Doom Patrol #7 - DC

I'm not sure where this cover at the left came from, but . . it looks neat so I'll keep it in here. Anyways, this issue . . it kind of feels like an in-between issue. But . . Keith Giffen does seem to be setting up the ground work for a few new story-lines. First we see that Oolong Island may be selling of corporate sponsorship to the Doom Patrol. They seem to be brokering with at Mr Jost, Thayer, with some type of animal or something that they've developed that will attack humans. I'm not sure why they would develop it, or what the buyer would use it for, but . . it's out there. Meanwhile the President of Oolong Island is trying to maintain order by subjecting Niles Caulder to house arrest. Well . . he is in the hospital after the Black Lantern attack last issue . . in which he lost his legs. So I guess it would actually be hospital arrest. And after talking to Niles, rather unsuccessfully, Father Davis is taken to another of the Doom Patrol's rooms and asked to talk to Crazy Jane. We haven't seen her in a long time. Also occurring at the same time, Oberon is at Dayton Manor and he's working with a moving company. He's going around the house and packing up various items. They seem to be leaving the furniture alone and going for the more obscure pieces . . the weird stuff that the Doom Patrol has collected over the years. But I'm not sure why he's doing it or where he's taking it. We also see the Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Man, Dr Larsen. He's antagonized and then collected by that same Mr Jost. However, this guy that's presented him self as Mr Jost doesn't appear to be the actual man. However . . he does have Mr Jost inside of him . . somewhere . . somehow. None of it is really explained this issue. And on the final page of the story we actually see Larry, Cliff and Rita. They're in some kind of military refugee camp in Coast City. I assume this part of the story takes place after Blackest Night. Like I said, there's a whole bunch of new plot lines being laid, but nothing really progressing very far. Matthew Clark and Cliff Richards do the pencils. But I have to say . . I'm not to impressed. Overall, it seemed like a rush issue. There's a few good pages and panels . . I assume it's Matthews work. Hopefully we'll get back on track next issue. The Metal Men story basically serves to wrap up the story with the Clique. Will has asked Dr Rumpus to be his assistant . . in lieu of going to jail. He agrees, but . . jail may have been a better option for him. We see the Metal Men fighting Giganta. It doesn't last long. Only until they rip off her blouse. And the guy who plays Douglas: Robot Hunter has come to Will's house to blow it up and take out Will and the Metal Men in the process. The problem is . . the automated defense mechanisms kick in and I think he only blows up himself . . well, the house to, but . . he's in it. And apparently this is going to be the last Metal Men story in this book. That's a shame. I hope they get another mini or something. This hilarious chapter was brought to us by Keith Giffen, JM DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire.

Doom Patrol #6 - DC

This issue would be a great jumping on point for anyone. This entire issue is told from Larry's perspective.Well . . at least we think he's Larry. But you'll have to read the book to sort all of that out. Anyways, this introspective kind of serves 2 purposes. First of all, it helps to sort out all the various changes that Larry has gone through over the years. What we thought was a Negative Woman, was actually just Larry in another body that the Chief had prepared for him. And, through all of this, the real question is . . is the Negative Man actually Larry? Or vice-versa? As we know, various members of this team have died over the years. But . . they keep coming back . . like cockroaches. In Larry's case, since energy can't be destroyed . . it just had to be rehoused in a new container. Which the Chief seems more than happy to provide. So anyways, it sorts out everything that he's been through over the years. Secondly, this book actually puts together the pieces of all of the Doom Patrol's various incarnations. Every time, it seems like a new team with different players. When in actuality the whole time it's been the same basic core group. Sometimes they look different . . sometimes they act different . . hell, sometimes they even have different faces, but when it comes down to it, this group, in all forms has revolved around Larry, Cliff, Rita and the Chief. And now it looks like, with everything that Larry's been through, as well as Rita's mistreatment by Steve Dayton, Larry and Rita may be finally exploring the friendship, and maybe more, that they've always shared. I think they deserve a little happiness. You know it's not going to last. Anyways, I thought Keith Giffen and Matthew Clark did a terrific job with this issue. The good news is, it looks like Keith and Matthew will be staying on board for the foreseeable future. The bad news? Next issue is the last back-up of the Metal Men. I know the story has been kind of absurd, but . . I love these guys. And with Keith, JM DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire doing the stories . . there's a certain kind of nostalgia to them. Maybe, hopefully (?) there will be a another mini-series in the near future? Next issue we're supposed to find out the fate of the Metal Men, but . . I'm guessing it's going to be pretty open-ended. Anyways, all in all I thought this was a pretty great issue. No matter what you've thought of this group in the past, now is the time to get on board and see what they're up to.

Doom Patrol #5 - DC

Well last issue Blackest Night reared it's ugly . . very ugly, head on Oolong Island. The kids spend most of this issue fighting dead versions of themselves . . or their loved ones. Larry ends up taking out Negative Woman, but it takes both of their negative energies colliding to achieve the results. So he can't do that trick again. The Black-holed face guy helps to protect the Chief, but he still gets his legs taken off in the process. And a large portion of Oolong island is destroyed when the Black Lanterns bring a tidal-wave down upon it. Cale and all of her Chiefs of Staff are starting to regret their decision to let the Metal Men take up residence here. They really do seem to be a magnet for trouble. Anyways, Niles gets an idea, and with the islands tech help the Doom Patrol lures the Black Lanterns into a portal made from boom-tube technology, and the transport all their dead counterparts and team-mates to parts unknown. But in the end the Chief finally succumbs to his injuries. Keith Giffen and Justiniano bring us this chapter of the story. I thought it was classic Doom Patrol . . fighting in the face of adversity even though they know, in the end, there's really no way that they're going to win this one. And they still haven't. They've just removed the problem. In the back-up story, Will and Tin are still fight the incredulous mannequins, the Clique. Keith Giffen and JM Dematteis write this story with their usual hilarity. The Clique is hell-bent on taking over the world, but first . . they'd planned on having a day of shopping and make-overs. That is until Will and Tin interrupted them. So now . . now Will has to be their personal shopper, because of the lack of help after their skirmish. Eventually he gets the rest of the Metal Men to show up so that he doesn't get killed. But Platinum, Tina, is more concerned that he's cavorting with 3 previously unknown females. The story ends with her knocking one of their heads off, and the Clique revealing several hidden weapons in their various limbs. It was a fun story, if slightly obnoxious. But still humorous. Unfortunately Kevin Maguire does not do the art this issue, but Tim Levins fills in for him. All in all I thought this was an interesting issue. I wasn't particularly thrilled with the Black Lanterns story-line, but that's only because I'm starting to get tired of them. I'm tired of the 'heroes' simply reacting to the threat and not coming up with an offensive plan, yet. But these are still 2 of my favorite groups.

