I went into this series without much in the way of expectations, but this book still managed to take me by surprise. The writing and art work combine for some powerful moments throughout both stories. Rucka and Checchetto clearly have a distinct Punisher story that they want to tell, and I want to be there to read it.

Great issue that moves the story forward, but still leaves us wanting more with the mystery of who the villain is and why they are doing this. Excellent character moments and art round out the package.

While I'm fairly negative in tone, the issue isn't bad just fairly underwhelming in the deja vu nature of the reading the same exact fight sequence over and over again between Ultimate SpiderMan and Green Goblin making up the entirety of the issue didn't really wow me at all. Even Wile E Coyote tries something new every time he tries to catch the Road Runner. Osborn or, better yet, Bendis should take some tips.

While a few hiccups in the reader friendly department, this issue does its job well in being accessible and is an excellent jumping on point for those interested in Daken or curious about seeing how differently, and most would agree better, he is written in his own title compared to other random Marvel title appearances. Add great art and freedom from tieins and crossover stories and this is one of the best issues of the title to date. Take a look if you have some extra cash, you might find a new book you never expected to grab you.

Another great issue of Green Lantern. The event is in full throttle now and really hitting its stride while still finding time for character moments, such as with Sinestro here, on top of the wall to wall action.

Aside from the last bit with Mogo's death, you actually wouldn't miss too much if you skipped over this issue. It's like a spiritual successor to the Battle of Mogo back in Sinestro Corps War, but this issue only worries about the ends justifying the means aka Mogo's death. It didn't really worry about having a story that builds up to it or justifies that killing. Check It instead of Avoid It simply for the importance of that death and what it will mean in future issues and the future of the Green Lantern Corps.

Continues the story and sets up the endgame to War of the Green Lanterns while still being a excellent read on its own, a rarity in most penultimate chapters that are more about shuffling everyone into position for the conclusion than actually offering anything substantial.

. Great, wall to wall action with Wolverine and Lord Deathstrike both racing for the kill on Mystique in the best issue of this volume of Wolverine to date.

By far my favourite issue of Batman, Inc to date and I feel it is the first to capitalize on the promise and potential of the concept. It almost reads like what should have been the first issue of this series with dozens of Batmen operatives in action, layers of intrigue, secret organizations, Batman building an army and so on. On top of this, it's just plain fun to read.

Hickman fans will love it and I do, but it's hard to really judge this type of story on a single issue basis when so much of it demands knowledge of his entire run on Fantastic Four and with so many disparate threads and plots moving in different directions and the story feeling very much like it was written entirely with the trade in mind.

Gillen writing a book centered on Loki should be enough to sell you on this. Add some of Braithwaite's best work for the art and a compelling story that can either stand on its own or work as a companion to the current Fear Itself event and you have an excellent comic you should be reading.

Great issue that hooked me instantly and never let go. After one issue, I want, no, need to know more about this world and these characters and am already picking out various tieins I want to try out simply because of how engaging and interesting this world and story is so far.

Everything was quite accessible and it was an fun and entertaining done in one story that has me contemplating picking up the next issue. If you've got a few extra dollars in the budget this week, consider picking this issue up.

Very underwhelming issue that felt incredibly short and ends abruptly. Aside from people getting hammers to join the Worthy, of which we learn very little about despite their being the focus of the issue, not much happens here and it still reads very quickly. Little action, plot or character driven story here either. Almost feels like filler two issues in.

First issue has a lot of promise, but fell a little flat with a predictable ending everyone saw coming and the unnecessary amount of time spent building up to said ending. Otherwise, a promising start to the new series with a capable creative team. Should be interesting to see where they go from here.

This was a very nice character driven story exploring their relationship. In that context, I quite enjoyed it and was pleased with the issue. However, it is difficult to ignore the complete lack of anything Schism related in a book marketed and labelled as a prelude to that event. The vague generalizations at the start do not a prelude make. Check it if you are interested in some exploration of the XavierCyclops relationship; Avoid It if you want an actual prelude to Schism.

Fantastic issue that made me actually want to read more about Hal Jordan out of costume for the first time ever and an ending that has me absolutely chomping at the bit to read more of this storyline and see where Johns and the rest of the Green Lantern team take this story from here.

War of the Green Lanterns started a little slow, but has really kicked it up a notch with these last few chapters of the story.

Great issue that pushes the Return of Bruce Wayne back to its roots with a noir tale and then rockets us towards the end game with an excellent cliffhanger ending.

I don't think the book is worth buying for the content you get. Most of it is retreading relatively new stories that were just released in trade (don't get me started on DC's slow trade department). Only a handful of pages from the issue are really new material as well. Pick it up if you are an absolute Blackest Night junkie, but otherwise not worth it for what you get.

Daken is more than just a Wolverine Jr. Marjorie Liu has done some amazing things with him and I love his manipulative nature. It's a shame he isn't portrayed this way in his other appearances, but it makes for compelling reads with moments like his interaction with Mystique in this issue. Little leary about the possessed Wolverine story, but otherwise enjoying this new series.

While the last couple of issues were average by Secret Six standards, this one is back up to its usual high standards that cemented this title as one of the best books being published.

While I'm not going to say it's in the same league as his Ultimates work, Superior reminds me more of Millar's time on that book than his more recent string of work. Also, it "makes Nemesis look like $%!&".

This is how an event should be. No hand holding or limping to the finish line. Just more of the epic cosmic storytelling that we've grown to know and expect from Abnett & Lanning.

Only the first issue of this miniseries, but I loved it. Nazi Frost Giants invade Asgard to initiate Ragnarok. Let that sink in for a moment. If that isn't enough to get you interested, this book probably isn't for you.

Great first issue that did more for me than the entire run of the previous XForce, which was more of a 90's grimdark spectacle than anything.

While I personally can't stand the reverting of Zemo to generic nazi badguy with daddy issues, the story is otherwise fairly solid with your standard hero confronting and overcoming his personal demons plot. Art is good and fits the tone of the story, too.

I'm tempted to say avoid it, but there's a lot of important things that are told in this issue that you will need to know moving forward if you have any desire to follow along. However, it was like reading a Wikipedia entry as Nick Fury recaps events and then tells us how they will attack a Hydra base. A huge stepdown in art from Caselli and Vitti combines with the other problems to make for a subpar issue of what has been one of my favourite books over the past year or two.

Really enjoying this title. It's fresh and unique take on Wonder Woman and is moving at a much faster pace than previous JMS books. Kramer's art has been excellent throughout as well. If I had any complaints, it would be mostly with Wonder Woman's dialogue as she seems quite glib in the face of all these adversities, particularly when speaking with Charon. Otherwise, a great issue.

This story went off the rails in this issue. Bruce Wayne is painted as incompetent both in his younger days as Batman and as Terry's mentor and is nothing like Batman or his Beyond appearances prior to this series. The Hush mystery/Dick Grayson debacle is just the final straw. It'll take some serious work to redeem this series after this issue with only two issues left.

Tomasi gets these characters and continues his great Green Lantern Corps work in this new title. I'm still a little miffed at the lack of concrete details regarding Guy's mission and his secret meetings with Atrocitus which were the basis and build up leading into this new series, but I'm more than happy with what we're getting and am sure we'll learn more in time. Oh, as an aside, that cover image? Not really indicative of what happens in the issue. She only appears on the last page if you were buying it to see her in action.

This is just a fantastic issue from page one. The art is the main attraction and this is easily the best work from Clayton Crain that I've seen yet. His Ghost Rider leaps from every page and is a moment in and of itself everytime he is on page. On top of the art, we get a great story showing insights into Ghost Rider's character and how he will not be a slave to anyone, even if it kills him. Great done in one story that nails the character in every way.

All in all, I'm enjoying this miniseries a great deal. I wasn't sure what to expect from the new Power Man, but he's been compelling and Van Lente has done a great job introducing us to the character and building him up so far.

All in all, I really enjoyed this issue, but it has a middle issue feeling some decent moments, good characterization and art, but very little happens. Players were moved into position for the big conclusion next month and while I have anticipation for what will happen next, I almost feel like I could skip this issue and be fine going into the final part with how little plot sensitive material was here and that keeps this from a Must Read verdict for me. Don't let this slight negativity fool you though, it was still an excellent read and I still highly recommend it.

Great read that pushed the Star Sapphires in a new direction and redefined, at least for the time being, a character in much need of moving out of Hal's shadow. Great resolution of the Predator's nature and Larfleeze was, as usual, stealing every scene he was in. Finally, Mahnke's art was stellar in this issue. Top marks all around here.

Great dialogue, great action, beautiful art and just plain fun from cover to cover.

Overall, this issue was fairly average. I'm still enjoying it, but there are flaws that may hurt the event in the long run if they aren't corrected in future issues. Things like Daredevil's weak motivation or the senseless fighting with other heroes these make for an easy access event, but lack the depth and characterization necessary for an event of this size. I'm hoping the ongoing Daredevil can continue to compliment this series as it did with the first issue last month. If not, this could fizzle out quickly.

There's some minor issues with the ending that prevent me from outright proclaiming this a perfect issue, but Doomwar entertained and is the early favourite for best event of the year. It was epic in scope, self contained, filled with great character moments, and every issue delivered in spades. No decompression, no filler or fluffing up of the story for the trade just a well written and drawn comic that's been criminally ignored by the majority of comic fans.

Definitely a great read, but completely random and leaves readers hanging in regards to the main story that has been put on hold for two straight issues for what amount to filler issues. Secret Six fans will still love this issue despite the filler nature of it, but that's about it.

Great read with few complaints.

A truly fun comic that captuers the essence of the classic Silver Age tales while maintaining modern sensibilities. A great insight into the character of Lex Luthor and how he perceives himself and the world around him.

A Larfleeze centric issue that has him ranting about Santa Claus and making a wish list? How could this not be a Must Read? We even get to see the avarice entity in action. Great issue that continues a string of high quality, must read issues for Green Lantern.

While this is not Rise of Arsenal or One More Day level of bad, nothing happens here. You could skip this issue entirely and come back next month without missing a beat. I feel like I've wasted time reading it, despite not hating it or finding anything outright offensive about it. That's not how you should feel about a book you spent $3.99 on, so it gets an Avoid It from me.

I didn't much care for the short preview of this story found in issue 600, but this was an entertaining read that has a lot of potential for future stories. Reminds me a lot of JMS's work on Thor, which is a good thing, and this is very reader friendly with the focus on a new continuity and different enough that if you've never enjoyed Wonder Woman before, this might be a good book to try out for a different interpretation.

Peter misses his wedding because a fat guy fell on him. I repeat, Peter misses his wedding because a fat guy fell on him and he couldn't get up. This is why they don't get married. This was the great story that justifies the Brand New Day continuity and had to be told. Additionally, they butchered a classic story to tell this abomination of a comic.

