ArtisticallyChill

Decided to spend a little more money today in order to pick up the other comics (mostly Marvel titles) that I had on hold from the past two previous weeks. The sooner I pick them up, the faster I can finish them and remove them from my pull list. I’ve lost interest in the X-titles and the Wolverine comics so there’s no point in picking them up regardless of how much Marvel hypes up the next big mutant storyline, SECOND COMING. Plus all the new DC titles I’m currently picking up have been increasing in appeal. From the story to the artwork, titles like POWER GIRL, BATMAN AND ROBIN, and BATGIRL are leaving a pretty good impression on me and each comic becomes more memorable than the X-titles these past several months.

This week we have:
• ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND
• BATGIRL # 7
• BATMAN AND ROBIN # 8
• CABLE # 23
• THE COMPLETE ALICE IN WONDERLAND # 2
• NEW MUTANTS # 10
• UNWRITTEN # 10
• WOLVERINE: ORIGINS # 44
• WOLVERINE: WEAPON X # 9
• X-FACTOR # 201
• X-FORCE # 23
• X-MEN LEGACY # 232

PICK OF THE WEEK: BATMAN AND ROBIN # 8

Written by Grant Morrison; Art and Variant covers by Cameron Stewart; Covers by Frank Quitely

BATMAN AND ROBIN double-ships in February with part 2 and 3 of “Blackest Knight” guest-starring Batwoman, Knight and Squire! Only months into his new role as Batman, Dick Grayson faces perhaps the biggest threat of his life. In hopes of attaining his heart’s desire, has Dick instead unleashed a terror the likes of which the world has never seen?

Meanwhile, back in Gotham City, Alfred and a recuperating Robin are at the mercy of someone both fearsome and familiar…

SERENA’S PICK OF THE WEEK: ALICE’S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND (hardcover novel)

Lewis Carrol (writer), Jenny Frison (artist), Jill Thompson (cover)
A new twist on Lewis Carroll’s classic tale of the wildly weird, this prose collection combines both Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Featuring chapter illustrations by Jenny Frison (Angel) and cover by Eisner Award-winning artist Jill Thompson.

Happy Reading!

~ LoneWolf

We actually got to see Keith today. He stopped into his store for a short visit and say thanks to all those present who wished him a speedy recovery. He’s not back to working full time until he gets approval from both the doctor and his wife. Today was a huge pick up with DC Comics standing out with BATMAN AND ROBIN, DETECTIVE COMICS, and GOTHAM CITY SIRENS. Both BATMAN AND ROBIN and GOTHAM CITY SIRENS have been great reads since issue one and have earned themselves spots on my pull list. I’m also excited that BLACKEST NIGHT hasn’t disappointed me and is going strong this week with the TITANS tie-in and GREEN LANTERN # 45.

On the chopping block: WOLVERINE. Currently, it’s DARK WOLVERINE, since it’s a part of the whole DARK REIGN mega-arc. And since it is DARK WOLVERINE, the comic, since issue # 75, has been focused on DAKEN, Wolverine’s estranged son.

Why is it on the chopping block? Well because Marvel doesn’t know what the hell they are doing with the flagship title of one of my favorite Marvel characters.

• Exhibit A: OLD MAN LOGAN should have came out regularly and ended already. Instead, the story gets cut off before it finishes and launches a 2-in-1 two issue mini-series because of the crappy live action movie and to give the creative team more time since they were well behind already. OLD MAN LOGAN could very well have been it’s own series, therefore eliminating the need to break the issue regularity of the actual WOLVERINE comic. Instead we have this odd break in the story that isn’t gonna even end in a WOLVERINE issue. The end of OLD MAN LOGAN will be a stand alone issue. Now tell me, does that make any sense?
• Exhibit B: DARK WOLVERINE should have been it’s own mini-series too. Ever since SECRET INVASION ended (poorly) I didn’t really care about DARK REIGN. I care even less about DAKEN, that character is such a TOOL. I don’t know why I even picked this series in the first place. Oh, it’s because OLD MAN LOGAN should have ended in the big 75th issue of WOLVERINE, but instead I get this crap.

I think after UTOPIA is over, I’ll take a look at what little Marvel titles I have left and see which ones aren’t worth picking up anymore.

This week we’ve got:

• BATMAN AND ROBIN # 3
• BLACKEST NIGHT: TITANS # 1
• DARK AVENGERS # 8
• DARK WOLVERINE # 77
• DEADPOOL # 14
• DETECTIVE COMICS # 856
• THE FLASH: REBIRTH # 4
• GOTHAM CITY SIRENS # 3
• GREEN LANTERN # 45
• HALO: HELLJUMPER # 2
• JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA # 30
• NEW MUTANTS # 4
• RUNAWAYS # 13
• TEEN TITANS # 74
• WEDNESDAY COMICS # 8
• WOLVERINE: ORIGINS # 39
• X-FORCE # 18

PICK OF THE WEEK: BATMAN AND ROBIN # 3

Written by Grant Morrison; Art and cover by Frank Quitely; Variant cover by Tony Daniel
“Batman Reborn” concludes the explosive reteaming of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (ALL-STAR SUPERMAN, WE3, New X-Men)! Witness Batman and Robin’s final showdown against Professor Pyg and the Circus of Strange! The future looks bright for the new Dynamic Duo as they prove themselves in battle, but lurking in the shadows is a mysterious red-hooded vigilante. Also, the origin of Scarlet!

