Maverik sidekick backpack. Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack: The Ultimate Gear Carrier for Lacrosse Players

What features does the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack offer. How does it compare to other lacrosse equipment bags. Is the Maverik Prez Backpack worth the investment for serious lacrosse players.

Key Features of the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack

The Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack is a high-quality gear bag designed specifically for lacrosse players. It offers several key features that make it stand out from standard backpacks:

• Durable grey exterior constructed from heavy-duty materials
• Two large straps with buckles on the front panel for securing equipment
• Heavy-duty double padded backpack straps for comfort
• Dedicated laptop compartment to safely carry electronics
• Spacious main compartment with room for lacrosse stick, pads, helmet, etc.
• Multiple pockets and organizational sections

The reinforced construction and lacrosse-specific design elements make this backpack ideal for transporting all the gear needed for practices and games. The padded straps distribute weight evenly for comfortable carrying, even when fully loaded.

Comparing the Maverik Prez to Other Lacrosse Bags

How does the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack stack up against other options on the market. When compared to basic duffel bags or generic sports backpacks, the Prez offers several advantages:

• More organized storage with dedicated compartments
• Better protection for equipment due to padded construction
• Easier to carry long distances with ergonomic backpack design
• More durable materials that can withstand regular use
• Lacrosse-specific features like stick straps

While slightly more expensive than entry-level bags, the Maverik Prez provides significantly more functionality and durability. For serious players who transport gear frequently, it’s a worthwhile investment that can last for many seasons.

Size and Capacity of the Maverik Prez Backpack

One of the most important factors to consider in a lacrosse bag is its capacity. The Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack offers ample room for all essential gear:

• Main compartment large enough for helmet, gloves, arm pads, and shoulder pads
• Exterior straps to secure a lacrosse stick
• Side pockets for water bottles
• Front organizer pocket for smaller items
• Laptop sleeve that fits most 15″ laptops

The backpack’s dimensions are approximately 20″ x 13″ x 9″, providing about 30 liters of total capacity. This size hits the sweet spot of being large enough to hold everything needed for a game or practice, while still being compact enough to easily carry and store in a locker.

Durability and Construction Quality

Lacrosse gear takes a beating, so a well-constructed bag is essential. How does the Maverik Prez hold up to regular use. Key durability features include:

• Reinforced stitching at stress points
• Water-resistant exterior fabric
• Heavy-duty zippers
• Abrasion-resistant bottom panel

Users report that the Maverik Prez Backpack maintains its shape and functionality even after years of use. The grey color also helps hide dirt and wear. While no bag is indestructible, this backpack is built to withstand the rigors of regular lacrosse play and transport.

Comfort and Ergonomics for Carrying Heavy Gear

Lacrosse equipment can be heavy, making comfort a crucial factor in choosing a gear bag. The Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack incorporates several features to enhance carrying comfort:

• Padded, adjustable shoulder straps
• Breathable mesh back panel
• Sternum strap for added stability
• Padded top handle for quick grabbing

The backpack design distributes weight evenly across the shoulders and back, reducing strain compared to single-strap bags. The padded straps prevent digging and discomfort, even when carrying a full load of gear. For players who walk or bike to practice, these ergonomic features make a significant difference in comfort.

Value for Money and Price Comparison

Is the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack worth its price tag. When evaluating the value proposition, consider the following factors:

• Higher quality materials than budget bags
• Lacrosse-specific design features
• Durability for long-term use
• Comfort for regular carrying
• Versatility for school and sports use

While the exact price may vary by retailer, the Maverik Prez typically falls in the mid-range for lacrosse backpacks. It offers a good balance of features and quality without the premium price of top-end models. For players serious about the sport, the investment in a reliable, purpose-built bag can pay off in terms of convenience and gear protection.

Versatility Beyond the Lacrosse Field

Although designed primarily for lacrosse, the Maverik Prez Backpack’s features make it versatile for other uses:

• School backpack with laptop protection
• Travel bag for short trips
• Gym bag for various sports
• Outdoor activities like hiking or camping

The organizational pockets and durable construction are useful for many scenarios beyond lacrosse. This versatility adds to the overall value, as the bag can serve multiple purposes throughout the year. For student-athletes in particular, the Prez can transition seamlessly from school to practice to travel.

Customization and Personalization Options

Many players like to personalize their gear. While the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack doesn’t come with built-in customization options, there are several ways to make it your own:

• Add patches or pins to the exterior
• Use carabiner clips to attach additional gear
• Add a luggage tag for identification
• Use fabric markers or paint for unique designs

The grey color provides a neutral base for personalization without clashing with team colors. Some players also use the front panel as a canvas for motivational quotes or team slogans.

Care and Maintenance Tips

To ensure your Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack lasts as long as possible, follow these care tips:

• Spot clean with mild soap and water as needed
• Air dry thoroughly after exposure to moisture
• Avoid machine washing or drying
• Periodically check and tighten any loose stitching
• Use a fabric protector spray for added water resistance

Proper care can significantly extend the life of your backpack. It’s also a good idea to empty and air out the bag after each use to prevent odors and mildew, especially if storing sweaty gear.

Comparing the Maverik Prez to Other Maverik Bag Options

Maverik offers several lacrosse bag options. How does the Prez compare to other models in their lineup.

• Sidekick Backpack: Slightly smaller, more affordable option
• Monster Bag: Larger duffel-style bag for more gear
• Kastle Backpack: Premium option with additional features

The Prez sits in the middle of Maverik’s range, offering a good balance of size, features, and price. It’s more spacious than the Sidekick but more portable than the Monster Bag. For most players, the Prez hits the sweet spot in terms of functionality and value.

User Reviews and Feedback

What do actual lacrosse players say about the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack. Common feedback points include:

• Appreciation for the organized compartments
• Comfort when carrying heavy loads
• Durability over multiple seasons of use
• Adequate size for all necessary gear
• Usefulness beyond just lacrosse

Most reviews are positive, with users praising the bag’s functionality and quality. Some minor critiques mention a desire for more color options or additional small pockets. Overall, the consensus is that the Prez is a reliable and well-designed lacrosse backpack.

Environmental Considerations

For environmentally conscious consumers, it’s worth considering the sustainability aspects of gear choices. While Maverik doesn’t specifically market the Prez as an eco-friendly product, its durability contributes to sustainability by reducing the need for frequent replacements. Additionally, the versatile design encourages multi-use, potentially reducing the number of bags a player needs to own.

To further minimize environmental impact, consider these practices:

• Repair minor damage instead of replacing the entire bag
• Donate or repurpose the bag if you outgrow it
• Choose classic colors and styles that won’t go out of fashion quickly

By investing in a high-quality, long-lasting bag like the Maverik Prez, players can reduce their overall consumption and waste in the long run.

Making the Decision: Is the Maverik Prez Right for You?

Choosing the right lacrosse bag depends on individual needs and preferences. The Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack is likely a good fit if you:

• Play lacrosse regularly and need to transport full gear
• Value organization and want dedicated compartments
• Prefer a backpack style for comfortable carrying
• Need a bag that can transition between sports and school
• Are willing to invest in a durable, long-lasting product

For casual players or those on a tight budget, a simpler bag might suffice. However, for committed lacrosse enthusiasts, the Maverik Prez offers a compelling combination of features, durability, and value that make it a worthy investment in your lacrosse journey.

Alternatives to Consider

While the Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack is a strong contender, it’s always wise to consider alternatives. Some other popular lacrosse backpacks include:

• STX Lacrosse Challenger Equipment Backpack
• Under Armour Undeniable Lacrosse Backpack
• Nike Vapor Power Backpack
• Warrior Black Hole Shorty Bag

Each of these options has its own set of features and price points. Compare them to the Maverik Prez to determine which best meets your specific needs and preferences. Factors to consider include size, organization, durability, brand loyalty, and price.

Ultimately, the best lacrosse backpack is the one that fits your gear, feels comfortable to carry, and withstands the demands of your playing schedule. The Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack checks these boxes for many players, making it a solid choice for those seeking a reliable and functional gear bag.

Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack Grey Team Sports Lacrosse rothsteinlegal.com



Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack Grey Team Sports Lacrosse rothsteinlegal.com

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Maverik Lacrosse Prez Backpack Grey

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Annual Tent SALE!! This… – Majestx Field Hockey Club

Annual Tent SALE!!

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August 25 & 26 10am-4pm

Sports Her Way Warehouse Location

2215 Greenspring Drive

Timonium, MD 21093

Check out some Deals:

ALL hooded sweat shirts – blank (unprinted) $10.00
ALL sweat pants – blank (unprinted) $10.00
All PRINTED hooded sweatshirts $15.00
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All Maverik Lacrosse Hooded Sweatshirts – pullovers & full-zips – $30.00
DeBeer Deluxe Travel Lacrosse Stick Bags $20.00
Brine Soccer Coaches Ball Bags $10.00
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Reebok Women’s Lacrosse Gloves $15.00
Brine Women’s Fire Lacrosse Gloves $10.00
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Maverik SideKick Backpack $45.00 (originally $55.00)
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GRYPHON DIABLO FIELD HOCKEY STICK

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852 Kenilworth Drive

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410-321-6280

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703-823-4700

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NOVA! COLOR BLAST! SWEET TOOTH! & MUCH MORE!!!

Hey folks, Ambush Bug here with a special announcement before we start with the reviews. Mark Millar of KICK-ASS and ULTIMATES fame is auctioning off the name for the title character in his upcoming book NEMESIS to raise money to buy a bus for a school for the handicapped that Millar’s brother teaches at.

Highest bidder will be able to go down in comic book history for naming the world’s greatest super-villain! The bidding is up on eBay now and closes Thursday night. Interested? Just follow the link here for more details. Good luck, Mark!

And now, on with the reviews!

The Pull List
(Click title to go directly to the review)
ULTIMATE X #1 / ULTIMATE ENEMY #1
BLACKEST NIGHT: THE QUESTION #37
COLOR BLAST: VOL. 2
SWEET TOOTH #6
BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT SPECIAL #1
NOVA #34 / GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #22
RED ROBIN #9
Big Eyes For the Cape Guy presents DEADMAN WONDERLAND Vol. 1
Indie Jones presents…
CHEAP SHOTS!

Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artist: Arthur Adams

Writer: Brian Bendis
Artist: Rafa Sandoval
Publisher: Ultimate Marvel
Reviewer: Optimous Douche

In 2000 the Ultimate Universe rose like a Phoenix from the dead ashes of what was one of the most hellish decades in comicdom. It was a salvation from dwindling sales and strangling continuity, promising to reinvent the treasured characters of the Marvel Universe for the modern age.

After ten years of exceeding expectations the decision was made to let it all end. Well sort of…because here we are in 2010 with three Ultimate titles again. Naturally there is Bendis’ 800 pound comic gorilla ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN, and now two new offerings, ULTIMATE ENEMY and ULTIMATE X.

This resurrection feels different though, less like a Phoenix and more like a Central Park pigeon with a busted wing rising to lamppost height after wafting a hearty cloud of that sweet sweet New York crack into its lungs.

None of the offerings are bad; all are surprisingly palatable as a matter of a fact. They just don’t seem anywhere near as delectable as what once was. Is this because ol’ Optimous is a fangeezer as opposed to a cherub faced fanboy? I don’t think so. I love a lot of new stuff. This doesn’t feel new, though. More like a resurrection akin to your grandmother that’s been dead for 14 years showing up on your doorstep, rotting flesh and all. You’re happy to see her, but then again, not really.

I’ll say part of this is akin to FINAL CRISIS syndrome: the art of leveraging an old name for something that is entirely different. A name (and, more importantly, a brand) sets certain expectations. You learn this day one of corporate communications boot camp. When FINAL CRISIS raped the nostalgia of CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS is it any wonder there was a revolt in the kingdom of Dorktopia? Ultimate is a brand that has set the expectation of new beginnings, not merely hitting a reset button on a universe we all bid a fond farewell to six months ago.

All right, I will now climb down from my Ultimate pulpit to take a Douche-eye look at this week’s Ultimate offerings.

ULTIMATE X definitely deserves top billing. The cover pretty much alludes to the story’s grand reveal, so I’m not sure if SPOILER ALERT is warranted, but regardless you have been warned. ULTIMATE X is the son of Wolverine. Growing up in the middle of trailer park alley, Jimmy is a strapping young man that knows he’s different, but doesn’t learn just how different he is until he flips his car in a drag race and heals almost instantly from injuries. An appearance by Kitty Pride explains that Jimmy’s lineage. Apparently Wolvie and Jimmy’s Dad were army buddies in Iraq. Like friends tend to do, Wolverine gives Jimmy to his buddy…well because. What, like none of you guys ever got a child as a birthday present? Get some new friends — I’m collecting them like Beanie Babies. Naturally, I’m being flip; we can assume that Wolverine gave up the child knowing that his own life would be one shit storm after another. When Jimmy pops his claws and sees bone instead of metal, he is confused. Kitty lets him know that the metal was an after market add-on because Wolverine just didn’t think he would look good with a moon roof. Then Jimmy grows metal — and therein lies the mystery of Ultimate X – we know who Dad is, but who the hell is Mom? Probably the highlight of this issue was the interactions between the “adults” of the book. There was just a genuine authentic feel with all of the conversations between Jimmy’s parents, and between Jimmy and his Dad at the end. Probably my only complaint was the fact that Jimmy’s adopted Mom looked like she was born five years after Jimmy and had just entered Junior High. No way I’m buying the fact this chick is in her late 30s.

I wanted desperately for ULTIMATE ENEMY to be a known Marvel character that is generally considered one of the good guys so I could do my ULTIMATE FRENEMY joke. Sadly, no such luck. For now it looks like the ULTIMATE ENEMY terrorizing New York is some kind of sentient afterbirth. This book serves as less of an original title and more of a check-in on the fully recovered world after the events of ULTIMATUM (does it bother anyone else that Magneto destroyed the globe and now everything is back to fine and dandy after a mere six months? Bygones).

The book opens with Jessica Drew, Spidergirl, seeking retribution against the corporate overlords that made her. I’ve never seen a character so ungrateful to exist. Then she sees Ultimate Afterbirth and we are whisked away to the life of the Ultimate FANTASTIC FOUR.

