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The 1000th comic in my comics database: Krampus #2

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Average score of 244 user reviews

Wake Me When Schism Ends 0

This issue, like the one before it, is a companion to the Schism issue that came out in the same week.  It shows what was going on behind the scenes with Hope's team.  There's a lot of good emotion as well as a fun scene where the previous "kids" team talks about how they used to face the same issues.Really, what kinda bugged me about this issue is that it's the same story stuck on repeat for the last 3-4 issues of a book who's only 11 issues in.  OMG HOPE IS LIKE CONTROLLING US SOMEHOW!  Yeah, ...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Colossus Smash! 4

Can a Juggernaut-powered Colossus beat Juggernaut?  That's what this issue's about.  Given how long this fight has taken, this story arc seems like it's putting the X-Men in a holding pattern until Schism is over.  And, of course, in order to not spoil the suprise in story arc, Colossus looks normal in Schism.  It's comics so I try not to think about it TOO much.  Poor Kitty can't catch a break.  She finally becomes tangible again so she can touch Peter and now he's Juggernaut.  Wonder how long ...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Not as Bad as it Could Be 2

The previous books in this story arc (after the first one) were so bad that my brother refused to even pick up this issue.  I definitely saw this arc (plus the fact that the book seems to have morphed in to X-Men teamups) as being the biggest reason I was going to drop this book from my pull list and just pick up trades of whatever stories seemed good.  So it's somewhat faint praise to say that this book was better than the previous ones.  I have to say that a lot of that goes to Doom having a m...

1 out of 2 found this review helpful.

Action Girls Rock! 3

I thought this book had the perfect tone - confused action.  Supergirl reminded me a lot of River Tam in Serenity.  Whether some of that is subconscious from Summer Glau voicing her in one of the OAVs or not, I think it's pretty valid.  A BAMF lands on a strange planet and is suddenly attacked.  Then the sun comes up and she's got the powers from the Earth's yellow sun.  (Unlike River Tam, this is one of the only new 52 #1s that doesn't feature female nudity)While the issue  was good overall, my...

3 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Red Hood and the Outlaws - More Like Red Hood and the Beach Vacat 2

This is going to sound weird, but I'm kinda annoyed at Lobdell for writing these characters well enough that I like it.  You see, with all the new 52s and Marvel's constant events, I'm a little over my comics buying budget.  So I need to not like some of these titles.  But, no, Lobdell does as good a job writing adults as he does teenagers.It opens up with an action bit with Red Hood and Arsenal.  Mentions Batman and his past with the other members of the Bat Family but then basically says "F- G...

3 out of 6 found this review helpful.

Back along with lessons learned under Cowl 6

I think this is in my top 3 favorite new issues from the new 52.  (The others being Action Comics #1 and Batman #1).  This book was just plain awesome.  To find a complaint, I'd have to nitpick and say that he looks older in this book and younger in Batman #1.I think this was another one of those perfect new 52 books in that it had stuff for everyone.  It had tidbits for the old readers like me - about how his time as Batman helped him grow as a hero and helped him understand Bruce a little bett...

4 out of 4 found this review helpful.

Winick wasn't kidding about the Sexy! (AKA Batinterrobang) 0

Catwoman starts off with what seems like blatant fan service - Selina Kyle pulling on her Catwoman top, thus showing us her breasts encased in a red, lacy bra.  We later see Kyle with her shirt unbuttoned and in a pinup pose as she tells a guy that she can give him what she wants.  While I don't read others' reviews before composing my own, I've already seen some complaints from readers that this entire issue is just fan service.  I have to disagree - I think Winnick has done a perfect job takin...

7 out of 12 found this review helpful.

Birds of Pray 0

This is another series where I am DC's intended audience - someone who never read Birds of Prey before.  So I don't know if it's suffering for a lack of Gail Simone or have any other feelings towards the book.  In fact, other than a cameo by Barbara Gorden that establishes that she knows the characters, I don't know any of the characters in this book.  So it was their job to make me care about Starling and Black Canary.It's definitely a good action comic.  Almost from the beginning there's a hug...

