Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Comic Pants. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature.

This week we will cover 2001 Maniacs Special #1, Annihilation Conquest #1 of 6, Darkness First Look #1, Division 18 Union Of Costumed Performers #1, Fearless #1, Freddy Vs Jason Vs Ash #1, Herc Brown #1, Odyssey Presents Venus #1, Robin #168, and Silver Surfer In Thy Name #1. Due to a shipping error, we’ll have Groo: Hell on Earth #1 next week.

Nick Budd Read and Thought:

Freddy Vs Jason Vs Ash #1 of 6
Writer: James Kuhoric
Artist: Jason Craig
Company: Wildstorm

Honestly, what can one expect from a book like this? The obvious answer would be not much, but actually this one was a fairly standard mix of entertainment melded with a few bright spots that shine. The basic idea is one that’s a little strange, as the story directly ties into the 2003 Freddy vs. Jason movie and co-stars two of the people who survived the ordeal. If you haven’t seen the thing, well it’s fairly easy to jump into the story as Jason is still kicking and killing, Freddy is barely alive but still tormenting people, and Ash…Well, sadly, he barely makes an appearance in it besides narrating the story. Overall, it’s got gore and a couple of laugh out loud jokes. If this is the kind of thing that you dig, Freddy Vs Jason Vs Ash is something that you’ll most certainly like.

Silver Surfer: In Thy Name #1 of 6
Writer: Simon Spurrier
Artist: Tan Eng Huat
Company: Marvel Comics

I’m actually of two minds with this one. On one hand, it’s a story that’s smart and well done, one where writer Simon Spurrier (Judge Dredd) does a good job summing up what the character of Norrin Radd stands for and what he wants and desires. On the other hand, besides laying the ground work for the story to come and introducing an interesting utopia society, not much happens. When you think Silver Surfer, especially these days in the wake of Annihilation, you immediately think action. That isn’t the case with In Thy Name. Huat’s art is, in a single word, gorgeous. It’s a bit on the bizarre end of the spectrum and there are times where it feels a little busy, but overall there’s an enormous amount of detail and playfulness to it and the addition of Jose Villarrubia’s vivid colors, which add a real definition and a good sense of energy to it, make it that much more enjoyable. This one might not be for everyone but it was a pleasant surprise none the less.

Dave Farabee Read and Thought:

The Darkness: First Look
Writer: Phil Hester
Artist: Michael Broussard
Publisher: Top Cow / Image Comics

This is one of those 99-cent preview issues, so it’s more prelude than anything else. Eight pages of story, a few sketches, an intro from new writer Phil Hester…like that. In any case, it’s my first exposure to the title (which I’ve heard led to a pretty cool video game recently), and I was pleasantly surprised to find some promise in it. Conceptually, The Darkness reminds me of an anime concept: a lineage of bad, bad dudes gifted with demonic, very “metal” powers from the very personification of the darkness that was driven out by God’s creation of light. In true anime style, this power’s present bearer is a ruggedly handsome hitman with long, billowy hair. And, of course, he’s the good guy. Sorta. I’m sure the series has seen many a bad story, but the premise is fine, and Phil Hester’s new direction for it - Darkness-bearer Jackie Estacado running a former South American dictatorship - looks intriguing. I think Hester’s imaginative horror concepts and strong dialogue will serve the book well. The art…well…the art is straight-up Top Cow house style. It’s solid and cheesily slick - not my thing, but for Hester’s writing I’ll be keeping an eye on this book for the first time.

Annihilation: Conquest #1 of 6
Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Artist: Tom Raney
Publisher: Marvel Comics

I’ve been digging all the Conquest preludes to one degree or another, so I’m honestly not surprised at all that the core series has a kick-ass opener. Artist Tom Raney brings a Euro/Heavy Metal level of detail to the proceedings, and the story opens literally with guns blazing. There’s cool ideas a’plenty, from former-Negative-Zone scumbag Blastaar leading a Kree resistance against the Phalanx to Adam Warlock getting a needed overhaul to…well, there are some big secrets to this book, including the revelation of two bigtime Marvel Universe players soon to have major roles. In fact, one’s enjoyment of the book may be somewhat predicated on how cool one considers the reveals. I’d say they’re pretty damn cool. I will say that the story is very much a continuation of the prelude material, though. You could probably jump in fresh, but you’ll lose a LOT of the richness of what’s been building. My only other criticism is Adam Warlock’s redesigned costume. I guess the lightning bolt motif has turned up in a few previous incarnations, but Annihilation’s generally been about moving these characters forward, and the lightning bolt motif seems decidedly retro (and DC). But it’s a small thing overall. Abnett and Lanning shine on all the incidental writing and probably should be given total control of all things cosmic at both Marvel and DC. Nab the preludes, hop aboard, it’s really good.

Dan Grendell Read and Thought:

2001 Maniacs Special #1
Writer: Tim Sullivan
Artist: Raulo Caceres
Publisher: Avatar Press

Umm, okay. This book ties in to a direct-to-video horror/comedy released a couple of years ago, and is written by the writer/director of the film. It does exactly what it tries to do- make goofy jokes, have people die in weird ways and show a lot of over the top violence and gratuitous nudity and sex. Seriously, there’s boobs on the first page, lesbian incest and sheep buggery by page two, and a woman cutting her own throat by page 8. The book describes the decadent Southern town of Pleasant Valley, which is butchered by rapacious Northern assholes during the Civil War. The townsfolk are freaks, the Northerners are monsters, and I was wishing they would all die so I could stop reading. Instead, the townsfolk are killed and rise from the dead to take their revenge on the soldiers in weird ways like using them as pinatas and biting off their penises with metal teeth. This serves as an origin for the movie. I hated this book, but I can’t deny it did exactly what was trying to, so if you like that type of low budget tits and gore horror, you may dig this.

