8th Dimension Comics and Games

Bulloch Points - May 16, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Tue, 2012-05-15 22:07

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Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out.

Locke & Key: Clockworks #6 (IDW Publishing)
With this issue, we close the book on the penultimate chapter of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’ epic series. The final chapter of the Clockworks miniseries answers just about all of the remaining questions. We see the final fate of all of Rendell’s friends, as well as poor, damned Dodge. The only mystery left for the Locke children is what happened to the Omega Key. Dodge has killed for it before, and is happy to do so again. We’re left with an ominous cliffhanger for the final six-issue miniseries. Dodge is still lurking in their midst, in the form of the youngest Locke child Bode. Tyler and Kinsey may have learned the truth about their father and the horrors he unleashed, but they are oblivious to one that’s under the same roof as they are.

The Manhattan Projects #3 (Image Comics)
When it comes to weird science, I say the weirder the better, and things don’t come much weirder than this. FDR lives on as the world’s first artificial intelligence, President Harry S Truman leads an Illuminati cult in the George Washington Masonic Memorial, and physicist Harry Daghlian is a living irradiated skeleton with a taste for plutonium and a half-life of over 24,000 years. All this is before they drop the atomic bomb.

Justice League #9 (DC Comics)
A new villain, a terminally ill man named David Graves, is targeting the Justice League. A prolific novelist, he literally wrote the book on the Justice League, but now he seeks to destroy them. Each member of the team is spotlighted briefly, contrasting a painful memory from their formative years with the current action. The angst of young Bruce Wayne repainting his room because he no longer has a favorite color would be sad if it wasn’t so funny. Once again, the SHAZAM backup is the strongest part of the issue. Geoff Johns and Gary Frank continue to flesh out Billy Batson and his foster family, making this new Marvel family seem like real people. Freddy Freeman’s lucrative side business of selling test scores, doctor’s notes, and hall passes gives us the best line of the issue and possibly the week. Note: It’s best to know what a medical condition actually IS before submitting a doctor’s excuse for it.

Avengers vs. X-Men #4 (Marvel Comics)
Cyclops and the White Queen only need to stall the Avengers, not defeat them. If Hope is still free when the Phoenix makes its way to Earth, then they get what they want, whether that’s for good or bad. Hope has fully embraced what she believes to be her destiny. She wants to become the Phoenix and bring about the rebirth of mutant-kind. Wolverine’s not buying it though. He’s seen firsthand what the Phoenix does, and how uncontrollable it is. The events of this issue bring us full circle, to the blue area of the moon. Longtime X-Men readers will remember this as where Jean Grey made her final stand in the classic Dark Phoenix story. After this issue, there are no more stalling tactics. It’s on.

AVX: Versus #2 (Marvel Comics)
The Jason Statham movie of comics continues. No plot, all action. In this issue, we get a knock-down fight between Captain America and Gambit of all people. A more fair fight is the second battle, Spider-Man vs. Colossus (AKA Juggalossus the Colossonaut).

The Shade #8 (DC Comics)
The year is 1901, and Dickie Swift is now known as the Shade, a name provided in jest by his dear friend Oscar Wilde. The Shade’s grandson, Albert Caldecott, has gotten in over his head with the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. It’s not the infamous Alistair Crowley that torments him, but an evil homunculus that he and his lover Otto summoned. Artist Jill Thompson provides the visuals for this “Times Past” story, bringing her unmatched characterization and storytelling sense. All the characters in this comic, from the leads to the most minor background figures, seem like real people. This is more important than ever when telling a story that traffics in supernatural themes, grounding them in a real-world setting that is easy to relate to.

Saucer Country #3 (DC Vertigo Comics)
Professor Kidd has a couple of lines in this issue that I think provide a thesis for the entire series. “I believe that you were abducted by aliens,” and “I don’t think anyone knows what ‘abducted by aliens’ really means.” Something very strange is happening to and with the citizens of New Mexico, and clearly it has been going on for a very long time. The Governor’s ex-husband, Michael, lies on a couch, undergoing so-called regression therapy. It’s not entirely clear how much of what he remembers is true memory, and how much is planted by the ambitious doctor.

Saga #3 (Image Comics)
Once again, Saga is by far the best book on the rack this week. Prince Robot IV leads the investigation into the whereabouts of Alana and Marco, armed only with a sense of noblesse oblige and a trashy romance novel. Meanwhile, Marco lays bleeding out in Rocketship Forest. There is once chance to save his life, but it will require Alana making an impossible deal with a desperate ghost child. Did I mention that this book is cuckoo for cocoa-puffs?

Nightwing #9 (Night of the Owls tie-in) (DC Comics)
William Cobb is Dick Grayson’s great-grandfather, and the most trusted of the Talons serving the Court of Owls. He believes that Nightwing could and should have helped to “save” Gotham. To him, Batman is a naïve fool, and Nightwing is a poor imitation of a naïve fool. As the two of them battle throughout the city, they wage a battle for Nightwing’s soul. The action cuts back and forth between the present-day battle and William Cobb’s original fall from grace a century ago. Of all of the books making up this crossover, Nightwing is the one with the highest personal stakes for its hero. If you only check out one of the tie-ins, make it this one.

Red Hood & The Outlaws #9 (Night of the Owls tie-in) (DC Comics)
Jason Todd has a lot in common with the Talons. Like them, he has died in the line of duty and been brought back to life with unfinished business. Like them, he has a complicated relationship with Gotham City. The Red Hood and his fellow outlaws live in that gray area between right and wrong, which allows them to empathize with both the Talons and their would-be victim, Mr. Freeze.

Daredevil #13 (Marvel Comics)
Foggy Nelson is Matt Murdoch’s oldest friend, but he’s at the end of his rope. The post-traumatic stress alone is nearly killing him. The issue begins with Foggy in therapy, confidentially spilling his concerns to a therapist. Matt always has been a brooder, tormented by guilt. Suddenly he seems bright and cheerful. Clearly such an about-face in personality can’t be healthy, right? Meanwhile, Matt still is in possession of the Omega Drive, containing the secrets of five criminal empires. He has been pitting the different families against each other for months, but as always, Daredevil is in over his horns. Daredevil is the Man without Fear, not the man without brains. He has a plan, and he thinks it’s a very good one. I’m not gonna give away the last-page reveal, but let’s just say things don’t quite the way Matt wanted them to.

