Podcast - Episode 51: Kingdom Come

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It's the first week of the Living Between Wednesdays Summer Book Club!

We're kicking things off with the 1996 DC Elseworlds event, Kingdom Come, by Mark Waid and Alex Ross. It's pretty! It's dark! It has everyone! It inspired Jay-Z to return to hip hop (don't tell me I'm wrong about this, I don't want to know)!

Before we get to all that, we cover a few news items.

We talk a bit about the tragic and very sudden passing on Anton Yelchin. Man, what a devastating thing. It's going to make it really hard to watch that new Star Trek movie.

I mention that Yelchin had a memorable role on ER as a child. Here's a screengrab of that:

Awww. 

If you want to read about the unending hell that was the Suicide Squad set, io9 has a pretty good list here.

Here is the Key and Peele sketch about Ray Parker Jr. It cracks me up every time. Especially when 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' scrolls up the screen.

I would post a link to some stuff about the Justice League set visit, but, nah.

We talk a bit about race in comics, and the lack of available comics by Black creators in particular. Also, the weird kinda racist depiction of Black super heroes in many comics. There is a really good piece about Black representation in comics and the death of James Rhodes by Thaddeus Howze here.

I don't even think we got into how messed up it is that Rhodes was killed (another Civil War starting with the death of a Black super hero), or the fact that almost no one is talking about it (the death of a Black hero is not as interesting as a white hero being a fake Nazi, I guess). We mostly talk about the weird racist meeting of all the Black heroes in Sam Wilson Captain America last week.

You can't watch Arty, the film that Dave is in, online yet, but you CAN watch the brand new documentary short, Monster Man, also directed by Nathan Boone, right here:

I'm not going to link to the Captain America porn, but here's a promo image to give you an idea:

I forgot to mention that Bucky does not have a metal arm in this porn. That's weird, right? I expect better attention to detail to be paid in my pornographic entertainment.

And if you want some softcore, here is a legit video of Sebastian Stan working out recently, posted by his friend (and trainer, I think?). Or, rather, here is a version that a fan edited so it's just Sebastian moments:

And if you want more Sebastian Stan (yes), here is the Q&A he did in GQ Style.

And if you want to see some super awesome Stucky art by J.Bone, check this out:

For real this time #stucky #captainamerica #wintersoldier #winterschildren #jbone

A photo posted by J.Bone (@originaljbone) on

Shriek!!!! I can't believe I didn't post this sooner!

J's Rocketeer comic comes out today, and I have it on good authority (his) that Steve and Bucky are hiding in the background somewhere.

Alright, let's get to Kingdom Come!

It's my boys! And my girl!

It was fun revisiting this book this week. I hadn't read it in awhile. And I am always here for silver fox Bruce Wayne:

And, um, shirtless farmer Superman:

Dave asked why people refer to this book as fanfic, and I don't think I explained it very well when we recorded. Basically, although, yes, all fiction written about characters that you didn't create and don't own is technically fanfic, this particular book contains more tropes of traditional fanfic than most (really, most of the Elseworlds did). This is what you might call a canon-divergent dark fic. Besides the premise, and the fact that, as I say, every character ever is worked in there somewhere, there is also the whole Alex Ross's-dad-as-original-character thing, the Superman/Wonder Woman thing, the pregnancy super happy ending thing...frankly that entire scene at the Planet Krypton restaurant read like fanfic. I'm saying this as someone who has read a lot of fanfic and a lot of comics. Some just seem more similar than others.

