Every comic you've read in 2009

[Dread]

Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1-Gordon vs Mr. Freeze. Not the most complicated story but McGraw (who?) captures Gordon perfectly and Tom Mandrake's art is a master class on storytelling and scene-setting. I think they colored from pencils here too which is purty. 7.5/10

Total

Comic books: 105

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Green Lantern #36, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis#6, Green Lantern Corps #32, Faces of Evil: Prometheus Oneshot, Black Lightning: Year One #1, Haunted Tank #2, No Hero #3, Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #1, Spider-Man Fear Itself, Dark Delicacies #1, Faces of Evil: Deathstroke Oneshot, Green Lantern #37, Myspace Dark Horse Presents Vol. 1, Final Crisis #7, Final Crisis Revelations #5, Faces of Evil: Kobra Oneshot, 1st Issue Special #1, 1st Issue Special #5, 1st Issue Special #6, Amazing Spider-Man #584, Dark Avengers #1, Elephantmen #15, Hellblazer #251, War Machine #2, The Mighty A #1, Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy Oneshot, Green Lantern Corps #33, Jersey Gods #1, R.E.B.E.Ls #1, Batman #682, Batman #683, Batman #684, Batman #685, Captain America #44, Captain America #45, Captain America #46, Daredevil #111, Daredevil #112, Daredevil #113, Daredevil #114, Daredevil #115, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #1, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1, Green Lantern #38, The Walking Dead #54, The Walking Dead #55, R.E.B.E.L.S #2, Green Lantern Corps #34, Batman and the Outsiders #13, Robin #178, Detective #851, Batman #686, Battle for the Cowl: Gotham Gazette #1, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #2, City of Dust #5, Battle for the Cowl #1, Walking Dead #56, Walking Dead #57, Walking Dead #58, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #1, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #2, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #4, Savage Dragon #132, Savage Dragon #133, Savage Dragon #134, Savage Dragon #135, Savage Dragon #136, Savage Dragon #137, Savage Dragon #138, Savage Dragon #139, Authority Prime #1, Authority Prime #2, Authority Prime #3, Authority Prime #4, Authority Prime #5, Authority Prime #6, Punisher War Journal #19, Punisher War Journal #20, Punisher War Journal #21, Punisher War Journal #22, Punisher War Journal #23, Punisher War Journal #24, Punisher War Journal #25, Punisher War Journal Annual #1, Justice Society of America #21, Justice Society of America #22, Justice Society of America #23, Justice Society of America #24, Night Force #1, Night Force #2, Night Force #3, Night Force #4, Night Force #5, Night Force #6, Night Force #7, Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1, Essential Howard the Duck Volume 1, Essential Marvel Horror Volume 1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #2, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #3, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #4, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #5, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #6, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #7, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #8, Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1

[Missy]

It pains me to say this, but unless it's for The Show, I'm simply not reading a lot of comics this year.

Earth-2.net: The Show 307

Cloak & Dagger: Child of Darkness, Child of Light

Avengers: Hawkeye

Starman: Sins of the Father

Earth-2.net: The Show 311

Superman: The Coming of Atlas

The Perhapanauts: Triangle

The Middleman: The Trade Paperback Imperative

Total

Comic books: 7

Trade paperbacks: 28

Graphic novels: 1

[elnino14]

Punisher Max vol. 4: Up is Down and Black is White; Punisher gets personal and returns to taking on the mafia, but you know as personal this storyline seemed to be for Frank, it didn't seem to give me any more than the usual. This volume serves as a semi-sequel to volume 1 and it's about on par with that volume, which also had the personal aspect of Micro being involved, and a bunch of other supporting characters. I never found his allies in this volume all that interesting, although that nude shower fight was great and reminds me of another nude shower fight from Eastern Promises. The best of the supporting characters is the villain of the piece, and we get his entire history painted out for us in one issue, showing us that although he was always an evil little shit, he also had some fucked up things happen to him, and it's easily the best issue of the bunch. I don't even remember if Frank appears in that issue. Next up is The Slavers. 7.5/10

I also went on a Thunderbolts binge, re-reading my old trades and then reading the new one that I received about 2 months back.

Penance: Relentless; I still have the same complaints about it as I did last time. There's not a whole lot of depth, it doesn't tell me anything I didn't already know about Penance, and there's a shit load of random cameo appearances (cough* Wolverine *cough*) just for the sake of it. It's not a bad book, it's got a tight plot, and it falls in line with what we already know about Penance, it's also got some amazing interactions between Norman Osborn and Tony Stark that I haven't seen in any other book. But it's pretty middle of the road all in all. 6.5/10

Thunderbolts by Ellis vol. 1 and 2: This is easily my favorite run on a Post-Civil War book. It's so fun, it's so mischievous, and it plays very well with all of the characters balancing a team of 8 seamlessly. Some characters are actually sympathetic and good-hearted (such as Songbird and Radioactive man) while most of the others are devilishly evil but oh so much fun to watch (Venom, Bullseye, Norman Osborn, Moonstone). It's also makes you feel for a bunch of small supporting anti-registration heroes in a matter of a couple of pages. Just a fun book with the first one building all the tensions and setting the stage for the huge implosion in the second book.

