Freak Comics

I finally got around to posting the Civil War reading order according to the Civil War Files Checklist.
They did make a mistake, and that is Wolverine #48 should read Wolverine #48 (Casualties of War).

Febuary

Amazing Spider-Man #529

March

Amazing Spider-Man #530
Fantastic Four #536
New Avengers: Illuminati Special

April

Amazing Spider-Man #531
Civil War Opening Shot Sketchbook
Fantastic Four #537

May

Civil War #1
Marvel Spotlight: Millar / McNiven
Amazing Spider-Man #532
She-Hulk #8
Wolverine #42

June

Civil War #2
Civil War Front Line #1
Civil War Front Line #2
Amazing Spider-Man #533
Fantastic Four #538
New Avengers #21
Thunderbolts #103
Wolverine #43
X-Factor #8

July

Civil War #3
Civil War Front Line #3
Civil War Front Line #4
Civil War: X-Men #1
Civil War: Young Avengers & Runaways #1
Amazing Spider-Man #534
Black Panther #18
Cable & Deadpool #30
Fantastic Four #539
New Avengers #22
Thunderbolts #104
Wolverine #44
X-Factor #9

August

Civil War Front Line #5
Civil War: X-Men #2
Civil War: Young Avengers & Runaways #2
Cable & Deadpool #31
Heroes for Hire #1
Ms. Marvel #6
New Avengers #23
Thunderbolts #105
Wolverine #45

September

Civil War #4
Civil War Files
Civil War Front Line #6
Civil War: X-Men #3
Civil War: Young Avengers & Runaways #3
Amazing Spider-Man #535
Cable & Deadpool #32
Captain America #22
Fantastic Four #540
Heroes for Hire #2
Ms. Marvel #7
New Avengers #24
Wolverine #46

October

Civil War: Choosing Sides (One-Shot)
Civil War Front Line #7
Civil War: X-Men #4
Civil War: Young Avengers & Runaways #4
Captain America #23
Heroes for Hire #3
Iron Man #13
Ms. Marvel #8
New Avengers #25
Wolverine #47

November

Civil War #5
Civil War Front Line #8
Amazing Spider-Man #536
Captain America #24
Fantastic Four #541
Iron Man #14
Moon Knight #7 (Casualties of War)
Punisher: War Journal #1
Wolverine #48

December

Civil War #6
Civil War Front LIne #9
Black Panther #23
Civil War: War Crimes (One-Shot)
Iron Man / Captain America Special (Casualties of War)
Moon Knight #8 (Casualties of War)
Punisher: War Journal #2
Winter Soldier: Winter Kills (Casualties of War)

January 2007

Civil War #7
Amazing Spider-Man #537
Amazing Spider-Man #538
Black Panther #24
Blade #5 (Casualties of War)
Civil War Front Line #10
Fantastic Four #542
Fantastic Four #543
Moon Knight @9 (Casualties of War)
Punisher: War Journal #3

Febuary 2007

Civil War Front Line #11
Civil War: Battle Damage Report
Black Panther 25

Update: The following list was sent out by Marvel today (January 9, 2007). Take note as some of these dates don’t match up with the above check list:

January 2007

Fantastic Four #542
Civil War: The Return
Moon Knight #7
Punisher War Journal #3
Black Panther #24

February 2007

Civil War: Black Panther War Crimes (21-23)
Civil War: Casualties of War One-Shots (Iron Man / Captain America, War Crimes, Winter Soldier)
Amazing Spider-Man #538

Civil War #7 (2 Michael Turner variants, one sketch, will be released): It all ends here! The startling battle that will determine the future of the Marvel Universe!

Civil War Poster Book
Fantastic Four #543
Moon Knight #8
Black Panther #25
Civil War: Front Line #11
Civil War: The Initiative

March

Captain America #25
Civil War: Battle Damage Report
Marvel Spotlight: Civil War Aftermath

Civil War: The Confession: From the Eisner Award winning team that brought you the start of CIVIL WAR with the New Avengers Illuminati Special comes this heart-wrenching finale that cannot be missed. Two of the Marvel heroes most affected by the shocking conclusion of the war get together one last time. What is said between them will set the course of the Marvel Universe for years to come. This is the confession.
Alex Maleev unveils another new fantastic art style especially for this very emotional and shocking issue.

Moon Knight #9

Marvel Zombies was good. It wasn’t quite as good as I would have hoped (didn’t care for the ending) but it was good fun (as anything involving Robert Kirkman is). I’m not so sure about this side stuff though… I haven’t read any of it.
I do think it’s pretty cool that Marvel is tying in with Army of Darkness from Dynamite Entertainment, and zombies are always great.
I also think Marvel taking advantage of the internet with their visual gallery is a wonderful idea.