Reed Richards is living back at home. You know, like every other world-famous eighteen -year old. That is until the sentient afterbirth comes in through the Internet and blows up his house (I think that’s what blew up the house – I’m actually not sure, the blast was purple and so is the afterbirth so I’m making assumptions). That’s about all from Reed.

Then we check in on Sue Storm. This was by far the most memorable moments in this title and I would say one of Bendis’ top ten endearing moments. Sue is still being all sciencey in New York when she is visited by Air Force member Ben Grimm. I won’t do the moment justice so I won’t even try. Suffice to say, Ben professes his love for Sue and the unrequited glance she gives back was well worth the price of admission alone.

Given my natural negative tonality (grow up in Jersey and you’ll sound this way too) it would appear that I hated these books, which is simply not case. Both built mysteries that will bring me back for issue 2. While I’ll say this new kid friendly art style that seems to be permeating books is not to my liking, I understand the need for change. My real issue boils down to the same problem I had with FINAL CRISIS. Is it that hard to come up with new fucking names? Or, why did Marvel proclaim the end of the Ultimate universe if it wasn’t really the end? Ponderous, truly ponderous…
Optimous is lonely and needs friends. Even virtual ones will fill the gaping hole, join him on Facebook or he will cry like a newborn kitten.

Writer: Greg Rucka
Art: Denys Cowan
Publisher: DC Comics
Guest Reviewer: KletusCasady

What do I know about the original Question? Not that much really. I know he’s kind of a detective type figure with no face…told you I didn’t know that much. One thing I learned about the Question is that his name (Charles Victor Szasz) is very similar to a certain Batman villain with a penchant for knives and self-inflicted pain. The new Question is currently featured in the back of DETECTIVE COMICS. I actually really like her story because it’s action packed and just enough filler to keep the story organically moving and the artwork by Cully Hamner (cool name) ain’t bad either. What I do know about the original Question, I learned from 52 and his story was pretty interesting. I’ve always liked heroes training someone to take on their mantle after they have passed on…I don’t know, it just seems like the right thing to do. I mean, you don’t want the legacy you built to disappear after you die, right? This is basically their story in 52: Victor Sage (the Question) was dying of cancer and had formed a close relationship with Rene Montoya, a cop from GothamCcity. He trains her to become the new Question before he dies of lung cancer thus making him a prime candidate for….drum roll please….a Black Lantern.
The story picks up with Renee meeting Tot (her intel/ Microchip/Oracle) who is apparently obsessed with life’s…wait for it…questions… I don’t really want to spoil the whole thing so I’ll try to do this with out falling back the synopsis. Basically they have a couple unexpected guests; the first is a certain female who trains people in advanced martial arts including one Tim Drake. The second guest is on the cover so if you can’t guess who that is then you probably shouldn’t be using the internet by yourself. Guest number 1 said they were there to fight the new Question and test Renee’s skills but when guest number 2 shows up, guest number 1 reveals their real reason for showing up which was to fight one of the undead Black Lanterns. Which I guess makes sense if you’re one of the best fighters in the world. You’d probably get bored kicking ass all across the globe and fighting a reincarnated hero with a black power ring is…well..something new so…what the hell?!? FIGHT!!! There are a few surprising moments in this issue, specifically a new way to deal with Black Lanterns that I haven’t seen explored in any other book, a technique that leaves the Black Lantern…well, I shouldn’t tell you that. The more Questions the better. ..get it…see what I did there…because it’s a book about a character called the…nevermind.
The artwork is done by Denys Cowan, who actually did the artwork for the 1987 series with Denny O’Neil (thank you wiki). I’ve always liked his artwork but it’s not the type of artwork that fits every book. He would be really good on DAREDEVIL or something similar where the tone of the book is very somber. Rick Leonardi (artist from VIGILANTE) has a very similar style with a lot of line work, which when done well gives the appearance that everything is moving, which is definitely cool during fight scenes. His style is sort of like a mix between Joe Kubert and Alex Maleev with a little more detail. A little known fact about Denys Cowan is that he did the artwork for one of the best hip hop albums (in my opinion) of the mid-90’s…who, you might you ask? (See, another question). Wu-Tang’s Gza: Liquid Swords, and he’s credited as Denys Cowan for DC Milestone Comics. Milestone coincidentally has a comic that comes out the same day. Did they do that on purpose or just a coincidence? Maybe that’s a question for…ok ok I’m done.
I recommend this book if you are into the BLACKEST NIGHT tie-ins or if you are into the Question and I imagine if you aren’t you’ll probably overlook this book. The story is interesting and easy to follow thanks to the all star team of Greg Rucka (Detective Comics, 52, Wonder Woman) and Denny O’Neil who has been writing DC comics since before I was born. The one thing I can say about Greg Rucka’s work is that everything that happens in his comics makes sense, meaning there is a logical progression to the actions his characters take without many “Well why would she do that if…” moments that some writers tend to over look. The artwork is pretty good, although I don’t think Denys Cowan’s art is as easily likable as some other artists, not that it’s bad, but his style is an acquired taste.

Writer: Jakob Westman
Art: Jakob Westman
Publisher: Strokirk-Landstoms AB
Reviewer: Mr. Pasty

A funny thing happened this week on the way home from wasting my life. I found a large, black envelope waiting for me at my front door. The package was glossy and tightly wrapped and labeled with stamps that were clearly not United States issue. I immediately thought of the digital dump I took on DARK TIMES last week and wondered if shelling two straight STAR WARS books motivated ol’ Georgie to say thanks in a special way.
After convincing my mother-in-law to open it, I was pleasantly surprised to find a complimentary copy of COLOR BLAST: VOLUME TWO from Swedish Art Director Jakob Westman. For those of you new to the COLOR BLAST experience, it reads like a photographer’s portfolio — assuming that photographer was on mescaline and taking screen captures of his mind. I’m not sure how Westman is able to create and sustain such lasting effects with such simplicity, but his creations are an exercise in synesthesia for the creatively impaired.
COLOR BLAST is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a blast of colors. But this isn’t some pretentious jack-off hurling watercolors at a jet engine, it’s more of a stained glass view of the real world. And I think that’s where this book triumphs. So many of the pictures, sometimes with little or no text to accompany it, leap off the page or even better, draw you into the book with an animated seductiveness not found in most of today’s “art.” One print in particular titled “Airport Vampires” astounded me with its story. Yes, story. A single page of art equates to several hours of deconstruction. That print in and of itself is why Westman has the gift, that eye for the fantastic in a world of mundane. I wasn’t sure I would “get it” at first, because I’m the kind of dope that stares at those 3D prints for hours on end with no clue as to what I’m supposed to be seeing.
Fortunately, COLOR BLAST is not a cheap gimmick or an experiment in ego. People tend to find value in art where none exists simply because they think they have to. Sometimes a cigar really is just a cigar. But in Westman’s case, you see the cigar but your mind will see the humidor, the tobacco plant – heck, maybe even the sweaty Cuban who was forced to roll it up and ship it to some corporate CEO. That’s why I like COLOR BLAST. It’s like a collection of the best comic book covers all in one place.
There’s also an affection for women here that I found endearing. Lots of bright pink and confident tones. Wonder Woman has a surprise cameo early on and I must say I’ve never quite seen her in that light. I wonder what she’s trying to say? Another favorite has one of the better stout beers representing all that’s good in life (cute chicks and good beer if you haven’t figured it out). The art in COLOR BLAST is like nothing you’ve ever seen, unless of course you were lucky enough to snag VOLUME ONE. While this collection of prints will mean different things to different people, Jakob Westman was able to help me see the world in a more colorful way. And I can go back at a later date and it’s just as fresh as the first time I read it. I’ll be enjoying this book for a long time to come.
Web heads who can’t get enough of Mr. Pasty’s word vomit are encouraged to watch him operate as Nostradumbass over at here. MMAmania.com. Love, hate and Mafia Wars requests should be directed here.

Writer/Artist: Jeff Lemire
Publisher: Vertigo/DC Comics
Reviewed by Humphrey Lee

Sometimes you have to sit back and be honest with yourself when something you are extremely hyped for plays out. Being the huge fan I am of Mr. Lemire’s ESSEX COUNTY work and his THE NOBODY graphic novel, his finally doing an ongoing seemed like a slam dunk. “Seemed” being the key word in that sentence. SWEET TOOTH started off solidly in trying to establish the setting and getting us familiar with Gus, our protagonist, and his condition and why it is going to mean a lot of trouble for him. But other than the first issue, there really has not been much of an emotional tether established so far, which is always the best and most glorious part of a Lemire book. There’s been some okay action, coming from would-be protector come turncoat Mr. Jepperd, but there was also some awkward pacing accompanying all of these elements Lemire has been playing with the first handful of issues for this series. Not bad stuff, but not the sure thing I was hyping myself up for.
But what a difference an issue makes…
To put it in the hockey terms Mr. Lemire holds so dear, while the first few issues seemed to be him taking some fanned on shots from the point, this issue is him crashing the net full speed. My hopes and expectations perked up a bit at the end of the last issue, when Mr. Jepperd ended up being not what he seemed as he turned in his young, antlered companion to some very unseemly types. This issue is quick to turn around that perception of what this would infer about Jepperd, and it is finally that emotional tether that I so crave from a Lemire work.
Mr. Jepperd, one would have assumed from his badassed mannerisms, was some sort of armed servant or whatnot. Finding out he was once a great hockey player is unsurprising in that regard (and given Lemire’s writing tendencies). But his story presented in this issue, that of a fallen from grace star, a loving husband that finds himself fearful for the life of his beloved as the world starts to fall down around them, and how this all relates to his Judas turn was just fantastically executed. This is a turning point for this book in so many ways, most importantly for the characters. Now that we know what’s in the bad that Jepperd took as his thirty pieces of silver for turning in poor, innocent Sweet Tooth, you can get how torturous a decision that had to have been for such a man. And you can, given the violent streak we have seen from this man, almost feel bad for the poor bastards that put him in such a position because it has to be assumed that he’s coming back for them and for his young ward, hell or high water.
This issue also serves as a turning point for Gus, as one can assume his naivete is hopefully going to start to crumble. And maybe it will start to be a push towards the revelation of just why Gus and the others like him – most way more animalized than he – are what they are in the wake of the plague or whatever it was that set the world the way it is now. I’m guessing that’s more a long term mystery to be played out down the line, but at least it’s throwing out some more conceptions to work with. There are a lot of elements coming into play now, and this book is benefiting greatly from them as well as making the most of them.
All it takes is one defining issue to take a very competent book and make it a must read. This was that issue for me and hopefully Mr. Lemire can build off of the momentum this issue presents. It would seem a safe bet to me, now that I consider it, because his ESSEX COUNTY books started out like this. Not so much with all the, y’know, bloodiness and bullets flying, but by playing around a bit and getting some establishment work going and then BAM! there’s the personal hook to drive the momentum of the rest of the story. An ongoing is a little more beastly than an OGN though, so it will be the old “wait and see” on whether or not he’s able to hold pace from here on out, but this will be a lot of momentum to build off for a while. Trust in great talent and great talent will usually come through, and Jeff Lemire is a hell of a talent. Despite my initial reservations, my taste buds are warming up and I’m getting a pretty vicious SWEET TOOTH going myself.
Humphrey Lee has been an avid comic book reader going on fifteen years now and a contributor to Ain’t It Cool comics for quite a few as well. In fact, reading comics is about all he does in his free time and where all the money from his day job wages goes to – funding his comic book habit so he can talk about them to you, our loyal readers (lucky you). He’s a bit of a social networking whore, so you can find him all over the Interwebs on sites like Twitter, The MySpaces, Facebookand a Blogger Account where he also mostly talks about comics with his free time because he hasn’t the slightest semblance of a life. Sad but true, and he gladly encourages you to add, read, and comment as you will.

Writer & artists: Various
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewer: William

This special was so distant from the usual orders that my local comic shop places for their store, that I had to put it in as a special request. I don’t blame them though for not ordering it in mass quantities. I mean seriously, how much demand is there right now for a collection of Batman stories from over 10 years ago? But my local shop was great in honoring my unique request, hence allowing me to review it here.
First off it’s such a breath of fresh air to be able to read stand-alone stories of Batman again. I received an overdue taste of it with DC’s recent Batman 80-page giant, which made me want to order this special afterward. Let this be a note to all comic book publishers out there. Sometimes comic book fans can get sick of all of these 40 issue epic events that simultaneously clog ALL of the rest of comics. Despite what the publishers seem to think, we won’t be turning away from comics if we’re not hooked into the latest multi-issue epic. Fans can still purchase smaller, character-focused issues and still stick to the industry. I can see though the rationale with comic book publishers these days. To paraphrase a great line from “Glengarry Glen Ross”, you don’t sell one comic to a guy, you sell him 5 comics over five visits.
In any case back to this special. The selection of stories here remains an excellent pick in my opinion. You want interesting stories featuring Commissioner Gordon, Two-Face and the Joker, you have them here. Out of the bunch my favorite remains “Slayride”, done by writer Paul Dini and pencils by Don Kramer. Paul presents another great Joker story, this time from the viewpoint of Robin as he’s being held hostage within a car the Joker is driving. Writer Dini is able to truly convey the horror that is the Joker. Within each page you have no idea what he is about to do, and that in itself is terror. In one page he decides to call in an emergency to 911, the “emergency” being the hit and run he causes as he smashes his car into a woman pedestrian so hard that the car’s front grill caves in. In another page, he calmly shoots a fast-food manager in the face, as a teen girl coworker watches no less, because she couldn’t understand the order he had tried to place through the drive-thru. Throughout all of this a helpless Robin can only sit and watch as he tries to free himself. Again Dini creates a true sense of horror here, and makes you realize how truly horrible the Joker can be when written by the right author. The artwork by Kramer is phenomenal too. I love photo-realistic, highly detailed artwork, and Kramer provides plenty of that here. His Joker remains one of the best I have ever seen, even up there with Brian Bolland’s IMO.
Overall I recommend this special to any Batman fan out there. If you’d like to be able to enjoy some short, self-contained Batman stories again, then this is the comic for you. One small complaint, though: I don’t know if it was DC’s or the printing company’s fault, but that Joker story had some pages completely out of sync. Page 56 was printed before page 52, and so on. It took a while to rearrange the pages in order (as some of the pages didn’t have numbers printed on the bottom), but that’s the only minor gripe.

