Fables #35:
Hmm. Well, the good news is that I was right about what Jack is doing in Hollywood. After I finished my review of the last issue, I realized why a Fable would be acting as Jack did, and posted it to Usenet's Vertigo newsgroup, where it was considered by the amassed digiterati. This week I'll likely be lauded as the visionary I am ... but I digress. The bad news is that the ending is as flat as Paris Hilton's backside. I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised by Fabletown's new sheriff making a really impressive showing (as I thought he was a shlub) and I simply loved the wild abandon with which Jack dove into the Hollywood lifestyle. Guest artist David Hahn's crisp, simple style worked well for the uncomplicated story of greed and naked ambition, well matched with Daniel Votto's equally crisp coloring. But as an issue of Fables? This would be a weak link ... but you can't be great all the time, I suppose. Well, okay, Captain Marvel volume three was ... and V For Vendetta ... I'm gonna move on now ...

The Grimoire #1:
FULL DISCLOSURE: I do more than review comics -- in my regular life I am a newspaper editor, a karaoke host and I am the publicity flack for Speakeasy Comics' Hawke Studios, the makers of this very comic book I'll be reviewing. I've watched this project from the very early stages of conception to the finished product, purchased at Comics Ink on Thursday (I had a date thing on Wednesday, which is why reviews are late). So yes, I am already biased towards this comic, and you should know that before reading the review.

Right then. First of all, the book looks really good. While a bit uneven in some specific panels (there's a bit with a fairy over the protagonist's shoulder where the fairy itself is just drawn as a few indistinct lines with a glow), when the book gets up close and personal, or deals with details, it looks very good, with the coloring standing out as being truly superior. The story, a tricky one told by jumping back and forth in time (not an easy trick, I've tried), will be familiar and understandable to fans of Marvel's Runaways -- bad parent -- and has the magical twist of a classical fairy tale. The issue moves fast and conveys some information (while leaving some details deliciously obscured, as the man with the wine glass watching all of the events from afar, for reasons the reader can only guess at) for some effective foreshadowing. This is clearly not a book for everyone -- fans of superhero smash ups will find only one legitimate "fight," with summoned warrior Louis Bigsky beating off some attack dogs while the Everwood-worthy lead tries to get to safety. However, a lot of non-traditional "comics" fans will enjoy the story's excellent command of ambiance and mood, as well as the inviting artwork. A very solid work from two relative newcomers (Sebastien Caisse on writing, Djief on art).

Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight #1:
Jump from the Read Pile. Speaking of ambiance and mood, Grant Morrison's opening salvo for DC's medieval myrmidon is a real masterpiece in capturing the reader's attention and not letting go. From the very first seconds, using many of the tricks of vocabulary he made popular in his JLA run (aided by Simone Bianchi's George Perez-meets-Jim Cheung art stylings) to create and maintain a mood of sweeping epic and grandeur. Considerably more tight in execution than the Seven Soldiers bookend that came out a bit ago, you can practically here the sweeping score playing behind the swinging swords. The talking winged horse is a surprisingly effective way for Morrison to sneak in the kind of lunatic whimsy that's been rampant in his work since The Filth while still carrying the plot hummingly along (and really -- whoever heard of a mad horse, indeed?). The reaction when the character makes a huge transition to a very different environment is done perfectly as well, with a perfectly done cliffhanger. My retailer Steve called it "really engaging set-up," but I view this as a vital story on its own, and liked it quite a bit.

Atomika #1:
I've already discussed my ties to the publisher of this title (and The Grimoire reviewed above), so no need to rehash all of that. First of all, yes, this will remind some readers of Archangel Studios' The Red Star, whereas mystical forces inspire and underwrite a Soviet Union. However, there the similarities end: this is based on the direct, literal Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and doesn't hide its mystical players behind other dimensions and historical battles. Here, they practically walk up and says "Dosvidanya," in part as the KGB's slaved remnants of Napoleon's army (and they play as well with history here as the MIA Rex Mundi) to the god of the state himself. Now, yes, there are problems -- there's a lot more French being spoken here than I expected, which hasn't been adequately explained in the great sweeping statements (very much in the caliber of The Red Star but not quite at Morrison's lofty peaks of "crack open the firmament and shatter the stars"). As well, there's a super-annoying typo ("I could barely breath.") which made my editing senses not just tingle but scream with agony. It's an origin story, grafting many myths into the creation of an uber-legend, one god to rule them all yet remain firmly under the state's control (and a resume that'd have made him a great prom date for Jenny Sparks). Very interesting stuff, and tightly focused on a smaller group of characters than the Russian-inspired title it will invariably be compared to (while admittedly having considerably less striking artwork).

