Adam Frey Comic Reviews

This issue is acceptable, but doesn't present much that we haven't seen elsewhere in post-apocalyptic fiction, zombie or otherwise. The issue might work better in the larger narrative of the overall series, but this issue doesn't make the best jumping-on point.

Still, as far as indie offerings go, this wasn't bad and may be worth your attention if you should encounter Jelenic's table at a convention. I've seen worse indie titles, and her art really does look solid. Consider giving this title a try if you need a diversion from the big publishers.

Readers looking to dip back into the Superman titles may want to see how Tomasi'sSuperman#1 does next week before choosing between this andAction. Readers who've been tracking classic Superman sinceConvergence may want to keep going with this one.

In other words, Spooktacular is a decent kid-friendly comic to offer your younguns as a Halloween treat. Its probably too pricey to buy a stack of them for a trick-or-treat offering (at $7.99, this thing isn't cheap), but its just the right price for a kid who needs a spooky-yet-pleasant distraction for an October evening.

Adventure Time Comics is, then, an art jam.Adventure Time as a show has been eating up the animation landscape for almost a decade now and seems to be this generation's"well, I'm not sure what.Tiny Toons, perhaps, but the show is definitelysomething and its mark on animation and childhoods everywhere will be felt for a long time. TheAdventure Time comic is another opportunity to bridge the television-to-comics gap for many kids, but even better,Adventure Time Comics is a chance to introduce kids to the beauty and variety of comics as an art form. This is worth a look, or better, worth handing to someone who needs a bridge intocomics.

The story closes with a sort-of prequel to the series' first issue, so this may be a fair jumping-on point for a new reader. It's a good read as it is. For the "regular" reader (and we use the term loosely), there will be an element of frustration that it's taken two years to get to ten issues.

We don't get a lot of xenomorph action in this one, and that's a necessary consequence of a multi-part story. Alien is horror at its core, and horror always requires a slow burn. But it's wonderful eye candy, and with Stokoe drawing it, it can only get better with each issue.

Unfortunately, jumping in at the eleventh issue is a little jarring, but at least we can figure out that the main character"Zula"has escaped from a space station and maybe brought some xenos back to Earth with her. The art's good"there's a lot of detail, though not quite on par with Stokoe's madness in Dead Orbit"and it's not completely inaccessible, as it's easy enough to jump into the issue.

This series may appeal to Vampirella fans who want to know what would happen if she met the xenomorphs. (Whether this book is intended to be in continuity with Dynamite's main Vampirella series isn't clear, though I'm thinking not if it's set in an unspecified future where Mars has been colonized.) Otherwise, this book doesn't do much to distinguish itself from any other story where a superhero has an unfortunate encounter with the aliens.

I will note that between this book andANAD Point One, Marvel is showing alot of post-Secret Wars impact on each title. Four out of six of the stories in this title were dealing withSecret Wars fallout, as didone of the shorts inPoint One and a few in Amazing Spider-Man. Let's hope this doesn't keep going for too long. The "All-New, All-Different" rebranding was advertised as a clean break for Marvel to be friendly to new readers, but this is all very heavily tied to what came before. That's good for long-term readers, but hopefully it doesn't alienate the intended new readers too much.

All-New, All-Different Avengers #1 was acceptable, but not phenomenal. As the apparent "lead" Avengers title, I expected a little better from it. It has promise, but cautious readers may want to trade wait the first volume and resume with the monthly when the team is finally established.

Overall, not a bad product, and there should be something in here for everyone even if you're someone who won't buy everything. Oh, and Marvel, please keep using this format of book to get us into new titles.

Reilly's darker turn is going to upset his fans, but at least this story offers an explanation for why Ben's a little nuts. Whether he can be redeemed from this is a different question"he's definitely no longer the likable guy he was back in the 90s, as this whole cloning story definitely has a distinctly un-Spidey like twistedness to it. But credit to Slott: it's maintained the element of surprise which gets people talking, and Reilly fans will at least want to know how he comes back from this one.

