Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #32 by Brad Meltzer and Georges Jeanty.
After a year long of mediocre stories, Buffy got back on track last month with issue #31 and this issue is also great. I liked this issue even more, mainly because I am emotionally invested on the characters. Issue #31 made me laugh a lot and it was great, but this issue was so good, I flew past it and then read it again to see if I missed anything. Angel is my favorite characters in the Buffy Verse, so having him back was awesome.
A very good issue, I am looking forward to getting more Buffy comics.
Chew #9 by John Layman and Rob Guillory.
This series is just great. Each issue is fun, works as a solo issue and works as a part for a bigger story. I love that Layman and Guillory do that. I also like how they play with form. Every issue has a prologue, but issue 8 had more than one (it had three if I remember correctly), and not this issue has more than one cliffhanger, in fact it has three. The issue is packed with jokes. I can't say enough about how much I like Guillory's art, without his art I don't think I would love this book. The art makes the jokes funnier. It is nice to see a comic not go for ultra realistic, but use the comic form to enhance the stories with good visual storytelling.
Chew is a fantastic ongoing series. I highly recommend it.
Obamouse by Joe Dunn and Ben Dunn.
When I read the solicits for Obamouse, solicits which talked about Hen Beck, Sarah Penguin, Joe Bison, John McCrane, Steven Colbear, etc. I decided I had to buy the comic. The comic is an independent, it is in black and white and has simple lettering, however the art is pretty good. The issue contains three stories. One is Obamouse as a spy trying to stop Owl Caida and the Fat Cat. He succeeds somehow, I think this was poorly written. The second story is where all the funny animal versions of famous political figures come into play. It has Obamouse watching the jokes about him on TV, then has him talk to John McCrane about the economy among other things. It wasn't great, but it has some funny moments and it was closer to what I imagined the comic would be. This was the longest story. The third story has Obamouse in another planet. Asrah Naplin (note that it is an anagram of Sarah Palin) explains to him how the culture in the planet was destroyed by the partisands. It was interesting reading how polarization can hurt the country, but overall there wasn't much weight behind the words. A simple story that led nowhere.
The issue wasn't good, but the penciling was well done and it had some funny moments.
Nemesis: The Impostors #1 by Ivan Brandon and Cliff Richards.
I think the issue was great. I think it is a great first issue because it generated a lot of questions and it makes me want to read more to find out what is going on. The narrative structure is weird as at times it is unclear whether what is on the panel is what is happening now or someone telling a story. Also, it seems that the issue begins midway through the story and later one we find out how we got to where the issue starts. It is confusing, however, it intrigued me.
The art in this comic was very good. I am surprised because I wasn't in love with Cliff Richards when he drew in the Buffy comic, but here I think he does a great job. Maybe he just does better with darker tones in the colors, but I liked his artwork.
A great first issue, we'll have to wait to see how good the miniseries is.
Amazing Spider-Man #621 by Dan Slott and Michael Lark.
I liked this issue. The issue was a good one shot, with a fun adventure. It is always good to see Black Cat and I am interested on seeing when Aunt May will go back to being nice. The art was great. Michael Lark, one of my favorite artists for noir stories, worked before on Daredevil, a great run with Ed Brubaker. His style translated well for Spider-Man, although it is good that is only for one issue, as his style is not optimistic enough for a long run with Spidey. I here he will be back for a four issue story by Joe Kelly around issue #634. It should be cool, I love his art.
Showing posts with label dan slott. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dan slott. Show all posts
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Various Single Issues
Marvels: Eye of the Camera #6 by Kurt Busiek, Roger Stern and Jay Anacleto.
This is the final issue in a six part miniseries. I read the first five issues about 6 months ago and I kept waiting for this issue to come out. The issue was quite good, giving us the back story on Maggie (from the mutant issue on the original Marvels) and giving a nice ending to the series. I think this series was worth it. It is not as good as the original, but it is a nice comic analyzing superheroes. I enjoyed it a lot. The artwork was great and while the issue itself is not fantastic, overall, the miniseries was very good.
