Weekly Pull List August-September 2014

Well I moved. I have now caught up on my comics purchases and am mostly moved in out east so it's time to catch up. I will start off over at image. Velvet number 7 follows Colt and Roberts as they work counter-espionage on the official side of things. It's another brilliant issue. Brubaker and Epting are still a glorious pair. Beautifully realistic art really makes me wish it was a TV show. It would be incredibly awesome to see this on a high quality network like AMC or HBO. 5 out of 5.

Next up is Lazarus 11. Conclave part 1 has a wonderful scene exploring the politics of the world. Seeing interactions between two Lazaruses (Lazari?) is always interesting A lot of buildup and anticipation for something that I'm not sure where it's going to go. We're at the peak of the chain lift on the roller coaster getting ready to go over the edge. 4 out of 5.

Now over to DC. We have two Futures End tie-ins. The first is Justice League United which is a surprisingly interesting story. A classic "getting the band back together" story set in the future. Several members of the old JLU congregate to hunt down the Martian Manhunter, who has been captured by Gorilla Grodd and the guy behind the whole thing: Captain Atom!?! it's a decent story. I was interested enough to want to go get the next part of the story in the Justice League tie in. I want to read the main story, but I really wish it was much shorter. 52 is a lot of commitment for a mediocre story. I'll give it 3.5 out of 5 for a surprise ending, even though they just seem to be trying way too hard to find a place for Captain Atom in the New 52. 

The other tie in is Green Arrow which is a solid issue. It's a nice wrap up to this creative team. Has a few nice callbacks and such to other moments in the recent issues. Oliver fakes his own death on live TV in a fight with Deathstroke only to realize it was Magus. His sister Emiko is acting as the Green Arrow in Seattle. Not a bad issue. Sorrentino is amazing as usual. Another book that piques my interest in the Futures End story. 4 out of 5.

Last book from DC is Batman '66 meets the Green Hornet 4. Comic hilarity continues as the two teams continue to torment each other due to ill timed torment from the kings of crime. Another middle story that serves its purpose and not much else. Fun book all around, but I'm glad it's only six issues so I can get the next two and not have to worry about it any more. 3 out of 5.

Now over to Marvel! First up is Nightcrawler 6. This issue follows Kurt and the young Rico as they hunt down the mysterious mutant girl that the pirates are also after. An exciting battle ensues and they manage to rescue her. A fun story that doesn't seem to have any real impact on the world as a whole, apart from introducing the new mutant, Ziggy, and the mysterious bossman who promises his revenge. Another fun series that I will probably not be picking up anymore as it is not very exciting. It's a few minutes of joy, but I have no real connection to it and am trying to buy fewer comics. 2.5 out f 5.

Next up we have 3 issues in the Thor saga: Thor and Loki The Tenth Realm 4 and 5 and Thor God of Thunder 25. Battles rage until Loki brings Odin out of his prison in Asgard and back to the Tenth Realm. He halts the war upon realizing Angela is his long-lost daughter. Which begs the question: Have they truly never met before? Apparently not as Odin isn't around nearly as much as he seems to be and Angela showed up about 20 years ago and was mostly a Spawn character until merely a few years ago when she starting hanging out with the Guardians of the Galaxy. A mildly anticlimactic ending to the tale, but it works as a great setup to the new Thor series as Thor gets told a secret by Fury in Original Sin that makes him unworthy to wield the hammer. Making way for a lady Thor in a new upcoming series. In issue 25, King Thor's granddaughters are reading ancient stories about his past exploits when they come upon one in chains. It is revealed that this book is titled Unworthy and the book ends with Thor Odinson trying desperately to hoist Mjolnir off the surface of the moon. This book is and always has been fantastic! Looking forward to seeing where Aaron is taking us on this ride. The art on both of these series has been incredible. Different artists provide wonderful different takes on the characters as they traverse different realms or appear in different eras. These books are truly masterpieces. Overall they get 5 out of 5.

The last of my Marvel books and the first off my Cullen Bunn books is Magneto 9: A March to Axis. Eric breaks into a concentration camp of sorts in order to assassinate the Red Skull and save some of the kids in there. Everything goes to hell, of course. This issue is a setup to some massive war between the Avengers, X-Men, and the Red Skull who has apparently taken Xavier's mental powers? Interested to see where this is going. Walta does a wonderful job with the gritty looking art. Great issue that has me hooked until next issue. 4 of 5.

Now over to Boom! for the Empty Man 3. Apparently the Empty Man isn't a disease, it's an invasion! *gasp* We get a creepy scene where we see some Frankenstein seeming doctor talking to an apparent carrier of the Empty Man or something. Still a gloriously creepy mystery that promises an awesome finale to this story in a few issues. Del Ray's art is once again brilliantly murky. Love this book. 4 out of 5.

Now for the Sixth Gun 42 and Days of the Dead 2. The prequel uses Jesup to tell us some history of the Knights of Solomon and the Sword of Abraham. There's also the mysterious Yum Kimil who seems to be a cajun god of some sort. Real cool series and history. The main series is setting up the grand finale where the Grey Witch will be using Jesup and the six to recreate the world. Drake, Becky, and Nidawi are trying to plan a way to stop her, and the Knights of Solomon are doing the same. It's amazing how these two series are being released along side each other and are so entertwined. Of course I love these books. It has been well documented. 4.5 out of 5.

