DC Hits the Money Note: Graeme reviews Final Crisis

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Posted by: Graeme McMillan on May 30, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Reading FINAL CRISIS #1 after having read some advance reviews of it (and listening to the opinions of friends who’d read advance copies both obtained legally and otherwise), I fully expected to be disappointed by it; I kept seeing that it sucked, was too confusing, that nothing happened, and so on and so on, and I was convinced that it’d be another product of the Morrison mind that knows what it wants too well, so much that it sometimes skips telling other people what’s going on. Instead, I came away from it thinking that it was a Good opener, and wondering if most people these days just want simpler, explosion-filled, stories. First things first; Am I the only person who…  Read More…

Jog Presents: Grant Morrison’s best comic from 5/29

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Posted by: Joe McCulloch on

Categories: Reviews

All Star Superman #11: Yeah, Morrison’s best this week. I mean, Final Crisis #1 was OKAY and all; it basically read like the start of one of Morrison’s old JLA storylines, only with the very slick stylings of J.G. Jones backing it up. More humor than expected, along with a couple character deaths that’re abrupt enough that I’m not sure we’re supposed to feel shocked. I smiled at Dark Side wiping his face, since I’m a Seven Soldiers nerd. But it also came off as firecracker-thin as JLA sometimes did, particularly while the stories were still in the setup stage. And Batman #677 was as EH as Morrison’s Batman tends to be in single-chapter form, packed with tense, prodding conversations…  Read More…

Meow Meow Woof Woof Woof: Graeme looks back at last week’s books

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Posted by: Graeme McMillan on May 28, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Thank God for that holiday weekend, which allowed me to… what’s the word? Oh, yeah, breathe. Perhaps it’s the ancient curse of May that’s been making myself and everyone I know so busy over the last couple of weeks, or maybe it’s that downturn in the economy making everyone work harder so that they keep their jobs. All I know is, there’re reviews once you hit that “More” button. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #560: Marcos Martin may be the ideal Spider-Man artist around these days whose name isn’t John Romita, judging from his work on this and the last issue, but that doesn’t really help this book break out of its only-Okay rut. I feel guilty for not liking this as much…  Read More…

Arriving 5/29/2008

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Posted by: Brian Hibbs on May 26, 2008

Categories: Shipping Lists

Here’s a pretty brutal week for comics – we’re receiving three comics that are triple digits in sales, and three trades with double digit orders — and there’s tons of other stuff, too! PLEASE REMEMBER: because of the Memorial Day holiday, comics are 24 hours late this week, and are on sale on THURSDAY, May 29th! Don’t go into your local comics shop on Wed looking for new books — they’ll laugh at you behind your back! 2000 AD #1585 2000 AD #1586 ACTION COMICS #865ALL STAR SUPERMAN #11ANGEL REVELATIONS #1 (OF 5)ANGRY YOUTH COMIX #14 ARCHIE #585ARMY OF DARKNESS XENA WHY NOT #3 (OF 4)ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN #6BATMAN #677 RIPBATMAN GOTHAM AFTER MIDNITE #1 (OF 12)BETTY & VERONICA DOUBLE DIGEST…  Read More…

New Returns, IDW: Jog got his return long ago but is still waiting for his rebate as of 5/21

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Posted by: Joe McCulloch on May 25, 2008

Categories: Reviews

IDW: where the paper quality is high, the licenses run free, the ads always sit in back, and it’s $3.99 for a drive. IDW: what have you this week?  Tank Girl: Visions of Booga #1 (of 4): This is the publisher’s second Tank Girl miniseries, from original writer and co-creator Alan C. Martin. You might recall the first issue of the last series (Tank Girl: The Gifting) being a strikingly odd bit of work, with Martin’s happy-go-lucky short-form gag stories being wrung onto the page via the art of Ashley Wood. It really did look a bit like that old MAD parody with Bernie Krigstein drawing Bringing up Father, except as a wholly intentional bit of franchise reinvention rather than…  Read More…

The Inventory #1: Jeff Considers Immortal Iron Fist #10-14

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Posted by: Jeff Lester on May 23, 2008

