Nov 022008
Superman #681: Part two of “New Krypton” sees Lex Luthor’s worst nightmare come true – Earth inhabited by out-of-control aliens. Not that the Kryptonians are wreaking havok everywhere they go (the dead blue whale aside), but with an overly defensive and smarmy-looking Thara Ak-Var and an alien-killing super-being thrown into the mix, it’s only a matter of time before cities start to fall. I hope. Obviously, the 100,000 Kryptonians are going to stay around Earth because they would nullify the need for any other superhero title again ever. However, the method and motive of their departure are still to be told. The best scene of the entire issue is between Martha Kent and the one member of the Superman Family who knows where he’s needed the most. Good boy! A
Madame Xanadu #5: If I had one criticism of this book, it would be that the centuries are slipping by way too fast. Matt Wagner doesn’t have to hit all the major events from 1000 A.D. to the present, but maybe a brief layover in the Renaissance would have been nice. A visit with Nostradamus perhaps. The “discovery” of America and subsequent slaughter of the American Indians would have topped my list of events for Miss X to run to. This is not to say that the French Revolution isn’t high on drama and intrigue; it is. I’m just saying there could have been a few more stops between there and here. B
1985 #6: I read this in the store because I had to see how it ended, and… really? “Everybody go home!”? That was the only logical conclusion to this story Mark Millar could come up with? It was so sad I wanted to pat it on the head and help it find it’s mommy because it was obviously lost. Alas, poor highly-anticipated mini-series, we hardly knew ye. F
Thor #11: When Captain America died last year, I found myself not caring too much. Not because I didn’t like Cap, but because his death was the latest in a series of ploys to shock and awe Marvel readers. And in the final analysis, it didn’t seem that anyone in the Marvel U cared. At all. Until this month. Don and Thor’s goodbyes to Captain America seem to be JMS’s none-to-veiled commentary on the state of American politics – where the speculation of what a hero would do overshadows the good s/he accomplished. When “who would Captain America vote for?” (terribly paralleling the “Jesus wants you to vote for McCain” screeds of late) is the best memorial people can create, it’s heartening to see that at least Thor remembers how to honor a friend and hero. A+
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