Doom Patrol #4 - DC

Blackest Night has finally come to Oolong Island. It's coming in the form of previous members, so . . we're getting a little history lesson at the same time. The first one we see is Arani Dasai, Celsius. She was also Niles Caulder's wife . . for a bit. Technically she still is . . he never bothered to get a divorce. She comes with the other members of her group . . Joshua Clay, Tempest, and Valentina Vostok, Negative Woman. And then Robot Man's original body, Clifford Steele, also shows up. It's much the same as the other Blackest Night stories. They show up and try to entice an emotional response, while targeting their hearts. But there are a few little neat tidbits that happen during this story. First of all, the Black-hole guy, you know from the Collider experiment . . he arrives on the island just before all of this happens. We see Rita's outburst when she finally deals with the intrusion of Steve Dayton's mind into her own. Basically, he's been a psychic peeping-Tom. But this is worse, because he can also control here. She's also mad at Niles because he had to have known what was going on. We find out that the Chief has rigged up some way for Cliff to download his memories and experience into a new body whenever an old one gets destroyed. I guess the Chief clones his brain and then leaves them waiting in empty receptacles. Somehow responsometers are also involved. Cliff is also keeping the used up bodies in a mass grave in his backyard. 'I keep count. Sue me.' But this still creeps Larry out. Also because Larry realizes this makes him practically immortal. Like I've said before, it's a creepy Doom Patrol tale as only Keith Giffen could tell it. I think he's doing a great job with this book. Justiniano does the art this issue. In the Metal Men back-up story, the Metal Men have some new competitors. It seems Professor Rumpus, from Helfer University in Evanston Illinois, has also created a new generation of robots. However, he's about to get thrown out on his rump because the University isn't happy with his results . . so they're cutting his funding. He just keeps complaining about how much more funding Will Magnus gets. However, he doesn't know it, because they're hiding it, his 3 robot ladies . . they look like mannequins . . are fully operational. They've just chose not to let him know. But after hearing him complain, they've decided to go out on their own. They're calling themselves Clique. However, they have to get a proper wardrobe before they can take over the world. A great story by Keith, JM DeMatteis and Kevin Maguire. So far . . I'm thrilled with this book. My only complaint? I wish it came out twice a month . . so I could get more of it.

Doom Patrol #3 - DC

Well . . Steven Dayton is back this issue. As you can tell by the cover. But his return is under less than ideal situations. Cliff, Rita and Larry are over in Europe confronting the 'black-hole' like entity that's revealed itself from under the guise of the super-collider experiment. It claims to be a scientist, and that scientific curiosity is one of it's main reasons to exist. The problem is . . it gathers information by assuming control of a nearby human and absorbing it's knowledge and memories. It then moves on to the next, when it feels it can no longer learn or experience any more from it's current host. But as it moves on to the next host, it leaves the current one little more than a pile of ash. When confronting this entity in Brandenburg, the Doom Patrol realizes that a simple taser can disrupt it's connection to it's host. It still leaves the connection as ash, but . . they can route it's ambitions temporarily. However, having used up all the human life in Brandenburg, they assume that it's heading towards the next congregation of hosts . . Cottbus, population 106,415. The real problem is, though . . that's only 125km from Berlin. Should it discover that information, and become more ambitious, a lot more people would be in jeopardy. They follow it to Cottbus, and while there . . while controlling 106,742 hosts . . it discovers an anomoly. 'A latent ability power talent . . ' . . a mutant. With no stress factor to incite it's evolution, it discovers a man with an ability that it's not experienced before. Apparently the host can do telekinetic projection via Kirlian aura. Basically, he can push an invisible force outwards from himself, which kind of looks like what the Invisible Woman does with the FF. The Chief, while observing through Cliff, is quick to take advantage of this situation. He has Steven take mental control of Rita. She then enlarges to the size needed to cover the exposed area of population and, I think, basically taser or emp everything. All the rest of the hosts lose their connection and turn to ash, and the one with the power puts a protective bubble around itself to ensure it's continued existence. Niles then informs him that he's been checkmated. 'Your drones have been neutralized, present company excepted. Your primary form is quite isolated, well removed from any potential host forms. And, unless I'm mistaken, the kirlian field surrounding this host has your quite contained. Have I missed anything?' So they're putting him in the helicopter and taking him back to the Chief. We still have a couple of problems here, though. Mostly in the form of Rita. She's not going to be happy about Steven's control of her, plus . . during the exchanged she shared his memories which include all the 'stalker-like' things that he's done to her by mental manipulation. Steven's character is changed this issue. Some of the assumptions and perceptions that we've previously had of him are challenged, by Niles. We learn that he's a whole lot more powerful than we ever really knew. But that all may be moot, because when Rita gets back, she's probably going to try to kill him. And it looks like they're going to have to deal with Blackest Night. This was another fantastic chapter in the opening of this book by Keith Giffen and Matthew Clark. I think Keith is the perfect person to take on the relaunch of these characters. I've said before that I thought Grant Morrison's version was the best, and I think Keith has the right frame-of-mind to mimic, without actually copying that series. Plus I think he's the only capable of coming up with 'far-out' enough ideas to keep this troupe in business. And I absolutely love Matthew's interpretation here. He's a fantastic artist. In the back-up, once again the Metal Men are brought to us by Keith, JM DeMatteis and Kevin Maquire. This is also the perfect team for the Metal Men. This issue focus' on Copper. Who? Copper. Exactly! And who knew Kevin could make a robot look so hot? The combination of these 2 stories, and 2 teams makes this the perfect book. It's fantastic, and I can't wait to read more.

