CONSTANTS

Thursday's episode of Lost was one of the best the series has produced so far and that's saying something. "The Constant" focused on Desmond once again - as he and Sayid flew on a helicopter out to the boat he suddenly became unstuck in time and his consciousness was toggling back and forth between 1996 and 2004 (still the present day of the series). It was sharply written and edited with great performances and cool ideas and it made me wish I could rewatch all three seasons of the show right now (of course, I still don't have Season 3 on DVD). Thank goodness the writer's strike is over and we can get 8 more episodes of this season.

Another TV show I love is almost over. I've been watching The Wire "On Demand," where they have each new episode of the season up the Monday before it airs on HBO. The other day I got around to watching the penultimate episode (and 9th of the fifth, final season), "Late Editions," and I felt sadness. Sadness not only for the fates of characters in the show but the fact that the show will soon be gone. I've said it before and I'll say it again - The Wire is one of the best TV shows ever. Ever. If you've never seen it, do yourself and favor and rent or buy Season 1 and dive in. You won't regret it.

Comics are another constant in my life, as I've been a reader for the last 27 years or so, give or take. I've gone through periods of high involvement and periods of keeping myself at a remove. Right now, I'm in a period of not caring that I love them and love super-heroes. Why? I think the energy of this guy might have helped me remember how much I do care. Why do I mention this, other than to tie in with my post title? I bought a big stack of 11 comics this past Wednesday.

I still had some of my Christmas (and Valentine's) cash and why not go ahead and use it up two months later? I bought the new Action Comics, the fifth part of the story with the Legion of Super-Heroes. I bought the 100th issue of Nexus and the first issue of Kick-Ass. I grabbed JSA Classified, which started a storyline about Wildcat written by my friend B. Clay Moore, and the last 5 issues of Justice Society of America, which I've missed reading. Criminal relaunched with a new #1 and there was a new Astro City Special about Beautie. It was a lot of good reading and I loved having a big stack like that. Of course, I can't afford to do that on a regular basis but that makes this week all the more sweet.

This week also saw the release of a new DC animated movie, Justice League: The New Frontier, which is based on the 2004 mini-series by Darwyn Cooke. The movie retains his cartoony, clean line style and does a good job encapsulating the story in a mere 75 minutes. Yes, there was a lot that was cut out but the story still worked. Grant had never read the comic but he really enjoyed the movie. There are a bunch of extras to get to, as I bought the 2-disc deluxe edition (which came with a Green Lantern figure).

MORE COMICS CHATTER

When we were in Columbus a couple weeks ago, we went to The Laughing Ogre, which is one of the most-known comic book stores in the country. It can be overwhelming when you walk in there, as they have rows and rows of single issues and trade paperbacks and so much more. I wandered around and looked at all the possibilities...and ended up buying just one comic. Eh, I'll be there again.

The comic I bought that day was Nexus #99, the first new issue of the series in 10 years. Obviously, it's been a while since I read those last issues and I no longer own them, of course. But Nexus has always been one of my favorites and it wasn't hard to get back in the groove. Mike Baron and Steve Rude are back in their groove with this issue - a plot against Nexus, the Elvonics and Alvinites are at each other's throats, and Sundra is about to give birth to their son. All that and a letter column to boot. One of the best comic books ever is back and here to stay for what I hope is a long, long time.

I also brought a trade along on our vacation and managed to get it read. The All-New Atom: My Life in Miniature collects the first six issues of the recently-relaunched series, this time with a new Atom at the helm. Dr. Ryan Choi comes to Ivy Town to take Ray Palmer's (the previous and longstanding Atom) place on the faculty and ends up taking his place as the hero as well. The series is full of weirdness and humor with a scientist support group, a new villain who shares the same powers, intergalactic war, a cancer god, and a man trying to adjust to his new powers. Gail Simone does a great job in writing the series and the art (by John Byrne and Eddy Barrows and Trevor Scott) is super-hero solid. I will definitely pick up the next volume in the series.

The week I bought the first two issues of Countdown I also picked up Justice Society of America #8. It foucses on Jesse Quick, the daughter of Golden Age heroes Johnny Quick and Liberty Belle (who starred in one of my favorite series of the 80s, All-Star Squadron). I've always had a fondess for the character and the mixture of her history and the present day (where she is married to Hourman) works very well. The issue also deals with some redemption for Damage and Jesse learns even more about herself. This is how done-in-one comics are supposed to be. Thanks Geoff Johns and the solid fill-in art by Fernando Pasarin (and Rodney Ramos) for that.

Finally, I picked up Batman #667 last week. It teams Grant Morrison with J.H. Williams once again and that's a great thing - Williams is easily one of my favorite artists. This is the first issue of the three-part story which features "Batmen" from around the world. It's funny and twisted and features Batman the way you want him to be. Can't wait to see where the story goes from here...