The Brave & The Bold-Issue #10-Superman & The Silent Knight, Teen Titans & Aquaman/Aqualad        As any DC reader knows, one of the the classic silver age comic book runs still on many a collector's wishlist is the 200-issue run from 1955 to 1983 of The Brave & The Bold.  DC revived the line in early 2007.  Now at issue #10, the new series is proving to be an entertaining and worthy addition to the classic line.      The original B&B began with a 24-issue run of classic medieval heroes, including The Silent Knight, Robin Hood and Viking Prince.  DC then mixed various superhero tandems and try-outs into the mix, before settling on the long-running formula of pairing Batman with a new superhero partner every issue.      Storytellers Mark Waid and George Perez have updated the formula, sticking with superhero pairings but dropping the "Batman and New Partner" formula.  The result is often refreshing pairings that swap-off every issue, such as Green Lantern/Supergirl, Wonder Woman/Power Girl, The Flash Family/Doom Patrol, and of course, Batman!  Unlike the one-shot storylines of the original series, there is a continuous story thread in issues one through ten, as all of the various team-ups take their turn trying to obtain and protect The Book of Destiny, inventory of all past, present and future, from falling into the hands of various aliens and bad guys.  Waid and Perez have introduced The Challengers Of The Unknown as a continual presence in each issue, weaving back and forth amongst the new hero pairings.      In an nice classic twist, the current issue #10 features Superman traveling back in time to team with The Silent Knight in a medieval-era quest to protect The Book Of Destiny in that era.  Inked by Bob Wiacek and colored by Tom Smith, its a beautifally-illustrated and engrossing story, with a fun, satisfying surprise ending that centers on a really interesting new trivia addition to the Superman family lore.      Unlike issues #1-#9, #10 features a second, separate story featuring Teen Titans and Aquaman/Aqualad doing their part in the Book of Destiny protection battle.  Not a bad second story-it will be interesting to see if Waid and Perez stick with the one unified story format or try again the two mini-story structure.      I definitely recommend for all DC fans to jump into reading the new B&B and get-in on the ground floor of collecting the entire run.  You can't go wrong, with a detailed storyline that's successfully working-in most of the DC A-List heroes from issue-to-issue.  Next pairing up in Issue #11: Superman & Ultraman. Green Lantern Corps #22.       If Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are considered the A-List of the traditional DC superhero line-up, then Green Lantern certainly isn't very far behind on any DC fan's A-minus list.  Part of the fun of being a Green Lantern fan is emersing oneself in the complex, character-rich universe that exists in the Green Lantern comic runs.      The original silver-age Green Lantern run not only gave us superhero/test pilot Hal Jordan and his otherworldly power ring, but an entire universe of Green Lanterns, each of whom polices a sector of the known galaxies as an intergalactic police force on behalf of the Guardians of OA.  Classic 1960's Green Lantern artist/writer Gil Kane created a very strong core group of alien Green Lanterns, who were comfortably and enjoyably interwoven into the various Green Lantern tales of the 1960's through the 1980's.      I hadn't read a new Green Lantern comic since the early 1990's and was intrigued to see recently on the That's Entertainment shelves Green Lantern Corps #22 alongside the current Green Lantern comic run, so I thought I'd give it a read to see how DC is keeping up in the year 2008 with the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps concept.      I didn't know what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised to find a modernization of the concept that reflects today's American society more than the DC classic tradition.  Issue #22 is the second half of a two-story arc writen by Sterling and Gates, and drawn by Nelson, Derek Friddles and Rob Hunter.  Art and story were entertaining as is, but what I really enjoyed was the 2008 version of Green Lantern Corps.      In the past, the Corps was a male company, with one token intergalactic "girl" allowed to be in the ranks.  The Corps is now more reflective of the American workforce and populated with a more normal ratio of women.  This story arc particularly focuses on a wide range of women in the Corps, including two sisters, one of whom is sent by the Guardians to corral-in her sister who all believe has gone renegade on the Corps.  Lots of fun action, involvement by Earth Green Lantern Hal Jordan and a satisfying judgement by the Guardians of OA at the end of the story trying to resolve the question of when its o.k. to go renegade on a just cause in the pursuit of an alternate justifiable reason.      Although I greatly enjoyed my spot read of Green Lantern Corps #22, it is the second and as such concluding  issue of a two-issue story arc.  As such, for the reader I'd recommend either backtracking to issue #21 first, or just picking up issue #23 which begins a fresh story arc.      A final thought: with Marvel finally hitting the screen this summer with an Iron Man movie, perhaps its time for DC to finally reach down into its vault and give Green Lantern (and his supporting intergalactic GL Corps, of course!) a big screen shot.  What Hollywood star do you think should be cast for the role of Hal Jordan/Green Lantern?  Call me crazy, but for some reason Brad Pitt comes to mind for me.        Here's my review of Legion Of Super-Heroes #41:       The Legion Of Super-Heroes is another current DC series with strong roots in the Silver Age.  This was always one incredibly weird-ass comic book back in the day.  The basic premise itself was o.k. and even very popular among silver age readers: Set in the 31st century, the Legion was a group of teenage superheroes who adventured in a similar vein like the Justice League, Justice Society, etc.  Every once in awhile Superboy would pop-in, then head back to the boring old 20th century.      Most likely unintentionally, it was also one of the campiest and cheesiest comics around back then, with some of the most amazingly wooden dialogue ever put to print.  If anyone ever publishes a coffee table book on the history of comic book cheese, a solid inventory of silver age Legion covers and inside pages would be included (a typically wooden silver age thought balloon from a Legion story: "Oh, there is Lightening Lad standing over that way.  I think I will walk by him and see if he will greet me."  I kid you not.)      The present-day Legion series run is up to issue #41, with highly respected veteran Jim Shooter writing and Aaron Lopresti pencilling and Matt Ryan inking.  Frankly, it's not bad, a quantum leap improvement from the Silver Age version that I vented on above.  The art is extremely high quality; I love it when really skilled comic artists can portry very subtle facial expressions on characters, and the Lopresti/Ryan team prove to be among the best at this delicate skill, if issue #41 is a typical example of what they bring to a comic book.      Without belaboring the story details, Shooter manages a typical group/ensemble superhero comic book plot with his expected skill, mixing in action, futuristic details and wonders, and adding a really nice touch of slightly dark humor/comments that are really a take on our current, 21st century media frenzy/celebrity/paparazzi world.      One constructive criticism, however.  While dropping the hackneyed old legion dialogue, he's gone a little weirdly into the world of the old Melrose Place t.v. series, of all things.  Its one thing to modernize the series to have the Legion members dating each other, but its a little creepy to show them running around their clubhouse in spandex underwear, saying stuff like (and I quote) "Be strict with me...take me...own me...do something shocking..."  Like I said, it might work on Melrose Place, but in a comic book which still implies to me, at least, a bunch of high school kids with super powers hanging-out in their clubhouse, its just a 2008 jaded version of updated cheesiness and it falls flat.      That said, for some upscale artwork and interesting futuristic plotting and setting, this series is worth checking-out.  It ain't classic DC, but its a light dessert of fun and worth the read in that vein. D.C. All-Star Superman #11:        One of the most popular D.C. titles of the past few years has been the D.C. All-Star run of Superman.  Issue #11 just came-out, and it only proves that each issue gets better and better.      Written by Grant Morrison, penciled by Frank Quitely and inked by Jamie Grant, the entire production just hits on all cylinders.  The trio has taken an approach of re-interpreting the silver age line of superman story themes that relied heavily on plots relating to Superman's various technological toys and resources in his Fortress of Solitude.  Through a plot thread that deals with Superman being over-radiated by the sun and supposedly slowly dying, the technological wizardly available at Superman's fingertips from his fortress inventory is heavily relied on in a multi-issue narrative thread that touches upon the familiar Superman world themes of his relationship with Lois Lane, his rivalry with Lex Luthor, attempting to relate to his fellow remaining Kryptonians in ye olde Bottle of Kandor, etc.      The art is breathtakingly exquisite, no doubt some of the best drawings basically ever produced in a comic book series.  It's also the small, incremental plot elements that add so much freshness and just plain enjoyment to this series: Lex Luthor's sarcastic, jaded Goth niece (does he have family in any other D.C. story run?  This is certainly news to me!),  Superman's heartarchingly innocent and loyal army of duplicate robots, his odd yet moving communication across time (utilizing Fortress gizmos) with versions of his future self (one interesting garbled radio message from his future self desperately poses the fate-of-the-world question "Who is J. Lo?").       However, there's a moving beauty to this particular interpretive Superman series that goes beyond amazing art and interesting dialogue.  The emotion of the characters is consistently very heartfelt and often melancholy in a way that I feel puts this series on a mature literary par with two of the most classic comic book series of all time, both Watchmen and Tim Sale's Superman For All Seasons.      Issue #11 is still on the shelf at That's Entertainment, and the store also has a nice newly-produced graphic novel format compiling a reprint of the first six issues.  My only criticism is that issue #12 is advertised in the back of #11 as the "all star conclusion," and that's a crying shame.  I guess all good things must naturally come to a (hopefully) satisfying conclusion, but this series is an extremely A-plus quality classic, and I just wish it could go on forever.  But at least don't miss it; whether you're one of our seemingly dwindling minority of hard-core D.C. fanatics (like me) or just a lover of great comics in general, get issue #11, those back issues and/or the newly released issues #1 through #6 graphic novel! Wonder Woman #20:        DC decided to reinvigorate Wonder Woman last year by rolling the numbering sequence back to #1.  The run is currently up to issue #23.  A new 4-issue story arc began in issue #20, so I recently gave it a read to see whether or not I would recommend that the loyal D.C. reader give the new story arc a try.      As you know from my reviews, I regularly (and boringly, by now!) mention that I'm a classic D.C. fan.  As such, the "holy D.C. trilogy" of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are on an A-list pedestal for me.  I've been a fan since childhood of all of the various incarnations of Wonder Woman.  Regarding the current run, there's been a lot of mainstream media attention to the fact that writer Gail Simone (of Birds of Prey note) is the first female writer to be handed writing duties for the premier D.C. female superhero character.      Issue #20 is Part 1 of a 4-issue story arc entitled "End Of The Earth," and is written by Simone, penciled by Aaron Lopresti and inked by Matt Ryan.  The story alternates between two sub-plots; Wonder Woman meeting-up with Beowulf in a snowy village while on an Old World fantasy quest, interspersed with Diana Prince a.k.a. Wonder Woman in her role as a government agent back in the bureaucratic world of Washington, D.C. trying to make her way in a Dept. of Homeland Security-type job while dealing with mythological creatures and situations.      At first read, I felt that the overall plot was of high quality but moved much too slow.  However, on second thought I realized that actually Simone hit the plotting nail on the head when it comes to Wonder Woman, and I changed my recommendation to a thumbs-up.  Wonder Woman stories have always been like those plots of T.V. movies made for The Lifetime Network, really slow and steadily building. The Wonder Woman issues traditionally have a comic book structure with a higher-than-average conversational dialogue in between shorter-than-standard scenes of comic book action.       I don't mean this at all in a sexist way but rather as a literary complement; Simone keeps-up the Wonder Woman tradition of it being a well-crafted chick lit comic book.  And that's a good thing; the comic isn't in the cookie-cutter mode of many other bang-bang blow-up-the-world comics. It continues to be a bit more cerebral and literate than some of the other mainstream comics.       I'm glad that D.C. and Simone are still out there doing this title up this way.  As such, I'd recommend that the eclectic D.C. reader mix this one into your monthly reading pile, unless you're completely addicted to quick-fix story arcs and over-heavy action comics. The Flash #242.       D.C. Comics is credited by comic historians with initiating the Silver Age of comics with the introduction of the modern-day Flash back in September of 1956 in Showcase issue #4.  By the mid-1950's, Golden Age superhero comics had gone out of style, so D.C. revamped the 1940's version of The Flash with a new costume and new alter ego, and the Silver Age of re-emerging superheros was on its way.       Given his own comic issue soon thereafter, The Flash hit its peak in the mid-1960's with story and art by the legendary Carmine Infantino.  Infantino's plotting and artistry of policeman Barry Allen, his sidekick Wally West and their superhero personas The Flash and Kid Flash represent some of the best art and storylines ever in the history of comics.      Such a rare level of quality is a very tough act to follow, so I approached reading the latest issue #242 of The Flash not expecting to be wowed.  While the issue naturally doesn't reach the peaks of the 1960's run, I'm pleased to report that, read in its own right, it's an excellent current version of the storied Flash franchise.      Issue #242 is written by Tom Peyer, drawn by Freddie E. Williams and inked by Tanya and Richard Horie.  The Flash franchise has evolved a lot since the 1960's; Barry Allen is long-gone, with former sidekick Wally West now wearing the costume.  He's married to biologist Linda Park West, and they have two super-speedy teenage kids, daughter Iris and son Jai, who wear sidekick costumes and run around with Dad.      Issue #242 is part five of a six-issue story arc entitled "Fast Money," and it's outstanding for three particular reasons.  First, credit has to be given to the writer and artists for pulling-off a rarity in any multi-issue story arc: in the first five pages, they clearly and smoothly bring the reader up-to-date on the basics of the plot covered in the previous four issues.  This is a rare and very admirable effort, allowing the new reader to enjoy the issue in its own right without feeling totally lost from the overall story arc.      Secondly, kudos have to be given to writer Tom Peyer for knowing his Flash history and basing major plots elements in the rich tradition of 1960's Flash storylines.  In this issue of the story, daughter Iris has been treated for a medical condition with some alien medical technology, leading to an unfortunate rapid-aging side effect.  The race is on (no pun intended!) to find a cure, which leads the entire Flash family to Gorilla City, where they deal with both good super-intelligent gorillas and the traditional Flash nemisis of Gorilla Grodd.      Gorilla Grodd was a standard Flash nemisis in The Silver Age; it was an unexpected kick to see him pop-up in a new Flash issue and it was also a lot of fun to see writer Tom Peyer blend the entire Gorilla City concept into a modern-day Flash tale.      The third and perhaps best reason to read The Flash is the whole Flash family concept as its now presented.  The D.C. team has pulled-off a very credible concept of a superhero who's entire family in center-stage with him as they deal together with whatever's going-on in each story.  The kids are a hoot; they seem very credible as modern-day teens, as opposed to stereotypical comic book sidekicks.  The Flash Family also starred a few months ago in an issue of The Brave & The Bold with the same high quality, so its clearly not just a fluke in Issue #242.      So all-in-all, a very high thumbs-up for Issue #242 and the 2008 version of The Flash in general.  For an enjoyable comic read of a modern-day superhero still incorporating silver age elements, this one's a keeper. Birds Of Prey #120        Birds Of Prey is a ensemble team of D.C. female heros, centered around former Batgirl Barbara Gordon (no relation!), now wheelchair-bound since being shot by The Joker in the acclaimed Allan Moore-scripted The Killing Joke graphic novel (1988). It was also a critically-acclaimed USA Network t.v. series back in 2002, known for the marketing tagline "Batman's Little Girl Is All Grown-Up."      Barbara is now known as The Oracle, a computer hacker/information expert who provides her technical services to superheros and her leadership and tactical experience to a core of superheros consisting of Black Canary, Huntress, Lady Blackhawk and a rotating cast of in-and-out team members.      Issue #120, entitled "Mad Science," is written by Tony Bedard, pencilled by Michael O'Hare and inked by John Floyd.  The plot centers around Oracle trying-out a new potential team member on a test assignment, a character named Infinity who can materialize through solid objects.  Black Canary and Huntress have no idea that a potential new team member is in the mix, which leads to bruised egos in the midst of the team taking-on a pair of bad guy teams who are manipulating a high-tech, Silicon Valley-type company.      Birds of Prey is an excellent D.C. team premise, but this particular issue really falls flat on the writing.  Tony Bedard has huge shoes to fill following Gail Simone's shift to Wonder Woman, and he trips-up by not really explaining much along the way in terms of the Birds Of Prey world structure.  If you jump into this comic the way I did without any previous background, you really can't tell what heros belong to the team, who these bad guys are, etc.        Bedard needs to mix-in a minor amount of team explanation and a small but significant element of plot summary from the previous issue; from page one, the reader is thrown head first into fast action and detailed dialogue continued from the previous issue.  It's extremely confusing and disorienting, and frankly difficult to understand just what is going on in this story.      Unfortunately, I would recommend skipping this confusing particular issue.  I do like very much the Birds of Prey team premise, however, and would suggest that the faithful D.C. reader keep an eye on future issues of this line, and try to pick-up a story line at the beginning of a new story arc.   Superman/Batman #50:        This particular Superman/Batman comic line was created a few years back by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness.  The creative pair established in this comic a really fresh and innovative idea of parallell narratives by Batman and Superman on just about every page.  Basically, the reader gets two different, simultaneous perspectives on the storyline.  This structure also shows the reader how the superhero pair have such completely differing, opposing personalities and attitudes, yet underneath it all their basic values still make them a brother-like team.  It's a really fun, fresh approach that breathed new life into presenting a superhero duo that's been teamed-up in comics seemingly forever-and-a-day.      I was a huge fan of this comic when Loeb and McGuinness ran it, and frankly walked away from it in disappointment when subsequent creative teams brought it back down to average or below-average stories and artwork.  As such, I was curious to see how it was being handled these days, with the recent production of a double-length ($3.99) special 50th issue.  This special issue was written by Michael Green and Mike Johnson, pencilled by Benes, Clark, Goldman and Churchill, and inked by Banning, Rapmund, Alquiza and Hunter.      There's nothing more enjoyable for me in a comic than a fresh, new interpretation of the basic elements of a superhero character or his/her basic world structure.  It doesn't happen very often and when it does these days, its from someone we all expect it from, such as a Tim Sale or a Jeph Loeb.  So it was a thrill to see such a storyline unexpectedly pop-up in Superman/Batman #50.      There are dual, interconnected storylines in this issue's plot.  In the present, our dynamic duo with the assistance of just about all of the Justice Leaguers battle two pieces of old Kryptonian technology that are partially damaged and as such run amok on Earth.  The second, key storyline is a flashback story that offers us the amazing premise of Superman's father Jor-El communicating with and actually meeting-up with Bruce Wayne's father, Thomas Wayne, before either of our heros were even born.  It's a neat premise on its own, but what elevates it to a classic D.C. tale is the very original details of how the father's dual actions not only directly affect the action going-on in the present, but actually determined the possibility of both Superman and Batman even coming into being.      I don't know if Superman/Batman as a comic line will continue to roller coaster in quality as it has during the first 50 issues (you can check-out the graphic novel reprint compilations and judge for yourself).  But I do know you're missing an instant classic issue if you skip #50.  So don't!    In Memorium-Michael Turner (1972-2008) Action #867        This is the comic line that began it all, of course, way back in 1939 with the debut of Superman.  It's still considered the flagship of the D.C. line, with D.C. honoring the title's heritage by preserved the numbering continuity all the way through the current issue #867.  I'm giving away my age by recalling how back in junior high we were all excited with the issuance of Action #400!  I can't wait to see issue #1000 hit the store shelves about 11 years from now, a numbering milestone first in the history of comics.      Issue #867 is part 2 of a multi-issue story arc entitled Brainiac-HIde and Seek.  Highly-respected writer Geoff Johns has been plotting Action Comics for about a year now, with Gary Frank pencilling and Jon Sibal inking.  This creative team definitely has their act together, if issue #867 is an indication.      Superman and his cousin Supergirl (Kara Zor-El) are currently co-starring in Action.  It's an excellent team-up, with Johns writing some very believable, natural human dialogue between the pair, as in this issue they advance a multi-issue storyline of taking on long-time Superman Family nemesis Brainiac.      Credit has to be given to Geoff Johns for putting a very fresh spin on the often-repeated Brainiac-Superman conflict.  This issue is mostly a set-up for the rest of the story arc, with Superman and Supergirl searching for Brainiac all the while recounting his evil past deeds.  The creative spin to this plot is that Superman and Supergirl actually have no idea that Brainiac shrunk and stole the famous Kryptonian city of Kandor.  It's intriguing listening to Kara Zor-El tell her cousin of the "famous Kryptonian story" of how Brainiac once made the city disappear, but no one's sure what exactly happened to it.       I think it's going to be a lot of fun seeing the pair obviously discover the truth to the Kandor mystery as this story arc unfolds over the next few issues, and they meet their fellow Kryptonians in the famed Bottle of Kandor.  The art is also great in this series, so an all-around strong recommendation to check-out the current stroy line in this classic D.C. title. Army@Love Second Season #1        D.C.'s Vertigo Line comic Army @ Love had an initial 12-issue run in the past year; after a few months hiatus, its back with the 13th issue listed as "Second Season Issue #1."  And that's a very accurate way for Vertigo to approach this series, as more than any comic book out there right now, reading this comic feels like watching an HBO or Showtime t.v. series.  This is definitely not your father's war comic!      The comic is an incredibly wild and wacky take on the ongoing Iraq and Afganistan wars.  The continuing storyline is set "a few years fron now" in the fictional country of Afbaghistan, as the U.S. has outsourced the war to private corporate America.  It's a wild soap opera of a comic full of pop media references, sexual intrigue and very accurate satire on our current foreign policy and general political climate in America.      The creative team behind this comic is Rick Veitch as writer, with inks by Gary Erskine and color by Brian Miller.  There's been a lot of media accolades given to Veitch in the past year for the strong vein of dark humor that he mixes into every issue of Army@Love, and its well-deserved.  He also very skillfully weaves together multiple sub-plots, ranging from such extremes as the war setting itself, Yeti territory in the Himalayas and suburban life in Edgefield, New Jersey, of all places.  The key here is that it all works, and you really want to come back for more of this roller coaster media blitz of a ride in each and every issue.      Just a reminder, this is a Vertigo Line comic for mature readers only, not suitable for the kids.  But I'm convinced that the entire comic series is really a visual set of t.v. scripts for a cable series on this title, so everyone will most likely see this on the small screen at some point in the future. Justice Society of America #17:        As a life-long D.C. fanatic, I've always shied-away from the D.C. efforts at larger-group, ensemble titles and story arcs.  Marvel built a solid part of their quality reputation on X-Men and Avenger titles, and they just seemed to do a more original, creative job of story-telling and plot than Justice League, which was the main D.C. equivalent to those titles back then.  My brother David considers Justice Society of America one of his favorite titles these days, so I thought I'd dive into the group ensemble comic world and give it a swim.      Justice Society of America #17 is subtitled "One World, Under Gog" and is the second issue in a multi-story arc.  The story is by the premier writing team of Geoff Johns and Alex Ross (with an Alex Ross cover), pencilled by Fernando Pasarin and inked by Prentis Rollins and John Stanisci.      The story plot centers upon the arrival on Earth of a giant supposed deity named Gog, who has God-like powers of healing people and the environment, and appears peaceful.  However, a parallel-Earth Superman has warned the Justice Society that Gog will choose a herald named Magog, who will ultimately lead all superheros toward violence and disaster.      You would expect only high quality storytelling from the likes of Johns and Ross, and they don't disappoint with this comic.  They mix a nice pace of plotting, some action and the impelling intrigue and mystery as the Justice Society and the world slowly learn the god-like extent of Gog's powers, question his true intent and deal with his direct effect on Society member's lives and abilities.      