It's a fun read and captures the essence of the Batman Beyond universe quite well. Beechen has a real grasp of Terry's character and the action and dialogue between him and the new Catwoman shows this. If you've any interest in Batman Beyond, you won't go wrong with this comic.

I really enjoy this comic. It started a bit slow with the first issue, but has really ramped up to Incredible Hercules level of quality and is a book I look forward to every month now. This was another strong issue with laughs, action and some great character moments. Everything I want and expect from this creative team and title.

Parker is doing some excellent character work with the new Thunderbolts team, but the inclusion of the old cast seems more for nostolgia's sake than story based at this time with their limited roles and page time. Story lacks a little direction, but the focus is on how the team works (or I guess we should say doesn't work) together, so this is forgiveable. Definitely worth checking out to see if you'll like this new iteration of the Thunderbolts and a book I'm still enjoying quite a bit.

A bit hasty and rushed, but otherwise, I enjoyed this issue. While I think there's some wasted potential with the various killings and resurrections, the story was good when it needed to be and delivered the action in spades. Not the best arc, but still recommended reading if you enjoy SpiderMan.

It's a good issue, but there's not much substance here. There's not even the usual Grant Morrison nuances in the writing or structure. It's like they dusted off some culled epilogue issue and pushed it out for a filler issue. It has its moments, but falls short of the standards set by most of Morrison's Batman and Robin issues.

The amount of things wrong with this issue are too many to enumerate. It is the worst Superman story I have ever personally read. It is one of the worst comics I have ever personally read. I don't know how a writer can write Superman so far off the mark as he was in this issue.

While it is just a straightforward action story, the painted art is worth the price of admission alone. But even looking past the art, I enjoyed the story a great deal as well. Like a great action flick in comic book format.

Still a solid story, but some miscues really dulled my enjoyment of this one compared to the previous two parts.

A solid first issue. I'm tempted to give it a higher rating, but there were some minor hiccups in this issue and it felt like a sort of reintroduction issue for past fans than a straight up story for anyone to pick up. It's also on a bimonthly schedule, barring delays, which are likely with Heinberg's record, and it might be a better choice to trade wait this one.

I didn't hate this issue and it's worth checking out to see if it interests you or if you are a fan of Maleev's art, but there's literally nothing I can tell you about the story. I don't know what the book is about, what is going to happen or anything I'd call substantial. Scarlet's boyfriend got killed by a cop and framed as a drug dealer. She's getting revenge. But not against the person who did it. She's taking down "all of it". With big guns. I think. Slow burns are nice and work with some well known characters, like how he joked about how long it took him to put Spider-Man in the costume in the Ultimate Universe, but when you don't know or care about the character, it doesn't work nearly as well. Trade wait this one or possibly avoid it if you aren't willing to stick around for something to hopefully happen.

Very good first issue to this arc. Enjoying the Lex Luthor centric story and looking forward to seeing how his quest for a power ring turns out.

Just another day at the office for Atmoic Robo is just another great issue of Atomic Robo for fans.

If you have any interest or fond memories of Batman Beyond, I think you'll really enjoy this issue. It's a great return for the franchise and I was quite impressed with the debut issue, despite my minor misgivings.

. Lobo vs the various Lanterns, DexStarr's origin, some of Doug Mahnke's best work on the title to date what's not to love about this issue?

It's a very solid second issue that I enjoyed, but it fell short of the bar set by the fantastic debut issue. Decompression and some minor inconsistencies and characterization left me slightly underwhelmed at times, but I'm still quite happy with the title and recommend checking it out.

SpiderMan dies. I'm not sure what defines a must read comic for most people, but I think this one fits the bill. It also helps that this was another compelling chapter of Grim Hunt with the great swerve with Ezekiel and it's a comic you should be reading.

If you're still on the fence with this series, this issue should decide it for you. It maintains the Elsewoldslike theme while moving the overarching plot forward. While still pretty light on the details, you can get a sense for where Morrison is taking this and it makes for a more compelling read than previous issues in that regard.

A good read that was a solid improvement over their debut issue last month. Not a perfect issue, but enjoyable and I'm expecting big things with next month's issue now that Cyborg Superman is back in the mix.

In the end, while I didn't hate this issue, I didn't overly enjoy it like previous ones either. It just sort of went through the paces, almost like it was killing time (yes, a time travel joke, sorry) or padding for a trade. The momentum of previous issues is lost and none of the promise on that previous cliffhanger was delivered. The heroes seem to fight the Deathloks the same way they did previously, despite major upgrades and we're back to roughly the exact same spot we ended at last issue.

I had some minor issues with the story, particularly the end, but it was a top notch effort all around in both writing and art and the extras provided with the backup stories were all value added content that no one will look at as pure filler or wasted pages. Great start to a long awaited storyline.

This issue really nailed the new Lizard concept down and capped off a strong storyline leading into Grim Hunt. Easily one of my favourite Lizard stories and one of the best SpiderMan arcs in years.

The only imperative you need concern yourself with is finding a copy of this issue. An event comic done right and one you won't want to miss out on.

Good issue, but didn't agree with the direction they went with the Lizard or the addition of new powers to him. Put a damper on what was looking like an instant classic story, but not so much that it ruins or makes it unreadable or anything.

This issue was another great read and I could see this event being one of the best of the year at this rate. I love the self contained nature of it and the focus on Dr Doom. The inclusion of various other heroes, such as the Fantastic Four and XMen, also gives it an epic feeling and no tieins or other excess baggage makes it a compelling and satsifying read every time.

Despite my early complaints about the repeating Brightest Day scene, I really enjoyed this issue and the Atrocitus and DexStarr moments are worth buying the issue for alone.

Solid debut issue for Tony Bedard and Adrian Syaf. I'll miss Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason, but I don't see me dropping this title over their departure and expect it to continue to be a favourite of mine.

If they were looking to build hype and add a level of "OH $%!&!!!" to this event, mission accomplished. Starts off a little slow as they catch people up to speed on the current status of the cosmic universe, but quickly ramps up and ends with a bang.

Don't wait for the trade on this series, you'll regret it. It grabs you immediately and doesn't let go. Can't recommend this new series enough. It's a fantastic start and unlike any Avengers title you've ever read.

As of right now, it's three issues in and, much like Countdown and Trinity, I don't foresee this storyline going anywhere for another 20 issues and I am not willing to sit around reading two and three pages of individual stories every second week for the next year as we wait for some imagined pay off down the road. Comics should be good every issue. There shouldn't be some carrot dangled in front of the reader or creators/fans telling us to sit tight because it'll get better later on.

As anthologies can be very hit or miss for each individual reader, it's likely others will enjoy the content of this issue more than I did. There's also the desire for some to support teh impetus behind this anthology's creation and to show Marvel you'd like to see more female creators getting work. As such, I'm giving this a Check It there's some unique content here that should appeal to a broad range of readers, but, personally, I felt this was a rather weak issue compared to the first.

Another fantastic reintroduction of one of Spidey's rogue gallery members and one of the best Lizard stories I've read in a long time.

Just a lot of fun to read. Few comics will put a smile on your face like this one did for me.

Four poorly written issues with a rushed execution and a plethora of tieins just so they could retcon Civil War and all characterization for the Avengers to get them back to preBendis era status quo. It's like One More Day except for the Avengers.

What started out strong ends on a bit of a low note. I had high expectations going in, so that may account for my disappointment, but I don't regret my purchase of this arc and still think it had its moments and was an above average story. I think I was hoping for Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut 2 and set the bar too high though.

No Annihilus, but still an engaging read with some stunning art.

Suffers slightly from being an epilogue issue, but is extremely strong when it counts with some powerful moments from the varied cast of characters that make up the Green Lantern Corps.

Excellent issue with lots of interesting developments on both Hydra and Nick Fury's sides, but is brought down slightly by what I view as a mischaracterization for one of the Secret Warriors.

Don't see any reason to recommend this issue. You'll likely read worse written, but this is a Siege tiein with no real impact or tangiable connection to the event and for those Secret Warriors fans out there, it has little to nothing to do with that book either and the characters don't act like they do in that book, despite being by the same author.

While I used Countdown in my comparison, note that it is nowhere near Countdown-level of bad. The story was just laid out like an issue of Countdown in the format. It looks better and is written well, but the 'spine of the DC Universe' format it seems to be using killed my interest in the project. Will give it a couple of issues to win me over and dissuade my fears.

Loving this series and it's a real sleeper hit in my eyes. Give it a look if you still are sitting on the fence or at least consider grabbing the trade.

However, as I said, Hal Jordan's scenes were boring. He has a personality made out of cardboard and his only memorable moments are those in which you could substitute any Green Lantern (Kyle, Guy or John) into his role and the outcome would be the same. His interactions with Carol are boring and devoid of emotion (no, that's not some pun). Keep the focus on the Green Lantern mythos and ancillary characters and I'm happy. Just keep the plot moving. When it slows down for these moments with Hal's personal life, it's just painful to read.

Overall, it's a solid read, but have reservations about Bullseye and his place in the MAX-verse.

Every once in a while, a comic comes out that you know is special from the minute you open the first page. SHIELD is one of these comics, but I'll be damned if I can tell you exactly what it's about. It's like a secret history of the world that actually delivers on that billing.

In addition to the focus on Catman, we have yet another splintering of the team, this time with Bane and Jeannette staying together with Jean promising to help recruit four more "monsters and perverts" to help fill their promised contracts. The rest of the team went off to help and/or stop Blake. I'm not really sure which, but enjoyed the concern from Deadshot. Another great moment from the issue.

All in all, a solid read that, while offers little to the Siege story (unless the Disir and other deals with Hela and Mephisto show up in the final issue of Siege), is still an entertaining and highly enjoyable read in its own right.

Entertaining, but devoid of any real lasting impact or emotion. A typical, yet slightly toned down Mark Millar story that had it's high points, but never really hits those classic Ultimates moments.

Very strong opening issue to this storyline. Loved the art and story and highly recommend picking it up.

I loved the Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps issues of this event. They were extremely well done. This...thing...though? No, I can't recommend it. It's the antithesis of good storytelling and the equivilent of Michael Bay's Transformers movies. Some action and eye candy along the way, but an empty and vapid venture nonetheless.

. Excellent issue and probably one of Hickman's strongest yet. Feels like what a Fantastic Four issue should be cosmic adventure and exploring new races and worlds. One minute they're sipping tea, the next they are on a rocket to the Moon and meeting new alien races. Never feels forced or like they are shoehorning new races into the backstory.

Neither great nor terrible, this is a relatively straightforward SpiderMan story that, while has its flaws, is otherwise satisfying.

I doubt anyone will complain about this issue, as it is enjoyable, but it's also quite circular, ending where it began, and that makes it feel like filler to me. Definitely worth checking out, but I don't think you'll be missing anything, storywise, if you skip it either.

