Wonder Woman #600

Sigh. They always say you don't know what you've got till it's gone, but that's not exactly true here. I've appreciated Gail Simone's run on Wonder Woman through some excellent TPBs, but it still bums me out to read this issue. Simone only has a few pages (working with the still awesome George Perez) but she proves once again that she has Wonder Woman's voice down like no other. Factor in how well all the ladies of the DCU work together (and under Diana), man, is it too much to hope for a new team book featuring some of these folks? It took a long time for the "right" Wonder Woman writer to come along for me, so I'm going to enjoy the heck out of my trades of Simone's run. (Plus I think I have a couple left that haven't come out yet.)

Excellent

Louise Simonson has a fairly generic story that nontheless gets to highlight the great relationship WW and Supes share. It's fine, but it is kind of overshadowed in this giant comic.

Average

Amanda Conner's team-up with Power Girl is just plain amusing. Nothing like seeking out the strongest woman on Earth for some insight on cat behavior!

Good

Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins sure look like they're gearing up for a new Wonder Woman Secret Origin limited series, don't they? I'd be interested in that.

Fair

Then we get to JMS' reboot of Wonder Woman. I'm not positive this is a "real" reboot. Is any of this going to stick? Or are we in an alternate universe or something. Right now this sure feels like JMS starting over with the character. WW is around 20 years old, has never heard of the Amazons, and has been raised "in an urban environment" if the news articles are to be believed. How did DC let this go through? You can't just reboot one of the most important characters in the business. WW's origin and appearances affect too much else in the DCU. How in the world can this get explained away, if it is a reboot? I've got to think this is just a story arc that will end, things will go back to normal and Diana will keep her new uniform as a memento from JMS' first story. At least, that's the only way this story will work for me. At all. Either way, I'm waiting for the trade at best, I don't like this new urban, espionage-y take on the character.

Looks like I'll just keep an eye out for those last Simone trades.

Average

G.I. Joe: European Missions #1

I'm a HUGE fan of Hasbro stuff (meaning Transformers and GI Joe) so I generally try to read and collect all the material out there.

I finally got around to reading the first issue of European Missions, the American re-print of Marvel UK's Action Force. Each issue has two or three shorts from the Action Force books (which also included US reprints). This issue has Flint, Lady J, Sci-Fi, Footloose, and Leatherneck taking on the Crimson Twins and some BATS in a fairly generic story. There's lots of good shooting, but the story is too short to get any great characterization. I like seeing the characters in print, but I think focusing on Lady J or Footloose for the whole story might have made this a tad better.

The next story features Shipwreck in a few pages as he deals with some Cobra treasure hunters. This was so short it is hard to even grade. I think I read a similar story in GI Joe Special Missions.

I'll keep reading, because I love seeing the recognizable names who worked on this stuff; Dan Abnett wrote the lead story here. The art isn't fantastic, but again, I'm reading these because I love any exposure for the Joes, and hopefully some of my faves show up in the later issues.

(For the record, Dusty, Beach Head, Flint, Lady J, Ripcord, Alpine, and Snow Job are prolly tops for me. I like a lot more, those are just the ones I make sure to follow.)

Good

Sea Bear & Grizzly Shark #1

There is a baby head in that shark's mouth. Just making sure you saw that.

"They got mixed up!"

4.99 is a bit expensive for a joke, but I had to support a book where grizzly bears are leaping out of the water to attack boaters and sharks are popping out of trees and poking their fins out of shrubs. This book is absolutely ridiculous, but there is no doubting it is fun.

Zach Howard's story reads a lot more like the first issue in a new super-comic. The protagonist has super powers, there are supporting characters, and the story makes sense. It's not fine drama, but it is clear. I like the idea of heroes delivered by torpedo, too.

Ryan Ottley's story looks a tad better, but makes less sense. This segment is played totally for laughs, and it is funny. I never expected to see a shark eat a jogger, leaving only her head, breasts, and one leg behind. The body counts in both sections are huge, but in the Grizzly Shark story, a lot more innocents are consumed.

The art is hilarious throughout, and I did enjoy this book. But 4.99 is awfully steep. I think 3.99 would have even been pushing it. If you can find this for 2.99, grab it, but the joke wears a tad thin for that full price.

Fair

Comics on the Bubble: Taskmaster (2002)

So I've got some fundamental problems with this series. I hate the new costume. Taskmaster's classic look works so much better in comics. The look would actually work nicely in a film, I can see that, but this isn't the character I fell in love with all those years ago in Avengers.

I can't stand how most of Taskmaster's gigs involve him using holograms to impersonate people (usually spikey-haired pretty-boys). Holograms were never part of Taskie's power-set, so making it such a fundamental part of this series is really a misfire for me. I have an even bigger problem with Taskmaster being able to move at super-speed after watching kung-fu movies on fast forward. That doesn't even make sense! Can he fly after watching the Superman movies?


I like the use of Sunset Bain as a foil, but even that relationship isn't really resolved. Ken Siu-Chong and Udon created an ok limited, if this were a new character. By removing all the working-class roots from Taskmaster's dialogue and drastically changing his look, voice, and power-set, I don't understand why this was a Taskmaster limited series. As a new character, it probably would have worked a lot better.

