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X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 9/6 Edition (plus June 2011)

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Being the Amazon addict that I am, I love it when a package arrives every week … which means I’ll be crying myself to sleep every night this week, because Marvel is not releasing any new X-Collections! Totally lame.

What’s a rabid X-Fan to do? Well, for one, surf my Guide to Collecting X-Men to find an older X-Men collection you’ve missed out on. Not only that; I’m taking this down week to recap the collections from June, which was absolutely packed with juicy X-books to buy!

Also, see below for the paltry three books Marvel has out this week, plus the massive list of their June collections.

June Collection of the Month, Hardcover:
Wolverine and Jubilee: Curse of the Mutants Hardcover
Collects Wolverine & Jubilee #1-4 & Jubilee’s first appearance in Uncanny X-Men #244.

CK Says: Buy it! Last September “Curse of the Mutants” put fan-fav X-sidekick Jubilee through the wringer, but didn’t really deal with the ramifications of the big change in her life. This series does just that with a creepy-yet-comedic mystery exploring Jubilee’s new outlook on the world. Writer Kathryn Immonen strikes the best tone on Wolverine/Jubilee interplay since the 90s. I also love her version of Rockslide’s charming hero-worship and crush on the pair, respectively.

While the mystery gets a bit fuzzy in the middle, by that point you’re hooked by Immonen’s writing and Phil Noto’s crisp, Adam Hughes esque artwork – especially the specific, expressive facial features. With Jubilee playing a leading role in this fall’s X-Men re-launch, this is better required reading than the “Curse” schlock that came before it. (Also available for pre-order as a TPB)

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June Collection of the Month, TPB:
X-Men: Second Coming
Collects Second Coming: Prepare, Second Coming #1-2, Uncanny X-Men #523-525; New Mutants #12-14, X-Men Legacy #235-237, X-Force #26-28. 

CK Says: Buy it! While I was initially a little disappointed with the “Second Coming” crossover, there is no denying that it is the most explosive X-Men event of all time, packed with universe-altering developments. The editorial team has worked out the minor pacing issues from Messiah Complex, and here they effectively intercut between multiple fronts to thrilling effect. If you are a major fan of Rogue, Nightcrawler, Cable, or Hope, all get major panel-time here. (Still available from resellers at reasonable prices as a hardcover – which I’d recommend even more)

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What other collections were out in June that I consider Must-Buys? And, which two lonely TPBs merited a skip? Keep reading to find out.  [Read more…] about X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 9/6 Edition (plus June 2011)

DC New 52 Preview: On Sale 9/7

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On the heels of last week’s first chapter of the rebooted origin of Justice League, DC Comics unleashes thirteen brand-new number one titles into stores this week.

As a non-comics reader, why should you care?

The entire point of this venture is to return comics back to something you can pick up casually, just for fun. DC is pairing its relaunch with making its entire line available digitally, including on the iPad. It’s also releasing a significant number of titles not fronted by white guys.

Will DC’s risky play to rejuvenate their readership by re-imagining their entire line of books be successful? Let’s see what this week’s salvo has in store, from my perspective as a relative DC neophyte.

Action Comics #1
Written by Grant Morrison, art by Rags Morales and Rick Bryant

While Batman and company have expanded into a Wolverine-like dominance of the new DC schedule, the big blue boy scout has been relegated to just a pair of solo titles. However, if there is going to be a single solo hit of the new 52, this could be it. Industry shaman Grant Morrison understands what makes superheroes tick, and the art team is solid. I’m in love the cover shot of Superman wearing his own branded t-shirt, a pair of jeans, and work boots. This is a must-read.

What do I think of the rest of this week’s line-up? And, what books are you most looking forward to? [Read more…] about DC New 52 Preview: On Sale 9/7

DC New 52 Review: Justice League #1

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A schedule of all 52 debut issues due from DC Comics this month. Click through for a full-size version.

This month DC Comics is relaunching their entire line of comics – 52 issues #1s in a single month!

Not only is every series starting fresh, but the relaunch also represents a “soft reboot” of the DC comics universe. That means characters could have a new set of history as they re-debut, including breaking up iconic relationships or being suddenly de-aged back to a more-relatable 20-something.