Analog is at least fine as a short-term reflection on the state of technology dependence and raises questions about what happens when things go too far and get too dependent on it. O'Sullivan's art is fine for the book, invoking the noir feel of Powers or Batman Adventures and helping set up a larger mystery for this book.

There's plenty of action with Black Manta and his terrorists. The only drawback? Aquaman himself doesn't do jack this entire issue, a point driven painfully home by the issue's final page.

Not bad, even if Abnett is taking a cue from Geoff Johns by excessively reminding you that Arthur is more than "the fish guy."

In an era of divided real-world politics, it's refreshing to see a superhero who's actively inclusionary, even with his enemies.

Although nothing particularly important happens in this issue, casual readers may want to try this book just for its historical significance. This isat least for nowthe end of classic Archie before we get Mark Waid/Fiona Staples reboot later this month. House Archie will still be around in the digests, the Betty & Veronica book, and in special projects like Archie vs. Sharknado and Archie vs. Predator (another book which needs to be read for its own sake). Still, its been apparent that Archie as a publisher has been slowly reinventing itself over the last decade, seeking that balance between classic and newsworthy. Archie #666 celebrates the classic side of that equation and is a very worthy example of what makes a good comic.

Overall, I'll recommend this book with the caution that it's lost something while not having lost anything at all. It's the same Archie, but definitely one aimed at a different audience than it was a month ago.

Barrier is considerably more open-ended and left to the imagination. In other words: it could be good, but that trademark Vaughan intrigue just hasn't established itself yet.

Batgirl is acceptable for hardcore Batgirl fans and readers looking for a clean jumping-on point.We'll just have to wait and see if the book can move past "acceptable" in the coming months.

It's honestly not the best start to this new creative team"but it's the closest we'll get to a revival of the 1990s title. Read if you're a diehard BoP reader or looking for some girl power in general.

It's OK, but something's not quite working here. David Finch's art is pretty, though.

Still, the nature of Batman stories requires that they can't have a Justice League solution, so no, Gotham isn't defeated by a well-placed Superman punch, impossible as it sounds. King goes for something much more clever than that, and it works.

When Scott Snyder leftBatman, I was ready to save some money and take a break from the character.Unfamiliar with King, I assumed that whatever he was going to write would be very rote and ordinary and Batman would continue just fine without me.Batman #6 is the issue that's convinced me that his run has crossed the thresholdfrom "standard" to "something special." Do check this one out.

From a cynical standpoint, Batman/TMNT Adventures may be nostalgia porn, but it works.Like a pizza, it's good comfort food, and even if you're not getting gourmet quality, it's still satisfying. If you're a fan of the old Batman animated series or the more recent TMNT series, or if just want a fun, clean story, this book is for you.

At $30, Garcia and Rubin's Beowulf isn't cheap, but you do get a solid take on one of the seminal works of English literature. Consider this adaption for the reader who needs a break from the usual capes-and-tights comics and wants to try a new take on some classic literature.

That aside, Betty & Veronica #1 puts the series off to a mostly good start which is a worthy addition to modern Archie. As a bonus, the book includes some reprints of classic "house" B&V stories to remind us that the classics are still out there and still relevant. For the diehard Archie fan, this is worth a look.

Being a licensed property, of course, the appeal of this book is limited toBob's Burgers fans, as non-viewers will have little context for the kids' antics and Tina's "erotic" fiction in general. However, fans of the show who also read comics have little excuse to not at least try the book. It captures the show's general spirit and offers a diversion where strict humor books seem to be lacking.

Still, that art. This is a curious sell in a crowded marketplace, but I'll say that the intrigue is there.Bonehead might be worth trying a few issues to see where it goes.

Mix Tape includes a few other shorts, some several pages andothers just a two-page sight gag. (Anna Strains Christmas cards are a pretty good sight gag.) At $10, Booms Mix Tape may seem a bit cost-prohibitive, but with the holidays around the corner, the book may actually make a decent gift for a young reader who wants to try out some original all-ages comics.

Both stories are a good basic foray into the Marvel Universe of 2016 and make a decent introduction to comics for theCaptain America: Civil War fan who's never read one. If you didn't get to your shop for FCBD, hopefully they still have one.

