Board 8 > Scarlet and Ed's really cool comics topic

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Eddv's way late comic thoughts

Aquaman 31

Federici is god. The splash pages in this book. My GOD, the detail, the style. This is the best illustrated book anyone is putting out right now. The story here feels like its directly out of an epic fantasy. All of the things I love about Conan, He-Man and Red Sonja are on display here but ratcheted up. The mixing of all these differently intersecting intrigues and its just masterful work by Abnett plotting this out. Week in and week out this is the best title DC is putting out, much as it pains me to say that he's beating the pants off King....he is.

Dark Nights Metal 4

This is still just a little bit dense for my tastes and the Batman god complex stuff... I am SO over it. it is my sincere hope that this is the swan song for Snyder on Batman. That said, the lore stuff here is excellent and unpacking the idea of a dark universe and the...inconsistency of having villains like Black Adam and Vandal Savage. Still definitely on board. I love any story that Hawkman is central to though so hey. But lets stop recycling this same interpretation.

Hawkman Found #1

This was completely unhelpful. Beautiful art but its like they went to extraordinary lengths to avoid illustrating much of anything. Waste of 5 bucks.

Doomsday Clock #2

Well, just one page in and I already regret this purchase. The Watchmen pastiche....it really just isn't for me the sooner this moves on into...well a more Metal-ish epic encounter stuff. This is just....faux philosophical crap that belongs in its gravestone back in the 90s. The actual story did begin to be more...bearable. But this is a cast full of completely unlikable characters with the possible exception of the mime. Not being a fan of the Watchmen, the return of the Comedian means nothing to me. I already ordered two more of these so hopefully this picks up. The Geoff Johns name means a lot but that welcome is going to be worn out.

Nightwing #35

The start of a new era on this title. My first impression is that I am instantly not as much of a fan of this art. It feels really disjointed - a new voice for Dick after so much continuity for so long was really truly jarring. I take it The Judge is an old villain come home to roost? Either way after the Blockbuster/King Shark angle ANOTHER Casino-centered angle. Gym owner is a bad angle, but hopefully he does...something with it. The cast-offs and Defacer being written off with no trace is ok i GUESS, but to act like Dick has no contacts in Bludhaven feels really...marvel. The twist of Svoboda at the end was a pretty nice twist though, just enough to buy this thing a couple more issues to see what Humphries has planned. Really surprised you loved it so much david, what worked for you here, because a lot of it didnt for me.

Wonder Woman #37

Nothing gets me in a sour mood when I open up a Wonder Woman comic and seeing the word "Steve". But I won't let that ruin what is an otherwise amazing run Robinson is off to. This is a pretty great way to advance this Grail/Darkseid vs Wonder Woman angle and really raised the stakes and yet left room to reset. And in the end, Steve never appeared. Win/win! Sideways preview was very fun!

Batman #37

I groan every time I have to read the Super Couple, but King makes it work! The opening few panels were good clean fun. And then good sexy fun. Mann's art here is so detailed and reminds me a lot of the art on the old Batman/Superman series. But the dialogue here and the whole relationship. Sorry its still super forced and I still don't like Lois at all. It was cute but honestly, forgettable duology. Do better next time, King.
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Super Sons #11

Hey what do you know. Another Everyone hates Batman and Batman hates Everyone else story. Well Tim Drake as Batman. Same difference. Joy. I was enjoying this title a lot more when it was, you know, mainly about Damien and Jon. Instead, this is basically just a second Teen Titans and I don't even read the first Teen Titans. This one is probably getting relegated to the trash bin in the wake of all the new titles. I do have to admit the last few panels where we start getting into Teen Titanception I am admittedly pretty hooked.

Batwoman #10

And so ends the Bennett run on this title. I at no point gave much of a shit about anything she tried to accomplish with this story, though Blanco's art was phenomenal with this scarecrow duology. Pretty glad to be done with this title. My enthusiasm for this character has significantly waned. I miss when this character was about unraveling supernatural threats and doing things her own way with the military support.

Nightwing: The New Order #5 (of 6)

The penultimate issue, let's see what it has in store. Ironically, this story does feature a Batwoman I am more interested in! The melodrama built over the course of the story is REALLY coming to a head here! I really enjoy them finally placing Dick's actions into context and the way in which they built the remaining resistance with well...Dick's FINAL decision.

Spider-Gwen #27

Gwenom arc is in FULL swing. This move where Gwen is finally going full on vigilante mode. Her move against this corrupt cop, using her powers in base more unrestrained ways. It reminds me of a brand of superheroism we havent seen since Morrison's Action Comics run. The Frank Castle arc coming back around here - the looming spectre of Matt Murdock even now that she is off the chain, this is brilliant stuff. Especially the use of Uncle Ben as a moral conscience.

Incidentally, Scarlet have you seen any previews for New Challengers, Brimstone or The Unexpected?

Do you plan on picking any of these 8 titles up? A lot of them feel like theyre similar to titles youve proposed in the past.
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In terms of Nightwing, maybe it was just that I was ready for something new? I know it's not exactly a fresh start with this arc, as you said, (although the casino seems to be less of an important setting and more of a theme in the next issue), but it's different enough that it feels fresh to me.

You could probably tell that I was kind of cooling off on Seeley's run by the end. Seeley built a cast of characters in the Run-offs that I didn't particularly like, and so to see them continue to stick around (as they should) wasn't doing it for me. Maybe it's less excitement for the issue in particular and more for the prospect of new stuff?
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Eddv posted...

