I Read Comic Books discussion
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What are you reading right now?
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What are you reading right now? (July 2020)
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Small week this week with no new Marvel or DC books. Yet, I still managed to spend 3 hours in the LCS and got yelled at by my wife. It's not like I left her in the car. She stayed home.Firepower #1
Goon #11
Negan Lives
Plot #5
Kids #4
And I picked up Jeff Lemire's Sentient since it was a small week.
Finder: Chase the Lady ★★Some interesting world building but no way in for new readers. You need to know what happened in the last 10 books to have any clue what's happening.
Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen ★★★★
Apex Lex vs. The Batman Who Laughs.
Catwoman, Vol. 3: Friend or Foe? ★★★
Joelle Jones closes out Selina's time in Villa Hermosa in this Year of the Villain tie in..
The Flash, Vol. 12: Death and the Speed Force ★★★
The Black Flash returns to try and kill off these new force users. It's about time to bring a new writer into Flash.
Doomsday Clock Part 2 ★★★★★
Johns and Frank knock it out of the park.
Marvel's Voices (2020) #1 ★★★
A bunch of creators from Marvel's Voices podcast give us some very short stories..
Ghost Rider, Vol. 1: The King Of Hell ★★★
I'm excited to see the real Ghost Riders come back, but this series is just OK.
Dial H for Hero Vol. 2: New Heroes of Metropolis ★★★★★
This was tremendous. It's wacky. It's meta. It's retro. It's incredibly inventive.
Batgirl, Volume 7: Oracle Rising ★★★★
A new creative team comes aboard and instantly makes their mark with a great Year of the Villain tie in story.
Faith: Taking Flight ★★★
Valiant gets in on the YA prose book craze with one of their best characters, Faith, a plus size fangirl with a bubbly personality who gains the ability to fly.
Jackie Robinson: Athletes Who Made a Difference ★★★★★
A graphic novel for kids about a true American hero, Jackie Robinson.
Legion of Super-Heroes, Vol. 1 ★★★★
Some people aren't going to be happy with this Legion reboot, but I dug it. The characters have rightly been majorly diversified and redesigned which is what you would expect a thousand years in the future.
Archie: 1955 ★★★
It's pretty much Archie filling in for Elvis.
Avengers: No Road Home ★★★
A bunch of random Avengers fight Nyx, the Greek goddess of Night. Conan returns to the Marvel universe in this as it's the best issue of the story.
Promethea, Vol. 1 ★★★★
I've read this several times before. It reminds me of Sandman quite a bit. The real star is JH Williams's art though. I love the unique panel structures.
Crowded, Vol. 1 ★★
Some cool world building but the main character is a nightmare who grated on my nerves.
Bolivar ★★★★★
A delightful combination of graphic novel and picture book about a little girl who is the only one who notices that a dinosaur lives next door. The art in this is fantastic and pays homage to New York.
Since my last update:-Hajime no Ippo, vol. 84
-Komi Can't Communicate, vol. 1
-Prison School omni, vols. 2-9
Most of my books this past week were doing rereads of some of my favourites (Journey Into Mystery/Slam Dunk/Nimona) so lots of high ratings. Still, glad I finished Ditko's Dr. Strange stuff and am almost done the Lee/Kirby S.H.I.E.L.D. stuff! Starting on the post-Ditko Strange now too.Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise ★★★★★
Doctor Strange Epic Collection Vol. 1: Master of the Mystic Arts ★★★★★
Invincible, Vol. 9: Out of This World ★★★★
The Mighty Thor/Journey into Mystery: Everything Burns ★★★★★
Nimona ★★★★★
Scooby-Doo Team-Up: Doomed! ★★
Scooby-Doo Team-Up: It's Scooby Time! ★★
Slam Dunk, Tome 1 ★★★★★
Slam Dunk, Vol. 2 ★★★★★
Slam Dunk Volume 3 ★★★★★
Chad wrote: "Finder: Chase the Lady ★★Some interesting world building but no way in for new readers. You need to know what happened in the last 10 books to have any clue what's happening."
