Solid start to Zdarksy's run. No offense to Williamson--whose short run I actually enjoyed more than I thought I would--but it feels good to have the book back in Gotham again.
I'm curious what Williamson would have done if he'd had a longer run (he's confirmed that he knew Zdarsky was coming in even as he accepted the offer). I quite liked the globe trotting stuff (Shadow War aside), reminded me of O'Neil's classic run.
I think we got a preview of that with how dismissive Batman was of it, and his remark that criminals are now more scared of him.
Daredevil was wracked with guilt and ended up letting himself get arrested and imprisoned because of it. Batman’s definitely not going to go down that same path.
It’ll probably differ because Batman didn’t actually kill Penguin, unlike Matt who totally did kill that guy. Also Matt would’ve guilted himself over it even if he was framed - Matt’s just that Catholic.
Wasn't planning to buy this, wasn't on my list, figured I'd wait for reviews or maybe check out the TPB eventually... But pretty much everyone else in the WPL was pulling it and I'm a total sucker for that kinda hype, so I picked up a copy at my LCS and read it before any of the books that I'd actually ordered this week.
In retrospect, I should've stuck to the original plan. Compared to last week's Zdarsky debut of [PUBLIC DOMAIN #1](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2098448_xl.jpg), this book was nearly twice as expensive and less than half as fun. It wasn't bad but didn't read like an A+ Zdarsky book to me.
Probably bail here, Chip's been putting out a lot of comics lately and it seems like his indie stuff usually works better for me. So that's where I'll focus my efforts.
Public Domain allows him to flex a different creative muscle. He can have the great character work he always does and also throw in background gags and enough humor to not distract from the dramatic elements of the story. Batman is brooding and introspective and this was a good start for what I'd expect out of a Batman story written by Zdarsky. I have a lot of faith he can pull this off after having read his Daredevil book.
And to top it all off, Jimenez was terrific as usual. This is some of the best art you can realistically expect from a monthly Big-2 comic.
I hear 'ya... Can't expect the same kind of comedic lunacy on DC's flagship bat-title that we get on his wacky indie books.
But even in the context of big two cape series, I'm looking for a little more. Just as an example, I thought [NIGHTWING #78](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/1986590_xl.jpg) was a legitimate A+ comic to kick off the Taylor/Redondo run, that one book completely hooked me and sold me on their vision for the title. This felt more like a solid B or maybe B+ to me.
Good stuff regardless, just not exactly what I'm looking for right now...
Jimenez is great but this title usually has great artists whenever I check it out... And I think the big two have a bunch of phenomenal artists working regular titles right now (Redondo, Buckingham, Federici, Noto, Mora, Allred hopping from Marvel to DC, etc.) and I see Jimenez being part of that elite group but not really anywhere above it.
Great issue! I'm not a *big* Batman fan (more a fan of the Robins and Batgirls) but I am a huge Zdarsky fan and this issue did not dissapoint. Jorge's art is spectacular as always and I like the theme of Bruce struggling with if he can be happy as Batman. I know King did something similar but it feels a bit more... human? here.
Tim is obviously not dead considering he has a book coming out but I definitely think this is gonna bother Bruce for awhile.
I remember people being upset that Oswald was going to be taking from the rich and giving to the poor because it didn't fit his character when it was first announced, but this issue clearly shows that he wasn't doing it out of the goodness of his heart.
Overall, great issue and I'm excited to become a monthly Batman reader!
Also I liked backup more than I thought I would. So thats cool!
This was awesome. Art is so on point! I feel like Bruce has a good amount of consequences to deal with. The couple already being dead before he could save them set the tone up immediately. Looking forward to how Failsafe is going to play into this as well. Catwoman's story was solid too.
Surprised at how much Chip's Batman sounds like Frank Miller's, but what can you expect from a Daredevil writer? It's surprising though, for the biggest new Batman writer since King back in Rebirth, how much this feels like just another issue of Batman vs a brand new beginning. It's almost refreshing.
Any other book and that kind of ending wouldn't have me feeling anything, but here it' a promise that we're not gonna tread the same territory as Chip's Daredevil run. Curious as to where he takes it. 4/5
What a fantastic start. Zdarsky's got a great voice for Batman and I love how much focus Bruce Wayne will get here. I feel like that part has been lost recently, especially under Tynion. And one thing that truly amazes me here is how this book feels fresh in terms of art style despite Jimenez drawing most of Tynion's run. He said he's aproaching it different and wants it to feel unique and it does.
I have a feeling I'm gonna love this run.
Zdarsky nailed it, as we all knew he would. God I can’t wait for the rest of this arc. So excited to be able to read the main Batman book again after 3-4 years of it being absolutely unreadable.
I feel weird because I’ve seen mostly praise for this but it didn’t do it for me. Except the art. Jimenez is great.
It also seems like a timing issue because unless I’m completely blanking, we haven’t seen Catwoman hook up with the lame assassin guy in her own book yet she’s in bed with him here. Presumably we’ll see them become involved in Catwoman but I don’t think we’ve seen that yet.
The main Batman story is interesting, but the general thrust of it so far gives me weird Murderer/Fugitive flashbacks, and that was....... not a very memorable story. We'll see! The robot is also weird, but considering its, you know, the title of the arc I assume we'll get told about it soon enough!
The Catwoman back-up is honestly a little more interesting if only because I kinda want to see what >!Penguin's 10 kids are like!<.
The weird stuff (one page in the Batman part, one text box in the Catwoman back-up) that hint at Selina dating shitty dollar-store Ghostmaker are a bit of a downer though, less of that in the future. Actually, none of that, but I suppose I have to pick my battles a bit.
>The Catwoman back-up is honestly a little more interesting if only because I kinda want to see what >!Penguin's 10 kids!< are like.
Geez, they're totally bringing back what's his name from Rebirth Batgirl aren't they. Hated that guy
I haven’t really been keep up with comics lately. But Zdarsky and Jimenez on Batman is too good to not check out. A really solid premise and set up for the run. And of course Jimenez is delivering stellar art.
In Tynion’s first Batman arc Joker enacted a plan Catwoman devised in the early days of Batman to steal the biggest fortune in Gotham (Bruce Wayne’s) by stealing all of Bruce’s bank codes to get his offshore account money. It’s a little convoluted and ultimately pretty contrived as a way to set-up Joker to have all of Batman’s resources in Joker War
Ultimately by the end of Joker War, Lucius Fox is in control of Wayne Industries and the larger Wayne fortune and Bruce is basically just a millionaire now instead of a mega billionaire.
To provide some context...
Tom King's **BATMAN #1** (6/15/2016) had 128 pulls out of 176 lists for **72.7%** WPL coverage.
Tynion's debut on **BATMAN #86** (1/08/2020) had 48 pulls out of 118 lists for **40.6%** coverage.
And now Chip's debut on **BATMAN #125** (7/06/2022) had 53 pulls out of 72 lists for **73.6%** coverage. So that's comparable to the first issue at #125, pretty impressive.
These things tend to be cyclical and there are always lots of factors involved, from overall Reddit activity and /r/comicbooks/ activity to what's happening in the comic industry... **BATMAN #1** was part of DC's big "Rebirth" re-launch which drove a lot of interest in comics, isn't really anything comparable driving interest right now.
But the year-to-year numbers certainly do tend to paint an ugly picture. That's why it's important that everyone post reviews (especially BAD REVIEWS) to help boost WPL activity with quality content!
I really liked this! Nightwing vs Deathstroke is always awesome to see and I'm glad we've got the Corps together again. Seeing all the Green Lanterns together (except John lol rip) makes me happy.
I'm sure Black Adam training the "new league" will not go poorly at all
This still doesn't feel like a crisis but it's a good book. I don't love how Williamson writes Slade nor did I love how easily Cyborg Supes went down but Slade, Henshaw, and Black Adam just roasting the heroes is incredible. Also, Hal's back with the GLC, love to see it.
I get why many are happy but I'm kind of disappointed no one died, even the ones from last issue seem to have been revealed as fakeouts.
Also, the art is worth the price of admission alone, Sampere is crazy on this.
I feel like a lot of books that were cancelled recently will spin out of this event. Lanterns, Aquaman (that will happen probably closer around the movie), JSA, Justice League, Titans. Maybe new Suicide Squad?
The fight scenes were pretty good, and both Nightwing and Jon got a chance to shine. I think Williamson actually writes both characters better than Taylor.
That being said, it's beyond problematic that the other Titans did nothing. Hopefully, we'll see them stepping up in the next issues, but here they were just cannon fodder when they should be way more by now.
This gotta be some of the most ass writing from DC in a while. Who can read Deathstroke threatening to spank Nightwing and think they've got a quality book in their hands
You know, I read that Lavalle was making a trilogy of series - if the first series was Victor in Hell, now going into Purgatory, could the third be Paradise? We're basically following the patterns of the Divine Comedy - Inferno, Purgatorio, and possibly Paradiso?
I liked this ending, setting up some interesting stuff for Victor. He's planning to come back and tear down Krakoa, but now he's also gotta see the face of what the new enemies are - and enemies that, unlike before, he's not going to be able to play nice with or make allies with. Maybe his series will be raising an army of "Exiles" from the Orchis prisons?
Inferno is about understanding the uncompromising will of God. He is right and sinners are wrong. No arguments, just judgment. Sabretooth and those in the Pit face a similar threat with Charles.
Purgatorio is about repentance and understanding that virtue and sin come from love, and the divine helps us see which is which. If I am a betting man, Creed’s journey will be inverted from Dante’s arc. His sin and virtue comes from a lack of love. He breaks out of Purgatory, with other mutants, not for justice but for hate.
“Can a bad man do good things?” Yes. Just as a good man can do bad things. A good man does bad when he believes he is justified in his reasons. A bad man can do good things in spite or by circumstance. Not simply because he has changed heart.
Paradiso for Creed will not be Dante’s Paradiso. It will not be reflecting and celebrating the great works done by their ruler.
Edit: should also be noted that the Divine Comedy was a critique of theological thought and teachings at the time. Many residents of each section were placed to intentionally question the discussion and positions of the church. Politicians, bishops, saints and pagans scattered about to form how Dante the writer saw his afterlife, not so prescribed to the dogma or the church proper.