Thunderbolts Secret Invasion (volume 3) by Christos Gage: There are numerous one-shots before returning to the actual Thunderbolts series and really they all were below average, sometimes down right boring. Where Ellis was subtle, Gage is outright blatant. Also the problem essentially is that Gage pits the Bolts many times against actual super-villains, but tries to force sympathy with the Bolts, rather than letting them be their natural evil selves. I don't know, it just really wasn't a good sign for things to come. The secret-invasion tie-in issues weren't half bad, they were certainly better than I expected especially after reading all those one-shots. But it still wasn't good by any means, it felt like Gage was trying to imitate Ellis but kept coming up short. He sews some interesting ideas (Swordsman sister a Skrull?, Distrust already sewn into the team) but either doesn't follow up on them or makes them as anti-climactic as possible. The only reason to keep this TPB is so it brings me up to speed from Ellis run to Diggle's run. There's significant developments here and during SI that this brings to pass. I really really hope Andy Diggle can do a better job in the next TPB, because otherwise I'm going to have to drop this series. 5.0/10

Total:

Comic books: 9

Trade paperbacks: 24

Daredevil by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Volumes 1, 2, and 3; The Authority by Ellis/Hitch/Millar/Quietly Volumes 1 (Relentless) and 2 (Under New Management) and 3 (Transfer of Power); Batman: Year One; Batman: The Long Halloween; Planetary vol 1 (All Over the World and Other Stories), vol. 2 (The Fourth Man), and vol. 3 (Leaving the 20th Century), Planetary Crossing Worlds (The Crossover specials); Planetary 19-26; Batman: The Man Who Laughs; Frank Miller's Daredevil: The Man Without Fear; RONIN; JOKER; Deadpool #1; Punisher Max vol. 1-4; Penance: Relentless; Thunderbolts by Warren Ellis vol 1-2; Thunderbolts: Secret Invasion.

[Dread]

Ex Machina #36-40-For a while I haven't been thrilled about this series' direction but the latest arc (36-39) has at least some great movement in the political arena for the protagonist. I'll stick around. 6.5/10. #40 on the other hand is one of the best single issues I've read in a long time. Mayor Hundred is hiring a writer/artist team to do his autobiography in comic form (!) and the interview candidates include Brian K Vaughn and Tony Harris. I am weary about the meta thing because after Morrison's Animal Man, everything pales. But this is the single best issue of the series and Vaughn is saying a lot here when he tells Hundred that he didn't move to LA with his girlfriend because of him (ie: the comics biz) and other kind of touching insightful moments into the process behind this book. Tony Harris is hilarious in this issue and the ending is the second best ending of the entire series. Those who've read the series from the ebginning know the ending that's number one. 10/10

Overall, I really like that the series isn't afraid to do odd arcs like four issues and then a oneshot before going into the next arc. It's a breath of fresh air really and I'm glad it seems to be shaping up.

Total

Comic books: 110

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Green Lantern #36, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis#6, Green Lantern Corps #32, Faces of Evil: Prometheus Oneshot, Black Lightning: Year One #1, Haunted Tank #2, No Hero #3, Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #1, Spider-Man Fear Itself, Dark Delicacies #1, Faces of Evil: Deathstroke Oneshot, Green Lantern #37, Myspace Dark Horse Presents Vol. 1, Final Crisis #7, Final Crisis Revelations #5, Faces of Evil: Kobra Oneshot, 1st Issue Special #1, 1st Issue Special #5, 1st Issue Special #6, Amazing Spider-Man #584, Dark Avengers #1, Elephantmen #15, Hellblazer #251, War Machine #2, The Mighty A #1, Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy Oneshot, Green Lantern Corps #33, Jersey Gods #1, R.E.B.E.Ls #1, Batman #682, Batman #683, Batman #684, Batman #685, Captain America #44, Captain America #45, Captain America #46, Daredevil #111, Daredevil #112, Daredevil #113, Daredevil #114, Daredevil #115, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #1, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1, Green Lantern #38, The Walking Dead #54, The Walking Dead #55, R.E.B.E.L.S #2, Green Lantern Corps #34, Batman and the Outsiders #13, Robin #178, Detective #851, Batman #686, Battle for the Cowl: Gotham Gazette #1, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #2, City of Dust #5, Battle for the Cowl #1, Walking Dead #56, Walking Dead #57, Walking Dead #58, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #1, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #2, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #4, Savage Dragon #132, Savage Dragon #133, Savage Dragon #134, Savage Dragon #135, Savage Dragon #136, Savage Dragon #137, Savage Dragon #138, Savage Dragon #139, Authority Prime #1, Authority Prime #2, Authority Prime #3, Authority Prime #4, Authority Prime #5, Authority Prime #6, Punisher War Journal #19, Punisher War Journal #20, Punisher War Journal #21, Punisher War Journal #22, Punisher War Journal #23, Punisher War Journal #24, Punisher War Journal #25, Punisher War Journal Annual #1, Justice Society of America #21, Justice Society of America #22, Justice Society of America #23, Justice Society of America #24, Night Force #1, Night Force #2, Night Force #3, Night Force #4, Night Force #5, Night Force #6, Night Force #7, Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1, Essential Howard the Duck Volume 1, Essential Marvel Horror Volume 1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #2, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #3, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #4, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #5, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #6, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #7, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #8, Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1, Ex Machina #36, Ex Machina #37, Ex Machina #38, Ex Machina #39, Ex Machina #40

