Review: Batman and Robin #1

Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely? Doing Batman and Robin? I was sold right there. I loved their All-Star Superman. In fact, this would be All-Star Batman & Robin if Frank Miller and Jim Lee hadn't already started that one. Morrison and Quitely are all-star material. Heh, I bet Morrison and Quitely get 2 or 3 more issues out before the next All-Star Batman & Robin comes out ;-) But I digress... this is about this issue and not the dreadfully late Miller/Lee Batman & Robin.

All day yesterday I was looking forward to reading this issue. I finally sat down and read it after the kids went to bed. There was one distraction that kept me from enjoying it the first time through, but more about that a little later. I re-read the issue trying as best I could to ignore this distraction and I really enjoyed it. I thought it was very well written, exciting, and drawn very well. This is everything you could hope for in a Batman comic. Better Batman than I've read in quite a while. Can't wait for issue #2!

It was a little more stylized and cartoony that I expected, but it worked really well that way. If you like Frank Quitely's art in other things he has done, you'll like this. I absolutely LOVED how he draws the sound effect words into the action frames. The very first panel of the issue has "BOOM BOOM" written into an explosion behind a car. Very effective, very cool.

So, the distraction... and I never thought I'd be talking about this in a review, but I can't ignore it. The coloring. In Morrison and Quitely's All-Star Superman and their book WE3, they had Jamie Grant as their colorist. He complimented Quitely's art beautifully. I love everything about the pencils/inks/coloring in both of those books. For this series, Alex Sinclair is doing the coloring. I know him from his coloring work in All-Star Batman & Robin, Batman: Hush, Top 10, Tom Strong, and Identity Crisis. His work in Batman: Hush is probably the most impressive. Jim Lee drawing Batman is amazing and then what Sinclair did with it when he colored it was very impressive. I have the Absolute hardcover edition of Batman: Hush and it is stunning.

So, one would think that this would be a good move - to get Sinclair coloring Quitely's art for this new Batman and Robin series. Well, it wasn't. It was a complete disaster. I honestly thought that maybe the book had been misprinted or something and I had a defective copy. But I looked at scans and samples online and no, I had the same thing everyone else has. Almost all the backgrounds and a lot of the other filling colors look like they were taken into Photoshop and then reduced to 8 or 16 colors. The result is something that looks like a mistake or something that would come out of MS Paint. Here are a few samples of what I'm talking about:

There is no smooth color transitions, they are all very blunt and sharp... That's what happens when you don't have enough colors in your pallet to make the transition from one color to another. I can't get over it. I'm sitting here on my couch with 8 trades spread out on my coffee table of other things Alex Sinclair has done and I just don't get it. I'm shaking my head in frustration, because I can't let this go. It just looks THAT BAD.

Now, if anyone knows about a misprinting or something, please let me know! I want to think this is just a mistake that somehow slipped by and that there will be another printing or at least the next issue won't look like this. I guess I'll cross my fingers and pray for the best. I've also noticed that nobody else is complaining about or noting the terrible coloring in reviews online. Could I really just be that picky that it doesn't matter to most people? *sigh*

*update*: Douglas Wolk over at The Savage Critic(s) noticed and commented on the coloring too, "I don't know about the weird pixelated colors Alex Sinclair is using for a lot of the backgrounds..."

Watchmen Movie Review

Knowing that I am a comic geek and have been very excited about this film for quite some time, several people have been asking for my thoughts on the movie. I am attempting to put my thoughts together here now after having seen the movie twice now. I will say right up front though that I am very biased. I am a fan of the graphic novel and I don't think I will be able to objectively set myself apart from that when reviewing the Watchmen movie.

Casting:

Spot on! I can not imagine anyone better for any role. It was as if the characters from the graphic novel jumped out of the comic and started walking and talking on screen. It was incredible. Seeing and hearing Rorschach was the most fun, closely followed by the Comedian. But really, the entire cast was perfect. These really were the characters from the graphic novel brought to life.