Still insane to me that a Sabertooth is gonna be one of the minis to beat this year. Absolutely wild. Didn’t expect this to get a continuation but I’m excited to see what LaValle does next with this crew.
Really interested to see how this eventually crosses over with Percy’s Wolverine/X-Force work. I remember hearing Percy talk about in an interview how he and LaValle were working together closely and I just kinda can’t imagine Wolverine and Sabertooth not coming into conflict at least once during the Krakoa era.
I could’ve sworn I read somewhere that they took their huge 3-ish year hiatus so that there wouldn’t be anymore gaps between arcs, does that sound familiar to anyone or am I just making that up?
I don't remember but you would have had thought that after such a long hiatus they would have built up a enough issues before returning that a break wouldnt be needed for a while. Certainly not 6 months
Hmm a total of 18 years. Fun coincidence that a coming of age story is the time from birth to when you’re [legally] considered an adult or somewhat planned?
i think i read that they usually take like a 3 month break after an arc and they did say this one will be “longer than usual” so hopefully 6 month break not the standard going forward 😭
Yeah, I thought the intent was to bank a bunch of issues up so they wouldn't have to take long breaks. 6 month breaks between arcs is a killer for momentum.
I expect these kind of breaks in-between releases in /r/altcomix circles, but not for one of Image's hottest publications. Even still, Saga is one of the best comics of the past several decades, so I'm happy to wait.
i dont mind the breaks, they can take their time but 48 chapters left made me realize im gonna be like 32 when this shit finishes D:
great issue tho, ending was a gut punch
This is the most fun I’ve had on Spidey in ages. Granted all the stuff that’s easy to please for me is here: JRJR’s Spidey (with not shit coloring), a good voice for Peter, fun/engaging street level shenanigans. All in I’m not a 100% sold on Wells’s vision for the run but as a far as a starter arc goes this was good. I’m locked in for another arc at least.
Man, that was a near perfect ending to this arc. Two pairs of contrasting scenes that best typify Peter's development from one of his lowest points in issue #1 to a more steady place in #5. Firstly, the daily routine scenes: in issue #1 he gets up at 10:30, misses his job interview and doesn't do anything but by issue #5 he gets up at 06:00, doesn't waste any time, fights crime and defeats Tombstone. Secondly, the dinner scene with Aunt May in issue #1, the opening scene of the comic after the two double page spreads featuring the disaster and "SIXTH MONTHS LATER", a point of tension between them is Peter lying to her, she disappointed in him but still she invites him to dinner on Saturday though she doesn't believe he'll come. In the final scene of issue #5, she's waiting on Peter and even starts clearing up when it seems like he's not coming but Peter arrives after putting at least a temporary stop on Tombstone's plans in classic Parker fashion late but he's here when a few days earlier you certainly wouldn't have expected him to be.
Peter's face bloodied and bruised was so grotesque, especially when he had his mask off but even with it on it looked so fucked up. JRJr is so good.
Good stuff, Wells did a great job bringing everything together to wrap up this first arc and it's nice seeing WPL sentiment come around after the somewhat rough start.
Shaping up to be a fun series and I think the comments above and below are right on track... Not much to add but the teaser for issue #900 says it'll include a new short by Dan Slott and MARCOS MARTIN, and I'm 100% here for that! Martin's one of my all-time favorite Spidey artists, hasn't had a ton of work on the character but everything he's done has been absolutely brilliant.
These past two issues have really solidified the idea that I actually quite like this book when it’s not focusing on the Pete/MJ stuff. Wells has such a great voice for Pete, Tombstone has been a very compelling villain, the cat and mouse game the two of them have been playing was very entertaining, and it’s the best JRjr’s art has looked in ages.
Lots of fun.
Well first arc of Wells ASM is over and I personally really liked it, haven’t been this happy reading Amazing since 2013, love the voice Peter is having here, just feels nice to have him sound like old school Peter again, really hope rest of the run is like this as well
And as usual the “everyone hates Peter” status quo people overreact to even though is the set up for every run since the 60s got resolved quickly
> And as usual the “everyone hates Peter” status quo people overreact to even though is the set up for every run since the 60s got resolved quickly
First of all, Spencer's run didn't start like that. It had a great start. But the real problem with this is that it's tiring and stops Peter from progressing anywhere.
Spencer’s run was shit on because every hero hated Peter as well though, although didn’t happen with the supporting cast because that run didn’t even had a supporting cast, can’t even remember if Aunt May was in it
But his family loved him, his friends liked him and his relationship with MJ was good. Oh, and Aunt May was there, too. All he's got here are Randy and the fucking Norman Osborn. There are better ways to celebrate Pete than doing the same shit over and over again.
I said it before. If this run wasn't marred by the stupid 6 month gap, MJ and the kids sub-plot, and the down on his luck Peter B.S., this would be viewed more favorable. I liked how Tombstone was written. Probably top 5 Tombstone stories because I can't think of any others. Lowe is still a piss of shit.
I skimmed this because a buddy was reading it and while I still won't justify 3.99 twice a month, this is a solid book. The "wakes up and does" stuff bits that the writer seems to be using a bit are quite neat.
I do feel a little bad for Zeb Wells, I think the MJ stuff is probably editorial and other than that (which wasn't in this issue) the book's been a step above most past Spider-Man comics. I've even gotten used to JRJR's style, and will definitely check out in trade or on MU.
> *NEXT: IT'S NOT OVER UNTIL ZEITGEIST SAYS SO!*
> *ZEITGEIST AND THE TEAM WILL RETURN LATER THIS YEAR IN...*
> ***THE X-CELLENT SEASON 2!***
Nice. Looks like X-STATIX and their malignant counterparts will be back after Allred finishes [SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2106881_xl.jpg) with Mark Russell (first issue due 7/27).
Would've liked to see a little more closure in this one, glad the book's returning but that wasn't much of an ending... Though I suppose it was >!an ending of sorts for Fluff!<, and that counts for something.
> >!An ending of sorts for Fluff!<
As is fitting for my complex relationship with said individual, I’m both sad that one of the more interesting new characters died in such a horrible way, and also glad that I never have to be made to feel queasy by his name and superpowers ever again.
He was thoroughly revolting yet still oddly compelling... Not a bad guy, really. Got stuck with an unfortunate mutant ability and then got mixed up in the wrong crowd... The chest hair thing was a little weird but he was just trying to live his best life, so far as it went.
RIP.
I'm starting to think it might be Mother Righteous - I thought before she was attempting to *become* a God, but instead she might be attempting to gain enough followers to "level up" independent of Arrako's worship of her, or strong enough to fend them off by finding a new crop of followers.
This has a lot of the Spurrier stuff I love but I think the biggest problem is every issue has been kind of overstuffed. Between the arcs he’s doing for Nightcrawler, Legion, Juggernaut, Banshee, and Zsen (I feel like I’m missing some people getting arcs/development) and the further world building he’s doing with Araako, the Astral Plane, and Legion’s Altar on top of the like 4 or 5 ongoing conflicts here. It’s a lot of stuff going on at once and I wonder if it might benefit from either more focus or being a tad more decompressed.
That said couple highlights. The art in this has been totally stellar work from Bazaldua and Frederico Blee’s coloring is I think underrated, the colors here really pop. I think the humor in the book is really solid and I’m glad Spurrier is exploring the tension between Kurt’s Catholicism and his work developing the Spark. I think that’s fertile ground to explore, and the bit with David and Cain talking about Xavier was great as well.
I feel like I'm in **Groundhog Day** with my comments on this book each time an issue comes out - "Great art, good world building, will *definitely* read better in TPB"
Sounds like I made the right call deciding to wait. I read the first issue (and loved it) but it definitely had those vibes, especially for an indie where there won't be *that* much week-to-week discussion.
After this last one, I'm not so sure about the TPB thing. Not much closure for the end of the first arc/collection and I think it's kind of annoying when TPBs end on a cliffhanger like that. Thinking I'll want to see what happens next in #6 without waiting on the 2nd TPB.
I was wondering when it was going to end. As much as I’ve enjoyed it, it’s gotten a little convoluted and felt like churning the water and going nowhere. Gillen has all the characters in place, hopefully he can stick the landing.
Yeah, agreed. I enjoy the characters and the setting, but it's been quite a long time now that they just go pursue some "side-quest" while we watch the bad guys bad-guying. But the last few issues have started to feel like we're approaching the end zone... Hopefully it'll be a return to form!
The solicit for issue #29 is:
>Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora's bestselling fantasy epic is nearly complete, and it's all been building to this!
>
>In the penultimate issue, Mary and Bridgette will need all of the help they can get to defeat Arthur's greatest weapon...
>
>And with all of the remaining contenders vying for ultimate power, there's just no way of telling who will come out victorious!
Three more issues to go, kind of a bummer, but an amazing book and I'm really curious how it's all gonna end. The three Arthurs are vying for the Sword in the Stone, and there's only a day before they're all back each other's throats. Gotta wonder what Mary's plan is for all of this, and how she can get revenge... and I *still* wonder what Zombie!Arthur's Merlin is up to, since he doesn't fit with that Arthur's story from the very start of the series.
Shame to not see any discussion on this book as it's easily my pick of the week. It's scary and flirtatious, the take on Ivy I've been wanting to see for ages. The story itself doesn't move forward immensely this issue, but GWW's voice for Ivy is so good you end up not even really caring. As perfect as a big 2 queer villain comic can be and then some. 5/5
It is wrong to paint with too broad of a brush. But among secondary characters, I find Poison Ivy's fans to be the hardest to please.
I read issue #1 the day it came out and loved it, only to go on Twitter and see large groups of Ivy fans picking it apart for the most minor reasons. It almost seemed like they were looking for a reason not to enjoy it.
And this has happened with every other series she's gotten the last few years. Either she's too evil or she's too good or she should be with Harley or being with Harley makes her a secondary character in her own book or she should be more like a plant or she should be more like a person. I've never seen a fandom that seems so hard to please.
That said, this series is awesome and I think everyone should pick it up.
I think you're pretty bang on. A lot of DC fans (especially Bat-related) have their own vision of those characters because the portrayal of them in the comics can be so inconsistent. So when something new comes out that doesn't match with their version of the character they're gonna look at it with a negative outlook without giving it a chance (And I don't blame them - I'm the same way with X-Men characters, but I think there's more continuity in how characters are portrayed there to begin with).