This would be the archive details for Kingdom Come, were it published online as fanfic:

Rating: T

Archive Warning: Major character death, 

Category: M/F

Fandoms: DC Comics (All), Superman (comics), Batman (comics), Wonder Woman (comics), Justice League of America (comics), Captain Marvel (DC)

Relationships: Superman/Wonder Woman, Superman & Batman, Batman & Wonder Woman, OC (male) & Spectre

Characters: Superman (Clark Kent), Batman (Bruce Wayne), Wonder Woman (Diana Prince), Captain Marvel (Billy Batson), Spectre, OC (male), Lex Luthor, The Flash (Wally West), Aquaman (Arthur Curry), Blue Beatle (Ted Kord), Green Arrow (Oliver Queen), Black Canary (Dinah Lance), Green Lantern (Alan Scott), Power Woman, various OCs

Additional Tags: Future fic, dark future, retired Superman, religion, Superman needs a hug, Batman is a bamf, Wonder Woman is a bamf, brainwashing, pregnancy, mortality, first kiss, major character death, eventual happy ending

Summary: OMG, idk. This was suppose to be a super short scene and it totally got away from me! Can't shut the muses up LOL! Set in the future, Superman has retired and the Justice League has been replaced by younger, more violent heroes. Lots of angst but a happy ending! I just really wanted to see Superman and Wonder Woman kiss! *hides* Possible prequel coming!

OK, and I looked into it. There have been a couple of female writers of Batman and Detective Comics, but very few issues written by them. As far as I could find, Devin Grayson wrote two issues of Batman and two issues of Detective Comics, and at least part of one Batman Annual. Louise Simonson wrote three issues of Detective Comics and at least part of one Detective Comics Annual. And I think...that's...it. At least for Batman and Detective Comics proper. Becky Cloonan was indeed the first woman to draw an issue of Batman. IN 2012!!!!! And...I don't think there has been one since? Correct me if I'm wrong?

So when I say it's challenging to find a lot of classic mainstream super hero comics by female creators, I mean it's VERY challenging. I'm glad to see that changing finally.

Sadly, there is no video feed or any information at all to confirm the rumours of the physical altercation between Waid and Ross at ComicCon but please please PLEASE be real. Dave thinks it would look a lot like the fighting you see in this trailer:

Alright, next week we are talking about Gerry Conway and Ross Andru's Spider-Man: The Original Clone Saga. It's a long one! Get reading, everyone! I still haven't unlocked Spider-Man in my Avengers Academy game!

Kirby: Genesis #0

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More than just the most prolific and influential creative mind in comics history, Jack Kirby is pretty much a genre unto himself these days. Entire series have been devoted to trying to capture and distill his technomythological superhero adventure style (like Joe Casey and Tom Scioli’s Godland and Scioli’s own self-published The Myth Of 8-Opus), memorable issues of comics have paid loving tribute to his achievements (Supreme: The Return #6 by Alan Moore and Rick Veitch is probably the finest example), and his depictions of action, energy, and technology in superhero comics have led to entirely new terminologies being named after him (Kirby Krackle, Kirbytech). Of course, the entire Marvel Universe as we know it wouldn’t have existed without him, not to mention various still-viable sub-sections of the DC Universe. Now, in the new series Kirby: Genesis, Dynamite Publishing is laying claim to pretty much everything else that doesn’t fall under the purview of the Big Two—lesser-known Kirby creations like Captain Victory, Silver Star, Galaxy Green, and a whole host of other concepts still owned by the Kirby estate—and folding them all into a shared-universe adventure that kicked off with a $1 Issue Zero this past week. One might be tempted to accuse Dynamite of trying to cash in on the Kirby name, re-heating some leftovers that may not have been all that fresh to begin with (as fun as Kirby’s 1980s output was—his Super Powers series was my first exposure to his work as a kid—you’d be hard pressed to find anyone that would call that period their favourite). Even the announcement of Kurt Busiek as writer and Alex Ross as cover artist/art director wasn’t enough to dissuade my skepticism, initially at least. But if the Zero issue is any indication, Kirby: Genesis looks to be a fun, heartfelt tribute to the King of Comics, one that successfully captures the style and feeling of Kirby at his most cosmic.