Two particular elements of this comic issue and the basic Justice Society line made a strong impression upon me.  The first was the good fit that the writers made among three groups of D.C. heroes that interact in this Justice Society storyline: golden age heroes, silver age heroes and new, upcoming heroes that I for one never crossed paths with before reading this comic. Mixing established popular characters from very different eras, along with new characters can often feel forced in a story, but the writers make it all feel very right and natural, here.      Secondly, I really liked the way Johns and Ross weaved together this issue's sub-plots, and I was very impressed with one particular sub-plot in which two of the heroes, Doctor Mid-Nite and Mr. Terrific, have a discussion questoning the meaning of faith in light of the arrival on Earth of the seemingly deified Gog.  It's an extremely literate element in this comic that on a smaller scale reminded me somewhat of the literate quality of Alan Moore's classic graphic novel Watchmen.      All in all, a thumbs-up for this issue and title.  D.C.'s definitely doing a good job at the moment of providing an entertaining and high quality large group ensemble superhero comic line, so check out this issue if you want lots of group superhero entertainment.  I enjoyed the story enough to go back out and buy myself a copy of Justice Society of America Annual #1, which continues one sub-plot from issue #17 regarding Gog supposedly sending Power Girl back to her homeworld. Air #1:        This new comic has the intriguing cover of an airline stewardess falling through a bright blue sky, along with a Neil Gaiman cover quote that the comic "starts as Rushdie and then parachutes off into Pynchon."  Both cover art and quote very accurately sum-up this extremely original new comic from D.C.'s Vertigo Line, written by G. Willow Wilson and drawn with beautiful art and expression by renowned Turkish artist M.K. Perker (Google Mr. Perker for access to his very impressive website).      The best way I can describe this comic is that its a magic realism short story presented in a visual medium.  Magic realism is a form of science fiction or fantasy in which the reader finds a very matter-of-fact world, with a few sudden touches of the unusual blended-in when you least expect it (check-out any novel or story written by author Lisa Goldstein, or the novel "The Necessary Beggar" by Susan Palwick for high quality examples).  The t.v. show "Lost" is a good example of having magic realism elements blended into some very mainstream sub-plots.      The main character in Air is Blythe, an American working as an overseas stewardess for Clearfleet Airlines.  The first issue nicely propels Blythe through some very interesting sub-plots, including her growing relationship with a mysterious boyfriend who has multiple identities, and a shadowy group of citizens who claim they're against airline terrorism yet seem to be worse in many ways than actual plane terrorists themselves.  The action and intrigue nicely come together in a key scene that centers around that amazing cover scene of Blythe plunging parachute-less through the sky.      I really don't want to give much more of this extremely creative storyline away, given the originality of this comic.  I also won't spoil the one sudden Magic Realism twist at the end of this issue, other than to say that after reading this issue, you'll never look at a postcard again without thinking of this comic.   Suffice to say that Wilson and Perker work wonderfully together here as a creative team; the combination of his art and her written dialogue can be described as poetic in presenting average folk dealing with a blend of the usual and the mysterious sides of life.        I do feel its important to note that this is a very brave comic, the first one that I've read since 9-11 that has as a central theme the very changed world that you and I actually live in now, whether we're up in an airplane or just trying to live our lives in an everyday manner.  I give a lot of credit to DC Vertigo for taking-on a storyline with such mainstream literate quality at the heart of it; no superheros here, folks, but the hint of magic realism in issue #1 will obviously grow with each succeeding issue.  Again, if you like the subplots of the t.v. show "Lost" where everything seems extremely ordinary and then one little item turns the whole world sideways, I think this is a comic for you. Justice League of America #22:        The current issue of Justice League is #24, the third story of a multi-issue story arc, so this time I jumped back to issue #22 to review the story arc's beginning.  #22 through #24 are all currently available on the That's Entertainment new issue display wall.  Issue #22 is entitled "The Second Coming-Chapter One," and is written by Dwayne McDuffie and drawn by Ed Benes.      The main storyline in this issue focuses on the League trying to help Red Tornado stabilize into a permanent body, so he can live as close to a human life as possible.  The League tries a radical, complicated scientific experiment to try and achieve this, which seems to be in the process of badly backfiring by the end of the issue, resulting in a dangerous programmed villain personality asserting itself in Red Tornado against the League.      I didn't enjoy this comic that much, for a few reasons.  First, the current Justice League writing is being outshined by the stellar writing of The Justice Society of America comic that I reviewed last week.  I thought it would be fun to compare the two back-to-back, and quickly found that the current writing is light years apart in quality between the two comics.  Justice League isn't bad, but its just average compared to Geoff Johns's writing level in Justice Society, and as such, Justice League seems drab in the Society's shadow, I'm afraid.      The second problem for me was Ed Benes's art.  Its excellent, but his style is heavier than most current D.C. artists with extreme shadowing and over-penciling of figures.  It makes for a bleak feeling in each scene, plus I'm always squinting to make out details in large scenes.  A two-page spread on pages 4 and 5 almost gave me a headache trying to make out all of the details.      Third and perhaps most significant is that after finishing this comic, it struck me that a lot of the sub-plot dialogue is kind of wooden, and frankly feels fake.  There's a scene of Superman and Green Lantern giving Red Arrow relationship advice that's supposed to be serious, but seems very stilted and just plain weird-its almost as if it was written by a kid in a creative writing class in school who is guessing how real adults might talk with each other about relationships and hasn't got a clue.      The final point that got under my skin about this issue is a point about the League that's actually bothered me since the early issues in the 1960's.  The League has always been structured as having a rotating chair; whoever's the leader-of-the-month is like a little dictator, and whatever he or she decides in certain storylines goes without saying.  In this issue, the League meets to consider whether the superhero Vixen should be allowed to stay in the League.  Everyone's willing to give her another chance except for the current League Chair Black Canary, so she's booted-out.  It's time for D.C. to drop this unrealistic structure, it just feels dumb and unreal, either for the real world or for a group of superheros that have come together to function on equal footing as a workable team.      If you're an old Justice League fan, not much has changed from the Silver Age Justice League approach for D.C., but I'm afraid that's not a good thing.  In light of the high quality of the current Justice Society line, combined with how comic book plotting has evolved in the past decade or two, this comic line feels very stale and is in need of a major style updating.   A Quick Heads-Up: Check-Out Brave & Bold #16! Green Arrow & Black Canary #11:        After reviewing a sub-par issue of Justice League last week, I was hoping that a read of this comic starring two Justice Leaguers would be an improvement, and it certainly didn't disappoint.  Issue #11 is part three of an ongoing story arc entitled "A League Of Their Own," written by Judd Winick, penciled by Mike Norton and inked by Wayne Faucher.      The story centers on Green Arrow and Black Canary taking on perennial bad guy Ra's Al Ghul's League of Assassins, while at the same time trying to find and rescue Green Arrow's kidnapped son, Connor.  Batman and Plastic Man join the superhero duo in this installment of the story arc, with Batman proving early on that the League is being manipulated by a Ra's impersonator.  This leads to a reluctant and interesting alliance between the four good guys and the League of Assassins to solve the mystery of the impersonator's identity and motivation.      There's a very well-plotted middle to this issue, serving as a flashback to how and why a certain League member joined the assassin's group in the first place, and the issue concludes with a nice surprise clue as a bridge to the next issue, as the search for both the Ra's imposter and Green Arrow's missing son continues.      Judd Winick has hit a nice stride in writing this title.  The dialogue, action and sense of mystery is all mixed together very nicely, and it was all paced so well from page-to-page that I didn't want it to end.  It made me want to check-out the two previous story arc issues and also see how things proceed in issue #12.      I also enjoyed Norton and Faucher's artwork very much.  While most D.C. comic art right now is excellent (at least in the books that I've been reading), it's all very detailed as the artists strive for a high degree of realism.  This team's artistic style is very conventional, more toward the style of superhero t.v. series animation.  It's a nice traditional comic book change of pace, and it feels more relaxed and enjoyable than a lot of the other ongoing comic's artistic styling.      So all in all, with a mix of very entertaining storytelling and enjoyable old school artwork, along with an interesting mystery to keep the pages turning, this comic's both a thumb's-up and a just plain fun read. Daredevil #110:        Ken asked me to add a non-D.C. title to the review pile this week, and the first comic that I thought of was one of my non-D.C. favorites, Daredevil.  I was a huge fan of Frank Miller's iconic 1980's run in this comic, and was curious to see how its faring these days.      Daredevil #110 is the concluding story in a multi-issue storyline entitled "Cruel & Unusual."  Its written by Eisner Award-winner Ed Brubaker along with Greg Rucka, and drawn by Michael Lark and Stefano Gaudiano.  Brubaker's been getting a lot of attention with his current scripting run of Daredevil, and issue #110 confirms that its well-deserved.  Page one includes a six-paragraph narrative of the story to-date, a detailed tale of blind lawyer Matt Murdock, a.k.a. Dardevil, trying to exonerate a death row convict who insists ontaking the fall for a murder he didn't commit.       The written story is superb, portraying involvement in the plot among federal security agencies, various crime figures and the well-established cast of Matt Murdock's friends and foes. Brubaker and Rucka are adept at weaving back and forth between Murdock dealing with his personal life struggles and the bigger superhero picture.  I really enjoyed how quite often they scripted Murdock as solving the major storyline mysteries in his civilian role, then donning the Daredevil costume just to wrap things up.  It makes for a much more complex and reality-based story and character.  Few writers can top Brubaker with his ability demonstrated in this issue of leading a very complex story to a complete and satisfying conclusion.      I also have to give the writers grateful credit for their page one narrative that catches-up the reader to the previous story issues.  I've previously complained in some of these reviews that its often very difficult to pick-up a multi-issue storyline after the first issue.  Finally, a writing team that takes a moment right up-front to get the reader caught-up and into the action of the current issue!  I hope more writers follow their lead.      While issue #110 is excellent, something very special is heading your way starting in the upcoming issue #111, with the teaming of Brubaker with guest artist Clay Mann for a new storyline starring the introduction of Lady Bullseye.  Marvel is heavily marketing this run, including a three-page preview at the end of the Daredevil Saga hand-out currently available at That's Entertainment.  The art and story preview look pretty special, so I'd recommend not missing-out on this upcoming story. Supergirl #33        The latest D.C. run of Supergirl began almost three years ago, with the first five issues being written by premier writer Jeph Loeb, penciled by Ian Churchill and inked by Norm Rapmund.  Loeb got the series off to the very high quality start expected of him.  I read the first ten issues of the series, so I was curious to check-out the latest issue and see how its holding-up.      Issue #33, entitled "Aftermath," is written by James Peaty with Ron Randall doing the art.  The plot focuses on Supergirl assisting the superhero Empress is trying to free her parents from a gangster who's kidnapped them after they've been genetically altered to revert to childhood.  It quickly turns out that the situation is a set-up to trap Supergirl.  Since I don't want to ruin the plot, I won't go into detail, other than to say that Empress and Supergirl figure out how to creatively work together and save the day by the end of the issue.       This is a pretty good issue, of a quality on par with the earlier issues of this series.  Two aspects of this comic stood-out for me.  First, I liked the fact that it was a one-issue story, beginning and concluding in one shot.  It seems like every comic these days is part of a complex, multi-issue story arc, and it was a nice change of pace to just pick-up a comic and read a complete story.      Secondly, there was a well-presented sub-plot through-out the story, of Supergirl grappling with the philosophical issue of how far a superhero should go both in getting violent in a situation and in personally trying to help a person.  There's reference to her recently trying to help a terminally ill cancer patient, and trying to come to terms with not being able to help in all situations.      All-in-all, Peaty and Randall deliver for the reader in this issue.  I'd also recommend checking out next month's issue #34-the promo in the back of issue #33 announces a new creative team and an interesting story arc, "as we march toward New Krypton." Secret Six #1        This new D.C. comic is written by Gail Simone, pencilled by Nicolla Scott and inked by Doug Hazlewood.  This is one badly disjointed, confusing book.  To be honest, it was so unclear regarding who the main characters are and just what is going on in this storyline, that I actually had to go to Wikipedia after reading this comic to try and get any idea about this comic world.      Apparently (as I learned from Wikipedia, not from reading this comic), the Secret Six has been an on-and-off again team published by D.C. sporadically since the 1960's.  Each iteration had a different mix of six superheros, with a mysterious leader only known as Nightingale.  In 2005 and 2006, Gail Simone took a spin at scripting a new Secret Six team, this time structuring the group as six villains in a limited comic book series.  She took the old B-list D.C. villains of Catman, Deadshot and Cheshire, and added new villains Ragdoll, Scandal Savage and Parademon.  At some point she added a character named Knockout, who had a lesbian relationship with Scandal Savage.      Simone's scripting of issue #1 is a disjointed mess, mixing together three major flaws to be avoided in any comic.  First, it's clear that she's throwing the reader into the middle of a lot of angst and emotional issues that are carried-over from her earlier series run, without giving any inkling to the reader of what it's all about.  Secondly, she makes no attempt to explain just who the heck any of these people are; there is absolutely no information regarding the group itself nor any details about the member's personalities, powers or histories, with the exception that Knockout previously died and Scandal Savage deeply mourns her passing.      Third, Simone seems to be trying to creatively write about evil by just going for cheap shock value.  Its not high quality writing to focus on bad guys planning to kill some kid's dog because they're trying to get back at the kid's father.  It's hacky writing.  Multiply that pathetic example by about 20 story items and you get a feel for this comic.      The cliffhanger at the end of issue #1 is the pending appearance of (gasp!) Batman in issue #2.  I don't think even The Dark Knight can bring some logic to this mess.  My advice:  run from this book, run from it like it's the Bubonic Plague.  There's so many great, or even average, enjoyable comics out there, that it's a crying shame to waste $2.99 in this direction.  Sorry to be so negative, but that's sometimes the life of a reviewer.  You're entitled to your own opinion...but you've been warned! Blue Beetle #29        The superhero Blue Beetle has a long and distinguished comic book history.  There are actually three well-known versions of this character; the first appeared in 1939, while the second was published in the 1950's and 60's as a very popular Charlton Comics character.  I remember the 60's version as a guy who was embodied with superhero powers derived from an ancient Egyptian artifact shaped like a scarab, or beetle, hence the "blue beetle" name.       D.C. bought-out Charlton's superhero line-up back in the early 1980's and has since used the Blue Beetle sporadically.  In 2006, they came-out with the current version.  Here, the Blue Beetle is teenager Jaime Reyes, who lives with his parents and younger sister in El Paso, Texas, trying to deal with the issues of being a young teenager and dealing with his new-found superhero abilities and responsibilities.      Issue #29 is part one of a multi-issue story arc entitled Boundaries.  It's written by Matthew Sturges with art by Rafael Albuquerque.  Both issue #29 and part two of the storyline in issue #30 are currently available on the new comic issues wall at That's Entertainment.       This is a high quality, entertaining comic on several levels.  First, it's just a refreshing, unique world-line from most of the other storylines currently inhabiting the D.C. Universe.  It's interesting to see an Hispanic character and his family living in the multi-cultural world of the Texas border.  The storyline well-represents this culture, as indicated by the story title "Boundaries."  The Blue Beetle and his friends and allies are dealing here with the complex issue of illegal immigrant border crossings, as well as the boundaries between genuine law enforcement issues vs. vigilante rage and frustration.      Writer Matthew Sturges is very skilled at mixing light humor with story action and drama.  There's a very funny sub-plot weaved-in here regarding the Blue Beetle dealing with two other local superheros who are deciding in their own dim-witted way which one inherits the more respected name and legacy of a deceased superhero.      This comic is the best I've read in years in credibly and realistically portraying the difficulties that a young teenager would have in actually being a superhero.  Jaime Reyes is not in this alone.  Sturges has him surrounded by a circle of family, friends and allies, all of whom are there for him in many ways.  There's a wonderful set of panels in this story portraying Jaime's parents and sister sitting in their living room watching him as the Blue Beetle stutter his way on television through a press conference, with the folks and sister all agreeing that "Jaime really sucks at being on TV."  Much more real and enjoyable than the standard "no one must ever know who I am" teen-age hero routine!       Kudos to D.C. for reinventing the hallowed Blue Beetle character with cultural relevance and basic good quality.  Here's hoping that Sturges and Albuquerque keep-up the excellent creative teamwork.  While I recommend this comic to all good D.C. readers, its highly recommended for teenagers looking for a comic book to personally relate to.  I think I'll even e-mail my old college buddy Ron N., a big fan of the old Charlton Comics Blue Beetle, and tell him to give the new issues a read! Tor #5        My second review this week is also a classic comic hero, this time the prehistoric hero Tor.  This is issue #5 in a six-issue D.C. mini-series.  The full title is "Joe Kubert's Tor," and rightly so.  Classic D.C. comic artist, writer and creator Joe Kubert initially created his cavemen wanderer-hero back in the 1950's, and has sporadically revisited this world over the decades.      This mini-series is part of a current D.C. effort to bring back their former Prehistory Hero, Western and Army comics.  I was concerned when I selected this comic that it might disappoint, as can often happen when an aging creator takes another stab at an old, hallowed character that he gave us.      Happily, I was not disappointed.  As expected, Joe Kubert proves that as with his generational peer Will Eisner, even in the late stages of his career he can still deliver the goods just as well as in the old days.      The storyline here is nothing new, with Tor trying to make his way through this mini-series back to his prehistoric tribe, all the while protecting a damsel in distress along with lost children, while battling the creatures of this lost prehistoric world.     Two features of this comic are classic and wonderful.  First is Kubert's amazing ability that he has portrayed since the beginning of the Tor line to deliver the story non-verbally.  None of the prehistoric characters speak, yet Kubert's narration along with the art are so engrossing that the reader hardly notices.  Secondly, Kubert is not resting on his previous story laurels.  There is a complex, literary plot filling out the basic storyline here, with Kubert updating his prehistoric jungle world to the modern narrative dinosaur details that we first met in Spielberg's Jurassic Park movie series.      Overall, much credit but also a thank you to the esteemed Joe Kubert for putting in the effort of giving us a quality and detailed new Tor storyline.  While you might want to look for back issues of issues #1 through #4, the good D.C. reader can easily enjoy issue #5 and the upcoming #6 on their own.  Here's hoping that D.C. plans to reprint all six issues of this mini-series in a graphic novel format.   Greatest Hits #1        DC Vertigo has a new six-issue mini-series entitled "Greatest Hits," with the sub-title "The Greatest Rock 'N Roll Heroes Of The '60's!"  The series is written by David Tischman and drawn by Glenn Fabry.      The story centers on The Mates, a superhero foursome "doing their thing" (1960's phrase!) during the British Invasion rock 'n roll period in the 1960's.  The plot in issue #1 interwines two storylines, which flip back-and-forth: the origin of the group as they form in England, along with a present-day storyline of an effort being made to film a behind-the-scenes documentary about the group.  In an interesting sub-plot, the reluctant Director of the film is the estranged son of one of The Mates, with the specific identity of his father remaining a mystery, at least for this issue.      Tischman has started this mini-series off to a very strong start.  It's clear that he's paralleling the early beginnings of The Mates with the factual origin of The Beatles.  His superhero group originates with two strong Lennon-McCartney like personalities, loses a member (a.k.a. Stu Sutcliffe) while gaining a happy-go-lucky new member (a la Ringo Starr), etc.      I was very impressed with Tischman's ability to contrast the 1960's and present-day pop culture scenes.  In one comic issue, he skillfully manages to contrast the elements of innocence and naivete within the 1960's pop culture scene as it was being born, with the more harsh, cynical and corporate pop culture that we live in today.  The modern storyline scenes are frankly bleak and downright depressing at certain points, but unfortunately they are accurate, and serve as excellent counterpoint to this creative team's colorburst portrayal of the 60's pop cultural explosion.      I also want to give credit to Tischman and Fabry for having a subtle hand in alluding to the Beatles.  It would be very easy to overemphasize The Fab Four here, to the point of it feeling forced and kind of fake.  Instead, the authors manage to parallel the Beatles history while establishing The Mates in their own identity.  Ticshman's even sharp enough to have the boys refer to The Beatles at the right point in the story, so we realize that they inhabit the same fictional world as opposed to being comic book knock-offs.  I wonder if The Mates and The Beatles might cross paths in an upcoming issue!      As with a lot of the Vertigo comics line, this one is definitely not for young readers.  But for any adult, whether you personally remember the sixties or at least claim to be too young to remember, this is an excellent, intriguing start to a brief mini-series that mixes two very different social eras and cultural times in telling an entertaining story. A Tribute To Gene Colan (Marvel One-Shot):        This one-shot tribute to artist and writer Gene Colan is produced by Marvel in conjunction with the Hero Initiative, a non-profit organization providing financial assistance to yesterday's comic creators.      Chances are that most true comic fans with interests ranging from the Silver Age to the present day have at least once enjoyed the high quality creative work of the legendary Gene Colan.  While Gene has produced for both Marvel and DC, he's particularly known for working out of the Silver Age "Marvel Bullpen" of Stan Lee's heyday, producing magnificent silver age Marvel creations both on his own and in conjunction with Lee.      This 96-page tribute issue reprints a wonderful representative sample of Colan's work for Marvel from the late 1960's through the mid-1970's.  Six stories are presented here: two Iron Man stories from Tales Of Suspense, a Doctor Strange tale, a Daredevil, a Doctor Doom and a Tomb of Dracula story.  Each story begins with a reproduction of the original issue cover, along with an introductory narrative tribute to Gene Colan from a Marvel contemporary or disciple.      Both the Stan Lee and Ed Brubaker commentaries most accurately describe and pay tribute to Colan's importance toward the development of the post-Golden Age comic book; namely, his ability to introduce a cinematic element within the artistic style of the story.  Motion literally leaps off of the page in a Colan action sequence.  To this day, I've never seen another professional comic artist match Colan's ability to move a scene along purely on the art alone, irregardless of his narrative and plotting talent.  Non-action scenes are also powered by Gene's artistic rarity; even in a panel of two people chatting in a living room, the reader can sense the natural movement of newspaper pages turning, people smoking, characters moving their hands and crossing their legs.      You don't have to be an old Silver Age fan to enjoy reading the six stories reproduced in this tribute issue.  All six stories are as modern in feel and detail as any decent new comic being produced today.  My personal favorite is the Daredevil story, the well-known iconic Silver Age classic reprinted from Daredevil #47, entitled "Brother, Take My Hand."  It's a moving tale of a disabled Army vet trying to adjust to life after Vietnam.  The narrative is absorbing, and then there's that matchless Colan artistic style.  Even the blind vet's guidedog seems to shamble across the page in cinematic motion.      In sum, you'd be doing two good deeds at once by purchasing this rare gem of a tribute: contributing to a worthy charitable fundraising cause and treating yourself to some of the best, most timeless work of this wonderful genre that we call comics. Ambush Bug #1        DC is in the process of issuing a six-issue Ambush Bug-Year None mini-series.  