DOUBLE FEATURE

I've mentioned on more than one occasion that I've gone back and forth on the issue of whether I should buy comics in single format at all. There have been periods where I've bought only trades and periods where I've bought a few monthlies as well. Those latter times usually last 6 to 8 months before I give it all up and go back to trades. Well, I'm determined to try to find a way for me to buy and read both, even buying some things in singles format that I may want to buy in collected form later. Yes, it's all very complicated or at least I make it that way. Getting to the point, I bought a couple comics two Wednesdays ago that remind me why I do like to read things is serialized format.

I bought the new series of Booster Gold when it started up in 2007. I'd always liked the character and I found the book to be highly entertaining but ended up losing touch in the last swing back to trades. The series is now in the hands of Dan Jurgens, who originally created Booster and made the first series such a favorite of mine that I talked about it in a speech my freshman year of high school (in 1986).

I picked up #21 of the current series for 2 reasons. First, the cover promised Booster tangling with Batman (whose cape is now being filled by Dick Grayson, the first Robin, due to Bruce Wayne's death). Second, the series is now carrying a second feature - Blue Beetle. DC is adding 10 page co-features to a number of its comics as a way of justifying higher prices ($3.99 per issue on selected titles). It's pricey but in this instance, the comic was worth it.

The lead feature is the first of the four-part "Day of Death" storyline. Booster is big-time hero but he has to pretend he is an ineffectual glory hound in order to keep secret his status as a time-traveler. He is working with Rip Hunter, who seems to be up to something as the issue opens. Sure, it looks like he is looking for a chink in the Black Beetle's armor but Booster isn't sure he can be fully trusted. Rip sends Booster to the Batcave, because there are some pictures there that reveal the truth about Booster (Batman was the only one aware of Booster's mission but Batman isn't exactly Batman anymore). Booster decides to trust Dick with the secret (that he tried to save Barbara Gordon from being shot; Dick is very close to Barbara) when the Black Beetle shows up and decides to change the timeline. At the end, it appears he has succeeding in killing Dick in the past. I'm interested to see where the story goes from here.

I read the first issue or three of the Blue Beetle series when it first came out but quickly lost track. I've found the character to be a lot of fun on the Batman: Brave and the Bold TV show and welcomed the chance to check in the character in the comics realm. Plus, writer Matt Sturges is someone I like (I read his novel Midwinter a few months back and have enjoyed his work on Jack of Fables, though I'm woefully behind on that series) and artist Mike Norton always turns out quality work. Well, there was plenty to like. Most especially, a giant yellow robot named Thinko! that Beetle had to battle. A fun comic.

Two good stories in one comic book? That's the way it should be. I will definitely be back for the next issue.

On the other end of the spectrum is the latest series from Vertigo, The Unwritten. This is a creator-owned series from Mike Carey and Peter Gross (such an underrated artist) and the first issue was over-sized and priced at $1. How can you resist that? I didn't and while I liked the issue well enough, the series really takes off with #2. The book is the story of Tom Taylor, the inspiration for a series of Harry Potter-like novels by his father. But it turns out he might not be Wilson Taylor's son after all. The series is steeped in fiction; Tom knows geography by way of fiction, though he hasn't read the books. There are forces skulking about, including a man who creates a cell phone through letters and then let's it dissolve back into the same. And what is the deal with Lizzie Hexam? Is she more than the protagonist of Dickens' Our Mutual Friend? I can't wait to see where this series goes and I'm not going to wait for trades either. How's that for an endorsement?

FANBOY CATNIP

Geoff Johns knows how to write for DC fanboys in their mid-30s, probably because he is one himself (I think he's a couple years younger than I am). His latest issue of Booster Gold (#8, with co-writer Jeff Katz and the usual art team of Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapmund) finds Booster and Blue Beetle in an timeline that's been twisted so that Max Lord is overrunning most heroes with OMACs and the two heroes have joined with a disparate band of heroes that features....Wild Dog! Not only that, but Pantha and Anthro too. And what fun it is amidst all the danger and drama and the sinisters machinations of a villainous cabal. The issue also ends with a promise of trying to get the old Justice League International team back together again to fight back against Lord, who was their benefactor and friend. Fanboy catnip, indeed.

The other comic I picked up last week was also written by Johns, Justice Society of America #14. It continues the "Thy Kingdom Come" storyline with the arrival and confrontation with Gog. Along the way, there are nice character bits (like a nice opening with Sandy and Power Girl) and some humor as all the heroes try to pile around the table (also, there's a printing snafu on one page but it is still readable). Of course, all that gives way to the fight in the second half of the book and nice cliffhanger ending. I'm ready for more.

