Weekly Pull List 2-26-14

Well I'm back. Last week was a short week as well as this week. I only have 2 new books to discuss so I'll review a trade or two I've read. First up Amazing X-Men 4 came out last week. It's a great continuation of Wolverine and friends through hell whilst trying to find Nightcrawler. Beast and Storm had come across Azazel last issue when Beast got stabbed in the back which makes him go a little nuts. Which is when Nightcrawler shows up!! He gathers the rest of the lost X-Men and they prepare for the final battle with Azazel's fleet. It's a great book. The writing is spot on and rather compelling. Jason Aaron works well with his pacing. This story flows great and leaves you wanting more. The art is decent but it's still a little juvenile, which actually does work for the light-hearted nature of the book. Story-wise I like most of the characters involved. Nightcrawler has been a favorite since the intro to the second film where he assaults the White House. I'm not a huge fan of Wolverine in general, but his interactions with Northstar are handled well enough for me to care about both of them. I've always liked Storm, apart from her hairstyle in the recent series. Firestar is a new character for me, but works as a foil to Ice Man. Loving this book and am really glad I took a chance based on Jason Aaron and the cover for issue 1. 4.5 out of 5.

Now for this week. I picked up Serenity Leaves on the Wind 2.The crew of the Serenity take Zoe to a medical ship. When the alliance get wind of it they rush to capture them forcing Mal to leave her behind.They contemplate how to get the alliance to give up Zoe so River decides to go into a coma to try to remember what other secrets they told her when another ship docks with them and Jayne Cobb appears with Bea. When Mal tries to get them to leave they realize Bea's crew has been killed by an old acquaintance. Where the first issue was quite a bit of setup, this issue turns the game on and gets the ball rolling. It's interesting to see how the dynamics have shifted since the Serenity movie. Mal and Jayne are at odds, which was hinted at happening during the show. They've now built up the conflict between Mal and crew and the Alliance, some good internal conflict twixt the crew and the imminent danger of an intruder lurking on the serenity. All of these plots are interesting and promise to unfold in classic Whedon glory. I love Zach's work and the voice sounds just like the show. The art still feels more along the lines of Buffy, but it's all good for this story. All around great book. 4 out of 5.

Weekly Pull List 2-12-14

Solid week this week. Got a few great books and took a chance on a new one. I'll start with the new one. I saw the cover of The Mercenary Sea which looks straight out of a James Bond comic. It's a fun read and pretty quick. Follows a crew of a mercenary ship floating the seven seas. Imagine Pirates of the Caribbean meets Firefly, set in modern times, with a bit of spy thriller thrown in.   The art is pretty cool, but the colors are rather flat. Not a ton of shading and detail, but it works. It's a pretty light story so far and the simplistic art matches quite well. I like it, but I think I'm going to watch for the trade to get the full story. 4 out of 5.

Next up is Justice League of America 12. Still following Martian Manhunter and Stargirl as they fight Despero and try to save the rest of the League as well as the world. J'onn tells an old Martian children's tale which relates to Stargirl's trials in the issue. Decent book as usual. It's just fun, not overly important in the grand scheme of things. The art is spot on with a solid realism and vibrant colors to keep things interesting. The whole Forever Evil thing is rather boring to me which is why I enjoy this smaller, more personal story. 3 out of 5.

Now I jump over to Marvel for Thor God of Thunder 19.Now. First, Marvel's decimal numbering is stupid. For more, go listen to the Watchtower Podcast as I share much of their views on the subject. In this case, however I think it works on this round as it's a new storyline that's pretty simple to jump into. Now for the book! Great start to the new story! Back on Midgard, Rosalind Solomon is following whales when attacked by some whalers. She's saved by Thor and arrives at a press release where Dario Agger of Roxxon is announcing his new ice harvested from a moon of Jupiter. Thor thwarts his plan of world domination via making boatloads of money. In the future, King Thor revels at how blue Earth used to be when an ancient Galactus shows up. Excellent start to another epic tale. It's great to see Thor really caring about the Earth. Also excellent to see Esad Ribic back!! His art is so smooth and beautiful. Fits the epic, medieval feel to the book. He's always been the perfect choice for this book. 4.5 out of 5. Excellent story and room for improvement.

