The Comic Book Discussion Thread

[number8]

Anyone use WOWIO? Alan Moore's entire run on Supreme is up for free download.

[EvilShoe]

I went to a (rather big) comic book store to find Scott Pilgrim 4.
I asked the clerk if they had Scott Pilgrim, as I couldn't find it.

He - confidently - walked towards a section of the store.
- "Yeah sure, what is it he wrote again?"
Me: "Scott Pilgrim's the name of the comic."
- "Yes, of course... Dark Horse, right?"
Me: "No, I don't think so."

He then asked me to wait for a few seconds as he would ask the guy who runs the store for more information. I could overhear them.
Boss: "Ah yes, Scott Pelgrim. It's some kind of cowboy comic, like Jonah Hex".

The clerk returned.
- "Is it some kind of cowboy comic, like Jonah Hex?"
Me: "No."

There was an awkward pause. He pulled out a sheet of paper, which was the stock list.
- "Scott Pelgrim, Scott Pelgrim... I think we're just out of those. They must be out of stock. Is this an American or British comic?"
Me: "Canadian, I think."
- "And what does the comic look like?"
Me: "Black and White... Manga-like... Pretty small book."
- "Yeah, it must be just out of stock. We can always order it for you." *smile*
Me: "No, thank you."

The universe won't let me obtain Scott Pilgrim 4.
I ended up buying Fables 4 instead. Good volume.

[Watashi]

My Borders has Scott Pilgrim 4.

[Sycophant]

Man, I can't walk down the street without some toothless homeless guy trying to peddle Scott Pilgrim 4 for a quarter.

[trotchky]

I finally got around to finishing Misery Loves Comedy the other day. Issue 3 is his best one yet. Brunetti is a major talent.

[number8]

I have so many copies of Scott Pilgrim 4, I stopped buying toilet paper.

[EvilShoe]

My Borders has Scott Pilgrim 4.
But do they have Scott Pelgrim?
I think not!

[number8]

Jeph Loeb = Wanker.

I skimmed through Ultimates 2 at the shop the other day and checked out a few more pages of it online. What an amazing piece of shit.

Why the hell is Hawkeye shooting at Spiderman for no reason? And the Thor post-coital naked cuddle scene. Ugh.

[Mr. Valentine]

i realize you mean Ultimates 3 and yes it is awful. i have no idea what happened to Loeb.

[number8]

I meant the second issue of 3, yeah.

I've now made the words "Jeph Loeb - Writer" synonymous with "Do not read".

[Mr. Valentine]

today's pick ups:

Detective Comics #841 (awesome cover)
Northlanders #3
Nightwing #141
Justice Society of America #12

i also ordered Batman: False Faces (hardcover), Batman: The Man Who Laughs (hardcover) and the Young Avengers (hardcover/which contains the whole series plus special) from amazon.

[ledfloyd]

i only got omega the unknown today, which i'm still loving, and in which i still have very little understanding about what exactly it is that's going on.

[EvilShoe]

Scott Pilgrim Gets it Together is mine!!!

[Skitch]

I picked up the Wanted graphic novel this weekend...what an interesting book.

[Sycophant]

Is anyone else reading Image Comics/The Luna Brothers' The Sword? The book is wild and in just four issues has already covered a lot of interesting territory.

[EyesWideOpen]

Is anyone else reading Image Comics/The Luna Brothers' The Sword? The book is wild and in just four issues has already covered a lot of interesting territory.

Nope, I actually haven't read anything by the Luna Brothers except for the Spider-Woman: Origin miniseries which they did the art for.

[EyesWideOpen]

Remember their is a bunch of new story arcs/creative teams starting today. Millar/Hitch on Fantastic Four, Jason Aaron on Wolverine, and a new X-Force book with Cyclops leading a black ops team of Wolverine, Warpath, X-23 and Wolfsbane.

My pickups:

Wolverine #62
Fantastic Four #554 (Bianchi variant cover)
Punisher MAX: Force of Nature (one shot)
Marvel Comics Presents #6
X-Force #1
Punisher: War Journal #16
New Avengers #38
Wonder Woman #17
Salvation Run #4
Gotham Underground #5

[ledfloyd]

nothing this week. but finally a new issue of runaways next week!

[Sycophant]

A friend of mine lent me the first three TPBs of Invincible with one of the most enthusiastic endorsements I've seen him give. Flipping through the book, I really dig the style. I'm looking forward to reading these.

[number8]

a new X-Force book with Cyclops leading a black ops team of Wolverine, Warpath, X-23 and Wolfsbane.

That idea is so fucking stupid. Especially the tagline. "The X-men don't kill. These are not the X-men... X-FORCE." Oooh, gotta but it now! There's lethal force involved!

I don't care about Jason Aaron on Wolverine, but I'm looking forward to his Ghost Rider. The guy shoulda been offered the Punisher MAX replacement gig.

[megladon8]

The X-Men don't kill?

Didn't Wolverine kill people all the time while affiliated/working with the X-Men?

Or does he somehow not count 'cause he's such a "badass"?

[Sven]

A friend of mine lent me the first three TPBs of Invincible with one of the most enthusiastic endorsements I've seen him give. Flipping through the book, I really dig the style. I'm looking forward to reading these.

They're so awesome! Who had 'em? Thirdmango? Mandrus?

[number8]

Didn't Wolverine kill people all the time while affiliated/working with the X-Men?

No. Not when he's with the team.

[number8]

Punisher: Force of Nature... What a waste of 5 bucks. My god, what a crappy story. I should really have known better.

Jason Aaron's Ghost Rider was easily book of the week. I can tell that this is the beginning of another beautiful monthly for me. *sigh*

[EyesWideOpen]

I thought Punisher: Force of Nature was pretty good actually.

[number8]

Any reason why? Three scumbags holed up on a raft for pages and pages? It's a complete waste of paper. In Ennis' hands, the entire book would be four pages, tops.

On top of that, the story is complete idiocy. "I could probably just torture these nobodies, but no, I need to do it differently and have them stranded in the ocean." <-- WHY?! Why would Frank Castle waste 2 days to do this instead of electrocuting their balls or gouging their eyes out? As a matter of fact, why would he even bother in the first place? He knew all three were linked to the Russian mob, he knew each of them were criminals. Did he really need to wait until he got all the facts straight to see what their role is in the mob's plan? Why didn't he just say, "Fuck it" and kill all three, then go after the Russian mob?

The entire thing makes no sense, and works like some lame crime story that Punisher was arbitrarily thrown in for no good reason.

[EyesWideOpen]

I thought that was kind of the point, he had only heard the three guys names and that they were involved with something big but didn't have any specifics. It was also mentioned that the three were nobodies (being used in a big crime exactly because they were nobodies) and from Punisher's experience with torturing nobodies is that they just pass out and you don't get any info from them so instead of using torture he came up with an inventive way of getting the information from them.

[megladon8]

No. Not when he's with the team.


Ah, my mistake.

For a long time I have been unimpressed with many of the "X-Meh'n" titles. "Astonishing" is the only one I've been reading regularly.

[number8]

Sometimes I think DC should wipe out their whole continuity and use the animated universe as their main one.

What happened to Joe Chill in DCAU (http://community.livejournal.com/scans_daily/4986473.html)

[ledfloyd]

so i've heard from a few people i need to pick up Aaron's Ghost Rider. one of my friends said "it's like tarantino doing a marvel book." i know shit about the character but i guess i'll check it out. scalped is easily one of my top 5 books right now.

i hear northlanders is picking up too, i'll probably check out the first trade. same with the luna brothers' the sword.

have you guys heard rucka is teaming up with brubaker for the next arc of DD? i can't wait. especially since the mr. fear stuff is starting to drag.

[EyesWideOpen]

Good news about Rucka on DD since him and Brubaker are quite possibly the greatest writing team ever.

As far as Ghost Rider both reviews I read online said it was just ok (although far better than the previous writer's run) and that was the consensus I got from my comic book store also. For me to want to pick it up it would have to be amazing and I really don't think Ghost Rider is ever going to hit that level. I get my Aaron fix through Scalped, Northlanders and Wolverine.

[bac0n]

So, I followed Meg's advise and, after a years-long hiatus, have finally dived head-first back into the world of comics, starting with New Avengers. I've been jonesing recently for some good super-hero action, and man, the comic delivered in spades. Thanks, Megs!

Unfortunately, the recent issues were sold out, so I'm about 4 issues behind. Hopefully a trip to a larger comic shop will help with that.

