Grading the Comics: Week of August 10

Okay, let's see what's (hopefully) in the comic book box this week:

• ACTION COMICS #880
• ADVENTURE COMICS #1
• BATMAN #689
• BLACKEST NIGHT #2 (OF 8)
• BLACKEST NIGHT BATMAN #1 (OF 3)
• BOOSTER GOLD #23
• GEN 13 #31
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #39 (BLACKEST NIGHT)
• MARVELS PROJECT #1 (OF 8)
• RED HERRING #1 (OF 6)
• SUPERMAN SECRET FILES 2009 #1
• ULTIMATE COMICS AVENGERS #1
• ULTIMATE COMICS SPIDER-MAN #1
• UNCANNY X-MEN #514 DAX
• UNWRITTEN #4
• WALKING DEAD #64

As usual, the italics are for books I am not committed to buying but hope to glance over on the stands. Odds are good that if I like what I see, it'll go home with me.

In the meantime, what are YOU reading? Comment away!

Grading the Comics: Week of August 3

Hey there, seems like forever since I graded my comic book purchases.
Having a baby in the house will do that. I have books from two or three weeks ago that I haven't even read yet.
=sigh=
Anyway, here's what I'm planning to buy today:

• AGENTS OF ATLAS #9 - Darn it, I forgot to pick this up. Will try to snag a copy today.
• BOYS #33 - Sick, what Butcher does to Payback, but very entertaining. And there's material besides that sets up some interesting stuff ahead. B
• CAPTAIN AMERICA REBORN #2 (OF 5) - Good stuff. Steve Rogers is on his way back (slowly) and yet--will he be Cap when he finally returns? A-
• DOOM PATROL #1 - Side by side with Metal Men, this is one wacked-out book. A must-read. A+
• HULK #13 - Bruce says bye to A-Bomb and we're thinking Ol' Jadejaws is gone...? B
• JUSTICE LEAGUE CRY FOR JUSTICE #2 (OF 7) - Haven't read it yet.
• SAVAGE DRAGON #151 - Geez, for a dead guy, Dragon sure can carry a book. B
• SUPERMAN: WORLD OF NEW KRYPTON #6 (OF 12) - Didn't have a copy at the store, hope to have it tonight.
• ULTIMATUM: FANTASTIC FOUR REQUIEM #1 - Ditto.
• ULTIMATUM: X-MEN REQUIEM #1 - Ditto.

As I've said elsewhere (I think), I'm probably going to let the WildStorm stuff fall by the wayside. "World's End" has been an interesting direction for the books but I'm ready to let it go.

Ditto the Ultimate line of books. I wasn't thrilled with the last issue of ULTIMATUM (see below), and now seems like a good time to let those titles slip off my reserve list. I'll keep an eye on the line to see what's happening, and reserve the right to change my mind, but... we'll just have to see.

Man, I sure didn't have a lot to say about the books this week-- but I'll fix that soon enough.

later!

Movies: In the Loop

Kat and I managed to catch a film recently--the delightfully subversive "In The Loop." Based on a BBC series called "The Thick of It," this film finds a hapless minister (Simon Foster, played by Tom Hollander) making a gaffe on British radio--calling war "unforeseeable"--and landing in the middle of a power struggle on both sides of the Atlantic. Assisted by chilly pro Judy (played by Gina McKee) and an amoral newcomer named Toby (Chris Addison), Foster is the football tossed between pro-war and anti-war factions. He tries to play both sides but... well, suffice it to say he is not nearly as clever as he thinks he is.

On the anti-war side is Assistant Secretary of State Karen Clarke (Mimi Kennedy), whose assistant Liza Weld (Anna Chlumsky, best known for her role in "My Girl") wrote an obscure paper on the pitfalls of going to war. This paper, Foster's harried cluelessness, the machinations of the hilariously obscene Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi)--the Prime Minister's Director of Communications and general troubleshooter--and the ridiculous nature of factional politicking make the movie a joyful chaos of conflicting purposes, double-dealing, betrayal, deceit and the things that make Washington DC and London so much fun to watch. Not to mention Steve Coogan as a local who needs Foster to repair a wall adjoining his property, lest his mother's greenhouse be crushed by falling bricks. Or James Gandolfini as a general who may or may not have political ambitions, but knows how to survive the Washington version of Russian roulette. Or David Rasche as venal Secretary of State Linton Barwick (leader of the pro-war side), whose sleaze is buried under a layer of cold humor and patronizing propriety.

As you can see, there's a lot to like here.

It's about the most foul-mouthed movie I've seen, but it is hilarious to those of us who live in this kind of environment. If you like political satire of a really dark bent, go see it.

Grading the Comics: Week of May 25, 2009

You're probably dying to know what's on my list this week, right?
Well, the suspense is over. Here's what I'm shopping for tomorrow (New Comics Day is pushed back one by Memorial Day--ah well):

• AVENGERS INITIATIVE #24 - Humberto Ramos sure draws a mean Typhoid Mary!
• GREEN LANTERN #41 - I'm guessing it's more Blackest Night, but that's just a guess.
• JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #33 - Probably going to drop this one today. I'm just not feeling it any more.
• JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #27 - Ditto.
• RUNAWAYS 3 #10 - This is Kat's book.
• SUPERMAN #688 - Oddly enough, this book is working out okay without Superman.
• TRINITY #52 - And another weekly title comes to an end.
• WILDCATS #11 - See Justice League of America.
• X-MEN LEGACY #224 - I think this is the issue wherein we take leave of Professor X, isn't it?

All right, folks, I'll be back with reviews and notes and general snark after I've read 'em. I have a few things to write for SFRevu but I'll try to be good this week.

later!

Grading the Comics: May 13, 2009

Okay, let's get back to work, shall we?
Here's what I'm aiming to pick up today (with some notations)...