Issues #1 through #3 are on the new issues wall at That's Entertainment, so I decided to give issue #1 a review.      Keith Giffen created Ambush Bug as an oddball DC character in the 1980's.  He's been an interesting satirical minor character over the years, often used by DC writers and artists in a very surreal and unexpected manner.  Some DC artists/writers have even just put him silently in the background of a panel; I recall one comic panel just had one of his antennas peeking into the scene!      The current mini-series puts Ambush Bug back in the main character role.  Its written by Bug creator Keith Giffen along with Robert Fleming and drawn by Giffen along with Al Milgrom.  Issue #1's basic plot is a murder mystery, as Ambush Bug pops around (that's his thing, he pops in and out of places-teleport is too elegant a word for it!) trying to solve the mystery of who is murdering various DC female characters, including Jonni DC, a female version of the old Johnny DC cartoon logo.       To be honest, although the plot is solid, it doesn't really matter, here.  The entire comic is just a very funny, well-crafted satirical riff on bits and pieces of the Silver Age DC universe.  Think of Mad Magazine doing an issue satirizing the DC Universe and you get the picture.      What I most enjoyed about this issue is the range of Giffen's satirical bits.  It was fun to see humorous send-ups of a wide range of DC minutiae, including the old Cap's Hobby Hints comic strip that ran in the 1960's DC comics.  He even gets major mileage out of skewering the old checkerboard paneling design along the border of Silver Age DC comics!      All in all, this creative team keeps the laughs coming from start to finish.  I'm sold on this mini-series and look forward to checking-out the remaining issues.  Hope you do, too! Flash Gordon #1        One of the most famous newspaper comic strips of all time is Flash Gordon, created back in the 1930's by Alex Raymond.  The comic has been paired with the equally famous Buck Rogers over the decades as the premier science fiction strip of the newspaper world.  The basic premise follows Earth adventurer Gordon, his girlfriend Dale Arden and scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov as they have adventures and battle Ming The Merciless from the planet Mongo.      Writer Brendan Deneen secured the rights from King Features Syndicate to produce an independent Flash Gordon comic book and distribute it through Diamond Distributors, in affiliation with Graham Cracker Comics, a chain of comic stores in the Chicago area.  Deneen has partnered with artist Paul Green on this effort.      Deneen has taken the approach of updating the Flash Gordon story from its original Art Deco world of the 1930's to our modern society.  As such, issue #1 is a modern retelling of the origin strips of the series, with the three characters getting together and at the end of the issue blasting off in a rocket ship for Mongo and their first encounter with Ming The Merciless.      I had a mixed reaction to this comic.  On the positive side, Paul Green's art is beautiful.  Credit also has to be given to Deneen for trying to update an iconic classic into our world.  Its not easy to make such major changes, but he's done a credible job of adding 2008 social elements to the Flash Gordon world.  Dale Arden is a CIA agent, who pairs with Yale Professor/CIA training school washout Gordon in finding the missing Zarkov in Africa, realizing that the good doctor has been framed by rogue CIA elements, and banding together to head for Mongo and destiny.  Deneen mixes-in modern action and intrigue story elements well, such as the CIA world, references to weapons of mass destruction, use of modern adventure technology, etc.      Unfortunately, a critical negative here is that the storyline just plain drags; there's too much talking head dialogue, with the story moving much too slowly.  This is the flaw of an independent effort done outside of a conventional comic publisher, which would have provided professional editing oversight of this project, resulting in a tighter and much more effective storyline.      Overall, the issue just feels too much like an amateur, albeit loving tribute to the creative team's favorite comic book subject. It takes an entire comic book issue here for the three main characters to get together and blast off for outer space in the very last panel, an event that should have happened no more than one-third of the way into this book.      As such, a reluctant thumbs-down against recommending this one.  While its a heartfelt attempt at paying tribute to a great comic figure, its in desperate need for the editing touch of an established comic book company to move it into the plus column for quality. Vixen #1        DC begins this month a six-issue miniseries starring Vixen.  For those of you not familiar with her, Vixen is Mari Jiwe McCabe, a New York supermodel who grew-up in a village in Africa.  Her power is to utilize the abilities of different animals, and its derived from a sacred artifact from her ancestors, called the Tantu Totem.      Issue #1, sub-titled "The Return Of The Lion", is written by G. Willow Wilson, drawn by Cafu and colored by Santiago Argas.  The issue begins with a six-page sequence of Vixen deciding to return home to Zambesi in Africa, upon learning from Superman the identity of her mother's long-ago murderer.  Superman prophetically warns her of the old adage "you can't go home again," foreshadowing that this will not be an easy homecoming.      G. Willow Wilson is also currently scripting the new Vertigo comic "Air."  As Vixen arrives home to her childhood village, Wilson demonstrates her same scripting strength that's evident in "Air" of quality plotting and characterization.  We're introduced to Vixen's childhood friends, as well as her mother's identified murderer, Aku Kwesi, and his gang of terrorizing thugs.  The issue ends with a violent battle between Vixen and Aku Kwesi, who happens to have totem-derived powers of his own.      I enjoyed this issue very much.  Wilson has established just the right story pace for a six-issue mini-series.  I liked her initial conversation with Superman about their shared difficulty of wanting and trying to return home as an orphan, followed by Vixen's arrival and reaction to the village and its problem of being terrorized by this gang of criminals.  I couldn't help but compare the relevancy of that part of the story to the real ongoing genocide in Darfur, which Wilson no doubt drew upon as she wrote the story.     So definitely an all-around thumbs-up on this one, for story quality as well as excellent artwork. Ms. Marvel #31        Again for the uninitiated, Ms. Marvel is a character created back in the Silver Age by the esteemed team of Roy Thomas and Gene Colan.  I remember her when I was younger back then as Captain Marvel's girlfriend.  A former NASA astronaut, Ms. Marvel (a.k.a. Carol Danvers) apparently lost a lot of her personal memories when they were absorbed by Rogue in a battle between the two.      In this issue the "can't go home again" theme is presented by writer Brian Reed in a very poignant manner.  Carol returns to Bar Harbor, Maine, after receiving a call from her brother that their father is on his deathbed.  Mutual old resentments and painful emotions quickly rise to the surface as Carol has a very difficult reunion with her mother and faces her comatose father.      Reed takes us on an intense emotional ride in this issue, with Carol realizing that she just can't emotionally connect to what's happening with her and her family, as she lacks the memories of who they were together earlier in her life.  In a stark admittance to herself, she comes to understand that she couldn't be the superheroine that she is if she did carry those feelings of safety and concern for her family.  As such, while she physically goes home in this issue, she can never go home emotionally, and accepts the reality of using that reality to motivate her as Ms. Marvel.      Credit is due to Brian Reed on scripting this story.  Its interesting that this is one hundred percent a Carol Danvers story, no costume or superhero action here; instead, we have a necessary, one-issue interlude which provides some essential personal details and human reasoning for Ms. Marvel being who she is and doing whatever comes-up in the next story arc beyond this issue.       So who wins the D.C./Marvel smackdown Battle Of The Heroines this review week?  My conclusion is that it's an even draw, with each comic approaching the common theme from a different perspective, yet each in its own effective way.  I will add that the artwork in Ms. Marvel is mediocre at best, but its not enough to take away from the quality storytelling, so the tie holds.      So two thumbs-up, and here's hoping you have a chance to check-out both comics! Ender's Game #1        Marvel Comics has just released issue #1 of a 5-issue mini-series comic book version of acclaimed science fiction writer Orson Scott Card's landmark novel "Ender's Game."  Published in 1985, the novel became an instant classic, winning the Nebula and Hugo awards for best science fiction novel of the year and spawning several sequel novels by Card.      Issue #1 is scripted by Christopher Yost with art by Pasqual Ferry and Frank D'Armata.  The comic faithfully summarizes in graphic format the early chapters of the novel.      Mankind has barely beat-back two alien invasions by the insect-like Formics, and is faring poorly in a third war.  Earth's military is testing and training young children for entrance into the elite Battle School, where the kids train in interstellar battle simulations, honing their video game abilities to eventually battle the invaders.      6-year-old Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is identified in early testing as having the potential for being the skilled battle leader that mankind needs to find.  Issue #1 introduces us to the basic characters and their personalities: Ender himself, his loving older sister Valentine, his jealous and violent older brother Peter, his emotionally distant parents, and his competitor schoolmates who jealously see Ender as a threat for the rare tactical qualities which he posseses and they don't.       Violent confrontations with these characters are the norm of Ender's young life. Ender is forced to justify his own severe violent actions against a schoolmate to protect himself; his explanation of his defensive violence against a dangerous bully turns out to be the tactical answer that Earth's leadership is seeking in a child battle leader trainee.  As such, by the end of issue #1 Ender is heading off for Interstellar Battle School for elite training with other hopeful child warriors.      "Ender's Game" is a very dense, complex novel.  In issue #1, the comic book creative team does a fine job of translating the story's key plot elements to the graphic format.  Just as importantly, they have captured the much-acclaimed atmosphere of the novel.  Author Card gave the reader a very violent, desperate, yet extremely credible story of mankind turning to its young children as its last hope against extinction.  The novel had a "Lord Of The Flies" end-of-days feel to it, with Card masterfully convincing the reader that little kids could actually assume realistic adult roles and face the necessity of trying to save the world.       While issue #1 succeeds in translating these elements of the novel into comic book format, my one concern is whether or not the full necessary elements of the lengthy novel can be condensed into a brief, five-issue mini-series.  If so, hats-off to Marvel Comics, but I have a feeling that a 12-issue series run would do the novel, and the reader, more of the justice that the story deserves.  But its worth going along for the ride and seeing how this comic book tribute turns-out.  So far the effort is off to an excellent start, so my recommendation is a definite thumbs-up if you're looking for a science fiction comic classic to enjoy. Checkmate #29        I wasn't familiar with this comic series, but it caught my eye on the That's Entertainment new issues wall, so I thought I'd give it a read and a review.  Fellow comic reviewer Dave LeBlanc was kind enough to fill me in on DC's Checkmate universe, telling me that Checkmate is a covert operations agency that includes superheros, and operatives named after chess pieces (i.e. King, Queen, Knight, etc.).      Issue #29 is written by Bruce Jones with art by Manuel Garcia.  The plot concerns the Checkmate operatives confronting the phenomenon of dangerous mythological creatures spontaneously appearing and attacking in various cultures around the world.       The superhero Chimera parachutes into Venezuela to join a Checkmate superhero team battling a huge mythological monster, with tension quickly developing due to Chimera's lone wolf personality and battle tactics.  In an accompanying sub-plot, Chimera's girlfriend Chloe Roberts confronts the Checkmate bureaucracy to try to find out how they are using him and whats become of this violent loner of an operative.      The world of Checkmate is an interesting corner of the DC Universe that I wasn't familiar with.  As a newcomer to it, I enjoyed reading the comic; the art is good, and the action-heavy plot was interesting, with the Checkmate battle scenes against the creatures both well-done and creative.      My one criticism is that there really needs to be a brief blurb at the beginning of the issue just briefing the reader as to what the Checkmate covert organization is all about.  The comic doesn't enlighten the reader about the group at all, with the uninitiated reader puzzled as to why people are referring to each other as Pawn #6, Black Knight, and other chess pieces.      But armed with that knowledge, its an average comic done well.  I've learned that DC plans on only two more issues of Checkmate, ending with Issue #31, so my advice is either get some back issues to catch-up with the basic Checkmate concept, or wait for the inevitable graphic collection reprint and enjoy this D.C. covert operations world from the beginning.   Just One More Opinion Department        I stick to doing two comic issue reviews a week, but can't resist giving a short third recommendation for the good D.C. reader to run out and grab a copy of this week's Superman #680.  Written by James Robinson and penciled by Renato Guedes, it's sub-titled "Dog Of Steel" and features a very rare starring role by Superman's Dog, Krypto.  It's an excellent story, with the creative team mixing very nicely Krypto's super abilities with a dog's personality and behavior, particularly his loyalty for his master, Superman.  So a quick, enthusistic thumbs-up, don't miss this one.  Good boy, Krypto, good boy! Anita Blake-The Laughing Corpse #1        Marvel has just published issue #1 of a new 5-issue mini-series of Anita Blake.  The comic is based on fiction writer Laurell K. Hamilton's extremely popular fiction novel series whose main character Anita Blake is a St. Louis-based vampire and werewolve hunter.  Marvel's first comic adaptation of the Anita Blake fiction world was 2006's immensely popular Anita Blake Vampire Hunters-Guilty Pleasures series.      Issue #1 is adapted from a Hamilton story by Jess Rufner with artwork by Ron Lim and June Chung.  The story begins with a brief narrative explanation that Anita Blake is a court-appointed vampire executioner, authorized by the St. Louis court system to hunt-down any members of the now legally-recognized vampire community who break the law.  Interestingly, Blake is also an Animator, with the ability to resurrect the dead as zombies.      The issue's plot is almost two separate stories.  In the first half of the comic, Blake is offered a million dollars by a very shady reclusive millionaire to resurrect a two century-old corpse, an offer that she refuses.  The story then shifts to Blake assisting the local police in a very mysterious (and bloody, of course!) dismemberment murder that clearly has supernatural written all over it.      This is one excellent comic book, that you don't have to be a straight-out horror or macabre fan to enjoy.  The art is of the highest quality and the plotting is top notch.  But its the personalities and dialogue that put this comic at the top of the recommended list.  It's probably due to both Blake's acclaimed writing skill and Rufner's adaptation ability, but irregardless, this comic succeeds in delivering in two key ways.      First, Blake is wonderfully portrayed as a realistic person trying to straddle the supernatural and everyday world.  Its very entertaining to see her consider being a bridesmaid in a friend's wedding and investigating a dismemberment as equally stressful.  Secondly, the comic's creative team is masterful at extracting elements of horror from very ordinary situations.  Blake's extended confrontation with the benignly-smiling mysterious millionaire is just as creepy, if not more so, than her investigation of the blood-soaked murder scene later in the comic.      All in all, a strong first issue start to what looks to be a fun read of a Halloween-season mini-series; definitely a sweet treat from our trick-or-treat grab bag! Angel-After The Fall #12       After reviewing a comic about a vampire slayer, it's time to jump the fence and review a comic about an actual vampire.  Angel-After The Fall, published by IDW Publishing, is based on the very popular Angel television series that was spun-off from the hit 1990's t.v show Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  The "After The Fall" comic series addresses the final season of the t.v. show, which centered on the heroic vampire Angel and his confrontations with the demonic Los Angeles law firm Wolfram & Hart.      Issue #12 is written by Brian Lynch with art by Stephen Mooney.  Unfortunately, this is a very difficult and unenjoyable comic to read.  There's too much of a focus here on following whatever the events were of the final season of the t.v. show, with the result being that we don't have a comic book plot, but rather a storyboard lay-out, with terrible art to boot, of a partial segment of a t.v. episode.      As such, I can't even summarize a story plot for you; Angel roams a demonic Los Angeles having pretentious conversations with some people in his life.  There's a ghost who fades in and out, and a neat-looking dragon shows-up in a few panels.  But again, one has no idea what the heck is going on in the way of an actual story, here.  As the writer Getrude Stein once said about the city of Oakland, "there's no there, there."      I'm most likely offending hard core Buffy and Angel fans, but an honest thumbs-down on this one.  If fans are reading this comic from issue #1 on, issue #12 most likely makes sense. I think this comic was designed for the hardcore t.v. fan, and tries to follow the t.v. show format too faithfully, almost serving as a collective drawing of t.v. show scenes.  As such, it has absolutely no stand-alone comic book issue strength, so I can't recommend that you pick it up and try to read it.  Keep reading if you're an Angel fan already on-board, but don't jump into issue #12 and try to give this a read at this stage of the 16-issue series. Superman: New Krypton Special One-Shot        DC is kicking-off the "New Krypton" storyline concept this week with a one-shot Special, written by Geoff Johns, James Robinson and Sterling Gates, and drawn by a team of eight artists.      Picking-up from the recent storyline events in Action Comics, Superman has defeated computer villain Brainiac and rescued from him the famed shrunken Kryptonian bottled city of Kandor.  Located in the Arctic near Superman's Fortress of Solitude, the city is restored to normal size, immediately introducing a population of 100,000 potential Superman and Superwomen (along with Super dogs, cats, lizards, snails, etc. to Earth, come to think of it!) onto our planet.      This intriguing World of Superfolks concept is enjoyably and effectively introduced in this one-shot issue.  Geoff Johns and his creative team partners deliver this fresh concept very well.  While a few sub-plots nicely weave Superman's Earth friends and family into the story, the main focus here is on Superman and Supergirl reuniting with Supergirl's Kandorian parents.       The landmark family reunion seems a bit brief and light on emotion.  However, Johns and partners do an excellent job of using the family reunion to focus on the quickly developing dilemma of how to integrate differing human and Kryptonian societies onto one shared planet.  With a very effective example of super Kryptonians just not getting how life on Earth works, they present the dual points that the two societies are extremely alien in thought processes to each other, and that no one will be able to halt the inevitable upcoming clash between the two races.      Much credit is due to DC for introducing this enjoyable new spin on the traditional Superman/Krypton comic society.  The second issue of this multi-issue storyline continues in the upcoming Superman Issue #681. Manhunter #35        DC Comics has had many different Manhunter superhero personas over the decades.  I'm personally most familiar with the Jack Kirby-drawn Manhunter presented in First Issue Special back in the 1970's.      The current Manhunter is the first superheroine to fill the role.  Kate Spencer is a Federal prosecutor who wears the superpowered Manhunter suit that gives her enhanced physical abilities.  Now up to issue #35, Manhunter has been critically acclaimed but has had a spotty and very erratic publication run, with DC twice announcing its cancellation then staying the execution.       With DC announcing that issue #39 will supposedly yet again be the last issue of the series, I thought I'd check-out the current issue to see if its worth getting on-board for the last 5 issues and/or checking out back issues or any future graphic novel reprint compilations.      Issue #35, written by Marc Andreyko with art by Michael Gaydos and Carlos Magno, is part 5 of an ongoing storyarc entitled "Forgotten-Happy Hunting Grounds."  The main storyline is a high action plot in which Manhunter is rescuing several women captives from a facility in the Mexican desert which is manned by a small army of bad guys, each of whom has super-enhanced battle abilities.  Carlos Magno draws these pages, while Michael Gaydos draws the pages of a sub-plot involving Manhunter's family back home and her Federal agent ally Cameron Chase.      This was an interesting issue that held my attention for a few reasons.  First, it was really easy to understand the basic plot, even though this is the fifth issue in an ongoing storyline.  I'm constantly complaining in these reviews that few single comics in multi-issue story arcs stand alone in allowing the reader to understand the ongoing plot, so its nice to come across one that actually is easy to enjoy as a single issue.      Secondly, I really enjoyed the way Andreyko seamlessly wove other DC Universe characters in and out of the story.  The Suicide Squad and Birds Of Prey come into the story at key times, and fit well with Manhunter and her supporting story cast.  Third, the Mexican compound battle sequences are detailed and enjoyable.  Carlos Magnos's art for those pages has a very nice 1980's retro feel to me, which just seemed right and comfortable for the particular pace and action going on here.      All in all, a nice, fun comic that seems to blend some old school and current style in an enjoyable way.  I can see why this comic has been the critic's darling to a large degree, and I personally hope that it gets another deserved stay-of-cancellation.  At the least, it deserves a graphic novel reprint in the near future.  So hop onboard with issue #35 in case this is the last segment of the series, and think about checking-out those back issues! Unknown Soldier #1        DC Vertigo has just issued a reinterpretation of the classic Unknown Soldier comic book series.  I still own my "Origin Of The Unknown Soldier" issue from the early 1970's, when the Unknown Soldier was set in World War II.  Vertigo's issue #1 is written by Joshua Dysart with art by Alberto Ponticelli.      In the new version, we learn in issue #1 that the Unknown Soldier is Moses Lwanga, a pacifist doctor who returns home in 2002 to Northern Uganda from life as an expatriot in the U.S.  Along with his physician wife, Moses tries to bring a small amount of peace and humanity to atrocity-torn Northern Uganda.      As Moses settles-into his wartorn humanitarian role, the reader learns of the tribal conflict history and ongoing civil war atrocities that make-up this struggling African land.  The plot then shifts to Moses struggling to maintain his pacifist outlook, while his subconscious begins to manifest a more violent reaction to the genocidal horror that surrounds him on a daily basis.      This internal struggle comes to a head when a local boy is mutiliated by rebels; Moses snaps and in retaliation kills a child rebel warrior, and in an act of self-loathing physically mutilates himself, setting himself on the road toward becoming the 2008 version of the Unknown Soldier.      This is a tough comic to read, full of graphic depictions of brutality and horror that unfortunately accurately reflect much of the civil strife within Northern Uganda and other war-torn African regions.  At the same time it is a necessary story, updating a classic DC storyline of one man trying to maintain his ideals of humanity and decency while trying his best to survive a violent wartime reality.      This type of comic isn't created to be read for graphic entertainment, but rather for the reader to be moved by a graphic representation of the human condition in the worst of real-world circumstances, and how one person tries to maintain their own humanity in the face of such an unfathomable situation.       In this regard, Dysart and Ponticelli's reinterpretation of DC's Unknown Soldier comic series is a worthy modern successor to the previous generation's version of this comic, interpreting the human condition on a par with Art Spiegelman's graphic novel Maus or the highly-anticipated upcoming Holocaust comic Judenhass, from Cerebus creator Dave Sim.      As such, the good DC reader should give both this comic's subject matter and the creative team's quality effort the respect they deserve and buy a copy of Unknown Soldier #1. Echo #6        Echo is written and drawn by Terry Moore, and self-published through Moore's Abstract Studio imprint.  Moore is best known for his now-completed Strangers In Paradise comic book series, and is acclaimed in the comics industry and fandom for creating comic storylines that address women in more realistic circumstances and storylines.      A quick summary of the Echo storyline through the first five issues: The main character is Julie Martin, a young photographer who while taking pictures in the western U.S. desert witnesses the explosion of a military plane testing a new advanced body armor weapon.  Pelletized pieces of the irradiated battlesuit fall on Julie, reforming as a type of atomic-powered chestplate on her, which unfortunately is adhered to her and can't come off.      By the current issue #6, Julie is on the road through the desert Southwest trying to figure-out how to cope with her bizarre experience. She's accompanied by Dillan, the boyfriend of the mysterious armor's inventor, who died in the explosion while piloting the armor testing plane.  At the same time, Julie is being investigated and pursued by Ivy, an agent of the organization working with the military on the secret armor project.      Issue #6 of Echo is an excellent and enjoyable example of Moore's unique style of comic plotting and artwork.  Presented in black-and-white, his art and storyline combine in a manner rarely seen in the comic genre to give a very real world feel to a comic story situation that has fantastic elements in it.       