[Acapelli]

So, I followed Meg's advise and, after a years-long hiatus, have finally dived head-first back into the world of comics, starting with New Avengers. I've been jonesing recently for some good super-hero action, and man, the comic delivered in spades. Thanks, Megs!

Unfortunately, the recent issues were sold out, so I'm about 4 issues behind. Hopefully a trip to a larger comic shop will help with that.
My favorite monthly.

[EyesWideOpen]

I love New Avengers. I was quite surprised to see so many mediocre reviews of the last issue because I thought it was pretty incredible. One of the few comic book issues that I had some sort of emotional attachment to. It's a shame that if a comic book stops the action for one issue and actually develops the human stuff it gets knocked by critics.

[D_Davis]

Sometimes I think DC should wipe out their whole continuity and use the animated universe as their main one.

What happened to Joe Chill in DCAU (http://community.livejournal.com/scans_daily/4986473.html)

Aren't they wiping out most everything now, anyways?

[number8]

Aren't they wiping out most everything now, anyways?

Pretty much. Reboots, whatever. I don't give a shit anymore.

But I'm talking about seriously discontinuing the entire DC Comics line and replacing them with tie-ins to the animated series. Since they know what the fuck they're doing a lot better than the current DC editors.

[number8]

RANT:

I hate New Avengers. I grew to hate it the more I read it, and I'm glad I dropped it when I did. The story with the guy with all the mutants' powers was what did it for me. Don't get me started on the Skrulls thing. In a comic book world where there are regularly clones, shapeshifters, robots, doppelgangers and cloaking spells, a Body Snatchers storyline just doesn't carry any weight.

Somebody once said that the farther away Bendis is from street-level nitty gritty crime stories, the worse his writing is. Which is true. He's an AWFUL superhero writer. His Daredevil run was incredible because his entire run was a deconstruction of Daredevil as a superhero--it was more about Matt Murdock's life and how the gangsters, the FBI and the tabloids are creating real life problems for him. When he pit DD against Kingpin and Bullseye, he wrote it as the end of their superhero game. He basically put the fear of God into Bullseye and destroyed Kingpin once and for all. That's what Bendis is good at: making a finite, logical sense out of a fantastical, neverending world.

Put Bendis in charge of some cosmic catastrophe and having him write a premiere team like Avengers and their monthly adventures? It's a whole bunch of awkwardly staged action scenes and pages and pages of heroes sitting around talking smack about stuff that's just regurgitating the plot. I hate it, hate it, hate it.

Also, Leinil Yu art, no thanks.

[ledfloyd]

i agree pretty much 100%. his spiderman stuff is best when he focuses on peter parker the person, when he gets into superhero stuff it gets terribly boring. as much as i love his creator owned stuff, aside from daredevil i cannot read his work for hire books.

[megladon8]

Can't get on board with this one, 8.

While I admittedly haven't read the recent issues of "New Avengers", the first 15 or so that I read were pretty freaking awesome.

Not the be-all, end-all of superhero comics, but awesome nonetheless. And I loved the artwork.

I do agree his "Daredevil" run was much better, though - but that's not saying too much, because that's just generally one of the best superhero comic runs Marvel has had in a long time.

Brubaker's "Captain America" run rocks socks, too.

[number8]

i agree pretty much 100%. his spiderman stuff is best when he focuses on peter parker the person, when he gets into superhero stuff it gets terribly boring.

That's why I've dropped Ultimate Spidey also. The earlier issues were more of a high school book with Peter occasionally having to be Spider-Man, and it's actually interesting. It was great how he delayed Uncle Ben's death until it mattered. Bendis handled Peter's school life and his relationship with Aunt May and his friends best. I like how he was more of a realistic nerd with actual friends rather than the way Stan Lee portrayed him as a bookish loner. But yeah, later on I just lost interest completely.

[Acapelli]

Wow, you even bashed Yu. Good job.

[EyesWideOpen]

Yu is my favorite current artist, I love his stuff.

[EyesWideOpen]

Today's pickups:

Ex Machina #34
Justice League of America #18
Mighty Avengers #8
Runaways #29
Umbrella Academy #6
Immortal Iron Fist Special
Batman & Outsiders #4
Grendel: Behold the Devil #4
Loaded Bible 3

[bac0n]

I find Yu's stuff... interesting. I enjoy the way he draws Doc Strange in particular, making him seem very harried and sleep deprived, but other than that, I'm sorta neutral on him. I liked whoever was drawing the series for the first 6 issues much better, tho.

[ledfloyd]

Gotta wait til tomorrow to get my books. I'm excited to read more Runaways. Despite hating Ramos' art I look forward to the book returning to a normal schedule after Whedon leaves. I'll probably pick up that Iron Fist special to see what the fuss is about.

I've been reading Ex Machina in trades. It's tempting to switch to singles but it's BKV so I'll be buying the trades anyways, better to save myself the cash on the singles and wait.

[EyesWideOpen]

Gotta wait til tomorrow to get my books. I'm excited to read more Runaways. Despite hating Ramos' art I look forward to the book returning to a normal schedule after Whedon leaves. I'll probably pick up that Iron Fist special to see what the fuss is about.

I've been reading Ex Machina in trades. It's tempting to switch to singles but it's BKV so I'll be buying the trades anyways, better to save myself the cash on the singles and wait.

I've been a fan of Runaways since the beginning and I've been pretty disappointed with Whedon's arc (not just being late but story wise) so I'm looking forward to the new team taking over.

If your looking to start reading Iron Fist and you haven't yet then the special is not really a good starting off point. It's more just back history for people who have been reading the series so far. Your far better off just picking up the first issue or the first trade.

[ledfloyd]

I've been a fan of Runaways since the beginning and I've been pretty disappointed with Whedon's arc (not just being late but story wise) so I'm looking forward to the new team taking over.

If your looking to start reading Iron Fist and you haven't yet then the special is not really a good starting off point. It's more just back history for people who have been reading the series so far. Your far better off just picking up the first issue or the first trade.
Whedon's arc has been alright, but pales in comparison to BKVs work. I typically love Whedon too. Here's hoping Terry Moore brings something new to it.

[megladon8]

Why was "Runaways" released in TPB form in those little books that look more like Manga collections?

The comics were full-sized, and I can't help but feel cheated by this decrease in size for the graphic novels.

[ledfloyd]

Why was "Runaways" released in TPB form in those little books that look more like Manga collections?

The comics were full-sized, and I can't help but feel cheated by this decrease in size for the graphic novels.
I agree with you, I guess it's to appeal to kids, and they sell really really well. You can get the oversize hardcover collections on amazon for roughly the same price as those manga trades. They're pretty nice too. It looks like whedon's arc is getting released in Premiere HC :rolleyes:

[number8]

I agree with you, I guess it's to appeal to kids, and they sell really really well.

It is. It's called a digest format, the same format Archie comics are produced in. Other Marvel books released in this format are Spiderman Loves Mary-Jane, Spiderman Adventures, and all those toddler-targeted books, which Runaways is.

[megladon8]

I haven't read any "Runaways" so obviously I'm wrong, but I always thought it was a more grown-up book, in terms of its target audience.

I know it involves teenagers, but I guess I thought there was some pretty mature content in there.

I guess I was wrong.

[ledfloyd]

I haven't read any "Runaways" so obviously I'm wrong, but I always thought it was a more grown-up book, in terms of its target audience.

I know it involves teenagers, but I guess I thought there was some pretty mature content in there.

I guess I was wrong.
I think it appeals to all ages. There's nothing terribly inappropriate that i can recall.

[number8]

I think it appeals to all ages. There's nothing terribly inappropriate that i can recall.

That's the idea. The book's target audience is 9-13 year olds, but BKV said that the reason he wanted to create the book was because he didn't understand why kids books are always so tame and cuddly wuddly. He reasoned that 12 year olds are at the age where they want to be perceived as an adult and want to read edgier stuff. So he set out to make an all-ages appropriate book that would still look cool and grown up in the eyes of a kid (like the prostitute being killed in a Satanic ritual in issue #1).

He touched on some adult-ish subjects like sex, but always very, very subtly. Like we never saw Niko and Victor in anything less than fully clothed, but we knew they've done it because when Vic was trying to fix the Leapfrog, Niko yelled at him to go faster and Victor retorted, "I liked it better when you were telling me to go slow." and Niko got even madder. Stuff like that.

