Top Five Fridays 6/13/08

by Dan Grendell on Jun 13 2008

Categories: Reviews | 12 comments for now

12 Responses to “Top Five Fridays 6/13/08”

1. Martin #

   D3 and Nick still haven’t updated yet? Hehe.

   Y’all discussed it in the last Top Five Fridays, but I’m still seriously bummed with Chuck Dixon leaving DC comics. I’m pretty sure editorial’s to blame, and this really points to just how poorly handled things are over there. I mean, yeah, Marvel did “Brand New Day” and that pissed me off to no end…but at least I could see the intentions behind it, and they were pretty good intentions; it was just badly thought out. But DC seems to screw things up with no real good reason or intention behind them.

   There are rumblings going around that it’s due to plenty of editorial flack, like Dixon’s Robin being forced through the “Batman RIP” storyline. For all that’s said about Marvel ego-stroking Bendis and Millar, I think it’s worse at DC. I love Morrison more than Millar and Bendis combined, but DC seems to be milking him even more; he’s just given an interview about how he was writing Final Crisis as its own, self-contained story, and that Diddio thought up Countdown and Death of the New Gods and all the mini-series to conform with it (and embarrassingly enough, because of that there are obvious continuity gaffs between FC and all the tie-ins). I’m pretty sure the case is the same with RIP; Morrison probably intended it to be his own thing, and suddenly it’s tying into 20 books or so. And if that is the reason Dixon left…what a terribly poor reason.

   But that’s just a rumor. Even so, I’m still upset with DC. They really need to clean up their act. The Dixon books are exactly the kind of books they needed - going back to the ’90s for DC would be like Marvel going back to the ’80s IMO, the ’90s was their golden age.

   13 Jun 2008 at 7:39 pm

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2. Martin #

   On the positive, side, though:

   1. Local - loved, loved this last issue. Cannot wait for the hardcover.
   2. Trinity - Busiek is my hero, especially on superhero books. Whetting my appetite for the release of Astro City: Dark Age hardcover next month.
   3. Green Lantern Corps - this storyline’s moving a little slower than I want it to, but I love all the Mongul and Black Mercy stuff.
   4. Wonder Woman - though merely solid and not yet “great”, I’m excited for Simone to kick things into gear when she does the epic storyline she has planned.
   5. True Story Swear to God Archives - picked this one up at last, loved reading through it again, and the many issues of it I missed for the first time.

   13 Jun 2008 at 7:48 pm

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3. c. towns #

   Wonder Woman was my fav this week. Glad I bought the Question Hc even though I had the issues. The stuff about the Montoya Journal they did and background information and how they put it together was cool.

   I have no strong opinion on Dixons exit. I like Batman and the Outsiders. I thought Robin was good too but I dropped it, along with other stuff, for Trinity and some of the FC tie ins(2) along with my increase in buying manga. Since I was young and had next to no cash when Dixon was churning out hits I don’t have the anger others have about this and the rumros around it. Yeah, it sucks-but to be honest, I’m enjoying reading manga more. That and All Star Superman, Batman, Fables, Young Liars and maybe one or two other American comics.

   13 Jun 2008 at 7:56 pm

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4. Dan Coyle #

   My top five of the moment:

   1. Justice Vol. 1
   2. Amazing Spider-Man
   3. Captain Britain and MI: 13
   4. Hulk: Planet Hulk
   5. Moon Knight

   Benson’s Moon Knight is so awesome it hurts.

   13 Jun 2008 at 9:48 pm

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5. s1rude #

   Kind of a down week for me - I didn’t buy much and didn’t LOVE anything I bought…

   (5 - tie) Angel and Booster Gold - perfectly serviceable for what they are, but just didn’t move me in any way. That’s not a good sign, and both may be on the chopping block, the former for its price tag and the latter because Johns’ exit seems like a good time for a book I’m not loving anymore.

   (4) Moon Knight - this will read better in trade, I think. Solid noir/superhero hybrid, better as an accumulation of small moments than it’s overall plotting, and the most I’ve ever liked Texeira’s pencils. Not sure I’m enthused with how quickly the Khonshu visions thing was (seemingly) resolved, and the hype for the upcoming Werewolf by Night arc smacks of a book on the chopping block if sales don’t perk up.

