Sunday, May 31, 2009

Comics for the week of June 3, 2009

...and that is how I escaped from OH HELLO I DID NOT SEE YOU COME IN.

Comics!

A pretty dry week, if the Diamond shipping list is accurate- usually I use The Savage Critics' list to put these together, but that won't be available until tomorrow and I felt like posting something, anything to get back into the blogging groove.

Singles
Batman & Robin #1. What, you thought I would stay silent on this? Are you out of your goddamned mind? Final Crisis was fascinating, and provided a lot to go over from a critical perspective, but as far as storytelling goes it was kind of a damp squib. I'm aware of Morrison's ambitions for the series, and I think he achieved some of them, but the awkward dovetailing with Batman RIP, the unplanned change of artists, and the strong whiff of interference from the complete fucking madhouse of DC Editorial made for something far less than the sum of its parts. What I've seen* of Batman & Robin has me excited like nothing since, well, Morrison's Batman, and the fact that he's working with Frank Quitely again raises my expectations to a level that's nearly impossible to satisfy. As with any Morrison book (except maybe All-Star Superman), it'll be difficult to judge based on the first issue, so I wait with bated breath for issue #2 in October, and next February's issue #3, featuring the art stylings of Igor Kordey. ZING MOTHERFUCKERS

Trades

Age of the Sentry. Not a very substantial book, but one I enjoyed, and one I can see myself loaning out to friends or acquaintances who are curious about superhero comics and want a quick, fun read with no prerequisites.

Wonton Soup vol. 2. Again, not a whole lot going on here, at least if the first book was any indication, but fun. I like Iron Chef, I like space and things that happen in space, I like this kind of Brian Lee O'Malley/Brandon Graham/Corey Lewis Westernized manga style, and more importantly this costs less than ten bucks so I'm not out too much if it's not entirely satisfying.

*preview courtesy of the vile Ain't It Cool News; click at your own risk. Actually, I'd advise holding off until the comic comes out, since it's just the cover and first three pages. Though those pages do include Mister Toad's Safety-Conscious Ride. Your call.

Thursday, April 30, 2009