[number8]

And while we're at it... Joss Whedon's run is bogshite.

[EyesWideOpen]

I don't believe that the target audience for Runaways is 9-13. Maybe 13-17 yes.

[Acapelli]

And while we're at it... Joss Whedon's run is bogshite.
While I don't think it's that awful, it's a huge step down from BKV's run.

[number8]

I don't believe that the target audience for Runaways is 9-13. Maybe 13-17 yes.

13-17?? That's like their regular target reader. :P

I've been hearing a lot about 4th, 5th grade teachers assigning Runaways as reading material in classes, and elementary schools stocking their libraries with it.

[EyesWideOpen]

13-17?? That's like their regular target reader. :P

I've been hearing a lot about 4th, 5th grade teachers assigning Runaways as reading material in classes, and elementary schools stocking their libraries with it.

My wife is a 5th grade teacher and a fellow Runaways fan and she agrees that she would no way be able to let her kids read Runaways in class. She said junior high would be ok but not for elementary kids.

[number8]

Actually, I'm just remembering now where I heard that. I think there were actually several letters from teachers in the Runaways letters column telling BKV just that. Someone go dig up every issue ever and confirm this for me.

[D_Davis]

A cool blog post/rant and pictures of Rob Liefeld's "best" work...

http://progressiveboink.com/archive/robliefeld.html

A sample...

http://progressiveboink.com/b/images/rob/liefeldgirl1.gif

[EyesWideOpen]

A cool blog post/rant and pictures of Rob Liefeld's "best" work...

http://progressiveboink.com/archive/robliefeld.html

A sample...

http://progressiveboink.com/b/images/rob/liefeldgirl1.gif

I hate Rob Liefeld and that blog is awesome.

[EyesWideOpen]

"A fun Liefeld drinking game: take a shot for every pouch he draws on a character. Oh great, now you have alcohol poisoning."

[D_Davis]

What the heck did they keep in all of those pouches?

You could also take a drink for every muscle he invents.

[D_Davis]

"How many teeth are in a mouth? Like a billion, right? I’ll just draw a billion, all the same size and shape."

[megladon8]

It's terrible art, I can't deny that...but the guy's commentary pissed me off.

He picks on things in the images which are pretty standard comic book stuff, and would almost lead me to think he just hates comic book art in general.

[EyesWideOpen]

It's terrible art, I can't deny that...but the guy's commentary pissed me off.

He picks on things in the images which are pretty standard comic book stuff, and would almost lead me to think he just hates comic book art in general.

I don't understand. Almost everything he complains about is solely something Liefeld does and not "standard comic book stuff" at least the stuff I read.

[number8]

Yeah, what are you referring to, meg?

[Acapelli]

No fucking way would Magneto take performance enhancing drugs. What the hell.

[megladon8]

The one that stuck out the most for me was #14, where he talks about Shatterstar's muscles.

Don't pretty much all comic book characters have ridiculously over-the-top muscle mass, and always look like they're flexing up a storm?

There are tons of other things in that drawing that bug me, and that just seemed like kind of a moot point.

[Horbgorbler]

That first picture. :eek:

Christ. :eek:

Incredibly painful. :eek:


But what I came in here to say was that Dave Sim is a big idiotic opinionated doodoohead.

[D_Davis]

But what I came in here to say was that Dave Sim is a big idiotic opinionated doodoohead.

And the man can deliver a kick ass comic.

Because he is so opinionated and because he has something that to say, his work stands out in a sea of milquetoast mediocrity.

I may not agree with him on a personal level, but on a craftsman's level, the dude is in a league of his own.

[D_Davis]

The one that stuck out the most for me was #14, where he talks about Shatterstar's muscles.

Don't pretty much all comic book characters have ridiculously over-the-top muscle mass, and always look like they're flexing up a storm?

There are tons of other things in that drawing that bug me, and that just seemed like kind of a moot point.

The problem with RL is that he is the physical manifestation of everything that is wrong with mainstream, super hero comic books.

Any super hero comic book artist worth their salt would at least have a very basic grasp of human anatomy. They should know the muscles of the human body, how these muscles lay around the bones, how these muscles look when in use, and how the body is shaped by the muscles.

RL knows none of this, and so he just does what any hack comic book artist or little kid pretending would do: he makes shit up.

The only thing is, most artists who do this know when to say when, but RL just lets it rip and has no understanding of anything about the human body.

Super hero comics can be pretty ridiculous and absurd, but that's what cool about them. However, RL takes it to the extreme and makes a mockery out of the entire industry.

[ledfloyd]

wow, i can't count the amount of times i laughed out loud at that article.

liefield is insane. i never noticed how he never shows a character interacting with an object, just kinda puts them near each other and hopes you can make the connection.

[D_Davis]

wow, i can't count the amount of times i laughed out loud at that article.

liefield is insane. i never noticed how he never shows a character interacting with an object, just kinda puts them near each other and hopes you can make the connection.

The dude lacks almost every single basic understanding and function that a decent artist should have.

He has no clue how space works - none.

[megladon8]

The problem with RL is that he is the physical manifestation of everything that is wrong with mainstream, super hero comic books.

Any super hero comic book artist worth their salt would at least have a very basic grasp of human anatomy. They should know the muscles of the human body, how these muscles lay around the bones, how these muscles look when in use, and how the body is shaped by the muscles.

RL knows none of this, and so he just does what any hack comic book artist or little kid pretending would do: he makes shit up.

The only thing is, most artists who do this know when to say when, but RL just lets it rip and has no understanding of anything about the human body.

Super hero comics can be pretty ridiculous and absurd, but that's what cool about them. However, RL takes it to the extreme and makes a mockery out of the entire industry.


This is all true, but again, I think this is something that happens quite often in comic book art, so it seems a little unfair to just pick on this guy for it.

Look at Jim Lee or Michael Turner - two of the most popular and successful comic book artists working today. Both of them have the habit of making the characters ridiculously bulky and bulgey all over. Sure, they have a better understanding of human anatomy and the way muscles are laid over bone, and flesh over muscles...but the characters are still so over-the-top in their muscular physiques. Not to mention the fact that just about every character looks exactly the same - I actually find it quite hard to read books with Turner's art, because the male characters have the exact same faces.

Again, I'm not excusing RL's art - I think it's horrendous. Stuff like that image of the kid with the gun in his hand which is so obviously just added in without any effort at all makes me cringe.

[Acapelli]

So Morrison's Here Comes Tomorrow arc almost makes up for how awful Planet X was. Overall, another really great run from Morrison.

[number8]

There is suuuuuuuch a big difference between comic book muscles and Liefeld muscles.

Nevermind Michael Turner, because he's a terrible artist just like Liefeld, but here, compare Jim Lee to Liefeld:

http://weblogs.variety.com/bags_and_boards/images/Superman204.jpg

http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/july00/images/0700/bb_1.jpg

[ledfloyd]

yeah, i still don't think lee is one of the best working today.

i just read runaways 29. which might be whedon's most lackluster issue yet. i can't wait for moore.

next week is brubaker week, with caps, dd, and criminal!

eta: millar's kick ass is out next week too.

[D_Davis]

Notice how the wing on the backside of Capt's head is actually higher than the one on the front side?

Even simple things such as perspective are completely alien to that douche.

[megladon8]

http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/july00/images/0700/bb_1.jpg

Wow.

Cap should be wearing a bra to harness those babies...he'd make Dolly Parton proud.

[Saya]

Is the Umbrella Academy series any good?

[number8]

Is the Umbrella Academy series any good?

It's a really obvious Doom Patrol rip-off/wannabe, but a lot of people seem to like it.

[bac0n]

http://www.sequentialtart.com/archive/july00/images/0700/bb_1.jpg

Good god, that's awful. Look how far back his head is. If you drew a straight line down from Cap's ears, they'd be half a foot behind his ass. And what's with the star on his chest? Holy skewed to the right, batman.

I'm almost glad they killed off Cap, if that means that Liefield won't be able to crap all over him with drawings like these anymore.

[EyesWideOpen]

Is the Umbrella Academy series any good?

It's not up to the high class standards of comic book affeciandos like number8 but it's a really fun book with great artwork.

[megladon8]

Got these two at MidTown in Times Square today...


http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51A9T09N2EL._SS500_.jpg

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51tMmNkdW%2BL._SS500_.jpg

[EyesWideOpen]

Nice pickups meg, Runaways is fantastic and Astro City is another series on my list of books that I need to pick up someday.

