Daredevil #64:
Jumped from the Read Pile. There was so much right with this issue, and it was all balanced with such a tender touch, and it was all so beautifully depicted by Alex Maleev ... i couldn't leave this at the store. To whit: Nick Fury is in rare form, using no Bendis-Speak (tm) but keeping all the gruffness and smarts he deserves. Matt Murdock's ongoing dramas with the NYPD provided some chuckles, while Natasha the Black Widow was also in rare form (who has a translation of what she was saying in French?), outsmarting Jigsaw with simple misdirection and playing by the rules. Natasha then gets the favor returned by Matt, who dutifully sits still while the game goes on, and Natasha gets the best line of the issue (and maybe the week), saying "You know what? Next week you'll be lying in bed ... and all of a sudden it'll dawn on you ... you should have slept with me when you had the chance." Hi-freakin-larious. The final scenes with divorced couples really hit a strong note for me as well, especially Matt and Milla in the rain, which was both tender and smart. Fine, fine work all around -- if this series were always like this, I'd be a regular buyer instead of a sporadic one.

Fierce #3:
Remember when Marvel promised that Max Cage book would have all the rhythms and nuances of Blaxploitation flicks? All they needed was Love -- Jeremy and Robert take their party to the mean streets of Kingston, with a perfectly gloomily colored tableau (think Mel Gibson in Payback) and art that's perfectly mixed between exaggerated Vice City stylings and realistic hard lines. The problem of competing voices in his head was solved with different colored speech balloons, and this series gets better and better with each issue. Tense, gently nuanced (I loved the Selassie splash image) ... really solid stuff here.

Madrox #1:
Jumped from the Read Pile. Peter David makes Madrox part Monk and part madman with spiffy art from Pablo Raimondi and Drew Hennessy (the rainfall panel was really kind of beautiful). The casting is flawless, the "personalities" on the dupes is fascinating, and even Guido's wildly expository monologues over drinks fit in well. Very interesting stuff, and with enough weirdness up front (instead of secreted in scant panels, like in Fallen Angel) that I can't help but be drawn in.

Human Target #14:
Again Christopher Chance wanders in to trouble, taking on the life of a nascent cult leader in training (apologies to Peter J. Harris), who inadvertantly draws the crosshairs of a random bad man. This issue, and this series, is like a well oiled machine, allowing Milligan to point a light at some of the wackiness in the world without making judgements. Again, really fine work (if a little less zippy than some past issues).

Transformers War Within Vol. 3: The Age of Wrath #1:
While it's clear Grimlock is still a shining star here (having no fewer than three great character moments), I loved the opening section of doubt from Ultra Magnus, cursing the name of Prime. Starscream, as always, is deliciously malicious and Shockwaves brusque business-like manner is almost refreshing. Plus, from a fanboy perspective, points for working in Slamdance on a simulcast, a really good use of the character. I'd have liked the coloring to be just a touch brighter, but it's a minor complaint in an interesting character study of the "old days" of Cybertron with a real master at work.

JLA Secret Files & Origins 2004:
Jumped from the Read Pile. I normally have very low expectations of these Secret Files stories, which are just filler to keep the book from having all profiles. Joe Kelly really shows up and brings his "A" game on "Same Coin," a story told from the Flash's perspective as he tries to balance being on both the JLA and the JLElite. While getting some great moments in with Vera Black, Green Arrow and Superman, he really shows an interesting side of Wally (more interesting, sadly, than his own title) while making credible threats and bringing on the Spear of Destiny in a wild ride that's much better than I counted on. Add some solid facts (such as the fact Coldcast has a lot in common with the X-Men's Bishop) and hints at future issues (with this Red King fellow, a 21st Century Duplicate Boy, and the long-languishing Ultramarines), it even managed to get me more interested in JLElite, which was already drawing my attention like a dreadlocked woman in a tight wrap skirt. A really pleasant surprise

Buy Pile Breakdown: Even at the price, damned worth it, as every issue this week has great re-readability.