• ACTION COMICS #877 - Nightwing takes the badly injured Flamebird to the one safe haven he knows, then engages in a brawl with Ursa and the US military. Good fun all around. B
• ALL-NEW SAVAGE SHE-HULK #2 - Thulkdra takes on Shulkie! Alas, didn't find a copy on shelf. No grade.
• BOOSTER GOLD #20 - Where in Time is Booster? Apparently back in the 1950s. Not bad at all, really. B-
• CAPTAIN BRITAIN & MI-13 #13 - Man, you thought Brian, Pete and their team got their butts kicked so far? You ain't seen nothin' yet. A
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #36 - Sodam Yat and Arisia on Daxam, while Sinestro gets to know his kid. Not as much as I might have hoped. C+
• SECRET WARRIORS #4 - Nick Fury continues to be the consummate soldier, recruiting some old friends to his anti-Hydra cause, while the kids try and figure out what the good colonel is doing. B-
• STORMWATCH PHD #21 - It's StormWatch vs. Night Tribes, with a cameo from WetWorks' Dane. Apparently the sh*t is hitting the fan in Europe big time, but can our heroes do anything about it? B-
• TRINITY #50 - The world is dead, Earth is destroyed, and Krona has a long heart-to-heart with the worldsoul, only to find he had no idea what planets really do. Then the Trinity get together and make a decision with significant consequences. B
• ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #132 - Spider-Man gets reacquainted with Dr. Strange, who appears to be having a very bad day, plus Kitty Pryde 'fesses up and Mary Jane goes bonkers. Entertaining but I'm spiraling down on my "Ultimate" fandom. B+
• UMBRELLA ACADEMY: DALLAS #6 - Twisted with a capital S. Love it. The end of the Dallas storyline has an unexpected set of turns, setting the stage for an even bigger third act. Way to go, team! A
• UNWRITTEN #1 - You have to read it. A+
• WALKING DEAD #61 - Kirkman rules. Zombies rule. Kirkman and zombies totally rule. In this installment, the survivors meet a man of God whose survival is a mystery, and rough justice is meted out when someone does something both horrific and unimaginable. A+

And there you have it. What do you think? On the money or off target? Let me know.

Star Trek (2009): What It Is and Is Not

Saw the new Star Trek last weekend and was absolutely blown away. Once in awhile, you leave a theater feeling like a movie was pretty good--or even great--and you re-think that reaction a day or two later. "Huh... y'know, Wolverine really wasn't good..." stuff like that.

Not so with ST '09. J.J. Abrams and his team have successfully and happily blown up the continuity-waterlogged beast that ST had become, pushing the new series into its own self-declared alternate timeline. The Original Series (OS) shows still happened... but now there are episodes that cannot happen with this new crew. There are layers of tragedy that will shadow certain characters forever, and new possibilities because the original timeline was not salvaged.

So what does this mean? It means that Star Trek now has a blank slate. There is no "it has to be!" about their future adventures, no inevitability about meeting Khan, the planet destroyer, the Tribbles... any of it. Abrams can cherry pick whatever he likes for the next few movies, freed from the shackles of continuity. Long-time fans won't like it, I'm betting, but I am a long-time fan and this is infusing that whole universe with fresh blood.

As many publications and sites have noted, Chris Pine absolutely nails the essence of Kirk. He loves the ladies, he's reckless and a bit of a showoff but he gets the job done. He is the epic hero in ways that Spock is not and cannot be, larger than life and bolder than bold. Pine doesn't impersonate William Shatner-- that would be a thankless and self-defeating task--but he captures what Kirk is all about: he's a leader, a man of action, and the guy whose commands you follow no matter what because he inspires that kind of loyalty.

Zachary Quinto likewise nails Spock, but brings emotional depth to the character that Leonard Nimoy only revealed very gradually (probably because the writers were trying to figure him out back then, whereas Quinto benefits from 40+ years of Spockian analysis). This Spock is as much a rebel as Kirk, though he is quiet and coldly precise in how he defies authority. His emotions are always under tight control--with Quinto, the cost and effort of that control are always there, giving a strong urgency to his performance. It's really something to see.

Overall, I loved the new movie and hope fans will continue to embrace it. If serving the original fans were all that the movie aspired to do, it would be a disappointment and indeed a failure; the franchise needs to pull in new viewers, new fans, if it's going to survive. And frankly, the franchise needed a huge dose of risk-taking and adventurous spirit to overcome the last few mort-tastic entries in the theaters. If anything will take the sour taste of the recent ST:NG movies out of my mouth, ST '09 is the palate cleanser.

Grade: A+

...And So It Goes

Well, I wanted to jump back into blogging and had good intentions toward doing so. Real life intervened.

With any luck, I'll be able to put together a coherent thought or two on this page in the next few days.

As for comics, buy POWER GIRL! It's a blast.

Grading the Comics- the Long-Overdue Edition

Hey folks!
Yeah, I'm back to grading comics. I have to write up my notes and see what's what this week. In the meantime, here's what I picked up:

• DARK AVENGERS #3 DKR - Starts out with some truly awesome face-to-face time between Norman Osborn and the Sentry, with some startling revelations and a bit of insight into both Norman and Bob Reynolds. Truly stellar. The rest of the issue, as the Dark Avengers face off against Morgan le Fay, is pretty good--but the first part puts this issue firmly into A+ territory.
• MYSTERIUS THE UNFATHOMABLE #3 (OF 6) - Not read yet.
• STAR TREK CREW #1 - Not read yet.
• STORMWATCH PHD #20 - A StormWatch ground team enters Eastern Europe, which is held by the Night Tribes, and finds things are vastly worse than they imagined. Expect a WetWorks appearance real soon. B-/C+
• SUPERGIRL #39 - Not read yet.
• TRINITY #42 - The Trinity aren't quite back to normal, even though they seem to be on the right side, and Gangbuster has a personal revelation courtesy of Tarot. B
• ULTIMATE X-MEN #100 - The series finale (sort of) sees the team battling the Multiple Man, who's been turned into a million-strong army of suicide bombers. Pretty strong ending. B++
• ULTIMATUM #3 (OF 5) - Not read yet.
• UNCANNY X-MEN #507 - Not read yet.
• X-MEN LEGACY #222 - Not read yet. This one bats clean-up, as I like to take my time reading Mike Carey's work.