[megladon8]

Nice pickups meg, Runaways is fantastic and Astro City is another series on my list of books that I need to pick up someday.


They didn't have the full-sized copies of the "Runaways" books, and since it's something I never read, the $7.99 price tag was a great selling point for the miniature trades.

And "Astro City" is one of my very favorite series'. Both "Confession" and "The Tarnished Angel" would make it onto my list of favorite comic stories.

In fact, in my experience pretty much anything written by Kurt Busiek is worth checking out.

[Acapelli]

They didn't have the full-sized copies of the "Runaways" books, and since it's something I never read, the $7.99 price tag was a great selling point for the miniature trades.

And "Astro City" is one of my very favorite series'. Both "Confession" and "The Tarnished Angel" would make it onto my list of favorite comic stories.

In fact, in my experience pretty much anything written by Kurt Busiek is worth checking out.
His Superman was really boring, but I love Astro City. Have you read the special that was just released?

[EyesWideOpen]

They didn't have the full-sized copies of the "Runaways" books, and since it's something I never read, the $7.99 price tag was a great selling point for the miniature trades.

And "Astro City" is one of my very favorite series'. Both "Confession" and "The Tarnished Angel" would make it onto my list of favorite comic stories.

In fact, in my experience pretty much anything written by Kurt Busiek is worth checking out.

yeah besides the digest $7.99 copies of Runaways your only other choice is the big hardcovers (which i own) and they run about $30 each and contain 12 or so issues.

[ledfloyd]

yeah besides the digest $7.99 copies of Runaways your only other choice is the big hardcovers (which i own) and they run about $30 each and contain 12 or so issues.
if you get them on amazon they end up costing about the same as the digests. the first one has 18 issues for $24 and the other two have 12 for like $17. well worth it IMO. but $24 is a big chunk a change when you don't already know you love the series.

[megladon8]

His Superman was really boring, but I love Astro City. Have you read the special that was just released?


You mean "Up, Up and Away", etc?

I thought that was some of the best Superman stuff in a while.

And no, I haven't read the special...unless I've done so unknowingly. I've never gotten the series in single issues, just the trades. I have "Life in the Big City", "Confession", "Family Album", "The Tarnished Angel" and now "Local Heroes".

[Acapelli]

You mean "Up, Up and Away", etc?

I thought that was some of the best Superman stuff in a while.

And no, I haven't read the special...unless I've done so unknowingly. I've never gotten the series in single issues, just the trades. I have "Life in the Big City", "Confession", "Family Album", "The Tarnished Angel" and now "Local Heroes".
Haven't read Up, Up & Away, but everything I've read that Busiek's written for supes in the past 6 months I really haven't liked.

[EvilShoe]

I forgot to say: Scott Pilgrim Gets it Together was a slice of heaven. Much better than the merely "very good" 3rd part, and perhaps even better than the first one.

Ranked: 4 > 1 > 2 > 3

[number8]

After reading Alan Moore's Supreme, I wondered if there's any point reading Superman ever again...

[ledfloyd]

After reading Alan Moore's Supreme, I wondered if there's any point reading Superman ever again...

as long as grant morrison is on all star? yes.

[EyesWideOpen]

today's pickups:

Young Avengers Presents #2
Captain America #35
Crime Bible #5
All-Star Batman & Robin #9
Kick-Ass #1
Criminal 2 #1
Project Superpowers #1
Shadowpact #22
Batman #674
Daredevil #105
She-Hulk #26
Justice Society of America #13

[ledfloyd]

God is Criminal 2 good. I loved that issue to death. I just read it twice. I look forward to more extras in the coming issues as well.

I picked up Caps and DD as well along with Morrison's Batman but haven't had a chance to read em yet.

[number8]

Nobody getting RASL?

[ledfloyd]

Nobody getting RASL?
i forgot to tell my shop to put it on my pull list ahead of time, and they didn't order it this week. i should be getting it next week.

[number8]

Man oh man, Batman #674 was too awesome for words.

[Acapelli]

Wow, I didn't even know Jeff Smith had a new monthly. I'll get it.

Has anyone been reading The Mice Templar?

[number8]

BEST FUCKING COVER IN YEARS:

http://comicsmedia.ign.com/comics/image/article/855/855321/marvels-plans-for-spring-08-20080227020209090.jpg

[Acapelli]

BEST FUCKING COVER IN YEARS:

http://comicsmedia.ign.com/comics/image/article/855/855321/marvels-plans-for-spring-08-20080227020209090.jpg
Wow, that is fucking sweet.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Bought this for my son tonight:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/photo.goodreads.com/books/1174329914l/381246.jpg

We've read it before (got it from the library), and it was the first thing he grabbed from the shelf.

[megladon8]

That's a great one, KF.

One of the upper-tier Superman stories.

[ledfloyd]

has anyone seen grant morrison's speech at disinfocon i think it's from 2000. i watched it the other night, and i'm really quite creeped out by it.

[bac0n]

Yesterday's purchase:

New Avengers: Sentry (trade paperback, issues #7-10)

Pretty neat stuff. I loved the Phillip K. Dick type story about Sentry trying to recover his memories.

[number8]

It's not like me to anticipate a Mark Millar book like crazy, but man, I cannot wait for MARVEL 1985.

[megladon8]

It took me a long time to cross over, but I must now admit...Robin is an awesome character.

[Watashi]

This probably doesn't belong here, but man, Superman Doomsday kinda sucks. Andrea Romano really dropped the ball on this one.

[megladon8]

This probably doesn't belong here, but man, Superman Doomsday kinda sucks. Andrea Romano really dropped the ball on this one.


I haven't seen this one yet, but I was pretty disappointed with Justice League: The New Frontier.

Here's hoping Batman: Gotham Knight makes up for this in spades, as it rightly should.

[EyesWideOpen]

Almost all of the recent animated comic book movies have been awful. The two Ultimate Avenger movies, Iron Man and Superman Doomsday. I have high hopes for Batman: Gotham Knight.

[megladon8]

Almost all of the recent animated comic book movies have been awful. The two Ultimate Avenger movies, Iron Man and Superman Doomsday. I have high hopes for Batman: Gotham Knight.


I honestly couldn't believe how shitty The Invincible Iron Man was.

Sure, my expectations were high - him being my very favorite Marvel character and all - but seriously, he has a pretty straight-forward origin story, and they screwed it all up. A lot of it felt like they were toning it down for a G-rated audience, then they had sequences which were borderline PG-13 that were totally different in tone and content.

And it didn't help that both the dialogue and voice acting were bad.

[EyesWideOpen]

I couldn't bring myself to watching the Dr. Strange flick even though that was the Marvel one I was most interested in and had the most distinct visual style. Maybe someday against my better judgement I'll give it a try.

[number8]

For some strange reason I'm more excited about the Wonder Woman movie than Gotham Knight.

[bac0n]

I couldn't bring myself to watching the Dr. Strange flick even though that was the Marvel one I was most interested in and had the most distinct visual style. Maybe someday against my better judgement I'll give it a try.

I saw a picture on the DVD box or something that showed Dr. Strange fighting someone/something with a sword, and that was enough to keep me away.

[EyesWideOpen]

Today's pickups:

Northlanders #4
Young Liars #1
X-Force #2
Cable #1 (not a big Cable fan but it was previewed as being a cross between Lone Wolf and Cub and the No Name Trilogy by Leone so I had to pick it up)
Logan #1 (black and white version)
Punisher War Journal #17
Nightwing #142
Detective Comics #842
Secret Invasion Saga (free)

[ledfloyd]

picked up:

The Dark Tower: The Long Road Home #1: great, picks up where the last series left off, isanove, lee and david are still firing on all cylinders.

Logan #1: got the color version. BKV + risso is a dream. this is very promising. with the $4 price tag i was expecting more than 23 pages, but it's worth it.

Omega the Unknown #6: past the halfway point and we finally have a decent grasp of what's going on. unfortunately with the passing of steve gerber we'll never know the "official" version of this story, but lethem is doing damn fine on his own. dalrymple's art is a nice change of pace for a marvel book.

Powers #28: this powers virus story is engaging, but i'm going to be honest, since christian walker took on the defender of the universe crown i'm becoming less and less interested in the powers world.

[Skitch]

I honestly couldn't believe how shitty The Invincible Iron Man was.

I enjoyed Iron Man more than Superman: Doomsday.