3 out of 4 found this review helpful.

Snyder Creates the Perfect DC #1 3

I think Snyder has created the perfect DC #1 for an established character. Anyone who cares enough about Batman to want to read a monthly serial knows that his parents' death is what caused him to become Batman and they know about Robin.  Snyder uses the cover of Batman testing new tech to introduce the reader to the three former Robins who happen to be in town.  And he starts things off with a bang. The actual opening of the issue is a poetic opening that goes to show how comics have evolved s...

6 out of 6 found this review helpful.

Remender is AWESOME 2

Man, this issue just makes me think that Remeder should be writing all the X-books.  Uncanny X-Force has been so tight with nary a wasted page.  This issue drops a bombshell - why Archangel chose to save Betsy.  It's great to see the rest of X-Force fight with Archangel and his gang.  Remender's done a good job of keeping either side from being over-powered.  Over each issue you still believe that the X-Force have a chance to succeed but that it's far from guaranteed.  (Or it may be a pyrhic vic...

1 out of 2 found this review helpful.

I will smite thee! 2

I thought I heard recently on the CV podcast that Herc is getting cancelled. It's no wonder - he seems like something out of the Silver Age or Golden Age. I mean, really who wants the actual mythical Hercules as a comic book hero? He almost seems to be a Marvel Wonder Woman expt from the silver age that was brought out again in hopes that Spider-Island Fairy Dust will make people want to read it like Chiang-Shi and Cloak and Dagger.Unfortunately the story's pretty dumb and the characters are ann...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

She's a Detective, buddy! 2

So Spider-Island continues and everything moves forward.  Reed keeps working on his cure.  J.J.J keeps freakin' out.  Anti-venom keeps curing people.  The main point of this issue seems to be none of this but rather the conflict between Peter and Carlie that's been under the surface at least since May (in real life time) if not longer.  She basically is one smoking gun (metaphorically) from being 100% confident that Peter is Spider-Man.  Sure, it took MJ forever, but Carlie is a top-notch detect...

3 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Why am I called Superboy? 3

I have to thank the ComicVine crew for giving me greater insight into Superboy thanks to their Scott Lobdell question and answer special.  Scott mentioned many tmes that he wants for the teens, including Superboy, to not just be kid versions of the adults they're modeled after.  Superboy, as envisioned by Lobdell in the revamp, is his own person.  He's only related to Superman in that he shares his genes.  Other than that he's his own dude.  And the opening "why do they call me superboy?" is mea...

2 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Batman and Son Again? 3

Batman is back in the Cowl in Gotham and has finished setting up his international Batman, Inc.   We start off with Batman remembering the anniversary of his parents' death.  Anyone who's been following Batman in any form (movies, cartoons, comics, or video games) knows this is a constant for Batman since this event led into his becoming Batman.  But FINALLY we see some character growth as Batman turns away from his parents' death and towards celebrating their life.  Only took him 70 years!  Ser...

4 out of 4 found this review helpful.

The Other Bat-Redhead 3

So last week was Batgirl and this week is Batwoman.  She's been around since the Golden or Silver age, but my only experience with her is a cameo in Batman, Inc.  So I don't know anything about her and haven't looked her up on ComicVine.  So, for this book, I am what DC wanted - a new reader.  So what do I know about her after reading this issue?  She's a lesbian and had a relationship with Renee Montoya (one of the named cops I now from Batman: TAS) Like Lois Lane, she has a father in the milit...

2 out of 6 found this review helpful.

Not a fan 6

The only reason I picked up the suicide squad is that I'm a HUGE Harley fan. I don't know any of these other bad guys. I'm on the fence about how I feel about Harley. Because this entire issue is like Resevoir Dogs, where the action already happened and now we're seeing the results all in one room, we don't get to see too much about how these characters are. On the one hand, Harley mostly seems the same personality and diction-wise. On the other hand, what's up with this new look? Also, ...