Categories: Reviews , Uncategorized

From time to time, it’s been suggested in our comments that we post follow-up reviews of story arcs after reviewing them in issue-by-issue fashion for so long, as a way to see whether or not the whole thing came out in the wash. The Inventory doesn’t quite do that but it’s close: I’m so far behind on my non-manga reading that I thought I might review a batch of purchased issues of a single title at one go and see how they shape up. First up, The Immortal Iron Fist #10-#14, plus The Immortal Iron Fist annual. As you may remember, I’ve been a fan of Iron Fist from way, way back (like back when Claremont and Byrne first worked…  Read More…

A Titan Passes: RIP Rory Root

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Posted by: Brian Hibbs on May 20, 2008

Categories: Retailing/Industry

I feel like I’ve just been punched in the chest. Rory Root, owner of Comic Relief in Berkeley, and a tremendously great friend of mine, just passed away following a brief coma after surgery for a ruptured hernia this weekend. Rory and I had a lot of shared paths in comics retailing — we both worked at the Best of Two Worlds chain in the Bay Area. He managed the Berkeley store, and I managed the SF one, before we each opened our own stores, he two years ahead of my own. Rory was a confidant, a friend, a mentor, and always always ALWAYS, whether I wanted it or not, a sounding board. There’s many a time when the phone…  Read More…

Arriving 5/21/2008

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Posted by: admin on May 19, 2008

Categories: Shipping Lists

Here are this week’s funny books scheduled to arrive at Comix Experience this Wednesday: 1001 ARABIAN NIGHTS ADVENTURES OF SINBAD #1 2000 AD #1584 A G SUPER EROTIC ANTHOLOGY #81 (A) AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #560 AMERICAN DREAM #2 (OF 5) ARCHIE DIGEST #244 AVENGERS CLASSIC #12 AVENGERS INITIATIVE #13 BATMAN AND THE OUTSIDERS #7 BETTY & VERONICA SPECTACULAR #83 BIRDS OF PREY #118 BLACK PANTHER #36 BOMB QUEEN V #1 (OF 6) BOY WHO MADE SILENCE #3 BRAVE AND THE BOLD #13 BROTHERS IN ARMS #1 CAPTAIN AMERICA #38 CASEY BLUE BEYOND TOMORROW #1 (OF 6) CATWOMAN #79 CHECKMATE #26 COUNTDOWN TO MYSTERY #8 (OF 8) DAMNED PRODIGAL SONS #2 (OF 3) DARK IVORY #2 (OF 4) DC SPECIAL CYBORG #1…  Read More…

Tilting v3 #1!

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Posted by: admin on May 16, 2008

Categories: Retailing/Industry

OK, so it’s actually #168, but it has a new home, over at Comic Book Resources, and I bet you that Jonah would like it if everyone would click through that link so he doesn’t start thinking, “Oh my god, what have I done” I also now have my own forum there (god, was that a foolish thing to ask for?), and I see the first message there says I’m a gay icon, and I should team up with Dazzler. I think I’ll answer that one when I’ve had a little sleep! -B

The Perils of the High

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Posted by: Brian Hibbs on

Categories: Reviews

Look, a review (kind of!)!! HUNTRESS YEAR ONE #1: I really don’t get the thinking behind this “Year one” series, for the most part — they seem to be focusing mostly on characters without their own books, and seemingly no particular thing coming up soon that they’re an important enough part that you’ve got to retell their origin. (cf METAMORPHO YEAR ONE) Huntress is largely a third string character, made much more so by decoupling her from being Batman-and-Selina’s child (the Earth-2 version). The Mafia-Princess-become-The-Punisher isn’t the worst idea ever, but it strikes me as being one of those inherently limited ideas that isn’t enough, in and of itself, to sustain a character. Jeff Lester and I were discussing something…  Read More…

