Amazing Spider-man #543 - Marvel

This is an amazing book. J Michael Straczynski is a fantastic writer. He has really done an outstanding job with this book and these characters. But from what I read, he's getting ready to end his 6 year run. That's really sad. I really hope the next writer loves these characters as much as he obviously does. Nothing with May, really changes this issue. Except that they move her to a different hospital. One of the nurses tips off the police that they have a patient, suffering from a gunshot wound, who hasn't reported it to the police, and are paying for all their medical bills with cash. That's . . a bit suspicious. They haven't made the connection who the people are. All they know is that something isn't right. So when they go to investigate. Peter assumes the worst, and they flee with May and take her to a different hospital. Through the course of the events, Peter figures he's committed 9 felonies. They include, failing to file a police report on a gunshot wound, assaulting a police officer, fleeing the scene of a crime, grand theft auto, breaking and entering, reckless endangerment, forgery and fraud. "Nine felony counts. Not committed by somebody in a mask that can't be tracked down. Not committed by Spider-man. Nine felonies committed by ME, with my fingerprints all over everything. Me. Peter Parker. I can't say it was a trap, or a frame-up, or an anti-registration technicality, or anything else. I committed those crimes. I have become the very thing I set out to fight. A criminal. All my life, I've had nightmares about being accused of a crime and being sent to jail. And now I'm trapped in that nightmare, only this time it's real It's REAL! I'm lost . . . god help me, I'm so lost . . ." And all of this is going to lead in to the One More Day storyline. Which from my understanding is going to change a lot of things in Peter's life. My best guess is, this is going to be the end of an era for Spider-man. And . . . the beginning of an era for Spider-man. It'll be interesting to see how this all shakes out.

Booster Gold #1 - DC

In my opinion, this book has a ton of potential. But . . they need to get Geoff Johns to stay on board long enough to give it a good solid foundation. Right now it's written by Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz. The first issue . . . is fantastic. The artistic work is done by Norm Rapmund over Dan Jurgens layouts. They really make a good solid team together. The book starts out in normal Booster Gold fashion. He's just thinking about himself. He assisted Rip Hunter in saving the Multi-verses, so he thinks he deserves his life back. In his typical egotistic leaps of logic, he thinks that this makes him a candidate for the Justice League. They pretty much all but fillet him. It's actually Batman that sticks up for him. The final verdict is, "For Blue Beetle . . let's give him a week. We watch him. We see what he does. And if . . if . . it's a unanimous vote after that . . . we'll flip a coin." But Rip Hunter has his own job offer for him, "I mean this in all sincerity. You've proven yourself to me. You're one of the bravest men I've met in any century. But maybe your destiny isn't what you think it is . . . . . you'll go down in history as an ineffectual and incompetent fraud when in reality you'll be the greatest hero history has never known." I guess that's the hard sell, because he didn't pull his punches. But Booster has his heart set on the League. When his week is up, he goes to the Hall of Justice. To his surprise they welcome him . . . with open arms. However when they give him his plaque, he and Skeets see a death certificate for Hal Jordan. So he knows what he has to do. As much as it pains him, he has to pass on the League and go back and help Rip. Basically what's happening is that when the Multiverse Crisis was wrapped up, between Mr Mind's manipulation, and Superboy Prime's tantrums, there have been worm-holes created all through history. Rip has determined that someone is using those holes to target the personal histories of the members of the League. So with Booster's help, they're going to stop all the attempts to change history, and then seal up the holes while they're there. But no-one will ever know, or be aware, of all the hard work that they're going to accomplish. While they're talking, someone is targeting Sinestro in his past. And they've already attacked Michael's Great, Great, Great, Great, (whatever) Grandfather, Daniel. He was a temporary replacement for Booster when Rip thought he lost him in the time stream. To help him survive there, he gave him the Supernova costume. Well whoever attacked Daniel took that costume. But Rip and Michael don't know that yet. Like I said, as long as this series gets a good foundation going, I think it'll do just fine. It's got some really great ideas to work off of. I just hope they use everything to it's potential, without getting to confusing. You know how those time stories can get sometimes. I for one, would really like to see it do well. So now . . . it's up to our creators. Please, Please, Please . . . hit a home run!

Grifter / MidNighter #6 - WildStorm

This issue wraps up the mini-series. Grifter and the MidNighter actually make a pretty good team. Cole, for some reason, seems to be the only one that can remember the restart of the WildStorm universe. So when they land on mars, with no oxygen, he gets pissed when the MidNighter revives him. "I died again?" Anyways, they find the alien queen. She's frozen in a huge chunk of ice. But before they can do anything, the male comes along and start unfreezing her. Our 2 anti-heroes are caught in the backwash of the glacier and can't do much. But when they finally settle down, they have a front row seat to an alien mating match. It doesn't do much for either one of them though. MidNighter jumps in head first, literally, and does his best to take out the male. But it's the spawn of the female that's the real threat. Cole does the mind-meld thing with MidNighter while he's underwater. It's not something he likes to do, or even enjoys, but this situation warrants it. Zee shows up soon, also, to see how her boys are doing. So now they're having a 3-way mind thing. Cole gets a headache and pissed off. "I gotta end this now. Everyone out of the water . . . it's a little something I've been holding back. Semtex, spent Plutonium . . . and a little Kherubim magic. Quick, nasty and effective." The story pretty much ends up the way you expect it to. But, the real magic of this story was the interaction between Grifter and MidNighter. It was fantastic. These 2 really are opposite sides of the same coin. I'd like to see them team-up again some time.

Loveless #19 - Vertigo

Well . . things are coming to a head in Blackwater. Mister Trotter and Captain Lord are trying to decide what to do about the massacre that happened lately here. Basically they're going to put the town under marshall law, trying to draw out the killers. They're convinced that it's some of Blackwaters men, and that they're hiding in the hills. Colonel Redd doesn't agree with that assessment though. And as they're going around taking the town-folks weapons, from the rage of Foley, and his accent, I'm guessing it was him and some of the other soldiers that killed all those people. Racism was a pretty powerful weapon back then. It still is now, actually. But, back then, we were dealing in a lawless part of the country. Meanwhile, Ruth is still in the cave with Wes' body. She knows he's dead. But she hasn't admitted it to herself yet. But she does know that Mister Punch was involved in it, so she takes out her anger on him. Also, in another part of the hills, Atticus is getting ready to head in to town, when one of the girls makes a comment about some of the things one of the guys said when they were killing all those people. From the accent she mimics, he makes the connection to Foley. When he gets to town, he gets the drop on Foley and has him step in to the hangman's noose. But then some of the local kids get involved and start throwing rocks at Atticus. This starts a melee. Captain Lord is watching from the window, and Ruth is getting ready to come down from the hills. She's loaded with guns and dynamite. It's getting ready to hit the fan . . . literally. I love the cover by Mario Frusin. But I'm not to thrilled with the interior work by Werther Dell'edera. I know they want it to have that old, simplistic look. Like the old westerns. But . . I just don't like it. However, Brian Azzarello's story is fantastic. I think this guy is definitely under-appreciated. But overall, a really nice book. Especially for a western.