Winter Soldier #5 (Marvel Comics)
The former Prime Minister of Latveria, Lucia Von Bardas, and her cohort, the Red Ghost, have stolen the launch codes to Latveria’s nuclear silos. This means we get a team-up with the Winter Soldier, Black Widow, Nick Fury, and Doctor Doom. By the end of the issue, the fates of two of the Soviet sleeper agents have been revealed, but one of Bucky’s students still is missing. Clearly, the Winter Soldier has more ghosts from his past to deal with in the immediate future.

Uncanny X-Men #12 (AVX tie-in) (Marvel Comics)
The best part of this comic by far is the further adventures of King Namor, underwater love-machine. “Namor does not speak of his conquests. Though he perfectly understands that others oft wish to spread word of his prowess.” That’s a fancy way of saying, “IMPERIUS SEX!”

Batwoman #9 (DC Comics)
Even without J.H. Williams currently penciling the series, his presence can be felt on every page. Trevor McCarthy follows the visual template established for the series back in its run in Detective Comics, but adds his own flair constantly. Once again, the worlds of both Kate Kane and Batwoman each feature a distinctly different art style. What’s interesting to me is how as Kate’s two separate worlds collapse into one, the art begins to follow suit. The current Batwoman series stands alongside Francis Manapul’s Flash as one of the most dynamic comics on the shelf today.

Wonder Woman #9 (DC Comics)
Hades’ love is as clumsy as it is cruel, so Diana is told by the shade of his last wife, Persephone. Wonder Woman is trapped in hell, about to marry the Lord of the Dead, to save her half-sister Zola. Hephaestus, Zola, and their companions seek to save Diana from her nuptials, but Hermes surprisingly is unwilling to involve himself further. Wonder Woman seems even more surprisingly accepting of her fate, but Hades is not convinced. The test that he prepares on the final page will give a new meaning to “’til death do us part.”

Birds of Prey #9 (Night of the Owls tie-in) (DC Comics)
Black Canary and Katana are two of the DC Universe’s most accomplished fighters, but they are hopelessly outmatched by the Court of Owls. Luckily, they do not have to fight alone. The rest of the Birds of Prey aren’t far behind, helping to take the fight to a Civil War-era Talon named Henry Ballard. Most Talons would have a hard time standing up to a team as accomplished as the Birds of Prey, but Henry Ballard has something that none of them have: an awesome mustache.

Incredible Hulk #7.1 (Marvel Comics)
What would you do if for the first time in your life there, you had no supervision? What if you were 10 feet tall and irradiated? The Hulk is free of Bruce Banner, and sowing his wild oats. The look on Hulk’s face when he rides a triceratops is worth the cover price alone, and the Indiana Jones homage is even better. The problem is, Hulk doesn’t feel much of anything now. Without Banner to define him, Hulk is in the middle of an existential crisis. Then Banner’s ex-wife, the Red She-Hulk, shows up, and she’s furious. Her relationship with Bruce was equally complicated and conflicted, but when Hulk’s are overwhelmed by emotions they lash out. It’s a primal reaction. You know what else is a primal reaction? A booty call. Oh yeah, and while all this is happening, we get a return of the second-dumbest villain Ghost Rider ever fought, the Orb. Check him out on Wikipedia – you’re not going to believe that he’s real.

Honorable Mentions
Avengers Academy #30 (AVX tie-in) (Marvel Comics)
Knights of the Dinner Table #186 (Kenzer & Co.)
Hulk Smash Avengers #3 (Marvel Comics)
Blue Beetle #9 (DC Comics)
Catwoman #9 (Night of the Owls tie-in) (DC Comics)
The Shadow #2 (Dynamite Entertainment)
Danger Club #2 (Image Comics)
Invincible Iron Man #517 (Marvel Comics)
Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi – Force Storm #4
Conan the Barbarian #4 (Dark Horse Comics)
Green Lantern Corps #9 (DC Comics)

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Bulloch Points - May 9, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Wed, 2012-05-09 20:16

Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out.

Alabaster Wolves #2 (Dark Horse Comics)

Dancy is feverish from infected Werewolf wounds, and her guardian angel has abandoned her. Seeking refuge in a clearly defiled church wasn’t the best idea, but you know – fever. The dark and trippy artwork continues to drive the story, and give the reader a creeped-out feeling of dread. I’m still not entirely sure what’s happening in this book, but I like it a lot.

Batgirl #9 (DC Comics)

One of the coolest things about the Night of Owls crossover is the diversity of bad guys. Using the template established by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo in Batman, the other creative teams were told to go nuts and create different and unique servants of the Court of Owls. Gail Simone manages to create a fantastic new bad guy who is as creepy as she is tragic. The real star of this issue is Commissioner Jim Gordon. The Court of Owls seek to exploit both his loyalty to Gotham City and his love for his daughter. Every action that he takes is one chosen and manipulated by the Owls. Gotham is their city, but is that just for now, or forever?

Batman #9 (DC Comics)

Batman has the best guard dog. The lead feature continues the narrative of Night of Owls right where we left off. Batman is battling an entire cave full of Talons who sought to end the Wayne family line once and for all. This issue is comic book action done perfectly, but it’s the backup feature that really stands out. It’s a short story from the perspective of Alfred’s father Jarvis Pennyworth, former servant to the Wayne family in happier times. He writes his son, warning him to stay far away from the Waynes. The family is cursed, and he blames himself for causing their doom. I’m not certain how the Owls are involved, but maybe they dance with the devil in the pale moonlight, if you know what I mean.

Batman & Robin #9 (DC Comics)

Damien Wayne takes center stage in this Night of Owls tie-in. All Robin wants is to rush to his father’s side, but he is too well-trained to disobey orders. Major General Benjamin Burrows is next on the Talons’ hit list, and Robin is the only thing standing between him and certain death. Damien approaches the Bat-family mission with a military-like precision and focus, so it’s fun to see that balanced with actual military men. As usual, he is Batman’s most brutal and efficient soldier.

Captain America #11 (Marvel Comics)

Back in the 1980s, one of Mark Gruenwald’s most celebrated Captain America runs was centered around the Scourge of the Underworld. A master of disguise, his victims never saw his face. He would pop up from time to time and assassinate minor super villains, coldly announcing that justice had been served. Recent readers of Thunderbolts know that there is a new Scourge, and he has resumed his predecessor’s mission. Somebody is selling out super criminals in S.H.I.E.L.D.’s witness relocation program, and Captain America is investigating. Featuring cameos by Dum Dum Duggan and Diamondback, this story is a treat for people who read Cap back in the day and new readers who just enjoy Ed Brubaker’s awesomeness.

