just in case someone accuses me of not giving back (cough, cough), i went over to the Universe as owned by Jim Hanley, whipped out a shopping list, and took aim. of course, with the 3rd New York Comic Con a couple of weeks away, this trip was no coincidence. you can bet some of these babies will bear a few Hancocks after that weekend. the wife took a couple of Adult Swim t-shirts (you can't say no to Brak).
considering i haven't had a "pull list" in a regular comic book store since 1999, and i haven't bought trade paperbacks (TPBs) from a real comic book store since 2005 (last year's Pride of Baghdad from a Barnes and Noble doesn't count), this one had a "kid in the candy store" feeling. but i had better control of the "kid" because i don't go wild buying everything in sight anymore (never happened but you never know).
TPBs are like the DVD boxed sets of the comic world. although it doesn't come out quite as fast a DVD edition of a blockbuster hit, it certainly would hit the streets much more often than it did in the past decade, especially collected works of hot artists and popular summer crossovers or storylines. i prefer buying the collected edition, because its a pain in the ass to keep going back to the store every month, and am not young not that interested anymore. plus with all the downloading going on ... wait, no i did not say that word.
considering i haven't had a "pull list" in a regular comic book store since 1999, and i haven't bought trade paperbacks (TPBs) from a real comic book store since 2005 (last year's Pride of Baghdad from a Barnes and Noble doesn't count), this one had a "kid in the candy store" feeling. but i had better control of the "kid" because i don't go wild buying everything in sight anymore (never happened but you never know).
TPBs are like the DVD boxed sets of the comic world. although it doesn't come out quite as fast a DVD edition of a blockbuster hit, it certainly would hit the streets much more often than it did in the past decade, especially collected works of hot artists and popular summer crossovers or storylines. i prefer buying the collected edition, because its a pain in the ass to keep going back to the store every month, and am not young not that interested anymore. plus with all the downloading going on ... wait, no i did not say that word.
Ultimates 2: Grand Theft America
Mark Millar/Bryan Hitch/Paul Neary
the eight-page gatefold by artist Bryan Hitch is almost worth the cover price. this TPB came out much faster than it took Hitch to finish issues 11, 12 and 13. although the ending seems forced as Mark Millar just wanted to put everyone in the picture for a nice big epic fight, its the Ultimates as they were designed for.
House of M
Brian Michael Bendis/Olivier Coipel
i used to like the Scarlet Witch a lot before this 2005 crossover, and predictably, after Bendis' gleeful deconstruction, i hated the bitch she became. okay, am just empathizing with poor Hawkeye (killed many times over) and Spiderman (his fake life had him having a son with Gwen Stacy). and can you really blame the mentally challenged? no wait, let's just blame the real culprit, her creepy psycho incestuous brother - yes, you, Pietro. jackass. its not Age of Apocalypse, but has more serious ramifications.
Civil War
Mark Millar/Steve McNiven
presenting the collected controversial 7-issue crossover of 2006-07. even though i read the series (and all the ensuing spinoffs and related issues as they came out), this comes out as TPB-worthy item to stack in my shelf. i'm sure there's a lot of haters out there, but why can't they be as amusing like mighty god king? as a story, its not perfect, but then it makes sense that that day would come. it was definitely a huge pissing contest (with Tony Stark completely going insane with his messiah complex) which only stopped when Cap died. at least by the end of this year, we expect to see one reunited Avengers team.
Death of Captain America
Ed Brubaker/Steve Epting
speaking of Captain America, Steve Rogers has been dead for a year now, and the former Bucky Barnes has taken up the mantle. the tragic event has been panned for being a gimmick, and so far, Rogers has not resurfaced. unless you're telling me that that dead body was a Skrull all along - i don't whether i'd feel happy or feel conned. better not cross that line, Bendis/Quesada.
Infinite Crisis
Geoff Johns/Phil Jimenez
1985's Crisis on Infinite Earths makes my head hurt if i try to wrap my mind around it too much. so imagine if there was an "infinite" crisis - then the headaches would never stop. fortunately Messrs. Johns and Jimenez take it easy on me, and even though the whole storyline is a lot complicated for DC n00bs, you can go back to the little details later and focus on what huge pricks this Superboy Prime and Alexander Luthor are.
Green Lantern: Rebirth
Geoff Johns/Ethan Van Sciver/Prentiss Rollins
i was deciding between this and No Fear, but since the latter was still in hardcover format, i went for the cheaper one, but then it fits because this is where Hal Jordan reclaims his mantle as the greatest Green Lantern in any timeline or universe. if you're unconvinced, here's a comparison: Batman punching Guy Gardner = cool. Hal Jordan punching Batman = waaaaaaaay cooler.
Secret Invasion #1
Brian Michael Bendis/Leinil Francis Yu/Mark Morales
do you know how much this same issue costs with the alternative variant covers? somewhere between $20 to $50. are you kidding me? actually why am i even surprised? its how these superstar creators/artists make money (or do they?). sorry, Leinil. you're way richer than me, so i can only shell out 4 bucks for this. too bad you won't be around to sign it.
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