Hack Slash vs. Evil Ernie. Devil’s Due. Tim Seeley (writer); Aadi Salman (artist); Steve Seeley (letterer). While I have some familiarity with Evil Ernie, the character of Hack and her partner Vlad are new to me. However, this crossover book catches you up to speed quickly so that, if you’re like me, you can enjoy it regardless. It even has some nice character moments with Hack. And even Ernie, though he’s basically a sociopathic undead bastard with a mind stuck in adolescence while aided by a powerful smiley face button with Larry Flynt’s id inside it. Enjoyable diversion, aided by Salman’s art, which looks like a kinder, gentler Sienkiewicz.
Justice League Elite #12. DC. Joe Kelly (writer); Doug Mahnke (penciller); Tom Nguyen (inker); David Baron (colorist); Pat Brosseau (letterer). And Extreme Justice, Vol. 2 dies the same way it lived…lamely. I don’t know what they were thinking. DC can’t do Authority properly, it’s not like I Can’t Believe It’s Not the Authority set in the DCU would fare any better.
Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #4. Marvel. Jeff Parker (writer); Patrick Scherberger (penciller); Norman Lee (inker); Dave Sharpe (letterer). Wow, this is the perfect comic book for kids! If they’re drooling morons! Imagine a giant monster named Goom who spouts such sparkling dialogue as “YO YO YO, GOOM IS IN THE HIZZY!” And no, I’m not kidding. You only wish I was.
New Warriors #1. Marvel. Zeb Wells (writer); Skottie Young (artist); Randy Gentile (letterer). Another teen magazine like Gravity, but give Marvel what little credit they deserve: they’re doing them as limited series instead of launching an entire line only to have no one give a shit and the whole thing get cancelled shortly thereafter. Like last time. If Tiger Shark wearing a purplish-pink robe and getting a slice of pizza in the face is your idea of a good time…then you’re eight, and you shouldn’t be reading this site. Isn’t it a school night?
The Pulse #9. Marvel. Brian Michael Bendis (writer); Michael Lark (penciller); Stefano Gaudiano (inker); Pete Pantazis (colorist); Cory Pettit (letterer). You remember when you’d be interested in a book, but then it would get bogged down in crossovers until you forgot what the hell made it so special? Let’s see…we finally get done with “Secret War” and now I see next month we can look forward to “House of M” tie-ins. How about this question…remember when Jessica Jones had her own book? Yeah, me too.
By the way, which American comics should I be reading? I’ve heard good things about Ultimate Spidey, but I loathe Ultimate X-Men, so I’m concerned.
Ulty X-Men is bad because it was setup wrong–they tried to cram too much of its history into an Ulty format too quickly, instead of just taking their time with it. It doesn’t seem to matter what writer they put on it, it just sucks because it’s inherently flawed.
Ulty Spidey is good, but when you see Ulty Carnage show up, just abandon the title.