Acting/Character Development:

I am not able to objectively review this. To me, a fan of the source material, the entire cast embodied the characters of the graphic novel. All performances were excellent and I loved them. Not sure where to put this one gripe I have, so this is as good a place as any. I was really distracted by the terrible makeup job of Nixon and Sally Jupiter (Silk Spectre I). Nixon's nose looks like it is so heavy and flabby it is about to fall off. Sally's makeup when she is old and her wig look incredibly fake. It's not that hard to make young actors look old. It has been done well in many films. Those were the only times I felt like I was disengaged and judging the film. I wish that had been done better.

Soundtrack:

The soundtrack was not what I was expecting at all. I was expecting the music from the trailers and that was there, but it was not the overall feel of the music. I loved it. It was different and unexpected and fit surprisingly well.

Fanboy Moments:

Way too many to count! From the opening scene to the end, there are so many treats for fans of the graphic novel. It really is an enjoyable experience. Zack Snyder did an amazing job of adapting the comic to the big screen. I think the more familiar you are with the source material, the more you will enjoy this film. Scene after scene, shot after shot - done perfectly to reflect the comic as best as possible. Excellent.

Content Advisory:

This movie is not for kids. This movie is not for many adults. The graphic novel is very adult in nature and the movie doesn't remove that at all. I was actually very surprised what they allow to pass as an 'R' rated film today. If this movie were made a few years ago it probably could have pulled an 'NC-17' rating. If you care and want a detailed content review, check here or here. I only make mention of it because there is some pretty extreme content and if you are offended by sexual content or violence/gore, you may want to review that in advance.

** Minor Spoiler Alert **
Please know that by continuing I will be revealing minor plot spoilers
**

Deviations/Omissions from the Graphic Novel:

There were very few deviations from the book. The most notable change was the ending, but I'll talk about that later with a stronger spoiler warning. A change that bothered me at first was the flashback when Rorschach is talking to the psychiatrist about when he became Rorschach. In the graphic novel, he ties the murderer up and burns him and the house up. In the film, he takes a meat cleaver and repeatedly hacks into his skull. At first I didn't like the deviation, but the more I thought about it, the more I liked the change. It was good and fits well in the graphic novel written in 1986/1987, but would an audience of 2009 get the same impact and feel that turning point in Rorschach's life when Walter Kovac died for good in that moment and there was only Rorschach left? The scene in the film was very striking and it did an excellent job of conveying the psychological and emotional change that the character went through in making that leap and transition, making him what he is presently. I'm okay with the change now.

There were many omissions simply for time's sake. Although, I must say, I did not leave the theater wishing I had seen anything else. The omissions were necessary and very well done. I need to read the graphic novel again now though and make a list of things I would have liked to see in the movie. As it stands in my memory now though, nothing.

One change that did bother me was the scene with Nite Owl and Silk Spectre II having sex in the Owl Ship. That scene was unnecessarily exaggerated and lengthened. I don't think it added to the movie experience at all. I would feel differently if more time was spent in the graphic novel on that scene, but it isn't. I would have rather seen it portrayed as it was in the book and given as much time as the book gives it and added more time elsewhere. I also think it was unnecessarily explicit.

** MAJOR SPOILER ALERT **
** The text below is the same color as the background of this blog. Highlight the text to read it

**

Okay, the ending. It is no longer the alien squid ending. Adrian instead uses bombs of energy, that look like Dr. Manhattan's energy signature, to destroy several major cities and kill millions of people. Dr. Manhattan is blamed and this unites the world against their now common enemy. World peace is achieved, the heroes are faced with the same decision of exposing Adrian's lie and losing world peace or letting him get away with it. Manhattan still leaves the galaxy, Rorschach still dies, the bad guy still "wins", and the same questions about right and wrong and ends justifying the means - those are all still there. And you know what? I think it was a good move. I think Snyder's ending works well for the movie. It doesn't change the emotions of the film or the outcome. It just makes it a little simpler and probably works as a better ending for a movie than the graphic novel ending would have.

** End of spoilers **

Overall/Conclusion:

Fabulous! A near perfect adaptation of an incredible graphic novel. I've seen it twice and have plans made to see it at least twice more in theaters. The minor issues I have with the film are really that... minor. This really is the graphic novel come to life... and that's awesome! I give Watchmen a 9.5 out of 10.

Review: Batman R.I.P.

Brilliant! Insane! Wonderful! Nuts!

