Thursday 5 March 2009

New Comics Round-up




Comic books are a bit like soap operas, aren’t they? They’re like soap operas with more spandex and fighting. Well, actually, WWE Wrestling is like a soap opera with spandex and fighting; comic books are like soap operas with spandex, fighting and speech bubbles. Hmm, I’m not sure where I was going with that. I’ll just move on to my comic book reviews.

Hergé’s Adventures of Superman #12 is the very special double-sized conclusion to the critically-acclaimed series. I don’t want to give too much away, but this is a highly satisfying end to a nail-biting storyline. Does Superman find the secrets of Smuggler’s Cove? Will Lois and Captain Haddock escape from the dungeon before the water drowns them? And what has Lex Luthor done with Snowy? All will be revealed if you buy this comic.

The Splendiferous Spider-man #64 introduces some new villains for Spidey to battle. The STD Gang, with Chlamydia Pete, VD Girl and The Clap could be the deadliest foes old web-head has ever faced! I’ll be honest; I didn’t particularly like this issue, mostly because the character design for the bad guys was a little too graphic for my liking. And the ending - in which Spider-man was rescued by a mysterious stranger known as Prophylacticus the Preventor - seemed a little tacked-on.

X-Men: The Re-Imagining is a great four-issue mini-series in which the mutant heroes are beset by falling subscription numbers and advertising revenue, and are forced by an evil super villain called ‘The Editor’ to undergo a horrific change in direction to gain new readers. Characters die, good guys turn bad, dead characters are reborn and one super-heroine comes out as a lesbian. How will Cyclops and the team survive? Hint: Time travel.

The best graphic novel out this month is Batman’s Greatest Scowls, a collection of the best grimaces from the last few decades of Dark Knight stories. My particular favourites include the one where he’s going “grr” and the one where he’s not saying anything but you can tell he’s really really mad.

The most promising new comic book looks like being Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog Man. This excellent series sees a mild-mannered weatherman gain the super powers of an Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog after being bitten by a radioactive goat. With his excellent sense of smell and amazing herding ability, Australian Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog Man is able to foil crime and rescue wandering flocks of sheep. Created by Frank Miller, this comic book should be on everyone’s wanted list for years to come!

The Imaginary Reviewer is deliberately not mentioning Watchmen so that he’s not accused of trying to generate extra search traffic by mentioning Watchmen despite the current popularity of Watchmen and the current release of Watchmen the movie which is based on the Watchmen comic book. No, no mention of Watchmen here.

9 comments:

Red said...

The new X-men comic sounds an awful lot like the plot of Lost. Thieves!

BeckEye said...

Even when I don't understand what in the hell you're talking about, I still laugh.

Anonymous said...

Chlamydia Pete used to be in one of my bands. He was a drummer. Liked to bang things. We only kept him for his awesome name. And he had ointment.

Some Guy said...

If there were more lesbians in comic books, I might start reading them.

Beautifully done as always, IR!

The Imaginary Reviewer said...

Red: Are there any lesbians in the new season of Lost? Actually, don't answer that, I haven't seen the last few episodes...

Beckeye: I don't know if I should take that as a comment on my hilarity or whether you're just incredibly nervous around me.

Tony: I feel sorry for him. Those tests are pretty painful.

Some Guy: Might I point you in the direction of the new Batgirl? She is more than familiar with the works of Sappho, if you get my drift.

BeckEye said...

Hey, you're a Firecrotch again. Just thought I'd let you know in case you wondered where that smoke was coming from.

katrocket said...

I love "Batman's Greatest Scowls". He IS a fine scowler. So sexy! And probably mentally ill.

words...words...words... said...

The Clap is a frightening villain.

Unknown said...

Good job you didn't mention Watchmen.