~ LoneWolf

We made it into the comic book store right before it closed. But since Keith is such a good guy, he stayed open a little longer than usual. Normally it’s game night, but no one showed up so he was gonna close earlier than usual. When we showed up, followed by Mickey, a regular and friend of Keith and now our friend, we hung out, talked about how being paid salary sucked, brainstormed a few designs for Serena’s artwork signature, and discussed the insanity of Michael Bay. In this week’s pull, I decided that Captain America: Reborn wasn’t worth the pick up since I wasn’t sold on the story when I read the teaser in Captain America # 600. I also passed on Deadpool: Merc With A Mouth. I think Deadpool is approaching comic bloated-ness with mini-series and one-shots, much like Wolverine. These types of publications are just to waste more of your hard earned money. Money that could be spent on better comic books, like BATMAN AND ROBIN.

• ANGEL: AFTER THE FALL # 23
• BATMAN AND ROBIN # 2
• BATMAN CONFIDENTIAL # 31
• BUFFY SEASON 8 # 26
• CABLE # 16
• FABLES: 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL (HC)
• GREEN LANTERN CORPS # 38
• SOULFIRE # 10
• UNCANNY X-MEN # 513

MY PICK OF THE WEEK: BATMAN AND ROBIN # 2

Written by Grant Morrison; Art and Cover by Frank Quitely; Variant Cover by Andy Kubert
“Batman Reborn” continues with the reteaming of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (ALL-STAR SUPERMAN, WE3, New X-Men)! In a blazing Gotham City police department, the new Batman and Robin face the bizarre, fighting freakshow that is the Circus of Strange and find that they don’t make as good a team as Batman had hoped! Meanwhile, the mysterious Sasha escapes from Professor Pyg and vows vengeance on the people who killed her father.

Despite the inevitability of Bruce Wayne’s return, and the predictability of BATTLE FOR THE COWL, the new Terrific Trio (I’m including Alfred in with the Dynamic Duo) is working out all too well. But would you expect any less from Morrison and Quitely? You’ll read this issue quick and want to read it again, taking in every panel and text bubble. Alfred’s role has grown even more as he plays both a therapist and a referee to Dick and Damien because of their unique, clashing personalities.

As interesting as a Jason Todd/Damien Wayne Dynamic Duo would be (think about it), Morrison and Quitely’s storytelling will surely make this Batman And Robin series memorable.

SERENA’S HARDCOVER PICK OF THE WEEK: FABLES: 1001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL

Written by Bill Willingham ; Art by Charles Vess, Brian Bolland, John Bolton, Michael Wm. Kaluta, James Jean, Tara McPherson, Derek Kirk Kim, Esao Andrews, Mark Buckingham, Mark Wheatley and Jill Thompson; Cover by James Jean
Don’t miss this stunning original hardcover collection written by FABLES creator Bill Willingham set in the early days of Fabletown, long before the FABLES series began! Featuring sequences illustrated by Charles Vess, Brian Bolland, John Bolton, Michael Wm. Kaluta, James Jean, Mark Buckingham, Jill Thompson and more, 1,001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL is both an entry point to the critically acclaimed series and an essential part of Willingham’s enchanting and imaginative FABLES mythos.

Traveling in Arabia as an Ambassador from the exiled FABLES community, Snow White is captured by the local sultan who wants to marry her (and then kill her). But the clever Snow attempts to charm the sultan instead by playing Scheherazade, telling him fantastic stories for a total of 1,001 nights. Running the gamut from horror to dark intrigue to mercurial coming-of-age, FABLES:1,001 NIGHTS OF SNOWFALL reveals the secret histories of familiar FABLES characters through a series of compelling and visually illustrative tales.

SERENA’S PICK OF THE WEEK: SOULFIRE # 10

Story and art by Michael Turner, script by J.T. Krul, colors by Peter Steigerwald.

The finale issue of Soulfire has arrived just in time for Soulfire month! As the magic returns and worlds collide, our heroes fight for their very lives in the showdown of the century! Some will live and some will die, but one thing we know for sure, the world of Soulfire will never be the same again! Experience all of the climatic thrills in this special oversized issue! Plus, don’t miss the first ever glimpse of the new Soulfire Volume 2 by Francisco Herrera! It’s a Soulfire unlike any you’ve ever seen before.

~ LoneWolf