 The series begins in a universe somewhat parallel to our own, where, in 1972, the Pioneer 10 Space Probe ventures out into the cosmos bearing a plaque illustrated by a familiar comics craftsman—a plaque that depicts humanity in the form of a male/female duo of Kirbyesque superbeings offering a friendly wave to whomever might greet the spacecraft (an afterword by Busiek explains this story point—Kirby was one of several artists asked by the Los Angeles Times how they might convey humanity to extraterrestrial beings via the Jupiter Probe, and this exact illustration was Kirby’s response). Reaching deep space, the Probe is sucked into a wormhole, and proceeds to zoom through a series of distant galaxies occupied by godlike superbeings engaged in various life-or-death struggles, all bearing the distinctive design tropes of the King of Comics. Among these are the aforementioned Captain Victory, Galaxy Green, and Silver Star, but eagle-eyed Kirby acolytes will also be able to pick out Destroyer Duck and several characters from the short-lived Kirbyverse of the early Nineties as well (not to mention various other unused Kirby concepts straight out of his sketchbooks, some of which were originally intended for his magnum opus, The New Gods). As the Probe finally begins making its way back to Earth, its passage is noted and followed by a pair of divine beings named Jerek and Spring, setting the stage for Kirby: Genesis #1.  

 More than anything, this book positively glows with affection for the life and work of Jack Kirby, and for a devotee like myself, that goes a long way. However, Busiek’s script uses that anecdote about the Pioneer Probe to hang an intriguing story idea on, one that is appropriately, wildly cosmic, but has a human element to ground it (after the Probe’s launch, we are briefly introduced to the series’ human protagonists, a couple of stargazing inner-city youths named Bobbi and—of course—Kirby). This melding of the fantastic and the real was the key to the success of both of Busiek and Ross’s previous collaborations, Marvels and Astro City, and it’s a formula that seems to bring out the best in both creators. The paintings of Alex Ross have always done a remarkable job of adding a patina of believability to Kirby’s designs, and his work here is no exception. While Ross mainly provides covers and art direction, the lion’s share of the interior artwork is handled by newcomer Jack Herbert, whose solid work here recalls the art of Astro City penciller Brent Anderson (with just a hint of Norm Breyfogle). The lead story feels fairly packed, despite being only 12 pages, but it’s hopefully a good indication of what’s to come. I’m fairly excited to see where this story goes, but I’m hoping it will stay contained to the pages of Kirby: Genesis—rapid overexpansion seems to be a fatal mistake for the comics industry in general and Dynamite Publishing in particular (Green Hornet, anyone? Project: Superpowers?). I’d hate to see this promising series diluted by a slew of spinoffs; the onslaught of variant covers promised for issue #1 is overkill enough. Still, if the quality of this Zero issue can be maintained into the regular series, it’ll make for a welcome return of the King.

 

This Week's Haul: Before The Storm

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Just a quick announcement before I get started. You might not hear from me for a few days (which isn't too unusual these days). The reason is because we are scheduled to get slammed by Hurricane Noel tomorrow. Last time we got hit with a storm this size, we lost power for quite a while. So that's what I'm prepared for.

Now I am thinking that this tree-top level apartment with a glass front, while nice, might not be the best location for this storm.

But enough of this unpleasantness. At least I have plenty of comics to read.

And here's what I thought of some of the ones that came out this week!

Action Comics #858

I was really looking forward to this, and I was not disappointed. Gary Frank's artwork is beautiful and Geoff Johns' writing is, as always, stellar.

It's a little confusing, in that it is a story set in current continuity, but borrows a lot from the past. It feels like a Year One story, mostly due to the emphasis on Clark Kent's loner status, and inability to relate to humanity. Of course, this has to ignore the fact that he is happily married, which this comic does.

But I'm not complaining. Especially not if we get delightful pages like this one, with classic grouchy Perry, awkward Clark and enthusiastic Jimmy:

That panel of Clark examining his tie kills me.

