crash landing

drive-by readings

Power Girl #15 (DC) "Bomb Squad Part Two" Judd Winnick Sami Basri Sunny Gho John J. Hill

what we learned: the Russian arms dealer is now Crash, weaponized into a city destroyer. but to learn his Achilles Heel, Karen sacrifices her secret id to her newest employer, a former uberhacker. however, there's a catch, and its name is ...
oh shit moment: ... Maxwell Lord, who designed Crash to replicate Kryptonian cellular structure.
what's next: so Lord has morphed from a joke, to a what-he's-a-bad-guy-now (some people are still in denial he shot Ted), and now, to a real honest-to-goodness villain. bring it on.


don't complain, you got a front row seat.

bombed

drive-by readings

Power Girl #14 (DC) "Bomb Squad Part One" Judd Winnick Sami Basri Sunny Gho John J. Hill

what we learned: Starrware is being taken over by the banks, given that they can't pay their loans because of embezzlement, and now the Busty Airborne Lass is torn in several directions with Booster plying his "don't you remember Max Lord?" schtick and a new alien (with a Russian arms dealer in its head) in town bent on destroying everything in sight.
oh shit moment: when i thought the title of the story was "Bomb Queen", then i realized Karen's chest was detail-washed out and it wasn't a Bomb Queen story.
what's next: we'd like to see respectable sales numbers so they don't take away our PeeGee.


one man's junk is another woman's puzzle.

the weekly hits

Sea Bear & Grizzly Shark (Image)
Ryan Ottley/Jason Howard/Cliff Rathburn
what we learned: a Sea Bear. a Grizzly Shark. eating people anywhere. that's all you need to know.
oh shit moment: just imagine any moment you could be doing your own thing, then suddenly you're wondering why your head is at ground level and the rest of your body's just ... gone.
what's next: really? you want this to be an ongoing? well ....


Batman: Streets of Gotham #13 (DC)
Paul Dini/Dustin Nguyen/Derek Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Sal Cipriano
what we learned: the Carpenter turns the tables on the Director just in time for Batman to clean up. despite the cheesy dialogue because of the nature of the story, its entertaining. by the way, how does everyone manage to show up at the right time for the board meetings to remind Thomas Eliott of his place?
oh shit moment: nothing much to shit your pants about. although Jenna Duffy has been warned off by Bats, she can't resist the lure of the job of assembling for dangerous people (which means that hauling supercriminals off to jail never works).
what's next: what is Hush up to?


Hulk #23 (Marvel)
Jeph Loeb/Ed McGuiness/Mark Farmer/Morry Hollowell/Richard Starkings/Herb Trimpe/Dave McCaig/Tim Sale/Dave Stewart/Dale Keown/Sal Buscema/Brad Anderson/Ian Churchill/Edgar Delgado/Leinil Yu/Gerry Alanguilan/Marte Gracia/John Romita Jr./Klaus Janson/Emily Warren/Dean White/Jason Keith/Mike Deodato/Rain Beredo (variant cover: Adam Kubert/Laura Martin)
man, i'm tired typing all those credits, but its the only way to give those nods as Blogger's 200 character limit for tags (booooo!) kinda put a damper on the party, and it was a rocking one.

Green Arrow #1 (DC)
J.T. Krul/Diogenes Neves/Vicente Cifuentes/Ulises Arreola/Rob Leigh (covers: Mauro Cascioli, Ethan Van Sciver/Hi-Fi)
what we learned: despite him being kicked out of Star City, Ollie Queen can't help himself and still hangs around. and conveniently a "magical" forest has sprung around the city, giving him cachet to play a man in tights. oh, someone offed his best friend Nunocerda. now Ollie has to throw away his special Nunocerda arrow.
oh shit moment: uh, Ollie stealing food from the rich to give to the poor? yeah. or his stepmom takes his company back.
what's next: team up with his pal Hal and beat up some rent-a-soldiers.

"well ... uh ... actually this is my BDSM outfit. heh."