Don't kill the messenger...:)


Warner Bros. Picks Up Bone Comic
Source: The Hollywood Reporter March 8, 2008


Warner Bros. has picked up the rights to "Bone," the acclaimed independent comic book series from artist Jeff Smith, says The Hollywood Reporter. Dan Lin will produce.

The fantasy series followed three cousins from the Bone family who are small, white and bald humanlike creatures with big noses. The trio are run out of their hometown and find themselves in a mysterious valley where they are separated and hunted by other creatures. They are taken in by a girl named Thorn and her grandmother, and find out that the valley is threatened by an evil force called the Lord of the Locusts.

The series ran irregularly from 1991-2004. Scholastic has been publishing the collected stories in graphic novel format since 2005, selling more than 1 million copies so far.

A decision on what kind of format "Bone" should take -- live-action or animated or both -- will be based on filmmaker meetings.

I'll go first....................WTF?! :crazy:

[ledfloyd]

how on earth could you do a live action bone? like spike's where the wild things are maybe? hmm, that could be cool.

[megladon8]

Is the early "The Darkness" stuff worth reading?

[number8]

Meh.

The game told the story better than the book ever did, really.

[megladon8]

Ah, cool - and it's a pretty good game.

"The Darkness" was Top Cow, right?

I thought for a minute it was Image, and I was going to say I've really not found much good from Image. Great ideas, great art - not so great writing.

[EyesWideOpen]

I picked up Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War Vol. 1 hardcover the other day and it's great stuff. I also found the first two TPB's of Alias for $5 each at a used book store.

[ledfloyd]

Ah, cool - and it's a pretty good game.

"The Darkness" was Top Cow, right?

I thought for a minute it was Image, and I was going to say I've really not found much good from Image. Great ideas, great art - not so great writing.
have you read the walking dead? fell? casanova? i also like the luna brothers work they've done for image, and invincible. i'd say casanova and walking dead are their best books though.

[EyesWideOpen]

I heartily recommend Fell and theirs only 9 issues so far so it's easy to catch up (the first 8 issues are collected in a TPB).

I blind bought the first Casanova TPB since I've liked all of Fraction's Marvel work and I really didn't care for it.

I own the first 2 oversized hardcovers of The Walking Dead and the first oversized volume of Invincible: The Ultimate Edition and I have yet to open any of them and I've never read either series.

[ledfloyd]

walking dead is much much stronger than invincible. invincible is pretty fun as far as wholesome superhero stuff goes. but that's about as far as it extends.

[megladon8]

have you read the walking dead? fell? casanova? i also like the luna brothers work they've done for image, and invincible. i'd say casanova and walking dead are their best books though.


"Walking Dead" is Image?

For some reason I thought it was Dark Horse - I guess because Dark Horse does a lot of the horror stuff.

But you got me there - "Walking Dead" is definitely an awesome title. It's better than any zombie movie has been in many years.

[Acapelli]

walking dead is much much stronger than invincible. invincible is pretty fun as far as wholesome superhero stuff goes. but that's about as far as it extends.
I've only started to read Invincible recently, but the buckets of blood that are spilled in there scream anything but wholesome.

I've been getting The Mice Templar by Image. Love MAO's art, and the fantasy elements are top notch. Also been picking up Madman Atomic Comics, but I love Allred.

[number8]

So I was having sex with my wifey last night on the floor, right, and she was on her back. When I lifted her to switch positions, she said there's something sticking on her back. I peeled it off, and it was my copy of All-Star Batman & Robin #9, ruined. If it wasn't for an audience present, I'd probably stop right then and there to cry and try and save it.

"I'm too geeky" realization #2,855.

[Watashi]

I thought you were stronger than this, 8.

I'm disappointed.

[Ezee E]

At the Apple store today I saw a program that contained all the Spider-Man and X-Men comics. Has anybody heard/read/know about this? It seems like a good buy.

[number8]

At the Apple store today I saw a program that contained all the Spider-Man and X-Men comics. Has anybody heard/read/know about this? It seems like a good buy.

Marvel has been selling archive DVD-ROMs for a while. It's a great deal if you don't mind reading on your computer.

http://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Comics-DVD-ROM-Collections/lm/R3J86VLTTACOV6

[megladon8]

You're not fooling anyone, number8.

We all know that whole story was just a song and dance to brag about having sex with your wife :)

[EvilShoe]

You're not fooling anyone, number8.

We all know that whole story was just a song and dance to brag about having sex with your wife :)
I didn't know it was that big an accomplishment to have sex with your brand new wife.

[Ezee E]

You're not fooling anyone, number8.

We all know that whole story was just a song and dance to brag about having sex with your wife :)
There's nothing to brag about when you also fuck up a great comic.

[EyesWideOpen]

Wonder Woman #18
Salvation Run #5
Gotham Underground #6
Wolverine #63
Mighty Avengers #10
Fantastic Four #555
Avengers: The Initative #10

I also picked up Y: The Last Man TPB #7 since i need to finish that series.

[ledfloyd]

I got the week off. Locke & Key was the only thing I wanted and I'll just grab it next week.

[number8]

I didn't know it was that big an accomplishment to have sex with your brand new wife.

To meg, any sex is a major accomplishment.

Hi-yo.

[number8]

I haven't picked up comics in two weeks, but I'll definitely be picking up the new David Lapham book tomorrow.

[Acapelli]

I haven't picked up comics in two weeks, but I'll definitely be picking up the new David Lapham book tomorrow.
It's good.

Still need to check out the new Terry Moore and Jeff Smith books.

[bac0n]

So, Mighty Avengers.... any good?

[Skitch]

So...Infinite Crisis...any good?

[bac0n]

So...Infinite Crisis...any good?

Shutup, I asked first.

[number8]

The answer to both is a no.

[EyesWideOpen]

I own all of both series and I wouldn't say no I think their both decent but their not must buys especially for people who don't buy a ton of comics because their is far better books to spend your money on.

[Grouchy]

Has anyone here read League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier? I just ordered it off Amazon along with a couple of Swamp Thing TPBs and some books. Can't wait to read it, but a friend told me Alan Moore really went cocoanuts on this one, in a "you're no fun anymore" kinda way.

[Sven]

Has anyone here read League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier? I just ordered it off Amazon along with a couple of Swamp Thing TPBs and some books. Can't wait to read it, but a friend told me Alan Moore really went cocoanuts on this one, in a "you're no fun anymore" kinda way.

I tried, but it was too whacko.

[Horbgorbler]

Has anyone here read League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier? I just ordered it off Amazon along with a couple of Swamp Thing TPBs and some books. Can't wait to read it, but a friend told me Alan Moore really went cocoanuts on this one, in a "you're no fun anymore" kinda way.

It's worth it just for "What Ho, Gods of the Abyss," his Lovecraft-via-Wodehouse short story, a concept that will never get old. But yeah, he might just have stuffed even more literary (Golliwogs!) and cinematic (Adenoid Hinkel!) references in this than in any other work of his I've read.

[Grouchy]

It's worth it just for "What Ho, Gods of the Abyss," his Lovecraft-via-Wodehouse short story, a concept that will never get old. But yeah, he might just have stuffed even more literary (Golliwogs!) and cinematic (Adenoid Hinkel!) references in this than in any other work of his I've read.
Hahah! Lovecraft meets Wodehouse sounds completely awesome. I can't wait to test my Moore endurance with this one, then.

[EyesWideOpen]

today's pickups:

RASL #1
Echo #1
Shadowpact #23
Justice League of America #19
Immortal Iron Fist #13
Grendel: Behold the Devil #5
Ex Machina #35
Captain America #36
Batman and the Outsiders #5
Ghost Rider #20 & 21

i also picked up The Atheist TPB.

[number8]

Discuss Jeph Loeb for me.

[EyesWideOpen]

Discuss Jeph Loeb for me.

What do you want to discuss? He went from being one of my favorite authors and responsible for some of my favorite storylines to one of my least favorite authors and a guy who if his name is attached to a book I know to avoid it.

[number8]

Something along those lines. I just find his writing fascinating, because he has written some of the best stuff essential to certain characters, but his work by and large suck donkey balls.

I also recently realized that LOST was at its worst when he was a writer on the show, and it got better when he left for Heroes.