If you haven't read much Batman, this may not be the best volume to pick up, but if you are familiar with recent Batman stories, this is absolutely brilliant.

The art is wonderful and the writing is superb. I loved every page. It is a beautifully twisted tale that reminds me why I love Batman so much.

I will be reading this again within the next few weeks.

Batman Cacophony #2

Well, after the disaster of issue #1 of this series, I was not expecting much going into issue #2. But, I tried to put my qualms with the first issue behind me and look at this new material objectively.

I don't know if it was Walter Flanagan's laughably bad drawing of Batman or if it was Kevin Smith's equally laughable (but also raunchy) depiction of the Joker... but whatever it was, I was done with it after the first panel of page 8 (Batman kicks the Joker between the legs and the Joker has the line, "Oooohhh... the twins didn't like that..."). I finished reading the comic, but I don't know why. This is issue #2 of 3 and there is no way I'm going to waste any more money just to collect the last issue or see how the story ends up. Yes, it was that bad.

Stay away. Very far away. This is poorly written and drawn even worse. I love Batman. I can usually even enjoy the bad Batman stories simply because they are Batman, but this is worse. I didn't want to write a review based on the first issue alone, so I waited until after this issue. Well, it didn't get better, it got worse.

I don't like giving negative reviews. Usually, if I don't like an issue, I just won't review it, but this deserved a post. The best thing about this issue is the Adam Kubert cover. If Kubert were doing the interior art, this book might be worth buying just for that. I would love to see him drawing a Batman book... but he's not.

Okay, I need to stop. Anyone else already read this? Am I off my rocker for hating it so badly? Is there something I'm missing?

Kevin Smith should stick to doing movies and stay out of comics.

Marvels: Eye Of Camera #2

Okay, I reviewed the first issue here, so I won't go into the background again now =o)  I really don't want to spoil any part of the story either, because I'm giving this a high recommendation as well. So, this "review" is going to be short.

This is a great issue. It is issue #2 of 6. If you didn't pick up the first issue, I recommend trying to get a copy and then get this one too. This continuation of the Marvels story is great. Or, if you prefer trades, I'm sure this will be collected in a trade and sit right next to the original Marvels on many fans' shelves. If it stays this good, I'll be buying the trade also.

Kurt Busiek, alternate/different look at the Marvel universe, fun, excitement, wonderful art, all-ages content... what's not to like about this? Go get it today!

Incognito #1

Wow! Two Icon/Marvel titles the same week - and both of them stellar issues!

I first became familiar with Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips with their book Sleeper. Then, I started reading Criminal. I really enjoy Criminal and Sleeper was great, so naturally, when I saw a new series by the same creative team, my ears perked.

Incognito is a story about an ex-super-villain who is now in some sort of witness protection program and his struggle to stay content living a normal life. He works as a file clerk, hates his job, can't make friends, his parole officer is being replaced by a new guy who is a real jerk...

We learn a little about his past in flashbacks that fit surprisingly well in the story. The timeline of the story jumps around a lot, but I never felt confused or thought the flashbacks were out of place. It worked very well in the story. This was a great first issue of introduction. I can't wait to see what Brubaker does with this character in this world. I'm sold.

This is another Icon published title due to the content, so just know that going into it. If you have read Criminal, you know what to expect ;-)

Kick-Ass #5

Sitting down to read this issue, I had to think back to try and remember where the story was. Issue 4 came out about 5 months ago I think. That is ridiculous. That's like All-Star Batman and Robin bad as far as release schedule. Sheesh! 5 months between issues? Really? I don't care if there is a movie being made or creators are busy or whatever - that is TOO long to wait between issues.

Release schedule aside, this is a great issue that continues a great series. Mark Millar keeps surprising me and this issue is no exception. But in case you are not familiar with the series, let me tell you a little about it without ruining the surprises.

Dave Lizewski is just a normal geeky kid. He becomes tired of just reading about superheroes in his comic books and decides that the world could use real people stepping up and being heroes. So he does. He puts on a ski suit and goes out to fight crime. It doesn't start well and goes from bad to worse - much like you would expect it to if this were real life. Things get better, he makes friends, pretends to be gay so he can get closer to a girl he likes, and continues his superhero journey.