Fury Max #1 (Marvel Comics)

Garth Ennis and Nick Fury go together perfectly. This book is macho, violent, and not for the easily offended (in other words, a typical Garth Ennis comic). Fury goes where there’s work to be done, and he has work to do in Indochina. His history of insubordination and heroic wartime service have landed him a position as an American liaison to the French armies who are about to lose their grip on Vietnam. If you know your military history, there’s a lot to recommend about this comic. If you don’t know your military history, there’s still tons of bar fights, naughty language, and Nazi war-criminals.

Green Lantern #9 (DC Comics)

After all this time, we finally get the origin of the Indigo Tribe. Natromo and Abin Sur assembled the Tribe out of the worst killers and sadists in the universe. The Indigo light forced them to feel compassion for those that they had wronged, regardless of their previous lack of empathy, but the Tribe was just a dry run for the real mission. Abin Sur had seen the future, and knew of the Blackest Night, and the much, much worse threat that would come next. Natromo has kept the Indigo Tribe going according to plan, never knowing that his friend and cohort was long dead. There are several crazy plot twists that make this book required reading for any fan of the DC Universe.

New Avengers #26 AVX (Marvel Comics)

Jean Grey was not the first human to play host to the cosmic power of the Phoenix Force. Centuries ago, there was an Iron Fist in the magical kingdom of K’Un Lun who also carried the burden. Her name was Fongji, and this is her story. To be fair, it’s also apparently the story of Leonardo Da Vinci. Comics are crazy.

Punisher #11 (Marvel Comics)

During the Omega Drive crossover, Rachel Cole-Alves betrayed Frank and ran off on her own. Now the Punisher is looking for her. He interrupts Officer Bolt’s date with Carlie Cooper (Peter Parker’s ex-girlfriend) to shake him down for information. Then they fight zombies in Times Square.

Scarlet Spider #5 (Marvel Comics)

“Get an address on his family. Because I’m going to go kill them.” Those are words that you never hear Spider-man say. That’s a major difference between the Amazing Spider-Man and the Scarlet Spider. Kaine and Officer Layton are chasing a bunch of racist whack-jobs who plan to blow up H-Town with an atomic bomb. What’s cool is that Christopher Yost is enough of a Marvel history buff that he remembered about the old Captain America villains the Watch Dogs. Rather than create a new one-off bad guy, he utilized a bit of old continuity. You know what else is cool? There’s a bearded agent in the Houston FBI Field Office named “Bulloch.” I have decided that he is the new star of this series. Please write to Marvel and demand to see more appearances by Special Agent Bulloch. I won’t be satisfied until he is in the next Avengers movie.

Suicide Squad #9 (DC Comics)

There’s a lot going on in this issue. First, Harley Quinn seems to have suffered a total psychotic break after the events of the last two issues. Either that or she has had a psychological breakthrough and regained her old pre-Joker personality. Or there’s always the possibility that she’s playing everyone. While whatever is happening with Harley happens back at Belle Reve Penitentiary, the rest of the team has been sent to kill Mitch Shelley, AKA Resurrection Man, and bring his body back to Amanda Waller. Of course, the Wall didn’t tell them that Shelley would resurrect with super powers after they killed him. Apparently, that was on a need-to-know basis. This story continues in Resurrection Man #9, also out this week.

Honorable Mentions

Deadpool #54 (Marvel Comics)

Fatale #5 (Image Comics)

Mind the Gap #1 (Image Comics)

The Walking Dead #97 (Image Comics)

Wolverine & The X-Men #10 AVX (Marvel Comics)

X-Men Legacy #266 AVX (Marvel Comics)

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Free Comic Book Day - Saturday, May 5, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Thu, 2012-05-03 16:13

This Saturday, May 5th, is Free Comic Book Day. We will have a variety of free comics available that are published especially for this annual event, including a number of all-ages-friendly titles. We'll be open our usual Saturday hours, 11:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m., so swing by 8th Dimension, check out our selection, and tell us what you thought of THE AVENGERS!

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Bulloch Points - May 2, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Thu, 2012-05-03 14:02

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Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out.

Dial H #1 (DC Comics)

Author China Miéville is a Hugo and Nebula award-winning fantasy and sci-fi author. Inspired by H.P. Lovecraft, he calls what he writes “weird fiction.” Well, fiction doesn’t come much weirder than Dial H. This comic is the latest attempt to update and reinterpret the campy Silver Age series Dial H for HERO, and it takes the concept in some seriously bizarre directions. Nelse is on a downward spiral. He is a morbidly obese chain-smoker in his late twenties who just had his first heart attack. He is not a heroic person by nature, and that’s what makes this book an interesting read. You’ll never look at a creepy, abandoned old phone booth quite the same way again.

Action Comics #9 (DC Comics)

Seemingly inspired by the Alex Ross painting of President Obama as a superhero, this issue introduced the Superman of Earth 23. Calvin Ellis is the President of the United States. He also is Superman. Each page of this comic is more delightfully full of crazy ideas than the last. On Earth 23, Lex Luthor still is obsessed with destroying Superman, only here everyone thinks that he’s motivated by racism. This notion infuriates Luthor. He claims that it’s everything ELSE about Superman that he hates, but the rest of the world just looks at him like he’s Mel Gibson. In addition to setting up Earth 23, Morrison begins to set the stage for his long-rumored Multiverse storyline. He has long been fascinated with the idea of reality being a fluid meme, created by the people experiencing it. It’s trippy, but a really cool concept.

Avengers vs. X-Men #3 (Marvel Comics)

Wolverine is the person most caught in the middle of this battle. He has burned his bridges with Cyclops, but after his actions in Issue #2, Captain America can’t trust him to be a team player either. Meanwhile, Hope Summers is still at large.

Daredevil #12 (Marvel Comics)

Matt Murdock and Assistant District Attorney Kirsten McDuffie are on a date at a carnival. She is convinced of his secret identity as Daredevil, but Matt continues to deny it. As they flirt and play a cat-and-mouse game, he tells her a story of his friendship with Foggy Nelson. They met as roommates at Columbia Law School, but became inseparable friends when Foggy was wrongly accused of plagiarism on a school paper and Matt put his own academic future on the line to defend him. All throughout the issue, the threat of Mega Crime families continue to hang overhead.