The Sixth Gun 38 rounds out my list this week. You've heard me praise the heck out of Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt. This issue's scale has expanded greatly from what the last few had been leading up to. Loads of action, lots of characters, and a ton of tension being released. They start working to shave off the overload of characters to make the book a little smaller and more intimate like the earlier stories. A story that is not only fresh, but done incredibly well to add to the novelty of it. Best issue I've read in a while. And still a favorite book. 4.5 out of 5.

Weekly Pull List 2-5-14

Picked up three books this week. First off we have a brand new Loki Agent of Asgard. The All-Mother sends Loki on a mission to midgard to infiltrate the Avengers tower and extract a darkness that is inside of Thor. Once he has accomplished that he hands it over to the All-Mother who release the old-school form of Loki from that darkness. This issue branches off from the previous arc in Thor God of Thunder. Fun little story by Al Ewing. The idea of now having multiple Lokis in this book is taken from Aaron's Thor God of Thunder having the three Thors. The art is pretty solid. A decent mix of realism and cartoonish style. There's an excellent flashback to when Thor was first exiled to Midgard that homages the classic printing style. It's really cool. I kinda wish the whole book was in that style. Great start to the book, with a promise of excellence to come. 3.5 out of 5.

Next up is Lazarus 6. Another great issue from the firm of Rucka and Lark. This issue moves from a family vs family story towards a more social commentary, family vs the public story. A group of teenagers breaks into a Carlyle facility and steals something that appears to be important, but we don't know what it is or why at this point, but they are heading to take care of something elsewhere in order to right some social injustice. Decent issue, but where it's headed is more exciting than where it's at currently. Great book, even if this issue is just okay. 3 out of 5.

Finally I picked up Green Arrow 28. Part 3 of the Outsiders War, Oliver is on the island with his father and Shado when they are attacked by Kodiak, the leader of the Shield Clan. The fight ensues among several pages of block lettered onomatopoeias in a really clever, albeit confusing art piece. It's the first time I've felt Sorrentino's art has been detrimental to the story as I had to interrupt my pace to get at what's happening. Meanwhile, Diggle shows up in Seattle looking for Oliver and Komodo plans a coup over the remaining Outsiders clans. Still one of my favorite books! It's so well written and has mostly perfect art. Great issue! Love this book so much, and can't wait for more of this story. 4 out of 5.

Weekly Pull List 1-29-14

Best week of comics this year! (I know that's not saying much considering it's the 3rd week of comics, but that may even apply to last year.) I did only get 2 books this week, but they were both excellent!

First up is Thor God of Thunder 18. Last book ended the Accursed storyline, so this issue we get a new story. From beginning to the end. It's great! Almost never see a full story in a single issue these days. Aaron weaves a fairy tale of young Thor answering the prayers of a village and befriending a dragon. In a "Hangover" style intro we see him waking up in the dragon's mouth. It follows a great little arc and there's great development of Thor and his new friend Skabgagg. On top of the wonderful writing of Jason Aaron, we get a new artist for this issue, Das Pastoras. His art is gloriously raw, yet beautifully watered down. It's almost as if the art is a representation of the godly hangover Thor has at the beginning of the issue. Love it! Absolutely love this book, and could not have asked for a better "filler" issue. 5 of 5.

The only other book I picked up this week was Serenity: Leaves on the Wind 1. With the 'verse in turmoil after the events of Serenity there is unrest over the revelation of Miranda. A new resistance has formed and is looking for a leader. Coincidentally, the alliance has turned to a presumed dead character to help look for Malcolm Reynolds to bring him to justice for disturbing the peace, to say the least. Good book. Great start to a potentially great series. I'm a huge fan of this universe so I'm in for the long haul. The art is by Georges Jeanty who does great work on the Buffy comics, but I don't think was the best choice for this story. It's a little too cartoony. It's great on a lighter story like Buffy, but Serenity left us in a darker world where everything has just been turned a little bleaker. Solid first issue to reintroduce us to the 'verse. Good stuff. 4.5 out of 5.