Birds of Prey #99 - DC

Ok, it looks like the Birds are in for a little rebuilding. Dinah has decided this issue, that it's time for her to take some time off, so she can be a mother and a mentor to Sin. Huntress, Oracle and Lady Blackhawk are still around, but the group is going to be redefined. We get a pop in from the new Batgirl this issue, or at least she wants to be. But Babs kinda' nixes that idea for her. She shows her the hash reality of what they do. And, since she's only 16, almost, it kinda' overwelms her. As she's leaving, she promised Babs that she won't try to be Batgirl anymore, but that she's not going to give up on trying to be a hero. I don't think we've seen the last of her yet. I really like what Gail Simone has done with this book. She's really built it into a cast of characters that we really care about. I even got a little misty eyed at the end, when Dinah was saying goodbye to everybody. The interaction she writes between the group is honest and believable. The new artist, James Raiz, gets better and better with every issue also. Next issue, #100, we're going to start seeing some of the choices and decisions for new members. It should prove interesting. I think that this issue is a wrap up for a lot of previous storylines. #100 should be the beginning of a new direction for the team. Here's hoping that it lives up to the excellence that Gail has breathed into this title.

Omega Men #1 - DC

The Omega Men are back. About time! And of course with their return, we can also expect to see more of L.E.G.I.O.N. and Viril Dox. Also since this series is set in the Vegan Space, I think we're again going to see the Darkstars. None of these groups are gone, after all, they're just so far out of our galaxy, we haven't heard from them in a while. And, since the GL corps have been all but inactive till late, we really haven't had any reason to look that far out into space. But, I think now, and in the near future, we're going to see a lot more of DC's stories taking a galactic theme. After all, they've got a lot of great characters that've been hibernating out there for way too long. Case in point, the "Mystery in Space" title with Captain Comet, the Weird and HardCore Station. Darkfire, Broot, the Doc, Ryand'r are all back. And knowing them, I'm sure they'll pick up some more recruits along the way. In a nutshell, this story is about the "Heartstone". A gem of unknown power that apparently shattered, with it's pieces being sent across the cosmos. Of course one of them ends up on earth. The Spider Guild is after these pieces, trying to put the stone back together, and the Omega Men are trying to stop them. This leads them to the Phillipines, where a nun has a piece of this on her necklace. The Spider Guild show up to take the stone, the Omega Men show up to stop the Spider Guild, and Vril Dox along with Superman, the Titans and Green Lantern show up to stop the Omega Men. How's that for a first issue? Enough action for ya'? If not, I'm sure they'll be more next issue. Anderson Gabrych writes this and Flint Henry does the art. Anderson's story is interesting and complex. And Flint's art lives up to it's usual excellence. This is a six issue mini, obviously spinning out of Infinite Crisis, and it should be a doozy.

Fantastick Four 1602 #2 - Marvel

Let me state a few things here first. I like this 1602 concept. I liked both of the first two series. Actually I liked the first one over the second, but, the second was good in that it introduced us to a lot more of the eras heroes, I mean "witchbreed". Also, I really like the Fantastic Four. They're a great set of characters whose interactions are "real". The interaction and banter between them is consistent with a "real" family. And, they're dysfunctional. As are all "real" families. Now, on to the criticism, I haven't seen anything new in these first two issues, that I wouldn't see in any other FF book. I really feel like I'm reading any other FF story, but with 17th century grammar. And, I don't want to seem like I'm picking on Peter David, but, with the inception of this concept, I saw a lot of imagination. That's why I don't think I liked the second as well as the first. The first had more imagination, but the second had more characters, while still involving the ideas and concepts of the first. This one, I feel, is nothing more than any other FF story, but happens to use the 1602 moniker as it's backdrop. Again, I'm really not trying to pick on Peter David alone, maybe it was a Marvel management decision to go at this book like this. Or maybe they just wanted to get another 1602 title out there and weren't overly concerned about it's content. But, this title has nowhere near the imagination or ideas of the first two. As I also feel, unfortunately, does Peter David. But, to his defense, the writers of the first two, seemed to put so much thought and imagination into them, that maybe it's unfair for me to judge Peter's work against theirs. But, again, since it is essentially the same concept, or an appendage there of, I expected the same degree of excellence. I'm sorry, but I don't see it. For those of you who love the FF, you'll like this book. For those of you who've read the other 1602 titles first, you're going to feel cheated. I'm sorry I can't say anything better, but that's how I feel about it.

Shadowpact #6 - DC

Ok, we've got ourselves another team book. Add it to JLA, Titans, Outsiders, etc.. But this one is a little different in that it's the "Magical" team for DC. And, everything about them is magical. Even their headquarters that resides in a bar in a magical pocket dimension, the Oblivion bar. And, we've got some pretty cool characters inhabiting this group. With this issue it looks like we have one more, Flippy. He took over the bar, while the group was stuck in Riverrock. Now, he's doesn't want to let it go. They haven't negotiated it yet, but, I think that he's only going to continue to let Shadowpact use the bar as their base of operations, if they let him become somekind of member of the group. The Phantom Stranger is also kind of an honorary member. He doesn't really belong to any group, but he has taken a shine to this one, so he shows up pretty regularly to offer, if nothing else, guidance. And, they already have a nemesis in Doctor Gotham. He's some ancient sorcerer who's come back and inhabited a body in Gotham, hence the name. He's made it his sole purpose to either wipe out Shadowpact, or throw everything he can at them to keep them to busy to be a bother in his other affairs. This issue also is the starting point where they've decided that if their going to be a team, they have to act like a team. Which means, rules, roles and game-plans. Everything to make them more effective and efficient in a fight. Which, besides introducing Flippy, seems to be what this next story arc is going to be all about. Now the artist this issue, Cory Walker, I'm not to thrilled about. I mean, he's not terrible, I'm just not thrilled with his style. But, if he's going to be the new artist, I'll give him a few issues before I get overly analytical. But, Bill Willingham's writing, more that makes up for any issues in other areas. As long as he stays on this book, it'll be well written, thought provoking, and stay with a clear and defined picture of it's future. I really started this series, for him alone. But the book is really growing on me. With all the capes flying around out there, it's good to see a "magic" book out there again.