The Defenders #6 (Marvel Comics)

Orson Randall and his Confederates of the Curious were one of the best things to come out of Matt Fraction and Ed Brubaker’s Immortal Iron Fist series. They were a pulp adventure team, led by the Iron Fist of the 1920s-1940s. Apparently their adventures nearly a century ago often centered around the same Concordance Engines that the Defenders recently stumbled across. Also, the Silver Surfer gets a day job as a short-order cook in Oklahoma.

Worlds’ Finest #1 (DC Comics)

Huntress and Power Girl were once the Robin and Supergirl of Earth 2, before a great tragedy trapped them here on our world. While Huntress has adapted to living here and continues her family’s mission against crime, Power Girl has worked tirelessly to get them back home. Huntress never really has believed that her friend’s quest was possible, but apparently somebody out there did. Featuring art by George Perez and Kevin Maquire, this book is a must for fans of the tone of “Classic DC.”

Earth 2 #1 (DC Comics)

Scientists have proved that the greatest comic ever written by man or beast is James Robinson’s epic Starman. And while I would never argue against science, I also can admit that much of James Robinson’s other work is hit-or-miss. Earth 2 is the biggest hit since Starman wrapped up a decade ago. Artist Nicola Scott creates a world that is instantly recognizable, yet totally different, from either the previous continuity or the DC New 52 Universe. Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman embark on their final battle against the forces of Darkseid, and it goes very different from their counterparts’ experience in Geoff Johns’ Justice League. This series will introduce newly reimagined versions of characters from the Justice Society of America. In Issue #1, we meet Al Pratt, Jay Garrick, and Alan Scott. They are very different from my beloved, Nazi-punching JSA, but similar in all the ways that matter. This book instantly has become my favorite thing that DC is publishing, and it very well might become yours as well.

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Bulloch Points - April 25, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Sat, 2012-04-28 12:46

Bulloch Points logo Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out. (Sorry for the delay this week - the comics shipment was delayed two days by a freight accident, which set off a ripple effect of other scheduling issues, but here's a slightly belated Bulloch Points!)

AvX: Versus #1 (Marvel Comics)

This book is designed to be non-stop action from cover to cover. The actual plot of Marvel’s summer crossover is taking place in other books, so this one is all about the fight scenes that aren’t elaborated on in those other books. Think of it as the Jason Statham movie of comic books. In issue #1, we are treated to a battle between Iron Man and Magneto and an underwater smack down featuring the Thing and Namor. Neither fight goes quite as the reader might expect. While I wish that the events of this issue were just folded into the main mini-series, I still had a lot of fun reading this.

New Avengers #25 (Marvel Comics)

THIS is the sort of tie-in issue that I love, a comic that stands alone as its own story AND fleshes out story details not addressed in the main comic. The magical city of K’un Lun is home to the Iron Fist, who gains their power from an ancient dragon spirit. Apparently, there is a connection between the dragon of K’un Lun and the cosmic power of the Phoenix. If prophecy is to believed, their chosen hosts must battle. If the forces of the Iron Fist fail, the Earth will die. So, no pressure or anything.

Secret Avengers #26 (Marvel Comics)

The M’Kraan Crystal, the Nega Bands, the Dark Phoenix Saga, drunk-and-awesome Thor, drunk-and-useless Brian Braddock, life, death, AND betrayal is a lot to squeeze into 22 pages. Rick Remender does it effortlessly. I recommend this comic to anyone, but especially fans of late ‘70s-early ‘80s Marvel space opera. It’s a throwback in every good way, while being written and drawn to modern tastes and styles.

Uncanny X-Men #11 (Marvel Comics)

Taking place between Avengers vs. X-Men #1 and #2, this issue gets inside the head and shows the motives driving the various members of Scott Summers’ Extinction Squad of X-Men. The highlight of the issue is a CRAZY underwater fight between the Red Hulk (let’s call him Rulk) and Colossus (and let’s call hm Juggalossus the Collossonaut). As Peter pummels the Red Hulk, he also wages a much more devastating battle against the demon Cyttorak that possesses him and grants him the power of the Juggernaut. The events of the final two pages show that Scott Summers has been prepared for a “Ruby Ridge” scenario for quite some time. What remains to be seen is if his scorched earth protocol ends up being worse for the Avengers, or for mutantkind.

Moon Knight #12 (Marvel Comics)

Old Crazy-Crazy White-Pants has always been one of my favorite characters. I’ve loved this volume of the series, but now it has come to an end. There’s a fun bit of meta-commentary at the end of the issue about its cancellation, but what it ultimately boiled down to was that the book didn’t have quite enough readers and writer Brian Michael Bendis has a lot on his plate. The McGuffin that has driven this story all 12 issues has been count Nefaria’s ambition to own the severed head of Ultron. Possession of the Ultron head will lead straight into Bendis’ next project post-AVX, The The Age of Ultron.

Transformers: Robots in Disguise #4 (IDW Comics)

IDW currently is publishing two very different Transformers comics. More Than Meets The Eye is a more traditional adventure series, featuring Hotrod and his friends searching deep space for the long-missing Knights of Cybertron. Robots in Disguise is a dark and paranoid political thriller about a radical reconstruction government back on Cybertron made up of formerly warring robots forced to live and work together. It’s a huge departure from the old days of clear-cut good Autobots fighting the bad Decepticons, and I love that. This issue features Prowl, the police car Autobot, as a paranoid and dirty cop. He may or may not have killed numerous other robots to maintain order. Prowl still sees himself as the good guy, doing whatever it takes to serve and protect. If he crosses the line, then it was just to prevent somebody else from doing it worse. The moral ambiguity that this comic wallows in is great. Then the robots turn into cars and shoot each other!

The Goon #39 (Dark Horse Comics)

Creator Eric Powell turns the Goon and Frankie into superheroes for an issue, and it’s awesome. Now Powell hasn’t read a mainstream superhero book since the ‘90s, but he’s pretty sure that he remembers all of the clichés. There’s a continuity reboot every couple of pages, so try to keep up as they send up pretty much every comic book that you’ve ever read. Eric Powell’s editorial at the end is also a must-read, and not just because he makes fun of Renaissance festivals in it. Everything that he says about independent comics is 100% true.

All Star Western #8 (DC Comics)

Dr. Amadeus Arkham smokes opium with Asian hookers and Jonah Hex takes a bath with a crazy lady after a knife-fight with her. Do you still need a reason to read this?