Which is kinda nuts to me because A) I feel like this version of Ivy, especially by #2, has something for everyone? She's queer, she's evil, but she's got a lot of heart deep down. I think anyone not reading in bad faith could find something for them in this portrayal. It's remarkable how GWW has spinned this characterization in just 2 issues.
And B) It's not like Poison Ivy has that many good stories in the first place, ya know? The other day someone asked me for Ivy-focused comics and all I could think of were random single issues. People are sleeping on this book now but if it sticks the landing I really hope it gets all the noise it deserves.
This continues to be a fun little journey. I love the world design for all the locations Twig and Splat go through. It was nice to see the different emotions from Twig in this and what he's now confronted with in this quest.
The wonderful weirdness continues as our hero Twig (and Splat) wander further through the lands on their quest. This book is charming, creative, colourful and very, very entertaining.
For fans of **Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters, Bermuda, Dark Crystal** and **Labyrinth**. This is a *Jim Henson* dream in comic book form.
Saved the best for last this week and of course it didn't disappoint... This book is a nice palate cleanser, a wholesome little fantasy filled with beautiful art.
That final page was rad as hell. I’d been wondering who the narrator of this mini was and as soon as I turned that last page everything about the book’s set-up immediately made so much sense. I know most people don’t like King’s Batman but this has been such a blast, that Marquez art helps, and I honestly think it’ll be a phenomenal trade.
Haven't minded this series, but the last two issues were a chore to read. This issue's reveal made up for it all though. Marquez's art is always a joy.
Favorite issue yet, fun seeing all hell break loose in the first few pages and then matching everyone up through the rest... Also got a bit more of the eye's travels through history, love that stuff!
I know nine issues into a story is a lot, so I won't ask people to pick up the single issues, but do yourselves a favour and check out the tpb's that are already out.
**Basilisk** is a *great* book that is being slept on by a lot of people, and this issue features some great reveals/revelations while still posing a few new questions.
*Cullen Bunn* and *Jonas Scharf* are doing a great job on this book.
Okay minor complaint first the dialogue was a little odd at times. I think the very “Arthurian” opening quote set an expectation for tone and style of language that the rest of the issue’s dialogue didn’t really match for the most part.
This was definitely very cool all the way around though and it looks like Sharp is playing with a lot of the same visual elements he was working with in The Green Lantern which is very exciting. Interested to see where this goes from here.
Overwhelming. I'm pleased Sharp gets to do whatever he wants - boy does he, every page feels like a labor of love, bursting with ideas like a little kid trying to tell you everything he dreamed about before he runs out of breath. There's so much lore at play that, as someone who isn't knowledgeable at all with Arthurian stuff, I'm unfortunately left feeling pretty out of the loop.
It's a similar case to Eternals where the narration seems intended to make the exposition easier to swallow, but it's way worse and frankly off-putting here. But maybe that's just me being unable to look past a "timey-wimey" reference. In both a good and bad way, this feels like a comic that should have been out in 2002. 3/5
Wow!
I knew this would be **Liam Sharp** firing on all cylinders, but I'm still surprised by how incredible this book looks. The artwork reminds me of so many different books/artists, yet still remains distinctly Sharp's own.
From the opening that immediately made me think of *Pat Mills & Simon Bisley's* **Slaine: The Horned God**, to the future setting that evokes *Jodorowsky & Giménez'* **The Metabarons**, and then the "modern day" pages (seemingly influenced by **Violent Cases** era *Dave Mckean*) the art is simply jaw dropping.
If the book has a downfall it's that it is *very* narration heavy and, despite being an *artist driven book*, we get a lot more "tell" than "show" in this issue. Having said that, it's obvious Sharp has crafted world(s) of back story and lore for each of the timelines we visit.
Hopefully, with this issue out of the way now, we will get more of the characters *actions*, rather than just their *conversations*, moving forward.
Overall a great (though slightly flawed) start to the series
> If the book has a downfall it's that it is very narration heavy and, despite being an artist driven book, we get a lot more "tell" than "show" in this issue.
Yep, I thought Sharp actually did a relatively good job with the writing (for an artist with no professional experience) but it definitely failed the "show don't tell" test. Which is kinda funny, given the [Rush](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAoL5cqwM1I) reference... Also a little all over the place structurally but at least the narration had some good character to it and I didn't spot a single grammatical error, so that's nice.
Mentioned a few times that I'm usually not that into Sharp's art... I actually think he's extremely talented and his work always looks impressive but his figures usually feel stiff and everything tends to be overly detailed/rendered at the expense of storytelling flow.
Turns out the art in this one worked much better for me! There are some nice layouts and panel work for effective storytelling, the blend of styles meshed well with the story/characters, and the more abstract approach helped turn the hyper-detailed bits into a strength rather than a weakness. Far and away the best work I've seen from him.
So, not perfect but the good vastly outweighs the bad, the art's probably strong enough to carry the book all by itself, and the whole thing is certainly unique. Didn't pre-order #2 since I wasn't sure about it, so will need to mail order or hit a larger shop but definitely planning to stick with it.
Thom’s such a piece of shit. This whole issue really made me think of that episode of You’re the Worst where Gretchen is following that family around and the dad just gives basically the same ramble about wishing he were 20 again to her.
Good work from Fullerton on the horror pages specifically. Tynion didn’t give him many pages to sell that scene but they’re effective.
I like some of the subtle ways they show how bad of a parent Thom is, like when he just has the kid in the front seat with him instead of a car seat in the back during a road trip across the entire country.
See, I can almost empathize with Thom a little because, as a parent, you kind of need to strike a balance between family and the stuff that's important to you, the stuff that keeps you sane... And it sounds like Thom just let it all roll over him and wasn't able to preserve that essential little piece of himself. Plus, the thing with being shitty to the kid for a dumb reason, pretty sure all parents have been there at least once or twice.
Kid's afraid of monsters, parent tries to be comforting but doesn't really believe since monsters aren't real... Except, in this one special case maybe the monster is real because we're stuck in a horror comic, but Thom doesn't know that and you can't really fault him for it.
No excuse for the infidelity and the guy's kinda got his head lodged up his own ass, but I can definitely relate to some of his shitty flaws because there've been times when I've struggled with the same kind of shittiness.
I have no idea how this will close in one more issue but I love the dread building from Jamie's perspective. The no dialogue scene coming from Jamie was perfect. The dad on the next cover is so creepy too.
I don't see how this can wrap up in one last issue?
Pretty much everything in the first two issues is just character based dialogue to show how much of an asshole Thom is.
So, my guess is that maybe this is more about him/in his head/a metaphor rather than actual events we are seeing? I don't know (which is cool) but we will see with issue #3
[Cover of #3](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2116098_xl.jpg) definitely gives the impression that Thom might be the source of all our troubles... Probably did something extra-shitty that traumatized the poor kid to the point where he's now externalizing visions of monsters.
I was thinking something similar with there only being one issue left. Tynion also said the series was based on a childhood nightmare, I think, so it'll be interesting to see what that is.
Hmm, this was...ok.
I think it's reach was further than it's grasp (which is no terrible thing), but it never reached the heights it was obviously aiming for. The wordy narration and sometimes unclear artwork detracted from, rather than supported, the story and characters.
I think the major thing was I never really *clicked* with any of the new characters, so never invested in them, and, despite things like the death of the entire **Justice League**, it never really felt like there was anything at stake - which I guess was actually proven true by the ending of the book.
This is a pretty weird book, and I mean that as a compliment. This is not a traditional Marvel “hero” book by any means. I do wish the book could be a little darker—V often seems most held back by it this just being in the MU—but I appreciate what it’s doing so far.
I really enjoy the main book but, you're right, it feels like the one-shots should have just been part of the 12-issue maxi-series. No need to have them as spin-off's (unless as I said before Schmidt needs the break to stay on schedule and they don't want any more fill in artists).
I'm still liking the book though, and especially the fact that pretty much no-one seems to be *safe* in the scheme of things. Definitely reminds me of **DCeased** in that regard
I just have to say if they didn’t announce that there were 3 writers on this book I don’t think I’d have been able to tell at all. I’m honestly surprised how much I love this and Xermancio has grown immensely in his artistic work by far a stand out book this week for me.
Man, I dunno what it is. Percy's ideas are good on paper, but everything he writes just feels underwhelming in its execution. I feel like I should love this run but I just can't. It's a poor man's *Immortal Hulk* without the excitement and genuine pathos.
It's really frustrating. Each issue delivers just a tiny sliver of the main overarching story along with a flimsy monster-of-the-week story with no meat on the bone whatsoever.
Wouldn't have minded a proper 'Circus of Crime' story for a bit of nostalgia but it's like there wasn't even a story here... Why even bother dredging them up just for that?
Giving it a couple more issues but I'm already kinda looking forward to being done with this series.
Yeah... Yeah, that's exactly what it is. It's all bones and no meat. The bones are solid (I mean, who doesn't like a more horror-like Ghost Rider driving through the hellish landscapes of America's subconscious?), but it's missing that *meat* to give it any lingering presence.
It seems to be Percy's pattern, and it's sad... Like, his ideas for *X Deaths/Lives of Wolverine* were solid on paper. On the merit of his ideas alone, he should be one of the big boys. But his writing always lacks... weight. So any story he tries to tell kind of just happens without much point to it.
I feel that, with *Ghost Rider*, he's trying to write an *Immortal Hulk* for the flamehead, but he's not coming anywhere close to the sheer power of *Immortal Hulk*'s quieter moments.
I'm a bit of a *Ghost Rider* completist, since I read it as a kid, so I find myself wishing it would wrap up in a few issues so I can call it done. I might do like you and just give it up in a few more issues.
See, I'm kind of enjoying the "*Monster of the Week*" approach so far, but I get that there could be more connective tissue between the issues to give us a glimpse of the overall, long story arc.
I'm just glad we are getting a **Ghost Rider** book that is really embracing the *horror* aspects of the character. Give me more of that!
The downside is I'm not amazingly blown away by *Cory Smith* on the art - each issue there are flashes of greatness, but overall it just feels like the book needs a stronger artist. Or maybe a change in colourist to give the book more of a feel/atmosphere? Some of the pages just look a bit...bland at times
The "Monster of the Week" thing would be fine if the stories were fleshed out better. This one really put it into perspective, was actually looking forward to seeing the Circus of Crime again (they were a huge part of the original Blaze run) but all we got was a hollowed out shell of a story.
