This is the cover to Marvels: Eye of the Camera #5. I'm not even reading this book, but I LOVE this cover. I'll have to check out the trade to see if these X-Men appear in it.

This image captures the X-Men as they were when I first started reading comics. These are "My X-Men". I know that it's not a very classic line-up, but it's still my favorite. Hope you enjoy.

Handpicked Comics for 4/15/09

I've decided to try something different this week. Instead of picking one book and talking about it, I'm going to rank the books that I purchased and give you my thoughts about each one.


#1 X-Factor #42 This was my favorite book this week. First off, I liked the art in this issue. Now, I would rather this book get Yardin or Sook back, but if that's not possible DiLandro will be a decent substitute. I did notice that there were 2 artists on this issue, the other one being Santucci. I looked through the issue, but I couldn't distinguish the pages done by a different artist. (I'm usually pretty good at that!)

As far as storyline, I'm loving Madrox, Layla, and Ruby in the future. I can't wait to see what happens there. Longshot's subplot moved along some and my favorite part of those sequences was the way that Peter David and the artists portrayed Longshot's power. I hope that he delves into Longshot's powers and how they work. That would be interesting.
Overall, this is the beginning of a future timeline storyline and I love those. I'm in!

#2 Uncanny X-Men #508 Despite what most people have to say about this book, I'm really enjoying it. I think that Fraction has a good handle on most of the characters. I also applaud him for using a wide-range of characters from Domino to Nightcrawler. They might not all technically be X-Men, but it makes sense that they would be in the periphery.
So, the Sisterhood...Spiral, Chimera, Deathstrike, Madelyne, & 2 Lady Masterminds. I like it. I'm going to be doing a little research into some of the members of this group, because I'm not familiar with all of them. If I come up with something interesting, I'll post it.




#3 Tiny Titans #15 This was one of the few issues of Tiny Titans that devote almost the entire issue to one storyline. I liked it. Usually, this book does several shorter (about 2-3 pages) storylines. This book is still my pick for a great comic starter book for kids.

Lost Thursdays

Some Like It Hoth

Um...so Miles. Yeah, you know Miles. He's that guy that just showed up last season who can "talk" to dead people. This episode gave us his backstory. What is that? You weren't chomping at the bit to find everything about him? You didn't want another character study, but you actually wanted to move the story forward.
Sorry, then this episode was not for you. I totally missed the connection between Miles and his dad. I watched this with my friend, Rachel, and she was able to predict this connect. (Of course!)
The highlight of this episode was the reveal of what Hurley was writing. Hilarious! Overall, I was underwhelmed. I'm looking forward to the upcoming 100th epidsode.
So, do you agree with me or not? Let me know.

FYI

Hello my throngs of fans! I just wanted to give you a heads up about the schedule for "Handpicked" this week. I won't post my "Handpicked Comic" for the week until Friday instead of the usual Wednesday. I'm traveling and won't get me books until then.
The good news is that I will be able to post "Lost Thursdays" as usual. I'm staying at a friends house that actually has cable, so I don't need to wait until it gets put online on Thursday. If you're lucky, you might even see a "Lost Thurdays" post on Wednesday. Let's just chalk it up to time travel, shall we?
Hey don't forget to vote on the poll!

My Comics Picks for 4/15/09

X-Men Legacy #223 - I don't know about this book. About every 2-3 months I think about dropping it. I'm just not sure if I know what purpose it is surving right now. I'm holding on now because this issues is part 4 of 5 of the current storyline, which has been solicited as the end of Xavier's part of Legacy. Now, I don't know who the comic will be about after Xavier's part is done. Maybe Rogue and Gambit? If that's all it is, I might be gone. Anyway, I'm reading it for now. Let's see if this book can draw me in.

Marvel Comics

By Mike Carey & Scot Eaton

X-Factor #42 - This book is good again. Peter David meandered a bit with this book a couple month ago, but now he's back on track. I'm glad that I didn't abandon this book. (Mmmm...maybe I should stick with X-Men Legacy). This issue we should get more Ruby Summers. Yay!

