Every comic you've read in 2012

[Professor]

The Crow - I did not like this. Eric is a nothing character with questionable likeability. The art is fine but has major problems with storytelling. When more than two people are in a scene, I was having issues following the action. Now, I love the movie, even tho I will admit it is flawed. Having said that, I believe that the movie took this source material and made it better.

Comics: 25

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 178 (1048)

[Professor]

X-Men Evolution - Started off as a sorta prequel to the show for three issues and then just went to stories based in that universe. Kinda disappointed in this. I have really enjoyed the Marvel Adventures line. In comparison, these all ages books simply do not hold up.

Comics: 25

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 180 (1057)

[Dread]

Greatest Hits #1-6: Tischman and Fabry's take on a British Invasion of superheroes called The Mates. It appears as though some seeds were sown here that perhaps Ennis ripped off for The Boys. There are elements here that work (Fabry's Steve Dillon meets David Gibbons interior art style is one) but this series really just screams movie and should have been one from the start.

Comics: 1100

Graphic Novels: 21

Trades: 45

Omnibus: 15

[dc20willsave]

Phonogram: Where has this book been my entire life? I'll admit, I know little to nothing about the British music scene but reading both series of this book makes me want to. LIke I will probably go and buy the entire Discography of Kenickie when I get home from vacation. I think I might like the second series more just for how segmented it was but still, it was altogether freaking awesome.

Also, I might have more than a little crush on David Kohl.

[Stavros]

A convert! Nice one Will.

[slothian]

Kenickie! Back in the days Lauren Laverne was a singer.

[Stavros]

...holy crap I never realised that was Lauren Laverne. I've been aware of Kenickie since they released Punka but it never twigged.

[slothian]

Lauren Laverne being the singer is pretty much everything I know about Kenickie!

[Dread]

Shadows #1-4: A small group of researchers band together to investigate the weird, starting with Bigfoot. Okay, simple enough. Unfortunately, this came right out of Image's dark age. Where it seemed they would publish ANYTHING right before the era where EVERYBODY wanted to be in the comics industry. This one starts out okay enough. The story has intrigue and the art is Steve Dillon lite. Bigfoot has boobs. That's interesting. But starting with issue 3 they went black and white. For no other reason than "we thought it looked better and got at the dark and light of the style without the color getting in the way" which I take to mean "Image no longer wants to spend money on this book. Which pans out because this was supposed to be an ongoing, but it got dropped at 4. Don't bother with it. If you could find it anyway.

Comics: 1104

Graphic Novels: 21

Trades: 45

Omnibus: 15

[Dread]

Badlands #1-6: A 6 issue mini written by Steven Grant in 1993 at Dark Horse. The story is the star as it is a tale about the guy who was standing on the grassy knoll. An interesting "what if" style tale that could easily fit into our own timeline depending on how much you believe of the conspiracy to kill JFK. Unfortunately, the art is less than stellar. A forgotten item of interest.

Crawl To Me: this IDW tpb collects the four issue mini written/drawn by Alan Robert. Besides being one of the founding members of Life of Agony, and main songwriter on their first record (one of the greatest New York metal albums of all time). This book is fucking mental! I love it and I am now a fan of more than just his music.

Comics: 1110

Graphic Novels: 21

Trades: 46

Omnibus: 15

[Professor]

X-Men: Eve of Destruction (Uncanny 391-393, X-Men 111-113) - This is set in a time period in which I know nothing about what is happening with the X-Men. I did enjoy the news report issue as it set up the storyline very well. As for the rest; not so much. The Cyclops/Wolverine relationship is enjoyable, but I could have done without all the newbies. And the 'shocking ending' really wasn't all that shocking and wasn't played up as a big deal.

Uncanny X-Men: Birth of Generation Hope - This did nothing for me. I think this is the first Hope books that I have read. I have no idea what her powers are. I have no idea why I should care about these 'lights' that I was introduced to. I know this was the set up for the Gen Hope book, but this could have been done much better. Best part of this book was the Beast/Molly Hayes scene in the Heroic Age special.

X-Men: Curse of the Mutants - Solid. The art is really nice, although Blade looks like Lemmy for some reason. My main complaint is the fact the important things happen outside of this trade. Since this is a trade, I kinda expect to get the full story. I do not expect to get "We need to get Dracula's head" - flip page - "I got the head".