Format Chit-Chat: Jog and a 5/14 pamphlet

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Posted by: Joe McCulloch on

Categories: Reviews

Sky Doll #1 (of 3) This is the first product of Marvel’s new comics venture with French publisher Soleil Productions. It’s a quasi-miniseries of sorta new work that will kind of run for three issues, more-or-less unedited in a relatively nice format. Essentially. Soleil has been around since the ’80s, in case you’re not familiar, and currently publishes a fairly international line of books, mixing European originals with French translations of English, Japanese and Korean-language works. They specialize in action/sci-fi/fantasy series — although their partnership with book publisher Gallimard in reviving Futuropolis, a defunct, influential purveyor of avant-garde comics, has had them deemed bandits of cultural capital by sectors of the French small press — and they’ve been enthusiastic in…  Read More…

The stones have forgotten them: Douglas complains about two 5/7 Marvels

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Posted by: admin on May 13, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Actually, an announcement first: Because I have discovered the secret extra six hours in every day, I’ve revised and expanded my annotations for DC Universe 0, and posted them at Final Crisis Annotations, where I’ll be making notes on FC-related stuff as it appears. So now the complaints, both about comics I more or less enjoyed, under the cut: THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #1 and SECRET INVASION #2. THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #1: I liked pretty much the same things everyone else liked about this issue–the clever ways it jumps off from the Iron Man movie (the dial-style chest implants, Pepper’s Girl Friday relationship with Tony), the return to Iron Man’s roots as a guilty arms merchant, the computer-modeled artwork…  Read More…

Arriving 5/14/2008

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Posted by: Brian Hibbs on May 12, 2008

Categories: Shipping Lists

Our remodel on our bathroom at home is nearly done, and we’ve moved back in this weekend, so I’ve got one major weight off my back (paying for it, however, will be another, different kind of joy) Once I get the new TILTING written (now with more surprises than ever!) (and, no one noticed that I skipped last month altogether?), then do this month’s Diamond data import I should be back to a “normal” posting schedule… 100 BULLETS #91 2000 AD #1583 ALL NEW IRON MANUALAMAZING SPIDER-GIRL #20AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #559ANITA BLAKE VH GUILTY PLEASURES #11 (OF 12)ARCHIE & FRIENDS #119ARMY OF DARKNESS #9 LONG ROAD HOMEBAT LASH #6 (OF 6)BATMAN #676 RIPBATMAN CONFIDENTIAL #17BATMAN STRIKES #45BETTY & VERONICA DIGEST #184BOOSTER…  Read More…

Abhay Briefly Considers Secret Invasion #2

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Posted by: Abhay Khosla on May 10, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Aaah, lazy Saturday, reading my Secret Invasion… Before Having Read the Comic: I really enjoyed reactions to issue #1 around the internet. My favorite criticism is from a Mr. Stahl at Newsarama which pointed out that Skrulls revert back into Skrulls when they die: “Detecting impersonators is trivial: Take a live tissue sample from a suspect, and see if it reverts, immediately upon being removed from the body or after the cells in the sample die. There’s no plausible way for a Skrull to retain control over the sample, especially after cell death.” I’m not being mean—I think that’s a great reaction. It’s a completely valid, logical solution to the logistical problems that extraterrestrial Skrulls would face in mounting an…  Read More…

Like Unto A Thing Or Two Of Iron

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Posted by: Graeme McMillan on May 7, 2008

Categories: Reviews

He may have the biggest movie opening that isn’t a sequel this side of Tobey Maguire – and, no, I haven’t seen it yet – but that doesn’t guarantee that Iron Man’s new books are going to be any good. With both the blatant movie tie-in (IRON MAN: VIVA LAS VEGAS #1) and more subtle tie-in (THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #1) released this week, it’s almost as if Marvel’s trying to, you know, get fans of the movie to buy comics or something. It’s a crazy world of multimedia marketing and no mistake these days. Thing is, the one that’s going to grab most of the movie-hungry eyes is easily the worst. That’s not just complimenting Matt Fraction’s new Tony…  Read More…

Wait, didn’t some other comics come out this week too?: Douglas reads some more 4/30/08 stuff