Marvel Comics

By Peter David & Valentine De Landro

Uncanny X-Men #508- The very controversial Greg Land returns to art duties with this issue. That doesn't matter to me, because I'm going to read it no matter who draws it. I'm very interested to see who is in the Sisterhood of Evil Mutants. I hope there are some members that I know and new members. I think that I see Lady Deathstrike on the cover, but I don't think that I know the rest. I'm also really interested by the new "Proposition X" storyline. Hopefully, this will turn out better than Prop. 8 did.

Marvel Comics

By Matt Fraction & Greg Land

Tiny Titans #15 - This will be a nice breath of fresh air in a very X heavy week. Seriously this comic makes me laugh. Remember when comics did that! Pick it up.

DC Comics

By Art Baltazar & Franco

Justice Society of America Vol. 4 Thy Kingdom Come Part 3 - I'm so glad that this is finally coming out. I don't know why it takes so long for DC to put out their hardcovers and trade paperbacks. I had originally intended to read this series in trade, but was so impatient that I ended up buying the hardcovers! (Wait, a minute...maybe that's why DC takes so long. Curses!) I love Power Girl, so I'm very excited to see how things turn out for her in the Earth-2 world she landed on. I can't wait to get my JSA fix...

DC Comics

By Geoff Johns, Alex Ross, Peter Tomasi, Dale Eaglesham, Fernando Pasarin and Nathan Massengill

Lost Thurdays

Dead is Dead

Ahh...the monster. I love the monster. I'll admit that the monster was cooler and scarier when it was first introduced, but I still love it. I don't even think that I want an explanation for it. It just is.

Ben wants judged by the monster. C'mon, how many of you believed that when he said that. Iknow I didn't. I figured he was up to something else and I greatly enjoyed Locke goading him into actually doing it. However, it seems that Ben actually did want to be judged by the monster. Hmmm...

The actual sequence during which Ben was judged was kind of cheesy. That's the sort of thing that you can pull of in a comic book, but doesn't translate so well to TV. I think that following Locke is Ben's punishment and it is a just one.

During the flashbacks, we got some gaps filled in. Danielle loses her baby to Ben. This is not a scene that I needed to see play out. I inferred what had happened already. I did get very tense when Ben went to kill Penelope.
I don't know what it is, but I love Desmond & Penelope. They got their happy ending and they deserve it after all they went through. I just want the island and everyone else to leave them alone. I'm glad that Desmond and Penelope made it out unscathed, but it makes me nervous that there's still another season after this one. You know something has got to happen to them.

Great episode. I just wish I knew what was going on with the new castaways. I think that I've at capacity with this show for the number of characters that I can care about and keep straight though. And what about the other people who were left behind. Bernard and...Rose? Am I right about that? Do you think we'll ever see any of them again?

Handpicked Comic for 4/8/09

Captain Britain and MI13 by Paul Cornell & Leonard Kirk

If you've been following my blog, you know that this week was a very light week for me. (I know of course the number of people following my blog right now numbers in the thousands, yeah right.) I originally only pulled two books, but alluded to the fact that I would probably try some other books and pick up some trades. I did in fact do this.

By the time I got home, I had purchased Exiles #1, War of Kings:Ascension #1, New Mutants Classic Vol. 4, and X-Men:First Class The Wonder Years in addition to my regular books, Secret Six and Capt. Brit & MI 13. I am very happy with all of my purchases. This made it very hard to narrow my tiny pile down to my Handpicked Comic (patent pending, patent pending, patent pending) of the week.

Finally, I chose Captain Britain and MI 13 #12. Ever since I jumped on this book, even paying extra for back issues, I have loved it. Initially drawing me in with X-related Capt. Britain & Pete Wisdom and then piquing my curiousity to learn about Spitfire, Blade, & Excalibur. And I've realized that's why I love this book.

It revolves around a lot of characters that I know very little or nothing AT ALL about!!

