Lobo #10 Review

Written by: Cullen Bunn and Frank Barbiere
Art by: Robson Rocha, Matt Banning, Daniel Henriques, Cam Smith and Blond
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Seeing Red

It's a shame that not more people gave this new Lobo a chance.  Actually, it's a shame that they didn't give these last couple issues a chance because after a rough start, this book has finally found it's footing and adding Sinestro to the mix has only made it better.  The Lobo Annual was hands down my favorite issue this rebooted  Main Man has starred in and I couldn't wait for this issue to continue the story.  There are certain pairings that just make sense in a holy sh** kind of way and this is one of those in my book.  Don't ask what the others are because nobody gets a peek into my book.  So, does the great lead in and awesome pairing equal a must read issue?  Let's find out...

Midnighter #4 Review

Written by: Steve Orlando
Art by: Stephen Mooney and Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

First Rule of Vampire Club...

I have had a diminishing love affair with Midnighter.  I simply loved the first issue, thought the second issue was a bit off and pretty much hated last month's third issue.  So, I'd say that this issue is a pivotal one for me.  I'll admit, this one already has a bit of an advantage since it features Dick Grayson.  While I liked Midnighter in Stormwatch during it's New 52 run, it was his guest appearances in Grayson that made me fall in love with the character.  I know I'm not the only one and without it, it'd be safe to say that this book wouldn't even exist.  The two characters just play so well off each other and it's a thrill to see them whether they are partners or enemies.  So, does the teamup get this book back on track or am I going to have to look for another book to love?  Let's find out...

Green Lantern 75th Anniversary: Top 5 Fridays: Green Lanterns (Who Aren't The Main Six)

Welcome back to another Top 5 Friday GREEN LANTERN ANNIVERSARY EDITION! Each Top 5 this month is going to be Lantern themed to honor the anniversary of the Green Lantern. We start this group with the Top 5 Green Lanterns that aren't from Earth. This means that any Green Lantern is available for this list with the exception of the main ones such as Hal Jordan and Alan Scott (even though he is from Earth 2). As always I want to remind every reader that this is my list, and If you don't see someone you wanted to see, I apologize. Enough talk, let's get started!

Batman: Arkham Knight #29 Review

Written by: Peter J. Tomasi
Art by: Viktor Bogdanovic, Richard Friend and John Rauch
Cover Price: $0.99
Release Date: September 9, 2015

It's a Date

While I loved the Tim Drake two part side story that ended last week, I couldn't wait to get back to the main story because of one guy...Calendar Man.  I've mentioned this before, but as a comic book character, Calendar Man was never a favorite of mine, but when he showed up in the Arkham games, I was sold.  Maybe it was dealing with him on a more personal level, but I am now a fan.  So, having him in the Arkham comic is like getting the best of both worlds, if you ask me.  This issue begins a four part arc called "Burning the Days" which seems fitting and cool, but was it good?  Let's find out...

Batman Beyond #4 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written By: Dan Jurgens 
Art By: Bernard Chang, Marcelo Maiolo
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Kicking It Old School

*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*

Let's get back to our foray into Thirty Five Years From Now, where if you've been reading this title or even Futures End, you'll know that shit has gotten dark for our Beyond hero....... or at least the one donning the Beyond suit right now.  That's right, Terry McGinnis is dead and Tim Drake is currently rocking the bat suit........which is weird because even though I love Batman Beyond and Tim Drake is my favorite Robin..... I haven't been enjoying this series all that much.  It just feels like it doesn't know what it wants to be yet and even Tim Drake is acting like a lunkhead when we all know how smart he's supposed to be.  It just feels off, but hopefully now that Brother Eye has discovered the cloaked location of Neo Gotham and our new hero has to man the hell up and get shit done, things will begin feeling more familiar..... or at least enjoyable.  Let's jump into this action packed issue and see what's going down in the future.  Let's check it out.

The Omega Men #4 Review

Written by: Tom King
Art by: Toby Cypress and Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Heads I Win, Tails You Lose

I have been one of the biggest supporters of the Omega Men and I stand by every accolade I've thrown it's way.  I have loved the slow burn story of these anti-heroes set in a universe far, far away. I put that last part in because this book immediately gave me the feelings that I had when I first watched Star Wars as a kid.  Like that movie, the Omega Men just plopped you right in the middle of a living, breathing universe and let the story happen organically around you.  Everything has a history and it all comes together while you read it.  Each issue has built on the last and while the answers have come slowly, each bit of information has lead to me appreciating the book that much more.  So, do we get any answers this month and does this issue keep the momentum going forward? Let's find out...