Probably true. Volumes 4 and 9 (Finder, Vol. 04: Talisman and Finder, Vol. 09: Voice) are both good places to start. Starting with Chase the Lady is not ideal.
But for me, the good news is that "Chase the Lady" is finally getting close to a release! I've been waiting FOREVER.
This week's comic run.Join the Future #3
Adventureman #2
Empyre: Fantastic Four #0
Lois Lane #12
Strange Academy #2
Finger Guns #3
Ghost Rider #7
Quantum & Woody #4
Something Is Killing the Children #8
X-Force #10
Superman #23
Batman's Grave #8
This is a pretty ambitious month:
Anurag wrote: "This is a pretty ambitious month:Anurag - you're reading some of my favorites! Enjoy Hark! A Vagrant and Yang's Boxers and Saints! I believe it's best to read Boxers first.
Here's what I've been up to (full reviews on book pages) -
Crowded, Vol. 2: Glitter Dystopia by Chris Sebela, Ro Stein, Ted Brandt - been waiting months for this one, not as good as vol1
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Vol. 1: Secrets and Rumors by Tom Taylor and Juann Cabal - Spider-Man perfection
Unbelievable Gwenpool Vol. 4: Beyond the Fourth Wall by Christopher Hastings & Gurihiru - Gwenpool perfection. One of the best fourth wall-breaking, comics satire, entertaining stories I've read in a long time.
Deadpool Classic, Vol. 9 by Gail Simone & Udon. Was hoping for classic Simone, got a heaping garbage fire instead.
Mod
Oh no, I've been saving Crowded Vol. 2 for a rainy day! I feel like we have pretty similar taste in comics, hoping it's still worth reading!
In my ongoing quest to read all the Eisner nominees before they announce the winners (I'm excited they're streaming it, I want to see the announcements!), I've been reading a lot this month (and a LOT left to go before the 24th....) but some standouts:
Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass
Comics: Easy as ABC!: The Essential Guide to Comics for Kids - this is a kid's book, but frankly I'll be coming back to it over and over because of how it breaks down pacing, gesture, etc.
Making Comics - coupled with the above book, I think these two make a perfect pair! I think I'll buy my own copy so I can return to it instead of just blowing through the library copy.
The House - this book was so beautiful! Highlights family drama and tension and looking back on what you had - I can't recommend this enough!
Mod
Also, got in on Kyle Starks' Old Head which was a fun romp. It read super fast, and I'd definitely recommend it!
Empyre (2020) #0: Avengers ★★★★I liked how much of the Avengers canon (Kree / Skrull War and Celestial Madonna) Al Ewing used.
The Joker 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular ★★★★
Some pretty cool Joker stories.
Kabuki Library Volume 3 ★★
Mack pretty much abandoned panel layouts, turning this into prose mixed media presentation where nothing much happens.
The Fox: Freak Magnet ★★
An ode to old school comics from Mark Waid and Dean Haspiel that fell flat..
Invisible Kingdom, Vol. 2: Edge of Everything ★★★★★
Christian Ward's art in this space opera is something special.
Justice League, Volume 5: The Doom War ★★★
I'm glad this is finally done. I don't think this whole thing with Apex Lex makes any sense. His ego would never allow him to follow anyone else, including a god.
Heathen Vol. 2 ★★★★★
I love everything about this lesbian viking saga.
Year of the Villain: The Infected ★★★
A bunch of tie ins to the Secret Six introduced in Batman/Superman Volume 1: Who are the Secret Six?.
Empyre (2020) #0: Fantastic Four ★★★
Felt like a normal issue of Slott's FF without any tie in to Empyre.
Batman: The Smile Killer #1 ★★
Jeff Lemire needs to stick to his creator owned stuff. His super hero work is not good.
Negan Lives ★★★★
You got to give props to Kirkman and Adlard for creating this just to draw people into comic shops. They paid for all the production costs and gave the book to LCS. The story is typical Negan.
Ghost Rider, Vol. 2: Hearts of Darkness II ★★★
Wolverine and Punisher return while the villain of the first Hearts of Darkness, Blackheart, operates in the background.