We also get some great flashback scenes of Clark as a lonely kid, when he meets the Legion for the first time. This was pretty adorable and heartbreaking, as a friendless young Clark thinks he's found someone who understands lonliness:

Awww.

I really liked this remark, as Superman faces who he believes is Brainiac, but is actually Brainiac 5 in an elaborate plot to get Superman's attention:

Hee!

It's nice to see Superboy and the legion. Especially with art this nice.

Superman ends up traveling to the future, just like the good ol' days, and finds out the hard way that Earth has a red sun in the 31st century:

Ouch!

Looking forward to more of this!

Batman #670

Ra's Al Ghul is back and he's effing terrifying!

Yargh!

This, along with this week's Robin Annual, more or less begins the big Resurrection of Ra's Al Ghul crossover, which will be continued in Batman and in Robin. I'm not super pumped about it, just because I've been enjoying the non-event issues of both Batman and Robin. But Grant Morrison is still writing, so it's not going to suck.

I am also liking Damien more and more:

You tell him, kiddo!

On a similar note, the Batman and Son action figures were released this week, and they look great! There's a very awesome Tim Drake, and a sweet-looking Batman. If you want a Man-Bat figure, there's a nice one of those, and the Joker one is fun to pose. I'm surprised they didn't make a Talia figure. It would have made more sense than the Joker.

52 Aftermath: The Four Horsemen #3

This entertaining Big Three story continues to roll along, with Giffen's inter-hero banter getting increasingly silly:

I have a hard time believing that Batman would ever say 'Hello' in that manner. He may as well have said "Ex-squeeze me?"

One thing this issue is really good for is Snapper Carr burns. Batman really hates that guy.

And no wonder. He really is an annoying twerp.

Superman still has that bite on his arm, and it's bothering him. It's like Harry Potter's scar. It burns when evil is near:

Still fun, still exciting. I recommend. If you read only one 52/Countdown tie-in, make it this one. Or Black Adam.

But Black Adam doesn't give you this:

Justice Society of America #10

I re-read Kingdom Come this week in preparation for this issue. Every time I read that thing I notice something new.

So Kingdom Come Superman shows up, and he's all "When Kingdom Come, you ready? Not only NYC, I'm hip-hop's saviour, so after this flow you might owe me a favour."

This was great. I loved Starman's interaction with Kingdom Come Superman:

Ha! All out of the colour yellow! Man, I love that guy.

This Superman likes to talk a lot about regret and failure and mistakes and tragedy. And he does, for a really long time. Then he decides to up and leave, which results in a JSA dogpile:

Superman impresses me by overcoming Starman's gravitational powers:

There's tough, and then there's that. Well done, sad Superman.

Daredevil Annual #1


Man, this was so fantastic. I love annuals, and I love Daredevil, so I was expecting greatness. This went above and beyond. Totally my pick of the week.

The thing about Annuals is that it usually involves a guest artist, and sometimes a guest writer. Or it's several short stories. This was a Brubaker story, with an Ande Parks script and Leandro Fernandez doing pencils. My only worry going into this was "Well, after all the Brubaker/Lark issues, this might be disappointing." NOPE.

This comic was amazing. It opens with Daredevil struggling to fight off some Yakuza boys. He's struggling because he has the flu, which he continues to have for the remainder of the issue.

Now the cool thing about giving Daredevil the flu is that it messes with his heightened senses. He can't smell anything, and his congested head and his high fever are making things very difficult. So he's making lots of mistakes. Painful mistakes:

The art is beautiful, as you can see. No need to miss Lark on this book.

I liked how Matt slinks off after the fight to go pass out:

That's not what that's for, Matt.

So yeah, sick Daredevil. Very interesting, and kind of cute:

Aw, who needs soup?

