I was a bit busy last week with the holiday, work, buying a new car, and selling the old one. I never got around to posting my thoughts on last week's books. I hope to find the time to do that this week. Remember, reviews and recommendations are encouraged and greatly appreciated. Even if you just pick up TPBs, I'd like to hear from you. And if you didn't pick up anything at all, you can still respond to the Question of the Week. (Except for those weeks when I'm too lazy to come up with one.)

Here's what I got.

Queen and Country: Declassified #1 - As I said last week, I think this book is pretty inconsistent, and I'll probably switch over to just collecting the trades (if I decide to keep following the book at all). I'm just trying to give it one last chance beore going that route.

Batman #609 - Yeah, I got suckered in by all the Loeb and Lee hype. I wasn't too impressed by the first issue, but I'll give it some time. Loeb has written some great Batman stories, so I have faith that this one will be interesting, too.

The Avengers #60 - Geoff Johns is my favorite writer in comics today, but this series hasn't done much for me so far. And the mediocre artwork doesn't help things.

Hellblazer #178 - Mike Carey is off to a promising start that will, hopefully, ersae all memory of Brian Azzarello's weak final story arc for this title.

The Truth: Red, White, and Black #1 - I'm pretty skeptical about this. I'm not sure if they can pull it off, and the whole thing does seem like a bit of a publicity stunt to get the fanboys arguing, but I'll give it a try.

The Flash #192 - Gorilla Grodd is one of the lamest villains ever. So how does Geoff Johns make him so enjoyable? Possibly the best superhero book available righ now. Of course that distinction could also belong to....

X-Statix #5 - Still hate the new name. Still love the book.

And now, the triumphant return of the QUESTION OF THE WEEK!!!

When this thread was around last year, we discussed favorite comic writers, but I'm curious about who your favorite authors are outside of the comic business. Also what book are you reading now? What was the last book you read? What's the next book you plan on reading.

My favorite books/ authors:

"Shot In The Heart" by Mikal Gilmore - My favorite book of all time. I read it at least once a year and buy copies for all my friends. A haunting, beautifully written book by the brother of executed criminal, Gary Gilmore. It was turned into an HBO movie last year, but I haven't seen it yet.

Roddy Doyle - Best known as the writer of "The Commitments". I have a weakness for modern Irish literature (the books of Patrick McCabe, particularly "The Butcher Boy" and "Cairn" are highly recommended, also). I anxiously await his follow-up to "A Star Called Henry".

David Sedaris - God bless NPR's "This American Life" for giving exposure to the likes of Sedaris, David Rakoff, and Sarah Vowell.

Last book I read:
"Prayers for Rain" by Dennis Lehane - The latest installment of the Kenzie/Genarro series is probably the weakest of the bunch, but still a fun read. If you haven't read anything by Lehane, I recommend picking up "Mystic River".

Now reading:
"The Quiet American" by Graham Greene - Wanted to finally read this before the movie comes out. I should finish it this weekend, if I find the time.

Up next:
I have a large stack of books waiting to be read, as well as a couple TPBs. After I finish "The Quiet American", I'll likely turn to Michael Moore's "Stupid White Men" or "The 6 Messiahs" by ("Twin Peaks" co-creator) Mark Frost.

jim

I'm not finished, but I'll weigh in with what I've read thus far:

Wolverine #183 - I'm not entirely sure if Wolverine needs to be in a mafia-type set-up, but I have to admit its makes for an interesting read. I haven't reg. picked up the title for several years, but with the new team on #181, I decided to give it a go via marvel.com. The book was $3.50 this month, due to the addition of a bonus story (whcih wasn't that great).

Agent X #5 - I love the book - the art and writing are both fantastic. I heard Gail was leaving after issue #7 (?), which does not bode well.

Batman #609 - The art is the highlight of the book for me, though I have no doubt Loeb will do some great stuff after all the set-up.

Queen and Country: Declassified #1 - The series as a whole seems a bit too confusing for its own good sometimes, though it mostly manages to be entertaining. The art is hit or miss for me, though.

Ult. X-Men #25 - I didn't like it - a weak resolution to a weak story arc (Hellfire & Brimstone). To make it worse, the art sucked.

X-Statix #5 - I wasn't a huge fan of the art (by Pope) which I felt detracted from the story...other than that, I did think the issue wrapped things up a bit *too* quickly with Arnie, but all in all, it wasn't bad.

Something I read recently that I thought I'd recommend was Violent Messiahs. The new 'arc' - Lamenting Pain - just started and its worth a look if you're into the urban crime/horror type stuff.