X-Men Legacy #237 (Marvel)
Mike Carey/Greg Land/Jay Leisten/Justin Ponsor/Cory Petit (cover: Adi Granov)
what we learned: aren't you glad they resurrected Doug Ramsey? and they say diplomatic and linguistic skills are useless in battle. suspiciously, Colossus' broken arm is not shown at all.
oh shit moment: two for me: Magneto bleeding for the X-Men once again in a very long time, and Hope having the balls to threaten the de facto leader of an endangered species. really.
what's next: bring on Bastion!!! (i wonder if Scott Lobdell or Pascual Ferry is reading this crossover?)

see, if only Jean was that frisky ...

Fantastic Four #580 (Marvel)
Jonathan Hickman/Neil Edwards/Andrew Currie/Paul Mounts/Rus Wooton (cover: Alan Davis/Mark Farmer/Javier Rodriguez)
what we learned: Toys R Us is actually a front for Arcade (no longer a premiere X-villain) and the Impossible Man is an NYC gadabout with a semblance of social responsibility (you mean to say no one mistakes him for a Skrull?). much more interesting is Reed's Future Foundation, where a disparate young cast of characters is mentored by Mr. Fantastic to generate ideas for the betterment of mankind. no, not the wrestler.
oh shit moment: the Future Foundation's first project: to cure Ben Grimm! ok, not a total cure, but its a start. the Thing's inability to become human and the subsequent frustration of trying to be normal is a Marvel tradition. Jonathan Hickman, just like Ed Brubaker and that Bucky thing before him, is poised to upend the apple cart.
what's next: don't call him Rocky no more! no, seriously, please let this not be a dead end. Ben needs this as much as we fans do.


Avengers #2 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/John Romita Jr./Klaus Janson/Dean White/Cory Petit
to get to the future, they need a binoculars. then a ride. so they ask Space Ghost Penis to help. then (less than) Wonder Man shows up angry, disappears. then some Horsemen show up, also angry. next issue, they fight.

Secret Warriors #17 (Marvel)
Jonathan Hickman/Alessandro Vitti/Imaginary Friends Studio/Dave Lanphear (cover: Jim Cheung/Mark Morales/Justin Ponsor)
what we learned: smelling blood in the water, Nick Fury unleashes all his teams on the warring Hydra and Leviathan. the narrative though is post-event, as Dum Dum and Jasper Sitwell are grilled in a secret meeting convened by the UN Security Council. oh, and there's a party and Steve Rogers feels like a 20 year old man again.
oh shit moment: Howling Commandos silenced forevermore?
what's next: Howling Commandos silenced forevermore?


Thunderbolts #145 (Marvel)
Jeff Parker/Kev Walker/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne
i commend Luke Cage for taking the task of running Marvel's rehab program and facing threats with a bunch of guys who might just stab him in the back, front, side or wherever they please. nanites or no nanites, something bad's gonna happen.

Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne (Marvel)
Grant Morrison/Yanick Paquette/Michel Lacombe/Nathan Fairbairn/Jared Fletcher (covers: Andy Kubert/Yanick Paquette)
what we learned: some people might scoff at at the whole Final Crisis/Batman RIP thing as poorly-conceived non-permanent-event ripoff. that may be so, but it allowed us to have Batman & Robin and the Return of Bruce Wayne. in his trek back from the past, Bruce gets involved with Blackbeard the Pirate and upholds his legacy as the Man of Bats in the most amazing way.
oh shit moment: a dazed Bruce takes the cape and takes on the buccaneers with the Bat People. whooooooooo!
what's next: Jonah Hex! Cowboy Batman! yeeeeeee-haaaaaaaaaawww!


Wolverine: Weapon X #14 (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Ron Garney/Jason Keith/Matt Milla/Cory Petit (cover: Garney/Morry Hollowell)
what we learned: this Deathlok is a murderer revived as a killing machine (what's new?). but there's a conscience there somehow.
oh shit moment: the future human resistance decides to go after the civilian identities of the Deathloks in the past - while they're still kids.
what's next: Peace, 'Lok!!