Wednesday Comics #12 - DC

This being the final issue of this 'experiment', I assume all the stories will be wrapped up here. I guess Luna shot herself, and then jumped out the window. She tells Batman that she couldn't see herself locked up, and apologized for not finishing it the way he would've wanted. He just looks at her and says her name . . and has he touches her cheek . . she realizes . ."Bru . ." But then she's gone. Orora dies from her wounds, but before she does she gives Kamandi her compass. She points at the face and says "Humans". So as Tuftan, Caesar, the Lion and Tiger nation head off to finish off the Apes, Kamandi decides to go off alone. South. Maybe to find some more of his kind. Superman checks on Lois, but she's fine. As he's talking to her on the phone, she's looking at a heading about Batman stopping an alien attack on the Daily Planet. It's good to have friends to watch your back. Deadman makes it back to Earth, but he's still scolded by Rama Kushna. She's upset because he upset the balance between Neron and his dukes. So now she's got some extra work for Boston to do to try to balance things out. Hal watches as the rest of the alien armada leaves Earth's atmosphere, and then he goes back to his watering hole to check up on Dillon. Rex Mason and company make it out of the pyramid, and a CIA transport shows up to pick them up. End of story. The Titans beat Deathstroke easily, now that he knows who he really is. I guess he really does have some psychological barrier that stops him from defeating them. Now that Korgo has been sent to Earth, Rann's little uprising is all fading away. Now Adam just has to worry about how Alanna would feel about him if she knew that he was a withered up old man back on Earth. Supergirl has passed out from when she was shot by the sun. But the aliens feel bad for assuming that she was threatening. While she was passed out, it turns out that Krypto and Streaky explained it all to them. You know . . universal translators and all. But after they leave and the aliens remove their helmets, we find out that they're a race of intelligent dogs and cats. Who knew? Chemo explodes and apparently takes all the Metal Men with him. Well . . except for Mercury. Now Magnus is just going to have to rebuild them again. Wonder Woman beats Dr Poison and the Cheetah, but . . I'm not really sure what she gained out of the whole thing. It was all a bit confusing . . right up until the end. Sgt Rock says goodbye to the villagers, and Easy Co heads home. And in the Flash strip . . we find out that all that crazy stuff that was happening was actually a comic strip itself that Barry wrote and Iris was reading. After Morgaine is defeated, the Demon reverts to his Jason Blood form. And Selina does a little flirting. And finally, with Aquaman's help, Hawkman defeats the T Rex while the rest of the JLA stop in alien invasion. All in all . . this was probably the most boring issue. Everything wrapped up this time, but most of the action was last issue. However . . it was ok. Again . . hats off to all the amazing talent. There was a great cast of writers . . Brian Azzarello, Dave Gibbons, John Arcudi, Dave Bullock, Kurt Busiek, Jimmy Palmiotti, Neil Gaiman, Eddie Berganza, Paul Pope, Kyle Baker, Dan Didio, Ben Caldwell, Adam Kubert, Karl Kerschl, and Walt Simonson. And then for the art we had . . Eduardo Risso, Ryan Sook, Lee Bermejo, Vinton Heuck, Amanda Conner, Joe Quinones, Mike Allred, Sean Galloway, Paul Pope, Kyle Baker, Jose Luis Garcia Lopez, Kevin Nowlan, Ben Caldwell, Joe Kubert, Brenden Fletcher, and Brian Stelfreeze. Quite a cast of characters . . on the creative side as well as in the actual pages. I wonder if they'll ever try this again?

Wednesday Comics #11 - DC

Only 2 more weeks to go, and it looks like Batman's got this all figured out. Luna had killed her husband . . well . . she used Hardy to kill her husband, and then she was going to kill Hardy. You know . . so he couldn't talk. Anyways, since there's another issue left . . we're left with a cliff-hanger ending. There's a shot fired, and we see Luna falling, or jumping through a big glass window. But . . did she shoot Batman, or herself? Or . . was there someone else there that we haven't seen yet? Hmmm!! Now that Tuftan and Caesar have been rescued from the Apes, Kamandi is looking forward to getting to know his human stray, Orora. But before they even get a chance to speak, she's shot down by an Ape sniper. Is she dead? Will Kamandi once again be the only living example of his species? Superman finally has the upper hand on the aliens. He snapped out of their telepathic influence when they threatened his parents. But as he pummeling the alien, he realizes . . he forgot about Lois! Have the aliens gone after her? And will he be able to reach her in time? In Hell, Boston realizes that he's being played by these women that were captured by the demon. He finds out that they just wanted him to release them so that they in turn could release Neron. He ends up leaving them behind, and walks out of this crazy place. But that leaves the question . . what's next? All it says is . . 'Loose Ends!'. Hal confronts the alien race that's trying to attack the Earth, but they quickly find out that they're no match for the power of his ring. Metamorpho and Element Girl take out Algon as he tries to power up the ship with the Star of Atlantis. However their deception pays off as the foil his plans. He then tries to bring the ship down around their ears. 'If I die . . you all die!' Trident, thinking that he had defeated the Titans, drops his disguise. He was actually Slade. Gizmo had rigged him up with a psychic implant so he forgot who he was . . he actually thought he was Trident. But then on the last panel . . . . On Rann, Adam Strange has sent lord Korgo to Earth . . on his Zeta-beam. We see him trapped in a museum display. Supergirl has gone off to the sun to try to stop the aliens from dumping their crap into it. But once there . . she doesn't know how she's going to communicate with them. They fire their guns at her . . which actually hurt her. But it looks like Krypto and Streaky are coming to her rescue. The Metal Men have Chemo contained, but he's still going to explode. The shove him into the basement of a nearby construction site, and as the story ends he and all the Metal Men go up in a cloud of smoke. Wonder Woman finds out that everything she's been through has been because of the machinations of Ares. Now she has to trust the Cheetah to protect Etta and the Professor while she fights Ares offspring. They were trying to manipulate it so that he would be the recipient of the Seven Stars of the Amazons. Easy Co. finally makes it into the building where they're holding Rock. And with their help, it looks like he's finally defeated the Germans. Grodd is trying to save his world. Barry is still trying to save Iris. It looks like the only way Barry is going to be able to do it is if he and Iris work together. He doesn't have to be the lone hero. It looks like the Demon has finally defeated Morgaine . . freeing Selina. And as Hawkman battles the T-Rex, on the beach . . Carter soon finds out that he has some help from the denizens of the deep . . and their master, Aquaman. It looks like the League has finally arrived. Now that we're almost done . . I'm finally getting in to this series. Of course . . all the cliff-hanger endings don't hurt either. But whether you like the format or not, you have to admit that some of the art looks amazing. Only 1 more issue to go. I think.

Doom Patrol #2 - DC

I've been a fan of the Doom Patrol for a very long time. I appreciate the old stuff . . the foundation, but to me the most interesting series was Grant Morrison's stuff. Those issues explored a lot of new ideas and paradigms. And what better team to do that with? Anyways, my point is, with Keith Giffen at the helm . . he's got a little bit of that feel also with this book. I mean, with this story-line, they're dealing with a sentient black-hole. It came into being at the Vulcan Supercollider in Germany. And it's interesting this issue to see how it goes from person to person, gathering intelligence and raw data. He tells the Doom Patrol later, "Curiosity . . once I stumbled across the concept, the allure was irresistible. Knowledge for the sake of knowledge. If it's there to know, I am compelled to know it." To which Rita responds, "Oh my got . . it's another Chief." With this latest incarnation, we're also dealing with the whole Oolong Island thing. Now that it's a sovereign nation, I think Dr Cale is tolerating Will's residence. However, with the turbulence that usually follows this group . . I'm sure that will be precarious at best. Plus we have the usual personality quirks that follow the members of this group. We have Karen, the Bumblebee from the Teen Titans, living in a doll-house in Rita's room. They're 'roomies', of sorts. However, it looks like Karen is more of a 'sounding-block' for Rita. There's also a new supporting character in the form of Rocky. He's a priest, and kind of the team's resident therapist. I don't know why nobody thought of that before. If any team needs that support, it's this one. And in the first issue we lost Nudge. Although I don't think that's the last we've seen of her. I think Keith has a tremendous handle on this group and these characters. If anyone can succeed here, it'll be him. I also love Matthew Clark's pencils. The back-up feature is another group of my favorite characters, the Metal Men. Keith is also involved with that. Along with JM Dematteis and Kevin Maguire. You know. The same group that brought us Justice League International . . back when it was fun . . in the beginning. It's a great feature and I really hope it grows from here. Overall, I think this is a great book. Definitely worth a 'look-see' if you're not reading it.

