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.

I bought comics

My epic, country-spanning victory jig having finally petered out somewhere in the Pacific Northwest in the wee hours of Monday morning, I'm finally ready to wholeheartedly resume the work I love: making fun of comics before I buy them and then failing to follow up with the more in-depth commentary I repeatedly promise and just as repeatedly scrap after realizing it's not funny or insightful. LET'S DO THIS THING!

Here's what I bought last week, or, since I live in a city without a single comic shop, what I asked Scifigenre to stick in a box and mail to me at the end of the month:

Age of the Sentry #3
Air #4
Ambush Bug: Year None #4
The Goon #30

Some comics I didn't buy yet, but somehow feel entitled to comment on anyway, my god, the sheer gall of this man:

Ender's Game: Battle School #2. Fuck Orson Scott Card in the ear. That is all.
Punisher War Journal #25
Scalped #23
Tales to Suffice #1

Trades:
Batman: Gotham Underground.
Countdown to Final Crisis vol. 4.
Jack Kirby's The Demon Omnibus. Meanwhile, in comics that don't make me want to travel through time and space to beat Johannes Gutenberg into a coma, thus forestalling the invention of the printing press and, eventually, the career of Judd Winick, we have the latest entry in DC's long overdue series of deluxe Jack Kirby reprints. It is good, and you will buy it, or you will be shunned.
The Punisher by Garth Ennis Omnibus. You already know in your heart of hearts whether or not you need a gigantic, 63 dollar, seven and a half pound slab of Ennis' profane, ultraviolent, extraordinarily silly take on the Punisher. For me, the answer was yes.
Vertigo Tarot Deck 20th Anniversary Edition. Includes Aquanet, Floodland on cassette tape, fishnet shirt (unisex) and heavy-duty tear-resistant mascara! No, I'm not buying this, I just wanted an excuse to point and laugh and link to this video.

And this week's releases:
Batman #681. "Note price," sez Diamond. Duly noted!
Blue Beetle #33
Unknown Soldier #2
Wolverine First Class #9

This week's trades:
American Elf vol. 3. The third collected volume of James Kochalka (Superstar)'s daily diary comic.
The Best of Tharg's Future Shocks.
Gilbert Hernandez's Sloth is now available in TPB if you didn't pick it up in hardcover. Congratulations, your two and a half years of fiscal vigilance has saved you five dollars, you savvy consumer, you!
Osamu Tezuka's Black Jack vol. 2.

Comics for the week of October 5, 2008

First things first. Are you American? Have you voted? No? You, sir, are a cad and a scoundrel. Get your ass to a voting booth and then we'll talk.

Back so soon? Well, okay, then.

Singles

Final Crisis: Resist #1. I'm hoping this will act as a sort of corollary to Morrison's Submit. This is my theory, hear me out: just as the main body of Final Crisis is holding steady at Pretty Fucking Great, but Submit was entirely disposable, incredibly ugly and not very well-written, I'm hoping that Resist will balance out the sadly unexciting Revelations and give us something really great. Rucka can do it, we know that; here's his chance.

Grant Morrison's Doctor Who #2. I have to confess, the first issue of this is sitting in a pile of unread books; I've been picking them up because, hey, The Moz is writing, but I'm putting them off until I've had some serious Netflix* and Wikipedia time to absorb all the Who I need. As a 20-something American, opportunities to see Doctor Who in any media have been pretty few and far between during my lifetime until relatively recently, and while I've caught up with most of the classic Tom Baker episodes and a few episodes with earlier Doctors, my knowledge is still extremely spotty.

Invincible Iron Man #7. The first story arc is over; this one's got Spider-Man. That's about all we know.

Top Ten: Season Two #2. The first one was good. With any luck, this will be too. Yeah, that's why you read this blog, exciting and provocative ideas and bold, confrontational views.

