulk 4: This first issue I really didn't enjoy. In fact, I don't even remember much about this issue at all. I remember Radioactive Man and Multiple Man being in. For one thing, it is too early in the series to be bringing them back in my opinion. Also, I don';t really see Multiplae Man siding against the Hulk after the issue he was in. Bah.

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man 32: This, on the other hand, was awesome. Hydro-Man showed a combination of great planning, and absolute stupidity. Which, actually, kind of worked. The splash page of Spidey saving JJJ was a great homage, though I suppose using that particular image is sort of cliched anymore. The trap set to capture Hydro-Man was so perfect it is beyond perfect.

Runaways 28: It has been so long since an issue of this has come out, I forgot I read it. I actually had it in my pull box, and had to double check to make sure it was there when I saw an issue on the shelf because I couldn't remember if I had it on my pull list or not. Granted,. the issue was decent. But, not really worth the wait. I love Joss Whedon, but hate how his comics are never on time. I am almost tempted to drop this out of protest. We will see how the next issue or two do before i choose.

The New Avengers 35: Ugh. Nothing I can say here about the disappointment with this that has not already been said elsewhere. Boo on the cover not having a thing to do with the contents.

Nova 7: Interesting. I like how the writers have found a way to save Richard Rider from the Phalanx infection, without a complete cop-out. I wonder if there will be a final cure by the end of the Annihilation: Conquest event. I am assuming so.

The Order 3: Zobos. Dude, freaking zobos. How fucking cool is that. This comic is totally all about tossing out the crazy shit left and right. The character portraits we get interspersed with the story are interesting too. The story about the dead ex-member should be good.

X-Factor 24: Another issue I can't even find words to describe. Consistently amazing.

Super-Villain Team-Up MODOK's 11 4: Another one I only vaguely remember from when I read it. Fighting the new Mandarin. Puma sort of getting his powers back. Rocket Racer betrays the team. Nobody realizes the Chameleon isn't who he seems (which, really, they should have noticed by now). Next issue it all wraps up.

28+1

So, as it is late and I must get to work early in the morning, I will try to be quick.

Demon's Mercy 1: Free preview. Crappy. Will not be buying this one any time soon.

Consumed 3: Still funny. Loving the roomies even more. Looking forward to the end, while wishing it could go on. Don't know how an ongoing would work, though.

Ghosting 2: Creepy. Confusing at the bit where there is the replay of the conversation from the graveyard inside the burned out frat house. Quite fun.

Stormwatch Post Human Division 10: Accidentally bought this, as it was in my box and I didn't pay close attention to the cover to realize I had it already. Oh well.

Madman 4: Awesome as always. Go Mike Allred.

The Umbrella Academy 1: Awesome origin story with a fun cliffhanger. If this can keep up the crazy/cool factor, it will be like another Hellboy.

Crossing Midnight 11: Yikes. Bad news. Good story.

Teen Titans Go! 47: Robin's origin was ok, with a good ending. Starfire/Raven bit was funny and awesome.

The Spirit 10: Great parody of modern "news" reporters. Loved all the parodies, and the ending was a blast.

Black Adam: The Dark Age 2: The beginning was cool, with fun visuals. The Felix Faust bit was kinda neat, and a great source for Black Adam's powers. Overall, though, it was sort of "meh."

Countdown to Mystery 1: I liked the whole thing, except the potential change to Eclipso's origin.

52 Aftermath: The Four Horsemen 2: Total shit. Not buying any more issues of this one. A shame, as I was looking forward to it the most save for the Bible of Crime.

Countdown to Adventure 2: Nice twist. Scary to think of what is coming. The JLAxis needed more story, less "Forerunner is cool and Monarch is a douchebag."

Shadowpact 17: Made of awesome. About time this comic started getting back to how cool it initially was. I think it needs more Blue Devil, and keep the level of Zauriel to 0 if possible.

Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Parallax 1: Disappointing. The rest better be as cool as the main event.

The Flash 232: The West Children are so awesome while being so cute. Almost glad that Wally's back now, even though I still miss Bart.