[prez]

Holy crap, man. Ever tried condensing posts?

[SuaveStar]

The commisioner BFTC one shot was good, I agree with Des.

I just read the mini JLU comic for kids, in my defence I got it free with a figure order months ago. I read it and although it looks just like the cartoon, it doesn't have the charm for me, I know it's not for me, and my nephews may like it, so that's why I still have it.

Good for kids, but unlike teen titans, it doesn't have crossover to adult market appeal.

Kingdom come: I liked it, though I need to read it again as when i first read it, it felt like the time flew by. I noticed the little nods to watchmen and other things, but will enjoy reading this again as it really is gorgeous and a great story.

Also I got a Happiness from vertigo for 50p and although it doesn't deliver the story it claims to, it is still a fun short forty page two part read and if you can get it for $1, it isn't the worst thing to spend it on.

Booster gold issues 1, 5, 12 and 13.

I got these all cheap and all I can say is I heart booster.

Issue five deals with the killing joke and is awesome.

I'll post some of the inside jokes and references Johns makes in his issues later.

One of my favourites was in issue 1:"Countdown does not matter"

Oracle the cure: Part two of 3.

Part one had a nice intro and was a solid read, and left you on a cliffhanger. Part two has none of this and left me unfufilled and not really caring anymore.

The art was acceptable but after finishing this all i said was "Well, that was....a comic." wheras I was meant to say "Wow, I wonder what happens next!?"

Party one set up the calculator, Oracle and a few other characters, this issue, couldn't even maintain my interest in one of the characters.

If you haven't tried this yet, give issue one a flip through and maybe get it, but only get two if your a completist and can't finish it in the shop.

I've been going through a lot of comics recently.

Green Lantern Corps 35: Sinestro.

When your cover has Sinestro on it, and the cover is of Sinestro, you kind of expect Sinestro be in the story. Well this was dull and I couldn't wait to end it, also finding out who a Black Lantern was kind of hurt Blackest nights twists for me, so this was boring and crap. Unlike the last issue which kept my interest right to the end, this lost me three pages in and never got me back. Flip through it in the shop and make up your own mind, me, what am i doing? Oh I'm dropping it.

Green Arrow #100.

This was one of the last storys before Oliver Queen died. This was very blah to me and was only 25p so i didn't lose anything by getting this and I don't regret getting it but am glad I didn't pay anymore for it.

Birds of prey 90: The birds take on Deathstroke in this fun story and it has some good moments and nice art.

Batman: Armageddon 2001. Batman in 201 and all his rogues are dieing or getting their own tv shows. This is good and was fun to read, and the art was alright and it was also 25p so it was worth the money and I enjoyed it.

Detective comics #705-707. Finally! I found a riddler story that is worth reading. Riddler sets up batman with the cluemaster and is plotting something, but what. Good issues and was written by Chuck Dixon and had some nice art and was fun to read.

Flash #207. Never read the Flash before, but after reading this I want to get some flash trades by Johns as he can write about Wallys life sucking for 500pages and I wouldn't get bored.

Brave and the bold: Batman and Green Lantern. Meh, this was alright, but it just couldn't hold my attention.

[drqshadow]

Call this the catchup edition.

Marvel Knights: Angel #3 - Issue #2 was nowhere to be found. Maybe I should have popped for the TPB collection. I kept waiting for something terrible to happen in this issue, but instead it caught me by surprise by focusing on Warren's jubilation in response to the sprouting of his wings. I've read the same old "mutant gets new powers, freaks out, gets run out of town by villagers with torches" angle so many times that it was really nice to see the other side of that coin, a kid who's utterly stoked about his mutation. Some of the developments hinted at the end of the issue weren't quite so unusual or even original, but hey, good with the bad.

