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 JULY 11, 2018

Darth Vader #18 (Marvel Comics)

Jump from the Read Pile. What does a dark lord of the Sith do when he's bored? This ruthless done in one issue answers that question and it is messy. Like "the end of Rogue One" messy. Vader says very little here and speaks with his actions, all of which are pretty murderous, all while totally explaining his relationship with Tarkin. Charles Soule turned in this wonderfully planned script, and the visual team of Guiseppe Camuncoli, Daniele Orlandini, David Curiel and Joe Caramagna make this as much of a nailbiter as the original Predator. Fun stuff worth your money. RATING: BUY.

Transformers Lost Light #20 (IDW Publishing)

A murderous, backstabbing maniac named Getaway has been a major antagonist in this series for more than a year, the kind that gets elected and turns much more dangerous than you'd expect. He finally has his showdown with Lost Light captain Rodimus, with the murder machine Cyclonus facing off against the legendary Star Saber on the undercard, and it is satisfying. Bringing together plot elements from even farther back, this issue really nails it thanks to James Roberts, Casey Coller, Joana Lafuente and Tom B. Long. This has been such an epic run, and it's closing out in style.

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #34 (Marvel Comics)

With a jailhouse debate and a bit of courtroom drama, this issue does quite a bit to cover the topic of how far does one go before they are in fact unredeemable. We get a simply fantastic bit of characterization from Kraven the Hunter (really digging into him as a person) while giving some supporting characters some great moments (including Tony Stark, literally phoning it in with the best possible results) and the title character struggling with her interests in a friendlier world versus its sometimes cruel realities. Great stuff from the creative team of Ryan North, Derek Charm, Rico Renzi and Travis Lanham. RATING: BUY.

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Detective Comics #984 comes very close to the mark, establishing the powers of the new villain Karma and setting the stage for Black Lightning to take another swing at Tim Drake's failed Bat-collective idea from a few months back. The challenge is that the plot seems like the puzzle pieces are not put together in the best order, with the action front loaded making the montage near the end feel rushed. Still finding its footing, but surely not bad. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Nancy Drew #2 still isn't connecting with a mountain of expository dialogue and circuitous plotting. This has high production values and keeps swinging, but these pages as configured don't cut it. RATING: HONORABLE MENTION.

Transformers Unicron #1 is like sledding uphill, and its gigantic (in number and scale) cadt of characters doesn't help as the world eating planet is collecting Cybertronian colony worlds like punches on a sub shop card. The actual plan in the narrative is very thin, the last act needlessly melodramatic, but everybody looks amazing. RATING: MEH.

Plastic Man #2 had a couple of moments of real emotional honesty but didn't manage its page count well enough for the plot to work. RATING: MEH.

Superman #1 presented some interesting ideas that challenge Kal-El's role as an agent of the status quo (while reinforcing his value) but didn't do much more than talk, even with its wildly ridiculous final page (ick). Sturm und drang that feels like treading water. RATING: MEH.

After all the big ideas and brave directions, Daredevil #605 ended its big "Mayor Fisk" storyline in cliches and vagueness, never fulfilling its self-avowed mandate. The Hand may as well be made of papier mache for as dull a fight as they put up. You're better than this, Daredevil. You are. RATING: NO. JUST ... NO.

Amazing Spider-Man #1 is not a bad book, in terms of execution. It's well drawn, has solid action scenes and even some solid guest appearqnces but has huge problems, especially forgetting how Daredevil even works (let alone the Bleck Penthah), piling on the "Parker luck" gag with continuity-heavy drama all for a saccharine closing. The concepts at the foundation of this issue are a problem, and there are some execution issues too. RATING: NO. JUST ... NO.

WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?

A bit rocky, but a thin win due to the jump.

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!