Teen Titans 51: A return to the arc that brought me to this comic to begin with. I love it all over again. Future Titans are assholes. Wanna see Future Ravager, though.

Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four 28: "Pizzower Coshizzmic?" Really? Just...no.

Marvel Adventures Avengers 16: Hawkeye was awesome. Villains were fun. Too bad they gave away the whole point of it early. Still good. Best Marvel Adventures series, by far.

Penance: Relentless 1: Nipple Piercings. Nothing more need be said, save I will likely buy another issue just to see what is going on with the numbers.

Avengers: The Initiative 6: Really hating the New Warriors hate going on here. The attacker was a scary surprise. Really really scary.

The Immortal Iron Fist 9: Still more awesome that anything short of Bruce Lee fighting a Ninja-Pirate-Monkey. For reals.

The Immortal Iron Fist Annual 1: Annuals should not be continuations of the main story. Especially if the first page recap spoils the current issue of the main series.

Captain America 30: Sharon is a scary lady. Captain Bucky is on his way. You just know it is going to happen.

Terror Inc 2: Icky, but fun (but icky).

Ultimate Fantastic Four 46: Hah, awesome. Thing's brain is in storage, and he still kicks bad guy ass. Psycho Man was much cooler here than in the real Marvel Universe. Next arc is called "Ghosts." Having not been paying attention to previews, I hope it means Red Ghost. I want me some Ultimate Super-Apes.

Ultimate Spider-Man 114: Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Par for the Spider-Course.

Annihilation: Conquest Quasar 3: Super Adaptoid is still one of the coolest villains. Moondragon is a dragon, bringing up images of creepy love scenes with Quasar. Shit hits the fan.

Annihilation: Conquest Starlord 3: More shit hitting many fans. The Groot/Rocket Raccoon interactions are the best.


So, that be all this week. Hopefully will have my next batch up closer to the actual purchase date this time. Either Thursday or Sunday, depending on outside forces.

Renaissance

So, a while back I had heard about this strange animated French movie called Renaissance. I was recently able to pick up a copy from Netflix.

It blew me away.

A combination of motion capture and CG animation, this movie at times made me think of Sin City. Except, it is nothing like that movie.

The story is about a cop looking for a kidnapped scientist. The missing woman works for a corporation named Avalon, which virtually runs Paris of 2054 (the setting of the movie). The movie has a very noir feel to it, aided by the unique animation style. As the entire movie was filmed with motion capture techniques and real actors, then animated over, it has a very organic and realistic feel. At the same time, the animation was completely black and white (not even using grayscale shades), making it almost surreal in look. To be honest, this took a little adjusting to get used to. Once I was into it, though, there was very little that took me out of the film.

I really much suggest this film to anyone who likes unique films or a good old fashioned noir thriller.

I would say more about this, but I have comics to read and review.

Heavy load

So, here they are, the most recent reviews I have got to offer.

Stormwatch post Human Division 11: After the destruction of the bar last issue, the team is pretty messed up. Concussions, rebar through legs, and one alien-hybrid killing machine makes for a bad day. Lucky for the team, the monstrosity is in love with one of the other team members, and saves the day. There is a bit of intrigue with the teams families being threatened, until the actual treat is made more clear. Bye bye police station.

The Walking Dead 42: Wow, what an issue. Carol dies in the horrible way you expect from a suicidal-turned-zombie. The seeming tension with Herschel and Andrea over her friendship with Tyreese is resolved before it is even begun. More plans to defend against the nearby town, using a guard tower manned by Andrea and a layer of zombies outside the gates. Then the shit hits the fan when the nearby townsfolk invade. In tanks.

The Un-Men 2: I have no idea what the hell is going on here, but I like it.

Fables 65: The journey of Flycatcher seems to be at an end when he reaches his homelands. Bluebeard and Shere Khan are up to no good, still. We learn that the entire conflict is really more of a game of chess played out between the Adversary and Frau Totenkinder. Conflict on many fronts looms.

Jack of the Fables 14: The beginning of the true origin of Jack. Maybe. More stuff dealing with Kevin, who appears to be more powerful and less human than we were initially led to believe. I was also expecting him to be more Fable aligned than Golden Boughs. Babe steals the show with his rich fantasy life again. Enough so that I read his one page before reading the comic itself, again as I read the issue, and a third time just because it was that good.