8/10

Marvel Knights: Angel #4 - Adam Pollina's artwork continues to blow me away within this series. In issue #3 he took my breath away with a full-page spread revealing the breadth of Warren's wings for the first time, and here he stunned me with another gorgeous cover and several more masterpieces inside. Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa quickly and neatly wrote his way out of the infuriating little corner he'd worked his way into at the end of last month and set the stage for the big finale next time around. Probably the weakest issue of the series, as some of the kids' antics push the limits of believability, but overall it's still worth reading.

6/10

Marvel Knights: Angel #5 - Keeps up a frantic pace from front to back, which is all you can really ask of a mini-series concluding issue. Pollina rebounds nicely from a shaky start to deliver on some of the best moments of the series, particularly when he allows a driving rainstorm to take shapes not entirely unlike Van Gogh's Starry Night. I was hoping for a slightly longer touch on Angel's transition from student to X-Man, but I don't think the story really needed it and this already has enough going on as it is. I'm really glad I took a chance on this series, it was a good reminder of what the core X-Men books used to be like, ages and ages ago. Just a cluster of kids going through some unprecedented changes together, trying to help each other find the courage to carry on.

8/10

Kingdom Come #3 - The spark. Waid and Ross spent three issues building up this house of cards, and I could almost feel their shared excitement as they filled their lungs with enough air to blow it all back down again. It's great to watch the individual arcs of all this book's supporting characters - Von Bach, Power Girl, the Satanist guy with nipple piercings... they each have a clearly defined progression and if you look in enough corners the whole world is laid out right there for you. This issue had so many enormous moments, it's tough to keep count. Clark and Diana discussing life, the universe and everything in the vacuum of outer space, Bruce's ultimate redemption, Captain Marvel's sudden, jarring arrival... this series deserves all the credit it gets. As a consistent detractor of Alex Ross's, that isn't especially easy for me to admit. This is his finest work, and it's more than likely the same story for Mark Waid.

10/10

Kingdom Come #4 - One of the best fight scenes ever, and undoubtedly the most shocking conclusion to one. It's been so long since I read this issue, that final climactic moment at the end of the brawl literally left my jaw agape. Again. What's amazing about this issue is that it can do mindless violence while at the same time carrying on a fascinating dialog on each corner of the battlefield. It merges dozens of ongoing plot threads without feeling complicated or losing touch with the essence of its message. And at the end of it all, Kingdom Come doesn't tell you who was in the right and who was in the wrong. That judgment is left for the reader to decide. Terrific ending to an all-around epic mini-series. And I never use the word "epic."

10/10

Also, two contributions to IIWY? this week: Timestorm - 2009/2099 #1 and Daredevil Noir #1. One of which I'd already read, so it doesn't really count.

Comics: 69, TPB: 5

[Missy]

Daredevil: Lady Bullseye

It's very clear Brubaker is building to the end of his run, and I like the possibilities he's laid down here. Now if only Marvel had the balls to let Daredevil become

the leader of The Hand

, then things would get really interesting for the MU. Regardless, this was a fun book that never let Matt sink too far into his trademarked depression, it introduced two great characters (Lady Bullseye and Master Izo), and I'm very interested in seeing where the Matt /

Dakota

relationship goes.

Out of 10: 7

Total

Comic books: 7

Trade paperbacks: 29

Graphic novels: 1

[Dread]

Battle for the Cowl: Man-Bat #1-this one had it stacked against it from the start. I've always been ambivalent. i can't say I've ever read anything memorable form Joe Harris and Jim Calafiore was in the top 3 artists of Countdown...making him one of my least favorite artists ever. But this was...ok. Overall I still don't care for Man-Bat but Batman Beyond fans might find a cool looking villain in Doctor Phosphorus. 6/10

Battle for the Cowl #2-Awesome. Not as good as #1 but it's got that weird second of three syndrome where you have to put a lot of pieces in place to knock everything down next issue. I LOVE TONY DANIEL'S ART. There. Done. I'm fully convinced I know exactly who Batman and Robin are post BFTC. 8/10

Green Lantern #39-Not as sold on thsi one as I had hoped. Kind of cold on it frankly. Not really digging the Blue Lantern thing going on. We'll have to see I guess. Philip Tan's art is better than I have ever seen it before but still pales in comparison to Ivan Reis in my opinion. Just not the biggest fan of the Orange Lanterns. And is it just me or are the Guardians the wishy-washiest of characters in the universe? 7/10

Green Lantern Corps #35-By far the better GL book of the month. Tomasi is rocking it again with Gleason's amazing art. Sodam Yat is quickly becoming my new favorite GL. 9/10

