Well, it's nice to have a light load after the beating my wallet has taken for the last 2 weeks. (And without all those other books to read, maybe I'll finallt find time for "Harlequin Valentine".) Only 2 titles this week.

Transmetropolitan #53

The Authority #28 - It's sad that this used to be one of the books, but all the delays and problems have made me kind of lose interest. I'm hoping for something in this issue that will draw me back in.


Also, does anyone know of a good place online where I can get comic supplies at a decent price? (I believe this question was asked a few weeks ago, but I don't feel like going through a search to find it.) I'm packing stuff up for my eventual move and realized that I have hundreds of books that are in boxes, but were never bagged and boarded. So now I need to find a place where I can find quality bags and boards without spending too much money.

Question Of The Week:

I read Scott McCloud's "Reinventing Comics" a few weeks ago. Although he makes some interesting points, I was not very impressed with the book...especially as a follow-up to his essential "Understanding Comics".

In the book, McCloud makes the case for online/ digital comics. He feels very strongly that this is the future of comics, and that this is a good thing.

My question?

Does anyone believe this will happen? Does anyone even want it to happen?

I have a few problems with the idea of "digital comics" and McCloud's opinions of their importance.

1.) Although McCloud insists that the technology is available to us now and that we should start acting on it, is this really the truth? Yes, digital comics can be done, but until everyone is equiped to see them, what's the point? I can't imagine trying to load up a comicbook on this slow computer. Hell! It can take me a good 2 or 3 minutes just to load the DVD Talk home page on a bad day! Maybe digital comics will be a viable option one day, but until more people (myself included) play catch-up with the technology, that day is far off.

2.) McCloud insists that one of the great groundbreaking things about digital comics, is that they can be interactive. The comics can be different each time you read it by allowing you to make decisions for the main character each time you read it. My problem is that this seems to gimmicky. If comic book writer's ficus on good storytelling, do we need this gimmick? It seems lazy to me. A way to get out of telling a good story by adding some bells and whistles. Why not just go back to the "glory days" of multiple, die-cut, holographic covers????

3.) What McCloud (and those who think that e-books and online magazines are the wave of the future) doesn't realize is that people, especially comic book collectors, like to own things. There's nothing quite like holding that book in your hand and the weekly trips to the comic shop. And, although it may seem infuriating at the time, trying to locate all those back issues is part of the fun. "The hunt" is part of being a serious collector.

And doesn't the fate of StanLee.net show that people are not ready for this yet? I never visited the site, so I cannot comment on its quality, but the thing sank faster than a kitten tied to a bowling ball.

jim

i agree that until the majority of people catch up with the speed of technology that online comics will not take hold. i would not want it that way at all. i much prefer being able to pick up a physical copy and read it as opposed to having to strain the eyes to read a computer based one.

as for the authority, i haven't picked it up yet. i am with you though, when this first came out it was absolutely incredible. i had gotten the TPB's and that was what got me interested in it. lately though it hasn't been near as good as it used to be. i wonder if the original pre 9/11 story arc will ever be seen? i wish that it would.

About the comic supplies, I was pointed in the direction of www.bagsunlimited.com

I just placed my order, though, so I can't comment on the product

Couldn't agree with you more. I don't understand why anyone would want this to happen. For me, part of the charm of a comic book is the way it's presented: on paper. I enjoy the fact that my home office smells like a comic book store. I like holding the thing in my hands. Having a virtual comic book would be almost worthless to me. The same reason I don't buy e-books.

Also for me interactive comic books sound like interactive cartoons. Regardless of how interactive they are, they will not be able to compete with the CGI of movies like Shrek or Monsters Inc.

I totally agree about digital comics - as much as I gripe about finding books sometimes at my local comic store, I can honestly say that digital comics don't interest me. I tried out a few virtua comics at www.marvel.com (the Ultimate back issues) and was less than impressed. I enjoy reading comics, and collecting them is part of the fun

In an effort to answer's the previous "question of the week..."

Preacher: Gone to Texas

I had every expectation that I would hate this book. I'd heard bad things about it, all from trusted sources. "Adolescent," "violent" and "gratuitous," are all particularly frightening words of criticism when you're talking to someone that you know who enjoys super-hero comics. Certainly, Preacher is all of those things. Ennis has the sensibilities of a man-child. Strange thing, though, I actually wound up enjoying it. Literally hit me out of the blue. Maybe I had a minor stroke halfway, but I started to appreciate some of the nice touches, especially toward the end of the book. Ultimately, I liked the end enough to justify the immaturity. May even pick up the next book in the series, just to see.