Alas my monthly shipment of comic books has not arrived yet...

Rucka is a great writer, his Whiteout was exhilirating. I've only read the first 4 issues of Q&C though, when I get time I'm definitely picking up the trades, I know he won't let me down.

Loeb has his hits and misses, a lot of hits usually. His regular work on the Superman issues was good, but nothing compared to his Superman minis. Hopefully it won't be the same for Batman, great mini, average to above average series?

I'm personally waiting for Mike Carey's future work, the ongoing Firestorm series he will be writing. Lucifer will satisfy until then.

I like Kyle Baker, but more for his writing than his art (which is pretty good), so I skipped this one. Hype does not a good comic make (e.g. Origin, DK2, ...)

I hear the writing has been slowing down lately, can't say personally though since I haven't read any X-Statix. How do you feel about it? I've only read the first 8 or so of Mulligan's run on X-Force (which led to X-Statix for people who don't know)....very nice, the art took a while to get used to.



My favorite books/ authors:

Neil Gaiman is probably my favorite author, but he isn't truly "outside" the comic business. Check out "American Gods", or his collection of short stories "Smoke and Mirrors" to get an idea of his different styles of writing.

My favorite books are:

"The Catcher in the Rye" - Salinger
Do you know of anybody that doesn't like this book? I thought not.

"The Count of Monte Cristo" - Dumas
Read the unabridged version if you can, definitely worth it; the movies don't do it justice, even though the last movie was excellent.

"The Call of the Wild" - London
The greatest animal story EVER, and this from a guy who isn't that fond of animal stories.

I mainly read the classics, hence I don't really have that many contemporary favorite writers/books. I don't know how long this "classics only" fit will last though, hopefully only 5 or so years more (of course I said that a few years ago too).

Last book I read:
"The Eternal Husband" - Dostoevsky
His grasp of human emotions is uncanny.

Now reading:
"Robinson Crusoe" - Defoe
I wish I had read this before I fell in love with Cast Away.

Up next:
"If Chins Could Kill, Confessions of a B Movie Actor" - Bruce Campbell
Got it signed by him last month and I really love his movies, so it's pretty much a given that I'm going read it.



Graduate school is taking most of my time, didn't even get to go home for Thanksgiving, and finals are coming up. Most of my reading is now required instead of being for pure pleasure, which stinks.

-Spooon69

A small sampling of this week with more on the way...

Fantastic Four #63/492 - Another great issue by Waid & Wieringo. This is a fantastic [hehe] example that proves not every book has to be "ultimate"-ized to be hip. Not that any of that stuff matters to me. I just like a good story & good art. Both of which are found between the covers of this book.

Superman: Day Of Doom #3 - This issue is the best of this series. And that cover! I likes. More remembrances & a discovery why reporter Duffy doesn't share most of Metropolis' fondness for Supes.

Flash #192 - I've been collecting this book for a while now. The 1-2 combo of Geoff Johns' writing & Scott Kolins' art makes this a must read. This is one of the books that I eagerly look forward to every month. I'm hoping Geoff doesn't spread himself "Bendis"-thin with the amount of new books he's writing for.

Batman #609 - Yep. I've been a fan of Lee's for a while now and he doesn't disappoint here. As others here have stated, i'm sure Loeb's story is going to take off soon. [hoping] And, I don't know if it's me...but Tommy looks a little too sinister in that last panel he's in.

Star Wars: the Empire Strikes Back Infinities #4 - ESB is the best SW flick. Hands down. So when this was announced I could hardly wait. The Star Wars: Infinities series was pretty good and i'm a sucker for a good "What If...?" story [lord knows the SW universe is overdue for some -- like "What if George didn't make the new trilogy...?"]. So I figured this would be an improvement -- unfortunately I was wrong. The art by Davidé Fabbri is fine, but the story by Dave Land isn't that great. This issue in particular isn't as disappointing as the previous three, but it seems to have an "X-Files ending*". Maybe Return of the Jedi: Infinities will be better? Here's hoping.

[* An ending that tries to sum up a complex 40 minute mystery in the final 5 minutes of show after. MINUS commercials, of course.]

Only read a couple of books from this week so far, still have a lot of catching up to do. But here is what I picked up last Wed. . .


Queen & Country: Declassified - I don't know I think you guys are missing the boat on this book. I find absolutely nothing "confusing" in this title, if anything it's quite straight forward & the book is ANYTHING but "inconsistant". It actually improves with each story arc, I think the last one was by far the best. Although I hated the way Fernanso drew chase, his art really grew on me. I'm really looking forward to reading this one the most though, as Paul Crocker has been my favorite character in the book since the first issue.