Total

Comic books: 114

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Green Lantern #36, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis#6, Green Lantern Corps #32, Faces of Evil: Prometheus Oneshot, Black Lightning: Year One #1, Haunted Tank #2, No Hero #3, Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #1, Spider-Man Fear Itself, Dark Delicacies #1, Faces of Evil: Deathstroke Oneshot, Green Lantern #37, Myspace Dark Horse Presents Vol. 1, Final Crisis #7, Final Crisis Revelations #5, Faces of Evil: Kobra Oneshot, 1st Issue Special #1, 1st Issue Special #5, 1st Issue Special #6, Amazing Spider-Man #584, Dark Avengers #1, Elephantmen #15, Hellblazer #251, War Machine #2, The Mighty A #1, Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy Oneshot, Green Lantern Corps #33, Jersey Gods #1, R.E.B.E.Ls #1, Batman #682, Batman #683, Batman #684, Batman #685, Captain America #44, Captain America #45, Captain America #46, Daredevil #111, Daredevil #112, Daredevil #113, Daredevil #114, Daredevil #115, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #1, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1, Green Lantern #38, The Walking Dead #54, The Walking Dead #55, R.E.B.E.L.S #2, Green Lantern Corps #34, Batman and the Outsiders #13, Robin #178, Detective #851, Batman #686, Battle for the Cowl: Gotham Gazette #1, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #2, City of Dust #5, Battle for the Cowl #1, Walking Dead #56, Walking Dead #57, Walking Dead #58, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #1, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #2, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #4, Savage Dragon #132, Savage Dragon #133, Savage Dragon #134, Savage Dragon #135, Savage Dragon #136, Savage Dragon #137, Savage Dragon #138, Savage Dragon #139, Authority Prime #1, Authority Prime #2, Authority Prime #3, Authority Prime #4, Authority Prime #5, Authority Prime #6, Punisher War Journal #19, Punisher War Journal #20, Punisher War Journal #21, Punisher War Journal #22, Punisher War Journal #23, Punisher War Journal #24, Punisher War Journal #25, Punisher War Journal Annual #1, Justice Society of America #21, Justice Society of America #22, Justice Society of America #23, Justice Society of America #24, Night Force #1, Night Force #2, Night Force #3, Night Force #4, Night Force #5, Night Force #6, Night Force #7, Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1, Essential Howard the Duck Volume 1, Essential Marvel Horror Volume 1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #2, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #3, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #4, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #5, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #6, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #7, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #8, Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1, Ex Machina #36, Ex Machina #37, Ex Machina #38, Ex Machina #39, Ex Machina #40, Battle for the Cowl: Man-Bat #1, Battle for the Cowl #2, Green Lantern #39, Green Lantern Corps #35

[Dread]

Justice League of America #27-30-Gah. If this is how they're planning on bringing the Milestone guys into the DCU, then count me out. I'd been kind of going stale on McDuffie's JLA as of late and this kind of sealed the deal. I was excited to see Len Wein hop aboard as guest writer but he did an even worse job. Terrible fucking comics. I'm done. 2/10

Total

Comic books: 118

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Green Lantern #36, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis#6, Green Lantern Corps #32, Faces of Evil: Prometheus Oneshot, Black Lightning: Year One #1, Haunted Tank #2, No Hero #3, Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #1, Spider-Man Fear Itself, Dark Delicacies #1, Faces of Evil: Deathstroke Oneshot, Green Lantern #37, Myspace Dark Horse Presents Vol. 1, Final Crisis #7, Final Crisis Revelations #5, Faces of Evil: Kobra Oneshot, 1st Issue Special #1, 1st Issue Special #5, 1st Issue Special #6, Amazing Spider-Man #584, Dark Avengers #1, Elephantmen #15, Hellblazer #251, War Machine #2, The Mighty A #1, Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy Oneshot, Green Lantern Corps #33, Jersey Gods #1, R.E.B.E.Ls #1, Batman #682, Batman #683, Batman #684, Batman #685, Captain America #44, Captain America #45, Captain America #46, Daredevil #111, Daredevil #112, Daredevil #113, Daredevil #114, Daredevil #115, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #1, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1, Green Lantern #38, The Walking Dead #54, The Walking Dead #55, R.E.B.E.L.S #2, Green Lantern Corps #34, Batman and the Outsiders #13, Robin #178, Detective #851, Batman #686, Battle for the Cowl: Gotham Gazette #1, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #2, City of Dust #5, Battle for the Cowl #1, Walking Dead #56, Walking Dead #57, Walking Dead #58, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #1, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #2, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #4, Savage Dragon #132, Savage Dragon #133, Savage Dragon #134, Savage Dragon #135, Savage Dragon #136, Savage Dragon #137, Savage Dragon #138, Savage Dragon #139, Authority Prime #1, Authority Prime #2, Authority Prime #3, Authority Prime #4, Authority Prime #5, Authority Prime #6, Punisher War Journal #19, Punisher War Journal #20, Punisher War Journal #21, Punisher War Journal #22, Punisher War Journal #23, Punisher War Journal #24, Punisher War Journal #25, Punisher War Journal Annual #1, Justice Society of America #21, Justice Society of America #22, Justice Society of America #23, Justice Society of America #24, Night Force #1, Night Force #2, Night Force #3, Night Force #4, Night Force #5, Night Force #6, Night Force #7, Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1, Essential Howard the Duck Volume 1, Essential Marvel Horror Volume 1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #2, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #3, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #4, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #5, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #6, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #7, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #8, Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1, Ex Machina #36, Ex Machina #37, Ex Machina #38, Ex Machina #39, Ex Machina #40, Battle for the Cowl: Man-Bat #1, Battle for the Cowl #2, Green Lantern #39, Green Lantern Corps #35, Justice League of America #27, Justice League of America #28, Justice League of America #29, Justice League of America #30

[Aaron Robinson]

Scott Pilgrim #3. Kicked a considerably large amount of ass. Vegan psychics and bass battles, what more could I want?

