Every week I go to the comic book store (Comics Ink at Overland and Braddock in Culver City, CA, hey Steve and Jason!) and grab a lot of comics. I sort these into two piles -- the "buy" pile (things I intend to spend money on, most often a small pile) and the "read" pile (often huge, including lots of stuff I don't actually like but wanna stay well informed about). In no particular order, here's some thoughts about all that.

NOTE: Due to me rushing this week, in expectation of a big announcement I'll be making in the next week or so, I completely forgot to pick up Reign of the Zodiac #2 while also delusionally believing that Y The Last Man #15 and Lobo Unbound #4 were gonna be out this week. Maybe they are out, and I just missed 'em at the store, but I doubt it. Anyway, that's why there's only one picture on this page (I did ones for Lobo and Y, dumb me). C'est la vie, onwards and review-wards ...

Empire #3:
Endymion speaks. This issue, one of two promising to delve into Golgoth's past, spotlights the last hero to fight against the only super villain to ever succeed and take over the world. Waid and Kitson are on their game here, as subplots advance carefully and the main story action is kept buoyant. I'm enjoying this series so much that I'm scared to pick up #6 in a few months, because that'll be all (for a while -- strong sales imply DC may front for a new mini or something). Exceptionally fine and intricate work here.

JLA-Z #1:
I was really excited to grab this ... only to find it's a vague set of pin ups, a veritable Tiger Beat for DC fans. Each "entry" has a short paragraph on the subject in question, does nothing to describe powers or special abilities, short shirts the origins (the Aquaman entry is particularly galling, as it misses all the irony the character has gotten over the past year or two) and on top of that, the art's not even all that good. Blah. I certainly won't be grabbing the next two issues, and I normally gravitate towards guidebooks. Despite the familiar look of the cover and art direction, I have to paraphrase an old political quote: I knew Who's Who, I've worked with Who's Who, and sir, this is no Who's Who!

Grendel: God & Devil #8:
The Grendel here is funnier than he's ever been, Orion Assante continues to build the seeds of the empire longtime Grendel fans know must come to pass, and storm clouds continue to gather. Wagner's pacing on this tale is absolutely perfect, throwing enough action and detail together to charm the reader along. Admittedly, new fans might not know what in the name of Eppy Thatcher is happening, but for what it's worth, this is a fine, fine read.

Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #6:
Stunticons. Starscream. Sweet Unicron eating, we've got Sunstreaker (who is, if you didn't know, my favorite Transformer of all time, even more so now). Yet another installment of Dreamwave's disturbingly complete guidebook has some of the same flaws and accomplishmemts of its predecessors -- no expanded coverage on super popular characters (Soundwave, Starscream, one page a pop) and tons more data than you'd have ever wanted on lesser knowns (Submarauder, Sixshot, etc.). Still, I love this thing, a dream for eBay hunting and reference.

Venture #4:
Alas, poor Venture ... I knew him well. The final issue brings the long awaited Celeste Noble guest appearance and a really fun fight scene that introduced a really smart point about media manipulation. This book was a lot better than people ever knew, and I'm sorry to see this final issue. The creators hope for more ... but in this economy, what can anybody really know of the future? Que sera sera ...

WildCATs 3.0 #14:
Every month this book drives deeper and deeper into Crazytown. I mean that in the best possible way. Jack Marlowe (the android CEO formerly known as Spartan) has used his economic clout to buy a movie company, largely as a promotional vehicle to springboard the new gas-less car the Halo Corporation is putting to market. Normal efforts of the old world order -- lobbyists and intimidation -- don't work, and it seems the "superhero company" can't be stopped. Meanwhile the Agent Wax subplot comes to a funny climax (one that the instigator can't fully control, without a gag) and Grifter brings his S&M boys back for a little larceny. I am always amazed at how much I like this title.

Buy Pile Breakdown: Short of my own stupidity and a misstep on the JLA front, I'm pretty well entertained.

Then there's the stuff on the "read pile" that I don't bring home ...

Born #4:
Ennis put an interesting twist on the Punisher mythos with a ending drenched in more blood than longtime fans may have ever seen. Frank Castle makes it out of Vietnam ... but boy is it ugly. I can't front -- I'll be looking for the softcover of this one very soon.

Brath #7:
I've always said Brath is too smart for it's own good. In its unerring historical fidelity, it's sacrificing some real story points. I didn't see one barbarian do anything ... barbaric. An attempted rape, sure, but first, eww and second it was over in a panel or two. The clan structure of Brath's tribe, combined with the "empire" standing in for Rome makes this book too political for what I'm looking for. Historical fiction fans may have a ball, but I'm probably done here.

Crimson Dynamo #2
God help me, this one was a really fun read. The combination of the heaviness of international intrigues and the goofiness of one Russian teenager make this book's chemistry literally fly off the page. The slow march of the Crimson Dynamo prototype armor across the Soviet mainland is funny and exciting, and the art doesn't stand in the way of the story (it works best on the teen lead, who looks just gawky and unsure enough). If the next issue is as good as the first two, I'll buy all three and consider myself a regular reader. Yowza.