CCHACE is aided tremendously by Michael Avon Oeming's artwork, which is very much styled in a space-age, Darwyn Cooke-manner. There's nothing indicating that this comic is set in the Silver Age; it just feels that way the same way that The Incredibles felt very retro without actually being so. This book is wonderful eye-candy just for that reason.

Look, overall, the comic is promising and enjoyable, and maybe Civil War II as a whole will turn out fine. However, Bendis' superstar status doesn't justify getting away with poorly researched law and a cheap resurrection which serves no purpose. In other words, sure, buy this comic, but expect it to suffer from the usual Bendisims which could have been easily fixed.

I wouldn't call Clue agreat comic - at its essence, it's product placement wedged into a different product's form. It's at least readable, comical (there's a lot of metatextual humor with the Butler breaking the fourth wall a lot), and there's a mystery to be solved. The real test of future issues is whether readers will actually be able to play along as they can in the board game, or if the mystery is set in stone and the authors are waiting until the last page to pull back the curtain. At least it's different, so if you're looking for a lighthearted change from the superhero fare, this isn't awful.

Now, this is a book that's actually got personality. Oh, DC's other books do to, but Cyborg has hit that sweet spot that carries a number of themes without being dominated by any of them.

As of this first issue, though,the main/mini-comic formatis frustrating to read, and we'll have to see how DC decides to collect the whole package when the story is finished. Are the mini-comics intended to bean expansion of the main Azzarello/Kubert story, or are they literal in-between chapters of the overall book? Does the main story read on its own, or will we be required to read a collected story which jarringly shifts between Miller's and Kubert's styles?We'll have to wain and see. Perhaps it will read just finewhen the series is collected, but as a monthly periodical, this format is annoying and a strike against this overall project.

If this series has been stretched to add an extra issue, it shows, because it feels like the story has been padded and there's a lot of filler here where it's just pages of the Amazons rearing for battle and not getting there.

Dark Night: A True Batman Story is very much a Batman story even as the story acknowledges that Batman is a work of fiction. It's essential reading for fans of the Animated Series even as it only scratches the history of that beloved show. Really, Dark Night is a story about Dini's inner demons, the same ones that come for all of us in our darkest hours, and what Batman represents in our struggle to fight back against those moments.

DC Super Hero Girls: Finals Crisisworks well as a gateway comic for the parent who's asking where to get a child started on comics (For the record, there isanother issue coming, but not until November.). Certainly there are more realisticstories that a new reader should be introduced to at some point"Wolfman and Perez'sTeen Titans comes to mind"but DCSuper Hero Girlsis a friendly, reasonably-priced entry point that will make a nice, easy gift for a kid.

Shea Fontana and Yancy Labat put on a competent tween-age book for the target audience and it's worth a peek for the younger readers. This is especially helpful for parents who aren't ready to let their kids into the older-oriented books of mainstream DC. Do keep in mind that the FCBDSuper Hero Girls comic is only an excerpt of the upcoming graphic novel, so kids who want more will have to come back to get the rest of the story.

It is a very different kind of story, though, and for readers looking for a change in environment, tone, and genre,Dept H is definitely worth a look. It's undersea, it's exploration, it's human drama, and it's a murder mystery. As Kindt says in his introduction, if you're into any of those things then this book may be for you.

If this quality of story keeps up, then hopefully readers will keep up with the reborn Detective in addition to Tom Kings main Batman book. Batman will almost certainly be the focal point for the big Bat-stories, but Detective just may be the title to read for some good, clean Bat-fun.

It's unsurprising that this book is going away next month""Rebirth" is what you want, so it's what you're getting"but it may be awhile before DC experiments like this again.

All in all, this is a great start for Marvel relaunch month, and if you're looking forward to the 2016Doctor Strange film, then this book should help satisfy your appetite while you wait.

DuckTales isn't just a nostalgia cartoon, but a much greater legacy of an artist who saw an entire world beyond Walt's speech-impeded mallard. In which case: sure, go for it. If you're introducing your kids to the new cartoon, best you introduce them to the source material as well.