The Goon vol. 1. Awesome stuff. I’m going to continue reading this.

I think I’ve made it my mission to buy the first three trades of every popular series in existence.

[Dread]

Teen Titans #63-68-As of late I haven't been hot on McKeever's treatment of what used to be the best book DC published and the first arc in this bunch doesn't change that. Wonder Girl versus her cousin. Yay. But, the end of the arc led to Robin leading a recruitment drive because he...QUIT. There's a really cool balance of characters and as far as writing, McKeever has an amazing grasp of the voices of Red Devil and Blue Beetle (a great duo) and is getting better with WG now that he's brought her where she needs to be. The intro of Kid Eternity was surprising and I can't wait to see Static in the next issue in hopes that it will be a Milestone character in the DCU that works. Fingers Crossed. 7/10

Total

Comic books: 124

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Green Lantern #36, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis#6, Green Lantern Corps #32, Faces of Evil: Prometheus Oneshot, Black Lightning: Year One #1, Haunted Tank #2, No Hero #3, Shrapnel: Aristeia Rising #1, Spider-Man Fear Itself, Dark Delicacies #1, Faces of Evil: Deathstroke Oneshot, Green Lantern #37, Myspace Dark Horse Presents Vol. 1, Final Crisis #7, Final Crisis Revelations #5, Faces of Evil: Kobra Oneshot, 1st Issue Special #1, 1st Issue Special #5, 1st Issue Special #6, Amazing Spider-Man #584, Dark Avengers #1, Elephantmen #15, Hellblazer #251, War Machine #2, The Mighty A #1, Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy Oneshot, Green Lantern Corps #33, Jersey Gods #1, R.E.B.E.Ls #1, Batman #682, Batman #683, Batman #684, Batman #685, Captain America #44, Captain America #45, Captain America #46, Daredevil #111, Daredevil #112, Daredevil #113, Daredevil #114, Daredevil #115, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #1, Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1, Green Lantern #38, The Walking Dead #54, The Walking Dead #55, R.E.B.E.L.S #2, Green Lantern Corps #34, Batman and the Outsiders #13, Robin #178, Detective #851, Batman #686, Battle for the Cowl: Gotham Gazette #1, Hotwire: Requiem for the Dead #2, City of Dust #5, Battle for the Cowl #1, Walking Dead #56, Walking Dead #57, Walking Dead #58, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #1, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #2, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #4, Savage Dragon #132, Savage Dragon #133, Savage Dragon #134, Savage Dragon #135, Savage Dragon #136, Savage Dragon #137, Savage Dragon #138, Savage Dragon #139, Authority Prime #1, Authority Prime #2, Authority Prime #3, Authority Prime #4, Authority Prime #5, Authority Prime #6, Punisher War Journal #19, Punisher War Journal #20, Punisher War Journal #21, Punisher War Journal #22, Punisher War Journal #23, Punisher War Journal #24, Punisher War Journal #25, Punisher War Journal Annual #1, Justice Society of America #21, Justice Society of America #22, Justice Society of America #23, Justice Society of America #24, Night Force #1, Night Force #2, Night Force #3, Night Force #4, Night Force #5, Night Force #6, Night Force #7, Essential Tomb of Dracula Volume 1, Essential Howard the Duck Volume 1, Essential Marvel Horror Volume 1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #1, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #2, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #3, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #4, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #5, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #6, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #7, Suicide Squad: From the Ashes #8, Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon #1, Ex Machina #36, Ex Machina #37, Ex Machina #38, Ex Machina #39, Ex Machina #40, Battle for the Cowl: Man-Bat #1, Battle for the Cowl #2, Green Lantern #39, Green Lantern Corps #35, Justice League of America #27, Justice League of America #28, Justice League of America #29, Justice League of America #30, Teen Titans #63, Teen Titans #64, Teen Titans #65, Teen Titans #66, Teen Titans #67, Teen Titans #68

[Venneh]

Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns: Pretty much the last piece that I needed to know to understand what's going on currently in the Green Lantern universe. I like the interaction between Sinestro and Hal here, and the background as to the Guardian who seems to be controlling the strings and the Red Lanterns.

