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 APRIL 15, 2015

Shaft #5

(Dynamite Entertainment)

With effortless certainty, John Shaft makes his way through self doubt and extraordinary challenges to outwit, outthink and generally be better than everyone around him. David Walker's script is a work of noirish literary excellence and the artwork from Bilquis Evely Daniela Miwa deftly manage the challenging but deeply engaging subject matter. This book is fantastic and this series is a treasure.

WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?

Inexpensive but enjoyable start.

THIS WEEK'S READ PILE

Honorable Mentions: Stuff worth noting, even if it's not good enough to buy

"Princeless The Pirate Princess" #3 had some good moments and simply fantastic artwork, but it feels like it was chopped from a larger work and not an individual installment of its own. This is gonna be so great in the TPB.

"Uncanny X-Men" #33 had some interesting emotional moments (using fairly predictable dramatic hooks) and decent action scenes, but its plot was too familiar and too enmeshed in the land of Deja Too (hat tip to author Thaddeus Howze) to connect. Better than some, not quite good enough.

The "Meh" Pile Not good enough to praise, not bad enough to insult, not important enough to say much more than the title

"Tithe" #1, "Captain America And The Mighty Avengers" #7,"D4VE" #3, "Convergence" #2, "Doctor Who The Tenth Doctor" #9, "Nova" #29, "Unity" #17, "Convergence Aquaman" #1, "Fox" #1, "Convergence Batman Shadow Of The Bat" #1, "Ms. Marvel" #14, "Ember" #0, "Convergence Catwoman" #1, "Superior Iron Man" #7, "Groo Friends And Foes" #4, "Spider-Man And The X-Men" #5, "Convergence Green Arrow" #1, "G.I. JOE Snake Eyes Agent Of Cobra" #4, "Convergence Justice League International" #1, "God Is Dead" #32, "Convergence Suicide Squad" #1, "Legendary Star-Lord" #11, "X-Files Season 10" #23, "Convergence Superboy" #1, "Nutmeg" #1, "Convergence Supergirl Matrix" #1, "Star Trek" #44, "Convergence Superman The Man Of Steel" #1, "EI8HT" #3, "Strange Sports Stories" #2, "Letter 44" #15, "Magneto" #17, "Chrononauts" #2, "Eternal" #4, "Doctor Who The Twelfth Doctor" #7, "Reyn" #4, "Archie Vs Predator" #1, "Loki Agent Of Asgard" #13, "RunLoveKill" #1, "Dark Gods" #5, "Secret Identities" #3, "Battlestar Galactica Six" #3, "Thor" #7, "Shaper" #2, "Transformers" #40, "Spawn" #251, "Bloodshot Reborn" #1, "Stray Bullets Sunshine And Roses" #3, "Deathlok" #7.

No, just ... no ... These comics? Not so much ...

Nothing terrible? That's cool!

SO, HOW BAD WAS IT?

Mostly "meh," which means that it's mostly forgettable.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

A win by a thin margin is a win nonetheless, so with just one really worthwhile thing, the week pulls it together by a nose.

THE BUSINESS

Normally, this column focuses on things you can buy immediately. This week there's a Kickstarter featuring the work of this column's writer for "Menthu: The Anger of Angels", and it'd be ever so groovy if you'd support it.

As of right now, you can spend ten bucks and get about 175,000 words worth of fiction from the writer of this column. The links that follow tell you where you can get "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, or "Fathom Sourcebook" #1 and "Soulfire Sourcebook" #1, the official guide to the Aspen Comics franchises. Too rich for your blood? Download the free PDF of "Cruel Summer: The Visual Mixtape." 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!