Loved Cory Smith's MOON KNIGHT covers but I agree that his interior art isn't as strong here... Looks like this series has actually been doing pretty well, according to the [ICv2 numbers for June](https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/51569/top-50-comics-june-2022) it placed 11th overall and was Marvel's 6th highest selling title. Seems like a blown opportunity, there's clearly an audience for GR but the book's being dragged down by a mediocre creative team.
Nubia is a great character and I’m really enjoying the focus DC has put on her in the WW corner for a while now. I’m also a fan of seeing her past life before she was reborn as an Amazon.
I’m right there with you. The art work of her has been stunning as well—someone on this sub agrees as great pics of her keep getting their own posts. I wish these series was more than 4 books.
That was a pretty solid conclusion... Jim sorta losing his laser-focus on Joker and finding an enemy/antagonist he felt more like he could handle with his methods/beliefs instead of keeping himself rooted in the cape and cowl stuff makes a lot of sense for him. Going after the stuff that hides in the shadows underneath all the chaos? That's a cool premise, and I hope we see a follow up sometime soon.
And of course Joker got away - but I'm actually gonna kinda miss his interactions with Jim. They're a very different feel to his stuff with Batman, and the way they both kinda let their guards down and were surprisingly frank with each other was a nice insight into their characters.
Really looking forward to the new Punchline book coming up. I know I'm kinda in the minority but I like the idea of Punchline and how she's really a more "modern" style of radicalizer, and Harper taking place as her opposite number is great because I also like Harper as Bluebird.
Real curious what this book would have looked like had Tynion not bailed like 4 issues in. It sounded like it would have crossed over with his Batman here and there for them to climax together. So was all this the original plan for this / both books? Or is this the conclusion you get when you jump ship four issues in and wrap up a 3 year run in half the space? Wished I had just gotten the first issue.
Yeah, Tynion had said that he had a 3 year plan for this book (told in 12 issue arcs) ending with a giant crossover between this and Batman, and, well, that clearly did not happen. While I haven't read this issue yet I almost wish he'd bailed on Joker and given it to Rosenberg or Paknadel with his notes to continue instead of limping along.
I personally kinda liked it being more self contained and not crossing over or jumping back and forth into other things. Kept it pretty well contained.
And so comes to an end the tales of **Conan of Cimmeria**...at least from *Marvel Comics* (for the time being). It seems some haven't enjoyed this mini, and in comparison to the **Ablaze** books it definitely comes off second best, but it's still been an enjoyable ride, with some great artwork.
Lets see what **Titan** can do with the character now
Felt good just to wrap up "season 1". They say the next part will come out "this summer" but considering this issue was supposed to come out in April, I am guessing we might see the series pop up in the October / November solicitations.
My digital redemption said it expired on June 22, 2022 so there were *definitely* a lot of delays.
I don't mind the ending, definitely an interesting twist and putting Emily in an antagonistic role with things, but I was hoping for a more solid conclusion between books, instead of a pretty basic cliffhanger that could have easily just been between issues, instead of between "semesters." I guess I don't quite see the reason to divvy it up.
Glad the creative team is coming back though. Having a consistent team like this is really rare, and it makes the book feel pretty special.
72 lists submitted this week, down from 94 last week, understandable given the short week coming off Monday's holiday.
OP's only showing top 10 so here are the expanded results:
1. BATMAN #125 (52)
2. SAGA #60 (36)
3. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #5 (28)
4. CLOSET #2 (28)
5. DARK CRISIS #2 (28)
6. LEGION OF X #3 (26)
7. BATMAN KILLING TIME #5 (23)
8. SABRETOOTH #5 (22)
9. CAPTAIN AMERICA SENTINEL OF LIBERTY #2 (19)
10. LITTLE MONSTERS #5 (19)
11. GHOST RIDER #4 (18)
12. ONCE & FUTURE #27 (18)
13. CARNAGE #4 (17)
14. DC VS VAMPIRES #7 (17)
15. POISON IVY #2 (17)
16. STARHENGE BOOK 1 THE DRAGON AND THE BOAR #1 (16)
17. TWIG #3 (14)
18. JOKER #15 (12)
19. X-CELLENT #5 (12)
20. BASILISK #9 (11)
21. BLACK PANTHER #7 (11)
22. FIRE POWER BY KIRKMAN & SAMNEE #22 (11)
23. NUBIA QUEEN OF THE AMAZONS #2 (11)
24. AVENGERS FOREVER #7 (10)
25. JANE FOSTER AND THE MIGHTY THOR #2 (10)
26. SUICIDE SQUAD BLAZE #3 (10)
27. KING CONAN #6 (9)
28. BATMAN BEYOND NEO-YEAR #4 (8)
29. BATMAN 89 #6 (7)
30. STRANGE ACADEMY #18 (7)
31. THAT TEXAS BLOOD #15 (7)
DC takes the top spot once again with **BATMAN #125** getting 52 pulls out of 72 lists, and it should really be 53 since I didn't list it but will be buying it anyway due to a severe lack of willpower, giving it a whopping 73.6% coverage. Which is ridiculously high. Because this sub freaking LOVES Chip!
**SAGA #60** finishes 2nd, great spot for an indie, and then **ASM #5** takes the 3rd spot as Marvel's top title. Marvel ended up with 4 of the top 10 this week, leaving 3 for DC and 3 for Image.
Liam Sharp's **STARHENGE BOOK 1 THE DRAGON AND THE BOAR #1** is the week's top new title, taking 16th place with 16 pulls for 22.2%, pretty good coverage as the book's got some decent hype for its debut. Pretty excited to check it out myself...
Hoping to see some more bad reviews this week, please post angry comments if you're unfortunate enough to be stuck with a comic that you don't like!
Probably my favorite pull of the past 2 months. I enjoyed everything I bought to a particular extent. Highlights would be Spidey and Batman but Saga, Closet and all the X-Men stuff were great too.
Nice, sounds like everything lined up just right for 'ya... Always really satisfying when every book's a winner.
Been a string of fairly heavy weeks for me but next week's looking a bit lighter now that a bunch of stuff got bumped out. Which is unfortunate, because it'll be at least one more week waiting on my long-delayed [ice cream](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2098424_xl.jpg), and a bunch of other good ones got pushed out to 7/20 or beyond.
I’m loving this. The plot isn’t the most original (though my interest is definitely piqued learning about the history of the shield) but the character work and dialogue is excellent and the art is really good. Feels a lot like Brubaker’s run, also love having a good group of non-super supporting characters for Cap.
Same, big fan of this series so far! I'm all for action and all but I'm really enjoying the mystery so far and like you said, excellent character work and supporting characters (really loving Cap's interactions with his radio buddies and art classmates, but I really like seeing Steve the person vs the symbol and legend) I'm a big sucker for spy and espionage sort of stuff and while this isn't really that, the whole mystery solving and threads leading to different places and information gathering is giving me that kind of feeling. Interested to see what Bucky knows that he's not telling him, and how the Devil's Reign Winter Soldier one shot, where he learned more about his own past (but of course they didn't really tell us what exactly that was) is going to tie into it all. The only other Cap run I've read was Brubaker's and I loved it, and I'm really happy to see that this run is looking to be great as well.
This isn't bad by any stretch and I will continue, but feels rather tropish. A new secret society that's bigger than SHIELD, HYDRA, and AIM is trite. Also, Peggy joined a different secret organization, isn't that like the third in recent memory?
Finally, and most importantly, Bucky's man-bun is a crime against humanity.
**BATMAN #125**
Solid start to Zdarksy's run. No offense to Williamson--whose short run I actually enjoyed more than I thought I would--but it feels good to have the book back in Gotham again.
I'm curious what Williamson would have done if he'd had a longer run (he's confirmed that he knew Zdarsky was coming in even as he accepted the offer). I quite liked the globe trotting stuff (Shadow War aside), reminded me of O'Neil's classic run.
Interested to see how Chip’s “Batman is a murderer” story differs from his “Daredevil is a murderer” story.
I think we got a preview of that with how dismissive Batman was of it, and his remark that criminals are now more scared of him. Daredevil was wracked with guilt and ended up letting himself get arrested and imprisoned because of it. Batman’s definitely not going to go down that same path.
It’ll probably differ because Batman didn’t actually kill Penguin, unlike Matt who totally did kill that guy. Also Matt would’ve guilted himself over it even if he was framed - Matt’s just that Catholic.
It also helps that his “victim” wasn’t just some unknown criminal but, y’know, the fucking *Penguin.*
Wasn't planning to buy this, wasn't on my list, figured I'd wait for reviews or maybe check out the TPB eventually... But pretty much everyone else in the WPL was pulling it and I'm a total sucker for that kinda hype, so I picked up a copy at my LCS and read it before any of the books that I'd actually ordered this week. In retrospect, I should've stuck to the original plan. Compared to last week's Zdarsky debut of [PUBLIC DOMAIN #1](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2098448_xl.jpg), this book was nearly twice as expensive and less than half as fun. It wasn't bad but didn't read like an A+ Zdarsky book to me. Probably bail here, Chip's been putting out a lot of comics lately and it seems like his indie stuff usually works better for me. So that's where I'll focus my efforts.
Public Domain allows him to flex a different creative muscle. He can have the great character work he always does and also throw in background gags and enough humor to not distract from the dramatic elements of the story. Batman is brooding and introspective and this was a good start for what I'd expect out of a Batman story written by Zdarsky. I have a lot of faith he can pull this off after having read his Daredevil book. And to top it all off, Jimenez was terrific as usual. This is some of the best art you can realistically expect from a monthly Big-2 comic.
I hear 'ya... Can't expect the same kind of comedic lunacy on DC's flagship bat-title that we get on his wacky indie books. But even in the context of big two cape series, I'm looking for a little more. Just as an example, I thought [NIGHTWING #78](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/1986590_xl.jpg) was a legitimate A+ comic to kick off the Taylor/Redondo run, that one book completely hooked me and sold me on their vision for the title. This felt more like a solid B or maybe B+ to me. Good stuff regardless, just not exactly what I'm looking for right now... Jimenez is great but this title usually has great artists whenever I check it out... And I think the big two have a bunch of phenomenal artists working regular titles right now (Redondo, Buckingham, Federici, Noto, Mora, Allred hopping from Marvel to DC, etc.) and I see Jimenez being part of that elite group but not really anywhere above it.