Secret Six #5: So, uhm, yeah. I love Gail Simone. Like the insight into Bane and Deadshot, the Hatter's quips are excellent, and Scandal Savage has to be one of my favorite characters ever now. Good fight scenes, especially with Jeanette and the sharkman. Want the rest nao. Definitely going to get the trade in July, and will get #8 next week.

Comic Books: 35

TPBs: 19

Graphic Novels: 2

Motion Comic: 1

[Dread]

At the end of June I will stop listing the books I've read from the beginning of the year, start with a number and then list the back half. It's getting ridiculously long.

[Aaron Robinson]

Wouldn’t it be easier to group them together?

[Koete]

Agents of Atlas #2-3: I love this book. Right off the bat, there's a talking monkey and a robot. Who doesn't love monkeys and robots? Also, best recap pages in any comic. It's taking advantage of the Dark Reign banner, with Jimmy Woo trying to stay one step ahead of Osborn. The second arc seems to be cutting between the present and a 1950s adventure involving the team. The art in both sequences is fantastic.

Batman: The Brave and The Bold #3: Fun Silver Age-esque Batman story. Is it the Brave and the Bold cartoon in comic book form? No, but it was still a fun issue and deifnitely the best of the series so far.

Guardians of The Galaxy #11-12: These are my last two issues of Guardians of The Galaxy. I thought the first six issues were great, but when it got into War of Kings, it just started going downhill in my opinion. Very significant cosmic developments in these two issues though I have to say. Haven't seen Wes Craig's before, but I thought it was pretty good.

Nova #23: One of the best issues of the series. Nice nod to the first volume at the beginning and a nice twist I didn't see coming. The ending would have been great if they didn't advertise it on the cover. Andrea Devito comes on board as artist and does great stuff. Still my favorite Marvel book.

Irredeemable #1: I was really looking forward to this tale of a world's greatest hero becoming the world's greatest villain. Have to say I was disappointed. The story was okay, but not great. Good moments at the beginning and near the end though. The art was pretty meh as well. I'm giving this one more issue to grab me.

Seaguy: The Slaves of Mickey Eye #1 - I have a feeling that by the end of the trilogy, this will be in my Morrison Top 5. It's definitely not a book for everyone, but if you're a fan of Morrison's more out there works, you're going to dig this a lot.

Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer: I enjoyed the first Ambush Bug mini-series, but this was terrible. Unfunny and a chore to get through. The one bright spot was the Mr. A parody.

Total

Comic Books: 48

TPBs: 11

HCs: 0

Graphic Novels: 1

Adventure Comics #0, Age of The Sentry #5-6, Agents of Atlas #1-3, Ambush Bug Stocking Stuffer, Animal Man Volume 1 TPB, Animal Man Volume 2: Origin of the Species TPB, Animal Man Volume 3: Deus Ex Machina TPB, Astounding Wolf-Man #10-13, Atomic Robo Dogs of War #5, Batman #684-686, Batman: The Brave and The Bold #1-3, Criminal Vol. 2-3 TPB, The Darkness Accursed Vol. 1 TPB, Doctor Who: The Whispering Gallery, Final Crisis Secret Files, Final Crisis #6-7, Four Eyes #2, The Goon #31-32, Green Lantern #36-38, Guardians of The Galaxy #8-12, Incognito #1, Invincible #57, Irredeemable #1, Justice Society of America #22, Kick-Ass #5, Nova #20-23, Ruins, Seaguy: The Slaves of Mickey Eye #1, Secret Invasion: War of Kings, Seven Soldiers of Victory Volume 1-4 TPB, Super Friends #11, Superman and Batman: World's Funnest, Superman Beyond #2, Vimanarama TPB, War of Kings: Darkhawk #1, X-Force #11

[Dread]

Joker's Asylum: Two-Face-This is probably my favorite Two-Face story as he teaches a lesson to a burn victim who wants to show him that he can be rehabilitated. Spoiler: he can't. David Hine's story is tight and very smart. Andy Clarke is responsible for some of the best art in comics today and this is no exception with some of the finest storytelling I've ever seen. Granted, it's easier when you have two characters with Two-Face-like burns. One of the best I've read all year. 10/10

Joker's Asylum: Poison Ivy-I've never been a fan of Poison Ivy and this story, though clever, never really grabbed me. It's the art that is the shit in this one. Guillem March not only has some great storytelling chops but he draws a mean Batman and one of the sexiest Poison Ivys ever put to print. Fun but still not the greatest. Still, for the art alone it gets 7.5/10

Joker's Asylum: Scarecrow-So the character with the easiest way of coming up with a decent scary story is the one that pulls it off the worst. It was a bog standard Scarecrow story but again, the art is the king here. Juan Doe does a really good job of balancing light cartooniness and dark material. It was perfect for this story and also made the score for this one 7/10

