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Green Lantern:Rebirth #4 Though prone to some wonky sci-fi nonsense, this has been a fun supe-hero story so far with a good amount of drama that has been building up the event of this issue. It's an exciting moment, especially if you're a Hal Jordan fan and have suffered through the character's mishandling over the years. I like Hal just fine, but this series has actually shown me that he's got a great supporting cast that needs to be in the book to make Green Lantern a successful comic. Nice art again from Ethan Van Sciver, though this cover is a good example of what I don't like about his work. He's amazing at the detailed linework, but very often seems to jump to the details without nailing the anatomy first. B+

JLA:Classified #4 Fans of the old sitcom-like "Justice League" series from the 80's can jump aboard this anthology series to enjoy "I Can't Believe It's Not The Justice League" for the next 6 issues. Like the last mini-series, "Formerly Known As the Justice League", the humor is simultaneously just as not and not as funny as I remembered it being. It's definitely a style of humor that's not ashamed of making stupid jokes to get a laugh. Sometimes it gets you and sometimes it gets you to groan.
What no one probably expected when this series was being written was that it would be released with a certain sentimental significance attached to it as a result of the character Sue Dibny being the victim of some horrible events in the recent "Identity Crisis" series. Continuity is not an issue here, so Sue is just fine. But an ongoing gag about everyone thinking she's pregnant carries an uncomfortable weight to it when you know that in "Identity Crisis" she was murdered before she had a chance to tell her husband she was pregnant. It's a dark subtext that this series doesn't deserve to be weighed down with.
B

Ex Machina #8 More great developments for this series. The Subway Tunnel murder mystery is getting more and more gruesome with each issue. I enjoyed the flashback that showed Mitch in a helpless moment with a crazy dog. My only complaint is my usual about this series. Every issue the writer, Brian K. Vaughan, feels the need to make his characters talk about some obscure fact that obviously Vaughan just researched and wants to put in to make the series more realistic but it always feels unnatural. Plus, there was a very unrealistically crass moment from Mayor Hundred in this issue in regards to a couple of gay characters that was meant to show how liberal the mayor is but still came across as offensive and unlike anyone who's ever run for office would ever say I think.
A

Human Target #19 Looks like this recently cancelled series is going to go out on a high note. One thing that this book has lacked for me is a failure to dig deep enough into the main character's interesting and fucked up psyche. Instead, Peter Milligan, has been using him to explore various aspects of American society, which has been great, don't get me wrong. But now this two part story looks to get back into not only the idea of losing yourself in a disguise, but it's also going to back to Christopher Chance's marriage to Mary, a plot point that often falls by the wayside.
I'm going to miss this book when it's gone.
A

Stray Bullets Vol. 6 It's taken me a long time to hunt down this hard to find volume but it's been worth all the effort. This might be one of my favorite installments in this series. Chapter 1 introduces a character named Benny who fantasizes about his wife dying because he's always falling in love with other women. A dinner with another couple (Kathy and Roger who we saw meet a few issues back) turns pretty wild. Chapter 2 is about a married man looking to cheat on his wife and meets Beth, one of Stray Bullet's main 'heroines'. Chapter 3 brings back little Joey who we first met all grown up back in issue 1. Here we learn that he's the nephew of Spanish Scott, who decides to take him out for the day and teach him about cursing, playing pool, and getting laid. Then things get violent. And finally in Chapter 4, it's Beth again, a few months later, and Harry's henchman, Monster has caught up to her. Somehow Beth has gotten involved with Ricky Fish and Amelia, two characters that were introduced separately in the last volume. My favorite thing about this series is how interconnected everyone is. The more you read, the more of a full story you get. This volume is a great example of why this is possibly the best comic out there.
A+

Posted at February 19, 2005 11:15 AM

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