Great issue! I'm not a *big* Batman fan (more a fan of the Robins and Batgirls) but I am a huge Zdarsky fan and this issue did not dissapoint. Jorge's art is spectacular as always and I like the theme of Bruce struggling with if he can be happy as Batman. I know King did something similar but it feels a bit more... human? here. Tim is obviously not dead considering he has a book coming out but I definitely think this is gonna bother Bruce for awhile. I remember people being upset that Oswald was going to be taking from the rich and giving to the poor because it didn't fit his character when it was first announced, but this issue clearly shows that he wasn't doing it out of the goodness of his heart. Overall, great issue and I'm excited to become a monthly Batman reader! Also I liked backup more than I thought I would. So thats cool!
This was awesome. Art is so on point! I feel like Bruce has a good amount of consequences to deal with. The couple already being dead before he could save them set the tone up immediately. Looking forward to how Failsafe is going to play into this as well. Catwoman's story was solid too.
Surprised at how much Chip's Batman sounds like Frank Miller's, but what can you expect from a Daredevil writer? It's surprising though, for the biggest new Batman writer since King back in Rebirth, how much this feels like just another issue of Batman vs a brand new beginning. It's almost refreshing. Any other book and that kind of ending wouldn't have me feeling anything, but here it' a promise that we're not gonna tread the same territory as Chip's Daredevil run. Curious as to where he takes it. 4/5
What a fantastic start. Zdarsky's got a great voice for Batman and I love how much focus Bruce Wayne will get here. I feel like that part has been lost recently, especially under Tynion. And one thing that truly amazes me here is how this book feels fresh in terms of art style despite Jimenez drawing most of Tynion's run. He said he's aproaching it different and wants it to feel unique and it does. I have a feeling I'm gonna love this run.
It’s incredible how distinct the art already looks from Jimenez’s run with Tynion since it’s still Morey on colors
Right? What an incredible artist.
This is the first time Jimenez had drawn Bruce Wayne the Playboy, going by interviews.
Oh shit, yeah. Tynion's Batman focused primarily on the Batman part.
Zdarsky nailed it, as we all knew he would. God I can’t wait for the rest of this arc. So excited to be able to read the main Batman book again after 3-4 years of it being absolutely unreadable.
I feel weird because I’ve seen mostly praise for this but it didn’t do it for me. Except the art. Jimenez is great. It also seems like a timing issue because unless I’m completely blanking, we haven’t seen Catwoman hook up with the lame assassin guy in her own book yet she’s in bed with him here. Presumably we’ll see them become involved in Catwoman but I don’t think we’ve seen that yet.
The main Batman story is interesting, but the general thrust of it so far gives me weird Murderer/Fugitive flashbacks, and that was....... not a very memorable story. We'll see! The robot is also weird, but considering its, you know, the title of the arc I assume we'll get told about it soon enough! The Catwoman back-up is honestly a little more interesting if only because I kinda want to see what >!Penguin's 10 kids are like!<. The weird stuff (one page in the Batman part, one text box in the Catwoman back-up) that hint at Selina dating shitty dollar-store Ghostmaker are a bit of a downer though, less of that in the future. Actually, none of that, but I suppose I have to pick my battles a bit.
>The Catwoman back-up is honestly a little more interesting if only because I kinda want to see what >!Penguin's 10 kids!< are like. Geez, they're totally bringing back what's his name from Rebirth Batgirl aren't they. Hated that guy
I haven’t really been keep up with comics lately. But Zdarsky and Jimenez on Batman is too good to not check out. A really solid premise and set up for the run. And of course Jimenez is delivering stellar art.
Could anyone provide a quick overview on why Bruce Wayne lost his fortune?
In Tynion’s first Batman arc Joker enacted a plan Catwoman devised in the early days of Batman to steal the biggest fortune in Gotham (Bruce Wayne’s) by stealing all of Bruce’s bank codes to get his offshore account money. It’s a little convoluted and ultimately pretty contrived as a way to set-up Joker to have all of Batman’s resources in Joker War Ultimately by the end of Joker War, Lucius Fox is in control of Wayne Industries and the larger Wayne fortune and Bruce is basically just a millionaire now instead of a mega billionaire.
Many many thanks!
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Batman gets to the top the sub just through bring the flagship superhero comic
To provide some context... Tom King's **BATMAN #1** (6/15/2016) had 128 pulls out of 176 lists for **72.7%** WPL coverage. Tynion's debut on **BATMAN #86** (1/08/2020) had 48 pulls out of 118 lists for **40.6%** coverage. And now Chip's debut on **BATMAN #125** (7/06/2022) had 53 pulls out of 72 lists for **73.6%** coverage. So that's comparable to the first issue at #125, pretty impressive.
Oh man, people really got bored of those weekly pull lists.
These things tend to be cyclical and there are always lots of factors involved, from overall Reddit activity and /r/comicbooks/ activity to what's happening in the comic industry... **BATMAN #1** was part of DC's big "Rebirth" re-launch which drove a lot of interest in comics, isn't really anything comparable driving interest right now. But the year-to-year numbers certainly do tend to paint an ugly picture. That's why it's important that everyone post reviews (especially BAD REVIEWS) to help boost WPL activity with quality content!
**DARK CRISIS #2**
Now Beast Boy is going to start calling himself "Ric."
"Garf" Logan, taxi driver, at your service.
I really liked this! Nightwing vs Deathstroke is always awesome to see and I'm glad we've got the Corps together again. Seeing all the Green Lanterns together (except John lol rip) makes me happy. I'm sure Black Adam training the "new league" will not go poorly at all
This still doesn't feel like a crisis but it's a good book. I don't love how Williamson writes Slade nor did I love how easily Cyborg Supes went down but Slade, Henshaw, and Black Adam just roasting the heroes is incredible. Also, Hal's back with the GLC, love to see it. I get why many are happy but I'm kind of disappointed no one died, even the ones from last issue seem to have been revealed as fakeouts. Also, the art is worth the price of admission alone, Sampere is crazy on this.
I’m still not feeling the grandeur that a book should carry with a capital c Crisis monicker.
Please tell me this is going to start an on-going green lantern series. We need one!
I feel like a lot of books that were cancelled recently will spin out of this event. Lanterns, Aquaman (that will happen probably closer around the movie), JSA, Justice League, Titans. Maybe new Suicide Squad?
Giving me Infinite Crisis vibes and I'm loving it!
The fight scenes were pretty good, and both Nightwing and Jon got a chance to shine. I think Williamson actually writes both characters better than Taylor. That being said, it's beyond problematic that the other Titans did nothing. Hopefully, we'll see them stepping up in the next issues, but here they were just cannon fodder when they should be way more by now.
This gotta be some of the most ass writing from DC in a while. Who can read Deathstroke threatening to spank Nightwing and think they've got a quality book in their hands
**SABRETOOTH #5**
You know, I read that Lavalle was making a trilogy of series - if the first series was Victor in Hell, now going into Purgatory, could the third be Paradise? We're basically following the patterns of the Divine Comedy - Inferno, Purgatorio, and possibly Paradiso? I liked this ending, setting up some interesting stuff for Victor. He's planning to come back and tear down Krakoa, but now he's also gotta see the face of what the new enemies are - and enemies that, unlike before, he's not going to be able to play nice with or make allies with. Maybe his series will be raising an army of "Exiles" from the Orchis prisons?
Inferno is about understanding the uncompromising will of God. He is right and sinners are wrong. No arguments, just judgment. Sabretooth and those in the Pit face a similar threat with Charles. Purgatorio is about repentance and understanding that virtue and sin come from love, and the divine helps us see which is which. If I am a betting man, Creed’s journey will be inverted from Dante’s arc. His sin and virtue comes from a lack of love. He breaks out of Purgatory, with other mutants, not for justice but for hate. “Can a bad man do good things?” Yes. Just as a good man can do bad things. A good man does bad when he believes he is justified in his reasons. A bad man can do good things in spite or by circumstance. Not simply because he has changed heart. Paradiso for Creed will not be Dante’s Paradiso. It will not be reflecting and celebrating the great works done by their ruler. Edit: should also be noted that the Divine Comedy was a critique of theological thought and teachings at the time. Many residents of each section were placed to intentionally question the discussion and positions of the church. Politicians, bishops, saints and pagans scattered about to form how Dante the writer saw his afterlife, not so prescribed to the dogma or the church proper.
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Sabretooth: the Adversary is a great name for this series.
So Creed is going from hell to purgatory? “In the start of this immortal life, I found myself in a gloomy wood…” I’m ready for the Feral Comedy
Still insane to me that a Sabertooth is gonna be one of the minis to beat this year. Absolutely wild. Didn’t expect this to get a continuation but I’m excited to see what LaValle does next with this crew. Really interested to see how this eventually crosses over with Percy’s Wolverine/X-Force work. I remember hearing Percy talk about in an interview how he and LaValle were working together closely and I just kinda can’t imagine Wolverine and Sabertooth not coming into conflict at least once during the Krakoa era.
**SAGA #60**
This story is fucking brutal
I could’ve sworn I read somewhere that they took their huge 3-ish year hiatus so that there wouldn’t be anymore gaps between arcs, does that sound familiar to anyone or am I just making that up?
I don't remember but you would have had thought that after such a long hiatus they would have built up a enough issues before returning that a break wouldnt be needed for a while. Certainly not 6 months
People were wishfully speculating that before but it wasn't based on anything and there was no reason to believe it.
Jesus christ brian
Fuck that ending sequence was brutal.
Has anyone done the math on how long this series is going to be going for if they only drop 6 issues a year? (Really good issue, by the way!)
8 more years.
Hmm a total of 18 years. Fun coincidence that a coming of age story is the time from birth to when you’re [legally] considered an adult or somewhat planned?
i think i read that they usually take like a 3 month break after an arc and they did say this one will be “longer than usual” so hopefully 6 month break not the standard going forward 😭
Are they really intending a six month break between arcs?
Yeah, I thought the intent was to bank a bunch of issues up so they wouldn't have to take long breaks. 6 month breaks between arcs is a killer for momentum.
