Pretty pictures

Comic reviews are going to have to wait until tomorrow. Until then, enjoy two new WIFL-exclusive pictures, drawn by our good friend Jason Flowers.

First up comes an epic battle that, well, just needed to be done. That's right, I'm talkin' Patrick Swayze VS. Bigfoot.

And, secondly, a picture that no human being would ever draw of their own free will. Lucky for us, I paid him, so he kinda had to. Allow me to present Deadpool and Bea Arthur.

Isn't that just the sweetest couple you've ever seen? Thanks, Jason!

The biggest news in comics history

Chris Sims' Invincible Super-Blog reports:

In addition to the new Nick Fury ongoing by Brian Bendis and The Nightly News’s Jonathan Hickman, the events of Secret Invasion will also lead to the dramatic return of U.S. 1 by Dan Slott and Juan Bobillo, as well as an all-new ROM: Spaceknight series from Christos Gage and Leonard Kirk!

Ok, so maybe this is a brazen lie on his part. But I choose to remain blissfully ignorant and wholeheartedly believe that there will in fact be a new U.S. 1 book. I suggest you do the same.

New Comic Day - 07/23/2008

No time for introductory text, Doctor Jones! Let's review some gad damn funny books!


AMBUSH BUG: YEAR NONE #1 (OF 6)
Egg Fu is in this fucking book. Buy it. Buy it hard.







AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE # 15
If you were to tell me yesterday that I would really enjoy read a copy of a series I've been considering dropping for the past five issues, I'd have been skeptical. If you told me that that issue was a Secret Invasion tie-in and that it had one of those god-awful "everyone has a skrull face" covers, I'd have laughed at you, and probably called you several funny, yet insulting, names (for example, Moron-Face). But, well, this issue was fucking good. Not only was it very actiony and good, but it offers a great backstory to a character I've never really cared about in the series. So, thanks for the tip, Moron-Face.

THE JOKER'S ASYLUM: SCARECROW
I've given this book some flak on having bad art in the past, but this issue (much like last week's) is a good change of pace from the dark and scratchy look of the first one. I've made it no secret in my weekly reviews that I'm a big fan of realism in my comic art. This book is definitely the opposite of that, but (for lack of a more descriptive word) it's very cute and fun. You'd think that wouldn't really work with the kind of story going on here, but it almost makes it even creepier.



MARVEL ADVENTURES SUPER HEROES # 1
And, once again, I find myself reviewing a Marvel Adventures book. This issue (obviously) marks the start of a new series under the banner. One which is quite possibly the best Adventures book out there. This issue stars Iron Man, Spider-Man, and The Hulk. Oh, and did I mention that the whole book is about them dog-sitting for Hercules? Oh, and did I mention that the dog in question is mother fucking Cerberus, the guardian of Hades? You might want to go ahead and pick your jaw up off of the floor, you're getting fanboy drool everywhere.

NEW AVENGERS # 43
Dear Mister Bendis,

"I so badly want to go home" is the most unnatural-sounding dialog I have ever seen written for Spider-Man. Ever.

Hugs and Kisses,
Ryan

WAR HEROES #1 (OF 6)
As usual, Millar does a wonderful job of setting up the backstory for this series quickly, while somehow including enough information to where you almost feel like you've already read 3 issues of the series. And, other than a few little things here and there, I think Tony Harris does beautiful art, especially for a war book. All in all, it manages to be both a good war story and a good super-powers story all at the same time.




So, there you have it. A good week for comics, with several really awesome new series debuted. See you next time, Moron-Face!

So, I saw The Dark Knight...

Ok, so, like everyone else, I saw The Dark Knight. It was by far the best film I've seen so far this year, and I think every actor gave a really top-knotch performance. But I'm not here to post some long review about it. Because really, if you've seen it, you know. And if you haven't seen it by now, you probably don't give a fuck. What I am here to do is ask a question.

Am I the only one who noticed that Batman had a lisp for the last fourth of the movie?