Wednesday Comics #10 - DC

We're on issue #10 now, so we're getting close to the end. Batman goes after Luna for the murder. He tells her that the Police are right behind him, but before he can do anything he's attacked by some wolves? Where did they come from? With the weapons that Kamandi found, and his help from the Lions, they quickly overpower the Apes in Shintun and Kamandi himself takes out Baaku, their leader. After they release Caesar and Tuftan they're ready to press the attack, but the Apes quickly retreat. Superman overloads the alien's minds with a tidal-wave of information. They're a hive mind, so by doing so he's stunned them all at once. Now he's pressing his advantage. Deadman impales the rune stone and stabs Kalak with the sword while it's attached. Apparently that's enough to take him out. He, and the rest of the females are free now. They just have to find a way out of here. Hal goes out to meet the invading force, and try to warn them off. But they aren't easily impressed. It looks like he's going to have to fight for it. It appears that both Rex and the Element Girl expired on the maze of elements . . or periodic maze, if you will. Apparently this temple is actually a space-ship. When Algon, the last remaining elemental, touches the Star of Atlantis he will turn into the fuel that's required for it to leave Earth. Unfortunately, it will destroy the Earth in the process. It appears that Triton has defeated Tim/Robin. He then tells the story of how the Titans destroyed the future of Earth. But before he can kill him he's confronted by Gizmo. Who asks him, "Do you remember who you really are?" Adam Strange has sent Korgo through the Zeta-beam back to Earth. He's hoping that since he has no counterpart there, he'll be diminished from the blue baboon that he is on Rann. Supergirl approaches the alien space-ship that's causing the solar-flares. Unfortunately she doesn't have any way to communicate with them. And it looks like they're viewing her arrival as hostile. Will Magnus puts a plan in place to slow the reaction that's occurring in Chemo right now. Unfortunately, I don't think they're going to be able to stop it, just contain the explosion. The question is . . will they survive the experience? In the Wonder Woman story . . I'm still a little confused about what's going on. It has to do with the Seven Stars of the Amazons, and Etta and Cheetah are involved. After that . . it's all more than a bit confusing. Plus every issue they seem to be experimenting with the panel lay-out. I'm not thrilled about this one, at all. Sgt Rock is attempted to escape. However, he's not making much progress. But the rest of Easy Co appear to be knocking at the door . . literally. It appears that Barry's problems are all coming from Grodd. Some 50 years in the future he's trying to communicate with himself in the past. Somehow the whole process has cause a problem that has sucked Barry, and Iris, right into the middle of it. Barry's trying to save Iris, but . . he may have to save the future also. It appears that Etrigan and Catwoman have the upper-hand over Morgaine, until Catwoman with the sword she's given. When it strikes Morgaine she turns into a swarm of locusts and quickly take over Selina. It looks like she's in control now. And Hawkman is trying to fight a T Rex to keep the survivors from the airplane crash safe. It's hard to tell if he's winning or not. Overall, I'm enjoying this little experiment. I still think the price-tag is to high, but . . I still bought it. So who am I to complain. There's some great talent here . . and only 2 issues to go. I guess I'll stick around and see how it all wraps up.

Wednesday Comics #9 - DC

Ok, I finally made it through that big stack of books last week. It was ok though. For the most part I enjoyed almost all of them. And I have a little breathing room this week as the new books won't be out till Thursday, because of the holiday. Speaking of which . . what exactly does Labor Day celebrate? I mean . . if it's for the 'working-class' people of this country . . most of us still have to work today. I mean . . the only people I know that don't work are either Federal employees, banks or union-workers. Anymore, all 3 of those categories seem to be a diminishing lot. Oh yeah . . students get it off also. Anyways . . I was just wondering. After that little respite . . I'll get back now to Wednesday's Comics. Batman breaks up Luna and Hardy's little romantic engagement. But as he pulls Hardy through the front window, Luna shoots Hardy twice in the chest. Killing him. And then Luna takes off. Like that's ever a good plan. In Kamandi, it appears the Shintun, the Ape city, is actually Washington DC. Kamandi, Dr Canus and Orora . . as well as the new Lion allies . . reach the city just as the Apes about to execute Ceasar and Tuftan. On thier way there, they found some plans for the underground armories . . so they're loaded for bear. Superman has decided to use his brain a bit. The aliens put some kind of signal into his head that been showing them all the important parts of his life. It's also what led to the depression and soul-searching he was experiencing. And it's also created a telepathic link between them. That's when Superman figures out that if he's sending a signal, then he's probably also receiving. When he stops and listens, he soon figures out the aliens weakness. Or so he says. Boston Brand decides to try to get these girls out of this 'hell' that they've been assigned to. He tries to take on the demon himself, but . . that doesn't go exactly as planned. There's something not quite right about the rune stone, but he doesn't know what it is yet. It's just a nagging suspicion right now. Anyways, the demon brings up a horde of lesser demons to fight him. Hal uses his ring to get the rest of the alien fungus out of his friend Dill. But then learns that what had inhabited him was only a 'scout'. While it was in there, it sent out a signal to a race of aliens that are looking for inhabitable planets. Hal could have his hands full next time. Rex and the Element Girl have discovered Algon, the original Elemental Man, in these caverns and caves while they were searching for this diamond for Stagg. Last time they started chasing him across the periodic table, and this issue they finish that. Did you think they could get all those elements into one story? Anyways, there's something in here about the end of the world, and as Rex reaches the end of the Periodic Table, it looks like he may be dying. The Titans seem to be falling to Trident. Even though they knew they were walking into a trap . . they weren't prepared. And they weren't acting as a team. They find out that all these villains they're fighting aren't real. Probably just hard-light images of Tridents. And then when Tim goes to release Blue Beetle, he finds out that it's actually Trident and now he's captured him. In Strange Adventures, Alanna and Sardath are fighting Korgo when Adam finally makes a reappearance . . right over Korgo's head. Adam's been gone for a while now . . and he see's that his love is in danger. You better believe he's ready to fight. Doctor Mid-Nite is getting closer to helping Kara find out what's wrong with her pets. It appears that there's an alien vessel floating around the sun . . about 200 miles out, and it's dumping things into it which are causing unusual flare activity. So now Supergirl is going to have to fly there to figure out what's going on. While Doctor Mid-Nite tries to keep track of Krypto and Streaky. Dr Pretorius has explained to Doc Magnus, and the Metal Men, that what's happening in Chemo is a chemical reaction. His shell was cracked, exposing the chemicals inside to the air. Once they reach a boiling point, the explosion will take out most of the city. Now the Metal Men have to jump into action and fix this. Wonder Woman is getting closer to figuring out what the plans of this Dr Poison are. She now has all the Seven Stars, except for the girdle. But the Dr knows where that's at, so I'm sure that'll somehow come to light during their altercation. However, Etta and some kids are involved, so she's going to approach this one cautiously. Sgt Rock is trying to make a break from his captives and the rest of Easy Co. are trying to find him. It doesn't appear that either of them are making much progress. We don't make much progress with the Flash story. Barry's caught in some type of fever dream and he's reliving some of his past memories . . with a Sunday comic kind of twist to them. He goes under with Iris over him, and wakes up to a gorilla. Morgaine is still trying to take possession of Selina . . she wants her virility and youth. But during the process, because of Selina's resistance, Morgaine is distracted enough that the Demon can finally break free of his restraints. But the process has already begun and they're in a kind of half-merged state. And in Hawkman, he tries to convince the others to run away as they're being approached by a T-Rex. Remember, apparently they're stuck on Dinosaur Island. As I said last time, I'm enjoying this more. Now that I have a better understanding of the stories. Overall, I think it'll turn out to be a successful project. Some of the art in here really is amazing.