Zack Snyder has found a new way to build interest in his upcoming Watchmen adaptation - a set of 12 production videos that will debut around the web on the 6th of every month (which means that final one will arrive the same day as the movie opens next year). The first video deals with the set-building and creating of New York circa 1985, Watchmen-style. Watch it here.

ARRIVALS

It was a big day today, as some boxes of goodies that I ordered with birthday cash and gift cards arrived. Plus, it's a Wednesday - new comics! It's a nice relief to a long day at work. Here's what I got...

Battlestar Galactica Season Three
Big Dipper/Supercluster: The Big Dipper Anthology
The Black Keys/Attack & Release
Booster Gold #8
Michael Chabon/Maps and Legends
Justice Society of America #14

I also would have gotten Criminal Vol. 2 #2 but my shop had a shortage on it, so maybe next week. I love getting new stuff.

TWO IN TWO

While I finished Zeroville, I snuck in some time to read the latest issue of Booster Gold (#6, in fact). Anyone who's been reading this blog knows how much I've been enjoying the ongoing relaunch of this series and this issue is no exception. In it, Booster travels back in time with a Blue Beetle from the past (Dan Garrett), a Blue Beetle from the present (Jaime Reyes), and a Blue Beetle from the future (?) to rescue his best friend, Ted Kord (who was also a Blue Beetle). Rip Hunter isn't happy about this and makes plans of his own. Is the group successful in saving Ted from Max Lord? Well, the next issue crosses over with 1994's Zero Hour and is teased as "Blue & Gold, Chapter One" so you be the judge!

Then last night after I finished Zeroville, I picked up Ex Machina: Power Down, the 6th volume of the ongoing series from Wildstorm. This is another comic I've talked about - it features a man who can talk to machines, and traded super-heroics for being mayor of New York. Powers and politics, yay! This volume collects a four issue storyline where Mitchell Hundred has to deal with the blackout of August 2003...and it turns out he's a lot more involved than you would think. He temporarily loses his powers and has an encounter with a man who appears to be from a parallel world - the parallel world from which Mitchell somehow got his powers. Very interesting. Brian K. Vaughan is one of the best writers working in comics and you can't beat Tony Harris (and inker Jim Clark) on art, which means this is a very good comic that everyone should read.

THE WEEK IN COMICS: DEC. 28

New comics day was delayed until Friday this week due to Christmas and I actually bought multiple comics. Actually, I bought two comics and three trades (thanks for the Christmas comics cash, Mom and Dad!)...can't remember the last time I bought that much at once. Plus, I got Previews and the new issue of Wizard, which is the 2008 preview issue (I'm a sucker for a preview issue). I love comics.

So, Action Comics #860 is the third part of the "Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes" storyline and I just have two words: Shadow Lass. Okay, I have more but the appearance of the sexy Shadow Lass as drawn by Gary Frank was really cool. Okay, it was great to see Polar Boy and Night Girl and Timber Wolf and everyone as well. Some fight scenes and character moments and an ending that further complicates things just give it that much more. Three more issues to go and I can't wait to see where it goes.

Hmm, I guess it was a Geoff Johns day because I also picked up Booster Gold #3 (thank you, reorders!) and have now read every issue of the series, albeit out of order. This issue saw Booster going back and getting drunk with Jonah Hex and ties into The Kents maxi-series from the late 90s (which I never did read). Plus, another encounter with Supernova and some complications for Booster's ancestor and some nifty Dan Jurgens art. Not the best issue of the series but still highly enjoyable.

When I get around to reading the trades, you'll hear about it. Next year, most likely.

BACK TO BOOSTER AND OTHER STORIES

A couple months back I wrote about the return of Booster Gold to the ranks of monthly comics. I liked the series a lot but only read the first two issues when we realized we needed to watch our spending a bit more closely. In the past couple months, I've figured out how to work the entertainment spending a little bit (see my recent post about Action Comics) and went to the store to pick up Booster Gold #5.