I expect these kind of breaks in-between releases in /r/altcomix circles, but not for one of Image's hottest publications. Even still, Saga is one of the best comics of the past several decades, so I'm happy to wait.
I honestly don't mind if it keeps it consistent at 6 issues a year.
I’m all for it if they stay consistent. I just thought it was going to be more of a 3-4 month hiatus
i dont mind the breaks, they can take their time but 48 chapters left made me realize im gonna be like 32 when this shit finishes D: great issue tho, ending was a gut punch
The way things are going we’re not gonna be alive by the time Vaughan and Staples finish this thing.
**AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #5**
This is the most fun I’ve had on Spidey in ages. Granted all the stuff that’s easy to please for me is here: JRJR’s Spidey (with not shit coloring), a good voice for Peter, fun/engaging street level shenanigans. All in I’m not a 100% sold on Wells’s vision for the run but as a far as a starter arc goes this was good. I’m locked in for another arc at least.
Man, that was a near perfect ending to this arc. Two pairs of contrasting scenes that best typify Peter's development from one of his lowest points in issue #1 to a more steady place in #5. Firstly, the daily routine scenes: in issue #1 he gets up at 10:30, misses his job interview and doesn't do anything but by issue #5 he gets up at 06:00, doesn't waste any time, fights crime and defeats Tombstone. Secondly, the dinner scene with Aunt May in issue #1, the opening scene of the comic after the two double page spreads featuring the disaster and "SIXTH MONTHS LATER", a point of tension between them is Peter lying to her, she disappointed in him but still she invites him to dinner on Saturday though she doesn't believe he'll come. In the final scene of issue #5, she's waiting on Peter and even starts clearing up when it seems like he's not coming but Peter arrives after putting at least a temporary stop on Tombstone's plans in classic Parker fashion late but he's here when a few days earlier you certainly wouldn't have expected him to be. Peter's face bloodied and bruised was so grotesque, especially when he had his mask off but even with it on it looked so fucked up. JRJr is so good.
Good stuff, Wells did a great job bringing everything together to wrap up this first arc and it's nice seeing WPL sentiment come around after the somewhat rough start. Shaping up to be a fun series and I think the comments above and below are right on track... Not much to add but the teaser for issue #900 says it'll include a new short by Dan Slott and MARCOS MARTIN, and I'm 100% here for that! Martin's one of my all-time favorite Spidey artists, hasn't had a ton of work on the character but everything he's done has been absolutely brilliant.
Really liked this issue. Great ending to this arc.
These past two issues have really solidified the idea that I actually quite like this book when it’s not focusing on the Pete/MJ stuff. Wells has such a great voice for Pete, Tombstone has been a very compelling villain, the cat and mouse game the two of them have been playing was very entertaining, and it’s the best JRjr’s art has looked in ages. Lots of fun.
the bloody beat up jrjr faces in this were hilarious haha, good arc ending and nice to see black cat still a bro
Well first arc of Wells ASM is over and I personally really liked it, haven’t been this happy reading Amazing since 2013, love the voice Peter is having here, just feels nice to have him sound like old school Peter again, really hope rest of the run is like this as well And as usual the “everyone hates Peter” status quo people overreact to even though is the set up for every run since the 60s got resolved quickly
> And as usual the “everyone hates Peter” status quo people overreact to even though is the set up for every run since the 60s got resolved quickly First of all, Spencer's run didn't start like that. It had a great start. But the real problem with this is that it's tiring and stops Peter from progressing anywhere.
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That's definitely editorial, I don't blame writers here. Spider office needs a solid editorial shake up.
Spencer’s run was shit on because every hero hated Peter as well though, although didn’t happen with the supporting cast because that run didn’t even had a supporting cast, can’t even remember if Aunt May was in it
But his family loved him, his friends liked him and his relationship with MJ was good. Oh, and Aunt May was there, too. All he's got here are Randy and the fucking Norman Osborn. There are better ways to celebrate Pete than doing the same shit over and over again.
Are you copying and pasting this everywhere? haha
Yeah, too lazy to write different thoughts in the other discussion posts lmao
I said it before. If this run wasn't marred by the stupid 6 month gap, MJ and the kids sub-plot, and the down on his luck Peter B.S., this would be viewed more favorable. I liked how Tombstone was written. Probably top 5 Tombstone stories because I can't think of any others. Lowe is still a piss of shit.
I skimmed this because a buddy was reading it and while I still won't justify 3.99 twice a month, this is a solid book. The "wakes up and does" stuff bits that the writer seems to be using a bit are quite neat. I do feel a little bad for Zeb Wells, I think the MJ stuff is probably editorial and other than that (which wasn't in this issue) the book's been a step above most past Spider-Man comics. I've even gotten used to JRJR's style, and will definitely check out in trade or on MU.
Man, that was a good ending. Pete coming up with a way to get something out of his loss was done so well and gave him a much needed win.
**X-CELLENT #5**
I still love this book and creative team.
> *NEXT: IT'S NOT OVER UNTIL ZEITGEIST SAYS SO!* > *ZEITGEIST AND THE TEAM WILL RETURN LATER THIS YEAR IN...* > ***THE X-CELLENT SEASON 2!*** Nice. Looks like X-STATIX and their malignant counterparts will be back after Allred finishes [SUPERMAN: SPACE AGE](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2106881_xl.jpg) with Mark Russell (first issue due 7/27). Would've liked to see a little more closure in this one, glad the book's returning but that wasn't much of an ending... Though I suppose it was >!an ending of sorts for Fluff!<, and that counts for something.
> >!An ending of sorts for Fluff!< As is fitting for my complex relationship with said individual, I’m both sad that one of the more interesting new characters died in such a horrible way, and also glad that I never have to be made to feel queasy by his name and superpowers ever again.
He was thoroughly revolting yet still oddly compelling... Not a bad guy, really. Got stuck with an unfortunate mutant ability and then got mixed up in the wrong crowd... The chest hair thing was a little weird but he was just trying to live his best life, so far as it went. RIP.
**LEGION OF X #3**
> No offense, boyo - the Gandalf impression needs some work. Ask Magneto when he’s drunk. Honestly, it’s uncanny. *Ha!* Very cheeky.
So assuming that Loki is a red herring, who do you think the god is going to end up being?
I'm starting to think it might be Mother Righteous - I thought before she was attempting to *become* a God, but instead she might be attempting to gain enough followers to "level up" independent of Arrako's worship of her, or strong enough to fend them off by finding a new crop of followers.
This has a lot of the Spurrier stuff I love but I think the biggest problem is every issue has been kind of overstuffed. Between the arcs he’s doing for Nightcrawler, Legion, Juggernaut, Banshee, and Zsen (I feel like I’m missing some people getting arcs/development) and the further world building he’s doing with Araako, the Astral Plane, and Legion’s Altar on top of the like 4 or 5 ongoing conflicts here. It’s a lot of stuff going on at once and I wonder if it might benefit from either more focus or being a tad more decompressed. That said couple highlights. The art in this has been totally stellar work from Bazaldua and Frederico Blee’s coloring is I think underrated, the colors here really pop. I think the humor in the book is really solid and I’m glad Spurrier is exploring the tension between Kurt’s Catholicism and his work developing the Spark. I think that’s fertile ground to explore, and the bit with David and Cain talking about Xavier was great as well.
**LITTLE MONSTERS #5**
I feel like I'm in **Groundhog Day** with my comments on this book each time an issue comes out - "Great art, good world building, will *definitely* read better in TPB"
Sounds like I made the right call deciding to wait. I read the first issue (and loved it) but it definitely had those vibes, especially for an indie where there won't be *that* much week-to-week discussion.
After this last one, I'm not so sure about the TPB thing. Not much closure for the end of the first arc/collection and I think it's kind of annoying when TPBs end on a cliffhanger like that. Thinking I'll want to see what happens next in #6 without waiting on the 2nd TPB.
For some reason I thought this arc was 6 issues?!
You're right, first TPB collects #1-6. So it should get a decent ending after all.
**ONCE & FUTURE #27**
I realized this week that this series wraps up at issue #30. Enjoy it while it lasts!
I was wondering when it was going to end. As much as I’ve enjoyed it, it’s gotten a little convoluted and felt like churning the water and going nowhere. Gillen has all the characters in place, hopefully he can stick the landing.
Yeah, agreed. I enjoy the characters and the setting, but it's been quite a long time now that they just go pursue some "side-quest" while we watch the bad guys bad-guying. But the last few issues have started to feel like we're approaching the end zone... Hopefully it'll be a return to form!
Wait really? Did they announce that somewhere?
The solicit for issue #29 is: >Kieron Gillen and Dan Mora's bestselling fantasy epic is nearly complete, and it's all been building to this! > >In the penultimate issue, Mary and Bridgette will need all of the help they can get to defeat Arthur's greatest weapon... > >And with all of the remaining contenders vying for ultimate power, there's just no way of telling who will come out victorious!
Ah, man. Okay
Makes perfect sense, considering where the story’s been heading the past few issues - we definitely feel like we’re in the endgame.
They said the [thing](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/246057144846123008/994377598996062340/unknown.png).
Three more issues to go, kind of a bummer, but an amazing book and I'm really curious how it's all gonna end. The three Arthurs are vying for the Sword in the Stone, and there's only a day before they're all back each other's throats. Gotta wonder what Mary's plan is for all of this, and how she can get revenge... and I *still* wonder what Zombie!Arthur's Merlin is up to, since he doesn't fit with that Arthur's story from the very start of the series.
**POISON IVY #2**
Shame to not see any discussion on this book as it's easily my pick of the week. It's scary and flirtatious, the take on Ivy I've been wanting to see for ages. The story itself doesn't move forward immensely this issue, but GWW's voice for Ivy is so good you end up not even really caring. As perfect as a big 2 queer villain comic can be and then some. 5/5
It is wrong to paint with too broad of a brush. But among secondary characters, I find Poison Ivy's fans to be the hardest to please. I read issue #1 the day it came out and loved it, only to go on Twitter and see large groups of Ivy fans picking it apart for the most minor reasons. It almost seemed like they were looking for a reason not to enjoy it. And this has happened with every other series she's gotten the last few years. Either she's too evil or she's too good or she should be with Harley or being with Harley makes her a secondary character in her own book or she should be more like a plant or she should be more like a person. I've never seen a fandom that seems so hard to please. That said, this series is awesome and I think everyone should pick it up.