Bat-Mite #4 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written By: Dan Jurgens
Art By: Corin Howell, Mike Atiyeh
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Do The Mite Thing

*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*

Bat-Mite's at it again and after having such a great time with the previous issue, where we saw Bat-Mite and Damian Wayne team up to take on the nostalgic Gridlock; I can't wait to see what our creative team have in store for us with this issue and the pairing of this 5th Dimensional Imp and the gold standard of superheroes: Booster Gold.  Let's jump into this issue and see what's crackin'.

Detective Comics #44 Review

Written by: Brian Buccellato
Art by: Fernando Blanco and Brian Buccellato
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

This is the End...

I have really enjoyed Manapul and Buccellato's run on Detective Comics.  They transformed the book into more of a Gotham Central story than just another bat book on the shelf.  It doesn't hurt that I am a Harvey Bullock fan and he has been the star of their run.  While this final arc has included the shiny new Bat-Bot, it still has centered around Gotham's best overweight detective.  The mystery of what Yip is up to and the (re)appearance of Renee Montoya have been awesome to read about, especially through Harvey's eyes.  I still can't help but wonder if this was the story that Manapul and Buccellato signed on for all those issues ago, but no matter what the case, they did a really good job.  So, did this final issue tie everything up into a nice, satisfying bow?  Let's find out...

Green Arrow #44 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written By: Ben Percy
Art By: Patrick Zircher, Fabrizio Fiorentino, Gabe Eltaeb
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

The Secret Origins of.........George?

*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*

I'm a little hesitant to step back into Seattle because the last time I was here it was full of racist robots and a white supremacist who wasn't even a vampire like I swore up and down that he was........ disappointments all around really.  Anyway, during Green Arrow's pseudo pursuit to get to the bottom of the last story arc's.......... big bad?  I'm not actually sure what Green Arrow was trying to do or really what the main antagonist Mr. Zimm was trying to do because the story was all over the place, but Oliver happened to come in the possession of a Wolf, who Emiko later named George and even though we really haven't had any Green Arrow action going on since this creative change, it looks like we're not going to get much here either.  Let's jump into this issue and find out about a wolf.

Green Lantern #44 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written By: Robert Venditti
Art By: Billy Tan, Martin Coccolo, Mark Irwin, Tony Avina
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Pit Stop

*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*

Let's continue our foray into Hal Jordan's adventures in being a "Renegade".  In the previous issue we saw our former Lantern go looking for answers about the Corps' disappearance in all the wrong places.  Well.. technically it was a pretty astute place to go asking around because our hero met up with Relic, who now that he's unstuck from the Source Wall is continuing his study on the emotional spectrum and his former prison Source Wall itself.  Only problem with this idea is that Relic still hates anyone who uses the emotional spectrum due to it threatening the destruction of the Universe and all that, but he especially hates Green Lanterns.  Since Hal and old Relic have a history together, Hal approaches the big guy incognito........ but really we don't learn anything except that Relic believes that Black Hand is behind planets turning to stone, but since we know this to be untrue, it doesn't really matter.  Eventually though, Hal's new crew member Virgo being the big dummy that he is, decides that Hal needs backup and puts on Krona's Gauntlet....... which knocks him out instantly and alerts Relic that he's being fooled.  Luckily though, Hal and his new crew were able to get away and our search for the Green Lantern Corps continues here.......kinda.

Weird Science DC Comics Podcast Episode 34 "The Marathon"

Jim and Eric cave in to  listener demand that they get rid of the "Flash Reviews" segment of the podcast and talk at length about every single DC Comics issue that hit the shelves this week.  That is fifteen books and boy, it took a long time to record this one.  I don't know if they can keep up this pace and not kill themselves or find themselves abandoned by their family and friends.  They also talk (rant) about the news including DC telling editors to stop "Batgirling" their books.  So, here is the longest podcast they will ever do...until the next one.  Enjoy!

Injustice: Year Four #18 Review

Written by: Brian Buccellato
Art by: Mike S. Miller and J. nanjan
Cover Price: $0.99
Release Date: September 1, 2015

Fish Out of Water

Last issue was Year Four of Injustice in a nutshell for me.  There were things I loved, things that fell flat and other things that pissed me off.  I'll try to deal in the positive here and tell you that having Aquaman and Mera show up at the end was awesome.  They are two of my favorite characters and make sense to go toe-to-toe in this issue and this Year.  In fact, the reason I gave last weeks issue as high a mark as I did was because of those two showing up.  So, did they kick total ass this issue and justify that score?  Let's find out...

