WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best of the past week: The Fall of the House of Usher #1 – Not the strongest week for comics, but it allowed this nice comic to win.  What impressed me most about this issue is how well Richard Corben (who adapted the classic Poe story) is able to make us uncomfortable, but not scare us outright.  That’s important because the classic Poe story depends on the main character being merely uncomfortable, such that he keeps getting deeper and deeper into the story.  If he’d been scared, he would have fled right away.  I guess I’d summarize the issue as follows: The story is familiar; the execution is not.

Most anticipated this week: 1). The Unwritten #49 – Even though last issue was a little bit routine, I know that this series has the ability to go deeper than just about anything else on the market right now.  Let’s hope it happens here, because I’m really not looking forward to the upcoming crossover with Fables.

2). Uncanny X-Men #6 – It’s funny; after years of LOUSY art, the X-books are suddenly suffering from an embarrassment of artistic riches.  For this issue Frazier Irving takes over from Chris Bachalo.  It should look great.  Brian Bendis has also been doing a snappy job of reminding all the people who hated on the tail end of his Avengers run that he is a pretty good writer.

3). Dia de los Muertos #3 – More Mexican-themed, Day of the Dead stories with illustration by Riley Rossmo?  Sounds good to me!

4). Superior Spider-Man #10 – I’m not so much enjoying the story in SSM and I recoil from all the fan angst over what is happening to a ~50 year old character.  But have you seen this new inking style that Ryan Stegman is laying down?  It is HOT!   Unfortunately, everyone else is realizing how HOT this guy is and his splash pages now cost ~4X what they used to.  Sigh….

5). The Massive #12 – Even though I’m consistently hard on this series when I review it, I’m starting to be “hooked”.  Maybe I just assume that eventually there will be a point to it all?

——-

Hugo’s Top Picks

Pick of the week: FF #7 – Even if this was a relatively small week for comics, there had been some strong showing, though none as strong as this week’s tale focused on the replacement Fantastic Four. With them battling the Wizard alongside Blastaar in the Negative Zone, it made my week as we saw more of this decidedly unique team working together. With Mike and Laura Allred on art mimicking the best of Jack Kirby’s style, it was a blast to read.

Most anticipated this week: 1) Green Lantern #20 – If there was one series that made me want to discover the DC universe as a whole back in the days, it was Green Lantern. I was much more of a Marvel guy back in the day, yet that character and the concepts attached to him seemed really interesting to me, which made me try the Rebirth series by Geoff Johns. I had a blast reading it and understanding just how huge a character this was, making me fan instantly as I tried to get up to speed to get to Blackest Night. It’s because of Green Lantern and Geoff Johns if I’m a fan of DC comics nowadays, so I’m really eager to see how he can conclude his whole run. It’s the end of the first DC run I first collected in trades and I wouldn’t dare miss it.

2) Journey Into Mystery #652 – The great art of Valerio Schitti? Check. The adventurous and funny writing of Kathryn Immonen? Check. Beta Ray Bill, one of the most awesome creation by Walter Simonson? Check. With all these elements in this issue, how could I not look forward to it?

3) Superior Spider-Man #10 – With the way the last issue ended, I am very curious to see just how Dan Slott will reflect this huge change in status quo in the book. There’s humongous potential for tons of new stuff here and I’d really like to see him take advantage of such a situation.

4) Uncanny Avengers #8 – I am not currently reading Age of Ultron, yet I am very much interested in this particular story, just to see more Kang the conqueror goodness and the apocalypse twins. Although this is a tie-in, this seems like a pretty important chapter of Rick Remender’s ongoing story and I’d be remiss to say that his current Avenger’s book has been really strong in his last few issues.

5) Deadpool #10 – I like the direction both Posehn and Duggan have taken the series so far, yet the latest issue was decidedly darker than usual. Even though I do hope they’ll bring the funny back in a big way, I have to see I am interested in seeing how this situation with Michael the necromancer and Vetis the devil can develop.

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best of the past week: Batman #20 – Magical things can happen when you ask Greg Capullo to draw gloppy villains like Clayface.  Some artists draw the villain like a man dipped in oatmeal, some make him big an scary looking, but nobody does gloppy and oozy as well as Capullo.  Mix that together with a romp of a story and you’ve got a good issue that serves as a nice palate-cleanser before an 11-issue Year Zero storyline.

Most anticipated this week: 1). FF #7 – Honestly, I didn’t have much hope for FF when Matt Fraction took over as writer, but I’ve found FF to be really enjoyable.  Probably 95% of my enjoyment is due to the Mike/Laura Allred art team, but still, sometimes a smart writer simply stays out of the way.

2). Vescell #8 – It hasn’t been coming out regularly , so I don’t remember what the story in Vescell really was about beyond it involving a private investigator, his girlfriend who was banished to limbo and his sexy fairy partner who will lose her wings if they “you-know”.  I do remember enjoying the series though and in a very light week, that’s enough to be #2 on the list.