I generally don’t post press releases any more, but I found this one of interest, so here it is in full:

When the Marvel Zombies universe first appeared in 2005’s Ultimate Fantastic Four #21, few expected it to become the phenomenon it has. Spinning off into a mini-series and several upcoming projects, this ghoulish, twisted take on the Marvel U. isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Wondering what order the various stories should be read in? Need to keep track of all the comics and the different variants? Fret not, Marvel.com has you covered. Read below for a quick rundown of the story and check out the gallery for images of all the Marvel Zombies-related books currently available. And if you’re wondering what the image to the left is, it’s the painting Marvel Zombies cover artist Arthur Suydam created for a Heroes Con 2006 poster!

It all began with Ultimate Fantastic Four #21-#23 as the zombified FF crossed over with the Ultimate U. The story then shifted, focusing on the zombie world in Marvel Zombies #1-#5. Ultimate FF #30-#32 tied up some loose ends on the Ultimate end, bridging that tale with the events taking place at the end of Marvel Zombies on the zombie world.

But the stories don’t end there. Or begin, for that matter. Dynamite Entertainment’s Army of Darkness #13 ends with Ash, hero of the “Evil Dead” films (Which were directed by Spider-Man’s Sam Raimi!) and Army of Darkness franchise getting shuffled off onto the Marvel Zombies world before the events of Ultimate Fantastic Four #21. Look for the upcoming Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness mini-series and the one-shot Marvel Zombies: Dead Days to explain what happens to Ash and reveal how the world got zombified.

For you completists out there:
-Exiles#85 and #86 feature Wolverine from Marvel Zombies.
-Wizard Magazine and Marvel Zombies artist Sean Phillips produced a one-page parody ad featuring several Marvel Zombies characters.
If you’d like to see these on this page or in this list, post on the message board!

We’ll be updating the gallery and information on this page as new issues, variants and more hit stands!

So what do you think? Has marvel exhausted the zombie theme? Is it even worth reading if Kirman isn’t involved?

Entertainment Weekly has published a review of the best comics of 2006 according to Ken Tucker. They are as follows:

Best Miniseries

Dr. Strange: The Oath

Best New Series

The All New Atom

Best Independent-Publisher Comic

Scott Pilgrim and the Infinite Sadness

Best Graphic Novel

The Left Bank Gang

Best Reissue, Part 1

Walt and Skeezix: Book Two 1923-1924

Best Reissue, Part 2

Popeye Vol. 1: “I Yam What I Yam”

I would really like to know how Tucker picked that list. Unfortunately I can’t agree or disagree with him as I haven’t read any of those comics (save for the Brave New World preview which had a lead in Atom story… which I wasn’t fond of), but it seems odd to me that an editor and DVD critic for Entertainment Weekly is also compiling the years best comics. I read a lot of comic books, but I don’t feel I’m in the position to pick the years greatest.

DC is already bragging about it. Unfortunately some people will see the announcement from DC and / or the article in EW and shell out the money to read the series based entirely on the fact that the review was endorsed by Entertainment Weekly.

This isn’t Tucker’s fault mind you. To berate him for writing his opinions would make me a hypocrite. The problem lies in uninformed consumers who like to be told what to think, and mass corporations that like to tell them what to think. The nice thing about blogs is that opinions are kept in perspective.
If I call something the Greatest Comic of 2006, it’s one person speaking a thought. When Entertainment Weekly calls something the Greatest Comic of 2006 it’s perceived as being the voice of the masses, even when it’s really one person speaking a thought.

So have any of you read the Atom? What did you think of it, best new comic or no?

Prepare to wear your secret identity on your chest.
Urban Outfitters has a small collection of t-shirts that make you look like a super hero… or at least a huge geek. Styles include Batman, Robin and of course, Superman. If you ask me Urban Outfitters is driving a pretty steep bargain at $28 a pop.

Marvel has released a CD containing music that was used in the Ultimate Avengers movie. If you’re thinking about picking it up, head on over to marvel.com where they’re giving away four free MP3s.

Personally I can’t see why anyone would want to listen to this stuff.

Forget everything negative I had to say about a Fantastic Four sequel. A rather low quality bootleg of the Fantastic Four 2 trailer had surfaced on You Tube, but an official realease from fox was quick on it’s heels. The official version can be seen on Apple.com and from the looks of it, this movie will blow the brains out of the first one.

For those of you unable to see the trailer, heres a quick break down:
Reed and Sue are getting married, Johnny and Ben are standing up behind them. Suddenly there’s a noise as something goes flying past the window. Johnny jumps out the window with his trade mark “Flame On” scream, and chases down the blur, only to discover that it is the Silver Surfer. The Surfer grabs Johnny by the neck, flys him in to space and drops him. The trailer ends as Johnny plummets towards Earth.

I had absolutely no idea that the Silver Surfer would be in this film.
Although I’d rather see a stand alone Silver Surfer movie, Fantastic Four 2 should be really awesome, especially if Galactus looks half as cool as the Surfer (Galactus had better make an appearance).