The New Deadwardians #2 (DC Vertigo)

In 1861, the ruling elites of Great Britain “took the cure” to protect themselves from a zombie plague that was decimating the empire. They became vampires so that zombies didn’t eat them. It was a pragmatic, but not perfect, solution to their problems. “The Young,” as the vampires call themselves, figured that their newfound immortality made all of their sacrifices worthwhile. They’re hard to kill, but apparently it’s not impossible. Chief Inspector Suttle’s investigation into the murder of one of the Young takes him into a politically uncomfortable direction. The (now-totally) dead man was Lord Hinchcliffe, Senior Advisor to the Crown. He had certain appetites that he had managed to keep from his family, but now the inspector is beginning to discover them. All the while, he has to keep the investigation on the down-low. If the citizens find out that they can still die, then the panic will be uncontrollable.

Battle Scars #6 (Marvel Comics)

By the end of this issue, the Marvel COMICS and Marvel FILMS universes take another step closer to each other. Army Ranger Staff Sergeant Marcus Johnson is the son of Nick Fury and his war buddy “Cheese” is better known to movie-goers as Agent Phil Coulson. Marvel has big plans for these new Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and I’m curious what they’re going to be.

Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead #1 (Dark Horse Comics)

Full disclosure: my name is Jeremy Bulloch. The actor who played Boba Fett in Empire and Jedi is named Jeremy Bulloch. As a result, I’ve loved Boba Fett since I was three years old. Meeting the other Jeremy Bulloch at Comicpalooza 2011 was a life-long dream come true, and he and his wife were super-nice. In this comic, Boba Fett has been murdered by a secret hit squad, and Connor Freeman is the only man in the galaxy who cares. As revealed in the previous Blood Ties mini-series, Connor was the son of one of Jango Fett’s clones, making him a sort of half-brother or nephew, depending on how you want to look at it. Clone genealogy is tricky. The painted artwork in this issue is great, and the story is full of turns that will keep you guessing. I would recommend it even if I didn’t have the same name as that other Jeremy Bulloch.

Supercrooks #2 (Marvel Icon)

There are many super villains that owe Carmine big time, and Johnny plans to call in all those markers. I’m not going to say that Mark Millar is a bad person, but he surely enjoys WRITING bad people. As they assemble the gang of super crooks for their job overseas, we see arms ripped off, f-bombs dropped, and even optic blasts to the nards. It’s very bad people doing very bad things. There’s no real middle ground with Millar. You either dig his stuff or you don’t. If you liked books like Kick-Ass or Ultimates, then check this out. I’m pretty sure you’ll enjoy the carnage.

FF #17 (Marvel Comics)

Peter Parker and Johnny Storm are roommates, and this comic is hilarious. No crossovers, no major events, just a great superhero sitcom.

The Flash #8 (DC Comics)

Another visually stunning issue from writer/artist Francis Manapul. Every month, he manages to find new ways to depict the high-speed world of the Fastest Man Alive. Here, he has Barry Allen trapped inside the Speed Force in a M.C. Escher-meets-Salvadore Dali world. According to the Speed Force’s other resident/prisoner, a WWII pilot calling himself Turbine, the Flash acts as a safety valve. Before Barry gained his super powers, the Speed Force frequently would overload. Time was unstable until he started running. Now all Turbine wants is for the Flash to send him back home to 1944. Of course, it’s not going to be so easy. This issue also gives us a brief glimpse into a re-imagined Gorilla City, home of the one and only Grodd. I would make a chimpanzee joke, but I respect you far too much to engage in that sort of monkey business.

Green Lantern: New Guardians #8 (DC Comics)

We get a chance for much-needed character development on the Yellow Lantern, Arkillo. When Sinestro betrayed and extinguished his Corps in recent issues of Green Lantern, Arkillo was one of the few not killed or imprisoned. Invictus, the demented angel, continues to threaten the Vega system, but Kyle Rayner has bought them a little time. Sure, he had to agree to lead this makeshift team to assassinate Larfleeze the Orange Lantern, but is it really lying if you say it to a bad guy? Or if your temporary allies are totally cool with actually killing the guy you promised to whack?

Honorable Mentions

Angel & Faith #9

Aquaman #8

Captain America #10

Daredevil #11

The Twelve #12

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Bulloch Points - April 18, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Wed, 2012-04-18 00:19

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Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out:

Avengers #25 (Marvel Comics)
First, the good. This issue features a great scene of camaraderie between Captain America and Thor, two men whose friendship runs very deep. Captain America is beleaguered by naysayers in the media and smug super-villains like Norman Osborn who never seem to truly pay for their crimes. To put it bluntly, he needs a win. This issue is all about giving that win to Cap and the Avengers, as they take out a secret A.I.M. base and wrap up a dangling plot thread from the previous story arc. It’s a fun, done-in-one issue of superheroes hitting each other. Now the un-good. They sell this book as an AvX tie-in. That is only true for the final two pages of the comic. I think that’s misleading and frustrating. Enjoy the book on its own terms, because it is good, but don’t be fooled into thinking that it’s an essential part of Marvel’s summer blockbuster. Of course, I could be wrong. The events of those last two pages MIGHT be majorly important in future months. We’re gonna have to stay tuned to know for sure.

Avengers vs. X-Men #2 (Marvel Comics)
Captain America says, “What you are doing here today is endangering the whole world, your people included. That’s all I need to know. End this before someone gets hurt.” Cyclops doesn’t care, and the blood of everybody who dies in this story is on his hands. Here’s the thing though: you hand this comic to five different customers in our store, and you’ll probably get five different reactions to it. There are plenty of readers who find themselves on the X-Men side out of loyalty to the Mutant race. John Romita, Jr.’s artwork continues to shine as he depicts the massive superhero smackdown. There are so many characters, and so many fights, that we don’t get to spend too much time on any one battle. One advantage of that is that the book is very fast-paced. It also means that Marvel is publishing a second book titled AvX (NOT to be confused with THIS book, Avengers vs. X-Men) that is nothing but expanding the fight scenes that there aren’t time for in the regular issue.