3). GI Joe: Special Missions #3 – Even though Paul Gulacy’s art has been really stinko, just read it fast and pay attention to the story.  Chuck Dixon rarely tells a lousy Joe story, so just don’t look too closely at the faces and you’ll enjoy yourself.

4). Dream Merchant #1 – It’s a new series by Nathan Edmondson from Image, so it’s worth checking out.  It also appears to have nothing to do with the military or the CIA, so it’ll be fun to see Edmondson stretch his legs a bit.

5). Age of Ultron #8 – AoU isn’t “great”, but it’s been generally enjoyable.  We’re close enough to the end that I’m curious to see what the point of it all was.  Wouldn’t it be funny if this was the series that “changed everything” since nobody is talking about it?

——-

Hugo’s Top Picks

Pick of the week: Thor: God of Thunder #8 – Was there any other pick worthy of that spot? While there were some good comics released that week, none were as satisfactory as the epic story of time-travelling and god butchering of the god of thunder as told by Jason Aaron, Esad Ribic and Ive Svorcina. Whenever this title comes out, it makes for a good week for me.

Most anticipated this week: 1) Fatale #14 – A new issue of this title superbly written by Ed Brubaker and drawn by Sean Phillips? Yes please! With each issue seeing release, we get more mystery, more noir-writing and more references to the mythos of H.P Lovecraft, which this comic is really good at doing.

2) FF #7 – I dig Michael Allred’s art, as I really like the pseudo Kirby take he has on most of everything in this series. With Matt Fraction somewhat aloof, yet funny and honest writing, this series has been a joy to read and I am always eager to open up an issue featuring the replacement FF.

3) Bloodshot #11 – With this title still caught in the whole Harbinger Wars crossover event, it has still given us some good exploration of the character and action. With this issue here to further explore the Harada protocol introduced in the second issue of the main event, I am curious to see how they will show us this particular angle.

4) X-O Manowar #13 – This title had started as one of my favourite Valiant title, yet it has struggled a little bit ever since this arc has begun. It remains an enjoyable comic, yet I really would like to see the story and the narrative kicked up a notch. This issue will show us if such a thing is possible, to say the least.

5) Wonder Woman #20 – I like this title, yet I have to admit being disappointed in the use of Orion so far. The struggle between gods and the whole story revolving around the new born baby of Zola is interesting, yet I am always waiting for a cool moment with one of my favourite DC creation of Jack Kirby. If we get more with the Dog of War, I’d be mighty pleased.

FF #7 – Review

by Jonathan Hickman (writer), Greg Tocchini (art), Paul Mounts (colors), and Rus Wooton (letters)

The Story: The return of Black Bolt from the fault is detailed.

What’s Good:  Really, the best thing I can say about this issue of FF is that it’s not as bad as the last one.

For starters, it’s far more intelligible.  It’s easier to tell just what the hell is happening, especially given that there are fewer flashbacks and less Supremor babbling.   Ultimately, Hickman tells a much clearer story this month, and also one that’s a lot of more relevant.  We get something a prophecy and a hint of things to come courtesy of Supremor that actually manages to tantalize more than it confuses.  At the very least, the ending of this issue ties right back to where we left off in FF before it became an Inhumans comic, which should ground it a bit more for a lot of readers.

And hey, you know what?  Black Bolt is a total badass, in case you didn’t already know.  Hickman makes really awesome use of his uber-powerful voice and has a firm handle on how best to use the character’s concept, with his words being few but powerful in content as well as tectonic force.

Weekly Comic Book Review’s Top Pick

Best From The Past Week: Daredevil #1 – This was easy.  Daredevil #1 managed to feel totally fresh, while also a nostalgic throwback that encapsulates everything that a Daredevil comic should be. If you’ve ever been even remotely curious about Daredevil, I’ll say it again: buy this book!

Most Anticipated: Amazing Spider-Man #666 – That was tough, as there’s so much to look forward to this week.  You get the second issue of the surprisingly excellent X-Men: Schism event, the final issue of Secret Warriors, the first issue of the Brubaker penned, and the WWII ongoing Captain America and Bucky.  Then there’s perennial favourites like Detective Comics, American Vampire, Criminal, FF, and Mighty Thor.

But I’ll go with ASM.  I’ve enjoyed Dan Slott’s run thus far, but it’s felt like ASM has been treading water the past few months, waiting for Spider-Island to begin.  It’s been frustrating at times, but it’s also heightened my anticipation.  Now, here we are, and I can’t wait to see the show on the road.

Other Picks: Captain America and Bucky #620, X-Men: Schism #2, Detective Comics #880, American Vampire #17, Mighty Thor #4, Criminal: Last of the Innocent #2, Secret Warriors #28, FF #7