This is a very unique blend between the real world and the world of comics and superheroes. Marvel decided to publish this title under their Icon imprint with a rating of "Max: Explicit Content" because Mark Millar is not exactly family friendly. Yeah, this is far from an all-ages title. John Romita Jr.'s art is fabulous! He really brings the story to life like nobody else could.

Aside from a moment in the 1st or 2nd issue (been too long to remember which it was in), this issue was my favorite. I highly recommend this book. Since the previous issues are so old now it might be hard to find back issues. And, at the rate they are being released, it might be years before we see a trade paperback of the collected series. So, if you can get your hands on it, read it! You won't be disappointed. This is a very fresh and fun story. A+!

Wormwood Gentleman Corpse: Down The Pub

Yesterday was a special day for me. A new Ben Templesmith issue came out. Even better than that, Ben Templesmith is the writer as well as the artist. He is an amazing artist, unlike anything else out there, but he is also a good writer. Recently another Templesmith authored and illustrated story was finished, Welcome to Hoxford. I get so excited when these books come out because I know I'm going to enjoy them. And this issue was no exception.

If you are not familiar with Templesmith's book Wormwood Gentleman Corpse, have no worries, this issue is complete. It is a one-shot and has a beautiful synopsis at the beginning to being you up to speed on Wormwood. This is not a spoiler for other stories or something that depends on other stories. It is truly stand-alone and that is essential for a good one-shot. So, if you haven't read Wormwood before, go pick this up - don't let that stop you.

Another great thing about this issue is that it is a 29 page story completely uninterrupted by advertisements. There is one (maybe 2, I don't remember) at the very end of the issue, like on the back page or something - but there are no ads between story pages. I love that. It allows you to stay saturated in the world of the story - without distraction. That's important. Good job IDW and Templesmith! I'll pay a slight premium for less ads or ads in the back instead. Good move.

This issue is three mini-issues in one. Each little story is a very fun read and illustrated beautifully. I cannot praise Templesmith highly enough for his art. It really is amazing. It is so different from anything else out there too. I would love to see a video about his process. I think it is sketch -> watercolors -> scan -> Photoshop, but I really have no idea. 

His book Fell that he did with Warren Ellis was where I first became familiar with his work. I don't really know how to better explain his style than to show more samples from his Flickr gallery of pictures from this issue.

Well, I bet you didn't see this coming, but I highly recommend this issue! And if you are not familiar with Ben Templesmith, this would be a good introduction. Also, check out my review of Welcome to Hoxford. The trade paperback will be out soon.

My only disappointment with this issue has nothing to do with the issue itself. I ordered 10 copies of this issue through my local comic shop so that I could get the variant cover for this issue, but due to a Diamond order mix-up, the variant did not ship. My comic shop is trying to straighten it out with Diamond, so we'll see what happens. Hopefully they will ship the variant. It's a pretty cool looking sketch cover.

Ben Templesmith has a very active blog and he's on Twitter! Subscribe and follow him!

Amazing Spider-Man #580

Well, coming right after a perfectly executed Mark Waid 2-part Spider-Man arc, this issue was destined to be not as good. New creative team I'm not familiar with (Roger Stern & Lee Weeks), single issue "story arc" (can it be a story arc if there is only 1 issue?), and only 6 days since I read that awesome story... my spidey senses were telling me to not have my hopes up too high.

All that said, this issue was great! It was another fun-filled Spider-Man story with suspense, a little mystery, and plenty of heroics. How they pulled off all that (and did it well) in 22 pages is beyond me.

In this story we meet The Blank, a man who is completely gray and has some kind of teflon type suit or force-field around him that makes Spidey's web not stick and bullets bounce off. He makes the mistake of endangering Aunt May and Spider-Man is on a mission to take him out.

I enjoyed the art in this book, it has a very nice look to it. It wasn't perfect though. Spider-Man looked great in every panel, but it felt a little like stop-motion instead of being fluid. I don't know if it was panel progression or the way action was drawn, but I wasn't completely sold on the action sequences. Good, but not great.

The story was great - another fun Spider-Man issue. Recommended for all ages.