Joker's Asylum: Killer Croc (DC)
Mike Raicht/David Yardin/Cliff Richards/Rodney Ramos/Jose Villarubia/Patrick Brosseau (cover: Francesco Mattina)
what we learned: despite the fear you have for Killer Croc as he chased you down the sewer tunnels of Arkham Asylum, there are bigger and viler beasts among men that you need to be more afraid of. and oh, did Francesco Mattina switch to DC already?
oh shit moment: we knew were it was going but the betrayal was painful nonetheless.
what's next: i think i need to check out the other Joker's Asylum titles i missed.


Power Girl #13 (DC)
Judd Winick/Sami Basri/Sunny Gho/John J. Hill
i know y'all miss Amanda Conner, but you should give this Basri guy a chance. and a serious story for a change.

Green Lantern Corps #49 (DC)
Tony Bedard/Ardian Syaf/Vicente Cifuentes/Randy Mayor/Gabe Eltaeb/Steve Wands (cover: Syaf/Cifuentes/Ulises Arreola, variant: Patrick Gleason/John Dell/Mayor)
what we learned: the rebellious Alpha Lanterns' recruitment drive is in full swing and it may have added Jon Stewart. opps, i meant John Stewart. dumb keyboard.
oh shit moment: who's behind all this nonsense? no, not Tony Bedard! its the i-wanna-die-but-i-cant Cyborg Superman! paging Dr. Kevorkian!
what's next: paging Dr. Kevorkian!

recharge

drive-by readings

Power Girl #13 (DC) "...What A Difference A Day Makes" Judd Winick Sami Basri Sunny Gho John J. Hill

whatever the reasons for the departure of much-lauded creative team of Gray/Palmiotti/Conner, they will definitely be missed. but that's not a diss for Judd Winick, who takes over with issue 13. hey, its PG-13, should we be seeing some PG-13 stuff? haha you wish. Winick slightly nudges Power Girl in a less cheesier direction (and i like cheese, don't get me wrong), which is probably the logical thing to do here, as continuing in that vein will elicit unfavorable comparisons.

in one issue, we get Power Girl as far as where she is right now in the DCU - immensely enjoying her day job, the hunt for Max Lord, the forgetting of Max Lord - but the cost of playing superhero may be her company, because when money is involved, you better be on top of things.

Winick balances the flashbacks and neatly intersperses it with current events. i'm glad she's still mentoring Terra after all the crap they went through because of the Ultra Humanite.


Sami Basri's art, which am not really familiar art, is clean and simple. continuity issues aside, this book should be a draw to tweeners and the female comicbook reading demographic. the art itself helps out in this regard. sure, there's still some cheese, but it should not be enough to turn off discriminating readers.

things i liked this week

Thunderbolts #144
Jeff Parker/Kev Walker/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne (cover: Marko Djurdjevic)

by now, everyone who follows the Marvel U and the T-Bolts in particular are probably in an ICU, for the nerd-neurysm that Jeff Parker gave them last Wednesday. in fact, i am typing this with my mind, because i have lost control of my motor skills.

Secret Avengers #1 (Marvel)
Ed Brubaker/Mike Deodato/Rain Beredo/Dave Lanphear (cover: Marko Djurdjevic)
Avengers fans who also follow the T-Bolts and didn't get to read T-Bolts #144 probably landed first in the hospital because of this.

Wolverine: Weapon X #13 (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Ron Garney/Jason Keith/Cory Petit (cover: Garney/Morry Hollowell)

the action heats up as Logan and Bucky Cap track down the inventor of the original Deathlok designer. curiosity arises as what's the beef between Logan and Buck (Natasha maybe?). anyhoo, they're unable to prevent Deathlok from reconfiguring himself and they're back on their heels. nice twist: the death of the future amazing Spider-Man.

Scalped #38 (DC/Vertigo)
Jason Aaron/R.M. Guera/Guilia Brusco/Steve Wands (cover: Jock)

Wade the Indian, a veteran soldier, whose lineage include nameless patriots who died for their country, is the luckiest man alive in terms of being able to escape certain death in the jungles of Vietnam. he's even considered unworthy to be killed by the Saigon residents in the final day of the war. now he's back in the US, and there seems to be a connection with him and the late Gina Bad Horse. hmm, Dashielle's dad then?

Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #2 (DC)
Grant Morrison/Frazer Irving/Jared Fletcher (cover: Andy Kubert/Irving)

i confess it took me a couple of reads, but i get it. Bruce reappears in puritanical New England (i presume) and right away puts logic and common sense over the close-minded and religious beliefs of the times. hot on his heels are Superman, Booster Gold, Rip Hunter and the rest of his friends who are impressed by the fact that he survived Final Crisis, but are also there in fact to stop him because, well, that's where things get complicated as Darkseid designed it to use Bruce as a doomsday Trojan horse. but this is Bruce we're talking about here - am sure he also solved that part too.

Thor #610 (Marvel)
Kieron Gillen/Doug Braithwaite/Andy Troy/Paul Mounts/Joe Sabino (cover: Mico Suayan/Laura Martin)

an epilogue of sorts to Siege, but with a final clash with that annoying Ragnarok a.k.a. Clor. i was surprised Tony or Reed ("short-sighted men") didn't show up here to help Thor take him down once and for all, which would also prove that either of them regret ever building that junk in the first place. it was heartbreaking to see Bill (Not Beta) alive in Valhalla, all but touchable by Kelda. and with Loki's disappearance, the wool has been pulled once again over the Asgardians' eyes. i'm glad Thor didn't accept the offer to be king again, because he's gonna be a goddarned regular Avenger from hereon. not sure though where this title goes from here (apart from the rebuilding of Asgard in one form or another). Straczynski successfully brought Thor back, and Gillen ends the chapter with the Asgardians tied in much tighter with the 616 universe.

Detective Comics #865 (DC)
David Hine/Jeremy Haun/David Baron/Todd Klein

so ... you think Jeremiah Arkham was the weakest link eh? the only thing about potentially one of the most damaging Bat villains in years isn't his own man, because he's merely a Joker co-creation.

Mystery Society (IDW)
Steve Niles/Fiona Staples/Robbie Robbins

Nick Mystery is like a modern day Indiana Jones figure but dealing more with conspiracy theories, government secrets and the fantastical. along with his wife, he forms the Mystery Society, but in the present day, he's being hauled off to prison for a variety of charges. this is basically an origin story, but it evokes some Hellboy and some Jonathan Hickman-S.H.I.E.L.D. (you know its good when its being referenced after only one issue).

Amazing Spider-Man #632 (Marvel)
Zeb Wells/Chris Bachalo/Emma Rios/Tim Townsend/Jaime Mendoza/Victor Olazaba/Antonio Fabela/Joe Caramagna (variant cover: Jay Anacleto/Brian Haberlin/Bob McLeod)

easily one of the best storylines of the year, Shed is another prime example why Spider-Man ABND (After Brand New Day) is one of the best Marvel titles again. and if they're making Spider-Man IV, its the Lizard's time to shed, ... i mean, shine!

X-Force #27 (Marvel)
Craig Kyle/Christopher Yost/Mike Choi/Sonia Oback/Cory Petit (cover: Adi Granov, variant cover: David Finch/Matt Banning/Peter Steigerwald)

its a very bad time to be a mutant. Nimrod-class sentinels from the future have trapped the X-Men in San Francisco and have inflicted heavy damages. the 10 pages dedicated to the battle - with no dialogue or sound effects - evoke memories of Superman vs. Doomsday. Cyclops' only card is to send X-Force to that future and somehow shut down the Sentinels with Doug's power (uh, couldn't Magneto or Box do this? oh right, the latter is outside the dome). expect more casualties before this thing is over. and oh yeah, i expect to see that talk between Ororo and Cyke about X-Force.