Catwoman #70 - DC

Well, last issue, Catwoman went undercover in the Bana. A radical, extremist group, that was a part of the Amazons. But now I don't know if anybody claims them. Anyways, she obtained a pocket nuclear device for them. Which they want to use to destroy Gotham. But, now Catwoman's feeling guilty for her part in the whole thing, and is trying to single-handedly stop their plan. The problem is, the police that are also at the scene, don't know which side of this situation Catwoman's on. But she has a vested interest in this, because she wants to make Gotham safe for her daughter. Long story short, the police take down the Bana, Catwoman recovers the device and then she makes a getaway. But later, as she's trying to relax and enjoy her victory, it dawns on her that there was still one of their group out there. She lays a little trap for her in her apartment, but when the Bana goes after her daughter instead of her . . . all bets are off. Catwoman kicks the crap out of her, and then Jonn Jonzz comes in to help her finish up and take the Bana in to custody. But then, she starts thinking about the last few months. Maybe a year. And she's decided she can't live this way anymore. And her daughter can definitely not live like this. So she's come to a decision, she's either done with being Catwoman, or done with Gotham. We'll have to wait until next issue to find out what it's going to be. It was a good wrap-up to this story though, by Will Pfeifer and David Lopez. Another creative team who's definitely made this book their own. And I love those Adam Hughes covers.

Robin #165 - DC

Robin's jumped in to the deep end of the pool this issue. He goes in to the Hospital to confront Dodge. Knowing that he's put a team together, but he doesn't know how many there are, or who they are. Let alone their powers. But he does go in . . . without hesitation. We also get a little more of the history of Dodge this issue. He takes out Macro and Micro first. They were bush-leaguers. So they were pretty easy. Then he takes out Tapeworm. That guy really is pretty lame. But he has some problems with Brutus. Think Juggernaut, but Italian, and in an Armani suit. His only real weak point is his eyes. Then there's Cheater. I'm not sure what all he can do, but it seams like he can either phase of teleport. And then there's Skill. She an assassin and she's looking to kill Robin so she can make her bones. Against the 3 of them, Robin really doesn't have a chance, but then Dodge calls a stop to it all because he didn't want to kill Robin. "I just wanted to show him he was wrong to mess with me! Killing him was never part of the plan . ." But these guys could definitely overpower Dodge too . . . and he knows it. So he teleports them all out so they can regroup and come up with a new plan. The 3 of them tell Dodge that they know where he lives and his parents names so he's going to follow along with them. And Skill tells them, " . . . we'll have Robin right where we want him. He'll practically beg us to kill him . . . . . because . . . I know Robin's real name." This could get interesting. But I think Dodge is going to switch sides. He's somehow going to help Robin, and when he tells him about his parents, Batman with take on that task. I don't know if they'll be able to beat these 3 or not. But they should be able to hold their own. Nice story by Adam Beechen. And I really like Freddie E Williams II's artwork. Both of them have brought a good feel to this book.

Shadowpact #16 - DC

It takes a whole issue here, but they tell us what happened after Dr. Gotham blew the Volcano in downtown Chicago. I mean, yes there were some fatalities, but . . nowhere near what there could have been. Anyways, long story short, when the dust cloud started coming towards them, Nightshade started scooping up as many people as she could and took them to her Nightshade dimension. She even scoops up whole buildings. Right around that time, some members of the Justice League showed up to lend a hand. Zatanna produced air bubbles around the survivors, and Superman, Supergirl, and Wonder Woman tried to pull out as many people as possible. About this same time, the Enchantress, realizing that his powers weren't a part of him, but rather from a pocket dimension inside his cloak, dove in to see what damage she could do. Once there she finds thousands upon thousands of magical items, and knowing that she only has a limited time there, starts smashing as much stuff as possible. Eventually Dr. Gotham shakes her loose and then teleports away. Meanwhile, in Hell, Blue Devil's lawyer is arguing his case with . . . the devils . . I guess. He's got a pretty compelling argument, but then one of Hell's lawyers steps up to say that Danny's contract is actually an extension of his brother's, Jack. At the same time Danny is talking to some high ranking priests, trying to figure out what and how many act of contrition he has to perform to save his soul. He has to complete 13 tasks. The first? ". . . an army of warrior-magicians is marching on this world, determined to overthrow it. They're called the Homo Magi. We'd like you to stop them." It just goes from bad to worse for this group. And the next issue blurb says, "Dr. Gotham is far from being done with our hard luck heroes." Sucks to be them! But anyways, it was a fantastic issue, by Bill Willingham and Tom Derenick.

Black Canary #4 - DC

Man . . does Dinah go off this issue. At the end of last issue, she thought that Ollie had his the rope to the dingy, and, as it fell in the water, it was crushed in the propellers of the barge. So now she is . . . . pissed. This also happens to be right around the time when Merlyn shows up. He doesn't know what's going on, but he kills 2 cops on his way to get on the boat. When he finds out Green Arrow dropped the dingy that cause Sin to be killed, he's pissed and ready to take it to Ollie. But Dinah, in a flying leap, blind-sides him. "He's not your problem now . . . I AM!!" And she proceeds to kick the crap out of him. She's really ready to kill him, until Ollie talks her down. "I know he deserves to die. But if you kill him, he can't suffer anymore. is that what you want?" The members of the League of Assassins that are still alive, Ollie lets live. "Go now, or you'll miss your chance. Go home and tell your friends what happened. I want the League to know there's nothing left for you here. And it would be a mistake to ever come back. And forget Merlyn. He belongs to Black Canary now." 3 days later, Ollie finally shows Dinah the letter to her from Sin. Basically it says that she was following Ollie's plan, and she's sorry that she's upset, but she's safe with another Sensei. Conner took her there. She wants to see Dinah, but she wants to wait for a little while until it safe for both of them. So when she finds out that Ollie set all of this up . . . to save Sin . . . knowing that Dinah may never forgive him, even though he really did do the right thing . . . . . she accepts his marriage proposal. I mean we all knew it was going to happen. But . . the way it happened . . . was fantastic. A brilliant story by Tony Bedard. And Mike Norton, Paulo Siqueira and Joe Prado did a great job on the art. Now we have to finish the Green Arrow Year 1 mini, have a couple of wedding specials coming up, and then later this year . . . we get the Green Arrow / Black Canary series. It's going to be by Judd Winick and Cliff Chiang. I can't wait.