Mainly, though, this is a story about Carlos LaMuerto, aka Black Tarantula. He has just been released from prison on parole. He got along well with Matt in jail, and he looks him up on the outside. Matt gives him a job at the firm, helping Dakota. Dakota is not into working with a violent ex-con. Carlos is not into her attitude:

LaMuerta gets frustrated by the uselessness of the legal process when it comes to actually helping people in the neighborhood. He takes things into his own hands, but with good intentions. Even so, Matt doesn't want to see Carlos go back to his old ways. He offers him a chance to suit up as Black Tarantula and help him fight the Yakuza. It works well, because Matt still isn't at 100%:

I love that scene.

Unfortunately, Carlos can't restrain himself from using extreme violence, except now he wants to clean up Hell's Kitchen, rather than run it. He feels responsible for a lot of the damage done to the neighborhood, and sets about making things right. Which involves killing a lot of bad people.

Matt is, needless to say, disappointed.

Like I said, this is a great comic, and it's extra-long. Do read it.

Countdown to Adventure #3

This issue opens with Buddy's son, Cliff, going nuts and attacking Kory with a knife. It's pretty intense:

Cliff is just one of many people all over the place to be infected with something that makes them worship Lady Styx. People are trying to kill each other everywhere.

In the middle of all this, Ellen is concerned about her marriage. She asks Buddy the question that's been on her mind ever since the scantily-clad space princess arrived at their door:

Sadly, this is all Buddy has to say for himself:

Ouch.

The Adam Strange Pages are all really great. I like his narration. He's tough.

I can't read the Forerunner back-ups at all. They make me sleepy.

Death of the New Gods #2

I finally got to read #1 this week. The store sold out of it pretty quickly. It's a pretty good series so far, even if poor Barda has been killed off.

Here's the JLA at the murder scene:

Here's what I like about this page:

1. Red Arrow isn't doing anything. He's just chilling, and looking as cool as possible.
2. Superman is like "Uh, what's Vixen doing exactly? Looking for cookies?"
3. Barda's outline, while not supposed to be funny, kind of is.

In the next panel Red Arrow has apparently removed his shirt. I approve:

I like it when colouring errors work in my favour.

I also like that Hal is talking like Batman. And Black Lightning is being a little inappropriate. "Are you sure she's in here? It's kinda light. I mean, she is Big Barda, right?"

Mr Miracle changes his clothes:

Poor guy. Sniff.

Superman accompanies him back to New Genesis with Barda's body. Orion takes one look at Superman and loses it. Man, that guy is just angry all the time.

Ooooo...you did NOT go there, Superman.

Unfortunately, he did. And this means a pointless fight between the two of them for the next few pages:

Yikes!

It lasts until Metron shows up. Then Orion wants to fight him.

Orion, you have got to chill, bro. You can't just beat up everyone who stops by. In three successive panels Orion is like "I'm gonna kill you, Superman! No, I'm going to kill YOU, Metron! No! I'm going to kill Darkseid!" It's exhausting being Orion. "Milkman! I'll kill you!"

I'm going to wrap it up there. And other comics can be discussed in the comments. Like the giant heaps of comics that count down to various things. But not that X-Men Messiah stuff. I don't read that.

This Week's Haul: Long Live Sean McKeever!

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I read a lot of really good comics this week! Here's what I thought of some of them:

Spider-Man Loves Mary-Jane #20

The squeeing hit inaudible decibels this week as I read this. I mean, look!:

They're gonna maybe hold hands!!! Eeeeeeee!!!

Firestar, I love ya, but get out the way! Harry, you suck and go die somewhere. Now all the excess baggage has been removed and MJ and Peter are totally gonna hook up! It's gonna happen! Any issue now!