The pace of Moore's comic reality is our-world normal, rather than standard comic book action; characters can sit in a coffee shop and just talk for a few story pages, or take care of a dog for a few panels, and yet the mundane, everyday-circumstances are very subtlely combined by Moore with the extraordinary elements of the story, resulting in an extremely believable situation.       There's a feeling with Moore's storyline that this situation could realistically happen in the everyday world, and that this is how a real person would react to such a strange event. I was entertained and drawn-in to Moore's style and world setting in this comic, and plan to backread issues #1 through #5, currently available in graphic compilation format, and recommend the same to you, the good comic reader.   Hulk #7        This fairly new comic line of The Hulk is written by Jeph Loeb.  The story format is a bit different from the standard one-story comic these days.  The first half of the issue is a stand-alone Hulk story entitled "What Happens In Vegas," scripted by Loeb with art by Art Adams and Walden Wong. It's a very action-oriented plot of the Hulk battling a band of Wendigo monsters in a Vegas casino, with some well-timed involvement from three other Marvel Universe superheros (I don't want to ruin the surprise of who they are, so I won't spill the beans!).      The second story is written by Loeb with art by Frank Cho.  Entitled "Hell Hath No Fury...", it centers on She-Hulk convincing Valkyrie and Thundra to team-up with her against "Red Hulk", a mysterious new Hulk who's immensely more powerful than Bruce Banner.  The heroines need to knock Red Hulk out in battle to identify what human he reverts to when defeated.   By the end of issue #7, the battle has begun with the threesome so far fairing very poorly against Red Hulk.      I wrote in a contest announcement several months ago that I traditionally felt The Hulk was one of my least favorite comic book characters, due to the "me Hulk, me smash" brainlessness of the old school Hulk that I grew up with.  The fact that Hulk now has a personality and intelligence (at least in some storylines) intrigued me to take a look at this current Hulk incarnation and give it a review.      I really enjoyed what I read in this issue, for several reasons.  First, it seems that one can never go wrong with any comic that Jeph Loeb writes; from the basic plotting to the minor dialogue and character features, Loeb always brings an A-game to the effort.  Secondly, Frank Cho is one of my favorite artists, so it was an unexpected treat to view his artistic take on Hulk.  I highly recommend that you check-out his popular "Liberty Meadows" comic book line.  Its clear from the strong Cho-style sense of humor within the second storyline here that Cho collaborated equally with Loeb in the writing of this story.      Third, the respective personalities and intelligence that Loeb instills in both the Green and Red Hulks is very effective.  I had wondered whether giving personality to Hulk would feel artificial or forced, given the long tradition of the brainless Hulk over the years, but it works in this storyline at least, with Loeb instilling the Bruce Banner Green Hulk with a humor-laced sharp intelligence and the Red Hulk with a dangerous, extremely confident cunning that's actually somewhat chilling to behold.  I was also very intrigued with this alternate "Red Hulk" concept that I wasn't previously familiar with, and frankly can't wait to see who this guy turns out to be when he reverts back to human form.      My minor criticism of this issue is two-fold.  First, the split story format results in two stories that feel much too brief in a standard size comic issue.  Marvel should allow extra pages in this type of storyarc, otherwise the comic feels much too cut-off, almost as if pages are missing from even a half-issue story.  However, the quality of both the Loeb story and art here still make this a very entertaining read.       So "me Hulk, me now have an I.Q." works for me, and hopefully will work for you, too!         To sum-up both of this week's reviews, it appears that all three of our irradiated main characters are well presented in these issues.  It's interesting to see how two completely different approaches to characters dealing with radioactive changes are represented in comic format.  While the approaches in "Echo" and "Hulk" are polar opposites of each other, both are well-crafted and succeed as entertaining and high quality comics. So if you're fishin' for some good entertainment this week, these two tales of fission are highly recommended (ouch!). Terra #1        D.C. has just released issue #1 of a four issue mini-series entitled "Terra."  The title character is a fairly new, young DC Universe superheroine who first appeared in Supergirl #12.  As such, she's a completely different character from a few previous Terra's who have inhabited various DC comic lines since the early 1980's.      This mini-series is written by Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti, with art by Palmiotti and Amanda Conner.  In issue #1, we're introduced to the new Terra, a subterranean human who uses her powers to manipulate the earth and solid materials to rescue a group of trapped Virginia coal miners.  The comic writers are adept at moving a lot more than the standard number of story plot elements quickly forward, as a series of Terra's rescue actions serve to introduce her to an entire world of average citizens as well as established superheros who weren't previously aware of her existance.      We also learn a lot about Terra's subterranean world inhabited by exotic creatures, some intelligent and some not, who are either allies or enemies of Terra and her referenced species of underground humans.  There's another sub-plot woven-in of mining developers and government agents intruding into this underground world.  Finally, toss Powergirl into this stew as the established superhero character who has first contact with this mysterious newcomer and you've got quite a lot of storytelling crammed into the first issue of this mini-series.      It would be easy to assume from the above summary that there might be too many plot elements going on in one standard-sized comic to avoid confusion.  But the creative team behind this comic actually pulls it all off very well.  It's a well-crafted comic story, comfortably serving the reader a mix of information on Terra's abilities, the struggle between the surface world and her mysterious underground land, and lots of interesting action and story elements as she throws herself into saving folks around the world from natural disasters.      The style of art in this comic is a more critical element here than in most comics that I've been reading of late.  Similar to Frank Cho's style in comics such as Liberty Meadows and the current issue of Hulk #7 that I reviewed last week, it's particularly effective in portraying both the needed range of character's facial expressions and the unique action required for Terra's specific earth-moving superpowers.      All in all, I found this comic to be very fresh and unique in both storyline and artistic presentation.  Definitely a thumbs-up to check-out issue #1, and I for one will personally stick around to see where this storyline goes for the three following issues of this mini-series. Iron Man-The End (Marvel One-Shot)        Marvel has a new one-shot out this week entitled "Iron Man-The End."  This extra-length comic is written by David Michelinie with art by Bernard Chang, Bob Layton and Mike Cavallaro.      The premise of this story is both original and intriguing.  The unspecified time is at least a few decades from now. Tony Stark has been Iron Man for 50 years; after five decades of armor clad battles, his battered body suffering from a degenerative nerve disorder, Stark must face the inevitability of giving-up the ghost and retiring from being Iron Man.      Several concurrent major plot elements receive equal focus in this oversized comic issue, including Stark struggling to accept his inability to perform as Iron Man, deciding whether or not he should anoint a successor (I won't give away the details of this plot line) and his obsession through Stark Industries on completing the world's first space elevator between Earth and an orbiting geostationary space station.  Author Michelinie also portrays the inevitable stress that these issues place on Stark's long-time marriage to U.S. Senator Beth Cabe.  As such, there's a very heavy "Lion In Winter" theme to this comic, as Stark deeply struggles to cope with this host of last-stage-of-life issues.      I had to give this comic a few days of thought between reading it and writing this review, and came away from it all with mixed feelings that lean toward the negative.  I'm bothered by the flat feeling to the story; while its partly due to the bleak themes of the plotline, its mainly because this really isn't a comic superhero story.  Instead, what we have here is a hard technology science fiction short story portrayed in graphic format.  In fact, I am positive that sometime back in the 1980's I read this exact plot as a science fiction short story by either Arthur C. Clarke, Larry Niven or a similar science fiction writer of that era.  That story had the exact same story elements of a scientist struggling with health issues later in life as he labored to complete the first Earth-to-space station space elevator.  Even the ending of the story was the same as this comic.       Since there's no statement in the comic referencing the earlier short story, I have to wonder if Marvel and the first story's author are aware of this situation.  However, that old story/new comic connection isn't the problem with this issue.  The basic fact is that while this particular hard science plot works in a short story format, its dry and frankly forced in a comic book format.  There's little real emotion of any sort, here, leaving the reader with a feeling that something standard in a superhero comic is missing that's essential to enjoying the read.    While I'm giving this comic a general thumbs down, I'll make a qualified recommendation that die-hard, long-time Iron Man fans might still want to check it out and add it to their collection inventory, as an interesting, albeit flawed, addition to the long lineage and wide range of interpretations of Iron Man over the years.  As a die-hard Superman and Batman collector/fan, I love to check-out as many interpretive versions as possible of both D.C. heroes.  Flawed or not, each creative interpretation adds an interesting depth and distinctive flavor to my favorite heroe's comic book and popular culture legacies.  So if Iron Man is one of your top comic hero icons, feel free to add this one-shot to your inventory.  If otherwise you're just looking for a fun read, with all due respect to the creative team's effort, skip this one.   Sgt. Rock #1        DC has just published issue #1 of a new 6-issue mini-series starring DC's number one military comics icon, Sgt. Rock.  Created by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert back in 1959, Rock was a staple of the Our Army At War comic line for decades.  Rock led the soldiers of Easy Company through all of the World War II theatres of engagement and major battle campaigns.      The comic was acclaimed over the years for being anything but a one-dimensional shoot-em-up comic.  There was a well-respected heart and intelligence to the Kanigher-Kubert universe of Rock; while Rock was a tough-as-nails traditional World War II soldier, the creative team also instilled in him a sense of outrage over the horror of war and a genuine respect for all parties, whether military or civilian, who get caught in the path of war.      Issue #1 of the new mini-series is both written and drawn by Billy Tucci, with Mark Sparacio teaming with Tucci on the cover art.  Subtitled "Day One: Fire," The issue chronicles Rock leading Easy Company ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day (June 6, 1944), and continues through October of that year.  Tucci introduces the reader to Rock along with the mainstay enlisted men of Easy Company from over the years: Bulldozer, Little Sure Shot, Tag Along, Wildman and Ice Cream Soldier.       The comic's narrator is military cartoonist and correspondent William Joseph Kilroy, of "Kilroy Was Here" fame, who chronicles Easy Company's participation in D-Day and later hooks-up again with Rock and Company as they push deeper into occupied Europe.  There's a sub-plot about Rock starting to clash with an incompetent General, and by issue #1's end Easy Company has joined forces with the Fighting 141st of Texas, a unit whose history goes back to The Alamo, as the soldiers begin a poorly-planned military campaign against seemingly overwhelming odds.      I frankly loved this comic issue, for many reasons.  First, Tucci's art is wonderful.  His style is very high quality artistic and falls closer to Alex Ross along the comic art spectrum than to standard comic art design.  There is a wonderful two-page spread at the beginning of the issue as Easy Company wades ashore at D-Day in the heat of battle.  The details of this scene and the rest of the comic are historically-accurate and highly-detailed, down to the full boot crosstitching on the sides of the soldier's WW II-era footwear.      Secondly, Tucci can not only write well, but has the skill to pay homage to the Our Army At War-era heritage of the Rock comic series while instilling the new mini-series with fresh plot details, interesting action and a well-balanced mix of humor and seriousness.  I immensely enjoyed the plotline of Rock's cartoonist narrator experiencing the story with Easy Company.  Rock has a funny habit of sarcastically calling Kilroy by a different 1940's-era cartoonist every time they meet-up (i.e., "You comin', Caniff?").      Third, Tucci stays true to keeping the military plotline of Rock relevant to the larger issues of society.  In the midst of European invasion action details, there's an excellent sub-plot in which Rock and Kilroy spend time with a unit of Japanese-American soldiers.  Tucci combines the humor of a pick-up baseball game between this unit and Rock's unit with the more sobering truth of WW II-era segregation and racism within the U.S. Army.      So hats-off to creator Billy Tucci and DC for kicking-off this new mini-series with a worthy addition to the esteemed Sgt. Rock line. Captain Britain And MI13 #6        Our second long-term, established comic book character in a new series this week is Captain Britain, currently featured in "Captain Britain And MI13" #6.  This British superhero was created in 1976 by Chris Claremont as a British equivalent to Captain America.  The series ran for many years with various artists and writers, with most notably Alan Moore having a stint at one point.      Captain Britain is Brian Braddock, who originally received his superhero powers from Merlin and Merlin's daughter Roma (a very British comic book, for sure!).  In the current comic line, the British intelligence service known as MI13 has put together a team consisting of the Captain, good vampire Spitfire, the Black Knight, a young doctor named Faiza Hussein and MI13 agency boss Pete Wisdom.  In issue #6, the team answers a distress call from a British superhero known as Captain Midlands.  They find themselves in a Birmingham public housing development (known as an "estate" in England), where an entity from another dimension has seized zombie-like control of the tenants and Captain Midlands, controlling folks by granting them their deepest desires.  There's also a sub-plot in this issue in which Blade The Vampire Hunter battles at the scene with Spitfire, refusing to accept her as a vampire on the side of good.      This is a well-produced comic and an enjoyable read.  It was fun and fresh to read a U.S.-produced comic set in a British culture with that country's characters.  I found the characters well-structured, and particularly enjoyed the rough-around-the-edges personality of Captain Midlands.  A blue collar, khaki-clad British version of Captain America, right down to the shield, picture his personality as Emerill Lagasse fighting super evil! Bam!  The malevalent entity from another dimension was anything but one-dimensional (no pun intended), portrayed as cunning and sly enough to manipulate our heros as they try to free the civilians from his personality control.      By the end of issue #6, I really wanted to know what would happen next in this storyline: would Spitfire go all bad-Vampire on Blade?  Would our heros free the tenants from interdimensional mind control?  And would Captain Britain manage to resist his deepest desire that the evil being offers him in the issue's cliffhanger ending?  You can't ask for anything more from a comic than charging you up to read the next issue, so an enthusiastic thumbs-up here for this comic line about superheros from "across the pond!" Jungle Girl-Season 2 #1 Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Frank Cho: Plot and Cover Doug Murray: Script Adriano Batista: Interior Art Frank Martin: Colors Zachary Matheny: Letters Genre: Adventure/Thriller        Dynamite Entertainment has just published issue #1 of the second season of Jungle Girl.  Created by Frank Cho, the issue is written by Cho and Doug Murray, with a Cho cover and interior art by Adriano Batista.       Jana The Jungle Girl lives in an unnamed jungle typical of many comic world settings, in that while the setting is 2008, its populated by a wide assortment of dinosaurs, prehistoric giant mammals and cavemen.  In the Season One storyline, Jana meets a crashlanded plane of modern world adventurers and helps them cope with finding themselves in this science fictional setting.      As I mentioned a few weeks ago in my Hulk #7 review, I'm a huge Frank Cho fan, and was drawn to this comic when I saw it on the That's Entertainment new issues wall because of the excellent work Cho produced a few years ago in drawing and writing his interpretation of Sheena, the classic icon of jungle girl comics.      This Season Two premiere issue of Jungle Girl begins with Jana, her friend Togg the caveman and Mike, one of the stranded outworlders, witnessing the distanced jungle crash of a space shuttle.  The rest of the issue focuses on the various jungle dangers that the trio face as they attempt a hike of several days to the shuttle crash site.      This comic is extremely well-drawn, but there's not much of a plot, here.  After page one portrays the trio witnessing the far-off shuttle crash, Cho and his creative team just give us 21 pages of three types of scenes: the trio carefully trekking through the dangerous jungle, the trio alternating between battling jungle beasts and quietly avoiding jungle beasts, and the two guys drooling at Jana when she unwittingly and repeatedly strikes a pose in her barely there, hand-made leopard string bikini.      On the one hand, this comic should rate a thumbs-down given that the plot is as thin as Jana's bikini.  But on the other hand, that's exactly what jungle girl-type comics are supposed to be: really light-on-story comics that highlight the art and scenery, whether its the magnificent jungle animals, breathtaking natural vistas or the stereotypical cheesecake girl.  Its not fair to compare it to one of Cho's Sheena issues, because he was really building his interpretation of the most established Jungle Girl-type character of Sheena, that had decades to develop into the premiere, stand-alone icon of the jungle genre with a higher-than-average character and substance.      As such, a thumb, or actually "paws-up" from our assembled Bongo Congo citizens for this issue as an entertaining, albeit typical issue of this type of adventure/thriller comic book. She-Hulk #34 Publisher: Marvel Comics Peter David: Writer Vincenzo Cucca: Penciler Vincenzo Acunzo: Inker Barbara Ciardo: Colorist Dave Sharpe: Letterer Genre: Superhero      The current run of Marvel's She-Hulk is at issue #34.  I was a faithful reader of this comic in its first Eisner award-winning year, and looked forward to revisiting it this week to see how its been holding-up.      Lawyer Jennifer Walters has the ability to transform into She-Hulk due to a blood transfusion from her cousin (guess who!) Bruce Banner, the Hulk.  After bouncing around the Marvel Universe for over 25 years, Marvel began a new She-Hulk storyline that's now up to the current issue #34.      The first 12 issues put a fresh and humorous face on the She-Hulk franchise, centering on Jennifer's legal work in the Superhuman Law Division of a New York law firm.  It was an extremely fresh and funny spin on comic plotting; picture one of the law firm-based television dramas with both good and evil superheros as clients and you have an accurate idea of how the storyline was structured.      As issue #34 shows, a lot has changed for Jennifer in a few years.  She's no longer a practicing lawyer, instead partnering as a bounty hunter with a female Skrull partner named Jazinda.  In this issue, Jennifer assembles Jazinda, Valkyrie, Thundra and Invisible Girl Sue Storm into a team known as the Lady Liberators.  The plot centers on the team planning and beginning a mission to the third world country of Marinmer to force that country's dictator to release withheld earthquake disaster aid to his suffering subjects.      Initially, I was very disappointed that the superhero law firm world is now history in this comic, and I was apprehensive that the comic might have taken a turn for the worse.  Luckily, I was happy to find that the quality writing that made She-Hulk a premiere hit three years ago is still front and center here.  Writer Peter David maintains the same successful balancing act of equal parts comedy and timely drama.  The comedy in this issue works well in providing both Valkyrie and Thundra, two starchy and overly-serious characters, with a goofy side to their personalities.  The serious plot thread addresses the too-real problem in our world of oppressive regimes sometimes withholding disaster relief from their own populace.  Its clear that the fictional "Marinmer" is based on last year's real situation of the military regime of Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, withholding international disaster aid from its own population after a devastating earthquake.      The basic plotline here is not brand new; many comics over the years have given us stories of superheros frustrated by world political and social problems to the point of trying to break through the bureaucratic system and take matters into their own powerful hands.  The quality of this particular effort at this theme is good enough that I for one want to stick around and see how it plays out.  My fellow reviewer Dave LeBlanc tells me that Marvel is scheduled to end this current run of She-Hulk at #36, so this is basically a three-issue storyline.  My recommendation is to definitely read issues #34 through #36, then enjoy the previous issues in the graphic compilation volumes that are currently available. Captain America: White Issue #0 Publisher: Marvel Comics Jeph Loeb: Writer Tim Sale: Artist Dave Stewart: Colors      For the uninitiated reader (and to recap for those in-the-know), the acclaimed creative team of Jeph Loeb as writer and Tim Sale as artist have been developing a unique style at Marvel of providing their own limited-series reinterpretations of the early years of key Marvel superheroes.  Often known as the color-coded series, the team began in 2002 with Daredevil: Yellow and progressed to Spiderman: Blue in 2003 and Hulk: Gray in 2004.      Now in 2008, Loeb and Sale give us Captain America: White, with Marvel publishing this month an issue #0 as a precurser to the upcoming six-issue miniseries.  Issue #0 consists of a 17-page story, followed by an 11-page combination black-and-white sketchbook and interview with the creative duo as conducted by Richard Starkings.      Created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon for Marvel's predecessor Timely Comics in 1941, Captain America is often referred to as Marvel's All-American superhero equivalent to D.C.'s Superman, and was a key American popular culture icon during World War II in rallying the American public for the war effort.  A super-soldier created by the U.S. Army, Cap and his teenage sidekick Bucky fought the Nazis and the infamous evil Red Skull.  The comic was discontinued in the mid-1950's and revived to immense acclaim by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in the Silver Age 1960's, continuing up to now with many interpretations too numerous to address in this review.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                While the high quality that Loeb and Sale bring to any comic series that they create (either as a team or individually) is automatic every time, their color-coded origin series for Marvel also included a very wistful and frankly sad storytone to each origin interpretation.  Although each series was of high artistic quality, both Daredevil: Yellow and Spiderman: Blue struck me as so respectively joyless and melancholy that I skipped reading Hulk: Gray entirely.      However, in the WWII origin story of Captain America, there's doubtless no more naturally melancholy a comic lineage tale than the origins of Cap and his sidekick Bucky, leading to Bucky's early death in the closing days of World War II.  It's not overkill to characterize the often-told story as the comic world's premier attempt at Shakespearian tragedy, and an excellent effort at that.  As such, the Loeb-Sale Marvel origins approach that so bummed me out in their Daredevil and Spiderman efforts should be perfectly suited to the world of Cap and Bucky.  The key question then becomes whether or not the team pulls it off in both quality and original effect.      I'm both happy and relieved as a fan of the pair to report that in issue #0 they've successfully achieved this quality, thus at least getting the upcoming series off on the right foot.  The brief story begins with the U.S. Army basic training period in which James Buchanon Barnes discovers that Private Steve Rodgers is really Captain America, and thus is trained to become his sidekick Bucky Barnes.  It ends with their first WWII battle in Europe.      The key to success in this first issue is Loeb's just-right narrative touch.  Without being too light or heavy, he strikes just the proper maudlin tone in clearly letting the reader know that Captain America is narrating the tale as a grief-filled recollection of Bucky's death, and that Cap was worried sick from day one that the tale would end the way it did.  How Loeb and Sale take us through the upcoming journey to the inevitable conclusion, and how they give us their particular spin on this well-known ending should only add a fine interpretation to the Captain America story history, and certainly deserves a recommended thumbs-up.      One final review comment: do not skip reading the 11-page Loeb-Sale interview in issue #0.  There are many fascinating conversational nuggets here on brainstorming the Captain America story details, including the difficulty of realistically putting Cap's teenage sidekick smack-in-the-middle of a war zone, a story element unique among young sidekicks in comic history.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Uncanny X-Men #504 Publisher: Marvel Comics Matt Fraction: Writer Terry Dodson: Penciler Rachel Dodson: Inker Justin Ponser: Colors        The latest Uncanny X-men issue is written by Matt Fraction with art by the team of Terry and Rachel Dodson.  I hadn't read an X-Men comic in a long time and the cover featured five beautiful women, so I immediately decided to make it an all-Marvel comic book review week!       This is the first issue of a new storyarc entited "Lovelorn." Page one of this issue gives the reader a nice, quick summary of recent X-Men activities; they've relocated from Westchester to San Francisco, where they've recently been battling the Hellfire Cult, a street gang led by a psychic Mutant named Empath.      There are three alternating sub-plots in this issue.  In one, a heartbroken Colossus is moping around the city and unexpectedly discovers that a mutant who we learn in flashbacks tortured his father (and possibly Colossus) is alive and dangerously-well is San Francisco.  In the second plotline, Scott a.k.a. Cyclops allows Emma Frost to enter his subconscious to try and learn what's bothering him.  