Batman #8 (DC Comics)
I throw around a lot of hyperbole here. I want to make it absolutely clear that this statement is to be taken at a literal of truth. Night of the Owls is the best Batman story that I have ever read. This sounds crazy, but hear me out. First of all, it has been a slow but steady build to the events of Batman #8. Scott Snyder began this story more than two years ago, before Flashpoint, when he was the writer of a backup feature in Detective Comics #871-881 and co-wrote the Gates of Gotham mini-series with Kyle Higgins. Meticulously, he laid the pieces for the Court of Owls, with neither the readers nor the Batman discovering what was happening until it was too late. Stories like this really can only be told in a serialized format like comic books, and it’s one of the best parts of the medium. Secondly, the defining characteristic of any great Batman story is that he is a detective. The Night of Owls is a mystery that can’t be solved by just hitting something. As great as books like The Dark Knight Returns are, that Batman is just using brute force. This Batman has to use his brain. Bruce Wayne is a mortal man, not an alien sun-god. That also means that he makes mistakes. Bruce thought that he ruled Gotham City from the streets and caves. He was wrong. Think about that for a second. Batman. Was. Wrong. The Court of Owls has owned Gotham City as long as there has been a Gotham City. Now they’re proving it with an aggressive power play. 40 of Gotham’s leading men and women, on both sides of the law, are to be murdered. And here’s where the last element falls into place. Batman sends out the call to the entire Bat-Family: Robin, Nightwing, Red Robin, the Red Hood, Batgirl, the Birds of Prey – everyone. Batman isn’t a crazed loner. He created a new family to take the place of the one that died in Crime Alley. A lot of other Batman stories try to gloss over this fact in their attempt to show the Dark Knight as a solo bad-ass, but I usually see that as wasted potential. Batman didn’t train successors to his cowl, he trained heirs. MY Batman isn’t a whacked-out lone vigilante, no different from the maniacs he locks up. MY Batman is something bigger and better than that. And MY Batman is starring in the Night of Owls crossover. Buy it, or be a sucka.

Nightwing #8 (DC Comics)
Read this issue after Batman #8. You ready? Good. Wow. Tying directly into the Gates of Gotham miniseries, this issue introduces a Talon named William Cobb. He is an ancestor of Dick Grayson, and has orders to kill him. The action cuts back and forth from the turn of the century, and the tragedy of young William Cobb’s life, to the modern day where Nightwing seeks to protect the mayor from being slain by the Court of Owls.

Defenders #5 (Marvel Comics)
This book has it all. Undersea adventures, violence, romance, you name it. I love it when a comic embraces all of the crazy that is possible in 22 pages, and Matt Fraction does crazy better than just about anyone is the business. King Namor takes center stage throughout most of this issue, but the rest of the team still gets a chance to shine. Iron Fist especially gets some great moments, along with a classic cliffhanger.

Green Lantern Corps #8 (DC Comics)
The Alpha Lanterns are meant to be the Internal Affairs for the Green Lanterns. The main problem with that is they serve the Guardians of the Universe unequivocally and without human emotion. Also, the Guardians of the Universe are smug, evil little creeps and the Corps would be so better off without them. During the previous story arc, John Stewart was forced to kill one of his teammates to prevent him from spilling vital security information under torture. By the letter of the law, he is guilty of murder. The arrest of John Stewart will be the first shot in the Alpha War, but it will certainly not be the last.

Incredible Hulk #7 (Marvel Comics)
SPOILERS FOR PAGE 1 (and the cover, really)! So, Bruce Banner is dead. The Hulk had Doctor Doom cut him out of his skull with an adamantium chainsaw, then he got blown up with a gamma bomb at the end of last issue. So now what? What happens next? We’re in totally uncharted territory now. The Hulk has always been defined by its battle between man and monster. Now only the monster is left.

Justice League #8 (DC Comics)
Once again, the SHAZAM backup stole the show. Though it’s a perfectly paced eleven pages, I wish it was longer. The lead story is fine, but it is hindered by being drawn by multiple fill-in artists. The plot revolves around Green Arrow begging the Justice League to consider him for membership. He has a bad past with Aquaman, who along with Batman and Green Lantern dismiss him out of hand. When Superman seems to at least consider adding another Super Friend, we are teased with a very good reason why the League is so closed off to strangers. We also learn about an interesting new power for Cyborg. Since he is partially composed of New Gods technology, he is able to open Boom Tubes to transport the team. The only problem is that one out of one thousand times, they teleport to Apokolips.

The Manhattan Projects #2 (Image Comics)
Did you know that Werner von Braun had a robot arm? It almost rhymes, so that makes it true. It’s hard to summarize this comic, because so much of what is great about it is its tone. It’s weird and quirky, but in a dark way that skeeves you out. Operation Paperclip really was a very real thing. In the closing days of WWII, the United States government spirited away Nazi scientists so the Commies couldn’t get them. We never would have made it to the moon without Werner von Braun adapting his V2 Rocket for NASA. Operation Paperclip was a deal with the devil, the sort of thing that anybody would have mixed feelings about. Each issue of The Manhattan Projects seems to tap into an uneasy feeling of dread. It seems like something utterly horrible is about to happen at any time. In this case, more horrible than making a deal with a cyborg Nazi war criminal.

Punisher #10 (Marvel Comics)
This is the second part of the three-part Omega Effect crossover with Avenging Spider-Man and Daredevil. Daredevil is in possession of an encrypted disk drive containing all of the secrets of five mega-crime cartels. Obviously, Frank Castle wants it. Just as obviously, Frank Castle doesn’t play well with others.

Shadow #1 (Dynamite Entertainment)
I am a huge fan of pulp characters like the Shadow, so this book was totally my style. Lamont Cranston has a darkness about him that Garth Ennis effortlessly taps into. It’s easily the best thing that he has written since the end of Punisher MAX. His Shadow is a man who looks into the darkness and laughs at it defiantly. Depending on how you look at it, he is either gifted or cursed with an ability to glimpse into the future. He smirks that this knowledge comes from a misspent youth in the Orient, as he uses it to rid the earth of scum. Ennis’ Shadow is not a hero. He’s cold, aloof, and utterly ruthless. It’s going to be awesome watching him do his work.

The Walking Dead #96 (Image Comics)
This issue has been a long time coming, but was worth the wait. Issue #96 wraps up the “A Larger World” arc and gives the book much-needed direction. Rick and his fellow survivors plan to buy their way into Hill Top by taking out a man called Nagan who leads a scavenging band of raiders that extort food and supplies from the community. It was Carl’s suggestion, a fact that seemed to legitimately shock Jesus. The only thing that Rick and his people are good at is death.

