Comics for Feb 21, First Looks Feb 28

[dvandom]

                    Dave's Unspoilt Capsules and Awards
         The Week's Picks and Pans, plus Awards of Dubious Merit

Standard Disclaimers: Please set appropriate followups.  Recommendation does
not factor in price.  Not all books will have arrived in your area this week.
I have a shiny new Washington dollar coin.  Rants, Capsules can be found on my 
             homepage, http://www.eyrie.org/~dvandom/Rants 

First Look Comments:

     Books I read over the weekend as First Looks, but didn't buy, so can't
really say much in detail about.  DC has stopped having First Looks, so it's
just Marvel and Image...and there's word that Diamond doesn't want to bother
with the program at all anymore.

     Books for next week - 

     Wonder Man #3 (of 5): Marvel - It's very much a middle issue, with sme
nice turning points and switchbacks.  The new baddies introduced here are so
far forgettable, though.  And PAD couldn't resist making at least one Kelsey
Grammar ref....  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.75Cn
     X-Factor #16: Marvel - Two moral quandaries this issue, solved in rather
different ways, albeit both heroically.  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.75Cn

Capsules:
     Short, relatively spoiler-free reviews of books I actually bring home
(as opposed to reading in preview form in the shop or online).  If I get a
book late due to distributor foulups or whatever, I'll put it in the Missing
section.

     Books of Note (Strongly Recommended or otherwise worthy): Superman #659,
Devil's Panties #9

     Cable & Deadpool #37: Marvel - While theoretically part of an arc, this
works just fine as a standalone story.  And no Cable on screen either.  Just
plenty of Deadpool weirdness as he deals with a little problem.
Recommended.  $2.99/$3.75Cn
     She-Hulk v2 #16: Marvel - Fun story from Slott, dealing with some old
business...and old pleasure.  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.75Cn
     Marvel Adventures Avengers #10: Marvel - The Black Knight and Morgan le
Fay feature in this issue, getting new origins as per usual for the title.
Parker's story gets a little hokey in places, but is overall worth reading.
And a nice counter to the stuff going on in the "real" Avengers book.
Recommended.  $2.99/$3.75Cn
     52 #42 (of 52): DC - Two pages of Montoya, two of Green Arrow's origins
(with crappy McDaniels art), and the rest is finishing off Ralph Dibny's
journey, with art by Darick Robertson (over Giffen layouts).  Like the
Everyman plot, this is a really good end, but to a plot that was strung out
way too long.  I'm not so keen on all the aspects of how this ends, but at
least it goes some ways towards redeeming Ralph after all the crap he's been
put through since Identity Crisis started.  And it's good to have Robertson
on a book, too.  Recommended.  $2.50/$2.99Cn
     Aquaman Sword of Atlantis #49: DC - Last Busiek issue (Tad Williams
takes over next month), very flashbacky, a strong Lovecraftian vibe to
things, and pulpy art from Villagran.  While it has its flaws, I think if
Busiek's entire run had been more like this, I would have been happier with
it.  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.65Cn
     Superman #659: DC - Busiek and Nicieza bring us a flashback tale, which
has the benefit of NOT adding any continuity-mangling stuff (as in Action
Comics Annual #10, which I have since been told is all in-continuity) and
also avoids some of the more maudlin extremes it could easily have slipped
into.  Plus, it's relevant to the Arion stuff from the past few issues,
without requiring knowledge of it.  In short, an excellent done in one
story.  Vale's art is somewhat derivative, but at least derives from good
sources.  Strongly recommended.  $2.99/$4.00Cn
     Shadowpact #10: DC - Willingham has fun with the hierarchy of Hell, and
while the story doesn't have the power of, say, the Ragman spotlight issue,
it's a good read.  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.65Cn
     Conan #37: Dark Horse - Something of a pause between arcs, lining up all
the people who currently have plans to see Conan dead or worse.  :)  I can't
shake the feeling that Conan's sparring partner this issue is a reference to
some pulp or Victorian character I should know, or perhaps a more modern
character with a tweaked name (checking Jess Nevins's "Encyclopedia of
Fantastic Victoriana yields no one by the name Stokosta the Seaman, though).
Recommended.  $2.99
     GIJoe vs. Transformers IV #2 (of 2): Devil's Due - I got the Bludgeon
cover.  Anyway, you can tell where the issue break is here (a 4 issue series
done as two double-sized issues), and it's a good spot for one.  :)  There's
a LOT more nostalgia cranking here, what with Kung Fu Grip and Battle Beasts
and the Laser Team.  The story itself is a bit compressed, but at least the
plot device used in the endgame was clearly established last issue and makes
perfect sense.  Recommended.  $5.50 (Aside: as mentioned below, Diamond's
local warehouse claimed to not have any of the movie prequel issues to send
us this week.)
     Invincible #39: Image - The Sequid plot gets in gear, but while we wait
for things to really hit the fan in that respect, another plot goes on the
front burner.  Kirkman's not afraid to juggle world-threatening plots.  :)
Recommended.  $2.99/$3.55Cn
     Retro Rocket #4 (of 4): Image - FINALLY.  I was definitely concerned
that one issue wouldn't be enough to resolve this story without a massive
deus ex machina (or cyborg), but despite a pretty heavy dose of exposition,
it came through pretty well, and made sense.  A tad of a downer ending,
especially for fans of extropianism, but good.  Recommended.  $2.99/$3.50Cn
     The Devil's Panties #9: Silent Devil - Well, it wasn't on the invoice as
of Saturday, but it actually came in, breaking a streak many issues long.  As
usual, while the strips themselves are great, it's the end notes that really
make the book...especially revelations about how MUCH of this stuff really
happened.  Strongly recommended.  $4.95
     PS238 #20: Dork Storm/Do Gooder - Whoog.  I think I'll need to go back
and re-read this after digging up #13 (which I think is stowed in a deep box,
so it'll have to wait until after I upgrade to drawerboxes), as it's the
other side of that time travel story.  It's also the less comprehensible side
of the story, although it has some good standalone scenes.  Recommended.
$2.99 
     