Report back soon, ye army of loyal readers! I'll have comments and grades real soon.

Watchmen

Okay, I know you are dying to know what I thought of Watchmen.
Kat and I saw it Saturday with friends and, oddly, this has been my first chance to sit down and write about it.
The movie is good. Not great, not fantastic, but good. It's faithful to the book especially in its look, though it's undercut by some choices that--while understandable--end up weakening the story in certain ways.
THE GOOD-

• Everyone loves Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach, and with good reason--this is an Oscar-level performance, especially at the end. He deserves enormous kudos for what he does with (and without) a sock on his head.
• Jeffrey Dean Morgan made me care about the Comedian. He pulled this brute's humanity out by the roots and showed something vulnerable, even tragic in this monster wrapped in the American flag. Amazing performance.
• Patrick Wilson comes alive as Dan Dreiberg/Nite Owl II late in the game, but when he does, it's great. (Also, his reaction to the near-end of the movie feels much more appropriate than what happened in the comic.)
• Billy Crudup sells me (most of the time) on Dr. Manhattan. Although we nicknamed him "Swingin' Blue," the shots of him full-frontal weren't gratuitous and his manners reflected a character who really cannot connect with humanity any longer.
• The production values of the movie could not have been higher, with amazing effects (like Rorschach's mask, the Owlship, Dr. Manhattan) and fantastic sets putting viewers into the sewer that is this alternate 1985.
• Taking out the squid was okay with me.

THE MEH-

• Watchmen is set in a time when the world is literally on the edge of nuclear annihilation. Problem is, we don't feel it. Alan Moore used street-level perspective to get the point across--the news vendor, the teenage kid, the cabbie, the psychiatrist, all of them showed life on the edge of the end. In the movie, we don't get enough of this. I know it's a time-constraint issue but I can only hope the director's cut includes it.

THE BAD-

• The violence was gratuitous. I know they're supposed to be "not the heroes we know," but showing compound fractures, ripping skin and a skull cleaved (over and over again) was overkill. And somewhat nauseating.
• Malin Akerman only sold me on her as Silk Spectre here and there. I can't say for sure if it was performance or script but she didn't register as anything more than a token female presence passed between two of the characters. Her revelation moment landed with a thud and even the byplay with Carla Gugino felt forced. Not good.
• Matthew Goode didn't deliver as Ozymandias. His performance was too muted, too restrained. Was he (or Zach Snyder) thinking that the audience would figure it out? Didn't they know most of the audience knows the story by now? In any case, Ozy should have been more forceful and Goode was just kind of present.
• The music really hammered on this being the 1980s, didn't it?
• The makeup for Nixon especially was terrible. And it didn't help that he was always in the War Room under that harsh fluorescent lighting, which showed how little the actor resembled the ex-president.
  

I doubt this will be one for the ages. My circle of friends (by voice vote) think it will not end up one of the big films of the summer, and indications now are that they are right.

At least this put to bed the notion that Watchmen (the graphic novel) is unfilmable. It CAN be filmed--but this version of it wasn't as great as the source material.

Grade: B-/C+

Grading the Comics- January 14

UPDATED!
Another week, another batch of reviews.
I haven't read everything on my list this week (had a late night at a farewell dinner for a friend who's off to LA next week), but I did read a few. So here we go:

• ACTION COMICS #873 (FOE) - Superman is caught between the Kandorians and the people of Earth, even as unsuspected enemies plot very bad things for the Man of Steel and his fellow Kryptonians. Plus a very unexpected reveal on the last page. A
• BOOSTER GOLD #16 (FOE) - not read yet
• CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI 13 #9 - A terrific book that keeps getting better. Pete Wisdom really shows how hard a guy he is and Captain Britain suffers a loss, the scope of which he doesn't quite realize. A
• FINAL CRISIS #6 (OF 7) - You've probably read about this one. All I can say is, the pieces are definitely beginning to come together: Flashes Barry and Wally go on what could be their last run; the Green Lanterns don't give up; the last castle crumbles; Mr. Terrific makes a momentous decision and enlists a revived superweapon; Supergirl and Mary Marvel square off one final time; and Batman's big play comes to light, along with the return of a missing hero. We have an awful lot happening and the last page is a killer. Marred by uneven art, the story still comes through. B+/A-
• GEN 13 #26 - not read yet
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #32 (FOE) - Kyle takes on Kryb, as the Star Sapphires show they can play nice when the mood strikes. Really interesting stuff AND we get more set up for the War of Light. And did anyone miss the significance of the response to the Guardians' Third Law? B+
• NO HERO #3 (OF 7) - The rookie is put through hell to trigger his powers, while the team suffers another loss--and the rest get a history lesson about how to kill a superhuman. Warren is bringing some real heat to this book, y'all. A
• PUSH #4 (OF 6) - not read yet (holding this one for last)
• TRINITY #33 - Okay, no Trinity in the flesh, but we do get a telling of Wonder Woman's "breaking" in this new world, as well as the battle for Tel Aviv (which has some really heavy emotional moments) between the JSI and the Dark Trinity. Great character work by Nicieza in the backup especially. B
• X-INFERNUS #2 (OF 4) - sold out! Hope to get it next week.

And that's where we stand. See ya!

