Dc Comics The New 52 - Quick Shots 10/29/11

Well, everyone take a quick sigh of relief. Catch your breath while you can, as the first month of DC's relaunch is finally over. 52 new books with new creative teams and new things to love or hate. Okay, break's over and the books keep on coming. Overall, I have to say that I'm pretty happy with the quality that we've seen. Sure, there have been a few books that have disappointed, but we expected that to some degree. There was no way that all 52 of them would hit the bulls-eye. What this article will try to do is provide a quick three or four sentence review of how each of the subsequent issues of the title fare. I wish that I could provide a more in depth look at each of them, but time is a harsh mistress and it seems to always run out. Anyways, to the books!

Spaceman #1 of 9

Writer: Brian Azzarello
Artist: Eduardo Risso
Company: Vertigo Comics

Well, I'm going to just come out and say it: Brian Azzarello is on fire. With his Flashpoint: Batman Knight of Vengeance mini being the creme de la creme of the Flashpoint world and the start to the new Wonder Woman series hitting all of the right notes, you'd think that he might be stretching himself a bit too thin. Wrong. Spaceman, an urban Sci-Fi story, is just as clever and mind grabbing. Teaming up with his artistic partner Eduardo Risso is the icing on the cake.

Together they aptly tell the tale of Orson, a genetically engineered hulk of a man who, like most people, is trying to find his place in life and dreaming

Wolverine & the X-Men #1

Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Chris Bachalo
Company: Marvel Comics

Well, whether or not you cared for the idea of Cyclops and Wolverine calling off their friend engagement and splitting into two different factions or not, there's really no stopping it now. It's happened and even though it was forced and felt off in seventeen different ways, we now have another X-Book to keep an eye on. That said, this is a weird book. Or more to the point, a weird X-Men book. Why? Because it bashes you over the head with humor instead of mutant, death-freeze-omni-whatever blasts that we are used to, which is a little atypical of the traditional X-Men formula. If you can get behind that and the very Whedon-y style to the characters speech patterns and banter, then there is a pleasant surprise for you with this book. If you

Incredible Hulk #1

Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Marc Silvestri
Company: Marvel Comics

Compared to the books that have encompassed the Hulk property over the last few years, Jason Aaron's new foray into the grand misadventures of a Banner-less Hulk leaves a distinct and quite unsatisfying taste in your mouth. Yes, the prerequisite material that any Hulk book should have is there. Hulk does smash stuff bare handed and grumble a bit about persecution and being hunted, but to me it's missing the heart that Greg Pak was able to package and get across in his book.

One of the biggest selling points is probably the Marc Silvestri artwork. It's been a long time since we've seen him do a monthly book, as for the past few years

Why Haven't there Been Any New Articles Recently?

The answer to that is fairly simple. ARKHAM CITY. Well, that and a crazy few weeks of life, but mainly because I was so engrossed by the expansive, interesting, beautiful, laugh inducing, beat em up fest that this game is. Though it sounds insane, it's the best licensed game that's ever been made, and unlike many other sequels, this one somehow beats the high bar that Arkham Asylum created. Now, with the main game over with and my obsessive need to find all 400 Riddler trophies (which is insane by the way...and I'm sure I've already started cackling), I decided that it was time to go back to comics.

So, without further ado, let's get back to the reviews! Of course, the Nightwing download pack comes out next week, so I better get cracking!

Have you guys been playing it as well? What's the general consensus from you? Best game ever?

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man # 2-3

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Sara Pichelli
Company: Marvel Comics

It's a fairly easy statement to make that Ultimate Spider-Man, in whatever incarnation that it's taken, is Brian Michael Bendis' best work. It's the most character centric, spot on, interesting, and ultimately enjoyable comic book that he's written. Sure, you could throw out and argue Alias, but there's something so dead on with the way that Bendis "gets" the character of Peter Parker. Now, this new book isn't Parker, but that in and of itself isn't a deal breaker. Starting from the ground up with a new character, while risky in many ways, also makes a great amount of sense. The potential for new readers is there, but the game has to be brought in order to keep up with the expectations. The first issue did that, though it did

Week in Review 10/5/11 - 10/13/11

Angel & Faith #2
Writer: Christos Gage
Artist: Rebekah Isaacs
Company: Dark Horse Comics

If you feel the need to read a comic that in any way relates to the world of Buffy, I can not stress the fact that Angel & Faith should be that book more. Gage is a writer that brings a good story with him when he comes on a book. He does his research, gets in the characters' headspace and then lets the ball of chaos unravel so the reader can get caught up in it. In a good way. The interaction between Faith and Angel is so paramount, and here it has a simple good cop/bad vampire type feel to it, one that feels faithful to the show while at the same time breaking new ground. The notion of Angel

DC Comics The New 52 - Quick Shots 10/12/11

Well, everyone take a quick sigh of relief. Catch your breath while you can, as the first month of DC's relaunch is finally over. 52 new books with new creative teams and new things to love or hate. Okay, break's over and the books keep on coming. Overall, I have to say that I'm pretty happy with the quality that we've seen. Sure, there have been a few books that have disappointed, but we expected that to some degree. There was no way that all 52 of them would hit the bulls-eye. What this article will try to do is provide a quick three or four sentence review of how each of the subsequent issues of the title fare. I wish that I could provide a more in depth look at each of them, but time is a harsh mistress and it seems to always run out. Anyways, to the books!

DC Comics The New 52 - Quick Shots 10/8/11

Well, everyone take a quick sigh of relief. Catch your breath while you can, as the first month of DC's relaunch is finally over. 52 new books with new creative teams and new things to love or hate. Okay, break's over and the books keep on coming. Overall, I have to say that I'm pretty happy with the quality that we've seen. Sure, there have been a few books that have disappointed, but we expected that to some degree. There was no way that all 52 of them would hit the bulls-eye. What this article will try to do is provide a quick three or four sentence review of how each of the subsequent issues of the title fare. I wish that I could provide a more in depth look at each of them, but time is a harsh mistress and it seems to always run out. Anyways, to the books!

The Strange Talent of Luther Strode #1

Writer: Justin Jordan
Artist: Tradd Moore
Company: Image Comics

To be completely honest, I had no idea what to expect with this first issue of The Strange Talent of Luther Strode. A friend of mine read a preview copy a while back and immediately stated that it was a "must read" title, one of those books that grabs you by the balls from the get go and gets you hooked quick and leaves you gasping for breath wanting more. I said okay, that I would most certainly give it a shot, even though it seemed like a book that wasn't really my cup of tea. It wasn't because of the super violence that I knew the book reveled in, nor was it the notion of a high school kid getting super powers. What it was, was the fact that we've seen these kinds of things tackled before and I was unsure of what, if anything, new that could be

DC Comics The New 52 Week 4: Part 2

Well, the wait is finally over!  The New DCU is upon us, and whether you're ready or not, this week sees the release of 13 all new series.  It's strange, exciting, and truly a great time to be a fan of the medium of comics.  Now, on the review side, I'm trying to be as spoiler free as possible with these reviews, mainly due to the fact that experiencing them yourself is paramount.  I'm also going to try to do full reviews for a lot of these new series, though time constraints and my current sanity level will prevent me from doing all of them.  That said, in these The New 52 Articles, I'll give you a quick rundown of what was good, what was not so good, and what are the books to seek out.  So without further ado, TO THE BOOKS!