Wednesday Comics #8 - DC

I'm getting into these stories more . . I love the art on most of them, but I don't get what the big draw is. I mean . . I know it's an experiment . . I know it's something different, but . . I don't think it's so fantastic that my shop should keep selling out of them. They're already doing 2nd prints of #1 & #2. The only thing I can think is that most shop owners underestimated their appeal. With lower orders, they're probably on smaller print runs. That would make them more collectible. Plus it's on this cheap newspaper print, so once they've been read, it's probably hard to find many in NM condition. My guy told me that sales started out very slow weeks 1 and 2, but then after that people started going back for what was left. He sold out of week 1 in the 3rd week, but then he's been selling out ever since. Crazy! Oh yeah, there's also about 30 people listing them on E-Bay right now. Anyways, on the Batman story Hardy Stone was arrested last issue, but he's out of jail already. And Batman follows him straight to . . Luna. Kamandi is still on his way to Shintun with Dr Canus and the girl they found. They're trying to get Tuftan and his father released from the Apes. Along the way they pick up an army of Lions. I believe Superman has started to figure out who these aliens are. He's come to the realization that he's intimately connected to these people on Earth . . as he races to try to save Ma & Pa. But as he's tackled to the ground by one of the aliens, he says . . "I got you!" Deadman, I think, is being seduced by Julianna, one of the girls captured by this demon, Kalak. He frees them from captivity be releasing a rune-stone, but they still have to go past Kalak to get out. But something just doesn't seem right. Green Lantern starts to get through to Dill a little bit. He shows him who he is and it startles him enough that he breaks his grip. Now all he has to do is crack his shell with his ring. Rex and Rainy chase after Algon, the ancient elemental, and as they do they shift from element to element and we're given a science lesson in the form of the Periodic Table. The Titans have come to face Triton in their old headquarters . . the cave. But it's a trap. As each member counters up with an enemy, Robin is left alone with Triton. He's scared, but he's trying to save Blue Beetle. We don't see Adam Strange this issue, but Alanna has gone to talk to Prince Zotar of the Northern Rock People. They decide to ally with each other to fight against Korgo who is trying to steal the Zeta-beam. Supergirl has gone to Doctor Mid-Nite to try to find out what's wrong with Krypto and Streaky. I don't think he's making much headway, until they both act out and attack his owl. The Metal Men are still fighting Chemo, but in doing so they've cracked his shell. Pretorius informs them that he's about to go Nuclear and take the entire city with him. Wonder Woman gets the Golden Lasso from some rather large wolf in her dreams, one of the Seven Stars, but she's also given a warning, "The thread does give you control, but . . perhaps not as you think." Sgt Rock tries to escape with the photographer, but he comes across some Nazi's who have gained advantage of the situation. Flash . . or rather, all the Flashes . .have worked together to tear apart this gravity field they've discovered by making a million tiny black holes. However, upon completion, I think they're all blinking out of existence as they develop nose bleeds and writhe in agony. Morgaine looks like she's about to gain Selina's body as her own, and there's nothing Jason Blood can do about it. Meanwhile, Hawkman . . now stuck on Dinosaur Island . . has called the JLA for help, but there's no one available. They're all still fighting the alien invasion. However . . Aquaman is free, so he's on his way to help. Overall I thought it was a pretty decent issue. Not enough information in each installment for me, but . . I'm getting used to it. Finally! However . . there's only 4 issues to go.

Wednesday Comics #7 - DC

I read this on Wednesday, but . . I haven't bothered to write anything down yet. Sorry! Batman is getting a little closer to finding the killer. He pushes Hardy, his last lead, who gives him another name . . Carlton Glass. But no sooner does he give him the name than he's killed. Kamandi gets some information out of the girl . . her name Orora. And they, and Dr Canus, are on their way to Shintun to help Tuftan and his father escape the Apes. However, on their way there they see that the Tiger Legion has been defeated. That means that these 3 are now the Prince's only hope. Meanwhile, Superman is just getting clobbered. He has no idea who these aliens are and how they're so strong. It appears that they're also telepaths because as they're fighting Clark worries about Ma and Pa, but they're out of town at church. However, as soon as he thinks it . . they're on their way to intercept. Deadman has finally caught up to the girl that he tried to help in the alley . . the one that got him into this whole mess. He finds out that she's not the only girl captured here. They're in a kind of limbo, and there's a demon there that has captured other women and is amusing himself by torturing them. Boston is trying to think of a plan to help them escape. Hal has finally made it to the TV station, where he finds Dill transformed into some kind of alien. Unfortunately, as he's fighting him, he finds out that he's strong enough to break through his rings constructed barrier. Metamorpho and Rainy, the elemental girl, have made it through some more of the traps, and have started questioning their involvement. That's when they come across another elemental type creature that's guarding the Star of Atlantis diamond. The Teen Titans are trying to figure out what the deal is with this new Triton. They've come across a couple of them in the past. This one claims that he's Dr Light's son, and he's from the future. Supposedly, he's preventing the Titans from becoming a threat then. So . . they're off to fight him. They know it's a trap, but . . it's what they do. Adam has a dream where Dr. Fate comes to him and helps him find his Zeta-map. Now he can find another location and go back to Rann. Supergirl and called on Aquaman to try to help her figure out what's wrong with Krypto and Streaky. But . . he doesn't talk to 'those' type of animals. He's mad about the inconvenience at first, but then he apologizes to her. He sends her off to see Doctor Mid-Nite. The Metal Men find out that this Dr Pretorius has created Chemo, and he may be more than the Metal Men can handle. Tin gets the raw end of the deal, and he probably won't be the last. Wonder Woman has another dream where she's going after the sword, but this time she may have inadvertantly sacrificed Etta and the Professor. To make matters worse, she can't seem to wake up. Sgt Rock is finally free . . sort of. He's still in a bunker someplace, but at least now he has a gun and a knife. And the rest of Easy Company have finally made it out of the cave. The Flash is getting closer to figuring out what's going on, but the more time he spends the more versions of himself that keep appearing. He's also starting to hallucinate and get nose bleeds. He's seeing monkeys. Morgaine has force the Demon back into his Jason Blood form, which also transforms Selina back. Now she's ready to pounce. And finally . . Hawkman has managed to bring the plan down, but they may have gone from the frying pan into the fire. The appear to be stranded on an island of dinosaurs. And because of the strain of trying to save the airplane, his Nth metal belt doesn't appear to be working. I sincerely applaud all the talent on this series. There are some great looking pages here. However . . I'm glad this is a mini-series because it's starting to drive me crazy. I appreciate what they're trying to do here, but . . there's only so much information they can fit on 1 page. We're really getting it in bite sized pieces. The only saving grace is that it's weekly . . so it doesn't take that long to start building up a little momentum. But . . it's very little momentum. This is issue #7 and some of the stories I don't know much more than when we first started. Well . . the artwork is pretty good too, so . . that helps with my patience. I want to be positive . . I really do. But like I said . . it's just a little frustrating. But I'll keep trying.

