DC Reboot: Fact, Rumor & Opinion

I think it's safe to say, if you've been on any comics news website or blog, you've seen the announcement that DC Comics will do a reboot of the DCU this coming September.  Now I can imagine that this has garnered some reaction from a lot of people.  Some good reactions, but from what I've scanned through this evening and earlier today, the majority of people have the gut reaction of, "Oh god, oh god, we're all going to die."

Well, maybe not that visceral, but certainly that it's a good time to stop reading DC Comics.

Locke & Key Volume 1: Welcome to Lovecraft

Writer: Joe Hill
Artist: Gabriel Rodriguez
Company: IDW Publishing

Summer's here and with it comes ample opportunity to seek out new books to wile away the hours of a day.  I mean really, who wants to be out on the beach, soaking up the sun or spending time with family when they could be locked away in a darkened room somewhere reading fantastical and thrilling stories?  The choice is simple, people.  Regardless of what you do choose, if you do happen to seek out a new title to peruse, my first suggestion would be Locke & Key, a supernatural suspense yarn by talented author Joe Hill.  Best known for his novels Heart-Shaped Box, Horns and the short story compilation 20th Century Ghosts, Locke & Key represents his first ongoing comic book series and let me tell you, it's a doozy.

Week in Review 5/28/11

American Vampire #15
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Rafael Albuquerque
Company: Vertigo

A great issue to an all together great series.  American Vampire, certainly one of Vertigo's best, is constantly at the top of my read pile, as the level of quality in both the writing and the art is so high.  With this issue, one that sees a new breed of Vampire as the group of hunters make their way into a small town on the island in the South Pacific, that status quo hasn't changed one bit.  Snyder still provides a taut story, one that has action and suspense in copious amounts, and Albuquerque's art is breathtaking.  His designs for the new, feral vampire, are creepy with its Alien-like flavor.

Spotlight: Dungeons & Dragons

Writer: John Rogers
Artists: Andrea Di Vito & Denis Medri
Company: IDW Publishing

Dungeons and Dragons.  That title, for good or ill, comes with some baggage.  Over the years, it's been touted as one of the best table top RPGs, a game that is inherently EVIL and a game for only basement dwelling geeks.  I have been playing the game off and on for a lot of my life and for me, it's an awesome game.  One that bands together a group of friends and allows them to blow off steam and laugh for 8 hours straight.  Still, the stigma exists and I think some people are shying away from reading the book because of it.  Don't do this, as you are depriving yourself from one of the funniest, clever and all-around enjoyable books that can be found on the shelves of your local comic book shop.

Wednesday Number Ones 5/25/11

Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Top 5 Comics. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature as well.

This week, we will cover:  Cobra Ongoing #1, Ducktales #1 and Strange Adventures #1.

Venom #1-2

Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Tony Moore
Company: Marvel Comics

Well, the 1990's era Nick Budd loved the concept of Venom, as did numerous other people.  I mean, why wouldn't you?  He was everything that you could want:  All the neat powers of Spider-Man coupled with the added bonus of eating brains and tongue lashing.  What's not to love?  Sadly, after such things as Venom: Lethal Protector and the subsequent 15 or so other minis that have emblazoned the name, the character got slightly silly and a bit old.  Even the various other people who have been host to the symbiote besides Eddie Brock couldn't revitalize the character, of which I still find the idea of giving the suit to Mac "The Scorpion" Gargan one of the weirder notions.  But want to know what's a stranger idea?  Giving the suit to Flash Thompson.

Blast From the Past: Sojourn #0-6

Writer: Ron Marz
Artist: Greg Land
Company: Crossgen Comics

One occurrence that seems to have become a ritual of mine is to every so often hit up a local pizzeria.  Before going though, I hit up a used book store, whichever one happens to be closest, and peruse the used trades and single issues for something that sounds interesting.  I've found some great things over the years:  Grant Morrison's first arc on JLA (still a favorite of mine), a twenty issue run from Chuck Dixon's Robin and one rare afternoon I even found a used copy of Eastman & Laird's TMNT (the color edition).  This time out was a good one as I snagged the first trade of Sojourn, the best selling Crossgen title and a book that I generally have heard good things about.