Girl Genius: Vol. 1-3 - I read these because I thought they would be (based on nothing but the title and the art) aimed at a younger female demographic. They are not. In fact, I have no idea who these are aimed at. The art is endlessly cartoony (and not very good at that). The story is a bit too much for a younger reader. I found the story to be confusing and needlessly convoluted. It took until the end of Vol. 3 for me to see a direction. Too many characters with zero depth and an overall narrative that changes book to book. I still have more volumes, and the ending of Vol. 4 gave me hope that this is getting on the right track.

Comics: 25

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 186 (1084)

[Dread]

Wire Hangers #1-4: Following up on Crawl To Me, Alan Robert also wrote and drew these issues (as well as the next book). This is one of the bleakest and most mental superhero origin stories I've ever read. Fucking crazy.

Killogy #1: This is the first time I've ever seen a comic that has original characters who are officially using the likenesses of real people. Brea Grant, Marky Ramone and Frank Vincent. Other than Greg Land, who always uses celebrity likenesses, but Alan Robert has permission. It's pretty crazy, and, as a result, comes with an interesting switch in art style.

Comics: 1115

Graphic Novels: 21

Trades: 46

Omnibus: 15

[Professor]

The Amazing Spider-Man: The Complete Ben Reilly Epic (Book 5) - This felt like filler. Nothing really happens for most of the book. Peter 'dies' and gets his powers back in the first fourth of the book. Then it is just filler. The Looter. Will O' the Wisp. Swarm (who I know Ben has fought before, yet he seems to have forgotten). The Unlimited series is just horrible (and the art is worse) and the Spidey Team-Up issue made zero sense for those of us with no knowledge of that Avengers timeline. The Onslaught tie-ins were the best issues, but seemed to halt all running plot lines.

It still comes down to Peter coming back. Ben get little to no 'screen time' in this book. Spider-Man gets plenty. Ben Reilly not so much. It seemed like they were trying to create a supporting cast for Ben with the coffee house crew, but Peter coming back killed it dead. Now you have way too many characters to deal with. Peter, Ben, MJ, the weekly villain, coffee house crew, Daily Bugle people, and mystery villain(s). And putting Peter on the top of the list is no mistake. You see more Peter than you do Ben.

Astonishing X-Men: Ghost Box - Alternate Realities are not my bag, so this really was not for me. I enjoyed the art and some of the character interactions, but the story left me cold. And I have no idea what the Ghost Box mini was supposed to be. Those were a complete waste of time.

Comics: 25

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 188 (1109)

[dc20willsave]

All-Star Superman: Just fucking awesome. Probably one of the best Superman stories of all time. My only complaint might be the Bizarro issues but even those have some highpoints.

[Dread]

Hard Time seasons one and two: 19 issues in total. Fuck, I really miss Steve Gerber. Yes, the premise is a little odd. A 15 year old complicit in the shooting of a bunch of fellow students (though he never fired a shot and evidence showed that) is sentenced to 50 years in an adult penitentiary. The day to day life lived by Ethan Harrow in this book is brutal in the way the best prison stories are. Add to the fact that his subconscious is a vengeful force he cannot control and you got yourself a story. Leave it to Gerber (and regular collaborator Mary Skrenes) to take this and craft one of the greatest books of the last 25 years. Brian Hurtt's art is spectacular, cartoony at times but really gritty and real. On top of all that, a major character is likely the first transgendered comics character published by the big two. Wonderful shit!

Comics: 1134

Graphic Novels: 21

Trades: 46

Omnibus: 15

[Professor]

Uncanny X-Men #394-415 - Not a fan of this team. I think this book suffers the most from the creation of X-Treme X-Men. Of this team (Bobby, Warren, Logan, Kurt, Chamber, Stacey-X), I am really only interested in Nightcrawler. He is the only character given anything to do really. Chamber is such an odd choice and Stacey-X has been annoying in every single panel she has appeared in. I remember reading the issues after this and liking it, so hopefully this picks up with some new team members. Random art gripe: Issue 400 is horrible to look at. It actively made my eyes hurt. I get what they were going for, with the changing art styles, but it is beyond bad.