[EyesWideOpen]

I can't understand why Marvel is basically give him the head writer job on all the big Marvel events coming up when I don't know a single person who is liking his Marvel work.

since he's been at Marvel:

Onslaught Reborn
Ultimates 3
Hulk
Wolverine

all 4 have been bashed by reviewers and people on internet forums.

whoops: forget about his Ultimate Power run which was poorly received also.

second whoops: also forgot about his Fallen Son series which I thought was decent but was poorly received.

[Acapelli]

Hulk #2 was so awful. He writes a horrible Tony Stark.

[ledfloyd]

What do you want to discuss? He went from being one of my favorite authors and responsible for some of my favorite storylines to one of my least favorite authors and a guy who if his name is attached to a book I know to avoid it.
i agree pretty much wholeheartedly.

his marvel work is horrendous. maybe with the exception of daredevil yellow. captain america: white looks interesting, but fallen son was pretty meh so i might avoid it until some reviews come in. he's also written some of the best batman stuff in the last decade.

[number8]

I don't know. Every time I re-read The Long Halloween I like it less and less. I think at this point I like Dark Victory more. His treatment of Harvey Dent will always be excellent, but the murder mystery angle is really contrived, and he does guest stars up the wazoo for no reason other than to distract from the actual plot, something he repeated in Hush and now in his Ultimates.

I think the only Loeb book that I can confidently call a masterpiece is Superman For All Seasons.

[number8]

Oh, and by the way? Ghost Rider has surpassed Iron Fist as my new favorite monthly. This book is too awesome for words.

[EyesWideOpen]

Oh, and by the way? Ghost Rider has surpassed Iron Fist as my new favorite monthly. This book is too awesome for words.

I don't know about better than Iron Fist but yeah it's pretty awesome. The Ennis and Way stuff had put a bad taste in my mouth so I was hesitant but I'm glad I picked up Aaron's two issues.

[EyesWideOpen]

I don't know. Every time I re-read The Long Halloween I like it less and less. I think at this point I like Dark Victory more. His treatment of Harvey Dent will always be excellent, but the murder mystery angle is really contrived, and he does guest stars up the wazoo for no reason other than to distract from the actual plot, something he repeated in Hush and now in his Ultimates.

I think the only Loeb book that I can confidently call a masterpiece is Superman For All Seasons.

I've always liked Dark Victory better but I love every book of that Batman series him and Sale did which includes Haunted Knight, Long Halloween, Dark Victory and Catwoman: When In Rome.

Besides Hush, the Color series and Superman: For All Seasons which are all great i'm also a big fan of his Superman/Batman stuff and the arc or two he did on the Supergirl series. The only Loeb DC stuff I didn't like was Superman: Emperor Joker which is awful.

[number8]

i'm also a big fan of his Superman/Batman stuff and the arc or two he did on the Supergirl series.

Argh. I hated those.

[megladon8]

I really enjoyed the "Daredevil: Yellow" story.

I thought that was great.

Though, that was pretty much the first Daredevil book I had ever read. I'd like to read it again now that I know the character a little better.


And number8, I'm with you in liking "Dark Victory" more than "The Long Halloween". I didn't find the murder mystery in "The Long Halloween" to be very interesting, and overall I just felt the story could have been more concise.

"Dark Victory" got me thinking of Robin as an interesting, strong character.

[Grouchy]

I don't know. Every time I re-read The Long Halloween I like it less and less. I think at this point I like Dark Victory more. His treatment of Harvey Dent will always be excellent, but the murder mystery angle is really contrived, and he does guest stars up the wazoo for no reason other than to distract from the actual plot, something he repeated in Hush and now in his Ultimates.

I think the only Loeb book that I can confidently call a masterpiece is Superman For All Seasons.
Same thing happens to me. The whodunit angle is pretty much the worst thing in the book. It doesn't make sense and the final reveal in the last few pages is too contrived for words. Dark Victory is doubtless a much better story. I think Loeb's flaws as a writer are his way to abuse every single possible character in the universe for worthless cameos, and the overwritten voice-overs and (sometimes) dialogue.

I did like the first two arcs of Superman/Batman, which are all I've read. Hush is a piece of garbage, though.

[number8]

Something to notice also: Jim Lee's drawings are much better in All-Star Batman & Robin than they are in Hush. Some review I read pointed this out to me and I agree--It's because Miller has Lee drawing really dynamic panels and actions that Loeb didn't have the imagination to ask. The last issue really distinguished this, because it was a Frank Miller book, with Frank Miller's compositions, but he borrowed Jim Lee's hand to draw them. Look at the splash after splash of Batman and Robin running through the rain. It's fucking gorgeous.

[number8]

So I've been staying away from the whole Skrull Invasion bullshit, but I recently learned that they've introduced the concept of Sleeper Skrulls. The idea is that some of them don't even know that they're Skrulls, is that right?

Has Bendis been watching BSG or something?

[bac0n]

Sleeper Skrulls, huh? It hasn't been introduced into the New Avengers story arc yet (tho I haven't been able to get my hands on the latest issue).

Nonetheless, I hope it's not true, cuz it's kinda stupid if you ask me.

On a different note, the other day, I picked up this:

http://www.boom-studios.com/files/image/GIANTMONSTER_TPB.jpg

Fun read, tho it was too short and completely lacking in character development. If it were a movie, you could fit it easily into an hour time slot with plenty of room left over for commercials.

[Watashi]

Bought the Deluxe Edition of The Killing Joke today. Not bad. Not my favorite Batman comic by a longshot, but it's definitely a good read. Kinda surprised how Moore regrets doing and has called it "lazy and clumsy".

[EyesWideOpen]

Bought the Deluxe Edition of The Killing Joke today. Not bad. Not my favorite Batman comic by a longshot, but it's definitely a good read. Kinda surprised how Moore regrets doing and has called it "lazy and clumsy".


I like The Killing Joke and I agree with him.

[number8]

I must remember to get that new Killing Joke, simply because I think the recoloring looks cool.

ORIGINAL:

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j145/besamim/scans_daily/killingjoke2a.jpg


NEW:

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j145/besamim/scans_daily/killingjoke2b.jpg

[Acapelli]

That actually looks worse to me. The backgrounds look drab based on that example and I think it's an especially bad decision making the water around his eyes and mouth blood, imo.

EDIT: I take that back about the backgrounds, I forgot this was a "flashback" scene.

[number8]

Yeah, and that was actually Moore's original intention making it look drab. In the script, he asked for B&W or Sepia for the flashbacks. Bolland wanted to color the book himself, but DC yanked it off him and colored it, and Bolland wasn't very satisfied with the product.

So for this reprint, they allowed him to color the book himself, the way he always wanted it.

[EyesWideOpen]

i picked up a bunch of Prestige Format and Elseworlds tales books for $2-3 each from a website sale.

i got:

Batman: The Blue, The Grey and the Bat
Batman: The Doom that Came to Gotham
Batman: Two-Face - Crime and Punishment
Batman: The Ankh
Batman: Mr. Freeze
Batman: Masque
Batman: Bane
Batman: Batgirl
Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop
Batman: Nosferatu
Batman/Joker: Switch
Batman: Scar of the Bat
Batman: Poison Ivy
Batman: Catwoman Defiant
Batman: Riddler - The Riddle Factory
Batman/Phantom Stranger
Batman: Castle of the Bat
Batman: Dark Joker - The Wild
Batman: Mitefall

and I also got from half price books:

Grendel: Red, White, & Black TPB
Punisher: Born (Hardcover)

[Acapelli]

i picked up a bunch of Prestige Format and Elseworlds tales books for $2-3 each from a website sale.

i got:

Batman: The Blue, The Grey and the Bat
Batman: The Doom that Came to Gotham
Batman: Two-Face - Crime and Punishment
Batman: The Ankh
Batman: Mr. Freeze
Batman: Masque
Batman: Bane
Batman: Batgirl
Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop
Batman: Nosferatu
Batman/Joker: Switch
Batman: Scar of the Bat
Batman: Poison Ivy
Batman: Catwoman Defiant
Batman: Riddler - The Riddle Factory
Batman/Phantom Stranger
Batman: Castle of the Bat
Batman: Dark Joker - The Wild
Batman: Mitefall

and I also got from half price books:

Grendel: Red, White, & Black TPB
Punisher: Born (Hardcover)
Please tell me where.

[EyesWideOpen]

Please tell me where.

that same torpedo comics website i've mentioned before.