New Comic Day - 07/06/2008

New comic day is upon us once again, and with is comes the weekly reviews. Surprisingly enough almost all my comics were really freaking good this week. I don't really have a complaint about any of them. So, you know what that means? It means these reviews probably won't be very entertaining. But you'd better read them anyways, or else your precious wife and kids might have a little accident. INCREDIBLE HERCULES # 119
I’ve heard good things about this book, and have picked up an issue here and there, but I’ve never really followed this series too closely. My big turn off was that I often have a hard time relating to the mythology-themed heroes, particularly the language. But, on the suggestion of fellow blogger Rich, I decided to grab this issue and give the series another shot. The current storyline about the group of Gods invading the Skrull homeland is a really good tie-in with Secret Invasion and I can finally see the funny aspect of the book that people talk about so often. I’m going to have to grab the next few issues to see how the series holds up.

THE JOKER'S ASYLUM: POISON IVY
The art in this issue is fantastic. And really, when you’re drawing a hot chick who is clad in only a handful of leaves, you need good art. By the way, did I mention there’s a hot chick who is practically naked on every single page?

MARVEL 1985 # 3
MODOK and Fin Fang Foom all in one action packed issue? Yes, please! This book is just getting more and more crazy-good as it goes.

MARVEL ADVENTURES THE AVENGERS # 26
I don’t normally review my Marvel Adventures comics every week. Mostly because they are consistently good and I can’t really find much to say about them. But every now and then, the writers through you a real curveball of an issue (get it, because they’re playing baseball on the cover. And I made a curveball joke. Eh, you’ll get it later.) As the cover would lead you to believe, this comic features the Avengers playing baseball against Galactus and the Silver Surfer in an attempt to save a planet full of very rude aliens.

It is fucking awesome.

Atlanta Comic Con, a recap

A few days ago I was reading Athens Georgia's Premiere Indie Music and Comic Blog, and came across the tip about the Atlanta Comic Convention last sunday. I've never really been to a comic con, other than DragonCon, which doesn't really count, as I never really end up looking at comics while there. The reason I've avoided them is because I'm what you might call an easy mark. Tell me a comic has a 9.4 grading and I'll stare at you blankly. Tell me that it's got a caveman fighting a Nazi and I'll pay whatever price you ask. In fact, I spent $10 on just such a comic. My point is that I'm not a real collector, I pick my comics based on how much fun I think they'll be. In other words, I buy shitty old comic books.

But, I figured with admission being only $3, I couldn't really get myself in too much financial ruin. Also, I took this as an opportunity to finally get my hands on a copy of Punisher meets Archie, which has eluded my grasp ever since the first time I heard about it. Well, as our president once said, Mission Accomplished! Amongst other many other things, I finally got my hands on an issue. And, since I know you're wondering, it is the greatest thing ever written. Let's see what else I bought.

Action Comics #289 - Superman's Super-Courtship
Action Comics #317 - The Rainbow Faces of Superman
Action Comics #418 - Who can beat Superman? More Supermen!
Action Comics #420
Action Comics #422
Action Comics #428
Action Comics #430 - Bus-Ride to Nowhere!
Action Comics #431
Action Comics #456 - Jaws of The Killer Shark
Action Comics #551
Action Comics #552
Fantastic Four #92
The Incredible Hulk #173
Lois Lane #76
Lois Lane #106
The Life of Pope John Paul II #1
Punisher Meets Archie #1
DC Special Presents: Super-Heroes Battle Super-Gorillas #16
Unknown Worlds #7
What If? #1
What If? #3
What If? #4
What If? #10
What If? #12
World's Finest #159

As you might imagine, they all look hilarious. But, the real highlight of the day was the opportunity to chat with Atlanta-based artist Jason Flowers.

Jason, along with Atlanta-based writer Jay Busbee, has a new graphic novel coming out soon called Ripped. Not to get into the deep plot points we talked about (mostly because I'm not sure if I'm allowed to or not), but the book is a time-tripping adventure to save history. From what we discussed about the book, it sounds like it's going to be a really fun read. Details on the release date are still up in the air, until the final touches are put on the book. But you had better believe I'll be grabbing a copy when it comes out and writing a review.

But, back on topic, this Jason guy is quite the nice dude who apparently draws one hell of a comic book. Oh, and also, he drew this...
Yeah, be on the look-out for more of those...

Dear Burger King

Did we really need a hamburger with Bacon, Friend onions, and a full serving of mashed potatoes on top?

Did we really?

