Martin's Profile

Wow, DC K.O. #4 delivers! The battle with the Absolute characters was epic, exactly what I wanted and Superman of the regular DC Universe proved why he is the greatest of all time … hands down the BEST superhero in any pantheon. For the first 3/4 this was all combat, all action, then there was a surprise twist … that stopped EVERYTHING. The story delivered … however the epilogue was a bit confusin g. I guess there is a dark Legion of Superheroes (or Absolute version) and they had a hand in laying down the groundwork for all that happened in this issue. Plus (no spoilers) they dropped in hints about another character who will most like be the ex machina saving grace of the final issue. So over 3/4 of the issue was spun gold … but the last section seemed to derail the momentum of the book. more

Not gonna lie, the cover for Transformers #29, had me concerned … the cover A art just isn’t that good, however EVERY page of the interior was spectacular. This was an all-out, straight-up, action packed issue! Picking up right where issue 28 left off, Megatron was literally eating Trailbreaker and Optimus Prime has had enough. He goes after Megatron with full force and before you can say “one sha ll stand, one shall fall” it becomes a massive brawl between all of the Autobots and all of the Decepticons. Each page is rendered with beautiful precision by Dan Mora … this guy is an Action Master (see what I did there). No humans … no M.A.S.K. … just robot on robot combat! Well done and exactly what the series needed. Arcee, Magnus, even Beachcomber all got their moments, top tier from the first page to the last. Best book of the week … maybe the month! more

People love to hate on poor Jar Jar, and I get it, he was not a character adults expected to see when they sat down in that darken theater back in 1999. However my 5 year old son loved him … he was the right character for that age bracket and I never had a problem with him. Finally he gets the spotlight in his own comic - Star Wars: Jar Jar #1, written by Jar Jar Binks himself Ahmed Best (with Mar c Guggenheim doing the heavy lifting). What can I say, I enjoyed the story … I really liked this comic. Set between Episode II & III (probably closer to III) it finds Jar Jar teaming up with Best’s other Star Wars character - Jedi Master Beq (the guy who rescued Grogu from the Jedi temple). Beq shows Senator Binks some horrible working conditions on a remote planet to get him to do something about it. It’s a solid tale with a good bit of action provided by bounty hunters Run Sleg (a background character from Episode I) and Aurra Sing. There is another tie to the large Star Wars cannon in the form of the mother of a major character from another Star Wars property (I don’t want to spoil it for you). It was a story that fits nicely in cannon and gave Jar Jar something important to do that won’t effect or contradict anything we’ve seen in the movies. The story wraps up at the end … I think it was just a one-shot … but I frankly would like to see these plot threads continued. more

I honestly expected to hate Thundarr: The Barbarian #1, I mean Dynamite is hit or miss these days, this one was pretty much on target. I know I watched the show as a kid, these characters are somewhat known to me, but the details have faded into the past. So while familiar, I didn’t go in with preconceived notions. The introduction was pretty much what I remembered and the characters all rang true , but where the book succeeded for me was in the execution. The plot had a very Saturday morning cartoon vibe, yet was also layered in a way that it never felt silly or overly predictable. The story was fun and moved with the right amount of speed, the cliffhanger plus epilogue was enticing enough to bring me back for a second helping. This isn’t high art, but it’s comfortable and I would give this book to a 7 year old in a heartbeat. A solid effort all around, I recommend this book. more

The guy at my LCS convinced me to buy Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #1 and I'm torn over it. It's an interesting story that is focused on The Question investigating some shady business going down in his city ... that then spirals into some larger international intrigue (if you want to call it that). Green Arrow is pulled in because this shady business is tied to his old company Queen In dustries, so that makes sense - I guess the Question and Olly have a relationship of sorts. Batman is pulled into the whole thing because he encounters some environmental terrorists and that brings Bruce to an event also tied to Queen Industries. It's a very gritty street level story, that then starts to feel like a James Bond plot. The art is nice (could use some inks) and the story is interesting ... if not over written ... this feels more like a film script than a comic book story. So much of the narrative is pushed forward through very long conversations and not the art ... which is odd because the writer is also the artist! I like most of the book, though I can already feel the environmental subtext creeping in all over the plot, to the point that calling it "subtext" is generous. All-in-all, I think it was an above average comic and I will be back for issue two ... but not sure if I would recommend it. more