Superman/Batman #39 - DC

Ok, I love this book. I love these characters. But, this is part of the thing I was worried about when they said they were going to bring back the multiple universes. This has to be on another world, because on page 4 there's a little box that says, "Another world. Another universe." And it's not that I don't like stories from different universes. But, I like to have a little fore-warning. So . . my best logical guess is . . . Dessad came to Earth to use the Scarecrow, by amping up his powers, to get Superman. Which he did. When they got back to Apocalypse he insets a crystal right in to his forehead, straight in to his brain. "Superman has no mind to come back to. There's nothing but static in that skull. Not one clear, conscious thought. It's as if his synapses have been ripped apart. And . . it's irreversible. For all intents and purposes . . . Superman is dead." That's what Desaad tells Darkseid when he's out field testing him on War-World. Part of the reason I believe it's an alternate Earth is because when Batman is talking to Lois, she knows that he's Bruce, but she doesn't know that Clark is Superman. So back to my hypothesis, I'm guessing that when Desaad came to Earth to get Superman, he switched realities without knowing it. And when he went back to Apocalypse he went back to his own. Because all through the last book, and the beginning of this one, it's never mentioned that it's an alternate Earth. So anyways, that just makes me wonder how it's all going to shake out. And . . . does it even matter. Since it's an alternate Earth, it's of no consequence to us. Another complaint I have about the multiple Earth story-lines. We have no vested interest in the characters of another world . . . so we really don't care. Sometimes it's a nice story. But really . . when all's said and done . . . after reading it, we put it away and never look at it again because it doesn't really matter. Unless . . this is somehow tied in to the Countdown crisis. Well we won't know till next issue, and maybe not even then.

the Flash #231 - DC

What a fantastic first issue of the new series. Wally West is back, along with his wife and the twins. They've been gone for over a year. The recent JLA/JSA/Legion crossover brought them back, literally in a flash. We don't learn the whole story about where they've been all this time but we do know that it was someplace alien. Someplace far advanced to earth. And someplace Flash had been to before because they owed him a debt of gratitude. Or honor. One or the other. Also, somehow while they were there the kids started going through growth spurts. They're barely a year old but they look and act like they're about 7, or so. They have gained powers. But we don't know exactly what those are because apparently during their growth spurts they changed. And they have to go through daily treatments on the alien devices. I'm not sure if it's to slow down their growth spurts, or to keep their powers in check. Like I said, we've gotten a glimpse of all of this this issue, but nothing has been explained fully. The issue ends with them being attacked by some kind of aliens coming after them from out of the river. I'm guessing they probably piggy-backed on to the Flash's ride back to earth. The series creators now are Mark Waid and Daniel Acuna. And I think they're both doing a tremendous job. But this is only the first issue. So . . we'll have to see where we go from here.

the Brave and the Bold #6 - DC

Well, this issue wraps up the Luck Lords storyline. And needless to say, any story that involves timetravel and a book of destiny that tells everything that will happen, is bound to get a little confusing. Batman recently took a trip to the 31st century, where he encountered the Legion. Really his trip there was so that he could learn what the ultimate plan of the Luck Lords was. And really, it wasn't that complicated of a plan for having run 1000 years. Basically they wanted to get the Book of Destiny in to the hands of the Rannians. Without the book, it was only a matter of time until the Thanagarians overpowered them. With the book, they were able to anticipate their moves. This caused the Thanagarians to come up with better weapons. By pushing their technological advances at an accelerated rate, because of the war, the Luck Lords were able to pick out the weapons that they wanted. Such as the Haruspex. He also learned that there were a few people that were removed from the book, or actually just didn't show up. These were the only ones that could alter the plan because nobody would be able to anticipate their moves. Well Green Lantern and Adam Strange find out just where Batman has been sent and they link up the Zeta Beam and Green Lanterns ring, to go in to the future and bring him back. That's a little far fetched . .but . . so is this whole story. Anyways, he comes back, fills in Adam Strange, and begins looking for the missing people. It turns out they're the Challengers of the Unknown. They beam them to Rann, and foil the Luck Lords plan before it really ever has a chance to begin. They get the book back from the Rannian general, and to the people that are supposed to have it. And everything goes back to normal. Really . . I could rip this story apart with it's inconsistencies . . but . . why bother. It was entertaining and the artwork was fabulous. George Perez has definitely not lost his touch. I think when this story started, it was a good premise. But I also think as they got farther in to it, it just got away from writer Mark Waid. It had a lot of cool ideas . . . but . . I think it just reached a point where Mark was going to have to take some leaps in order to resolve the story with any kind of normalcy. Yes I know it's a comic book. That in and of itself is a leap. But . . some of the leaps that were taken in this story even stretched some of those boundaries. But so what. Like I said, it was entertaining and visually stunning. So we'll let the inconsistencies fall to the wayside. I liked the book, and I liked the storyline. But next issue? Wonder Woman and Powergirl? Meowww!!

Spawn #170 - Image

I really like this Nyx character. I'm glad they decided to have her stick around for a while. But, I really think they did it to give him someone, so Spawn will be able to ground himself in the real world. Sometimes! I think he gets himself so wrapped up in these cosmic themes, and then pulls himself away from the real world. He's like completely out of touch, until one of the demons or angels rears it's head and he has to come take care of the situation. I mean . . he's not really alive . .but . . he is. Know what I mean? And if he went to such great lengths, and personal loss, to bring the world back, and try to make it a better place, shouldn't he also be allowed to enjoy a little bit of it? I mean . . . ya he did some bad stuff. And yes he's been on both sides of the fence. But, with the recreation of the world, isn't that literally . . a lifetime ago? Anyways, Nyx is trying to help him stay in touch with his human side. Maybe it is a facade, but . . so what. It's still there. He can't loose touch with it. Meanwhile 2 hell demons, Abbadon and Zabraxas are running around trying to bring people over to the darkside. Spawn's been trying to keep tabs on them. But while out of touch, they created this little "hell-house" to show people their inner demons. And when Spawn finally does show up to stop them . . he sees one of his own. Fantastic story by David Hine. I really like the direction that Spawn seems to be going in right now. Like I said though, I wish he'd get a little of his humanity back. Also the series artist is Brian Haberlin now. He is also doing an outstanding job. The look and feel of this book is really unique right now. And from reading the letters page, it looks like a lot of other people are diggin' it right now also.