New Comic Day - 07/09/2008

After an extra day's wait, it's finally new comic day! Unfortunately, it was a week with a lot of crap books. Let's take a look-see at what I purchased.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN # 565
My interest in this book has always been a bit sporadic. I’ll pick up an issue here or there if they start a new story arc that sounds interesting, but I generally never get more than one issue in at any given time. That said, this is a really good issue. I bought it because I heard there was some Spidey and Daredevil team-up action. That’s probably the best part of the book, but the story in general just really makes me want more. I’ll give this book a few more issues, if they stay this good.

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI: 13 # 3
This is, yet again, one of the consistently best books on the shelves. Honestly? This is the only Secret Invasion tie-in I’ve been following that I am really enjoying.







GREEN ARROW/BLACK CANARY #10
Another win for this book. I’ve heard some people complain that this series was running too slowly, and I think that this issue will be a pleasant change of pace for them. The whole book is pretty much one big fight scene, so you can’t really go wrong. Also, Plastic Man is there, so that’s a guaranteed fun book.






SECRET INVASION # 4


Sucks





ULTIMATE ORIGINS # 2
I didn’t pick up the first issue of this series. In fact, I’ve never read any of the Ultimate Universe books. But, well, this book had Captain America on it, so I figured it was worth a try. Surprisingly, it’s a pretty decent read. Bendis still hasn’t really impressed me with his work for Marvel, but this is far from his worst. I’ll probably give the next 3 issues a shot.




YOUNG X-MEN # 4
This series fucking blows. Aside from Rockslide and Dust, I couldn’t have less interest in this team of mutants. That said, the inspiration for Ink’s new tattoo is the funniest goddamned thing I’ve read all week. You’ve bought yourself one more issue, Guggenheim.

Dear Marvel

Dear Marvel,

Secret Invasion is getting boring. Please do something more interesting so I can keep throwing wads of money in your faces.

New Comic Day - 07/02/2008

It's new comic book day. Actually, it might be the Best New Comic Day Ever!?! Let's check the list!

AMERICAN DREAM # 5
Well, this is the last issue of the mini-series. I would say that I’m sad to see the character go, but after reading the last page, I’m not so sure that I’ll have to be. Looks like somebody at Marvel is picking up what I’m throwin’ down.

ASTONISHING X-MEN #25
I don’t care much for the art here, but Warren Ellis writes the best damn Emma Frost around. ‘Nuff Said.

BATMAN #678
Am I the only one who has absolutely no fucking clue what is going on? Opening this book, I feel like I’ve missed several issues since #677. That said, this book is getting just strange enough to make me want to keep buying it.

BLUE BEETLE #28
Yet another really entertaining issue from this creative team. I’ve noticed that a lot of my favorite comics these days are ones that are more accessible to younger readers. In my opinion, this is the best DC has to offer in that category. This book somehow finds a way to be action-packed and funny, with consistently great art, and still have interesting and clever twists and turns. Next issue will be Matt Sturges’ first issue as writer on the series. I’m not too familiar with his work, but I’m hoping that this book will continue to be fantastic after the change.

CABLE # 5
What can I say about this issue? Overall, I loved it. I think Swierczynski writes the best Cable ever, and (as always) Mr. Olivetti delivers the goods in the art department. The whole series has basically re-written the general attitude of Cable They’ve made the character much more enjoyable, and far less “90’s guy with a metal arm and big guns”. This issue, however, really redefines characters that have just been made within these first 5 issues. Seeing Cable’s new waitress friend in full battlesuit with guns blazing was classic to me.

What killed it for me was on the second page. We get a big close-up of the babies eyes. I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, so I won’t. Let’s just say it looks like I’m going to be really disappointed with the series sometime soon.

THE JOKER'S ASYLUM: THE JOKER
When I first opened this book, I thought the art was going to be the death of me. It’s really rough. When I say really rough, I mean it looks like Howard Chaykin’s Cat took a dump on Leinell Yu’s art. The art was scary bad. But as I read through it, it kind of grew on me. The art did a pretty good job of reflecting the jumbled mind of the Joker. I’m pretty excited to see next issue’s take on the Penguin

THE WAR THAT TIME FORGOT #3
I’m pretty sure I’ve said this once before, but I’ll say it again. If you love things that are too awesome to comprehend, buy this damn book. There are dinosaurs and guns and cowboys and dinosaurs and explosions. It’s pretty bitchin.