Rapid Reviews - 27 April 2005 - Part I

Simpsons Classics #4: Typical Simpsons. This one had several shorts, all originally published years ago. No surprises here. Either you like the Simpsons, or you don't.

The Pact #1: "Father's Day": Nice little set-up issue. Four teenaged heroes get together and agree to hang out every once in awhile. Of the four, I'm familiar with Invincible from reading his trades from the library, and with Zephyr from Noble Causes. I'd heard of Firebreather before, but wasn't much interested, and Shadowhawk is completely new to me. After reading this book, I'm more interested in Firebreather and very intrigued by Shadowhawk. I guess I rate this one pretty high. Better than your average superhero book in some ways, but not spectacular because it is still set-up.

PS238 #11: I just love this book. Seriously, go out and buy a copy of the trade or something. If you like superheroes and a lightly dry sense of humor, this book is for you. I'm particularly amused by the whole "Four Square" thing, as Aaron quotes from Wikipedia on it, and I never once played it as a kid although I remember the squares being on the playground. This is just a great book.

Invincible #0: Origin, summary of current status, and a little hanky-panky all in one 50 cent package. I'm glad I read the trades first, but this isn't a bad way to get up to speed on the character. And you can't much beat the price, even if this is a mighty thin book.

Supreme Power #16: "The Deconstruction of Mark Milton": As the title implies, this issue starts a smear campaign against Hyperion now that he no longer is working for the government. And as the cover implies, the aqua-character is finally moving out of the shadows as well. An interesting issue. I just wish this book came out more quickly, then it wouldn't feel like it's dragging along.

Lullaby: Wisdom Seeker #2: This book attempts to be Manga-y, and I suppose it works to a degree. There's a huge cast being assembled, but if you know a bit about legends and fairy tales you can follow them without difficulty. And Oz keeps coming up as the destination on this journey. So we'll keep reading and see what happens.

Red Sonja #0: Ug. At least it was only 25 cents. A pretty cliche tale, typical bad girl artwork, and not a lot of deep thinking. After the remarkable Conan series Dark Horse is producing, I thought maybe I would be surprised and impressed by this character. I thought wrong.

Slowly getting through last week's comics... maybe I'll be done with them by tomorrow night...