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On to the reviews!

The Fade Out #1 –ISAAC (8/10 Lugos)

Ed Brubaker is the king of Noir. From Sleeper to Criminal, From Incognito to Fatale no one does it better. The Fade Out starts his latest Noir Epic set in Hollywood of the late 1940’s. It reminds me of movies like LA Confidential. Brubaker uses the first issue to set up his characters, and the central mystery of the series.:The murder of a Hollywood Starlet, and the only witness is a screenwriter who was blackout drunk, and doesn’t remember everything that happened at the party the previous night. I like the way Brubaker writes these characters, and the world they live in. Joining Brubaker on this book is his long time collaborator Sean Philips. Sean Philips is the perfect person to draw Brubaker’s dark LA streets. Looking at his pages makes me feel like I’m watching one of those Old 1940’s detective movies where the men smoked, and sometimes you had to hit a dame, and it was ok to call a woman a dame. It was a fine time to be alive, but I digress. I really liked this issue, and I’m Definitely on board for the ride. If you’re a fan of Brubaker, a fan of Noir, or just a fan of old Hollywood this is a book for you.

New Avengers # 23 – ISAAC (10/10 Lugos)

“All the Angels Have Fallen, and we Devils are all that remain.” Wow. This was a great book. This is the last issue of New Avengers before the Eight Month Skip, and Like I said Wow. The final Incursion is about to take place, and the world is about to end. This is how the members of the Illuminati spend their last hour on Earth. The best parts of this issue are the quiet moments. Each member of the Illuminati meets with the people who mean the most to them, and each of the scenes are very powerful. New Avengers has always been one of my favorite Avengers books, except for the brief couple of issues after Infinity, when it seemed to have lost it’s way, but it is back, and Hickman has never been better. Kev Walker is once again on art, and he delivers the emotions needed for these vignettes. In the end the world doesn’t end, but from the ashes of the illuminati’s failure comes the birth of a new Cabal, and that might be worse than the end of the world. I was already looking forward to Times Runs Out. Now I can’t wait.

Multiversity # 1 – SAM (4/10 Lugos) Carlos Rivera: Fuck you, Grant Morrison.

I can’t say I disagree with him. Grant Morrison has been more miss than hit with me for years now. He favors strange and unusual over straightforward stories. Multiversity was announced prior to the New 52. One of the worst parts of the New 52 is wondering what happened and what didn’t happen. This book takes characters

and ideas from Final Crisis (which I hated)… If any story should have been retconned out with the New 52, its Final Crisis. But, alas, I guess not.

Morrison introduces an all new threat to… Everything. The whole Multiverse. And heroes gather to stop it. In some ways, that idea (and ideas like Monitors and Harbinger) is reminiscent of the original Crisis. But the threat is ill formed, and the “heroes” gathered is one of the weakest assemblages I have ever seen. Captain Carrot? A couple of Marvel analogues? When you add that to the lack of any tension, or feeling that this book matters in any way, you get a mediocre book. Ivan Reis’ art is nice as always, but he’s wasted on this book. It’s not the worst book, and maybe it’ll turn around… But this was not a strong start. This book was announced as, what was supposed to be, a look at the various universes in the DCU. With so many rich universes to pull from, I wonder why the characters in it were chosen. And then I remember. It’s Morrison. Why would he want to use interesting characters when he can use a giant cartoon super hero rabbit? Fuck you, Grant Morrison.

Batman & Robin #34 – SAM (9/10 Lugos)

Tomasi! So good. So underutilized at DC. Robin Rises has been fantastic since it started, and it doesn’t stop being awesome here. Batman continues his quest to rescue/bring back his son from Darkseid and Death itself. That and the interaction with the Justice League alone would have been enough… But there is also the greatest Bat family moment since Death of the Family tore them apart. Such a good scene. As good as Snyder’s Batman is, Tomasi is giving him a run for his money. This is the best Bat book out there right now.

Storm #2 -NADIA (6/10 Lugos)

THIEF. GODDESS. HEADMISTRESS. QUEEN. HER DESIRE TO BETTER THE WORLD HAS NEVER BEEN LIMITED TO ONLY HER KIND.

The first issue of Storm was unremarkably good, so good that I was worried about where the story can go from there. Fortunately, Pak has great plans for Storm up his sleeve. In issue #2, Storm aims to become more. She feels the need to do better things, and help more people. She finds a poster with a picture of a missing child, and decides to make finding this little girl her main priority. She ventures down to the sewers in search of this innocent girl. I enjoyed this issue so much. It reminds me of Silhouette in Before Watchmen: Minutemen, when she went on her own to find missing children. It sent chills down my spine and I hoped to dear God that there was going to be a happy ending.

