This Week In Comics: 03/30/2005

[Clayface]

Welcome to This Week in Comics for March 30th, 2005 - April 5th, 2005!

This is the place to discuss the comics you've bought this week, whether it be a brand new title or old back-issues. We also welcome and encourage talk about comics in general - news you've read on comic news sites, the state of the industry in general, upcoming issues you're excited about, etc. All we ask is that you please use spoiler brackets in the event that your comments get too detailed concerning a particular storyline. This way the book won't be ruined for anyone who hasn't read it yet.

For a list of the new items shipping this week, please consult Diamond Comics' Shipping List (http://www.diamondcomics.com/shipping/shipping_033005.txt).

To find a comic book store near you, check out the Comic Shop Locator Service (http://csls.diamondcomics.com/).

Comic store too far away from where you live? Want to support Toon Zone? We've teamed up with Things From Another World (http://www.tfaw.com/) to provide an avenue for you to buy comics. Click here (http://www.qksrv.net/click-1001569-5533438?url=http://www3.tfaw.com/comics/newreleases.html?cart=3183189286606656?qt=cjtoonzone) to see a listing of this week's comics being offered by TFAW.


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Highlights of the Week!



Randomguy's Pick:


http://www.forbidden-planet.co.uk/acatalog/MADV1.jpg (http://www.marvel.com/catalog/showcomic.htm?id=1734&format=comic)

Madrox: Multiple Choice TPB




Ace the Bathound's Picks:



http://images.darkhorse.com/covers/med/00/00083.jpg (http://www.darkhorse.com/profile/preview.php?theid=00-083)............http://www.idwpublishing.com/images/titles/150_GJKI03.jpg (http://www.idwpublishing.com/?path=titles&view=issue&id=276)


Concrete: The Human Dilemma #4 (of 6).......GrimJack: Killer Instinct #3 (of 6)





Clayface's Pick:


http://images.darkhorse.com/covers/med/00/00083.jpg (http://www.darkhorse.com/profile/preview.php?theid=00-083)

Concrete: The Human Dilemma #4 (of 6)




Fray's Picks:


http://marvel.com/comics/onsale/covers/uploaded/ASTONISHING%20X-MEN_9image_small.jpg (http://www.marvel.com/catalog/showcomic.htm?id=1626) .......http://marvel.com/comics/onsale/covers/0305/MKSM012_COV.jpg (http://www.marvel.com/catalog/showcomic.htm?id=1715)

Astonishing X-Men #9.......MK Spider-Man #12



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[the panther]

BIG week, last week of the month always is. Let's see... today I'm getting:

ASTONISHING X-MEN #9 - Whedon and Cassaday. Great combo. :)
BATGIRL #62 - I love the art in this book; it's beautiful. And the story's really good!
BATMAN #638 - Curious about this whole Red Hood thing, and you just know it ties in with all this COUNTDOWN stuff. ;)
DC COUNTDOWN TO INFINITE CRISIS - It's a buck, and it's got the top three DC writers on it. How can you go wrong (other than Jim Lee and Alex Ross's odd-looking cover)?
FANTASTIC FOUR #524 - Waid and Weiringo's last. Oh well, I enjoyed the last few issues. ;) Actually one of the books I'm cutting, so this perfect.
THE FLASH #220 - Johns and villains. Villains and Johns. Actually, I really like Wally, that's why I've been getting this book. You believe me, right? ;)
THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #4 - Alas, still haven't gotten #1. But I hope to soon.
X-MEN: PHOENIX - ENDSONG #3 - (ltd. ed. variant cover) I missed this issue when it first came out, so I'm gonna try to snag it this week.
X-MEN: PHOENIX - ENDSONG #4 - Greg Land's art + Greg Pak's writing = good stuff.

Plus, NANCY DREW, VOL. 1: THE DEMON OF RIVER HEIGHTS, I'll pick up at Borders within the week. They didn't have it in-store yesterday, so it had to be "special ordered".