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #5

Cover artist: Terry Moore

Writer: Terry Moore

Pencils & Inks: Craig Rousseau

TWO Terry Moore books in ONE WEEK?! I've died and gone to heaven! This book is Moore writing what he writes best - a story about relationships. This is not a Spider-Man book. Heck, it's not even a superhero book at all. This is Mary Jane's high school story. It's about drama class, math class, good friends, jocks, geeks, friendship, love, and hatred. It's a Marvel title, yes, but don't let that fool you. This is a Terry Moore relationship story set in the Marvel Spider-Man world... when Peter Parker and Mary Jane are in high school.

I wrote more about the first two issues on another blog.

Sadly, this is the final issue of this series. I absolutely loved it. The issue and the series. I'll be picking up the TPB when it comes out because I know I'm going to want to re-read this story a few times as well as loan it out.

Craig Rousseau did great with the art I was not familiar with his work before this series, but I will definitely be checking out his other works. Having said that, I would have preferred seeing Terry Moore draw this book as well as write it. He is a wonderful artist as well as a writer. I love his style.

Highly recommended! Especially if you are tired of the superhero books and want something a little fuzzier =o)

Echo #8

Wow, this series gets better with each issue. We finally begin to see what Julie is really capable of! But I'm ahead of myself - some of you might not be familiar with Echo, so I should introduce it.

Julie Martin was taking pictures in the desert when she witnessed an explosion in the sky. A metallic substance rained down from the sky, sticking to her and to her truck. Once she is home and inspects her truck, more of the pieces fly from the truck to her skin. She tried to remove it, but it only spreads. It covers most of her chest and shoulders. What she doesn't know is that what rained down on her in the desert was a private/government company's battle suit... Now she is on the run and things have been getting more and more exciting.

Terry Moore is the author, artist, and cover artist. He does an incredible job telling this story. It is engaging, fun, suspenseful, and smart. The art is incredible. Each issue has been better than the last - and that is saying something, because I fell in love with it after reading the first issue.

There are several surprises along the way and I don't wait to spoil them. I will say that issue #8 was the most exciting issue so far. I highly recommend this series. A+ writing / A+ art! It makes me want to go back and read the first 7 issues again and it leaves me dying for issue #9.

Token TPB

Token, written by Alisa Kwitney and drawn by Joëlle Jones, is one of the last Minx books that we'll ever see, because DC has decided to shut down their young-adult line. That's very sad, because I have really enjoyed the Minx books I've read. I know they are targeted to younger (primarily female) readers, but for some reason I've really enjoyed them.

In Token, Shira is a 15 year old girl living in Miami. The story is set in 1987 and I didn't really understand why. I mean, why not set it today? There wasn't anything relevant to the time period that wouldn't have been relevant today. That just seemed a little odd... but I digress.

Shira's mother died many years ago and her father has always treated her like a princess... until he starts to fall in love with his secretary. Shira feels like she is losing her father because he is simultaneously becoming more critical of her and spending less time with her. Shira doesn't fit in at school and doesn't have many friends. Her best friend is an eighty year old woman.

Feeling lost and getting more and more lonely, Shira falls for a boy she barely knows and falls into some bad habits.

I enjoyed the story, but felt a little lost in the ending. I would have liked to see a little more resolution in plot elements. But don't get me wrong, it was a very fun book. It is a good exploration of the uncertainty in life that teenagers have.

The art is fantastic. Joëlle Jones is a local Portland, Oregon artist, but I had never heard of her before this book. I will be looking for other books she has drawn, because I really enjoyed the art in this book. Very well done. 

I'll put this book on the shelf and probably read it again in a couple years. It would be a good book to introduce someone to the comic world with. It is about as far away from the stereotypical comic book as they get.

B+/A- : I really enjoyed the story, but I thought it ended a little weak. The art was very solid and Jones really showed she could draw a variety and do it well. Recommended.

X-Men Noir #1

This book was recommended to me by a few people, so I made my way back to Tony's Kingdom of Comics this evening to pick up a copy. I almost picked it up yesterday, but for some reason I didn't. I like the X-Men, but I have been reluctant to start reading X-Men books because there are so many of them. I don't even know how many monthly books there are, but there are a lot. It's almost its own world - just the X-Men. But this book is different. This can be read on its own because it is very different.