I'm willing to give Exiles a continued try if it can keep the universe-hopping concept from becoming stale.

Is Get Naked the sleeper comic hit of the year? Probably not. It's definitely a veryavant garde book which screams "Fantagraphics" yet somehow ended up at Image. It's weird, and different, and is probably going to cause a few eyebrows to arch as the shopper is looking for the latestBatman issue. But a select few readers might pick this title up and have a familiar experience at laughing at their own unnecessary embarassment.

Overall, this is not a bad start to the crossover, and diehard Ghostbusters fans who are riding high on the franchise's 30th anniversary will want to check it out. However, I do hope it's able to excel beyond the standard tropes of a crossover, because we really are running out of new ideas.

Percy's got a lot going on in this story which requires a lot of backstory. Seriously, if you haven't been following this since issue #1, you might be lost.

Longtime readers will probably get this issue; new folks may want to start from the beginning.

If you didn't enjoy the opening Green Arrow arc, this issue is a nice distraction from that with good, clean art.

In the end,Green Lantern: Earth One isn't a rehash of the traditional Hal Jordan story, but neither does it abandon its roots. It's fairly close to an "Elseworlds" spin on the story, taking a familar story and giving it an alien overlay. This may put it at the forefront of the Earth One line, believe it or not: it's high quality, keeps to its roots, but still allows itself to stand free of repetition.

Humphries' story reads pretty much like you'd expect a follow-on to Geoff Johns' long run to read"pretty much pulling from that existing mythos. It's OK"though if you want some new stuff, there's last week's Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps.

Readers who want to step fresh into Green Lanterns have a great opportunity here.

Grumpy Cat isn't high literature, but it recaptures some of the sarcastic delight that was effective inGarfield comics so many years ago. Having test-run it on my nine-year-old cat-loving daughter, I can say that it effectively won her over.Grumpy Cat is recommended for young readers who want a funny animal alternative to superhero fare. It's also probably good for anyone who has a cat's dim outlook on life.

So, Gutter Magic is off to an OK start with a caution that there's a lot more story that could stand to be told here. Let's see if it can pull it all together in the remaining three issues.

The only real drawback this book has is the lack of an actual Corps, minus Hal's flashback reference to their disappearance. Future issues are going to have to explain why a book calledHal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps is only about one guy so far. But for now, this title is off to a cromulent start and may be worth a look for both diehard Green Lantern fans and for the Hal-curious.

With the exposition out of the way, there's a little more time to focus on story"except for multiple splash pages which, despite the pretty art, is once again heavy on exposition.

There's some pretty art by Joe Linser (and where's he been lately, anyway?), but this book is playing the "self-aware" thing too hard to notice its own structural flaws.

Harley's Little Black Book #1 is as standalone an issue as you get. That's fine if you're looking for a done-in-one book, but it raises the question as to what's going to keep the reader coming back other than "more Harley." I could see this book becoming repetitive and formulaic pretty quickly. Worse, this appears to be a bi-monthly book, with the next issue due in February. It could be tough for this book to maintain our interest if it's essentially a supplement to the main book and it's not being released on a regular basis.

This issue embraces everything wrong with Lobo. Maybe that's the point"but it's like trying too hard to make a bad joke worse.

It's not off to a bad start, but as withThe Shadow Glass,House of Penance doesn't do the greatest job selling itself at the outset. The story may be of interest to readers who want to try a weird psychological drama with historical roots. Less discriminating readers may want to wait for the eventual trade paperback release to see how the first chapter fits into the larger whole.

In today's market, a first issue of a comic needs to be a successful sales pitch to the dwindling reader base. Between pissing of Jen Walters' longtime fans and being a slow burn of a story, the sale hasn't been made here, and that's a shame. Between Tamaki's take on Jen's monologue and the dark, creeping fear that Leon works into the art, this comic is at least trying to make a point about PTSD. That point may not stick if readers don't have a reason to stick around due to character rewrites and six-part stories which cost four bucks a pop.

