Ryanscribbles Rundown!

week 6/24 of 2009

DC

Gotham City Sirens #1

Paul Dini returns to his favorite group of anti-heroines with a mediocre bang. It seems like Dini doesn’t really know what’s going to happen next in every panel but it all ends up pretty funny. So while it’s a good for a laugh, the story seems more Sex in the City banter than Gotham City battling.

Green Lantern #42

Whereas with this build up arc I’ve been a little underwhelmed this ish definitely brought me back up to being entirely excited about what’s to come. Hal and Larfleeze shine in this, with the blue ring finally revealing it’s power, and Johns is obviously working double time to get things ready for ‘Blackest Night.’

Justice League of America #34

Oh god this is saddening. Len Wein is a hero of mine…but he should really just make his Marvel. His work with DC and the Justice League has just been atrocious. I could barely sit through this comic. I can’t wait for this arc to END and for us to finally get a real team book back.

Justice Society of America #28

As previously mentioned, Jerry Ordway is an old school comic guy. And it shows. This story is cliche and boring and the characters aren’t interesting and the battle is predicatable. The most exciting part of the issue is the end when DC announces Bill Willingham coming on to it.

Superman #689

This comic was absolutely amazing. James Robinson has made Mon-El a real leading man, a passionate and intriguing character, full of curiosity and splendor. Robinson explored the world in the issue and it was just brilliant. It had an intertwined story that were complete contrasts and it worked, with splendid art from Renato Guedes and Jose Magalhaes, this book has shaped up into one of my most anticipated titles of the month.

Teen Titans #72

…and then there is this. What once used to be, quite possibly, my favorite DC book is now a continual let down. There is no focus in the stories, the characters are getting zero build, and the limelight is on Wonder Girl one issue after another. New writer please!

Wonder Woman #33

With this last issue of ‘The Rise of the Olympian’ arc, Simone finally showcases some talent and produces a fun story driven comic. Aaron Lopresti behind the art really brings it up a notch because ot was built for this title, displaying the Amazons as fierce yet sexy. It was the best issue in the story and unfortunately the last.

Marvel

week 6/24 of 2009

Astonishing X-Men #30

Ellis wraps things up in his “opening epic” with a bit of a confusing Stephen King ending. He got tired of the story and decided, "eh…this is how I’m gonna wrap it up." While some awesome stuff was shown off, including the death of long time X-Man Forge, the writing was a little hectic. Simone Bianchi  really kicks the art into high gear though and refines it a lot, stepping it up with power.

Avengers/Invaders #12

Thank god this is over.

Avengers: The Initiative #25

I really want to like this title. It has a lot of interesting amazing characters that so much could be done with but I still don’t even know where the hell, continuity wise, this comic is. It has an overload of characters and story lines and it could be simplified a bit and that would really help bring the story up to par. I love the art by Humberto Ramos though, I want to see him draw everyone.

Daredevil #119

I love this art. It’s so perfectly Daredevil. Major props to Lark and Gaudiano for creating a down-and-dirty noir style atmosphere. And Brubaker…the man is great. The story is full of backstabbing and mystery and even a crazy old sensei style character. I totally dig it.

Dark Reign: Elektra #3

Zeb Wells is a great writer and really has brought some talent to a book that I thought was going to be a throwaway. With just the right sized roster, action, and some beautiful silent panel shots, so far Elektra is in the lead for top Dark Reign spin off titles. Throwing in Wolverine is a little over the top but we’ll see what happens.

Dark Reign: Lethal Legion #1

This is a hard comic to judge because it’s a whole lot of exposition and that’s about it. We’re introduced to the characters, Tiger Shark has had a bizarre (and unapproved) makeover, and we finally figure out where Wonder Man has been. It definitely brings some interesting questions to the table but it’s a bit wannabe Arkham Asylum and the art is really hard to cope with.

Dark Reign: Zodiac #1

Joe Casey is one of my favorite writers right now. He’s quirky and modern and reminds me a lot of an upcoming Morrison but I can’t even focus on his writing with this fucking art. Nathan Fox has the most sporadic messy scribble art I’ve ever seen published. It hurt to look at. While Casey is a talented writer, this title seems like just another Dark Reign mini.

Dark Wolverine #75

Totally blindsided me. I thought I didn’t care about Daken at all but this has made him a totally cool character and really fun to read. He’s educated. He’s elaborate. He’s everything Wolverine isn’t. But at the same time he is so very much his father. Daniel Way and Marjorie Liu made a great story accompanied by neat and pretty art from Giuseppe Camuncoli.

Guardians of the Galaxy #15

Amazing. This comic is absolutely stellar. Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning are giving Geoff Johns a run for his money on space epics. This is the most fun, most exhilirating, best rostered comic in Marvel right now. It’s a blow out and one hell of a ride.