Black Kiss ★★★
Howard Chaykin's weird as hell noir comic from the 80's, chock full of ultraviolence and X-rated moments, plus vampires.
Cuisine Chinoise: Five Tales of Food and Life ★
Some weird translated stories I couldn't follow at all.
The Flower of the Witch ★★★
A coming of age fantasy story.
Unfinished Business ★★
A priest, a minister and a rabbi walk into a bar... in the afterlife.
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Promise ★★★★
A very solid continuation of the cartoon.
Moonstruck, Vol. 1: Magic to Brew ★★
I really want to like this LGBTQ+ series. It has great world building, but the stories go off the rails and are just frustrating.
Moonstruck, Vol. 2: Some Enchanted Evening ★★
A LGBTQ+ comic with great premises that should be good but isn't.
Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: The Beast of Vargu and Others ★★★★
More Hellboy stories are always a good thing.
Erin wrote: "In my ongoing quest to read all the Eisner nominees before they announce the winners (I'm excited they're streaming it, I want to see the announcements!), I've been reading a lot this month (and a LOT left to go before the 24th....) but some standouts:Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass"
I really, really enjoyed Breaking Glass, as well.
Chad wrote: "Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: The Beast of Vargu and Others ★★★★
More Hellboy stories are always a good thing."
Seconded. I've liked the little one or two issue arcs they've been doing since BPRD ended.
Chad wrote: "Invisible Kingdom, Vol. 2: Edge of Everything ★★★★★Christian Ward's art in this space opera is something special...."
My real-life (well, zoom call life) group read volume 1 this month. Most of us found the art pretty except for the faces. Characters were sometimes hard to tell apart. And that child character didn't look like a child. Looked more like an Oompa-Loompa.
Anyhow, I look forward to volume 2.
I just read Black Bolt, Vol. 1: Hard Time to see how his art looks in a more traditional story. In this case, he kept most of the weirdness for the backgrounds, and the main characters looked pretty conventional. I didn't like the story much, but I rarely like superhero stories.
Ed wrote: "My real-life (well, zoom call life) group read volume 1 this month. Most of us found the art pretty except for the faces. Characters were sometimes hard to tell apart. And that child character didn't look like a child. Looked more like an Oompa-Loompa.Anyhow, I look forward to volume 2."
Ward's art certainly isn't perfect. I think he often uses colors that are too similar next to one another that makes it difficult to pull out details.
Erin wrote: "Oh no, I've been saving Crowded Vol. 2 for a rainy day! I feel like we have pretty similar taste in comics, hoping it's still worth reading!"Yes, it's absolutely still worth reading! I had some minor gripes with it but on the whole it's still a good sequel. Looking forward to hearing what you think about it!
Karmen Vol. 1. English translation of a French graphic novel. It’s about suicide, pain, regrets, and what comes after (not what you expect at all). It’s currently a Read Now on Netgalley
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Moon Lake. An horror comic anthology. Quite outrageous. Might not be for everybody. But, mindless fun to me. Read Now on Netgalley.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Today's comic book run:Year Zero #3
Once and Future #9
Canuck Beyond and Captain Battle FCBD
iWolverine 2020 #1
Empyre #1
Death Metal #2
Strange Adventures #3
Jimmy Olsen #12
Daphne Byrne #6
Artemis and the Assassin #3
Spider-Woman #2
X-Men FCBD
Giant Size X-Men - Magneto
This week's comic book reading:Birds of Prey by Brian Azzarello & Emanuela Lupacchino ★★★
Eh. There's no much story here and definitely not what I'd expect from Azzarello. Emanuela Lupacchino's art is fantastic but this was nothing more than an attempt to capitalize on the failed movie.
Peace Talks by Jim Butcher ★★★★★
Not a comic, but a new urban fantasy book from one of my favorite authors. If you're never read The Dresden Files, you should rectify that immediately. There's some spectacular worldbuilding going on in these novels.
Swamp Thing: The Dead Don't Sleep ★★
Len Wein returns to his Swamp Thing roots for a story better left untold.