4 out of 6 found this review helpful.

Surprised in a Good Way! 0

I did not think I was going to like this book at all.  I don’t follow the Avengers.  I don’t know any of these characters other than Hawkeye.  And why is there a character called Squirrel Girl?  To appeal to furries?  WTF?!?  But this book was insanely hilarious.  Its best asset was that it did not take itself seriously at all.  I couldn’t pinpoint it at first, but my brother gave me the perfect reference point – Scott Pilgrim.  It was as if they’d asked the author of Scott Pilgrim to come and ...

3 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Snikt! 2

This was an OK issue for X-23.   It asks the question what happens when you shack up with the FF?  The answer: things get Sci-Fi.   I really enjoyed how well Marjorie portrayed all the characters of the Future Foundation, especially Valeria.   And X-23 has great interactions with others, especially Ben.   But I wonder – X-23, she’s growing emotionally, but …. is it too slowly?  I know Laura’s been through some extremely traumatic stuff and that it’s only issue 14 of her first on-going series, b...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

International House of Heroes 0

Although it’s nowhere near as ridiculous, Justice League International worked for me because it seems to take itself as seriously as Spider-Island: Avengers One Shot.   This is because both that issue and this one involve some B (or even C) level heroes.   So, although they don’t do the best job relaying it for all these supposed new readers the New 52 is bringing in (a theme in all the DC books this week), this issue takes place after the Justice League has already formed.   (So at least a g...

0 out of 1 found this review helpful.

I just couldn't care 5

After the excitement of the FF and X-Men teaming up wears off, what’s left?   Unfortunately, not much.   There’s a fun moment with the blondes being catty, but other than that this issue just didn’t do it for me at all.   The twist was only a twist because I’d elected not to read the story’s title.   The story does seem to be setting up for a neat battle, but I’m kinda left not caring.   I don’t know what it is that caused me to go sour so quickly, but the story just seems so blasé.   Maybe it’...

1 out of 2 found this review helpful.

A Crazy Ending 0

Let me just say, before anything else, that this issue is beautiful.   I LOVE the artwork, especially the colours on this issue.   I love that comics have evolved to the point that we can have art to match the content rather than the generic looking stuff we had in the 1990s and prior.   Story-wise I’m not sure what to think.   We pick up (more or less) where we left off – all the good guys teleported and standing in from of all the bad guys.   Unfortunately, given the relationships between the...

0 out of 1 found this review helpful.

She's ready to stretch her .... everything 5

So, this is the issue I was MOST excited about this week.   I actually put it off until after reading Action Comics and Detective Comics because I was nervous it wouldn’t live up to my expectations.   Between my love of Batgirl from Batman: The Animated Series and all the love I’ve heard for Gail Simone based on her Birds of Prey writing, I was expecting a lot! Barbara is thinking about what’s happened since The Killing Joke and how her life has been.   Now that she’s cured (or however it is t...

8 out of 9 found this review helpful.

Time to do some Detective Work 0

So, here’s the new Batman for the New 52.   I’m not going to harp on this because I already ranted in my Action Comics #1 review, but if this is going to take 5 years in the past and it’s meant for new readers – they should say that!   Anyway, DC and AC seem to be five years in the past while Superman and Batman are in the present.   Like Action Comics #1, this issue appears to take place slightly before Justice League #1. So, since this takes place in the pre-super hero past, Batman is consid...

5 out of 5 found this review helpful.

Morrison Has Done It! 1

On one level, DC has already succeeded with their New 52 initiative – at least for month one.   I have about 4 Superman comics from the late 1990s (or early 2000s) and I think they were all gifts.   Other than reading The Death Of Superman in elementary school I’ve never been a reader of Superman.   Yet, here I am reading Action Comics #1.   Sure, part of that is Grant Morrison’s name, but it’s also partly due to the fact that they’re retooling him into being less of a tool.   As he was until n...

6 out of 6 found this review helpful.

