The List - 8/12/09

Well after a really slow week for comics last week, it looks like DC is trying to make up for it with one of the heaviest weeks I've seen in a while...

BATMAN #689 - "Long Shadows" continues! Batman forges ahead in his battle to retrieve the escapees from Arkham Asylum, while Two-Face begins a ground war of his own. Elsewhere, Penguin wants to become Gotham City's new king of crime, but to do so he has to make a deal with the devil. - As we're now knee deep into the Batman: Reborn event, I think it's safe to make assupmtions about the books now. Batman has been a decent read, nothing fantastic but not bad. Winnick is doing well keeping this a straight forward Batman story, much to the delight (or despair) of his detractors.

BLACKEST NIGHT #2 - The event of the summer continues! The dead rise across the DC Universe, bringing terror and darkness with them. What are the Black Lanterns? What do they want? Will Earth's greatest heroes survive long enough to find out – or will they join the Black Lantern Corps? - I'm really excited about this one, mostly because I don't know where it's heading next. Yeah, we're going to see more Black Lanterns of course, but it's now the overall story that I'm most looking forward to.

BLACKEST NIGHT: BATMAN #1 - Deadman can't shut out the cries of the dead rising as he comes to the aid of the new Batman. It's just in time, too, as the duo face a circus of zombies including the Black Lantern Flying Graysons! - I've always liked Deadman as a character, and I think that this might be the perfect vehicle for him to step out in. Seeing how Deadman reacts to his corpse being raised is going to be interesting, as well as how Dick Grayson handles his first big event in the Cowl.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #39 - Just when things couldn't look any darker after the death and chaos of the Sciencell riot, Blackest Night descends on Oa! The black rings tear into the planet and the Lantern Crypt causing all the dead Corps members to rise and wreak havoc as a new and deadlier battle threatens to engulf not only the Corps, but the Universe itself! - This is where it all starts for the GLC. Previews show that the issue opens with Lanterns; Guy, Kyle, Soranik and Iolande arriving on Oa right after the onslaught of black rings tear through the crypts. This one is right up there with Blackest Night #2 on top of the "must read" pile.

RED ROBIN #3 - "The Grail" part 3 of 4! "Batman Reborn" continues, but is Red Robin's quest to find Bruce Wayne at an end? Because in a German museum, answers await. But to get to those answers, Red Robin has to go through the Global Guardian known as the Wild Huntsman. Making matters worse, Red Robin's got an unwanted ally – Ra's al Ghul! Also, discover what happened in the days after BATTLE FOR THE COWL? - I've always been a huge Robin fan, and while I've enjoyed this series so far, it hasn't wowed me yet. The premise for it is strong, but I'm still waiting for that moment where it really hits. Hopefully it happens soon, I probably won't be dropping this anytime soon since Tim Drake remains one of my favorite characters in the DC Universe, but I would like for this book to cement why.

TITANS #16 - Why has Starfire been acting odd the past few issues? Turns out the warrior woman has major rage issues coming out of her recent breakup with Dick Grayson, the events of FINAL CRISIS and more. Her super-powerful emotions could very well rip the team apart! - ...speaking of dropping books, I don't think I can do Titans anymore. I was originally excited to see the old guard back together, but this book has just been treading water for a while. When I go through my Previews and order for this month I'm really going to be thinking about whether or not the next Titans issue makes the List.

FABLES #83 - Part 1 of "Witches"! The business office got lost somewhere when Fabletown collapsed into ruins. Now Bufkin, the meek and mild flying monkey, is trapped inside with the evil witch Baba Yaga – and she's in a really bad mood. How is poor little Bufkin going to survive her tantrum? At the same time, Frau Totenkinder and the witches upstate at the Farm prepare to deal with Mister Dark down in what's left of Fabletown. - Bufkin has always been a great background character, and it's good to see him getting some attention. The Witches of Fabletown have been an overarching precense throughout the books entire run, but now they are also stepping into the limelight. After the fun but ultimately unfulfilling Great Fables Crossover, it's good to see the main Fables book back on track.