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Penciler: Mahmud A. Asrar

Writers: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Penciler: Brad Walker
Published by: Marvel Comics
Reviewed by: BottleImp

It can’t ALL be nostalgia, right? I mean, I’m sure that the whole “good old days” mentality is playing a big part, and I realize and appreciate that there is some damn fine storytelling going on out there, but come on—is it just me, or do the majority of today’s comic books lack that special spark that made us all fans in the first place? Comic creators and publishers have spent so long trying to convince the general public (and perhaps themselves?) that the medium now has more to offer intellectually than the four-color serials of yore that they seem to have forgotten that this old sense of edge-of-your-seat adventure is a powerfully addictive drug. When used properly, a good cliffhanger can generate enough excitement to hook those kids for life.
That’s right, kids. It used to be the kids who bought comics, saving up their allowances so that they could exchange them each month for the latest exploits of their favorite characters. Kids don’t tend to have a lot of disposable income (at least, most kids don’t—those who do have a lot of scratch lying around are probably more likely to spend it on video games or illegal narcotics), so the purchase of a comic book would not be taken lightly. If the comic became less enjoyable, the kid would most likely stop buying it and spend his cash on more amusing fare.
Nowadays it has become increasingly (and somewhat depressingly) evident that the majority of comic buyers are those of us who got into the medium when we were kids, and we just kept on reading them into our twenties, thirties, and beyond. The older comic book reader DOES have more disposable income—hence the older reader would be far more likely than a child to continue spending money on a comic book that was no longer entertaining, merely out of habit. And since that monthly cliffhanging hook has become less of an essential component to tantalize the older comic reader, publishers have focused more of their attention on the inevitable trade paperback collections—after all, the adult comic reader usually has the money to plunk down $20 at a time, so why should he spend it a little at a time for individual chapters when he can just buy the whole book? Unfortunately this emphasis on the trade paperback market has led to writers who write monthly comic not as serials, but as chapters of the trade—in other words, the focus has shifted from bringing a sense of excitement every month to thinking only about the completed storyline. Now we have comic books out on the stands that end up providing little to no entertainment, containing only filler for the trade, without consideration of the integral serial nature of the medium.
(A similar medium is television, and a similar example of this shifted focus from chapter to gestalt can be found in HEROES from the second season on.)
And so it seems as if comics are doomed to slowly collapse under the weight of their own pretension, all the while desperately trying to assure us that this turgid style of storytelling is better and more “mature.”
HOWEVER…
There are still those comic book makers out there who remember the childhood thrill of following the monthly adventures of their spandex-clad heroes, and they succeed in producing the most entertaining superhero comic books on the stands today. I am speaking, of course, of Andy Lanning and Dan Abnett, whose titles featuring Marvel’s spacefaring heroes truly capture the best qualities of the medium.
In this month’s NOVA, for instance, the title character’s arch-enemy The Sphinx is locked in battle with a younger version of himself inside the space/time anomaly dubbed “The Fault” (currently the McGuffin of many of the “Realm of Kings” storylines). Nova and other heroes, including the recently-deceased Black Bolt and the less-recently-deceased Namorita, have been plucked from their timelines by the older Sphinx to act as champions in his fight against Sphinx Junior, who has summoned his own motley assortment of oddballs from the corners of the Marvel Universe. It’s a tip of the hat to an old Marvel standby, the Legion of the Unliving. Remember that? Every so often a villain such as Immortus or the Grandmaster would pit the Avengers against a smorgasbord of characters who had shuffled off Marvel’s mortal coil, the two sides would be separated so it turned into one-on-one combat, and chances were that at least one of the Avengers was going to end up losing (though that unfortunate soul usually found a way to be resurrected before the final page). This good guys-versus-bad guys, living-versus-dead contest was always a blast to read even if only to take a look back at some of the wackier characters that Marvel had introduced over the years, and the similar contest in this issue of NOVA is no exception. I mean, Bloodstone and the Basilisk? I never thought I’d ever see them in continuity again, let alone the Basilisk putting a smackdown on the king of the Inhumans. It’s a wonderful throwback to those old comics while at the same time retaining enough of its own identity to feel fresh. The reader can sense that Abnett and Lanning really love the world they’re playing in without the writing ever falling into the trap of winking at the audience, and saying “look how clever and post-modern we are.” There’s a sincerity to the work that elevates action/adventure to a higher level of art. Oh, and speaking of art, Mahmud Asrar’s pencils are pretty slick.
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is a little different, since the comic is less of the traditional superhero fare and more like a four-color equivalent of THE DIRTY DOZEN—a rag-tag bunch of misfits thrown together and fighting against impossible odds. But Abnett and Lanning are also practicing the Mighty Marvel Method of storytelling here. I know that it’s become standard for Marvel’s comics to have the one-page recap/credits in every issue, and I appreciate how that makes it easier for a new reader to be brought up to speed on the characters and plot, but if a writer is doing his job (as Lanning and Abnett certainly do theirs), all the information that a reader needs should be right there in the story itself. And in this issue, within the first three pages, we learn all about the Church of Universal Truth, the fact that Moondragon is a telepath, the fact that she’s a little bit preggers with a monster from inside the previously mentioned Fault, and that the Church thinks this monster is their new God. And this information is woven seamlessly into the dialogue; plot exposition while the plot advances rather than a clumsy, clunky “last issue” text box. This issue comes to an action-packed finale that neatly wraps up the current story arc (which clocks in at a brisk and breezy two issues) and ends with that classic comic convention, the cliff-hanger… and just like I’m a kid again, I can’t wait until next month so I can fork over my allowance to find out what happens next.
These comics aren’t literature. You’ll never have to read NOVA for a college course, unlike, say, almost anything by Alan Moore. But in a time when so-called “comic book superstars” are churning out storylines that drag on for months and even years, when publishers are looking to the trade collection sales and Hollywood deals as the ultimate goals, and when you realize (as I have done not once, but several times over the years) that you’ve been throwing away money month after month on bland, insipid material out of sheer routine, you’ll come to realize that comic books shouldn’t work so hard to be taken seriously. Don’t forget about that little thing called fun.
When released from his Bottle, the Imp takes the form of Stephen Andrade, an artist/illustrator/pirate monkey painter from the Northeast. You can see some of his artwork here. He’s given up comics more times than he can remember. But every time he thinks he’s out, they pull him back in.

Writer: Christ Yost
Art: Marcus To
Publisher: DC Comics
Guest Reviewer: KletusCasady

Ever since I was a kid I’ve always loved Robin; there is just something about being the sidekick to one of the coolest heroes ever that appealed to me. I mean I couldn’t be Batman because I was just a kid and Batman was obviously an adult and frankly Batman has a lot of responsibility, which to this day I’m not sure I could handle. But Robin was a kid and so was I and so it seemed totally feasible that Batman could come to my window and say “I need a new sidekick…let’s roll,” which I don’t think Batman ever said but you get where I’m coming from. Not only that, Robin was always smiling! He was having fun for god sakes and he was fighting crime, saving lives and hanging out with Batman and his awesome toys. That being said, Tim Drake is my favorite Robin (one of my coworkers would fight me for this, he loves Nightwing). Not that I don’t like Dick Grayson but in my opinion he never really wanted to be Batman (and still doesn’t) and Tim Drake, no matter how much he fights it, wants to be Batman deep inside and after every issue he’s more and more like Batman and I like it.
When all the “one year later” stuff came around I was excited. I liked the fact that there were actual repercussions from some wild cosmic crisis event. Everything was not ok, everything was different and really this, to me, was better than INFINITE CRISIS. Enter Robin with a new costume and a new creative team to boot. Beechen and Williams II (Freddie not J.H. who is the III) were that team and I liked their run. Robin was on the lam from the cops, he had to escape the police station at one point with out hurting anyone and the art work, while at first I didn’t like because of its cartooniness, grew on me. He had a different attitude because of his Dad’s and Conner’s death (two factors that largely contributed to the more Bruce like Tim), and the stories were fun, well drawn and you could see that Robin was becoming his own bat (sorry I couldn’t resist). Then the creative team changed again, Chuck Dixon wrote one or two issues then had some snafu with DC and left the book, then Fabian Nicieza was on for a hot minute and his run wasn’t bad it just seemed as if he had to pick up the pieces from the Dixon fallout. One FINAL CRISIS and “Battle for the Cowl” later we are at the most current incarnation of Tim Drake as Red Robin. This book is awesome! Tim is his own man now and he’s searching for Bruce Wayne because he believes…no he knows he’s alive and he IS going to find him. What I like about this book is that Tim is smart as hell and it’s really a joy to see his cunning as well as his determination in finding his surrogate father. I don’t know if Chris Yost (of X-Force fame, another bad ass book that constantly has me saying “HOLY SHIT!” every issue) always had a desire to write Robin but it seems like he was destined to write Robin at some point in his life. Tim Drake not only manages to stay alive while working for Ra’s Al Ghul (long story…pick up the trade…trust me its good), but he fights off a group of assassins called the Council of Spiders (they are cool as hell!), saves his lady friend and cripples Ra’s Al Ghul’s computer infrastructure all over the world…whew!
That leads us to issue #9 and it’s really just Tim going back to Gotham but now he’s got to worry about Ras Al Ghul’s revenge which is really a testament to how good Tim is. I mean for Ra’s to crawl out of his hole, come to Gotham and hunt down people that Tim cares about shows how deeply Tim burned him. Ra’s even called Tim a “very dangerous young man,” and that’s a complement and a half coming from the Demon’s Head. He fights an old villain from the first appearance of Batgirl, runs into an old non Black Lantern friend, and talks shit to Ra’s Al Ghul. Basically, the meat of this book is Tim getting reacclimated to Gotham and lamenting about how he missed it. The thing that makes this book awesome, besides the stellar art work by Marcus To not Raymond Bachs as printed on the front of the cover (come on DC the guy hasn’t been on the book in 4 or 5 issues!), is the internal dialog which, to me, can make or break a Batman book (see Batman 692-current..for the make..not the break) and Tim’s dialog is spot on. Last issue the scene where he’s sizing up his opponents was sooo cool: “Remember everything your teachers gave you. Don’t be any of them. Be all of them.” This is the dialog of a confident person who knows what to do but also knows they can’t just cruise through a fight with deadly assassins…awesome! Chris Yost and Marcus To, I thank you, you have made Robin even more awesome, despite how much my friend Josh makes fun of me for liking him. Now lets hope they stay on this book for…well…forever!

By Jinsei Kataoka and Kazuma Kondou
Released by TokyoPop
Reviewer: Scott Green

In the wake of the Great Tokyo Earthquake… err… pop entertainment with earthquake tie-ins are a bit tough these days. I wonder if anyone was looking at licensing TOKYO MAGNITUDE 8.0 and how Haiti’s tragedy effected that.
In the wake of the Great Tokyo Earthquake, Japan built the privatized prison/tourist attraction Deadman Wonderland. Despite this transformation of Japan’s geographical and social landscape, middle school student Ganta Igarashi grew up under recognizably familiar circumstances. This mundane life was shattered in his early teens. In a normal classroom setting, Ganta looks out the window and sees a red, rag covered figure floating, trailing chains and dripping blood. The shocking presence unleashes a spray of hexagonal planes, slicing up Ganta’s classmates. In the bloody wake of the event, Ganta is arrested for the killings and sentenced to death, to be carried out at Deadman Wonderland.
It’s Wonka’s chocolate factory with brutal beatings. Walking through the death’s head emblazoned Magic Kingdom gates, Ganta is lined up with other newcomers and given a bit of an orientation by a shapely young woman in a fascist flight attendant number. “Any questions?” she prompts… “Yup… how big are those cans.” “G cup.”
Another young inmate bumps into Ganta. After the clumsy prisoner helps Ganta up, the curvy officer warns this pick pocket to return what he stole. Without giving him much time to respond, the woman draws a sword, slices into the chest of the thief, then steps on his head with her high heeled boot.
In the midst of the brutal inmates, brutal administrators and brutal death spectator sports, Ganta finds an ally of sorts. Pale peer girl Shiro, outfitted in a skintight number that manages to make her look both naked and restrained, crawls through the installations rafters and utility tunnels, coming to Ganta’s aid. Her regard for the hero is bewildering. Her manner is that of a young child. However, it certainly appears that there are few she can’t overpower.
There are elements of the shonen power progression tournament here. And, childish/physically impressive Shiro does possess characteristics of the kind of girl on which anime/manga rest their appeal. Neither of these is the hook of the series.
DEADMAN WONDERLAND is unusual. It doesn’t conform to a simple “if you like X, you’ll like it” pattern. However, even if the recipe of elements is a complex one, whether it receives a cold reception or an embrace is dependent on a connection to its particular constellation of points of comparison.
On one hand, DEADMAN WONDERLAND is the quintessential SHONEN ACE title. This anthology is known for its many anime tie-ins, mostly of the mecha variety such as NEON GENESIS EVENGELION, various GUNDAM and various MACROSS. As the name implies, it’s for a shonen, teen boys, audience, but it skews older than periodicals like SHONEN JUMP or SHONEN SUNDAY, as it features darkly disturbing, and/or violent works, often populated by older characters such as GOTH (teens investigating murders due to their pathological fascination with violent crime), ANNE FREAKS (a teen on the run after killing his mother combats a terrorist cult), MPD PSYCHO (a police detective/criminal profilers/serial killer with multiple personality disorder, adapted for TV by the infamous Takashi Miike), and KUROSAGI CORPSE DELIVERY SERVICE (underemployed Buddhist college grads find work transporting corpses to where the dead need to be).
DEADMAN WONDERLAND hits both SHONEN ACE notes. It’s not anime adapted, but it’s certainly anime ready (and to be adapted into anime). Beyond its colorful vision of prison theme parks, this impression is enhanced by illustrations from Kazuma Kondou, the artist who adapted mecha anime EUREKA 7 into manga (published in SHONEN ACE). And it’s violent. Late in the volume, Ganta is revealed to have a tool to facilitate his survival. It’s a decidedly gruesome concept for a super power. Apart from the massacre of Ganta’s class, DEADMAN WONDERLAND is not one of the more graphic manga you’ll find in SHONEN ACE. The two elements find a away to complement each other in DEADMAN WONDERLAND in a way that they don’t in the violent SHONEN ACE manga that have or would lend themselves to live action. It doesn’t have the spilled organs of GOTH or the exposed cadavers of KUROSAGI CORPSE DELIVERY SERVICE. More often, DEADMAN WONDERLAND operates with cartoonish attacks and windshield spray gushes of blood.
Beyond DEADMAN WONDERLAND’s SHONEN ACE-ness, it applies a mind for social satire to silver age comic extravagance. Ganta is set to fight for his life on the raised platform of a Ninja Warrior obstacle course at the behest of cruel institutions, for the amusement of the crowd. The occasional bits in which we see the spine of an anonymous inmate as he’s sliced up by a pendulum blade might not pass Comic Code muster, but the situation is strikingly like ones in which a super hero is dropped into a death trap. With institutions, schemers and violent elements threatening him, the odds are against Ganta to a dire extent. Terrible circumstances and violence are afflicted on the desperate Ganta throughout. Even if there is pointed cultural criticism implied, it’s too exaggerated to get too exercised about the ideology. That’s not necessarily a flaw. It does skew young. A dose of jadedness can easily poison the fun of DEADMAN WONDERLAND. Still it has the right amounts of transgression, spectacle and attitude to enthrall readers of the right mindset.
Scott Green has been writing for AICN ANIME for over eight years. If you like what you see here and love anime & manga, be sure to check out his latest AICN ANIME column every week on AICN.

