ON THE SHELF NOV 16, 2005
by Craig Reade

#10 - Spider-Man Vs The Black Cat Vol 1 TPB, $14.99, Marvel. Cover by Al Migram. A nice trade collection putting together some classic Spider-Man and Black Cat confrontations, in time for the long awaited final issues of Spider-Man/Black Cat. Collects Amazing Spider-Man #194-195, #204-205, and #226-227. Also out this week is the Must Have edition collecting the first three issues of Spider-Man/Black Cat, in case you missed out on those and want to jump in for the final issues. It is still a really, really bad thing that Kevin Smith dropped the ball on this series that bad, but he deserves some credit for actually owning his mistake, and finally coming through in the end. Hopefully everyone involved learned from this on the publishing end. Nice to see this finally coming together! 128 Pages.#9 - PVP #20, $2.99. By Scott Kurtz. This one is only a few weeks late. But still… some on Kurtz! Extend that same ontine spirit (even when the update happens late into the evening) to the comic book as well! Missing PvP on the shelves isn’t quite so gut-wrenching as it is for other books, since the daily dose is available for free and online, but it is still missed in my stack. This issue’s cover featured a nice New Avenger’s spoof by David Finch. Check it out. 32 Pages.

#8 - Fables #43, $2.75, DC/Vertigo. Bill Willingham; Art by Mark Buckingham & Steve Leialoha. Talked about this one last week, but unfortunately it didn’t get put out on time. Should be on the shelves this week though. It has really only been one issue since the end of the Homelands arc, but Willingham has already demonstrated that he has a lot of mileage left in this concept. Fables is still one of those titles that more people should be reading, but aren’t for some reason. Maybe it is the Vertigo label, or the lack of superheroes, but I urge you all to give it a chance. 32 Pages.

#7 - Birds Of Prey #88, $2.50, DC Comics. Written by Gail Simone, Art by Joe Bennett and Jack Jadsen. This story might seem a little obvious, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be exciting. Oracle as Oracle has never really had a nemesis of her own, to my knowledge, and the Calculator could prove to be an outstanding foil. This issue will be an excellent side-show to the whole Infinite Crisis event. 32 Pages.

#6 - Ultimate Spider-Man #86, $2.50. Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Art by Mark Bagley. This is the first part in the five part Silver Sable arc that was promised when the video game was first announced. Now of course, you don’t have to have played the video game to follow this story - that would be cruel! But for those of you who did play the game, this will be a little treat for you. This arc should also introduce Ultimate Omega Red, for those of you that might be looking forward to that character getting the Ultimate treatment. 32 Pages.

#5 - Mutopia X #5 (of 5), $2.99, Marvel. Written by David Hine, Art by Lan Medina. This is probably the first major change for the worst fans are experiencing coming out of House of M. This title, formerly District X, was a beacon of quality storytelling in a muddy X-Universe. Hine got praise for this story, and for making Bishop an interesting character for many people who didn’t find anything likeable about him. House of M is supposed to rework the mutant universe in a way that streamlines the universe, but maybe this was one title that didn’t have to go. Or at least not this way. Hopefully, the loss of District X is a tough, but needed cut that will end up improving the quality of the X-books in the long run. 32 Pages.

#4 - Supergirl #3, $2.99, DC Comics. Written by Jeph Loeb, Art by Ian Churchill & Norm Rapmund. Jeph Loeb has done a pretty good job, so far, of telling an interesting story with a pretty weak character. Supergirl’s only real assets, up to this point, are the name that she has inherited and the history that she may or may not share with past holders of the title. But as a character, THIS Supergirl is really lacking. Leob is slowly giving her a personality though, and that is making this title a pretty good read. Still early yet though, hopefully the momentum continues. 32 Pages.

#3 - Books Of Doom #1 (Of 6), $2.99, Marvel. Written by Ed Brubaker, Art by Pablo Raimondi. This series has the makings of something special. A in-depth look at the history of Doom, Brubaker will explore what lead him to rise to power in Latveria, and what molded him into the character he is today. Brubaker has really started to make a mark on the Marvel Universe since he signed his exclusive deal. This mini should be a good one. 32 Pages.

#2 - All Star Superman #1, $2.99, DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison; Art and by Frank Quitely. This week marks the beginning the unfortunately initialed second stab at the new All-Star line-up. Coming off of what can only be described as a fairly disastrous launch of All Star Batman and Robin. Morrison is kicking off with a monster twelve issue story arc. When this series was first announced, it met with lots of excitement, and not much else. But after Millar’s new take on Batman and Robin, this series no longer seems like a sure thing. Morrison has a hit on his hands with Seven Soldiers, hopefully he can carry that momentum to this book. 32 Pages.

#1 - Thing #1, $2.99. Written by Dan Slott, Art by Andrea Di Vito. It has really gotten to the point where anything Dan Slott touches will end up gold. Everything Slott has done with marvel lately: She-Hulk, Spider-Man/Human Torch, GLA - they have all been outstanding reads. This series, focused on the Thing’s sudden wealth, has the making of another fun read. Slott proves that good comic stories don’t always have to be dark ones. Here’s another chance to get in at the ground floor of a winner. 32 Pages

NOTE: Opinions here may not reflect those of X-World Comics LLC or it’s staff and are solely the opinions of the writer.

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