Top Five Fridays 5/9/08
Some of you may have noticed on the sidebar, we have our “Top Five of the Moment” listed. These are the five books that are most clicking with each Pants writer. It may or may not represent the best books we’ve read all month, year, or just what we’re digging that week. We generally try to update it with books from that week, but there are no hard and fast rules. Inspired by an email from one of our readers, we’re going to post every Friday with the most recent Top Five from each member of the Panteon, and hope for your comments on our lists, or maybe even your own “Top Five of the Moment.”
Also, just as the Wednesday Number Ones feature is generally our spot for folks to talk about the comics of the week, we hope that Top Five Fridays is where you’ll come to talk about what’s going on in comics in general. News in the comics world, thoughts on comics you’ve recently read, talk about comic-related movies that release this weekend and more are welcome in the comments thread for Top Five Fridays.
This week, the Top Five Books of the Moment are:
Nick Budd’s Top Five Books of the Moment
- Nova
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Secret Invasion
- House of Mystery
- Nightwing
Dave Farabee’s Top Five Books of the Moment
- Nova
- Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- Invincible Iron Man
- The Man With No Name
- American Splendor
Dan Grendell’s Top Five Books of the Moment
- Modesty Blaise V.13: Yellowstone Booty
- Nova
- Tor
- Kindaichi Case Files V. 17
- Pretty Baby Machine
Randy Lander’s Top Five Books of the Moment
- Nova
- Buffy The Vampire Slayer
- Gemini
- Question Vol 2 Poisoned Ground TP
- George R R Martins Wild Cards
D3’s (David Martindale) Top Five Books of the Moment
- Local
- X-Men: FCBD one shot
- Batman: Deathmask
- Gon vol 4
- Nova
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Get ready for a Randy sized post:
I
1. Dynamo 5 Annual- This is prob my fave book right now.
Loved seeing the first appearance of Captain Dynamo.
2. Nova- Prob my favorite issue yet, until next month at least. I
hope Nova knows that you can defeat the Silver Surfer with a
choke hold.
3. Mighty Avengers- (I know, I was suprised too.) Love that Nick
Fury. I can see myself enjoying this Nick Fury storyline more
than the actual Secret Invasion storyline (much like I did with
Incredible Hulk and World War Hulk.)
4. Gemini- Can Faerber do any wrong? Great twist on secret
identities and superheroes. I am also reading Noble Causes
archives and loving it as well.
5. Secret Invasion- Not as good as the first issue, but still solid.
6. Buffy- Man, can Xander get a break! Still good though.
7. Nightwing- A DC comic, oh my!
8. Avengers/Invaders- My mad Captain America love is showing
here, which is better than mad Hawkeye love BTW
know it’s a gimmicky time travel thing, but I ate it up
anyway. Also I thought it was pretty awesome Spider-Man
could take on all of The Thunderbolts. Now if only he could do
it without lame dialogue.
9. Dead Space- Very creepy. Great art from Templesmith.
10. Invincible Iron Man- A very solid first issue. I think the
reason I ranked it so low is I had huge expectations and it
just didn’t deliver. Yet. This is probably unfair, but after the
Iron Man movie I couldn’t help it. All in all I think I would
prefer Fraction to stay on Iron Fist and The Order.
A quick word on Free Comic Book Day:
Just curious, but did anyone have any comics they just loved from FCBD? For me I decided to try some stuff that I wouldn’t normally read (which I think is the point.) I really dug The Stranded by Mike Carey which was a joint venture between the SCI-FI channel and Virgin comics. Also liked the Dan Dare Ennis stuff in the same comic.
My fave without a doubt was Love and Capes. I think I know why too, it’s just a really smart enjoyable read. Definately looking foward to the trade comming out later.
09 May 2008 at 1:42 pm
Quote1. Kirby: King Of Comics HC - Finally got my hands on this after months of searching. Well worth the wait.
2. Invincible Iron Man - Fraction & Larroca. Nuff Said.
3. Secret Invasion - Really enjoying this despite what people may think, and besides Hawkeye finally picked up his bow again so that made it a must have instantly
4. X-Factor: The Quick & The Dead - It’s X-Factor by Peter David so it’s automatically on the list.
5. Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas - A quick read granted but a lot of fun and beautiful Granov art.
Was this week’s Amazing Spider-Man any good? Really didn’t like Gale’s Freak arc but have been enjoying Brand New Day otherwise and was sorely tempted to pick this up for Kitson’s art alone.
09 May 2008 at 3:35 pm
Quote1) Invincible Iron Man- I liked it. Agreed, it isn’t as good as Iron Fist or any of Fractions other stuff but I think it was good setup and I liked Tony’s internal monologue.
2) Nova- Great issue. I like this take on Galactus that as far as I can remember hasn’t been done…namely the “let the Wookiee win” strategy. Sure, by the end that gets thrown out but I like the “force of nature” aspect of this vs. just a giant supervillain.
3) Mystery House- Dug it. Neat shorter stuff that reminds me of Willingham’s earlier “The Dreaming” stories if a bit more gross. Look forward to where it is going or at least the journey to get there.