Ambush Bug here. Enjoy these comics that celebrate the awesomeness of independent graphic literature. Take a walk on the wild side and check them out…

THE ARGONAUTS #1
Timeless Journey Comics

The second offering from new publisher Timeless Journey Comics has a great premise as warriors are gathered from across history to battle a common threat. Sound familiar? Sure it does, but there’s something to be said about old school super-heroing seen through a modern lens. Though more questions are asked than answered here, this first issue does its job by introducing the reader to a cast of lost heroes and a premise that reeks of old school without the musty stench that usually accompanies those qualities. The makers of this book know comics and know how to make fun comics. I especially like the character designs; original and iconic. This book is worth a look.

THE ORDER OF DRAGONET #1-2
THE ORDER OF DRAGONET

This is a satirical and entertaining read. It’s got a Monty Python feel mixed with a bit of HITCHHIKERS GUIDE TO THE GALAXY as the modern world is overrun with magical creatures and an unlikely group of humans are knighted by Merlin as humanity’s last hope. The story by Jeremy Whitley is something original and fun with a tone that juggles light humor with dire consequences. The art in this one is especially nice by Jason Strutz. His panels take on a more chalky feel than anything else, though I guess it could be categorized as oil pastel. All in all this is an off kilter and offbeat take on an age old knights’ tale.

INTREPID #1
Crucial Crisis Comix/Graphic Illusions Comics

This is a very cool story about a not so distant future where heroes are no longer looked up to and it’s up to the military to take on super powered villains. What happened to make the populace lose faith in the heroes? Where are all of these villains coming from? And how frikkin awesome is the art in this comic? I can answer the last question easily: pretty frikkin awesome. Reminiscent of art you may see in a 2000AD book (very Kev Walker), the one-named artist Montos doles out some truly unique and gritty looking art that booms off the page as the villains and military clash. I’m going to be keeping a close eye on this book. So far, so good. Can’t get over how awesome the art is on this one. Fantastic stuff.

DEAD MAN’S HOLIDAY #1
www.deadmanholiday.com

Like magnets of the same polarity, as I read this book, the closer I come to understanding this story, the further away it goes. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There’s a TWIN PEAKS disconnected vibe going on with this story that is all too intriguing as a lone hero boats through a city with rivers for streets and battling a costumed skeleton and a haunted pile of rags. This is a very dreamy, very surreal adventure/horror comic that will induce just as many chills that it does questions.
Ambush Bug is Mark L. Miller, reviewer and co-editor of AICN Comics for over eight years and one of the original @$$holes. Check out his comic book shorts from Cream City Comics’ MUSCLES & FIGHTS VOL.3 and MUSCLES & FRIGHTS VOL.1 on his ComicSpace page. Bug was interviewed here and here at Cream City Comics and here and here about his comic from Bluewater Comics, VINCENT PRICE PRESENTS: THE TINGLER #1-2. Look for more comics from Bug in 2010, including ROGER CORMAN PRESENTS DEATHSPORT, and the just announced vampire miniseries NANNY & HANK (and check out Jazma Online’s new interview with Bug about NANNY & HANK here). Bug’s latest comic is VINCENT PRICE PRESENTS #16: WITCHFINDER GENERAL on sale February 24, 2010. Fanboy Radio recently interviewed Bug about it here.

NEW AVENGERS #61
Marvel Comics

Pretty, pretty, prettyyyyy good. This was a pretty good issue. Hold this comic up next to one of his earlier DAREDEVIL issues and tell me which one is better. To me, Bendis’ DD run doesn’t hold a candle to his current stuff. Sure there the uhm’s and the hell’s and all of the other stuttering Mamet speak is still here, but lately Bendis has reeled that in a notch. And though there are some Tarantino discourse asides in this issue, it’s also a pretty pulse pounding actioner. Cap and Bucky take on the Living Laser and the Controller while across town Spider-Man and Spider-Woman face off against the Griffin and Mandrill. For once, Bendis isn’t treating the villains like idiots. He’s highlighting their personalities along with the action potential that beasts of these guys’ power set have to offer. The result: some cool scenes of broad stroked action. Not what Bendis is known for, but it’s good to see the guy evolving. – Bug

RED SONJA: WRATH OF THE GODS #1
Dynamite Entertainment

I never get tired of reading the RED SONJA series. One of the few gems in the animated landfill known as Dynamite Entertainment, it continues to satisfy on so many levels. I think the best compliment I can give it is that it feels like a comic book. I like that. Not every “graphic novel” has to be Hemingway and to his credit, Luke Leiberman plays it straight in WRATH OF THE GODS. Of course the story is preposterous, as a bikini-clad Sonja treks through a frozen wasteland with a bratty sidekick, but who cares? Leiberman makes it entertaining and delivers the perfect balance of dialogue and action. And Walter Geovani? Forget the pencil. This man draws with a lightning bolt from Zeus himself. No mere mortal can accomplish what he does with her buxom figure and I’ll put Sonja’s ass up against any animated ass in the business. RED SONJA looks hot, kicks ass and swashbuckles her way through monthly adventures that usually involve Gods, monsters and demons. I can’t get enough. – Pasty

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #35
DC Comics

Man, this was a stinker of an issue. I hate to say it, but outside of the FABLES universe, Willingham is not impressing me. I wasn’t a fan of his SHADOWPACT stuff mainly because it seemed uninspired, as if Willingham’s heart wasn’t into it. Here once again, really lame stuff is going on. Wildcat fighting stuffed animals. Mr. America runs from a pack of wolves. Flash runs from giant bees. Dr. Mid-Nite creeped out by zombies looking for his healing touch…ok that one was kind of cool, but the effect was lamed when one goes on about his need for Viagra. Everything is wrapped up in a little bow in the end a little too neatly and quickly, making this entire two-parter read like a fill in story that had gathered dust on a DC shelf for a few years. Willingham needs to come out guns a blazin’ with a little bit of that FABLES awesomeness in this next arc or I’m out of here. – Bug

DAREDEVIL #504
Marvel Comics

Apart from some pretty intense action going on in this book, the main reason to keep you radar sense attuned to this book is because of the fantastic art by Roberto De la Torre who is taking this book to new artistic heights. I’ve seen De La Torre adapt and evolve his style over the last year or two and with every issue of DAREDEVIL his stuff gets more distinct and amazing than ever. DD has been forced to make some pretty morally ambiguous decisions so far as leader of the Hand. Now with a battalion of HAMMER troops as prisoner, DD heads to Japan next issue. He’s keeping busy and though Diggle is keeping DD in character, he’s walking a tightrope between good and evil more than ever before. One thing’s for sure; as long as De la Torre is in the artist’s chair, I’m there. – Bug

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #41
DC Comics

I know this book came out a week or two ago, but I just got to it in my stack. Have you read the first issue of CRY FOR JUSTICE? You know, the one where the hero is fighting a villain and then two more heroes stand smugly to the side and say something like, “The Justice League needs YOU!”? You know that issue? Well, this issue is basically same shit/different issue. How can Robinson get away with using the exact same formula for an issue for two different stories focusing on the same characters? Completely ridiculous. I want to like the JLA again after what seems like an age and a half of following the wannabes in one useless adventure after another. While DC saves all of its good adventure for its event books, Robinson takes us on another tedious “gathering the gang” issue. I understand comic book storytelling has come a long way since the first JLA #1 many, many years ago, but in that issue it took just a few panels for a bunch of heroes to join forces and battle a common foe. Now it takes twelve issues just to get them all on he same page. There’s something I can appreciate about getting to the damn point and telling some compelling stories. These modern writers need to consult the classics, take some notes, and get the hell on with it. – Bug

PUNISHER #13
Marvel Comics

And now for the “I read it so you don’t have to” book of the week. Frank Castle is still one of the undead, reanimated with bolts and spare parts in one of the worst editorial decisions since…well, ever. There’s a reason people still remember Angel Guns Punisher and the arc where he’s played by C. Thomas Howell from SOUL MAN. They were awful runs and proof positive when you start tossing too many fantastical elements into a Punisher story, it just doesn’t work. Three issues in, and my point still stands. This comic is the worst of the year. Remender is a good writer and Moore a good artist. But together and on the Punisher they’re toxic. Moore’s art is too cartoony for the tone of the book. Had this been done with an artist with a more horrific and less comic style, it just might have worked. But the ridiculous, “throw a bunch of shit against the wall and see what sticks” tone Remender uses with the book would’ve sabotaged even the most horrific of art. This comic reads and looks more like a MAD MAGAZINE version of the Punisher, making fun of the premise rather than honoring it. Stay away from this book. It reeks.

Editing, compiling, imaging, coding, logos & cat-wrangling by Ambush Bug
Proofs, co-edits & common sense provided by Sleazy G

Ad by Prof. Challenger

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Check out the @$$oles’ ComicSpace AICN Comics page here for an archive and more @$$y goodness.

AICN COMICS! ALL STAR BATMAN & ROBIN! SCROOGE MCDUCK! THE 1ST AICN COMICS NEWS

The Pull List
(Click title to go directly to the review)




ALL STAR BATMAN & ROBIN THE BOY WONDER #1

NEW THUNDERBOLTS #10

JLA #116

THE LIFE & TIMES OF $CROOGE MCDUCK (TPB)

BATMAN #642

BANANA SUNDAY #1

RANN-THANAGAR WAR #3

Indie Jones presents GENSHIKEN VOLUME 1

CHEAP SHOTS!

SHOOT THE MESSENGER – AICN COMICS NEWS!

Written by Frank Miller

Art by Jim Lee

Published by DC

Reviewed by All Star Buzz

Frank! Jim! Glad we could have this little sit down.

You two: overpaid, overrated comic book pros. Me: disgusted, occasionally disgusting comic book fan/@$$hole. As a fan, the mainstream media like ENTERTAINMENT WEEKY and WIZARD has been telling me that I’m supposed to go all Monkeemania over this book because you two worked on it.

Before I go on, Frank, I have to tell you how much I liked the SIN CITY movie. A lot of my friends have said that it’s the first time they ever liked Mickey Rourke (what, no love for Teddy Lewis the Rock ‘n’ Roll arsonist or even The Motorcycle Boy or Boogie?) or the first time they liked his work in years. I tell them I’ve always liked Violent Mick but it’s the first time I’ve liked Frank’s work in years. C’mon, Frank, you don’t really want to be doing DC or Marvel stuff. That’s why there’s a SIN CITY / 300 Frank and a Cashing In On Past BATMAN Glory Frank.

About the book itself, I wanna start with Jim. Jim, there is no doubt that you draw beautiful women posing. I wanna help ya, man. Soon, your remaining audience will figure out what the rest of us have: most comic fans are over 18. Despite the stereotypes, we’ve all been there and back again. We’ve seen and touched the real thing. We have porn a click away. VICTORIA’S SECRET catalogues are mailed to our homes. We can subscribe to PLAYBOY, PENTHOUSE, HUSTLER and CRACK HO all we want. So we don’t need your pencilings of Vicki Vale in her underwear drinking a martini or capering around.

I don’t know whose bright idea that was. I don’t want to point the finger so one of you ‘fess up. Let’s look at those pretty scenes with a little logic. Vicki Vale is a newspaper columnist. What do they pay newspaper columnists in Gotham? That apartment of hers with the wall high windows, the retro-mod furnishings, the telecom…Vicki would have to own the entire newspaper chain to afford all that crap. At first, I thought maybe she was being kept by Bruce Wayne, but you go and tell us it’s their first date. Does Bruce know she’s kept by Lex Luthor? Or is Tony Stark sneaking over from the Marvel Universe for a little, exotic DC action?

And, sorry, fantasy and all, but have ya ever been in a newsroom? Even on TV news, they don’t look like the Vickstress here. This would be okay, but everybody says that Frank does the realistic Batman, which is the kind of oxymoron that has fucked up comics since the 1980s.

Vicki’s take on Batman was well done, although immediately repeated. And her thrill at being on a date with Bruce Wayne was repeated, too. The kids dig it when the DJ jiggles the record and makes it repeat, don’t they, Frank? What I don’t get is that you set Vicki up as tough, cynical, and sophisticated, but then she’s a groupie?

All of those are really minor issues, guys. It’s just that you used the T & A to get everyone’s attention so I talked about it first. Let’s talk about you portrayal of Batman, Frank. How can put it politely?

It’s kind of stupid.

It was fine back in the ’80s, but do you really think the ultra-unlikable hardass is anything more than a gimmick? Sure, it appealed to the wannabe tough in me when I was an undergrad, but since then it’s been kind of hemmorhoidal. The character never would have lasted this way, in publishing and in his fictional world, Frank.

“On your feet, soldier. You’ve just been drafted. This is a war.”

Maybe I’m too old for this shit. I’m not as old as you guys, but you’re getting paid. Isn’t this a little pretentious? Along the lines of “Good soldier, good soldier”. When Alan Moore spoofed that line with Dark ’80s Supreme and the other Supremes (the superheroes, not the girl-group) looked at each other like, “What the fuck?” I had to laugh my ass off and mostly I was laughing at myself for ever thinking things like that were cool.

