Category Archives: Reviews
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 9/19/15
I tell ya, I honestly forgot how good it felt to have a real, fully working new video game to dive into. I never got around to buying a PS 4 or an X-Bone, and my PC has been out of date for a long time. I’ve spent the past year playing either old X-Box 360 games or PC games where I had to shrink the screen and lower the graphics to the bottom wrung to get even some movement out of them. But wowzers does it feel good to have a brand new, fully upgraded computer gaming machine!
My current list is Witcher 3, Dead Rising 3 and Divinity: Original Sin. Feels good!
As for comics, we’ve got some treats this week! New issues of Harley Quinn and Lumberjanes don’t fail to entertain, though I’m still not won over by the new Secret Six. Fortunately, the main Star Wars series is still pretty amazing, and wins Comic Book of the Week for its exciting, mythology-based story — and probably the coolest Chewbacca moment in years.
Stand aside, Mon Mothma, he’s here!
Someday, I expect to get a Chewbacca vs. Black Krrsantan battle out of these Marvel comics. If that doesn’t happen, then Disney buying Marvel was completely for naught! Naught, I say!
Comic Ratings: Harley Quinn #20, Lumberjanes #18, Secret Six #6 and Star Wars #9.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 9/12/15
Oh boy! What a week! I had a great birthday, thanks for asking. Plus, in the good news department, my new computer arrived five days early! So I’ve spent the past few days getting that all set up, transferring files, and trying out some awesome games on my new super awesome graphics card. Talk about a major improvement!
But I didn’t forget about comics this week, not a chance! And what a week for comics! We get some solid new issues of Action Comics and Gotham Academy, both of which I definitely enjoy. This week also marks the return of Bitch Planet, and the start of Star Wars: Shattered Empire, the first comic in Marvel’s Star Wars series that takes place ahead of The Force Awakens! Good stuff!
Comic Book of the Week goes to the new issue of Ms. Marvel! With the end of the world on the horizon, writer G. Willow Wilson and artist Adrian Alphona deliver a knockout issue of my favorite comic, hitting all the right emotional, silly and down-to-Earth beats that have made Ms. Marvel such a stellar comic!
And there’s still one more Ms. Marvel to go before the relaunch! I can’t wait to see how they wrap up the first volume of this dynamite series!
Comic Reviews: Action Comics #44, Bitch Planet #5, Gotham Academy #10, Ms. Marvel #18, Starfire #4 and Star Wars: Shattered Empire #1.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 9/5/15
Somehow, fate finds a way to balance the scales. Last week, I reviewed nearly a dozen comics all piled into one New Comics Day! This week, I had to scrape and scrounge to find some interesting comics to talk about. And they’re all Marvel, that’s always a hoot.
I went back to last week and snagged my copy of Hank Johnson: Agent of Hydra, by popular request. I also picked up Mockingbird #1, a special issue celebrating the anniversary of SHIELD. And Comic Book of the Week goes to Silk #7, the last issue before the Secret Wars break, for a pretty good wrap-up of the first story arc.
Never a dull moment!
Over at Word of the Nerd, I continue the lack of content with a look at House of M #2. It’s a pretty boring comic, despite involving two rebellions, an angry Scarlet Witch and Fin Fang Foom.
Comic Reviews: Hank Johnson: Agent of Hydra #1, Mockingbird #1, Silk #7, and Silver Surfer #14.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 8/29/15
I don’t know why this happens, but it always seems like my favorite comics all come out in the same week. It’s a nightmare for the wallet but a celebration for reading! This week, we’ve got new issues of Ant-Man, Spider-Woman, Lumberjanes, Grayson, We Are Robin, Harley Quinn and more! It’s great!
Comic Book of the Week goes to Batgirl #43 for another nearly perfect issue. Batgirl is everything I could possibly want from a superhero comic these days, and the creative team pulls it off so effortlessly.
Batgirl vs. a tiger!!
I hope DC keeps this team and this direction around for a long time to come.
Comic Reviews: Last Days of Ant-Man #1, Batgirl #43, Cyborg #2, Grayson #11, Harley Quinn #19, Justice League of America #3, Lumberjanes #17, Ninjak #6, Spider-Woman #10 and We Are Robin #3.
Review: Teen Titans #11
Okay, I’m calm now. As you may recall, I thought the last issue of Teen Titans was an utter abomination. It was full of random, pointless character moments, crummy art and a general sense of terrible pacing and storytelling. It was a monster. But time heals all wounds, and I’m back to see if Teen Titans #11 is any better. Good news, it is! But only because all that prior insanity is behind us. I’m OK with the fact that Wonder Girl’s team is randomly called ‘The Elite’. I’m OK that Trinity exists in the face of all logic. I’m OK that Chimera is now a full member of the Teen Titans with little to no fanfare. I’m OK with the fact that Kid Flash is back for no particular reason.
Teen Titans #11
I think I’ve fallen too far down the rabbit hole of suckitude to ever ‘enjoy’ an issue of Teen Titans again, but the new issue is serviceable. The story is straight forward, so that helps. And writer Will Pfeifer keeps most of his worst characters in check.
Comic Rating: 4/10 – Pretty Bad.
If any comic was in need of ‘Batgirling’ in the wake of Convergence, it was Teen Titans. The book has been terrible since the launch of the New 52. There is zero focus on the main characters, some of whom have never even been seen out of costume. Teen Titans is all about what random villain the characters can be thrown at next, it’s never about the characters themselves, which has become a cornerstone of good comics this year. Batgirl is popular because it focuses on Barbara Gordon, among many other good reasons. Same with Hawkeye or Harley Quinn or Ms. Marvel. But Teen Titans remains the silly action figure comic it has been since the start of the New 52.
And it boggles the mind even further to remember that Teen Titans got a relaunch and a new #1 issue last year! Why the heck did that happen?! Pfeifer hasn’t done anything differently than previous writer Scott Lobdell.
But I’m rambling. Teen Titans #11 sees one half of the team try to break into a supermax prison, and that focus helps to keep the book from flailing painfully out of control. There’s another new artist, who’s both good and bad. Basically, Teen Titans continues to be a pretty terrible comic overall, but this issue softens the blow.
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