Weapon X: First Class #1. This just sounds like the worst fucking thing ever, at least for this week, as Marvel appears to be ditching the whole "fun" part of the First Class books for, and I quote, "a brand-new look at the horrifying history of Marvel's most prominent mutant". Because God knows, that well isn't dry, oh no. That barrel is un-scraped. The horse is one hundred percent alive and it is in need of a vicious beating. "PLUS: Each issue features a 10-page back-up story featuring an important player from Wolverine's past! First up, an untold tale of Wolvie's arch-nemesis, the mutant madman known as Sabretooth!" BE STILL MY BEATING HEART

Trades

Absolute Sandman vol. 4. Yeah, I'm a sucker, I've already got most of these books in paperback and they're not quite as great as I thought when I was a teenager. I don't fucking care, I'm still buying them again. Because...hell, I don't know why. They're pretty on my shelf?

Daredevil by Frank Miller & Klaus Janson vol. 1. The first volume in Marvel's paperback printing of the out-of-print Miller/Janson Daredevil Omnibus. I have it on reasonable authority that this is Good Stuff and will be picking up a copy.

Liquid City. An Image anthology of Southeast Asian artists and writers. I don't know anyone involved in the project, but after the success of Image's Popgun anthologies I'm definitely interested. Will at least give this the old bookstore flip-through.

The Mister X Archives. Dark Horse reprints all of Dean Motter & co.'s Mister X in anticipation of the new miniseries starting November. This is beautiful work, even if it didn't always make a great deal of sense or conclude satisfyingly; I'm looking forward to the opportunity to read the whole thing.

The Question, vol. 3: Epitaph for a Hero. More O'Neal Question. I'm experiencing the series for the first time with these reprints, so I really can't speak to the quality of this trade; I did enjoy the first two, though, for all their desperately earnest 80's-ness and melodrama.

Watchmen. The Absolute Edition? Savage Critic says it's another reprint of the Absolute, as did DC's website months ago, but other sources suggest it's just a new hardcover with the Absolute Edition's revised coloring. If it's the former, yay; the Absolute Watchmen was a gorgeously produced book with some truly worthwhile supplementary material, and one that I never managed to convince myself to buy before it went out of print. If it's the latter, I can definitely do without, as I'm ambivalent about recoloring classic comics (see this recent Funnybook Babylon post for a truly heinous example, or the rereleased Killing Joke).

*Netflix subscribers should be aware that they have quite a lot of Doctor Who DVD sets available on their thoroughly impressive streaming service, including the entire Key to Time arc

Comics for the week of October 29, 2008

Via, as always, the Savage Critic.

Singles, loneliest number, etc

Checkmate #31. Bruce Jones, you will be called to account for what you've done. Not today, not tomorrow, but when you pass them Pearly Gates up to that there Great Bullpen in the Sky. And on that day, you will know what it is like to be mercilessly bitchslapped by the ghost of Will Eisner. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY BELOVED MEDIUM," he will scream, tears of rage rolling down his spectral cheeks. And you will be silent because you know there is nothing you could possibly say in your defense.
...okay, that one got a little out of hand. Moving on to more...

positive...

subjects

DC Universe: Decisions #3.

why you do this to me Dimi

why

i am afraid

Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1. Finally, a book that doesn't make me want to jump off a bridge! So yeah, here we get Geoff Johns dealing with the immediate aftermath of the Sinestro Corps War and laying the groundwork for the upcoming Darkest Night plotline. Should be fun stuff, even if the art is a bit dodgy and it looks like it has fuck-all to do with Final Crisis proper.

Hellboy in the Chapel of Moloch. Mignola returns to drawing Hellboy for a special one-shot issue? I am so up for this.

Kick Drum Comix #2. More Jim Mahfood art. I would like more of this, yes I would.

Kill Your Boyfriend. A bit of prime Morrison finally available again in the slow, slow rush to cash in on the mild sorta-success of Final Crisis. I will never understand how the marketing departments of the big two work, but I will gladly take this reprint of one of my favorite Morrison stories. Gorgeous art by Philip Bond too.

Superman and Batman vs Vampires and Werewolves #2. I must confess I haven't read the first one yet, and ominously, I haven't seen much about it on the blogospheriversamajig, which probably means it's not only not terribly good (like anyone expected it to be) but not bad enough to be worth my while. But who knows? This could be the next Nextwave. It won't be, but I shall read it and its preceding issue with no expectations and find out.