Irredeemable #11 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
Now that the Plutonian is vulnerable, the comic is getting better and better. We found out about the past between Bette Noir and Plutonian and we found out some of the bad things Plutonian did as a child. The story is great and the art is very good (although, I think Krause is not that good on close ups as he is on the rest). A great series that I recommend people to check out.
Daredevil #226 by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli.
The last issue of the Frank Miller run that I hadn't read (his last issue was 233). Although I have not read Daredevil: Man of Fear, I'd say that is outside the run. This issue is a pretty good one-shot. It sets up the attraction that Foggy has for Matt's girlfriend, it has the Gladiator (a character who shouldn't be interesting but Miller and Brubaker have made interesting) and it has great art by Mazzucchelli.
It was worth reading. A nice one shot before the masterpiece that is Daredevil: Born Again.
Amazing Spider-Man #620 by Dan Slott, Marcos Martin and Javier Pulido.
The third issue in the three part story on Mysterio. I think the issue was pretty good. It was nice to see Mysterio be a competent villain and I liked the jokes. The art was great, I was surprised the art was consistent even though there were two artists. I think Marcos Martin is great when it comes to drawing Spider-Man.
Haunt #5 by Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley and Todd McFarlane.
The issue is good. An important character dies, changing the scene quite a bit and we find out a bit more about the past of the ghost. It is a bit surprising to me that there is almost no back story to the main character, but a lot of back story to the ghost character. Hopefully we'll find out more to get to be interested in the characters more.
I am starting to have second doubts about continuing with these series. It is not that it is bad, but I think that it is the weakest of the series I get monthly. I will give it a few more issues.
Not a recommended series, but not bad.
This is the final issue in a six part miniseries. I read the first five issues about 6 months ago and I kept waiting for this issue to come out. The issue was quite good, giving us the back story on Maggie (from the mutant issue on the original Marvels) and giving a nice ending to the series. I think this series was worth it. It is not as good as the original, but it is a nice comic analyzing superheroes. I enjoyed it a lot. The artwork was great and while the issue itself is not fantastic, overall, the miniseries was very good.
Irredeemable #11 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
Now that the Plutonian is vulnerable, the comic is getting better and better. We found out about the past between Bette Noir and Plutonian and we found out some of the bad things Plutonian did as a child. The story is great and the art is very good (although, I think Krause is not that good on close ups as he is on the rest). A great series that I recommend people to check out.
Daredevil #226 by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli.
The last issue of the Frank Miller run that I hadn't read (his last issue was 233). Although I have not read Daredevil: Man of Fear, I'd say that is outside the run. This issue is a pretty good one-shot. It sets up the attraction that Foggy has for Matt's girlfriend, it has the Gladiator (a character who shouldn't be interesting but Miller and Brubaker have made interesting) and it has great art by Mazzucchelli.
It was worth reading. A nice one shot before the masterpiece that is Daredevil: Born Again.
Amazing Spider-Man #620 by Dan Slott, Marcos Martin and Javier Pulido.
The third issue in the three part story on Mysterio. I think the issue was pretty good. It was nice to see Mysterio be a competent villain and I liked the jokes. The art was great, I was surprised the art was consistent even though there were two artists. I think Marcos Martin is great when it comes to drawing Spider-Man.
Haunt #5 by Robert Kirkman, Ryan Ottley and Todd McFarlane.
The issue is good. An important character dies, changing the scene quite a bit and we find out a bit more about the past of the ghost. It is a bit surprising to me that there is almost no back story to the main character, but a lot of back story to the ghost character. Hopefully we'll find out more to get to be interested in the characters more.
I am starting to have second doubts about continuing with these series. It is not that it is bad, but I think that it is the weakest of the series I get monthly. I will give it a few more issues.