But that's ultimately what this comic is"a basic "franchise comic" that exists as a merchandise expansion without really getting deep into its source material (though with only two movies, there's not much to get into). As I explained in ourPrometheus comic review, unexplored franchises have difficulty being relevant when there's not much in the original work. So while theIndependence Day story is competent, it's also just sort of "there" and doesn't give us much beyond what the original did so well back in 1996.

On the other hand, theJem Holiday Special may serve as a decent introduction to the young reader who's never been exposed to Jem before, which hopefully means they also didn't see this summer's bomb of a film. This is recommended for your young reader wants to get into some girl power comics"or the older reader who wants a new spin on an 80s classic.

This one is skippable"save your five bucks for that day in the future when Afterlife reappears.

Justice League is the latest of many incarnations of the team and only time will tell if it's a "great" run on the book. While it's the only Justice League game in town at the moment, it's certainly off to a great start and looks to be worthwhile for readers who want to keep a toe in DC's waters.

It's an interesting play, although Lobo's presence in this book still doesn't make any sense.

Hey, we get a double-dose of Conner and Palmiotti this week, and even better, Conner is drawing. If these two know anything, it's how to make comics sexy and weird.

Across the Universe isn't horrible"the art and writing are up to the standards of the average DC book"but it simply doesn't recreate the delightful madness of the previous two. That's OK, but it's disappointing all the same. This might have been the year to bring "Rebirth" into things and, I don't know, showing Doctor Manhattan conducting a cosmic breakdown of a sandwich. And anyway, this is going to be a promotional book at this weekend's San Diego Comic-Con, and it should be easy enough to find a digital comic eventually. Maybe at some point, we'll get aCrisis on Infinite Colonelscollection which brings them together into something shelf-worthy.

Overall, this is a well-drawn book whose plot is unfortunately a little hard to get into thanks to Tiger and Milo's introductions having appeared a year ago in another book. However, it shows promise, and maybe it could fill the martial arts/mystical void in your life you didn't know was there.

Matt Smith's art is fine, if mostly medieval-focused. It'd be nice to see him cut loose on the aliens, but alas, we don't see much of them in this issue. Some glimpses, and a lot more towards the end, but he mostly keeps the story grounded until the big finish of this first chapter. One thing the reader will appreciate, though: this opening issue is double-sized. At $3.99, readers definitely get their money's worth compared to, say, your standard superhero stuff.

I tested Mega Princess on my 10 year-old daughter, and she loved it from beginning to end. Maxine will be very familiar tothe kid who was raised on Disney Princesses but, somewhere around age six, switched to reading books and climbing trees all day. Consider getting this one for the Mega Princess in your life.

Micronauts may never be what it was in the 1980s, but it is a nice space epic that may serve as a diversion for sci-fi readers who want a break fromStar Wars and other similar prominent properties. I'm not sure if readers of the original series will get what they want here, but what they are getting is commendable.

Miss Fury isn't the comic of the century, but it is a competent work and worth consideration for readers who are looking for a pulpy Golden Age throwback story.

If your household has a kid who's into MLP:FIM, this issue will make a decent gateway drug to get them into the comic shop. If you're reading it with them, you just might get lucky and find a Big Lebowski joke.

New Suicide Squad #17 is an acceptable comic and probably isas good as an entry point for a new reader as any issue will be. However,the reader should be advised that this book is likely going to be cancelled and rebooted in another four months to coincide with DC's big relaunchand theSuicide Squad movie, so the overall consequence of this story is probably on the low side.

New Super-Man isn't the most stellar offering on the market, but it is an alternative to the current nostalgia fest that is DC Rebirth. It has enough twiststhat it could be the surprise hit of the week for the reader who's willing to go unspoiled.

Once the issue gets moving, it's moving. Paradoxically, this issue may be tricky to read in trade, but as a single issue, it's not a bad jumping-on point.

Buy this if you're buying Batman; skip if you're just waiting for last month's story to resume.