Ex Machina: The First Hundred Days TPB:
How in the name of Jed Bartlett did I miss this? I've been seeing the ads in comics for a while, and said to myself, "Superhero mayor? That sounds interesting ..." Plus Brian K. Vaughan has done more good than ill, so at an even ten bucks, I took a swing. Wow. As a long time fan of The West Wing and procedurals of its ilk, this was like manna from heaven, with a craftily done mystery to solve in the background and decent characterization on most characters (I thought Journal Moore was a bit rushed -- took me two reads of it to get a grasp on her). Plus, seeing as how they used photo reference for almost every shot, it gives me vain hope that I could one day create a book in the same fashion (knowing full well I don't have that kind of skill nor patience). I've owned this TPB less than twelve hours and already read it three times. A real gem.

Buy Pile Breakdown: With every other title shining so brightly, I practically missed Fables going through the motions like Chris Webber in his last months as a Sacramento King. Very happy.

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

Action Comics #825:
An army of Gogs with Doomsday on the horizon, and Supes running on fumes. Sounds like it'd be good, doesn't it? It's not. With a Dr. Phil inspired-ending (what in the name of big boy pants happened to Doomsday here?) and another bit of Superman's moralizing taking center stage in a "big" issue (remember #775 which brought us Manchester Black and the Elite? Man, I miss The Hat ...), stuff gets broken and then unbroken in quick succession. The art was great, but the story was so awful and hackneyed, I couldn't retain any details about the creators.

Punisher #18:
The solution to Frank Castle's impossible dilemma was so clever, I kicked myself for not seeing it earlier. A real nailbiter with great tension and this issue was so much better than almost all of the others in this storyline (except the one with the martial artist), it almost seems like it happened in a vacuum. Again climbing back towards being really good once more.

Vimanarama #2:
After confusing me with The Filth and saddening me with Seaguy, Morrison's on fire this week. This issue had such a John Hughes movie feel to its poignant moments that I almost wanted OMD's "If You Leave" to start playing in the background. The lead character -- channeling those great 80s movies mensches as much as Arthur Dent -- kind of slumps his shoulders and keeps trudging on as everything goes haywire around him, while the Justice League of India sounds like they'd be right at home along side Adam One and his band of heroes from Morrison's JLA run (you can see the influence of that work all over the stuff we see this week). There's a grat series of moments that string together in a fairly coherent fashion, and if the conclusion to this story is as enjoyable as the road to get there, I'll go back and buy 'em all.

Ultimate Fantactic Four #16:
Ultimate Annihilus shows up and ... well, let's just say the Ultimate Earth's first contact with the Ultimate Negative Zone (which is brilliantly depicted) doesn't feature handshakes or friendship agreements. I particularly loved Ultimate Thing's commentary on why things would end up as they did (yet he ... ah, I won't spoil it for you). True peril, high adventure and one of the best scenic routes the Ultimate Universe has thrown at us yet (my policy is not to pay for the scenic route, which is why I pass on buying most Ultimate books).

Adam Strange #6:
Events from last issue sprawl into this one, with Vril Dox and L.E.G.I.O.N. showing up, the Omega Men continuing their supporting roles and a really big (in terms of the story) reveal on the last page. Stellar swashbuckling without the heavy undertones of Space Ghost crafted perfectly like the old Republic serials of yore. ("But why didn't you buy it?" "Oh, I never liked those serials, or cliffhangers of that sort in general.")

Alexa #1:
This makes me sad. Can somebody please stop Stan Lee? It's like Michael Jordan still trying to come back and play at age 65 -- the game has passed him by. The Man plotted this and had another person script it (according to my retailer Steve, who made me read this) and while that does turn down the volume on the bombasticity, the pseudo-Thunderbolts version 1 plot (that's no real spoiler) is so obvious that it's almost embarrassing. It was cute that Stan was able to take a joke at his own expense, clearly lampooned a beleaguered comic book publisher, but this is just not interesting.

Aquaman #28:
I can't believe, for one scary moment, I believed there was a chance this book wouldn't suck on a regular basis ("Like an airplane toilet," to quote Ex Machina's deputy mayor). Mutant fishman cop. Stolen Aquaman DNA, being patented and sold. It's like somebody rented Grant Morrison's lack of restraint, but couldn't afford his imagination. Gah.

Thunderbolts #6:
Murky. Strucker's plans take center stage here, as the good baron appears to be a student of the "things'll look better after they look worse" school of thought (where, of course, I hold an emeritus professorship). A lot went wrong, which was weird from the normally continuity-conscious Fabian Nicieza (i.e. Genis Vell showing up and deciding his name is "Photon" -- which must drive Monica Rambeau crazy -- and the idea that Power Pack joined in the action as kids, when Julie Power is getting her Lindsey Lohan on out in California with Excelsior in Runaways). However, getting a better look into the normally one-dimensional Radiation Man was interesting, as was the struggle of Speed Demon to do the right thing. Plus, Atlas continues to develop as a more complicated character, faced with information he would much rather not know. Not back in form yet, but on its way, apparently.