That's all (thankfully!). And since Friday was my birthday, I actually have money. Haha. :gir:

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

DC Month-to-Month sales for February 2005 (http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/pulse.cgi?http%3A//www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi%3Fubb%3Dget_topic%26f%3D36%26t%3D003609).

Licensed properties, getcher licenced properties here! Devil's Due picks up the Dungeons & Dragons license (http://newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30590), while Titan Books gets Battlestar Galactica (http://newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30594) (the new version where the Cylons are hotties and not the old one where they're big robots that talk funny). I'd gripe about them nasty Brits getting BSG before us Americans again, but I hear some of them limey dirtbags have been known to hang around here from time to time.

And you know you're a nerd when the phrase "Drizzt Comic Books" is something that makes you unreasonably happy.

The Fourth Rail takes a look at the June 2005 Previews catalog (http://www.thefourthrail.com/features/0405/downthelineapril.shtml). Worth noting if only because it's the only place I've seen so far that describes what's in the new Dark Horse Concrete trade paperback.

Almost no Sin City articles today. Luckily, Tim O'Neil comes to the rescue, sort of, with the latest comics remix (http://www.popcultureshock.com/features.php?id=925) to make sure we don't have a day without Sin. The joke about shaving during Will & Grace was probably my favorite.

-- Ed/Ace

[Pyro]

Big day today. Lots of my favorite titles. I haven't read any of them yet but I'll give my reasons for picking them up. I got:
Fantastic Four #524 - Mark & Mike's final issue.:crying: I'm gonna miss you guys. They had a great run.
Astonishing X-Men #9 - Always a good read.
X-Men: Phoenix - Endsong #4 - I've loved this mini so far, looking forward to reading this issue.
Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #12 - Finally! The end to Miller's dreadfully slow arc. I guess I did enjoy it, but it moved way too slow. I'll probably drop this title when the new creative team starts.
Ultimate Secret #1 - I didn't read Ultimate Nightmare, nor do I read Ultimates but I picked this up because it has two things going for it: Steve McNiven's art (which I so sorely missed on MK:4) and the coming of Ultimate Galactus so I'm looking forward to this arc.
New Avengers #4 - This and the following are my not-so-favorite titles. I've been following New Avengers so far, and it's an ok book, so I'll just see where it goes.
Countdown to Infinite Crisis - I couldn't pass up 80 pages for 1 buck, plus I'm interested in whatever this new crisis is about.
Teen Titans Go! #17 - I picked this up because I could afford one more book and I'm interested in seeing Hotspot working with the Titans... and because I don't get my daily dose of Todd Nauck anymore.

And I already picked up these on Monday:
Runaways #2 - Pretty good. The Runaways didn't approach their situation as subtley as I had expected but whatever. The mystery surrounding Victor Mancha is well done, and the future scenes were cool.
Spider-Man/Human Torch #3 - A very good issue from a very good series. The comedy was good, but there were also some unexpected serious moments that I really liked.
New X-Men #11 - I really don't like Paco Medina's art, I don't really like Prodigy, and I didn't really like this arc. Oh well, it was funny to see so many deaths, but then you wonder why the X-Men don't die more often because they're in these kinds of situations all the time.
X-Men #168 - This issue may have been the easiest to follow so far, but I barely know what's going on. I hope Milligan will improve, but if he doesn't, I'm dropping this title.

And these I haven't read yet:
Fantastic Four: Foes #2 - I'm currently on a Fantastic Four kick, so I looked into this title, but I wasn't sure if I was going to like it so I'm trying it out with this issue.
Marvel Knights: Wolverine #23 & 24 - I got issue 25 a while back and it was pretty good so I'm trying to get the rest of this arc.
Batman: Gotham Adventures #10 & 50 - I really liked this series so I decided to fill out my collection. I'm starting with these and I'll see how many more I'll be able to get. It was a little disheartening to see that there was a time where comics were $1.99 instead of $2.99. However, the issues were re-priced at $2.25.

[DarkHawk]

Huge week for me!

Flash #220 The Rogue war arc is shaping up really well. I am digging the focus on Wally's personal life!

