Fables #43:
There was a lot to like in this highly entertaining issue. The interplay of the marital relationship between Beauty and The Beast was nicely played, using existing characteristics of Prince Charming as a catalyst. King Cole also shone brightly, using diplomatic skills which would have served him as mayor, but somehow never seemed to rise to the surface. I like the tense relations between the European-based Fables and their Arabic counterparts, down to magical manuevering behind the scenes. There's trouble with Sinbad's over-enthusiastic adjutant Yusuf, and the threat of virtual global annihilation. All in good fun, of course. Willingham manages multiple scenes and intrigues with his usual deft touch, with his collaborators Buckingham and Leialoha more than ably keeping up their end of the bargain, depicting the scenes with magical aplomb. Great stuff.

All-Star Superman #1:
Jump from the Read Pile. When I was a child, I read Superman stories voraciously. The idea of a single being of such ridiculous power and overwhelming possibility simply enraptured me. But for years and years since, in my somewhat jaded adulthood, I came to hate the modern character of the Man of Steel -- an ineffectual agent of the status quo, a super-powered pansy more likely to whine and resort to pointless violence than to actually accomplish anything with the virtually endless power at his command. I suppose one could say that could be part of where I lost the ability to believe. But every once in a while, I'd get a glimpse of something, and I could feel the old stirrings of it. Wonder. Amazement. Alien experiences now, but fondly remembered.

Grant Morrison remembers, though, and he's sometimes able to communicate that sensation through the haze of his self-claimed drug-induced states. This issue, this comic book, is what I've been wanting in a Superman comic book. Superman dives first into the sun, battling a genetic bomb designed by a mad, loose Lex Luthor, while Lois, Jimmy and Perry do the Daily Planet dance to a tune at once familiar and fun. In the background, mad super science that'd make Julius Schwartz sit back and chuckle with pride, and the kind of trademark mad ideas you expect from Grant Morrison, all brought to thick-jawed, glorious life by the deliberate hands of Frank Quietly. The most clear thing I can say about this comic book can be summed up in two words: thank you. I see now why Morrison has been angling for a shot at Kal-El for years, and I'm sorry it's taken this long for it to happen.

The Thing #1:
Jump from the Read Pile. With more traditional superhero craziness at his command, Dan "I've Never Even Heard Of Decompression" Slott tells an interesting story about the modern-day Thing, a jet-setting billionaire many times over who is the newfound financial backing for Marvel's first family, but still lives as a tortured soul in a shell of stone. When the final, fun and whimsical threat to his newfound life is exposed (dragging along the newly funny Constrictor and the always-something-to-prove 616 Nighthawk (the white billionaire Kyle Richmond, not the angry Black billionaire Kyle Richmond from ... oh, never mind), it's an "oh, cool" geek moment akin to the ones that made a career for Fabian Nicieza. Fun, textured storytelling with crisp, highly detailed artwork from Andrea DiVito (with simply flawless colors from Laura Villari). Well worth the price, and I'm not even a fan of the character.

Top Ten: Beyond the Farthest Precinct #4:
I can't say how well this is going, as I had such low expectations with Gene Ha and Alan Moore not involved. The in-jokes you've come to love (and that have spawned annotations all over the web)? All there, from Warren Worthington III in the lobby of Toybox's apartment building to a Marvel super villain reunion at a baseball game (really a hilarious full page splash, worth looking over in great detail). The story moves along at a decent pace, involving together a terrorist threat, the ongoing "Hell Ditch Pilgrim" investigation and personal issues for the cops themselves (with Duane and Robyn having the hardest time of it, and at least he gets some consolation). Very good, very substantive reading.

Hero Squared #3:
This manages, somehow, to be funny, complicated and action packed. Sloat and the non-powered Milo provide most of the laughs, as parallel universe versions of each other sidestep around stories and secrets. There are times when I'm enjoying a comic (or a movie or a TV show) like this and I'll simply have to sit and marvel the sheer body of skill involved in making it look so effortless. Giffen and DeMatteis should practically be joined at the hip to be this good together, with great visual chemistry between Joe Abraham on art and the duo of Matt Nelson and Ron Riley on colors. The resolution is pyrrhic at best, with everybody but Evil Stephie/Lord Caliginous being the only one happy about how things are going. Really great comics here.

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

Honorable Mentions: Birds of Prey #88 was close but no cigar, with everything involving Creote, Savant and Huntress all being very cool (and interesting that Nightwing is on a parallel path). I also loved the art, with that scene in the rain being a great visual. Just too unfocused to make the jump. I am shocked to say that Green Arrow #56 also gets honorable mention, for showing Doctor Light in a less twitchy fashion and rather smart, while keeping Ollie on the ropes. Ditto for Runaways #10, showing the kids taking on New York in a vaguely entertaining fashion. Books of Doom #1 was likewise close, covering Victor's early history in an expanded OHOTMU fashion, but even in the good bits (his mastery of magic and technology) it brushed past the meat of the story, the hows and the whys in specifics. To be honest, I think Warren Ellis would have been better used here than on whatever Ultimate blah blah he's doing, as Brubaker doesn't seem to have the depth for a character as grandiose as Doom.

Pass These Issues By: Mutopia X #5 -- why did so few of the House of M books actually pay any attention to what actually happened in House of M? This contradicted the real story, but again, okay, I don't care. Supergirl #3 was only good for the crush-on-Nightwing sequence, and the "evil costume" bit with Armor Luthor, ugh. Manhunter #16 is rudderless, Fantastic Four #532 made it clear that Stracyznski has read dangerously little or he'd know Reed has Eternity on speed dial and could have saved himself most of the issue's navel gazing. Dull Captain Universe: X-23, and Captain Atom: Armageddon #2 was most insulting of all by dismantling the work of Halo from WildCATs 3.0.