Robin #155 - DC

I really felt like Robin was going into a slump there, for a little while. But, I think, ever since the one year later thing, we seem to be getting back on track. Plus, I really like the whole plot line of Bruce adopting Tim. I really think that it was long overdue. It was just to bad that his father had to die for it to come to pass. But, I guess that was inevitable, it couldn't have really happened without it. Anyways, last issue we found out that privileged children were being abducted in broad daylight. So Tim was set up to be abducted, so he could try to bring the operation down from the inside. We also have a new character, whom I really didn't like at first, but, he seems to be growing on me. He's Dodge, or that's what he calls himself, and he has some sort of teleporting power. He really wants to be a hero, and he really wants to be Robin's sidekick. But, he's so impulsive and brash, that he just keeps getting in the way and making a nuisance of himself. So Tim gets inside, and starts to formulate a plan on how to take this group down, but then Dodge shows up. Now Tim has to work his plan, but also take into account Dodge's zealousness. He of course overcomes the obstacles, but, not without a casualty. One of the kids gets shot, and it's really Dodge's fault. And Dodge knows that. I really think it's a wake-up call to him. But, as I was saying, this book really seems to be getting on track again. Adam Beechen writes, and Freddie E. Williams II draws. Adams writing is really becoming very solid. He seems to have a really good grasp of his characters, and the supporting cast. And Freddie's pencils seem to get better every issue. His style fits the book very well. This book has gone up and down through it's tenure, but I really like the direction that it's heading now.

Batman and the Mad Monk #3 - DC

This is a series written and drawn by Matt Wagner. This story, the setting and style, is just perfect for his delivery. Batman is scouring Gotham trying to figure out who this new madman is. All he really knows is that he calls himself the Monk. He working his way through Gotham killing young women, in very ritualistic fashion, and he's come across his crew that he uses for disposal. They call themselves the Brotherhood. He tries to work his way through the bunch to find someone to give him some answers. The only problem is, they are more afraid of the Monk than of Batman. Now at the same time, Bruce's current love interest, Julie Madison, has delivered herself right into the lap of the Monk. She having some trouble with her father, a self made man, one of Gotham's business leaders, and a very rich man with whom she is the only heir. So anyways, preying on her insecurities, the Monk has sent his right hand man, woman, Dala to seek her out, and try to find a way in. Well that's not to hard when your whole life is filled with worrying about the welfare of your father. Dala listens when Julie needs it, and the suggests that her boyfriend, Niccolai, who is really the Monk, is a person who "is a private counselor to some of the country's most influential men." They talk her into coming to their estate for a "meet and greet". But really it's an excuse for Niccolai to sink his teeth into her, literally. It appears that the Monk is some sort of vampire, and his "feedings" serve to strengthen both his followers, and his hold over them. Later, when Bruce and Julie are going out on a date, she takes off her wrap and he notices the 2 puncture wounds on her neck. It seems that in order to find the Monk, he has to look no further than his other pillow. Like I said, this is the perfect story for Matt. He writes this genre impeccably, and his artistic style is perfect for the story. Not to mention we get to see the Batman in his early days, when he was still trying to figure everything out, and was more pomp that circumstance.

X-Men First Class #2 - Marvel

This is a neat book in that we get to see some of the core X-Men, before they became shaded by a world that is constantly trying to segregate them, or ask for their help. These are the kids that started the X-Men. They're all full of life and full of hope. Even Scott, who is becoming their leader, isn't quite there yet. We even get to see him laugh, and joke, and smile a little bit. We also see a little more about how Charles manipulates his prodigy's. He's a little more blattant in the use of his powers because these kids don't really know what he's capable or, yet. In all of them, you see hints of who they are now, but they have the naivety of youth. So, overall, the book isn't as morose as some of the current X titles. Anyways, after their mission last issue, Charles decides to give them a break by going down to Warren's summer home in Miami. While doing so he decides to stop in on an old friend of his, Curt Conners. You know that just spells trouble. Anyways, upon arriving they find out that Curt has been testing, on himself, a reptilian formula to regenerate tissue. Since he lost his arm in an explosion. And of course he in one of his rampage states running amok in the everglades. Being Charles friend, Charles decides to use his new team to go after him and bring him home to his wife. And this is where you see the real difference between this and the current team. There's no leadership or teamwork. And there's definitely no defined roles. It's like a bunch of college kids who got together on the spur of the moment and decided to go down to Florida, and oh hey, while were at it, let's have an adventure. Jeff Parker, the writer, really has a good handle on how he wants the book to feel. And it's perfect for the setting. Also Roger Cruz' artwork perfectly fits this book. Overall this book is definitely a winner. To bad it's only 8 issues long.