Countdown To IC Great start to the summer-long arc. A great read for just a dollar and it focused on two of my favorite characters, Ted and Booster :)

Batman #638 I wasn't expecting the "Red Hood" to do that at the end. Great storyline twist. Another book I'm hooked to!

X23 #4 Kinda boring read, I hope next issue has more action

MK Spidey #12 Horrible end to the Millar arc! This will be my last issue unless the next creative team blows my socks off.

Outsiders #22 Holy crap,wasn't expecting THAT twist! One of my new favorite books to read.

Ast X-men #9 This new arc is kinda blah. I hope it picks up soon or I'm just going to get the Uncan Xmen from now on

Batgirl #62 The story in this book is nothing to write home about but the art makes me get into this book every time.

MK Senty #1 Between these books and the new wizard, I now know all about this character. A very complex character I see...will be interesting to see how Bendis fits him in the Avengers.

Sentry/ Xmen Same as above

Sentry/FF Same as above

Titans/Young Justice : Graduation Day TPB Since I have just started reading Titans and Outsiders, someone told me that I should read this. Its a great read plus I wasn't expecting that death :(

Spidergirl #83, 84 Wow!! For a book not in continuity, this sure rocks. I see why it has such a rabid following. Added to my pull list :)

Daredevil #71 Bleh, almost put me to sleep. I thought by me reading the TPB of the events leading up to this, that I would enjoy this. I thought wrong :(

Identity Crisis #3,4 You know after reading everyones thoughts on this series, I thought it was overrated. I stand corrected...this series is a work of art. Great art, great pacing, and awesome fights!

New Avengers #4 LOL, the webbing on Luke's hands had me rolling. Good solid read.

Runaways #1,2 I'm not going to lie....I only bought these because of DHawk. But the book is really good :)

JLA Classified #5 Well, after Dhawk and Moonknight my next favorite hero is Guy, so I had to pick this up!

Overall, a great week of books. I would say the best since I started reading again late last year. I am pumped for this summers events!

[wonderfly]

This week I got:

Astonishing Xmen #9:

DC Countdown to Infinite Crisis: An absurdly long name. I prefered when it was just called "Countdown".

Fantastic Four #524:

Flash #220:

Legion of Super-heroes #4:

Marvel Knights: Spiderman: 2nd most dreaded read of the week! Here's to hoping Mark Millar can salvage this wreck!

Pulse #8:

Secret War Book Four:

Spectacular Spiderman #26: Most dreaded read of the week! I truly fear how this rancid storyline is going to end!

Reviews to follow as I read them.

[PaQ]

Relatively light week. Man, didn't realize how long AXM has been delayed, the one released today was due out in January. Anyway, 8 comics: 4 Marvel, 3 DC & 1 Broadsword.

Runaways #2 - Maybe i'm missing something from not reading the first round of Runaways issues. It certainly feels like I could be enjoying it a lot more. The art was solid, and the story keeps getting interesting, especially with Excelsior in the mix. ****

Astonishing X-men #9 - I'm not really feeling the whole sentient Danger Room aspect. And the numerous delays haven't helped the series as the whole flow was really halted. Lets see if they can turn it up a notch in the last 3 issues. ***

Fantastic Four #524 - Best book of the week. This issue was cleverly written, the art made it great to look at and the relationships between the group really came through. Reed's pig-headedness and Ben's realistic approach. *****

MK: Spider-Man #12 - So this ends the yearlong run for Mark Millar on Spidey, and I must say I'll probably be in the minority but I really didn't enjoy it as much as the hype led me to believe I would. I'm staying on with Hudlin, and it'll be interesting to see where this goes. ***

Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose #31 - Great art. Fun easy to follow story. Nice lighthearted material. ****

Batman #638 - Jason returns. Things are picking up. Winick seems to know what he is doing, which I can't believe I'm saying that since I haven't really been a fan of his work. ****

Countdown to Infinite Crisis #1 - So starts the countdown to Infinite Crisis. It did a nice job of giving off an Identity Crisis feel. Poor Blue Beetle, but I'm sure his discovery will not go in vain, as the whole DCU will be turned upside down within 6 months.

