Big Stack o' Comics, Part II

Well, since yesterday, I have made a fairly substantial dent in the pile of comics waiting for me. I always hate to be put in the position of playing catch-up on serialized monthlies. Reading scads of unrelated comics in a row, for me at least, can often lead to said comics blending into each other, lessening my enjoyment of the really good ones. So once I miss a few weeks reading, and I have a big pile to go through, I am torn between slowing down, taking my time, and making sure I appreciate each one, or rushing through to finish them all so I don't get even further behind. One reason I'm blogging about "the stack" now is that by writing something (anything) about each book, I'll be forced to step back and evaluate it somewhat, thus lessening the blurring effect I get by sitting down and plowing through a big bunch of graphic wonder.

Green Lantern Corps #39 - Decided to pick this up on a whim, as I've been following the rest of Blackest Night. Super-hero zombies played seriously is a pretty decent concept, and one I'm surprised hasn't been done already, so I've enjoyed every piece of the Blackest Night pie so far. This issue of Green Lantern Corps is where some diminishing returns set in for me, though. A lot of it has to do with the fact that I'm not too steeped in Green Lantern lore - so I felt like I was definitely missing something when some of the fallen Green Lanterns were resurrected, as I had no idea who most, if not all, of them were. Otherwise, an enjoyable issue -- I liked the interaction between Kyle Rayner and Guy Gardner, I LOVED Guy bringing his date to Wrigley Field as a "romantic" dinner, and there were other nice touches thrown in. But, overall, this didn't provide enough for me to justify sticking around for the next issue -- this is one part of the Blackest Night tapestry I feel content in foregoing for now.

G-Man: Cape Crisis # 1 - This book is a lot of fun, and brought a welcome bit of whimsy after all the darkness of GLC and Blackest Night. This is an all-ages book that kids and grown-ups can enjoy equally, with a suitably action-filled plot AND something to laugh at on every page. The back-up strips that ran after the main story were all enjoyable as well. Well worth every penny.

Batman # 689 - I really don't get the extreme hate for Judd Winick. He writes Dick Grayson exceptionally well in this issue, highlighting real differences between he and his Bat-predecessor. Dick tends to be less focused on staying in the shadows, and more interested in being out in the open and operating flamboyantly, than Bruce Wayne ever was, a difference that is 100% consistent with his character and background. I like that Winick shows this new Batman focusing more on protection and rescue than Bruce did as well. The character moments certainly shine brighter than the plot, however, as the conflict between Two-Face and the Penguin (with Two-Face intentionally leaking details of the Penguin's operations in order to gain an advantage for his own criminal organization), comes off as a bit by-the-numbers.

Batman Confidential #32 - I'm picking this up because I really like Peter Milligan's writing, but the art by Andy Clarke is a welcome surprise. Those looking for a fix of "classic" Bruce Wayne Batman, operating this time in Russia, of all places, shouldn't be disappointed with this book.

War Machine # 8 - Because maybe three people in the entire world demanded it, a West Coast Avengers reunion! Seriously, I started getting this book for Leonardo Manco's art, and said art is still a major draw for me, but I am having to seriously consider dropping this title. The story just did nothing for me -- a muddled mess of fights, explosions, a self-defeating villain, and Norman Osborne purposelessly skulking in the wings (I guess its because he's required to do so in every in-continuity Marvel book these days). There just wasn't anything here for me beyond the gritty style of Manco's pencils that makes me want to come back.

Adventure Comics # 1 (or #504, depending on who's counting) - a solid debut issue from Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul, starring Superboy (with a back-up feature featuring the Legion of Super-heroes that I couldn't really care less about). Johns' story doesn't quite live up to the beauty of Manapul's art, which is truly worth the price of admission alone. Geoff does plant the seeds of some good stuff to come, though, at least enough to insure I'll stick around for next issue. Superboy's attempt to discover who he is by tracing the footsteps of his biological "parents" (for those not familiar with the character, Superboy is a clone featuring genetic material from both Superman and Lex Luthor) is an interesting way to start the series, but I do hope that it doesn't linger too long, and we can get into other stories beyond the Superman/Luthor thing.

Cable # 17 - This issue left me really wondering where this series is going. I've generally been enjoying Cable, but by the time the recent "Messiah War" cross-over with X-Force rolled around, I had started to wonder exactly how many post-apocalyptic futures there were for Cable and Hope to jump to. From the ending of this issue, it appears Swierczynski may have them sticking around and exploring this one for a bit longer, which I hope is the case. I should also note that Gullacy's art fits the tone of this book much better than Olivetti's ever did, so that too is a welcome change.

Destroyer # 5 - I'm almost ashamed to say that this series is the only thing I've read by Kirkman. Not that its bad -- its actually much, much better than it has any right to be. It has me thoroughly convinced that I should be reading Invincible and the Walking Dead as well, though, rather than just this tale of a nonagenarian who is so bad-ass he survives a heart attack by beating Death (actually, three "Deaths") to a bloody pulp.

Red Robin # 3 - I want to like this book, but I can't fully commit to it untili Chris Yost decides what he wants it to be. If it is the tale of Tim Drake growing out of his role as Robin and using his detective skills to prove he is correct in surmising Bruce Wayne is indeed still living, then I'm all for that. If it is the tale of Emo Boy and his infinite sadness reluctantly teaming up with a cookie-cutter team of super-assassins, then count me out. Unfortunately, its leaning toward the latter right now, but I'll give it at least through next issue to convince me otherwise.

North 40 # 2 - Love the concept - Lovecraftian evil unleashed in a small town. Love the art - Fiona Staples is a major new talent. Can't say I love the execution of the story - there are way too many characters that I simply could not remember the significance of in the story from issue # 1. Sadly, this may be a book that reads better in the collected edition than month-to-month, as while I could easily figure out what was happening in this issue, the significance to the continuing story was somewhat lost on me on the first read. I may be dropping this soon and picking up the eventual collection instead.

Around a dozen down, and I can't say I'm blown away by anything so far (with the possible exception of G-Man). I tend to save the best for last when I'm putting my books in reading order, though (which is why, after tonight, I'll be savoring the prospect of reading three issues of Wednesday Comis in a row), so there's plenty of room for things to turn around.