Doomsday Clock #2

Well, just one page in and I already regret this purchase. The Watchmen pastiche....it really just isn't for me the sooner this moves on into...well a more Metal-ish epic encounter stuff. This is just....faux philosophical crap that belongs in its gravestone back in the 90s. The actual story did begin to be more...bearable. But this is a cast full of completely unlikable characters with the possible exception of the mime. Not being a fan of the Watchmen, the return of the Comedian means nothing to me. I already ordered two more of these so hopefully this picks up. The Geoff Johns name means a lot but that welcome is going to be worn out.

I never really think of it as philosophical. For me, it's about an alternate reality, and that's totally a DC cornerstone, and one I love.

Eddv posted...

Do you plan on picking any of these 8 titles up? A lot of them feel like theyre similar to titles youve proposed in the past.

I got previews on all of them, and you want to pick up Immortal Men and The Terrifics for sure.
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davidponte posted...

In terms of Nightwing, maybe it was just that I was ready for something new? I know it's not exactly a fresh start with this arc, as you said, (although the casino seems to be less of an important setting and more of a theme in the next issue), but it's different enough that it feels fresh to me.

You could probably tell that I was kind of cooling off on Seeley's run by the end. Seeley built a cast of characters in the Run-offs that I didn't particularly like, and so to see them continue to stick around (as they should) wasn't doing it for me. Maybe it's less excitement for the issue in particular and more for the prospect of new stuff?

Yeah I mean I guess I can see that.

To me though, Nightwings great strength has been the level of continuity the character has had going back even to the original N52 Nightwing run and connecting into the old Morrison B&R. For the first time in QUITE some time he just feels like a different person. The gym angle in particular really bothers me. The entire point of dick was wanting to be himself and do some like regular amounts of good as Dick Grayson, human being. Running a small business to turn a tidy profit just seems like a step towards nothing for no gain. Just a waste of panels.

And looking back on the issue the whole "Woe is dick, my only friend is Svoboda" angle is meant to make that last panel sting more but that's a lot of sacrifice for a twist ending that has a really obvious explanation.

As for Doomsday Clock, I mean youre right and thats why I gave this thing a chance. But another issue focused on Ozy and Rohrshach talking is gonna be the end for me.
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I have decided to pull Sideways, Immortal Men, The Terrifics and New Challengers.

I have to admit being interested in Brimstone and Damage but I think ill leave them be.
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Here's something scary to think about. It's been 12 years since Superboy Prime wall-punched something.
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I miss Superboy Prime. Everyone hated him but you don't know what you got til it's gone. :\

And his last appearance was jobbing to the Teen Titans or some garbage. He really deserves better.
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I was a huge fan of Superboy Prime. Unapologetically so.
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I'm reading Avengers #675 right now (it comes out tomorrow) and I wanted to stop in this topic just to post that it's absolutely atrocious and not worth anybody's time
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We're already not the Marvel fan club in here so thats not surprising but what specifically makes it so bad
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Sorry I was at work when I typed that comment, I was furious reading it

It reads like it's a #1 for an event book, not an issue #675. Treats every character like you're meeting them for the first time. Clearly meant for a trade, which I guess is fine, but it makes the dialogue really stilted and unnatural.

It starts with Living Lightning monologuing to himself, but at the same time he's speaking the exact same exposition out loud, so it's really redundant. I feel like Mark Waid wrote the actual dialogue and Editorial told him to add the expository thought-bubble things to make the event as accessible as possible.

Also, the new character they are focusing the event on is just some dumb OC self-insert. She's basically the Sentry, and the dialogue introducing her is really hammy.

Most scenes don't contribute to the plot and the threat being set up is really vague. Just overall a really poorly written book that's a chore to read.

Marvel wanted our shop to do a midnight release and our owner legitimately laughed at the request. Nobody cares about this "event." Can't believe they have a lenticular cover for it by default with no plentiful alternative to it. It reeks of a cash grab, and while I know that's all Marvel's been doing lately, this one is so apparent that it's actually offensive to me.

I don't usually read comics and more as being surrounded by them for the better part of a decade has completely turned me off to most hero books, but I try to skim through the events so I can talk about them with customers. This one is probably one of the worst I've read since... Secret Empire. Marvel is going to need to do a lot to win back its fans. Nobody at my shop even really reads Marvel anymore, so I don't know why I try to keep up with their terrible events. We pulled new books today for subscribers and I think there were three or four titles nobody requested at all (Squirrel Girl, Gwenpool, Secret Warriors, Runaways, maybe Secret Warriors), and that used to be really rare, but it's a weekly occurrence with Marvel now.

The sad thing is that there's no way DC can pick up sales slack for Marvel. Our overall sales are way down even though DC and Indie are up. You just can't have independent comic shops without the Big 2 there to prop it up. The worst part is that I used to love Marvel, so it hurts even more to watch them fall apart.

Maybe Akira Yoshi-- err, CB Cebulski can turn it around?
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My comic shop owner mentioned it to me (a DC reader) as a good spot to jump on at, so that's probably the reasoning for your first point.
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I have been finding that too. My local store had to shut down almost precisely because their marvel sales tanked and were accompanied by not enough uptick in indy sales to counter it.

And once sales staff gives up on Marvel - as it is almost everywhere, sales tank with it. Ots a vicious cycle
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My schedule for the winter term means I won't get a chance to pick up comics until Thursdays. I'm excited to see where Mister Miracle goes after that last issue.

I've had the variant cover as my phone background for the last few weeks so hopefully I get a chance to pick that one up.
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davidponte posted...

My schedule for the winter term means I won't get a chance to pick up comics until Thursdays. I'm excited to see where Mister Miracle goes after that last issue.

I've had the variant cover as my phone background for the last few weeks so hopefully I get a chance to pick that one up.

Nice phone background!
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https://twitter.com/DCComics/status/951525390689980416

I stopped reading JLA after the second arc. What is going on here?
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Has nothing to do with JLA. It has everything to do with the utterly fantastic Doom Patrol.
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