Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Lazy Bullet-Point Catch-Up

Well, there were about a billion announcements last week, none of which I was really able to talk about here, because I was stuck in 1995.

So, how about a marathon of uninformed, ill-considered snarkiness?

  • Wolverine: The Best There Is...seriously? That's the actual title for the series? It sounds more like a razor jingle...isn't Marvel at least remotely embarrassed to release a comic with that title?
  • Let's see, Action Comics, and now Squire & Knight...you know, Marvel, all you had to do was find a way to not cancel Captain Britain and MI-13, and maybe you could have kept Paul Cornell around, creating cool things for you instead of them...
  • You know, when I saw this placeholder cover...

...the very first thought to pop into my head was, "Maybe on that road home, he'll pass Superman going the other way, and kick Clark's ass for being such a dingus." We can only hope.

  • Batman: The Dark Knight, the new ongoing by David Finch, puts Batman "into a world of demonology, dark arts, and mystery. He's the ultimate detective, faster, stronger and smarter than any villain, but now he faces creatures to whom logic and mortality don't apply."
Color me skeptical, albeit open-minded. Yes, it's good to take Batman out of his comfort zone once in awhile...but isn't that what the last three years have been already? And I don't think Batman mixes well with mystical, except in very small doses (Your mileage may vary). So if that's really the long-term premise of the book, as opposed to just an arc...well, we'll see. I'll give it a chance.

  • Wait a minute--Jonathan Hickman writing an Ultimate Comics Thor? You mean I'm actually going to have to read an Ultimate book?? Damn you Marvel--damn you to hell!! (Note: this title hasn't been confirmed by Marvel yet, so it could be just a rumor).
  • I'm thrilled that DC is finally getting around to doing the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents (what took so long?? You announced this a full year ago!!). And I actually think the concept makes a better fit for the DC Universe than Red Circle or Milestone--it's basically The Order done 1960s meets Checkmate, so it's got a healthy vibe ( but since the premise is heroes no one in the DC Universe knows, facing "global threats the rest of the DCU don’t even know exist," you wonder why it has to be in the DC Universe...).
However, along with the lengthy delay, the fact that DC has assigned back-benchers to the creative team leaves me fearful. Nothing against Nick Spenser and CAFU--but they're not exactly household names, and the renown of the creative team is usually a sign of DC's commitment to a project these day. Just watch--the first DC guest-stars will be Magog and and members of the Global Guardians--the will prove the strip is doomed.

Meanwhile, here's a helpful (OK, not too helpful) primer of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.

  • Satan Girl?? Yessss......

Thank you Dynamite!!!

3 comments:

Mark Engblom said...

Lazy bullet-point response:

• I would have preferred "SNIKT" as a new Wolverine series title.

• I laugh (inwardly...occasionally outwardly) every time I see those silly blanked-out Bruce Wayne covers. What could they possibly be hiding from the reader....that Bruce Wayne returns? That he's now blonde or sporting a handlebar mustache?

• Loved the cartoon parody of JMSuperman (though the swearing was completely unnecessary to deliver the gag). I did a little Googling yesterday, and it appears as if the Super-Walk is almost universally despised. Not merely "disliked", but "despised". It'll be really interesting to see if DC gives it a whole year...which I'm not sure I'd put money on at this point. Word of mouth will surely kill whatever sales boost they received...and THEN some!

• As much as I like Hickman's stuff on Fantastic Four (despite concerns that the scale of the story is getting a little unwieldy), I just can't bring myself to pick up an Ultimates title....even if it IS Thor!

• Thunder Agents: Meh. With Checkmate, Suicide Squad, and now the Freedom Fighters covering pretty much the same "so secret we're going to have to kill you" territory, I have zero interest in this already marginal bit of comics history....even less that it's being shoehorned into the crowded, Ellis Island in 1902-like DC Universe. I supposed since the Golden Child (a.k.a. Grant Morrison) is working on his grand Multiversial master theory, any alternate realities are strickly verboten...but still....I'll give 'em 13 issues before DC pulls the plug (one more than Magog).

Kelly Sedinger said...

I assume "The Best There Is" refers to Wolvie's catchphrase, "I'm the best there is at what I do, but what I do best isn't very nice." But aside from comic book geeks, who's going to know that?!

Siskoid said...

Did it better? Shorter certainly, but JMS deserves long form bashing on this one.