Squirrel Girl fans may enjoy the tonal similarity ofPatsy Walker, a.k.a. Hellcat! to what they're already reading. However, non-Squirrel Girl readers shouldn't be put off by the superficial kinship. They're quite different titles, andHellcat stands just fine on its own merits.

This story is recommended for fans of theAlien/Prometheus andPredator films who want a more modern expansion of the film universe than Dark Horse's earlier efforts accomplished. However, there isn't much else to bring in a casualAlien orPredatorfan who doesn't normally go beyond the films.

Prometheus: Life & Death may be fun for readers looking to fill the void before the nextAlien film (and this entire 17-part series should wrap up just in time for the movie, so maybe they'll connect). Thus far, it doesn't seem to be so compelling that it's a "must read" story, though.

If you've stuck with the entire Fire and Stone and Life and Death sagas, then sure, read this. If not, then it's kind of empty.

Still,Revolution is good fun and will be the crossover to watch in the coming months. Check it out if you need a break fromCivil War andRebirth.

MaybeLil' Poopy Superstar will get better as the story progresses, but the first issue doesn't inspire confidence that it will substitute for the show's summer hiatus.

If you're nuts aboutRiverdale orArchie Comics in general: then sure, get this. Keep in mind that a free version of this comic will be released on Free Comic Book Day, albeit with only half the stories. If you want to save a few bucks and get the reduced version: sure, go for that one.

I put Scooby Apocalypse to the ultimate test by having my 10 year-old daughter read it. She's had limited exposure to Scooby, although she reads DC's Scooby-Doo Team-Up regularly and just watched the newly-released Lego Scooby-Doo: Haunted Hollywood film. Guess what? She actually liked it. She had no problem with an "adult" Scooby and enjoyed the sense impending doom that builds during the story. If a member of classic Scooby's target audience can enjoy a radically recreation of the character, then maybe adults can too. Consider giving this one a shot.

This issue finally gets the Scooby Gang out of the bunker and into the larger world which, yes, is infested with monsters too.

This issue introduces the most obvious and worst of Scooby villains. Porter and DeMatteis are planning something interesting with the character if you can stop yourself from groaning.

Skybourne may show promise in the future. For now, while it's not bad"and Cho's art is great"the story on this chapter alone doesn't quite suck us in just yet. Maybe keep a pulse on this one, but at the moment, it's not the next must-have sleeper hit.

As a returning reader, I was pretty lost; a new reader would be hopeless or worse. While I'm sure the trade paperback market is the way to get a new reader started, the single issue remains the gateway drug, and this is not the best tool to get them hooked.

Overall,Spider-Woman brings the interesting prospect of parenthood and all its associated risks to a medium that's meant for our inner child. A lot of comics' readers right now are adults who have moved into parenthood themselves and have, to varying degrees, been through what Jess is now experiencing. That could be an interesting opportunity to outreach to readers who, at that time in their lives, might be tempted to start shelving the comic hobby. Let's see where this goes.

Spidey is probably an acceptable book if you're looking to introduce a young reader to Spider-Man in a manner unburdened from continuity. Older readers may find it a welcome diversion that hearkens back to early Marvel as well, but I'll caution again that it's working very independently from the source material. A fun, youthful title is probably something we need, so Marvel's challenge will be to keep this book relevant where so many other "young Spidey" books have fallen into the discount bins.

Overall, this was not the best start to a newSquadron Supreme title, but there's a decent enough concept that it may be worth coming back for a second issue. Do not expect this to be Marvel'sJustice League, but do look at it as its own thing: an updatedSquadron Supreme for the 21st century.

For those fans who want to see more of the newStar Trek franchise or taste an updated version of a classicTrek threat,Boldly Go's opening arc could be a fun diversion. If there's a downside, it's that IDW's ongoing Abramsverse comics do delve into classic Trek stories and characters alot, so bringing in this particular problem is unoriginal in the broader scope of the book. But in the scope of a single story, this could be a nice distraction for a reader who just wants moreTrek.