• Issue 1: Taskmaster fights Iron Man, I actually do buy how Taskmaster gets away. But as part of the series... SELL
• Issue 2: Taskmaster starts using his hologram machine more, making this even less of a Taskmaster series. SELL
• Issue 3: There is actually a cool concept here, that Taskmaster sometimes uses end-level abilities before he's mastered the intro stuff (like diving before swimming). But other than that? SELL
• Issue 4: Man. Taskmaster announces he's stopped using his old sword (based on Black Knight skills) and switched to a katana like Silver Samurai. Blerg. SELL

Summary:
SELL: 1, 2, 3, 4

Green Lantern Corps #49

Wow, I haven't seen a jump in quality like this in some time.

Tony Bedard's first issue of GLC was unimpressive. I didn't really connect with any of the characters and the overall plot didn't grab me either. But this issue is a huge improvement. The Alpha Lanterns numbers have skyrocketed, making them into a suddenly scary threat. I loved the interaction with Boodika and John Stewart, Stewart's thoughts really laid out how sad that whole Alpha situation has become.

Ganthet actually starts to be more interesting too.
I think last issue focused on him too much. I like him as a "rogue" Guardian out there in the trenches with the GLs. Teaming him up with Kyle and Soranik lowers his role enough to make him tolerable. I also like that Stel is getting talked about so much. I hope he gets fixed so he can bring the fight to the Alphas next issue. I've got to think that Bedard is going to change most of these Alphas back to normal GLs. I'd like to see Boodika and Green Man changed back.

I like the "surprise" villain too. I don't like Cyborg Superman's motivations that he wants to die, but I am fascinated that he's exploiting the Guardians' new robots just as effectively as he did the Manhunters. You'd think the Guardians would learn their lesson!

Ardian Syaf's artwork is very nice. His Alpha Lanterns look really spooky, which is a must. I don't care for the sniper gear for John Stewart, but that's an ongoing complaint for me. Now I'm ready to see him create some fun, nerdy constructs for Kyle Rayner.

Good

All Star Superman v2 TPB

Grant Morrison has a lot of ideas. He packs another ton of them into this second and final volume of his brilliant All-Star Superman trade. I think my favorite thing about Morrison's Superman isn't even the crazy-awesome adventures or the insane ideas that get shuffled on and off panel on a constant basis. My favorite thing is just how kind Superman is in this trade.

My favorite scene in this trade opens when Superman stops a train from derailing, and as the crowd of saved folks shuffles off the train, we see one talking into his phone about how he's on his way and couldn't help the delay. It's a throwaway line of dialogue in the babble of a crowd. Superman moves on to do a quick good deed or two, and the scene shifts. A depressed goth-looking gal is standing on the edge of a building, dropping her phone after she thinks her therapist isn't coming to save her. She's about to step off when Superman arrives, and gently says "You're stronger than you think" and gives her a hug. What a great scene! Supes really is some kind of Super-Jesus in this.

Frank Quitely's art nails the tone throughout. His bulky, even stocky Superman is an imposing guy even when he's slouching around as Clark Kent. I love the Kryptonian style too, with smooth curves and nice solid colors.

I don't want to undersell the great insanity we expect from Morrison. Bizarro world as a huge planetary predator from the under-universe. Lex Luthor reading a book on cocktails as he waits for his turn on death row. Steve Lombard's unique resistance to Bizarro-infection. This is another wonderful story from Morrison, and it deserves all the accolades it's received.

THIS is what Superman stories should be like.

Excellent

X-Force v1 TPB

For some of my trades, I wait and grab them on the cheap at comic conventions. I'm obviously really behind on X-Force, but wow, this was entertaining. It's odd, this has forced drug use, Angel getting mutilated, and the X-Men gratuitously killing their foes, but man if I wasn't riveted from cover to cover. Chris Yost not only cooked up the Purifiers as good villains on their own, but he also uses some good Marvel history to bring back the worst of the X-Men's past villains too.

The team is barely a team in these first six issues. Wolverine, Warpath, and X-23 are running around killing while trying to maintain their humanity. I was shocked that Elixir (I guess from New X-Men) and Angel are so involved though. And Angel...well, he's going to be a bit more complicated now. Wolfesbane also plays a very important role, but I'm not certain it is one she can come back from. Can she ever go back to the New Mutants now?

This trade has a ton of stuff that doesn't pay off for awhile. Many future storylines are hinted at or shown here, clearly I need to catch up on X-Force before I catch up on the core X-Men titles.

I'm not a huge Clayton Crain fan. His images always look computer generated, and while it works sometimes (like on Archangel and Bastion) it doesn't look so good on the more fleshy characters like Wolverine or X-23. His Wolfesbane is WEIRD, looking almost slippery rather than furred. The panels are so dark that sometimes I have a hard time figuring out what is happening. His stuff is moody and works great with the blood spattering, but the figure works is just too dark. With a clearer artist, this might have made "Excellent."

Good