This year the local shop, South Tampa Comics, went out of business but the location was quickly snapped up by a chain called Coliseum of Comics, and until a few weeks ago continuity was maintained by Randall Armstrong (known on the internet as Randall Begins for reasons I will probably never know) as head clerk. But Coliseum sent him packing. I made weekly trips to the store when it opened, but then scaled back, and my visits have become sporadic, just enough to keep in touch with what interests me. Over the course of three recent trips I scooped up a bunch of interesting comics, in the process of which learning Randall’s fate. I figured I could share the results on this old blog.
Animal Pound #3 (Boom!) One of the things Randall never quite caught onto was that if he just set aside Tom King releases for me I would buy them. It’s not the business of sales clerk to set these kinds of things up (hold files set up by customers being the preferred method), but it happened frequently enough that we talked about Tom King and how one other customer was buying Tom King releases out from under me (stores with low sales have little incentive to invest in more than single copies of some things), and leaving me often with nothing. I don’t like to special order from a store. There’s this thing called the internet. I go to a store for the convenience, and it was also fun to talk with Randall. Anyway, so Animal Pound is Tom King’s update of Animal Farm, only instead of communism he’s commenting on democracy. It’s another great comic from Tom King. This post will have several more.
Batman #s 148-150 (DC) Chip Zdarsky has been one of the best writers in comics for a number of years at this point, and his Batman is up there, for me, in modern runs with Grant Morrison, Tom King. And the longer he writes it, the better he gets. But you don’t have the guy who did a fantastic run on Daredevil because you expect anything less. #148 concludes Batman’s war with Failsafe, #149 is like the Star Trek: Enterprise episode “Similitude” (for me high praise in every connotation), and #150 is at last a pause for a more human-level story. I can’t wait to see where he goes next.
Batman and Robin #10 (DC) Notable not just for the return of Bane but, for me personally, Damian’s old pal Goliath, from the pages of the highly underrated Robin: Son of Batman.
Gotham by Gaslight/Gotham by Gaslight: The Kryptonian Age #1 (DC) DC reprinted the original Elseworlds graphic novel alongside the return of the imprint with the first issue of the follow-up.
Blood Squad Seven #1 (Image) Joe Casey in an essay at the back of the issue is not legally allowed to call this Youngbloods: Thirty Years Later! But of course, that’s exactly what it is. He’s also hopeful it’ll spark a renewed interest at the company for a shared superhero landscape that isn’t just Spawn or Savage Dragon or Radiant Black. Good luck with that, pal.
Blue Beetle #10 (DC) A title soon to be cancelled (but it’s still Jaime Reyes’s third ongoing series, which is impressive, for DC, in this era). Bought mostly to support Josh Trujillo, who put together such a great tribute to Keith Giffen a few issues ago.
The Boy Wonder #2 (DC) Another great little standalone spotlight for the legacy of Robin(s).
Geiger #3 (Image) Geoff Johns finally split (mostly) from DC and set up his own landscape with Ghost Machine, and I hope he gets to play in this sandbox for a while. This lead creation is surprisingly durable, clearly inspired by the Atomic Knights post-Infinite Crisis but also its own thing.
Green Lantern #12 (DC) Jeremy Adams made his mark with The Flash and then got to segue here. He’s settled in nicely. This issue sees Carol Ferris possibly finally, finally commit to a relationship with Hal. And a backup featuring Guy Gardner, Kevin Maguire, and Bottle City Czarnians. Adams would be absolutely perfect for a JLI revisit.
Helen of Wyndhorn #2 (Dark Horse) In yon olden days, DC would’ve had the Vertigo imprint for Love Everlasting, for Animal Pound, for Helen. Now they’re all at different publishers. Tom King never settles. He remains just as ambitious as ever. Helen is yet another contender, as it turns out, for a true career highlight. I didn’t really know what it was, before reading this issue (my first of the series), other than a reunion between King and Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow artist Bilquis Evely. Turns out it’s kind of a Victorian novel crossed with Conan, kind of The Unwritten (for those interested in a Vertigo deep cut).
Justice Society of America #10 (DC) Currently looking like Johns’ last hurrah at DC, the much-delayed JSA epic just went deeper by adding in the Legion of Super-Heroes. There’s still no one at DC who can do what Johns has done. He doesn’t just love what’s been done before him, he’s consistently tried to build on it, keep it evolving. Like his Ghost Machine he truly sees it as a mythology.
The Penguin #11 (DC) Here’s Tom King again, penultimate issue of this story trying to help Oswald Cobblepot navigate the extremely complex legacy he’s left for himself. Can he truly leave his empire behind without dying in the process?
Redcoat #3 (Image) I’m not all in on Ghost Machine, but I love what Johns has come up with in Redcoat, a welcome modern popular entertainment take on the Revolutionary generation. It may be batshit crazy, but it’s the good kind of batshit crazy! And that’s the whole point!
Wesley Dodds: The Sandman #6 (DC) The oldest comic in this pile, it’s the final issue. Robert Venditti earned a huge amount of respect from me in the pages of Hawkman, which I thought might be reflected here. I’m happy to report I was right. The surprise was seeing Riley Rossmo somehow evolve his work into Tim Sale proportions. Someone take note at DC!
Spider-Man: Reign 2 #1 (Marvel) I adored Kaare Andrews’ original story, which for me was absolutely the webslinging take on Dark Knight Returns, and I am keenly aware I am in a tiny minority. So I’m very pleased that somehow a follow-up has somehow happened anyway.
Star Wars #47 (Marvel) Charles Soule has proven surprisingly hit or miss with me, but one of the things I absolutely loved back in the day was his Lando Calrissian miniseries. This issue is Lando getting out of a spot of trouble in the days leading up to Return of the Jedi.
Wonder Woman #10 (DC) I am keenly aware that not everyone shares my enthusiasm for Tom King in recent years. I follow a blog that said this issue was yet another abomination. Wow. It is not. It is the opposite of that. Plus more Lizzie! I’m just eager to see how long King can stick around. I want the adult Trinity we were promised, too!
Uncanny X-Men #700 (Marvel) It’s the coda to the Krakoan age. It fits the bill. I love how Apocalypse is used to illustrate it.
William of Newbury #1 (Dark Horse) For fans it’s really hard not to see this as Michael Avon Oeming on a spiritual sequel to Mice Templar.
Zatanna: Bring Down the House #1 (DC) For the life of me I’ll never understand why DC has never pursued her in more solo tales. But we have this! Finally! Worth the wait!
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