WHAT IS THE BUY PILE?
Every week Hannibal Tabu (winner of the 2012 Top Cow Talent Hunt/blogger/novelist/poet/jackass on Twitter/head honcho of Komplicated) grabs a whole lotta comics. These periodicals are quickly sorted (how) into two piles -- the "buy" pile (a small pile most weeks, comprised of planned purchases) and the "read" pile (often huge, often including comics that are really crappy but have some value to stay abreast of). Thursday afternoons you'll be able to get his thoughts (and they're just the opinions of one guy, so calm down, and here's some common definitions used in the column) about all of that ... which goes something like this ...
THE BUY PILE FOR FEBRUARY 1, 2017
Transformers Lost Light #2 (IDW Publishing)
Jump from the Read Pile. With amazing character moments as the guide, half of the cats is stuck in a dystopian alternate universe and the other half are at each other's throats. This leads the story to an interesting place as the overarching quest for a lost legacy of their mechanical race continues. Watching the drastic shift in roles for Cyclonus and Tailpipe, or the exhausted nature of Megatron (perhaps, now, the most developed character in the entire property) as he sees what happened when he did not act as he did, all these moments wove an interesting parable about the nature of Cybertronian life and how it's almost a curse unto itself. Heady stuff wrapped in whimsical trappings by James Roberts, Jack Lawrence, Joana LaFuente and Tom B. Long.
Unstoppable Wasp #2 (Marvel Comics)
Jump from the Read Pile. Nadia Pym is an orphaned super genius on a mission, as unflappable as Kimmie Schmidt and smarter than Lena Luthor. When she fails to notice her own myopia -- planning on using fellow genius Moon Girl as a recruiting prop without ever thinking to talk to her -- it's a moment that could be played differently but sticks to the light tone. The action is balanced with the kookiness and Jarvis makes a perfect exasperated foil for the inexorable drive of the titular character. Writer Jeremy Whitley has the tone down pat here as the visuals from Elsa Charretier, Megan Wilson and Joe Caramagna make this bouncy, energetic script come to life.
WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?
Smart stuff to get us started, all good so far ...
THIS WEEK'S READ PILE
Honorable Mentions:
Stuff worth noting, even if it's not good enough to buy
"All-New X-Men" #1.MU had some cute quotes and character moments but was stuck with a crossover-inflicted plot that's easily forgotten.
The "Meh" Pile
Not good enough to praise, not bad enough to insult, they just kind of happened ...
"Shade The Changing Girl" #5, "Blood Blister" #1, "Champions" #5, "Everafter From The Pages Of Fables" #6, "Spider-Man 2099" #20, "A&A The Adventures Of Archer And Armstrong" #12, "Monsters Unleashed" #2, "Justice League" #14, "Nova" #3, "Star Wars Darth Maul" #1, "Invincible" #132, "Deadpool And The Mercs For Money" #8, "Green Lanterns" #16, "Big Trouble In Little China Escape From New York" #5, "Midnighter And Apollo" #5, "Karnak" #6, "Jem And The Misfits" #2, "Flintstones" #8, "Aquaman" #16, "Unbelievable Gwenpool" #11, "Vampirella" #0, "Death Of Hawkman" #5, "Jem And The Holograms Annual 2017, "Avengers" #4, "Goldie Vance" #9, "Harley Quinn" #13, "Faith" #8, "Ghostbusters Annual 2017, "Flash Gordon Kings Cross" #4, "Star Wars" #28, "Hard Case Crime The Assignment" #2, "Marvel Universe Avengers Ultron Revolution" #8, "Superman" #16, "Moon Knight" #11, "Jungle Fantasy Ivory" #6, "Deadpool" #26, "Electric Sublime" #4, "Bullseye" #1, "Fall And Rise Of Captain Atom" #2, "Assassin's Creed Uprising" #1, "Nightwing" #14, "Planet Of The Apes Green Lantern" #1, "Old Man Logan" #17, "Walking Dead" #163, "Hawkeye" #3, "Cyborg" #9, "Back To The Future" #16, "Green Arrow" #16, "Planetoid Praxis" #1, "Batman" #16, "All-New X-Men" #18.
No, just ... no ...
These comics? Not so much ...
No alarms and no surprises.
SO, HOW BAD WAS IT?
Well, while a lot of books just muddled along (and, honestly, "Moon Knight" was a hair from being reviewed much more harshly), it wasn't so bad as a light week.
WINNERS AND LOSERS
Two jumps beat the blahs of the Meh Pile, so the week essentially wins.
THE BUSINESS
Yeah, there are now 24 pages of the astonishing new web comic "Menthu: The Anger of Angels online and ready to roll. 48 pages remain, all done already, as this web comic shares a page a week throughout 2017, alongside a monthly newsletter from the Operative Network that includes giveaways and more. Hoo hah!
The writer of this column isn't just a jerk who spews his opinions -- he writes stuff too. A lot. Like what? You can get "Project Wildfire: Enter Project Torrent" (a collected superhero web comic), "The Crown: Ascension" and "Faraway," five bucks a piece, or spend a few more dollars and get "New Money" #1 from Canon Comics, the rambunctious tale of four multimillionaires running wild in Los Angeles, a story in "Watson and Holmes Volume 2" co-plotted by "2 Guns" creator Steven Grant, two books from Stranger Comics -- "Waso: Will To Power" and the sequel "Waso: Gathering Wind" (the tale of a young man who had leadership thrust upon him after a tragedy), or "Fathom Sourcebook" #1, "Soulfire Sourcebook" #1, "Executive Assistant Iris Sourcebook" #1 and "Aspen Universe Sourcebook," the official guides to those Aspen Comics franchises. Love these reviews? It'd be great if you picked up a copy. Hate these reviews? Find out what this guy thinks is so freakin' great. There's free sample chapters too, and all proceeds to towards the care and maintenance of his kids ... oh, and to buy comic books, of course. There’s also a bunch of great stuff -- fantasy, superhero stuff, magical realism and more -- available from this writer on Amazon. What are you waiting for? Go buy a freakin' book already!
Got a comic you think should be reviewed in The Buy Pile? If we get a PDF of a fairly normal length comic (i.e. "less than 64 pages") by no later than 24 hours before the actual issue arrives in stores (and sorry, we can only review comics people can go to stores and buy), we guarantee the work will get reviewed, if remembered. Physical comics? Geddouttahere. Too much drama to store with diminishing resources. If you send it in more than two days before comics come out, the possibility of it being forgotten increases exponentially. Oh, you should use the contact form as the CBR email address hasn't been regularly checked since George W. Bush was in office. Sorry!