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Post by thwhtguardian on Aug 31, 2021 9:08:32 GMT -5
OFF THE RACKSReal Readers, Real Reviews  |
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Post by String on Aug 31, 2021 22:33:38 GMT -5
I know that Batman: Fear State Alpha #1 came out today. I bought it digitally but haven't read it yet. I've been reading Detective Comics of late cause I felt like reading Batman (and for some reason, when I do, I prefer Detective over the main Batman title, always have).
The back up stories have been interesting and while the Hue Vile/Worth story line was okay, I get the feeling that the climax was a bit rushed to tidy things up quickly for this upcoming Bat event. That being said, for those in the know, can you explain to me why Bruce Wayne is living out of a townhouse? Is he no longer rich? And Alfred is dead?? Is this related to aftermath of Joker War? (I ain't worried about spoilers so feel free to tell me but use the spoiler tag if it makes you more comfortable).
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Post by wildfire2099 on Aug 31, 2021 23:33:42 GMT -5
No idea about Bruce Wayne, but Alfred is dead at the moment... he apparently was quite rich in his own right, and left all his money to Dick Grayson (which is a major plot point in Nightwing right now... which you should be reading, it's amazing). The other Batman stuff I read is not main universe stuff, so no idea about the other stuff.
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Post by majestic on Sept 1, 2021 14:46:14 GMT -5
Batman/Superman Annual 2021. Written by Gene Luen Yang. Art by Paul Pelletier (Batman) & Francesco Francavilla (Superman).
The epilogue to the Archive of Worlds saga presented in "flipbook" format. Superman & Batman switch worlds to solve a problem only the other can solve. And both stories merge in the middle in a really cool double page spread.
Yang started this arc with a bang but unfortunately the conclusion was a bit of a letdown in the final issue last week. However this annual was fun and felt more like the first few issues of the arc.
This was a good read with versions of Superman & Batman I would like to see again.
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Post by majestic on Sept 1, 2021 14:53:27 GMT -5
Geiger #6. Geoff Johns & Gray Frank.
The conclusion of this mini series ends with some unexpected twists. The story started out as a "Mad Max riff" with a radioactive hero (Geiger). By the end mix in some Quality Comics Uncle Sam and the Unknown Soldier and the series takes on a whole new view.
Great art by Frank and I really didn't see the ending coming.
I wish I could say more but it would spoil the whole plot. All I will say is the ending was very satisfying and I look forward to the 80 page Special coming in Nov that will tell stories about the other characters introduced in this series.
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Post by majestic on Sept 1, 2021 15:04:11 GMT -5
Aquaman 80th Anniversary 100 page Super Spectacular.
I have loved DC's celebrations of their heroes with these specials. The recent Green Arrow one was especially good. In this special we see Aquaman, Garth, Aqualad, Manta, Ocean Master & Mera. The stories were done by various creators. However this special fell short of previous ones.
For one thing previous collections focused on stories told throughout the character's 80 year history. These were focused on stuff done in the last 20 years. And 2 of the stories were about upcoming stories. And second, other than Dan Jurgens & Steve Epting, stories by past creators that had classic runs were not represented.
That led to a lackluster feel to the entire book like it was thrown together instead of being a tribute issue like others were.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 1, 2021 17:55:50 GMT -5
I know that Batman: Fear State Alpha #1 came out today. I bought it digitally but haven't read it yet. I've been reading Detective Comics of late cause I felt like reading Batman (and for some reason, when I do, I prefer Detective over the main Batman title, always have). The back up stories have been interesting and while the Hue Vile/Worth story line was okay, I get the feeling that the climax was a bit rushed to tidy things up quickly for this upcoming Bat event. That being said, for those in the know, can you explain to me why Bruce Wayne is living out of a townhouse? Is he no longer rich? And Alfred is dead?? Is this related to aftermath of Joker War? (I ain't worried about spoilers so feel free to tell me but use the spoiler tag if it makes you more comfortable). Alfred was unfortunately allowed to be killed off in the City of Bane story, and Bruce lost a lot of his fortune and was voted off the Wayne board after Joker War. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 1, 2021 19:00:08 GMT -5
Black Hammer Reborn #3Written by Jeff Lemire Art by Caitlin Yarsky Summary: As Lucy's marriage falls apart...so too does the very world around her.
Plot: I'm not really sure what to think of Lemire's newest addition to the Black Hammer Universe, here in this issue or as a whole so far. While there have been some pretty solid character moments there has yet to be a real hook plot wise and with out that there is a definite sense that the plot lacks a sense of forward momentum. What kind of story is Lemire trying to tell? Where does he intend to go? After three issues I'd expect to have at least some inkling as to what is going on on but so far there has been nothing to really go on. With Weird showing up at the end of this issue perhaps it'll all blow wide open next month...and I'll be honest even if it doesn't get any clearer I'll still stick with it because even if it doesn't "mean" anything it's a decent slice of life story in its own right.
Art: I really enjoy Yarsky's facial expression, you could seriously enjoy this book and still get what's going on just from the way the characters were expressing themselves with their eyes and mouths which is seriously stunning. On top of that she also nails the action scenes as well, she gives a real sense of weight to the way Lucy wields the Black Hammer which isn't something you see in a traditional book. For instance, you never see Thor show any real effort in heft his hammer so never feel how much it might weigh, and like wise heroes who use swords don't often show any strain in holding them either...but there's a slight tremble to Lucy's stance that feels completely real and I just love that attention to detail.