Flash #5 - DC

It's good to see the Flash back in action again. And I'm glad it's Bart. Wally had a different feel to him than Barry, and now Bart has a different feel to him than Wally. Although I would still like to know what happened to Wally. Anyways, now it's about Bart, and Jay too. Also Bart's friend, Griffin, somehow got some power off of Bart when they had that accident in the car factory. We're seeing what the power is doing to Griffin, both physically and emotionally, but they still haven't delved into how he really ended up with it, and what exactly his powers are. But, at the rate it's consuming his body, he may not be around that long for us to worry about it anyways. Also, now, the entirety of the speed force resides solely in Bart. And he doesn't seem to be able to control it very well. Vic, Cyborg, shows up this issue to give him a little sage advice. Whether or not he listens is another matter, but he tried. Also his girlfriend, Valerie, who happens to be Mota's daughter, has dissapeared. We know that Mota has her, but we don't know where. Also Mota is in league with Inertia, Bart evil nemesis, Tad Thawne, from the future. Tad wants to rid the world of all things Flash, and Mota wants to use his daughters body to help him reestablish himself on the physical plane. He's kind of an apparition right now. So, although they are in league together, I see a falling out coming soon over the necessity of each one's mission. I'm sure this will be their undoing. And finally, Griffin has abducted Jay because he believes that the secret to fixing his dissolving state lies in Jays connection to the speed force, since he doesn't age. I know. It's a stretch. But Griffin isn't playing with a full deck right now anyways. Danny Bilson & Paul Demeo are writing this, and I really like the approach they're taking. There's a couple different plot lines going on, with a couple more developing. Also the whole Wally thing seems to be on the back burner for a while. Ron Adrian does pencils this issue. What is it with artists not sticking around for more than 3 or 4 issues anymore? It's not just this book, it's a lot of them. I'm not trying to diminish Ron Adrian's work, I actually like his style. It fits well on this book also. But it seems that the trend in the industry now is for an artist to change books like he changes his shoes. I guess thats just the nature of the beast. Anyways, I really like this book and the direction that it's going. If they don't change the writers, it should stay this way for quite a while.

52 - Week Twenty Four - DC

Another installment of my favorite weekly serial. And I have an extra added bonus with this one, in that Phil Jimenez does all the interiors. It's like a slice of warm apple pie with a big chuck of ice cream on top. It just doesn't get any better. There's a lot going on in this issue also. We start out with Ollie announcing his bid for the mayoral race in Star City.Then we find Firestorm trying to put together a rag-tag Justice League. So far it consists of himself, Firehawk, Black Bison (or Super Chief), the Bulleeteer and Ambush Bug. Next we have Jonn Jonzz rapaging through the old Justice League headquarters, the mountain one. He's feeling guilty about Blue Beetle. To that end, he's been using his alias' in the govt. to get Checkmate disbanded. He's vowed not to rest until Checkmate has been eradicated from the earth. And all this pent up rage has been used to make a monument to all the fallen heroes. Next we find Black Adam, Isis and Osiris dissolving their relationship with the heroes of China. They're calling themselves the Black Marvel Family now. Back in Metropolis Firestorm and gang are fighting some bad guys, and a slew of Luthor's everyday heroes try to come to their aid. Firehawk puts it best, "Oh, good God! Help like this, we don't need! Where'd the all loser squad come from?" Apparantly is was all set up by Skeets. He's trying to draw someone out. But we don't know who it is yet. But, since whoever he's looking for isn't there, he decides to up the ante he starts taking out all of Luthor's losers. He also takes out the Super Chief. We get a glimpse of Ralph Digby. Jonn gets some bad news when he finds out that Checkmate is going to be reinstated under a United Nations sanction. And finally we see Amanda Waller, back at Belle Reeve trying to put together a team to go after Black Adam. Her lead is the Atom Smasher. Lots of action, lots of heroes, and it comes out every week. What more could you ask for?

X-Men Civil War #4 - Marvel

It appears that the whole reason behind this mini-series was to get Bishop alligned with the O.N.E.. Much in the way that he was with the X.S.E.. It's all altruistic right now, but you just know that there's going to be some point that's he going to have to cross some line, and he'll become a mutant hunter again. After last issue the battle has come to a halt, first because Micromax has been seriously hurt, and also because it was found out that Gnrl. Lazer has been manipulating everyone. And now, he has set the arsenal of weapons buried deep in the bunker to explode, and he has locked the 198 in. So, everyone is trying to make a concerted effort the break down the bunker door, and get the people, mutants, to safety. While they're all trying to bulldoze their way in, Valerie is back at the base, trying to persuade the information out of Gnrl. Lazer. Well, as much persuation as she can accomplish with a crowbar. But, the joke is one Lazer as he is betrayed by the doll man. He touched him, so he makes a likeness of him and twist his head around. Eventually with the combined power of Cyclops, Bishop, Iron Man and Ms. Marvel, they blast the door open. In the after math of the mellee, Valerie debriefs Bishop. She lets him know that some changes are going to be made in the way that the mutants are handled. Most of the changes are actually to the benefit of the mutants. And that is when she offers him the job. If nothing else, the X-men are constantly changing. It'll be interesting to see where they go from here.

Ghost Rider #4 - Marvel

Ok, last issue ended with Johnny kicking the crap out of Dr. Strange. Well actually, he was burning it out of him. The real problem is that he wasn't holding back at all, because he believes that Dr. Strange is just Lucifer in another of his disguises. He ends up taken so much out of him, that Numecet has to show up to try to talk some sense into him. And to try to help the Doc recover. She really doesn't want to get involved, but she ends up leaking some information to Johnny. See, his problem is really two fold. He already knows that when he escaped from Hell, he accidentally brought Lucifer with him. Well, accidentally by design. Anyways, what he didn't know is that Lucifer doesn't have a coporeal form on earth, so his essence was divided 666 times, and each of those has gone out to inhabated a recently deceased person, and wreak havoc. So on one hand, Johnny feels responsible and will most likely go out in search of all of Lucifers forms. But, on the other hand, every time he defeats one of his hosts, that energy is divided between all the remaining hosts, and therefore each one becomes a little stronger. So right now, each of his hosts possess 1/666th of his power. But, as they are defeated that fraction will increase. Until eventually, he'll get down to 2 with each of them possessing 1/2 of his power. So basically Johnny is , "damned if you do, and damned if you don't". Of course he's hot headed, literally, and thinks that he can rush out and take care of this. But, we'll have to wait until next issue to see what he can actually accomplish. Great writing by Daniel Way, and extraordinary art by Mark Texiera. I'm glad this series is back.

