Empire #5:
It's not very often that I'm genuinely surprised. As a writer, I often see plot developments coming at least a quarter mile away, as clearly as I can see a commercial break coming on a network sitcom. This issue of Empire managed to surprise me. In retrospect, I see how Waid planted the seeds long ago, and how everything that happened makes sense. Still ... it was nice to be surprised, somewhat. The Qaron that the writer hinted at in online coverage look like a deus ex machina, and their inclusion feels a little bit cheap, given the seriousness and gravity of the material involved. Mysteries come to a close and Golgoth is forced to deal with the consequences of who and what he has become, and I felt the ending to this issue was abrupt -- probably a less jarring read in a collected form. An interesting penultimate chapter.

G.I. Joe #24:
War is in the air, as everybody and their momma is headed for Cobra Island to lay the smackdown on somebody (with shades of the classic issue #74-75). Best of all is that an attack force the size of a regiment were able to cripple most of the US' most major cities. Almost ... too easy, especially in the post-9/11 era. There's a fun bit of character play with a captive yet still dangerous Cobra Commander, a wonderful nod to fans of the old Marvel series, and it's another great "gathering of forces" issue. Worth the time, still.

Caper #2:
Winick is at the top of his game in this title, a heavily textured and fascinating story about obligations and criminal intent. The dreaded Weiss Brothers become embroiled in a struggle somewhat similar to the one from Road to Perdition, where a hired gun goes against his master for reasons complex and related to emotion. My comics pusher Steve was recommending it, saying it was a great mix of action and story. Fine, fine work.

Punisher #36:
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! "Confederacy of Dunces" is the finest Punisher storyline since "Welcome Back, Frank." When backed up against the wall, Castle comes out with surprise after surprise, the biggest of all being a guest star you won't even recognize until six pages from the end. Ennis has the literal perfect balance between evil humor and graphic violence, with John McCrea's visuals dancing the line between slapstick and melodrama. I'll be sorry to see the laughs go away when this book shifts to the Max imprint soon, but wow is this a great way to go.

Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman: Trinity #3:
Wagner has a grasp of these three iconic characters that's simply splendid. His grasp of the modern interpretation of Bruce as a borderline lunatic, of Diana as the ambitious idealogue and of Clark as power and altruism personified -- every note of their interaction, from Bruce's weakness on Themyscria to Diana's warrior spirit (although the idea of her being evenly matched by the Demon's Head overstates him by a great deal). The wet cameo and the characterization on the girl Amazon Artemis were also a delight. The trinity of characters -- two boys, one always driven to compete, the other always amazed by the first's sheer drive, with the woman as a counterpoint in every way -- stands at the core of this tale of nuclear weapons and high flying pugilism, and makes it practically levitate. Again, fine, fine work.

G.I. Joe Frontline #17:
This one made the jump more because I got to the store at 7:30 PM (I had a bad experience) than because of anything else, but I was very pleased. Through a corrupted observer, Beachhead got some of the finest characterization (and proof that he's a bad ass) of any Joe in ... hell, years, with a well drawn and amusingly told story between Tim Seeley and Paul Jenkins. Yes, Paul Jenkins.

Wildcats 3.0 #16:
Grifter ... oooh. He's done something surprising, pulling a piece of Wildstorm continuity from waaaaay back (given some of the other books this week, it feels like the late eighties and early nineties all over again) and leaving a very dangerous piece of software somewhere that it certainly should not be (I have a feeling we'll be hearing from that "encrypted" bit of data again). Meanwhile Agent Wax continues his very dangerous game, Spartan continues his mad quest for "a finer world" (with commercials that would fly very solidly on network television) and some voices in the halls of power finally realize that change is coming and they don't know how to profit from it. When turning the pages, you can almost hear the ticking of a time bomb behind the scenes. This title is one of the finest slow boils on the stands, and clearly Casey's masterpiece.

JLA #90
Another casualty of timing (I had ... a bad ... experience!), this issue was sort of a walk down memories-yet-to-come lane. The question of Batman and Wonder Woman's romance ended the only way multi-billion dollar licensed properties could allow it to (no real spoiler there), but Kelly manages to make it tolerable and make sense. Even though, logically, it doesn't. A decent feat.

Buy Pile Breakdown: Despite some derivative energy in G.I. Joe and a show of commerce over character with Bats and WW, a good week for purchases.

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

Trouble #5:
I'm glad it's over.

Scion #41:
Ethan has Neo Syndrome, and a charter membership in the Dumb Hero Club. They deserve to die.

Losers #6:
I had to read this fast, but it felt like the other issues. There was a lot of shooting. That seemed good.

Silver Surfer #3:
Cosmic kidnappings. X-Files and Millennium leftover dialogue. Three issues in, and they've done a decent job at making Norrin Radd's motivations "alien," and not that good of a job of making them interesting.

Solus #8:
The Wizard's curtain is being pulled back, and some of the secrets are being revealed. I am very surprised to say that, at this stage of the game, I didn't really care.

JLA/Avengers #3:
There was a lot of funny stuff here, some good action, amazing artwork throughout, and some really jumbled and confused moments. It was a less than compelling installment.

Mystique #8:
This title is getting good enough -- and consistent enough -- to buy. Of course that means it's doomed.

Legion #27:
A much more mediagenic take on the Great Darkness Saga, it's better than last issue but still far to derivative for money.

Thor: Vikings #5:
A quickie ending with little Dr. Strange. He was all the real charm of the title. Oh well.

Reign of the Zodiac #4:
As always Doran's art is amazing, but I get the feeling this should have been a novel, as it's not really clear as a comic book.

Batman #621:
"100 Batarangs," er "Broken City" continues with Bat Noir and Killer Croc getting his dental work threatened for the second time in two months. Eh. At least "Hush" kept me interested for five months.

Read Pile Roundup: Several cuts due to time, and a less than compelling set of also-rans.

The hot side being hot made it all right that the cool side was ice cold. Tolerable.