   (3) Young Liars - maybe it’s just because I want there to continue to be Vertigo monthlies, but something about the overall vibe of this book is working for me, even if issue 2 was the only time I liked any of the characters.

   (2) Wonder Woman - I could still do without the Agent Prince stuff, and “Amazons Attack” should be ignored not referenced, but Simone seems to be hitting her stride. She has a good handle on how to explore the character and what settings to put her in. Lopresti is very well suited to the book, too, moreso that the Dodsons were.

   (1) Hack/Slash - continuing its impressive string since going monthly (the only misstep being the “Riverdale” issue, for mine), with percolating sub-plots that would make Claremont proud.

   In other news, I’m not outraged with the “Dixon no longer at DC” item, while I do think it speaks to some kind of problem with editorial at the company. Books switching writers rapidly and with no warning is not the way to get me to hang with a title, and it’s happening more and more under Didio. I’d rather see Dixon do more in genres other than capes (war, westerns, pirates) - his superhero stuff is workmanlike, but I have plenty of long boxes and bookcases full of collections when I’m in the mood for that.

   Also bought The Umbrella Academy collection this week, but haven’t cracked it yet. Hope it lives up to the hype.

   One last thing: I missed Locke & Key and the Hester-penned Magdalena/Daredevil coming out, and didn’t know that Who Do You Trust? would have anything that interests me (Agents!), so any one of those could have changed my Top 5 and altered my outlook on the week.

   14 Jun 2008 at 8:01 am

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6. NathanK #

   Finally got to read “The Good Prince” last week and it may be my favorite Fables story. I sure didn’t like waiting almost a year between trades, but it may have been worth the wait. The main Flycatcher story was fantastic, and it’s amazing that he was able to weave in the over-arching Fabletown versus Adversary story effectively.

   On the not as positive side, I’m so disappointed in Batman right now. The last time I was this frustrated, I quit collecting comics for 3-4 years. I don’t think I’ll do that again, but I may be done with super-hero books for a while. Why can’t I just read a title and have it make sense? I’ll put up with crossovers and event storylines, as long as I don’t have to buy other books to make my book make sense. But I haven’t even been able to figure out how “One Year Later” was supposed to have affected Batman continuity, and now they are restarting everything again? No thank you. It’s too bad, because I would love to keep my Batman and Detective collections comprehensive, but why buy something I really don’t enjoy?

   Oh well. I hope to read the last “Y” trade this week. That should perk me up.

   14 Jun 2008 at 9:52 am

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7. Randy Lander #

   It was kind of a down week for me as well, but there were a few real indie bright spots out there amongst the general disappointment of the superhero stuff.

   1. Amazing Joy Buzzards Vol 1 Here Come The Spiders GN - Yes, it’s a reprint, but it’s reformatted, has the whole story together and is something too many people haven’t read. This book is just crazy fun, with terrific artwork, and it’s one of my absolute favorites. I just wish the second volume was out already, but it’s coming out soon.

   2. Superior Showcase - I bought this because I buy all the Adhouse Superior books, but also because it had a new Street Angel story, which did not disappoint. Neither did the other two, either. Really good indie take on superheroes here from three different sets of creators… I might need to review this book soon.

   3. Secret Invasion Who Do You Trust - Covered on Wednesday Number Ones… this is the book responsible for getting my hopes up too high about Secret Invasion #3. And reminding me how sad I am that Agents of Atlas doesn’t sell well enough to get another miniseries or an ongoing.

   4. Local - I wasn’t blown away by the ending, but I thought it was a good ending, and I look forward to the hardcover.

   5. Hack Slash Series - The Milk and Cheese dream sequence alone made this one a winner. Always liked this book, and making it an ongoing seems to have served it well.

   6. Tiny Titans - Still pretty fun, although if you don’t have a 5-year-old to read them with, I don’t know how much fun they’ll be.

   7. Skaar Son Of Hulk - Dug Garney’s art, story is a bit on the slow side but I want to like it, so I’ll give it a couple more issues.