Except! Ack! It's Sean McKeever's last issue! The letter at the back almost made me cry (it was really nice that he was able to mention his upcoming run on Teen Titans, though). Oh, Sean McKeever, thank-you so much for creating this series. Just yesterday a young girl in the comic shop shyly picked up the first Mary-Jane book, and I was like, "Ohmygod, that's my favourite comic. You should buy it. You'll love it. If you don't, I'll eat it." Because, although I don't normally eat comics, I have a feeling that this one would taste like ice-cream. I await Terry Moore's run with interest and, like most MJ fans, some amount of uncertainty. But I'm sure it will be great. The foundation is so solid, with such a great cast of characters, I think it will be awesome to the end. Everyone was sad when Miyazawa stopped doing the art, but David Hahn has been doing a great job.

Oh, and PS: I love having the Mini Marvels back-ups. Such a great idea.

Countdown Week 42

This was the surprise of the week. As you may recall, last week I said I wasn't going to buy this anymore because I just haven't really enjoyed more than a couple of pages of any issue. Plus, the overall arc is a confusing mess (someone in the store yesterday asked us what Countdown was about and we could not answer that question, except with laughter).

The point I am getting to in a roundabout way is that I enjoyed pretty much every page of this issue. From Trickster and Piper's cuffed-together Midnight Run-style adventures:

to Holly's conversation with Harley to Jimmy's decision to be a super hero to whatever Mary Marvel and the Riddler were doing. Plus, bonus Ryan Choi content, and an odd little scene between Batman and Karate Kid which TOTALLY sounds like a lover's spat:

"Sure. Go. Whatever. I don't know why you think I'll care."
"Fine. I just thought I'd say good-bye, but I don't know why I bothered wasting my time."
"Good then. Go."
"I will."
"Fine. Bye."
"See if I care."

So I was wondering why I was enjoying this issue so much, and then I check the writer and AH! Of course! It's Sean McKeever!

And also...no Forerunner!

(Note: I can't even imagine how challenging it would be to be given Countdown as your first writing assignment at DC. Soooo confusing).

The New Avengers #32

And now Bendis Theatre presents: The Avengers as a Marvel Comics Message Board

Spider-Man: As a re-cap, Elektra is a Skrull. Let's talk about that.
Wolverine: Any one of us could be a Skrull, and I will now give detailed reasons as to why, based on recent events.
Dr Strange: Maybe you're a Skrull, Wolverine.
Wolverine: I certainly could be. And here's an amusing and surreal list of reasons why, including the fact that I am in every single comic on the stands right now.
Spider-Man: So what does this all mean?
Everyone: Shrug. War, maybe?
Spider-Woman: We should take this dead Skrull to Tony Stark.
Luke Cage: Tony Stark is totally a Skrull.
Hawkeye: Backed. Who else is a Skrull?
Spider-Woman: The president?
Everyone: Skrull, Skrull, Skrull
KRAKABOOM!
Everyone: Mercifully distracted by plane going down.
Iron Fist: Dr Strange, can you do some magic or something to save us?
Dr Strange: Nope!

And the plane crashed and they are probably all fine. Or Skrulls.

Sub-Mariner #2

I don't have much to say about this. I do want to mention that it falls into one of my favourite sub-categories of comics: Iron Man getting his ass handed to him.

I also want to say that I was totally following and enjoying this series until this moment:

Well...when I heard about this Sub-Mariner mini-series, I certainly never thought I'd see that guy in it.

Ehn. They're probably all Skrulls.

Justice Penis Society of America #7

Well, clearly some quick photo-shopping was done here to reduce Citizen Steel's controversial package. Here's the original:

So I guess I can also expect that Mary-Jane statue to be wearing a comfy sweat suit when it comes out and she'll be studying for the LSAT exam.

They can smudge out Citizen Steel's junk all they want and it still won't distract from the fact that the dude is HOT.

Power Girl knows what I'm talkin' about.

Yeaaaah. (I love how Eaglesham draws Powergirl. I really do).

I also love how Eaglesham drew the alternate cover for this issue, which is the one that I bought:

Hilarious! And even better is the subplot that it refers to: Superman and Starman chatting it up while scarfing sloppy joes and milk at the mental hospital cafeteria.