FABLES Vol. 12: THE DARK AGES - The 12th volume in the best-selling, award-winning FABLES series collects the epic from issues #76-82 of the acclaimed monthly series. If you've ever craved a guided tour of Fabletown's secret Manhattan location, prepare to be thrilled. Pinocchio has a field day taking a certain VIP around the city. And exactly which Fabletown denizens are no longer active (dead, alive or otherwise) just might shock you into a comic book coma. Also in this volume, you'll find the 4-part story featuring Freddy and Mouse, two local rogues who just want to get along and perhaps turn a bit of profit in the post-war, topsy-turvy world. Meanwhile, in Fabletown, a new political group forms called the Society of Seconds, and what they want doesn't seem very reasonable at all. - Finally another Fables trade to throw onto the shelf. This arc is still pretty fresh in my head but I can't wait to go through it again.

The List - 7/1/09

Another week, another wednesday and thusly another edition of The List. And if things looked sparse last week, well things are downright lonely for tomorrow.

Buffy The Vampire Slayer: Season 8 #28 - Team Buffy has become all about sneaky in a world where Slayers are now feared and hated, and vampires would rank at the top of a popularity poll. All hands are on deck as Scotland's brand-newest Slayer headquarters comes under attack; but, when things get more than a little fried, Buffy has to punt. There are yaks. - I love Buffy. I have since I caught the fourth episode of the first season of the show when it was on the WB network on monday nights. I have an abundance of Buffy statues. I like Buffy the comic. I'm worried about this issue though.

I hope you were paying attention to that bit earlier, you know the one, where I gushed over how much I adore Buffy in all it's forms. This issue is being written by Buffy-alumn Jane Espenson, and while that would normally be cause to do the Snoopy dance, she's written an issue of the comic before and it was, well as Buffy would say, "gahh". Hopefully this issue will make up for that as Jane, who wrote two of the best Buffy episodes (Earshot and Conversations With Dead People) gets back into Buffy-mode.

Which leads to a sidebar, while researching this article I came across this little fun bit:



I really wish this show had happened. But I'll probably write about that another time.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #2 - "Batman Reborn" continues with the reteaming of Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (ALL-STAR SUPERMAN, WE3, New X-Men)! In a blazing Gotham City police department, the new Batman and Robin face the bizarre, fighting freakshow that is the Circus of Strange and find that they don't make as good a team as Batman had hoped! Meanwhile, the mysterious Sasha escapes from Professor Pyg and vows vengeance on the people who killed her father. - Hard to believe it's already been a month since the launch of Batman And Robin. The first issue was fantastic and I'm really looking forward to more. As long as Morrison stays in this mode and doesn't veer too far to the sides and kick into his crazy story mode, we're set.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #38 - "Emerald Eclipse" hits its shocking conclusion leading directly into BLACKEST NIGHT. The sciencell riot causes a new law to be doctored into the Book of Oa as Kyle and Guy fight against it. What fate awaits the honor guards, and who will be left standing from the riot that shook Oa to its core? - Oh man, this is it. This is the final issue of GLC until the official start of DC's Blackest Night event and I'm beyond jazzed for this. GLC continues to knock it out of the park, and if it can keep at this pace Blackest Night is going to blow the Sinesto Corps war out of the water.

GREEN LANTERN: RAGE OF THE RED LANTERNS HC - The War of Light begins in this hardcover collection! First, a ruthless, by-the-books new task force of Green Lanterns known as the Alpha Lanterns is born, creating tension within the heroic ranks of the Green Lantern Corps. Then, Hal Jordan battles for his life when the Red Lantern Corps, a brutal brigade of monsters fueled by rage, attacks! But nothing could prepare the heroes for the arrival of even more colored Lanterns! - Green Lantern is one of four titles that I buy both monthly and by trade (the others being Green Lantern Corps, Fables and Jack of Fables). I'm really excited to go back and revisit these issues featuring the debut of the Red Lanterns, my favorite of the new Corps (second going to either the Blue or Orange depending on how I feel that day). With the exciting direction that Geoff Johns has taken the Green Lantern franchise in since he took over in 2005, I've gone back and reread the trades countless times, so some "new" material is greatly appreciated.