Not a recommended series, but not bad.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Recent Single Issues
Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Season 8 #32 by Brad Meltzer and Georges Jeanty.
After a really good issue #31 we get an even better #32, the best since #15. Meltzer does a fantastic job in his first Buffy comic, making great use of his superhero writing experience. Buffy, who has just found out, has superpowers and Xander wants to test to see which superpowers she has. There's a really funny exchange about phasing, which is extra funny given that Joss Whedon loves the character Kitty Pride (her power is phasing). I love a panel where Warren, after finding out Buffy has superpowers, asks "think she can phase?".
While I am still not in love with Jeanty's art, he does a great job with backgrounds and with scenes that are close to the characters, I don't like how when characters are a bit far or move fast, the face has no detail and looks cartoony. I don't mind cartoony that much if it can express a little more than what it does in his art.
Fantastic issue that leaves me wishing I had the next one already to be able to read it right away.
God Complex #3 by Dan Berman, Michael Avon Oeming and John Broglia.
This is the final issue I ordered for God Complex, as I wanted to give it a three issue trial run. While the issue itself is good and left me curious to what would happen next, overall the series hasn't been what I was hoping it would be about. I was hoping the comic would be introspective, analyzing what makes mortality interesting to a God, what makes people so important and interesting, by looking at our world through the eyes of a God who shuns his immortality. The comic is a lot more about action and the issues seem to be an extended battle with nothing to make me think about. The battles are fun, but I was just hoping for a deeper book than this. For a fun romp about Gods fighting, I would rather read Incredible Hercules (which I'll start reading soon).
I liked this issue, but I am not continuing with the series, not my cup of tea.
Amazing Spider-Man #619 by Dan Slott and Marcos Martin.
This issue is the second part of the Mysterio arc. Mysterio looks really powerful and clever in this issue, although he seems to have gone too far with his illusions as Spider-Man figured out who is behind it. The scene where Spider-Man finds out reminded me of Matt Murdock finding out Kingpin is behind his fall in Daredevil #227 (first issue in the "Born Again" storyline). Since I have just read Born Again, the moment in Spider-Man felt cliché and was nowhere as powerful as Murdock's moment in DD #227.
The issue has a great cliffhanger and I am happy to see Carlie Cooper have more screen time. I was also happy to see a cop who likes Spidey and the reference to Jean DeWolffe. The issue also has fantastic art courtesy of Marcos Martin and the I am eager to read the next issue in the series. Spider-Man's comic is as good as I can remember, since they hit issue #600, the comic has been fantastic. A joy to be a Spidey fan nowadays.
After a really good issue #31 we get an even better #32, the best since #15. Meltzer does a fantastic job in his first Buffy comic, making great use of his superhero writing experience. Buffy, who has just found out, has superpowers and Xander wants to test to see which superpowers she has. There's a really funny exchange about phasing, which is extra funny given that Joss Whedon loves the character Kitty Pride (her power is phasing). I love a panel where Warren, after finding out Buffy has superpowers, asks "think she can phase?".
While I am still not in love with Jeanty's art, he does a great job with backgrounds and with scenes that are close to the characters, I don't like how when characters are a bit far or move fast, the face has no detail and looks cartoony. I don't mind cartoony that much if it can express a little more than what it does in his art.
Fantastic issue that leaves me wishing I had the next one already to be able to read it right away.
God Complex #3 by Dan Berman, Michael Avon Oeming and John Broglia.
This is the final issue I ordered for God Complex, as I wanted to give it a three issue trial run. While the issue itself is good and left me curious to what would happen next, overall the series hasn't been what I was hoping it would be about. I was hoping the comic would be introspective, analyzing what makes mortality interesting to a God, what makes people so important and interesting, by looking at our world through the eyes of a God who shuns his immortality. The comic is a lot more about action and the issues seem to be an extended battle with nothing to make me think about. The battles are fun, but I was just hoping for a deeper book than this. For a fun romp about Gods fighting, I would rather read Incredible Hercules (which I'll start reading soon).