Or, at the very least, wait for the trade if you are still interested. Like most Millar stories, this has a good premise and concept, but it lacks any kind of subtlty or execution. Should make for an entertaining movie, but it's seriously lacking on the comic book side of things.

Very good issue marred by a few hiccups. Fiumara is an excellent artist and his image of the original Rhino back in action was amazing and worth the price of admission alone. The entire Rhino storyline, save the cause and reasons for his return to action, was top notch and, while I disagree with how they made him come back to crime, I still thoroughly enjoyed the issue and highly recommend it.

Review aside, I didn't hate this issue. It's biggest flaw is the timing of the story and the general feeling that Tomasi already told his story, the Battle of Oa, and is now just killing time with the standard tiein storyline all the Blackest Night tieins have been throwing together. Where it was an essential part of the story in previous months, it's merely a filler issue this time around.

While it IS one of those requiem issues we usually associate with a quick cash grab on the heels of a death, it's actually quite entertaining and one of the better Hercules issues in recent months, despite the main characters' absence.

If you made it this far, you know I don't like this event and nothing anyone says will change that. Every little thing adds up to grate on me. I can see why people like it, I can see why they are enjoying it and I know many of my complaints are overblown and nitpicking/Comic Book Guylevel whining. I can't help it, but feel I've explained the majority of the things that bother me about this issue to the best of my ability and believe that they are valid complaints. Whether they bother you or not or if you put as much weight on them as I do is up to you. Personally, I just can't enjoy this issue or event on any level other than the superficial.

Really, it's like night and day between this and the previous few issues. I'm so glad I forgot to have the book removed from my pull list at the shop. Otherwise, I would have missed out on possibly the best issue of the series so far and a return to the greatness of the opening arc of this title. As a bonus, it's assuaged any fears about whether I'd enjoy it or hesitation in I had regarding picking up the upcoming Return of Bruce Wayne. Highly recommended issue.

Forgettable is just about the worst thing I can say about any story driven purchase, whether it be a movie, book or comic. Inability to engage a reader on any level is a failure to me. So, while technically sound in both writing and art, I can't recommend this issue on any creative or entertainment level.

Entertaining read from a collection of talented creators with a diverse range of styles and influences that makes for a fun and engaging read that is sure to have something of note for even the most reluctant reader.

My favourite stories are where we get to know the characters or sit on in those quiet or private moments where we see a different aspect of them. This issue had that in abundance as Wolverine and Cap went for a night on the town. The added intrigue and mystery of the Deathloks objective make for a promising start to this arc and capped off another great issue of this series.

Yes, I just wrote like a 1000 words lambasting how text was displayed and criticizing the fact Batman helped kill a woman that was injured with the plan being he'd just revive her in a magic pool of water that was buried under tonnes of rock with no guarantee of her being saved and I'm still giving this a Check It instead of outright Avoid It rating. Why? Because I still enjoyed it and think less anal, OCD people will be able to look past those, and other minor, failings to see this is still a solid read. And there's always Cameron Stewart's beautiful art to fall back on.

A compelling read that is tightly paced and brings together some, but not all, of the many subplots of past issues while continuing to develop Hydra and its inner circle into a credible threat for the first time in, well, ever. This is a series you should be reading.

My book of the week and a fantastic start to another volume of Atomic Robo. With the promise of Dr Dinosaur, a trip to Japan and more in future issues of this volume, I can't imagine this not being the best volume of Atomic Robo yet.

Great miniseries that builds upon Blackest Night, adds to it and also tells its own story. Some interesting implications for Brightest Day and the beginnings of what I believe will be another Rogues return to prominence in the upcoming Flash monthly. This has me more excited for that new ongoing than Rebirth has, so if you've been on the fence about Barry's return, pick up this series to change your opinion on him.

While on one hand, I think this is actually a pretty solid issue with fantastic art and even some great character moments, the plot and where it lines up with Siege, something it's listed as a tiein to, just doesn't work for me and pulled me out of the issue, resulting in me questioning everything about it. Good stories shouldn't do that.

Enjoyable issue that did not disappoint. Seeing things like Parallax rip the face off of the Spectre, literally, or Larfleeze and Lex Luthor interacting were as good as you can imagine and the issue just feels like an event in and of itself. Few minor hiccups near the end, but otherwise fine job by everyone involved.

I want to love this, but it's a clear throttling back of the title compared to previous issues and felt like Tomasi just had to get everyone back into position for the conclusion to Blackest Night. Did not care for the convenient reusing of Mogo to solve all their problems with little to no consequences for the second month in a row either.

It's pure fun. Loved every minute of this issue. It's the kind of fun you can only have with a SpiderMan comic and an issue I can see myself rereading again and again.

In the end, though, Secret Six is always about the characters for me. Each has a unique voice and they all play off each so well that it's a joy to read each month. They could, and have, sat around talking for some issues, even gone to strip clubs and nights on the town, and Simone has made it work. With Ostrander helping out now, it's just gotten that much better.

Overall, I can say that I enjoyed this issue, but there were a lot of flaws. It goes from the break neck pace at the start to a nearstop as it dragged its way to a conclusion at the end. Many of the major events are telegraphed and happen simply to move the story along. It's a pretty book, thanks to Coipel, and an improvement over the first that should appeal to most, but the pacing really hurt my enjoyment of the issue.

I'm not saying this is Final Crisislevel of channel zapping or that you will not understand this comic. It is, actually, quite a straight forward tale. However, you will have to work for it and may even want to reread it again just to make sure you got it all straight in your head. Like all Grant Morrison stories, I think this will make for a much better trade read, though this is still a very good read.

I missed Daredevil when I ended up boycotting Brubaker's run for his treatment of Matt's marriage and fridging of his wife. It's great to be reading it again and Diggle is certainly making his mark on a series that has been defined by a veritable who's who list of writers before him.

. A good issue that continues to build up Batwoman. Batman is starting to make appearances, but it still feels like Kate's book. A bit of a paintbynumbers, cookiecutter plot, but I liked the detective parts of this story showing the contrasting methods of Batman and Batwoman. Solid effort all around.

This issue turns the dial up to eleven from the get go and doesn't let up until the very end. A fantastic read that defines why everyone loves the Marvel cosmic titles.

I really enjoy this series, even despite its faults, but cannot overlook them in a review either. I believe they may read better in a trade, but, as a monthly, these numerous converging plots feel bloated and unwieldly and leave me feeling a bit unsatisfied with how disjoint the story reads, which I likened to an anthology book with numerous barely related stories making up the issue.

Considering how Gillen was forced to pick up the pieces of an aborted run by JMS, it's a testament to his ability that this arc turned out as good as it did and it manages to offer up a much more satisfying conclusion to the JMS era than JMS himself did while still being accessible to readers new and old alike. Great issue, great arc, great fun all around.

With a $1 cover price, it's hard not to pick this up. Add two amazing creators, an interesting, though not perfect premise, and this is a very solid setup issue. I'm a little disappointed with the revelation of how this fantastic world comes to pass, but am looking forward to the journey we're about to set out on.

This issue, combined with the previous two by Fred Van Lente and Javier Pulido, are the perfect examples of how to do a SpiderMan comic. Peter is likeable for the first time in years (yes, years), SpiderMan is lighthearted and fun to watch, Peter's supporting cast has been interesting and, most importantly, they aren't rubbing the whole Brand New Day status quo in our face. Aside from the lack of a marriage, these issues could have taken place at any point in Spidey's history and been just as good. Why can't every issue be like these ones?

This will be an important event, or as important as any event can be in setting up the status quo for the next event, and you should probably keep up to date on what happens. However, this issue offers nothing new for readers. Read a solicit, summary or review? Saw a few scans online or read the 8page preview in the back of several leadin issues? That's all you really need to know. Olivier Coipel's art is really the only thing worth buying this issue for and even that doesn't make up for such a paintbynumbers event.

The deputizing of multiple Earthbased heroes and villains was pure pandering and I loved it, but it doesn't really make up for the first half of this issue, which ignored everything from last issue and just recapped the previous issues for us. In fact, I'm left wondering if we'll just ignore these deputized heroes like the "dead" heroes from last issue or Nekron from the reveal in the issue before that. However, with a skip month in place for this event, I'm left wanting more after this issue, which is a good thing I think.

Don't give too many of these to Amazing SpiderMan anymore, but I think this twoparter deserves it on the strength of the story and art and the fact it's an instant classic SpiderMan story that I'm sure I'll be rereading in the years to come.

A lot of negatives listed, but, ignoring the Sentry powerup, I didn't hate this issue. It's pretty straight forward and concludes abruptly, but great art, some interesting character developments for Hand and Osborn and bonus points for not dragging this out for six issues.

If you aren't following this series, I implore you to pick it up or at least pencil the trade into your future purchases. You've missed out on something special by skipping this series and it will change how you view Ares as a character, especially if Bendis's Avengers titles are the only times you've seen the character.

If you have interest in the Clone Saga, you probably read the original. Stick with that. For morbid curiousity, just flip through it for some nostolgia at the shop. While not terrible, nothing really worthwhile to see here either.

Even if you weren't a fan of JMS's Thor, you should be reading this. How often do you get to see Thor and Dr Doom throw down like this? How often is Dr Doom written so perfectly? And how often does someone pick up the pieces of an aborted, yet critically acclaimed run and cap it off so perfectly? Buy this issue. You won't regret it.

Excellent read and unlike anything you'll read in mainstream super hero comics. A creepy, dark and twisted story that answers a lot of lingering questions from earlier issues of the arc, but at the expense of that same creepy atmosphere they were building. Still top notch work. Highly recommended.

. While I enjoyed this issue more than the previous chapters of Necrosha, I'm still not sold on the event yet. This issue felt more like the event was just starting and that things are finally moving beyond the Blackest Nightlike "bad guy comes back from dead, fight breaks out" stage that the first two parts were, so there's potential for this to really start ramping up from here.

These last two issues of Green Lantern Corps have turned the Blackest Night event on its ear and I'm willing to call these "tieins" the main event. Must read for everyone, Green Lantern fan or not.

Only good thing I can really say about this issue is that this story is over. Oh, and the political meta nonsense from previous issues was toned down/restricted to the opening part of the story, so I guess that was good, too.

. These holiday specials are fun, but hardly essential for most comic fans. This issue, in particular, has several good stories, but the vast majority are fun, yet forgettable. I was coming in hoping for that one or two great stories that previous specials had and this one delivered on that end, so I was pleased with the purchase,but many will be turned off by the hefty pricetag.

It finishes up what was a strong start last issue in a disappointing fashion, but I'm more upset with the wasted potential than the actual quality of the writing or art. This could have been so much more, but it comes off as a rushed bandaid to get back to the main plot of the series. REBELS fans will probably love that, but I think the point of this tiein was to convince others to continue buying it. This did not.