X-Men Noir is an alternate world story set in the 30's to 50's, no date is given and it's hard to tell exactly. Fedoras, trench-coats, and the cars make it obviously in that range though. I have not read many else-world stories and I have never read an else-world X-Men story (I don't know if there have been any), so for me, this was new and different just in that respect.

I am also a fan of the noir style. The art was good, but not excellent in that regard though. It could have been more "noir-like" with deeper shadows, less color (maybe even B&W), and more stylized. Facial expressions also seemed a bit drab - to be nit-picky about things. Don't get me wrong, it was good... it just wasn't Frank Miller's Sin City (but really, what ever could be?).

I'm sold on the concept of the book - I love it! The X-Men are the bad guys (with apparently no mutant powers) and the Brotherhood are the good guys. This first story arc (is it only going to be one story or will there be many? I have no idea...) appears that it will be about solving the murder of Jean Grey.

This book takes the roles of the X-Men characters, reverses them, takes away their powers, plops them in a 1940's noir world, and starts a crime-mystery. I like that. I'll be buying issue 2 when it comes out in January.

Two quick last gripes: the book has "parental advisory" on the front and yet they still block out the swearing in the book. It's no mystery what words are muffled by the black box over them and they have a parental advisory... so why bother with the black boxes? It's annoying and detracts from the story as you are reading. Also, there are a lot of ads. They stick out more in this book because it is darker and more stylized. I have also been reading mainly trades with no ads lately, so they stick out to me more anyway. Those are minor complaints, but I wanted to share them anyway. Those last 2 complaints are more complaints with Marvel and DC mainstream books in general though, not this particular issue.

I liked it. It was good. The writing was solid, the art was average/good, and the concept was excellent. I recommend this one. I'll be anxiously awaiting issue #2.

Here are a couple pages:

The Umbrella Academy: Dallas #1

Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá are back for another Umbrella Academy mini-series! If you haven't read The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite, I would highly recommend picking up the trade of that one. And that is a must before starting this new story. There is a recap on the inside cover of this first issue, but it would make a lot more sense if you've read the first book. Besides, it's a great story =o)

This issue is great! It brings us up to speed on where the characters are, it is action-packed, and it sets up a cliff-hanger ending where the world is apparently doomed  =o)

Also, it is worth noting that this is a $2.99 lengthy issue with zero advertisements in it. Not quite as awesome that way as Warren Ellis's Fell issues at $1.99 with no ads, but it's close.

My favorite panel is Number Five yelling, "I am a gazelle and the jungle is my home!" You'll have to read the issue to know the context. Highly recommended! Very refreshing and different.

Amazing Spider-Man #579 (& #578)

I really like Spider-Man as a superhero. I almost always enjoy reading Amazing Spider-Man. It is a great all-ages fun comic book that never disappoints. One thing that is especially refreshing about Amazing Spider-Man is that the creative teams are always changing on the book. I enjoy seeing fresh new takes on Spider-Man and the villains - it's fun.

Every so often a creator comes on the book and I get really excited because I recognize the name as a favorite of mine. Such was the case for these last 2 issues. Mark Waid, a superstar in comics, authored this 2-part story. I instantly recognized Waid from 52 and Kingdom Come. I'm sure he's done a lot more and even more that I have read, but I can't remember off the top of my head. Anyway, he is a good story-teller and a good superhero writer. That got me excited.

This opening panel really set the tone at the beginning of #578:

Spider-Man perched above the city eating take-out Chinese food =o)  A few months ago there was a similar panel of Spider-Man sipping a Starbucks coffee. I really like that. It keeps the book real and fun. So anyway, on to the story...

Peter Parker is on his way somewhere when the Shocker attempts to crush the subway car Peter is on. It is a very fun Spider-Man story with a little twist/side-plot involving J. J. Jameson, but I won't give it away. I recommend this 2 part story-arc. It was fun, well written, with excellent art. Plenty of action and have I mentioned fun yet?  ;-)

EDIT/UPDATE (12/8/08):  I re-read these 2 issues and I feel like I didn't do this story justice in my review. This story is about as perfect of a Spider-Man story as you could have. It really was exceptional. I was thinking back on it and thinking, "how could it have been better?" I couldn't think of anything that would have made it better. It was a perfect story. Highly recommended.

