Week in Review 2/29/12 - Part 1

Justice League #6
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Jim Lee
Company: DC Comics

While this book had a solid opener and subsequent issue or two, the pacing of Justice League took a wallop and delved into a very muddled place where people quickly lose interest. This is the finale to the opening six issue story of Darkseid invading the world, which is most definitely a good thing. Johns and Lee focus on the "Widescreen" moments, the larger than life action sequences that fans enjoy, most

Week in Review 2/24/12

The Flash #6
Writers: Francis Manapul & Brian Buccellato
Artist: Francis Manapul
Company: DC Comics

So much has been said about the layouts and artistic talents of artist Francis Manapul. Simply stated, they're all true. He has so much talent and employs it in such a manner that your eyes are drawn to his work like it was a big giant steak that has been seared to perfection. There are aspects of Will Eisner utilized in his work, especially using the backdrops for the opening titles. Still, with the art being so good, the stories

Batman #1-6

Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Greg Capullo
Company: DC Comics

With the buzz around the upcoming Batman crossover "Night of the Owls" and the general notion that Scott Snyder doesn't know how to write a comic that even remotely falls into the category of bad, I decided to reassess my initial, slightly negative reaction to the book. The biggest hurdle that it had, and still has really, is simply Greg Capullo's artwork. There's no getting around the McFarlane influences that are ingrained in the line work. Yes, he has improved over the years, no question about it, but that particular comparison is inescapable and off-putting in many ways.

Week in Review 2/14/12

Batwoman #6
Writer: J. H. Williams III & W. Haden Blackman
Artist: Amy Reeder Hadley
Company: DC Comics

While it is a little sad to see Williams take a break from the art on Batwoman, the powers that be couldn't have chosen better for a replacement. Hadley is such a talented artist. Her work on Madame Xanadu was sensational and the work for this jumping on point in the Batwoman title is just as thrilling. The way that she has her own style but is able to mirror the

Conan the Barbarian #1

Writer: Brian Wood
Artist: Becky Cloonan
Company: Dark Horse Comics

By Crom, this was good. Come on, it had to be said, and more importantly it isn't a lie. Brian (DMZ/Northlanders) Wood takes the reigns of the Conan property and diverts it from the sedate and unexciting waters that it has been treading as of late into the lands of Bad Ass and Awesome. Wood is a natural storyteller, and even though this is an adaptation of Howard's popular story Queen of the Black Coast, he definitely puts his own emphasis on it. Being only a dabbler in the world of Conan (the movies, minus the last very uninspired and Mystery Science Theater 3000 candidate one, and the Busiek and Nord offerings), I am not familiar with the story at hand, but already Wood has my attention.

Thief of Thieves #1

Writers: Robert Kirkman & Nick Spencer
Artist: Shawn Martinbrough
Company: Image Comics

Ocean's Eleven, To Catch a Thief, and White Collar. These are just a few stories that feature bad boys and thieves that are suave and classy and are people we can ultimately root for as they rob the rich and the common man for various reasons. It's a trend that probably won't ever stop in the entertainment industry. With comics, the same trend exists. In standard superhero fare, we have Gambit. In the land of more realistic comics however, we now have Conrad Paulson to fill the particular void. So far, he's doing quite nicely.

Blast from the Past: Daredevil #220

Writer: Denny O'Neil
Artist: David Mazzucchelli
Company: Marvel Comics

It's late at night, a storm is rolling in, and you're craving something to read. That's the situation that I found myself in the other evening. To remedy said problem I went to the bookshelves and happened upon a collection of Daredevil entitled Loves Labor Lost. I couldn't remember buying it, but I must have, considering it's sitting on my shelf with all of the other Daredevil collections. Being a Daredevil fan to the extreme, I quickly settled in and devoured it. The stories inside were all notable. A few of them I even remember stealing from my brother's collection to read. This one however, this issue eerily titled The Fog, was the stand out.

Winter Solider #1

Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Butch Guice
Company: Marvel Comics

When it was announced some time ago that Bucky was coming back in the pages of Captain America, people were skeptical. It was strange and the notion of turning him into what is essentially a trained assassin wasn't a very popular idea. That said, writer Ed (Sleeper/Catwoman) Brubaker, being a fairly talented writer, did the impossible. He injected a healthy dose of espionage into the pages and made a believer out of a lot of people. He made Bucky a character to root for, a man who was more than up to the challenge of taking on Captain America's mantle. Then came Fear Itself and the supposed demise of our new favorite hero. The shock death felt forced and wasn't a very satisfying conclusion to our hero's story.

Week in Review 2/3/12

Action Comics #6
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Andy Kubert
Company: DC Comics

While I always think Morrison books are packed with fun ideas and have a great sense of energy to them, his Action Comics lately has been a tad on the disappointing side. It hasn't been bad, just disjointed and muddled and nowhere near as exciting as those first two issues were. This issue, which sees a battle waged in the confines of a partitioned section of Clark Kent's brain and copious amounts of time