Hellblazer #235 - Vertigo

This issue is part 2 of the JoyRide story-line. First off, I'd like to say . . . please take a look at that Lee Bermejo cover. Is that a piece of art or what? That is really fantastic! Now about the book itself . . . it couldn't be in better hands. Andy Diggle is writing it, and Leonardo Manco is the artist. Andy's stuff, especially of late, has been . . genius. He's doing a fantastic job over on Green Arrow Year 1. And even though he's just getting started here, he looks to be bringing his same genius, and accounting of detail, to this series. I can't wait to see the things he's going to do with this character. Also, Leonardo's artwork . . . is easily some of his best work to date. I don't know if it's Andy bringing new life in to this book, or maybe there's just a better working relationship between Andy and Leonardo . . . but the proof is in the pudding. He definitely looks like he's putting more effort and time in to his work. That . . or he's just having a blast. Either way . . I love it. This issue Constantine finds a Lodestone in Haine's apartment. "A Lodestone's a kind of psychic beacon. Like a navigation buoy for astral entities. A GPS system for souls. Someone hid this one on the Hunger Hill housing estate. Haine found it. And they killed him for it." But, when he goes to use it, he finds out it's booby-trapped. He ends up in a small, empty, pocket dimension. He gets out of it, but it drops him in front of a moving train. Only one thing runs through his head, " . . this . . means . . WAR!" So even though the first 2 parts of this story were good . . . I think it's just going to get amped up from here. Constantine's back . . and he's chewing gum and taking names. Well . . smoking . . but you know what I mean.

The Boys #9 - Dynamite Entertainment

This is a fantastic book. And they haven't missed a beat with their transition over to Dynamite from WildStorm. I could see how the title might not fit in with the WildStorm Universe. But at Dynamite . . it has no restrains. And even though they just got here, it appears that the gloves are off starting with this issue. Two instances in this issue actually stand out to me the most. First is when Hughie and Butcher are in the Tek-Knight's . . . cave . . as it were . . Hughie has to use the Bog, restroom, but can't get access because he doesn't know the security codes. Well since he got the Turtle's head, as he puts it, and can't hold it anymore, he ends up taking a dump right on the floor. Secondly, when the Tek-Knight is telling Butcher a story about Swingwing, he goes back to one of their earlier adventures when they were chasing the Talon. She was always one of those people that swung on both sides of the fence. Sometimes a good girl, sometimes a bad girl. Well a few years ago, she shows up out of the blue. They come back to the Tek-Cave to talk and have some wine. She decides that they should make it a proper reunion and call Swingwing up also. Well one thing leads to another . . and bang . . they're in a three way. While she's blowing Tek-Knight he keeps saying to himself, "Don't look at his face. Don't look at his face." Well of course he does, " . . and it's all downhill from there." I'm telling you . . this is not your fathers comics. Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson are really blowing the lid off of super-hero comics with this series. But that's ok. Sometimes they need to be shaken' up a bit. This series has it all . . a great cast of characters . . a superb writer . . and a fantastic artist. And to top it off, they take a stab at all the super-heroes, and groups, out there. The best part of the series is wondering what they're going to come up with next.

Shanna the She-Devil : Survival of the fittest #1 - Marvel

There's actually a couple of reasons that I'm happy to see another Shanna mini-series on the shelves. First of all, I think she's a pretty decent character. And she's one of the original "jungle girls". Of which there's so many rip-offs out there now. Secondly, even though Frank Cho isn't doing the art on this run, the artwork of Khari Evans is quite nice too. It's got a different style than Frank's. But . . that's ok. He still represents the story and the series well. Also . . it's nice to see Shanna bouncing around the jungle again . . in a loin-cloth that's barely there. I wonder if she realizes the sex-appeal that she exudes. I mean it flows off of her like . . . well like . . any type of liquid I'd like to see flowing off of her. Meowww!! Anyways, this story kicks off with a crash landing on her "dinosaur island". A group of Pirates are commandeering a boat full of rich people out on a pleasure cruise. But . . during the heist . . they stray a little to close to shore, and one of the dinosaur octopus', I don't know what they're called, bring down both boats. So now they're stranded on the island, and about to be eaten by a bunch of Velociraptors. But of course, Shanna comes swinging in to save the day. Long story short, they're a bunch of thieves, but . . they're not killers. All they want now is to get off the island. But, they're also being chased by someone, Teddy "the axe" Xiang, and his group. Who are killers. So when they see his plane land, they know that they're going to need it to get off the island. The problem is, they have to get past Teddy and his gang, and all the dinosaurs, in order to do it. That's where the theme of this story is going to come in. It's written by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti. And it should be a heck of a ride. It's only 4 issue, and not 6, so it'll be over soon. Buckle in . . and get ready for the ride.

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-man #23 - Marvel

Well this is it. Well . . . not quite the end of the book. But . . it's the last one for Peter David and Todd Nauck. I gave 'em some hell in the beginning. Mostly about that Green Goblin from the future story-line. But, other than that debacle, it's been a really nice run. I didn't know if I'd like Todd on the pencils. I mean he did Young Justice for so long, that's just what I associated him with. But . . I think he did a great job. This particular issue is mostly about wrapping up the Daily Bugle story-line. An issue or 2 ago, J Jonah fired Robbie. He was in a fit over Spider-man. Robbie stuck up for him, so he told him to get out. Well . . as it turns out this issue, he really only did that to draw out Spider-man. Which worked. I'd like to mention that it's nice to see Betty Brandt back in as a regular rotating cast member again. I mean, she's always been there. We just actually get to see and hear from her now. I've always liked her character. Anyways, Peter and J Jonah get together and they do a lot of verbal arguing. Finally he offers Peter a choice, " . . either I'll drop the lawsuit against you or rehire Robbie. You get to choose." He chooses, " . . drop the lawsuit." J Jonah thinks he's being selfish, but then Peter tells him that he knew that he never really had any intention of firing Robbie because he just did it to get to him. Long story short, J Jonah agrees to drop the lawsuit, and then he goes to tell Robbie the story of what he's just been through, and to ask him to come back to work. This was actually a nice wrap up to some of these story-lines. We do have one more issue though. Next issue is actually going to be part 2 of the One More Day story-line. It'll be by Straczynski and Quesada. I'm sad that this book is leaving the shelves. But . . . whatta' way to go out.