I liked this issue, but I am not continuing with the series, not my cup of tea.
Amazing Spider-Man #619 by Dan Slott and Marcos Martin.
This issue is the second part of the Mysterio arc. Mysterio looks really powerful and clever in this issue, although he seems to have gone too far with his illusions as Spider-Man figured out who is behind it. The scene where Spider-Man finds out reminded me of Matt Murdock finding out Kingpin is behind his fall in Daredevil #227 (first issue in the "Born Again" storyline). Since I have just read Born Again, the moment in Spider-Man felt cliché and was nowhere as powerful as Murdock's moment in DD #227.
The issue has a great cliffhanger and I am happy to see Carlie Cooper have more screen time. I was also happy to see a cop who likes Spidey and the reference to Jean DeWolffe. The issue also has fantastic art courtesy of Marcos Martin and the I am eager to read the next issue in the series. Spider-Man's comic is as good as I can remember, since they hit issue #600, the comic has been fantastic. A joy to be a Spidey fan nowadays.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Various Single Issues
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 #31 by Joss Whedon and Georges Jeanty.
The latest issue of Buffy gives hope about the future of the series. 2009 was a bad year for the comic as the quality of the stories went way down from the first two years. This issue was very good, the art was good for the most part and the dialogue was funny and interesting. An issue that gives me hope about the future of this series.
Dingo #1 by Michael Alan Nelson and Francesco Biagini.
The comic book owner at the place I buy comics convinced me to read this comic. The comic is great. The comic creates some suspense about the characters, making me want to know about their backstory. This is something that comics I love have in common. They make me want to know something that they don't reveal right away, but at the same time, it feels natural not to reveal it. In other words, I like stories that start in the middle, that is, you start reading as if you knew the characters already and then things start making sense little by little the more you read.
I should point out that I liked the art in the comic and that the issue has an awesome dog as a character. We need more awesome dogs in comic books.
Amazing Spider-Man #617 by Joe Kelly and Max Fiumara.
I liked this issue a lot. The Spider-Man comic keeps delivering great stuff. I like how Joe Kelly treats the Rhino. The Rhino had already had a really good origin story recently in Web of Spider-Man, and now we get a very good "ending" story for the Rhino.
The comic also has a back up story drawn by Javier Pulido. In the back up, we get to see a little bit more of Rhino, explaining how he fell in love. I liked the back story a lot. Well done.
Spider-Man is my favorite superhero and the issues haven't disappointed me in a long time.
Chew #8 by John Layman and Rob Guillory.
Chew is one of my favorite comics now and I get excited every time I get a new issue. It is the first issue I read whenever I get it. Issue 7 wasn't great so I was hoping this would be better. The issue is much better. We have an interesting adventure following Chu on his quest to find Poyo (a cockfighter) and we get a lot of laughs a long the way. The comic has started every issue with a short prologue and in this issue we don't get one but three prologues, another funny bit that gives the comic a world of its own. I like how the comic has a very clear identity, by having this sort of form play and by having unique art, by the hands of Rob Guillory. Guillory draws perfectly for this offbeat, funny comic. His art is instantly recognizable, I love that.
Chew is fantastic.
Irredeemable #10 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
I like this series a lot. This issue wasn't as interesting as others, mainly because it departs a lot from understanding Plutonian, however I can see that some things are developing. First we get to see a villain that was hinted at in the last issue and we get to see how powerful and menacing he is. Secondly, we get to see how much the Plutonian cares for Samsara, which is interesting because it seems that the comic might be shifting into going from hate to Plutonian into pity. The key thing about making Plutonian pitiable is how he was defeated recently in such a convincing manner. I don't understand why weakness can make someone more likeable, but I know it has that effect on us and I am glad that the comic seems to explore that.
I am excited about the next issue.