Robin 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular #1 ★★★★
I loved that DC brought most of the major creative teams back to do stories for each of the Robins. Dixon and McDaniel on Nightwing. Seeley, King, and Janin on Grayson. Tomasi and Jimenez on Supersons. Judd Winick on Red Hood. Tynion and Fernandez on Tim Drake's Gotham Knights era.
Empyre #1 ★★★★
A really solid beginning to this event. I like how the Avengers and FF come at this from opposite sides.
Nightwing Year One ★★★★
Chuck Dixon and Scott McDaniel return to tell Nightwing's untold time between quitting as Robin in A Lonely Place of Dying and his 1st appearance as Nightwing in New Teen Titans.
Flash Forward ★★★
DC's attempt to try and fix all the awful things they've done to Wally West since Flashpoint. I'm really curious how the end of this book plays out in the future as it seems to tie into Doomsday Clock.
Nancy in Hell ★★
Blood, guts and T&A... and not much else.
Red Hood: Outlaw Vol. 3: Generation Outlaw ★★★
Red Hood signs up to train the next generation of villains as part of Year of the Villain.
Quantum and Woody: Earth's Last Choice ★★
Typically I like Christopher Hastings but this was a dud. No story and terrible art from Ryan Browne.
Suicide Squad Vol. 1 by Tom Taylor ★★★★★
Pretty much anything Taylor touched turns to gold. Taylor brings back a sense of danger by introducing a new cast of characters that can actually die at any moment.
Secret Six, Vol. 1: Friends in Low Places ★★
Really disappointing reboot of the Secret Six from Gail Simone.
X Omnibus, Volume 1 ★★★
Dark Horse's version of the Punisher written by the writer of the original Punisher miniseries.
X Omnibus, Volume 2 ★★
This book quickly jumps the shark once X takes over Arcadia.
Captain Midnight, Volume 3: For a Better Tomorrow ★★★★
Captain Midnight is a public domain, pulp character Dark Horse resurrected when they brought back their shared superhero universe several years back.
Captain Midnight Volume 4: Crash and Burn ★★★
Midnight mopes around after the death of his friend.
Captain Midnight, Vol. 5: Lost Time ★★★★
Midnight's sidekick from the 40's has gone "the end justifies the means". That plotline wraps up here.
Two Past Midnight ★★★★
Ghost, X, and Captain Midnight team up.
X, Volume 1: Big Bad ★★★★
Duane Swierczynski's reboot of Dark Horse's version of the Punisher.
X, Volume 2: The Dogs of War ★★★★
X takes on some criminal elements he didn't murder in the last volume.
X, Volume 3: Siege ★★★★
Swierczynski brings back some villains from the previous X series.
X Volume 4: Better Off Dead ★★★★
X goes up against some Aryan villains that later threaten Captain Midnight.
X, Volume 5: Flesh and Blood ★★★★
This story gets pretty gruesome as there is a man kidnapping prostitutes and surgically removing their skin.
Can you tell I had a bunch of hoopla downloads I needed to use before the end of June?
Today's comic book pile.Empyre #2
Emperor Hulkling
Empyre: X-Men #1
Dr. Aphra #2
Spider-Man FCBD
Bloodshot FCBD
Dark Ark: Instinct FCBD
Shazam #13
Hellions #2
The Man Who Fucked Up Time #4
New Mutants #11
The Resistance #3
Wolverine #3
X-Men / FF #4
Action Comics #1023
Humanoids Humble Bundle !Review in which I make the sacrilegious statement than Jodorowski and Moebius heavily borrowed from early Judge Dredd, but I have receipts.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Mod
Per usual, I've been flying through nominees trying to read them all (and also per usual, didn't get through the list - I have 20 or so left to go), but I really enjoyed:
Penny Nichols - Giant Days-ish book where a girl gets involved in some indie horror filmmaking. Super fun!
The Nib #4 - I'm surprised by how much I liked The Nib, a comic magazine centered on different themes. I think I'll probably become a subscriber.
