Let's Get Comical! - Week of 2/13/13

Yes, it's my attempt to get back to weekly comic reviews. I REALLY need some motivation to read more and not sit around and play Halo 4. Since I've dropped a bunch of titles, I've only been buying three or four comics a week, which is a lot faster and easier to read than when I had crap like Superman and Green Lantern in my pile that I really didn't want to read. So my new plan is to get back to reviewing titles weekly, catching up BE DAMNED. When I do happen to catch up on comics I'll just post them as a separate column.

I've got about a 3 week backlog which I'll post as a "weekly" column soon but I'll work my way backwards.

Heck, I'm confusing even myself with all this typing so let's just get right to the reviews!

This week was larger than it has been for the last several weeks, however, with seven titles:

-- Star Wars #2
-- The Walking Dead #107
-- The Walking Dead: The Governor Reprint
-- Batman #17
-- Batman and Robin #17
-- Scarlet Spider #
-- The Uncanny X-Men #1 (yes, this is being rebooted a year later)


Star Wars #2

This is the second issue in a new series that I've started, but haven't reviewed yet. The first issue I picked up on a whim and it turned out to be really good, and apparently other people thought so because the first printing sold out. My local store claimed to have been shorted on this issue, so I had to trek downtown to the much larger Austin Books and Comics where they had many many copies, so I don't know what's going on. All I know is I have my copy, so here we go.

This takes place a few weeks after the destruction of the first Death Star, and the Rebels are scouting for a new base. But everywhere they look, the Empire gets the jump on them, leading to Alliance higher-ups pondering if they have a spy infiltrating them. So Mon Mothma confides in Leia to create a secret squadron to scout a new base, to avoid getting that knowledge to the spy. But not all goes well when the groups first meet. Meanwhile, Darth Vader gets reassigned for his failure  in allowing the Death Star to be blown up and is replaced with a tough Imperial admiral, while Han and Chewie run into Boba Fett on their way to pay Jabba the Hutt. Two good issues in a row, and I'll definitely be sticking around for this one until the Star Wars comics go to Marvel. Pick this one up, and not just because it's rare!

The Walking Dead #107

I am caught up with the series (I've only been reading for about ten issues) but just haven't done any reviews. In issue 100 we met Negan, a foul mouthed badass who "protects" the local settlements and reacts violently when displeased. In a previous issue, Rick decides that his group will bow to Negan's every wish, which upsets Carl, who stows aboard Negan's van and shoots up his men. Negan is impressed but promises to punish Carl. Rick goes back to get Carl but Negan intercepts them and after nearly getting his ass kicked by Rick reveals that Carl is alright, at least physically. The gang retreats back home as they plot to defeat Negan, and they decide it's time to unleash Ezekiel. Meanwhile, the rest of Rick's gang discovers an old bullet factory. The comic is SO much different from the show, as half of the show's characters have been offed. But it's always a fun ride, just seems so short. Pick it up if you can't get enough Walking Dead but just know to expect a different bunch of characters than the show.

Uncanny X-Men #1

Not sure why this is being rebooted or if it is related to the Uncanny X-Men reboot from last year (which itself was a reboot of the original Uncanny X-Men) but we'll see. Anyway, we begin with SHIELD agent Maria Hill interrogating a mystery man who details a recent attack by Cyclops and the remaining X-Men on a mall, seeking out a new mutant and then destroying a Sentinel after evading cops. The mystery man reveals that Cyclops is very weak at the moment and can easily be taken down. The mystery man is revealed to be Magneto, who was involved in the mall attack, but shunned by Cyke for being weakened or something, and he offers Hill a proposition. Yay, more nonsensical X-Men storylines. I'd pass on this one, and really only picked it up because it's an Issue #1. I don't see myself hanging around for a conclusion either, I dropped pretty much every other X title due to boredom and silliness, so yeah.

Scarlet Spider #14

Forgive me, as this is one of the comics that I'm not caught up on. Thankfully Marvel always include recaps in the intro, where I learn that Kaine has been killed by Werewolf Agent siblings or something lame like that, and they're after the Hispanic girl that Kaine saved in an issue way back when I was actually reviewing things regularly. So Kaine is dead but his spirit begins fighting with a demon that keeps fighting him and urging him to "embrace his true self" or something of that nature. Meanwhile, the Hispanic girl (she has a name but I forgot it) leads the werewolf siblings into a bad part of Houston where a gang gets upset that the werewolves are on their territory. Meanwhile, spiders have wrapped Kaine into a cocoon as he finally realizes that he was created to be a monster, and becomes reborn. Good issue here too, that apparently answers a bunch of long standing questions from the Amazing Spider-Man series, which took place before I started reading. But this issue was pretty darn good with a solid beginning, middle and end.

Batman #17

I guess this is the conclusion to the Death of the Family storyline. I still have to read #16, but this one opens with Joker awaking Batman at a weird dinner inside the Batcave. Joker also has Alfred, Robin, Red Hood, Nightwing and Batgirl captured and reveals that he has cut off their faces, just like what was done to him. As he goes to set the table and guests on fire, Batman floods the cave and takes off after Joker while the rest deal with the effects of laughing gas, which sets off when they discover their faces are actually fine. Batman catches Joker and they discuss death and why Batman has never killed Joker, until he accidentally falls off a cliff. Batman later reveals to Alfred why he never stops Joker permanently, and also discovers the periodic table symbol of Joker's latest chemical - Ha. I wasn't too impressed with what I had read from Death of the Family storyline but this felt like a satisfying conclusion. Of course Joker simply vanishes, so we know he'll be back. I'd probably skip this one though. This series really has hot story starts but weak conclusions.

Batman and Robin #17

Another comic I'm not fully caught up on, but this one was easy to follow. Confirming my assumption from the end of Batman #17, Joker has been vanquished for now, and Alfred, Damian, and Bruce return to Wayne Manor for some much needed sleep. They each wind up having very different dreams, and or nightmares in some cases. Alfred dreams of blowing the Joker's head off with a shotgun, Damian dreams of his inner selves fighting over whether or not he is a Wayne or an al Ghul and Bruce dreams of drowning until he is rescued by Damian. The issue ends with Batman and Robin fighting together, happily and peacefully, and after a victory Batman asks Robin if he knows it's a dream, to which he responds "yes." This was a fun issue where I was relieved that I could follow along with the storyline. And then the ending tugs at your heartstrings by revealing that Damian does, in fact, care for Bruce. Highly recommended!

Overall Thoughts: A mixed bag this week, leaning toward good. Highly recommended are Star Wars (if you can find it), Batman and Robin and Scarlet Spider. I didn't review the Walking Dead Governor special because it's a reprint of a previous comic solely used for promoting the TV show. I'll review it sometime in the future. But definitely pick up the three I mentioned!