Joker's Asylum: Penguin-Another bat-villain I've never given a shit about but this story (by Jason Aaron and Jason Pearson) garnered more respect for the character in 22 pages than he's gotten in the 50 odd years since he was created. Fucking greatness. Pearson does the most amazing Joker even though we only see him through a window in a door. Greatness. 10/10

Joker's Asylum: Joker-Storywise, one of the best Jokewr stories ever told. I don't know who Arvid Nelson is but I'm paying attention now. I'm not a fan of Alex Sanchez's art. It looks like a cross between Bisley and Frank Miller (circa DKR). A la ugly. In this one, Joker hijacks a game show, you know just because, and terrorizes the contestants and audience. He even switches up the trivia for harder topics. Dialogue sample:

Joker: "Oh, I am so sorry, Marty! The correct answer was the square root of the average molecular density coefficient times the inverse radial entropic mass. That means you die!"

Beautiful. 9/10 because of ugly art.

Overall, ther idea of Joker introducing the dark "horror" stories of these villains like the Cryptkeeper is easy but it is done amazingly well. This is one of the undiscovered gems of last year and it comes highly recommended when it hits trade.

Total

Comic books: 110

Trade paperbacks: 4

Graphic novels: 0

Jan 01-Apr 21=105 comics, 4 TPBs...Joker's Asylum: Two-Face, Joker's Asylum: Poison Ivy, Joker's Asylum: Scarecrow, Joker's Asylum: Penguin, Joker's Asylum: Joker

[SuaveStar]

Really Des, we really do have differing opinions on comics as I hated most of the Jokers Asylums and thgought they were tales from the crypt knock offs and the art for the most part was poor.

But at least you enjoyed them and I liked the end of the Joker story.

[Aaron Robinson]

Just bought myself Criminal vol. 4, Walking Dead vol. 3 and the fourth issue of Wizard of Oz (which I held off on because individual issues are $7 here, and that seems kind of crazy to me).

[Luke]

Been reading through Judge Dredd: The Complete Casefiles Volume 1 (with volumes 2-6 also sitting on my shelf). It's fantastic, both retro and futuristic, with a nicely concieved setting and an art for quick yet meaningful storytelling.

[SuaveStar]

Batman: Year one.

I got it because instead of a refund, I got credit, so I got this and thought it was alright.

Whatever happened to the caped crusader part 2. Damn, now that was an ending. Re-reading it, it's an okay story, and not spectacular but it was fun and I loved the ending.

[Missy]

Can you expand on that, suavestar, 'cause Batman: Year One is easily the best Batman story ever. So to hear someone say it's only "alright" without going further boggles the mind.

EDIT: Just to clarify, I'm not getting on your case, I just want to hear your thoughts.

Edited April 23, 2009 by Yoda

[SuaveStar]

Oh ok.

I meant it was good, the art really set the mood, and when I heard the episode of waiting for the trade, i would have thought more time would've been spent on the stuff that was mentioned their, rather than just being four second pieces.

I liked the fact that every officer was corrupt to some extent, even Gordon who took the law into his own hands at one point.

I like Bruce faining being drunk and what he did with the wine was genius.

Bruce started covering his tracks early and already knew he had to hid who he really was, was interesting.

I preffered it to the Dark knight returns, which everyone knows I didn't enjoy.

It was a fun story and it had a great noir setting, I just wished more was done with Selina and Bruce's relationship.

All in all it was good.

It was nice seeing Bruce start out and seeing things Batman Begins ripped right out of year 1.

I liked how they set up the Joker showing up right at the end and Dent's almost rise but not how he and Batman got to know each other, maybe I missed that.

All in all, it was great, and I will look forward to reading it again.

When I said it was alright, I meant I went in with too much of an expectation, because of all i heard about it being the best batman story ever, and I guess my hopes were too high, and that's why I said it was alright.

So it's a great story and one of the top three batman trades I own (After under the hood and the killing joke) so it was good.

Edit: I just saw your edit, and I totally understand, I shouldn't have just posted it was alright, and when doing more of these I should give thoughts in more than two words.

Nightwing: 1,000,000. I got this in a 25p pile and it wasn't worth anymore than that, it was just a hollow uninteresting story which was not entertaining and made me actually want to start counting the pages till it was over and when I got to the end, I felt jipped with the fact their was no ending.

[Dread]

Really Des, we really do have differing opinions on comics as I hated most of the Jokers Asylums and thgought they were tales from the crypt knock offs and the art for the most part was poor.

But at least you enjoyed them and I liked the end of the Joker story.

The Tales of the Crypt thing is the idea though. That and they were better than any comics of their type for the past 20 odd years.

The art was poor? You don't like good comic art, my man. Andy Clarke, Juan Doe, Guillem March and Jason Pearson are some of the best going right now.

[SuaveStar]

I understand that was the idea, but the storys weren't as good as they could have been.

It's been a good few months since I read them and the only one that really stands out is the Jokers terrible art for his story.