Undiscovered Country Volume 1: Destiny - I enjoyed reading this one and am curious to see what comes next!
H.P. Lovecraft's at the Mountains of Madness Volume 1 - manga adaptation of the Lovecraft classic - I loved the art in this!
For the "Mountains of Madness" manga.... I don't like Lovecraft very much, but his special charm is in his word choices, and things that are implied but not shown. Adding pictures doesn't work for me.
This week's comic book reading:Secret Six, Vol. 1: Friends in Low Places ★★
Really disappointing reboot of the Secret Six from Gail Simone.
Secret Six, Vol. 2: The Gauntlet ★★★
Vol 2 was better but nowhere as good as the original run.
Captain Midnight Volume 6 Marked for Death--Reign of the Archon ★★★
Unfortunately, it looks like this was cancelled before the war with the Archon was resolved. Still, this was a solid series.
Super Sons: The Foxglove Mission ★
Sometimes YA authors shouldn't try to write comic books. This is the most confusing children's book I think I've read. Maybe a child actually wrote it?
The Fox: Fox Hunt ★★★
A fun, retro superhero book where The Fox's son wants to be a superhero.
New Kid by Jerry Craft ★★★★
The first graphic novel to win a Newberry Medal.
Uncanny X-Men, Vol. 4: The Draco ★
Widely panned as the worst X-Men story ever written. Chuck Austen makes Nightcrawler's dad an actual demon. His X-Men run was responsible for getting him thrown out of comics to where he started self-publishing porn comics.
Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen: Who Killed Jimmy Olsen? ★★★
Not as good as the buzz I heard about it. Fraction has started to believe his own hype.
Halo: Tales from Slipspace ★★
Only recommended for Halo enthusiasts. This sucked of you haven't played the games.
Dear Justice League ★★★★★
Superheros for kids done right.
X-Men/Fantastic Four: 4X ★★★★
The X-Men and FF fight over Franklin Richard's future. Really well done.
X-Men: Trial of the Juggernaut ★★
Marvel tries to disguise this book as The Trial of the Juggernaut but that's only two issues of Chuck Austen's infamously terrible run on the X-Men. FYI, the Juggernaut gets it on with She-Hulk.
Gunland ★★★
An oddball, sci-fi, spaghetti western with dinosaurs replacing horses.
Empyre #2 ★★★★
I'm really digging this book. It's fun. It's exciting. Ewing is packing each issue with some "Wow!" moments.
Lords Of Empyre: Emperor Hulkling ★★★★
Fills in the gaps between Incoming! and Empyre #1.
Infinity 8 Vol.7: All for Nothing ★★
I couldn't make heads or tails of what was going on in this. Basically some alien was being manipulated by a robot and lots of timey-wimeyness was mentioned.
Strange Skies Over East Berlin ★★
A disappointing story about an alien crash landing in East Germany and being captured by the Stasi.
The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys: California Library Edition ★★★★
This reminds me of something Jamie Hewlett would do if he and Damon Albarn ever turned Gorillaz into a comic.
James Bond 007, Vol. 2 ★★★
A re-imagining of Odd Job and Goldfinger for modern audiences. Not too shabby.
Cobra Kai: The Karate Kid Saga Continues - Johnny's Story ★★
The Karate Kid retold from Johnny's perspective. It doesn't really add much at all to the story unfortunately. I'd give this a pass.
The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes ★★★★★
Decided to do a re-read of Sandman and snagged all of the oversized Absolute collections from the library. I'm really happy I still love this 30 years later.
The Sandman Vol. 2: The Doll's House ★★★★★
The Corinthian is badass.
Erin wrote: "Is anyone else super excited to get to watch the Eisners online tonight? I love award shows so I can't wait!"Am I the only one who thinks the Eisner's are past their prime? The majority of nominees held no interest to me or just weren't that great when I did read them.
