HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
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AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #574, $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Marc Guggenheim, Art by Barry Kitson, Mark Farmer, and Antonio Fabela

It has been several months since Brand New Day, and despite the fact that the stories we have seen since then have been very good, there are still some major continuity issues that are going to take a very long time to resolve. Looks like this issue is going to make a little dent there, focusing on Flash Thompson, telling the new story of what happened to him after he left school and joined the army. I expect that we will see lots of interludes like this one – after wiping out so much history, there are a lot of old characters that need to be accounted for once again. Tough to say if the new status quo is an improvement in of itself, but it is safe to say that the stories are much better now than they have been in some time. This issue should be no different.

BIRDS OF PREY #123, $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Tony Bedard; Art by Michael O’Hare and John Floyd; Cover by Stephane Roux

So much promise in this issue. One would think that the Joker would play a much bigger role in Oracle’s life since he ended her career as Batgirl and confined her to that wheelchair – but she grew and developed just fine without him as an antagonist, and his appearance in this issue really is a rarity. Though, if the last page of the previous issue is any indication, we are finally going to be given a moment with the Joker and Barbara face to face. I smell a tease here, but since this arc has really been playing up a long-awaited confrontation between these two, I can’t imagine we will be robbed of that. However – we still have another issue in this story, so it isn’t a stretch to say that we won’t be seeing any real payoff until issue #124. Even still this has been an enjoyable arc. Looking forward to seeing how Bedard will wrap it up.

BLUE BEETLE #32 $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Matthew Sturges; Art and Cover by Rafael Albuquerque

Looks like we are going to see the official emergence of a new Doctor Polaris this issue. Of course, the original Doctor Polaris was an enemy of Hal Jordan, and later the Justice League. Provided this new Polaris has any connection to Neal Emerson, this will be one more thing that ties this current Blue Beetle to the Green Lantern Corps. Last arc was something of an aberration for this book – it was still a decent read, but it was hurt a bit in its attempt to inject the politics of illegal immigration into the story. Sure – it is easy to say that the setting of El Paso makes this an ideal title to delve into that issue, but that is really more an excuse than anything. This title is tough because it has been a fantastic read, but for some reason Sturges and DC continue to try and focus on race. Instead of presenting Jaime as a hero first, DC seems to want to present him as Hispanic first, which is the exact recipe for failure. Readers don’t care about heroes more focused on their race than being a hero – and making racial identity the central focus of any hero is dooming it to failure. Jaime as the Blue Beetle has lasted this long because he is a compelling character with a heroic spirit that readers can identify with. Sadly, the story focus over the last several months has started to damage that. Sadly, we haven’t seen the last of that. This Boundaries story is set to continue into December, and there is no telling what we will see after that.

It is painful to look at this title sometimes. It’s good – it really is. But every time the story steps into the political realm, it is really rough. I wish he best for this title, and it deserves to be read. But if Sturges can’t let go of the urge to turn this title into a platform for his political beliefs, and can’t stop making race the most important part of Jaime’s identity, everything that has been accomplished might just go down the drain.

To summarize – entertaining book, but there is starting to be real cause for concern. Still worth reading, but if there was only some way to let DC know that this isn’t what we want to see from this book…

DC UNIVERSE HALLOWEEN 08, $5.99, 80 Pages
Written by Mark Verheiden, Mike Johnson, Brian Reed and others; Art by Trevor Hairsine, Duncan Rouleau and others; Cover by Gene Ha

Looks like DC is delivering a jam-packed Halloween issue this year, filled with short stories featuring the Titans, El Diablo, Faust, and their Trinity of course…

As you might expect, you probably won’t see anything that really rocks continuity in this issue, but it is a great opportunity for creators to relax and tell a fun story for a change, without worrying how it is going to tie into everything else. Seems like a great way to get into the holiday spirit.

GHOST RIDER DANNY KETCH #1 (OF 5), $3.99
Written by Simon Spurrier, Art by Javier Saltares, Tom Palmer, and Dan Brown

Jason Aaron has brought Dan Ketch back to Ghost Rider in his current arc on the regular Ghost Rider series – and as a result we are getting one of the best Ghost Rider stories we have seen in a while. Maybe Marvel has decided to do with Ghost Rider what Brubaker and Fraction did with Iron Man – it is a winning formula, so if they really are trying to focus on the Ghost Rider mythos, it is isn’t a bad idea. Especially if we get the kind of stories we are seeing in Ghost Rider now. Of course, with Danny Ketch back, Marvel is taking this opportunity to tell us what happened to him, and how he came to be where we see him in the current story. Aaron isn’t writing this issue, but it does promise to tie into the ongoing Ghost Rider – not a bad issue to pick up if you are really enjoying the direction Aaron is taking this property.