Wonder Woman #8 (DC Comics)
This issue has a very striking cover, featuring Wonder Woman doing her best John Woo movie impression, diving through the air with golden pistols blazing. While there is action inside, the actual comic is more of a horror story. Diana and Hermes have traveled to the underworld to rescue her sister, Zola, from Hades. It seems that Hades did not like being lied to by Diana about him being officially betrothed to the presumed-widowed Hera. He’s determined to take a new bride, no matter what the Amazon had planned. Everything about this comic worked, from the washed-out color palate of the underworld, to the creepy visuals of the dead souls literally making up the terrain, to the awesome cliffhanger. The last page made me think of the words of poet laureate Jon Bon Jovi, “Shot through the heart! And you’re to blame! You give love… A BAD NAME!”

Honorable Mentions
Amazing Spider-Man #684
Birds of Prey #8
Blue Beetle #8
Fables #116
Invincible Iron Man #515
Knights of the Dinner Table #185
Star Wars - Dawn of the Jedi: Force Storm #3
Super Dinosaur #10
Venom #16
Wolverine & The X-Men #9

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Bulloch Points - April 11, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Wed, 2012-04-11 11:17

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Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out:

The Thief of Thieves #3 (Image Comics)
The letter page in the back starts off saying that this isn’t a story about getting things, it’s about losing things. Redmond may be the greatest thief that ever lived, but he has nothing to show for it. Writing this book is a delicate balancing act for Robert Kirkman and Nick Spencer. They need to show the world-weariness of their protagonist, but keep the book energetic enough to keep moving fast. A perfect illustration of that is in the book’s opening scene. Elizabeth is a cop, and she’s obsessed with proving that Conrad Paulson is the super-thief known as Redmond. Armed with a very questionable warrant, Elizabeth has let herself into Redmond’s house to toy with her quarry. The banter between them is light and breezy, but she clearly is calling her shot against him. It’s a fun scene, and it sets the tone for a fun comic, but there is another layer of underlying tension. Due to her overzealousness, the department is currently losing a four-million-dollar lawsuit for over a “wrongful arrest case.” There is a still-developing mystery about Redmond’s son, and why the master criminal is looking for a way out of his life. All these elements lay under the light and breezy surface, just waiting to poke their ugly heads out and take a bite out of the characters. Everyone in the comic seems to know that whatever sense of fun they’re having is all too fleeting.

Secret #1 (Image Comics)
For the last few years, Jonathan Hickman has done the impossible and made the Fantastic Four not just readable, but really good. He quickly has become one of those writers that I buy sight unseen, and his new Image series continues that trend. This book is a corporate espionage thriller that does not disappoint. There’s action, plot twists, and an A-Team-like group of “security consultants” manipulating corporate fat-cats for shadowy personal reasons.

Saucer Country #2 (DC Vertigo)
In the last issue, we discovered that Governor Alvarado had been abducted by aliens. In this issue, we discover what she plans to do about it. First, she absolutely has no intention of telling the public. She’s not a crackpot looking for attention. More than ever, she now seeks the highest office in the land so she can use it against this alien threat. Professor Joshua Kidd isn’t a crackpot either. Sure, he might very well be cuckoo for Cocoa-Puffs, but that doesn’t mean that tiny glowing naked people aren’t secretly feeding him information…

Alabaster: Wolves #1 (Dark Horse Comics)
Dancy Flammarion is a murdering, whackadoodle-crazy Albino kid, at least according to the bird that is harassing her at an abandoned bus stop in South Carolina. A three-headed angel with a flaming sword sends Dancy all around the country to kill monsters. Well, the monsters aren’t too keen on that. Throughout this issue Dancy plays cat-and-mouse with a killer werewolf. They sit and chat, tell each other riddles, and then once all the games are done, they get down to business. Alabaster: Wolves is a good, creepy, five-issue miniseries. Tone-wise I would say that it is less Buffy the Vampire Slayer and more BPRD.

Batman & Robin #8 (DC Comics)
SPOILERS FOR LAST ISSUE! So, Damien totally killed a dude last month. Ducard had it coming, and it was the only way to stop him, and Damien only did it to save his father, but now both Bruce and Damien have to live with the repercussions. What makes this issue awesome is the talk between father and son. They both have recovered enough from their injuries to walk and talk, but little else. So they walk. And they talk. Bruce is more open with Damien than he ever was to Dick, Jason, or Tim, which allows Damien to open up a little too. It’s interesting to see Bruce and Damien show a little vulnerability to each other, and this may represent a turning point in their relationship.

New Avengers #24 – AvX Tie-In (Marvel Comics)
This issue fleshes out what happened with the Avengers between issues #0 and #1 of Avengers vs. X-Men. Captain America assembles the entirety of the team and briefs them on the Phoenix. For readers who felt that Cap came off as a jack-booted thug in AvX, this issue goes a long way toward explaining his reasons and justifications. The main thrust of this issue though is the relationship between Luke Cage and Jessica Jones. They are just days removed from Norman Osborn threatening the life of their baby, and people still gather outside to protest the Avengers’ continued existence. Jessica’s done. Her priority is being a parent and a grownup. Before Luke can make a similar decision, it’s Wednesday and the universe is in danger again. Since Civil War, Luke has been cast as the conscience of the Avengers. If he leaves the team, what will that mean?

America’s Got Powers #1 (Image Comics)
Jonathan Ross, sort of the BBC equivalent of Conan O’Brien, and Bryan Hitch have a weird concept for you. What if the super-powered kids from J. Michael Straczynski’s Rising Stars were on American Gladiators? The book is nuts, but in a cool way. 17 years ago an asteroid crashed into Golden Gate Park. All the pregnant women in the area gave birth immediately to healthy, albeit super-powered, children. Now they’re all competitors on a violent reality TV show. Tommy Watts is one of the super folks, but he’s the runt of the litter. On a scale of 1-100, his Power Level is a Zero. With no discernible powers or abilities, they’ve kept him on as a sort of waterboy for the team. However, there’s more going on, since he’s the star of the book. Bryan Hitch turns in solid art that at least equals his Authority and Ultimates runs. His super-hero designs come off as a little derivative of his earlier work, but he really excels at the faces and body language. Everybody comes off as a real person, which is more than you can say for many, many superhero comics. It’s also 40 pages of comic for only $2.99, making it the best value per kicked butt on the shelves today.

Saga #2 (Image Comics)
The star-crossed lovers Alana and Marko are hunting for the mythical Rocketship forest so they can escape the planet Cleave with their newborn infant Hazel. Unfortunately, they are being hunted by mercenaries and are trapped in the Endless Woods. When the feared bounty-killer known as “The Stalk” arrives, I thought that would be the creepiest thing in the book. Then I made it to the last page and saw that I was soooo wrong. Awesome issue!