I am not a DC comics fan, and have never been a regular reader of any of their titles aside than Wonder Woman – so why not try to read and review as many of their new 52 as I can in one month?

Sounds like a plan! The month starts with DC’s biggest gun – Justice League #1, with DC co-publisher and debateably best-penciler in the industry Jim Lee on art, and DC superstar Geoff Johns scripting.

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DC Comics Justice League #1, released August 31, 2011.

Justice League #1

Rating: 2.5 of 5 – Okay.

In a line: “You’re not just some guy in a BAT COSTUME, are you?”

140char Review: Justice League #1 – Solid art and interactions between Bats & GL, but the quick-to-read debut kinda falls flat. Not the big gun you’d expect

Plot & Script

DC’s reimagined Justice League are … The X-Men? The issue starts five years in the past when Green Lantern shows up to save Batman from a superhero kill squad in hot pursuit, and you’re hoping against hope the explanation will be something more deft than “because they hate and fear us.”

Yet there we are.

Yes, I suppose hating and fearing people with super-powers makes a lot of sense, but that schtick has been cornered and bludgeoned to death by Marvel. Also, it’s annoyingly dissonant to see these classic characters in that position. Sure, Batman is a wacko vigilante and Aquaman might have a bestiality problem, but is the government really going to chase after The Flash?

The conceit is that five years ago in the new DC universe was effectively year zero, with heroes meeting each other for the first time. Apparently they weren’t too popular with law enforcement (or, at least, Batman wasn’t). We’re treated to Batman’s introduction to and subsequent chafing at Green Lantern, who is as brash as Bats is brooding. GL gets one funny line after another. It’s clear that John’s is used to writing him, and that they’re playing up the Ryan Reynolds aspect of him as much as possible.

Both Batman and Green Lantern art scripted well, and the trickle of exposition from them is just enough to capture the imagination of a new fan. Yet, there is just barely enough plot here to call it an issue. Jim Lee isn’t exactly the fastest penciler in the world, you’d think Johns would write a little more script.

Instead, we get a brief tussle and several episodes of exposition, followed by a blah four pages with kid Cyborg. Also, note that the cast of characters are cynically the two heroes with the most recent movie, plus Superman – because, well… you know.

Artwork

Lee’s action is bold but always easy to follow. What is unexpected (for me, at least), is the wild sketchiness of his shadows. Maybe it’s the doing of inker Scott Williams leaving more of Lee’s original pencil work intact, but the effect reminds me of 70s comics (a good thing).

Lee relentlessly knocks the opening Batman scramble out of the park from the first, deliberately un-iconic shot of Batman. Note all of the random insanity he has Green Lantern creating – a fire truck and giant bats!?

The single page of Superman is intriguing. He’s definitely boyish, but not as much as on the cover. And, though he is lacking his red underpants, the underpants are still sketched on – just colored the same as his legs.

The primary Jim Lee cover is expected, if not classic. Unsurprisingly, his Batman is outstanding (he’s penciled him before). I immediately am annoyed whenever GL wields a gun. Lee’s posing of Superman is strange, so that his eyes are obscured and he looks very boyish. (The Finch alternate is creepy – Superman looks like he should be wielding puppet strings, and Wonder Woman’s head is too big for her shoulders.)

CK Says: Consider it.

Justice League #1 is too quick a read with too little happening along the way.

I don’t mean to grade a comic merely on expectations, but when the words “Justice League” and “Jim Lee” are connected you can’t help but hope for something on the scale of 1991’s all-time best-seller X-Men #1.

Instead, we’re building up the origin of the Justice League from square one – and you could do a lot worse than that! I’d argue that the first issue of your flagship team should either introduce everyone, be a huge blowout, or do both. This sort of expository story belongs in the individual character books, or – at least – explored after you’ve got your hooks in new readers.

X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 8/30 Edition

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Marvel Comics is the purveyor of a mighty list of comic book heroes, including my favorites – The X-Men.

If you aren’t the comic-collecting type you might think your consumption of said heroes are limited to every kind of media but print. Not so! Marvel releases collected editions of almost every one of their newly released issues. These handy tomes make it easy to keep up with comics without being a issue-by-issue collector.

It’s a big week for X-collections, with my favorite X-book so far this year out in paperback! Plus, an overview of Marvel’s other new books for the week.