Losers #4:
The art is serviceable but not always clear, and the double-triple-what-did-you-say-cross goes down in a fairly entertaining way. This book is good, but a long way from buy-ably good.

Domino #4:
Domino has a little brother. Oh, and her mom is precognizant. These aren't really story spoilers, trust me, as this issue is all about action. From its opening "credits" to the last "frame," this cinematic story has hit all the same buttons that the recent Reload mini did. Pop comics at its finest, this was a fun ride. Is it over?

Batman #619:
"Hush" has finally been revealed ... and I wasn't impressed. It wasn't Jason Todd at least. Still, the close to this story was a bit of a downbeat, although the addition of one final rogue did have a certain poetry to it. Batman's secret identity is now considerably more well known than, well, mine, and I don't know if that is such a good thing. Storywise, the issue (and the whole arc) is "serviceable" in my mind, and I'm beginning to think that Jim Lee could illustrate the phone book and make it a top seller. I'm glad I barely spent any money on this run.

Mystique #6:
Another tortured performance, another fun read. Marvel is nailing the pop comics thing this week, and this issue followed last week's Runaways in setting a fun status quo from which the title can proceed. The "Cuban Mutant Crisis" (my title, not Marvel's) ended with a satisfying "boom" and events here clearly happened before the latest issue of New X-Men (or not, who can tell these days).

Path #18:
I felt that this issue, like so many CrossGen issues I've read, is too "decompressed," doing in 22 pages what could have been done in 12. With The Path's original artist, I enjoyed the slower pace because the art made everything so pastoral and Zen. The new artist's sharper linework and more realistic rendering don't serve that pace as well, making it seem contrived. Nevertheless, another "background" player is exposed (almost every CG core book has one "deus ex machina" player lurking in the background) as the company marches towards War, their big "not a crossover." I liked it, but I can be certain that this title should stop monthly publication and go straight to trades.

Thor: Vikings #3:
Ennis' Doctor Strange is more entertaining than any incarnation I've seen in years. He uses Thor as a straight man in a bit of mystical detective work, pokes fun at himself, and grabs a collection of genetically-related murderers from several points in history. This title fell off a little last issue, but I'd say it's back in form. Two issues to go, to see whether or not a trade will be bought (as with Born) or if we've got another Blood & Water on our hands.

Silken Ghost #5:
The kung fu movie ended, as all good ones do, with a big fight scene and quiet denouement. I liked this title, and would enjoy a trade (if they'll still send me one -- c'mon CG).

Captain America #18:
Nazi busting action. I'm so bored of Nazis in stories. I'd swear this plays like any of a grillion "Bad Guy X Takes Over the US" stories I've seen and read in the last two decades. Adding a depowered FF to the mix just made it cornier to me. Ah well.

Solus #6:
This is the first issue I wasn't forced to buy, due to some world-shattering revelation about the foundations of the CrossGen universe. One big (and somewhat unclear, truthfully) fight scene on The First's Elysia. Ho hum.

Fantastic Four #504:
My notes have one word: "smarter." The secrets of Doom are starting to come to light, and they're every bit as bad as I'd have wanted. Reed has stopped acting like a super hero and started acting like a genius, swearing to clean up Victor's messes and leave him unarmed should he return from the dead. I'm actually really, really interested ... and had I not known that Waid was gonna be gone and all this would be for naught, I'd have bought this issue, one of the most refreshing takes on the concept I've ever seen (although I have no idea how FF purists and fans might take it).

Flash #202:
The story continues to bore, and now the art has gotten really muddled. Blah.

Hulk #61:
If Mulder or Bill Bixby never make an appearance in this title, I'll be very surprised. This tense, well dialogued issue was Hulk-free and bereft of destruction, as a mystery continues to unravel. It's about as good as Losers, in my not-so-humble opinion.

Green Lantern #169:
I couldn't make it past page five of this without being bored spitless. Sorry.

JLA #87:
The Burning, a new villain, is exactly who I thought he was. The cause has turned into considerably more of a wellspring for stories than I'd hoped -- I can off the top of my head think of seven or eight issues where the same "type" of menace has been fought (I don't wanna spoil it, but it's someone fans will know very well). Blah.

Punisher #32:
This issue spotlights supporting character Detective Soap. It's a sad sack tale, but funny in Ennis' mean way. The last page is "inappropriate" (according to my notes) but I'd say this title is virtually back to "Welcome Back, Frank" levels.

Legion #24:
Another "this could have been 12 pages" scenario, filled with cliche and an anticlimax at its heart. Blah.

Promethea #27:
Moore is a master of misdirection, and about three or four things were happening at once -- with the song, Promethea's travels, stuff in the background and Tom Strong -- and while I'll admit I'm not sure what all of it means, it was damned entertaining.

Read Pile Roundup: Lots of ups and downs this week, but more good than bad, I'd say.

It was a decent week, not great but not horrible, for comics. I'm not sure if I'll be doing reviews next week, due to the aforementioned announcement (I can't say what it is right now), but if so see you then, and if not thanks for the ride and I hope you'll join me on my next adventure.