Comics Roundup for 12/16/09

I was out of town for a couple of days, so it took a bit longer to get through the week's stack. Here we go:

Daredevil #503 - I was sort of hoping that this issue was going to suck so I could have one more title that I could quit getting. No such luck. Thanks a lot, Andy Diggle, Roberto de la Torre, and Marco Chechetto. How am I supposed to quit reading when it's still so good? With that said, I actually hope that it can maintain the momentum that's been building. Ol' Hornhead is really in a tough situation, as he's the leader of a ruthless band of assassins, and it's kind of difficult to get them to be a bunch of good guys. I'm not quite sure how much longer they can run with this, but hopefully they won't drag it out.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #7 - Even though I liked the last two guest-written issues, it sure is nice to have Paul Dini back and bringing his A game. There's a pretty gruesome story about a guy dressed like Santa who's stealing presents for a bunch of dead kids. Dead kids? Where did they come from? That's for the next issue. The best part of this issue though? The exchange between Dick Grayson/Batman and Damion Wayne/Robin:

Robin: I figured it was just a matter of time before Santa joined our rogue's gallery.
Batman: Right, because you're obviously way too grown up for Christmas.
Robin: Nah, I like it fine. Mother usually gets me something -- jetliner, hydrofoil, I got a private island last year --
Batman: And I used to think it was a big Christmas if Bruce allowed Alfred to make eggnog.
Robin: You get better stuff if you're a real son.

Batman #694 - Okay, Tony Daniel set up some interesting stuff with his first two issues, but I was having a hard time following what the hell was going on in this one. Perhaps I just need to re-read all three issues in a row, but this stuff had better get better. Also, what's up with the overly-dramatic endings in every issue? When's Winick coming back?

The Amazing Spider-Man #615 - At last we get some good art again with the return of Javier Pulido along with a somewhat confusing story involving The Sandman. Still, it had a pretty cool ending, and I'm intrigued as to where all this stuff with Spidey's rogues gallery is going.

Spider-Man: Clone Saga #4 (of 6) - Okay, I was actually surprised by what happened at the end of this issue. I guess we're finally getting to the part where Defalco and Mackie give us how the original clone story was supposed to shape out. I also really like Todd Nauck's art, and I hope they find a place for him on the regular book's rotation.

Captain America: Reborn #5 (of 6) - I believe that this was supposed to be a five issue series, but it looks like they're dragging it out another issue. I'm fine with that, I guess, as concluding it with this issue might have made everything feel a little rushed. I guess the only other complaint is that it would have been nice if the entire New Avengers team could have been helping out on this one instead of a mix of various heroes. I guess we'll have to wait for the Cap/Avengers reunion in the New Avengers series.

Dark Avengers #12 - While I'm still loving every issue of this series, I hope that Marvel does the right thing and ends it when this whole "Dark Reign" thing is over with. I suppose that there might be a legitimate way to keep it going, but if we need villains as heroes, we have Thunderbolts. Anyway, a fun issue plus a cool cliffhanger has me wanting more and looking forward to Siege.

Echo #17 - Terry Moore waited seventeen issues to finally reveal the backstory of the metal alloy that fuses to main character Julie's body. This was a smart move, as by this time I'm invested enough in the characters to actually care about how all this came to be. As easy a time as I am having with following this series from issue to issue, I think it's time for another marathon session.