Grading the Comics- January 2 & 7 Double Header!

UPDATE!!

Okay, here's the stuff from last week:

• FINAL CRISIS SECRET FILES #1 - Recap of Libra's origin story with some marginalia shoveled in at the back. Nice to see Len Wein working again but the story itself was inconsequential and the art was okay but nothing special. C-
• GREEN LANTERN #36 - Setting up the War of Light with Sinestro in the hands of Red Lantern leader Atrocitus, while Hal finds out more about the Blue Lanterns (who have a really impractical recruitment process, not to mention a pretty silly ambition regarding one Green Lantern). Plus a Sinestro Corps member changes color and a green ring gets hypercharged. Important in building toward the aforementioned War but not a terrific story in and of itself. C+
• INCOGNITO #1 - A real neat story, of a supervillain in witness protection who's having a hard time adjusting. A-
• JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #28 - JLA meets Milestone in a bruising clash that is not what it seems. McDuffie returns to the characters he helped create (and publish) all those years ago. B+
• JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #22 - A strong ending to the World Under Gog storyline that's been running for... oh, a long time now. Superman-KC has a nice few moments at the end and Starman gets to do something new. A
• KICK ASS #5 - I'm out. F
• SUPERMAN #683 NEW KRYPTON - Superman is caught between Earth's heroes, who want to "talk with" the Kryptonians who killed some of the Science Police, and the Kandorians, led by a vengeful Alura. Things are not going to end well. B+
• TEEN TITANS #66 - A feeble attempt at recruiting new Titans, a supervillain declaring revenge, and a core member takes a hike. I'm out. F
• TRINITY #31 - Well, my interest is sustained for yet another week, so it can't be that bad. B-/C+
• ULTIMATE HULK ANNUAL #1 - Truly awful. The art is okay but the storyline (Power Princess beats the $#!t out of the Hulk, who's naked and obsessed with pancakes) is really atrocious. Probably the worst Ultimate Universe story I've read; doubly so for the ending. No, just plain no. F
• ULTIMATE X-MEN #99 - Rogue lines up some help in taking the fight to Magneto, but her plans are derailed as human Sentinels attack the X-Mansion. Interesting set up but the payoff was regrettably weak. And Vindicator is right--taking out Magneto IS more important than helping out the X-brood. Oh well. C
• WHAT IF SECRET WARS - Doom keeps the Beyonder's power and kicks butt all over the Marvel Universe. Yep, the heroes who died on Battleworld stay dead and yep, Doom takes down pretty much everybody. And stays in character doing it, which is even better. B+

and here's this week's offering:

• AUTHORITY #6 - StormWatch and the Authority come to an agreement, things begin to move and an old enemy makes a very big play. Plus an unexpected ray of hope for Jack and the Engineer. B+
• MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 #4 - The end of the current mini sets up the next one in ways one could never miss. It was pretty good and had some neat gross-out moments, wrapping up a lot of "whatever happened to the OTHER guys...?" Still don't think I'll come back for another helping, though. Gotta cut somewhere. B
• TRINITY #32 - More legends about how Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman ended up in this quasi-Earth, with unsettling resonances for many of the would-be rescuers. Plus a character study of Triumph and Tomorrow Woman and why they're fighting the good fight. B
• WALKING DEAD #57 - Rick and Abraham set out for reconnaissance and recovery, while the others hunker down and wait for their return. Features some of the most disturbing content of the series, which is really saying something. A

Wow, that's kind of a light week. Four I'll definitely buy, two I might-or-might-not. Hm.

And finally, my "trimming the list" candidates (stuff that won't be on my pull list any longer):

• KICK ASS - Enough is enough.
• REIGN IN HELL - I've seen about as much as I need to see for this mini.
• SPIRIT - Once Darwyn walked away...
• SQUADRON SUPREME - Not enjoying it so much I want to shell out $3 (or more)
• TEEN TITANS - The team's falling apart and I just don't care that much.
• TERROR TITANS - ugh.
• TITANS - I wish the reunion of the original Titans was better than this. But it isn't. We're getting rehashed Trigon and now Jericho-gone-bad-or-is-he? nonsense. Isn't anyone interested in trying something NEW with these characters?

Wow, clean sweep of all the Titans books. Oh well.

That's it for now, friends! See you next week.

Grading the Comics- December 17, 2008

All righty, what's on the menu for today?

• AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #19 - hm... you're in the Avengers' own training camp and learned the guy in charge was a Skrull. I know it'd undermine my confidence in a federally-funded superhero career.
• DARK REIGN: NEW NATION- Gotta say, I like the "Illuminaughty" nickname that's been kicked around.
• STORMWATCH PHD #17- Random thought: having an orbital station sure makes for a gloomy spot to watch the end of the world, doesn't it?
• SUPERGIRL #36-NK
• TERRA #4- end of the mini
• TRINITY #29-
• ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #59- I'm betting Johnny Storm isn't really dead.
• WALKING DEAD #56- wonder how much longer Rick's gonna last. Any bets? I'm thinking a year, tops.
• X-MEN LEGACY #219- Professor X sits down with Juggernaut for a little brotherly heart to heart

Reviews to come...

HEROES Follow Up

Okay, my batting average for last night (prediction wise) wasn't terrible...

• Peter did get his powers back;
• Nathan and Peter ended as enemies;
• there was a knockdown dragout fight (or two);
• they DID try to use Doyle to take down Sylar but that lasted all of a minute;
• they did thin the herd (geez, let's see: Meredith, Knox, Flint, Arthur [confirmed dead], Doyle, metal-arm guy, and possibly Sylar [yeah right]);
• and time travel is apparently off the menu (yay!).