The last issue failed to impress me, however Void Rivals #26 was the exact opposite. This was a straight up action packed story that was squarely focused on the Quintessons invading The Sacred Ring, no Cobra-La, no Transformers, no Skuxxoid, just one singular narrative and the book was better off for it. I have an idea where all of this is going ... but I could be 100% wrong - so I am just enjoyin g the ride. This issue was a much needed adrenaline push that the series needed. I highly recommend and am eagerly looking forward to the next installment. more

G.I. Joe #18 was a super fun little interlude. A great way to introduce a fan favorite character into this new Energon version of G.I. Joe. Sadly he doesn't speak in rhyme, but he is a fully fleshed out character who has the heart of previous iterations. After the high energy roller coaster ride that was the Dreadnok War, this was a great break. Not saying there wasn't some crazy fun action ... Xa mot and Tomax show up trying to pay Marvin (Roadblock) to head up their food truck division, when he turns them down, THAT's when the fun begins. Artist Marco Fodera steps in and delivers solid artwork to accompany Williamson's writing. Another great issue for an already great series. Yo Joe!!!more

I've had a run of bad luck with Iron Man relaunches ... so I was hesitant to check out Joshua Williamson's new Iron Man #1, the hesitation was unfounded. It took a minute to get going but once it got up to speed I found myself enjoying it. The writing is tight and all the characters feel authentic ... the plot streamlined, with an odd villain plot and an even odder cliffhanger, but I'm here for th e ride. The art I feel let the book down in a few places, but not enough to bring me out of the story. I hope the second issue is as strong as this as I will be adding Iron Man to my pull list for the first time in a while (I think the last run I actually enjoyed was back in 98). more

Aquaman #13 opens by focusing on Mera trying to figure out what happened to Atlantis (something we still don't know), and drops in some history about her character, that I had no idea about. We then get a small flash to the events of DC K.O. #3 that is presented differently than it was in the actual book. There is also a hint that Arthur is losing his overpowered-powers ... but nothing comes of it as the scene changes again. We then find the adult daughter of Arthur and Mera - Andrina fighting with Parademons (also a result of the DC K.O. event) when she decides that she is going to unite all the kingdoms of the sea ... and our plot flys forward.

I find that this book has strayed far from the original storyline that launched the series. The forward moving plot of the first arc was so good as Arthur picked up new companions with each issue ... they formed a well rounded team. Now those characters (outside of Andrina) have been dumped into the background. So the story isn't hitting with me and then the art in this issue also failed to hit the mark. I plan on sticking with the book through all this K.O. stuff in hopes that things turn back arounmore

Alright ... Transformers 28 was STACKED with all sorts of story points and some action mixed in for good measure. Megatron is going cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, Arcee is becoming the new Magnus, Spike & Carly are getting back to normal, Autobots "roll out", and Trailbreaker has a bad day. This was a great Transformers comic, giving everyone a little something while dropping a cliffhanger at the end. T he story & pace are on point and the art ... WOW ... Optimus Prime has seldom looked so good. My only issue was that they keep putting peanut butter in my chocolate ... I really think the MASK plot should be in GI Joe or it's own book. Still an excellent issue and I highly recommend it! more

While I enjoyed the fun of DC K.O. #3 ... it was much like eating McDonalds ... nothing of any real substance. A DC event always seemed to have some emotional weight to it ... but I'm getting none of that here. It all feels hollow, and after Dark Crisis & Absolute Power I don't expect it to stick any sort of satisfying landing (as the last two events failed to as well). As I said I am enjoying the "main series" for the popcorn fun that it is ... but have given up on any of the tie-ins - so what does that say about this event?

The individual matches in this issue were fun to read and there was some minor character moments. The artwork and pacing were top tier, so it's worth the price of admission, just don't expect to walk away feeling overly satisfied. Fast food comics. more

The Dreadnok War was an exciting chapter in this new G.I.Joe / Energon series ... however I feel this last chapter - G.I. Joe #17, fell a little short of expectations. Well ... no ... it was exactly what I expected and that was the problem I had with this issue. Outside of the last few pages - everything that happened in this issue was pretty much what I thought would happen. Not saying it's bad . .. no ... just the opposite - it was a quality ending, I guess I just wanted more. Without too many spoilers - the sequences played out in a very predictable way and frankly after such an "epic event" I expected more of a status quo shift. Yes, Yes there was the epilogue (which I also predicted - just with a different Joe) ... I just wanted more. That's on me though ... technically the book checked all the boxes and wrapped up this story nicely with one or two dangling plot threads to keep me coming back for more.
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Well this is unfortunate ... I was ready to drop Batman from my pull-list ... and then issue #5 comes along and is really good. This was a fun, fast paced comic that was nonstop action and speed. It's a simple "bad guys are after us" chase ... but was so well done! As much as I was losing interest in this series this issue pulled me right back in. If issue 6 keeps up this quality - I might be in for the long haul. I can do nothing but HIGHLY recommend this issue. more