   8. Captain Britain And MI 13 - Not entirely feeling the vibe of the story, but Kirk’s art is *gorgeous* and I like a lot of these characters, and it’s solid at worst.

   9. Invincible - Not so thrilled with this one as I have been with the same sort of status quo shakeup going on in Walking Dead. It’s… OK… I’m just sort of not as interested in it as I once was. But I go through that with Kirkman’s books from time to time, pretty sure he’ll win me back. Although that new Invincible costume isn’t doing him any favors. Blech.

   Haven’t had a chance to read BPRD War on Frogs or Batman Confidential yet, I suspect they would have fallen just outside the top five somewhere, probably above Tiny Titans.

   So Moon Knight, huh? I’m skeptical, because I hated the ultra-violent crazy take on Moon Knight that kicked off the book, but I really like the character, so I might need to give this new arc a shot… recommendations on which issue to start with?

   Umbrella Academy TP seems to have not shipped everywhere… we’re getting ours next week. Insult to injury, not only late but we’re only getting a small part of it next week. Guess I’ll have to wait another week or two to pick up my copy. That’s OK, though, with Battle Royale HC, Naoki Urusawa’s Monster, Y The Last Man and Dynamo 5 trades, plus Drawing Words & Writing Pictures, next week’s a pretty hefty trade week for me.

   14 Jun 2008 at 12:49 pm

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8. Dan Coyle #

   Start with issue #14, the first issue of Benson’s arc. The hardcover drops August 6th. It’s about yet another of MK’s old villains coming back to haunt him. This time it’s Black Spectre, but Benson’s more interested in exploring the consequences of Marc’s behavior than getting off on them like Huston was doing. Of course, since Huston is still co-plotting this book he may have planned it all along this way, but Benson’s a far better, more thoughtful, less masturbatory writer.

   Moon Knight has to do some nasty things to save lives in the story, but in the end he’s spent. He’s broken. He’s Konshu’s best disciple, but he wants to be more than that. And I can’t wait to see where Benson takes him next.

   I don’t have a five year old, and I find Tiny Titans to be a total gas. Even the artwork is funny, with Baltazar’s big ass mouths that look like every character is shouting.

   14 Jun 2008 at 7:58 pm

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9. Oscar #

   Randy, not reading Walking Dead on any kind of regular basis, I don’t think I’m at quite the same point as you are with Invincible. I thought it was the monthly issue of the week for me. Ever since the conver popped up on the net months back, I have avoided all Invincible related threads, stories, and interviews. So other than the cover, everything in the book was pretty fresh for me.

   But I think this week, the book that really stood out was the new Fable trade. For those pulling this title, this was the Flycatcher arc where he goes back home. I was extremely impressed with this volume. Fables is a consistent title but this book seems to do so well when the Fables are actually confronting the adversary in some way or another. Like NathanK, I’m reading the book in trade. I also hate the wait but even though the monthly titles would still be a great read, I rather like getting an entire arc at once.

   16 Jun 2008 at 7:36 am

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10. s1rude #

    With Moon Knight, I’d go back one more issue from Dan’s suggestion and start with 13. That was a make-or-break issue for my continuing to follow the book (I was bored to tears by Huston’s second arc), and it totally sold me on keeping up with it. It’s done-in-one and also sets up half of the conflict of the first Benson-scripted arc. The “ultra-violence” seems toned down in 14 - 19, or at least presented as something that’s not 100% cool by the title character, but if “crazy” is a problem, this might not be the book for you. The question being asked isn’t “Is Spector crazy?”, but “how crazy is he?”

    Spent quite a bit of time with Umbrella Academy this weekend and can say that it does indeed live up to the hype. Ba’s art is gorgeous, and Way pulls off the Incredibles as directed by Wes Anderson thing he’s going for - complete with the heart that’s present in both.

    16 Jun 2008 at 9:00 am

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11. Randy Lander #

    Randy, not reading Walking Dead on any kind of regular basis, I don’t think I’m at quite the same point as you are with Invincible. I thought it was the monthly issue of the week for me. Ever since the conver popped up on the net months back, I have avoided all Invincible related threads, stories, and interviews. So other than the cover, everything in the book was pretty fresh for me.