We learn in the first page summary that in the previous battle with the Hellfire Cult, he discovered that his ex-wife is still alive, and he's obviously keeping this information to himself.  What Emma discovers when she pokes around in Scott's psyche lends new meaning to the phrase "boxing-up your emotions," to say the least.  The third plotline gives us The Beast and Angel visiting Argentina to try and recruit a Dr. Bradley, co-creator of the original Human Torch, to join the X-Men. This is an entertaining X-Men issue, although the sub-plots differ very much in quality.  The Emma-Scott subconscious journey is funny and the most interesting, as Emma finds our hero's subconscious structured as an elegant hotel, with staff and guests consisting of every gorgeous woman that Scott ever met-I wonder what Sigmund Freud would make of this guy!      The Colossus sub-plot is somewhat confusing.  From reading this issue alone, we have no idea why he's so heartbroken, a key story element that really should be referred to at least once in this issue for clarity's sake.  I found the third storyline's Dr. Bradley to be a fascinating scientist-adventurer character right out of a 1930's pulp magazine world.  I think it will be very interesting to see how he fits, or doesn't fit, in working with the X-Men through this storyarc.  Perhaps regular X-Men readers are more familiar with him, but as a sporadic reader I had never seen him before, and writer Matt Fraction succeeded in presenting him in a colorful and mysterious way that hooked me into wanting to know more about this historic throwback who functioned in the early superhero pioneer days of the Marvel Universe.        So while the Colossus storyline gets off to a weak start, the Emma Frost-Cyclops and Dr. Bradley stories are top notch and carry this issue very well.  It's well worth checking this issue out and following the rest of the storyarc to see where this Uncanny X-Man adventure takes us. Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 (One-Shot) Publisher: Marvel Comics Marc Guggenheim: Writer Mike McCone: Pencils Andy Lanning: Inks  Jeremy Cox: Colors      As I mentioned above, I was attracted to this comic by the beautiful cover.  It's equal in quality to the 200th issue cover of Amazing Spider-Man way back in the day.  I'm not a big fan of the Annual issues of any comic line; the stories generally seem forced to me and out-of-synch with the regular action of whatever's going on in the monthly issues.  So let's see if this issue follows that pattern or not:        This Spider-Man annual is written by Marc Guggenheim with art by Mike McCone, Andy Lanning and Jeromy Cox.  The issue is entitled "A Tale Of Two Jackpots" and centers on Spider-Man trying to figure-out the secret identity of Jackpot, a new super-heroine who recently started fighting crime in New York.  Spidey's frankly obsessed with figuring-out who she really is, as she physically resembles his long-time love Mary Jane.  The good Peter Parker really gets pulled into the mystery when Jackpot gives him a fake identity and he meets-up with the real civilian who she falsely claims to be.      This comic happily broke the pattern for me that I complained about above regarding unsatisfying Annual issues, for several reasons.  The mystery of Jackpot's secret identity was very compelling.  I liked how writer Marc Guggenheim combined that mystery with an equal surprise regarding the actual source of Jackpot's superhero abilities, which I obviously won't give away in this review.  But trust me, it was enjoyable and served well as an example of a very relevant social problem that we struggle with today in our real world.      The comic's creative team also gives us excellent interior art in this comic, equal to the cover that I can't stop praising.  There are some excellent Spiderman and Jackpot action sequences as the two superheros team-up together to battle costumed bad guys Blindside and his girlfriend Commanda.  Fantastic Four leader Reed Richards also appears in this issue in a strong supporting cast role.  Finally, the story gives us a poignant, moving ending revolving around a character's death, but nicely leaves open the possibly of introducing another new superhero in an upcoming Spider-Man issue.      On a final note, although this Annual issue is higher priced at $3.99, at least the reader gets a full 38 pages of story, nicely structured into five Chapters, giving the creative team a fuller length to present us with a more richly-detailed narrative and extra art compared to the more compressed story structure of most comics these days.        So we're fortunate this week to hit a trifecta of three high quality, top-notch Marvel comic issues.  The good subjects of Bongo Congo couldn't ask for anything more in this post-Thanksgiving week, and thank our Good King Leonardo for adding an extra comic to this week's review list.  See you back here in our jungle-nation next week with two new reviews from the world of D.C. Comics! Uncanny X-Men #504 Publisher: Marvel Comics Matt Fraction: Writer Terry Dodson: Penciler Rachel Dodson: Inker Justin Ponser: Colors      The latest Uncanny X-men issue is written by Matt Fraction with art by the team of Terry and Rachel Dodson.  I hadn't read an X-Men comic in a long time and the cover featured five beautiful women, so I immediately decided to make it an all-Marvel comic book review week!       This is the first issue of a new storyarc entited "Lovelorn." Page one of this issue gives the reader a nice, quick summary of recent X-Men activities; they've relocated from Westchester to San Francisco, where they've recently been battling the Hellfire Cult, a street gang led by a psychic Mutant named Empath.      There are three alternating sub-plots in this issue.  In one, a heartbroken Colossus is moping around the city and unexpectedly discovers that a mutant who we learn in flashbacks tortured his father (and possibly Colossus) is alive and dangerously-well is San Francisco.  In the second plotline, Scott a.k.a. Cyclops allows Emma Frost to enter his subconscious to try and learn what's bothering him.  We learn in the first page summary that in the previous battle with the Hellfire Cult, he discovered that his ex-wife is still alive, and he's obviously keeping this information to himself.  What Emma discovers when she pokes around in Scott's psyche lends new meaning to the phrase "boxing-up your emotions," to say the least.  The third plotline gives us The Beast and Angel visiting Argentina to try and recruit a Dr. Bradley, co-creator of the original Human Torch, to join the X-Men. This is an entertaining X-Men issue, although the sub-plots differ very much in quality.  The Emma-Scott subconscious journey is funny and the most interesting, as Emma finds our hero's subconscious structured as an elegant hotel, with staff and guests consisting of every gorgeous woman that Scott ever met-I wonder what Sigmund Freud would make of this guy!      The Colossus sub-plot is somewhat confusing.  From reading this issue alone, we have no idea why he's so heartbroken, a key story element that really should be referred to at least once in this issue for clarity's sake.  I found the third storyline's Dr. Bradley to be a fascinating scientist-adventurer character right out of a 1930's pulp magazine world.  I think it will be very interesting to see how he fits, or doesn't fit, in working with the X-Men through this storyarc.  Perhaps regular X-Men readers are more familiar with him, but as a sporadic reader I had never seen him before, and writer Matt Fraction succeeded in presenting him in a colorful and mysterious way that hooked me into wanting to know more about this historic throwback who functioned in the early superhero pioneer days of the Marvel Universe.        So while the Colossus storyline gets off to a weak start, the Emma Frost-Cyclops and Dr. Bradley stories are top notch and carry this issue very well.  It's well worth checking this issue out and following the rest of the storyarc to see where this Uncanny X-Man adventure takes us. Simpsons Comics #146 Bongo Comics Group: Publisher Eric Rodgers: Script Phil Ortiz: Pencils Mike Decarlo: Inks             Our second cartoon comic reviewed this week also comes from creator Matt Groenig.  Simpsons Comics is obviously based on the long-running television show, which I mentioned in a previous column is the longest running sitcom, live or animated, in television history.             Issue #146 is scripted by Eric Rodgers, with pencils by Phil Ortiz and inks by Mike Decarlo.  The story is entitled “A Skate With Destiny!” and centers around The Simpsons family mom Marge joining a local professional roller derby team.  Marge has her work cut-out for her in trying to win over her much younger, hostile teammates, making daughter Lisa proud of her and hopefully leading the “Springfield Spitfires” to the league championship.             As with the Futurama comic reviewed above, I hoped for the same enjoyable experience of viewing the cartoon t.v. show in comic book form, and again I wasn’t disappointed.  One consistent element that makes the t.v. show a classic is Groening and Company’s ability to deliver each episode as a mix of basic cartoon fun with a serious, often-moving life lesson. The life lesson in issue #146 is a sub-plot involving Marge meeting her now-aged roller derby idol from childhood, “Mary Tyler Maul,” and stealing her professional name and persona to become a local sports hero in her own right.  How both Marge and her sports mentor react to and resolve the situation provides us with the right mix of life message and poignancy that makes The Simpsons a beloved classic in t.v. or comic book format. Again, just a quick constructive criticism in that it seems to be a Bongo Comics policy to publish one long story in each of their comics, or at least in the issues reviewed for this week.  It would be more fun to have at least two shorter stories in Simpsons Comics; perhaps the second story could star one of the huge cast of supporting characters from the show, such as Groundskeeper Willy, Marge’s twin sisters or the infamous Sideshow Bob! Iron Man/Incredible Hulk/Nick Fury #1 Marvel has a one-shot comic out this week entitled Iron Man/The Incredible Hulk/Nick Fury #1.  Its clearly a marketing promo for the Marvel Universe version being created in the recent Iron Man movie and continuing in the upcoming Avengers movie.  Tony Stark is drawn in this comic to look exactly like Robert Downey, Jr., while Nick Fury is a drawn copy of the upcoming Avengers movie star Samuel L. Jackson. The key review consideration here is whether the three mini-stories presented in this issue stand-alone as enjoyable comic book tales or alternately serve as weak promos for their movie tie-ins.  From my read of the comic, Marvel succeeds on two-and-a-half out of three counts. The Iron Man story is entitled “Fast Friends,” and is the story that is only partly successful.  The first 7 pages are a dragged-out, fairly boring extended series of scenes over-emphasizing that Tony Stark is the shallow, self-centered jet-setter that anyone who’s ever read an Iron Man comic is aware of, and doesn’t need to see more than one or two pages of in any story, ever again. Fortunately, the remaining five pages of the story balance-out the poor start, offering us a nice interaction between Stark and agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as they play an intellectual cat-and-mouse game over whether Iron Man will work for the agency and whether or not Stark will keep his Iron Man identity anonymous. The remaining two stories are much more fresh and enjoyable to read.  “Incredible Hulk: The Fury Files” gives us a 12-page plot of Nick Fury conducting a surveillance operation on Bruce Banner, knowing that he’s of interest to General Ross but trying to figure-out exactly why.  How Fury learns of Banner’s Hulk alter ego and the resulting meeting of the two makes for a high quality, enjoyable story.  The final story, a 10-page tale entitled “”Nick Fury: Spies Like Us,” gives us a Cold War-era spy thriller with Nick Fury on an undercover mission in Eastern Europe.  It’s a non-superhero, traditional spy-versus-spy tale with excellent intrigue and action elements which bring-out Fury’s personal spy-guy abilities on a stand-alone basis, without him needing to rely on his team or any heroes. While the Iron Man story didn’t offer anything new here, the two Hulk/Nick Fury stories were top notch, and made me want to see the upcoming Samuel L. Jackson movie treatment as well as read more Fury/Jackson comics.  I understand that Jackson actually gave Marvel permission this past year to update recent Nick Fury storylines by redrawing Fury in his image.  If this issue is any indication, the update comes-off very well, both graphically and story-wise.  So an enthusiastic thumbs-up to this particular new version Nick Fury and the Fury overhaul in general. DC All-Star: Batman & Robin, The Boy Wonder Publisher:  DC Frank Miller: Writer Jim Lee: Penciler Scott Williams: Inker Alex Sinclair: Colorist             The Good DC Reader knows that in 2005, DC started publishing under the All-Star imprint a new run of Batman & Robin, as well as a 12-issue run of Superman.  Although the award-winning Grant Morrison/Frank Quitely-helmed run of Superman ended at a dozen issues, there’s no scheduled conclusion of the Batman/Robin arc, which has actually become DC’s current highest selling comic line.  So let’s take a look at the current issue #10 and see how the series is faring.             The acclaimed writer Frank Miller is scripting the series, with veteran Jim Lee penciling.  Issue #10’s plot centers on Gotham Police Captain (not yet Commissioner) Gordon narrating a tale that weaves between the Dynamic Duo, Gordon, a badly injured Catwoman and a very young teenaged Barbara Gordon, who is just trying-out her new Batgirl persona with dangerous, borderline-reckless results.  The story interweaves two sub-plots: the interaction between the costumed heroes and various streetcrime situations, and Gordon dealing with his reckless Batgirl daughter and alcoholic wife who just had a bad drunk-driving car accident.             I abandoned this comic series last year after reading issue #1, feeling at the time that Frank Miller’s narrative and mood in that first issue just didn’t feel fresh for a supposedly new interpretive take at Batman & Robin.  But issue #10 shows that Miller has come a long way and clearly established a unique voice in this title at this point.             Three elements to this comic frankly elevate it to the potential of being a classic Batman comic line run.  The first is Miller’s narrative style.  His voice of Captain Jim Gordon as the story narrator provides some of the most poetic, film noir “Gotham At Night” narrative published in a Batman title in years.  Secondly, Lee’s penciling is nothing short of classic.  A multi-page sequence of Batman and Robin on fast-action night patrol of Gotham is a wonder to behold.  Lee portrays a young Robin as a kid just bundled in energy, conveying a puppy-like energy and innocent glee that just explodes off of the page.             Third and finally, the sub-plot of Gordon’s private life is a unique addition to the Batman family interpretive lore.  Gordon’s life is a catastrophic mess, here, including a DUI-injured alcoholic wife, out-of-control Batgirl of a daughter and the intriguing allusion to a mistress on the side, someone that even daughter Barbara alludes to as the most stable part of Gordon’s life.  Things are so bad here that Gordon actually ponders unloading his personal problems on Batman, just to have one friend to lean on.  Miller’s take on this sub-plot is disturbing yet fascinating, drawing the reader in like a horrible trainwreck which one just can’t turn away from, as the cars of Gordon’s life all inevitably spill off of the track.             I’ll stick by my disappointment with last year’s issue #1 of this series, but I’m thrilled to see how much life and quality Miller and Lee have brought to their game by the current issue #10.  It’s enough not only to make me plan on reading issue #11, but also to check-out the That’s Entertainment back issues to see how issues prior to #10 have fared.  So definitely check-out the current issue and enjoy this classic addition to the Batman & Robin universe. Nightwing #150 Publisher:  DC Comics Peter J. Tomasi:  Story Don Kramer: Penciller Jay Leisten & Rodney Ramos: Inkers             While Frank Miller’s Robin in the review above is just a pre-teenager, he’s all grown-up and known as Nightwing in the long-running Nightwing series, now up to issue #150.  The comic is written by Peter J. Tomasi, with art by Don Kramer, Jay Leisten and Rodney Ramos.             Although I’m a huge Batman fan, to be honest, this is the first time that I’ve read an issue of this series centering on the grown-up Robin.  This issue is the concluding episode of a multiple-issue story arc entitled “The Great Leap.”  The plot is a traditional Batman-family story, centering upon Nightwing trying to prevent traditional Batman-family nemesis Two-Face from bringing-down a major catastrophe upon the city.  It’s interesting that the city here is New York, and not Gotham.  Nightwing is also assisted in this conflict by the former Batgirl, now Oracle, Barbara Gordon.             Unlike the Frank Miller’s take on the Batman Family reviewed above, there’s nothing classic or groundbreaking going-on here, just a good, standard comic story with good art, to boot.  Without giving away any particulars regarding Two Face’s attempt of destroying the city, I liked the way that Nightwing had to rely heavily rely on the circus acrobatic skills that he learned way back before his parents were killed, in order to save the day.  The artistic team gives us some beautiful, panoramic aerial scenes of what’s happening at this key juncture in the story.             There is one huge, glaring flaw at a key moment in this story, where in our real world, the New York Police SWAT guys would have easily stopped Harvey Dent, a.k.a. Two-Face dead in his tracks, as such not requiring Nightwing to swing into action and save the day.  But hey, its just a comic book, not the real New York City in our post-9/11 security-heightened real world.  So my advice is to just kick back on a cozy January night and just enjoy reading this Batman-world story. The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz #1 Publisher: Marvel Comics Eric Shanower: Writer Skottie Young: Artist Jean-Francois Beaulieu: Colorist             This new Marvel mini-series is an adaptation of the classic L. Frank Baum Wizard of Oz novel.  Eric Shanower is the writer adapting the novel, originally published in 1900, to comic mini-series format, with Scottie Young providing the art and Jean-Francois Beaulieu adding the coloring. We all know the famous story from the 1939 classic movie starring Judy Garland, so I don’t have to recount the basic plot, here.  Issue #1 covers the first part of the tale, from the initial tornado carrying Dorothy and her little dog Toto away from the plains of Kansas to the Land of Oz, through her initial encounter with the brainless Scarecrow, the first of her three well-known traveling companions along the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City and the Wizard of Oz. This is a beautiful adaptation of a well-known and oft-told tale.  What makes it really enjoyable is the creative team’s basing of their version on the story elements from the original novel, as opposed to the movie version that’s overshadowed the novel and completely imprinted itself on our collective popular culture.  It’s almost as if one is reading in this comic an alternate-reality version of the well-known story.  Here, Dorothy isn’t the Judy Garland-based teenager, but just a little kid, adorably crafted by artist Skottie Young.  Following the novel’s plotline excludes major details of Dorothy’s famous initial encounter with the Munchkins, instead taking us into a few days of Dorothy spending a leisurely time with a Munchkin family and learning from them the ways of the Land of Oz, the mysterious Wizard and the Yellow Brick Road.  No ruby slippers here, but a pair of silver shoes that literally “Ting-Ting” in song as Dorothy begins her fabled long walk along the storied route.  Even the Emerald City feels different here, as many folk refer to it as “the City of Emeralds.” I very much enjoyed the L. Frank Baum flavor and atmosphere that Shanower and Young bring to their interpretation of this classic American tale.  It’s ironic that more than a century after its famous initial entrance into American popular culture, the once well-known details of the original story are completely lost behind the 1939 movie version.  However, that just makes it more fun and fresh to rediscover the story’s origins  in this new version.  So an enthusiastic thumbs-up to issue #1 and high expectations for the remaining issues of this mini-series tribute to our most quintessential of American fables. Runaways #5 Publisher: Marvel Comics Terry Moore: Writer Humberto Ramos: Penciler Dave Meikis: Inker Christina Strain: Colorist      Runaways is a unique Marvel comic series that was created by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona in 2003.  The very original premise of the comic is that a group of seemingly ordinary kids discover that their parents are secretly a group of super-powered criminals known as "The Pride."  Using newly-discovered powers of their own, along with technology stolen from their parents, the kids defeat the old folk and go on the run, with the goal of doing good to atone for their parents misdeeds.      The comic is currently in its third volume.  Creators Vaughan & Alphona departed awhile ago, with Joss Whedon and Michael Ryan creating a few issues.  The current volume three is written by Terry Moore and penciled by Humberto Ramos.      I've been wanting to both read and review this comic for awhile now, for two reasons.  First, the basic concept here, about kids who discover that their folks are secret super evil-doers, sounded very fresh and intriguing.  Secondly, I've been curious to read Terry Moore's take on this style of storyline, given that it seems like such a different type of comic genre for him, compared to his well-known Strangers In Paradise and Echo comic lines.      Issue #5 is entitled "Dead Wrong," and is the fifth installment of a multi-issue storyline.  We're told on page one in a narrative summary that the kids were previously attacked by a group of Majesdanian soldiers intent on capturing Runaway Karolina Dean (the daughter of aliens).  As such, issue #5 gives us one very detailed, complete-issue action sequence as the Runaways try to elude their pursuers and protect Karolina Dean.  The action here is very intense and aerial, involving a large rocket ship (the pursuers), a small rocket ship (the Runaways) and the most creative use of a VW bus in the history of comic books.       I liked this comic for several reasons.  First, although the Runaways are all young teens, the comic is enjoyable for adults to read, due to Terry Moore's plotting.  Word on the Internet is that Moore is committed to writing Runaways at least through issue #9.  The action in this story is combined with excellent dialogue, taking the reader on a rollercoaster of a fun chase sequence.  There's absolutely no advancing of the ongoing multi-issue storyline here.  But it really seems worth it to get onboard in this issue for one fun, 21-page wild chase scene and then pick-up the plot again in the next issue #6.       In addition, I liked the fact that this comic centers on a bunch of teenagers, thereby giving young readers out there a comic to relate to and attract them into the wide world of comic reading.  Since I started these reviews last year, DC's Blue Beetle is the only other comic I've come across so far that seems to relate to young comic readers in the same quality manner.  Please feel free to e-mail me at Gordon_A@msn.com if you know of any other decent comics for younger readers, and I would be glad to consider reviewing them for the younger generation of comic fans.      Critics have also lauded Runaways for being more female-centered than the standard fanboy comic, with four of the current Runaway team members being girls (Nico, Clara, Molly and Karolina) and only two of them being guys (Victor and Chase).  Again, a good move to address an underserved segment of young fandom.      So if you liked the movie Speed (which I did), and like quality chase scene action, hop onboard Runaways with the current issue #5 and hang on for the ride of a lifetime.  And again, without providing a spoiler, just trust me, the $2.99 price of the issue is more than worth it just to check out what Moore and Ramos do with that VW bus! Black Lightning #1 Publisher: DC Comics Jen Van Meter: Writer Cully Hamner: Art Laura Martin: Colors      DC has just released issue #1 of a new Black Lightning 6-issue miniseries.  Black Lightning, a.k.a. Jefferson Pierce, first appeared in 1977 as one of DC's first African-American superheroes.  A resident of the Southside inner-city neighborhood of Metropolis, Black Lightning wields electrical-generating powers.      The current mini-series is scripted by Jen Van Meter, with art by Cully Hamner and Laura Martin.  The narrator in issue #1 is Jefferson's wife Lynn Stewart, as the couple along with their young daughter are relocating home to inner-city Southside.  Pierce has accepted a new job as principal of the local high school.  Pierce immediately gets drawn into dangerous confrontations with The 100, a local street gang, with bloody and deadly results by the end of this first issue.      The creative team's structure for initiating this mini-series is to devote issue #1 to the personal identity side of Black Lightning.  Here, he is not in superhero garb wielding his electical abilities, but instead instead trying to establish himself as an educational leader in a violent inner city neighborhood environment.  This plot structure is both effective and powerful from a story-telling vantage, giving us the start of a socially-relevant tale of individuals, particularly high school-age kids, trying to function and survive in a desperate, deadly world with little hope of succeeding.      I was reminded in reading this issue of two previous stories plotted in a similar socially-relevant structure, both the Neal Adams run in Green Lantern back in the Silver Age, when Green Lantern, Green Arrow and Black Canary dealt with social issues such as race and poverty, as well as segments of the movie Grand Canyon that addressed the same issues.  Issue #1 of Black Lightning holds it own with both previous stellar efforts.  The story is powerfully told, blending a low-level of superhero reference with wider, more realistic social issues.  Its obvious that with the bloody, heartbreaking ending in issue #1, Jefferson Pierce will be forced in upcoming issues to try and find a way to combine his superhero abilities with his civic role in coping with the problems of this difficult world.  Given the quality of issue #1, I believe that the creative team is up to the task of evolving this story beyond just an entertaining read to also provide us with a moving and heartfelt tale relevant to the social issues of today's American urban life. Thor #12 Publisher: Marvel Comics J. Michael Straczynski: Writer Olivier Coipel: Penciler Mark Morales: Inker Laura Martin: Colorist      After awarding last week's "Favorite 1980's Comic Book" contest co-prize to an issue of Thor, I thought it would be interesting to check-out how the comic is faring in its current-day version.      Thor is currently in its third volume since its creation in the early 1960's.  Although the current run is at issue #12, Marvel has announced that since issue #13 will be the 600th issue in the overall series, that issue will begin a reversion to the old numbering at #600, in honor of the comic's longevity.       Most comic readers are at least somewhat familiar with the famous comic, which centers around the Norse god Thor, his father Odin, evil adopted-brother Loki and cast of Norse-based mythological support characters.  