Amazing Spider-Man #618 by Dan Slott and Marcos Martin.
I like this issue a lot. I am always happy to be surprised in an issue and to have the surprise seem plausible (obviously in a superhero comic book, I have to stretch my imagination when considering something plausible). I like that the comic has a very Spidey feel to it and that it can be read without needing previous issues to enjoy. I also love the art. Martin makes the comic very dynamic.
This issue also got me more interested in reading Web of Spider-Man #4, as it will have the origin story for Mysterio who plays a role in this issue.
Amazing Spider-Man is a really good comic and I am glad that I get to enjoy it three times a week.
The latest issue of Buffy gives hope about the future of the series. 2009 was a bad year for the comic as the quality of the stories went way down from the first two years. This issue was very good, the art was good for the most part and the dialogue was funny and interesting. An issue that gives me hope about the future of this series.
Dingo #1 by Michael Alan Nelson and Francesco Biagini.
The comic book owner at the place I buy comics convinced me to read this comic. The comic is great. The comic creates some suspense about the characters, making me want to know about their backstory. This is something that comics I love have in common. They make me want to know something that they don't reveal right away, but at the same time, it feels natural not to reveal it. In other words, I like stories that start in the middle, that is, you start reading as if you knew the characters already and then things start making sense little by little the more you read.
I should point out that I liked the art in the comic and that the issue has an awesome dog as a character. We need more awesome dogs in comic books.
Amazing Spider-Man #617 by Joe Kelly and Max Fiumara.
I liked this issue a lot. The Spider-Man comic keeps delivering great stuff. I like how Joe Kelly treats the Rhino. The Rhino had already had a really good origin story recently in Web of Spider-Man, and now we get a very good "ending" story for the Rhino.
The comic also has a back up story drawn by Javier Pulido. In the back up, we get to see a little bit more of Rhino, explaining how he fell in love. I liked the back story a lot. Well done.
Spider-Man is my favorite superhero and the issues haven't disappointed me in a long time.
Chew #8 by John Layman and Rob Guillory.
Chew is one of my favorite comics now and I get excited every time I get a new issue. It is the first issue I read whenever I get it. Issue 7 wasn't great so I was hoping this would be better. The issue is much better. We have an interesting adventure following Chu on his quest to find Poyo (a cockfighter) and we get a lot of laughs a long the way. The comic has started every issue with a short prologue and in this issue we don't get one but three prologues, another funny bit that gives the comic a world of its own. I like how the comic has a very clear identity, by having this sort of form play and by having unique art, by the hands of Rob Guillory. Guillory draws perfectly for this offbeat, funny comic. His art is instantly recognizable, I love that.
Chew is fantastic.
Irredeemable #10 by Mark Waid and Peter Krause.
I like this series a lot. This issue wasn't as interesting as others, mainly because it departs a lot from understanding Plutonian, however I can see that some things are developing. First we get to see a villain that was hinted at in the last issue and we get to see how powerful and menacing he is. Secondly, we get to see how much the Plutonian cares for Samsara, which is interesting because it seems that the comic might be shifting into going from hate to Plutonian into pity. The key thing about making Plutonian pitiable is how he was defeated recently in such a convincing manner. I don't understand why weakness can make someone more likeable, but I know it has that effect on us and I am glad that the comic seems to explore that.
I am excited about the next issue.
Amazing Spider-Man #618 by Dan Slott and Marcos Martin.
I like this issue a lot. I am always happy to be surprised in an issue and to have the surprise seem plausible (obviously in a superhero comic book, I have to stretch my imagination when considering something plausible). I like that the comic has a very Spidey feel to it and that it can be read without needing previous issues to enjoy. I also love the art. Martin makes the comic very dynamic.
This issue also got me more interested in reading Web of Spider-Man #4, as it will have the origin story for Mysterio who plays a role in this issue.
Amazing Spider-Man is a really good comic and I am glad that I get to enjoy it three times a week.
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