Hellblazer: Dangerous Habits and Hellblazer: Fear and Loathing

Taking a shortcut here. Based on Gamblor's recommendation, I decided to pick up the first two books in Ennis' Hellblazer run. The horror comic concept is still new to me, so I may have appreciated these more than I otherwise might have. In the final analysis, I didn't enjoy these as much as Moore's work on Swamp Thing, but still thought they were quite good. Somewhere in the gulf between Gaiman's Black Orchid and the aforementioned Swamp Thing.

So, my assessment of Ennis is that I want to hate him more than I actually do. His work epitomizes the irony of many "mature readers" labels. (I even felt this seeping through in his Hellblazer books.) Still, if you're the kind of person that really wants to like horror movies more, but you just can't bring yourself to sacrifice your standards, you may want to give his books a try.

What I picked up this week:
SINGLES:
Authority #28 - Hoping the last panel of #27 is followed through by this issue.
Harley Quinn #17 - I like Terry Dodson's art because it fits Harley Quinn's offbeat behavior.
Suicide Squad #6 - Haven't read this particular issue yet, but I like the ties it has to Sgt. Rock and Easy Company. Also, I use to enjoy Keith Giffen's JLA and the sense of humor he occasionally imparts into the story.
Sojourn #8 - Greg Land art pretty
Radix #2 - Somewhat bland. I thought this title would have ended with #1 (as plenty of Image titles seem to do), so I gave it another try when I was surprised to see #2 out.
Muties #1 - Haven't read through yet, but the art is very..."brown". Looks to be a pretty somber story.
New X-Men #122 - Frank Quitely managed to finish another issue (I gotta wonder: does Kordey draw like a madman since he's been filling in on New X-Men while working on Cable?)
Cable #102 - Having enjoyed Kordey's work on New X-Men, I decide to give his Cable work a try. Recently picked up #97-101 from milehighcomics during their 30% sale (less than $2 each) to give the new creative team a go.
Elecktra #7 - #1 I like Rucka's writing #2 I recently finished the War Machine trade and I've grown accustomed to Chuck Austen's art. Also, Chuck Austen is going to be writing Uncanny X-Men...going to need a scorecard soon to keep track of all of this
Punisher #9 - Hoping for good things from the new creative team despite #8
Taskmaster #1 - I actually liked this issue. People either like or dislike UDON's "anime-style", but I enjoyed the story. I remember how goofy - and craptastic - Taskmaster was, and this new rendition gives him some character that he never had before. He seems more realistically mercenary and business-like than his prior incarnation, although I'm hoping UDON doesn't suddenly turn him into a "good guy".
Ultimate X-Men #14
X-treme X-Men #10 - I know this title sucks, but I can't stop buying it for some reason

TRADES:
Hellblazer: Good Intentions - I like Azerello's work on 100 Bullets, and decided to pick this up. I still have the rest of the Hellblazer trades on my "wantlist" though.
Strangers in Paradise v.1 - I heard good things about this series for years, but never picked it up. Also, it seems like this series has been around forever, so I finally decided to give it a try.


Question of the Week:
1. As a manga fan, I was interested when www.comicsone.com decided to try selling comics on-line. Although it sounded great, the application itself seemed less than desireable for a comics fan like myself. The problems I found was:
- the comics can only be played in the computer you downloaded it to. Although I realize this prevents the comic from being pirated, it limits you right off the bat where you can read your comics.
- a lack of portibility. Although I also have a laptop, it's still a drag to sit there staring at a screen flipping through a 80+ page manga. I've always found comics something that I can whip out and read at my discretion, without having to turn on the computer, load up the program, etc. Also, comics make good...*ahem* bathroom reading...
- Since I usually end up re-formatting my hard drive once a year, it's a bit disconcerting to possibly have my "collection" being wiped out with a hard drive failure. Comicsone does have some guarantee to it (in a limited sense), but who wants to have to re-download their entire collection, and what if they go out of business?
2. Interactivity would be like a "Choose Your Own Adventure" where the story either ends or you get steered into a pre-defined story path. In addition, you start moving away from the story that the writer is looking to tell, because the story is being molded by the reader. Also, it will be impossible to have mulitple "issues" because the writer will eventually have to come up with expontially more outcomes and possibilities. As Gamblor said, this interactivity would only be a gimmick: it can't be implemented fully, and a very limited use of it can be pretty lame
3. Wow, I thought it was just my own sick impulse to like hunting down "missing issues" . I gotta admit hunting down issues tend to more fun than actually reading the darn things

greydt, we seem to have very similar tastes in comics & read almost all the same stuff, I've been thinking about picking up Harley Quinn just b/c I really like the art, but I don't like many female characters & I'm not a big Batman fan, is it any good?