Justice League of America #12 - DC

The sad part about this book is that it's Brad Meltzer's last issue. He has done a brilliant job writing these characters through the first 12 issue. He's really shown us different aspects of their personalities and characters that we've never seen or been privy to previously. It's really been an eye-opening run so far. The good news is that Dwayne McDuffie will be taking over for him on the next part of the run. And Ed Benes will be staying on board as the resident artist. And I have to give props to Ed to, he has done an outstanding job on this series so far. In fact I would have to say it's his best work to date. This issue we get one more little glimpse in to each of the characters personalities. Kind of a parting gift from Brad, I would guess. But they're being watched, judged and critiqued by someone. And we don't find out who it is until the end. They're pretty sharp and cutting critiques and analysis' also. Very quickly . . . Red Tornado is losing his humanity. Or . . he's just giving it up. Hawkgirl thinks she's in love with Roy. Or is she just trying to forget about Hank? Roy is trying to live up to what he thinks Ollie expects of him. And he's trying to be a good father. Dinah is the new chair-person, and she's definitely glowing in her new role. She's a very strong person, and it shows. Jefferson is trying to play his game. But is he playing or being played? He's putting himself in deep with Lex Luthor. Mari is concerned about her loss of powers. But when she talks to Brion, if it isn't obvious to her it is to us, it seems that he has her powers somehow. And somehow it's all linked to Deathstroke. And Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman seem to know that all of this stuff is going on, but they're taking an approach of sitting back and watching how it all plays out. I think they're trying not to be so hands on. Oh . . and there's a real strong friendship . . relationship . . growing between Wally and Hal. It turns out that they've been watched this whole time by Jonn and Arthur. I wonder if this has anything to do with Batman's new group, the Outsiders. And if so, is Batman the one who asked them to watch and evaluate? Anyways, like I said, fantastic book. Fantastic story and art. And I'm sure Dwayne will lead them to even more greatness.

Army @ Love #6 - Vertigo

I really like this book. But as I've said before, it doesn't lend itself well to being recapped because . . . well . . . Rick Veitch has a lot going on here. There's a bunch of separate story-lines, but they're all connected somehow. And there's not really a central character. If I had to pick one, I'd have to say either the war itself, or the Motivation & Morale unit. There's Switzer, the housewife who actually helped create the Hot Zone club. Or her at home thang, Loman who's wife Allie has been snatched by Secretary Stelaphane. His main job is to get sponsors for all the stuff in the war, so the govt. doesn't have to pay for it. He's joined this issue, by Woyner who is actually Colonel Healey's right hand man . . er . . woman . . in the MoMo unit. Healey created it and runs it. Then we have Flabbergast, who with Switzer, co-created the Hot Zone club. But now he's on monitor duty in some toxic dumb because when they went back to the states for a fund-raiser, he's a magician, somebody put a wiccan spell on him and now he's head over heals for Switzer. So much so, that he can't seem to focus on anything else. Meanwhile Allie's been dumped in Mongrolia and picked up by some sheep herder to be his next wife. She's taken to his home where he already has 3 or 4 other american wives. It seems this is a favorite dump spot when someone wants to get rid of their wives. Or someone else's. Let's see . . what else? Oh yeah, Healey is in trouble because he has a Bagh woman on the side, Jenan, whom he gave his old cell phone to. Actually it was her kids. They liked the ring tone. Anyways, it still had some of his old contacts on it, so they sold it to the North Koreenians. Which is why he's in trouble. Security risks. Then we have Pamona Peebles. She's tied in to the war financially. So much so, that she's opened a used car lot in Bagh. Of course the cars are pieces of crap. They're used one's from Edgefield, where a lot of our characters are from actually, which she has shipped over and sells for top dollar. But she's a viper. Three wounded Bagh's come in, who bought a car the day before, and she's worried about how they're going to pay her. The father tells her, " . . . the car actually saved our lives when it stalled up the street from where the bomber detonated himself. " To pay her off, he offers his son Issa to her for a year as a servant. She's more than excited. And since he wants to be a minister, I think she sees it as a challenge to test his resolve and virtue. Like I said, lots of different story-lines. And yes they're all connected. But some . . just fringly. But they're all integral parts of the story. And I think it's a fantastic story. This issue's cover quote is from Variety Magazine, " . . . full of the kind of wild ideas that comics used to do all the time . . . Grade: A-"

Legion of Super-heroes in the 31st Century #5 - DC

Another good book for kids in the Johnny DC line. This one is about being competitive and about what young boys are willing to do to try to impress a girl. Kind of silly . . . but themes that younger readers think about all of the time. Basically, Lightning Lad and Superboy are training together. But Superboy consistently beats him. When he notices that Saturn Girl is starting to pay attention to him too, he really starts to get competitive. Eventually he gets so frustrated that he just takes off. The Emerald Empress happens to be in the area, and sensing his frustration easily captures him in her spell. She then wants to use him to take down the Legion. Of course there ends up being a battle between Superboy and Lightning Lad. But, being the family that they are, it isn't long before the rest of the Legion shows up to protect their own. The Empress, not one for physical confrontation, retreats. The spell is broken, and everything returns to normal. Well . . . after Lightning Lad apologizes to Superboy that is. Being who he is, Superboy doesn't hold any hard feelings towards him. Like the rest of the Johnny DC line, pretty simple themes. But that's ok. It's perfect for the kids, and a welcome distraction for me.

Aquaman : Sword of Atlantis #55 - DC

All the story-lines in this book are starting to come together. The problem is, right now, they all seem a bit . . . odd. Before I get to that though, I'd like to welcome Kevin Maguire back to the comic scene. He does the cover for this issue. Does this mean he may be doing some interiors somewhere soon? I hope so. Tad Williams writes this book. But, I hate to blame him for the obtuseness of the story. I really don't think it's his fault. If anything, I think that he's trying to wrap up all these various story-lines that seem to go all the way back to the sinking of San-Diego. If not earlier. As far as the art goes . . I'm a fan of Shawn McManus. However, I notice that when he first takes on a book, his work is kind of . . . thin, I guess would be the best word for it. It's almost like, until he gets in to the book, he doesn't really get in to the art. It looks like he takes some shortcuts. But then . . as he gets in to the story, his work gets much improved. The problem though is, as he gets ready to end his run, his work gets shoddy at the end again. The good news is that his stuff looks pretty good in this issue. So I'm guessing that he's starting to get in to the book . . or the work. Also since it has been improving, I'm guessing that he's going to be here for a while longer. Anyways, overall it is a decent book . . even if it is a little hard to follow all the plot-lines. And they continue to bring in a potpourri of characters. Now Vandal Savage and Krusivax is brought in to the mix. And at the end of this issue, Cyborg becomes involved. I like this book. I just hope this whole thing comes together soon so we can resolve it.