X-Men: Blind Science (Marvel)
Simon Spurrier/Paul Davidson/Francis Portela/Chris Sotomayor/Rob Steen (cover: Gerald Parel)

goddamn, i like Dr. Nemesis! i want him to be more vocal and more sarcastic and more smart-assy when he's talking to Cyke and the inner council around Utopia (God knows, Hank lost his sense of humor during one of his evolution phases and Bobby isn't that funny). wait, there may not be an Utopia after Bastion is done with them.

obviously, they're NOT Thundercats.

Doomwar #4 (Marvel)
Jonathan Maberry/Scot Eaton/Andy Lanning/Robert Campanella/Jean-Francois Beaulieu/Cory Petit (cover: John Romita Jr./Klaus Janson/Dean White)
this title has taken a backseat to Siege and Second Coming but it really should have been finished even before Soldier Field got blown to bits. and just when you think all is lost, and everything is gloom and (pun intended) doom, this guy shows up:


Green Lantern #54 (DC)
Geoff Johns/Doug Mahnke/Christian Alamy/Tom Nguyen/Keith Champagne/Randy Mayor/Gabe Eltaeb/Nick J. Napolitano (cover: Shane Davis/Sandra Hope/Barbara Ciardo, variant cover: Alex Garner)

what do i like about this issue? hmmm. Atrocitus in the New York subway. Sinestro kind of being the grumpy uncle to Hal and Carol. the continuing mystery of who's collecting entities that used to reside in each ring color (?). and then the appearance of this guy:

Green Lantern Corps #48 (DC)
Tony Bedard/Ardian Syaf/Vicente Cifuentes/Randy Mayor/Gabe Eltaeb/Carrie Strachan/Steve Wands (cover: Rodolfo Migliari, variant cover: Pat Gleason/Mark Irwin/Mayor)

Ganthet continues his attention-hogging drama queen antics by renouncing his Guardianship and becoming a Green Lantern. what's next, he's gonna have his own reality TV show? anyway, some Alpha Lanterns are secretly massing and recruiting for something. what i want to know is: what's Guy been put up to by Ganthet that he claims will result in having his friendship with Hal to be over.

The Thanos Imperative: Ignition one shot (Marvel)
Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning/Brad Walker/Andrew Hennessy/Wil Quintana/Joe Caramagna (cover: Aleksi Briclot)

and just in case somebody dozed off on the cosmic ongoings out there, this is a reminder that Thanos has come back! but he may not be the biggest threat at all - his name starts with the letter M and rhymes with "Barvell". oh ftaghn, oh ftaghn, oh ftaghn!! (wait, fark sounds better)

Power Girl #12 (DC)
Justin Gray/Jimmy Palmiotti/Amanda Conner/Paul Mounts/John J. Hill
need i say more? let's celebrate the last hurrah with the departure of Amanda Conner and the rest of the crew. any chance of having the Dodsons take over this title?

things i liked this week

X-Men: Legacy #235 (Marvel)
Mike Carey/Greg Land/Jay Leisten/Justin Ponsor/Cory Petit (cover: Adi Granov)
you know things are really grave (pun intended) when goody-two-shoes Doug Ramsey makes BFF Warlock suck the life-force out of Hodge and the Right soldiers. in other words, the New Mutants should really no longer be called such, becaused they've been bloodied to hell and back already. our intrepid mutants sustain two more blows, and one's a Fallen Angel (if any of you still remember). i don't care if Greg Land is drawing this (and in one panel, Cable's mouth is not symmetrical to his face), this is shaping up to be an exciting X-crossover.


Ultimate Avengers #6 (Marvel)
Mark Millar/Carlos Pacheco/Dexter Vines/Cory Petit/Justin Ponsor/Laura Martin
an ending worthy of past Millar Ultimates books. father and son finally gets the their final 5-minute faceoff, and guess who loses. Carlos Pacheco turns in overall, his best work in recent years (except for random details, like two missing jet needles in one panel, certainly an important element to the eventual conclusion).


Doomwar #3 (Marvel)
Jonathan Maberry/Scot Eaton/Andy Lanning/Robert Campanella/Jean-Francois Beaulieu/Cory Petit (cover: John Romita Jr./Klaus Janson/Dean White)
Doom has Vibranium
the Panther God lets him pass
T'Challa is pissed.


