Charlotte, Here I Come!

I am officially going to Charlotte, NC for HeroesCon in June! I am very excited. Not only have I never been to North Carolina before, I have never been to a comic convention before! I hear this is a really good one.

The nice boys from The Dollar Bin invited me down, so I'll be hanging out at their table (I believe) when I'm not running around the convention centre totally overwhelmed and exploding with nerdy glee. Or when I'm not eating as much pit BBQ as humanly possible.

So if you are going to be at HeroesCon, let me know and we can meet and chat and stuff. Or drink beer. I like beer.

I have a limited knowledge of Charlotte. I basically associate two things with the city: BBQ and Charlotte Hornets Starter Jackets:

Stylin'! I picture every resident of Charlotte wearing this at all times.

I can't wait!

What's Cyclops Whining About This Time?

Here's a long train of thought that is pretty unique to Cyclops:

Really. No one else could ever have those exact thoughts.

Ah, comic books. I love you. You're not going to find people moping about this stuff on Law & Order.

Now that's good television!

The Cyclops panel is from The Uncanny X-Men #29.

Free Comic Book Day!

IT'S TODAY!

Visit your local comic shop. If you happen to live in Halifax, Strange Adventures will be giving away over 20,000 comics. And Darwyn Cooke will be there! And Faith Erin Hicks! And Mike Holmes! And more! Don't miss out!

IRON MAN DAY!

The day that Iron Man opens is finally upon us. I'm sure most of you, like myself, saw the movie last night at an advance screening. It's AWESOME.

The Invincible Iron Man #172 is also awesome. Check it out:

With a cover that romantic, you know it's going to be good!

It opens with a drunk Tony Stark in a museum, wearing a suit of armour and being crazy:

Oh man I love it!

The cops take him down:

Tony Stark is drunk and sweating mayonnaise. He gets taken into a holding cell, but is quickly released on bail. This is pretty sad:

Oh, Tony.

Fortunately, James Rhodes is doing a great job being Iron Man while Tony is busy drinking it up.
I really appreciate the contrast between those two pages.

Ok, so now Captain America enters the story, and someone is very romantically describing him in the narration:

"The way his muscles flex and lock to give him a purposeful lope." I don't know who's doing the talking there in those narration boxes. I like to think Tony. Or maybe it's just Denny O'Neil who has the crush on Cap.

Anyway, Captain America finds Tony in a seedy motel room:

Oh come on, Cap. Just join him in a drink. It would be a such an entertaining comic. Obviously this is a very cool party that you've just walked in on.

Now it's Cap's turn to get romantic about Tony:


Tony doesn't have any answers, which makes Cap more angry. Get ready for a very special episode of Iron Man:

Oh come on, Cap. Your dad was an alcoholic? It was the thirties! Everyone was an alcoholic.

During all of this, Firebrand has decided to make a comeback. He wants to burn down the very motel that Tony is staying in. Since Tony isn't going to save himself, Cap has to do everything:

Rhodes is also there to help out (and say funny things):

When the flames are out and the people are saved, Cap and Rhodes go to get their pal Tony. Only Tony, even totally hammered Tony, has managed to outfox them:

Lookin' good, Tony!

Oh, and the OTHER thing going down in this comic is that, because Tony hasn't been around, Stark Industries has fallen apart and has now been sold to...

LEX LUTHOR!

No, wait. Obadiah Stane I mean. Yeah.

This comic is great. And so is the movie. It was worth the wait!

Hey Kids! You Don't Need Drugs...To Kill a Cobra!

And now, the most badass thing to ever happen in an Archie comic:


That cobra got its head blown clean off!!

You rarely see a gun, or a silencer, or a decapitation in an Archie comic.

Quick Review: X-Men First Class #11

I want to say two things about this issue:

1. It was totally awesome and everyone should read it.

2. Two of the Continuiteens, who are comic shop employees, look exactly like my comic shop co-workers/pals, Dave and Tiina. Check it:


So we can't decide if the creative team of X-Men First Class are watching us at all times, or if Dave and Tiina just look exactly like comic shop employee stereotypes. Either way, we all felt uncomfortable at the shop yesterday.

I had totally planned a triumphant return to reviewing weekly comics this week, but frankly the complete and utter confusion I felt after reading the last issue of Countdown and the last issue of The Death of the New Gods left me exhausted. It took me three tries to get through the New Gods because I kept getting sleepy and bored.

