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 21, 2018
Black Panther Annual #1 (Marvel Comics)
Jump from the Read Pile. In an interesting twist, several creators with classic runs on the titular character return to tell very different stories from their usual milieu. Don MacGregor's tale closing down the story of 1970s love interest Monica Lynne was bittersweet and really examined the king's friendships. Christopher Priest reunites T’Challa with Priest's creation, the original wise-cracking Everett K. Ross in a tale that was surprisingly tender and personal. Reginald Hudlin then brings the hammer down with a future tale of Wakanda forced to rule the world that will shock and alarm many while delighting fans of Michael B. Jordan's recent work. Add in artistic work from Mike Perkins, Andy Troy, Daniel Acuna, Ken Lashley, Matt Milla and Joe Sabino and you have one heck of a trip to Wakanda, one that stands well next to the Wakandan legacy.
Doctor Aphra #17 (Marvel Comics)
Jump from the Read Pile. If you're a hard core Star Wars fan (especially if you're caught up on Rebels), this issue has a number of treats for you that will tickle your Easter egg loving soul. There are lies and romance and murder and shenanigans and fun as things go from "friendly" to "blast-y" very quickly and the not-so-good doctor gets a pleasant surprise in a very unexpected way. Great humor and action here from Kieron Gillen, Si Spurrier, Emilio Laiso, Rachelle Rosenberg and Joe Caramagna.
Luke Cage #170 (Marvel Comics)
For anyone who has told a story to a precocious child, this issue will seem very, very familiar as the titular hero spends time, telling his daughter a story. Immediately most of the Wednesday crowd just tuned out, but with a clever twist and some subtweet-worthy commentary, this turned from a simple exercise in mimicking The Princess Bride to something really special. Kudos to David F. Walker, Guillermo Sanna, Marcio Menyz and Joe Sabino for this subtle treasure of a comic.
WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?
On the anniversary of Malcolm X's assassination, that's not a bad set of comics to have.
Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='Justice%20League%2C%20Mighty%20Thor%20%26%20More%20Just%20Miss%20the%20Mark']
THIS WEEK'S READ PILE
Honorable Mentions: Stuff worth noting, even if it's not good enough to buy
Justice League #39 was extremely close to making the mark, bracketed by simulated social media responses to the League's activity and some very fun Easter eggs (look for Aquaman and Batman). The plot, however, never settled on telling the story of their struggle in the public eye, science-fueled disaster relief or working to defeat a "fan" determined to push them to the limit. Close, though.
Mighty Thor #704 was an amazingly well depicted character piece that had a wholly predictable plot. The former couldn't outweigh the latter, alas, but there were good moments that couldn't come together as a great whole.
Batman And The Signal #2 does a Killmonger-worthy job of exposing a flaw in the armor of the Bat, perhaps unintentionally. A new player in town has been doing genetic experimentation on the population of the Narrows for decades ... and Batman had no idea. Dressing up in fetish gear and punching poor people in alleys apparently took up a lot of his attention. Despite this very problematic issue, the art here is gorgeous and the coloring well represents the difference in the light of day. From an execution standpoint this issue is pretty good, but from a conception standpoint, the roots look pretty shaky.
Battlestar Galactica Vs Battlestar Galactica #2 had several very cute crossover moments, all the way down to addressing Richard Hatch's appearance, but plot wise doesn't do very much.
Tales Of Suspense #102 had a very fun buddy comedy vibe between Hawkeye and the Winter Soldier, but the plot veered all over the place like a station wagon struggling to manage on black ice.
Watching Damian Wayne spit out mean spirited rejoinders is always a delight, but Super Sons #13 didn't have much happening plot wise to match the distinctiveness of the Son of the Bat.
Daredevil #599 had a moment in its third act that was simply sublime ("All right") but felt like one of those middle episodes between stuff actually happening. This issue is surely not bad, with moody and effective coloring for dramatic visuals, but it didn't quite connect either.
Like Thor this week, Quantum And Woody #3 does a great job exploring the top billed hero. Everybody else hit some predictable plot points without much distinction and Woody continued as a stereotype you'd loathe if you met in real life. Gorgeously drawn but just a slice or two above "meh."
No, just ... no ... These comics? Not so much ...
Nothing was bad? Heeeeyyyyyyy!!!
SO, HOW BAD WAS IT?
Clap your hands for any week that doesn't have a cringeworthy book
WINNERS AND LOSERS
A week of comics this good will have you joyfully exclaiming, "Wakanda forever!"
THE BUSINESS
Did you miss the phenomenal Black Com!x Day in San Diego? No worries, you can still check out the big panel, video and photos from the event from the comfort of your own screen. You're welcome.
The writer of this column writes a weekly web superhero comic -- Project Wildfire: Street Justice -- free every week. Can't beat "free."
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 Scoundrel (historical fiction set in 1981 east Los Angeles), Irrational Numbers: Addition (a supernatural historical fiction saga with vampires), 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!