Flash #220 - I'm really not digging this whole Rogue wars trip. I hope it picks up, hasn't really had the same flow since the IC-tie-in even if Wally's wife came back since then. **

[RAINMAN]

I herd that all of flash`s rouge has gone crazy> Why? What happing to them.

[the panther]

I herd that all of flash`s rouge has gone crazy> Why? What happing to them.
They're going against each other or something. It has to do with all the Countdown and Crisis stuff. I'm not so sure what's going on, myself. :ack:

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

Obligatory BPoL Brian K. Vaughan interview (http://www.portlandmercury.com/2005-03-31/books.html), courtesy of the Portland Mercury.

Apparently, the United States Army is looking for a few good...comics creators (http://www.newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30680) to make comics for the kids of the Middle East. In addition to being able to produce the work, apparently it'll help if you're well-versed in Arab languages and cultures, "as well as law enforcement and small unit military operations." Apparently, nobody's told them about AK Comics (http://www.akcomics.com/), which is already producing comics for the target population.

Toby Cypress talks about The Tourist (http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/pulse.cgi?http%3A//www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi%3Fubb%3Dget_topic%26f%3D36%26t%3D003616), the new AiT/PlanetLar graphic novel he's working on with Brian Wood. OK, mostly, he talks about himself and his background and includes some preview artwork from The Tourist.

Jim Ottaviani's made a name for himself doing comics about famous scientists. Apparently, his Dignifying Science TPB made it to both the Maryland school system and CBS News (http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/pulse.cgi?http%3A//www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi%3Fubb%3Dget_topic%26f%3D36%26t%3D003615).

The Comics Journal has an interesting article about the Westernization of manga (http://www.tcj.com/sp2005/intro.html), which is alternately infuriating and well-informed, like most of their articles. However, there is a nice little summary of stuff they deem the cream of the crop for those who want to find out more about manga but don't know where to start.

Finally, it's T-minus-1 before the Sin City movie hits, and the links are flying fast and furious. First is the motherlode of all comic-to-movie-frame comparison sites (http://www.filmrot.com/articles/news/005719.php) (contains comic book nudity and proof that Carla Gugino did, in fact, do her own nude scenes for the movie). Meanwhile, Frank Miller gets interviewed by former New York Times movie reviewer Elvis Mitchell (http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=5038) (who consistently "got" comics in his reviews, even if he didn't like the movies that came out of them all the time). Finally, the movie debuted in New York City recently to the comics industry glitterati, with writeups coming the day after from Jim Lee (http://gelatometti2.blogspot.com/2005/03/new-sin-city.html) and Heidi MacDonald (http://www.comicon.com/thebeat/archives/2005/03/sin_city_screen.html). Apparently, poor She-Hulk writer Dan Slott was rather star-struck at going to the bathroom next to the likes of Joe Kubert, Neal Adams, and Jim Shooter.

-- Ed/Ace

[Spider-Man]

I didn't pick up anything speciual outside of my regular books but I'm very tempted on going back to get Batman: Tales of the Demon. I flipped through it and it looked great. I haven't read many Ra's Al Ghul stories but these looks amazing.

Batman #638 (talkback (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=137497))
Astonishing X-Men #9 (talkback (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=137500))
Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #12 (talkback (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=137499))
Spectacular Spider-Man #26 (talkback (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=137498))
Incredible Hulk #78
Black Panther #2

[rggkjg1]

finally made it to the comic shop.