Wolverine #47 - Marvel

Ok, we almost have this whole storyline with Wolverine and Nitro wrapped up. Next issue will be the final chapter. Which is sad, in that it will also be Humberto Ramos' last book. This whole thing started in Stamford Conn. when Nitro blew up and killed over 600 people. This generated the Superhuman Registration Act. Logan, not happy about the act, or it's inception, became curious about what brought about the events that led up to it. To him, they just seemed to well orchestrated to be coincidence. So he pursued Nitro to find answers. He did, in that he found out that the reason Nitro blew up was because he couldn't control himself because he was hopped up on MGH. He also finds out that he was suppled MGH by Walter Declun, the CEO of Damage Control Inc.. DCI is a company that profits from super human conflict. Their job, literally, is to clean up after these acts of violence. So the more conflict, the more there services are needed. Wolverine wants to bring Nitro to justice, but he ends up leaving him in the hands of the Atlantean's. He then focus' his attention on DCI. This is when he finds out that not only do they clean up after the conflicts, but they also salvage any weapons, tech or parts that they find. So, not only do they prosper from a monetary standpoint, but also from a technological one also. So he then makes it his mission to tear apart DCI piece by piece. And finally by taking down Walter Declun. But has he gone over the line in doing so? We'll have to wait until next issue to find out what path this puts Wolverine on next.

Batman Strikes #26 - DC

Like Justice League Unlimited, Teen Titans Go! and the new Krypto, this book is just fun to read. This it's simple. And the art is very cartoonish. But, that is exactly what I like about it. It's a simple story, usually only 1 issue arcs, with cartoonish fun art, that is a quick and fun read. It's a nice distraction from our usual myriad of earth threatening, or life threatening storylines that usually run through all of our favorite books. Also, it doesn't have the huge "soap opera" storyline that's run through the last 50 to 200 issues. It's just a simple fun read. It harkens us back to why we started reading comics in the first place. Yes they're aimed at kids, but, I like 'em too. This isn't the actual cover, but it's what was available on the DC comics website. But that's ok. It's always cool to see a piece of art that we might not get the chance to see otherwise.

Gen13 #1 - Wildstorm

The first book in the new Wildstorm Universe. What better way than to start it with the youngins'? We are introduced the the new Gen13 team. Although they aren't really a team yet. And, they aren't really new. They're all the old characters, but we're starting out fresh. We find out in this issue, that all of them have inhibited powers, and were sent out to fake families, so they could be raised normally and under constant supervision. For some reason, IO has decided to get rid of the charade of normalcy and bring in all the Gen13's. The stress of seeing their "parents" killed, or taken away activates their powers. IO then begins gathering them up. They take them to their headquarters, secure them, and deactivate their powers. It's there, in the bowels of their capture that they start to come together. This is the basis of the new Universe. Most of the creators have decided to go with the original characters, and just retell, or revamp, their beginnings and origins. This one is by Gail Simone and Talent Caldwell. Both are huge talents in their own rights, but together on this book, it should be something special. I have a feeling this is the beginning of the best incarnation yet.

World Storm #1 - Wildstorm

This book is put together to introduce us to all the new books in the Wildstorm Universe. After the Captain Atom mini series, the Wildstorm Universe has literally been blown back into existence. The new books we have coming out are: Tranquility, Gen13, Wetworks, the Authority, WildCats, Midnighter, Deathblow and StormWatch - Post Human Division. We get a spash page from the artist of each book, and a little description that tells us a little about the team and where it's going. We also get two little short stories. The first is a StormWatch story, in which Jackson King is thinking about putting together his new team. Which apparently is going to include the Machinist. Anyways, he's thinking about his past glory, and who he's going to put on the new team. The other story is about Tranquility. I guess, this is the story about a team of geriatric heroes who haven't lived down the glories of their youth. They even still dress is their old uniforms. Apparently after WWII, the Liberty Squad found this little town, Tranquility, and liked it so much that they came to live there. Now it is the unofficial post-superhero retirement center. Actually it is filled with retired hero's and villians. This should prove interesting. Anyways, the Wildstorm Universe is back, and this is the guide to all the new books. Exselsior!

Ultimate Fantastic Four #35 - Marvel

Like it's predecessor's (the Ultimates, Ultimate Spider-man, and Ultimate X-Men) this is a very cool book. Mike Carey and Pasqual Ferry, seem to have a very interesting story going on here. They've created this whole world, and cast of characters, to introduce us to the Ultimate Thanos. How cool is that? It started with the Seed Nineteen Unit, Acheron's defenders. Trying to escape from Gallowglass, one of Thanos' high lords, they jumped into earth space. This is where they met the FF. Although the FF didn't believe they were benevolent in nature, at first, so they scuffled. After examining Seed Nineteen, and their sentient Cycle, Reed and Sue came to have a better understanding of them. Then, Gallowglass arrived. It was soon evident, that this menace, was what this unit of defenders was racing from. Gallowglass took two of the unit's members, Tesseract and Vykni, and headed back towards Acheron. But this time, Seed Unit Nineteen pursued them, along with the FF, whom were very close behind. Once on board Gallowglass' ship, the Unit and the FF engaged Gallowglass and his minions, raven and drakelighters. They didn't seem to be making much headway, until Dreamcatcher told Sue that her forcefield would interact with Gallowglass', who was formed from nuetron-degenerate matter. When his force field was removed, and his form came into contact with positive matter, the result would be explosive. Sue does so, and on the final page we see Gallowglass' ship exploding across Acheron space. Oh, and during the course of all this, Thanos has been ressurected. What kind of imagination and intelligence does it take to think this stuff up? I know that a lot of this is a variation of our own stories of Thanos, but the way they twist is around and give it a fresh spin, is just breathtaking. This book is truly living up to it's Ultimate lineage.