Wednesday Comics #6 - DC

Well, it's another edition of Wednesday Comics. Lets see how we stand on all of our various stories here. Batman goes to confront Hardy Stone . . our supposed killer. It's interesting though as he looks like a gang-member, but he's sitting in his house listening to Opera. Kamandi and the girl break free of the apes' bonds, but it may not be enough. They find Dr Canus still alive, after the crash, but Tuftan is still on his way back to ape city. Which, I assume is their next destination. Clark is enjoying a morning of sleeping in . . in Kansas, when he's interrupted by an explosion, and the yelling voices of aliens . . "Kryptonian!" Deadman appears to have run out of luck, after he was cast into whatever demon dimension he's in . . because he did something Rama Kushna told him not to. But just as it appears to be over, 3 visions of loveliness appear before him. Hal's still thinking back on his competitiveness with Dill. All it cost him was getting kicked out of the space program. Even still, he's now rushing to his opponents aid. Metamorpho and Element Girl go further into the relics, only to find giant snakes as a deterrent. There's a game on the bottom of the page for kids. Blue Beetle is still battling Trident, but . .they're both worn out. Trident is still trying to kill the Titans. He says they're a danger to the future, but doesn't give specifics. However, we find out this time that he's Arthur Light's son. Adam Strange zeta-beamed back to Earth last issue only to find out that back home . . he's an old man. He seems to be set on an expedition in Peru, circa 1957, and after weeks of being stuck her, he's beginning to think that his life back on Rann was all just a dream. Supergirl goes to Aquaman for pet advice, but being the protector of the oceans . . 70% of Earth, seems to be keeping him a little busy. I think in order to get advice, she's going to have to go with him. The Metal Men have risen to the challenge and negated Dr Pretorius' threat of blowing them all up, but . . by circumventing his remote, they've unwittingly sent out a homing signal to an even bigger threat . . Chemo. I'm still a little confused about the Wonder Woman story. She's gotten most of the seven stars, now she just needs the sword, girdle and lasso. And she meets Etta this time. However I'm not sure if this is still a dream, and . . Ben Caldwell changes the format this time. That was a little confusing. Sgt Rock is aided in his escape when one of the scientists cuts his ropes. He wants to take the advantage while the Nazi's are busy. Barry has to again vibrate into the past, as he finds himself in space, and now there's 3 versions of himself. While in the story that was about Iris, we learn a little bit about the history of Gorilla Grodd. The Demon comes face to face with Morgaine Le Fey. And Hawkman, having brought down the plane in the ocean, and then to a deserted isle, finds that while most of the passengers have survived, although injured, he now has to face the threat of leaking, and exploding, fuel. Like I said last time, I'm starting to get into the stories more . . except for Wonder Woman, that is . . but I'm still not thrilled about the format. We just don't get very much information with each issue. But I'll keep getting it and reporting to see what kind of progress we make. It is some nice looking art though.

Doom Patrol #1 - DC

First of all . . oh my god! Two of my favorite teams in the same book. It's a dream come true. Yes it's the Doom Patrol's new book, but . . the back-up story is about the Metal Men. Fan-frikkin-tastic! For that . . I'm even willing to happily pay $3.99. Well . . maybe not happily. But you know what I mean. You can't see it on this picture, but on the cover there's even the checkerboard design on top that was often seen on the original series, back in the 60's, and on My Greatest Adventures. I think it was a great nod of the hat to the original. By the way, the cover that this art is super-imposed over is actually Doom Patrol #109 from 1966. Well . . the actual cover is. The one pictured on the right is Doom Patrol #121, 1968. But, enough of the past. This series is being done by Keith Giffen and Matthew Clark. As with most Doom Patrol books, this one just jumps right into the action. They're staying with the Oolong Island theme here. That's where the team is operating out of, and where Niles is currently residing. Nudge and Grunt are still with the team, and there's also a new handler/pilot/mission support with Deborah Marlow, Dusty. We start out with the team in Buena Suerte trying to stop a mad-scientist, Dr Amanda Beckett from creating some kind of monsters. They cripple her operation, but . . I don't think we've seen the last of her. And, of course, it's a suicide mission because the army shows up just as they're getting ready to take off. Nudge is taken down in a hail of bullets, and Grunt runs off into the woods with her body. Those 2 didn't last long. When the team returns to the island, we also see that Niles has brought in a priest/therapist to help the team with these rather common losses. His name is father Rocky Davis. It seems like a nice added twist to the story. We also see that Karen Duncan, Bumblebee is still around and rooming with Rita. The story ends with Niles finding out that the super-collider has been brought on line, and as expected, a singularity has been created . . a black-hole. The problem, as relayed to Niles by Dr Ackerman is, this singularity seems to have sentience. "It . . it wants to negotiate terms." Well . . there's nothing like jumping right into the frying pan. This was a pretty fast-paced, hectic story . . with a lot to absorb, but . . I'm so glad they're back with their own title again. I can't wait to read this crazy stuff month after month. The Metal Men story, also by Keith with JM DeMatteis was kind of the opposite. It was a much more relaxed, laid-back story. Sure the team is in Brazil fighting some giant Incan stone statue of one of their gods, but . . they did take the Ruby of Redemption off of the pedestal that the statue was guarding. "Haven't you ever see those movies about the guy with the whip and the funny hat? The point is . . you're never ever supposed to take the ancient artifact off the pedestal! If you do, you end up being chased by giant boulders . . or ancient stone gods with moronic names!" And, they're only doing it because Will is getting some money from the museum in Sao Paulo to do so. Anyways, the real point of the story is all the hilarious interaction between this crazy characters, and . . Will's neighbors have decided that they don't like him living in their neighborhood with his 'monsters'. Keith can bring out all of his crazy demented humor with this cast. Oh, and by the way, Kevin Maguire does the pencils. I thought it was a great book. I can't wait for more!