Anyway, would have been an even bigger week for me today if I didn't recently drop Nightwing & Ultimate X-men, & Cable. I picked up. . .

New X-men #122 - X-men fan or not I simply cannot understand how anyone can not love this book. Morrison & Quitely on this title are nothing short of brilliant. Quitely creates an eerie atmosphere fear in every single panel in this issue as if something huge will happen at any moment yet the entire issue is nothing more than a slow build up to the action. And what a funny yet extemely tragic ending. One of the best comics I've read in my life.

Muties #1 - WHAT A WASTE OF MY TIME reading this trite crap. I don't know why I got this.

Queen & Country #6 - Gamblor, curious if you read this title as it seems like something you would like. Another fantastic issue, truly Rucka's best work in comics, aside from Whiteout. Although a little creepy as this issue was done before the events of Sept. 11 & how relative these issues are now.

Suicide Squad #6 - Haven't read it yet, I have always hated Griffin's work but I am really enjoy this seres. It's not reinventing the wheel, but it is a damn fun read .

Elektra #7 - Haven't read yet but unless Rucka starts a fantastic story, which he is very capable of, I'm dropping this book. Austin's art hurst my head.

Taskmaster #1 - Haven't read yet, but I generally hate mini-series & one-shots. I always liked Taskmaster & it looks like this will be a pretty fun read.

The Authority #28 - Haven't read yet either but can't wait. Art Adams is one of the greatest comic book artists of all-time.

X-treme X-men #10 - Haven't gotten to this either.

Sojourn #8 - Also have not read but I'm glad Land is back.

Trades:

Hellblazer: Good Intentions - I've tried twice to get into this title in single issues. Once a while ago & I was lost. Another time a few issues back, the story had to do with a prostitute. I'm all for violence & curses but this issue was so vulgar it just seemed unwarrented & turned me off. I'm a big Azzarello fan & this is his first story arc. Gamblor if you read this is the beginning of his run any good? I probably woun't get to read this for a while.

Too much typing, I'll answer the Q.O.T.W. after I've read some more of this weeks comics.

Gah, I just saw Sessa17's list and can't believe that I forgot to say that I had also picked up:

Queen & Country #6 - Had read it this morning and concur that it was an excellent issue. The only issue i have with it is that it's bi-monthly...although it's going monthly soon, so problem solved . The trade of the first arc is coming out soon, although the individual issues are readily available since they've been re-printed. I recommend the trade though for the first arc because it also re-prints a Q&C side story that appeared in the Oni Color Special.

Sessa17 - I don't pick up any of the other Batman titles, but I've enjoyed Harley Quinn so far although it really depends on if you can 1) stand the character and 2) stand the tone of the book. It's not TOO silly, but it doesn't take itself too seriously as well. The art can veer off to be "Dini-esque" (from the Animated series), which may be jarring to some, but offers a lighter tone to what's being said or done. As for Harley, she's not as ditzy as the Batman: the animated series one, but she is quite flamboyant.

Pros: on-going storylines, incorporates various members of the DCU without sticking with just the Gotham characters, doesn't take itself too seriously (but hasn't veered off into being idiotic)

Cons: Can be seen as "silly", art can switch over to cartoon-like characters which may be jarring for some

Favorite issues has been #10 & #11 when Harley gets a "vision" (after a bump on the noggin fighting with Croc) and decides to see what it's like to fight crime, so she dresses up as the Barbara Gordon Batgirl. Ends up with Oracle, new Batgirl, Robin and Nightwing chasing after her through Gotham.

The current story arc (14-17, probably ending in 18) involves Harley & Poison Ivy roadtripping to Metropolis and encountering Bizarro and some of the characters there.

Of course, this is coming from someone who can sit down and enjoy "Dude, Where's My Car?"

Does anyone know where I can buy Origins #1 besideds Ebay?
I just bought issues 2-4, but the comic book store didn't have any copies of issue #1 for sale. Any help would be appreciated.

If you just want it to read, then any comic book store should have "Mighty Marvels Must Haves". Its a comic that collects the first issues of Origin & a couple of other comics, I don't remember which ones.

Aside from that, you'll either have to wait for the Hardcover trade that comes out in April or shell out $20 + at a store or ebay.

I think its Cable #97, Amaz. Spiderman #36, Banner #1, and Origin #1.