Lobo #10 Preview

Written by Cullen Bunn and Frank Barbiere
Art by: Robson Rocha and Blond
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

Lobo is finally face-to-face with Sinestro! But did our favorite bounty hunter bite off more than he could chew when he agreed to kill the leader of the Yellow Lanterns?

After the Lobo Annual, I've been looking forward to this issue.  It's funny, I have never been a big fan of Lobo or Sinestro, but the two of them together just feels right.  Like tow great tastes that go great together and yes, I'm talking about donuts and hamburgers.

Archer & Armstrong #1 Review

Written by: Fred Van Lente
Artist: Clayton Henry, Matt Mila
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: August 8, 2012
Publisher Valiant Entertainment

*Spoilers Ahead. Score at The Bottom*

Big City of Dreams

I recently started getting into the Valiant universe and I believe Archer & Armstrong is a series that ties in some of the universes characters. We have Armstrong who is the brother of the eternal warrior. This ties in a lot since a lot of the lore centers around Giled.

So we start with Giled and Armstrong destroying the entire civilization on Earth with the boon they found, they then become eternal from it. So it appears we started pretty big, then we jump 10,000 years into the future at an amusement park. The park has been ran by these old rich people who take in orphans and have been training them to become assassins. It is not sounding right when I am writing down, but I am sure that is it. All these orphans have a home, but all have to fight each other for the opportunity to go on the sacred mission for their parents. Our hero Obadiah Archer beat up all the orphans so now he is allowed to leave the park and fulfill his parents mission.

Nightmares On Elm Street #1 Review and *SPOILERS*

I've got some sad news for you if you haven't heard yet.  Wes Craven, the legendary horror writer/director died Sunday and while I originally intended on getting up to date on the Puppet Master comic series for this installment of Just For The Hell of It Mondays, I figured I'd do a book to honor a man who created an icon, that scared the hell out of me as a kid.  I watched a lot of horror flicks growing up and no one scared me the way that Freddy Krueger did and it might be because of the premise of a slasher that kills you in your nightmares and then having said nightmares that made Krueger a character that was truly terrifying....... you know, until he got goofy.  Even then though, he's still a character that will never be forgotten and nobody will ever forget the man that was behind the nightmare.  It's pretty sad to me because it was films like Nightmare on Elm Street, The People Under The Stairs and Shocker that really made me want to be a part of the horror genre growing up, so while Wes gave me nightmares, he also gave me dreams.

Green Lantern 75th Anniversary : Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight #1 Review and *SPOILERS*

Written by: Ron Marz
Art by: Bill Willingham

Release Date: December 31, 1993

Mourning

This month, DC will be honoring Green Lantern's 75th anniversary with Green Lantern variant covers. While my articles don't really come with variant covers, most of my articles this month will be Green Lantern themed to honor the anniversary of one of DC's most famous superheroes. What better way to start this little honor fest than with the story of one of the greatest falls for a Lantern...yeah a very weird start, but this was one of the very first Green Lantern stories I ever read!
This is the first issue of the Emerald Twilight story arc, leading to Hal Jordan's fall, and the birth of Kyle Rayner's time as the Green Lantern. This story was set up during the Reign of the Supermen event, which had Cyborg Superman team up with Mongol to destroy Coast City, making way for a way-station to turn the Earth into Warworld. While the station was destroyed, the damage was done; Coast City was destroyed.
It has been years since I first read this, and now it's time to see if it holds up.

The Omega Men #4 Preview

Written by: Tom King
Art by: Toby Cypress
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

The epic, bloody saga of the Omega Men continues as a plan to rescue Princess Kalista goes horribly wrong. The Omega Men point their guns. The Citadel points theirs. And everyone pulls the trigger.

I love this book so much.  It had me hooked from the beginning and I really can't get enough.  Tom King really has keyed into the sense of wonder and excitement that 8 year old Jim had when he went to see Star Wars and taped all those pictures of Han and Luke on my school folders.  Please grab this issue (and the first three) so the story continues forever...

Bat-Mite #4 Preview

Written By: Dan Jurgens
Art By: Corin Howell
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: September 2, 2015

There’s a new bad guy in town: Gridlock, the villain who’s stuck in the past! And now, he’s out to stop the future from coming! Booster Gold, the hero from the future, obviously can’t allow that, but when he seeks Bat-Mite’s help in finding this purloiner of progress, it doesn’t take much of a prognosticator to predict that he’s going to regret it.

I loved the last issue of Bat-Mite so much and pairing our 5th Dimension imp with Booster Gold seems like......well, Gold..  This series hasn't let me down yet and I don't expect it to here.