Speaking of story, Aaron continues to intrigue and delight us. If I had to guess, I'd say that this arc is going to deal with competing themes dealing with our character's past. Luke is searching for his"he's looking for old Jedi sites so he can train himself to be a Jedi. In contrast, it's Han's past that's seeking him out"the mystery of Han's "wife" introduced in issue 6 continues here. We don't get firm answers, but it wouldn't be very funny if the story of Sana Solo was immediately resolved this issue. Plenty happens here, but an explosive cliffhanger guarantees that we'll want to come back for next month.

This is a promising start to a six-part story which, hopefully, will continue to captivate and distract from the fact that everybody's going to walk away just fine.

Not much of consequence happens in what we're given. Set some 25 years before Marvel's main Star Wars titles, we know where these characters are headed, so the backdrop of some crisis on some unimportant world isn't strictly compelling. This might have been an opportunity to explore Obi-Wan and Anakin's relationship, perhaps showing us the transition from how the master came to accept his padawan since the role was forced upon him at the end of Episode I. That may come in future issues, but for now, it's not the most persuasive story.

Poe Dameron represents a welcome first step into the new story era. While this initial arc is apparently going to play it safe"obviously, Poe is going to find Lor San Tekka at some point"it'll be fun to see how we get there, and this will provide a welcome distraction until the comics can move past the events of Episode VII.

This is good stuff. We look forward to issue #2, which hopefully does start to give us a more substantive look at life after Endor.

Suicide Squad is a movie-driven comic that gets the job done. It's not the Ostrander-penned classic series, and you really shouldn't expect it to be on the heels of a movie. But it delivers even if it isn't Shakespeare

If your non-comic reading friends are looking to jump onto a Suicide Squad book after seeing this week's film, then sure, give them Suicide Squad Rebirth #1 and see how they take to it, but it's not phenomenal, and that free April Fool's Day reprint might make for a cheaper sampler for your friends. Let's hope that the non-"Rebirth" #1 coming on August 17, which actually had Jim Lee's art, fares better.

Ultimately,War Crimes isn't a great comic. It's an OK comic, but perhaps not the best choice for introducing a new reader to either the Squad or to John Ostrander. The former can be done with this month's much less expensiveSuicide Squad #1, and the latter can be done with the new trades collecting the 1980s series.

At this point, the best "Rebirth" books are those that have a tight cast and tight single-issue stories. Tomasi's Superman at least has the former, but like so many other books here, it's a stretched-out story that's being written for the trade.

Now, this is what we needed after a double-shipped six-issue arc. Decompression hurts, and a one-off issue is just what both creators and readers need to catch their breaths.

Superman Rebirth #1 is a decent read for a reader looking to get back into Superman, keeping in mind that it's heavily weighed down by Superman continuity that literally links 1992's "Death of Superman" to last week's equivalent to the same event. Read as a straight story of one Superman coming out of retirement because of the absence of another, it's a fine story. In light of the larger issues of the comics industry"reboots, major events, and the death of one character leading to the return of an earlier iteration"the story suffers a little, because there's much deeper issues going on here beyond a simple alien messiah who wants to better his adopted planet.

Not every comic needs to be dramatic, dangerous, or alter the status quo. Some just need to be rolled up and stuck in your back pocket for a good laugh. Teen Titans Go! gets you there, and with this issue, you need to buy two copies: one for a kid who needs it, and one for yourself.

As with most of the otherEarth One books,Teen Titans Vol. 2 ends on an open-ended note which invites another chapter to come. We'll see if that actually happens. This is an appropriate closing point to the story with the kids coming into their own with an open future ahead of them. If DC and the readers want to keep this branch ofTeen Titans going, it's not a bad concept, though the growing cast will require the story to focus next time.

The only downside is that the plotline and the villains are still a bit thick. We're new to the story, so of course the larger picture shouldn't be clear yet. Nonetheless, the reader is going to have difficulty discerning what's going on beyond "occultists are manipulating capitalism." It's good, but dizzying. Hopefully readers who stick around for the next issue will make sense of where it's going.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina #1 is due for a reprint for this year's Halloween ComicFest. If readers want to wait until then to get a free reprint of the first issue, that might make for a better venture into the series to see if it's worth it. This issue is acceptable, but seasoned horror fans shouldn't expect to be chilled in any way they haven't been before.

