Best Comic of the Week:
Somna #2 – This book is a true work of art. Becky Cloonan and Tula Lotay trade off on art duties, and I can’t decide whose pages I like more. In this period piece, Ingrid is becoming lost to the passionate dreams she has of the devil, and while her husband is away, temptation starts to take over. At the same time, her best friend’s husband is killed, and it’s only Ingrid who knows what Maja was doing. This issue gets a little Surrealist in parts, as Ingrid struggles to know the difference between reality and dream. The larger page size and prestige format of DSTLRY comics really compliments this title.
Quick Takes:
Alan Scott Green Lantern #4 – It’s odd to me that Tim Sheridan’s work on this book is largely in service to retconning the existence of a character from Geoff John’s current (and always late) run on Justice Society of America. We learn about the Soviet Red Lantern in this issue, and have some of the mysteries that Alan’s spent years living with revealed. It’s a pretty effective issue, and I enjoyed it.
Avengers Inc. #5 – It’s a shame that this series didn’t take off, as Al Ewing and Leonard Kirk clearly had to rush their ending with this issue. I do like how Ewing has fixed the mess that Rick Remender left Hank Pym in. There were a lot of characters in this issue, many of whom didn’t really do much. I’ll be curious to see where the Victor Shade turns up next, if ever again.
Batman and Robin 2024 Annual #1 – Bruce takes Damian camping, but they get caught up in a strange hunt where rich people pay to kill innocent campers. Much of this issue didn’t work for me – that so many people would go missing and that their bodies would just be rotting in a campsite (Damian found them immediately upon arriving), that there would be such high-tech elements like a force shield, but Damian just finds Roulette, the woman behind the hunt’s, place – and it didn’t do much to advance what Joshua Williamson has been doing in the monthly Batman and Robin title. Howard Porter’s art has taken a turn that I really don’t like. He seems to be channeling Gene Colan these days, but his storytelling is a little murky and hard to follow. I much prefer Porter’s work in the 90s, like when he drew Ray and JLA. In all, this was a disappointment.
Dead X-Men #1 – Because I really can’t keep away from event tie-ins that might not be all that important, I ended up picking up the first issue of Dead X-Men by Steve Foxe, Jonas Scharf, and Bernard Chang. I was intrigued by who some of the main characters are (I like Prodigy and Frenzy a lot), but I really don’t understand the premise of this book. This squad of X-Men got killed during the Hellfire Gala Massacre, but now they’re alive and working with Rachel Summers to try to find a living pre-cyborg version of Moira in one of Sinister’s alternate timelines. Why is the book called Dead X-Men if they aren’t dead? When did Rachel and Xavier resurrect these characters, given how much we’ve seen of these events, and the fact that mutant resurrection was lost to Krakoa? Why have characters like Jubilee and Dazzler in the book if they don’t do anything? When did Rachel start calling herself Askani? (And is it weird that her ‘brother’ is often called Askani’son?) My completist nature will likely have me finish this series, but I’m not all that impressed.
The Incredible Hulk #8 – Hulk and a Ghost Rider take on another big monster in an action sequence that Nic Klein made look stunning. I’m liking Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s Hulk run, but this issue didn’t advance things much. Still, as a platform for showing off Klein’s skills, it worked great.
Quest #5 – Jonathan Luna and co-writer Crystal Wood continue to reveal some of the secrets of the fantasy world they’ve created as they finish their first arc. The princess and her party face the first of the demons who have stolen her new husband. This issue lets us know about demon organs, and the demon’s back story, and sets up the next arc. This is a good read, and Luna’s art is as gorgeous as ever.
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #40 – When Alyssa Wong and Minkyu Jung began their long run with Doctor Aphra, I wasn’t immediately impressed, but with time, I’ve come to appreciate it as much as I did Kieron Gillen and Simon Spurrier’s runs. They added a number of memorable characters to Aphra’s life, and managed to move her away from Darth Vader’s orbit. Their series was often kind of cute, and allowed Aphra to soften a little while still maintaining her edge. This final issue reveals whether or not Aphra lived through the end of the Dark Droids event, and sets the course for her supporting cast in the future. I hope we’ll see Aphra again, as the last page promises, but that whoever gets to handle her next will have both a vision for the character, and the space to develop it fully. I assume any new series will be taking place after Return of the Jedi, and I’m curious to see how Aphra makes the collapse of the Empire work for her.
Titans: Beast World #6 – Tom Taylor reaches the end of this event quite well, setting up some new storylines in the Titans book, and setting Amanda Waller up for her next big arc (which we are already seeing in Green Arrow). This was an enjoyable event wrung out of a ridiculous concept, helping to cement the Titans as the main team of heroes in the DC Universe. It moved at a quick pace, helped by the rapid shipping schedule.
Wolverine #42 – We’re only two chapters into this ten-part story, and the bodycount is already really high. Sabretooth is attacking X-Force’s base in the Arctic with a bunch of multiversal counterparts, and Logan is tied up outside, given few choices to help. It’s a propulsive issue, with decent art by Cory Smith (there go my hopes that Geoff Shaw would be drawing the whole thing).
W0rldtr33 #7 – In the aftermath of the internet being shut down, this story continues to sprawl some, as we check in on the various characters as they try to figure out what they should be doing next. We get to know a little about Ellison’s sisters, and learn more about what Gabriel Winter was up to as a teen. The last page has a twist that I did not see coming. I’m really liking what James Tynion IV is doing with this book, which takes me back to the couple of years I spent reading Wired as a teen.