As for stuff I didn't predict (or got wrong):

• Hiro did not get his powers back, but was retrieved from 1992;
• Ando got powers;
• PrimaTech is history;
• Angela was NOT ready for Sylar;
• the Mendez scrapbook was much less annoying than I thought it'd be;
• the way they retrieved Hiro was clever;
• and Kat and I both loved how Hiro punched out Tracey.

Among the miscellaneous, Spider-Mo is healed (and probably still has powers), Tracey is looking for a new job, and nobody but nobody is going to be using Papa Petrelli's magical jello except his son and Ando. (And apparently at least one Marine, per the ad for "Heroes: the Recruit" webisodes.)

What do we see for the future? Apparently Nathan convinces the President (Michael Dorn, aka Worf) that the heroes represent a danger and must be contained at an isolated facility (shades of DAYS OF FUTURE PAST, anyone?). Some of the heroes are on the run (hence the chapter title FUGITIVES), others have been captured and are presumably on their way to some American gulag. Beyond that, I imagine we'll see some of the heroes drafted into government service in different capacities as the talents are weaponized.

And so it goes. HEROES returns on February 2, folks.

UPDATE! Argh--forgot to give the chapter finale a grade. Having watched it a second time (and really enjoying the Sylar voiceover opening!), I'm giving this an A-/B+. Far more entertaining than the close out of either previous chapter and actually has me curious about the next volume.

HEROES "Villains" Overview

Tonight is the last episode of this chapter of HEROES. "Villains" has been in many ways a relaunch of the series, fixing points where the series had gone astray in Season 2 (and boy, had it gone astray). Whether it worked is debatable: fan reaction is mixed; ratings have declined; and two executive producers have been let go.

So what's my take on the whole thing? Cover your eyes, kids, 'cause there are spoilers below.

1. Bromance is dead. Peter and Nathan are ending up enemies after this chapter; it's pretty clear that Nathan has drunk the Petrelli Kool-Aid and is going to further his dad's scheme to distribute powers to "the worthy." The fact that he thinks he can judge who's worthy and who isn't is a stamp of villainy in the making.
2. On the other hand, Isaac Mendez just won't die. It's not Santiago Cabrera's fault; hell, I'd love him to be back on the show again. A junkie painter-prophet? Gold! But his damnable "missing issue" is a cheap McGuffin.
3. And Arthur Petrelli might not be dead. Okay, Sylar allowed Peter's bullet to pass through Papa P's cranium. Is he dead? Well... Claire bounced back after a chunk of wood was lodged in her brain stem for awhile, so I'm not counting Papa P out just yet.
4. Matt Parkman finds love. I'm thinking Matt and Daphne might have something that lasts (until next year, anyway). Unfortunately, Elle and Sylar... not so much.
5. No love for time travel. This is one comic book cliche that needs to be buried once again. Honestly, every last friggin' thing is about saving the world from some future disaster. I'm pretty damned sick of it. How about saving your job from a bad evaluation? Sure, you can fly... so what? You'll be the flyingest guy in the unemployment line. More slice of life stories, less cataclysm-of-the-season please.
6. HRG is back. Jack Coleman acts his ass off in that scene last week with Claire, where she tries to convince him NOT to let the Company experiment on baby Claire. "Claire bear, huh?" is a great new quotable for the show.
7. Thinning the herd. About frickin' time. Maya's gone (for good?), Elle is gone (kind of a shame, 'cause I like Kristen Bell a lot), Arthur Petrelli may be gone (see above), and y'know, it's a good thing. We only have so much time and attention to give, so a sprawling cast is not helpful.
8. Predictions. It looks like PrimaTech drafts puppetmaster Doyle to take on Sylar, though I'm guessing this is only the overt move; odds are good Angela has another trick up her sleeve and is ready for her not-really-son. I'm also betting Peter gets his powers back and we see a powerhouse knockdown fight in tonight's ep.

That's where I am, folks. I'd grade this season as a C+ with moments of pure A. Far better than the D+ of last season, but it has a ways to go before it recaptures its lost glories. Will the show be renewed? NBC needs hits desperately, so if pilot season produces something phenomenal, HEROES may be the victim. Then again, Bryan Fuller is coming back on board, so the next arc ("Fugitives") might be the shot of pure awesome the show needs right now.

Grading the Comics- December 9, 2008

Here's the review for this week. Reactions? Let me know!