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

Fantastic Four #518:
In hugely high-concept form, Manhattan is being hurled into the sun in order to destroy one singular thing that can defeat a widely-used countermeasure against world-munching entity Galactus eating planets. That's freakin' cool. I guessed what the reveal was a page and a half before it happened, but I was flying along so that didn't bother me. 'Ringo and Waid are a comic-creating machine here, skilfully balancing disaster movie tension with really good character interaction (I loved the bit between Johnny and Ben), all the while jamming page after page with mad ideas. Despite not being so pleased with the last issue, this was very close to a purchase, but I had three jumps already and it was just that -- close. Still damned interesting reading.

Gotham Knights #57:
Spoiler is quickly becoming the Kim Bauer of the Bat-verse. Fans of the Fox series 24 know that most of the time when Kim Bauer is on screen, stupid things are about to happen (and guys will look at her chest). Sans the mammary enticements, Spoiler (especially at the end here) is that problem in a nutshell. The Bat figures out that he really should stop leaving really dangerous plans lying around on his widely accessed computer, and everybody is now on the same page as to what happened and why (despite having no time to yell at Bruce about it). A cute issue with some decent action and some inadvertant laughs, including a very bad day to be Orpheus, but a wholly plugged-in chapter of the crossover and less meritorious on its own.

G.I. Joe/Transformers Volume 2 #1:
Cobra Commander, channeling his TV show persona, leads a rag-tag group of Joes and Cobras to Cybertron, which leads to all kinds of things going wrong. If the end result wasn't Jazz ending up a pimp's Cadillac in the 1970s, I'd barely remember this story at all, but that touch really worked for me. Not enough to buy, with the wildly contrived plot and largely scattershot characterization (although I did like Bumblebee's grumbling), but a kooky way to blow six or seven minutes.

Identity Crisis #4:
The tension and suspense is ratcheted up, as everybody's tense (I loved the last page "scare tactic"), a table full of super villains lays low while playing Risk (and I am not at all surprised to see the guy calling out the future moves still alive, we've always been at war with Eurasia) and heroes snap at one another. Nothing much happened, but Brad Meltzer keeps you on the edge of your seat with the promise that it might. From a craft standpoint it's quite an issue (and Green Arrow was great), even if from an "overall story" standpoint it kind of stood in place.

Invaders #2:
This issue was humming along smartly, with Jim Hammond being revealed as the leader of the V-Battalion and the Invaders getting themselves a cool transdimensional battleship as a floating HQ and platform for mayhem. Then the last pages showed up, and I sighed as the ghosts of the past simply cannot die, and there's just no room for new ideas to come along and be interesting. That made me sad. So sad I put the issue back on the shelves and sighed loudly.

Megacity 909 #1:
The art really caught my attention, an interesting visual style which has elements of painting, computer artwork and manga. The story -- basic dystopian future with mysterious invaders and a rag-tag group of human freedom fighters -- is nothing special, and made less accessible to me by characters with names that are unusual in a bad way. Far below the radar for piquing my interest, but pretty.

Iron Man #88:
There's somebody else in the Iron Man suit. I think I know who it is, but I'm not sure -- the self-referential notes to recent issues in Iraq didn't jog my memory because no characters in those issues stuck when I first read it. Anyway, of course Tony had an old suit lying around (which may have been the problem) and there's a fight and ... oh who cares, this comic will be revamped/cancelled in a couple of months anyway, and with writing like this, perhaps that's best.

Youngblood Genesis #1:
When I saw the four variant covers and the fact that a book from Rob Liefeld actually hit the stands, I checked my PDA and asked several people, to be sure I didn't accidentally fall back into 1993 (in which case I could go warn myself of a variety of things ... but ah well). Then, when I saw the club-like three-fingered fist on the cover, and noticed the dangerously low production values (there's a conversation in captions that takes real focus to understand who's who, as there's no difference in colors or what have you, and the lettering looks like it was done on an Apple IIe), it almost distracted me away from the lackluster scripting and the Crayola-styled coloring. Without a doubt, a solid contender for "worst issue of the year," pulling ahead of Superman/Batman #6 on production values alone. I don't think I remember any real details of what happened, and the characters (such as they were) were even more two dimensional than the paper they're photocopied on. Wow.