Who knows if this book will continue to cause controversy? The first issue has long passed and the controversial cover was pulled. It'll be hard to invoke as much surprise from here, but heaven knows, Chaykin has surprised us before"nobody expected the first issue to cause the reactions it did. Anyway, as a 2017 social commentary, it's at least worth a curious peek and some significant reflection.

With San Diego Comic Con having wrapped up, and the New York and Baltimore Comic Cons on the way, this is the right time of year for this comic to come out. If your brain needs a break from DCYou and Secret Wars and you just want to have a laugh about fandom, The Eltingville Club is right for you.

Flintstones may very well be DC's first significant backfire in the Hanna-Barbera revamp line. There's not a lot of classic Flinstones still on the market, but they did appear in an issue ofScooby-Doo Team-Up which may be a more satisfying read.

In just one issue, The Legend of Wonder Woman presents a delightful remix of Diana's origin that will be appropriate for both older fans who want a more "classic" version and newer, younger readers who could do without a "mature" version. Let's emphasize that De Liz's spin is not a "kiddie" version for young readers only, but it is a good one that doesn't limit itself for the sake of an older audience. Let's hope the other eight issues keep pace and present a cohesive, timeless story that we can read for years to come.

The Shadow Glass will be of particular interest for readers who are fans of Shakespeare and 16th century British history, even if that is a rather narrowly-targeted niche market.

On its surface, it is a delightful mashup of multiple genres: aliens, westerns, giant robots, demons, and who knows what else is coming. With Halloween approaching, this might be a gooddiversion for readers who are looking for a bit ofweird horror. I'll recommend giving this a try with a caution that the book will need to work at really distinguishing itself from other weird western stories in future issues.

I am not confident that The Terrifics will last: it's a book spinning out of an event and living in the shadow of a better-known concept at another company.

In other words, Titans Rebirth is recommended for readers who've missed the legacy aspect of the DC Universe and the notion of younger heroes who have that special bond of growing up together. Readers should be aware that this isn't necessarily a "teen" book in the vein ofYoung Justice orYoung Avengers, but is more of a nostalgia piece seeking to recapture one of the New 52's many casualties.

Longtime readers may enjoy this title. Older, established fans may want to stick with the wackyG.I.Joe vs. Transformers, which has considerably fewer issues to catch up on and stays closer to its roots.

I ran this preview by my 9 year-old daughter, who agreed that the story's ending was too abrupt, making it hard for her to understand who "won" in the contest over Scrooge's money. That aside, she loved the book. Even with the arguably flawed ending, this is only one issue out of hundreds of classic Duckburg stories to which IDW and their young fans now have access. Given the importance of Uncle Scrooge to comics and Disney history, now is the perfect time to get your young reader on board.

So to my Canadian friends and family out there: Happy Canada Day. I hope we can all take this story as a good bit of fun and that the great U.S. invasion of Canada remains forever fiction.

So, is the new Witchblade going to be any good? I have no idea. It's not your younger teenage self's Witchblade, and changing markets probably won't let that kind of book exist again anytime soon. This one's competent, but will probably need a few more issues to give a clear idea what it's supposed to be about.

Wonder Woman: Earth One is not a comprehensive origin for the character. Indeed, Morrison's truncated version only pays lip service to certain elements"like the origins of her costume"in favor of characterization. Readers who want a lengthier, detailed story which stays closer to the World War II roots should look to the ongoing Legend of Wonder Woman for a "fuller" picture of the character. But for those who want a quicker story, as well as a Morrison comic which isn't as cerebral as his past works, it's not a bad read and worth a look along with the many other versions of the character.

As such,The True Amazon really isn't the best offering for an aspiring Wonder Woman reader. Renae De Liz's edition works for younger readers, and Rucka's for older ones. Thompson's followers may want to try this out of loyalty, and as a strict Greek tragedy, it's not terrible. It's just less than ideal for this specific character.