Batman: Streets of Gotham #11 (DC)
Paul Dini/Dustin Nguyen/Derek Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands

finally someone takes down Zsasz. Damian's character is getting fleshed out, and DC is doing right with him. i think now he's much more interesting than Tim Drake. thank the God of Comics.

Power Girl #11 (DC)
Justin Gray/Jimmy Palmiotti/Amanda Conner/Paul Mounts/John J. Hill
i wouldn't say its a cop out, but having a cloning tank takes the thrill out of beating the bad guys. but listen, a monthly Power Girl book is always a must. so, please don't cancel this.


Guardians of the Galaxy #25 (Marvel)
Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning/Brad Walker/Andrew Hennessy/Wil Quintana/Joe Caramagna (cover: Alex Garner)

the team is back together again, and i couldn't be happier. hey, wait, according to the future iterations of the Guardians, this 2010 version of them are the only ones standing in the way of annihilation caused by the chronal error of a resurrected Thanos. let The Thanos Imperative begin.

Green Lantern #53 (DC)
Geoff Johns/Doug Mahnke/Christian Alamy/Keith Champagne/Mark Irwin/Randy Mayor/Nick Napolitano (variant cover: Ryan Sook)
Johns allows us a bit of a moment to catch our breath before Brightest Day, and what best way to spend it except to witness playful flirting between Highball (heh - he only has one ball and he's high) and Carol. turns out Sinestro wants to join in. in other news, who's this character who seems to be the sole protector of the Universe back when it was young? could it be ... G.O.D.?


Siege: Spider-Man #1 (Marvel)
Brian Reed/Marco Santucci/Chris Sotomayor/Joe Caramagna (cover: Marko Djurdjevic)
this one-shot is both a treat and a letdown, as Brian Reed follows up on the Peter-Carol angle (which makes sense as he's made his peace with Michelle and the MJ option has slim odds). and we get them beating up on TIKAMG (The Idiot Known as Mac Gargan). but that has no complete closure as it all occurs during Siege. duh.


Dark Wolverine #85 (Marvel)
Daniel Way/Marjorie Liu/Stephen Segovia/Cam Smith/Marte Gracia/Cory Petit/Rain Beredo
not sure why i like this. it has the annoying Romulus. and also the most gay-ass scenes between Logan and Daken, it borders on creepy. maybe its because we finally see the punk get stabbed with the Muramasa blade.


Captain America: Who Won't Wield the Shield (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Mirco Pierfederici/Todd Klein/Matt Fraction/Brendan McCarthy/Howard Hallis/Stuart Moore/Joe Quinones/Javier Rodriguez
why can't they do these more often? and tone down the Deadpool stuff. is there a law against Assistant Editor's Month? (pssst. its not Assistant Editor's Month. whatever.)

the mother of all trick questions

things i liked this week

Batman: Streets of Gotham #10 (DC)
Paul Dini/Dustin Nguyen/Derek Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands
holy shit. what is this? am i really warming up to Damian? really? OMGOMGZSASZOMG!!


Power Girl #10 (DC)
Jimmy Palmiotti/Justin Gray/Amanda Conner/Paul Mounts/John J. Hill
here's six words for you: never trust a girl named Terra. ok, that's a bit unfair. Ultra Humanite's in da house, you dig?


Green Lantern #52 (DC)
Geoff Johns/Doug Mahnke/Christian Alamy/Rebecca Buchman/Keith Champagne/Randy Mayor/Gabe Eltaeb/Carrie Strachan/Rob Leigh (variant cover: Shane Davis/Sandra Hope/Barbara Ciardo)
doesn't Sinestro in all white with that pedophile moustache look creepy to you? but it was worth the price of admission to see him get chopped in two and have John Stewart lead a team sever all Black Lantern connections.