Great issue with lots of fun moments, from the team's bonding time in the strip club to Ragdoll's reactions to being called "all kinda hot" and just how every one reacted to the new team member's sudden appearance. I would have liked some more followup to Simone's last issue, where the Scandal was kicked off the team (she's still here, but not "active" as a Six member), but it's hard to complain when it's an issue as good as this one was.

I liked the character work Johns did with Barry Allen here. Much better than the work I've seen in Flash Rebirth. I could see myself reading a book about this Barry Allen. However, that's not enough to warrant the same, repetitive Blackest Night formula for this story that every other tiein has been based around.

If you like what Bendis is doing with NohVar or have no feelings one way or the other about the character from Marvel Boy, you'll probably rate this issue a little higher than I do. It's a pretty solid effort from both Bendis and Ramos, but I just can't look past what they've done with NohVar.

Give this a look at the shop or check a few scans in the upcoming Moments of the Week. There's nothing really to see here and all you need to know is the Cabal had a spat, Osborn and Loki caused a Civil Warlike incident using Volstagg and some Dlist villains and now we get another major event. Lark's art and how Doom strikes back at Osborn are probably the only really good parts to this issue and not worth buying for.

Great first issue by Gillen. I know he's only on for a brief arc here, but I look forward to future work on the book from him. Tan's art was also a pleasant surprise. Didn't expect it to be that good.

First issue that felt like it was required reading, which is odd when you consider this is the main event book. Lots of action and some great reveals and character moments marred by jarring art and the same lack of Green Lantern focus for the event that previous issues had.

I was tempted to give this a Must Read like the previous issue, but it read more like a straight up origin with few shocks or draws. It's well written and Williams is still fantastic on art, but not nearly as powerful as the previous issue. Still highly recommended though.

Great read that hit a lot of the right notes for me. I wanted to see all of these different corps bouncing off of each other and how the different personalities would react to one another. Finding out Atrocitus' history and backstory or how Abin Sur is Saint Walker's "savior" and other little details about each character and their relationships to one another was great. While not the heaviest on action, it's definitely one of the better issues of Blackest Night to date.

As I said, it's a fun doneinone story about a date between Ms Marvel and SpiderMan and all that that entails. There's some mild super heroics mixed in to liven it up and the awkwardness between the two on the date was fun to read. Nothing I'd rush back to the comic shop to pick up, but if you've got some spare cash and/or enjoy SpiderMan stories, you may want to grab this for a solid read.

Average story with above average art. Great backup, though I imagine it would be difficult for those jumping right into it. It kepts Streets of Gotham on our radar instead of delaying it due to other committments on Dini's part, but I can't say I'm not looking forward to Dini's return next month.

Things were going so smoothly for Adventure Comics with some nice, if not the meatiest, stories following Superboy and Legion related offerings. Shame Blackest Night rolled up and brought Prime into the mix.

I'm not sure how many people would be willing to buy a book simply for a short backup story, so I'll leave it as a Check It, but I, personally, would buy it simply for more Joe Kelly and J.K. Nimura SpiderMan. A pleasant surprise that caught me off guard and really made the issue for me whereas the Gauntlet story went south quickly.

Very entertaining read that acts as both a doneinone team up with Deadpool and progresses the overarching subplot with Kraven's family and the upcoming Gauntlet. I just wish more issues could be like this one.

Andy Diggle & Roberto De La Torre are taking this book in a whole new direction and I'm just happy to be along for the ride. Can't wait to see what happens next.

It's hard to believe Kyle iss dead, but it capped off a truly special issue of Green Lantern Corps that you absolutely, unequivocally, need to read. Easily one of, if not the best single issue of the year and something you'll be kicking yourself over having not read.

. Solid debut issue that hooks you with a unique twist on a villain everyone is familiar with, but in a MAX setting.

Sadly, the future for this series seems to be more of the same with a decided focus on the rest of the Imperial Guard and Gladiator as a bit player. This intro issue didn't really impress me enough to recommend this a great deal, but I'm giving it a Check It for the upcoming Fault expedition, our first indepth look at just what it is and entails, and the possibility for more Talon and Gladiator offerings. Fans of Nova and Guardians will enjoy this, but those on a budget can feel safe avoiding it and won't miss anything.

When the issue settles down and tells a consistent narrative for a sequence of events, such as the return of Banshee or the previously mentioned resurrection of Genosha, it's quite good and an organic series of events. However, poor art and a constant parade of dead characters returning for a panel at a time hurts that momentum.

Just about everything about this conclusion was awful and I can't even put to words my disappointment with how this debacle turned out. They had a golden opportunity to reintroduce some of the better parts of the Clone Saga and turned into into a complete waste of paper. Even me, a Clone Saga fan, does not even want to see any more of this garbage if this is the best they can muster.

The negatives seem to overpower this quick shot review, but I did enjoy this issue. I just felt that not much happened to drive this "event" (more of an extension of the nowcancelled Ghost Rider series) forward and I was a bit confused over the villains and their powers. However, I imagine longtime Ghost Rider readers are loving it as I'm still quite impressed with what I see here.

Ostrander tells a safe character driven story that fleshes out Deadshot's past for readers unfamiliar with it, but it also reads unlike what Secret Six fans are accustomed to and is more like a oneshot for Deadshot than a continuation of the series. After the bombshell conclusion to last issue, I was disappointed there was no follow up here, too. All in all, a good story, but not up to typical Secret Six standards either.

While I personally enjoyed the issue a great deal, I'm only giving it a Check It for the simple fact that it fails to accomplish what I perceived as the objective of the oneshot to sell people on the concept of this new event and get new readers on board. Hercules fans and most that pick it up will likely enjoy the book, but enough to buy into an event?

More present day than actual origin story, which disappointed me, but the six or so pages of origin were fantastic, especially in terms of art. I like Black Widow, but have never really read her origin before, so was looking forward to that aspect. Wish it had been played up more than it was.

I'm going to hold off on a Must Read verdict until we see where the Phobos plot goes and how it lines up with other storylines first. I'm also leaving the bar a little higher so that future issues have the ability to wow me even more than this opening salvo did. I had so much fun reading this one, I can't wait for the next chapter.

The Amadeus Cho half of the Incredible Hercules more than carries its weight with the final chapter of the Pythogoras Dupree storyline. Shocking ending that had a lot of emotion considering I don't particularly care for the Cho character and Dupree is relatively new. While both Herc and Cho have proven to be capable on their own, I'm looking forward to seeing them meet up again after their time apart. Great issue. Buy it.

Nowhere near the disaster everyone expected the series to be and I like the concept and friendships between these characters that was established, but the cancer subplot and subsequent trip to Hell and other nonsense really took me out of the story. If they had kept it to the slice of life with the realistic portrayal of the cancer, yes, I'd be all over this and recommending it to everyone.

Not a fan of where they're going with the Jackal, as I thought that was where the slippery slope started in the original, and the time skip was a bit confusing piecing together at first, but I like how they've streamlined several aspects, particularly Ben's life and his cousin relationship with Peter. Good second effort overall.

I like Millar's Ultimates and this is him in his element. If he had time to introduce characters in shorter bursts like he did in the original Ultimates, I think the problems with this issue in particular would not be as apparent, but I'm willing to overlook them for the time being since I enjoyed the issue on the whole.

Aaron plays his cards close to his chest in this opening issue to the new arc and we're only just starting to see the insanity behind this insane asylum. Looking forward to seeing how this story progresses as we go on.

To be honest, this is an event book you could probably skip and still enjoy the event just as much by reading the "tieins" that are Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps. Blackest Night is still a good book and accomplishes what DC wants to do with it, but I think it's failing as a Green Lantern story. This is more like a Blackest Night DCU tiein than the main event to me. Take that one or two pages of Nekron's reveal out and you wouldn't think twice about calling it a tiein. That's pretty telling for the main event title for the event.

A surprisingly good read. I'm not sure if I'll follow up on Frankencastle or not just yet, but the preview for it looked good and Remender impressed me here. I may just put money towards the trade for the Punisher vs Hood stuff instead of following up on the Franken stuff, but we'll see. However, this is a great, done in one that most should be easily able to pick up and enjoy.

Ignoring the backup, which I view as merely a "free" extra, the Batwoman part of this issue was absolutely stunning and a must read by any definition of the word.

A few hiccups here and there, but an otherwise rock solid read that hits all the right notes for me.

I'm tempted to say avoid this issue, but there is promise for this event and I'm still going to pick up the XForce issues and varous oneshots related to it, but as a oneshot issue to kick off the event, this really did nothing for me and didn't sell me on a single storyline from the other titles. If you have any interest in the event though, you may want to pick this up to see which of the stories intrigues you and decide on what you see here.

Nothing ground breaking in this arc, but it's a solid effort from everyone involved.

For a filler issue, I was actually satisfied with the effort and don't regret my purchase. Would have been nice to see some nods to Dini's ongoing subplots, but otherwise happy with it.

A very strong opening issue to this arc and one of Bendis's best from a character standpoint. He's done a great job on the premise and setup of this story and it has me looking forward to seeing how he resolves the threat in future issues.

A completely forgettable comic that is the poster boy of why I've been having trouble getting into the Brand New Day era of comics. Was hoping it would follow the lead of the enjoyable RedHeaded Stranger arc and focus on new stories and growth of the characters. Instead, it's a regression to the past.

I'm not really sure what to think of this issue or miniseries. It seems like it's lost all direction and has gone off the rails, wavering between a serious take on cancer, and how it can affect even super heroes, and the super hero version of Sex and the City.

Despite the number of negatives on this quick shot review, I still enjoyed this issue quite a bit. In fact, the negatives are mostly nitpicking on my part. Not the best issue of Secret Warriors, but definitely a solid read worth checking out.

While there are problems with this issue that prevent it from being a must read in my eyes, it's still quite clearly a great comic; just not up to the lofty standards this series has set for itself.

. I'm quite pleased with Aaron's first arc on Weapon X and it's the first time in a long time that a Wolverine title has grabbed me like this one has. While this issue is only a Check It, the arc as a whole is a Must Read. Grab the trade if you've been on the fence about this series. You won't regret it.

22pages of nonstop adrenline rush that is tightly paced and beautifully rendered. Take your favourite Sinestro Corps War issue and this will more than likely blow it out of the water. Excellent job by all involved.

It's a remake of an infamous storyline from the 90's at a $3.99 pricepoint. That's probably quite off putting for most people, but, if you have the extra cash on hand, it's not nearly as bad as most would expect and, my love of the Clone Saga aside, this is actually a very solid, well put together opening issue.

Horrible handling of female characters, inexplicable appearance and behaviour of Black Cat and a retread of past stories beyond the standard Brand New Dayera level of rehashing. Just about everything here could have been handled in a better way.