Wolverine: First Class #8. Still good. Still a book about Wolverine. My brain is having trouble reconciling these two data points.

Trades

Bat-Manga: The Secret History of Batman in Japan. Batman. 60's manga. Chip Kidd. Ridiculous Japanese Bat-Merchandise. You know you want it, and if you do, be aware that the hardcover is a bit longer than the paperback. Last I checked, Amazon still had the hardcover at a steep discount.

Green Lantern: In Brightest Day. Geoff Johns selects an anthology of his favorite Green Lantern stories. Potentially interesting, though I don't know enough of the non-Moore GL highlights to have much to say about his choices. I can, however, point and scowl at the Jim Lee cover. SCOWL

And finally, something called Extreme Curves: Phat Girls. Not that I'm going to buy it- heavens, no- I just think it's a funny title. You see, "phat" with a "ph" is how the urban people say something is bad

(which means it is good oh they are SO CRAZY)

Seriously, I thought the word "phat" had been lying in an unmarked grave just off of Route 66 since the mid-nineties. Let's leave it there, okay? Especially if you mean "fat," which from what I gather is the specific fetish addressed in this weighty tome. OH SNAP

Comics for the week of October 8, 2008, my friends.

Singles, my friends. Did you know my opponent wants to read these singles with no predonditions? No preconditions, my friends. My friends, that's not the kind of change we can believe in.

Action Comics #870. Geoff Johns brings a decent but not overwhelming Brainiac story to what seems to me like a rushed conclusion. I've been enjoying it so far, but the last issue was unimpressive. We'll see if Johns can stick the landing.

Detective Comics #849. This is by far the best Batman RIP tie-in, by virtue of not being complete crap; Dini also pulls off the best Hush story ever written by managing to not be Jeph Loeb. This isn't to say it's great, or even particularly good, but there's a high-melodrama pulpiness that Dini can employ particularly well at times and it's on display here. Zombie hobo nurses! Catwoman's missing heart! Batman fighting a little boy hopped up on Venom! Okay, that last one was ridiculous in a bad way, and Dini's Zatanna fetish is still irritatingly obvious, but I'm having fun here despite myself. Dustin Nguyen's gorgeous art helps too.

Final Crisis: Revelations #3. The third issue in Greg Rucka's surprisingly unsurprising Final Crisis tie-in, in which we learn more about the Magic Nun of Happiness and the Question and Batwoman throw down kung fu style. And some other stuff happens, presumably, unless the book is the first five pages printed over and over again. WE WILL SEE, AND READ, AND JUDGE.

Green Lantern #35. Huzzah! "Secret Origin" is finally fucking over! It's been as competently executed as any of Johns' recent work, but was it really worth taking half a year out of a flagship title to let us know that Black Hand diddles corpses? Okay, yes, there's the retconned Darkest Night stuff, but I'm not really convinced that was necessary- surely all the references in Sinestro Corps War provided enough context. And if they didn't, just carve some space out of the back of one of the GL titles (*cough*Corps*cough*) and reprint Alan Moore's "Tygers," bang, problem solved. Oh, and don't get me started on that line from last issue about "tell the other four Inversions that they can kiss my ass," or whatever the fuck, where Johns takes what Moore clearly meant to be a vaguely mystical title ("of the Five Inversions") and literalizes it in the most painful way. Urgh.
...so yeah, I like this book and am looking forward to this issue.

Green Lantern Corps #29. This one, on the other hand? Not so much. GLC was never less than fine during the Sinestro Corps War event, but lately it's been feeling a bit rudderless, with the rushed and unsatisfactory Mongul/Mother Mercy storyline (YES DC YOU MISS ALAN MOORE, WE GET IT, THIS WILL NOT MAKE HIM COME BACK) and the almost pointless story of the last two issues with the Eyeball Kids or whatever the hell they were called. This month's issue allegedly starts the lead-up to Darkest Night- oh goody, they're ramping up to the stuff I actually want to read!- and features the Star Sapphires. They will be the Corps of Luuuv. Righto then.