Checkmate #17 - DC

This is a fantastic book. I love what Greg Rucka is doing with it. And look at this cast of characters. We have individuals from all across the spectrum. Mr. Terrific, Amanda Waller, the Thinker, Fire, King Farraday, Count Vertigo . . . just to name a few. This issue we focus on Checkmate security. And they bring in a character that's just as controversial as the rest . . . Carl Draper aka Deathtrap. His previous experience, both on the good and bad side of the fence, have made him the perfect candidate for the job of Castellan. That's head of Castle security for us civilians. We get a little of his background story. And we see how he has his system set-up, and interfaced with his own brain. One of his tests is to go toe-to-toe with the Thinker. If anyone could hack in to his systems . . . it would be him. And . . he actually holds his own. There's two main things that come out of this story though. The first is the Code Zoo. " . . . a repository for Artificial Intelligence. Every AI that checkmate has ever encountered is locked away in the zoo. They're either in there as complete self-aware constructs or captured fragments of code. All of it trying, relentlessly, to break free." That is one of the main things that Draper's been assigned to protect and watch. The second important thread is the attack that follows on the castle. It's very systematic. They use magic, and the League of Assassins, and strike in the exact spots that would cause him to have to redirect power. It's so exact to the way he would've done it, that it becomes obvious to him that it's someone trying to pick up his criminal career where he left off . . . his daughter. The part that isn't addressed though, that I'm worried about, is that in the final gambit he used some boom-tubes to capture the threats. In order to do that, he had to divert some energy from the generator that runs The Zoo's security systems. So I'm thinking that maybe even though they're confident that they stopped the attack, maybe the intended item was actually obtained. And that's what I really love about this book. Stories within stories. This really is a great series. I wasn't to thrilled with the artwork this issue. But that's a minor complaint.

Five of a Kind - Thunder and Martian Manhunter #1 - DC

Maybe I'm misreading something . . . but . . . by my count . . . Katana and the Martian Manhunter are the only 2 that have made it on to Batman's new squad so far. Did I miss something? This issue, Thunder and Jonn go up against Grayvn. Whoever out there, that has been killing the New Gods, and some Apokolyptan people as well, killed one of the female furies in front of him, while he was floating through space . . mindless. He had a battle with Kyle and he gave him an emerald lobotomy. Anyways, he decided to head towards earth and confront his nemesis there. Even though he's mindless, he still had a plan. He wants to build a Zeta beam transporter, and power it by absorbing the residual radiation on earth. Then when his attacker comes, he want to beam him right in to Darksied's throne room. Not a bad plan actually. But, apparently he used the last of his brain cells devising it, because he doesn't have enough left to build the machine. But Thunder decides to go along with him. She has Jonn attempt to put his mind back together . . . a bit. And then her plan is to trick him in to using it on himself and that way he's off Earth and they don't have to worry about him any more. Also a very good plan. And it works. But when he gets to the throne room, the killer is already there and takes him out. And because Thunder's plan spared his life, Batman decides she's not ruthless enough for his team. She's out. And she's pissed. Fantastic story by Tony Bedard with some amazing art by Koi Turnbull. But now I'm stymied. Who exactly is going to be on Batman's team. Well . . . we only have a few weeks to find out.

Action Comics #854 - DC

This issue picks up immediately after Countdown #37. And I do mean immediately after. The last panel of Countdown was Jimmy ripping Clark's shirt open, and it's the first panel of this book. To convince Clark that he's serious about wanting to join the Justice League, he fills him in on the rest of the story about the Kryptonite Man. Last issue, the K-man had Supes down for the count. Jimmy was in the closet and didn't know it, so he rigged a signal device. He broke his watch. But, obviously, Superman didn't come running. But Krypto did. So he tells him how he and Krypto kept K-man busy until Supes recovered. Which Jimmy also had a hand in when he fed him some solar energy. Then Supes made pretty short work of him. But during that, Jimmy took off once he knew that Supes had it under control. He was more concerned about Krypto who seemed affected by all the radiation. Clark said he's think about Jimmy's request. Things go back to normal, but then the green monkey shows up. Jimmy and Krypto are first on the scene. Jimmy's ready to fight it, but then he realizes that if he stays calm, he can probably calm the monkey down also. Which works. And which also impress' Clark, who was watching. So Clark's going to talk to the League, and Krypto is going to live with Jimmy for a while. This was a nice story, again, by Kurt Busiek. I like the way he's handling this character. He's kind of gone a different direction with Superman, and it's interesting. Also Brad Walker does the pencils again this issue. And, as I've previously stated, he really does seem to be improving with every issue. This one had a really nice feel to it. And some great action panels. All in all a great display for a book that's 854 issues old.

Countdown #37 - DC

The creative chores this issue fall upon Keith Giffen, who does the breakdowns, and David Lopez and Mike Norton with the finished pencils. It's actually a very nice looking book. Of course it starts out with a beautiful Shane Davis cover. I mean look at Ivy on the cover. Meowww!! Anyways we find out some more about Karate Kid this issue. It seems he has some kind of virus that Oracle can't identify. She thinks it's either extra-terrestrial, or from the future. And since this isn't her area of expertise, she refers him to a man named Elias Orr. She doesn't know much about him, but she knows about his work. So she gives him all the info that she has, and now he and Una are on a quest to find him. Zatanna has taken Mary Marvel back to her father's estate, Shadowcrest. I think that she thinks she's going to take Mary under her wing and mentor her a bit. She can sense the frustration and anxiety coming from her. And with the level of her power right now, that's not a good combination. We don't find out much about her plans, but we do get a pretty extensive tour of the house. Our group of microscopic travelers have come across a band of wizards. One of them comes out to wish our group luck, and to tell them that there's nothing they can do to help them. They've see Ray, but they don't know where he went. Actually, they're more concerned about the coming disaster, the Great Disaster. So they're sending themselves to a plane where they can work in peace until it's over. I assume it's the same Great Disaster that Karate Kid and Una keep talking about. The one from their history books. And Bob, the Monitor, also says it's the one he's concerned about. Piper & Trickster, in their attempt to stay out of sight, have unwittingly stumbled across Ivy's lair. She's asleep when they first get there, but then she's awaken to find them stumbling through her plants, raping them of their fruit and nectar . . . and she's not happy. So they aren't in a good situation. Holly, after talking to Athena last issue, tells Harley that she's supposed to attend a self esteem exercise. Harley informs her that that means she's in, and she better get ready to train, train, train. And finally, Jimmy puts all the pieces together in his mind. Not about his powers, but about Clark. With his powers has come all this information about other heroes. But whenever he thinks about Superman, he's been seeing Lois & Clark. He didn't really know what that meant. Until one nite when he and Clark are alone in the Planet cafeteria and all of the sudden it comes to him. He begs Clark to help him with his problem. Clark feigns ignorance, so Jimmy literally exposes him. As a backup now in this book, we've reverted to the 2 page origin stories of various heroes and villains. This issue's is about Poison Ivy. It's beautifully drawn by Stephane Roux. I never heard of her before, but it's a beautiful piece of work. Have I mentioned that I really like this series? If not . . . I do.

