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) 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 JUNE 13, 2018

Transformers Lost Light #18 (IDW Publishing)

If this is your first exposure to this title, or you're a casual fan of giant robots, please just put the book down now. Even if you find something you like -- and you might --you'll need several trade paperbacks or a long time reading TFWiki to get a sense of all these shenanigans. If you know about Rodimus and the Lost Light and the quest to chase the Knights of Cybertron to Cyberutopia, sweet spirit singing are you in for a treat. First of all, block out some time, because you're gonna need to read this more than once as so many loose ends and questions and theories get settled or put to bed for once and for all, bringing long lingering narrative threads to such a brilliant, well conceived end you'll think you're finding out the truth about Ghost Nation all over again. If, as writer James Roberts has implied on Twitter, this has been the plan all along, we are witnessing one of the most amazing "stick the landing" moments in the history of comics, if not long form serialized narratives period. Let's not take an iota of credit away from Jack Lawrence, Joana LaFuente and Tom B. Long who took no fewer than three gasp-worthy moments (among many others worth an appreciative nod) and transformed them (no pun intended) into amazingly effecive visuals that really did some amazing heavy lifting. Wow. RATING: BUY.

Mister Miracle #9 (DC Comics)

<i>Mister Miracle</i> #9
Has Darkseid developed a trap even Scott Free can't escape in Mister Miracle #9?

Jump from the Read Pile. Writer Tom King has a gift for subversive narratives, and this book is a masterpiece in his catalog. Two warring nations, led by two adoptive brothers, are trying to negotiate peace. If you know your DC history and know that Apokolips, New Genesis, Kalibak and Scott Free are all wildly disparate points on any given map, then there's rich subtext available to you. If you don't, you get a sense of Apokolips -- subtleties, things only "locals" could know, all with what's on the page and it is in fact pretty much amazing.

RELATED: Mister Miracle #8 Answers the Age-Old Question: Does Batman Kill Babies?

The conclusion is breathtaking, the build up certain and cautious and every panel you think is a throwaway comes sharply into focus with the last page. This book is insidious in its brilliance, and the care and craft applied by Mitch Gerads and Clayton Cowles is just as ruthlessly effective. Wow. RATING: BUY

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #33 (Marvel Comics)

<i>Unbeatable Squirrel Girl</i> #33
Go nuts for the latest adventures of Doreen Green in Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #33.

If you're looking not to think this week, whew, you're in the wrong place because this book is intensely cerebral and downright fun. While perfectly characterizing a sizeable number of players, this issue's plot is like a Rube Goldberg machine full of awesomeness as a mysterious (and semi-remembered) villain has trapped the title character, Kraven the Hunter, the literally perfect Brain Drain, Koi Boy, Chipmunk Hunk (a big surprise) and his girlfriend Mary in a series of death traps masquerading as one of those escape rooms. Writer Ryan North is awe-inspiring with his cavalcade of gags and delicious plot twists, while the visual team of Derek Charm, Rico Renzi and Travis Lanham make every panel a little slice of joy. RATING: BUY.

Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='The%20Buy%20Pile%3A%20How%20Does%20Thor%27s%20New%20Series%20Launch%20Fare%3F']

Thor #1 wasn't bad, showing the newly-rekindled God of Thunder cleaning up the detritus of a shattered and now humbled Asgard, with a back up story that follows an older, more powerful Thor faced with answers he doesn't want and cannot change. It had laughs and good moments with well developed supporting characters but didn't feature heroism, didn't have any greatness, didn't feel worthy. In each era, the Odinson hates what he's doing, hates the circumstances he faces and in many ways seems to hate himself. That kind of hard luck Thor has a problem delivering on power and glory, and that likewise keeps this issue from greatness. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

RELATED: Mjolnir Is Gone, But Thor’s New Hammer May Be More Badass

Sea Of Thieves #4 hinged upon a head scratcher in the third act that baffles, but had so many effective character moments that it's impossible to be furious at it. Great resolution in terms of character, kind of shaky as far as plot goes. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Domino #3 was very close to making it home due to some serious emotional monents for the lead character, a very engaging ending and some decent character development. The plot felt pretty thin, like it needed to pick up the pace a bit, and the antagonists remain frustratingly vague. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

RELATED: Thor #1 Introduces The Final Phoenix (And It’s A VERY Familiar Face)

Weatherman #1 has got a last page hook that would make Jay Faerber proud, as a hedonistic, self-important meteorologist on Mars in 2770 stumbles into so much more than he knows how to handle. It took a while to get going, but this shows some promise. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Nancy Drew #1 is very heavy on charm and character, plus having super engaging artwork. Even for a mystery, however, it doesn't give enough information to really work, as well as trying to shoehorn in two supporting casts. If it can fix its pacing issues, this could be something. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Page 3: [valnet-url-page page=3 paginated=0 text='The%20Buy%20Pile%20Reviews%20Man%20of%20Steel%2C%20Batgirl%20Vs.%20The%20Riddler%20and%20More']

Like a weak-minded psychopath hounding Kelly Marie Tran off Instagram, Batman Prelude To The Wedding Batgirl Vs The Riddler #1 is an incel love letter from Edward Nygma to a heroine who literally could not care less about him. That's not a compliment. In spite of the fantastic artwork and dynamic pacing, there's a rotten sense of entitlement and lameness clinging to the underlying conception. Endangering the lives of innocents in a labyrinthine 13 Reasons Why-themed night of running and heroics really feels kind of passe and derivative these days, with Cory Michael Smith actually making that green suit kind of cool again. RATING: MEH.

If you're ready to party like it's 1998, you're gonna love Deadpool Assassin #1, a literal throwback to the early Kelly run without being as uproariously funny. There's one legitimate music-related guffaw here, a clever scheme at the center of the narrative and some clever breaking of the fourth wall, but it's all covers and karaoke. There may not be any new ground to break for this character in publishing, based on this, a very serviceable rendition of familiar "hits" that simply ups the body count and resets the continuity back to something familiar. If this is your first Deadpool book, this is probably amazing. If you've ever read much of the character in the past ... you've pretty much read it. RATING: MEH.

Man Of Steel #3 trades in shock value and spectacle but is spectacularly short on plot as the antagonist finally confronts the titular lead. It's quite a show, but there's not much to it. RATING: MEH.

RELATED: Bendis Destroys a Massive Part of Superman’s History in Man of Steel #3

Star Wars Darth Vader #17 was a little like when Lucy pulled the football away from Charlie Brown as the Empire does its continuity-required thing to the waterworld Mon Cala and Vader faces an undistinguished Jedi dropout, yet the conclusion of this issue feels empty. This was not a tour de force by the Dark Lord of the Sith, but not bad. RATING: MEH.

Detective Comics #982 brushes up against indictments of the Bat for not using his billions of dollars to make a better Gotham City but instead dressing in fetish gear and beating up poor people in alleys, but gets lost in a kind of metaphysical claptrap, delusions and false flags that finish up in wildly cliched fashions. RATING: MEH.

RELATED: The Riddler Just Expressed a Really, REALLY Creepy Interest in Batgirl

Have you read The Walking Dead? Well, Scooby Apocalypse #26 tries a similar shtick with significantly less sophistication. This is derivative and unengaging. RATING: NO. JUST ... NO.

WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?

Three purchases beats the Scooby-minded mishap, even with a chasm of near misses and "meh" in between.

THE BUSINESS

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 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!