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Posted by: Douglas Wolk on May 6, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Weekly comics, therefore spoilers, therefore under the cut. Specifically Action Comics and New Avengers. And glamourpuss, which is sort of impossible to spoil. Plus Whatever, which is not a weekly comic but a collection of weekly comic strips. GLAMOURPUSS #1: I see that Dave Sim, God bless him, is now requiring anybody who wants to talk to him to indicate in writing that they don’t believe he’s a misogynist. Well, that’ll cut down on the amount of time he’ll have to spend doing interviews, I suppose. I posted here about how excited I was that Dave would be doing a regular series again when he announced glamourpuss, and it’s good to see him doing a kind of drawing he obviously…  Read More…

Why I love Free Comic Book Day

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Posted by: admin on May 5, 2008

Categories: Retailing/Industry

The OVERWHELMING majority of people coming in are incredibly fuckin’ cool — they’re not greedy, they only take stuff the actual want (as opposed to it being free), they’re excited and HAPPY, and most of them actually purchase something as well, without any prompting whatsoever. So so many kids coming in with their families — and that’s thirty-TWO flavors of awesome! Sure, there’s always a couple of greedy dicks (check around the net, you’ll find at least one or two blogging their dickishness), or people who just don’t “get” the idea of FCBD, but they’re the clear minority. We had a GREAT day of sales (about 160% of Wednesday, w00t!), made tons and tons of people happy, and did it,…  Read More…

Stone Cold Sober as a Matter of Fact: Diana takes on 4/30

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Posted by: admin on May 3, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Well, I can’t stay away from the Big Two forever, so let’s check in and see what Marvel and DC have for us this week! I must’ve been possessed by the Great Cornholio to think I could make sense of DC UNIVERSE ZERO. Never in my entire life have I ever felt so excluded by a comic book – they might as well have stamped “THIS IS NOT FOR YOU” on the cover. Look, maybe it’s me. Maybe I’m the only person who expects a #0 issue (not even #1! #0! Before the beginning!) to actually present the starting point of a story, as opposed to trailers of stories that are already in progress. Is that an unfair expectation? I…  Read More…

Zero Hour

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Posted by: Brian Hibbs on May 2, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Before I start, let me say “Cool!” for Douglas’ Deconstruction of DC UNIVERSE ZERO (below), that was a rush I haven’t felt since the good ol’ days of 52 Pickup. Here’s hoping he does the same for FINAL CRISIS! On the other hand, I’m not here to praise ZERO. I think teasers and trailers are pretty cool. I especially liked the little “Glimpse” at the end of the “Sinestro War” storyline. That was awesome. But it was awesome because it was a part of the package of entertainment that I had bought. And that’s my problem with ZERO — I thought I was buying a package of entertainment, a story, an actual lead-in to FINAL CRISIS. And ZERO really isn’t…  Read More…

I am the beauty of 4/30; hooray for beauty.

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Posted by: Joe McCulloch on

Categories: Reviews

glamourpuss #1: This is Dave Sim’s new series, in case you hadn’t heard. Your $3.00 will get you 24 b&w pages, with future installments to appear bimonthly (with Dave Sim, that’s a promise) until the thing’s finished. Sim estimates there’ll be 20-25 issues in total, but I wouldn’t be surprised if changes occur – unless Sim’s got a blueprint pinned up somewhere, this is just the sort of project that could flow any which way. The image above does a pretty good job of teasing the book’s concept, but a little extra fleshing-out is warranted. At its core, glamourpuss is a comics-format essay on the ‘photorealism‘ type of newspaper comic strip art, as exemplified by the individual styles of Alex…  Read More…

All Systems Intact, the Red and the Black: Douglas Looks at DC Universe Zero

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Posted by: Douglas Wolk on May 1, 2008

Categories: Reviews

Yeah, this one’s spoilery. Not that everything hasn’t been spoiled elsewhere, but I’m still putting this under the cut. Not a review, really, but annotations; if you want a rating, I thought it was Excellent as a teaser and value-for-money–I want to read what happens next–and n/a as a story. Pg. 1: It’s somehow fitting that, on the first page of a multi-title arc that will apparently draw on Jack Kirby’s multi-title arc very heavily (and by the way, Jeff, that’s a fantastic post right there), we get a tribute to one of his signature artistic techniques, the extreme long shot. This page seems to have been a last-second rewrite: in the version included in the New York Comic-Con program,…  Read More…