Invincible Iron Man #6. Matt Fraction wraps up his first plot arc, in which Microsoft, in the persona of Warren Ellis's Tony Stark, fights Evil Linus Torvalds, only things are settled with punchin' and force beams instead of IP law and market share. I'm going to go out on a limb here and wager that we did not in fact see Tony get his head blown off on the last page of issue 5. Call it a hunch. Also featuring a variant cover that isn't ugly and pointless! Seriously, that is a fine, fine cover. I APPROVE.

Secret Six #2. Gail Simone seems like she's having a blast writing these characters again. Presumably this issue we get more of the deeply discomfiting villain-in-a-box and more supervillains makin' catty comments durin' Six Feet Under. I can live with that!

Young Liars #8. I was going to drop this after issue 6 for being an annoying, shallow Gregg Araki script transferred to the comics page. Then issue 7 came out, I read it anyway, and now I think Lapham might have a plan for this, and that the Natural Born Killersiness of the first six issues might have been intentional. I mean, obviously it was intentional, he sat down and wrote it and drew it, I mean intentionally irritating. We'll see. But man, that last issue was bugfuck crazy. Literally.

My friends, there is a surge of trades. It's a surge that my opponent, my opponent said wouldn't work, would- would never work, can't even admit today that it has worked. Teddy Roosevelt, my hero, once said- walk, talk softly and carry a big stick. My friends, these trades talk loudly.

Batman: Black and White vol. 2. Now in an all-new, smaller edition for your convenience! But as a compromise it costs...the same? Wait what

DC Comics Goes Ape. Yes, DC is again cynically exploiting a silly Marvel event with a cheap reprint of older material. But this book contains the Mod Gorilla Boss's fight with Animal Man and you know what? That is keen.

Hellboy Library Edition vol. 2. If you like yer Hellboy big 'n' sturdy, here's another giant backbreakin' chunk o' Mignola. Cain't say as it's my thing, but some folks go fer it.

The Immortal Iron Fist vol. 3: The Book of Iron Fist. The final volume of Brubaker and Fraction's run on the title, also collecting the two one-shots. Good stuff, but if you hold off for a couple months it'll be in paperback.

Punisher MAX vol. 10: Valley Forge, Valley Forge. Or "Valley Forge, Valley Forge: The Slaughter of a US Marine Garrison and the Birth of the Punisher" if you're a stickler for detail. The last of Ennis's MAX stories, and allegedly a damn fine one. I'll be waiting on the final hardcover to read this.

Black Jack vol. 1. Also available through Diamond as a hardcover with an extra Black Jack story Tezuka apparently didn't see fit to print in the Japanese "perfect collection" these Vertical reprints are based on. Good stuff, and highly recommended. See Christopher Butcher's review for more.

Edited for a truly astounding number of typos and errors gramattical, factual and stylistic. Most amusingly "Batgirl" instead of "Batwoman;" apparently my subconscious can't believe they're finally trying to get some use out of the character either

Comics for the week of October 2, 2008

Things are looking a bit better in singles this week:

Batman #680. Now that All-Star Superman has wrapped up, at least I've got Morrison's Batman to keep me going. Expectations are pretty damn high for this issue, since we should be closing in on the climax of "Batman R.I.P." and some hot plot-twisting action.
The Boys #23. A new story arc starts here after the excellent "I Tell You No Lie, G.I." Here's hoping it'll be more of that and less of "Glorious Five Year Plan."
DC Universe: Decisions #2. Not because I want to, you understand. Because I must. Because I must descend into the abyss and confront the age-old evil that is The Real World's Judd Winick, and also that Fables guy, as they work their hardest to ass up the DC Universe with their toothless, pointless "political" "thriller." I was going to read the first issue out of morbid curiosity, then let the rest slide and read it all later for a post detailing its inevitable crappiness, but then Winick and Willingham used the Doom Patrol's Robotman, and used him badly. It's personal now.
Doktor Sleepless #9. A new plot arc starts here, so if you're looking for a jumping-on point to this most Ellis-y of Ellis comics, this might be it. I can't say for sure as I'm waiting on next month's trade to catch up before I jump back on board.
Nightwing #149. Because, eh, why not? I read the first two parts of this tepid Two-Face storyline and I will be goddamned if I quit in the middle. Worse comics than this have not defeated me (this is still pretty bad though).
Punisher War Journal #24. Not actually buying this, as I've been following PWJ in trades (something far easier to do with Marvel titles than DC thanks to their comparatively brisk trade schedule) but I felt like noting it anyway. I've heard some really harsh reviews of this book's Jigsaw storyline (which is, worryingly, the next trade), but judging from the solicit text, that looks like it's over. What we've got instead is a Secret Invasion tie-in (um) that focuses on Stuart Clarke (hm).
Sub-Mariner: The Depths #2. #1 was surprisingly good, and while I have little hope that we'll ever see the Milligan of Rogan Gosh and Enigma again, this at least beats his recent work for hire.
Top Ten Season Two #1. Let's see if this does any better than Beyond the Farthest Precinct.

