First up is IDW's hundred penny press edition (yes, that means it cost $1) of Zombie vs. Robots. It's brainless automaton vs. brainless automaton in a battle royale for... well, it's something to do when they're not killing humans. Created by Chris Ryall and Ashley Wood, this excerpt from the collected edition gives us the humorous beginning of this non-traditional feud. I love giving something new a try for one buck, especially something as good as this. Wood's art awesomely depicts these strange beings with a unique sense of grit that brings them to un-life and off the page. Looking forward to checking out the TPB of it when I get the chance.
Next book comes from Archaia, Cyclops #3 of 8. Doug Pistoia has become a household name through out the entire world as the nightly broadcasts of his military exploits sky rocket in ratings but has our hero lost sight of why he signed up in the first place? Another solid issue from Matz and Luc Jacamon as we get deeper into this world of ratings "super" soldiers and U.N. military contracts. Seriously, give this series a shot if you haven't already. You may just be surprised at how much you enjoy its full art and engaging narrative.
The last non-superhero book of the week comes from Avatar Press, the finale to Crossed: Family Values. Things seem to have quieted down a bit for Addy and her group of survivors but David Lapham and Javier Barreno send us out on a bag as there is one, last family reunion between the children and their Crossed mother. I've said it when reviewing every issue, but I love this mini-series! Always manages to give you something your not expecting, ups the ante on traditional zombie apocalypse tale, and gets back to their core of critiquing humanity at its best and worst. It's also by far the most adult rated title on the stand, so if you can't handle gore or sexual acts steer clear. If you can, make sure to grab this up when it gets collected.
Heading over to DC, we have Batman Beyond #2. In classic Bruce fashion, he convinces Terry to take down the Justice League before they can even argue against his plan of action while this new Matter Master holds his family and other Gotham residents hostage. Even though the superheroes fighting each other has become cliche in comics its always fun to see a Batman take down all those heroes who are supposedly more powerful than him, which Adam Beechen (writer) and Ryan Benjamin (penciler) handle expertly. This series perfectly captures the fun but still dramatic take on Batman the show gave us years ago.
Round out DC's books is Brightest Day #19. Aquawar begins, as Aquaman and lad head to the Bermuda triangle to stop the Atlantian separatists of Xebel from invading land and sea while Boston Brand gets closer to figuring out why he and the others were resurrected. Have to give a hand to the Brightest Day crew for another good issue that answers a few questions but still leaves us wanting more. Should be interesting to see how this all wraps up with only a little over a handful of issues remaining.
Getting into the Marvel books we'll start with the bad, Ultimate New Ultimates #5. Thor is on a rampage after coming back from the dead only to have his beloved Valkyrie die at the same moment. Does anyone on earth posses the power to stop a god on a rampage? This story has shown fleeting glances of potential but ultimately amounts to nothing. Frank Cho's art has made it endurable, as his art is always nice to look at (especially the ladies), but if it went on much longer I don't think even that would have kept me on it. Looking forward to all of these characters being back under Mark Millar's narrative hands as Avengers vs. New Ultimates starts up next week.
Polar opposite to New Ultimates, and pick of the week, is Ultimate Thor #4 of 4. This issue rounds out Thor's origins covering from the final battle of Asgard up till him joining the the Ultimates. Not only does Carlos Pacheco's art depict the the Norse god of thunder in all his earthly glory, Jonathan Hickman's story fits perfectly with how the character seemingly started as pretender but ended up being immortal. While I'm a not real big Thor fan, I real dug this mini-series and feel it was a great telling/re-telling of his origins (telling in the sense that it's the ultimate version, re-telling in that it still bears the markings of the original Thor.) If your a fan of the character of are looking for a nice sci-fi/fantasy tale make sure to grab this when it gets collected.
That is it for this week, looks like we have another heavy stack on the way next week though so that will have to make up for it. Usual routine: comments, critiques, questions, or suggestions can be left below or emailed to me talesofthegeeklanterncorp@gmail.com Now I'm off to get some sleep while Visions and Scarlet Witches dance in my head.
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