Marvel Age Hulk - Not as much fun as I wanted. The Hulk was awesome in the Marvel Adventures Avengers series. I guess I was looking for more of that. Also, I read these in the library bound editions, meaning each issue is bound as a hardcover. Gotta say, I would have loved these as a kid.

Comics: 45

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 189 (1115)

[dc20willsave]

Yeah... Prof, you're into the beginning of Chuck Austen's run on Uncanny X-men. It just continues to spiral into inanity.You haven't even gotten into where Alpha Flight acts entirely out of character, She-Hulk acts entirely out of character, Jean Grey acts entirely out of character, Polaris goes crazy for some reason, Romeo and Juliet for Idiots with rednecks and mutants, Nightcrawler plot arc derailment part 1 & 2, and Archangel being a borderline pedophile. Quite frankly, the only good thing about that entire arc is Juggernaut's Face Turn and that's just barely. I know I've said this to the point of sounding like a broken record but Chuck Austen's entire run on both Uncanny and Adjective-less X-Men is probably the worst run on X-Men of any writer ever.

[Professor]

So, if I understand what you are saying, some characters act out of character.

Like I said, I remember reading these before years ago. All that really stuck was the Juggernaut face turn and the fish boy. I think this shall prove interesting.

[Professor]

Uncanny X-Men #416-436 - Not a fan of this book. This book is a mess. The transitions between storylines are nonexistent. The constant switching of artists is annoying and, in the case of Phillip Tan, down right horrid. I was have the hardest time telling people apart during his tenure. My hopes of this book picking up with a new team did not happen. Juggernaut (the most interesting thing happening in this book) isn't really on this team, nor is Northstar really. Got rid of Stacey-X (thank Jebus), but this never really feels like a team. This feels like whoever happens to be awake goes on this mission. Oh, Alpha Flight are apparently bags of douche, becuase Canada?

Comics: 66

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 189 (1115)

[Dread]

Borgia 3: The Flames of the Pyre: I could have sworn there were only three Borgian graphic novels. The way this ended has me thinking there's another. This is the most profane and taboo one yet. The opening of this begins with a 13 page orgy that ends with the masked main character fucking another chick in a mask. Then they find out they're father and daughter, and they're okay with it. Still, amazingly well written and Manara still draws the hottest women in the art world. Just google image "Milo Manara" for proof. NSFW

Love Bunny & Mr. Hell: an IMage oneshot that I couldn't wait to end.

Rock & Roll: another Image oneshot that ended far more abruptly than it should have.

Shadow Man #1 (vol 2?): After the initial run of Valiant Comics clearly ran its course, Acclaim (the video game company) bought the properties as fodder for video games. The only two video games that I think came form this were X-O Manowar and, if I'm not mistaken, an Iron Man/X-O Manowar crossover game. I guess they held the rights to both Valiant and Marvel at the same time? Anyway, there are some interesting pairings to come out of the reboot of the comics at the time, including Shadow Man by Garth Ennis and Ashley Wood. And it's fucking awful. You're welcome. Next up, Peyer/McKone on Magnus Robot Fighter.

Comics: 1137

Graphic Novels: 22

Trades: 46

Omnibus: 15

[Professor]

Uncanny X-Men #437-443 - Still never felt like a team book. I am sooooo glad to be done with Chuck Austen (until I go back and finish X-Men, argh). Art improved greatly tho, so that is good.

Comics: 73

Graphic Novels: 1

Trades: 189 (1115)

[dc20willsave]

Thankfully his run on X-men is only nine issues long. Doesn't change how crappy those nine issues are.

[elnino14]

Almost done with all the X-men stuff.

Carey's run on X-men Legacy: I finished this run up and if I were completely honest, I hardly remember it now. I know they came back to the open plotlines left over from Rise and Fall of the Shiar and that was fun to see those characters that were lost in space and it was suitably sci-fi fun but in the end, I doesn't quite feel like Carey's conclusion to his run. Was it fun, readable comics? Yeah! But was it memorable, outside of the exploration of Professor X in a few trades, not really. I say that Carey's run is good, but in terms of must read X-men runs only the 4 trade saga about Professor X are awesome enough to fill that virtue.

