I've been busy these last few weeks, and so here's a quick run-down of the comics from the last two weeks. The comics for 11/11/2010 will be up soon enough.
First: 28/10/2010
Essential Comic
Fantastic Four #584
By Jonathan Hickman and Steve Epting
This was the second part of the epic "Three" story arc, which will tie together all the pieces from Hickman's run so far, and kill off one of the Fantastic Four. This issue focuses on the Thing, who's been given a potion which allows him to become Ben Grimm again for one week a year. It's a nice character piece, and doesn't feature much of the main plot, other than a brief snippet of Sue Storm with Namor and Reed Richards being met by the cliffhanger villain. This continues to be one of the strongest written books out there at the moment, and the artwork by Steve Epting is absolutely mindblowing.
Rating: 10/10
And the Rest
Amazing Spider-Man #646
By Mark Waid, Paul Azaceta and Matthew Southworth
The final part of the "Origin of the Species" event that's been going on for the past month was a fantastic capper to the arc. We got the Lizard, Doctor Octopus, a pleasant twist regarding the nature of the Osborn baby and some wonderfully paced action.
Rating: 10/10
Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Oracle (One-Shot)
By Marc Andreyko and Agustin Padilla
The penultimate issue of the mess-event that's attempted to force Bruce Wayne back into the DC Universe prematurely features some decent character stuff with Barbara Gordon, who happens to be the focus of this issue. We also get a nice flashback to the period when Barbara was first crippled, which was nice, but did start to feel as though the creators were trying to find emotion where there was none.
Rating: 7/10
Bruce Wayne: The Road Home: Ra's al Ghul (One-Shot)
By Fabian Nicieza and Scott McDaniel
The final issue of the mess-event is here. And it wraps up the threads of the arc nicely. The Vicki Vale arc introduced by Nicieza in RED ROBIN comes to a resolution, as does the Ra's al Ghul arc, partly. The Scott McDaniel arc is fantastic and makes me miss him on a regular title. Now for the actual Return of Bruce Wayne to happen so the strangeness of this event makes sense (hopefully).
Rating: 9/10
Justice League: Generation Lost #12
By Judd Winick and Fernando Dagnino
This issue was a drastic improvement over the last one. Sure enough, this was pretty much an extended fight sequence, but the flashbacks to Ice's past were a welcome addition and allowed someone who was unfamiliar with the character to gain a sense of understanding from her.
Rating: 9/10
Ultimate Avengers 3 #3
By Mark Millar and Steve Dillon
Silly vampire action. That's the only way to describe this issue, and the mini-series as a whole. It lacks any substance, but the art by Steve Dillon is great, and the story is mindlessly fun to read.
Rating: 8/10
Ultimate Mystery #4
By Brian Michael Bendis and Rafa Sandoval
After the previous, fantastic issue of this mini-series, we're treated to a bland, uninteresting bit of padding. Nothing truly changes over the course of the issue and the big mystery over what made the bad guy go bad isn't really explored beyond some flashbacks that are essentially page-for-page reconstructions of previous Ultimate issues.
Rating: 6/10
Ultimate Spider-Man #15
By Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli
Dealing with the aftermath of the previous arc, Bendis decides to focus on the human side of Peter Parker; introducing a new supporting character/potential love interest, inserting some major character developments into the mix, adding a new agenda for J. Jonah Jameson and ending on a brutal down-note. Plus: Sara Pichelli's art is absolutely gorgeous.
Rating: 10/10
Wonder Woman #604
By J. Michael Straczynski, Don Kramer and Eduardo Pansica
This book has become so woefully flawed in the past few issues. And it was horribly flawed to begin with. This was a nice development in the story of this new version of Wonder Woman, but there were no real stakes, the characters themselves are presented as unlikeable, and the announcement of JMS's departure from the book signal that this is my final issue of Wonder Woman. It was fun while it lasted, but I have no desire to read on, and the conclusion of this issue feels like a decent capper to the first arc. If there's buzz over the next few, I'll pick up a trade. Otherwise, I'm finished with Wonder Woman for good.
Rating: 5/10
Second: 04/11/2010
The Essential Comic
Batman and Robin #16
By Grant Morrison, Cameron Stewart, Frazer Irving and Chris Burnham
Yes, this issue had lots of artists. No, this wasn't a problem. As the finale to Grant Morrison's run on the title, this was a perfect issue of the series; the artwork by everyone involved was phenomenal, the resolution to the Doctor Hurt story was interesting and worked within the context of Morrison's run, and it worked without the need of the final issue of Return of Bruce Wayne. This was a fabulous issue of BATMAN AND ROBIN, and the final Joker sequence was absolutely marvellous. The last page lead-in to BATMAN INC annoyed lots of people, yes, but I was not one of them.
Rating: 10/10
And the Rest
Amazing Spider-Man #647
By Fred Van Lente, Zeb Wells, Bob Gale, Joe Kelly, Mark Waid, Marc Guggenheim, Dan Slott, Max Fiumara, Michael Del Mundo, Karl Kesel, J.M Ken Niimura, Paul Azaceta, Graham Nolan and Adam Archer
The oversized finale of the "Brand New Day" status quo for Spider-Man was a fantastically fun affair. The first story brought the story to a close, while opening up numerous doors for the "Big Time" run that starts next week. The remaining stories add a bit of flavour to the whole thing; they're all very good, but none of them manage to wow completely. Still, this is a perfect package.
Rating: 10/10
Brightest Day #13
By Geoff Johns, Peter J. Tomasi, Ardian Syaf, Ivan Reis and Joe Prado
Oh, great. An issue about Hawkman and Hawkgirl. This was better than their previous dominant appearances, but it was still one of the weakest issues of the series so far. The brief snippet of Deadman was great, meanwhile, and the cliffhanger was awesome, especially the final page.
Rating: 7/10
Buffy the Vampire Slayer #38
By Joss Whedon, Scott Allie and Georges Jeanty
Yes, this arc has been rushed. Yes, this series has gone on too long. Yes, I understand everything that's going on. The final push to the finale of Season 8 is in full swing, and there are betrayals everywhere you turn. The question is, however, who will be revealed as the ultimate betrayer next issue? Because right now, it could be anyone!
Rating: 7/10
Jonah Hex #61
By Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti and Jordi Bernet
Jordi Bernet's art here was as fantastic as ever, but this issue's story was very confusing and felt out of place with the rest of Jonah Hex lore, particularly after the previous, stunning issue. Hopefully something will come of the questions raised here in the near future. Until then, this was a decent issue.
Rating: 8/10
Red Hood: Lost Days #6
By Judd Winick and Jeremy Haun
This mini-series has been great fun to read. The development of Jason Todd into the Red Hood has been a fun journey to witness, and the emphasis placed on the Joker this issue helps to build the tension throughout. The only flaw here is the ending, which feels a bit rushed, as well as the fact that we know exactly what happens next.
Rating: 9/10
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