• ACTION COMICS #872 NEW KRYPTON - Hm. Reactron has a pretty nifty new weapon, and Metallo is kicking all kinds of butt. Meanwhile, Superman realizes the Kryptonians are NOT on the same page when it comes to settling down on Earth, while Luthor toys with Brainiac. Plus a pretty brutal final page. Great art by Gary Frank, involving story by Geoff Johns. A
• BOOSTER GOLD #15 - Booster runs afoul of the Elongated Man while trying to tie up yet more loose ends from the multi-part story spinning out of a museum break-in. The McGuffin isn't great and the way it affects history is way too murky to be entertaining. Dan Jurgen's art is great but I don't know if he's locked in on the "Booster as Time Cop" premise wholeheartedly. UPDATE: re-read this over the weekend and decided to bump it up half a grade. Dan J is pretty solid and Booster IS his creation, after all. Still... C+
• CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI 13 #8 - Captain Britain makes a heartbreaking realization, courtesy of his brutally honest subconscious, while the rest of the team fights the Mindless Ones, Blade produces a nifty new weapon, the Black Knight discovers something unsettling about his Ebony Blade's side effects, and Wisdom gets schooled in what demons really want. A
• DETECTIVE COMICS - With Batman gone, Nightwing gets called into Gotham when a Two-Face groupie splashes acid on "the Face of Gotham." It's not a comfy situation for any of the major players, as the status quo post-Batman starts to shuffle around. Not a great story by Denny O'Neil but not a bad story either. B-/C+
• FINAL CRISIS #5 (OF 7) - some interesting stuff going on here. The Green Lantern Corps enters the fray (though will they be able to DO anything?), the few remaining heroes are doing their best in Bludhaven, and Checkmate appears to be, um, checkmated. Plus a strange new arrival, delivered via a puzzle box. How do the good guys pull this out of the fire? Strong story, strong art. B+
• FINAL CRISIS REVELATIONS #4 (OF 5) - Vandal Savage/Cain (with the Spear of Destiny) shows he's one sick puppy, the Question asks some questions (and gets answers!), Huntress shows up to reinforce the good guys (who are under siege) and God's mercy... well. A
• GEN13 #25 - the Gen kids encounter Warhol fever victims in a mall and wackiness ensues. Well, not really--this is probably the bloodiest and nastiest issue of the series to date, with a hanging plot thread that will probably pay off sooner rather than later. And Eddie tries assimilating some unusual materials when facing a plague of rats... B-/C+
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #31 - Kryb takes on a squad of Green Lanterns, including a pregnant one out for revenge for the parental Lanterns murdered thus far. Nasty... and I never, ever thought Kryb was this badass. (Sure wasn't previously!). The Star Sapphire material is REAL interesting, too... B+
• JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #27 - the Milestone family of characters hits the DCU big time, following Static's recent debut in TERROR TITANS. They want the remains of a now-dead villain and are willing to face off against the JLA to get it. Lots of drama with Red Arrow and Hawkgirl, not to mention Black Canary giving the Trinity a piece of her mind (and rightly so!) and Hardware and Iota sharing some fun dialogue in the Hall of Justice gift shop (and you just knew there was one, right?). I guess I'm liking this book after all. B
• SAVAGE DRAGON #142 - In the aftermath of killing a beloved (if psychotic) hero, Dragon finds his name is mud AND he's a target for some superpowered vengeance. Meanwhile, Dragon Jr. and his friends face off against Mr. Glum, the search for the long-missing Jennifer is NOT going well, and a mysterious stranger promises to make Dragon's life very interesting, and possibly very short as well. A-
• SECRET INVASION DARK REIGN - love the story, not loving the art. Alex Maleev made Namor look like Bendis after a real bad night in the pubs--what gives? Namor with scruff and Bruce Willis hair? But Norman lays it out for the assembled villains (with serious badass style) and Emma Frost's motivations for being there get a good hard look. Story B+, art D+.
• TITANS #8 - okay, I'm out. The art is good but the story has totally lost me. F
• TRINITY #28 - the first part follows the six Friends of Trinity (FOT) into the former JLA HQ/cave in Happy Harbor, RI, then to terra incognita; meanwhile, the JSI and the League face off against an outbreak of weird-powered characters (including folks who were heroes in the mainstream DCU), while all hell appears to be breaking loose. B

Not a bad week so far, my friends. BTW, gave a glance at ASTONISHING X-MEN: GHOST BOXES by Warren E this week too... and WTF, man?? It's like RUINS all over again! Geez.

What's On Deck for This Week?

What am I planning to read this week? Well... let's find out. (With comments!)

• ACTION COMICS #872 NEW KRYPTON - SEE lots and lots of Kryptonians on Earth! SEE Superman try to mediate the differences between his native and his adopted people! SEE if I stay with this book after Johns and Frank move on.
• BOOSTER GOLD #15
• CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI 13 #8
• FINAL CRISIS #5 (OF 7) - sure hope something happens after all this waiting.
• FINAL CRISIS REVELATIONS #4 (OF 5) - I'm liking the Spectre enough to keep this rolling.
• GEN13 #25 - ...
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS #31 - looks like Kyle vs Kryb for all the marbles (or infants, or whatever)
• JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #27 - the Milestone-verse comes to the DCU at last!
• SECRET INVASION DARK REIGN - gotta see what they do, coming out of SI. Has lots of potential.
• TITANS #8 - at least we're done with Trigon's version of "My Three Sons"...
• TRINITY #28 - you may be surprised that I'm hanging in with this title but I have faith in Kurt Busiek and Fabian Nicieza. The story may be slow now but I figure it'll pick up speed until it's a runaway train this spring. Gotta hope, right?

See ya Wednesday!

Grading the Comics - December 3, 2008

Hey folks,
As Jeff points out in his comment, it's been awhile since I've done my usual reviews. So let me cue up what I'll be reading this week and (with luck) catch up later today/tomorrow on the huge mass of stuff I read last week.

UPDATED! All right, I have read my list for this week and here's what I think. (Drum roll please.)

