Yeah. The DC Comics Presents books would be nicer if the paper stock for their covers was heavier. With thicker covers, those would basically be cheap TPBs. It’s kind of annoying how floppy they are in reality. Still, I guess we should be grateful that these stories are being reprinted at all.
Here’s the first of what I aim to make a recurring feature in the blog: quarter bin reviews.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: For What It’s Worth #1 - The Batman Chronicles #10
Here’s another quick “For What It’s Worth” post.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: For What It?s Worth #2: The Batman Chronicles #15
i need to pick up that rucka huntress trade…i assume theres a trade?
Yeah, there is a TRADE, BABY for that Rucka/Burchett Huntress story.
Amazon.com: Batman: Huntress - Cry for Blood (9781840233957): Greg Rucka, Rick Burchett: Books
That’s the one I have… It must be out of print or unavailable on Amazon for some reason.
Concluding Milligan’s initial Human Target miniseries, here is my analysis and review of the fourth issue.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: Human Target #4 (Miniseries)
For a change of pace, here are some brief write-ups on some of the TPBs/HCs I’ve read lately.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: Quick Reviews
Here’s another For What It’s Worth review. The best of the bunch thus far.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: For What It?s Worth #3: The Batman Chronicles #19
^ reading your blog makes me want to do some serious back-issue hunting!
I should read zot…and that green arrow trade. To me Meltzer is the “good” jeph loeb.
Zephy spreads lies and slander everywhere he goes. Don’t read it!!
Oh and I’ll check it out. Also hi comic forums. :lovin:
Thanks! I appreciate the sentiment. There’s something satisfying about spending a quarter on a comic and then discovering you got more than your money’s worth. (Of course, it’s also a lousy feeling when you read a piece of tripe that isn’t even worth twenty-five cents…)
Zot! you should definitely read.
I’m curious to learn more about your Meltzer to Loeb comparison, though. Care to elaborate?
Haha, I wondered where you’ve been.
Here’s another brief update. Another For What It’s Worth review.
Permalink: http://madnessvest.blogspot.com/2011/03/for-what-its-worth-4-action-comics.html
A brief little blurb on a couple new comics I noticed in the latest DC solicitations.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: Thoughts on DC’s June 2011 Solcititations
Here are some write-ups of a few TRADES, BABY that I read/re-read recently. I’d be interested in knowing what you guys have been reading lately. No one seems to post too much in The Official TPB Thread anymore…
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: Quick Reviews 2
I posted a review a quality Batman story that I recently discovered in (surprise, surprise) a quarter bin. It’s worth checking out for yourself!
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: For What It?s Worth #5 ? Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Annual #7 (1997)
The quarter bin is all about testing your luck. Kinda like Russian roulette, but without a revolver and without a bullet and without two idiots.
This Ain’t Kansas.
Permalink: This Ain’t Kansas.: For What It?s Worth #6 - Brass #s 2-6
zephy what do you think of Superman For Tomorrow?
I think For Tomorrow is an enjoyable but deeply flawed comic. Its biggest weakness, I feel, is Jim Lee’s artwork, which does not go with the tone of Azzarello’s script at all. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but start in the first issue and just count how many times Lee draws Superman with clenched fists, even when he’s just having a conversation with that priest dude. It gets ridiculous.
The comic was very introspective, which isn’t necessarily what I want to see from a 12 part Superman story, but if the art had been better, it would have been easier to swallow. It’s been a few years since I last reread it, so I can’t get too specific with details. I just remember there being a little more wallowing than I prefer to see in a Superman tale.
Azzarello’s Lex Luthor: Man of Steel, though, is something I would consider one of the very best Superman stories of all time.
Hmm…but isn’t it Azzarello’s fault for not writing something that plays to Jim Lee’s strengths?
I guess that’s a reasonable argument, but I would rather a writer tell a story he wants to tell rather than be forced to shoehorn a whole bunch of scenes to suit his artist. That’s what Jeph Loeb claims to do ALL the time - and we ended up with things like a giant half-Batman/half-Superman robot piloted by Captain Atom into the dying sun.
Besides, being able to draw two people having a conversation should be a requirement for anyone who draws comics for a living. I’m not going to deny that superhero comics should have a lot of action, but I don’t think For Tomorrow was intended to be a typical superhero comic. You don’t bring Brian Azzarello on board to have him write a typical superhero comic. You bring him on board because you want a unique voice and the best dialogue writer on an established icon.
Otherwise, why not just have Jeph Loeb reteam with Jim Lee? For Tomorrow could have just as easily ended up as a Hush remix, with Superman going through a gauntlet of his rogues gallery, only to discover, shockingly, that Zod was secretly pulling the strings while twirling his curly mustache. It would have been safe, would have sold a lot of issues, and surely people would remember it as fondly as they do Hush.
For Tomorrow may be a failure in some regards, but at least it aspires to be more than it is, which is more than I can say for most superhero comics. I also find ambitious failures to be far more fascinating than even a decent average comic.