Pull List for 4 Nov 2009

1. Atomika #11 (of 12)
2. Conan The Cimmerian #15
3. Dark Avengers: Ares #1 (of 3)
4. Deadpool Team-Up #899 *
5. GrimJack: The Manx Cat #4 (of 6)
6. Lobo: Highway to Hell #1 (of 2)
7. Reborn #4 (of 5)
8. Secret Six #15
9. Sir Edward Grey, Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels #5 (of 5)
10. Starr the Slayer #3 (of 4)
11. Vampirella: The Second Coming #3 (of 4)
12. Warlord #8 *

LOBO! LOBO! LOBO! LOBO! (Can you tell I get a tad excited when any new Lobo book comes out?)

I’ve been avoiding any of the Deadpool spin-off books, but this one guest-stars Hercules and is written by Fred Van Lente, who is doing great work on that book, so at least worth the look-see.  No promises on any future issues, though, unless Van Lente is going to be writing them. If that’s the case, I may drop the main series and start picking this one up.

Apparently, Grell’s story was only a two-parter, so we’ll see if he’s back for Warlord next month or if whoever wrote the first unimpressive arc is.  If it ain’t Grell, I’m not interested.

Vampi’s still only $2. I’m worried the story ends stupidly, and they didn’t think they could sell the next series if this one cost too much.

Pull List for 4 Dec 2008

1. The Astounding Wolf-Man #10
2. Batman #682
3. Criminal #7
4. Hack/Slash #18
5. Hellboy: The Wild Hunt #1 (of 8 )
6. Kull #2
7. The Living Corpse #6
8. The New Avengers #47
9. Secret Invasion #8 (of 8 )
10. Wolverine: Manifest Destiny #2 (of 4)
11. Wonder Woman #26

Quick Reviews for 22 Oct 2008

Yeah, I’m still behind — sue me.

1. Captain America #43 — Mostly set-up for the new storyline, but some intriguing bits contrasting Bucky’s WWII adventures and his time as the Winter Soldier. Plus, Batroc returns! A
2. Criminal #6 — Jacob’s life takes a turn for the worse, if you can imagine.  Another homer from Brubaker. A
3. Cyblade #1 — While there’s nothing particularly “wrong” with this book, you get the feeling it thinks it’s treading new ground when it’s merely rehashing an age-old plot (c.f. La Femme Nikita, Alias, et. al.). Mays’s art doesn’t look good at all.  I’m not sure if he was rushed, is experimenting with a new style, or if the inker wasn’t a good fit, but it looks borderline terrible, especially compared to some of his older work. I may give #2 a shot, but this first issue was extremely unimpressive. D
4. DCU Halloween Special 2008 #1 — Aside from a few momentary good bits, this is largely a complete waste of $6. D
5. Final Crisis #4 — Holy crap! Anyone who’s been having problems following Morrison’s thought patterns should have no problems with this issue.  There is some seriously dark stuff happening here. A
6. Final Crisis: Submit #1 — If you haven’t already, read this one before Final Crisis #4.  This gives a little more explanation of what’s happening to the world, and also sets the stage for the Tattooed Man scenes.  B
7. Ms. Marvel #32 — Okay, now we’re telling a pre-Ms. Marvel Carol Danvers military story.  I’m not buying the relative civility Carol’s captors are bestowing on her.  I’m not sure what Reed is trying to pull here, but he’s seriously starting to lose me on this title. C
8. The New Avengers #46 — Another “Where were you when the invasion began?” story, but centered around the Hood and his collection of criminals.  I liked this issue more than most, but aside from the Hood’s reveal, it’s really unnecessary to the “Secret Invasion” storyline.  B
9. Secret Invasion #7 — Mostly one big fight scene. Not bad, but it just fell a bit flat. B
10. She-Hulk #34 — This series is starting to remind me of later seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Lots of good bits of dialog and characterization intermingled with a mess of a plot. C
11. Thor: The Truth of History #1 — An old-school Thor story (plenty of “thees”, “thous”, and other olden-speak), but a lot of fun.  The fact the art is gorgeous adds to the enjoyment. A
12. Wolverine: Manifest Destiny #1 — I’m not sure why this warrants a separate miniseries when it could’ve easily been an arc in the main series or the long-suffering Wolverine: Origins. Basically, it’s a change of pace where Wolverine preemptively tries to tie up some loose ends in Chinatown before they show up at his door to start a fight.  It’s okay, just nothing special.  B
13. X-Factor #36 — A great story marred by Stroman’s god-awful artwork. Marvel, please get rid of him. B