Week in Review 5/21/11

Avengers #13
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Chris Bachalo
Company: Marvel Comics

Let's first talk about Bachalo's art, as really, it was the only thing about this issue that popped.  It was interesting to see Bachalo work within the confines of Bendis' wordy script.  I tend to prefer him when he's allowed to run wild with his out of the box art, but I can understand where some people have a problem with his readability and focus.  That said, his depiction of the Avengers team is pretty good.  They look lean and tough and ready to take on the forces of evil.  Except, these Avengers happen to live in a Bendis comic, where for the most part, that action

Nonplayer #1 of 6

Writer/Artist: Nate Simpson
Company: Image Comics

Is Nonplayer the Avatar of the comics world?  From a visual perspective, that may be a fairly good analysis.  From a story point of view, Nonplayer removes a honed longsword from its sheathe, paints some war paint on its face, does a base jump off of a skyscraper and proceeds to go to town on said movie.

And let me tell you, it does goes to town.

This being Nate Simpson's first foray into the comics industry, it's a damn impressive opening salvo.  Previous to this he was working on video game concept art, and while I'm sure his work there was beautiful, the work that has been put into the pages of this comic is mind blowing.

Wednesday Number Ones 5/18/11

Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Top 5 Comics. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature as well.

This week, we will cover:  Alpha Flight #0, Batman Gates of Gotham #1, Drums #1, Rocketeer Adventures #1, Snake Eyes Ongoing #1 and Star Wars Jedi Dark Side #1.

Week in Review 5/15/11

Batman Inc. #6
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Chris Burnham
Company: DC Comics


I'm just going to throw this out there to the masses:  Batman fights Mario and Luigi of Super Mario Bros. fame.  I kid you not.  But that's not all that happens in this sixth issue of Batman Inc., the major plot with Leviathan is moved forward.  We also get to see Bruce meet with various other Batmen that he has established all over the globe.  Like always, there is a lot to digest and enjoy.  I guess the one word that I would use to describe the psychedelic pinball machine that Morrison has made this book is this:  FUN.  The Silver Age feel, the happy Batman...It's all extremely

Ruse #1-2

Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Mirco Pierfederici
Company: Marvel Comics

Like a lot of people, I'm a sucker for a good Sherlock Holmes story.  And while Ruse isn't Sherlock Holmes completely, the character of Simon Archard certainly fits into the same wheelhouse. Having this book back on the stands again is like seeing an old friend for a cup of joe.  These characters, both Archard and Emma Bishop (Simon's Watson) and the relationship between them made the original Ruse series a favorite of mine and one of the biggest standouts of the entire Crossgen imprint.  You had mystery, intrigue, magic, action, humor and did I mention Mystery?  I only mention it again because it's a pretty big portion of the book.  But I guess the question that needs to be asked is this:

New Mutants #25

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Artist: Leandro Fernandez
Company: Marvel Comics

To tell the truth, the New Mutants have had a rocky couple of years.  As a kid, I remember reading some of the classic issues by Claremont (Demon Bear!) that my brother had and I instantly fell in love with the group.  They were cool and young and relatable.  When Zeb Wells started the series back up, gathering many of the original players, there was the potential for great things.  And while I don't think the heights that could have been reached were, seeing them square off against a crazy Legion and reconnect with Illyana brought the nostalgic factor full force and it ended up being pretty solid.  That said, since that opening arc, the title has been bogged down in

Wednesday Number Ones 5/11/11

Wednesday Number Ones, a feature that some of you might recognize, is a weekly feature here at Top 5 Comics. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature as well.

This week, we will cover:  Batman Arkham City #1, Fear Itself Youth in Revolt #1, Flashpoint #1, G.I. Joe Vol 2 #1 and Moriarty #1.

Week in Review 05/10/11

Herc #2
Writer: Grek Pak & Fred Van Lente
Artist: Neil Edwards
Company: Marvel Comics

Action packed. Smart. Entertaining. Smile inducing. All of these things can be said about the first two issues of the Son of Zeus' newest incarnation. The dynamic of Hercules as a human continues to work. It humanizes him and allows the character to grow in ways that we haven't seen yet. Also, Pak and Van Lente's idea of gearing him up with powerful "gadgets" is just innately cool. With this issue we see Herc go toe to toe with Kingpin's newest henchman, Hobgoblin. I will say that I don't know much about this Hobgoblin, and while he seems a bit of a Deadpool clone, he works as a good villain for the story and the ensuing battle has a lot of high points. The strong art by Edwards doesn't hurt either. The action is clear and decisive and memorable.

About Top 5 Comics

Top 5 Comics is a comic book review site established in 2011 from Austin, Texas.  The goal is to provide quality reviews without taking things too seriously.  The medium of comics is something that we love and one of the major goals is that we want to share our love of comics with others.


Why Top 5?  It sounded catchy.  Beyond that, you know, what's really in a name?