I am just not feeling this new Batman series and issue 4 helped me see why. There just isn't enough happening in these issues. Just little sequences that set things up without enough pay off. First off the book was sold as being self contained stories ... that's been tossed out the window. There are too many plots running off into the ether and I just don't think any are all that interesting. The book is beautiful to look at and the writing is solid ... but not captivating. In this issue they put Bruce and this scientist Dr Zeller together and she was written so insufferably bad ... there was nothing about her that played well. Unless the plan is to make her the villain ... I don't see how they can redeem her. Maybe this series will read better as a trade paperback ... but as $5 floppies ... I can't justify it. I have one more issue left in my to-read stack ... unless that floors me ... I think it's time to say goodbye to Batman. more

I don't really care about the whole Speed Racer IP ... never was a fan of the cartoon as a kid. I read this book because of how David Pepose writes the races and with Speed Racer 5 he wrote a fast and fun comic that stuck the landing for the first story arc. This is the kind of comic I wish there were more of ... fun, fast, and safe for all ages. I hope Pepose and Tinto continue with this title fo r many more issues to come, I will also start to seek out their work elsewhere. I'm sure the trade paperback will drop soon, it's worth getting, for pure enjoyment. more

It's hard to really evaluate Void Rivals #25, as it was a good book that absolutely nothing happened in. Kirkman's Void Rivals has been the slowest moving of the Energon books and compared to the action packed Dreadnock War in G.I. Joe this book feels frozen in time. That's not to say it's a bad book ... not by any measure, the storytelling and dialog is solid and the art by Andrei Bressan is top tier. I think my complaint is that after reading the book - I feel that very little has happened. We open with two characters fighting for NINE pages then for another four pages they are running ... at the end of those 13 pages - there is zero resolution from their fight. Why spend so much time having the "fight to the death", if at the end of the conflict - they are both still standing? There is some interesting character stuff that happens along the way (especially with the Handroid) - but the arc is - in the beginning the Quintesson ships are coming ... at the end of the book - they are there - plot wise not much more happens. I think it's time to speed the plow a little here to keep the excitement up. more

With the exception of the Jedi Apprentice YA novels by Jude Watson - Star Wars: Jedi Knights #10 might be the perfect Qui-Gon & Obi-Wan story to date. Qui-Gon faces Corlis Rath in a final duel that does not go the way one would expect, yet fits perfect into the world of Star Wars and the Jedi. The tone of the book is exactly what it needed to be and culminates perfectly for the series. Seeing as t here is no solicitation for issue 11 and Marc Guggenheim is now writing a Jar-Jar comic (with Ahmed Best), I can assume that this is the final issue and it stuck the landing. If you are a fan of prequel era Star Wars - I highly recommend this incredible (short lived) series.
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Wow! I can't believe they just canceled this title out of the blue. At issue 10, which is a weird number to finish up with. This was the first Star Wars title I actually liked in quite a while. The story ended nicely, but it did feel rushed. I wonder if the writer knew he ws being cancelled before writing this issue? Oh well. Just shows the stae of Star Wars.

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G.I. Joe #16 was another banger! "¨Much to their dismay the Dreadnoks get a little "Bond villain" with Cobra Commander, once again allowing him to escape and the action to continue - at full throttle. The concept behind the "Dreadnok War" at first seemed an odd choice - but in practice, it is a thrill ride. The interludes with Hawk and Destro, didn't add much, but it served to break up the actio n (in a good way). Joshua Williamson is absolutely killing it - BIG TIME, with some incredible and kinetic artwork by Tom Reilly to bring it home. There is not much more I can say about this series (especially this storyline) that I haven't already said - just go out and buy it! more

I guess the whole one complete story per-issue concept was tossed out with Batman #3, as almost every plot point was left dangling for the next issue. The book is well written and beautifully illustrated ... but ... I'm still not as invested as I would like to be. There are so many threads carried over from the previous run that I just don't care about. There is some machinations underway by the c learly evil Vandal Savage, who is somehow the police commissioner ... still waiting on an explanation for that. Also Batman having more than one Robin is confusing and a bit too much. Oh and who the heck is Bernard? I already have issue 4 so I'm sticking around for at least one more issue ... maybe that will give me a reason to keep going with this series. more