Perfect Ending to Month 1 of Spider-Island 7

I’ve had a bit of an issue with all of Marvel’s events recently.   For one thing, because of fact that we have 3 overlapping events (Spider-Island, Schism, and Fear Itself), it’s not really clear how things fit into each other.   Lots of things have fallen out of sync and I think that, in an attempt to avoid spoilers, Marvel has created some strange inconsistencies.   For example, I *think* it’s certain that Schism takes place after Fear Itself, but if that’s true – there’s something weird going...

3 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Perfect DC Universe Relaunch 0

This issue places the Justice League in a world where super heroes have never existed so Johns can examine how our modern world would deal with the sudden appearance of super powered beings.  I'm not sure if DC dealt with this back in the 30s and 40s during the Golden Age.  But we're in a much more cynical time.  People aren't going to assume that super heroes will be benevolent.  In Batman's case, this more or less matches the latest reboot where he was trying to keep himself as a scary rumor i...

2 out of 2 found this review helpful.

An Amazing Ending to a Middle-of-the-Road Series 0

The main Flashpoint book has been a bit uneven.  Some great issues and some OK issues.  This issue was the perfect ending to both this book and to the DC era that started in the 80s. The revelation of who was to blame for the Flashpoint world was one of the best comic book twists of 2011.  The ending with Flash and Batman reviewing what happened was also awesome.  (As well as the "is it the same?" "as far as I know" catch because some stuff is changing)  If there was one weak point of this book ...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Man....why couldn't this end one issue sooner 3

This issue started off great.   Then I felt very conflicted about the way the issue went.   I’ll have to reread the first issue, but Catwoman claims the whole thing was a fakeout/setup.   I could have sworn that in that first issue you see her thoughts and that would contradict what’s going on here.   To paraphrase a line in an article on Comics Alliance – “villains lie”.   So it’s entirely possible that she is lying now in order to hurt the other two girls after they betrayed each other and ha...

2 out of 2 found this review helpful.

Well, that was a nice little twist 0

The writer has done something very, very interesting here.   He made me really enjoy the ending to a story arc that I didn’t give a darn about.   I’ve loved the space storyline.   This one, not so much.   I found the bad guy and the premise to be pretty dumb.   And the only thing that made it worth reading was having Armor deal with the death in her family and the conflict in whether to be more (stereotypically asian?) loyal to her blood family or her X-Men family.   Also, I haven’t been the b...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

A Lot Slower of a Pace Than I Thought It Would Have 3

With the way the last issue ended, I thought this issue would start off with a melee fight or something.   Nope.   Rogue’s amatuer teleportation ends up with her separated from the rest of the group.   I’m not sure I entirely buy how quickly the situation difuses where she is, but whatever, it’s not a deal-breaker.   So, the X-Men are in space…. Yo, guess what? The Shi’ar are involved.   Surprised?   Me neither.   Still, the story has some potential.   For once the Shi’ar aren’t exactly in ...

0 out of 1 found this review helpful.

great ending! 0

I was a big fan of this mini-series the whole way through.   I was a little disappointed at first with the soldier because I thought they were pulling a Lois Lane and the Resistance on me.   But the idea seemed intriguing.   And in the end of the first issue Superman arrives on Earth.   Which blew me away because they did a great job with misdirection.   I thought he was being combined with Superman’s DNA!   The second one introduced him meeting Lois which I saw as one of those things that show...

2 out of 2 found this review helpful.

Great! 0

Even if I canceled the rest of my X-books, I’d keep Uncanny X-Force as long as Remender is writing the book.   He’s done a great job with the dialog and storytelling.   Even though I jumped into this story in the middle (about two issues ago), I was very curious to see what would happen.   And he appears to love stoking the fire as last month’s kisses showed.     This issue had a great Wolverine-on-Wolverine fight.   I felt that AoA Wolverine’s speech on the evolution of the homo genus seeme...

2 out of 3 found this review helpful.