Despite some concerns about the storyline on the whole, this was probably the strongest issue of Detective Comics since Rucka and Williams debuted on the book. However, Willaims is clearly the main draw at this point, though Rucka isn't exactly dragging his feet either.

Very, very solid start to Hickman's and Eaglesham's run on Fantastic Four and each issue has been better than the previous so far. Would like to see more of the other Fantastic Four members, but also understand it's only two issues into the run and there's time to explore them later.

While I liked this issue, I'm not willing to give it a very high verdict for the simple reason reason that it felt like filler. Enjoyable filler, but filler nonetheless. Give us some plot progression with these fun character moments and we can talk next month.

This was just too unique and too much fun not to give a Must Read verdict. It works as a single issue and as something for longtime readers, so don't be afraid to just jump right in on this issue. Crazy fun that you can only see in comic books.

Nothing new to see here. Move along or pick up the trade if you want a Superman origin for your shelf. No point wasting money on the singles.

Great read from start to finish that wraps up the Shadows From Beyond Time volume of Atomic Robo. Action, comedy and a strong concluding chapter for my favourite volume of Atomic Robo to date.

I wanted to like this new Batgirl series. Stephanie was given the cowl and one of the few people I was willing to accept as the new Batgirl, Oracle looked like she was going to return to a mentor status like she did with Cassandra and I was sure with Steph's friendship with Cass we'd see some follow up on why she quit and gave the costume to Steph. What we get is weak writing, poor plots, Oracle acting snide and snarky and Cassandra completely ignored in favour of poorly written and forced college scenes.

A steep decline in quality, both in writing and artwork, for what had been some of the best Batman work in over a decade. I'm hoping this is only a temporary set back for the title as it's just pedestrian work right now. At least Morrison's preBatman and Robin work was interesting and unique, if not something I cared for. This is just dull and uninspired in comparison to that and the past three issues of this series.

I really enjoyed this issue. Even if you aren't following the title, it's a great doneinone that still has threads that tie into past issues and lead into future ones. Worth picking up just to know the origin of all those crazy amusement parks and rundown villain hideouts.

. I didn't want to write a full review of this because, well, I'm completely apathetic about it now. Loved ones come back from the dead, say mean things and kill people. Rinse and repeat. Same story for three issues and a dozen or so tieins. Yawn.

Good premise, solid start, but weak finish. Fails to sell people on the new status quo and poor choice of artist for the style of this character made an uneven book that just petered out in the end. Preview for next issue of Daredevil more than makes up for it though.

Unless you just want to see Hawkeye act completely out of character, rant and rave about killing people and go off half cocked to kill Osborn and get captured in the process, there's nothing worth seeing or reading here. Story feels forced to propel this List "event" forward.

There's some good dialogue and beautiful art in the Superboy part of the book, but it fails to address the previous year of in story time and events in favour of getting the two characters back together. With Johns and Manapul off the book with issue six, I may just drop the title as well.

Solid ending to an all around good arc, which was one of the first BND era SpiderMan stories to, well, feel like a SpiderMan story to me.

I'm not completely disenfranchised with the Blackest Night yet and this issue wasn't nearly as bad as my more general commentary on the state of Blackest Night so far would have you believe, but I am holding out that things shift away from all this death and repeat deadlovedonesencounter stories that we've been getting nonstop in every tiein and issue of the event so far.

Just a fun return to the Ultimates from Millar and, slow pacing and comic book tropes aside, something I enjoyed for no real reason I can put into words other than it was fun to read.

It's a whole different ballgame from the original Ultimate SpiderMan and I'm still trying to wrap my head around the changes, most of which I'm finding myself disliking on some level, but it's still a good comic that most will enjoy.

Was hoping this would be as entertaining as Pak's last run on Incredible Hulk, but it was a really slow issue that wasted a lot of time on exposition and recaps instead of establishing a plot to grab readers. I'm going to pass on anymore of this series unless I start hearing Planet Hulklike praise for it.

This was a wonderful conclusion to the Pyg storyline and he's an excellent addition to the Batman rogue's gallery that I hope isn't forgotten once Morrison's run ends. Disappointed to see Quitely off the book for the next six months, but it's better than constant delays, too.

Fantastic series that does just about everything right, including a great ending to a premise we all knew the ending (or the basic outline of it) to already.

A great series that reestablishes Elektra, tells us why the Skrulls wanted her first and gives us the exact timeframe of when she was captured. While the miniseries was probably not needed to reveal these simple facts, it was a whirlwind of a ride that was filled with great moments and just fun to read from start to finish.

Beautiful art that is worth buying the issue for on its own. Story is going in a direction I don't like, but I seem to be in the minority based on other online reviews, so your mileage may vary.

Not a perfect issue, but a good Fantastic Four issue. More in line with classic interpretations of the team and personalities than the more over the top Millar work.

I rarely drop miniseries or events midway through, but I came in looking for more of the Barry Allen from Final Crisis, not the grimdark Saint Barry version, and was curious if Johns could recapture the magic from his original run on Flash. Sadly, this event seems to be aimed directly at a very distinct minority of Flash fans moreso than a catch all reboot/launch of the Flash franchise like Green Lantern Rebirth was. Shame.

My only real complaint is the squandered potential the War of Light had and nonstop focus on killings and Black Lanterns so far. Otherwise, this was a spectacular chapter to the event.

Once the story got moving, it was interesting, but I just don't care for Cho. He's just Herc's smart sidekick and having entire issues dedicated to him doesn't click with me.

Was hoping this would be as entertaining as Pak's last run on Incredible Hulk, but it was a really slow issue that wasted a lot of time on exposition and recaps instead of establishing a plot to grab readers. I'm going to pass on anymore of this series unless I start hearing Planet Hulklike praise for it.

Probably the best issue of Nova this year, which is saying a lot considering how good this book typically is. Strong from start to finish. Highly recommended.

Brubaker and Lark go out with a bang with what has been the best of these renumbered anniversary issues from Marvel. I loved the additions to the Daredevil mythos which add to without diminishing other writer's contributions over the years, as well as the new status quo that showed great care in keeping Matt's old life and loved ones safe and sound (most would just kill them off hamfistedly) while still putting Matt in a bold new direction that will be a lot of fun to follow. Top notch issue and highly recommended.

I almost wish Chameleon could stay as Peter. He was quite entertaining in the role. I'd also hate to be Peter when he finds out about everything Chameleon did as him. That's going to be one bad day. However, ending to this arc looks like it will be a predictable conclusion. Will save judgement until next issue though.

I can't think of a single bad thing to say about this issue. Perfect blend of comedy, action, SCIENCE! and plot progression that reminds me why I love this series so much.

Mild complaints aside, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this issue. One of the stronger Batman Reborn relaunch issues. Wanted to see more on Cassie and why she quit, but will with hold judgement on that for a few issues as they establish this new status quo.

Despite not liking how Batman and Robin handled Hush's usurping of Bruce Wayne's identity, this was still a very solid outing for Streets of Gotham.

Many will be turned off by the 'out of continuity' or 'unimportant' nature of the story, others will dislike the simulation copout to Grodd's ruling the world, but I quite enjoyed this type of story. It was a tad short, but definitely worth the ride. Haven't checked solicits, but I wouldn't mind seeing a few more Batman worst case scenario simulations over the next few issues.

Few comics are just plain fun from start to finish like this one was. It really does capture the essence of what makes Wolverine a great character and I'm not even someone that particularly cares for him in the first place. Garney deserves some kind of award for his work on these last few issues, too. Just stellar stuff.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. While a tad slow for a first issue, if you have the slightest interest in Superboy or the Legion, you should probably be buying this first issue.

Odd transition from last issue to this Chameleon centric arc. Was hoping for more Mary Jane/Peter interaction (or, at least some interaction). Was actually one of the better Brand New Day issues I've read for the simple fact it didn't feel like a BND issue. It was just a SpiderMan comic to me, which was the first time it's felt like that in a long time.

Very little progression in terms of plot and a tad excessive in the violence and gore department, but an otherwise entertaining issue.

If this had come out the same week as Blackest Night #1, I'd probably be more enthusiastic about the issue, but a month later seeing the same content from the first issue of the event, on the same day as the second issue comes out, is a bit trying. Nothing was followed up on in issue two of Blackest Night either, so I assume we'll have to wait yet another month for the follow up.

Last few issues had been average fair, but this was a return to form for one of my favourite titles.

I'm not hating this book, but I'm not completely enthralled by it either. Will stick with it for the duration, as it hasn't gone off the rails and is treating the cancer subplot with some respect.

While not a perfect issue, I quite enjoyed it and recommend it to everyone. It's a tad slow and dense, but never completely overwhelming and will reward future reads, especially when the series is complete. Trade wait it might be a better recommendation, but I think it will read well in singles, too.

Is this as good as Ultimates 1 and 2? I'm not sure, but I'm giving it a Must Read for the simple reason that the nightmare is finally over and we can have some good Ultimates style comics again.

Overall, I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it's mostly same old, same old for Ultimate SpiderMan. Sorry, Ultimate Comics SpiderMan. Add a $1 increase in price to the book and I'm almost tempted to switch to trades for it. However, it's still the same, consistently good Ultimate SpiderMan we loved prior to Ultimatum, so feel free to jump back on with no worries.

Aside from my nerdraging over a little thing like SpiderMan drinking alcohol, the issue was the atypical Brand New Day story. It looks and feels like a SpiderMan story, has the creative talent behind it and will definitely appeal to fans of the status quo, but, as a long time reader, I still can't get into this and it just doesn't feel like the book is 'for me' any more. The backup, however, was great. Really made my day and helped justify the purchase for me, despite enjoying the main story on a fundamental level.

I'm hesitant to call it a Must Read as this does deal with a lot of fringe characters and the more mystical sides of the Marvel Universe, but this is a very good read and, my complaints about the useless recap page at the start aside, fairly reader friendly, all things considered.

There's so many things done right in this issue and it reads like no other book on the market. At the heart of it, these are villains doing bad things, but who knew being so bad could be so good?

Call me biased if you will, but any perceived faults with this issue are just washed away by how much I enjoyed everything. I do wish the aftermath was touched on more in this issue, but the epilogue has been scheduled for a while and I'm not going to complain any more about it until I read that, as I assume that will answer any lingering questions and transition us into the next year or two worth of cosmic goodness.

If you're looking for a complete story in one issue or were looking to give SpiderMan or the Brand New Day era a look, this is a perfect jumping on point and an issue that, while not perfect, is still a fun ride.

Better than the first, but still feels a bit too light for a $3.99 comic. Die hard fans will obviously want this and shouldn't be disappointed, but casuals expecting something relevant to the Blackest Night event should probably steer clear.

While it may sound like I'm complaining a great deal about the issue, I did love this issue and what was given to me. I just wanted others to know what they are getting when they read it as there is a sudden cut off to the fight and a "go read something else for the rest" feeling to the ending. To me, I'm buying everything Blackest Night related and have no problem with this, but others may feel cheated by it. To me, though, a must read issue.