Immortal Iron Fist #27

In the last year their have been a number of characters who have got a well deserved revamp but nothing ended up as brilliant and beautiful as Iron Fist. With Duane Swierczynski behind the story this book can do no wrong. This issue has a real big revelation that I’m not going to ruin but you need to check it out. It also is graced with Travis Foreman doing the art and he handles martial arts like it’s nobodies business. His normal day-to-day stuff isn’t so great but his fight scenes are perfect.

Incredible Hercules #130

As soon as I saw Ben Parker in this issue I hated it. Even without him it wouldn’t have been a great issue. Whatever. I don’t know what Van Lente and Pak are doing but it’s not good right now.

Ms. Marvel #40

Brian Reed really takes things in a weird direction in this comic. It has a few good moments, including everything involving Deadpool, but the plot is just really bizarre. We’ll see what happens but it really leaves a lot to answer for.

New Avengers #54

In 54 issues of New Avengers, this is the first one that has failed to impress me. It felt short, had a really WTF ending, and didn’t really answer any questions at all. Bendis is the magic guy for Marvel so I hope we see more but I want to see where this is going.

Nova #26

Um…hello?! Abnett and Lanning on a space title. That marks this as a must read. The resemblance to Green Lantern Corps is noticeable but it’s still a wonderful book. Andrea Di Vito brings some remarkable art to the page and Bruno Hang is just killing it as the colorist for the title. An all around win.

Runaways #11

The art finally gets a grounding back on something a little less anime-style as Sara Pichelli hops on the book and it really helps it in my opinion. It has a cute back story, something that really relates the heroes to us, but it get’s a little twisted at the end. It’s definitely a cliffhanger so it’s obviously going to leave us confused but it does a good job at giving us some stability first.

Secret Warriors #5

Bendis and Hickman really know how to kick some ass. Stefano Caselli has great art to accompany the sweet writing and it’s balls-to-the-wall action in this fifth installment of the espionage high octane series that just continues to impress me.

Skaar: Son of Hulk #12

It actually had one interesting moment with the Hulk. And that’s it. The rest is dumb. Skaar and Red Hulk, two Hulk characters, are my least favorite in existence right now.

Terror Inc.-Apocalypse Soon #3

Dave Lapham started out with a great dark comedic comic and has turned it into some sort of over political boring mess. Also, dear god, the art is in shambles. This comic is in need of good STEADY art.

Thunderbolts #133

It was awesome to see Songbird come back and I really hope Andy Diggle does something good with her. She’s a great character and with all of the resentment we’re starting to see against Norman amongst the team she would be a welcome catalyst to many of their desires. Also, a welcome twist right at the end really seals the deal at the end of the book.

Uncanny X-Men #512

I really don’t think Fraction gets enough credit for his work on Uncanny. This issue focuses on Hanks science team and gives some background story of Nemesis. It is, in history, the first X-Men story I’ve ever read where I didn’t hate the time travel aspect. Fraction worked it exactly how it should be used. Great solid issue.

Wolverine Noir #3

I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. Daredevil Noir is the only title that should be Noir at all. They really fuck around with Wolverine back story in this. It’s weird stuff.

Wolverine: Weapon X #3

If you’re looking for an amazing story here…you’re not going to get it. But a vivid and wildly brutal Wolverine rampage is something to expect. All of the political aspects of the comic are easy to pass over but the scenes in the jungle are all a good amount of fun.

X-Factor #45

I really hate Jamie being in the future but finally bringing Shatterstar back was great. The last page really catches…everyone off guard and Doom has a really strange guest appearance in the comic but the title is making it’s way back to being a solid monthly book.

X-Force #16

Well THAT was anti-climatic.

Tags: andrea di vito, andy diggle, andy lanning, astonishing x-men, Avengers, avengers/invaders, avengers: the initiative, brian bendis, brian m. bendis, brian reed, bruno hang, daken, dan abnett, daniel way, daredevil, dark reign, dave lapham, DC, deapool, duane swierczynski, ed brubaker, elektra, ellis, forge, gaudiano, giuseppe camuncoli, guardians of the galaxy, hercules, hickman, hulk, humberto ramos, immortal iron fist, invaders, iron fist, joe casey, lark, marjorie liu, Marvel, matt fraction, ms marvel, nathan fox, new avengers, noir, nova, pak, runaways, sara pichelli, Secret Warriors, shatterstar, simone bianchi, skaar, songbird, stefano caselli, terror inc, thunderbolts, tiger shark, travis foreman, uncanny x-men, van lente, wolverine, wolverine noir, wolverine weapon x, wonder man, x-factor, x-force, x-men, zeb wells, zodiac