COUNTDOWN TO INFINITE CRISIS #1 - this was a good read. i knew you cant go wrong with a dollar. im just upset with all the tie ins though. i am looking forward to the omac project and villians united. but i really dont give a crap about magic (day of vengence) and hawkman (rann/thanagar war). hopefully those 2 tie ins can change my mind.
BATMAN #638 - hope fully the return of jason todd is a hoax or a part of the countdown event. it seems really pointless to have him come back and as a villain. hopefully a good explanation will be told.
SUPERMAN #214 - "son of jor el, kneel before zod." i am glad to see zod in superman comics finnally. and this looks like the closest will see of him as the movie counterpart. i really hope this zod doesnt get killed off. i want to see more of him after this arc is done. i think its safe to say future arcs featuring this general zod will be way better as well.
SPACE GHOST #5
TEEN TITANS #22 - good issue. it looks like the dr. light's mindwipe will be "haunting" the dc universe for sometime know.
JLA CLASSIFIED #5
ROBIN #136
MAJESTIC #3
NIGHTWING #105 & 106 - nightwing year one was a great story. i wish in the last issue we could see bruce and dick try to patch things up or something.
THE QUESTION #5
JLA #112
THE PUNISHER #18 - the conclusion of arguably the best punisher story in the max title. i dont even hesitate to call mother russia one of the best punisher stories ever. i really hope ennis can keep up the great work. i am really looking forward to the next arc.
MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN #12 - glad that this run finally ended. it was a good while it lasted. i dropped this title because the next arc and creative team hasnt really interested me.
ULTIMATES #4
WOLVERINE #26
ASTONISHING X-MEN #9

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

Akira Yoshida seems to be the flavor of the month at Marvel. ComicBookResources covers his body of work (http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=5039) and previews the new Kitty Pryde mini-series coming in May.

Bummer drag -- turns out that Dave Cockrum won't be involved in Giant-Sized X-Men #3 after all (http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/pulse.cgi?http%3A//www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi%3Fubb%3Dget_topic%26f%3D36%26t%3D003619) due to health concerns. Get well soon, Dave!

Ryan Dunlavey talks about Action Philosophers (http://www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/pulse.cgi?http%3A//www.comicon.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi%3Fubb%3Dget_topic%26f%3D36%26t%3D003618), his comic that promises to combine famous philosophers in history with slam-bang, full-tilt comic book action! Contains preview art from the Plato story, where it is revealed that the author of The Republic was apparently a pro wrestler before he was a philosopher. Also reveals future titles, like the Action Philosophers All Sex Special, Action Philosophers All-Hate the French Special, and Action Philosophers Self-Help Guide for Stupid Ugly Losers. Philosophy hasn't been as entertaining since Epicurus the Sage (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1401200281/qid=1112391723/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-2003060-1000127?v=glance&s=books).

Finally, Pipeline finishes up its summary of the Sin City trades (http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/index.cgi?column=pipeline&article=2126) in conjunction with the movie, but it's pretty obvious that he ripped off the CBC's guide to the same (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=137738).

-- Ed/Ace

[the panther]

Managed to get everything except Batman #638 and XPE #3. My shop was freakin' sold out.

ASTONISHING X-MEN #9 - Ah, the confusion. I'm just hoping the next issue will be on time.
BATGIRL #62 - Love the art, and the story's interesting. I just need to stop reading previews online - I keep getting a feeling of deja-vu.
BATMAN #638 - Won't get it till next Thurs...
DC COUNTDOWN TO INFINITE CRISIS - Excellent read! Man, oh man! Just awesome.
FANTASTIC FOUR #524 - Fun, but it's not a book I'm exactly sad to see cut from my list. The past five issues have been fun, but I really don't like Waid's writing on this title, and MK4 is better.
THE FLASH #220 - So sad... No baby Wally... And the Rogues have gone crazy -- er!
THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #4 - The shop actually had a copy of #1 just sitting on the shelf next to #4, so I got both. One of my new fave series! Wow, I read all four back-to-back and I'm totally bummed that I have to wait a whole month for the next.
X-MEN: PHOENIX - ENDSONG #3 - GAH!!! Shop didn't have it. I'll check out the other shop when they get their shipment next Thurs.
X-MEN: PHOENIX - ENDSONG #4 - Since I haven't gotten #3 yet, I haven't read #4 yet! Looking forward to it, though.

I ordered Green Lantern: Rebirth #1 - 3, and those should be in by the eleventh, I'm guessing. So funny, the guy wasn't sure if he could get them in until I told him they didn't have to be first printings.

Pick of the Week: The Legion of Super-Heroes #4.