[number8]

So I finally read the Riki-Oh manga, and was disappointed to find that the movie basically adapted it super-faithfully almost scene-for-scene. The creativity of the gore that I've always attributed to Ngai Kai Lam all these years should have gone to the comic. :sad:

[EyesWideOpen]

today's pickups:

Secret Invasion #1 Jarvis NO!!
Zorro #2
Punisher: War Journal #18
Cable #2
Young Avengers Presents #3
Project Superpowers #2
Nightwing #143
Logan #2 (black and white)
Kick Ass #2
Detective Comics #843

[lovejuice]

So I finally read the Riki-Oh manga, and was disappointed to find that the movie basically adapted it super-faithfully almost scene-for-scene. The creativity of the gore that I've always attributed to Ngai Kai Lam all these years should have gone to the comic. :sad:

i only see clips from the movie, but i think, its tone is more tongue-in-cheek. riki-oh manga, from what i remember, is dead serious.

[number8]

i only see clips from the movie, but i think, its tone is more tongue-in-cheek. riki-oh manga, from what i remember, is dead serious.

Oh, exactly. And that's why I love the movie yet was bored to shit with the manga.

It's 99.5% the same, but the fact that it's so gory and absurd comes across as comical in live action. That's the thing. I always thought the movie was creating these absurd gore moments to be ridiculous, but apparently they're just adapting from a really sadistic manga.

[number8]

HOLY OBVIOUS TRACING, BATMAN!

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/9705/newuniversal002008co3.jpg


Guess who?

[lovejuice]

Oh, exactly. And that's why I love the movie yet was bored to shit with the manga.


i ain't bored to shit, but neither am i a fan of the manga and the artist.

[megladon8]

How do you determine the presence of tracing?

[ledfloyd]

Guess who?
Mack?

[EyesWideOpen]

Land.

[Acapelli]

Larocca?

[number8]

Larocca?

You're right, but I was being rhetorical.

I meant "Guess who?" in a "Look it's Sawyer!" way.

[Marley]

Got Watchmen from the library today. I have no idea what to expect.

[Grouchy]

Got Watchmen from the library today. I have no idea what to expect.
Awesome. More people should do this every day.

And that Moore comment about The Killing Joke, I think, was aimed at the fact that it's a book for people who know about the Batman universe. Otherwise, it loses much of its depth and poignant observations about the characters. My guess is that Moore wants to make comics for a more universal audience.

[ledfloyd]

I've said it before but I'm loving the absolute hell out of Omega the Unknown.

[Duncan]

I read V For Vendetta. It was alright. Better than the movie. Not nearly as good as Watchmen.

[number8]

Brubaker, Fraction and Aja are leaving Iron Fist.

There goes my favorite book. More money for me, I suppose.

[Acapelli]

Brubaker, Fraction and Aja are leaving Iron Fist.

There goes my favorite book. More money for me, I suppose.
What!?

At least Fraction's gonna go on Uncanny with Brubaker.

[trotchky]

WE3 was one of Grant Morrison's better works this decade.

Now I'm reading Curses.

[number8]

Has anyone seen/heard of this (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v38/liliaeth/liliaeth/Superman-Thundercats-24.jpg)?

I read about 12 pages from it and it seems... enjoyable.

[EyesWideOpen]

todays pickups:

Screamland #2
Batman: Death Mask #1
Echo #2
Wonder Woman #19
Wolverine #64
Justice Society of America #14
Fantastic Four #556
Criminal 2 #2

[number8]

I got Punisher, Criminal 2 and Young Liars.

I'm fucking astounded by how fantastic Punisher is. This is going to be the best last arc of all last arcs. Seriously.

[number8]

By the way, Sean Phillips drawing Frank Pembleton?

I nearly got a boner.

[EyesWideOpen]

I got Punisher, Criminal 2 and Young Liars.

I'm fucking astounded by how fantastic Punisher is. This is going to be the best last arc of all last arcs. Seriously.

I forgot about picking up issue 2 of Young Liars, i thought the first issue was decent.

I've been reading Punisher in the hardcovers and can't wait to see how Ennis's run ends.

[Acapelli]

I forgot about picking up issue 2 of Young Liars, i thought the first issue was decent.
This second issue pretty much sold me on it. I love it.

[number8]

This second issue pretty much sold me on it. I love it.

Yeah, it was rockin'. They really could've used this as the first issue too.

[Sven]

Anybody read Rick Veitch's Can't Get No?

I have no idea what to make of it. It feels like it should be brilliant, but I didn't understand it well enough to say.

[ledfloyd]

Anybody read Rick Veitch's Can't Get No?

I have no idea what to make of it. It feels like it should be brilliant, but I didn't understand it well enough to say.

i had more or less the same reaction.

[Thirdmango]

Bought today

100 Bullets Vol. 1&2
Fables Vol. 1&2

Also trying to find Scott Pilgrim 3, can't find it anywhere, have 4 can't read it yet, waiting for my bank to make my account available then I can buy it online and do all that other money online stuff I need to do.

[EyesWideOpen]

Today's Pickups:

Cthulhu Tales #1 (very meh)
Ghost Rider #22
Salvation Run #6
Grendel: Behold the Devil #6
Gotham Underground #7
Captain America #37
Batman & the Outsiders #6
Avengers Initiative #11

[EyesWideOpen]

I just got shipped the Hellboy Vol. 1 Library Edition Hardcover today, http://www.amazon.com/Hellboy-Library-Destruction-Devil-Editions/dp/1593079109/ref=pd_bbs_sr_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208396747&sr=8-10.

I'd rather give my old TPB's out to people who wanted them so anybody interested in Hellboy Vol. 1 Seed of Destruction and Hellboy Vol. 2 Wake the Devil let me know. $2 shipped and i'll send them out media mail.

[number8]

Haha, the guy following Ennis on Punisher is doing a story based on The Seven Samurai, with a poor Mexican town pooling resources to send one guy across the border to find The Punisher to help them with a serial killer.

And then the next guy is adapting Crank, with Punisher injected with poison and having 6 hours to live to find the guy who did it.

[Ezee E]

Haha, the guy following Ennis on Punisher is doing a story based on The Seven Samurai, with a poor Mexican town pooling resources to send one guy across the border to find The Punisher to help them with a serial killer.

And then the next guy is adapting Crank, with Punisher injected with poison and having 6 hours to live to find the guy who did it.
The first story sounds awesome.

The latter... No.

[bac0n]

Today's pick-up: Secret Invasion 1/8. Holy shit hitting the fan, batman. I think I'm going to enjoy how this develops indeed.

[Acapelli]

Today's pick-up: Secret Invasion 1/8. Holy shit hitting the fan, batman. I think I'm going to enjoy how this develops indeed.
Yeah I'm really excited too. The new Mighty Avengers was great too.

No thought bubbles! And Alex Maleev!

[number8]

An offer from David Lapham:


Yes it is a Vertigo book, and I'm trying my G#$damn hardest to make sure it's not cancelled. I'm putting my heart and soul into this thing and I'm trying to spread the word.

Thus here I am. Being a novice at posting I hope I'm in the right spot. (Who knew there were so many Valiant fans gathered in one spot? I guess you all did, but ask the checkout lady at Vons. I bet she didn't....) But I just wanted to thank anyone spreading the word about Young Liars and everyone who will give it a try. It would mean everything to me to make this book a success. Not only because it's my living and my passion but also because it would allow me the freedom to get back to Stray Bullet, if even only on a limited basis.

Any advice from anyone about how I can get the word out within this forum and elsewhere, please let me have it.

I don't know if this sounds like a swell idea to anyone, but let me throw out this offer:

Anyone who tries out Young Liars and sends it to me with a SASE will have the comic returned signed (personalized or not) along with a headshot sketch of any character you choose. Could be a Young Liars character, Stray Bullets character, Your favorite Valiant character, etc.

If anyone's willing to risk sending me a Valiant comic I can sign those, too, but other than promising not to rip, fold, or crumple your comic personally and packing it back in your mailer, I can't take any other responsibility for what the good folks at the PO might do to it. So be careful.

Spread the word on this. I'll do this for anyone who tries out YL.

Send all comics to:

David Lapham
P.O. Box 3911
Glendale, CA 91221-0911

Much thanks to eternalwarrior for his wise advice and for getting this post going.

I'll check back here if anyone has any questions about the book. And I apologize in advance if this is not the best or proper place for a post like this.

[number8]

Next time I go to New York, I'd have my tourists checkpoints ready:

http://www.emmafrostfiles.com/gallery/Random/Manhattan/manhattan_lg_highquality.jpg

[trotchky]

Anyone here like the work of Shintaro Kago?