Strange #1:
I read this whole thing online at Mile High's site a few weeks ago, and noticed no changes when I flipped through it. It's a great show of "pride goeth before a fall," as Stephen Strange sets himself up to lose it all in an almost Freudian fit of pique and hubris. Given that he ended up with greater powers (and, of course, greater responsibility, natch ... this is almost like Smallville for him), it's hard to say which life was "better." Anyway, as for the issue itself, it's well rendered if boringly located (talking heads dominate), and it has enough charm to keep me reading at least.

Adventures of Superman #632:
Many years ago, I was engaged to a very beautiful woman named Nikia. One night, after a romantic dinner and evening out, I woke up to find her amost unconscious on the bathroom floor, after throwing up. I picked her up and carried her to the car, rushing her to the hospital. Gazing through the exam room window at the shadows of her behind the curtains was a lot like reading this issue. Its most remarkable feat was how well Greg Rucka made me feel Superman's fear, frustration and vulnerability, watching his wife bleeding on a table. Someone pointed out to me that, in competing Superman titles, Lois has now been shot and obliterated, along with the brutality towards women in Identity Crisis, but hey -- I didn't approve the stories. It was nice to see, really, an emotional effect, and I loved how the League pulled together to help out.

Ultimate Nightmare #2:
Far less creepy than its first issue, Ultimate Sam Wilson is a serious and well-educated bad-ass to whom even Ultimate Nick Fury defers, which was cool to watch. There's a cute section where he gains the respect of Ultimate Captain America, which I also liked a lot. Wolverine gets a good bit of epiphany, and the technology and nuance here all seemed top notch. As for why I didn't buy it, even with all those pluses, I have no freaking idea what's going on. Still Ellis made this read a lot more like the rest of the Ultimate titles, which is good and bad depending on where you stand.

Wanted #5:
Bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang bang. In a deluge of homaged recitations of gun-toting white guys, this issue goes for the throat and never lets up, even with the big twist at the end (which, admittedly, even surprised me). I have no idea what's going to happen (which is different, and better, than having no idea what is happening) and at this kind of breakneck speed (well, breakneck given the rate the issues come out), I don't even care because it's fun. Still not the halcyon peaks of early issues, but damned good stuff.

Cable/Deadpool #7:
Cable has put back on his mutant messiah hat, this time delivering smart solutions while balancing the equations (i.e. disarming civil wars, easing the pain of terminal patients, removing loggers from the Amazon and setting them up in northern Canada ... the last of which may not be a fix, but it's something) in a show of power that's surprisingly ... logical. of course Deadpool is the monkeywrench in everybody's plans, as he comes to blow with old martial arts character The Cat and gets his quips in where he can. As much as I'd love to see more Deadpool zaniness (and how has there never been a comic with Deadpool, Batroc and Madcap?), I have to admit the balance of his nutiness and Cable's stoic "I-know-better-than-you" heroism is working. Inching towards the promised land, even, despite a really stupid new Six Pack debuting at the end.

Birds of Prey #74:
Huntress and Canary spend most of the issue getting ready to trick Oracle, while Savant also has some smarter ideas on fighting crime (with his phone and not his fists). Sure, he may miss a detail or two, but Savant showed it's smarter to fight crime with money than with violence. Not that it'll help. An okay issue that seemed a hair off balance -- Simone is working her way back to fighting shape.

Wolverine: The End #5:
When I read the line, "I'm getting too old for this," I knew that I should have stopped reviewing this title two issues ago. Wolvie suits up and gets his full detective on, going espionage style after his missing "brother." I don't care, and I can't imagine why anyone would, but he's Wolverine so surely someone must.

Voltron Vol. 2 #9:
Sven and Lotor find out they make one hell of a team, as the two of them in a sophisticated fighter craft almost smoke all five lions. Of course, more bad guys show up and things go from bad to "oh crap" for our heroes in an issue that flew by too quickly, but still hit pretty much all the right notes.

Spider-Man: Doctor Octopus: Year One #3:
Just two things: One -- good issue. Two -- if it keeps up, I'm gonna go buy all the back issues. Really interesting look into Otto's mind and process.

Read Pile Roundup: Mostly good stuff this week, with some titles making subtle moves towards getting bought.

So, How Was It This Week? With three jumps, several good reads and a good feeling all around, we're gonna go thumbs up here.

The Buy Pile is a weekly collection of comic reviews done by Hannibal Tabu (www.operative.net), originally published at UGO.com.