If this list isn’t enough to satisfy you, catch up on every X-Men book collection ever in my Definitive Guide to Collection X-Men in Graphic Novels, which address the collection(s) of every X-issue ever printed. Also, if you’re new to this whole comics racket, see my recent Intro to X-Men (on a budget) post.

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Collection of the Week:
Uncanny X-Force: The Apocalypse Solution TPB
Collects Uncanny X-Force #1-4 and material from Wolverine: The Road to Hell.

CK Says: Buy it! If you like X-Men and know who any one of Wolverine, Psylocke, Deadpool, or Fantomax are from other media, check out this book! It’s the best X-Men has been in the last two years. I read it three times consecutively when it first arrived in hardcover earlier this year.

New-to-X writer Rick Remender not only nails Wolverine and Fantomax and has a seemingly encyclopedic knowledge of X-history, but writes the best Psylocke of all time. Seriously: ever. Meanwhile, artist Jerome Opena contributes some of the most lush interiors any X-book has seen in some time, with vivid, painterly colors.

The plot? Wolverine puts together a top-secret kill-squad to deal with the return of major villain Apocalypse. The team has to go through his deadly horseman to confront him, and they’re in for a surprise when they do – one that will cause them to rethink joining the team. (Available for just a few dollars more in hardcover)

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There are three more X-books out this week, but you should avoid one of them like the Legacy Virus? Which one? [Read more…] about X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 8/30 Edition

X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 8/23 Edition

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Every week Marvel puts out graphic novels collection recent and classic comics. It’s a much cheaper and easier way to follow comic books than chasing down single issues (now $3-4 each!)

This week is light on X-Collections, though Marvel has a bevy of other books out.

As always, get the full scoop on every X-Men book collection ever in my Definitive Guide to Collection X-Men in Graphic Novels, which tells you how you can buy any X-issue ever printed. Also, if you’re just an X-Men dabbler, head over to my recent Intro to X-Men (on a budget) post.

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Collection of the Week:
FF by Jonathan Hickman, Vol. 1 Hardcover
Collects FF #1-5

CK Says: Buy it! It’s pretty rare to see a non-X-men recommendation at the top of my list, but this is a high quality comic. Fresh off of four volumes of incredible, must-read adventures, scripter Jonathan Hickman has transported Marvel’s first family to the top of the A-list of superheroes. Starting with Reed Richard’s compuction to solve all the world’s problems, the team was tipped on it’s ear – Reed saw his alternate-reality selves get slaughtered, Sue became a regent, Ben got to spend a day each month as a human, and  Johnny had to defend the residents of the Baxter Building against certain death. All the while, four cities of otherworldly humanoids declared war on each other, and on the team!

And that’s just a fraction of the insanity of the past 20 issues! Time travel! Cloning! Death!

FF is the result of all of that action. It’s not short for “Fantastic Four,” but for “Future Foundation” – what Mr. Fantastic coins the collection of refugee super-geniuses currently living in the Baxter Building. That means the comic is no longer just about four people in blue spandex. First of all, now they’re in pristine white spandex. And Spider-Man is on the team. But the new heart of the book isn’t Mr. Parker. It’s an expanded supporting cast – the Future Foundation made up of a dozen interesting characters. My favorite is Reed & Sue’s preternaturally genius pre-schooler, Valeria, who occasionally hatches troublesome plots with her god-father, Dr. Doom.

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X-Men Legacy: Collision TPB
Collects X-Men Legacy #238-241

CK Says: Buy it! X-Men Legacy has been on a roll since before Second Coming to present. Here Mike Carey detours from the angst of Utopia for a road trip to India with Rogue, Magneto, and a handful of former X-Men Academy students. Add to that Children of the Vault – the only quality X-Villains debuted in the past half decade (by Carey) – and you have an inessential-but-enjoyable four-issue arc that doesn’t require too much advance reading. That it includes beautiful, painterly covers with interiors penciled by outstanding fan-favorite artist Clay Mann only makes the read more fun. (Also available in hardcover)

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Keep reading for a summary of the rest of the books out from Marvel this week, including a street-level brawl headlined by Daredevil. [Read more…] about X-Men Hardcover & Trade Paperback Review, 8/23 Edition