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 OCTOBER 15, 2014

Nothing

Hm. Yep. Nothing. Sorry. Maybe time to reread "New Money" #1 again ...

WHAT'S THE PROGNOSIS?

That's never a good start ...

THIS WEEK'S READ PILE

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

"Life After" #4 had some solid elements, with consequences from the past and Hemingway awesomeness, but played put a previous action scene in pretty much the same way and teased a "deal" without following through. Still worth watching for, just not up to its own standards of excellence this issue.

Re: "Fables" #145. Hm. There was a big fight here. It ended badly for everyone. However, its conclusion hinged upon a mysterious moment that was not clearly explained and led to a denouement that had two sworn enemies sharing a drink. There was nothing wrong here -- this is "Fables," after all, a series with more than a hundred and twenty great issues. There isn't anything really right, either. Every arguable character moment relies memories from previous years, not on anything in these pages. Is this series coasting to its finale? Starting to seem that way.

In "Red Sonja The Black Tower" #2, the titular heroine seems to be fighting Sith robots. Uh ... well, there's likely an audience for that, sure ...

"Batman Superman" #15 had some cute moments, walking in skins the title characters could have had without the baggage of their origins. The "tragedy" of the issue's conclusion -- unavoidable unless this was going full Elseworlds -- was more a downer than entertaining. Not a bad book, but not one that's rewarding to read.

Re: "Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man" #6. The bit with the resurrections may be limp and unexplained, the part with the fighting may have been de rigueur, but that sure as heck is exactly how you Spider-Man.

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

"Unity" #0, "Evil Empire" #6, "Batman And Robin" #35, "Flash Gordon" #6, "Batman Eternal" #28, "Last Broadcast" #6, "Grimm Fairy Tales Presents Wonderland" #28, "Batwoman" #35, "Magnus Robot Fighter" #7, "Earth 2 World's End" #2, "Wolverine And The X-Men" #10, "Sleepy Hollow" #1, "Uncanny X-Men" #27 "Green Lantern New Guardians" #35, "Superior Foes Of Spider-Man" #16, "Manifest Destiny" #11, "Spider-Man 2099" #5, "Justice League" #35, "Painkiller Jane: The 22 Brides" #3, "Jim Henson's Storyteller Witches" #2, "Original Sin Annual" #1, "Ms. Marvel" #9, "New 52 Future's End" #24, "Magneto" #11, "Supreme Blue Rose" #4, "Loki: Agent Of Asgard" #7, "Red Hood And The Outlaws" #35, "Hulk" #7, "Wild's End" #2, "Edge Of Spider-Verse" #5, "Supergirl" #35, "Deadpool's Art Of War" #1, "Witchblade Case Files" #1, "Daredevil" #9, "Teen Titans" #3, "Avengers World" #14, "Q2 The Return Of Quantum And Woody" #1, "Avengers And X-Men Axis" #2, "Trinity Of Sin" #1.

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

Re: "Death Of Wolverine" #4: That's it? One of the most iconic characters of the late 20th century, and that's the swan song you dreamed up? Setting aside the fact that there is no way Logan will be gone from comics long (heck, even Steve Rogers is back in uniform based on post-NYCC teases), this story is dull, the stakes are meaningless, the antagonist is tepid, the action lacked dynamics and tension and despite fantastic artwork, this book is as empty as a thoughtful conversation with a Kardashian. Really. No.

As if milking the death of a character nobody believes will stay dead (as long as Hugh Jackman and the licensing department are around anyway), "Death Of Wolverine: The Logan Legacy" #1 spends a good bit of its ... well, "story" might be too forgiving a term, but its pages hinting at or dancing around things that happen in comics that haven't been published yet. This limp attempt at foreshadowing and enticing readers to buy more is a turn off at best and shabby storytelling at worst. Add to it a straw man antagonist and impetus for the whole thing, and you'll be too bored to scour back issues to see if anyone says "caterpillar" around Lady Deathstrike. Tedious.

SO, HOW BAD WAS IT?

... it was kind of ugly out there.

WINNERS AND LOSERS

With perennial favorite writers turning in less-than-epic work and Wolverine's corpse stinking up the joint, this was not a week you could point at and say, "there, comics strove for greatness!"

THE BUSINESS

Yesterday was also the birthday of the beautiful and talented wife of this column's writer, and she's pretty freaking awesome.

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. 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!