Best Comic of the Week:
What’s The Furthest Place From Here? #16 – I’ve been waiting for a couple of years to get an explanation of the story behind the story in this series, and this issue finally provides a ton of answers. It backs up from the events of the last issue, and shows us what happened to Sid when she found the City. We learn about a second city, floating above the ruined one she discovered, where all the adults live. We learn why children are exiled, the role of the Strangers, and many other things that underpin this world, and it leaves me wondering if we are moving towards the end of this title. I really like what Matthew Rosenberg and Tyler Boss have done with this comic, and am curious to see how much Sid chooses to share with her friends now that she’s reunited with them.
Quick Takes:
Action Comics #1059 – I know that Phillip Kennedy Johnson is going to be leaving this title soon, and I think it’s a shame, as I’ve been enjoying his family-oriented approach to Superman. Blue Earth continues to cause problems for Clark, who is dealing with a temporary loss of power, and the rest of the family, especially when their leader works to recruit one of the Super-Twins. I love the pacing of this book, and Eddy Barrows’s art hasn’t ever looked better. The Kenan Kong-focused backup story concludes well, and we get a slightly cringey Jon Kent backup story as well.
Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #2 – I don’t think I expected this Alan Scott series to turn into a queer version of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, but that’s more or less what happens with this issue, as we see Alan’s time in Arkham Asylum following the events of the first issue. I like how Tim Sheridan is exploring Alan’s identity with sensitivity, but find some of the retconning of his origins to be strange. I’m going to stick with this series, as I’m so happy to see the Golden Age characters getting screentime again after being ignored for so long.
City Boy #6 – Greg Pak wraps up the debut of City Boy, and I somehow doubt we’re going to see this character again. Cameron is likeable and interesting, with a power set I’d like to see explored more fully, but the Darkseid plotline never really clicked for me. I’d have preferred more variety in this book, and was really looking forward to seeing him meet with Jack Hawksmoor to compare notes. I’m also left wondering why Cameron kept a surgical mask under his chin through all of this action; that thing would have blown away a dozen times over. If this book comes back, I’m not going to be there for it, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Cameron turn up somewhere in a supporting or teammate role (like if Teen Titans Academy ever returns).
The Cull #4 – The teens have returned home to find that something terrible has happened to their town, and they spend the rest of the issue searching for their families and trying to cope with the knowledge that everything that’s happened is probably their fault. Kelly Thompson has done a great job building these characters, and Mattia De Iulis’s art is so beautiful and so good at making these odd situations feel realistic. I really like this series.
Detective Comics #1078 – The Orghams are preparing to execute Batman, so Catwoman and her crew make their moves, hoping to free him in time. It’s an exciting issue that shows Azrael back in his Batman armor (and maybe looking a lot cooler than he did back in the day). Jason Shawn Alexander’s art has never looked better than it is here, and I like how Ram V has moved the focus off Batman in favour of these other characters for a bit. This has been a very good run, and because of that, I don’t even mind how often this book is coming out.
Fire Power #29 – After the emotionally devastating last issue, this one shows the aftermath of the big battle with Master Shaw and the dragon, but things are not over yet. The family has to face the revived dragon again, in the penultimate issue of this series. Robert Kirkman and Chris Samnee have really outdone themselves on this book, which combines the best of old school kung fu movies with strong characterization and sense of family. Kirkman kept the surprises coming, and Samnee has created incredible action sequences, but also made the small family moments believable and warm. I’m excited to see how the big fight will end this series, but I’m also sad to say goodbye to these characters.
The Flash #3 – Simon Spurrier’s take on Flash gives some strong Grant Morrison vibes, as Wally and Mister Terrific try to figure out what the portal-like thing Grodd created is, and at the same time, Wally enlists Max Mercury to help him figure out what’s happening with the Speed Force. Mike Deodato’s art and strange layout ideas are well-suited to this story, as the stakes feel like they’re growing. This is an interesting book, and it’s very different from the run that preceded it. You’d think that would bother me, given how much I loved Jeremy Adams’s take, but I’m really leaning into this one.
Green Arrow #6 – Ollie ends up confronting his enemy at the end of time, as many of the questions this title raises are answered. I’m glad to see that this book is going to be ongoing, as I’d expected it to end with this storyline. Instead, it looks like Joshua Williamson is going to be continuing his larger Amanda Waller story here (I hope someone explains away all that Earth-3 nonsense from the last Suicide Squad run).
Kaya #13 – For this new arc, Wes Craig has Kaya and Jin risking their lives to hire some pirates to take them on the next leg of their journey. Craig has some cool scenarios happening in this book, and his art is perfect for this. I really enjoy this series, and how Craig is slowly peeling back some of the layers of Kaya’s character, so we get to understand her better and better. This is a rewarding series.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #12 – Miles’s adventure with Blade and his daughter comes to its end as he tries to rescue Hightail from the vampire that’s enthralled her. This was a fun story, but visually a little too busy to follow carefully. I am not all that sold on Cody Ziglar’s run yet; it has some good points, but the action issues never feel all that grounded in Miles’s personality and tend to ignore any subplots. I want to see more of Miles interacting with his supporting cast, because that’s when he’s most interesting to me.