Robin’s parents were just killed and this is how Batman introduces himself? We know that Sub-human Batman has already thought of Robin as a “brat.” I’m gonna skip Psycho Batman. When Batman’s supposed to sound tough, it just reads as prissy to me.

Yes, guys, I know that you’re not trying to appeal to kids. You’ve got a foul mouthed Vicki Vale and her panties riding up her ass. Yes, Frank, I know that censorship is bad because it’s censorship. But you didn’t create any of these characters so it’s not the same thing, is it?

Comic people fall into two groups. The larger group would genuinely like to bring in new readership and that means getting kids back into reading comics. The other group is this weird contingent of the macho and the artistic types that don’t give a shit if kids read comics. Elements like Robin, a kid hero, appeal to little kids, if they get a chance to see the character and the comics. This book is an opportunity, but they gave it to you two guys. Dumb move.

Frank, I know you’ll say that kids should be able to read this stuff, that you wouldn’t have a problem with your own kids reading it. How old are you kids? 23, 24? I don’t trust your judgment.

Ah, here are the Hype-guys! You know Frank and Jim. Hype-guys, I’m about to wrap up but I want to tell you before we go: stop treating comic fans like they’re stupid.

Writer: Fabian Nicieza

Penciller: Tom Grummett

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Reviewed by Humphrey Lee

I love it when a plan comes together.

Since issue one of this THUNDERBOLTS relaunch something has be amiss. Between the rather clandestine way this new line up of the team has come together, and some rather eyebrow-raising erratic behavior from the characters (well, even more than usual from this kind of bunch) there’s just been something that hasn’t felt right. But now we have most of our answers, and I like the end result of this puzzle that has been displayed before us.

What we’re seeing here has been a grand orchestration since issue one. Since then we’ve seen a new team assembled, disassembled, then assembled again, and now they’ve gone back to being at each others’ throats… but now the reasoning behind it is clear and making much more sense. Apparently Zebediah Killgrave, AKA The Purple Man, has been running our team in circles since day one. As this issue progresses, all with an overlying narrative done by our said antagonist that is really quite fun to read, we “listen” as he slowly unfolds his scheme. Since the beginning he was the one who has caused the infighting, and the doubt, and even dissent between our teammates. And now he’s causing all sorts of havoc as he has framed original Thunderbolter Mockingbird for multiple homicides, turning the team against her as she flees with the new Swordsman, with the THUNDERBOLTS on her tail as well as half the city under Killgrave’s control.

All this plus at the end of the book we watch as Killgrave’s plans within the team start to take shape, with much brutality to come, and a cliffhanger that comes out of nowhere to make me smile and somewhat groan all at the same time.

I know that sounds like a lot, but trust me, going back through the previous issues this has all unfolded very well. As we watch the characters bind together you can always feel that there’s something on the horizon, and now we know what it was. As everything comes to a head in this issue you can just feel how well it matches up with Killgrave’s narrative throughout this issue. It really does take on the notion of him being the “writer” all along and gives us a feel of suspense as we still don’t really know who’s a pawn of the Purple Man’s, or hell, if they’re all just pawns. Also, the action and violence kicks it up to 11 here as we watch the team going at it with Killgrave’s pawns, both from within the team and the city’s denizens as they begin to riot at his command. Add to that the ever increasing mystery of just who exactly is this new Swordman and you’ve got yourself a real page turner in this issue.

Between all of the above elements, and some really great art by the always competent Tom Grummett, this series is becoming quite the ride. It all got off to a shaky start, but now we see why. And with it, this book is truly coming into its own and becoming one of Marvel’s best and most riveting titles.

Writers: Geoff Johns/Allan Heinberg

Artists: Chris Batista/Mark Farmer

Publisher: DC Comics

Reviewer: Prof. Challenger

You know, just a couple of weeks back I was sharing my frustration over the bastard-Batman appearing in THE OMAC PROJECT. Now here I am complaining about bastard-Hawkman appearing in JLA. Hawkman, as he’s been portrayed ever since IDENTITY CRISIS (which means it’s all retroactive characterization making him an s.o.b. in all those fun little past adventures too), is a full-on bloody bastard. By the point that Matter Master was slicing through Hawkman’s shoulder with that shield, I was kind of hoping he really would slice Carter’s arm off.

Remember 20 years back when the CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS hit? One of the story-telling charms that occurred during CRISIS and its various tie-in comics was the opportunity to team up characters from different time periods and alternate Earths for the first, and maybe last, time. Well, that’s kind of the overall surface-level feeling I had while reading this month’s JLA. The Secret Society of Super-Villains are on the scene — but not in the VILLAINS UNITED form. Instead, here they are in their grand, glorious, mid-to-late-70s form even down to the lame green-hooded orange costume of the Wizard (though what’s with the baggy pirate-shirt sleeves instead of the even more dorky tanktop he actually wore in the 70s?). Chronos is there in his hideously garish old costume. The non-Carol Ferris Star Sapphire’s there in all her inexplicable psycho-ness. The Floronic Man is back from his hijack into Vertigo-land so many years ago. Finally, there’s Felix Faust in all his towel-headed costume silliness. I don’t remember any guy named Matter Master in the SSOSV back then, but whatever.

So, here I am settled into a 70s groove and then my face gets fish-slapped by Catwoman in all her postmodern leather and goggles embarrassment. Somebody get that girl back into that sexy purple-skirted thing she wore back in the 70s. Meow. Later, up pops Zatanna in all her fishnet glory, but, oops what a waste of a great character. To complete the 70s membership, they’re carrying around all the broken up parts of the now-expressionless-faced Red Tornado. I don’t know what all’s up with that. Wasn’t there a whole big story point way back when where Reddy wanted a more human-like face and that’s what he got? Not sure why he would then feel comfortable going back to the expressionless face. [This review’s O.C.D. art quibble: apparently Green Lantern now has the ability to become Giant Green Lantern if you look at the last panel on page 12. Needed a taller panel or a different angle. I know he’s supposed to be floating there, but as it sits right now, now matter how you slice it, GL looks like he’s about the size of Mighty Joe Young there.]

OK. Now that that’s all out of the way, what happened in this comic? Well, that scene on the cover for one. Of course, problem with that is that it was basically a sucker punch. Hawkman wasn’t expecting it AND he’d just finished having one of his arms sewn back on. So, when Batman lost control there and busted Carter’s face, it came off to me a bit like an out-of-character crybaby tantrum by Batman taking a little bit of advantage of the fact that Carter’s not physically up to par right now. So, CRISIS OF CONSCIENCE has substituted Crybaby-Batman for Bastard-Batman. I at least prefer the crybaby version telling everybody to go home cause he doesn’t wanna play anymore cause they were mean to him. Especially with that mean playground bully Hawkman getting in his face. If it hadn’t been for Coach Lantern, I bet Hawkbully would’a pounded Crybabyman with his mace.

Also, Johns and Heinberg make an attempt to play “Messrs. Fixit” here and fix one of Meltzer’s worst storytelling mistakes back in IDENTITY CRISIS — the character evisceration of Zatanna. Under Meltzer’s laptop transmission, Zatanna was retroactively reduced to a weak-willed girl who allowed herself to be bullied into raping the minds of villain’s and heroes by super-bastard Hawkman. If nothing else good comes out of this CRISIS OF CONSCIENCE story arc, at least Johns and Heinberg have addressed the Zatanna problem and restored a bit of Zee’s strength of character by having her step up and claim the blame for the whole thing. That’s good. I just wish all the bottles of bad characterization hadn’t been spilled in ID CRISIS in the first place forcing Johns and others to spend this whole last year mopping up and figuring out how to restore proper characterization to these characters while acknowledging and springboarding forward from the events and actions that occurred in that series.

I’m not hating this CRISIS arc in JLA. In fact, I’m appreciating what it is attempting to do with respect to continuity and the work of previous writers. That right there is an admirably professional approach that’s disturbingly unique in the modern comics industry. Best of all, just when jaded Prof thought he didn’t have it in him anymore, he let loose a giddy fanboy “Yeah!” when he got to the last page and discovered whose glowing red eyes those were in Part One that restored the memories of the SSOSV. Sitting there in all his fin-headed glory. He’s the totally logical villain of the piece but still took me completely by surprise.

Writer/Artist: Don Rosa

Publisher: Gemstone Publishing

Reviewer: Dave Farabee

“Scrooge and his creator Carl Barks belong in the great mainstream of American Folklore.”

-TIME MAGAZINE

This being Ain’t-It-Cool-News and all our readers being hipper-than-hip, I’m betting you’re like me when it comes to Disney ‘toons versus Warner Brothers ‘toons: Warners all the way, baybee! Bugs Bunny versus Mickey Mouse? Please, it’s not even a contest. Warner Brothers is the home of subversiveness, Disney’s the home of sitcom schtick. Warner Brothers is Lenny Bruce, Disney is Bob Hope.

Right?

Imagine my surprise then, when I learned years ago that Disney comics – especially the “Disney Duck” comics…especially the Carl Barks-cartooned stories of the ‘40s and ‘50s…especially the adventures of Donald Duck’s miserly uncle, Scrooge McDuck – were held in highest regard by comic book aficionados! None other than George Lucas himself penned the introduction to an ‘80s reprint of favorite Uncle Scrooge stories (“These comics are one of the few things you can point to and say: like it or not, this is what America is.”), and it’s Uncle Scrooge we’re interested in today.

The question you’re all asking, of course: Just what the hell is the appeal of an aging, adventure-seeking Scottish duck with more money than God?!

Don Rosa’s THE LIFE AND TIMES OF $CROOGE MCDUCK is as good an answer as you’re likely to find. Written and drawn in the early ‘90s, it’s a twelve-part story chronicling the formative years of Scrooge McDuck. It’s an adventure, it’s a comedy, it’s what they used to call a “funny animal” story. Rosa, considered by many a Disney Duck fan to be Barks’ only true successor, approached the project with an obsession for detail to rival Alan Moore’s FROM HELL. His goal was to read every Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge story and incorporate every reference the old coot made to his past adventures (and he made lots of ‘em!) into a sprawling, globe-hopping tale that would also be steeped in real American and world history from the period (late 1800s/early 1900s).

Sound insane? Big time, but it won 1995’s Eisner Award for “Best Serialized Story”, so show some respect!

Or better yet, find out why you should show some respect. At its heart, Uncle Scrooge’s life is a Horatio Alger story by way of Indiana Jones, lensed through an animator’s screwball sensibilities. I got a real kick out of the opening few pages, the omniscient narrator reflecting on Uncle Scrooge swimming around in his famous money vault and posing the question of just how he earned it. Scrooge pauses in his fun, turns to the reader, and growls, “None of your goldurn business!”

Ha!

It’s an appropriately rambunctious keynote, but the narrator coolly responds, “Oh so?”, and Scrooge’s protestations aside, we’re off! It all begins in the moors of Scotland, where a penniless young Scrooge vows to strike it rich through hard work and return prestige to the long-suffering Clan McDuck. Let’s jump ahead, though, to peek in on a more exciting chapter and see what makes these things tick. “Master of the Mississippi” is a particular favorite…

[Sidebar: the reason these stories are set so long ago is that, of course, they need to be to jibe with the Barks stories of ‘40s and ‘50s, which had a then-aged Scrooge talking about prospecting for gold in his younger days, serving as a cowpoke, etc. Rosa’s even drawn up a timeline, with Scrooge’s birth in 1867, and yes, even his death 100 years later.]

Like every chapter in LIFE AND TIMES, “Master of the Mississippi” sets its stage with a map of the relevant countryside in the first panel. The maps, always bounded by Scrooge’s adventuring gear, provide a nice sense of historicity…cartoon ducks notwithstanding! This time out it’s 1880 and Scrooge has made his way to a wonderfully-rendered Louisville, Kentucky. Like all of Rosa’s settings, Louisville’s drawn with dense R. Crumb-meets-Disney detail and hatching, bringing to life the muddy riverbanks, massive riverboats, and roughneck saloons. These detailed backdrops become playscapes for Scrooge, his friends, and his enemies to vault and caper over with animated glee and endearing exasperation. It’s like a stop-motion-animated flick, creating its own kind of dreamlike (but somehow believable) reality for the viewer to lose himself in.

Scrooge finds himself chasing after the salvage rights to the mysterious Drennan Whyte, a famed riverboat that supposedly sank carrying a hundred grand in government gold. The Whyte was a real tall tale of the era, Rosa notes in his meticulous and readable afterward to the chapter, the first of many historical “easter eggs”. The villains of the piece are the ancestors of the Beagle Boys, the dog-faced baddies who’re the recurring black hats in Scrooge’s adventures. This first squaring off with Scrooge is one of the many such “historic” moments in the story, but lest you think it’s all continuity geeking…there’s riverboat racing, sunken towns, and big explosions! The set piece of the story, though, has to be a showdown in the sunken Drennan Whyte, only partially flooded at the river bottom and perfect for creepy exploring.

And that’s just a single chapter of twelve, each self-contained but building on the others. LIFE AND TIMES really is the epitome of the all-ages story. I can’t say the writing is brilliant per se, but it’s got verve and wit, it’s got twists and turns, and it has that indefinable quality of so many great kids’ yarns – it makes you feel good to read it. If that sounds corny, move on, smartass! But know that the story’s not without its moments of pathos, especially in the latter chapters. America’s at the heart Scrooge’s travels, but he does his share of globetrotting and at his lowest ebb in one story, makes a shameful decision while mining diamonds in Africa. Later, as his money begins the pile, he starts abandoning family and friends. Rosa, an avowed classic movie buff, even makes an explicit comparison to CITIZEN KANE in the moving final chapter. Will the once square-deal Scrooge – whom we’ve seen battling claim jumpers, fighting alongside Teddy Roosevelt (no kiddin’), and dodging flash floods in Australia’s deserts – sacrifice his old-fashioned values in a fit of greed and misanthropy?

I say drop the mere seventeen bucks this ultra-packed volume costs and find out your own dang self! You’ll get a kick out of the continuity geek stuff like Scrooge first donning his famous pince-nez or getting his first kick in the pants from nephew, Donald, but more than that, you’ll get one of the most guileless examples of comic book escapism since Marvel’s Silver Age! And it’s a lot of reading, ta boot. Twelve issues, seven or eight panels a page, detailed art dotted with Harvey Kurtzmanesque visual gags, fond interstitial reflections from Rosa (who even cops to it when he fudges a detail here and there), and plenty of bonus material like cover reproductions, family trees, and layouts for unused pages.

