WHAT IS THE BUY PILE?

Every week Hannibal Tabu (winner of the 2012 Top Cow Talent Hunt/2018-2019 City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs Cultural Trailblazer/blogger/novelist/poet/jackass on Twitter/head honcho of Komplicated) takes on an between seven to thirteen reviews (or so) to share his opinions with you. Thursday afternoons you'll be able to get those thoughts (and they're just the opinions of one guy, so calm down) about all of that ... which goes something like this ...

THE BUY PILE FOR APRIL 10, 2019

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #43 (Marvel Comics)

Wow. This issue has a travelogue that won't stop as Doreen Green visits two nations and two separate dimensions, dropping in on a crossover that's been brewing behind her back for years. This issue does it all -- huge action scenes (literally), a heartfelt plea from Loki, interdimensional hair advice and so much more. Ryan North is an unsung visionary and this script is another example of his genius, while the visuals from Derek Charm, Rico Renzi and Travis Lanham work well conveying the madness of an invasion from other realms. Once again, fantastic work. RATING: BUY.

Wonder Twins #3 (DC Comics)

<i>Wonder Twins</i> #3
Luckily, Gleek is only half this terrifying in Wonder Twins #3.

Jump from the Read Pile. First, the important business: this is the third issue of this series to make the jump, which by the rules means that any subsequent issue is rated "buy on sight" until it has three sub par issues in a row. It's been some time since a series earned this kind of distinction, and surely not so soon, so, basically, wow. This issue is -- like its predecessors -- brilliant in the little details (finding out Gleek's story in slivers, off-hand jokes). What's a surprise about this issue is its subtlety -- finding a glimmer of doubt in the world's most powerful man, and using that as a prism to show how perseverance and simple goodness matters even in the face of overwhelmingly contrary evidence. Writer Mark Russell is wicked with this efficient, effective script and the bright, friendly yet wonderfully insane artwork from Stephen Byrne and Dave Sharpe brought this issue from topics mundane to spectacular really well. RATING: BUY.

Fairlady #1 wasn't exactly the "complete mystery" its cover promises, but with a super interesting fantasy-based premise, a lead character that could easily be Beauregard from Critical Role and super engaging artwork, this almost made the jump on its charisma alone. Unfortunately, the unsatisfying conclusion to the mystery let the air out of this issue, but it's a promising look at what might come next. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Doctor Who The Thirteenth Doctor #6 has good at and does a great job at capturing our newest doctor's moxie and brilliance, but doesn't have enough plot to connect point "a" to point "what the heck was that?" RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Outer Darkness #6 worked well in fleshing out the creepy universe these magic-inflected space travelers inhabit, but it's balance of character and detail to plot was a little off. This feels like we should get bigger chunks of it, all at once, maybe with longer periods in between. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

NEXT PAGE: It Got Weird With Faithless, Wonder Woman and The Batman Who Laughs

She Could Fly The Lost Pilot #1 had a lot of the old feels you'd have gotten from the less-prominent Vertigo titles of yesteryear, but its plot is a big mess and its characters only passably interesting. RATING: MEH.

Wonder Woman #68 had some enjoyable moments of dialogue and Giganta taking the metaphorical high ground, but muddled along as a plot and really never sold the grandeur and spectacle of the action scenes. RATING: MEH.

Re: Faithless #1. Whaaaaaaaaaaat? RATING: MEH.

War Of The Realms Journey Into Mystery #1 moves so fast you might miss the clever wordplay as Balder the Brave assembles a crew of legacy heroes and nutjobs to protect the ... sixth child of Odin from a crossover and ... you know what? Never mind, nobody will remember any of this next year. RATING: MEH.

Age Of X-Man The Marvelous X-Men #3 is maudlin, overwrought and ill-considered, bad ideas wrapped in the prettiest of finery. Nate Grey is fighting the most consistent of biological imperatives and losing ugly, resorting to very extreme measures to keep the plates spinning on this needless, insipid crossover. Please. Stop. RATING: NO. JUST ... NO.

Batman Who Laughs #4 is less terrible than previous issues, largely due to having a lot less of its title character. It's still awful, with Bruce Wayne on the edge and teetering with confusing visual storytelling. RATING: NO. JUST ... NO.

WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?

Tie game once you match up the best with the worst.

THE BUSINESS

Have you checked out season four of the free web comic Project Wildfire: The Once and Future King? Every week catch a page of the story for the best possible price: "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 to try and review the work, 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!