Pull List Review – March 19th, 2008

Again, the way this works is I give you the brief rundown of my immediate thoughts about this week’s comics.

PVP #39 – You know what? I don’t know why I’m buying this. I started years ago when Scott would alter the stories, improve the artwork, fix typos, etc. These days, this is just stuff straight from the web and the only original art is the new cover. I think it’s time I removed this and saved $3.50. I wish Scott the best, it’s still a great strip, but I don’t have money to burn.

Shadowpact #23- The moment we Blue Devil fans have waited 2 decades to see: suddenly there’s a zipper. Best part of the issue, and I’m intrigued where this will go. I’d love to see the special effects man return. All in all, the book is keeping my interest enough to stay on the list, but it’s still not as good as in the days of Willingham. Dr. Gotham is a bore of a character and the book needs to go somewhere new.

Robin #172 – Nice to see Maxie Zeus alive. Stunning surprise in this one. Chuck says that #173 will be his most under-ordered book since Birds of Prey #8 and I believe him.

Justice League of America #19 – I have had mixed feelings about JLA ever since it rebooted. JLA just seems dark and dreary, without a hint of the spark that JSA has. It’s been that way through several writers, too. Maybe it’s just that nobody ever smiles in this book. At this point, I’m reading it just because I like Red Tornado and Black Lightning, and that’s not reason enough. I buy it on inertia because of my quarter century of reading JLA, but I am putting this title on notice. It’s seriously close to the cut-off. I could just give it up and let my friends tell me if there’s ever anything so monumental that I need to start reading it again.

Birds of Prey #116 – My face lit up when I saw whose name was on the cover. GAIL SIMONE IS BACK! And in the middle of a storyline, too, which is weird. Ah, but it’s a mistake. Still, a good issue by writer McKeever. This book still rules.

Flash #238 – OOPS! I missed this one. I’ll read it and get back to you.

Countdown to Final Crisis #06 – This book has been a major suckfest. It has sucked and sucked, and so far it’s sucked some $138 out of my wallet! I actually canceled this book months ago. I told Mark at Jimmy Jams that I was done collecting it, because it was boring, the characters were uninteresting, it wasn’t going anywhere, it wasn’t entertaining, and it was costing way too much money. He told me that, per the agreement, I still had to buy it until all the issues he’d pre-purchased for my pull list were done. I said I understood. A few months later I asked him how much longer I had to go and I guess there was some miscommunication as to whether I was for sure canceling it. At that point, the story was FINALLY getting interesting, so I told him I’d stick with it to the end. And given that I got to see an appearance by Ralph and Sue Dibny (even on another Earth), it wasn’t so bad. But boy, this book still sucks. I’d rather have my $138 back. It’s all leading into a major event and I just couldn’t care. Plus, the issue ends with Green Lantern doing something that is way too stupid for Hal Jordan to do. (My guess? This isn’t the real Earth and none of this matters.)

Batman and the Outsiders #5 – Well how about that? A book I was only buying because it was by Chuck Dixon and I was giving it a chance has just shot to the top of my pull list. This is now the book that I will be eagerly awaiting and diving into as soon as it arrives. I’ve had a lousy week working long hours (and it’s only half over), and this comic book brought a huge smile to my face, made me giddy, made me laugh…and no, I’m not telling you why. You have to buy it. The surprises in this issue are now forcing me to re-read issues 1-4. I will say one thing: kudos to artist Julian Lopez, who manages to pull off the difficult feat of making you see a face inside a different face. I’m not explaining it well, but I’m trying to be cryptic. Go buy it. Go buy five! As for me, I’ve already promised to buy the Silver Wookie a drink at Wizard World.

By the way, the first word balloon in the book references Chuck’s list of Gun Mistakes All Writers Make. (UPDATED: Thanks to commenter Moosalini for the link.)

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