The cover catches the eye immediately - the Joker is pointing a camera and reflected in the lens are Booster and Batgirl (the original Batgirl, Barbara Gordon). It's a take on Batman: The Killing Joke, the one-shot from the late 80s where Alan Moore had the Joker cripple Batgirl. And that's the time period Booster travels to in this issue; Rip Hunter sends him back to save her from the bullet. Booster fails. And has Rip send him back again and again and again, trying desperately to defeat the Joker. In the end, he finds out that Rip is trying to make a point - not all time can be changed, some things are fixed points. It's a testament to Booster's determination and heroism that he keeps trying and it makes for a strong issue. And that's not even touching on the villainous trio of Ultra-Humanite, Per Degaton, and Despero, or the ending. I know the comics shop has #4 still on the shelves and I'm gonna have to try and find #3 as well. This is what makes me love super-hero comics and the DC Universe.

Last night Jill and I finally got around to our latest DVD from Netflix, The Squid and the Whale. It's the story of a family going through a divorce - the narcissistic father, the mother desperate from attention, and the two boys trying to figure out who they are by which parent they're like. None of the characters are particularly nice and it's a fairly depressing story. However, it is watchable - not only for the performances of Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney (and the kids) but for the way it's shot and the way the music works with it. This was Noah Baumbach's first film; his second, Margot at the Wedding, is out now.

Speaking of DVDs, Grant and I are once again making progress on The Simpsons Season 9 with only two episodes left on the second disc. It's interesting watching these episodes because this may be the first season we've watched where I haven't seen most of the episodes multiple times. There are some here I've seen maybe two or three times before if even that.

Today I have the day off - the first day other than a Sunday that I've not had to go into the Y since early September, not counting Thanksgiving break. Classes are done for three weeks. I will be doing some lifeguarding shifts over that time period but nothing at all today or Wednesday (and just a short time tomorrow). I'm going to use the time to catch up on my DVR and try to finish the two books that are due this Wednesday (I'm about 60 pages into the one). I'm also caught up with my Entertainment Weekly reading, ready to start the issue that arrived on Saturday (other magazines...not so much). Oh, and some last stuff for Christmas. I'm looking forward to it.

THE WEEK IN COMICS: AUG. 15

This is the biggest week of comics I've had in quite a while. I will cover the two Countdown comics in another post, so here's some thoughts on the rest of them...

Booster Gold #1 - Confession time: I've always been a big fan of Booster Gold. The original series started back in 1986 and I bought it from the first issue; I even used the cover to #3 as an example of dynamic art during my freshman English class. Dan Jurgens did a great job writing and illustrating the series and I was sad to see it disappear after two years. Since that time, he's kicked around the DCU and has been a joke for much of that time period, something I've never been a fan of. The writers of 52 resuscitated him to the point where he played a huge role in the return of the Multiverse. This new first issue (written by Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz with art by Jurgens and inker Norm Rapmund) sees Booster trying to reclaim a big role by joining up with the newly-reformed Justice League. He gets the offer and ends up turning it down. Why? Rip Hunter (a master of time) has come to him and told him only he can help save the time stream from someone trying to exploit wormholes within time. Booster agrees to play the fool while working to save heroes throughout time. Time travel and all sorts of corners of the DCU? Sign me up. Johns (and Katz) repeats his trick from the first issue of Justice Society of America by giving us a teaser page of what's coming up in the first year of the title. Brainiac 5 trying to take back his Legion flight ring? Multiple Blue Beetles and Booster fighting Maxwell Lord? Yes, please!

The Flash #231 - Here's a different Flash book - Wally and Linda are parents! And, of course, their kids have super-powers (and have grown at a very fast rate). We see fun interaction between the kids and their parents, touching moments, a glimpse of where the Wests have been, and a weird mystery at the end. Mark Waid knows what he's doing. I also have to mention the art by Daniel Acuna, which is cartoony and sleek and very appealing.

Justice League of America #12 - This is Brad Meltzer's last issue, capping off his relaunch of this longstanding title. We get glimpses of all the members as they shuffle in and out of monitor duty and we learn some secrets and see some plot developments and it's all framed by two characters who aren't revealed until the end (though you can figure out who they are). It's a good issue. I am interested to see where Dwayne McDuffie goes from here; he takes over next issue.

Clash #1 - This is the first book from Moonstone I've ever bought and I probably wouldn't have bought it in the first place except for the fact it's written by my friend and local comics shop owner, Greg Karras. It's drawn by Cory Hamscher, who lives in the area and whom I've known for a long time as well. They turn in a solid story about a grim future where some super-powered people are trying to overthrow other super-powered people. There is a lot going on but you can follow it and the last page has me interested to see what else he's going to throw in there.