If there’s a better comic buy all year, I’ll eat Uncle Scrooge’s top hat.

Writer: Andersen Gabrych

Penciller: Chris Marrinan

Publisher: DC Comics

Reviewed by Humphrey Lee

Why? Just why?

Is this really even necessary?

This latest issue of Batman kicks off a month long, four-part mini-crossover with DETECTIVE COMICS called WAR CRIMES, that is supposed to work off of last years lackluster BATMAN crossover WAR GAMES. But why? Even though last years crossover had its own troubles, it wrapped up pretty conclusively. Batman’s newest sidekick, Spoiler, was dead, Black Mask was the newest Crime lord of Gotham, and Oracle’s Watchtower lay in ruins. And now, DC has decided that in the midst of all the INFINITE CRISIS tie-ins, and all the events now going on with Jason Todd in BATMAN, AND in the middle of David Lapham’s 12-part storyline in DETECTIVE, we apparently need to add this to the mix as well. Really, I just don’t see why this story even needs to be told. And it doesn’t help that it’s off to a very uninteresting start.

Here’s the basic gist of the book. Apparently during WAR GAMES, Black Mask has the Mad Hatter implant one of his mind control chips directly into Killer Croc’s brain in order to use him as an unwilling ally. Eventually though Croc becomes aware of something wrong with his head. And in an admittedly humorous bit through the first half of the book, we see him digging at his skull, and even digging into it, to the point where eventually he digs through it and finds the chip in the soft tissue of his brain.

And then the killing begins as Croc spends the rest of the issue wading through foot soldiers trying to get to the Hatter, and Batman is on his trail trying to stop him and save him at the same time, as apparently Croc’s genetic make-up is now unstable due to what Hush did to him in that storyline.

Seriously though, the story itself could be somewhat fun enough if it just wasn’t forced to run through these titles. If DC could just decide what they were doing with LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT, I would say this belongs there. But apparently they’re still holding on to that title as being the “free-roaming, anything goes” BATMAN title, except, y’know, whenever there’s a Crossover to be had. As it stands though we have a book here with a couple minor fun bits, but somewhat erratic pacing and a really mildly boring storyline combined with some decently competent art. Feel my excitement.

Root Nibot: Writer

Colleen Coover: Artist

Oni Press: Publisher
Vroom Socko: Monkey Brain

This book stars talking monkeys.

What, you need more than that? Talking monkeys, people! Everyone loves talking monkeys, and these ones are hilarious.

Well, strictly speaking there’s only one actual monkey. Called Knobby, he bears a bit of a resemblance to a young Frank Sinatra. In fact, due to his having gained his communication skills from old romance comics, he has a similar effect on the ladies. The two other primates are Chuck, an orangutan who resembles a more erudite version of Unseen University’s Librarian, and Go-Go the baby gorilla. Go-Go is easily the funniest of the three, bellowing out “Two bananas plus two bananas equals oh boy it’s naptime!” then promptly falling asleep. He kinda reminds me of Schleppy, our own AWOL mascot. (The little diaper-wearing freak went to see Fantastic Four and never came back.)

These three primates are in the care of Kirby Steinberg, an accident-prone teenage girl whose father is testing an experimental learning system on our little trio. As a part of the program, these three clowns are now attending school alongside Kirby. Unfortunately, Kirby’s new friend Nickels is quickly becoming obsessed with finding out just how these chimps learned to talk and writing about it in the school paper.

Writer Root Nibot, (aka Paul Tobin,) has a real sense of whimsy at play here. The obvious monkey jokes work, of course, but there’s plenty of funny little touches at work as well, such as Kirby’s groggy “I denounce you” to her alarm clock on Monday morning. The writing is also complimented to perfection by Colleen Coover’s cute as anything artwork, especially the wild physical comedy of Go-Go. Coover is the mind behind SMALL FAVORS, the world’s most adorable lesbian porn comic. Don’t worry, this book is pure PG. In either case, Coover’s style is pure fun on the page, with sweet looking girls and silly little monkeys. A perfect combination, if you ask me.

This book is funny, no question. I’m also rather anxious to see what the “real” source of these intelligent apes might be. But really, that’s all just a bonus. The real joy here is the funny talking monkeys. Buh-Nanners!

Writer: Dave Gibbons

Artists: Ivan Reis/Mark Campos

Publisher: DC Comics

Reviewer: Prof. Challenger

Wow! This Reis guy’s art knocks me out. He’s like the love-child of Neal Adams and Carlos Pacheco. None of that “I can’t draw so I’ll just throw a bunch of lines on everything” nonsense parade begun back when Liefeld entered the field. Dynamic but accurate anatomy. Cinematic angles. Dramatic movement. Unafraid to use shading techniques. I haven’t seen his un-inked pencils, but I also attribute some of the great look of the art to the inker, Mark Campos. I don’t know if he’s inking digitally or not, but he gets in there and works it with what look like old-style inking techniques. There are what look like brushstrokes, penlines, razorblade scratches, spackling, the works. It’s work like what these guys are doing that make RANN-THANAGAR WAR the best looking title in the round of post-COUNTDOWN miniseries leading to the INFINITE CRISIS.

Other than the art, let me say, I totally appreciate the scope that Gibbons is working with here. He’s pulling in DC characters from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and modern day, and totally making it work. I can’t wait for Space Ranger or the Star Rovers to show up. Representing the 50s, we’ve got Capt. Comet and Adam Strange. Representing the 60s, we’ve got Hawkman and the Thanagarians. Representing the 70s, we’ve got Prince Gavyn/Starman (Loved seeing Prince Gavyn again. Thought he was dead.) Representing the 80s, we’ve got Blackfire, Warlords of Okarra, and the Omega Men. Representing the 90s, we’ve got L.E.G.I.O.N., the Dominion, and the new Hawkwoman. Representing current day, we’ve got the new Hawkgirl and Kyle Rayner/Green Lantern. This comic has a lotta characters and a lot happening.

Differently than in a real war, where there’s a whole ton of downtime broken up by intensive fighting, this series puts us in the middle of a cosmic war that is mainly action and fighting broken up by an occasional plot-moving slow moment. I’m especially enjoying the interaction between Capt. Comet and Kyle. As I recall, Capt. Comet originally encountered a version of the Guardians of the Universe years before DC introduced Hal Jordan as the Silver Age Green Lantern. Also, Comet has never had a lot of interaction with the widespread DC Universe continuity outside of a largely ignored attempt at making him relevant as the token hero in the SECRET SOCIETY OF SUPER-VILLAINS comic and, I think, a role in L.E.G.I.O.N. years ago. So, his attitude about all this is different than someone who’s been on the daily world-saving diet of your average DC super-hero. Comet is like your basic grizzled old tough guy military man and with telepathic abilities.

Comet and Kyle are on the destroyed surface of Thanagar where they come face to face with Onimar Synn, the Lord of the Undead and his zombie warriors. Not a pretty sight. Really, though, this entire war has not been pretty. I mean, Rann really put themselves out on a limb here and offered their world to the Thanagarians, and they’ve paid a deadly price. Turns out modern-day interpretation of Thanagarians is that they’re like a bunch of bloodthirsty Nazis or something. Maybe that explains why Hawkman’s suddenly a retroactive angry bastard. Now that the bastard’s dead in his own book, let’s see someone just resurrect the Earth-2 Carter Hall withOUT any of this Thanagarian blood tainting him. Sheesh.

I especially love seeing the prominent leadership role that Adam Strange is taking in this comic and I hold hopes that this treatment will continue beyond INFINITE CRISIS. Adam has always been a great but underutilized character with lots of potential. Seems the current crop of writers, including Gibbons here, feel the same way and are treating him right. Best character interaction involves the confrontation between Hawkgirl and Hawkwoman. I’ve watched the character development of this new Hawkgirl since she was introduced and it is nice to see her so bold and confident. She cuts right through the obfuscating b.s. being thrown around by all sides in this war and deals back straight. She tells them who the “true” enemies are at work in this conflagration and calls for them to unite against the true enemies. So, by the end, shaky agreements have been made between trustworthy and untrustworthy allies which shifts the power balance of both the series and the war.

I look forward to seeing how it ultimately builds to the final battle and climax. I’m also looking forward to the fallout. RANN-THANAGAR WAR is easily the most consistently satisfying of these CRISIS countdown mini-series. Fingers crossed that Gibbons and Reis do not disappoint.

Writer/Artist: Kio Shimoku

Publisher: Del Rey Manga

Reviewed by superhero

There’s a big problem with some of the translated manga out there.

The thing is, I can’t figure out whether the problem is with the translation of the manga or the actual work itself.

See, with the first volume of a lot of the manga series that I’ve read the opening chapters tend to be a bit jumbled and confusing. It’s hard to figure out who’s who at times, what each character’s motivations are, what the general plot is, or something as simple as who the word balloon is pointing at when someone is speaking. I can’t figure out whether the reason for this is because it’s the first volume of the series and the writer/artist is still finding their way with getting the story together or if the actual translators were lazy with their job and didn’t actually sit down and make sure that all the dialogue made sense once it was worked out. Whatever the problem actually is, it can lead to a slightly frustrating read when you first pick up a new book, which isn’t a good thing. Every once in a while I’ll pick up a manga book and just feel like throwing it out the window because it’s such a pain in the ass to figure out what’s going on. Is it the actual artist/writer? Is it the American manga publishing company’s fault? Or is it my lack of patience and intelligence? I don’t know, but if I pay $10.95 for a manga it better damn well be a satisfying read.

Genshiken suffers from this exact problem.

The basic plot of this series is something that I, as a comic fan, should love. Basically, Genshiken is about manga/comic/anime/videogame fanatics in Japan. It’s something I should identify with, right? But because of the problems in the storytelling it became a bit frustrating to figure out some of the opening chapters of the book. A lot of it is simplistic enough so it’s not too hard to sort it out but my biggest frustration was with the placing of the word bubbles. At times it’d be a great big pain in the ass just trying to figure out what character said what. It wasn’t impossible to figure out (it is a comic after all) but it certainly didn’t help out with the reading experience.

The thing is, while the reading can be confusing at times, as the book progresses the characters tend to grow on you and the semi-familiar situations help you identify with them as the story goes through its paces.

The book follows the exploits of an otaku fan club in Japan. For the uninitiated of you out there otaku is the Japanese word for “fan” or “fanatic” usually in reference to anime or manga collectors. Central to the story are three main characters who are just joining up with the Genshiken fan club, also known as The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture: Kanji Sasahara, Saki Kasukabe, and Makoto Kousaka.

Kanji is the character that most readers of comics will more than likely identify with. He loves comics but is still at the stage where he’s ashamed of his obsession. He spends most of the book trying to hide the fact that he likes manga/anime and continually becomes embarrassed when someone discovers his hobby. He spends a big chunk of the early chapters just trying to decide whether or not he’s going to join the Genshiken club because he doesn’t even know if wants to be associated with comics in the first place. Kanji’s character is endearing and frustrating all at the same time as he can be a big reminder of the time when, and I’m sure most comic fans went through this, a lot of comic lovers were mortified to admit that they actually enjoyed comic books. Kanji, however, is a big reason why the book succeeds because as he finally decides to join up with the club he begins to gain some sort of pride in his hobby. He becomes more comfortable with the fact that, yes, he likes comic books and not only that, he enjoys hanging out with the other geeks that make up the club. He grows as a character and experiences all of the weird stuff that all of us comic fans come to discover. Everything from overcrowded conventions to fans who like to dress up as their favorite characters to porno comics to first discovering the wonder of a female comics fan (whose tastes, in their own way, are as bizarre as his own).

The other two leads add some comedic relief but tend to lack some depth. Makoto is the complete flipside of Kanji. He’s completely open about the fact that he’s an otaku and loves every aspect of his obsession. He’s the comic fan that most of us grow to become in that he’s proud he loves comics while being completely oblivious to the fact that, to most people, comic people are considered a bit outside the mainstream. Unfortunately, this tends to drive Saki crazy because she is completely superficial, has no love for manga or anime, and is all too aware of the fact that others see it as not the hippest lifestyle in the world. The problem is she’s been completely in love with Makoto from since they were kids. She can’t get over him, she’s head over heels. The thing is he just doesn’t fit her view of what her perfect boyfriend should act like so Saki spends most of the book trying to seduce Kanji away from the Genshiken club. It’s a futile effort, though. It seems that Kanji loves comics more than he loves her and that drives Saki up the wall with frustration. This works itself into a cute dynamic throughout the book and climaxes with Saki being so at the end of her rope that she actually ends up joining the Genshiken club.

Personally, I think the whole Saki/Kanji dynamic is fantastic as I’m sure there are plenty of women/girls out there who have to deal with the problem of getting sucked into their significant other’s obsession with comics/movies/videogames/etc. I know my wife has to deal with it. It’s really something that hasn’t been addressed in any comic series that I know of and a humorous spin is put on it so it’s a welcome part of the larger story. The only thing I didn’t buy into was the fact that Kanji would be completely oblivious to Saki’s advances. I mean, a comic fan who has a cute girl following him around and he doesn’t get that she wants to be with him? Um, yeah, not in the real world. In the real world a comic geek would drop to his feet and thank the gods of both Marvel and DC that an attractive girl would want to spend time with him. But, hey, this is a comic and it plays off as amusing so I was willing to let it go for the most part.

All in all Genshiken is a good little book. The art is great and the characters can be endearing especially if you’re a comic fan. The only thing that keeps it from being a flawless coming-of-age tale is, as I said before, the fact that it can be a bit of a pain to read. But in my experience with manga a lot of the translation/storytelling issues tend to be resolved in the volumes that follow the first. If anyone at Del Rey Manga is reading this I hope this is the case because a lot of fans could be turned off by the book’s layout problems. In my case, though, I’m willing to give the second volume of Genshiken a look and I think that any fan of manga or comics in general might want to give it a look. It’s not perfect but it’s got potential and a story that a lot of comic fans may identify with.

Remember, if you have an Indie book you’d like one of the @$$holes to take a look at, click on your favorite reviewer’s link and drop us an email.