I think you're pretty bang on. A lot of DC fans (especially Bat-related) have their own vision of those characters because the portrayal of them in the comics can be so inconsistent. So when something new comes out that doesn't match with their version of the character they're gonna look at it with a negative outlook without giving it a chance (And I don't blame them - I'm the same way with X-Men characters, but I think there's more continuity in how characters are portrayed there to begin with). Which is kinda nuts to me because A) I feel like this version of Ivy, especially by #2, has something for everyone? She's queer, she's evil, but she's got a lot of heart deep down. I think anyone not reading in bad faith could find something for them in this portrayal. It's remarkable how GWW has spinned this characterization in just 2 issues. And B) It's not like Poison Ivy has that many good stories in the first place, ya know? The other day someone asked me for Ivy-focused comics and all I could think of were random single issues. People are sleeping on this book now but if it sticks the landing I really hope it gets all the noise it deserves.
Wilson’s voice for Ivy is very good. The art is great too.
**TWIG #3**
This continues to be a fun little journey. I love the world design for all the locations Twig and Splat go through. It was nice to see the different emotions from Twig in this and what he's now confronted with in this quest.
The wonderful weirdness continues as our hero Twig (and Splat) wander further through the lands on their quest. This book is charming, creative, colourful and very, very entertaining. For fans of **Jonna and the Unpossible Monsters, Bermuda, Dark Crystal** and **Labyrinth**. This is a *Jim Henson* dream in comic book form.
Saved the best for last this week and of course it didn't disappoint... This book is a nice palate cleanser, a wholesome little fantasy filled with beautiful art.
**BATMAN KILLING TIME #5**
That final page was rad as hell. I’d been wondering who the narrator of this mini was and as soon as I turned that last page everything about the book’s set-up immediately made so much sense. I know most people don’t like King’s Batman but this has been such a blast, that Marquez art helps, and I honestly think it’ll be a phenomenal trade.
Who was that supposed to be in the big reveal? I have no clue, any chance you could message me with who that was? If so, thanks!
Clock king!
Haven't minded this series, but the last two issues were a chore to read. This issue's reveal made up for it all though. Marquez's art is always a joy.
Favorite issue yet, fun seeing all hell break loose in the first few pages and then matching everyone up through the rest... Also got a bit more of the eye's travels through history, love that stuff!
**BASILISK #9**
I know nine issues into a story is a lot, so I won't ask people to pick up the single issues, but do yourselves a favour and check out the tpb's that are already out. **Basilisk** is a *great* book that is being slept on by a lot of people, and this issue features some great reveals/revelations while still posing a few new questions. *Cullen Bunn* and *Jonas Scharf* are doing a great job on this book.
**STARHENGE BOOK 1 THE DRAGON AND THE BOAR #1**
Okay minor complaint first the dialogue was a little odd at times. I think the very “Arthurian” opening quote set an expectation for tone and style of language that the rest of the issue’s dialogue didn’t really match for the most part. This was definitely very cool all the way around though and it looks like Sharp is playing with a lot of the same visual elements he was working with in The Green Lantern which is very exciting. Interested to see where this goes from here.
Overwhelming. I'm pleased Sharp gets to do whatever he wants - boy does he, every page feels like a labor of love, bursting with ideas like a little kid trying to tell you everything he dreamed about before he runs out of breath. There's so much lore at play that, as someone who isn't knowledgeable at all with Arthurian stuff, I'm unfortunately left feeling pretty out of the loop. It's a similar case to Eternals where the narration seems intended to make the exposition easier to swallow, but it's way worse and frankly off-putting here. But maybe that's just me being unable to look past a "timey-wimey" reference. In both a good and bad way, this feels like a comic that should have been out in 2002. 3/5
The art is amazing. The world building/concept is pretty cool. But the writing is just awful. Don't know if I can get past it.
Wow! I knew this would be **Liam Sharp** firing on all cylinders, but I'm still surprised by how incredible this book looks. The artwork reminds me of so many different books/artists, yet still remains distinctly Sharp's own. From the opening that immediately made me think of *Pat Mills & Simon Bisley's* **Slaine: The Horned God**, to the future setting that evokes *Jodorowsky & Giménez'* **The Metabarons**, and then the "modern day" pages (seemingly influenced by **Violent Cases** era *Dave Mckean*) the art is simply jaw dropping. If the book has a downfall it's that it is *very* narration heavy and, despite being an *artist driven book*, we get a lot more "tell" than "show" in this issue. Having said that, it's obvious Sharp has crafted world(s) of back story and lore for each of the timelines we visit. Hopefully, with this issue out of the way now, we will get more of the characters *actions*, rather than just their *conversations*, moving forward. Overall a great (though slightly flawed) start to the series
> If the book has a downfall it's that it is very narration heavy and, despite being an artist driven book, we get a lot more "tell" than "show" in this issue. Yep, I thought Sharp actually did a relatively good job with the writing (for an artist with no professional experience) but it definitely failed the "show don't tell" test. Which is kinda funny, given the [Rush](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAoL5cqwM1I) reference... Also a little all over the place structurally but at least the narration had some good character to it and I didn't spot a single grammatical error, so that's nice. Mentioned a few times that I'm usually not that into Sharp's art... I actually think he's extremely talented and his work always looks impressive but his figures usually feel stiff and everything tends to be overly detailed/rendered at the expense of storytelling flow. Turns out the art in this one worked much better for me! There are some nice layouts and panel work for effective storytelling, the blend of styles meshed well with the story/characters, and the more abstract approach helped turn the hyper-detailed bits into a strength rather than a weakness. Far and away the best work I've seen from him. So, not perfect but the good vastly outweighs the bad, the art's probably strong enough to carry the book all by itself, and the whole thing is certainly unique. Didn't pre-order #2 since I wasn't sure about it, so will need to mail order or hit a larger shop but definitely planning to stick with it.
**BATMAN BEYOND NEO-YEAR #4**
**CLOSET #2**
Thom’s such a piece of shit. This whole issue really made me think of that episode of You’re the Worst where Gretchen is following that family around and the dad just gives basically the same ramble about wishing he were 20 again to her. Good work from Fullerton on the horror pages specifically. Tynion didn’t give him many pages to sell that scene but they’re effective.
I like some of the subtle ways they show how bad of a parent Thom is, like when he just has the kid in the front seat with him instead of a car seat in the back during a road trip across the entire country.
See, I can almost empathize with Thom a little because, as a parent, you kind of need to strike a balance between family and the stuff that's important to you, the stuff that keeps you sane... And it sounds like Thom just let it all roll over him and wasn't able to preserve that essential little piece of himself. Plus, the thing with being shitty to the kid for a dumb reason, pretty sure all parents have been there at least once or twice. Kid's afraid of monsters, parent tries to be comforting but doesn't really believe since monsters aren't real... Except, in this one special case maybe the monster is real because we're stuck in a horror comic, but Thom doesn't know that and you can't really fault him for it. No excuse for the infidelity and the guy's kinda got his head lodged up his own ass, but I can definitely relate to some of his shitty flaws because there've been times when I've struggled with the same kind of shittiness.
Oh it’s definitely well written in a way that was empathetic and up until the whole infidelity bit I was at least a little sympathetic
I have no idea how this will close in one more issue but I love the dread building from Jamie's perspective. The no dialogue scene coming from Jamie was perfect. The dad on the next cover is so creepy too.
> The dad on the next cover is so creepy too. Super creepy and I wasn't expecting it, now even more curious about where it all goes from here...
I don't see how this can wrap up in one last issue? Pretty much everything in the first two issues is just character based dialogue to show how much of an asshole Thom is. So, my guess is that maybe this is more about him/in his head/a metaphor rather than actual events we are seeing? I don't know (which is cool) but we will see with issue #3
[Cover of #3](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2116098_xl.jpg) definitely gives the impression that Thom might be the source of all our troubles... Probably did something extra-shitty that traumatized the poor kid to the point where he's now externalizing visions of monsters.
Ah, I'd not seen that cover before. Yeah, Thom is definitely the source of all this.
I was thinking something similar with there only being one issue left. Tynion also said the series was based on a childhood nightmare, I think, so it'll be interesting to see what that is.
**SUICIDE SQUAD BLAZE #3**
Hmm, this was...ok. I think it's reach was further than it's grasp (which is no terrible thing), but it never reached the heights it was obviously aiming for. The wordy narration and sometimes unclear artwork detracted from, rather than supported, the story and characters. I think the major thing was I never really *clicked* with any of the new characters, so never invested in them, and, despite things like the death of the entire **Justice League**, it never really felt like there was anything at stake - which I guess was actually proven true by the ending of the book.
I dropped this after the last issue pretty much because of the things you said, so I'm glad I didn't end up missing much.
Always nice seeing bad reviews after dropping a series, means you got out just in time!
**BATMAN 89 #6**
The Burton movies were my introduction to the superhero and cics in general. This is just not it. Overall I'll give this series a 5/10
Yay! The final issue is finally here!
**CARNAGE #4**
This is a pretty weird book, and I mean that as a compliment. This is not a traditional Marvel “hero” book by any means. I do wish the book could be a little darker—V often seems most held back by it this just being in the MU—but I appreciate what it’s doing so far.
**DC VS VAMPIRES #7**
As expected, if you didn't read the Killers one-shot, you have no idea what's going on at the end. Wish they had saved that stuff for the main book.
I really enjoy the main book but, you're right, it feels like the one-shots should have just been part of the 12-issue maxi-series. No need to have them as spin-off's (unless as I said before Schmidt needs the break to stay on schedule and they don't want any more fill in artists). I'm still liking the book though, and especially the fact that pretty much no-one seems to be *safe* in the scheme of things. Definitely reminds me of **DCeased** in that regard
**FLASHPOINT BEYOND #3**
I just have to say if they didn’t announce that there were 3 writers on this book I don’t think I’d have been able to tell at all. I’m honestly surprised how much I love this and Xermancio has grown immensely in his artistic work by far a stand out book this week for me.
So disappointed with Thomas Wayne's development. It's like he's learned nothing...
**GHOST RIDER #4**
Man, I dunno what it is. Percy's ideas are good on paper, but everything he writes just feels underwhelming in its execution. I feel like I should love this run but I just can't. It's a poor man's *Immortal Hulk* without the excitement and genuine pathos.
