Saturday, September 3, 2011

Comics Roundup for 8/31/11

Justice League #1 - This is it, the first of the "New 52" from DC Comics, where they've rebooted the entire DC Universe. How was it? Pretty good, I'd say. I was actually having a bit of a hard time getting into it at first, but it picked up once Green Lantern met Batman, and it got even better when Batman casually yanked off GL's power ring. There were definitely some nice character bits, and the new version of Superman gets to make quite an impressive introduction.

I realize that there are probably some folks out there who would have preferred to see all the members of the league together in this first issue, but I think by doing it this way, Geoff Johns is leaving some room for some character development and an emphasis on how these heroes are all different from one another.

Jim Lee's art is pretty good here as well, but he usually turns in some good stuff. While not the best when it comes to storytelling and layouts, he always has enough genuinely cool moments to make one of his comics worth the cover price.

Flashpoint #5 (of 5) - And here is the end of the old DC Universe. Overall, I'd say that this was a pretty good crossover miniseries, and I'll repeat the reason why. While involving many different characters, it was smart to focus on only a few. That's what made the ending work so well, and the fact that it provides an explanation for why things are somewhat different now is only a bonus.

The Amazing Spider-Man #668 - I have to say that I'm enjoying this "Spider-Island" storyline a lot more than I thought I would. I guess Dan Slott is just a good writer, and he's good at getting the reader involved with what's happening. As always, I really feel like I get a lot of story out of each issue, which is a nice change of pace for comics nowadays. Also, while I've never been a big fan of Humberto Ramos, I also find myself enjoying his art more than I would have figured.

Secret Avengers #16 - I realize that this issue has the fanboys drooling, but I found myself not liking it much at all. Apparently the Secret Avengers are in a place fighting some people for some reason. While there were some nice character moments, overall I found myself not giving a crap about anything that happened. It's too bad, as I was really looking forward to this. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood, but I'm going to give the next issue a serious looking over before picking it up. I just might be done with this series. (What has the fanboys drooling? Warren Ellis is writing the series for a few issues, this one being the first.)

Rocketeer Adventures #4 - This is the last issue of this series, and I think that it did a pretty good job as a tribute to Dave Stevens's character. While the strongest stories were in the first two issues, the rest of the series was decent enough. I especially liked the story by John Arcudi and Brendan McCarthy this issue with the female Nazi version of the Rocketeer.


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