X-Factor #12 - Marvel

As much as I rag on Peter David for his work on Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, I have to give him credit for what he's doing with this book. Maybe he just does better with team books. But, I guess FNS could almost be considered a team book, with as many supporting characters as they have running around through the SM titles. Anyways, I really like the feel of this book. And there are some very interesting characters, especially Layla. We seem to have settled on a regular artist now too. Roy Allen Martinez, does all the flashback, or flash forward, sequences. And in my opinion, he is the better of the 2 artist. Renato Arlem, does all the rest of the art. I do have to give him credit also, as he seems to be improving with every issue. The theme of this particular issue seems to be aquainting us with how Singularity Ivestigations have been involved with the members of X-Factor, in the past present and future. It also explains Mr. Tryp Jr. and Sr.. I thought it was the same guy, going back and forth through time, but there's actually 2 of them. But, the scooting around throught time thing does seem to be one of their abilities. It also seems that Layla, and Mr. Tryp Sr., seem to be polar opposites. In fact Mr. Tryp Sr. pays her a visit at the end of this issue, and kind of upsets her world a little bit. The interaction between these 2 should prove interesting in the future. Also, one of Jamie's dupes kills Mr. Tryp Jr., and in doing so, his memories come flooding back into Jamie. It's then that he realizes that it was the Tryp's that killed his parents. He had been made to forget their meeting when he was a child. He also didn't know, what his dupe had figured out, that it was the Tryp's that had killed his parents, not some freak tornado. Jamie seems to be physically distraught with this new found information. On top of all this, we still have the whole thing going on with Guido and Quicksilver. Very interesting book.

Noble Causes #24 - Image

Welcome to another installment of "As the Pages Turn". Here is the mryiad of plots that we have going on under these covers. Celeste is trying to help Race get his powers back. To do that he has taken him to Dr. Wiseman for some experimental surgery. Rusty's in jail, for blowing up the chopper last issue, and killing the people inside. Gaia is trying to do what she can to get him bailed out. Rusty was trying to find out who replaced his girlfriend, Rae, with a robot. Celesta and Dawn are having an affair. And I'll tell you what, Celeste is smokin' in her bra and skirt. Race and Liz are having marital problems, because Race won't confide in her about what he's up to with Celeste. Also because he hasn't really communicated his feelings, or pretty much anything, to her since he lost his powers. Gaia finds out that Rae has always been a robot. Doc built her for Rusty, because he was becoming so emotionally detached from everyone, since his accident that put him in his robot body. But now he has to figure out, one if he can rebuild her, and two if he should. No one has know about this except for him, until now. Race undergoes the experiment to try to give him his powers back, and Liz goes along for emotional support. However, something goes wrong, and it looks as if he could be harmed. Liz goes in to pull him out, but she can't get herself out in time. It looks like the ray, and the experiment, has just switched hosts. And this, was just what we saw of all these plots in this issue. We still have another dozen or so characters that we haven't even touched base with in this issue. Jay Faerber has a very tightly woven little soap opera going on here. And Jon Bosco's artwork is getting better with every issue. This is a very fun read, and very cool. It's hard not to get caught up in the plot of the Noble's.

Desolation Jones #7 - Wildstorm

I was really suprised to see this book back out again. I just assumed that after the first 6 issues, that that was it. This is another fantastic character by Warren Ellis. I'm not completely bought in to the artwork by Danijel Zezelj. I like his stuff, but I don't know how it's going to fit here. But, since I liked the first 6 issues so much, I'm more than willing to wait it out a little bit, because , I know the story will be more that worth it. Not to disparage Danijel's art, but I'm bought in to this one because of the story. Since all we really know of Jones is what we learned in the first story, we'll be delving into his past some more. Learn what makes him tick. How he got the way he his. Did he volunteer to get "fucked up" like this? And why is he naked so much? But, as I said, with Warren Ellis writing this, I'm sure we'll find out all we want, and more. Wildstorm, is really putting out some cool stuff of late. It's nice to see someone take chances on stories and characters, like this one. Makes it feel like more of an "adult" market. Plus, with so many "heroes" out there, it's nice to see some "anti-heroes". And, I always like a story that makes me think. And I can count on Warren for that. If you can find the first 6 issues, I definitely recommend it. I'm sure it's out in a TPB by now. This is a fantastic book.