Deadpool #21
Daniel Way/Carlo Barberi/Sandu Florea/Marte Gracia/Joe Sabino (cover: Jason Pearson)

its the conclusion of the Hit-Monkey story (what's next? Hit-Dolphin?). giggly fun: Reed Richards acting as a proper dad, Deadpool assuming Spidey's identity (don't ask), that banter between two similarly-looking costumed dorks, and of course, a monkey at a funeral.

Thor #608 (Marvel)
Kieron Gillen/Billy Tan/Batt/Rich Elson/Christina Strain/Matt Hollingsworth/Joe Sabino (cover: Mico Suayan/Laura Martin)

all you need to know: Volstagg versus Ragnarok (he'll always be Clor to us)!!! and having said that, we didn't know the fat guy can JUMP.

Thunderbolts #142 (Marvel)
Jeff Parker/Wellinton Alves/Nelson Pereira/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne (cover: Adi Granov)

Jeff Parker actually was on leave during the last two pages of this issue, because James Robinson snuck in and promptly inserted Roy Harper in. hey, that's not Roy.

New Avengers #63 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/Mike McKone/Dave McCaig/Albert Deschesne (cover: Stuart Immonen/Wade Von Grawbadger)
more Siege tie-ins, focusing specifically on two of Marvel's memorable couples (Luke/Jessica and Clint/Bobbi) while kicking ass in Asgard. did we see Mockingbird in any of the teasers for the new Avengers books coming out? uh oh.


Superman #698 (DC)
James Robinson/Javier Pina/Bernard Chiang/Blond/John J. Hill (cover: Julian Lopez/Bit/Santiago Arcas)
ladies and gentlemen, live at the New York Comedy Club ... Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeex Luthor!!


Uncanny X-Men #522 (Marvel)
Matt Fraction/Whilce Portacio/Ed Tadeo/Justin Ponsor/Joe Caramagna (cover: Terry Dodson, variant cover: Mark Brooks)
Kitty Pryde fans, rejoice!! by the same token, Kitty Pryde fans, weep!!!


Amazing Spider-Man #626 (Marvel)
Fred Van Lente/Michael Gaydos/Joe Caramagna (cover: Michael Del Mundo)
you know where Spidey isn't a loser? in the Avengers books!!


Mighty Avengers #35 (Marvel)
Dan Slott/Khoi Pham/Craig Yeung/John Rauch/Dave Lanphear/Morry Hollowell
creepy Henry Pym
making out with Jocasta
while Ultron's about.

Avengers - The Initiative #34 (Marvel)
Christos N. Gage/Jorge Molina/Andrew Hennessy/Edgar Delgado/Joe Caramagna (cover: David Yardin)

the Initiative guys (principally the ex-New Warriors) get their shit together and finally make a stand. over in the Siege of Asgard, Taskmaster goes for A-list status and maybe fails. despite all the Siege hoopla and coordination nightmares, this issue holds up heading towards its finale. cancellation time, fellas.

Captain America #604 (Marvel)
Ed Brubaker/Luke Ross/Butch Guice/Dean White/Joe Caramagna (cover: Gerald Parel)

what made me happy about this issue? the Falcon bringing the ass-kicking for a change. Sam, you are a credit to your race! in other news, Bad-Cap & Bucky go to the Hoover Dam for a swim.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #1 (IDW)
Joe Carnahan/Tom Waltz/Stephen Mooney/Alfredo Rodriguez/Neil Uyatake (cover: John K. Snyder III/Jason Wright)
is this gonna be the plot for the A-Team movie (uh, because director Joe Carnahan is involved)? if so, its pretty damn exciting. Hannibal and the team ride shotgun for a wedding of the daughter of an old friend, because there's a mysterious threat. i bet there's a betrayal around here somewhere. and Face already hooked up with the bride.


Nemesis (Marvel/Icon)
Mark Millar/Steve McNiven/Dave McCaig/Chris Eliopoulos (variant cover: Leinil Francis Yu)

i kinda miss Mark Morales inking McNiven. and what's with the Nurse Jackie reference but the president's not umm, up to date? i guess nobody wants to go there. c'mon, let the speculation on optioning this as a movie commence.