It's dense, overly complicated and deals with many obscure characters, making this a tough sell for anyone not already following this title. For those that are, you'll likely enjoy this issue, but I don't know if it will be regarded as the best in the run.

Whether Johns actually meant the SuperboyPrime conclusion to come off this way or not, this is about the least professional thing I've ever seen and I honestly thought I was being pranked by some fake copy my LCS spliced together before finally letting it sink in that I just spent more than $20 and about a year's worth of time on a series only to be treated as the butt of a joke by the writer and DC. This isn't a "I'm never buying DC or Geoff Johns comics again!", but there's a definite lack of respect for both after reading this and I can't, in good faith, recommend something like that to anyone.

All in all, it's a solid read, but the book seems unclear as to what it wants to be about. I'd love to see the Hush angle played up more and maybe even see him taking over the book as its main character, but I suspect we'll continue with the series of interconnected plots playing up Gotham City as the character while the actual characters are just the set pieces.

If you're only experience with Beta Ray Bill has been the lackluster appearances in Omega Flight and what not, you owe it to yourself to see why this character is beloved by so many people. The miniseries even has backups of the first appearance of Bill, showing you some of his best stories. As of right now, this is an early front runner for my Best Miniseries award and this could be compared to the Thor Ages of Thunder series from last year.

I enjoyed these stories for what they are and will continue to pick up the series due to wanting to know everything Blackest Night related, but I'm pretty confident in saying that, at $3.99, you can easily skip this and not miss a beat when the Indigo Tribe finally shows up in Blackest Night. Nothing here is required reading and only the most diehard fans need apply.

Tempted to bump this up to Must Read status, but it's basically out of continuity and a little weak on plot. I'm also biased towards Albuquerque's art. However, despite not being an absolute Must Read book, I highly recommend giving this issue a shot. Just a fun read with some beautiful visuals.

Slow start for anyone following the buildup to this event, but kicks it into high gear about halfway through and never slows down. Lots of new Black Lanterns to mull over and tonnes of new information to speculate on. Not a flawless issue, as it has its faults, but was damn entertaining and a great way to kick off this event.

While I didn't get as much out of this issue as I'd hope, it is still a very good issue that tells you everything you could ever want to know about Black Hand while simultaneously kicking off Blackest Night with a literal bang.

Does it bother you that this is just an overpriced comic book in newspaper format? If no, this is probably a must read for you. Does it bother you that this "comic" won't physically stand the test of time and that a "proper", cheaper oversized trade is inevitable? If yes, this is probably an avoid it for you. Personally, while I don't hate the stories told and I do think the art looks fantastic for just about every single one of these pages, the format simply acts as too much of a barrier for me for what amounted to a basic series of out of continuity anthology tales from top creators. I'll be waiting for the trade on this one where I'll be able to enjoy it in a much easier to handle manner.

It's fun. Pure, unadultered fun. Something I can't say about too many comics. Is it perfect? No. Are there flaws? Yes. Do they matter? Not a bit.

Unless you absolutely need to know why Steve Rogers is coming back or just want to continue the story from Captain America, I see no reason to pick this book up and would not recommend it to anyone looking for a continuation of what was going on in Captain America. Unless something drastic happens, I may even end up dropping both Reborn and the monthly Captain America over this.

While there's some disappointment with the sudden ends to several key plots from the past few months, it's hard to fault the book for it when the rest of it was so damn good.

While some parts of the story fell flat, I was actually quite pleased with the purchase. The book isn't for everyone, but if you like SpiderMan Loves Mary Jane or even BKV's first volume of Runaways, you'll probably enjoy the dialogue and feel of this miniseries.

Great action, lots of character moments and, ignoring the odd way Abnett and Lanning moved us to the endgame with the TBomb, the promise of the final showdown next issue has me dying to find out what happens next.

This is a good jumping on point for people interested, but the new direction is also a good jumping off point for others, such as myself. While not a bad book or issue, I feel it's served its purpose and it's time to move on.

. A good issue, but felt extremely light at time. Read incredibly fast as well. At $3.99 a pop, I should feel a little more satisfied after reading it than I did, but very few actual complaints about it either.

Disappointment over the cofeature aside, the actual Batwoman related story was just about as good as I could have possibly hoped. I don't say this often, but you almost owe it to yourself to buy it for the art alone. The excellent and engaging story is only going to be a bonus to Williams's art.

. Enjoyable read with many good character moments to go along with the action packed plot.

Wall to wall action and the chaos and pandimonium of this raid on the HAMMER facility is brought to life beautifully by Caselli. If you've been trade waiting this series, I think you're going to be in for one hell of a treat when it gets released because even as a monthly, this flows perfectly from one issue to the next. My only complaint is physically waiting for a new issue.

Taken on its own, I think this is probably the strongest issue of the entire event, but it's also the most disconnected from everything that came before and, as a concluding chapter, should reflect the various plots from previous issues. The fact it didn't made for a jarring and disconnected reading experience.

. Nothing to see here. Move along now.

Very solid outing for Green Lantern that did an excellent job of balancing the numerous subplots occuring in the book.

While I quite enjoyed the issue, it was fairly laid back and straight forward in its execution and lacked any real tension or drama that would warrant a must read verdict. It's just sort of there and fans of the book will love it while those wondering what all the fuss is about the book will probably be left wondering, "that's it", if they jump in on this issue, so that's why it gets a check it from me.

Some minor nitpicking aside, this was another excellent issue of Thor and it should be interesting to see what JMS does with the few issues he has left.

I can't recall the last time a Wolverine comic was this good, but even the most staunch detractors of Wolverine will have to step up and take notice of this book if it continues to put out quality issues like these first three.

Nothing really happened. Sound and fury signifying nothing, but with bad art. Most crossovers, even as bad as they some parts are, they are typically worth purchasing to know what is going on. Not the case with this one.

It's a good issue, but nothing special and hardly worth the amount of attention it's received. It's greatest failing is probably due to not living up to the hype as it's still a solid outing for Brubaker and Co.

All in all, despite the whole dream sequence washing away at the start, this was a very good issue of the always excellent Captain Britain and MI13 that has left me wanting more. Can't wait to see how this storyline concludes.

While not a must read or major story, this was still quite entertaining and fans of Young Avengers will be very pleased with their handling here.

Talon's and Razor's parts are still quite entertaining and worth checking out, but I'm not feeling anything that has to do with the actual main character of the book.

If you skipped Battle for the Cowl, you might enjoy seeing Dick come to terms with becoming Batman more than I did, but for the rest of us, I think it's a weak first issue and not nearly enough to get me to come back again next month.

Enjoyable read, but Millar, for as much as I enjoy his works, is becoming a bit of a one trick pony in terms of storytelling. You're enjoyment of the issue will depend on how much you like or dislike Millar's other work.

I don't think this book is written for me or other readers like me. It's clearly being aimed at long time Flash fans who would appreciate the return of Barry and could draw on emotional baggage associated with his Silver Age stories to carry an otherwise unremarkable issue.

I know the opening of this review sounded like it might be a bad issue, but it was still very, very good, despite some minor issues with it. Still very much a must read book.

Tempted to say Avoid It for this based on how disappointing the Meggan half of the story was, but the backup story does go a long way to redeeming it and was much more in line with how the series typically reads. I do feel that this is probably something only current readers of the series or longtime fans of Meggan will enjoy, so I wouldn't go rushing out to pick it up as an introduction to the much talked about series. For that, go back and start with the first trade or this Vampire State storyarc.

Good, but feels out of touch with the rest of the Marvel Universe with the lateness in dealing with certain topics and many characters have yet to establish a voice of their own under Bendis.

I'm actually having a hard time thinking of anything good to say about this issue. It's like they tried their best to do the absolute worst story possible for something that should have been a homerun with the Green Lanterns checking up on this new planet full of Supermenlevel beings.

In the end, due to the whole lack of words, the issue actually reads in about a minute flat and, at a $3.99 price point and with the Ultimatum nonsense ending the book here, I, honestly, feel a bit ripped off after having bought this, but am giving it a Check It just for the whole end of an era thing and that it's still not a bad issue, per se, just not really a fitting end to the series either.

This event just keeps getting better and better. A great middle chapter that most events fill with padding. No wasted pages and every scene felt important. Loving this event and this issue.

A solid finish to the miniseries that did a good job explaining how Mockingbird came back, what her state of mind was and set up a new status quo for both her and Hawkeye that I hope gets followed up on by McCann in the future.

The shock ending is about the only noteworthy thing to come of this rather disappointing chapter to the Agent Orange storyline. Here's hoping it finishes strong next month.

While I liked the ending and the fact Richard is back as Nova, the issue didn't really click for me. Just too much of the inner turmoil mumbo jumbo type of storytelling solutions that I don't particularly care for. Still, it's Nova, so even an average issue is still damn good.

. This will probably read a million times better in trade and I actually regret picking it up in singles now. Momentum has been sapped and, while pretty, it's a very cliched Mark Millar story on top of it all.

Only thing you need to know from this entire event is that Nightwing became Batman on the last page, Tim Drake will probably be out of commission for a while due to superficial wounds and Damian is the new Robin, all things you knew prior to the event.

If you hate these types of issues, it's an Avoid It. If you're unfamiliar with Captain America or the current series or just like these types of stories, it's a Must Read. I didn't hate it, but it wasn't exactly thrilling for a $3.99 price hike just because of the big number 50 on the cover.

I haven't had this much fun with a comic in a long, long time. While it's not a complete check your brain at the door type of story, it's still one hell of an action packed fun ride that will reminds anyone who reads it just why Wolverine is so popular.

There's nothing here that will entice you to pick up this book if you aren't already, but it should entertain those that already are. I just hope this comic starts picking up again or I may end up dropping it. Next issue will more than likely be the decider for me.

Few other comics feature so much action in one issue, let alone an entire arc. This arc has already been placed on my list for early candidates for Best Villain and Best Story and with good reason. Definitely a must read comic.

It's a soso first issue that doesn't immediately hook you, but there's something unique about the concept that appealed to me enough that I want to see what happens next.

Aside from some confusion over just what happened to Sodam and why/how he blew up in the star, I have absolutely no complaints with the issue and it's nearly a pitch perfect comic and a formula others should look to for success in the future.

The plot is fairly straightforward, but the trip is worth it. Spot on characterizations and easily one of my favourite comics this year. Highly recommended.

A few shining moments help redeem an otherwise forgettable issue that is quite unbefitting an end to the storied legacy of the Ultimate SpiderMan title.

If I could gut the middle parts of this story dealing with Chris Powell's origin and innerself nonsense, I'd probably rate this issue an easy Must Read. Those parts are really dragging this miniseries down.