Tales of the Unexpected #1 - DC

Another old DC book brought back from the "Crypt". Oh wait, that was somebody else. This one was just, "Unexpected". But, I guess, where else would we expect Crispus Allen, the new Spectre to show up. First of all, a beautiful Mike Mignola cover. The story, picks up, I assume, almost immediately after the mini series. But, I guess, when you're the Spectre, time and space is relative. However, I don't think Crispus has gotten that far into his lessons yet. Right now he's still having trouble separating himself from his old life as a homicide detective. He still wants to get down in the dirt and play with the clues, like the real, I mean living, detectives. He's trying to avenge the death of a slum lord. A bad man that, thanks to karma, was held captive in the basement of one of his own rotting tenements. It's obvious, that the crime was done in retribution for how he made his tenents live. It was an exacting revenge. However, it's not our duty to be judge or jury. After all, if it was, why would we need the Spectre. So, now that the crime has been done, Crispus has to decide who he's going to hold responsible. The problem with this crime though, is that with so many possible people with culpability, it's more like how he's going to measure the degrees of responsibility. After all, if someone witnessed what happened, but did nothing to help or stop it, aren't they in fact just as responsible? I think Crispus could have bitten off more than he can chew with this "gig". Justice is exacted on one tenant, but Crispus is just getting started. David Lapham, and Eric Battle, put together a nice first installment or this story. Very well crafted and visually appealing. We also get a backup story, about another obscure DC "hero", Dr Thirteen. Again very well crafted. But with Brian Azzarello writing, and Cliff Chiang on the pencils, I would expect nothing less. And we also get a glimpse of "I. . . .Vampire!" Nice! This is the first in a six issue series. Should be a nice ride.

Martian Manhunter #3 - DC

This is another series that really shows a lot of potential. First of all it's done by A.J. Lieberman and Al Barrionuevo. For those unfamiliar, they were last seen on Gotham Knights. A series that I don't feel should've been cancelled. But, as evidenced there, and is seen even more here, their storytelling abilities take dramatic stides with each and every issue they produce. They're rapidly becoming masters of their crafts. Basically, Jonn has found 5 other Martians that were being held and experimented on. Actually, these 5 are what's left. As I said they were performing some really inhumane experiments, so we don't really know how many they started with. There appears to be 2 groups fast on their trails. One Govt. based and one non. Also, somehow the White Martians are tied up into this, but we don't know how exactly yet. Finally, at the end of the issue, we learn that the Dept. of Homeland Security, is putting together their own Justice League to go after Jonn, and the people he's responsible for freeing. It includes Black Canary, Zatanna, Green Arrow, Vixen and the Green Lantern. The depth of character development and interaction the A.J. puts into his stories, is phenomonal. You really feel as if you're getting an understanding for what these characters are thinking and feeling. And you can definitely feel their frustration. And Al's pencils really do get better and better. This is an 8 issue mini, and I'm sure any future plans will depend on the buyer's response to it. I for one, am hoping that it moves on. But, I guess that's up to you.

JLA Classified #28 - DC

Another tale of international espionage and intrigue by Howard Chaykin. Is there any other way he does it? Add in the artwork of Kilian Plunkett, and we have a very nice book, and story arc, here. We're dealing with the countries of Santa Bertriz and Del Canto. Two third world nations, somewhere in South America I presume. They are both developing super human progams, and are using those powers to maintain their dominance over their citizens. There is also a patch of land, between the 2 nations, ala the Gaza strip, that both countries are fighting over. It's really a wastland, but for either to gain control of it would mean that they would be that much closer to their border making it easier to lauch an attack. Enter the Justice League. They've gone on an undercover mission into the 2 countries, to find out just how bad the injustices are. But, they've been banned from doing so by the U.N.. So, not only do they have to do this discreetly, but they also have to make the rest of the world believe that they are elsewhere fighting other world problems. Problems that would leave them to busy to pay attention to these 2 poor destitute nations. So Bruce, Clark, Diana, Wally, Kyle and Faith really have their hands full. Then, somehow in the skirmish of the whole thing, Diana and Kyle have dissapeared. Also, Jonn has let them know that Arthur has gone AWOL. Personally, I think he got tired of the charade they were all performing, and has gone to take a more active role in the whole debacle. Very cool story. Very ala JLA:Elite. Which is a series that I really miss. I know it was only 12 issues, but it could've been expanded into so much more. As we're seeing with this story arc. Maybe there's hope yet?

Green Lantern Corps #5 - DC

Dave Gibbons writing and drawing and doing covers. Again! Awesome. And with Michael Bair on inks, it's really a crisp clean looking book. We pick up where we left off with Guy on some pleasure planet, trying to get a little R&R. But, of course, it's going to be disrupted by Bolphunga, an intergalactic bounty hunter looking to settle a score with Guy. Do these guys really chase after Guy because he's such a nemesis, or because he's such an asshole? Only the Guardians know. We also catch up with Vath and Isamot. Isamot is the lizard kinda' guy who went to Thanagar to help, but fell in love and had to stay because of his crazy mating heritage. But, he pulled himself off planet to help Vath when he was being attacked by the Citadel fleet. As is turn out it was the butler, or rather the valet, maybe bellboy, who actually took Guy's ring. He gets it back and makes pretty short work of Bolphunga. Then Salaak shows up. He's pissed at guy and sends him on a kidnapping case is sector 73. As Guy puts it, "That's the Buttcrack of the Galaxy". We also catch up to Soranik, Natu, who has gone to Mogo for some counseling. She still feels guily about Myrrt's death. She also runs into Tanak, who says he is there for counseling also. Although I think there's more to that story. I guess we'll have to wait for future issues to find out. Vath and Isamot have followed the fleet, after they stopped punishing them, but unfortunately have ended up in the Vega System. "Vega System off limits to Lanterns. Turn around. Failure to obey is a court-martial offense.", is how their rings warns them. Meanwhile, Guy has hooked up with his partner is sector 73, Chthos. He needs Guys help because the kidnapper is in Ranx. "Ranx is a city. A city as old as the stars, according to folklore. It is a most unusual city. It is sentient . . . . alive. As lanterns it is our duty to respect life. No matter how strange that life seems to our own sensibilities. And Ranx . . . . hates the Green Lantern Corps. With a vengeance". Lots of good characters, lots of good character interaction, lots of interesting plot lines. What more could you ask for in a book?