AMAZING FANTASY #10

This book’s two week’s old, but I’m still gonna take a moment of your valuable time to say that Scorpion’s story continues to impress. Remember Brian Vaughan’s spy-babe take on Mystique a year or two back? Fun enough stuff, but Mystique – essentially a terrorist and assassin – probably wasn’t the best vehicle for lighter spy adventure. The new Scorpion? Much better fit. The highlight this time out is a new look at techno-terrorists A.I.M., outfitted with a new pitch line for helping third world nations through technology. It’s still pretty lightweight, but Scorpion’s adventures continue to make the case that Marvel’s newer heroes – Young Avengers, Runaways, Livewires – are currently more interesting than its venerable legends. – Dave

DESOLATION JONES #2

What I think we have here is the beginning of a successful heir to the legacy of TRANSMETROPOLITAN. We’ve got a lead character that is as big a mixed bag as Spider Jerusalem ever was. He’s a tragic figure, he’s hateful and resentful, but he’s also kind and gentle as well. He’s got a mission but he’s really not sure why he’s bothering with it. We’re starting to see a nice cast of secondary characters develop too, with some more exposure to Jones’ own “Filthy Assistant” and the introduction of Emily, a girl who through experimentation gives off pheromones that make it impossible for almost all people to around her due the feelings of fear and revulsion it stirs in them. She’s a terribly gloomy and tragic character that I can’t wait to see more of. Plus we have hands down some of the top art on the market from J.H. Williams III and a mystery involving Hitler porn too boot. Those things right there are enough to make this one of the best reads on the stands. – Humphrey

FABLES #39

Who knew this book could survive without Bigby Wolf in the lead? But not only has it done that, it’s thrived, still as brilliant and darkly humorous as ever. A new alpha-male takes the stage this issue – Mowgli of Kipling’s JUNGLE BOOK – and the Beast and Mayor Charming have plans to put him to use striking back at The Adversary. I’m dying to see what Boy Blue’s up to back in the Homelands, but this is the kind of “meanwhile” issue you can get used to, highlighted by Mowgli’s interactions with old pals Bagheera the panther and Baloo the bear. – Dave

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR # 21

Ok, I admit it, I was duped. When the last issue of this title came out I made a little sarcastic remark about “Next issue we get exactly what I expected but never wanted from these Ultimate titles, a Crossover with the regular Marvel Universe.” And that’s exactly where Mark Millar wanted me. I should have known something was up when Marvel was actually seemingly playing this event out without their usual bit of over-the-top hype, but then again I’ve been trying to avoid said hype for months now and really just tuned it out. And then I get this and I’m pleasantly surprised. What we have here is an issue that starts out like a FF book should–the team is out handling some baddies, but definitely in a more adventurous and science fictionish way. The team acts like they should, with good bits of joking and bickering back and forth between them. And then, as it builds to the end and you’re waiting for the inevitable… BAM! Millar kicks you in the bollocks and laughs at you for falling for such an obvious ploy. – Humphrey

SEVEN SOLDIERS: GUARDIAN #3 (of 4)

Grant “Morrisons-out” a bit in this issue, but I do love the premise: newspaper-sponsored hero Guardian duking it out with international robots in the bizarre setting of “Century Hollow”. It’s an international theme park ala Disney’s Epcot, meant to encapsulate earth’s population of six billion with 100 representative robots. So for example, only 30 robots are white, 70 non-white. Six of them control most of the wealth, and all of them live in America. 80 in substandard housing. Only one owns a computer. You get the idea – Morrison takes a fun statistics experiment and turns it into WESTWORLD! Where it derails slightly is with Morrison’s dialogue veering into that almost non-sequitur territory he enjoys, while some of the background soap operatics between our hero and his girl felt oddly traditional. Concept trumps specifics, making it all quite readable, but it’s still GUARDIAN’s weakest outing. – Dave

NEW AVENGERS #7

Simply put, Brian Michael Bendis is getting better. Or at least he is on NEW AVENGERS. While this comic is still an over-hyped monster ill-able to match the ballyhoo heaped upon it by Joey Q and the writer himself, I’ve enjoyed Bendis’ take on the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. As much as he gets some of his characters wrong (i.e. Cap’s lack of a spine when he caved to Iron Man’s inane rationale that Wolverine belongs on the team in the last issue), he gets a whole lot of things right in this issue. In this one, Bendis writes *gasp* a fight scene. And not the type of fight scene where all of the action is over in seconds because the mandate at Marvel seems to be that every villain is a walking joke these days. In this issue, we get an honest to goodness, extended slugfest between the Wrecker and Cage, Spider-Woman, Wolverine, and Spider-Man. One that is well written and doesn’t castrate the villain to make one wonder why he was ever thought of as a threat in the first place. AND it carries over into the next issue, none-the-fuckin-less! Alright Bendis! This was a fun issue with a big fight, a nice meeting of the minds involving the big brains and brawn of the Marvel U (although this is a bit like a lazy VILLAINS UNITED riff, if you ask me), a big mystery involving the Sentry, and an even bigger revelation/cliffhanger in the end. Thinking about the ramifications of the revelation/cliffhanger makes my brain hurt, but I am interested in seeing where Bendis is going with this. – Ambush Bug

ZOMBIE KING #0

Zombie cow-rape, get’cher zombie cow-rape! Yes, friends, Frank Cho brings his high-brow humor to the horror genre, and I’ll say this: it’s at least more entertaining than his softcore work on SHANNA. About half the issue is an almost-amusing sequence of a yokel farmer and his kid trying to stop a zombie from copulating with their cows, the rest is by-the-numbers government cover-up stuff about how the zombies came to be and why they want to fuck everything. Cho’s art, generally considered his strong suit, doesn’t do much for me. He’s got the anatomy stuff down, good visual balance, solid timing, but where are the backgrounds? Nowhere, it seems. And why does every character either have no shading or the same faux-dramatic swatch of shadow running down their face? It seems to be taken for granted the guy’s an artistic genius, but he’s not even in the ballpark of his inspirations like Wally Wood and Al Williamson. Consider this one a big ol’ “pass” for me, but fans of the twisted might be interested. I did laugh when the zombie tripped over his own spilled intestines, so that’s something. – Dave

PUNISHER #23

This issue is mid-arc, but since we haven’t covered the first few issues of this one, I felt the need to give it a shout out. Although Garth Ennis has had the annoying tendency to focus on supporting characters more than Frank Castle in the past, his entire run with the MAX line has proven to have some great Punisher character moments peppered in here and there. Ennis is more selective with said pepper in this arc, focusing on a wannabe street tough who wants to rule the underworld and tries to do so by pissing on the corpses of the Punisher’s family. Of course Frank is pissed. More pissed than ever before. The death toll is upped and the carnage flies furiously in this arc. Frank tries to deal with his rage and may be gaining a new partner in crime. This arc is moving slower than previous ones, devoting entire issues to supporting players, but Ennis takes the time to toss us into the mind of the Punisher more than in his previous series and we find out that it is a dark place indeed. – Bug

NEW WARRIORS #2 (of 6)

Me? Not so big on the wonky superhero stuff like FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE, but somehow this book’s ha-ha’s actually make me laugh. Is it the fact that I don’t have any particular attachment to the New Warriors, so they’re okay to throw in a lighthearted book? Maybe, but I’ve always been a Nova fan, so…hmm…I think the book might just be legitimately funny. This second issue brings the young reality-show heroes to a zoo in Kansas that just might be the staging ground for an animal uprising. It’s a great venue for artist Skottie Young, who’s clearly taken Disney’s TARZAN to heart, and his rendering of some of my favorite Marvel U. apes might just be definitive. Wells keeps the laughs coming as the team struggles to be effective under the supervision of a shrewish PETA-style spokesperson, but what impressed me most was that under all the silliness, the heroes themselves weren’t spoofed and the story was actually pretty keen. It also had one of those endings that I thought only Dan Slott could pull off, where you hit that last panel and you just have to grin. Highly recommended.- Dave

Howdy folks, Dave Farabee here introducing an all-new feature for the column where I ninja-loot news from other websites! I’m talking comic-centric places like Newsarama, The Pulse, Comic Book Resources, and all those gossip-packed message boards out there.

Want detailed info? Hit those sources. What we’re here to give you is the highlight reel, the talking points, the info snacks, the bite-sized nuggets of knowledgy goodness! And it’s still a whopper of a feature this week as we continue to ride in the wake of the massive info-dump that is the San Diego Comic-Con. Check out this concise overview of the week’s news and be sure to click on the links for images and such. Let not my coding be in vain!

* * * * * * * * * * * *

* Upcoming box-set CD by punk band The Ramones to include a 52-page graphic novel featuring art by luminaries such as Sergio Aragones, Jim Woodring, William Stout, and Bill Griffith.

* Bill “FABLES” Willingham has renewed his exclusive contract with DC Comics for two years.

* Warren Ellis provides commentary on DESOLATION JONES #1.

* New SOLAR, MAN OF THE ATOM to debut in September from Dynamic Forces.

* Reginald “BLACK PANTHER” Hudlin has signed on as President of Entertainment for the network BET.

* Dan Slott will write a new ongoing series starring The Thing in November. Andrea “STORMBREAKER” Di Vito draws.

* Microsoft has signed an exclusive to publish Marvel massively multiplayer online games for the Xbox.

* Trailer for the BONE video game.

* Jeph Loeb writes, Darwyn “NEW FRONTIER” Cooke draws a BATMAN/SPIRIT one-shot in December. Cooke launches a new SPIRIT ongoing in 2006.

* New Line Cinema has acquired the film rights to Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris’s EX MACHINA.

* Cloak & Dagger make a return appearance in RUNAWAYS issues 9-12.

* Bill “FABLES” Willingham apparently has a story idea for a meeting between Batman and FABLES’ own Bigby Wolf. No immediate plans to put it into action, though.

* Greg “GOTHAM CENTRAL” Rucka indicated the possibility of a new CHECKMATE ongoing in the wake of OMAC PROJECT.

* Spinning off of the miniseries MADROX and HOUSE OF M, Peter David has an ongoing X-FACTOR series in the works. Debuts in November, drawn by Ryan Sook.

* Peter David won’t be staying on INCREDIBLE HULK indefinitely. He leaves an issue after the HOUSE OF M tie-in arc ends.

* Thor returns in 2006. No details as yet.

* Kid superhero team Power Pack will crossover with the X-Men in October.

* Vertigo launches a monthly series called TESTAMENT in November. Series to focus on Biblical stories recurring in a modern context.

* Disney will be producing comics through Slave Labor Graphics. The opening salvo includes HAUNTED MANSION (October 2005), TRON (January 2006), and GARGOYLES and WONDERLAND debuting at unspecified dates.

* Paul Jenkins will be writing the series MYTHOS for Marvel, retelling the origins of major Marvel characters.

* Tokyopop will be producing manga based on various Jim Henson properties: LABYRINTH, THE DARK CRYSTAL, and the Neil Gaiman/Dave McKean feature film, MIRRORMASK (opens on September 30th). The LABYRINTH manga will be a sequel, while the DARK CRYSTAL and MIRRORMASK manga are prequels.

* A new Captain Atom miniseries – CAPTAIN ATOM: ARMAGEDDON – debuts in October. Writing by Will Pfeifer, art by Giuseppe Camuncoli and Sandra Hope, and covers by Jim Lee and Alex Ross. Will see Captain Atom bounced to the WildStorm universe with potentially major consequences for that setting.

* Brian “DEMO” Wood will write DMZ for DC’s Vertigo line, collaborating with Italian artist Ricardo Burchielli. The series follows a photojournalist who finds himself in the midst of a new civil war in America.

* February 2006 sees a new MOON KNIGHT miniseries written by Charlie Huston (a prose crime novelist) and drawn by David “NEW AVENGERS” Finch.

* Zeb “NEW WARRIORS” Wells will write the four-issue mini FANTASTIC FOUR/IRON MAN: BIG IN JAPAN in October. Seth “GREEN LANTERN: WILLWORLD” Fisher draws.

* MARVEL TEAM-UP #14 will star Robert Kirkman’s creator-owned superhero, Invincible, who appears in the Image comic of the same name. More intercompany crossovers may follow if it’s successful.

* J. Michael Straczynski will write THE BOOK OF LOST SOULS for Marvel. Art by Colleen Doran.

* POWER MAN & IRON FIST supporting players Colleen Wing and Misty Knight will appear in a new series, DAUGHTERS OF THE DRAGON, written by Jimmy “THE MONOLITH” Palmiotti. Promo image.

* SHE-HULK returns with Dan Slott writing in October. The series will return to the numbering begun with the John Byrne series, thus putting issue 100 within sight. Explains Dan Slott: “We are such whores.”

* Frank Cho will draw several issues of NEW AVENGERS following Steve McNiven’s arc. Spider-Woman to be spotlighted.

* Marvel will announce a new X-STATIX project in the near future.

* Joe Casey will write FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST FAMILY, a six-issue miniseries debuting in January. Focus will be on the team’s early years, ala Casey’s AVENGERS: EARTH’S MIGHTIEST HEROES.

* Joss Whedon and John Cassaday will remain on ASTONISHING X-MEN at least through issue #25.

* Warren Ellis has an unnamed team book coming up from Marvel. Announcements within a month.

* Sean McKeever will produce a new MARY JANE miniseries in October or November.

* Marvel’s big tease of the San Diego Comic-Con was this poster. It was shown at the end of Joe Quesada’s panel with Quesada dropping hints that the image related to a writer he’s always wanted to have at Marvel.

* Mark Waid has signed a two year exclusive with DC Comics. He’ll continue on LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES, write a new BRAVE AND THE BOLD miniseries, and also have some editorial consulting responsibilities ala Geoff Johns and Grant Morrison. Waid described BRAVE AND THE BOLD as being along the lines of JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED in its hero mixing. Waid’s contract allows him to continue on his creator-owned Top Cow project, HUNTER-KILLER.

* Paul “100%” Pope will write and draw a four issue Batman prestige project titled BATMAN: YEAR 100. It imagines a Batman created in the year 2039 instead of 1939. Sample page 1. Sample page 2. Sample page 3. Sample page 4. Sample page 5.