Now having read comics for...20 years?? maybe more, this doesn't happen. I usually have the opposite problem of getting pissed off when a current storyline contradicts something that happened 2 or 3 years ago.

This book usually leaves me feeling that I don't quite get everything that is going on and I love it. I'm surprised by plot turns and am intrigued by what will happen next. My current favorite characters are Spitfire and Blade. Blade?! you say? I know, but he's actually interesting when written by Cornell. Did you know Blade is British? Me either!! Eat you heart out Wesley Snipes!! And Spitfire? Who? I know! I've seen her briefly in Captain America, but I didn't know she was a vampire. That's cool.

I know that I kind of got off point by not reviewing this issue specifically, but the entire run of this book is great and you should be reading it.

Quick summary of current storyline: Dracula is invading Great Britain which he intends to run as a country of vampires! Love it.

Captain Britain and MI13 is your Handpicked Comic for April 8th!!

My Comic Picks for 4/8/09

Secret Six #8 - Confession time. When I started reading this, I thought it was a six issue limited series. I hadn't intended to start reading a new ongoing. This comic, however, has worked its way into my heart. This group of tough, dirty villains is extremely entertaining. I've grown to care about each of these characters. I love that Gail goes there with Ragdoll, who is my personal favorite. This issue is supposed to detail what Ragdoll dreams about. It's going to be gross!!
DC Comics
Gail Simone & Carlos Rodriguez (No, Nicola this issue? Aargh!!)



Captain Britain & MI 13 #12 - This is another comic that I tried very hard not to buy. My plan was to buy this in trade, iFanboy wouldn't stop. Ron, Conor, & Josh were constantly talking about it, so my curiosity won over. (If you're not listening to iFanboy's podcasts, you should be. http://www.ifanboy.com/) Again, just like Secret Six, I'm glad I did. I'm curious to see what Dracula will do next. C'mon, it's Dracula!!
Marvel Comics
Paul Cornell & Leonard Kirk




2 comics!! That's it! This is what happens when you try to switch over to reading the trades instead. I would love to pick up Green Lantern, but gotta wait for trade. Also, I'm waiting until trade for the whole Superman: World of Krypton thing. This light week will probably mean that I'll check out War of Kings Ascension #1. I was going to skip it, but I've been loving War of Kings. I'll probably also pick up a few trade that I've been wanting to catch up on like Spider-Man: Brand New Day or New Mutants Classic.

Well, check back here Wednesday to see what this week's Handpicked Comic will be!!

Wonder Woman 101

Here are the basic facts you need to be reading Wonder Woman right now. (And you SHOULD be reading WW right now!)
1. Wonder Woman has again taken on her secret identity of Diana Prince.









2. The Amazons had been scattered across the globe amnesiatic. This left Hippolyta, Diana's mother, alone of Themyscira (Paradise Island). The Amazons have since returned and it appears their memories are now intact.



3. Diana has been courting Tom Tresser aka Nemesis. So, Diana has a boyfriend who has been made an official Amazon by Hippolyta.







4. Wonder Woman as Diana Prince works for the Department of Metahuman Affairs. Nemesis, her partner, until recently didn't know Diana Prince was Wonder Woman. Etta Candy-Trevor also work at the DMA. Steven Trevor has recently become the head of this department.

5. Diana is currently battling a new villain called Genocide. The Secret Society created Genocide under the guidance of the Cheetah. We also find out that Dr. Psycho has switched bodies with Sarge Steel, Diana's boss at the DMA before Trevor.









6. The Greek Gods had disappeared. They have since returned. Zeus has decided that he will reward the Amazons' faith with death. (Gee, thanks a alot. Right?) So he has created a new race of all men called the Olympians. His champion, ala Wonder Woman, is a newly ressurected Achilles.