Thor was originally summoned by disabled American Doctor Don Blake, who would exchange places with him when summoning him with Thor's mystical hammer.      Issue #12, entitled "Diversions and Misdirections," is part of a multi-issue story arc written by J. Michael Straczynski and penciled by Olivier Coipel.  Its an interesting issue centering on Thor's evil half-brother Loki.  Loki travels to Las Vegas and gains the assistance of the enchantress Hela, whose spell allows him to time travel to his boyhood, where his manipulations set the stage for Odin to adopt the boyhood version of Loki and thereby establish the soap opera good-versus-evil brotherhood bond between Thor and Loki.  There's a very surprising and unexpected twist at the end of the issue, whereby its revealed that Loki is temporarily inhabiting the body of a key ally in Thor's world.      Straczynski's plotting in this issue is very strong, enjoyable and easily understandable as a stand-alone plot within this ongoing, multi-issue tale.  To his credit, he's able to devote an entire issue to the key bad guy in Thor's world without any appearance of our superhero and still have an enjoyable comic.  There is no feel of missing Thor, here.  I liked the mix of traditional Norse mythology with today's Las Vegas as well as the standard time travel science fiction element.  While on the face of it, these three elements don't sound compatible, Straczynski does an admirable job of interweaving these seemingly incompatible plot elements into one seamless, enjoyable story.       Kudos also to Coipel's penciling and Morales's inking for providing us with a lush, elegant artistic style that is perfectly suitable to coveying Loki's personality and evil.  Often, a mere gesture or look from either the present-day adult or past-child Loki in many panels provides more than any narrative could in conveying both the power and sheer cunning of Loki, both past and present.      If you're an old Thor fan like me who hadn't read an issue in ages, the comic's definitely worth revisiting, and if you're new to Thor, issue #12 is a great place to give our Norse superhero/god an enjoyable try. Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures In The 8th Grade #2 Publisher: DC Comics Landry Q. Walker: Writer Eric Jones: Artist Joey Mason: Coloring     I mentioned in last week's column that from time-to-time I'd like to review comics that are geared toward younger readers.  DC has just such a mini-series out right now with the on-going Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures In The 8th Grade.      The storyline is currently at issue #2 in a planned 6-issue mini-series.  As the title indicates, in this series Supergirl is 12 years old, and has been sent to Stanhope Boarding School by her adult cousin Superman.  There, in her alter-ego guise of Linda Lee, as the page one narrative tells us, she "fights the never-ending battle against the oppressive grading curve, peer pressure and her own out-of-control super abilities!"      This is a cute, well-presented comic ideal for introducing pre-teen girls and boys alike to the DC universe.  Writer Landry Walker blends basic DC superhero plot elements such as kryptonite and dealing with having an evil supervillain doppelganger (who also happens to be head of the school cheerleading squad, of course!) with kid peer pressure and school social situations that any pre-teen could identify with.      The last few pages of the comic are very creative, in which the reader learns that Linda Lee/Supergirl's new boarding school roommate has her own secret and unexpected personal connection to a key person in the Superman Family universe, which should prove to be very interesting as the final four issues of this mini-series unfold.  Also, one minor item that I got a kick out of was learning Superman's supposed e-mail address, as Linda Lee sends her cousin messages.  Spoiler Alert: its superman@thesecretfortress.com, so now you know, and feel free to e-mail the big guy with all of your own fanboy Superman thoughts and questions!      I don't recommend that anyone older than a teenager spend any time reading this comic.  But its definitely perfect for any pre-teen or teen reader, and I highly recommend that any of you adult readers looking to introduce your kids to the DC universe with an enjoyable read consider starting them off with this cute and funny kid-friendly mini-series.  Also, kudos to DC for cutting the price a bit per issue of this mini-series, from the standard $2.99 issue price to a slightly more kid-affordable $2.50. Dark Avengers #1 Publisher: Marvel Comics Brian Michael Bendis: Writer Mike Deodato: Art Rain Beredo: Color Art      Marvel has just published issue #1 of a new Dark Avengers comic line, with Brian Michael Bendis as writer, Mike Deodato and artist and Rain Beredo as colorist.  The new line is one of several ongoing Avengers comic lines, along with other Marvel hero comics, dealing with the aftermath of the Skrull secret invasion of Earth, a subject that's been prominent in Marvel comics within the past year.       Issue #1 of Dark Avengers begins with a clear one-page summary of the highlights of the secret invasion storyarc, from the initial invasion to the penultimate battle in Central Park, New York, where the Avengers and other heroes allied with major bad-guys from the Marvel Universe to barely defeat the alien invaders.  Apparently Harry Osborn, Spiderman's Green Goblin enemy, saved the day and now has risen to the top of the power pyramid in the U.S. national security network, replacing Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D and Tony Stark as superhero heads of American security and defense.      As expected, Osborn is an evil wolf in good-guy sheep's clothing.  The plot in issue #1 focuses on Osborn recruiting one-by-one bad guys to serve in false good-guy identities, along with a few legitimate good guys, as a new version of The Avengers.  At the same time, Osborn works within the U.S. federal security bureaucracy to build a new agency called H.A.M.M.E.R. to replace S.H.I.E.L.D.  A more limited sub-plot in this issue addresses Osborn's secret ally Dr. Doom being pursued and confronted by his time-traveling nemesis, the enchantress Morgana Le Fay.      One of writer Bendis's strong points in any comic that he writes is his ability to weave into his story believable aspects of real-world political realism.  Here, he once again succeeds in bringing real-world complexity to what could have been a simplistic, good-guy, bad-guy superhero storyline.  For example, although Ms. Marvel sees through Osborn and initially rejects his offer to lead this new anti-hero team, she has to struggle with the painful fact that two decent heroes, Ares and Sentry, are willing to knowingly blend themselves into this new, questionable world that Osborn is creating.      On one storytelling level, the plot here is a comment on our real-world dilemma of trying to maintain our own post-9/11 national security in a world that often tempts us to consider crossing the line to the dark side in addressing the problems of terrorism and national security.  I know that sounds heavy and preachy, but Bendis manages to present the issue here in a simple and clear way that blends nicely into a traditional superhero comic book story, giving the reader a decent balance between both comic book entertainment and political food-for-thought on this serious subject. The Mighty Avengers #21 Publisher: Marvel Comics Dan Slott: Writer Khoi Pham: Penciller Allen Martinez & Danny Miki: Inkers           Our second Avengers comic review for this week is the current issue #21 of The Mighty Avengers, scripted by Dan Slott and drawn by Khoi Pham, Allen Martinez and Danny Miki.  As with Dark Avengers #1, the issue begins with a very helpful one-page narrative summary of previous events, again summarzing the Skrull Invasion highlights, but then adding that Avengers member Wanda Maximoff, The Scarlet Witch, is now insane from the nature of her powers and considered very dangerous.        The plot is a fast-paced storyline in which simultaneous disasters of Biblical proportion (i.e., tidal waves of blood, etc.), caused by a villain whom I won't reveal here, are occurring in cities the world over.  Various characters including The Vision and Harry Osborn with his New Avengers struggle to address the situation, while Hercules, Amadeus Cho and old Avengers servant Edwin Jarvis seek out Antman Henry Pym to try and team-up to figure-out what's going-on.  Interwoven throughout is a sub-plot of The Scarlet Witch traveling the globe to find individual heros such as The Hulk and John Walker, with an inference that she's not attacking them but somehow trying to assemble them with her against whatever's causing the international catastrophe.       While not on a high quality par with Bendis's Avenger's story reviewed above, this is still a good issue; I liked reading a modern-day Avengers story that featured traditional, old-school Avenger characters such as The Scarlet Witch, Edwin Jarvis and Henry Pym, who are often overshadowed in Marvel stories these days by more newcomer characters.  There are some nice flashback sequences throughout the story regarding very early Avenger history.  The creative team also does a very nice job of blending The Scarlet Witch's insanity with a still-existing side of her character that reaches out to address the world-wide problems as she seeks to ally herself with The Avengers.      So all-in-all, a thumbs-up recommendation for both Avengers comics, with Dark Avengers #1 giving us a cutting-edge, new approach and The Mighty Avengers #21 complementing that new-school side of the Avengers world with an action-paced story centering around traditional, founding Avengers characters in today's post-Skrull Invasion World.  Good King Leonardo agrees with my brother Dave, and decrees that ye shall consider reading both comics for some solid Avengers Assemble entertainment!       Thor Follow-Up: Just a quick heads-up, that in follow-up to my positive recommendation last week regarding the current issue #12 of The Mighty Thor, I noticed the other day that issues #1 through #6 are already assembled in graphic novel reprint format, so you might want to check-out those first six issues along with the current comic issues on the That's Entertainmnet wall of new stuff. Presidential Material: Barack Obama Publisher: IDW Publishing Jeff Mariotte: Writer Tom Morgan: Artist Len O'Grady: Colorist      IDW Publishing has issued the first biographical comic of newly-elected President Barack Obama.  The 28-page story scripted by Jeff Mariotte begins with Obama's childhood years and concludes with his November election as the 44th President of the United States.      Mariotte does an excellent job in giving equal plot time to the various stages of Obama's life, to give the reader an effective story of who Barack Obama is and what he stands for politically.  Several pages are excellent graphic representations of key points in Obama's childhood and young adult years directly taken from his autobiography "Dreams Of My Father," while other sections of the plot are derived from his second book about his early political years, "The Audacity Of Hope."      Prior to reading the comic, I was concerned that Obama's well-known personal story was so richly-detailed that it might not translate well to a single-issue comic representation.  As such, I was very glad to see that the creative team did an amazing job in developing a well-flowing graphic presentation of the key points of Obama's overall life story.  After two years of the most recent national presidential campaign, I assumed that I had nothing new to learn about Obama's (or any of the other candidate's, for that matter) personal backstory.  But I did learn a lot of new details from this comic about his early years.  The pages portraying his deceased mother and how she shaped his outlook on life were particularly engrossing, and the personality given to his grandfather who helped raise him in Hawaii lent a new element to the Obama family history.      I would have been happy just to see that this comic avoided the clunkiness, both plot-wise and artistically, that so many biographical comics over the years seem to have fallen into.  As such, the high quality of this comic was thus the more gratifying, and comparable to the best of the old Classics Illustrated comic line.  Irregardless of your personal political opinions or allegiances, one should read this high quality comic as a deeply moving portrayal of one man's success in achieving The American Dream and what his election means to all Americans in these troubled times.  As such, I'd recommend this comic to readers of all ages.        Additional kudos also go out to the artistic team for rendering the features of the key political players of the recent election so accurately.  Another nice extra feature of the comic is a complete, two-page reprint of Obama's Election-Eve victory speech made November 4 in Grant Park, Chicago. The Amazing Spider-Man #583 Publisher: Marval Comics Mark Waid & Zeb Wells: Writers Barry Kitson, Mark Farmer & Todd Nauck: Artists Andres Mossa & Frank D'Armata: Colors      Our second President Obama-oriented comic is this month's Amazing Spider-Man #583, with a fun cover of Spidey asking the President, "if you get to be on my cover, can I be on the dollar bill?"  This cover marketing is a bit misleading, as the two-story issue consists of a 23-page conventional Spiderman story, followed by the brief, six-page self-described "Marvel Bonus Back-Up Feature!" that squeezes-in the Barack Obama tale.      The first story is entitled "With Friends Like These..." and centers on the friendship between Peter Parker, a.k.a. Spiderman and Betty Brant, former secretary to Daily Bugle Editor J. Jonah Jameson and now an investigative journalist.  While this very in-depth story has a standard amount of Spiderman action, it really shines on an unexpected level, giving us a richly-plotted story about friendship and relationships.  A sub-plot in which Peter gives speed dating a try is both hilarious and a dead-on comment on the nature of blind dating.      Through the first half of the story, as Peter plans a surpise birthday party for Betty, the reader is led to believe that Betty is a popular friend among all of the Spidey comic regulars.  The plot takes an very unexpected turn when we suddenly learn that Betty has alienated just about everyone she knows with her take-no-prisoners style of journalism, and no one but Peter wants to have anything to do with her on her birthday.  Writer Mark Waid's style of having Betty as the story narrator is extremely effective here, giving us a tale at times humorous, mostly moving and concluding with a very satisfying, realistic message about the nature of true friendship.      Our quick President Obama story focuses on Pater Parker interceding as Spiderman while in Washington to cover the inaugural, as two identical Obamas show-up for the motorcade to the event.  Spidey, the Secret Service and the real Obama think quickly and on-their-feet in proving who's real, who's the imposter and why this is going-on. The story is fun as a read for all age groups, and has just the right mix of action, humor and mental challenge for the reader to enjoy trying to figure-out what's happening here and why.      I'm definitely giving an enthusistic thumbs-up to this comic, for both the unexpected, very high quality main story and the fun Obama bonus short.  However, Ken at That's Entertainment made a very good point in chatting with me last week about this comic, in that the cover misleads potential buyers into believing that they're getting a full-issue Obama story.  It should also be noted that the main story with its take on adult dating and friendship/relationship issues would seem pretty boring to any kids who might be looking to buy this comic for the Spidey-President tale.  So just realize the accurate nature of this issue and read it for what it is, thereby avoiding any dashed expectations or unexpected storylines. Bonus: Two Out'A Three Ain't Bad Department!      In the spirit of the Marvel Bonus Obama story reviewed above, Good King Leonardo has decreed this week that I offer as a review bonus the following three quick mini-reviews: Mini-Review Number One: Batman #685-Entitled "Catspaw", this is one of DC's current Faces Of Evil comics, featuring the main series protagonist in various DC comic lines.  For Batman, that means Catwoman's up at-bat, of course!  Quick Mini-Review Comments:  A well-scripted story by Paul Dini, excellent art by Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridolfs, including an iconic Catwoman cover that would make a great comic poster.  An exotic story setting in Southeast Asia, centering on Catwoman's affinity for saving exotic wildlife (big cats included, of course!), as well as the various Batman Family characters dealing with the ongoing changes in the Batman line with the recent "death of Batman" shenanigans that DC's been putting-out of late.  Mini-review bottom line: Thumbs-up, a keeper. Mini-Review Number Two: Batman: Gotham After Midnight #8.  Issue #8 in an intriguing mini-series scripted by Steve Niles with art by Kelley Jones and Michelle Madsen.  Quick Mini-Review Comments: A fresh, original serial killer mystery series.  Very inventive, unique art style adds a nice new dimension to the Batman comic genre.  The creative team gives us a high-thriller atmosphere as Batman races to try to stem the fast-paced serial killing while at the same time trying to winnow-out the madman's identity from the list of suspects.  A bit more gory than I prefer for my Batman comic fix, but the dark humor and unique style make it well-worth the read.  Mini-review bottom line:  Thumbs-up, a worthy addition to the various interpretations within the Batman genre. Mini-Review Number Three: Ultimate Hulk Annual #1: March On Ultimatum.  Quick Mini-Review Comments: And here I was hoping that my aversion to the old-school Hulk was permanently in remission after the last two or three good reviews that I gave to issues of various Hulk comic lines.  The plot centers on a confrontation between Hulk and Zarda, a gorgeous albeit super-violent psycho supposed warrior goddess from another dimension who's trying to "play nice" in our world by not killing anyone who mildly ticks her off.  While the art by Ed McGuinness, et al is excellent, Jeph Loeb stumbles badly story-wise here, with a "Dumb And Dumber" plot weighed-down by lame humor focusing on Hulk not wearing any pants in this issue, culminating in a stupid Hulk sex joke that the entire issue seemed to focus on building toward.  A clear example of an influential writer overindulged by a comic publisher to the point that they don't have the guts to honestly tell him that no writer is great every time, and some pathetic plot ideas are just that, suitable more for snarky high school fanboys to giggle over as they fantasize how they could write a supposedly funny comic story.  Mini-review bottom line: Note To Comic Shops-burn this comic before it infects the other healthy comics in your store inventory. Captain America #46 Publisher: Marvel Comics Ed Brubaker: Writer Steve Epting: Artist Frank D'Armata: Colors      The latest issue of Captain America is the first story in a three-issue story arc entitled "Old Friends And Enemies."  I was drawn (no comic-related pun intended) to read the comic in light of the past year's well-publicized death of Steve Rodgers, a.k.a. Captain America.  For those uninitiated readers, Marvel at this stage of the game has Cap's old sidekick, James "Bucky" Barnes, putting on the famed cowl and picking-up the shield to carry-on the famed Captain America legacy.      Issue #46 begins with a first-page narrative that provides a backstory explanation that during World War II, Cap and Bucky rescued 12-year-old Chinese supergenius Zhang Chin, who as an adult scientist today has recovered the remains of the original Human Torch and is secretly racing to revive him as a slave.  The issue alternates between the present-day, where the new Captain America is traveling to China with The Submariner to try to stop the mad experiment, and two flashback periods: the original 1942 rescue of the boy-scientist by the heroes, and a 1968 botched assassination attempt on Zhang Chin by Bucky in his role as the Soviet-controlled Winter Soldier, which ended in the death of Zhang's wife.  An entertaining sub-plot has The Black Widow assisting the heroes in obtaining Zhang's whereabouts through her international espionage contacts.      I was very impressed with Ed Brubaker's plotting of this story, which seamlessly combines the WW II-era activities of Captain America, Bucky and Submariner with their present-day actions.   It seems rare to me, at least, to come across a Marvel Comic story these days that isn't either squarely set in the present or alternately set completely back in the Golden Age.  Much credit is due to Brubaker for skillfully combining both eras into one competent plot.  Presented with Epting and D'Armata's quality art, and we have one very entertaining kick-off to this three- issue story arc.        My only criticism is that the issue's cover is very misleading.  While it's a beautiful rendering by Epting of Captain America and The Submariner battling each other in the water, it has nothing to do with the plot of the two working together as teammates to try and help The Human Torch. But its a minor point, which doesn't take away from an enthusiastic thumbs-up for this comic book that features two of Marvel's classic A-list superhero characters.   Black Panther-Dark Reign#1 Publisher: Marvel Reginald Hudlin: Writer Ken Lashley: Pencils Paul Neary: Inks Paul Mounts: Colors      As part of the across-the-company Dark Reign series, Marvel has released issue #1 of a new Black Panther comic book series.  Black Panther was originally created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby back in the 1960's as T'Challa, ruler of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, a high-tech land based on the existence of a rare element known as Vibranium.  The ruler of the land traditionally wears the Black Panther garb as head-of-state, and has access to a rare herb that grants him super strength and agility.  The character has a long and storied past in many Marvel Comic series beginning with the Fantastic Four in the 1960's.  My personal favorite was the Black Panther's own Kirby-penned title that ran in the late 1970's, which involved interesting science fiction and time-travel themes.      As mentioned above, the latest Black Panther comic takes place in the new Dark Reign Marvel plotline, in which Harry Osborne is taking control of national security issues.  The first issue storyline alternates between two sub-plots.  In the first, T'Challa's wife Storm, of the X-Men, witnesses a plane-crash in Wakanda, in which T'Challa is critically injured.  Its determined that the crash was caused by sabatauge, leading the royal family to realize that at least for now, they need to immediately designate a new Black Panther leader to don the costume and lead the nation against further possible attack.      The second storyline consists of flashbacks over the previous day, as T'Challa has tense confrontations with both The Submariner and Dr. Doom over the Norman Osborn situation, hinting to the reader that these conflicts led to the deadly plane crash.  Although its not included by the end of the first issue, it's clear from the comic book cover as well as Marvel's advertising campaign that issue #2 will anoint an unknown female to take T'Challa's place as the new Black Panther.      As a big Black Panther fan, I was happy to see this new comic line begin.  I found the flashback sub-plot well-paced and entertaining, but the main storyline surrounding the crash and leadership crisis dragged much too slowly.  By the end of the issue, we only know that a new leader needs to be appointed, with absolutely no reference yet to the main plotpoint of a new female leader emerging.  This extra-large, $3.99 issue concludes the story after 22 pages, followed by an extremely-detailed, 10-page historical chronology of the character, and then a 6-page "preview" of issue #2.  I suspect that Marvel had a deadline issue here, choosing to publish an incomplete story combined with filler to keep issue #1's publication on-schedule.      While this is a high-quality production, we really are given only about two-third's of a normal issue storyline, which really isn't fair to the casual reader.  I recommend the comic to Black Panther fans who plan on commiting to reading the series beyond issue #1, but warn the casual reader that reading only this issue leaves you hanging with the feeling that part of the issue is missing.  Here's hoping that Marvel gives us more complete story segments in the upcoming issues, which both this fine title and the readers deserve. G.I. Joe #2 Publisher: IDW Publishing Chuck Dixon: Writer Robert Atkins: Artist Clayton Brown & John Wycough: Inkers      Many readers of this column have expressed their fondness for the G.I. Joe comic line published by Marvel from the mid-1980's to the mid-1990's, and I was a big fan as a kid of Hasbro's G.I. Joe toy line, so I thought it would be of interest to review the new G.I. Joe comic line recently begun by IDW Publishing.  Issue #2 is scripted by Chuck Dixon with art by Robert Atkins, Clayton Brown and John Wycough.      The G.I. Joe team is involved in two interconnected sub-plots in this issue.  The main storyline takes place in The Pit, the team's secret headquarters, as they examine a mysterious high tech box that the team captured on assignment in the first issue.  The team doesn't realize that the box has video capabilities that is allowing Scottish bad guy Laird James McCullen and his team to spy on The Pit and try to pinpoint its secret location.  This plot ends in a nice confrontation between McCullen and a female scuba member of the G.I. Joe team who has infiltrated his hideout.  The second storyline is more action-oriented, and focuses on team members in Manila trying to abduct a field agent of COBRA, a mysterious weapons smuggling group.      I've never been a big fan of stories or shows based on toys or products, so I approached this comic with some doubt.  But happily, credit is due to the creative team for providing a first-rate story.  The characters are the key, here.  The G.I. Joe team members including Scarlett, Stalker, Leatherneck, Bankshot, Sparks and General Hawk have strong and unique personalities.  The military members work closely with civilian Research and Development folks at The Pit, including young genious scientist Ward Michaelmas, who is a main character of this issue.  The comic thus gives us a CSI-type setting, combining research and technology elements with military action in a realistic manner.  Add some humorous and up-to-date pop culture dialogue and we have an enjoyable comic that avoided the feared potential woodenness of evolving from a toy line.  No doubt the 1980's version succeeded well in providing this same story quality, given the number of readers who are still fans of that previous G.I. Joe comic line.      I also got a kick out of the cover, both variant versions of which show the female team member who uses G.I. Joe scuba action to infiltrate the bad guy's Scottish lair.  Its got to be intentional that she's a dead ringer for recent Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin!  It's only a minor constructive criticism, but as a first-time reader, I would have liked a little more information about her, including her name.  So overall, an enthusiastic thumbs-up for our first military comic of the week. Haunted Tank #3 Publisher: DC Vertigo Frank Marraffino: Writer Henry Flint: Pencils & Inks Lee Loughridge: Colors      DC's more adult-oriented Vertigo comics line is currently at issue #3 in a five-issue mini-series of Haunted Tank.  For the uninitiated, The Haunted Tank was a classic silver age DC comic line that began in 1961 in G.I. Combat.  The premise was that the ghost of Confederate Civil War General J.E.B. Stuart acted as a guide and guardian to his WW II Tank Commander descendent Lt. Jeb Stuart, through the various WWII battle campaigns.  