MS MARVEL #32, $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Brian Reed, Art by Paulo Siqueira and Chris Sotomayor

Ms. Marvel has been a title that has gotten a bad rap over its history. The costume was a major distraction from the beginning – combined with Carol Danvers’ shallow attitude when we first saw her in this book really fueled the critics. Instead of seeing that the title was a fairly solid action book, there were too many opportunities to rip it for its perceived failings.

However, over the years, Carol Danvers has grown as a character. Her shallow beginning could better be described as a blank slate upon which to build a character. And instead of remaining an enjoyable action read, Reed has grown into the character and story and actually producing a compelling read. The last several arcs have been fantastic, and last issue’s post-Secret Invasion story was compelling.

This issue will turn back the clock a bit – going back to Carol’s time in the Air Force. Adding a little more depth – you can bet that this issue will tie into a future story in some fashion. Might be a good time to try this title out if you are curious – having just finished with the Secret Invasion crossover, it looks like it is starting to focus on itself for a bit. Let’s hope that lasts a while.

RUNAWAYS 3 #3, $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Terry Moore, Art by Humberto Ramos, Dave Meikis, and Christina Strain

When you stack this title up against Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, it just hasn’t been as good. The first issue was different – improvement in some areas (The constant sexuality focus in this title was horribly misplaced – these are supposed to be kids for crying out loud. Dialing that back was a great move), but the story just wasn’t as solid as it has been in the past. Last issue was a marked improvement however – which makes me think that maybe Moore is trying to set something up for the long term, and decided he could count on the avid fans of the series sticking with him through a set-up first issue.

Still not fantastic – and definitely not as good as Moore’s other work yet, but there is promise here. And this is definitely better than the last Runaways arc we had.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #127, $2.99, 32 Pages
Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Art by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger, and Justin Ponsor

It has been a slow build (and sometimes confusing – I think they tried too hard to tie this into the video game), but now that we are reaching the end, the story has proven to be very much worth the journey. This issue has all the elements – Carnage, Venom, Brock and Gwen Stacy. Tough to know whether we should credit Bendis for this title, or just the concept itself, but even when it is average, this is the most enjoyable Spider-Man title on the market. The basics are what make it so – here we have Eddie Brock longing for his symbiote, Spider-Man with a personal life, trying to protect his identity – teen angst, and Spider-Man very much not in control of his destiny. Retcon Amazing Spider-Man all you want, it seems that the only real way to recapture what made Spider-Man special was to start all over. Even over 120 issues into it, this title is still special, and still very much Spider-Man. If you still aren’t reading this book, you are really short-changing yourself.

SPOTLIGHT PICK OF THE WEEK

SUPERMAN NEW KRYPTON SPECIAL #1, $3.99, 48 Pages
Written by Geoff Johns, James Robinson and Sterling Gates; Art by Gary Frank and Jon Sibal, Renato Guedes and Wilson Magalháes, and Pete Woods ; Cover by Gary Frank; Variant cover by Renato Guedes and Wilson Magalháes

This issue is the official start to the nine issue “New Krypton” story that is going to be featured in all of the Superman books through the end of December. DC has been gearing up for this crossover for a while – and with all three Super-title writers collaborating on it (Johns is fantastic at special events, and Robinson has been amazing so-far during his short run), it is a safe bet that this will be an entertaining story. Added to that is that this story is not tying into the entire DCU – might be a good event to pick up if you passed on Final Crisis and Secret Invasion because you are worn-out by universe-spanning mega-events.

By way of a checklist for the New Krypton story:

Part 1 – Superman: New Krypton Special (10/22)
Part 2 – Superman #681 (10/29)
Part 3 – Guardian of Metropolis Special (11/05)
Part 4 – Action Comics #871 (11/12)
Part 5 – Supergirl #35 (11/19)
Part 6 – Superman #682 (11/26)
Part 7 – Action Comics #872 (12/10)
Part 8 – Supergirl #36 (12/17)
Part 9 – Superman #683 (12/31)

That’s it! Just Superman books – not dozens of forced tie-ins throughout the DCU, and no supplemental minis to worry about. This is an event I can get behind in this era of mega-event fatigue. Check it out – this one looks like it is going to be really good.