But there were very good comics this week. I highly recommend, besides X-Men First Class, The Hulk vs Hercules one-shot dealie, Wolverine First Class, The Spirit, and Birds of Prey. Sadly, it's the last McKeever issue of Birds of Prey, but Tony Bedard will also be good.

I've been cranky about comics lately because they are canceling some of my favourites (Catwoman, The All-New Atom) but will no doubt be putting out endless Final Crisis tie-ins or Countdown aftermath whatnots that are total nonsense and completely boring. I'm sure a lot of it will be great, but there will definitely be a lot of stuff that does not hold a candle to even the least good issues of Catwoman or The Atom. Blah. When I am able to get my thoughts together I'm sure I will have a whole long post about all the reasons why it sucks that Catwoman is canceled.

Cliff Chiang Sketch!

My big plan for the past year was to go to the New York Comic Con. Not only have I never been to NYC, I've never been to a comic convention. Unfortunately exams and things got in the way of my plan, so I didn't go. But Strange Adventures' owner and all-around awesome dude, Cal Johnston went. And he got me this beautiful Cliff Chiang sketch!

Check it out!!!

Yay!!

I am trying to make it to Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC this summer. Hopefully things will work out for that.

Top 10 Marvel Characters

I write my final exam tonight, which is awesome. I will probably fail it, which isn't so awesome. Finance is hard and boring.

I haven't had time to post anything due to the emotional roller coaster of exams, the Habs making it to round 2 of the play-offs, and Catwoman being canceled (seriously, DC, WHAT THE HELL?! That is my FAVOURITE COMIC!). However, I do have a new list up over at Mondo Magazine of my Top 10 Favourite Marvel Characters. Here's the link to that: Daredevil Wins.

I'll be back in full form soon. I haven't even had time to read comics over the past few months. They will be a welcome change from accounting textbooks.

Quick Review: Titans Together #1

Note to Ian Churchill:

This is a skirt:

This is a muffin cup:


Skirt:

Muffin cup:


Skirt:


Muffin cup:


You'll notice the subtle differences, I'm sure.

Ok, now that we've had this talk, maybe you'll stop drawing things like this:

Siiiiiiigh.

Also, this comic is terrible.

Comic Foundry Rules

No time to do comic reviews this past week, but I do want to take a moment to praise the awesomeness of Comic Foundry Magazine. Issue #2 came out last week (this time in full colour!) and it is seriously great.

It's like if everything awesome about the comic book community came to life...and then maybe got cursed or something and became a magazine instead of a living thing.

Finally a magazine for smart, funny, cool comic fans!

The cover feature of the new issue is an interview with Matt Fraction...and, hey, putting an actual comic creator on the cover of a magazine instead of a picture of, like, Captain America?...nice one!

Also in this issue...

• A fashion feature on how to get Jimmy Olsen's look!
• An interview with Dinosaur Comics' creator Ryan North!
• All-Star Batman & Robin drinking game!
• Interview with Kristen Bell!
• A Venture Bros. Article!
• Album covers by comic artists!
• A letter from me!

It's super great. Support this effort by buying at least one copy!

This Week's Haul: BBQ at Blue Beetle's House!

Daredevil #106

In this issue Daredevil throws a party! And all of his friends are there and they all have a wonderful time! Daredevil laughs and loves and dances and decides everything is going to be ok from now on.

Oh, I'm kidding. In this issue Daredevil continues to march in the endless parade of shit that is his life.

I love this series. Really love it. But, damn, it has to lighten up a little. Comic books shouldn't make you wish they came with a suicide pill.

Blue Beetle #25

People sometimes ask me why I read comic books. This comic book right here is EXACTLY why I read comic books. What an awesome and fun issue of an awesome and fun series. It brings together the whole supporting cast in a way that makes you say "Hey, this comic has a really excellent supporting cast."

And, ladies and gentlemen, I give you your new desktop image:

Plus, I love any comic that ends in a super hero BBQ party:

All-Star Superman #10

I want to read this at least three more times because there is just too much awesome happening here to take in all in one sitting.

This issue was particularly heartwarming. And confusing. But when you read it really carefully it's staggeringly brilliant. Superman created our Earth! Insane!

And this page is amazing:

Wolverine First Class #1

This was great! It was more like Kitty Pryde First Class, which is ok with me. I can typically take or leave Wolverine, but team him up with a plucky young girl and you've got a recipe for adorable!