This was a very popular Silver Age war comic, second in longevity only to Sgt. Rock in the DC war comics line.      The new mini-series has updated the war scene to the current Iraq warfront.  This time around, the General's ghost serves as guardian to a tank crew commanded by African American Lt. Stuart.  The plot of issue #3 focuses mostly on an angry confrontation and extended dialogue between Lt. Stuart and the General's ghost regarding the General's outdated Civil War-era racial prejudices.  The ongoing argument between the two is interspersed with a few brief confrontations between the tank crew, Iraqi rebels and Iraqi tank crews.      I have a mixed reaction to this comic.  I like the fresh idea of updating the comics premise to today's wartime situation, as well as the element of changing the interaction between the ghostly Stuart and the Tank Commander Stuart to one of struggling to accept modern racial appceptence and equality.  However, the underlying premise of any war comic is just that, a combat-related story that needs to serve as the basis for the additional elements of the story.       The creative team tries to give us the Irag conflict as the comic base, but there's no real plot to that side of the comic book.  The comic is also set early in the war, in April of 2003, at an early point during which Saddam's army was still around.  That gives the Haunted Tank crew a chance to engage an Iragi tank battalion in traditional tank-to-tank combat.  However, given how for years now the war has slogged-down into a brutal hand-to-hand armed insurgency, the traditional, old-fashioned form of combat feels surreal and out-of-place, for me at least, in an Iraq war comic published in 2009.      I give this comic a thumbs-up, albeit a mixed review, for its excellent modernizing of the Haunted Tank concept from its 1960's original to today's army and society, but hope that the remaining issues in this mini-series give us a better-quality combat element to this worthy effort of a combat comic book. The Spaghetti Strand Murder Publisher: Alterna Comics Bret M. Herholz: Author Bret M. Herholz: Artist Peter Simeti & Erin Kohut: Editors      The Spaghetti Strand Murder is published by Alterna Comics.  A creation of writer and artist Bret M. Herholz, the issue gives us a 72-page graphic novel consisting of a main, 43-page story and two shorter additional tales.      The title story is a whodunit murder mystery plot a la Agatha Christie.  In 1920 England, Lord Algernon Sloughshire is found murdered in his country estate, with the aforementioned single spaghetti strand as the apparent murder weapon.  Its up to the bumbling Detective Inspector Ferguson to round-up the usual suspects among Lord Sloughshire's family and guests and ferret-out the killer.      Credit is due to Herholz for giving us a nice, new take on this popular genre. The author takes the very standard British murder mystery format familiar to all fans of Agatha Christie or episodes of PBS's Mystery Theatre, and infuses it with a well-balanced blend of humor, intriguing plot details and fresh characterization.  The plot steadily builds as suspect-after-suspect is focused upon and found innocent, leading to a well-played and humorous answer to our whodunnit-using-food mystery.      I was particularly impressed with two elements of the story structure.  First, Herholz demonstrates ability as author-artist to infuse a nice sense of mystery genre humor with a skillfully-produced, wide range of effective character facial expressions.  As I've mentioned in previous reviews, it takes a quality artist to convey plot meaning and dialogue with a mere exasperated glance or a devious narrowing of the eyes, a pattern that's produced throughout this story with effective and often very humorous results.      Secondly, good British-style mystery needs a certain element of English theatrical farce blended into its humor.  Herholz brings this ingredient to the plot in two ways; first, giving us a funny, two-page introductory biography of the cast of characters, and secondly, making Detective Inspector Ferguson completely unwitting in his bumbling misinterpretation of clues and evidence that practically screams correct answers at him regarding plot mysteries.  I also liked the addition in the third, shorter story of the more sane, logical Assistant Inspector Jenkins to assist and balance-out Ferguson in his sleuthing mishaps.   House Of Mystery #10        DC's House Of Mystery comic title has a very long and distinguished pedigree.  Originating as a horror series in 1951, DC revamped the title for a storied 1960's Silver Age run, featuring at times The Martian Manhunter and the Dial H For Hero series, before reverting to its horror and suspense heritage.         The current House Of Mystery is published through DC's Vertigo line.  Issue #10 is the fifth and final part of a five-issue story arc entitled "Love Stories For Dead People."  Its written by Matthew Sturges with pencils by Luca Rossi, inks by Jose Marzan, Jr. and colors by Lee Loughridge.        The main character in this series is Bethany "Fig" Keeler, a former college architecture student who is trapped in The House Of Mystery, a creepy Victorian mansion where the action centers in the house bar.  The bar's inhabitants include an array of aliens and past and future humans, who take turns telling their stories and dealing one way or another with the situation of their supernatural imprisonment.        Issue #10's plot is a bit difficult to completely comprehend as a stand-alone story within this setting.  The best summary of it is to say that Fig, her Dad and two apparent friends are pursued though The House of Mystery by a demon that is somehow psychically connected with a very messed-up, battered woman who ultimately teams-up with the bar's inhabitants to save the day.         I like this current take on the House Of Mystery comic world for two main reasons.  First, the atmosphere of the basic setting has a nice resemblance to the gothic Victorian settings of horror master H.P. Lovecraft's stories, as well as Edgar Allen Poe's classic stories such as "The Fall Of The House Of Usher."  Secondly, writer Sturges has wedded this classic horror theme with a well-known science fiction/fantasy plotting element of bringing together characters from across space and time to tell their personal tales to each other and jointly address the story action.  Two famous science fiction works along this line include L. Sprague DeCamp's "Tales From Gavagan's Bar" and Spider Robinson's "Callihan's Crosstime Saloon."        I also liked the offering of a 6-page second story in this issue that follows the 16-page main story.  Entitled "Fig's Adventure In Stuffytown," the production by writers Bethany and Peter Keele with artist Kyle Baker offers a cute children's fantasy tale with an underlying life lesson, starring Fig in her childhood years. Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen #4 Publisher: Oni Press John Layman, Tom Peyer & Jim Massey: Writers Robbi Rodriquez: Art Pete Pantazis, Aurelio Alfonso & Nathan Fairbarn: Coloring Stephen Colbert: Galactic Overlording      Oni Press is publishing a five-issue mini-series comic in conjunction with Comedy Central's Stephen Colbert, entitled "Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen."  For the uninitiated, Colbert is the popular and successful host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report" (silent "t's" at the end of both Colbert and Report!), the half-hour nightly satirical political talk show that is a spin-off and follows "The Jon Stewart Show."      The comic book is a spin-off of a recurring gag on Colbert's show, revolving around a supposed 1,800 page novel that he wrote and self-published entitled "Stephen Colbert's Alpha Squad 7-Lady Nocturne: A Tek Jansen Adventure.  The concept is a spoof on superheroes, with "Tek Jansen" drawn as a stong-chinned, buffed superhero version of Colbert, who fights evil in his goofball way as part of Alpha Squad 7.      I'm a huge fan of Colbert's show, and was hoping that his brand of satirical humor would be translated into this comic.  Not to worry, Colbert Nation, the comic book's creative team has done its job!  Issue #4's main 16-page story is entitled "Too Many Jansen's," with a plot that centers on Jansen/Colbert battling an evil twin from a parallel universe.  It's followed by a shorter, 7-page story entitled "Born To Be Hyperwild," a hilarious send-up on undercover sleuthing in an alien biker bar.  In the tradition of some Tek Jansen animated shorts produced for The Colbert Report t.v. show, "Born To Be Hyperwild" concludes with a nude Jansen riding off into the sunset.      I happily give an enthusiastic thumbs-up for this gem of a superhero spoof comic.  While the art is excellent and the plot strong and solidly funny, its the little satirical gems that make the two stories shine, ranging from future homeless aliens, known as the "planetless," to a hilarious dialogue between the good and evil universe Tek Jansen's regarding the true nature of good and evil-doing, after which you'll be convinced that there's no difference at all!      Oni Press produced this comic in the old-school science fiction paperback "flip side" format, with the two stories upside-down from each other, along with reverse covers on the front and backsides.  The covers alone are satirical sci-fi gems; the first story's cover features Jansen rescuing an alien damsel-in-distress from a giant killer robot, while the second story cover gives us Jansen firing rayguns in space alongside a giant, raygun-shooting, space-helmeted dinosaur.  The killer robot cover which attracted me to this comic didn't translate into the story plot; but no matter, the two covers alone are classic and both story's are great fun.      So whether you're already a Stephen Colbert fan or a newbie, my advice is to run, don't walk, to Ye Olde Comic Shoppe and get a copy of this high quality, just-plain-funny comic! Terminator: Revolution Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Simon Furman: Writer Lui Antonio: ArtAdriano Lucas: Colors      Our second review of the week is issue #3 of Terminator: Revolution.  This is one of a few Terminator titles currently published by Dynamite, based on the current Fox Network television series, in which John Connor and his mother, Sara Connor, try to prevent events from progressing in the mid-1990's to the Judgement Day nuclear war that would usher in the killer robot/computer future that's well-established from the Terminator movie series.      The plot of issue #3 flips back and forth between 1996 events and 2015 events.  In 1996, Sara Connor is teamed with her young, present-day son and an older version of John Connor who's comes back from the future to try and prevent the expected Apocalypse.  In the 2015 sub-plot, John's wife, Tara, is battling a giant Terminator robot dog who also seems to be at odds with the rest of the Terminator robot bad guys, giving us a glimpse at a possible split in motivation within the killer robot society.      If you're a fan of huge explosion scenes from the t.v. series and movies, then by all means read this comic.  But beyond that element, the comic trips-up badly as a stand-alone comic book.  The 1996 sub-plot is a very tired rehash that we've seen from movie and t.v. episodes of this series, of Sara rushing to her son's school to try and prevent the latest Terminator attack on him, then dealing with the actual attack on the schoolgrounds.  The future sub-plot premise of the killer dog had potential, but goes nowhere in terms of story development beyond the dog robot fighting with other Terminators.      While Lui Antonio's art is o.k., its frankly creepy the way he portrays both of the main female characters running around in extremely low-cut pants, exposed thongs and half-piece, extremely tight shirts with no bras.  Its so bizarrely unrealistic as to how any of these women would even remotely dress in real life, that I can only assume that this stupid costume element is deliberately combined with the huge explosions/lack of a plot as a marketing ploy to try and sell this comic to young teenaged boys.  If that's the case, good luck with sales of this comic.  But for any male (or female) over the age of 14, I'd recommend spending your $3.50 on a comic book with an actual story to it.   Strange Adventures #1 Publisher: DC Comics Jim Starlin: Writer Manuel Garcia: Pencils Al Milgrom & Rob Hunter: Inks John Kalisz: Colors      One of the most prestigious titles in DC history was the original "Strange Adventures" comic line.  The science fiction-oriented comic ran from 1950 to 1973; among its many accomplishments was the introduction of Captain Comet, one of the last of the pre-Silver Age heroes, as well as the Silver Age introductions of Deadman, The Atomic Knights and Animal Man.  I personally treasure in my own collection the Neal Adams-created Deadman issues of this renowned comic line.     DC has just published issue #1 in an 8-issue mini-series of a new Strange Adventures, with the series entitled "What Threat Lurks In The Dark Zone?"   Needless to say, there are big shoes to fill by any creative team in taking-up new issues of the comic.  I'm pleased to report that DC meets the challenge in issue #1.  The comic is written by esteemed industry veteran Jim Starlin, with art by Manuel Garcia, Al Milgrom, John Kalisz and Rob Hunter.      There are two stories in issue #1.  The first story, entitled "Starting Over," stars Adam Strange in a plot that centers on relocating the entire society of his adopted planet Rann to the planet Throneworld, after Rann has been devastated by war.  The tale alternates with a second sub-plot reintroducing us to Captain Comet, as he is pursued by alien thugs on a planet where he's been pulling-off financial schemes due to personal money woes.  A second, 7-page story is both written and pencilled by Starlin.  Entitled "A Minor Incident," the story adds Bizarro, Superman's defective clone, into the Strange Adventures mix, when an alien sorcerer accidentally pulls Bizarro into the developing storyline while miscasting a spell intended to snag Hawkman.      The goal of issue #1 of this mini-series is to introduce us to the three main characters, Adam Strange, Captain Comet and Bizarro, with further issues bringing the three together as a team to address the Dark Zone situation.  In this respect, the series is off to a solid start.  I immensely enjoyed Starlin's scripting, here; he brings much depth to the panel-by-panel narrative that creates two very credible and detailed science fiction worlds, the planets that both Adam Strange and Captain Comet currently inhabit.       While Bizarro might seem like an odd choice for a third member of this superhero team, an excellent narrative provided by Superman in the second story weaves him smoothly into the growing plotline and provides strong credibility as to why he will join the other heroes in upcoming issues.       So if you like a science fiction theme to your superhero comics, I think you definitely will want to get onboard at the very beginning of this mini-series Jersey Gods #1 Publisher: Image Comics Glen Brunswick: Writer Dan McDaid: Art Rachelle Rosenberg: Colors Mike Allred: Cover       My brother Dave went to the New York Comic Con last month, and was kind enough to bring me back lots of free swag, including this wonderful new comic book entitled "Jersey Gods."  Glen Brunswick's the writer, with Dan McDaid providing the art and Rachelle Rosenberg doing the coloring.      The premise is a very fresh, campy take on the world of relationships.  Zoe is a typical Jersey chick, who's boyfriend dumps her while they're holiday shopping at the Cherry Hill, New Jersey mall.  A few moments after this earthshattering development in her life, the mall literally does shatter as the Gods/Superheroes from the planet Neboron bring their never-ending clash between good and evil smack into the middle of the mall.       As good gods Barock and Helius battle bad god Minog, Zoe gets caught smack in the middle of the whole mess.  Woe be it to Minog, when the good gods team-up with a Jersey chick whose just been dumped by the latest boyfriend!  Hell hath no fury like a Jersey mallrat scorned!      I immensely enjoyed this comic, with its perfect blend of relationship humor and spoofing of the Jack Kirby Eternals/New Gods Universe.  There's a lot of depth given to the character of Zoe by writer Glen Brunswick, which is heightened by the expressive range that artist Dan McDaid brings to portraying her.  With the casting of the right actress, I can easily see this comic concept crossing-over into a smash hit television series.  McDaid's art reminds me of Darwyn Cooke at his best.  Cooke is actually scheduled to draw the cover for the upcoming issue #2.      In summary, we have Jersey malls, a hot chick on the rebound from her latest break-up and the comic book gods returning to Earth just in time for the holiday shopping season; who can ask for anything more!  I'm personally looking forward to issue #2, and hope that at some point, Paul Blart, mall cop, shows-up to join the battle! Gotham Gazette #1 Publisher: DC Comics Fabian Nicieza: Writer Art By A team Of Eight Artists Guy Major & Guillem March: Colors      As DC fans know, the "Battle For The Cowl" is the name of the current multi-title story arc addressing the missing Batman situation across a range of DC Batman-oriented titles.  DC is also introducing part of this theme in the new Gotham Gazette comic line.  Issue #1 is scripted by Fabian Nicieza, with a team of eight artists drawing various sections of the comic.  This first issue is sub-titled "Batman Dead?" while the sub-title will change to "Batman Alive?" starting in issue #2.      The issue #1 plot basically introduces the reader to four key Gotham City characters who will be interacting with each other and addressing the missing Batman mystery as the series unfolds: reporter Vicky Vale, on-leave Superhero Stephanie Brown, Dr. Leslie Thompkins and Police Commissioner Gordon's ally Detective Harvey Bullock.  Each of these characters is introduced to us within their own five-page individual sub-plot, book-ended by a mysterious narrator for the overall story whom we meet in the first and last page of this issue.      I enjoyed this piece of the "Batman is AWOL" story puzzle for two particular stand-out reasons.  First, one of my favorite elements of the Batman universe is the film noir language and atmosphere often attributed to night in Gotham City.  While not as detailed an element here as in Frank Miller's ongoing DC All-Stars Batman & Robin series, its still an elegant and poetic part of this story.  You can't go wrong with a Batman story that begins with the statement "Listen. Do you hear? The City is restless, concrete skin heaving with deep, cracking breaths.  Gotham City suffers in seething frustration, as it always has..."      Secondly, one of the strengths that DC has infused into Batman comics over the years is the stand-alone strength of Batman's supporting characters.  The personality and backstory built around Commissioner Gordon alone could easily allow him to carry his own comic line (and at times has, actually).  As such, the depth of these other Batman world characters is both entertaining in this comic and gives me the feeling that developing the Batman storyline for awhile without The Caped Crusader as the central figure will work as both entertainment and as a worthy addition to the various Batman tales developed over the decades.      So bottom line: enjoy Gotham Gazette #1, both as a stand-alone comic and as an entry issue into this "missing Batman" theme, that's less marketing gimmick and actually more of a sincere, intriguing new take on the world of Batman. From Our Special Third Review Of The Week Shout-Out Department: Echo #10 Publisher: Abstract Studio Terry Moore: Story & Art      As a third, extra review this week, I strongly recommend that you check-out the Echo comic book title.  I reviewed issue #6 of Echo several months ago, giving an enthusistic thumbs-up to this intriguing storyline written and drawn by the esteemed Terry Moore.  After reading the latest installment in the current issue #10, I decided to make this the first comic title that I've returned to for review of another issue since I started writing these reviews about a year ago.      The ongoing story centers on Julie, witness to a military test accident in the western desert which leaves her wearing an metallic chestplate of experimental material which she can't remove, giving her an at-times uncontrollable power of atomic fission.       But the heart of this story isn't the science fiction element.  Instead, as only Terry Moore can write and illustrate, its a story about family, personal relationships and just doing the right thing as a human being, particularly when doing the right thing isn't the easiest choice to make.  In this sense, Moore is most likely providing us in his Echo comic series with the best example of quality literate fiction being produced in a graphic format today.      Issue #10 elevates the ongoing story drama to a new level, as Julie and Ivy, her National Security Agency pursuer, play a tense and wonderful game of cat and mouse via cell phone as they separately race around the desert Southwest.  However, my strong advice is to jump back and buy the trade paperback reprinting of issues #1 through #5 which is available at That's Entertainment, then quickly catch-up with the remaining comic issues up to the current issue #10, all of which are available at the store.  You won't be disappointed! Astonishing Tales #2 Publisher: Marvel Comics Four Stories & Art By Many Writers & Artists John Barber: Editor      Last week, I reviewed DC's current effort to revive the silver age iconic title "Strange Adventures."  Marvel is currently attempting a similar effort with a fresh revival of "Astonishing Tales."  The Silver Age Astonishing Tales ran from 1970 to 1976 and featured two stories every issue, beginning with Ka-Zar and Doctor Doom tales and ending with It! and Deathlok.  Such renowned artists as Wally Wood, Gene Colan and Jack Kirby worked on the title, along with writers Roy Thomas and Stan Lee.      The current issue #2 of the revived comic consists of four, 8-page stories.  The first two stories are traditional superhero tales, featuring the team-up of Wolverine and Punisher in story #1 in a high action battle adventure, while story #2 gives us an Iron Man-In-The-Year-2023 story, featuring Arno Stark as Iron Man in a thriller involving a wide cast of characters in a high tech adventure.  The remaining two stories are very unique and comical; story #3 features M.O.D.O.K., a little blob of a killing machine created by A.I.M., in a bizarre and very darkly funny take-off on the marketing of Marvel superheros, while story #4 features two X-Men named Cannonball and Sunset in a wacky negotiation with an alien named Mojo to finalize a movie-making package.      I enjoyed this comic very much.  Kudos must be given all around to the extensive cast of writers and artists who teamed on the various stories, for pulling-off the very admirable feat of giving the reader four 8-page stories that each manage to provide a satisfying, well-rounded tale in only 8 pages.  Credit is also due to Editor John Barber and his team for balancing very nicely the variety of stories: we have an action/battle story, a mystery/thriller, a dark satire and a wacky comedy all rolled-up into one comic issue.  That's a lot of high quality variety for one $3.99 comic issue, and takes a skilled editor to pull it off.      I can't remember the last time that I read four stories in one comic that gave this level of art and story quality across-the-board, so a very enthusiastic thumbs-up for this issue.  Here's hoping that the creative team keeps producing this high level of value for future issues.  In the meantime, go enjoy issue #2, now!   Savior 28 #1 Publisher: IDW J.M. DeMatteis: Writer Mike Cavallaro: Artist Andrew Covalt: Colors      IDW has a new comic title out this week with issue #1 of The Life And Times Of Savior 28.  The title gives us a brand-new superhero created by J.M. DeMatteis, with art by Mike Cavallaro and colors by Andrew Covalt.      The plot in issue #1 introduces us to the basics of the Savior 28 story universe.  "28's" origin is similar to Captain America, as a down-and-out pre-World War II army vet named James Smith is enhanced into a costumed super soldier when government scientists implant an ancient artifact called The Master Stone into his chest.  After 27 failed operations on earlier unlucky test subjects Smith's operation succeeds, and thus superhero #28 is born.      Issue #1's plot ranges back-and-forth over a 70-year period, as James Smith struggles with the emotional stress of fitting into a rapidly changing society, staying the same age while loved ones age and die, and seeming to fail in his struggle to find a relevant and worthwhile role as a superhero in our present-day, over-complicated and socially fractured world.      While I'm giving a positive recommendation on this comic, I have a mixed reaction to issue #1.  On the positive side, enough credit can't be given to writer DeMatteis for giving us a fresh and original take on a traditional costumed superhero.  It's very tough coming-up with a new superhero in today's market that has enough depth of character and storyline to have some potential staying power, and DeMatteis has hit a bullseye on that count.  We've also seen many a comic over the years with the central theme of a superhero agonizing over his or her role in society.  Again, the creative team does a strong job of giving us a fresh approach on this Watchmen-like aspect of the comic hero story element.      The main criticism here is a failure of editing by the folks at IDW Publishing.  While I loved issue #1's story details, the 20 pages of the story are just hyper-packed with too many plot elements, revelations and Savior 28 facts.  With only six pages of traditional, in-the-present comic book dialogue and action given to us early in the issue, we're left with 14 pages of overly-detailed backstory narrative.  The result left me with the feeling that I was reading less of a stand-alone comic issue and more of a packed outline or series treatment for at least twelve issues of a Savior 28 comic line.       That's not the creative team's failure, its a failure of editing, one that seems common at the smaller comic publishing houses.  The right editors at DC or Marvel would have the comic creators take a deep breath and take their time in alternately developing two-to-four-page segments of the jam-packed story treatment in issue #1 instead into a series of potentially moving, stand-alone issues.      Again, a positive recommendation to check-out issue #1 for the entertaining story elements within this worthy attempt at creating a traditional superhero in a crowded publishing market.  But here's hoping that the editors at IDW give this heavily overloaded mix of story details the proper structure and steady editing hand to slow down in the storytelling, put down some roots and try to grow some multi-issue staying power.  The creative team and their new superhero deserve as much.  Groom Lake #1 Publisher: IDW Publishing Chris Ryall: Writer Ben Templesmith: Art Robbie Robbins: Letters      IDW Publishing has a new aliens 'n UFO's-themed comic out this week entitled Groom Lake.  An original creation of writer Chris Ryall and artist Ben Templesmith, the series is an intriguing new take on the classic UFO genre. The plot of issue #1 gives the reader an introduction to the creative team's particular take on the UFO fiction mythology.       20-year-old Karl Bauer of Portsmouth, New Hampshire is informed by the Feds that his missing father was actually abducted and probed by aliens, and has now been returned after a two-year absence.  Karl is taken by Special Agent Leticia Pope to Groom Lake, a secret Area 51-style government facility in New Mexico, where he is reunited with his mutilated father just before his dad's subsequent death and introduced to a cast of alien characters living and working at the base.      I'm a huge fan of the general UFO genre and have always enjoyed comic book-related UFO and alien material, particularly the Topps Comics X-Files comic line published in the 1990's as a spin-off of the popular Fox Television show.  