Moon Knight #29 – I don’t live that Jed MacKay is killing off Moon Knight in this storyline, but he is doing it in a really exciting way. Marc fights Black Spectre, and learns who he is, while his friends continue to work their way through Spectre’s building. At the same time, Zodiac attacks Reese at the Midnight Mission. This is an exciting and dynamic issue, as MacKay’s plans come together with an interesting revelation. This is a good book.
The Penguin #4 – As he continues to put together his crew, Penguin flies to Las Vegas to visit his ex-wife. Tom King is making the Penguin interesting for the first time ever, as we see different sides of Cobblepot, and realize that he has been consistently underestimated for decades. This book, with atmospheric art by Rafael De Latorre, is consistently impressive and interesting. I like the slow pace King is taking, and the way he has numerous characters narrating different scenes.
Quest #4 – Princess Anya picks up some allies and continues her quest, which leads to her first confrontation with one of the demons who stole her husband at their wedding. Jonathan Luna and co-writer Crystal Wood are keeping this series moving, but keep adding more elements to it with each issue. I find the crawling creatures at the end of this issue very creepy, and love the general feel of this book.
Realm of X #4 – I kind of regret having bought into this series. I thought that we’d see some real development for Dani, Illyana, or maybe Dust or Typhoid Mary, but this ended up being about Saturnyne and Curse more than anything else, and these are not characters I care about. Thor and some of his friends come to help our mutant friends in the last big fight for Vanaheim, and I found my attention wandering a lot. It’s weird that Angela made a tiny appearance in this comic, and no one acknowledged her. Why did Marvel pay so much for this character again?
Titans: Beast World #1 – Tom Taylor has been building to this story since his Titans run began, which admittedly, wasn’t all that long ago. Brother Eternity (aka Brother Blood) makes his move, which involves unleashing a planetary threat that the Titans gather heroes to help them fight off. Gar figures out how to save the day, but it puts him at great risk. It’s cool to see the Titans acting as the new Justice League, and seeing Batman have a bit of trouble with that. This issue moved fast and had a switch I didn’t see coming, which I always appreciate, and now I’m not all that sure what the rest of this event is going to be like. This is a good start for this event, in the DC house style, thanks to Ivan Reis. I’m going to get it and the Titans and Nightwing issues, as well as one or two of the associated one-shots.
X-Men Blue: Origins #1 – Simon Spurrier has become the go-to Nightcrawler writer in recent years, and now he digs into Kurt’s origins to fix the character after a bad decision made decades ago by Chuck Austen. Tying into the Uncanny Spider-Man miniseries, where Kurt is currently starring, he has a conversation with Mystique, his supposed mother, and learns the truth of his parentage. It’s a pretty cool exploration of Mystique’s character and powers, and retcons things into a context that makes a lot more sense over the course of the characters’ histories. I liked it, and hope that when Fall of X is over, we’ll see Spurrier continuing to work with the X-books.
Bargain Comics:
Milestone Returns: Infinite Edition #0 – I stay curious about the latest iteration of Milestone revamps, but have only dipped my toes. This one-shot (from 2021) did a good job of contextualizing the various titles in relation to one another, and made me regret not getting this stuff sooner. The Static parts grabbed me the most, and I was impressed with Nikolas Draper-Ivey’s art, even when compared to giants like Denys Cowan and Bill Sienkiewicz. I’m glad I’ve got the Static HC in a big stack of books to read, and need to check for more of this stuff.
The Week in Music:
Irreversible Entanglements – Protect Your Light – I’ve been a fan of the improvisational afro-futurist jazz band Irreversible Entanglements for a while now, and think this is their best album yet. Some of the music is more rhythmic than usual, and frontwoman Camae Ayewa, aka Moor Mother, is at her lyrical best. These songs call for freedom, for Land Back, and for growing awareness of the world’s ills. Much of this album is thrilling in its political fierceness, and I appreciate its tribute to trumpeter jaimie branch. I see that the band is no longer on International Anthem (this is on the Impulse! label), but it feels like a distillation of so much of what IARC is all about.
Onipa – Off The Grid – This year has been all about Afrobeats and amapiano, but there are still artists working in a more traditional vein of African grooves, even though half of this band is made up of white men from London. It would be a lot of fun to see this band, whose members are also in Nubiyan Twist and Steam Down, perform live, as they are lively and rousing, sliding in Afro-futurist themes and ideas. This is one of those albums that grows on you the more you play it.
Kiefer – It’s Ok, B U – While I’ll freely admit that some of the compositions on this album wouldn’t sound out of place on a Wii game, there is a lightness and fun to this new Kiefer album that I really appreciate. He’s a talented keyboardist who brings a new perspective to this kind of nu-jazz electronic music. It’s a good time.
