I Bought Comics: First Week of October 2008

[Sometimes I buy comics, sometimes I don't... this is a day when I did and I feel like rambling on about them in my own unique manner. Oh ho ho what fun. Not serious reviews, just thoughts strung together in various manners.]

Batman #680

Hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhha............... good and evil... the story of Job comes to mind. Jezebel. Damien. Red and black, life and death... love and hate... duality, patterns... it certainly points to the evil below, doesn't it? His soul dies tonight... at midnight... "it's not the side-effects of the cocaine... I'm thinking that it must be love..." Huh. "The European cannon is here!" I don't think I get it yet, but I'm more intrigued than ever. Tim will have better (re: more intelligent) things to say soon no doubt. (And, I will, too, seeing as how a lengthy look at Morrison's second year will happen after the two post-RIP issues come out before he takes a short break from the book.)

The Boys #23

The X-Men connection is superficial and not the point at all, of course. Some obvious analogies/stand-ins, but some aren't quite so obvious. Do like "G-Style"--there hasn't been a group of black mutants, has there? Has there? None spring to mind, but who knows. That last page is very, very funny.

Captain America #42

It almost seems anti-climatic, doesn't it? But, it's another piece of the larger puzzle, especially that final page. Brubaker sets up this huge epic storyline and then has it conclude in a manner both typical and atypical. Captain America does very little to resolve the plot, actually. Good stuff for the good guys.

The Immortal Iron Fist: Orson Randall and the Death Queen of California

I paid a dollar more for this comic book than a regular issue and it wasn't worth it. I've alreay done one Duane Swierczynski book and I'm not afraid to drop another. This wasn't a well-written comic book. I get what he was going for, but it wasn't good. The narration was heavy-handed, cliched and obvious--and doesn't work without the rest of the prose to go along with it. Used with visuals, it's often redundant and becomes tedious to read. The plot isn't anything special or really worth reading. Maybe this will turn out to tie into the current story in the book, but if it doesn't... what was the point? At least with Frubaker, the two specials (one special and one annual really) tied into the story and provided some background info. But, nothing is jumping out here, which just has me wondering what the point of this book was... because it sure wasn't entertainment. At least Giuseppe Camuncoli provides some lovely art. Since I've been steeped in The Intimates, seeing how he's grown and changed in the past three years is almost worth the cover price. I should read a Raymond Chandler short story right now to get the stink of this comic out of my brain.

New Avengers #45

Well, that was a big let down. I was looking forward to this House of M issue, figuring it would provide something worthwhile, but it doesn't. The House of M thing happens and the Skrulls on Earth aren't fooled by it, but get freaked out because it fucks with their plans... "And...?" That's it, basically. *sigh*

No Hero #1

The manner in which Ellis begins this issue, using media footage and quotes, is interesting. A little different from his usual method. Not so much the media footage, but the quotes... I don't recall him using quotes to highlight his theme before, and it's always nice to see him trying new things. A little disappointed by Juan Jose Ryp's art--the odd "impact blobs" he adds here... they look out of place here--they're so damn cartoony and this book's tone isn't cartoonish. It's over-the-top, yes, but... ugh, they just look really weird and out of place. Otherwise, this issue isn't anything that groundbreaking--a combination of various comic book tropes and mostly introduction. If you haven't gotten the zero issue... do that.

Youngblood #5

Doesn't Josh mean Doug's uncle on the first page? I didn't mind the subtle nod to The West Wing in the first issue, but the more it continues to subtley suggest that this is the same world, the more it bothers me--if only because Casey can't quite capture the dialogue style of the show for Santos and Josh. Otherwise, I'm still not sure about this book. It's not that great, but it seems like Casey wants it to be... he just can't escape from the mediocrity of the characters and world, or from the premise, which never really goes further than the obvious. But, since it's written by Casey, I'll keep on buying it. It's a sickness, really.

Not sure if I'll do a "book of the week" post this week. If something here jumps out, say so.