As such, I'm pleased to report that Ryall and Templesmith provide us here with a very fresh and entertaining addition to the world of UFO's, aliens and generally mysterious doings.      The strength and entertainment of Groom Lake issue #1 is the result of three combined elements.  First, the creative team nicely combines the UFO genre with the Men-In- Black world, balancing smoothly the idea of unidentified flying objects with the M.I.B. concept of a significantly-large U.S. government agency that employs aliens to work with the Feds in addressing human-alien storylines.       Secondly, Ryall and Templesmith give us a nice fresh characterization of the aliens that they create.  In issue #1 we meet Archibald, the quintessential large-headed, bug-eyed little green man (he's grey, actually) who heads-up whatever the Feds are secretly working-on.  Archibald speaks in a very entertaining, happy-go-lucky sing-song of pidgeon English that's worth reading just for its own enjoyment.  We also have Barada 2, the giant killer robot who has unsuccessfully tried to escape from Groom Lake on a weekly basis since he was first captured back in the 1950's buzzing-over Washington in his UFO.  Archibald finds the weekly violent robot break-out attempts extremely entertaining, chainsmoking and chanting "Barada-Bada-Fofada!" with glee as he watches the weekly breakout attempt.      Third, the creative team manages to apply just the perfect blend of dark humor and light comedy along with a dash of seriousness to this whole alien conspiracy/mystery stew that they're a-brewin' down in Groom Lake.  You just can't take this stuff seriously, and it can be wildly entertaining when its done-up right, as it definitely is in Groom Lake #1.  It's also the presence of little minor story touches that help to make this comic a gem-as an example, look for a very funny take on the "you've got your father's eyes" remark at the top of page 15.      So whether you're a fan of this genre or just a comic book reader in general, don't miss-out on this new and entertaining comic line.  It'll probably sell very fast, so if the new comics shelf is sold-out of issue #1 by the time you check it out, I highly recommend that you ask the good folks at That's Entertainment to order you a copy.  You won't be disappointed! Avengers: The Initiative Special #1 Publisher: Marvel Comics Christos N. Gage: Writer Steve Uy: Artist     There's seems to be a lot of activity and change these days among the various Avengers titles published by Marvel Comics.  I'm not a regular Avengers reader, but I grew-up as a fan of the original Silver Age Avengers team, so from-time-to-time I dip back into the Avengers universe and review one of the current efforts.  Avengers: The Initiative Special #1 caught my eye last week on the That's Entertainment new comic issues wall, so let's see what its all about.      This one-shot addition to the current Avengers universe is entitled "The Real Thing," and is written by Christos N. Gage, with art by Steve Uy.  An introductory narrative informs us that S.H.I.E.L.D. has a new program called The Initiative, which trains young super-powered people and fields them in local teams in each of the 50 states.  The plot of this issue initially focuses on the Arizona and Nevada teams working together to save the Hoover Dam against an electromagnetic creature.  The story then shifts to the personal relationship between Arizona team member Komodo, who gained her powers from The Lizard's transforming formula, and her Nevada team member/ boyfriend Hardball, who's being clandestinely pressured by Hydra to betray Komodo and The Initiative.  The story climaxes with an epic street battle in Las Vegas, within which Hardball has to make some difficult choices which I won't reveal for fear of being a story spoiler.      This is a high quality comic issue in many respects.  One of Gage's strengths as an accomplished veteran Marvel writer is his ability to bring real-world characterization to the superheros that he scripts.  Whether the focus here is on the Komodo-Hardball relationship or the superhero-bad guy action, the story elements and dialogue are well-grounded in realism and believability, which lends a nice mix of literary credibility and enjoyment, for me at least, toward reading the story.  I particularly liked the final third of the story, in which Hardball struggles with some difficult choices regarding loyalty versus betrayal for his teammates, his girlfriend and himself.  The choices are not simple or clear-cut, which again lends a realistic tone to the storyline.      I also enjoyed very much Steve Uy's quality artwork, combined with a comic that gives-us a large group of young, latest-generation Avengers with whom I was not familiar.  Combined with the leadership of the old-school Marvel figure/Arizona Team Leader of The Two-Gun Kid, the new characters were a colorful and credible bunch to add to the growing army of Marvel superheros.      There's an eight-page second story in this $3.99 expanded comic issue entitled "Fear For Your Life," scripted by Gage and Dan Slott and drawn by Uy.  The plot focuses on Trauma, a Goth-type kid who struggles in Camp Hammond, The Initiative training center, to cope with the difficulty of having a power that overwhelms the people he meets by projecting their worst fears onto them.  It's a well-presented story, but struck me as being geared toward a younger, high school-age reading crowd.       So a definite thumbs-up for this issue.  If you're a regular Avengers reader, you'll want to read this comic to keep up-to-date with some of the ongoings within the wider Avengers multi-title universe.  But if you're not a regular Avengers reader, I'd still suggest checking this comic out, as it has staying power as a stand-alone, enjoyable Avengers comic issue. Dark Avengers #3 Publisher: Marvel Comics Brian Michael Bendis: Writer Mike Deodato: Art Rain Beredo: Color Art      Marvel's latest issue of Dark Avengers is out this week.  I had reviewed issue #1 a few months ago, and was impressed at the time with this new title line addition to the wider Avengers Universe; the Dark Avengers series is proving so popular among readers that I'm inclined this week to revisit the title with the current issue to see how the storyline is proceeding.      The concept here is that Norman Osborn, the former villainous Green Goblin, has replaced Tony Stark, a.k.a Iron Man, as national security leader and has reconstituted the Avengers.  Unbenownst to the public, Osborn has installed many of the Marvel Universe bad guys in disguise as The New Avengers, with Osborn himself taking-on a red, white and blue Iron Man-like persona in which he calls himself The Iron Patriot.  The current issue #3 progresses the storyline through two sub-plots.  In the first, Osborn conducts a lengthy, therapist-like conversation within Avengers headquarters with a mentally-deranged Bob Reynolds, a.k.a The Sentry.  Over the course of the first nine story pages, Osborn helps The Sentry take the first tentative steps out of his insanity and back toward the world of a functioning superhero life.  The second sub-plot balances the Osborn/Sentry conversation with fast-paced action adventure, as The Dark Avengers team-up with Dr. Doom in a desperate battle against the rapidly time-traveling sorceress Morgana Le Fay, who is intent on destroying Dr. Doom and anyone who stands in her way of succeeding.      When I reviewed issue #1, I felt that veteran Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis had really hit upon a unique and enjoyable take on the ever-changing Avengers world.  I'm pleased to report that the current issue #3 indicates that Bendis is really hitting his story-telling stride as the series progresses.  The 9-page Socratic dialogue between Osborn and The Sentry is as mesmerizing as any high action sequence, as Osborn conducts an engrossing intellectual high-wire act, carefully balancing his bad guy cunning skills with his new supposedly good guy Avengers leadership role in gently trying to lead The Sentry back to the real world of sanity.       The remainder of the issue gives us 13 pages of classic hero-villain battle action.  Again, Bendis gives us a special story, here, by going beyond a traditional superpowered fight sequence to weave-in a very complex story element of Morgana Le Fay time-tripping her way back to attack the new Avengers in the same battle again and again, actually repeatedly re-working the timestream from the safety of her castle base in 690 A.D. whenever she repeatedly dies in the present-day battle, to come back at the Avengers and Dr. Doom in a new and deadlier manner.  Bendis and artist Mike Deodato provide a terrific final four-page story sequence that brings the battle to a climax with a twist that left me with a wonderful feeling of anticipation for next month's issue #4 in this ongoing adventure.      I actually felt breathless after reading this comic, as Bendis's script combined with Deodato's classic Marvel action artwork to give the reader a full throttle adventure.  The combination of story and artwork here flows in a cinematic manner reminiscent of the best story and artwork that veteran Gene Colan gave us in the Silver Age heyday of Marvel story-telling.  My obvious thumbs-up here includes a recommendation not only to read issue #3 for its own enjoyment, but to get on-board now at the early stages of this new Avengers series, for a ride that has the potential to be looked back at in the future as a classic series, if the first few issues are any indication of where Bendis and Deodato are capable of taking this storyline. Solomon Grundy #1 Publisher: DC Comics Scott Kolins: Story, Art & Cover Michael Atiyeh: Colors      DC Comics has reanimated (pun intended!) this month perrenial zombie villain Solomon Grundy in his own seven-issue mini-series.  For the uninitiated, Solomon Grundy was created as a DC character back in the Golden Age 1940's.  Grundy is the evil zombie of 19th century Gotham City financier Cyrus Gold, who was murdered back in the 1890's and dumped in nearby Slaughter Swamp.  50 years later, Gold gets reanimated as the swamp-based, superpowerful and mindless evil zombie.  He derives his name from the children's nursery rhyme ("Solomon Grundy, born on Monday...) as it is one of the few memories he retains from his previous lifetime.  Originally a foe of the Golden Age Green Lantern, DC also featured Grundy over the decades as an opponent of Batman and Superman.  My personal Silver Age memories of Grundy were as a featured foe of Batman in those years.      Issue #1 mainly serves as an origin issue to kick-off this new mini-series.  The Phantom Stranger sets the creepy mood by serving as the backstory narrator, starting the story by giving us the origin of Slaughter Swamp as a breeding ground of evil originating from an ancient demonic battle at the site.  Hence Gold's body absorbing the evil and turning into said bad guy zombie.  The creative team next walks us through Grundy's early conflicts with the original Green Lantern, with the bulk of the remaining issue pages giving us a modern day heavy action battle in and around Gotham between Grundy and our old Jack Kirby Fourth World friend The Demon Etrigan.  The issue ends with a tantalizing reference to another DC zombie-style villain who most likely is about to make a major entrance into the plot in the upcoming issue #2.      To be honest, I've never been a fan of this DC character; the characterization of Grundy in the Silver Age always seemed to me to be a poor man's's/weak DC attempt to counterpoint Marvel's Hulk, with too much creepiness, dark melancholy and violence built into the character for my personal enjoyment.  But I was attracted to review this latest incarnation of the character to see how the creative team interprets this old DC standby in 2009.      While not a great comic, I definitely give it a thumbs-up if you personally like this type of story theme.  Writer/artist Scott Kolins does an admirable job of giving us Grundy's backstory as quickly and usefully as possible, thus leaving most of the issue to focus on kicking-off the new mini-series story with the Grundy/Demon battle in Gotham.  There are enough small inclusions of other characters in the issue #1 plot, such as The Phantom Stranger as narrator, the original Green Lantern as traditional foe, The Demon and the surprise last page new villain, to give writer/artist Kolins the potential for one or more intriguing and detailed sub-plots to unfold as the mini-series progresses for six more issues.      So while I'm not a personal fan of flying body parts, reanimation and demonic zombie stories, if you are a fan, this is a very good quality effort to tell such a tale and have some story fun by combining some of the DC stable of superhero characters into the mini-series mix. The Flash: Rebirth #1 Publisher: DC Comics Geoff Johns: Writer Ethan Van Sciver: Artis Moose Baumann: Colors      DC has published issue #1 this week of the eagerly-anticipated return of Barry Allen as The Flash.  The issue is scripted by the renowned Geoff Johns, with art by Ethan Van Sciver and colors by Moose Baumann.  The Barry Allen version of The Flash is one of the Silver Age's flagship DC characters.  Most comic book enthusiasts consider DC's introduction of the Barry Allen Flash in Showcase #4 back in 1956 as the official start of the Silver Age of superhero comicdom.  I'm a big fan of the Carmine Infantino issues of Flash from the 1960's, and as such have been looking forward to The Flash: Rebirth series.       Issue #1 reflects the wide-ranging changes to The Flash Universe since those days.  In helping to save the world in previous DC storylines in the recent past, Allen/The Flash apparently got pulled into "The Speed Force," which is a part of the extradimensional lightning that all speedsters access to do their superspeed running.  The plot of issue #1 is a two sub-plot introductory story.  One storyline focuses on introducing the reader to the wide-ranging cast of both good and bad characters in The Flash's life, as his friends, family and the world in general prepare celebrations honoring his return to Central City from his entrapment.      The alternating storyline is an extended dialogue between The Flash and Hal Jordan/Green Lantern, as Barry Allen expresses angst over his return and how he sees his roles and responsibilities in society versus the other people's expectations.  The issue concludes in a cliffhanger, as Allen unintentionally re-opens access to The Speed Force, with seemingly disastrous multiple results.      Given that Geoff Johns scripted the issue, Spoiled-Old-Me expected an instant classic along the lines of Johns's acclaimed run at Action Comics last year, or at the level of rare quality that he has brought to Justice Society.  While we don't get that level of story quality, we do get a very good comic story in a more traditional format that follows very nicely in the style and content footprints of the traditional Flash comic title that has evolved over the decades.      While this comic wasn't what I expected, I did find it very enjoyable for a few reasons.  Johns takes on the detailed task of introducing the reader to the very wide range of Barry Allen's family, friends, foes and the various Flash successors, from Wally Wood onward.  He pulls this introduction off very well, to the point where someone like me who hasn't followed The Flash for years and doesn't know many of these characters can actually come away from this issue having easily learned a bit as to how these folks fit into the 2009 world of this title.  Johns also provides credible writing on the action side of the story.  The accidental access to the dangers of The Speed Force is handled well, leaving the reader with several good hints anticipating at various sub-plots that will evolve in upcoming issues.       So a definite thumbs-up for a well-scripted and nicely drawn return to the 2009 DC Universe for the traditional Barry Allen version of The Flash. Irredeemable Publisher: BOOM! Studios Mark Waid: Creator & Writer Peter Krause: Artist Andrew Dalhouse: Colorist      BOOM! Studios has released issue #1 of Irredeemable, a bold experiment by creator/writer Mark Waid.  Best known as the writer of DC's iconic Kingdom Come, Waid has presented us with a unique new series that explores the dark side of superheroism-gone-bad to a degree rarely presented in comic book format.      The main character of Irredeemable is The Plutonian, a blond, blue-eyed All-American Boy caped superhero cut in the midwestern cloth of Superman.  In flashback sequences, Waid shows the mysterious Plutonian teaming-up with a Justice League-type group of superheros and all initially seems well in their world.  However, Waid juxtaposes this flashback world with the present day, in which The Plutonium has gone murderously berserk and is in the process of relentlessly hunting-down his teammates and slaughtering them and their innocent loved ones.      This is a very cutting edge and at times mesmerizing take on the dual questions of why a Superman-like boy scout of a hero would go rogue and just what does it take to stop the most powerful person on the planet when he completely goes over to The Dark Side.  Mark Waid pushes the plotting envelope farther than I believe any comic creator ever has in exploring this difficult theme.  I actually had to read this comic book twice, in order to absorb the revulsion of several of the scenes of The Plutonian's violence and mayhem against innocents and his good guy former superhero friends and allies.      Waid also examines in this new series the major comic superhero theme of the nature of good versus evil.  Issue #1's story line is rich with Waid's proposal that this is a very grey issue area;  while The Plutonian's former allies initially are presented as preyed-upon, weaker good guys, there are strong plot hints here that all is not as it seems, that they themselves harbor dark sides and quite possibly may have betrayed The Plutonian to the point where they are responsible for victimizing him until he transforms into a slaughtering madman.       If you miss this comic title, you're quite possibly missing one of the boldest experiments in examining the psychological nature of superheroism to come down the publishing pike in quite some time.  So my advice is don't miss Irredeemable.  Reading this comic is to some degree uncomfortable and draining, but it's definitely entertaining.  And unlike just about any other comic out there at the moment, without sounding pretentious, its just plainly an important comic book in its sobering and difficult examination of the basic superhero concepts of good, evil and the nightmare of when the All-American dream of caped crusading goes awfully, horribly, irredeemably wrong. Captain America Comics #1 One-Shot 70th Anniversary Special Publisher: Marvel Comics James Robinson: Writer Marcos Martin: ArtistJavier Rodriquez: Colors      My brother Dave recently brought to my attention that in honor of the 70th anniversary this year of Marvel Comics, the company is issuing four one-shot anniversary tributes to its original three superheros.  The first comic book is out this week as a tribute to Captain America, with the remaining issues to be in honor of The Sub-Mariner, original Human Torch and Marvel Mystery Comics.  This Captain America one-shot is written by James Robinson with art by Marcos Martin and Javier Rodriquez.      The issue is a beautiful tribute not only to the Golden Age 1940's era of Captain America and his sidekick Bucky, but also to Marvel's original parent company, Timely Comics, Inc.  The Timely logo is prominent throughout the issue as an historical tribute to the roots of today's Marvel comics universe.  Marvel also pays a nice narrative tribute on the bottom of the first page to the multiple artists and assistants who labored anonymously on Timely's 1940's comics through the Simon & Kirby studio without getting personal credit references in the published issues in those days.      Issue #1 gives us two stories.  The main story, entitled "What Makes The Man," is a 23-page flashback tale narrated by Bucky Barnes, giving us a completely new, reinterpreted version of how Steve Rodgers became Captain America.  Here, the scrawny 4-F recruitment washout actually gets caught-up in pre-World War II espionage intrigue, as he stumbles out of the Army recruitment center and directly into a confrontation with pre-war Nazi domestic spies.      The point of the plot is to show us that the basic character attributes of Captain America already existed in the pre-Cap, scrawny Steve Rodgers.  The main story focus is a wonderful, cinematic chase sequence through pre-war New York, as Steve uses acrobatic skills, trash can lids a la his famous future shield and just plain gutsiness to prove, as Bucky narrates, "when he was still frail and slight, inside he was still the man that he is now."      The beautiful art and at-times moving reinterpretation of a familiar Captain America storyline puts this comic on a par with Tim Sale's "Superman: For All Seasons" 4-issue mini-series back in the 1990's.  As such, this comic book gives us both an entertaining read and a worthy 70th anniversary tribute to an iconic figure of both comicdom and general 20th century American popular culture.  Also, don't miss the second story in the issue, a reprint from Captain America Comics #7, originally published in October of 1941.  Entitled "Captain America: Death Loads The Bases!" its a baseball-related action story that is very timely, given the start this past week of the Major League baseball season. The Warlord #1 Publisher:  DC Comics Mike Grell: Writer Joe Prado: Penciller Walden Wong: Inker David Curiel: Colorist      DC has just published issue #1 of a new title for The Warlord.  The creation of veteran Mike Grell, The Warlord had his debut in 1975 in DC's First Issue Special #8 (I still own my copy!) and had a popular and lengthy run through 133 issues of his own title from 1976 until 1989.  The Warlord is Vietnam War fighter pilot Travis Morgan, who while flying over the north pole crashes through a hole in the Earth into the undiscovered realm of Skataris.  Grell developed the storyline as an Edgar Rice Burroughs-like lost world where Morgan becomes The Warlord and has numerous adventures in this prehistoric civilization/barbarian land.      Issue #1 of the new title is set in the present day and alternates between two sub-plots. The main story focuses on young archaeologist Alysha Grant, who discovers a frozen dinosaur in a cave in Tibet, which unbenownst to her is most likely a portal into the hidden Skataris.  The rest of the issue takes us through Grant's efforts in assembling a team of adventurers to return to the frozen dinosaur, ending with their stumbling upon the hidden kingdom's entryway.      Our second sub-plot re-introduces us to the present day Travis Morgan/Warlord, as he awakens from one of his periodic hibernating sleeps which slow down his aging and allow him to extend his Warlord rule over the decades.  Although much briefer in length than the first sub-plot, the premise is established that a wave of refugees is flooding into the Warlord's city of Shamballah, ahead of an invading "new god and his queen" with previously unseen powers.  Morgan quickly discovers that said new powers are modern firearms, thus establishing the hook that modern world invaders have entered the hidden realm.  Its up to issue #2 to reveal whether or not these invaders are part of Alysha Grant's team or a separate force.      This is an enjoyable comic read for at least three reasons.  First and foremost is the artwork.  A major attraction of the original title was Grell's lush illustration, recalling the best of the mid-20th century pulp illustrations that accompanied the fantasy fiction of writers such as Burroughs.  The new art team of Prado/Wong/Curiel succeeds in filling Grell's shoes admirably, providing us with a really nice two-page flashback montage of Morgan's 1969 entry into the hidden kingdom, as well as seven beautifully-rendered pages of Morgan's present-day life in Skataris.  There's also a beautiful cover for issue #1 drawn by Grell himself.      The second strength of this issue centers on Grell's writing.  I enjoyed the fusing of the new, modern-day story characters of Alysha Grant and her young adventurers with the traditional world of The Warlord comic line.  Its obvious that beyond issue #1, the plot will lead to the old and new characters coming together, with lots of potential interesting plotting and action possibilities available to make for an entertaining new comic run.  Third, as an old Warlord fan, I was glad to see Grell quickly introduce us to a few other standard characters from the old comic, namely, Morgan's barbarian bride/queen Tara and Shakira, Morgan's shape-shifting were-cat friend and ally.      You don't have to be a veteran fan of The Warlord to enjoy the return of this DC character; this comic has strong legs of its own, both artistically and plot-wise, for old and new fans alike to be entertained.  So definitely give this new title a read and enjoy! Man-Bat #1 Publisher:  DC Comics Joe Harris: Writer Jim Calafiore: Artist Guy Major: Colors      Our second 1970's-era DC character up for review this week is Man-Bat, who's featured this week in a brand-new One-Shot comic from DC.  For the uninitiated, Man-Bat is Dr. Kirk Langstrom, a research scientist who developed a serum that transforms him into a humanoid bat-person.  DC introduced the character back in the 1970's and at the time gave him a brief run for two issues in his own comic title.  While at times over the years Langstrom/Man-Bat has been portrayed as a bad guy, I recall him having been originally created as a misunderstood and tragic figure, as Langstrom struggled to control in his transformation the out-of-control bat-like behavior and blood-craving so that he might be able to become a decent superbeing.      This latest Man-Bat one-shot issue is part of the ongoing "Battle For The Cowl" series, as the world of Gotham City and its various characters jockey for power and position within the vacuum created by the current death/disappearance of The Caped Crusader.  The plot of issue #1 alternates between the standard theme of Langstrom struggling to control the Man-Bat personality with a sub-plot of Langstrom trying to rescue his wife from kidnapping at the hands of a villain escapee from the infamous Arkham Asylum.  I won't reveal the identity of said villain in this review for those readers who don't want a spoiler.      I give a definite thumbs-up recommendation for this comic.  Its strongest point is writer Joe Harris's success in nicely blending the basics of the Man-Bat character into the ongoing Battle For The Cowl situation.  Man-Bat is usually portrayed as a second-class citizen in whatever storyline he's portrayed, disrespected and reviled by most of the other players.  There's a very poignant scene in this comic addressing this issue, as Langstrom discovers that Oracle sends a distress signal over Batman's disappearance to everyone in the hero world who's ever been involved with Batman, with the sole exception of excluding him from the communication.  This snub very effectively heightens his isolation and emphasizes his yearning to somehow control the beast in him and be accepted by superhero society.      The artistic team is also top notch in this issue, giving us an artistic style appropriately suited to the bat-guy-with-big-ears nature of the character and the blood-laden, vampire-bat world that he struggles in.  As such, my only constructive criticism is actually a compliment, in that the quality of the comic begs for DC to have structured the story as a mini-series or short-run title, as opposed to just a One-Shot comic book.  So here's hoping that the good folks at DC have the sense to continue incorporating Man-Bat somewhere and somehow within the various titles and issues of the wider, continuing "Battle For The Cowl" storyline.      So there you have it folks, two DC comic book characters back this week from the 1970's in new, 2009 adventures.  What's old is new, and what's new is good reading in both issues.