Winter Soldier #4 (Marvel Comics)
I love Bucky Barnes and Natasha Romanoff, but they are totally upstaged by Doctor Doom. If Ed Brubaker wrote a Doctor Doom ongoing, I would be there. (He DID write an excellent miniseries called The Books of Doom, available in trade paperback.) Drawn by the always-great Butch Guice, this issue is cover-to-cover action. It’s full of karate-fighting, explosions, and killer robots. What’s not to love?

Demon Knights #8 (DC Comics)
This issue allegedly tells us the story behind the romance between Madame Xanadu and Jason Blood, but the ambiguity is what sells it. To hear Xanadu tell it, she and Jason are soulmates, tormented and kept apart by the evil Demon Etrigan. The Demon has a different point of view. According to him, Jason Blood is a cuckold, and Xanadu is brought to the yard by his own demonic milkshake. As a reader, we’re unsure which (or both?) is true. A similar tale is spun of Camelot. Apparently the Camelot of the Shining Knight was a totally different time and place than the Camelot of Madame Xanadu and Jason Blood. As much an idea as it is a place, the Kingdom seems to rise when and where it’s needed, then fall when its heroes are shown to have feet of clay. Vandal Savage reminisces about sacking many different Camelots through the ages, but there was always a common element: the wizard Merlin is always there. Well, what happens to the idea of Camelot when something befalls Merlin?

Scarlet Spider #4 (Marvel Comics)
Kaine is no Peter Parker. You know how I know this? Peter Parker would never chuck a ninja off the roof of the Chase Building in downtown Houston. That’s just the opening scene in issue #4 of Houston’s favorite superhero. Then it gets crazy. I could talk about how cool it is that Kaine’s past with the New Orleans-based Assassins Guild is addressed, or the way that artist Ryan Stegman totally nails the little details of living in Houston (tufts of green grass sprouting everywhere, even in the concrete of the Galleria and River Oaks), but you guys know about all that stuff. I’m just going to say that this book rules, and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Avenging Spider-Man #6 (Marvel Comics)
This issue starts a crossover called “The Omega Effect” between Avenging Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Punisher. Daredevil has jacked a drive with infinite encryption and storage filled with the secrets of 5 mega-crime organizations. Daredevil wants to bring down the criminals, while keeping the streets safe from the inevitable gang war. Spider-Man wants the same thing, but recognizes they must bring in the help of the Avengers and Fantastic Four. Frank Castle wants to kill criminals. An uneasy alliance is formed. It’s going to be a long night.

Green Lantern #8 (DC Comics)
I refuse to spoil this issue’s specifics, but they’re awesome. We see both Hal and Sinestro do crazy-macho-amazing things, finally get an answer to exactly what the Indigo Tribe does, and see a Tron-style light cycle.

Batgirl #8 (DC Comics)
Gail Simone’s Barbara Gordon is probably the purest hero in comics. What I mean by that is that she works tirelessly to rise above the evil cesspool that is Gotham City and do what’s right. Even when a bullet from the Joker put her in a wheelchair, she refused to let that limit her. Now that she has persevered and reclaimed the heroic life that was taken from her, it’s nerve-wracking to see her come close to losing it. Her fight with Grotesque and henchman Danny “The Weasel” Weaver is very personal, and it risks dragging her down to their level. Then there’s the issue of her brother, the clearly twisted Jim Junior. Much like the kid from the recent movie We Need to Talk about Kevin, he clearly has been a serial killer-in-training since childhood. Now he’s back in Gotham City, along with Barbara’s long-missing mother. How are those returns connected to each other, and to the upcoming Night of Owls crossover? Read the book!

Honorable Mentions
Adventure Time #3
Kevin Keller #2
Avengers Assemble #2
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 9 #8
Suicide Squad #8
Batwoman #8
Ultimate Comics X-Men #10
The Shade #7

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April Alamo Kids Club - THE SECRET OF NIMH

Submitted by 8thDimension on Sat, 2012-04-07 14:00

The Secret of NIMH Poster At noon on Saturday, April 28th, the monthly Alamo Kids Club film series continues with The Secret of NIMH (1982). Join us at Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Mason Park in Katy for this FREE screening!

Bulloch Points - April 4, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Wed, 2012-04-04 10:46

Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out:

Avengers vs. X-Men #1 (Marvel)
Hot on the heels of last week’s excellent #0 issue, the fight between the two premier super-teams of the Marvel Universe begins. A member of the Nova Corps crashes to Earth with a terrified warning: “It’s Coming.” The “It” he refers to is the cosmic force of destruction and rebirth known as the Phoenix. The X-Men know the Phoenix Force better than anyone. It possessed, replaced, and ultimately corrupted Jean Grey, changing the mutant’s lives forever. Cyclops believes that Hope Summers, the teenage mutant-Messiah and guerilla fighter trained by his elderly cyborg son Cable in an alternate future, is destined to be the Phoenix’s next host. He also has convinced himself that it might somehow be a good thing if this happens. Cyclops is pinning all of his hopes for the survival of his species on this. Sure untold galaxy-wide devastation is all but guaranteed, but he feels that is a fair trade to restarting the Mutant Race.

Bulloch Points: March 28, 2012

Submitted by 8thDimension on Wed, 2012-03-28 12:50

Every Wednesday, 8th Dimension’s Jeremy Bulloch reads every comic that comes out, and recommends some of the best titles for you to check out:

The New Deadwardians #1 (Vertigo)
In addition to the massive relaunch of the mainstream DC Universe, another renaissance is taking place at their mature readers imprint, Vertigo. The New Deadwardians joins fellow new series like Dominque Laveau: Voodoo Child, Fairest, and Saucer Country in revitalizing the Vertigo line. Of all the new books that have dropped from Vertigo this month, this one is easily my favorite. The story opens in October of 1910. Chief Inspector George Suttle is the only remaining homicide detective at Scotland Yard and he is filled with a quiet melancholy. As the broad strokes of this alternate history are established, it’s easy to see why. A war took place, and now the lower classes are overrun with a zombie plague. To protect themselves, the upper crust of society took “The Cure,” becoming vampires. The members of the ever-dwindling working class are the only still-living citizens in London. Set against this backdrop, (un)life goes on as it always has, until the Chief Inspector is called in to investigate the murder of someone who already was dead.