[Chad Bonin]

JAN050296 DC COUNTDOWN TO INFINITE CRISIS #1 $1.00
Best bargain of the day.

JAN050301 FLASH #220 $2.25
I don't know why I bought it. I'm not the biggest Flash fan, and was actually intending to avoid this arc.

JAN050315 OUTSIDERS #22 $2.50
Deathstroke = Comic Gold.

NOV041813 ASTONISHING X-MEN #9 $2.99
Meh... it's a good story, but I really just don't like the Evil Danger Room thing.

DEC041794 DOCTOR SPECTRUM #6 (OF 6) (MR) $2.99
Probably gonna read it tonight.

JAN051823 MARVEL KNIGHTS SPIDER-MAN #12 $2.99
Weak, but nice ending.

JAN051818 SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #26 $2.25
Weak arc, weak ending, but not horrid.

JAN051810 ULTIMATE SECRET #1 (OF 4) (RES) $2.99
... I swear, I felt like I was watching Kamen Rider. That's a good thing.

JAN051826 X-23 #4 (OF 6) $2.99
I will never buy Girl Scout Cookies again... except Samoas.

JAN051855 X-MEN PHOENIX ENDSONG #4 (OF 5) $2.99
Mmm... Phoenix force finds a new host...

[screw on head]

Spider-Man/Human Torch #3 is hands down the most fun I've had reading a comic book in a long time, it was absolutely fantastic. From beginning to end, it was a joy to read and it had some genuinely funny laugh out loud jokes to behold. I still can't get over how brilliantly funny that last page is...

Astonishing X-Men #9 isn't as underwelming as some of the reviews linked on Whedonesque have made it out to be. John Cassaday did a pretty good job with issue, and I was left with only minor quibbles with his art this time out. The story itself was pretty good, I look forward to reading with some hindsight in the future so I have a better handle over what's going on. This situation isn't Grant Morrison JLA: Classified Level confusing/infuriating, so it wasn't a chore to read and the more ominous details are interesting.

JLA Classified #2 is still sitting on my coffee table. I got a third of the ways into it, and then I lost whaterver faith I had and just stopped reading. I like Grant, but he's no Alan Moore,... if I think he has lost his respect for me as a reader/his general coherence as a writer, I'm going to stop reading... I'd give Alan the benefit of the doubt and continue on, but I'm not about to make such effort for this guy. Presently, I feel like he's wasting my time and money with this croc. I'll try reading this again, but I'm not about to be led on in some sort of maze, as a reader blind folded with ear muffs and roller skates on going down some uneven gravel path crafted by some hack. This is the type of thing that frustrates me to no end about the comic book industry...

More reviewage will be editted into this post indefinately. Feels like I'm covering the gammet of emotions this week...

[superprime]

This week I got:

New Avengers #4: This book has been a huge step up from Disassembled. Bendis is getting the characterization down now and his Cap and Iron Man where really good this issue. The part when Iron Man told Agent Hill they ween't asking for permission was great. I also liked the interaction between Spider-Man and Cage. They play off each other really well. I never would have guesses that Sauron was who Electro broke out of the Raft and I can't wait to see where this goes. The last page was great. It'll be interesting to see how Wolverine fits into all this. 4.5 out of 5

Ultimate Galactus Book 1: Ultimate Nightmare: This was a pretty good book. Ellis did a good job of building the suspense about what was in the bunker and Hairsine and Epting's dark art made everything look really creepy and mysterious. I liked the way they did Ultimate Falcon and I hope we see him and Cap team up again sometime soon. I felt the X-Men were pretty pointless in this story. They never did anything important and just got their butts handed to them by the Ultimates. I've heard alot of people say this story felt paded out, and after reading it I can sort of see why. Although the failed Russian Super Soldiers were pretty cool, especially Red Guardian, they really weren't all that necessary to the plot. I was really suprised when it was revealed that Vision was in the bunker. I definately didn't expect them to introduce Ultimate Vision like that, but it was still a pretty cool way to do it. I hope they have him full repaired by the time Galactus arrives. Although some of the stuff in this story was unnecessary, it was still good and has me pretty excited for Ultimate Galactus' arrival. 4 out of 5

[Spider-Man]

X-MEN PHOENIX ENDSONG #4 (OF 5) - Mmm... Phoenix force finds a new host... I went down on Saturday to visit the comic shop to see the new Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith comic and skimmed through this issue and I was blown away. I immediately picked up all of the issues for the comic afterwards. The artwork was excellent and the storyline really has me hooked. Emma and Scott are proving to be so interesting as a couple and the dilemma they have themselves in is just fascinating. This comic really has come out of left field to be a better read than expected. I may have to get the hardcover for this storyline when it comes out in June.