Wolverine Origins #16 - Marvel

I really, really, really like this book. I think Daniel Way is doing a fantastic job with the stories. I mean, he's really going in to uncharted territory here. We've been wondering about Logan's past for the past . . what? . . about 25 to 30 years. And now we're just going to open Pandora's box? It appears so. But never let it be said that finding out answers doesn't lead to more questions. So far . . we just weren't asking the right ones. I also think that this book has shown some of Steve Dillon's best work ever. Every issue has been fabulous. No my problem with the book has nothing to do with the creative team. My problem comes from the management decisions imposed on it. I mean, gas is $3.09 a gallon right now. So we're all starting to get to the point where we have to watch what we're spending weekly on our little treasure hunts. But this issue was raised to $3.99. When I picked it up, I thought, well that's ok, this issue must be a special story and we'll learn even more about our favorite Canuck. But no. We get our normal 22 page story. Then we do get a new story, but, it's a preview of next month's Wolverine by Howard Chaykin. So the chances are, if you're buying this book, then you'll probably be buying the regular Wolverine title when it comes out next month. So why do we necessarily need to see 8 pages from a book that we'll be buying anyhow? Then on top of that, they reprint, in it's entirety Uncanny X-men #268. I believe it was the first Jim Lee X-men, but more importantly it was a team-up of Wolverine, Captain America and the Black Widow. While it admittedly was an awesome book, it's been reprinted . . what? . . probably 5 or 6 times by now? And whether you wanted to or not . . you just got another copy of it. So my reaction to this? This month I cut out one of my normal Marvel titles. If they want to double the price on one book, for some reprinted material . . . fine. But that means I have to cut one book someplace else. And since it was Marvel that messed up my budget . . . a Marvel book is the one I cut. Sorry! But what's fairs, fair. And this was just . . trickery. Thanks for taking care of your fans and customers by bleeding a few more dollars out of them to up your monthly revenues.

Ultimate Spider-man #112 - Marvel

Obviously this is the same book. Hell . . . it still has the same writer, Brian Michael Bendis. Only the artwork has changed. Stuart Immomen is now on board instead of Mark Bagley. I'm a big fan of Stuart's. But . . . this particular issue . . just had a different feel to it. Maybe it's just because it's the first issue after the 111 issue run. But . . . to me it felt different. I think we just got used to the facial expressions that Mark would draw on the characters. Peter . . . just seemed different. And I definitely didn't like Kitty's new costume. I mean, everybody knows she's on the X-Men. Why does she have to hide her face? But that's just minor details really. The story was still good. Peter's class is doing a project about parenting. You know the one. The one where they have to take care of an egg for 2 weeks and not let anything happen to it. It's a little more involved now-a-days though. They have to do it in pairs, and they have to keep a journal of everything that the baby does, and they do with it. Oh yeah . . . and it's not an egg anymore, it's a computerized baby-doll. I guess the kids now-a-days don't have enough imagination to pretend an egg is an infant. Anyways, you just know that Peter is going to be teamed up with Kitty. I mean you can see it coming from a mile away. But the interaction between the 3 of them, Peter, Kitty and MJ is priceless. So while all this High School drama is going on, they're having some big problems over at the Triskelion. It seems that the structural damage that it's suffered of late, has affected the foundation. But in order to do repairs, they have to move all the prisoners that are kept there. And there's some pretty high-profile, and powerful, characters there. Nick isn't around to oversee it, so Carol has to take the lead. Long story short, she riles up Norman and somehow he ends up busting loose. It looks like he's taking half the building down to, in the process. I still love the book. Right now though . . it just feels different. Maybe it's separation anxiety. I'll give it a couple issue, and then I'll really let you know how I feel.

New X-Men #41 - Marvel

This issue wraps up the Quest for Magik story-line. But . . . really . . . it leaves more questions than it answers. Last issue, Illyana decided to use Pixie's soul to make another Soulsword. But halfway through the process, Pixie decided that she didn't want to follow through with it. So she got a sword. But it's a very small sword. But she still thinks that with that, and the back-up of the X-Men that have come down to rescue their brethren, she should still be able to stand up to Belasco. Meanwhile, the part of the team that wasn't transported to limbo, have assembled their own strike-force with a Sentinel and Amanda Sefton, one of the former rulers of Limbo. All together, they give Belasco a pretty good beating. But, in his own realm, he's a pretty tough guy. Finally the Cuckoo's get rid of their dampening helmets, and level the playing field a bit. They also don't have enough power, but, with them weakening him, both physically and mentally, the rest of the group coordinates a strike powerful enough to weaken him enough for Illyana to take him out. One thing that comes to the surface is, when the Cuckoo's are going at it, they discover that the reason he is so hell-bent on finding Illyana is because . . . he loves her. That knowledge, and the X-men's attack, is enough to vanquish him when he's also thrown off by Illyana's presence. The problem we have now is two-fold. First, Illyana doesn't have a soul. Belasco took it at some time, and only he knows it whereabouts. The second problem is now that she has vanquished Belasco, she is now the ruler of Limbo. Piotr tries to talk to her, and she looks a little dazed and innocent, but that doesn't last long before she's back to her hateful self and she banishes everyone back to Earth. I think the purpose of this story was also two-fold. First we re-established Illyana's presence back in the Marvel Universe. True she's in Limbo. But that's still all part of the big picture. Secondly, some of our X-men have gone through a bit of a transformation because of this experience. Also probably from having to deal with the whole magic thing. But a few of them really got their powers amped up. It'll be interesting to see how this all affects the team dynamics. So the X-men will be dealing with the after affects of their trip, and Illyana . . . it looks like she's going to being looking for her soul. In chapter 8 of the Endangered Species storyline, Hank and . . . well, Hank, have gone to an abandoned nuclear facility. As it turns out, Sinister had a hidden lair here. He once let it slip to the Dark Beast where it was, so now they're hoping that he left some data behind, and with his years of research, they may be able to leap-frog a few steps ahead. But someone got here before them. And it appears that it was Sinister. So without his research, they're just going to need some raw data. And Dark Beast says he thinks he knows where they can find it. Pretty cool story so far. I wasn't to hip on the artist this issue, Skottie Young. But, hey, that's just me. I'm sure some people dig his stuff, but it's just now my style.