Booster Gold 2:Rip Hunter finds trouble. Supernova causes trouble. Booster Gold is the reason Guy Gardener was not Green Lantern and also the reason Sinestro came up with the Sinestro Corps. Great way to play with continuity.

Green Lantern 23: More Sinestro Corps. Hal's ring runs out of juice, so he steals a bunch of Qwardian ones to use in the interim. Ion is freed, and Parallax seems to break Guy's neck (though he is better soon after). The Sinestro Corps attacks Earth and the Guardians lift the lethal force restriction.

Countdown to Adventure 1: Dude, Starfire is hot. Buddy Baker is not very bright, missing his son's obvious crush on her, and his wife's obvious discomfort with her. Adam Strange gets pink slipped, and replaced with a fucking psychopath. This will not end well. The history of the Forerunners is actually kind of cool. Definitely something I like there. Looking forward to another issue, if only for the Nazi Justice League bit.

Countdown Presents: The Search for Ray Palmer 1: This was utter crap. A shame, too, since it involves a character I sort of like now (Jason Todd) and the Wildstorm universe. *sigh* What a waste.

Suicide Squad 1: As with all things comics and cool, I missed out on this back in the day. All I know of the team I learned from one of the greatest minds in comics blogdom. That said, I think this will make me hunt down old issues of the original series so I can get acquainted with the cool. Must read it all.

Marvel Adventures Hulk 3: Hulk is captured by Hulkbusters. Rick Jones saves him, and Radioactive Man as well. They hang out, with Radioactive Man siphoning gamma radiation from Bruce to keep hum human. Then the shit hits the fan and Rick has to coerce the Hulk into staying mad (like that's all that hard). In the end, we are back to the status quo. All in all, a fun read.

X-Man Emperor Vulcan 1: We catch up with the team that stayed behind in Shi'ar space. They try to make a surprise attack on Vulcan and the rest of the Shi'ar Empire, but are summarily defeated. Then some new alien race appears that seem the hate the Shi'ar more than anyone else does. Interesting, and fun to see some of these character playing off each other.

The New Avengers 34: After a night alone, the team all come back together and let Doctor Strange cast a spell revealing their true natures. Luke Cage is pretty much himself, though more retro in look. Jessica Jones wants to be a superhero again. Iron Fist is his legacy. Spider-Man wishes to be himself, before the bit. Echo wants to be Daredevil. Hawkeye/Ronin wishes to be Captain America. Doctor Strange wishes to be a surgeon again. Wolverine, late tot he party, is apparently a samurai. Not a Skrull in the bunch. The team decide to say screw the danger and alert the other Avengers team of the danger. Instead, they see a lot of symbiotes running amok int he city. Also, Wolverine's junk is shot off.

X-Factor 23: We learn how crazy Quicksilver has become, which is a little scary really. Layla Miller is confused, which is more scary. Monet and Siryn get the kids they were after, which appears to be a set up. Finally, Josef Huber is a badass mofo.

Nova 6: Stuff happens. Nothing that really impressed of disgusted me enough to write about. Plus, I am getting tired of writing and want my dinner. HAH!

Ultimate Power 7: After who knows how long of a delay, we finally get another issue of this one. I still want to know where Doom came from, since I thought he was on Zombie Earth. Spider-man thinks Doom is responsible for the mess. Emil Burbank admits to Reed that he is responsible for the mess. Hulk is about to be brought into play. The original Squadron Supreme makes an appearance, just to make this more of a mess.

Ultimate X-Men 86: Stryfe seems to be up to something, but what is it? Psyloke is Bishop's future wife? Pyro is a spy, but already uncovered as such? Best part is Wolverine and Storm taking down the Sentinels.

Ultimate Spider-Man 113: All that needs to be said is that Norman Osborne is one crafty bastard...and not nearly as crazy as we thought.

With that out of the way, I invite you back Thursday(ish) when I will give you last weeks and this weeks comics. Together, for the first time.