• AUTHORITY #5 - Continuing the post-apocalypse storyline, this features the Engineer racing to save a handful of refugees from "Warhol fever" victims in the wreckage of the Carrier, while her teammates both help and hinder her progress. Sets up some nice ongoing tension within the ranks. B
• BATMAN #682 - a true Final Crisis tie-in and (I hope) the wrap up to RIP, this is a brilliant done-in-one about Batman's career--the start, the early days, the advent of Robin, the painful aftermath of Robin's departure, and the notion that something very wrong is happening inside Batman's noggin. Better than #681! A
• BOYS #25 - Wee Hughie learns more than he wanted about the expansive "G-Men" and their myriad franchise teams, while Mother's Milk talks about the job and Butcher contrives something interesting in the name of research. B+
• JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #21 - the $h!t is hitting the fan, boys and girls, with Gog setting a price for his miracles and the JSA deciding if they're going to pay it. And Superman-Grim punches a lightning bolt. Classic! And this is NOT yet the end of the story--that happens next month. A
• MARVEL ZOMBIES 3 #3 - as Machine Man confronts (and rips through) legions of Marvel zombies (including lots of the Inhumans, Ghost Rider, et al), Jocasta finds what they're looking for, even as ARMOR finds that they have a mole from the zombieverse. Solid storytelling and I like it MUCH better than MZ 2. B
• SECRET INVASION #8 - Wow, what a wrap up. Fans will love it or hate it; I thought it was pretty damn good. A major death very early on, a gigantic shake up to the status quo, and Iron Man pretty definitively falls from grace. A few loose ends and a heartwarming moment or two, all of which launch us into DARK REIGN, coming soon! A+
• TERRA #3 - interesting story, setting up a subterranean culture (something that AQUAMAN got around to doing very, very late) that justifies spending lots of time underground. Plus Terra explains her origin, Geo-Force gets slapped around some and "Diamond Boy" has some ups and downs of his own. B
• TERROR TITANS #3 - lots of fighting but not much to show for it, except an already-spoiled reveal on the last page. Three more issues of this? C-
• TRINITY #27 - again, not a lot happening. If this weren't a weekly, I'd have dumped it by now. C+
• WHAT IF... HOUSE OF M - "No more powers." Kind of says it all, except that a very old and very evil supervillain has an ultimate weapon that the nonpowered heroes can't fight. A pretty good look at what the heroic do when they don't have powers to prop them up. Plus a backup that'll run through all the What Ifs: What if the Runaways had become the Young Avengers? B
• X-INFERNUS #1 - Magik is back (okay, the Darkchilde is back; not exactly the same thing) and she's kicking butt. Colossus wants to go after and rescue his little sister Illyana but it looks like she doesn't need rescuing. Who does? Oh, probably the whole X-team, once a teleportal opens up in the wake of Pixie's discovery. Nice to see S'ym and Nastirh back again too. B+

And that's it for this week. Thoughts, comments, agree/disagree? I await word from you.

Drew

Last Week's Comics

=sigh=
Even with the best of intentions...
Turns out the new books did not come out yesterday, so I'll stall for time by listing the ton of books I got last week, plus some quick grading and thoughts.
First, though, a mini-rant.
I'm not enjoying reading comics as much as I did. Why? Partly because of a big sense of "been there done that" that infecting everything on the market now. There's no real sense of anything truly new breaking in (with sporadic exceptions).
It leads me to wonder how much longer I'll indulge my hobby on a weekly basis. Could be the time's come to make a break. We'll see, but 2008 has not stoked the fires of my fanboy heart.
Now, as for last week, what'd I buy? Well... (SPOILERS BELOW, FOLKS!)

• BATMAN #681 RIP - Okay, it's finally over. Batman meets the Devil (borrowing the image of his long-dead daddy) and blows up a helicopter. I'm surprised Nightwing and Robin bought it--this is the kind of faux-death that every Bat-villain has come back from bigger and badder than ever. Hell, the Joker does it every other month. Speaking of, let's retire the Joker for awhile, okay? I'm sick of that green-and-white freak showing up EVERYWHERE. B-
• BODY BAGS (ONE SHOT) - why the hell doesn't Jason Pearson do Body Bags more often? Geez! I love this guy's stuff and it shows up, what, every two or three years? How the hell does he make a living? It's frustrating as hell to enjoy a creator's work so much and get it so infrequently. Clownface and Panda absolutely rock. Buy this book and write to 12 Gauge--tell them you want more Body Bags! A
• HULK #8 - whew, talk about stinky cheese. Two stories that add up to more filler. Honest, is there any reason why three superheroes show up in Vegas at the same time as Bruce Banner and a busload of Wendigos? As for the other, I've lost any interest whatsoever in the Red Hulk (for the record, I think it's Talbot [aka Grey from Gamma Corps]) and just hope somebody will off this mort sooner rather than later. The art's nice (Art Adams and Frank Cho could illustrate the phone book, for my money) but the story's on life support and fading fast. D- (story), B+ art
• JSA KINGDOM COME SPECIAL THE KINGDOM #1 - most spinoffs and tie-ins have nothing to say; luckily, this is the rare exception. The killer final page gets to what Geoff Johns has been building to throughout this arc, setting up JSA for a big smackdown and some payoff to long-running plot threads. Gog shows who he really is and the JSA, divided along ideological lines, has never been this unready to meet the challenge. And the artwork rocks too! A
• PUSH #2 (OF 6) - Used to work with Marc Bernadin back in my freelancing days, when he was at STARLOG and I was scrambling for work. Now he's a bigshot comics writer (with a gig at ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY, no less) and I'm... well, I'm reviewing his stuff. Dammit. At least (as I recall), he was always a nice guy; pleasure to find out he's so talented at writing too. Read PUSH and you'll have a whole new appreciation for the psychic/espionage microgenre. A
• REIGN IN HELL #5 (OF 8) - Can somebody make sense of this story? I'll settle for being told why any DC reader ought to care at this point. C-
• RUNAWAYS 3 #4 - This one is Kat's specialty. I'll post her comments when I get them.
• SAVAGE DRAGON #141 - A big climax to the Solar Man story, along with a new vs old superhero throwdown. Erik Larsen does what he does best. B+
• SECRET INVASION X-MEN #4 (OF 4) MD - Always a big fan of Mike Carey's work, and this does not disappoint. Sets up a classic "should we go there?" dilemma for Cyclops, with Beast acting as Jiminy Cricket, and a splashy payoff as the X-Men deal with the Skrull threat to San Francisco in a pretty definitive fashion. Next question: is Tony Stark going to ask for their final solution? B+
• SUPERMAN #682 NEW KRYPTON - This is probably the most interesting way to go with Kandor that's been tried in a long, long time. Unfortunately, it's still not holding my interest. We all pretty much know 100,000 Kryptonians are NEVER going to assimilate on Earth--and is there any other reason to send Superman into deep space (2009) than to find them a new homeworld? Didn't think so. B-
• TEEN TITANS #65 - Wonder Girl gets empowered and celebrates with a new look, as well as kicking the ass of her psycho nephew. Okay story but nothing I'll recall in detail three months from now. B-
• TRINITY #26 - Earth is falling apart without the Big Three, I get it. Next. C+
• ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #128 - More about Venom and Carnage finally got interesting. Also, a fairly intriguing return. B
• ULTIMATE X-MEN #98 - An Ultimatum tie-in with the X-Men convinced that three of their teammates are dead in flooded Manhattan. Not bad at all. B-
• UMBRELLA ACADEMY DALLAS #1 - Hilarious stuff, setting up a truly grim-feeling storyline. A
• WALKING DEAD #55 - Rick's finally getting his head together, even as the little caravan makes some interesting discoveries (why are some of the zombies getting weak?). B+
• WILDCATS #5 - We get inside Spartan's head a bit, with help from Nemesis and Voodoo, and see that Hadrian is not a happy camper (and is also suffering a bit of an identity crisis). Good stuff. B