Grade: 7/10 |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Sept 2, 2021 10:36:50 GMT -5
Black Hammer Reborn #3Written by Jeff Lemire Art by Caitlin Yarsky Summary: As Lucy's marriage falls apart...so too does the very world around her.
Plot: I'm not really sure what to think of Lemire's newest addition to the Black Hammer Universe, here in this issue or as a whole so far. While there have been some pretty solid character moments there has yet to be a real hook plot wise and with out that there is a definite sense that the plot lacks a sense of forward momentum. What kind of story is Lemire trying to tell? Where does he intend to go? After three issues I'd expect to have at least some inkling as to what is going on on but so far there has been nothing to really go on. With Weird showing up at the end of this issue perhaps it'll all blow wide open next month...and I'll be honest even if it doesn't get any clearer I'll still stick with it because even if it doesn't "mean" anything it's a decent slice of life story in its own right.
Art: I really enjoy Yarsky's facial expression, you could seriously enjoy this book and still get what's going on just from the way the characters were expressing themselves with their eyes and mouths which is seriously stunning. On top of that she also nails the action scenes as well, she gives a real sense of weight to the way Lucy wields the Black Hammer which isn't something you see in a traditional book. For instance, you never see Thor show any real effort in heft his hammer so never feel how much it might weigh, and like wise heroes who use swords don't often show any strain in holding them either...but there's a slight tremble to Lucy's stance that feels completely real and I just love that attention to detail.
Grade: 7/10 I think that's a valid criticism of the plot since we're three issues in and I have no idea what it is. There's a slow burn and then there's an ember that's been smoldering in the back of the wood stove since Granny passed a few years back. This is coming perilously close to becoming a slice-of-life book. |
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Post by String on Sept 2, 2021 16:23:44 GMT -5
No idea about Bruce Wayne, but Alfred is dead at the moment... he apparently was quite rich in his own right, and left all his money to Dick Grayson (which is a major plot point in Nightwing right now... which you should be reading, it's amazing). The other Batman stuff I read is not main universe stuff, so no idea about the other stuff. Now that I think about it, I've never read any solo Nightwing title (I think because I've become a Tim Drake fan over these years). But yeah, I keep hearing good things about Taylor's run. With this event upcoming, I may end up reading it anyway but I'll check it out, thanks. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 3, 2021 5:33:12 GMT -5
Black Hammer Reborn #3Written by Jeff Lemire Art by Caitlin Yarsky Summary: As Lucy's marriage falls apart...so too does the very world around her.
Plot: I'm not really sure what to think of Lemire's newest addition to the Black Hammer Universe, here in this issue or as a whole so far. While there have been some pretty solid character moments there has yet to be a real hook plot wise and with out that there is a definite sense that the plot lacks a sense of forward momentum. What kind of story is Lemire trying to tell? Where does he intend to go? After three issues I'd expect to have at least some inkling as to what is going on on but so far there has been nothing to really go on. With Weird showing up at the end of this issue perhaps it'll all blow wide open next month...and I'll be honest even if it doesn't get any clearer I'll still stick with it because even if it doesn't "mean" anything it's a decent slice of life story in its own right.
Art: I really enjoy Yarsky's facial expression, you could seriously enjoy this book and still get what's going on just from the way the characters were expressing themselves with their eyes and mouths which is seriously stunning. On top of that she also nails the action scenes as well, she gives a real sense of weight to the way Lucy wields the Black Hammer which isn't something you see in a traditional book. For instance, you never see Thor show any real effort in heft his hammer so never feel how much it might weigh, and like wise heroes who use swords don't often show any strain in holding them either...but there's a slight tremble to Lucy's stance that feels completely real and I just love that attention to detail.
Grade: 7/10 I think that's a valid criticism of the plot since we're three issues in and I have no idea what it is. There's a slow burn and then there's an ember that's been smoldering in the back of the wood stove since Granny passed a few years back. This is coming perilously close to becoming a slice-of-life book. It is starting to feel that way, and if that's the intention all the power to Lemire for trying something different...but it's certainly not what I expected. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Sept 3, 2021 9:37:55 GMT -5
Demon Days: Cursed WebArt and Story by Peach Momoko Summary: Mariko continues her journey of discovery and fights Sabertooth and Mystique.
Plot/Art: I finally managed to get to the shop and pick this one up and I'm going to be honest here, at this point I'm buying this book purely for the art. Her water colored art work is truly stunning to behold and the mix of highly detailed and realistic back grounds with more simplistic manga style figures is really striking...but I really have very little clue as to what is going on plotwise and I read all the previous issues back to back before jumping into this one. Mariko is wanted for some reason by some evil onis and she's trying to figure out why...but there's not a whole lot fleshed out character wise, nothing that makes me really care about her or her journey so it all feels very hollow. That said, the idea of Storm as Thor's "little sister" teased at the end did make me smile though with the current track record I think I'll still enjoy the visuals of that relationship more than the story but when the art is that good I don't mind too much.
Grade:6/10 |
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