Oh man I love this comic.

Green Arrow Year One #1

I thought this was great. I'm a big Green Arrow fan and Andy Diggle and Jock do a nice job of updating his origin. It starts with Oliver as a cocky, thrill-seeking billionaire with a Robin Hood complex. By the end of this issue he's been double-crossed and thrown off a yacht in the Pacific, so we can expect to see him learning to survive on a deserted island in the next issue, honing his archery skills in the process.

I liked this little fun piece of foreshadowing:

As can be expected from these guys, it's a very macho comic and I expect we'll be seeing a lot of violence and action in the next three issues. And beautiful covers.

Superman #664

Continuing the very long Busiek story-arc about Arion' s bleak prophecy about Superman and the other aliens on Earth inadvertently destroying humanity while trying to save it. In this issue, which I really enjoyed, Arion magically takes control of Superman...but only for a second. Superman is able to overcome the spell using techniques learned from Zatanna. Unfortunately for Superman, no one else knows that, and he has to deal with wave after wave of emergency anti-Superman measures.

First comes the federal government's Squad-K, a tech-heavy bunch of soldiers and vehicles designed to take Superman down if necessary. Then comes Prankster with his own anti-Superman weapon:

A giant pie filled with lead and electric jolts. Well, that's something else!

Then the Justice League AND Justice Society show up:

(No one invited Geo-Force). Superman, awesomely, has to yell to get it through Hal's thick head that he isn't being magically controlled:

Hey, shouldn't Hal be kinda busy off in space with that whole...aw forget it.

Superman takes a moment to wonder what Batman is doing:

In the end, Superman talks it out with the leader of Squad-K, throws Prankster in
jail, and vows to hunt down Arion and stop...whatever it is that Arion is doing. I honestly kinda forget. But I did like this issue. A lot.

Nexus #99

Hells yeah! New Nexus!

Nexus is a comic that I've only gotten into in the last year, which turned out to be excellent timing what with the new series just starting up after a ten year hiatus. If you've never read Nexus, I can't recommend it enough. It's just a really well-written and beautifully drawn comic with awesome characters. In space. I think a lot of people are intimidated by it for one reason or another, but it's very easy to follow. I really find that, as far as outer-space stories go, this one is very straight-forward. Green Lantern Corps is more confusing than this by far.

This is issue #99, but it could work as a jumping-on point. I'm sure they are hoping new fans use it as a jumping on point. I would recommend reading the three original black and white comics, which is collected in a small out-of-print but easy-to-track-down book called Original Nexus, then reading the single issue Nexus: The Origin, and then the Alien Justice three-part series. Seriously, you read those seven comics and you will be all set to enjoy the new series. Then you'll be able to read amazing pages like this and fully appreciate them:

Seriously, not as confusing as it looks.

As an aside, I think that women are better represented in Nexus comics than in any other comics anywhere. Ever. Actually, people are just generally better represented. And Nexus himself is an amazingly well-developed character.

My goal is to get more people into Nexus. As I keep stressing, I just got on board myself and it was really easy. Great superheroes exist outside DC and Marvel.

Green Lantern #21

I think the good thing about this issue is that it more or less brings people up to speed who may have missed the sold-out Sinestro Corps one-shot. And it does it in a non-boring way for people who have read it.

I am trying to think of things to say about this and I got nothing. It's good. Read it. Parallax is gonna pound on the Green Lantern Corp. You don't want to miss that.

Alright, that about wraps it up. I read other stuff, but I have nothing really to say about it. Oh! Except Superman Confidential, which I wrote a review for that will be posted on Comic Addiction shortly. I also have a copy of the new Minx book, Clubbing, which I haven't read yet, but I'll let you know what I think of it.

Today is my friend Paul Hammond's birthday. He's a talented artist and one half of local screenprinting superstars, YoRodeo. You should check out their stuff at their website. If you like cool art and stuff.