Firestorm #30 - DC

With the rather large spectrum of characters and books available out there, I can't really explain why Firestorm is one of my most favorite characters, but he is. Has been ever since his inception. I would have to say that him, Spider-man, and Superman, are my 3 all time favorites. I was a little concerned when this book first started, after all, where's Ronnie and the Prof.? But, with a little patience, I sooned learned that the book was in very capable hands with Stuart Moore and Jamal Igle. And in recent months they've brought back the Prof. Good to see Martin's head floating around again. This time also he plays a much more interactive role in the process as when he's in Jason's head, he's actually at the control panel of the Firestorm matrix. They've also brought back Firehawk, Pozhar and more recently the Pionic Man. I really think they're making a concentrated effort to have this incarnation tied in as closely as possible to the last. Ronnie or no. Jason finally catches up to Gehanna this issue to try to explain himself, but as he finds out, she's already forgiven him. Also, I have a feeling the Pionic Man is going to change his colors. He may be on the side of angels now. But, of course, there's a new bad guy, "Tokomak : the Human Reactor". We meet him at the end of this issue. I really hope that this book doesn't fall into the creative wastland like it did last time. It's good to have it back, and I hope it sticks around for a while. You know, it would really help if he became and active member of the JLA again. I mean, while they're trying to decide membership and all. Shameless plug!!

52 - Week Twenty Three - DC

Here we go again. This is proving to be a fantastic serial. By the way, Drew Johnson draws this one. Which is really cool. Anyways, we start of with Dr. Magnus being taken to an island, after his abduction last issue, filled with scientists. Both good and bad. T.O.Morrow is also there, and his reply to the Doc's question about this place is, "This is what you get when the world's maddest scientists are given an unlimited budget and encouraged to let their imaginations run wild on the finest mind-expanding narcotics available to man! Isn't it amazing?" We also catch up with Black Adam and Isis looking for Isis' brother, Osiris. They are helped by the Question and Renee Montoya, whom are also on the same trail. He's severely beaten and broken and Black Adam gives him a little of his power, much in the form of Shazam Jr.. They end the issue heading off to China. What, you say? Is that it? Well not entirely, but you should pick it up and read it. If I share all the character interaction, what is your incentive to buy it? Seriously, though, this is a great series. There's a lot of stuff going on. And a lot of stuff that's going to be affecting the DC universe in the months and years to come. If your comic shop doesn't have them I'm sure somebody on E-Bay has all 23 issues for sale. Either way, I think there's going to be a lot of future reference back to this series. Get it while you can.

Batman Legends of the Dark Knight #211 - DC

This is the final chapter of the Bruce Jones / Ariel Olivetti saga. Once again, I just want to warn you, that the artwork in this book is astounding. This book, and the last couple, should truly be considered pieces of art. They are just flawless. The only downside, is that this is going to spoil you for every other book out there. Truly amazing. "Girl before I met you, I was F.I.N.E. . . fine". We start out where the last book left off, Bruce has gone to the dock for the ransom dropoff, only to find Janie Rutledge floating in the water. Bruce also finds that Lilith stole the money rather that drop it off. She was in on it from the start. Alfred has found out the Lilith was not Janie's sister but rather her mother. When they get a better look at the woman's body, they figure out that it's not Janie, but the Billingsworth's butler's daughter, who was pregnant and who was dating Billingsworth's son. After that it really gets convoluted. It's a twisted tale of deceit, greed and masterful manipulation. Batman of course tracks her down, and on a leisurely drive in Malibu, she discovers that Bruce has a deceitful streak of his own, there's not really a million dollars in the briefcase. She also has learned that Batman is Bruce Wayne. "Little tip, sweetheart: you can't fool a woman once kissed!" But as Batman tries to stop her, she crashes and dies. Pity! Bruce Jones has put together a nice little opus here, and as I said, Ariel Olivetti's artwork is fantastic. It's going to be hard to follow up this story arc. It'll be interesting to see which direction they go.

Green Arrow #67 - DC

This is the final chapter of the story where Ollie learned all those new fighting skills. We finally get to see the interaction between him and Natas. He's the guy who trained Deathstroke. To begin with, this guy kicks the crap out of Ollie. He keeps getting beat up and Conner and Maya patch him up. Then when he has his strength back, he goes out, gets beat up again, and they patch him up again. This cycle is repeated over and over. But this Natas didn't waste any time. While he was recupperating, Natas would be by his side filling his head with more information. Now while all this is going on, Conner and Maya were still training with all the other Sensei's and assassins. But only Ollie was training with the master. When he started anticipating his moves, the training stops and the attacks begin. It's like an Extreme Games form of tag. They hide from each other for days, and then spring out and attack when the other least expects it. Next they do tracking. Then, Ollie learns about the wall in Star City. He starts to formulate a plan. One part is having Tuckman start running his campaign for Mayor. The other is to pick Natas mind on how to obtain more money. Because what he has is mind, is going to require a lot. Basically he creates a boondoggle with the stock market, specifically with corporations with defense contracts, and gains billions of dollars. Natas final lesson? He's sent an army to try to kill them. Man this book is awesome. Ever since Judd Winick and Scott McDaniel got together on this book, it's been going at a breakneck speed. I honestly think this is my favorite adaptation of the green guy. Ever! Oh, and by the way, on "Smallville" they're doing their own interpretation of Ollie. And, it's pretty good also. Do I hear "Green Arrow Corps"?? Ha-Ha!

