Shipping This Week! (040623)

I'm getting Wanted #4 and the second trade of Sleeper that's coming out (in addition to Astonishing #2).

The one thing that suckers me in, though, is all the gratuitous guest appearances. It's like an issue of World's Finest, but instead of having all these back-up stories with Metamorpho & Green Arrow & whomever, they're in the main book! Also, I think the fuzzy happiness that Ed McGuinness' art brought to the first 6 issues is what's REALLY keeping me on the title. (This is the 87th time I've mentioned this on ILC, but it bears repeating, and it's almost got me jonesin' for issues of the Loeb / McGuinness Superman run, which I think is where the "Luthor for President" stuff happened.)

But I have no interest in the Supergirl story and it feels like it's being dragged out for trade-collecting purposes. I think I've said this before, but I remember when everything that's actually happened so far in this storyline could have been handled in an 8-page back-up feature with room to spare.
Say what you will about the simplistic stories of yesterday, you have to admire their economy of space.

Jordan - did you notice any qualitative difference between Risso's art in the Batman arc vs. his 100 Bullets work? The Frank Millery sketchiness of his work on Batman really put me off, but after reading the last 2 issues of 100 Bullets (& noting the VERY OBVIOUS difference in quality in the art between the two books), I'm tempted to think that Azz & Rizz mailed it in re: Batman. Or maybe Risso was trying to shamelessly expose his FM influence.

Anyway, the Superman arc, so far, is interesting. The pacing is a bit strange, and the one-liners Azzarello's so fond of (& rightfully so!) seem a bit clunky and out-of-place when part of an exchange between a priest & Big Red regarding heroic guilt and planetary cataclysms. But, yeah, so far, it's Superman "confessing" to a priest re: trying to find the cause for a worldwide missing-persons cosmic event (which, of course, included Lois). It's a slow burn, for sure, but interesting nonetheless, if you've the patience to see where the story's going.

Are the Superman storylines back to being contained within one title? If they are, I'd be more willing to read some of them. I remember when they really started going hard, putting extra numbers on the covers and you suddenly had to buy every issue of every title and I think that's probably one of the things that burned me out on comics. Too much work for not enough payoff (storywise).

Funny you should mention THE DIAMOND - the Batman family is diving ass-first into a super-annoying, super-clunky summer/fall crossover. Wooooooooo.

Yeah, I've only heard a tiny bit about it but I'm planning on ignoring the whole thing nonetheless.

Meanwhile though, the current Judd Winnick arc is the most solid Batman story in like a year and a half, shocker!

(Btw, I stopped by the comic shop on the way to getting sushi for lunch and got the new issue of The Walking Dead in addition to the stuff listed above)

I didn't think the artwork was bad per se, but definitely Millerish and different from what I've seen of 100 Bullets. My main complaint was how the plot degenerated into compressed crime novel gibberish after the first couple issues. The first issue was brilliant though, it had the best one-liners and the 'Batman cooking a steak' scene.

Before I forget, I have to give props to Millarworld for this thread idea. Millarworld - they're kooky, but alright.

We were pretty good about doing the weekly update threads in the beginning, I think, so thanks for ending the slacking off.

See all the white in the background of this thread?

I don't get it, Leee.

(too bad I'm still a tpb-whore when it comes to Q&C)

Me too. I got through all the ones that are out, and since I'm too lazy to hunt down the rest of the issues that would catch me up (and then I'd probably have to BAG them, ugh), I decided to just let the trades come to me. Same with Daredevil.

*possible exception being Gotham Central, now with its cute "Previously on..." thing. Wearing its Homicide: Life On The Streets love on its sleeve!

The Scott & Emma dynamic is pretty interesting although it seems like an excuse to make Scott spineless.

And, yeah, what Jordan said - even after GM actually made him interesting, he's still riddled w/ doubt & insecurities & all of that when he's not taking charge in field ops.

I hadn't noticed Hank getting dumber, but even THAT plotline's already happened (see early X-Factor circa the initial Apocalypse storyline).

On the whole, I'd rather read plotlines I haven't seen before as opposed to variations on things that have happened before and I'd rather read about new character dynamics rather than escalated versions of old ones. Replacing Wolverine and Beast with (for example) Dani and Roberto would make this book much more interesting to me.

- Leeeee, the new issue of The Goon (#7) guest stars Hellboy, & features a few pages by your boy Mignola. Giant spiders are punched, & giant squidballoons are scaled and punctured. Fun stuff.
- I'm really enjoying the Superman, even if the disappearing's barely addressed, and The Fourth Rail are spot-on in comparing the super-baddie to a previous Authority psychopath.
- I am SO HAPPY that Bart Sears is getting replaced on Priest's Captain America title; half of the art was unaesthetically sketchy, and the half that wasn't chicken-scratched was saddled with dopey framing devices (Cap on the side of the page cutting into the panel; a giant fist at the center of four panels). Also, boobs. Priest's plots are confusing enough (in an enjoyable, gotta reread that way); I don't need the artiste to rediscover themselves in the process of negotiating Priest's twists & turns.
- Greg Rucka = slow burn. Works very well on Wonder Woman, doesn't work so well on Wolverine. And, of course, shop had no Q&C = my screen isn't so white.
- I'm withholding judgement on the re-emergence of Gwen Stacy (in spirit) in the newest issue of Amazing Spider-Man until A) the end of this "earth shattering" arc or B) F*CK!NG LUDICROUS CLONAGE.

This is only one smidgen of what I snagged, of course - I even bought the newest Previews. I have no shame (or $$$).

http://www.sit.wisc.edu/~amgreene/newpics/beepercomic.jpg

- Greg Rucka = slow burn.

Don't forget Adventurs of Superman. I'm giving it a chance till something actually happens, but it's been flat boring so far.