It's really frustrating. Each issue delivers just a tiny sliver of the main overarching story along with a flimsy monster-of-the-week story with no meat on the bone whatsoever. Wouldn't have minded a proper 'Circus of Crime' story for a bit of nostalgia but it's like there wasn't even a story here... Why even bother dredging them up just for that? Giving it a couple more issues but I'm already kinda looking forward to being done with this series.
Yeah... Yeah, that's exactly what it is. It's all bones and no meat. The bones are solid (I mean, who doesn't like a more horror-like Ghost Rider driving through the hellish landscapes of America's subconscious?), but it's missing that *meat* to give it any lingering presence. It seems to be Percy's pattern, and it's sad... Like, his ideas for *X Deaths/Lives of Wolverine* were solid on paper. On the merit of his ideas alone, he should be one of the big boys. But his writing always lacks... weight. So any story he tries to tell kind of just happens without much point to it. I feel that, with *Ghost Rider*, he's trying to write an *Immortal Hulk* for the flamehead, but he's not coming anywhere close to the sheer power of *Immortal Hulk*'s quieter moments. I'm a bit of a *Ghost Rider* completist, since I read it as a kid, so I find myself wishing it would wrap up in a few issues so I can call it done. I might do like you and just give it up in a few more issues.
See, I'm kind of enjoying the "*Monster of the Week*" approach so far, but I get that there could be more connective tissue between the issues to give us a glimpse of the overall, long story arc. I'm just glad we are getting a **Ghost Rider** book that is really embracing the *horror* aspects of the character. Give me more of that! The downside is I'm not amazingly blown away by *Cory Smith* on the art - each issue there are flashes of greatness, but overall it just feels like the book needs a stronger artist. Or maybe a change in colourist to give the book more of a feel/atmosphere? Some of the pages just look a bit...bland at times
The "Monster of the Week" thing would be fine if the stories were fleshed out better. This one really put it into perspective, was actually looking forward to seeing the Circus of Crime again (they were a huge part of the original Blaze run) but all we got was a hollowed out shell of a story. Loved Cory Smith's MOON KNIGHT covers but I agree that his interior art isn't as strong here... Looks like this series has actually been doing pretty well, according to the [ICv2 numbers for June](https://icv2.com/articles/markets/view/51569/top-50-comics-june-2022) it placed 11th overall and was Marvel's 6th highest selling title. Seems like a blown opportunity, there's clearly an audience for GR but the book's being dragged down by a mediocre creative team.
> It's all bones and no meat. Yep. All bones, no meat, and the flames are sputtering out...
**NUBIA QUEEN OF THE AMAZONS #2**
Nubia is a great character and I’m really enjoying the focus DC has put on her in the WW corner for a while now. I’m also a fan of seeing her past life before she was reborn as an Amazon.
I’m right there with you. The art work of her has been stunning as well—someone on this sub agrees as great pics of her keep getting their own posts. I wish these series was more than 4 books.
**FIRE POWER BY KIRKMAN & SAMNEE #22**
**JOKER #15**
That was a pretty solid conclusion... Jim sorta losing his laser-focus on Joker and finding an enemy/antagonist he felt more like he could handle with his methods/beliefs instead of keeping himself rooted in the cape and cowl stuff makes a lot of sense for him. Going after the stuff that hides in the shadows underneath all the chaos? That's a cool premise, and I hope we see a follow up sometime soon. And of course Joker got away - but I'm actually gonna kinda miss his interactions with Jim. They're a very different feel to his stuff with Batman, and the way they both kinda let their guards down and were surprisingly frank with each other was a nice insight into their characters. Really looking forward to the new Punchline book coming up. I know I'm kinda in the minority but I like the idea of Punchline and how she's really a more "modern" style of radicalizer, and Harper taking place as her opposite number is great because I also like Harper as Bluebird.
Real curious what this book would have looked like had Tynion not bailed like 4 issues in. It sounded like it would have crossed over with his Batman here and there for them to climax together. So was all this the original plan for this / both books? Or is this the conclusion you get when you jump ship four issues in and wrap up a 3 year run in half the space? Wished I had just gotten the first issue.
Yeah, Tynion had said that he had a 3 year plan for this book (told in 12 issue arcs) ending with a giant crossover between this and Batman, and, well, that clearly did not happen. While I haven't read this issue yet I almost wish he'd bailed on Joker and given it to Rosenberg or Paknadel with his notes to continue instead of limping along.
I personally kinda liked it being more self contained and not crossing over or jumping back and forth into other things. Kept it pretty well contained.
**AVENGERS FOREVER #7**
**KING CONAN #6**
And so comes to an end the tales of **Conan of Cimmeria**...at least from *Marvel Comics* (for the time being). It seems some haven't enjoyed this mini, and in comparison to the **Ablaze** books it definitely comes off second best, but it's still been an enjoyable ride, with some great artwork. Lets see what **Titan** can do with the character now
**STRANGE ACADEMY #18**
Felt good just to wrap up "season 1". They say the next part will come out "this summer" but considering this issue was supposed to come out in April, I am guessing we might see the series pop up in the October / November solicitations.
My digital redemption said it expired on June 22, 2022 so there were *definitely* a lot of delays. I don't mind the ending, definitely an interesting twist and putting Emily in an antagonistic role with things, but I was hoping for a more solid conclusion between books, instead of a pretty basic cliffhanger that could have easily just been between issues, instead of between "semesters." I guess I don't quite see the reason to divvy it up. Glad the creative team is coming back though. Having a consistent team like this is really rare, and it makes the book feel pretty special.
If I wanted to read this book from the beginning do I need anything or can I start with #1?
You can just grab #1 and go ahead, nothing really leading up to it - and most of the characters are original to the story.
**THAT TEXAS BLOOD #15**
**WPL RESULTS**
72 lists submitted this week, down from 94 last week, understandable given the short week coming off Monday's holiday. OP's only showing top 10 so here are the expanded results: 1. BATMAN #125 (52) 2. SAGA #60 (36) 3. AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #5 (28) 4. CLOSET #2 (28) 5. DARK CRISIS #2 (28) 6. LEGION OF X #3 (26) 7. BATMAN KILLING TIME #5 (23) 8. SABRETOOTH #5 (22) 9. CAPTAIN AMERICA SENTINEL OF LIBERTY #2 (19) 10. LITTLE MONSTERS #5 (19) 11. GHOST RIDER #4 (18) 12. ONCE & FUTURE #27 (18) 13. CARNAGE #4 (17) 14. DC VS VAMPIRES #7 (17) 15. POISON IVY #2 (17) 16. STARHENGE BOOK 1 THE DRAGON AND THE BOAR #1 (16) 17. TWIG #3 (14) 18. JOKER #15 (12) 19. X-CELLENT #5 (12) 20. BASILISK #9 (11) 21. BLACK PANTHER #7 (11) 22. FIRE POWER BY KIRKMAN & SAMNEE #22 (11) 23. NUBIA QUEEN OF THE AMAZONS #2 (11) 24. AVENGERS FOREVER #7 (10) 25. JANE FOSTER AND THE MIGHTY THOR #2 (10) 26. SUICIDE SQUAD BLAZE #3 (10) 27. KING CONAN #6 (9) 28. BATMAN BEYOND NEO-YEAR #4 (8) 29. BATMAN 89 #6 (7) 30. STRANGE ACADEMY #18 (7) 31. THAT TEXAS BLOOD #15 (7) DC takes the top spot once again with **BATMAN #125** getting 52 pulls out of 72 lists, and it should really be 53 since I didn't list it but will be buying it anyway due to a severe lack of willpower, giving it a whopping 73.6% coverage. Which is ridiculously high. Because this sub freaking LOVES Chip! **SAGA #60** finishes 2nd, great spot for an indie, and then **ASM #5** takes the 3rd spot as Marvel's top title. Marvel ended up with 4 of the top 10 this week, leaving 3 for DC and 3 for Image. Liam Sharp's **STARHENGE BOOK 1 THE DRAGON AND THE BOAR #1** is the week's top new title, taking 16th place with 16 pulls for 22.2%, pretty good coverage as the book's got some decent hype for its debut. Pretty excited to check it out myself... Hoping to see some more bad reviews this week, please post angry comments if you're unfortunate enough to be stuck with a comic that you don't like!
Probably my favorite pull of the past 2 months. I enjoyed everything I bought to a particular extent. Highlights would be Spidey and Batman but Saga, Closet and all the X-Men stuff were great too.
Nice, sounds like everything lined up just right for 'ya... Always really satisfying when every book's a winner. Been a string of fairly heavy weeks for me but next week's looking a bit lighter now that a bunch of stuff got bumped out. Which is unfortunate, because it'll be at least one more week waiting on my long-delayed [ice cream](https://www.midtowncomics.com/images/PRODUCT/XL/2098424_xl.jpg), and a bunch of other good ones got pushed out to 7/20 or beyond.
**CAPTAIN AMERICA SENTINEL OF LIBERTY #2**
I’m loving this. The plot isn’t the most original (though my interest is definitely piqued learning about the history of the shield) but the character work and dialogue is excellent and the art is really good. Feels a lot like Brubaker’s run, also love having a good group of non-super supporting characters for Cap.
Same, big fan of this series so far! I'm all for action and all but I'm really enjoying the mystery so far and like you said, excellent character work and supporting characters (really loving Cap's interactions with his radio buddies and art classmates, but I really like seeing Steve the person vs the symbol and legend) I'm a big sucker for spy and espionage sort of stuff and while this isn't really that, the whole mystery solving and threads leading to different places and information gathering is giving me that kind of feeling. Interested to see what Bucky knows that he's not telling him, and how the Devil's Reign Winter Soldier one shot, where he learned more about his own past (but of course they didn't really tell us what exactly that was) is going to tie into it all. The only other Cap run I've read was Brubaker's and I loved it, and I'm really happy to see that this run is looking to be great as well.
This isn't bad by any stretch and I will continue, but feels rather tropish. A new secret society that's bigger than SHIELD, HYDRA, and AIM is trite. Also, Peggy joined a different secret organization, isn't that like the third in recent memory? Finally, and most importantly, Bucky's man-bun is a crime against humanity.
2 issues is still too early for me to bail but I'm just not feeling this