Global Frequency #2 - If any of you guys are Warren Ellis fans (which I assume your not or your would have checked this out) this is a must get comic. The first issue was vintage Ellis & in the vain of Planetary & Authority, the book reads very much like Planetary but without Superheroes. I'm glad the book has a different artist each issue also, b/c I hate Glenn Fabry's pencils.

Catwoman #14 - Hands down one of the 3 books I look forward to every month & IMO the best comic being published today. AND I DON'T EVEN LIKE CATWOMAN. The book is that good. There is nothing like it out there.

Agent X #5 - I seriously doubt I'm going to get this book after Simone/Udon's last issue. Which really sucks b/c it's such a great read right now.

Avengers #60(475) - So far Johns' run has been extremely dull & dissapointing. I've never read the Avengers before in my life, I only decided to pick the book up when I heard that the most UNDERRATED artist in all of comics, Olivier Coipel would be taking over as the regular aritst & one of my all-time favorite artists Gary Frank would be filling in for 2 issues. However it's been an agonizing wait, as the current artist is terrible & this is probably the dullest, least interesting work I've read from Johns.


Batman #609 - Like pretty much everyone, I'm only getting this for Lee. The first issue didn't exactly grab my attention story wise, but it sure looked purty.


Wolverine #183 - Giving the magic of Axel Alonso one more issue to kick in before I drop this title after getting over 183 issues of it. Wolvie taking on the mob is about the most retarted thing they have ever done with this book. And that says a lot. This issue was so lame it just made me cringe at time reading it, I was almost embarrased.

X-Statix #5 - Ugghhh. This comic get's my vote for the ugliest comic book of the year. I know critics love him, but Paul Pope utterly sucks. This is the comic I would call inconsistant. About every 3-4 issues this comic hits a homerun & then we get an issue like this that just feels redundant & boring.

Ultimate X-men #25 - And with this issue I am done with this lackluster series. [shameless plug]They will all be on ebay with every single variant shortly for anyone interested.[/shameless plug]

And of coarse The new Previews

As for the question of the week, well. . . I don't really read anything unless it has plenty of pictures. It's not that I hate reading, I just don't have the time for a bool, with DVDS & comic books & having a life, how do you people have time for actual books. I'm a big horror fan though & I love Brian Lumley's Necroscope series. Which was briefly adapted to some pretty terrible comics years ago. The earlier books are much better though then the newer ones.

Crap! I didn't know that the second issue of "Global Frequency" had come out. Looks like I'll be making a trip to the shop tomorrow. (If I can shovel my way out of all this snow.

A few comments on some of the books I picked up....

Queen and Country: Declassified #1 - Much better than I expected. Crocker is the most interesting character in "Queen and Country", and I may just stick around for the rest of this miniseries.

Batman #609 - I rarely buy a book just because of an artist, so Lee's work, as good as it is, is not enough to keep me interested. This issue was better than the last, in my opnion, but it's still just set up.

The Avengers #60 - Again, a bit disappointing. The good news is that Gary Frank will be supplying the art for the next two issues. The better news is that Geoff Johns will be changing the line-up for the group. This should be a good move. Johns is great at portraying conflict and adding character development with established characters. (See "JSA".)

The Truth #1 - Ehhh. Not great, but not too bad, either. Kyle Baker is a good artist, but his art doesn't always seem to suit the type of stories he's involved with. (This includes his own "You Are Here", where the art seems at odd with the storyline.) The same is true here. I'll pick up the second issue when it comes out and go from there.

X-Statix #5 - I'm going to have to agree with Sessa17 on this one. I've heard that Paul Pope has written some good books, so maybe that's where all the praise comes from. It sure can't be from his art. If they have to use fill-in artists (and I wish they didn't because I love Allred's work), I wish that they'd go with frequent Peter Milligan collaborator, Duncan Fegredo, one of the most underrated artists in the industry.

The Flash #192 - Kudos to Geoff Johns for doing the impossible....turning the Flash's previously lame enemies into the most interesting rogue's gallery this side of Batman and for turning Iron Heights into Keystone City's equivalent of Arkham Asylum.

jim

Agreed, but I would've picked "King David". The writing and art was in complete conflict, which was quite a hinderance while reading the book.

I don't know if his works will ever be back to the caliber of "Cowboy Wally Show" or "Why I Hate Saturn" (my fav). Hopefully he'll prove me wrong with his "Plastic Man" book, sometime 2003 last I heard.

-Spooon69