A heavy week for trades:
Blue Beetle Vol. 4: Endgame. Why aren't you reading Blue Beetle? Is it because you have no soul? You disgust me.
The Boys Vol. 3: Good for the Soul. You almost certainly know by now whether this is your kind of book or not. I know it's mine; I make no apologies. Not buying the trade, though; I'll set that aside for a slow week.
Countdown to Final Crisis vol. 3. rimshot.wav
Green Lantern Vol. 2: Revenge of the Green Lanterns. DC finally, finally release the second volume of Geoff Johns's Lantern run in paperback. See what I mean about trade schedules? I've been pleasantly surprised by Johns's DC work over the last year or so, but I find that the $8 cardboard tax on hardcovers is exactly what it takes for me to not buy this stuff when it gets collected. DC: not everything needs to be a hardcover. Some comics are not that big a deal. It is okay.
Marvel Zombies. Again! AGAIN! Only this time it's got Spider-Man on the cover and he is a zombie Spider-Man and he's swingin' along like on the cover of Amazing Fantasy only he's a zombie and the guy he's carrying is a dead guy! Also available in Iron Man and Hulk flavors, to satisfy those with OCD, poor impulse control, or very strange ideas about what constitutes a worthwhile purchase.
Punisher MAX: From First to Last. The compilation of Ennis's Punisher MAX short stories finally sees print again, this time in paperback. The stories themselves range from solid ("The Cell") to fantastic ("The Tyger"). Definitely getting this.
The Spirit vol. 2. The last collection of Darwyn Cooke's run on the book, before the disappointing Evanier/Aragones team took over. The first volume was great, so this is a no-brainer for me.

Comics for the week of September 22, 2008

Yes, I know I'm running behind to an almost Millerian degree. In my defense, I had some very pressing video games and sleeping to attend to. But now that's all done with and I've got my hands on my singles, so it's time to do last Monday's post and, um, anticipate them. The comics. Which I have already bought. I'm confused.

This was a pretty poor week for singles:
All-Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder #10. Oh, Frankie dearest, you complete me.
Ambush Bug: Year None #3. Here's hoping it's beter than last month's issue, which I feel can be fairly characterized as "wack."
Blue Beetle #31. Criswell predicts: consistently fun book remains consistently fun! Future reviews such as this will affect you in the future!
Hellboy: The Crooked Man #3. I have no one but myself to blame for it, but I'm still bitter about the climactic moment of my most looked-forward-to book of the week being spoiled in nearly every review. To be fair, I don't think I would be able to resist the temptation either, but in case anyone is even less on the ball than myself and hasn't picked it up yet, let's just say it involves the Prince of Darkness and a gardening implement and good ol' country Violence.
Hulk #6. This is going into the Shitbin with Gotham Underground, Checkmate et al for extensive discussion later on. DOESN'T THAT SOUND EXCITING?
Superman/Batman #52. So on the one hand, last month's issue was kind of a head-scratcher as the Green/Johnson team threw up their hands, said "fuck it, let's bring on Super JLA Kawaii Team Love Beat GO!!" because apparently they have nothing better to do with this alleged showcase title than cater to scans_daily and the sort of people who type (or, god forbid, say) "squee!". On the other hand, Rafael Albuquerque is manning the pencils, and it really is kinda adorable. SO CONFLICTED
Wolverine: First Class #7. You could've knocked me over with a feather when this proved (with the exception of the two-part High Evolutionary/Mount Wundagore story) to be far better than the declining X-Men: First Class, even more so when Van Lente turned in a Sabretooth story that was actually worth reading for the first time in- shit, the first time ever as far as I'm aware. So yeah, getting this. (On a related note, Weapon X: First Class? What the HELL yo?)