Such a disappointing end to such a great book 3

Man everything just fell apart at the end there.  I can't help but wonder if it's due to the New 52 and the fact that Batman, Inc is going on hiatus until next year.  The plot was only related to the rest of Batman, Inc and Leviathon by the barest thread right at the end of the story.  And the art style, while creative, sucked.  They could have gone with full-on 3D like Pixar quality and I would have been able to tell the people apart.  Instead it was a horrible Second Life quality (years after ...

0 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Oh yeah...there was a war going on .... 3

With FF #8 we're finally returned to the present.  Thank goodness.  I'm sure the Black Bold lore was fun for a certain segment of the FF readers, but I was pretty bored when it was the only thing I had to read for FF for a month.  This issue seemed to be a great setup for the climax.  And that must be coming because Marvel has been teasing some surprises in store for November's issues that don't seem to have anything to do with the War of Four Cities.  The good thing about this issue was that we...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Great FF/X-Men Team Up 1

Spidey and the kids from FF are out on a fishing trip to the Bermuda Triangle.  I'm not 100% sure but I think this is referenced in an earlier Fantastic Four book or Amazing Spider-Man.  I don't remember, but I do remember the visuals.  So maybe that's when this book takes place?  I know my brother berates me for caring about timelines, but I enjoy understanding where the stories fit into each other.  This book is obviously before Schism since Cyclops is leading the usual team and it's before F4...

3 out of 5 found this review helpful.

Not sure about the title, but it's a great story 0

As I mentioned during one of my X-Men: The New Age trade reviews, my comic shop recommends that readers who wish to catch up on their X-Men start with Deadly Genesis.  I disagree because a lot of stuff starting with Morrison's run still plays into today's X-Men.  (eg why is Scott with Emma and not Jean) Also, if you start back from 2001 you'll end up reading House of M which, of all the Marvel Cross-over storylines, has had the largest impact on the current X-Men universe and storylines.  What y...

0 out of 0 found this review helpful.

A fitting End to the 200s Claremont Run 0

And now we arrive at the final trade collecting Chris Claremont's 2000s run on Uncanny X-Men.  As has been the case with with all the issues (at least 2-5) the focus is on the B-Team.  Other than scattered appearances here and there - No Cyclops, Gambit, Emma, etc.  As you probably remember, in the third volume Psylocke was mysteriously found alive after her team mates saw her die.  She literally died in Beast's arms.  Turns out her brother, Brian, can manipulate reality via quantum strings.  (S...

0 out of 0 found this review helpful.

After House of M we jump right back into Claremont's Great Run 0

Welcome back to Uncanny X-Men: The New Age.  I do hope that you did read the House of M books because they explain a lot about what's going on here.  (Especially the side plot with Wolverine and Storm)  But if you didn't want to, I'll do a quick recap - something happened to Scarlett Witch.  I don't read Avengers so I can only go on what was given during the House of M book.  Apparently she lost her pregnancy and went crazy and killed a bunch of Avengers.  Xavier's been trying to keep her sane b...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Despite a VERY misleading cover, a fun book you should pick up 0

My comic shop recommends that if you're going to read the backstory trades on the X-Men that you should start from Deadly Genesis.  I disagree.  I think that both Morrison's and Whedon's runs on the X-Men are great jumping off points for the modern stories.  However, I think that anyone catching up on the X-Men should AT LEAST start with Chris Claremon't return in these X-Men: The New Age TPs.  (The onlybummer - some of them can be hard/expensive to find) I mentioned in my vol 2 review that we s...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.

Could Only Exist Nowadays 2

Powers reads and looks like a combination of a webcomic and a 2000s indie comic.  Like a webcomic it really takes a long view of the storylline.  There are things that happen early on, like a little girl that the main guy ends up saddled with, who plays essentially no role at all.  She gets shuttled into daycare and is never heard from again.  Which makes it all seem pointless unless you're taking the long view of the plot - which most indie comics don't do - not knowing how well they'll sell.  ...

1 out of 1 found this review helpful.