[Sycophant]

Finally read the first three volumes of the Invincible TPBs. Pretty great stuff. Sadly, my friend who was lending them to me doesn't have any more than just the first three, so it may be a while before I get around to more of the series.

[EyesWideOpen]

Anybody else go to Free Comic Book Day?

I picked up the Project Superpowers, Hellboy & X-Men free issues all three were pretty good for free books.

All the original Image Comics people (Jim Lee, Rob Liefield, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri, Erik Larsen, Jim Valentino and Whilce Portacio) were at my local shop signing from 12-5 but I had to work at 10 so I missed them. The only one I really wanted to see was Lee but i'm sure i'll catch him again.

[Sycophant]

Anyone here like the work of Shintaro Kago?Wikipedia describes him as a guro mangaka. His work sounds interesting, but my brief and usually accidental brushes with anything that could be described as guro leave me hesitant to research the dude any further. Am I going to vomit?

[number8]

DCU: Decisions.

Worst. Idea. Ever.

[EyesWideOpen]

DCU: Decisions.

Worst. Idea. Ever.

I had never even heard about it but after googling it yeah it sounds pretty dumb.

[number8]

Whats laughable too is that their idea of having a balanced political story is to get the most conservative guy at DC (Willingham) and the most liberal (Wynick) to write it together. What a disaster.

[number8]

http://img393.imageshack.us/img393/1416/wf286desecrate7gn.jpg

http://img393.imageshack.us/img393/3867/wf286cross9xr.jpg

[Sycophant]

Wait... does Superman hate our precious freedoms?

[megladon8]

http://www.penny-arcade.com/images/2008/20080514.jpg

[number8]

I'm very happy about this week.

Punisher, Batman and David Lapham's Wolverine one-shot were all amazing.

[Acapelli]

Thunderbolts was great, as it always is.

And the art on Spidey this week was perfect.

[monolith94]

I read the graphic novel Shortcomings today at the library; it only took an hour. If you're willing to fritter away an hour going through an occasionally interesting, mostly stereotypical story of modern young-types, go for it. It's pretty passable, shrug-worthy stuff, with an incredibly anticlimactic ending.

[number8]

I'm having a hard time deciding which one of these comics I love the most and which of the writers I would go to bed sooner:

Ed Brubaker, for writing such a twisty espionage intrigue in Captain America; Jason Aaron, for his utter disregard of formal plotting in exchange for his rowdy storytelling-from-the-hip writing in Ghost Rider; Garth Ennis, for the John Woo-esque ballad of nostalgia and bullets in his swan song Punisher; or Grant Morrison, for blowing my mind with the cleverness, intricateness and meticulousness of his ongoing arc in Batman.

[Acapelli]

Well out of those choices 8, I'd pick Bru.

[ledfloyd]

Brubaker is the easy choice. if you said Jason Aaron in Scalped it might have been more difficult. Morrison on All-Star would've made it tougher as well.

[trotchky]

Has anyone read Sim's Glamourpuss?

[Acapelli]

Has anyone read Sim's Glamourpuss?
I did. Not really sure what I thought of it.

8, did you read Grant Morrison's interview on Batman RIP on IGN? It was pretty good.

[number8]

I did. Not really sure what I thought of it.

Same. But I have zero interest in fashion.


8, did you read Grant Morrison's interview on Batman RIP on IGN? It was pretty good.

Yes, it was. I knew that Joker's blood had to be an error.

[megladon8]

I've been out of the loop for several months with regards to comics.

Anything I should check up on?

Any TPBs come out lately that are worth getting?

[bac0n]

I've been out of the loop for several months with regards to comics.

Anything I should check up on?

I've made mention of this before, but the Secret Invasion crossover is shaping up to be pretty big news. It's currently on 2/8 and the shit hasn't so much hit the fan as careened into it, blowing the fan to smithereens and leaving a hole in the wall behind it.

[Acapelli]

I've been out of the loop for several months with regards to comics.

Anything I should check up on?

Any TPBs come out lately that are worth getting?
i loved the legion of superheroes arc in action comics.

[number8]

If you want to be in the loop, just read CBR, Newsarama and Wikipedia. If you want to read TPBs worth getting, just get one of the greats you've put off for a while.

[EyesWideOpen]

I just finished reading the Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 TPB and i'd highly recommend that.

[number8]

Anyone else picked up 1985? Might be Mark Millar's best work in a long time.

[EyesWideOpen]

Anyone else picked up 1985? Might be Mark Millar's best work in a long time.

Agreed. Although I am also enjoying Kick-Ass I was pretty disappointed with that first arc of Fantastic Four.

[monolith94]

Just read volumes 1 and 3-6 of Powers (the library didn't have 2) and all in all it was pretty great/emotionally affecting, although I do have the quibbles that at the beginning the art seemed pretty phoned in, and the wicked high body count occasionally annoys me. There were certain characters' deaths that REALLY frustrated me, but hey the show must go on. Looking forward to picking up the next volumes from the library tomorrow.

[number8]

BKV's Dr. Strange is pretty cool.

"By the hoary fucking hosts!"

Young Liars #4 was book of the week for me.

[monolith94]

Read up to Powers 11, and while it was compelling, parts of it I don't know about, I just don't know. Again, huge bodycount, and I wonder how many superheroes Bendis can be left with? I'm also not digging how the Deena character is shaping up. I'm wondering if the series has gone a bit too far off the deep end. But, still, there's much that's great about it, and at its core it is still a compelling idea/read.

[megladon8]

Picked up some TPB's at MidTown in Times Square today...

"Ex Machina" - Vol. 1-5

"The Authority" - Vol. 1

"The Boys" - Vol. 1

[megladon8]

I met a really cool guy at MidTown (not an employee, just a guy shopping) and he recommended both "Ex Machina" and "The Boys" to me.

In return I recommended "The Walking Dead" and "Fables".

Man, this guy had like, an encyclopedic knowledge of comic books, and he didn't seem the type at all.

He looked and acted like Jeffrey Wright, and we stood and talked about comics for quite a while. It was awesome.

[number8]

Um, someone who looks and acts like Jeffrey Wright would actually be my idea of a stereotypical know-it-all comic geek.

[Winston*]

]"The Boys" - Vol. 1Post what you think of this one. I thought it was kind of lame from what I read. Tries to out-OTT Preacher but doesn't have the interesting story or characters to back it up.

[ledfloyd]

"Ex Machina" - Vol. 1-5
awesome. have you read Y: The Last Man? BKV is one of my favorite writers period. comic books or otherwise.

[megladon8]

Post what you think of this one. I thought it was kind of lame from what I read. Tries to out-OTT Preacher but doesn't have the interesting story or characters to back it up.


I read the first issue and liked it.

Though I'm not a big fan of Garth Ennis, which is why I only got the first volume even though I was recommended to get a few.

"Fury" is one of my least favorite books of like, ever. He just tries so hard to push buttons and be "edgy" and whatever, it really gets on my nerves, because half the time it's really poor writing.

[megladon8]

awesome. have you read Y: The Last Man? BKV is one of my favorite writers period. comic books or otherwise.


Yes, I've read all the volumes of "Y: The Last Man" up to "Motherland". I think that's volume 9...

And yes, he's an incredible writer. "Y: The Last Man" is like the comic book equivalent of a fantastic summer movie - quick paced, action packed, edge-of-your-seat thrills, and it has a brain as well.

Have you read his book "Pride of Baghdad"? It's wonderful.

[ledfloyd]

Yes, I've read all the volumes of "Y: The Last Man" up to "Motherland". I think that's volume 9...

And yes, he's an incredible writer. "Y: The Last Man" is like the comic book equivalent of a fantastic summer movie - quick paced, action packed, edge-of-your-seat thrills, and it has a brain as well.

Have you read his book "Pride of Baghdad"? It's wonderful.
sweet, you still have the last six issues. great stuff. the final issue i thought was quite amazing. issue 58 might be the best of the series. the last page at least is brilliant.

i have read pride. i've read all his creator-owned stuff, runaways, and the dr. strange series. i still need to check out the hood and that book of his batman stories that was just released.

if you haven't read the escapists i'd recommend that as well.

[number8]

His Matches Malone story in Batman was utterly fantastic.

[Acapelli]

meg, next time you're in the city you should check out forbidden planet

it's pretty awesome

also bob gale needs to get off amazing asap