The art is excellent. The story is really fun, and, along with X-Men First Class, it doubles my cute X-men story intake!

X-Men First Class #10

A Cyclops-centric story, which is ok with me because I inexplicably really like Cyclops. He gets sent on a solo mission after the rest of the team all hilariously have a horrible bacterial stomach infection.

Green Lantern #29

Here's the thing: we've all read Hal Jordan's origin a thousand times. But does it ever really get tired? I really liked this issue a lot, and am looking forward to more of Geoff Johns' version of this tale. Especially since Ivan Reis is laying down some absolutely beautiful art to compliment it.

This is a pretty smart move by DC to re-tell the origin because of the sudden crazy interest in all things Green Lantern, thanks to the Sinestro Corps War. I like it when comic publishers do smart things.

Batman Confidential #15

I hope everyone has been reading this Bedard/Morales run on Batman Confidential. I understand if people have been missing it, due to the fact that BC has been a festering dung heap since it started. No more! Now it is one of the best Batman stories that I have read in a very long time. Do check it out. This issue was part 3 of 4.

Teen Titans #57

I am really close to dropping this, and it is 99% related to the art.

I just want to offer this bit of advice to current comic artists: belly shirts. No one wears them anymore, guys. You put a girl in a belly shirt and it looks like Melrose Place. Please take an hour or so a week to take note of current fashions. These are teenagers; they should look somewhat hip and "with it" (as the kids say).

Also...that is not how clothing fits. I know I shouldn't even open this can of worms because it's so enormous, but shirts don't perfectly encase breasts like that. There is stretching and hanging and extra material. This looks effing ridiculous.

Plus, she's a teenager, so...gross.

Scalphunter hates two things: the white man, and high comic book prices.

There is something really hilarious and wrong about this subscription ad:

Man, Scalphunter is hanging from a noose! And they're making cute puns!

I mean...why stop there...

This Week's Haul: So Good It's Boring

I really want to review comics this week, but I don't have much to say about them. They were all pretty solid. I mean, what can you really say about Captain America, Iron Fist, The Incredible Herc, Grendel, The Brave and the Bold and Birds of Prey besides they are all really good? All the time. Even Spider-Man is rocking the house regularly. I have very few complaints these days.

I would like to talk about three comics, basically.

Catwoman #77

Ok, this was awesome. This book is consistently awesome, as I keep mentioning on this blog, but I think bonus points deserve to be awarded when the book ties into Salvation Run and is STILL awesome.

In this issue Catwoman, still on a bizarre parallel world after having supposedly escaped the Salvation Run planet, beats Batman in a fight:

And then destroys the Justice League:

And then LIGHTS A CIGAR WITH HAL'S RING!

I love this woman.

Super Friends #1

Awwwwwwwwwwww. Look at them! All stumpy!

I'm not going to lie: I'd be a lot happier if J. Bone was doing the interiors on this title, but I can give any quibbles about the art a pass because, hey, kids are buying this comic! Kids are asking for this comic by name! We are selling lots of copies of this comic! It's exciting. This first issue is certainly a lot blander than Tiny Titans, or Teen Titans Go...or basically any other all ages comic on the shelf right now by any publisher, but still...

Green Lantern defeats Amazo using the awesome combined power of the Justice League believing in him. And frankly kids need to learn these valuable lessons (i.e. - holding hands with your friends will cause a giant ram's head to burst out of your finger).


Superman/Batman Annual #2

Yeah, I keep saying I am not reading this comic anymore...but I love annuals.

This annual kept the same theme as last year: re-telling a classic Superman/Batman team-up story. This time it's World's Finest #178, where Superman loses his powers and tries to make a go of it as a powerless crime fighter named Nova.

Like last year's annual, this one is written by Joe Kelly and infuses a nice amount of humour, parody and tongue-in-cheek sexual tension between our two heroes. But where last year's was just full-throttle with the silliness, this comic is actually a pretty decent re-telling. It updates the story nicely without being nearly as corny as you would imagine something like this being. It's not hard to be an exceptionally good issue of Superman/Batman, but this is one. The art, by Scott Kolins, is also very nice.

I think it would be cool if they could reprint the original stories as part of these annuals, or at least mention where readers can find the original stories. I also think that every issue of S/B should just be a re-telling of a classic story. Or be anything other than what it is right now, which is a complete waste of everything.



So there it is. Another week of comics that is so high in quality it's downright boring.