I enjoyed this issue. Storm becoming a local hero is a great idea, but I still find myself wondering where the story can go from here. Will each issue continue to be different? Or will there be a main storyline focusing on a bigger enemy? The only thing I didn’t like in this issue was Hank McCoy (Beast). He seems to be the first one to judge other people’s decisions. He didn’t play a major part in this issue so it

wasn’t much of a bother. I also surprisingly found Storm’s intimate relationship with Wolverine quite steamy. I was unsure on how to feel about them being in a relationship but Pak made it seem somewhat natural. Ibanez’s art is very appealing and Storm looks beautiful. I have to give this issue 6 out of 10 Lugos. It was satisfying but not better than issue #1.

Ms. Marvel 7 –NADIA (10/10 Lugos)

In the last issue of Ms Marvel we see Kamala team up with who better than Wolverine!!!

G. Willow Wilson does such a fantastic job (yet again) with the plot. You become so focused on what is going on right at that moment, and you enjoy it so much that you forget that Kamala and Wolverine are trying to get somewhere. I could watch a sitcom of these two trying to save the day. In this issue we see them take on the cockatoo…cockatiel? (I like to refer to him as BAD BIRD MAN) I love that they chose Wolverine out of all the superheroes. He’s serious and she’s just young and funny. Their personalities clash to bring you pure joy and comedic relief from everything else going on in the world of Inhumans. Oh, speaking of Inhumans, don’t forget that there are bigger plans for Kamala Khan! I cannot say much more without spoiling this book for you. For anyone who STILL has not given this series a try, don’t misjudge the character. I give so much credit to G. Willow Wilson for making this book so enjoyable for all ages, and both boys and girls. I give this book 10 out of 10 Lugos.

All New Ghost Rider #6 – JARRYD (6/10 Lugos)

Robbie Reyes continues his mission to provide a better life for himself and his handi-capable little brother. This of course is not the premise you’d expect to hear for a story about a demonically possessed drag racer, but what makes All New Ghost Rider so relatable is that at it’s core it is a personal journey about a young man who strives only to be a hero to his little brother. That resonates with me and immediately makes Robbie incredibly likable. After last issue Robbie has rooted out the gang bangers and Dr Hyde’s forces from his neighborhood, and in doing so has made himself a public hero. Even with more public support than Spider-man ever received and more power than your run of the mill vigilante, Robbie is unswayed by the mysterious spirit Eli, he forgoes vigilantism and heroics to use his abilities to earn extra money for his younger brother while maintaining his commitment to his neighborhood and furthering his studies. It’s a touching Good Will Hunting meets the Fast and the Furious kind of issue with Robbie playing the roles of Matt Damon and Vin Diesel respectively. It that also foreshadows two big showdowns boiling underneath the surface one coming from an already pissed of villain, and a curious spirit of Vengeance. If there is one complaint I have for this book, it is over the departure of series artist Tradd Moore, his energetic and manga inspired style made this comic feel unique. His replacement Damion Scott tries to do his best

impersonation of Moore’s work but ends up looking like a cheap knockoff. It’s one of those cases that it probably would have been better to go with a new visual style rather than try to implant a sub par doppelgänger. And for those waiting for Moore’s departure to jump aboard, I’m afraid this isn’t going to offer much of a different look. All in all ANGR is still a fantastic story, watching Robbie Reyes mature as a man and a hero is an intimate and entertaining adventure. I just wish the new art was half as impressive.

Red Hood & the Outlaws #34 –JARRYD (0/10 Lugos)

My bad I scooped on red hood. It was just bad. FLASHBACK REVIEW BY LUGO

Superman Last Son of Krypton (9/10 Lugos)

I love this Trade. It has everything I love about Supes. Written by Geoff Johns I knew it was going to be awesome. It has two stories, the first one is about a pod that crash lands in Metropolis carrying a Kryptonian child. The government tries to take him to study him but Superman don’t play that shit, son! He watches over the boy and even plans on raising him as his own but then the real parents show up and that’s when the party starts. The second is featuring Supergirl and it’s about Brainiac. Brainiac discovers that the race of Krypton is not as extinct as he thought and decides to make a lil trip to earth. Superman tries to stop him but shit gets real, real quick! With art by Adam Kubert and Gary Frank this TPB is a must have for any Superman fan.