Mixed Plate Comics- Week of 4.06.11

Alright, so we are mad late with our reads for not one but two weeks due to the awesomeness of Wondercon and a bunch of fam visiting from the islands, so let's just pop right into what kept me flipping:  Kick-Ass  #2 / Gotham City Sirens #21 / Book of the Skrull  #1 / Jimmy Olsen #1 / Incognito #5 / Secret Avengers #11 / Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8 / Secret Six #32 / Teen Titans #93 / Action Comics #899 / Avengers #11 / Wonder Woman #609 / Brightest Day #23 / Wolverine #7 / Superman/Batman Annual #5.  Now here are the fab 5 reads that you loved or should love if you haven't yet, really.


5   Secret Six  #32  Gail Simone & J. Califiore
Mr. Merkel aka Ragdoll quits the Secret Six to join up with the Secret 666 of Hell!  I suppose this is what you call karma for DC's dubious family of renegades.  Doll explains how he has been appointed as the new demonic crown prince and not only has a following but for once feels at home..yes, in Hell.

Scandal does her best to keep things civil, which is funny as hell cause they are in hell afterall.  So of course, they all start brawling.  Hell yes!

Separate from the crew is Catman who plays teamup with The Demon, Etrigan and they too find some formidable opposition with another demon- Pariagon.  If I ever met a demon and they were always rhyming-- I am sure I would get into verse and drop the cypher with em-- just like Catman & Etrigan do.  Pissed, gist...yeah that rhymes!   


The action shots are as savagely brutal as the dialogue is hysterical in only the way that Simone and Califiore bust.  Was totally in awe especially of the imaginative, morbid sequencing by Califiore that makes the Six look yet again, way overpowered and in some serious shit. 


4   Action Comics  #899  Paul Cornell & Jesus Merino

How did I not see that Brainiac was involved in this whole Black Ring quest nonsense from the very beginning?!  Yeah, didn't expect it and appreciate how well Cornell made every piece connect from the Lois nanobytes to even bringing back Mister Mind! 

The out-there, very sci-fi heavy explanation of a high-powered being that felt the affects of the Black Lanterns from deep within the Phantom Zone was believable, crafty and as you can see the character design is ill. 

Was blown away to see how easily Lex served Brainiac-- of course this was all pre-meditated and am looking forward to seeing Kal-El making his return to Action though it may not be so triumphant. 

Again, Cornell's run on Lex in Action Comics has been some of the best writing and original take on an iconic character since I picked up Geoff John's GL in 2005.  Now you have been served!





3   Brightest Day  #23  Johns / Tomasi & Reis / Prado
At Wondercon, Geoff Johns and Eddie Berganza promised that how Brightest Day unfolds would be "not what you would expect."  And they were right!

The White Lantern harnesses the elemental powers of Earth and channels it through who we thought were just axed (not the man-spray) previously, to help protect against the Dark Avatar-- who in fact is a resurrected Black Lantern Swamp Thing!!!!

How sick is that?!

Pretty funny how Dan DiDio was hinting at this during DC Nation by bringing up how much he loved Swamp Thing and is the reason he came to work for DC.

One more ish till we see how BD jumps into the beginnings of Flashpoint and though I am a Digger fan-- please don't let Dove be next to go on the chopping blocks!  Oh well-- I suppose all bets are off post-Flash Point right?!  A fantastic series that has been worth the serious coin dropped on it.


2   Superman/Batman Annual #5   James Robinson & Miguel Sepulveda

James Robinson seems to write his best stuff on these one-shot/special type books (big fan of all his Blackest Night stuff but just couldn't stay on his JLA series).  Sure, I know this is part of a Reign of Doomsday series but I haven't read any of that other nonsense thru the other Supes-fam books and this story gave me

enough to enjoy what I was reading as an isolated, beautifully illustrated Annual via the talented Miguel  Sepulveda.

Whenever I see Cyborg Superman used in a book I get pumped.  The way he is captured during the brutal faceoff between him and Doomsday (with Supergirl and Batman caught in the middle at the JLA Watchtower) made me fart nerd screams through my ass it was so good.

How crazy is this visual to the left?!  Madness right...while Supergirl was facing her darkside and the other Kryptonian-baddies-- Dick Grayson gets stuck in the JLA version of the Danger Room and well-- Batman is screwed.

The unlikely pairing of Saint Walker and Starman shined-- more please!  Just like everyone else around the interwebs I agree that this and the last Superman/Batman
annual has elevated the game on what an Annual should be.  Nom-nom-nom. 



1  Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8   Peter J. Tomasi & Fernando Pasarin
The War of Green Lanterns takes us to where we knew it would eventually go...a major ring-sling that turns bare-knucked between Hal and Guy.With every GL Corps member under Parallax-infected control-- Guy and Hal begin falling under their corrupted rings powers and what starts as an emergency meeting to figure out how to deal, escalates to a much needed panel to panel ass kick between the two GL powerhouses.  Pasarin has surpassed all of my prior expectations on his realworld, meticulous and yet gritty art-style and the selected landscape of an ice planet for their "meeting" only pushed forward how incredible all of his linework has become.

With their ability to tap into the GL power somewhat unavail, will we see a return to their earlier connections with the Blue and Red Lantern powers?!  I angrily hope so.


This post was written by:
big O