4) American Splendor- I love Harvey Pekar and am making up for years of “I don’t read comics like this” by reading comics like this. He is almost Zen in his approach to storytelling. Glad I finally “got it.”
5) Buffy- Still very fun. I think that in any future “Couples” Rumble Pants (like the recent one that included Sue and Richard Reed or Batman and Catwoman) that Xander and Dracula be a consideration. There is just as much chemistry and tension as with Batman and Catwoman any day.
09 May 2008 at 3:38 pm
QuoteGood bunch this week. I enjoyed House of Mystery. Dave’s opinion is it’s lukewarm but is that everyone’s opinion? Do you think this series will survive or will it go the way of Loveless and Un-men?
I’ll still buy it but I didn’t enjoyed Man with no name #1 as much. That long hippie hair distracted me and Blondie talked way too much near the end than what I’m used to. It’s hard to set the mood without Ennio Morricone’s music on the background like in the Dollars trilogy, but that just been picky.
09 May 2008 at 6:16 pm
QuoteSome from this week, some from last week, and one from Free Comic Book Day:
1. Local
2. X-Men: FCBD one shot
3. Batman: Deathmask
4. Gon vol 4
5. Nova
09 May 2008 at 6:17 pm
QuoteWelcome back D3!!!!
Really enjoyed Invincible Iron Man this week, since I was totally primed for a good Iron Man comic. Haven’t actually followed his series since Busiek was writing (ok, I think I got the Quesada run too, but that wasn’t long), but I just might add this to my pull list.
09 May 2008 at 9:45 pm
QuoteI’ll piggy back on the Invincible Iron Man love. As a hardcore comic fan who has never really been interested in Iron Man as a solo character the movie got me totally pumped to read more Iron Man stories and Fraction and Larocca delivered exactly what I was looking for.
One I’ll throw out that nobody has mentioned yet is the Action Comics Annual. It probably helped that I recently re-read the previous issues of the Last Son arc but I actually really enjoyed the conclusion in the AC Annual and Adam Kubert’s art was spectacular throughout. It sucks it took so long to come out but in the end I think it will make a great collection.
On the disappointing front Cable might have finally lost me after three very slow issues and after a promising first issue from Vaughan and Risso’s Logan the last two issues really didn’t deliver.
Anyway, my top 5 looks as follows:
1. Invincible Iron Man
2. Action Comics Annual
3. Nova
4. Secret Invasion
5. Gemini
10 May 2008 at 12:00 pm
QuoteIt was a big week, but kind of a smallish list of hits (only top 10) for me this week:
1. Nova - An unusual take on the Galactus story, great artwork, terrific moment-to-moment stuff, and that cliffhanger promises great stuff. The only thing I’m not digging about the book right now are Maleev’s “blah” covers. And the sales. The book outsells every Ultimate book (except Ultimates 3) in our store, but there must be a lot of stores out there ordering it like it’s Marvel Comics Presents. Which blows.
2. Buffy The Vampire Slayer - Great issue, not sure how I feel about that ending. Hope it’s not as final as it looks.
3. Gemini - Great new superhero concept with fun stylized art. See my Wednesday Number One review for more.
4. Question Vol 2 Poisoned Ground TP - More modern day (well, ’80s) pulp action and crime by O’Neil and Cowan, both of whom did their career best work on this book. Glad DC is finally reprinting it, it lives up to all the hype.
5. George R R Martins Wild Cards - Actually liked the second issue better than the first, and I’m enjoying seeing this world again. If it keeps up like this, I’ll probably pick up the trade.
6. Invincible Iron Man #1 - Covered in Weds Number Ones, but basically it was good, not great, but has greatness potential.
7. Dynamo 5 Annual #1 - Lots of interesting stories here, but I wasn’t quite as sold on a lot of the art. Still, a must for Dynamo 5 *or* Noble Causes fans, as Faerber sort of throws his two kids together in the playground.
8. Nightwing #144 - Better than last issue, still not up to the standards of the two before that.
9. Batman Death Mask #2 - Interesting stuff, reminding me of the classic Animated Series episodes Night of the Ninja and Day of the Samurai.
10. Dead Space #3 - Continues to be creepy and effective, with great art by Templesmith.
10 May 2008 at 12:05 pm
QuoteThanks, Greg.
I also really dug Invincible Iron Man. It made my top six, just not my top five
10 May 2008 at 12:11 pm
QuoteSpeaking of Ultimates vol 3, is anyone still reading it? Is it as horrible as that first issue promised?
Adding to my pull this week is “Soon I Will Be Invincible,” a novel set in an original comic universe. Anyone read it? It is on my nightstand until I finish the last Dresden book (love them but warning to any other newbies…don’t read all 10 at once…I did and am thoroughly burned out of them as fun as they are). I read the first page just to see and it was a hoot immediately. It is a supervillain telling the story in the first person and explaining the situation on the planet in bare numbers first (how many supers, how many are good, bad or…my favorite…out of continuity on alternate Earth) and more in detail about super genius villains with a knack of being in jail too much of the time.