And that's what went on last week, friends. Till tomorrow! DB

Some Random Stuff

Hey folks,
I don't know why but short weeks are rough. Last week seemed to go on forever, after Labor Day.
Of course, we had a lot going on.
We went out Wednesday night to attend a book signing by Terry Brooks (author of the Shannara epic fantasy series-of-series) He's a real nice guy-- I think I met him first in '88 here in DC-- and perked up when I mentioned the reviews I've done for SFRevu. His sister has a book in the works and hopefully we'll review it when it comes out.
Thursday night we went to join our usual pack of comic book readers, the former UCBB (alas), and were out kind of late. We weren't lucky with trains and got home around 10.
And Friday night was First Friday for WSFA (Washington Science Fiction Association). Fun bunch of folks, and I picked up the newest Wild Cards novel in ARC form. I'm reading it now for review.
Well, that was our week last week. I mentioned T.S. Hanna already. Good news: my mom got through Gustav just fine, but now they're worried about Ike. I think I could hate Ike...
Hm.
Join me next time when I pick up the exciting adventures of my second stay in Hollywood.

Star Wars: The Decline and Fall

Hey folks-

Once in awhile, you read something that really touches a nerve. In this case, I read Drew McWeeny's post on Ain't It Cool News about his fanboy love of Star Wars and the break-up a decade in the making. It's really sad but honest as all hell.

McWeeny writes on AICN under the pen name Moriarty. He reviews movies and scripts, while building up his own resume as a screenwriter (he's had a few things produced and seems to be coming along well in the industry, if a remote observer like me can be any kind of judge). Well, it seems he ticked off Lucasfilm and the Bearded One himself with his review of Phantom Menace, way back in 1999 or so, and thus incurred their wrath in ways great and small.

Ultimately, he said (in the above post), he's had enough. Lucas won-- he won't write about Star Wars again.

I think articles like this highlight something I came to believe awhile ago: George Lucas went from being Luke Skywalker to being the Emperor.

Star Wars (the original--I've never called it "the fourth movie" or "A New Hope" and never intend to) was something I saw 23 times in the theaters. Think about that. From the age of 12 on, I used a tiny fortune (or so it seemed to me then) to watch the same movie 23 times.

I can't say the same about Empire Strikes Back-- I didn't like it as much at the time and didn't feel like spending that much money. In retrospect, I think Empire was a better film--better written and much better directed, for all that it built upon Lucas's original.

I hated Return of the Jedi. Did you know Obi-Wan, the Merlin to Luke's prospective Arthur, is a liar? ("from a certain point of view" my ass.) I didn't... and I hated that that was the path Lucas took, snapping up the intriguing bait offered (but not substantiated) by Kasdan and Brackett. Luke and Leia are brother and sister, a tribe of furry teddy bears can overcome the military forces of an interstellar atrocity machine, and Darth Vader is completely redeemed for two decades of evil by tossing his boss down a shaft. What a crapfest. I wanted Luke to find out Vader wasn't his dad--it was Vader who was lying. I wanted Luke to end up with Leia; Han Solo could snuggle up with Chewbacca for all I cared, he wasn't the hero of the story. (Turns out Luke wasn't either.)

Then a whole bunch of years go by and I see Phantom Menace and think... WTF? To see a really bad movie and then be told that the whole series was meant for kids? Please. Pretend all you want but don't talk down to me. (Side note: does anyone else notice Lucas has a penchant for creating tough-looking bada$$ characters and then totally punking them with lame death scenes? Boba Fett, Darth Maul, General Grievous--okay, maybe that last guy wasn't THAT tough-looking but still, he died like a punk. So what gives? Maybe he just has a thing for disposable villains who look good but can't deliver. Personally, I think Vader would have gone the same way--knocked off by Luke in the second movie, maybe--if he hadn't become a fan favorite.)

I saw Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith almost incidentally. Sith came out the day before I got married, back in '05, and I saw it more as a goodbye to my vastly prolonged childhood than anything else. Turns out it wasn't that bad, despite Hayden Christensen. (On the other hand, I guess we know for certain that strength in the Force and being a crybaby are both genetic traits of the Skywalkers...)

The upshot? The movies don't have any real heart and haven't for a long time--they're just the product of an industrial process more concerned with technical wizardry than storytelling. Lucas can construct a dazzling movie but he can't tell a story. It's as simple as that. And his efforts are aimed more at merchandising his properties than doing anything worthwhile with them.

(I should point out, in the interest of fairness, that I have read and enjoyed many of the Star Wars novels put out by Ballantine and Lucas Books. Those authors have turned a sow's ear into a silk purse more than once. Might be nice if the movie folks took a cue from the talented writing group they've assembled...)

Ah well. I enjoyed Star Wars an awful lot as a kid. Maybe it's better to let those memories lie undisturbed and not try to recapture that particular lightning in a bottle. I have better things to do with my time.