The Issues That Made Me Drop X-Men #2

#349 "Blackbirds" by Steve Seagle & Chris Bachalo

After #349, I didn't try Uncanny X-Men until issue #353. I know, I couldn't stay away very long. But before I tear into 353 let's look at the issues between that I skipped:

#350 - Covered in "Issues That Made Me Drop X-Men #1"

#351 - Focus on Cecelia Reyes. 'nuff said

#352 - The cover of this issue boasted the following: "The most artists ever on a comic!" Can you believe this was the selling point of this issue? I couldn't and I didn't.

So, #353 focuses on Rogue's "personal crisis". I'm not trying to hate on Rogue, but after almost 10 years of reading about her problems with her powers, you get a little tired of it. The team this issue wasn't a bad line-up.

Storm, Wolverine (These two are always a great start, IMHO)
Rogue, Iceman, Iceman,

Jubilee, Cannonball (I really liked the idea of these two "graduating" to the X-Men)

Maggot, Joseph

We also still have Psylocke and Angel doing the sub-plot thing. Bishop is also kidnapped by Deathbird.

Overall, this issue wasn't that bad. A lot better than #349. But Sauron was going to be the villain next issue.

Rogue drama
+ Maggot, Joseph

+Sauron next issue

_____________

Uncanny X-Men dropped again

Lost Thursdays

Whatever Happened, Happened

First off: Really?? Sayid, trained soldier, torturer, and hitman, didn't kill Ben? Don't buy it for a second.

I'm glad that Jack is now fully formed as an asshole. He always seemed a little "holier than thou", so now he's been brought down a notch. I don't know what it says about me, but I like Jack better as an asshole.

I was also glad that Sawyer decided to help Kate because Juliet wanted Ben saved. I've really grown to love Juliet and Sawyer as a couple and I don't want Kate to mess that up.

Kate's backstory was well needed. I think that the writers actually came up with a plausible reason for Kate to go back to the island. I'm curious as to what happened to Claire too.

Locke appearing at the end with Ben made me realize how much I've missed his presence on the past couple of episodes. Even though he's gotten a little wacky, I still enjoy him.

Overall, this was a solid Lost episode. So you've heard what I think, what you do think?

Handpicked Comic for 4/1/09: War of Kings #2

War of Kings #2 Abnett, Lanning & Pelletier

This was the first and best book that I read this week. Here's the set up. The Inhumans are now the Royal Family of the Kree, as they were always destined to be. The Shi'ar are ruled by Vulcan who would just as soon as kill you as look at you. So they're at war now to become the supreme power in the universe. (I think that's the simplest summary I could have given. Way to go me!)

Last issue, Vulcan launched an attack against the Kree by attacking during Crystal's wedding to Ronan. (Which will bond the Inhumans and the Kree together.) This issue focused on the Kree's response, which kicked ass!!

My favorite scene was Crystal calming the masses in the infirmiry. It's not very often that the Inhumans are depicted as the royalty that they are, so this was refreshing. This scene shows Crystal stepping into her role as Princess and taking it seriously. She's run from it for so long that it was nice change to see her accept it.

I laughed outloud to Medusa's response to Crystal being called "the People's Princess". Her haughty "Pah!" spoke volumes and referenced the argument between the sisters in "Inhumans: Secret Invasion" (Yay, continuity!)

I got a thrill out of the combination of Kree and Inhuman technology. The Kree Sentries combined with the echo-tech was brilliant. I'm glad that Maximus is being used for a different purpose other than battling Black Bolt. He's a mad genius!! Use his genius!!

The issue ends with Vulcan stating that he is going to kill Lilandra immediately. Honestly, he could and I'm starting to think he should. That would really shake things up. Then maybe Deathbird (after she heals) would finally see Vulcan for what he is and she would rule the Shi'ar. Or Gladiator will somehow step up and rule the Shi'ar. Do I think that Vulcan will really kill Lilandra? No. I think that Gladiator will snap and fight against Vulcan. But, we'll see...

Finally, you should be reading this book. If you like big, cosmic, political, war stories this is for you. And that's why War of Kings #2 is your Handpicked Comic for April 1st! No foolin'!