Gen13 #11 - WildStorm

I'm really diggin' this book. It really has that same fun feel that Gen13 had when it originally came out. You know . . . way back when. But, Gail Simone won't be writing it for that much longer. So I hope it retains it's edge with the next writer. The artists this issue were Carlo Barberi and Sunny Lee. Both of which also added to the feel of this book. Last issue our team, still in Tranquility, was confronted by the Authoriteens. We find out they come from a world that has no grown-ups. No role models. So they're all pretty much left to their own devices. This happens when Gen13 was about to throw down with the teen group from Tranquility. The Authoriteens scare them off, but they still here all the talk about how the Gen13 characters have to be eliminated and disposed of. So eventually they feel guilty about scramming, and go back to help. Meanwhile, the Authoriteens Intern has taken Roxy and Rainmaker on a spiritual journey and has left them stranded on what looks like an asteroid. Also back at Tabula Rasa, Megan has ordered the team to come up with a way to genetically return Dr. Cross to her. They've done it, multiple times, and they all look like baby male versions of our main Gen13 team. So I'm not sure what that all means. So anyways, it looks like next issue, Sally and his crew are going to have to get in the middle of Gen13 and the Authoriteens and try to sort this all out. It should prove interesting.

PainKiller Jane - Episode #18 - Jane 113 - SciFi Network

I'll give these guys credit where it's due. It seems like the stories are definitely improving. This episode is actually, pretty much all about Jane. Pardon me for not knowing all the characters names . . . they aren't all that interesting to me. Anyways, the guy that Jane saved in a previous episode . . you know . . the one that was dying and Jane chipped him with a blank. Anyways, as he was dying he told Jane there was more to her story than she knew. So he transferred some of his knowledge to her. She then learned that maybe her fall at Vanotech wasn't such an accident. The one guy she was following around there, on her first trip there, whom they thought was the Neuro, was actually a scientist whom in the confusion injected her with something. Apparently they were on to her from the moment she stepped through the door. And then the Neuro grabbed the other guy that was with her and shoved them both out the window. Long story short, we're led to believe that her powers were created and given to her there. She goes in to the building to try to find some answers but she's not in long before they're on to her. Riley then has to create a elevator malfunction, so Jane posing as one of the Maintenance staff, can get on one and sneak on to a hidden 113th floor. While there she steals a vial, and when the scientist comes in, hides so she can follow him again. This time he leads her to a cafe down the street where he has a meeting with . . . her boyfriend. Another twist. Apparently her boyfriend is a reporter and he's been investigating Vanotech. When he heard about her accident, he decided to try to get close to her. He takes her to meet the "Big Guy" at Vanotech. We don't know his name, but says he wants to rid the world of disease even if it means putting Vanotech out of business. Again, long story short, he hypnotizes her and the next thing we see is the two of them sitting in her apartment talking about the rest of her Neuro team as if they're having afternoon tea. The final shot of the episode is of the room at Vanoech where all the male test bodies were hanging. Her boyfriend is now one of those bodies. Like I said, I think the stories are getting better. I liked that this one was mostly about Jane. I think that the origin story was a bit hokey, but . . . I don't think we've seen the whole thing yet. I think there's even more going on here than we're privy to so far. But . . . I have to admit that I do think it's improving.

Jack of Fables #13 - Vertigo

I really like this book. But I feel like Bill Willingham is probably high when he writes these stories. I mean . . . I don't know where he comes up with his ideas. And while there is a progression to these stories . . . sometimes . . . he's just all over the place. See if you can follow along here. Last issue, maybe the one before, Jack hooked up with Priscilla Page, a magistrate . . if you will . . from Fabletown, another Fable character John, and his side-kick Gary. In trying to escape, Jack caused the mini-van they were traveling in to come crashing down a ravine. When they got to the bottom, they found this old guy who's dingy had washed him ashore, and he had a sword. Jack went over to see what was going on and the guy impaled him with it. Now this issue, Jack is stumbling about wondering what the hell is going on. It's a while before he stops to realize that actually, he's ok. The sword seems to be having no ill affects on him. That's when Gary realizes that it may actually be the sword Excalibur. And Priscilla theorizes that since Jack is such a strong male character, he most often is the center of the story. So this time the old man mad him the center by figuratively turning him in to the rock in which Excalibur has become stuck. So now he has to wait for the true king to come along before it can be removed. Also Jack gets into an argument with John because, obviously, Jack is the original and John is the copy. But Gary, with his new found wisdom, shines the light on the situation by telling Jack that actually . . . he's the copy. Meanwhile there's a reporter, Kevin Thorn, in Manhattan that is looking through all his journals and antique books. He's trying to expose a story about Fabletown. Expose it's existence and all the characters that live there. The problem is, no one will believe him. They believe him up to a point. The point is when he shows them his research library. It's filled with books that are antiques and rarities that he's collected over the years. The reason they don't believe him? Every single one of them is written in Kevin's handwriting. We also find out that his dog has been assigned to keep an eye on him, and after the latest incident, he has to call Leroy to let him know that he thinks Kevin is getting his memory back. Also back in Fabletown, or Golden Boughs . . whatever! . . the other Miss Page is setting about to go on an excursion with Paul Bunyon. He and his Ox are both miniaturized now, but Miss Page doesn't want to take the Ox along, because she's afraid a miniature blue Ox would draw attention to them. But Paul's afraid to leave him alone because when he's left to his own thoughts he tends to lose touch with reality. I think this whole book has lost touch with reality. I mean you tell me . . . was that story written by someone who wasn't F@#$ed up? I don't know. It seems like maybe this book is a release for him. Well . . . either way . . it's a heck of a story. I just don't know how he comes up with it month after month.