Hellboy: The Wild Hunt #1

Mike Mignola (author) and Duncan Fegredo (artist) continue their Hellboy story in this new 8-part series. Their last run together was excellent and is available in trade form: Hellboy: Darkness Calls. It is not necessary to read that before picking up this story though. This first issue begins to setup the story. Hellboy is summoned to help hunt a group of giants with a group of giant hunters. There is a surprise waiting in the story that I don't want to spoil. If you like Hellboy, this is a good start to a story. Mike Mignola never disappoints and Duncan Fegredo's art is spot-on for Hellboy. This is what Hellboy books are about. I can't wait to see where this story goes. It is setup well. Makes me wish I were reading it in a trade though, there is a cliff-hanger ending and I want more!

Batman #682

Well, Batman R.I.P. is over. Since many people have not read it yet, I will not spoil anything. The crossovers into other books did nothing for R.I.P., so just picking up the Batman R.I.P. Hardcover in February would be a really good idea if you want the whole story. I'll be buying it. It was a great story. Grant Morrison, while not the best Batman author IMO, does a very good job.

Didn't Batman #681 just come out last week? Two Batman books back to back weeks? Wow. I like it =o)

First of all Alex Ross gives a great cover to this issue. He has been doing Batman covers for awhile now and they are really exceptional. Most covers have little to do with the contents of the issue, but this one does well. In this issue we essentially see Batman's story recapped. We see the villains, Robin, Nightwing, etc. all fly by.

I was not greatly impressed with the apparent need for this recap or the way it was done. The art was average, but I am partial to Frank Miller and Jim Lee, so take what I say there with a grain of salt.

I'll probably always buy every issue of Batman because I like the character. This is not the best Batman issue I've ever read, but it certainly isn't the worst either. It was "meh." Probably necessary in the story, but it could have been half the pages or less. With the unimpressive art, this issue just kind of drug on... If you aren't reading Batman right now, go read Batman R.I.P. instead of picking up here ;-)

Marvels: Eye of the Camera #1

Okay, brief background on this one. Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross did Marvels back in the mid-90's. If you have not read Marvels, go to your nearest comic book shop or online and buy it! It is a must read. It is the story of Phil Sheldon, a photographer in New York. The story is about him and him viewing the Marvel universe of characters. The original series, now in trade paperback and hardcover, is one of the best comics ever made. Because of this, I was skeptical of this new Marvels story. I was also skeptical because Alex Ross is not on the project. What Ross and Busiek did with Marvels was incredible and it would be very hard for something to live up to that legacy.

Well, this issue is a really good start! Most of this issue is a recap of Phil Sheldon and setting up the story. There are a couple major plot elements near the end and I won't spoil those, because I am recommending this comic as a must buy. Jay Anacleto is doing the art and I must say, I was very impressed. I am a big Alex Ross fan and I was very disappointed to hear that he wasn't doing the art. I was even more disappointed when I heard Jay Anacleto was doing the art. The name meant nothing to me. I have no idea what else he has done. But after reading this issue, I'll be looking to see what else he has done. His art was amazing. It rivaled Ross' art from the original series.

Kurt Busiek is a wonderful story-teller and this issue does not fall short there either. It is masterfully told and very enjoyable. Now, I am already invested in Sheldon from the first series, so a lot of that carries over. But, I would imagine most people reading this have read the first. Highly recommended! This is also a comic for all ages. I eagerly await the next issue!

Welcome to Hoxford #4

I discovered Ben Templesmith's latest work a couple months ago when issue #2 came out. Welcome to Hoxford is a 4 issue miniseries that just concluded last week. I cannot give this book a strong enough recommendation. However, it is not for everyone. To label this book "mature" would be an understatement. This is gory, freaky, suspenseful, bloody, violent, and at times, disgusting. So, just know that going into it. Having said that, this is the best horror comic I think I have ever read. Ware-wolves praying on the inmates of a mental hospital/prison.

I love Ben Templesmith's artwork and this story shows that he has a lot more than art to give to comics. This book is his idea and he wrote it as well. Excellent story, suspenseful, beautiful artwork... and it's very refreshing to see such a different take on an old concept of monsters.

I give this series a 10/10.

Oh, and follow Ben Templesmith on Twitter! He's a hoot!