Wednesday Comics #5 - DC

I finally got caught up on last weeks books so I can begin on this weeks. I'm excited because I got some great looking DC books starting out this stack. Were up to issue 5 now on this series, and the stories are starting to come together for me. Batman's looking into Carlton Glass' murder, but he's been looking into it as Bruce. Carlton was a socialite, much like he. But now, with the attempt on Luna's life at her father's funeral, by Hardy Stone, some hired muscle, it's time for him to don the Batman persona and go at it from that direction. In the Kamandi story, brilliantly drawn by Ryan Sook, Kamandi, Tuftan and the girl are all taken captive by the Apes and their leader Baaku. He's especially happy to have captured Prince Tuftan. Now they're headed by to thier city as slaves. Clark has gone back to Smallville to try to find some perspective. He's looking at his old ship, in the basement of the barn, realizing that he's not been 'normal' since he arrived on this planet. He's longing for Krypton, where . ."Things were normal. Until they weren't." And then his birth parents had to send him off. Boston Brand has been brought back to life only to have to suffer the tortures of hell. Now that he has flesh and bones again, all he has to do is escape 3 demons that are trying to kill him. In the end he gets impaled from behind. Hal's thinking back to when he and Dill were competing for the space launch. There were 30 some guys there as recruits, but really it always came down to he and Dill. His biggest frustration was that Dill was so level-headed . . he took everything so calmly. Hal was always ready to just jump in the rocket and take off. Simon Stagg and company are getting ready to go after the Atlantis diamond when their troupe is attacked by a cloud of Chlorine gas. Element-girl reacts quickly and she and Rex soon turn the cloud into table salt. But they now realize that someone is trying to kill them. In the Titans story, Caroline Lee the agent of SMASH who's come out to help the Titans, doesn't have any lost love for 'heroes'. She considers firemen, policemen and doctors to be the true heroes. But she learns a little bit about sacrifice when Beetle puts himself in danger with Trident to help out his teammates, Kory and Tim. She's starting to realize why the heroes can't always be around everytime we 'think' we need them. The Paul Pope chapter of Adam Strange was a little bland. We learn a little about Rannian landscape, but that's about it. Supergirl has to save the plane that Streaky ripped the tail off of. She begs Krypto for help, but . . he's a dog. What do you expect. After the debacle, they both just sit at her feet . . looking cute and begging for attention. She's really confused as to their actions. Will Magnus has found out that the bank robbery is actually an attempt by Dr. Bela Pretorius to get some revenge on the student that he believes to have betrayed him . . Will. He's got a bomb strapped to himself and he's ready to take Will, the Metal Men and everybody else with him straight to hell. Have I mentioned lately how Jose Luis Garcia Lopez is one of my all-time favorite artists? Well . . he is. It's great to see him on this story. In Diana's latest dreams, she's gone to the city of Shangri-La in the Himalayas. There she comes across Priscilla Rich who is in search of the Tiara of Sakyamunis, one of the seven stars of the Amazons. This is probably the most intricate story in this parchment, but it's also the most confusing. I almost think that Ben Caldwell is trying to put to much into this story. Basically, this one was a dream showing Diana where her Tiara came from. Sgt Rock is still being tortured by the Nazis, while the rest of Easy Co is in a cave below the city with some refugees. The Flash story is also a bit confusing to me. There's 2 flashes present, apparently one came back from the immediate future to help stop Grodd. But, he's also created a quantum singularity . . an infant universe for him by using his speed. And, in the Iris part of the story, Barry commits to not being the Flash anymore so that he can save his marriage. The story is done in 2 separate parts. I know they're related, and connected, somehow. I just don't see it yet. In the Demon/Catwoman story, it appears that it's the machinations of Morgana Le Fey that have brought these 2 together. He believes the cat to be her totem and is returning it to her so that he might strike at her in person. But . . she's really manipulated the whole thing because somehow Selina . . or rather her body, can help Morgana return to her youthful vigor. Finally, Hawkman has to save the plane of innocents that he just rescued from being taken over by aliens. However, now the plane has lost a wing and is in free-fall. He tries to steer it over the ocean. Overall, I thought this batch of stories were interesting. Some fit the format . . some didn't. But, it's an experiment and things aren't always going to be perfect. But I enjoyed it.

Wednesday Comics #4 - DC

Ok . . now that we're on issue #4 . . we've had 4 full pages of story and art from each of these characters . . I'm finally starting to get into a couple of the stories. Batman's story is about a rich Gotham socialite, Franklin Glass. It's obvious that he was killed either by his 'trophy' wife or his son. Bruce/Batman just hasn't figured out whom it is . . yet. In Kamandi, our hero has leaped into danger because of the hope of finding another of his kind . . a young girl. However, in doing so, he and Prince Tuftan have jumped from the frying pan into the fire . . the hands of their enemy, the Apes. The Superman story is a bit more confusing. He's being drawn to Smallville for some reason, but we don't really know why yet. All we know is that whatever it is . . it's making him feel like Metropolis just isn't his home. Hal saw an old friend, Joseph Dillon . . Dill, turn into a monster on live television last issue. As he flies out to help, he has memories of how they first met . . as recruits for a space program. Rex Mason is going after the Star of Atlantis, a diamond, for Simon Stagg, and Sapphire. But the US Government is after it also. They've brought in thier own female Metamorpho, Urania Blackwell, CIA. But, there's also someone else, mysterious, that we haven't met yet. He also wants the diamond and he says that Rex is going to get it for him. Hmmm . . mystery and intrigue. In the Teen Titans story, it appears that this Trident is from the future. Somehow he has it in his head that the Titans will turn on the population and cause untold damage. He's convinced that they have to die . . now! Paul Pope shows us a dark, dreary look at Rann. Last time Adam Strange escaped his blue Orangutan jailers, and this time the female does. Supergirl and Krypto watch Streaky rip the tail wing off a passing airplane, because it has a picture of a mouse on it. We find out that the bank robbery that the Metal Men inadvertently walked into was actually staged by someone who knows and hates Doc Magnus. And now he's even more pissed. Wonder Woman, to me, has the worst story of the bunch. This issue she travels to the underworld and battles a Granny Cipactl. I don't know who this is. But she has what she calls a mirror that is actually the Queens shield that was forged by the gods. Diana decides that she's going to return it . . but at what cost? I really liked this story the least. We see Sgt Rock getting interrogated, while Easy Co., in their search for him, find a community of survivors living in the caves underground. They were trying to evade the Nazis. The Flash story is a bit confusing as there are 2 Flashs and 2 Barry Allens. I guess one of them went back in time 10 minutes to stop Gorilla Grodd. We also see that Iris is having a huge problem with Barry. It seems as if she's almost ready to leave him. We watch the Demon and Cat-Woman fight each other, as Selina has been turned into some kind of large 'cat-beast'. And finally, Hawkman is trying to stop the Makkorthites from invading Earth. But he's going to have to stop a plane from crashing before he continues any farther. I've kind of got a feeling for all of them now, except for Wonder Woman. I'm struggling with that one for some reason. Anyways, overall I enjoyed the issue, it's just the 'bite-sized' pieces of information that we're getting is frustrating. But . . it is an experiment. Right? I appreciate the effort by all the creators involved, but I'm still struggling with the price and the relevancy of these stories.