Pull List for 22 Oct 2008

1. Captain America #43
2. Criminal #6
3. Cyblade #1
4. DCU Halloween Special 2008 #1 (one-shot)
5. Final Crisis #4 (of 7)
6. Final Crisis: Submit #1 (one-shot)
7. Ms. Marvel #32 *
8. The New Avengers #46
9. Secret Invasion #7 (of 8 )
10. She-Hulk #34 *
11. Thor: The Truth of History #1 (one-shot)
12. Wolverine: Manifest Destiny #1 (of 4)
13. X-Factor #36

* — Denotes those wavering at the edge of the Culling List.
§ — Denotes my last issue of this misbegotten series.

Most anticipated: Well, if you exclude Cap and Criminal, which are givens, Thor: TToH is a) Thor and b) by Alan Davis, so it should be good.

Secret Invasion and Final Crisis continue this week.  Both have been good to excellent so far.

Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk have been faltering a bit lately, so they’re on the short list right now.

Wolverine: MD is my attempt at giving Jason Aaron a second chance since Ghost Rider’s been hit and miss, plus Segovia draws pretty pictures.

The Pilot Season Cyblade issue from last year was pretty good, so we’ll give the first issue of the new series a try.

Quick Reviews for 24 Sep 2008

1. Ambush Bug: Year None #3 — Things are a little more disjointed this issue, as Ambush Bug tries to get his marriage annulled. This is turning into more of a collection of random jokes than a satire. B
2. Captain America #42 — At the risk of sounding like an Internet fanboy, OMFG!!! WTF?!?1? The last page alone is worth the price.  LOVED IT!  A
3. Deadpool #2 — This story probably would’ve worked better as a double-sized #1 instead of a lackluster #1 and an okay #2.  I’m going to give this another issue or two to decide, but I’m not convinced Way is the best fit for Deadpool. B
4. Fantastic Four #560 — So we get the origins of the New Defenders, or whatever the hell they’re calling themselves.  Yea… more environmental propaganda. I’m going to let this arc finish, and then I’m done with this.  Too predictible and preachy, in my opinion.  At least the pictures are pretty, though. C
5. Hellboy: The Crooked Man #3 — Very cool final battle with the Crooked Man.  A
6. Ms. Marvel #31 — See, this is what I’m talking about.  Once we get away from the crossover, Reed turns out a great personal piece.  The art could’ve been a bit stronger in conveying the emotion, but otherwise a good read.  B
7. The New Avengers #45 — For some reason, we do a flashback (?) to the “House of M” storyline, the result of which make the Skrull’s invasion easier. I thought they did this in the HoM tie-in, so why did Bendis feel the need to repeat it here? C
8. Northlanders #10 — Edwin sees his revenge exacted and gets a shot at joining with the Vikings. Great stuff. A
9. Project Superpowers #6 — The penultimate issue in the first story arc.  This has had it’s good moments as well as its not-so-good.  This was somewhere in between. B
10. She-Hulk #33 — Nice development with Jazinda and Super-Skrull. David really excels on complex characterization.  A
11. Wolverine: Origins #28 — So this is the prologue to a crossover with X-Men.  Why?  C
12. X-Force #7 — I’m probably going to get some flak here, but I actually thought this issue was a great improvement over the first storyline.  There were some good character moments, and some definite tension between the various members.  B