Hope it lives up to the first page promise. Heard good things about it.
10 May 2008 at 12:56 pm
QuoteAs kind of an aside, after being intrigued by the Dresden comic, I went out and bought the first three novels, borrowed the remaining paperbacks from a friend, and then went out and bought the new hardcover. Read them all in the past two weeks, and I tend to agree with Fil, don’t read them all at once. I loved them, but a little time between each book might have made me like them even more.
10 May 2008 at 3:56 pm
QuoteHey lads I actully bought enough to HAVE a top 5 I think let me see
1. Jonah Hex. A normally good comic stands up and rasies the bar for itself Really this issuse me cheering! and geek that I am wondering what would happen if Hex somehow met the Riddler”tA Hell with it. i’m just gonna kill ya!
Omega 8 just when I thought it would go “Normal Marvel” WA-BAM werid left turn 3
3 Nova good Galatics the poor guy gets to be scary instead of a punching bag for some newer comso god and Mark me well the Silver Sufer is a skrull here. No it does’nt that but bet it will.
4 franklin Richards Skrull thing
5. Avengers/invaders Well I liked it a lot but it had few things wrong with it
A I HATE that kind of lettering!
B I hate with a burning seathing passion Moron-bable Spider-man! “WIDDLE THunderbolts?”
C like Namor and Bucky
D this is a big Story and Even in issuse 1 in a story like this I want to see reacation from Reed Richards Dr Doom and DR STANGE
10 May 2008 at 4:14 pm
Quotepicked up Nightwing and Secret Invasion. i don’t have the same problems with SI as i do with most of the Bendis comcis i’ve read but i just don’t like most these marvel characters enough to even care whats going on.
also got Teen Titans Year One and Deadpool Classics in the mail. hopefully Classics volume 2 comes out soon. volume 1 only had one story worth reading.
so i’d say the best were the volumes of Paradise Kiss i got. i’m loving Nana so much i bought Paradise Kiss and its damn good. Ai Yazawas up in my top 5 artists now.
10 May 2008 at 5:49 pm
Quote10 May 2008 at 6:21 pm
QuoteAbout Dynamo 5 Annual #1, I liked but I felt it needed more stories, especially with its price tag, seeing as I already read the first story from Noble Causes Extended Family #2 and I would like to read about the team than Captain Dynamo.
10 May 2008 at 11:28 pm
QuoteI see your point. However when you consider that Dynamo 5 is already $3.50 it’s really not that much more. But considering how cheap I am I would definately have loved one or two more stories or a $3.99 price tag (not the $4.99 price tag it sold for.)
11 May 2008 at 9:16 am
QuoteAren’t most superhero comics fanfic to one degree or another? Bendis has been hit or miss for me lately but his Secret Invasion-related stuff has been pretty good.
The D5 Annual was actually $5.99 which was a little steep for a reprint and the stories provided.
11 May 2008 at 8:47 pm
QuoteYeah that is steep. I am glad I didn’t pay attention to the price point while I read it.
11 May 2008 at 9:56 pm
QuoteShow ▼
12 May 2008 at 9:13 am
Quote12 May 2008 at 1:32 pm
Quote12 May 2008 at 2:50 pm
QuoteA little late getting through all my comics this week..
1.Invincible Iron Man-Fraction’s writing is top notch and Larroca’s work is the best it’s ever been.
2.Nova-Great story. Solid art. Great cliffhanger. Amen.
3.Nightwing-If Tomasi can continue to produce quality stories as he has so far on this book..I say give him his own Batman book.
4.Batman: Death Mask-Two issues in and I think it’s safe to say I’ll probably be picking up the trade.
5.The Man With No Name- While not perfect it sure has me hooked..I reckon. Only major complaint is that Blondie sure had a lot to say. Oh and I don’t recall him saying “yeah” at any point.
6.Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas- Like #5 my favorite thing about this was that it didn’t drag it’s feet. I loved the scene on the plane with all of the passengers reactions to Iron Man’s action. Just goes to show how..ridiculous some people can be today. It was quick and well done and I would probably have even gotten it just for Granov’s art work had the story not been good.
7.Dynamo 5 Annual-Some fun little stories.
8.Secret Invasion-Not as good as the first issue and I really loved the first issue.
9.House of Mystery-Very underwhelming first issue. I will give it the WTF moment of the week with the bug/girl sex. My goodness.
10.Avengers/Invaders-I would have rather had seen an Invaders story since that was my favorite part of the book was the early Invaders stuff.
11-Detective Comics-I guess since The Bat is about to bite the dust(for a short time I’m assumming) it was nice to see him and Zatanna share some time and good scenes together especially when not fighting.
12. Abe Sapien:The Drowning- I’m sad to say this series has fallen down and down with each issue. I still love Abe and Alexandar’s art work. I still love Mignola as well.
Now I need to go and read all of the books from FCB I didn’t get the chance to read.
12 May 2008 at 10:46 pm
Quote