Things were slightly better in trades:
Absolute Ronin. I like Ronin, but do I $100 like it? No. No I do not. You might, though. Who's to say?
Batman: Black and White Vol. 3. Some really fantastic writers and artists in this volume, and it includes one of my all-time favorite Batman shorts in Paul Pope's "Broken Nose." Gettin'!
The Complete Peanuts Vol. 10 (1969-1970). I'm waiting for this to be collected into the next slipcased three-book set (and for me to catch up to them; I'm six volumes in at the moment) but I think it's fair to assume this will be quality stuff. Call it a hunch.
Kingdom Come (new edition). I'm not buying this- God, no- but is it just me or does DC publish a new edition of Kingdom Come at least bimonthly? This one features a fancy-ass new gatefold cover, though, so if you liked the idea of Kingdom Come but thought it just wasn't enough like Tales From Topographic Oceans, then son, THIS BOOK'S FOR YOU.
Marvel Boy Premiere Hardcover. Marvel must have their own definition of "premiere" that I was not previously aware of, unless they mean "first time in a slightly stiffer and much more expensive format," in which case fair play to them. This is a reprint of a trade I was never able to track down at a sane price and fixes that book's splash-page problems, though, so I can't be too bitter.
Red Rocket 7 (Image edition). Speaking of reprints, as part of their expanding Mike Allred library, Image are reprinting this original graphic novel originally released on Dark Horse. Assuming it actually comes out on time, unlike the second Amazing Joy Buzzards collection, or the first Madman Atomic Comics trade, or comes out at all, unlike their promised Stray Toasters reprint or the second collection of Casanova.

That's it for now. See you after a reasonable interval, swear to god, for two weeks of reviews, and for Monday's shipping list post.

Comics for the week of September 15, 2008

Reviews to follow tomorrow, along with some books of interest from the last few weeks. Via the indispensible Savage Critic, or Savage Critics, I'm not sure.

Weak, floppy, vulnerable singles:
Action Comics #869
Air #2
All-Star Superman #12
Checkmate #30. Checkmate. Number. Thirty. There will be a reckoning for this, Mr. Jones.
DC Universe: Decisions #1. Between this and DC Universe: Last Will and Testament, I'm starting to have a Pavlovian response to the words "DC Universe." It is not the good kind of Pavlovian response, with the drooling and so forth.
Greatest Hits #1
Marvel Zombies Pirates Ninjas Apes #2
Robin #178
Star Trek: Assignment Earth #5. No, not really, but damn if I'm not curious. A Star Trek comic with hot Nixon-on-Nixon action that, I have just now learned in the process of finding a copy of the cover I can link to, is written and drawn by notorious Internet crank John Byrne? Hmm. HMMM.
Titans #5. I am watching you, Winick.



I'm watching you.

and True Believers #3.

Some other excellent comics had issues out this week- Joe Casey's Godland and a Jason Aaron twofer with Ghost Rider and Scalped- but since I'm following Scalped and Godland in trades and haven't caught up on Ghost Rider yet, I can't really say much about 'em.

And in firm, unyielding trades:
...nothing, this week. Anticlimactic! I'm interested in Superman: Kryptonite by Messrs. Cooke and Sale, but not $29.99 interested, and while I'll probably end up buying the trade of Mignola and Alexander's Abe Sapien mini, it'll be after I've finished buying the rest of the BPRD trades. Yes, even after Lobster Johnson: The Iron Prometheus. What can I say? I can't resist a dude named Lobster Johnson. Lobster Johnson!