* The creator and head writer of HBO’s OZ, Tom Fontana, will write an original graphic novel titled BATMAN: HOPELESSNESS & FAITH. Cliff “HUMAN TARGET” Chiang draws.

* Matt “MAGE” Wagner writes and draws BATMAN AND THE MONSTER MEN in December, pitting Batman against a legion of creatures created by Hugo Strange and based on a story from the Golden Age.

* Free Comic Book Day for 2006 will occur on May 6th. No particular ties to a summer movie this outing.

* Antony Johnston, who recently became the first writer to fill in for Greg Rucka on QUEEN & COUNTRY, will write a post-apocalyptic-themed miniseries for Oni in Spring 2006. Title is WASTELAND.

* Craig “X-23” Yost takes over NEW X-MEN from Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir after HOUSE OF M. The new team includes: X-23, Surge, Hellion, Rockslide, Mercury, Elixir, and Dust.

* Sean McKeever returns with a new SENTINEL miniseries for Marvel in November. Udon to draw.

* Vertigo’s FABLES will get a hardcover anthology in the tradition of SANDMAN: ENDLESS NIGHTS. Titled FABLES: 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL, it will be written by Bill Willingham, feature art by Charles Vess, James Jean and others, and fill in the histories of the series’ major characters.

* FABLES will also have a spin-off called JACK OF FABLES following the further adventures of Jack after his flop as a movie mogul. Bill Willingham co-writes along with Matt Sturgis (new guy). Art is by Tony “HELLBLAZER: PAPA MIDNITE” Akins.

* Gilbert “LOVE & ROCKETS” Hernandez writes and draws the 128-page graphic novel SLOTH for Vertigo. Says Gilbert: “It’s about a guy who decides he doesn’t want to go to school one day and wills himself into a coma. When the boy returns to awareness a year later, he finds the world changed–assuming of course that he’s actually really awake.”

* Steven “IT’S A BIRD” Seagle writes the new Vertigo series AMERICAN VIRGIN with Becky “DEMO” Cloonan on art. Vertigo editor Karen Berger calls it “controversial even for Vertigo” and Seagle says of the project: “It’s a book about two of my most favorite pastimes today: sex and terrorism.”

* Howard Chaykin and David Tischman will be back with a new BITE CLUB miniseries, BITE CLUB: VAMPIRE CRIMES UNIT.

* Crime novelist Denise Mina becomes the first woman to write HELLBLAZER when Mike Carey’s run concludes later this year.

* Painter Kent Williams will adapt Darren “REQUIEM FOR A DREAM” Aronofsky’s screenplay for his pending movie, THE FOUNTAIN.

* Vertigo’s THE LOSERS will conclude early 2006.

* Richard and Wendy Pini will produce a new, underwater-themed Elfquest project titled ELFQUEST: DISCOVERY.

* McFarlane Productions has a

Gear Shout | Updated catalog of Gear Shout project reviews

Catalog of all published reviews of the Gear Shout project since 2011, in total there are more than 700 materials from several authors in different categories. The lists are sorted alphabetically by brand and by date of publication.

2XU

3M Peltor

5.11 Tactical

• October 2, 2019 – First impressions of utilitarian casual pants 5.11 Tactical Defender-Flex Pant
• August 14, 2019 – First Impressions of Lightweight Summer Shorts for Everyday Wear 5.11 Base 11 ″ Short
• January 30, 2018 – First Look at the 5.11 Flexio Penlight
• Series Universal LED Flashlight
• January 4, 2018 – Detailed introduction to 5.11 Tactical Cavu Full Frame Polarized Goggles
• November 23, 2017 – Introductory review of 5.11 Tactical Scene One Tactical Gloves
• December 20, 2016 – Introductory overview of 5.11 protective shooting goggles.11 Aileron Shield
• November 29, 2016 – 5.11 Tactical CS2 Spearpoint folding knife review, after four years of use
• October 4, 2016 – Final review of 5.11 Year Round OTC Sock after two years of use
• December 25, 2015 – Small review folding knife 5.11 Tactical DTP Knife
• October 6, 2015 – Review of Urban Everyday Backpack 5.11 Covrt Boxpack
• July 24, 2015 – Review of 5.11 TPT EDC Flashlight Everyday LED Flashlight
• July 7, 2015 – Review of Shoulder Bag 5.11 RUSH MOAB 6
• June 9, 2015 – Review of the small pocket light 5.11 TMT PL Flashlight
• May 19, 2015 – Introduction to casual pants 5.11 Ridgeline Pants
• April 7, 2015 – Review of casual pants 5.11 Kodiak Pant. A year later
• March 20, 2015 – Review of 5.11 Tactical 2-Banger Bag
• January 13, 2015 – Review of 5.11 Tactical RUSH 72 backpack. Two years later
• November 7, 2014 – Tactical gloves 5.11 Hard Time Gloves. A year later
• September 22, 2014 – Lightweight windbreaker review 5.11 Packable Operator Jacket
• August 15, 2014 – Review of Military Tactical Boots 5.11 XPRT 2.0
• August 4, 2014 – Review of 5.11 All Hazards Nitro
• August 1, 2014 – Review of 5.11 TMT PLx Penlight LED Pocket Flashlight
• July 25, 2014 – Review 5.11 Pursuit Polo
• July 14, 2014 – Review 5.11 Freedom Flex Woven Shirt
• June 23, 2014 – Tactical pants 5.11 Tactical Stryke Pant two years later
• June 9, 2014 – Sneakers 5.11 Recon Trainer – Six Months Later
• May 30, 2014 – Review of 5.11 Recon Performance Top and Shorts 5.11 Recon Vandal Shorts
• May 5, 2014 – Shooting Gloves 5.11 Hard Time Gloves – Six Months Later
• April 11, 2014 – Review Summer Sports Socks 5.11 Recon Ankle Socks
• February 10, 2014 – Review of 5.11 Year Round OTC Sock
• January 13, 2014 – Review of pants 5.11 Kodiak Pant
• December 5, 2013 – Review of LED headlamp 5.11 S + R h4 Headlamp
• November 21, 2013 – Review of protective shooting glasses 5.11 Burner Half Frame
• November 14, 2013 – Review of platform vest 5.11 Tactec Plate Carrier
• November 7, 2013 – Comparative review of 5.11 Tactical RUSH

series backpacks

• October 31, 2013 – 5.11 Hard Time Gloves Review
• October 24, 2013 – 5.11 Tactical Saber 2.0 Jacket Review
• October 10, 2013 – 5.11 Recon Trainer Trainer Review
• September 2, 2013 – Tactical Vest Review 5.11 Range Vest
• August 22, 2013 – Review of Summer Socks 5.11 Summer 6 Sock (Taclite 6 Sock)
• August 8, 2013 – Review of Light Bib 5.11 TacTec Chest Rig
• July 29, 2013 – Review of 5.11 Tac K9 Canine & Gloves Rope Handler Glove
• July 1, 2013 – 5.11 LMC Curved Rescue Blade Review
• June 13, 2013 – 5.11 Maverick Assaulters Belt Review
• April 29, 2013 – Shirt and Pants Review 5.11 Traverse
• April 15 , 2013 – Review of backpack 5.11 COVRT 18 Backpack
• April 8, 2013 – Review of Tactical Flashlight 5.11 ATAC R3MC LiIon Rechargeable Multi-Color Tactical
• March 28, 2013 – Review of Tactical Flashlight 5.11 TPT L2 Tactical Flashlight
• March 14, 2013 – Review of Concealed Vest 5.11 Covert Vest
• February 25, 2013 – Review of watches 5.11 Tactical Sentinel Watch
• December 13, 2012 – Review of folding knife 5.11 CS2 Spearpoint
• November 1, 2012 – Review of backpack 5.11 Tactical RUSH 72 Backpack
• October 25, 2012 – Comparative review of Condor Outdoor fleece hats and 5.11 Tactical
• October 22, 2012 – Universal Backpack Review 5.11 Tactical TRIAB 18
• September 27, 2012 – Backpack Review 5.11 Tactical All Hazards Prime Backpack
• September 20, 2012 – Softshell Jacket Review 5.11 Tactical Chameleon Softshell Jacket
• September , 2012 – Review of 5.11 Tactical TacDry Rain Shell Storm Jacket
• August 20, 2012 – Review of 5.11 Scout Folder Spear Point
• August 2, 2012 – Review of lightweight and durable tactical pants 5.11 Tactical Stryke Pant
• June 4, 2012 – Review of tactical pants 5.11 Taclite Jean-Cut
• May 14, 2012 – Review of tactical boots 5.11 Tactical ATAC 8 Side Zip Boot
• May 7, 2012 – Review of training shoes 5.11 Tactical Trainer 2.0 Low
• May 3, 2012 – Watch Review 5.11 Tactical Field Ops Watch
• April 23, 2012 – Boots Review 5.11 Tactical Taclite 6 Coyote Boot

Allpowers

Alocs

Altraa Quest

Arc’teryx

Armytek Optoelectronics

ASICS

• Dec 23, 2014 – Review of Asics Marathon Running Socks and Winter Running Socks
• November 3, 2014 – Running Shoes for Running Rough Terrain Asics Gel-Fuji Trabuco 2
• April 7, 2014 – Asics Gel-Noosa Tri 9 vs Saucon Comparison Review y Fastwitch 6
• March 28, 2014 – Asics Gel-Noosa Fast 2 vs Saucony Type A6 Comparison
• July 2, 2012 – Asics, Saucony, Mizuno and JOMA
• Entry Level Shoe Review January 22, 2012 – Winter Running Gloves Review
• October 26, 2011 – Review of Mizuno Wave Prophecy, Asics Gel-Kinsei 3 and Saucony PowerGrid Cortana

Asolo

ATAKA (Army Tactical Alternate Accessory Kit)

July 900 2020 – Detailed acquaintance with the ATAKA WS-123 series universal weapon belt

BCB Adventure Limited

Belleville / Tactical Research

Beyond Clothing

Bila Zbroya (White Weapon)

Black Diamond Equipment

HA

Blue Force Gear (BFG)

Boker

Brandit Textil

Brooks

BRS

Byteks 000 9000

Byteks 9000 Camp 9000

Carinthia

Case Logic

Casio

CEP

Chameleon

• January 14, 2020 – Introductory review of brutal utilitarian sofechell 2020 An introductory review of the new Chameleon Liberator
• Casual Backpack November 04, 2020 – First Impressions of the Chameleon Notherman Hybrid Insulated Jacket
• May 27, 2020 – Review of the Chameleon Tramp Universal Hiking Pants, after a year of use
• March 4, 2020 – Interim softshell review jackets with Chameleon Soft Shell Spartan Series
• October 30, 2019 – First Impressions of the Chameleon Soft Shell Spartan Softshell Jacket
• July 31, 2019 – A detailed review of the light and thin sweat-wicking Chameleon Top Cool T-Shirt
• June 19, 2019 – First Impressions from Summer Trekking Socks Chameleon Trekking Functional Socks
• May 22, 2019 – Introducing the lightweight and versatile Chameleon Tramp Olive

Cikrilan

Combat SpN

CRK Toolkit

CRK

Competitive Edge Dynamics

Condor Outdoor

• February 06, 2021 – Review of the Condor Outdoor 1/4 Zip Fleece Pullover, ten years later
• November 30, 2017 – First impressions of the military tactical belt Condor US1015 Rigger Belt
• October 26, 2017 – First Look at the Versatile S Condor Elite Fail Safe Pack
• July 21, 2017 – First look at Condor Cipher Pants
• July 7, 2017 – A closer look at Condor Cipher Jeans
• June 27, 2017 – First look at the softshell windbreaker Condor Vapor Lightweight Windbreaker
• February 7, 2017 – Preview Condor Elite Draw Down Waist Pack
• December 30, 2016 – First Look at the Condor C05 EDC Flashlight
• August 7, 2015 – Condor Scythe Travel Bag Review Messenger Bag
• July 17, 2015 – Review of Condor Elite Frontier Outdoor Pack
• January 30, 2015 – Review of Condor Outdoor Zephyr Lightweight Down Jacket
• July 28, 2014 – Review of Condor Outdoor Tactician Tactical Gloves
• July 18, 2014 – Condor Outdoor Gunner Lig Platform Vest Review htweight Plate Carrier
• July 11, 2014 – Review of Condor Outdoor EDC Bag
• June 13, 2014 – Review of Condor Outdoor Outrider Backpack
• June 6, 2014 – Review of Condor Outdoor Urban Go Pack
• May 26, 2014 – Review of Condor Outdoor Phantom Soft Shell Jacket
• September 9, 2013 – Review of Condor Outdoor 1/4 Zip Fleece Pullover
• August 5, 2013 – Review of Condor Outdoor Barracuda Folding Knife
• March 25, 2013 – Comparative review of harness belts from different manufacturers
• February 18, 2013 – Comparative review of Condor MCR4 and MCR5 bibs
• February 11, 2013 – Comparative review of Condor HK220 Tactical Kevlar Gloves and Mechanix MPT-72 M-Pact Glove
• October 25, 2012 – Comparative review of Condor Outdoor fleece hats and 5.11 Tactical
• October 8, 2012 – Review of Condor Outdoor Modular Operator Plate Carrier
• September 17, 2012 – Comparative review of Condor Tactical Cap and Mesh Tactical Cap
• August 6, 2012 – Review of Condor Outdoor Stealth Operator Pants
• June 28, 2012 – Review of Condor Outdoor 3 Day Venture Pack
• June 18, 2012 – Review of Condor Summit Soft Shell Jacket
• May 31, 2012 – Review of Condor Shooter Glove
• February 20, 2012 – Review Sweatshirts Condor Outdoor Sierra Hooded Fleece Jacket

Covert Threads

CRAFT

CRSMZ (TsRSMZ ZSU)

Crye Precision

Precision WindLiner

Damascus Worldwide

Danaper

Defcon 5

DexShell3000

Eberlestock

ECCO

EDC Gear

Ekot ekhnologii 21 Vek (ECO technologies – 21st century)

Emerson

Envos (Envos)

Eye Safety Systems (ESS)

Fahrenheit Fahrenheit

Fahrenheit Lighting

FirstSpear

Fiskars

Fjord Nansen

Flat World Innovations

FURA Gear

G-Code6 Hols3000 9000 9000

G-Code6 Hols3000 9000 February 20, 2018 – GPS navigation.How to plan hiking routes using the available services