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: After a palaver with the new editor, it was decided to make a shift in what the Buy PIle does, concentrating only on what I actually buy and/or like, while brushing past everything else. Which, in truth, is a lot less work for me -- a good thing since I've been super focused on my new serial fiction project. If you like or don't like our new modus operandi, please don't hesitate to let us know (I think there's a link on my name here). In the mean time, let's check the technique ...
Marvel Team-Up #14:
Stepping away from the alternate Tony Stark/Titannus storyline, Image's teen superhero sensation Invincible gets tossed into the 616 universe, smacks around Doc Ock and has one of the best meetings with the Avengers ever (his naming panel is hi-freakin-larious). Invincible said, "Don't say anything -- let me guess. Okay -- using 'Spider-Man' as an indication of how you guys name yourselves -- let's see here ... Robot-Man, Claw-Man, Flag-Man, Fabio-Man, Bat-Woman and, uh ... Black-Man?" Iron Man, Wolverine, Captain America, Sentry, Spider-Woman and Luke Cage didn't know how to take that. Best single panel of the year. Admittedly, it kind of serves as an ad for Invincible (he comes off pretty cool), but I enjoyed it anyway, a good balance between action and (a lot) of talking (Invincible delivers a soliloquy about his origins). Fabio-Man. That's some good crazy.
Beowulf #5:
I'll start off by saying that I like what's happening with the story, which is starting to pick up some steam. The title character shows some of his immortal toughness and gets deeper into his conflict with the Knights of the Blood (who are a bigger story than I'll go into). I'll even say that I like the art -- pencils and inks -- by Attilla Adorjany (who I've met and who is a barrel of laughs, a really fun guy who's also talented). The only problem -- and it's a big one -- is the coloring. With monochromatic palettes making whole sequences fade together visually, it does a disservice to the story and the art, being too dark and too vague in almost every application. Still an interesting work, but the coloring of the last two issues is really making my eyes hurt and diminishing my enjoyment of this title.
Then there's the stuff on the "read pile" that I don't bring home ...
Honorable Mentions: What was pretty good, but just missed the mark of being good enough to bring home? Jonah Hex #1, Seven Soldiers: Bulleteer #1
Pass These Issues By: I know I'm supposed to only discuss the positive, but the two House of ATM books this week were like having somebody stick their penis in your ear and ejaculate on your brain. Ow. Nothing else was so horrible it merited mentioning.
FINAL ANALYSIS: Didn't spend very much, even the worst books passed by quickly (damned crossovers) and with five shipping weeks this month, it was a quick day, so no complaints.
The Buy Pile is a weekly collection of comic reviews done by Hannibal Tabu (www.operative.net), originally published at UGO.com.