Gotham Central #29:
Rucka gets to grimy up Keystone City since, apparently, Dr. Alchemy left a surprise in Gotham on a day trip. Montoya has some extreme emotional moments before the show hits the road, and the GCPD has a little jealousy of apparently greater resources in Keystone. A cute melding of the worlds, but not much meat on the bones yet. Maybe Rucka's getting used to being left alone on the title, but it's not back in form yet (i.e. how amazing the sniper story was).

Age of Apocalypse #2:
X-23 continues her ... it's too big to be a "world" tour, since she's in other dimensions and timelines now, and even has three adamantium claws on each hand, but whatever. Magneto starts to doubt the dream (<sarcasm>shocker</sarcasm>) as Wolvie gets the Michael Corleone treatment. I didn't like the art (another customer called it "too cartoony" and set the book back on the shelf), and I didn't like the story.

Breach #3:
The best part was the main character discovering his long-lost son, diverging (finally) from the Captain Atom source material. Meanwhile, the Kobra terrorist organization has a very surprising new CEO (which will, I suppose, complement her alleged new role in Villains United), this Herdsman stuff is still more baroque and indecipherable than the source code for Microsoft Office, and this series is taking its own sweet time in accomplishing anything.

Armor X #1:
A Columbine-minded teen gets a set of super-powered armor. Cool, in concept. However, in the application of this issue, every page is a predictable story beat that doesn't flesh out the whys (why the character is an outcast, why we should care, etc.) or make the story do anything special.

Green Arrow #48:
"Sentient hillbilly android." When I read those three words, I knew that all hell had finally, irrevocably broken loose. Yes, Brick is a fascinating character (although he's basically a smarter Blockbuster), but he's the only sensical thing in this title (and no, Constantine Drakon won't get points, he's the really good killer from the end of the original X-Force run with a better suit). This book is dominated by fighting the Duke of Oil, and I'm not sure if having him here is the most embarrassing part, or the fact it took two issues to beat him. "But he's a distraction," Jason the clerk offered. HIre some cheerleaders, this is sad.

District X #11 :
Feeling very Law & Order: SVU in its creepy tone and pacing (as well as the marital problems Izzy has, which are very close to what's happening with Detective Elliot Stabler), Bishop and Izzy's partnership is on the rocks as the killer is on the loose (and really, really ugly ... like "cuddling up with Ernest Borgnine" ugly) and the sewer people are getting forced out. Not bad, but still not good enough.

JSA #71:
Borrowing the "big scene" feel of DC New Frontier Johns tries to climb back over the shark, letting Mr. Terrific beat up Klansmen (yay), bond Jakeem and his predecessor over good old fashioned fisticuffs, and generally go through all the nostalgia-based meetings you can have with old and new heroes. I like Degaton's cruelness and determination, but his "un-necessarily slow dipping mechanism" (of sorts) still smacks of the '60s Joker tying Batman to a giant pendulum or something.

Gambit #8:
I started to ask how Brother Voodoo survived the very large hole blown in his head back in the Priest volume of Black Panther but decided that it probably didn't matter to Marvel or writer John Layman. Then, when Jericho Drumm comes through as a cool badass, well, that's even better. Obviously death was a good thing for 'im. Now, I'm no fan of zombie comics -- makes for an uninteresting read, I figure, shambling jackasses who can't even move very quickly -- but this issue was enjoyable enough, as Gambit struggles with a moral crisis that has no real solution.

Majestic #3:
Majestic has a lot easier time containing his superiority complex here (in comparison to his time on DCU Earth, which even made Steve Rogers cranky) as he deals with a populace of powerful extraterrestrials with a set up ultimately similar to Shyamalan's The Village. Nothing special here.

X-Men: The End: Heroes and Martyrs #1:
I swear I'm done. You can killl the whole Marvel Universe in six issues, but the X-Men take 18. Picking up right where the last "mini" left off (why divide them into six-issue minis, even though they're all one story, and not one long maxi-series? Oh, right, TPBs, right, never mind me) the X-Men are still dying. Slowly. Fighting Warskrulls and prejudice and even each other sometimes. I counted three dead this issue (Cable, Northstar, Domino), and at this rate my grandkids will be waiting to see "the end" of this.

Superman #214:
Zod is the real Zod, almost the Terence Stamp Zod, the Phantom Zone, "I Hate Jor-El and saw him push the button" Zod. When the truth is revealed about Metropia or whatever this cockamamie shtick is, it seems like the dumbest possible idea I've ever seen in my whole life, especially given all the crap that's gotten thrown into the Phantom Zone over the years (even the new post-Crisis, post-Zero Hour years). After seeing how good Azzarello's lex Luthor book was, I wish Jim Lee would have joined him there instead of on this pap.

Read Pile Roundup: The few that were really good outshined the many that were just okay.

So, How Was It This Week? A good week, but with an asterisk.

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