X-men: Schism - I liked this, it was suitably fun, climactic, and perfectly paced. I know Wolvie has had a problem with how Cyclops has handled some of the edgier part of the mutant race, and this felt slightly drastic in how overblown the whole situation became. In the end, when you think about what's happened with the school aspect and especially his treatment of X-23, it is kind of natural that this would happen.

X-men Kieron Gillen - I read about three trades of his run (Breaking Point, Fear Itself tie in, and the Kieron Gillen vol. 1) and it kind of feels like more of the same to be honest. Sure there's a "huge shake-up" with the creation of the Extinction team, but honestly I didn't really care for much of this. I like the characters here, I like the idea of the extinction team. But I'm getting a little world weary of all the super seriousness of it all. I'm kind of tired of X-men comics.

EXCEPT:

Wolverine and the X-men vol. 1 - This book is such a breath of fresh air. I'm not a huge fan of the art, but the story and the writing is so enjoyable, that I can't hate on it too much. Never thought I would enjoy reading about new mutant students so much but I do, and seeing a bunch of great X-men in new teaching roles, positions a lot of them haven't been in before is great. I wouldn't say this is great comics yet, but it's definitely fun comics. Something the X-men have been missing for quite a long while.

Also Secret Avengers: Fear Itself - Pretty boring to be honest. Maybe there was an issue that I sort of liked, but again it's mostly disappointing. I have Warren Ellis' 6 issue run (LOVE WARREN ELLIS) and then I'm done.

Fear Itself Main Book - Another sucky event unfortunately. A couple of bad send offs here too.

Swamp Thing vol. 1 and Animal Man vol. 1 - both were very good, but I don't think I'll be collecting this in trade as it goes along. I liked the Swamp Thing issues more. There feels like a larger game being played here in these runs, so I'll wait a while untill most of it's collected and then play catch up, or I collect in Hardcovers. Not sure yet.

Young Avengers vol. 1 and 2, Young Avengers presents - More fun stories. I read this a while ago and I liked it just as much. After reading so much overwrought drama from the Avengers again this felt like a breath of fresh air, a throwback to old-school mega plots but with Teens. Liked this one a lot. The fight Kang in the first arc and deal with a mini Kree Skrull war in the second, how awesome is this. Very Awesome. The Young Avengers Presents were 6 one shots looking at each member, and they're all pretty enjoyable as well and were a look at why these characters do what they do.

Started my run on Cosmic Marvel with Avengers Kree Skrull War - It's got too much prose and does feel dated but it's good stories as long as you space it out, because the wordy dialogue and description boxes will drive you nuts. Also reading Life and Death of Captain Marvel - it's been great thus far, better pacing, better dialogue and less of the overblown stuff (still there, but less) and the art on this thing is amazingly trippy. Really enjoying it. Will be at the Infinity Trilogy soon.

Up next: Life and Death of Captain Marvel, Rebirth of Thanos, Infinity Trilogy, Avengers: Children's Crusade, Avengers vs. X-men HC, Secret Avengers by Warren Ellis

[Dread]

Magnus, Robot Fighter (vol 3?) #1-8: Also part of the Acclaim reboot. This being written by Tom Peyer, I expected to be better than the Shadow Man reboot. The first six issues are drawn by Mike Mckone which is beautiful, though it's clear that the last few pages of 6 are drawn by somebody else entirely. Not sure what happened there. The concept is interesting in the way that Magnus is a villain. An outright shithead who happens to be manipulated by a robot worse than him. How does the story fare after the first six issues? Well, I read through 8, but the first half on 9 as well. And there's 18 issues in the run. That should tell you how quickly it dives into the shitter.

Comics: 1145

Graphic Novels: 22

Trades: 46

Omnibus: 15

[Molly]

Johnny Cash: I See a Darkness: I'd never heard of Reinhard Kleist, before this, but I'll be searching him out now. The story is basically the Joaquin Phoenix film, adding in Cash's suicide attempt, a bit of backstory about Folsom and an epilogue after June Carter Cash's death. The art, however, is AMAZING. It's just... wow. It's a amazing black and white, balancing realism with cartoon. The scenes where Kleist draws Cash's songs are incredible, too.

I'm obviously a huge Cash fan, so this appeals to me greatly, but it's worth a look for the art alone.