Wednesday Comics #3 - DC

I'm left again, feeling kind of flat about this one. I appreciate the art . . and the effort. I think the thing that troubles me the most is that we get so little with each chapter . . a couple of them I'm just reading to read . . the story really has no meaning for me. It's great that Azzarello & Risso have taken on another project together. And it's fantastic that it's Batman. Kamandi and Hawkman's stories fit in perfect with this format. I love Bermejo's work on Superman, but . . I don't know where the story is going. Deadman is one of my favorite characters and this story I'm actually keeping track of, but . . after 3 issues we've gotten . . Deadman wants to help out a girl in trouble by inhabiting her attacker . . Rama Kushna doesn't want him to do that and punishes him . . he's now in human form but also in mortal danger. There's not much info for each chapter. The same can be said for Green Lantern. The first chapter we didn't even see him, just his Ferris Aircraft co-workers. The second he's Green Lantern, but his supporting cast is nowhere around. Now he shows up at the bar, sees that an old colleague is in trouble on TV, and takes off as Green Lantern. Metamorpho is the worst. It's just one giant splash page. We see Stagg and Rex talking, and that's about it. The Teen Titans are ok, but . . it's moving very slowly. I've given up on Wonder Woman. I know that she's having dreams where she crosses over into man's world. The dreams are prophetic and having actual consequences, but . . so far it's a boring story. I'm enjoying Strange Adventures by Paul Pope. And I'm not even a huge fan. I'm also enjoying Supergirl and Metal Men. Both of them are progressing . . a bit speedier than the other stories. Sgt Rock is another one that fits this format perfectly. Flash is a bit confusing, but it's a neat story. And Catwoman is suffering some Demon trouble. It's interesting, but we haven't got to the heart of the story yet. And that's everything. To me, I can't really blame the creators because I think they're really doing their best and putting in the effort. Unfortunately, they're just so limited with the format. And, if you think about it, these are really nothing more than back-up stories. Even if they collect everything at the end, and put it in a format where you can read all of the pages together, there's still only going to be 12 pages per story. Like I said . . a back-up story. I think the frustrating part for me is that I want to like it. I really do. But, so far . . it's just not doing it for me. And . . I'm sorry. But I want to be honest also.

Wednesday Comics #2 - DC

I'm finding myself at a loss as to what to say about this issue . . these strips. While I like the characters, and I appreciate the talent that's involved with each tale . . unfortunately I haven't really received enough information from just the 2 strips . . this week and last, to come to an informed opinion about any of the stories. Again, I think the stories that fit the format the best were Kamandi, Hawkman, Strange Adventures and Sgt Rock. But, to me, that was mostly because of the style of art. They actually look like they could've come out of the Sunday comics. Overall I liked all of the stories. It was great to see Superman and Batman together, as it was to see Azzarello and Risso together again . . especially since they're doing Batman. I would have to say that my favorite of the group so far is the Metal Men story. One, because I've always liked the Metal Men. And two, because Jose Luis Garcia Lopez is doing the art. He hasn't done much lately, so I'm always thrilled when he becomes involved with a new project. I noticed in the credits that it says that this is dedicated to Archie Goodwin. I thought that was a nice nod of the hat. I really don't know what else to say. I'm still a little upset about the price per issue, $3.99. But obviously it's selling, so . . I must be alone in that department. Now I just have to figure out how to store them. They don't fit in a normal sized comic bag. Oh well. On to the next title.

Wednesday Comics #1 - DC

Well . . this is different. It's set up just like the comic section of the Sunday newspaper. It's got the same kind of look and flow to it as those serials. And, from what I understand, these stories will be dragged out over the 12 issues of this experiment. The good thing about this is, there's no adds. Well, one on the back fold for Robot Chicken. But we have a great cast of stories set up here, with a huge cast of creators. There's Superman by Arcudi & Bermejo, Batman by Azzarello & Risso, Kamandi by Gibbons & Sook, Hawkman by Kyle Baker, Deadman by Bullock & Hauck, Green Lantern by Busiek & Quinones, Metamorpho by Gaiman & Allred, Teen Titans by Berganza and Galloway, Strange Adventures by Paul Pope, Supergirl by Palmiotti & Conner, Metal Men by Didio, Gacia-Lopez & Nowlan, Wonder Woman by Talent Caldwell, Sgt Rock by father & son, the Flash by Kerschl & Fletcher, and the one that surprised me the most Catwoman and the Demon by Simonson & Steelfreeze. Of the stories themselves, the ones that seemed like they fit the format the best were Kamandi, Hawkman, Strange Adventures and Sgt Rock. They just had the feel, and look of something that could've been in the paper. I liked, or appreciated all the stories, but looking at this paper unfolded before me, I'm taken back to when I was a kid and rushed to read the color comics in the Sunday paper. The comics the rest of the week were ok. But Sunday's were in color. Like I said, I liked the rest of the stories . . Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, but . . the Sunday comics were never that flashy. There was never anything like Bermejo, Risso or Quinones' work. My other complaint, kind of, is that having read comics and knowing how long some of these stories can be dragged out, it just didn't seem like we received near enough information in the one page spread. Oh yeah, and it was $3.99. $3.99? Are you kidding me? I definitely didn't feel that it was worth that price tag. Ok. I'm sorry. I'm starting to get kind of negative here. I know this is an experiment. And, I appreciate what they're trying to do. I got the newspaper feel from it. But overall, it just felt like a page blown up from 15 different comics. Other than the uniqueness of the whole thing . . there was nothing that really stood out to draw me back week after week. I'm sure this whole thing was a 'cool' idea. And everybody got all excited when the characters and names started getting thrown around. But, in my opinion. The presentation of the material was lacking. Lacking what, though? I'm not sure. With this medium there wasn't really much they could've changed. I'm a little confounded after thinking this all through. Maybe it'll grab me more next week.

Metal Men #8 - DC

I really like this book. The Metal Men are some of my favorite characters of all time. I have . . almost . . every appearance that they've ever made. But I gotta say, in all that time . . in all that rich history . . things were never, ever, explained is such detail as they were in this series. And, while I appreciate that . . I think that this series will be like the bible of the Metal Men for any future series . . it was a bit confusing, because we had so much stuff being thrown at us. Like the big alchemical creature with the pyramid on his head and the one eye. I'm a little confused about if he came from the past or the future. I kind of get what he was after, but then in this issue, Will and Professor Morrow take him out, but it isn't really explained what happens to him. I have a feeling this guys going to pop up again. I definitely don't think he's down for the count. Also, at the end of the issue, Will's brother, David, gets caught in the time-stream and something happens to him that turns him in to another Metal Man. He's a new one, Viridium, and he definitely has it out for Will and his band of metal miscreants. I thought Duncan Rouleau did a wonderful job with this series. Both in story and art. I'm not sure how much . . or how many ideas . . Grant Morrison gave Duncan, but there were some brilliant ideas in here. Like I said, things that will define every future story of these heroes. For that I'm thankful. There were just times that I felt like I was sitting in on a science class. Which, overall, is ok. I think everything was accomplished that they wanted to accomplish. I'm sure we'll see a new series from them sometime in the next year or so. It'll be interesting to see where they go from here. I really do love these characters.