I'm not sure why they broke both stories in half and slapped them together instead of just releasing them each in their own issue and I'm a tad disappointed with how the Aaron/Kubert half panned out, but I think I'm still satisfied with the purchase and, while not an absolute must read issue, think it's definitely worth checking out if either story or creator team interests you.

Fairly entertaining, albeit predictable read. Quite satisfied with the purchase even though I know this isn't the best book I'll ever read.

. If you're reading this event, you'll be happy to know the story picks up with this issue, but there's not really much here for those uninterested or trade waiting to get excited over just yet.

I'm not willing to recommend this series to any new readers of Flash and I'm not even sure if it's something old fans should run out to pick up, but it wasn't a bad issue either. It's mostly falling a victim of its own hype and my high expectations, to which it is falling well short of presently.

It's hard to believe how good War of Kings has been so far and we haven't even seen a Vulcan vs Black Bolt match up or Black Bolt vs Gladiator rematch or any kind of cutting loose between the actual "kings" of this event.

While arguably just as good as the last issue with answering questions about Mockingbird and her time with the Skrulls, as well as with the interaction between her and Hawkeye, there comes a time in a four issue miniseries where we need some plot progression and waiting for the last issue to really introduce and conclude that aspect of the story can backfire. Without having read the last issue, I have a sinking feeling this series might have actually benefitted from being a five or six issue miniseries instead, but I'll reserve full judgement until next month.

A solid story that offers more to long term readers than new ones but still has its own charms and definitely got me more interested in Blackest Night.

Great Doom short story, some interesting character studies for the rest of the Cabal, but nothing that reaches out and grabs you or that people will be talking about months later like the various Illuminati stories.

Clearly, this issue and series is not aimed at me anymore. I love that Johns has revived Superboy and Kid Flash, but with so many time travel options available to them, they didn't have to be so hamfisted about these resurrections. It's like handwaving of details away so he can have his cake and eat it, too.

It's not so much that this is a bad issue, as it's still better than most comics on the market, but it's a noticeable dip in quality, mainly through the pacing and character driven moments, for the past few months when compared to previous Green Lantern issues. I'm typically harder on my favourite books when I feel they're dipping in quality than I am with genuinely bad or even average issues, so take any of my complaints with a grain of salt, too.

While I talk a lot about the negatives of the issue, it was still quite entertaining. Just not perfect or up to the typical Nova standards. I'll still take a "bad" Nova issue over just about any other comic, so it's not a complete wash either.

Other than that little hiccup with Osborn's rationalizing unleashing Bullseye, there was little to complain about with this issue and I absolutely loved the opening fight sequence with the HAMMER cannonfodder. Not the deepest comic you'll ever read, but entertaining nonetheless.

It's a comic you need to experience to truly appreciate and something that will be talked about and discussed for years to come.

Personally, I couldn't find a single thing wrong with this issue outside of maybe some stretching behind the reasons for getting involved in the event. It's just good old fashioned fun and I just hope the title continues with this return to form and puts those last few substandard issues behind us.

There are moments I liked this issue, but the absurdity of the reveal and some heavy handed writing really knock the wind out my sails in regards to my enthusiasm for this title.

There are a lot of flaws in this issue (dark, muddied art, continuity, time travel discrepencies, etc) that prevent it from being an outright Must Read, but I really did enjoy a lot of the things Yost and Kyle brought to the table and this story is finally starting to come together. Let's see if they can continue to build on the momentum of this issue.

No answers to the rapidly aging Chris subplot and a quickly derailed plot, which opted for a fight oriented character focus on Ursa, keeps this otherwise entertaining issue from being a Must Read.

Brilliant character piece that is potentially setting up some major bombshells for the back to back anniversary issues / renumberings.

While Johns deals with the more dubious aspects of the multiple corps, such as wearing multiple rings, Tomasi is content to give us nonstop action and Sinestro Corps Warlike moments month in, month out and this issue, and storyline, is the equivilent of a Battle of Mogolike minievent building up to the Blackest Night.

I really can't express how good this series has been since day one and it's only been getting better as it goes along. Do yourself a favour and either grab the first trade or jump in on this Dracula storyline. You won't regret it.

Agent Orange = Great. Everything else = Average at best. Made for an up and down issue. Still looking forward to the rest of Agent Orange, but I'm getting the feeling Johns may be stretching himself a little thin lately.

Just a fun, character relationship building and expanding type of issue, similar to how the XMen used to have those baseball game doneinones back in the day. Of course, this being Secret Six and a team of villains, they had their own spin on fun activities.

I'm still intrigued with Superman's life in the military guild, but there's only so much suspension of disbelief in regards to the forced labor guild hostage plot that makes up the latter half of this issue and its cliffhanger.

I wasn't blown away by it, but I'm willing to give Abnett and Lanning the benefit of the doubt here. Talon revealed as a bad guy was fairly predictable, but I'm curious enough about the Darkhawk / Razer dichotomy to stick with this miniseries.

It's not the greatest issue or even the best this week, but it's great fun and Aaron's writing, combined with Garney's pencils, make you understand why Wolverine, as a character, has been so popular over the years. These two simply get the character and what makes him tick and I can't wait to read more from them both.

A solid, if slow opening issue that failed, by a large margin, to reach the expectations set for it. Additionally, Johns spent far too much time having characters espouse the greatness of Saint Barry as opposed to actually showing us why he's so great or deserving of all this attention. However, it's early on in this miniseries, so there's still time to solve these problems.

Action, suspense, great character moments and beautiful art what's not to love?

I will concede that this issue has a slower, more methodical pace than the previous, but I think the step back taken for the big picture view of how the war affected people helped the event more than any amount of mindless action could have. Great effort from all those involved.

McCann really hit his stride with this issue. The interplay between Hawkeye and Mockingbird is spot on and many of the questions regarding Mockingbird's abduction, such as when and how she was taken, are answered here and the consequences of the timing for the abduction is played up for maximum effect.

Allinall, I'm just glad this arc is over and we can move on. It had it's moments, most of them in the earlier chapters, but it really dragged its feet in these latter parts. However, a 'bad' Captain America issue is still better than most anything on the market, so take any complaints with a grain of salt.

I liked this issue enough that I'll be coming back again for the second part, but I'm also unsure of how much staying power this will have or even how important this will be in regards to the rest of the Marvel Universe. I actually suspect this series will fall between the cracks when the upcoming diluge of Dark Reign miniseries start pouring onto the shelves.

This issue was far better than last month's issue, but just barely makes a passing grade to Check It status.

As disappointed as I was with how this 'crossover' turned out, Nova does become Quasar here, which is a pretty big plotpoint moving forward, so I'm giving it a Check It for that. Otherwise, it felt more like filler and, while not outright bad at any point, never felt like it justified the price of admission either.

If you've been left out in the cold by not reading Cable or XForce, this issue primarily sums up everything you need to know going in before giving a brief meet and greet between Cable and the XForce people and will be a Must Read for you. For those that have been following along all this time, nothing really happens here and you may feel a bit cheated by how light on new material and plot progression this issue was. It was really a whole lot of scenes that didn't have to be shown to us and only served to frame flashback sequences. Worth checking, but won't impact your ability to understand the crossover if you simply skip it either.

Despite the negative tone of the review, I didn't hate this issue and it was still much better than any of Bendis' recent New Avengers work. I was just disappointed that he's fallen back into his NA writing patterns when he had been doing something unique, for a change, with the Dark Avengers.

Sterling Gates has done an impossible job of actually making me like a Supergirl comic, which will probably lead me to picking up some back issues of his short run and continuing with it for the time being. While not an absolute Must Read comic, entertaining and a solid pick if you are enjoying the current World Without Superman event.

Not sure what Marvel was trying to accomplish by forcing this crossover between the two titles. If it was to get people to pick up both titles or increase sales in general, they've failed miserably and only managed to lose a customer on one of the titles. Not even sure if I'll bother coming back in two or three months time when this is all over and done with.

While I was a little put off by the pace and jarring sequence of events in this issue, I don't think anyone that has been following the storyline will be disappointed with the purchase and I'm sure Logan is at his breaking point after the final pages of this issue, promising lots of action to finish out this story in the coming issues.

There would be more, that would be spoiling things.

While I found the reveal for the 'magically aging' Chris Kent to be a tad off putting, everything else about this issue and the plot Rucka has set up for future issues was more than enough for me to give this a Must Read rating.

While I wasn't exactly thrilled with the characterization, the story does have promise and, as it's only three issues long, I'm going to stick with it for the duration.

Great follow up to Dracula's sneak attacks last issue make up the bulk of this issue. Add quality character moments and solid artwork and it's a Must Read all the way.

This was worth it for the Arkillo vs Mongul fight alone. Add all the delicious subplots and Blackest Night related goodies and it's hard to go wrong with this book.

Maybe Abnett and Lanning are stretched too thin with the War of Kings event and other books they write. It simply felt like they phoned in this story and stretched it out so they'd be able to focus on their other books for the next couple months. First Guardians of the Galaxy I've actually been disappointed with having purchased.

While I did enjoy this, there's that pesky $3.99 price tag and the fact this is almost entirely setup for the remainder of the series with few reasons for nonFantastic Four fans to really jump in.

I know I droned on about the resurrections in an attempt to dispel rumours and forum rumblings about them, but that doesn't mean this issue is bad. I loved every minute of this issue and it's cemented Secret Warriors on my pull list for the months to come.

I'm not sure if I'll be following the other Superman titles, but I'm definitely sold on World of New Krypton. Excellent first issue that has sold me on the "world without Superman concept".

Action, drama and the promise of more cosmic goodness from this event int he future what more could you ask for?

McCann doesn't knock it out of the park on his first big foray into writing, but, to continue with the baseball metaphor, it's easily a solid ground rule double and enough to have me come back again next month to find out more.

This title appears to be back on track, but still lacks a real purpose, especially with the destruction of most of Camp Hammond here and the fallout of Secret Invasion's Skrull infestation. Gage just needs to show me he has something long term planned for the title or a new direction of some kind and I'll be sold on sticking with this title for the long haul again.

I have some concerns, as they are, about the potential for this story to go off the tracks with the additions of more and more corps to the mix and the use of multiple rings by one person, but the sheer amount of good things that happened in this issue was more than enough to silence those concerns for the time being.

Both stories featured in this issue were rather hohum. I did enjoy the Hercules origin, but didn't really see the need for so many pages devoted to it either. All in all, an average issue that should be a decent jumping on point, especially with the two or three pages worth of recapping past events in the middle of the book.

Johns never really clicked on this volume of JSA and, sad as it is to say, I'm glad he's finally leaving. I only wish this final storyline could have come out better.

Never have I paid so much for so little nor have I seen someone take 37 pages and do nothing but give a few guest artists some splash pages to sell online, as there's no story here and nothing new or interesting happening.