DC COMICS

BATMAN GOTHAM AFTER MIDNIGHT #6 (OF 12) $2.99 Now: $2.59
BIRDS OF PREY #123 $2.99 Now: $2.59
BLUE BEETLE #32 $2.99 Now: $2.59
DC UNIVERSE HALLOWEEN 08 $5.99 Now: $4.99
FINAL CRISIS #4 (OF 7) $3.99 Now: $3.49
FINAL CRISIS SUBMIT #1 $3.99 Now: $3.49
SUPERMAN NEW KRYPTON SPECIAL #1 $3.99 Now: $3.49
TRINITY #21 $2.99 Now: $2.69

DEVIL’S DUE

WORLDS OF DUNGEONS & DRAGONS #6 ROBERTS $5.50 Now: $4.99

DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA ORIGINS #11 $3.50 Now: $2.99

MARVEL COMICS

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #572 2ND PTG JRJR VAR $2.99 Now: $2.69
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #574 $2.99 Now: $2.69
DAREDEVIL #112 $2.99 Now: $2.69
GHOST RIDER DANNY KETCH #1 (OF 5) $3.99 Now: $3.49
HULK #7 $2.99 Now: $2.69
MS MARVEL #32 $2.99 Now: $2.69
NEW AVENGERS #46 $2.99 Now: $2.69
NEW EXILES #13 $2.99 Now: $2.69
NEW WARRIORS #17 $2.99 Now: $2.69
RUNAWAYS 3 #3 $2.99 Now: $2.69
SECRET INVASION #7 (OF 8) $3.99 Now: $3.49
SECRET INVASION AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #3 (OF 3) $2.99 Now: $2.79
STAND CAPTAIN TRIPS #1 (OF 5) 2ND PTG PERKINS VAR $3.99 Now: $2.79
TRUE BELIEVERS #4 (OF 5) $2.99 Now: $2.59
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #127 $2.99 Now: $2.69
ULTIMATE X-MEN TP VOL 19 ABSOLUTE POWER $12.99 Now: $10.99
WEAPON OMEGA TP $12.99 Now: $10.99
WOLVERINE MANIFEST DESTINY #1 (OF 4) $2.99 Now: $2.69
X-FACTOR #36 $2.99 Now: $2.69
X-MEN LEGACY #217 $2.99 Now: $2.69

SPIDER-GIRL AND MANHUNTER CANCELLED

Two titles that managed to survive despite low sales and continued resurrections thanks to fan support both got the axe recently, as Marvel announced that Amazing Spider-Girl would be coming to an end with issue #30, and DC announced that Manhunter’s final issue would end with issue #38. (This is the third time that Manhunter has been cancelled, and frankly, I’ve lost count on how many times Spider-Girl has been cancelled – we have seen at least six at this point). Both characters have some hope of survival – Marvel is talking about making Spider-Girl a regular 16-page feature in Spider-Man Family, and Manhunter has made regular appearances in Birds of Prey – so fans of both characters will be able to see them in some form.

Still, it is a shame to see both titles go. Both were solid titles that had their own strengths, that probably could have done better if their respective publishers had just pushed them a little harder. As many times as Spider-Girl has been saved, you have to wonder if either publisher is just using this cancellation announcement as a means of generating viral marketing… every time Spider-Girl has faced cancellation in the past, sales spiked, and fan letters flooded Marvel. Manhunter has experienced similar (though weaker) support, but its long, long hiatus really killed the fan-support momentum it had when it was cancelled last time.

Check both titles out – they are both entertaining. Sadly, it seems that this time, their fate might be permanent – fans seem to be growing weary of rescuing books that the publisher doesn’t care about, and each time the reaction has been weaker and weaker. Spider-Girl held on for over 130 issues and lasted 11 years. If it hasn’t gotten the publisher’s full support by now, it won’t ever. Both will be missed greatly.

The opinions in this article are the writer’s alone, and no not necessarily reflect the views of X-World Comics or comiXtreme.com.

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