ArtisticallyChill

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

We did our pick up earlier this morning before Serena had to go to work in the afternoon. Lots of good stuff in today! Serena picked up the next volume of FABLES. I’m in the middle of Vol. 3 right now. I could really see this series taking off on the small screen, like on HBO or ShowTime. The stories are well written and already have a deep background with its fairy tale roots. Deadpool’s battle against the Thunderbolts continues with DEADPOOL # 9 and if you can’t get enough of the ‘merc with a mouth’, there’s CABLE # 13. Another BATTLE FOR THE COWL tie-in (yeah I’m a sucker). Oh and do I need to mention BUFFY? Make all the jokes you want about me, but BUFFY SEASON 8 is a damn good read every month! But the biggest title this week (for me) is THE FLASH: REBIRTH.

• ANGEL – BLOOD AND TRENCHES # 2
• BATMAN: BATTLE FOR THE COWL – MAN-BAT
• BUFFY SEASON 8 # 24
• CABLE # 13
• DEADPOOL # 9
• ECHO # 11
• FABLES VOL.5 TPB – THE MEAN SEASONS
• THE FLASH: REBIRTH #1 (OF 5)
• JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA # 25
• NEW AVENGERS: THE REUNION # 2
• TEEN TITANS # 69
• TEEN TITANS ANNUAL # 1
• TRINITY # 44
• X-MEN: FIRST CLASS FINALS # 3

PICK OF THE WEEK – THE FLASH: REBIRTH # 1

Written by Geoff Johns; Art and covers by Ethan Van Sciver
Through the decades, many heroes have taken the mantle of The Flash, but they all ride the lightning that crackles in the wake of the greatest hero the DC Universe has ever known, the man who sacrificed himself to save the Multiverse: Barry Allen!

Following the events of FINAL CRISIS, Barry has beaten death and returned to a fast-paced world that a man out of time wouldn’t recognize. Or is it a world that is only just now catching up? All the running he’s done before was just a warmup for the high-speed race that he and every other Flash must now run, because even though one speedster might have beaten death, another has just turned up dead! From Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver, the visionaries responsible for the blockbuster GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH and THE SINESTRO CORPS WAR, comes the start of an explosive and jaw-dropping epic that will reintroduce to the modern age the hero who single-handedly birthed the Silver Age of comics! DC history will be made, and the Flash legacy will be redefined!

~ LoneWolf

Last night, I picked up this weeks BATTLE FOR THE COWL tie-ins. Normally I wouldn’t but since BATTLE FOR THE COWL is a short arc, it wouldn’t hurt to get the ‘bigger picture’ with the tie-ins. Serena picked up volume 4 of FABLES. She says despite the art, the stories are very well written. She isn’t lying. She finished volume 4 in one sitting, last night. I’m a bit behind. I managed to finish reading volume 2 and tonight I hope to start volume 3 before I go to bed. The art isn’t terribly bad, but considering the subject matter, you’d think the art would be more epically drawn. The covers of the comics are awesome and like I said earlier, both Serena and I wish the interiors were done by the same artist as the covers, James Jean.

• BATMAN: BATTLE FOR THE COWL – COMMISSIONER GORDON
• CAPTAIN AMERICA # 48
• FABLES VOL. 4 TPB – MARCH OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS
• JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA # 31
• ORACLE: THE CURE # 1
• RUNAWAYS # 8
• THUNDERBOLTS # 130
• TRINITY # 43
• X-FORCE/CABLE: MESSIAH WAR PROLOGUE # 1
• X-INFERNUS # 4

PICK OF THE WEEK: THUNDERBOLTS # 130

The Story: “MAGNUM OPUS,” PART 2 OF 4 — CROSSOVER WITH DEADPOOL
Everyone’s favorite Merc with a Mouth has the Thunderbolts in his crosshairs – but don’t expect this murderer’s row of
butt-kickers to lay down! The nastiest fight of ’09 has begun, and you’ve got the front row seat for all the ultra violence that
Andy Diggle (DARK REIGN: HAWKEYE) and red-hot artist Bong Dazo can dish up!

Even though I hate it when my normal titles crossover with titles I normally don’t pick up, I’m rather pumped to see Deadpool take on The Thunderbolts. Who wouldn’t be pumped to see this brawl? C’mon IT’S DEADPOOL, the real one, NOT that crap you’ll see in the upcoming Wolverine movie, and definitely NOT Ryan Reynolds.

~ LoneWolf