Ultimate Power #1 - Marvel

With Brian Michael Bendis writing, and Greg Land doing the art, do you really need another reason to buy this book? Ok, I'll give you one, look at that cover! Fantastic!! We start out this issue with the FF in a heated battle with some HYDRA honeys. And I do mean honeys. Nobody draws a sexier female villian than Greg Land. And these chicks are HOTTTT!!! Anyways, obviously the FF beat them, but in the process one of them knocks a chuck out of Ben. This really upsets Reed and Sue. They already feel guily enough about what's happened to their friend. Now they have to worry about this? So anyways, Reed becomes obsessed with it. Suprise, huh? He's convinced that this has something to do with their trip to the N-Zone. So he wants to build 4200 drones to send out into all the other dimensions he can find, to try to retrieve information to help him fix Ben. Of course that's not what he tells Nick Fury, whom he wants to pay for all this. Of course he won't, partly because he's still upset about the whole Gah Lak Tus thing. But also because him, and Carol Danvers, are concerned about the "Butterfly Effect" that this whole experiment might have. But, in usual Reed fashion, he uses the 5 probes that he has, to try to cover as much area as possible. The "Butterfly Effect" is that the top couple of floors of the Baxter Bldg. comes blasting off, and when they look up they find a team of people looking down on them menacingly. We know, of course, that this is the Squadron Supreme. But, they don't know that yet. Next issue should prove very interesting. Did I mention how HOT the women the Greg draws in this book are? Smokin'!!

Ultimate X-Men #75 - Marvel

First of all, what an awesome cover by Michael Turner. Unfortunately I could only find a picture of it on the Mile HighComics website. But props to them for having it available. And since I borrowed it from them, it's only fair to tell you that if you're looking for anything, back issue wise, they are definitely the place to go to. It's at www.Milehighcomics.com , and the way their website is laid out, and the selection they have, it's just fantastic. I use them as a source to judge my purchase prices when I'm looking for stuff on E-Bay too. Anyways, we finally get to see Cable in the Ultimate Universe. But even with that, there is just so much stuff going on in this book. We're still dealing with Jean's "psychic break", after her run in with the Professor and Lilandra. Then we have the Professor's interactions with Fury. Much more so than we've seen in our version of the X-Men. Bobby is still trying to get close to Rogue. Good luck with that, bub. We have the Kitty/Peter relationship, which is really just starting since she just got done with the other Kitty / Peter (Spider-man) relationship. Also there's still sparks flying between Ororo and Logan. Also there's the whole Nightcrawler thing. He seems to be having flashbacks, maybe from his Weapon X days, maybe from the war. Anyways the Prof. is trying to help him, and that's when Cable pops in. Literally. He take down everybody, except for Wolverine. But then when they are fighting, he pops out his claws. Cable I mean. Cable??? Yep, he's got Wolverine's claws too. So obviously this Cable is different than our Cable, even though he looks exactly the same, weapons and bullets and everything. But the final splash page is a picture of him with his claws drawn. And Wolverine confused about the 3 slash marks across his chest. Snikt!!
Awesome book. I can't believe they've made it to issue 75 already. If this isn't in your pulls, it should be!!

Wolverine Origins #7 - Marvel

Another cool book, with some great creators. Daniel Way writes and Steve Dillon draws. We're going back to the origins of Omega Red with this story arc. Also we learn about the effects Carbonadium has on Wolverine and his regenerative powers. From what I've seen, in the flashbacks to his early years, these people in Weapon X were some real bastards. We also get a glimpse into why Logans memories are so fracked up. After these 2 scientists experiment on him, with the Carbonadium, they drag him to this room that has what looks like an electric chair in it. The one scientist asks, "I've uh . . . . I've never actually seen it . . . . that's what is used to replace Logan's memories?". To which the other replys, "No. No, no . . . . . . that is what is used to destroy his memories." Then he keeps going on, "Electrical current is passed throught the subjects brain via the penetrating diodes to specified areas of the cerebral cortex known to store short-term memories. Destroying the brain cells and therefore destroying the memories themselves. As the affected portions of the brain regenerate, I . . . or another with my qualifications. . . . steadily and repeatedly dictate an . . . alternate version of recent events to the subject. 'Memory Implants', so to speak. Once the subject is conscious and near full recovery, I . . . pretending to be his attending physcian . . . .'reluctantly' clear him for active duty and then provide him with a sealed dossier containing details for his next mission." And he starts laughing. "What's so funny?", asks the one scientist. To which he cynically says, "Oh nothing. . . I was just remembering the last time I did this . . . . he actually thanked me. For helping him." What a bunch of bastards. I always thought his "implants" were some kind of psychic assault on him, not something so sadistic and primitive. Logan regains consciousness and uses his claws to eviscerate the one scientist. But he is truly suprised by the protrusion of the claws. But this also seems to clear up some of his memories. As he's looking at his bloodied hands, he just calmly says, "I remember it all." He has this flashback, because, after that incident he went to Berlin to obtain the Carbonadium Synthesizer. Once he got it he gave it to Maverick to hold. But then after that mission his memories were wiped again, and he forgot. So now he's come to Maverick to get it back, but so has Omega Red. And one of his biggest concerns is Jubillee, who is also in this group of people that OR is attacking. I like this series because it fills in a lot of questions that we've been having about Wolverine for the last 30 years. I'm glad the powers that be decided to finally shed some light on some of this. But, it's very well written, and Steve Dillon's artwork is perfect for this story. And we get 2 covers every issue also. Yay!!