Noble Causes #7:
Most of the well-done issue (with much more finished artwork by Gabe Bridwell and Kris Justice for most of the issue) is an exercise in doing the opposite of what people expect. Race and his recently reconciled wife Liz spend a day being normal -- as hard as that is for him -- with some great moments of comedy and real emotion. Oh, plus almost ever Image superhero guest starring in a great splash page. While the backup feature should inspire litigious phone calls from Quantum and Woody for stealing their shtick, the issue as a whole is darned entertaining. I have yet to find a single issue of this title that hasn't, in some way, worked. That's all good.

JLA Classified #4:
First of all, don't panic -- the events here are obviously set before Identity Crisis. And yes, I did get a nostalgic twinge seeing Sue Dibny interacting with Maxwell Lord and L-Ron, well ... they really were good times, weren't they? With a last-page reveal bringing along one of the best personalities forged by the Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire team ... this is a funny, entertaining issue. If you've loved the work of the creative team, this book is a real treausre. If you're new, there's sufficient explanation and clarity to catch up anybody without taking away any of the laughs and entertainment value. Excellent work here.

She-Hulk #12:
The inevitable conflict between Titania and She-Hulk ends up with one of the women impaled on a tube, apparently dead. But of course there's more to the story (and I don't spoil), and brains not brawn wins the day. I wasn't too sure about this storyline, which took some dips and turns, but between the great comic book store scene, a great team effort that made it work for the normal supporting characters and the guest stars (great stuff from Hercules, Doc Samson and Reed Richards), it all came off without a hitch. A staggeringly smart issue with crisp, clear and interesting artwork from Pelletier and Magyar. Dan Slott is proving himself to be the real thing.

Lucifer #59:
Chapterish -- as a Lucifer fan, I was fascinated to follow along with Jill Presto heading to Vegas of the Mazikeen having problems with her mother Lilith. However a new reader would be completely lost, especially since the title character doesn't deign to make an appearaance in this issue. I'm happy, but I can see a lot of people not getting much out of it.

Cable/Deadpool #12:
This issue just barely made the cut -- Fabien Niceza's gift for making exposition clever and the very fun rivalry between Deadpool and Agent X made this work. Cable is a bit of a cold fish -- even when whimsical and dying, he's a stiff. Add taking a shot at a highly publicized archer's death makes it all the more delicious. The fun here is in the fine touches -- the plot, saving Cable's life, lacks punch -- but Nicieza (with a wildly interesting visual assist by the always great Patrick Zircher with a Udon guy and Derek Fridolfs on inks) makes every page a joy. Not the complete package, but good enough for me.

The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Marvel Knights 2005:
You know I love these Handbooks. You know there's virtually nothing they could do as a Handbook that I would not buy, in both some vague hope that one day, writing for Marvel that I would use the information as well as my well-known love for encyclopaedic character knowledge. No surprises there. However, with a Black Panther entry that quotes the entirety of the Priest run while Reggie Hudlin picks at the remains (i.e. Ross and T'Challa have never met now but Ross served as Wakandan regent for a while) and a Blade entry that borders on the insanely thorough, this is a weird collection. Even the wildly ill-conceived Chuck Dixon "Marvel Knights" team is chronicled here, as is Man-Thing and both versions of Ghost Rider. Fascinating stuff (to me) if largely insular.

Runaways Volume 2 #1:
So I'm standing in the store, reading this, remembering how good the last volume was. This one is just as good, with the added bonus of half of Marvel's bad guys heading west to take up the power vacuum left by the Pride losing to their children. I always said I'd start buying this book, and I surely was enjoying it, so I stopped reading at about the "secret lair" page and just slid it on the "buy" pile (which is a lot of Marvel this week). The chemistry of the "team" is really solid, I loved the visual storytelling (the panels when the witch produces her staff) and when the support group for former teenaged heroes Excelsior (even when Stan wins in court, he still gets love) pops up (with some fantastic members, including Darkhawk, Turbo, Julie Power (looking very Lindsey Lohan), Ricochet, Chamber ... all just easter eggs for continuity freaks like myself, but this is a great jumping on point and a fantastic issue all around. Toss in a time travel "Hitler-as-a-baby" ending and this is good stuff.

Buy Pile Breakdown: All around good stuff -- and what a showing for Marvel, huh?

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

Human Target #19:
Drop from the Buy Pile. I started buying this title on principle -- "support smart comics where I can." I found it entertaining and smartly done. But I recently read it was not long for this earth, so me not being a completist anymore, this issue was suddenly justifying its existence. And coming up short -- the tale of a wayward "apprentice" of Christopher Chance's coming home to roost while Christopher fights domestic routine -- is good but not great, especially with the title on the way down. It had a good run, though.

Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill #2:
My memory of Silver Surfer comics (before the last incomprehensible volume) went like this. Surfer wanders the spaceways, whining about Zenn-La and Shalla-Bal. Someone bumps into Surfer. "Know you not I possess the Power Cosmic?" Zap zap zap, guy gets beaten, return to position one. Now, I'm not saying that happens here ... but there's surely hints of it, as a fresh herald of Galactus (does he advertise on Craigslist or something?) called Stardust works hard at exterminating Beta Ray Bill's people while her master yawns with indifference. Bill finds some signs of hope, which are then characteristically dashed. A bit of a downer, but not badly done (and love that zany lettering).

Authority Revolution #5:
The last page of this issue means that, somewhere, Doselle Young is laughing. In the worst possible manuever for this title, a ghost from the past returns as the team echoes the sentiments of many of the property's detractors. Even the Midnighter says something like "maybe the time for The Authority is done." It's a really whiny and self-doubting issue, and with the final page it just made me sick to my ass. That's no good.

X-Force #6:
My notes say "meaningless action," as something that's supposedly tough gets stomped in a way that ... well, didn't seem so hard. Crappy production values, sketchy art, lame storyline. Yeah. Let's just move on.

Ocean #4:
The story has boiled down to mad career ambition and personal vengeance. That's ... kind of a waste of Chris Sprouse on art, I think. There's a mysterious old alien race under the ice of a moon around ... Jupiter or something, a race with more than 150 words for "murder" and weapons that can set worlds ablaze, and the issue spends most of its time with an over-enthusiastic middle manager. Eh.

Wolverine #25:
Things go badly for the bad guys, as Wolvie's a much smarter hunter when he's feeling naughty. Millar paces masterfully, ratcheting up the tension with delicacy and brains -- and of course John Romita Jr. makes it intimate in the right places and widescreen in the right places. Interesting work (if a bit hokey on the ending) and setting up a kind of goofy sequel (which could strain the credibility scale).

Ultra #7:
The Luna brothers deliver a soapy but sentimental issue which resolves a love story in a bittersweet way, makes some jokes worthy of Ace and Gary, and almost scared me into thinking that the Sentry showed up at the end (which will make more sense if you read the issue). Not bad, but no big shocker this time.

Space Ghost #4:
Drop from the Buy Pile. The tight focus on revenge gets dilluted by a predictable insectile enemy in Zorak's hive mind is kind of predictable. Jana and Jayce show up, and I instantly hated them. The intense, laser-like focus of this title was what allowed me to overcome the whimsy of the talk show in my mind, but with adding so many elements of the classic Hanna Barbera cartoon, it got scattered and lost me.

Promethea #32:
Wholly indecipherable. The inside cover warns that the issue should be disassembled and put together like a poster in order to be properly understood. After flipping the book to and fro, and reading it with all of the enjoyment of James Joyce's Ulysses, it'sjust no good. It's like a harder to read (color/lettering choices) and less mean-spirited Angel Stomp Future, and a limp ending to a book that once was some of the best stuff on the stands.

Green Lantern: Rebirth #4:
In an insult to everything I know as a writer and every GL story that's ever passed before, the "it wasn't Hal" bandwagon gets bigger and Sinestro goes from rebel to elememtal threat in an extreme makeover that'd make ABC jealous. So the Spectre story is sewn up, the Parralax story comes home, and yes, this story ignores the fact that GLs are chosen because they have no fear (therefore making it more than a challenge to instill it in them). Lame and stupid.

Astonishing X-Men #8:
One of the real crimes of the series Star Trek: Voyager is that it introduced the concept of the "bad holodeck" episode, where a simulated environment goes nuts. So for Joss Whedon to rely on such an old chestnut ... urf. There's a weird bit about an antique Sentinel with an odd religious fixation and a really nice show of power from good ol' Slim Summers, all done in John Cassaday's inimitable style. But otherwise ... urf.

Manhunter #7:
Almost worth buying because you get to see Superman and Hawkman stumble in cross-examination (going through Carter's convoluted history alone was fun). The Trial of the Shadow Thief is on, and everybody's watching. Interesting, and getting better with every turn of a page.

New Invaders #7:
An uninteresting walk down memory lane with the Thin Man, who learns Ferengi Rule of Acquisition #285 the hard way. At least the Nazis are captive now, and maybe it can have the "anti-terrorist" force deal with somebody from, I dunno, the last decade or so.

Teen Titans #21:
Dr. Light has some unfinished business from Identity Crisis and he's using the new Speedy's first day as an excuse to handle it. It's a bad day to be a teen hero, and Speedy's still hiding a secret from her teammates. Good character work, but a bit of a downer.

Read Pile Roundup: Two drops already make things problematic on a week that squeaked by as "adequate."

So, How Was It This Week? Slightly above average buys and an "adequate" set of reads works out just fine.

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