Gone Missing:

     Stuff that came out some places this week and that I wanted to buy, but
couldn't find for whatever reason, so people don't have to email me asking
"Why didn't you review X?"  (If it's neither here nor in the section above,
though, feel free to ask, I might have forgotten about it!) 

     Current list as of 2/21:

     Still missing Gold Digger Tangent #2, Fred Perry's S-Guild #1,
Dr. Debunko: the Short Stories, Roy Thomas's Anthem #4, Devil's Panties #7,
#8 (Diamond cancelled the reorder on Devil's Panties #7), Thunderbolts
Presents: Zemo Born Better #1.  Add Invincible #39 and Transformers the Movie
Prequel #1, both of which the Diamond rep said they ran out of or something
and would try to ship next week.  At least I read Invincible already.


Awards:

"I Need To Make That Keychain" Award to Cable & Deadpool #37

"Tabloid Troubles" Award to She-Hulk v2 #16

"How's THAT For Crafting Rules?" Award to Marvel Adventures Avengers #10

"A Faustian Bargain" Award to 52 #42 (of 52)

"Home Is Where You Wear Your Hat" Award to Aquaman Sword of Atlantis #49

"I Thought The Other One Was The Angel?" Award to Superman #659

"But Do The Guns Breathe?" Award to Shadowpact #10

"A Crackerjack Plan" Award to Conan #37

"Kung Fu Brip!" Award GIJoe vs. Transformers IV #2 (of 2)

"Snakes On A Silo?" Award to Invincible #39

"Suicide By Bot" Award to Retro Rocket #4 (of 4)

"MONKEY DEMANDS TEA!" Award to The Devil's Panties #9

"She Should Hang Out With The Akiko-Bot" Award to PS238 #20

   Dave Van Domelen, "Don't make me go get a bunch of EUROPEANS to come over here and PAVE the place!" - Zodon, PS238 #20

Comments

[dvandom.livejournal.com]

Well, it's a sailor in a striped shirt, with a bulldog who hangs out with him.

[ratmmjess.livejournal.com]

Is the sailor a kid, with a kind of flat hat? 'cause if so, I think I've seen him before....

[dvandom.livejournal.com]

Nope. Big burly guy, with short hair and no hat. But might be intended to be an adult version of someone otherwise seen as a kid. Maybe I'll scan it when I get home.