Quick Jabs

I get tired of using the same name all the time, and I still haven't come up with anything I like...on with the show!

Rogue #1  $2.99

I had no intention of picking this up, but when I saw Rodi's name on the cover I thought it might be worth a shot. I've disliked his Identity Disc mini, but his Loki has impressed me a great deal. Sadly, this book falls more on the side of Identity than Loki. It starts off strong, but by the end of the issue you really hate Rogue (if you didn't already) and Rodi's charatcerizations of the few X-Men in the series is so off base that I'm not exactly sure who the guy leading them is supposed to be, Havok maybe? He tries to give the book a sense of danger, making it even more goofy. Best avoided, although the cover looks damn pretty...oh and the art on the inside isn't anything to write home about either.

Venom/Carnage #1  $2.99

On the inside of the book it says Carnage/Venom...which one is it Marvel? That aside, this is quite weird, Milligan does a decent job on the script, and the characters feel right, but the concept seems a bit odd (Carnage is having a baby basically) and the art looks like some weird mix of CGI and pencils. It's worth a look, and it definitely has a butt-load of action in it, unlike most Marvel #1's. Not sure if I'll be picking up #2 though.

Caper #10  #2.95

The first two storyline in this book were very serious in tone, which makes this one seem out of place. The second arc of the book left me wanting tho, the end seemed forced, but this arc has had me rolling with laughter. When Winick is on, he's on, and he's one of the best new talents in the industry. The art fits the story nicely, and the dialogue is just great. I'm eagerly awaiting the next issue.

Ultimate Fantastic Four #9  $2.25

Holy crap this issue rocks. I went from doubting Ellis' ability to pull it off to loving him...of course this issue focus' entirely on the FF. No Doom in sight, besides mention of his name, which actually builds a little suspense. Immonen kills on the art, and is fast becoming one of my favorite FF artists (a list which only includes Kirby and 'Ringo, hehe). So, forget what I said previosly about Ellis, this is good stuff, I just hope he doesn't disappoint in the end.

Venom #17  $2.99

I still like this book, but this issue left me confused as hell. It will read better as a whole, definitely. It lacks the horror/suspens that it initially had though, which makes me sad.

Small Gods #1  $2.99

If you buy any floppy this week, it should be this one. Holy hell it's impressive. The art is crisp, the story is long, but never feels drawn out, it's got action and setup, it's got characters you can immediately relate too, and it's got a cliffhanger of an ending, and a back up story ta boot. I don'tknow where these guys came from, but this is hands down one of the best floppy books I've bought in a long time (excluding Eightball of course). It has an immediately recognizeable concept, but portrays it very realistically, and I mean very. People say books like Capes and Powers bring superheroes into the real world, but none of them do it this well...of course there aren't any superheroes in this book, but it has almost the same concept as those two. Actually, it's a bit of a modern take on Minority Report, for a more accurate description. Just buy this friggin' book, it's amazing.

-L