Monthly Pull List 8-12-14

Time to catch up a bit. I got carried away with reading other comics I borrowed from my brother: Superman: New Krypton stuff and now IDWs Ninja turtles series. I also only had one or two books most weeks. Anyways, onto the books! We will start with Marvel. First up is a new series: Storm #1 written by Greg Pak with art by Victor Ibanez. It starts with Storm rescuing Santo Marco from a tsunami. With political tensions high due to their ban on mutants Ororo argues with Beast about being there. This is the basis of the story which this issue is merely made to kickstart the series and let Storm go off on her own. It's a great start having political strife as well as a personal conflict to build up the stakes and make it an intriguing series. Art-wise, this book is pretty solid. It really shines in the darker exterior scenes while the bright interiors are oddly cartoonish. Great start to the book and I hope it continues to be a good series. 3.5 out of 5.

Next up Magneto 7. Magneto infiltrates a mutant slave ring where they are forced to fight a predator x, or a mutant hunting machine. Naturally he decimates the whole operation and frees the mutant captives. It is still an excellent book. I love the anti-spy feel of the book and the way the story is progressing. Art is still very good. The use of the overly willing sidekick is pretty cool. A single hero (or antihero as the case may be) is rarely awesome on their own and typically need another person who is the brains behind the operation. Someone to gather more information whilst the title character is off fighting their enemies or taking down slave rings. Briar Raleigh is an excellent assistant and I can't wait to see what Bunn has in store for her and where she has come from. Great book still. 4 out of 5.

To polish off Marvel I have Thor & Loki: The Tenth Realm 2 and 3 where we explore the realm of Heven and at least the Angels' side of the war with Asgard. Still an incredibly intriguing story. I love the retcon happening across Marvel due to the Original Sin story. Well, I don't consider it a retcon as it gives new information more so than changing things we thought we knew. I love the dark Asgardian history though I'm not sure if I believe the queen of the angels and her version of history yet. Loki is deceptive and conniving as usual and I'm curious to see how it would play out (Which is why Loki is great, he can always go either way). Only two issues left before Thor becomes unworthy to wield Mjolnir and a female picks up the mantle (Angela?) so I am ver much looking forward to finishing the series. Great series. 4 out of 5.

On the other side we get to see Batman 66 Meets the Green Hornet 3. It continues the fun, light-heartedness of the series. It's not super great, but it's a lot of fun. I'm just very okay about the book and there's not much to discuss that hasn't been said already. I would suggest waiting for the trade as the series is very serialized, but feels like it should be read all at once. The one thing I want to say about this is that it greatly captures the feel of a TV show where each issue, while not a full story, ends on a cliffhanger. It's like you get to the commercial break in the show. Interesting way to read the comics, but it feels like the whole series would be the equivalent of at least a two episode story arc. 3 out of 5.

My other DC book is Green Arrow 34. As the conclusion of the Broken story this issue raises the bar in seriousness of tone and incredible art. Ollie gets his ass kicked by Dragon before he pierces Dragon's femoral artery and leaving him. It's an incredibly clean and solid finale to the story and sets up the direction the next story will go with Emiko agreeing to be Oliver's apprentice and Diggle agreeing to stick around. Another issue ideal for setting up where the story wants to go. Lemire is great and Sorrentino is amazing at translating his words. So, if you have any interest in picking up one of the best books at DC, grab the trades. Absolutely worth it. If you like Arrow then pick up issue 35 when show veterens Kreisberg and Sokolowski are taking over. 5 out of 5!

Now to the independent side of things. Outcast 2 comes from Robert Kirkman's side of Image: Skybound Publishing. If you want a book that'll creep you out and possibly make you lose sleep. Demon possession, rape and domestic abuse, questions of faith and possible matricide are all represented in this fantastic book. One of the creepiest things I've ever seen/read/watched/experienced. Outcast is a lot darker than anything else Kirkman has done. Although Invincible is apparently absurdly evil and vicious. Paul Azaceta's art is grim and dark, but not too vile. It helps to lighten the creepiness a bit. There's a solid cliffhanger that really seduced me. Looking forward to checking out more from this series. 5 out of 5.

Also from Image is Lazarus 10. This issue expands our knowledge of the world a bit and raises the stakes  as it sets up for a world-wide gang war. This story looks far more interesting than the last one. I hope things play out epically. It's really nice to see Rucka expand the universe appropriately and having another solid looking story. Not much else to say apart from This is my favorite issue of this series in a little while and I hope it continues. 4 out of 5.

Last Image book I picked up was Velvet 6. In this book we follow Velvet as she meets a few of her assets and decides to go on the offensive to clear her name. Brubaker doesn't disappoint with his espionage, crime thriller. Steve Epting's work is incredible gorgeous and sufficiently noir, perfectly matching the tone of this book. There's some more backstory and a couple twists. Great book! I love everything about this book! 4.5 out of 5.

Lastly, I picked up Sixth Gun: Days of the Dead 1. A new miniseries to give a little more backstory to the world of the Six and their history. It introduces us to Yum Kimil, an apparent god or embodiment of death itself who is set to be reawakened as villains tend to be in stories. If you've read any of my blog posts, you know I love anything to do with this series. Great start to the story and we'll see how what it builds into the mythology before the last streak of issues before the end in issue 50. 5 out of 5!