    That’s cool, sometimes I think I’d be better off in news blackout mode on a few books, but unfortunately it’s a choice between being over-informed (for both the comic shop owner thing *and* the reviewer thing) and maybe getting a little more surprise out of a few of my comics, and the over-informed thing always wins out.

    OK, honestly, it’s also because while I’m a big anti-spoiler person in terms of my entertainment, there’s a part of me that *loves* movie trailers, advance previews, “next week on Lost” and all that stuff too much to stay away from it. It’s a disease.

    But I think this week, the book that really stood out was the new Fable trade.

    I really enjoyed that story as it was coming out, and I was pleased to see that when read all together, it’s even better. Possibly the best Fables story yet, for me.

    The “ultra-violence” seems toned down in 14 - 19, or at least presented as something that’s not 100% cool by the title character, but if “crazy” is a problem, this might not be the book for you. The question being asked isn’t “Is Spector crazy?”, but “how crazy is he?”

    I actually like the crazy thing. As long as it doesn’t become just “This guy’s crazy! He’ll tear a dude’s face off!” If it’s a little more sophisticated, with him dealing with questions of identity and being sane enough to worry about his sanity, then I’m cool with it.

    In fact, back during Marvel’s ill-fated Epic Comics thing, I had two pitches in at Marvel. One was a time-travel thing involving Kang, the other was a Moon Knight pitch that put him into more of a hunter of the supernatural role and really played up that he was crazy and dangerous to others as a result.

    Thankfully, neither one got much beyond the notes stage, because they probably wouldn’t have been very good. I’m a guy who reviews and sells comics, I don’t think I’m cut out for writing them.

    17 Jun 2008 at 12:28 am

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12. roblewmac #

    Randy, not reading Walking Dead on any kind of regular basis, I don’t think I’m at quite the same point as you are with Invincible. I thought it was the monthly issue of the week for me. Ever since the conver popped up on the net months back, I have avoided all Invincible related threads, stories, and interviews. So other than the cover, everything in the book was pretty fresh for me.

    That’s cool, sometimes I think I’d be better off in news blackout mode on a few books, but unfortunately it’s a choice between being over-informed (for both the comic shop owner thing *and* the reviewer thing) and maybe getting a little more surprise out of a few of my comics, and the over-informed thing always wins out.

    OK, honestly, it’s also because while I’m a big anti-spoiler person in terms of my entertainment, there’s a part of me that *loves* movie trailers, advance previews, “next week on Lost” and all that stuff too much to stay away from it. It’s a disease.

    But I think this week, the book that really stood out was the new Fable trade.

    I really enjoyed that story as it was coming out, and I was pleased to see that when read all together, it’s even better. Possibly the best Fables story yet, for me.

    The “ultra-violence” seems toned down in 14 - 19, or at least presented as something that’s not 100% cool by the title character, but if “crazy” is a problem, this might not be the book for you. The question being asked isn’t “Is Spector crazy?”, but “how crazy is he?”

    I actually like the crazy thing. As long as it doesn’t become just “This guy’s crazy! He’ll tear a dude’s face off!” If it’s a little more sophisticated, with him dealing with questions of identity and being sane enough to worry about his sanity, then I’m cool with it.

    In fact, back during Marvel’s ill-fated Epic Comics thing, I had two pitches in at Marvel. One was a time-travel thing involving Kang, the other was a Moon Knight pitch that put him into more of a hunter of the supernatural role and really played up that he was crazy and dangerous to others as a result.

    Thankfully, neither one got much beyond the notes stage, because they probably wouldn’t have been very good. I’m a guy who reviews and sells comics, I don’t think I’m cut out for writing them.

    Come on now Randy if you have a Kang pitch I KNOW I wanna read after all i’ve failed well over 283 times. You can’t tell from how I write here but I REALLY REALLY love Marvel which is why i’m negitive…it’s tough love.

    24 Jun 2008 at 6:15 pm

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