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

When it's time to prove to your friends that you're worth a damn, sometimes that means dying. Sometimes it means linking to a whole lot of websites. Today's Big Pile of Links links to an even Bigger Pile of Links, courtesy of Tom Spurgeon, that has every Frank Miller resource on the Internet worth a look (http://www.comicsreporter.com/index.php/briefings/commentary/1291/).

In the Fray magazine (yeah, I never heard of them either) has a nice, lengthy article about the development of the female superhero (http://inthefray.com/html/article.php?sid=1086&mode=thread&order=0), as their powers moved from fundamentally passive and peaceful (Wonder Woman and the Invisible Girl/Woman) to being its own brand of butt-kicking (Elektra and Alias' Sydney Bristow), and What It All Means. The former is worth the time even if you don't agree with the latter.

Finally, you may have heard that Jim Lee is one of the nicest people working in the business. Apparently, at Big Apple Con this past Saturday, he said something that made a fan cry, and had to put in a quick blog entry talking about how badly he felt about it (http://gelatometti2.blogspot.com/2005/04/damper-or-stupid-things-i-have-done.html). Then, after the con, he managed to track down the fan specifically to clear the air and hang out with her and her boyfriend in a bar -- photographic evidence and a partial explanation are at Heidi MacDonald's BAC gallery (http://www.comicon.com/thebeat/archives/2005/04/big_apple_photo_1.html) on The Beat weblog.

Now that's a class act.

(Meanwhile, check out Heidi's Big Apple Con mug shots as she asks "Who Beat the Beat? (http://www.comicon.com/thebeat/archives/2005/04/who_beat_the_be.html)")

-- Ed/Ace

[Ed Liu]

Howdy,

Hey, the New York Times felt the need to resurrect a "Pow!" headline for an article about fashion designers who like comics fashion (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/05/fashion/05fron.html?) (free registration required, or go to www.bugmenot.com for a free password). I guess it's back in style again.

Speaking of Pow!, Newsarama.com has a preview of the Mr. T comic (http://newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=31048). Again, I will skip the cheap "I pity da fool!" joke.

On a marginally more serious note, Newsarama also has a preview for Black Diamond #1 (http://newsarama.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30972), which writer Larry Young describes as "Die Hard meets the Road Warrior." Booyah. Six issues, starting in June. You want it.

Speaking of six-issue stories, Paul Jenkins' interview with Hero Realm (http://www.herorealm.com/features/comicculture/index.htm) is required reading if you're a fan of his Spectacular Spider-Man title, but also essentially verifies Marvel's "Write for the Trade" policy:


“I think something has happened, a small transition or change in direction in the last year and a half where a lot of times the editorial would come to me and say they want a three-issue story arc, or specifically five-issue story arcs. That became difficult for me because this is different from the way I want to write; I like to focus on the people and if it should be a two issues that is what I want to write. Fitting into the constraints of ‘writing for the trade paperback’ is something I didn’t want to do and it didn’t suit me very well."
Also gives the real reasons for his departure. Hurmph.

Kevin Smith, Robert Rodriguez, and Frank Miller babbling for an hour about Sin City in movie and comic form (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4569989), courtesy of NPR. Biggest problem is probably figuring out which one's Frank Miller and which one's Robert Rodriguez.

Finally, Tim O'Neil blasts the latest controversy coming out of DC Comics. No, not THAT one -- the OTHER one (http://www.popcultureshock.com/features.php?id=930).

-- Ed/Ace