Odyssey Presents: Venus #1
Writer: Chad Rebmann
Artists: Esdras, Clonerh!, and Jesus Salas
Publisher: Bluewater Comics

This was a bit of a mixed bag. I liked the sharp lines and exaggerated look of the cartooning, but the writing didn’t do it for me. In a few places the dialogue was wooden and rough, and a couple times it didn’t make any sense at all. The story is that the Olympian goddess Venus has decided to play superhero. Several people throughout the book comment that she has the same costume as Atlas, and she says that was the only example she had. But later in the issue, someone comments “the superhero fad is so two years ago.” Huh? Also, for some reason, she has all the powers of Atlas plus love powers. Why? The weirdest thing, though, was when the Greek Muse Tragedy tries to rob some rich guy. Why? Lots of heavy cash flow needs on Olympus? The writing needed work here, but the art was pretty good- still, I’d feel safe in missing this.

Randy Lander Read and Thought:

Division 18: The Union of Novelty Costumed Performers #1
Writer: Matt Bergin
Artist: Jeremy Donelson
Company: Silent Devil Productions

It’s not easy to create a funny comic. Most of them wind up either obvious and painful or solidly crafted but not laugh out loud funny. Division 18 is somewhere in the middle, but it leans a little bit towards obvious and painful, especially in the opening, which features lewd, none-too-clever innuendo and the same monkeys are funny gags we’ve seen a hundred times before. Bergin perks it up a bit toward the end with an over-the-top Scotsman only mildly reminiscent of Mike Myers and a fun twist that the Union of Novelty Costumed Performers (you know, guys in animal suits) also doubles as leg-breakers for the mob, but the whole thing is loaded down with one-dimensional, boring characters and a script that is trying way too hard to be funny. I’ll admit to getting a couple chuckles, and I do think Bergin’s comedic timing shows potential, but not enough to recommend this particular effort. Donelson does solid, fairly detailed art with good storytelling, and that helps carry a lot of the book. Both of these creators have solid potential, but their chosen concept is something of a non-starter, and it’s definitely future potential, as this is one rough, early look at their talents.

Fearless #1
Writers: Mark Sable & David Roth
Artist: PJ Holden
Company: Image Comics

I’m always up for some new superheroes from Image. This is the publisher that has Invincible, Dynamo 5 and Firebreather, among others. Fearless is not quite in that must read class yet, but it’s got potential, based on clean line, appealing and beautifully colored artwork by Holden and Nick Filardi and a pretty interesting hook from writers Sable and Roth. Basically, our lead character was what scientists call a “mega ‘fraidy cat” until a fellow agoraphobic hooked him up with a synthetic anti-fear cocktail and a battlesuit, turning him into a one-man war on crime. It’s a crazy Stan Lee style origin for modern times, and while the first issue is mostly spent setting up the backstory, the characters and the premise, I like what I see. Good premise, good art, solid storytelling, all of that are found in Fearless #1… if Sable & Roth can back it with interesting plots and bad guys, Image might have another superhero hit on its hands.

Herc Brown #1
Writer: Stephen L. Antczak
Artists: Drew & Wesley Craig
Company: VLE Comics

Um. Well. Uh. The folks behind Herc Brown mean well, I can tell. And they’ve got a basically interesting hook, re-telling the story of Hercules and his twelve labors in modern times. But man, was this a bad comic. The artwork by the Craigs was amateurish, the coloring by Matthew Razzano garish, the dialogue and narration laughably overblown, and yet, for a story involving demigods and monsters and labors, there sure wasn’t a whole lot of sense of wonder. It fails on an overall level, but it also has groan-worthy dialogue and amateur mistakes, such as misspelling “Hermione” in an out-of-place Harry Potter reference, or the bit of dialogue that actually provided me some accidental amusement, as the god/probation officer dealing with Herc asks him “Do you not want to rescue your mother from the infernal depths of Hades?” and is met with “Okay.” Like I said, sense of wonder? Not so much. You don’t even feel like the characters really care about what’s going on, which makes it so much harder to care as a reader.

David Martindale Read and Thought:

Robin #168
Writer: Peter Milligan
Artist: Freddie E. Williams II
Publisher: DC Comics

An all around disappointing issue. First of all, the numbering on this crossover is a bit misleading. Even though the book is labeled as The Resurrection of Ra’s al Ghul 1 of 7, but it’s really more like the the second installment of an eight part story. The prelude issue in Batman wasn’t really a prelude so much as a full-on first part, and it makes this issue pretty inaccessible for a first issue. My second big gripe is that we spend the a large portion of the issue watching Damian and Tim Drake behave like spoiled brats fighting with each other over “Daddy’s” love. The idea that readers might actually be interested in reading about spoiled brats throwing a fit for page after page may have been a miscalculation. My last complaint is in the art. While most of it is proficient, Williams made a major misstep in his portrayal of Talia. In several panels she looks like some innocent secretary Batman just finished saving. I nearly expected her to clasp her hands together and plead in a pouty tone, “Oh Batman… please save me.” Her dialogue was decent, but the art just didn’t fit her historic personality or the dialogue she was given. I would suggest skipping it.