Another great showing from the book and it's quickly becoming like Captain America and Ultimate SpiderMan a title that's so consistently good, I've begun taking it for granted.

A perfect companion book to Dark Avengers and maintains the dark aspects of an all villain book that made the Ellis run so much fun to read. Looking forward to more of this.

It's a well crafted book and I did enjoy the return of Crane's unique art style, but I think the entire concept of the book is just wearing thin on me. Add the upcoming crossover with the much maligned Cable and I'm thinking I may just drop the title at the end of this arc.

Despite some flaws, I'm still going to give this issue a Must Read verdict as I enjoyed it immensely and more than a few pages had me going, "OH SH!". This isn't the most cerebral comic on the market, but it's definitely entertaining.

I don't want to give the book an Avoid It because I do love this title and stuff does happen in this issue it's just completely predictable and felt like the writers were finishing up their chores moreso than telling us some thrilling prison break adventure. Hopefully things pick up next month.

With no love for Secret Invasion, I was hesitant coming into this, but Bendis and Deodato blew me away with this opening issue. Will definitely be around for more of this series.

Batman dies, you have to read it whether you're a fan of it or not. However, for what it's worth, this is easily the best issue of the series, regardless of how the event turned out, and, when I read this, it was the first time I was honestly blown away by this event.

Is this the greatest comic ever written? No. Will rereading the series make you like it more? Debatable. But I imagine many will have a newfound appreciation for the craft and what Morrison was trying to accomplish with it afterwards, regardless of whether they end up liking it more or not.

It's great to see Green Lantern return to the heights it once reached and the past few issues have renewed my faith and interest in the upcoming Blackest Night.

I wanted to love this issue, as Black Adam has become one of my favourite characters over the years, but everything he did and said just felt wrong for some reason. The flow of the issue greatly impacted the readability and I just hope the storyline picks up over the next few issues.

Just another great issue of Nova.

Dark Reign seems to be doing everything right coming out of Secret Invasion and it's been a while since I've been this impressed with the direction of the Marvel Universe outside of their cosmic line or Captain America.

One thing to note about the issue before making any judgements is that this is only the first half of the story and seems to be grounded in mostly preCrisis era stories, barring the "I'm the goddamn Riddler!" line, and we still have the concluding chapter (delayed until March thanks to Kubert's involvement) to look forward to. So, at that, I'll leave most of the speculation and comparisons to Moore's work until we see how this turns out before making anymore bold claims about this issue.

If you've been looking for an excuse to jump into this series, by all means, do so now. This is a great jumping on point with some down time between characters to help ease you in as well as some great building blocks for the next storyarc being put in place.

This looks like the beginnings of another Ranx vs Mogolike epic, this time with the battle over Daxam. Couldn't believe how much content was packed into this one issue. Great stuff all around.

Great action, Loki being Loki, beautiful art and some great story developments that should help propel this book forward over the coming months.

I didn't care much for this ragtag squad of heroes during Secret Invasion, but Hickman has my full attention with this debut outing. One of the best debut issues for a series I've seen in a long time. Highly recommended.

Another solid outing from Johns, but a rather disappointing continuation of the socalled New Krypton event.

While not a perfect issue, the few flaws I do talk about, seemingly at length, didn't affect my enjoyment of this issue in the least and Final Crisis may just deliver on much of the hype. However, the art, which I didn't really mention in the review, looks terrible in comparison to earlier issues and it's a shame.

The villains teamed up. Emma Frost tagged along for no real reason. Norman is keeping them in line with a mystery character, whom we only see in shadow. This just sort of went through the motions and it lacks any of the impact or entertainment value that the Illuminati specials had. Nothing happens here that needs to be seen. These characters are teamed up and that's about all you need to know in my opinion, making this issue redundant.

Nothing noteworthy happens and there's nothing here that I can even remotely see as foreshadowing or setup for future storylines that would justify a read.

While the storyline has its problems, it looks like it will be ending with a bang based on this issue.

I'm not sure where they'll be going in relation to the missing baby story, but I really enjoyed this issue and recommend it to any fan of these characters or Bendis' more street level stories.

If you've been online, you've seen the final page of this issue. That's all you need to know. Having the conclusion to your summer blockbuster told completely in flashback is the stupidest thing I've ever seen and robbed the story of any impact it could have had and flies completely in the face of the style and tone the rest of the series had. It's like they didn't even care anymore and wanted to end it and move on to Dark Reign instead of going through the paces of, you know, telling the story. Not even the most adamant Secret Invasion fan should be pleased with how this was arbitrarily swept under the rug.

As a single issue, I think this was the strongest in the Batman RIP storyline and, combined with the last issue, redeems a story I had almost written off. However, as a concluding chapter to a story promising the death of Batman, with mountains of hype surrounding it, I think it fails to deliver any kind of definitive ending, good or bad, which is rather disappointing in the grand scheme of things. Mostly a Must Read for the impact it will have on the coming months, but a good issue on its own, as well.

Allinall, this is a picture perfect comic where everything flowed together perfectly to form one great read from start to finish.

Much like this week's Guardians of the Galaxy, this issue does a lot to renew my faith in the cosmic line and has me pumped for both Nova and GotG again after some disappointing tiein issues. Great issue with great introductions to several new and interesting characters.

Can't wait for an oversized hardcover of these issues. If any comics deserve the treatment, these Ages of Thunder stories do. Zircher and Mann did fantastic jobs here and it'll be a real treat to see their work. If you haven't picked any of these up yet, for shame, but you might be better off waiting for the eventual trade at this point and getting one of the best series of books of the year.

Delays hurt the book and the sweeping of SpiderBitch's story under the rug really hurt the opening of the book, but, once I got back into it, it was still just as entertaining as always. However, I'm giving it a Check It as I feel it's best to simply trade wait this one out and enjoy the story from start to finish without the delays.

Another solid addition to the New Krypton story. It's a bit of a slow burn for the storyline, so I'll leave it as Check It, but I suspect it will quickly turn into a series of Must Reads by the end of this.

Unless you absolutely love Alex Ross' artwork or need every Kingdom Come appearance possible, there's absolutely nothing here worth reading and there's nothing that furthers the current Gog storyline either. I asked why DC didn't hype this book more than it did in my previews this week and now I know why they didn't.

Overall, it's better than the current Avengers The Initiative Secret Invasion stuff, but suffers from poor pacing and some subpar artwork. It should be interesting to see when this is picked up in the main title, but won't really convert any nonInitiative readers to the flock either.

Solid read with a few minor quibbles on my part. Nothing worth skipping or even docking this issue over, so feel free to grab another excellent Final Crisis tiein. Bonus this issue actually ties into Final Crisis!

While nothing glaring or overly wrong with the art or writing, this is just filler and side tracks the Gog story so they can have some oneshot specials and a minievent next month. Skip this and you won't even notice next month when the actual story continues.

I'm tempted to say Must Read, but the whole Neron / magic card deal left a sour taste in my mouth. Otherwise, great issue.

There are flashes of the old Initiative book preSI tieins, but they are few and far between. With only one issue left of tieins, I wonder if the book will be able to keep me entertained long enough to stick it out for future stories.

I don't think it's an understatement to call it this year's Sinestro Corps War Special and I can see this one going back to printing several times, just as that issue did last year. Fails as a tiein to Final Crisis, but kicks the Rage of the Red Lanterns storyline off with a bang.

As I said, it's contrived and rushed and wholly forgettable and I'm fairly disappointed with the whole storyline after reading this socalled conclusion.

Great job dealing with the teenage sex talk, but the various subplots of the book all feel disjoint and lack any cohesion, giving the book a jarring and disconnected feeling. Trim this down to the important parts and it would have been a picture perfect book.

Lot of fun to read, great flashbacks fleshing out Herc's past and progressed the current plot. Can't ask for much more.

If you've been following this series already, this is more of the same and you won't be disappointed on that end. But, for everyone else, you didn't miss anything and you should spend your money elsewhere.

I think the issue only serves to downplay the actual Kryptonians with its human perspective and Robinson's dialogue has continued to turn me off of his Superman. The issue was a decent continuation of the New Krypton storyline, but it lacks the impact and appeal of Johns' setup issues.

Thor continues to impress and, while some may find the slow pace tedious or the lack of action disconcerting, I'll take an Asgardian drama over random hammer smashings any day.

While most Captain America issues come away with a Must Read verdict, I think I enjoyed this issue more than any other in recent months, just on the strength of the Batroc portrayal and the fact Brubaker did an excellent job setting up this new storyarc.

I think it's safe to say this event starts with this issue. I'd honestly recommend not even reading the first three issues at this point. All you need to know is evil won and this is the aftermath and you should be able to enjoy every aspect of this issue with even the vaguest knowledge of DC. Oh, but make sure to read Final Crisis Submit first. It fills in a fairly large chunk of story for the Hall of Justice scene with Black Lightning and the Tattoo Man.

While I think it's safe to avoid this if you are short on cash, it is actually one of the few Final Crisis tieins that actually impacts the main storyline and, while I didn't overly enjoy the story, it does explain a lot about what happened with Black Lightning and the Tattoo Man's circuit tattoo seems like it will be important to the storyline, making this worth checking out at the very least.

I actually enjoyed reading the issue and, while another 'fill in the blanks' tiein by Bendis, it actually gave us something new and intersting to chew on, whereas other tieins read like an entire issue devoted to being told being what the heroes had for breakfast before Skrulls replaced them. The reveal at the end has lots of storytelling promise and it will be interesting to see what part, if any, it plays in Secret Invasion's conclusion or the postSI world.

Go back and read my opening summary. That's all that happens. If you want to look at some big explosions and pinup style fight scenes with no real story telling or flow to them, feel free to get this then.

While I don't think the entire issue warrants a Must Read, I'm giving it one on the strength of the Johns / Frank part of the book and Superman's dealing with his grief over his father's death. The problems with the rest of the book stem from the rather slow opening for a major event and how it seems to have throttled down from the Action Comics Brainiac story that preceeded it.

Move along. Nothing to see here.

While the review may come off as overly negative, many of my problems stem primarily from BND. This issue never strays into a definitive Avoid It territory, but it's never overly impressive either. JRJr's Green Goblin is still one of my favourite interpretations of the character. Some of his best recent work, to be honest.

This has been a lengthy review as it is, but I just have to end this on a positive note, as this comes off as one big hateon for this issue when that couldn't be any further from the truth. This is an excellent, yet flawed, issue. Thankfully, the good outweighs the bad by a large margin, but this review is for those that aren't buying this issue, for whatever reason, and I think they've read more than enough of the glowing reviews on other sites and are interested in knowing the flaws as well. For the rest of us that bought it, we just get to enjoy it and shake our heads at why they didn't.

I'm still enjoying the Gog storyline, but this is the weakest issue of JSA in a while.