I never thought I would be much of a Spectre fan, but after reading Infinite Crisis as well as Kingdom Come, I grew somewhat intrigued with the character.
Thankfully DC released Tales of the Unexpected, an eight issue mini-series, featuring the Spectre, who is now bound to Crispus Allen, his human host.

Each issue features the Spectre killing off the worst of the worst in criminal scum: rapists, child molesters, and mainly murders are among the victims of the Spectre’s unique brand of blind justice.

The issues move fast, but are always interesting and feature well written dialogue. The side story of Crispus Allen adapting to his new un-life is entertaining, and the arc, which happens to be a murder mystery, is intriguing.

Brian Azzarello has done an amazing job on the art and David Lapham is a great writer.

Then, there’s the bonus crap in the back of each issue: Dr. Thirteen.
I really wanted to like this story. It has all of the elements of classic 1950’s campy horror: vampires, pirates, yeti, Nazi chimps that live in a jungle in the arctic…
However, the dialogue is rather cliche and the story is taking too long to get to the point. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not slow moving, it’s actually very quickly paced… but that’s the problem: it’s running in circles.
The third installment felt like the first and second repeated with different characters. The story feels rushed but frozen, like a person trapped in the woods who rushes to get out, but simply winds up tracing their footsteps again and again in one big circle.

I’m simply not getting it… perhaps it will pick up, but I doubt it.

Don’t let Dr. Thirteen prevent you from enjoying Tales of the Unexpected. It’s just a ‘bonus’, not the main tale. This series is definitely worth reading, especially if you’re a Spectre fan.

In this issue of the Justice League of America Superman, Bat Man and Wonder Woman finally decide to take a break from their card collecting when Black Lightening calls them in on a case he is working which involves a villain named Starro.

If you’re like me, you have no idea who Starro is. A quick trip to Wikipedia helped to shed some light on this .
The short of it is, he’s a starfish like creature who first showed up way back in 1960 in The Brave and the Bold #28. This was also the first appearance of the JLA. So Starro is their oldest enemy.

This comic holds up to the previous 3 issues as being very well written and having pretty good looking art.

I do have a complaint though (don’t I always?):
Superman attempts to remove one of these mini-Starro things from a dude’s neck. He can barely pry it off, Wonder Woman even offers to lasso it to help yank it out. Supes ends up breaking off a leg instead.
A few pages later the Red Arrow easily shoots these Starros off of several people’s necks with his arrows. This would imply that the Red Arrow’s shot is more powerful than Superman’s pull… interesting plot hole.

Other than the mini-complaint, I really enjoyed the comic. If you’re not reading this title yet, I encourage you to track down the first four issues and give it a read.

I’m not a Blade fan, but I can’t resist posting the cover of Blade #5 because it’s just that cool. Enjoy!

Warning: This article contains major spoilers. Read at your own risk!

The current story arc seems to have drawn to a close (or at the very least gone over it’s peak) in Walking Dead #33. It has definitely left our small band of explorer / heroes in bad shape, and while one is missing a body part, one has sever mental trauma, and one has a lot of physical and mental trauma, they all made it out with their lives.

This story arc as a whole was pretty unexpected. Spotting a helicopter which lead to a town made up of mentally unstable sociopaths was crazy enough… finding out that their self-proclaimed governor kept his zombie daughter leashed to a wall, stages fights between residents and new-comers in an arena surrounded by chained zombies and watched by town residents, and likes to rape his women victims was almost over the top.

Kirkman made a bold decision in chopping off Rick’s hand. At first I thought this was a terrible choice… after all, a hand is something that won’t heal. Rick is permanently damaged. However the more I think about it, the more I like this turn of events. Rick is somewhat of a mainstay in the book. He and his wife are the only characters that seem safe. Chopping off a limb makes you think that Kirkman might be crazy enough to kill Rick after-all.

While I do feel this story has pushed the limits, and the art has been absolutely outstanding, I did think the rape of Michone was a bit harsh. Even that I could deal with. What really felt unnecessary was the fate of the Governor as dealt by Michone in retaliation to her own torture (this included having his eye plucked out with a spoon, the chopping off of his man-bits, the dismemberment of his arm, and a few other pretty horrible things). Issue #33 was a payback issue. It was gratuitous in violence and nothing more. While one could argue that the Governor got what was coming to him, I would argue that he got a bit too much. I was actually a little sickened while reading this and didn’t feel a sense of closure. Rather I felt that Kirkman was trying to appease his readers for the shocking treatment of Michone by one-upping it on the Governor.

Up until this story arc I have felt that Walking Dead is one of the greatest stories in comics, currently not so much. Things have taken a turn towards shock value which feels very cheap.
I’m actually happy to see this story draw to a close and look forward to moving on to bigger and better things. If only the group would just get motivated to leave the prison for good and get back to some exploring…