Erin wrote: "Am I the only one who thinks the Eisner's are past their prime? The majority of nominees held no interest to me or just weren't that great when I did read them."I was happy with a few wins - They Called Us Enemy, Christian Ward for digital artist, and Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me, and I thought Stan Sakai deserved to be honored for Yojimbo. Frankly, these are the creators/titles I also knew best, and I'm probably not aware of the other nominees and wins to speak to the Eisners as a whole.
If the IRCB hosts are into it, I'd love a podcast episode on it, honestly.
Less reads for me this week, it's been busy and I'm reading some (gasp) prose books.
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra, Vol. 3: Remastered - Love love love this series.
March: Book Three - Brutal and required reading. Read the day John Lewis crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge for the final time.
Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Re-Entry - Fun and forgettable
Mod
Am I the only one who thinks the Eisner's are past their prime? The major..."
To be frank, I don't really understand the point of having creators' vote be the deciding factor - I think it would be cool if it was 1/2 of the points, and then judges voted as well so it was less of a popularity contest. I think a few of the ones who won were more conventionally popular, but not necessarily the best in the category? Like does Dave Stewart really need more Eisners? Obviously his work is great, but I thought Lorena Alvarez and Molly Mendoza did some truly stunning color work this year. I've read nearly all of the nominees by now and thought most were alright - there have been only a few I found to be not worth reading.
With that being said, I think I get extra hype about it because it's cool to have a fully comics-focused award and by trying to read nominees I get exposed to a lot of great books I would have otherwise never even known about. This year was extra exciting to me because I'll probably never go to Comic Con and see them in person, so it was fun to be "part of it" at home, even though it went super quickly and was kind of anti-climactic and there's the whole doubt about the actual votes thing. But hey, I'll take whatever serotonin hits I can get in 2020! :)
Christian Ward for artist really surprised me. Yeah, his stuff is interesting, especially for colors. (I think he does his own colors.) But in my IRL group, pretty much everyone complained about the way people were drawn in Invisible Kingdom v. 1. His Black Bolt has more recognizable characters.
Finished volume 15 of Slam Dunk, I'm now halfway through my series reread and loving it. Also decided to use my Hoopla borrows to check out the Joe Kubert Tarzan stuff- don't know anything about Tarzan other than the Disney movie so it's an interesting dive in.Also I don't usually talk about my pulls and recent comics here but y'all should read Hedra it's good stuff.
Ed wrote: "Christian Ward for artist really surprised me. Yeah, his stuff is interesting, especially for colors. (I think he does his own colors.) "He does do his own colors.
This week's comic run:Empyre: Avengers #1
Empyre: Savage Avengers #1
Iron Man 2020 #5
X-Factor #1
DC Cybernetic Summer
Plunge #5
Cable #2
Doctor Tomorrow #4
X-Men #10
Hellblazer #8
Legion of Super-Heroes #7
Suicide Squad #7
Stranger Things FCBD
My July reads:Superman Smashes the Klan has author Gene Luen Yang deftly combining the mythology of Superman with timely topics of immigration and battling prejudice. Wonderful for a YA audience, but also will appeal to all ages.
Strange Fruit was the book of the month for this site and told nine short stories of blacks from American history that you are probably not aware of. Stories were solid but I was not a fan of the art that was too cartoony for the seriousness of the tales.
Black Widow: Bad Blood was a podcast I won through this site (thank you!) to the subscription site Serial Box. This story about Natasha and the Winter Soldier teaming up together when their blood is taken from them for nefarious purposes was excellent.
Pride of Baghdad is an absolutely riveting graphic novel that took the real-life story of how a pride of lions escaped the Baghdad Zoo in April of 2003 during an American raid of Iraq. This anthropomorphic tale of four lions roaming the city streets effectively showed the perils of war.
I've been picking up Free Comic Book Day issues at my comic book store, and read the X-Men/Dark Ages and Spiderman/Venom stories. I have more to get through later.
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I Read Comic Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Re-Entry (other topics)March: Book Three (other topics)
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra, Vol. 3: Remastered (other topics)
Undiscovered Country Volume 1: Destiny (other topics)
The Nib #4 (other topics)
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Don't forget to check out what the IRCB crew is reading on the weekly public Top of My Pile posts!