When I first started this blog, I knew I wanted to do some sort of comic book read-along a review type project - something where we could all read the same book, then share our thoughts and opinions. I guess it would be something like a book club or a review club.
I guess I just lost track of that goal somewhere along the way.
Now, though, I'm ready to make it happen!
As you may know from reading some of my previous posts, I'm not getting a lot of single issues anymore. I've instead switched over to reading more trades because 1.) the story is all together and I don't have to wait weeks between books and 2.) it's much more affordable. So, instead of making this a read and review for comic book issues, it's going to be a read and review for trades!
Each month I'll choose 3 books from my shelves, read them, and then review them at the end of the month. You can choose to read all four books with me, or just one or two.
If you're on Goodreads, I've created a group for this read and review project here. I'll be sharing my reviews here on the blog, as well as on the Goodreads group. If you're participating, you can also share your review on the Goodreads group. IT will be fun!
Are you ready to see the first three books I chose to read and review?
First off we have our DC title for the month - The Killing Joke!
I thought it would be fun to start off with a classic. You can never go wrong with Batman and The Joker!
Next, for the Marvel title I chose Cable & Deadpool Separation Anxiety.
Yet another book that's guaranteed to be a good read!
Finally, for the indie title I chose the Image book Heaven, LLC.
This is a book I picked up at the STL Wizard World Comic-Con and have been waiting to read ever since.
I hope to see you all over at Goodreads this month and on here at the end of June when I'll be posting all my reviews. Thanks for reading!
Oops! I'm a day late posting this week.
I'm sad to say that I didn't read too much this week. As I've said before, most of my reading occurs at work on my lunch break. Last Monday and Friday were both half days for me, and Thursday I went to my daughter's school during lunch to pick up her spring pictures. That left just Tuesday and Wednesday to enjoy some lunchtime comics.
Here's what I managed to read this week
Have you ever watched one word or less comic reviews on YouTube? Well that's basically what I'm going to do today because I'm lazy. The first four books up there are individual books, while the fifth is a trade. I'll talk about the trade a little more.
Batman The Dark Knight #16 - overrated
Uncanny X-Force #2 - forgettable
A + X #5 - light
Age of Apocalypse #13 - intriguing
Whew! That's a bit more difficult than I expected!
Now for the trade, which is Jericho Season 3 Civil War.
If you watched and enjoyed seasons 1 and 2 of the Jericho TV show, this is a must read! That being said, I don't think you could just into this trade without watching the show first. Honestly, I don't know why you would even want to. The TV show was one of the best I've ever seen. Yeah, I love my LOST and BSG, but Jericho was incredible. I would have to say that, in my opinion, it was better than the two shows I just mentioned. NOT better than Firefly, but better than LOST and BSG. That's saying a lot, because I love my LOST.
This trade picked up right where season 2 ended, and revealed so much about the plot and characters. I LOVED it and I cannot wait to read more!Season 4 is currently being published in singles, but I'm waiting (not so) patiently for the trade.
There's nothing too interesting to report for this week. It was back to work and back to school for us.
While I enjoyed being home for spring break, it was nice to get back into our usual routine and definitely nice to be making money again. My paycheck took a big hit with spring break. That's the big downside to working in the school system.
On to this week's comics! They're in no particular order this time.
Clearly, a very good reading week!
First up we have Detective Comics #17. Awesome story! I was surprised, because I've been unimpressed by most of the bat family titles lately. I really liked reading about the Merrymaker and hope to see him pop up again.
Next is Deathstroke #17 and #18. Why did they cancel this series?! It's so good! I love Deathstroke and I don't think any issue of his has been bad. I haven't read them all, but I plan on collecting single issues of the New 52 run. These issues were just as great as all the others have been. If you aren't reading Deathstroke, DO IT!
As you can see, I finally got around to reading Uncanny Avengers issues #1-#4. I loved each and every issue! It's too bad I've cancelled the majority of my subs, because I would really like to keep reading this monthly. The story arc was very interesting and original. I love the concept of what someone else would do with Charles Xavier's powers.
The biggest reading event this week was Punisher Nightmare #1-#5. I read two issues on Tuesday, then one each day until Friday. It was a great and very thought-provoking read. I'm glad I didn't read these as they came out, but rather kept them to read all at once. I may have been lost otherwise. The first issue started off somewhat slowly, and the second issue was incredible, but confusing. Things were more clear in the last three issues, though. I think this is something I'll buy in trade, despite having the single issues. It will be nice to read this story again and again.
Finally, the star of the week was Colder #5. This has been an amazing story! I've loved every single second of it! Just like Punisher Nightmare, I'll definitely be buying this in trade. It's SUCH a good story with incredible art. I can't communicate how much I enjoyed this series.
I also got a small shipment of new comics in the mail this week. It's weird to get such a small box after months of getting boxes with over $200 worth of comics. I know it makes more sense financially to buy trades, but I'm still sad that I'll be missing out on that experience of reading the monthly issues.
Spring Break!
It has been awesome not working this week, although my next check will not be so awesome.
I had a lot of time to read comics this week, but I mostly used that time for other things.
*Ahem*CandyCrush*Ahem*
I'm completely obsessed with this stupid game and have spent WAY too much time playing it this week.
I did find a nice amount of time for my comics, too. This week I decided to read lots of the DC titles that I dropped, mostly to get them out of the way. I enjoyed some of them, and some of them not so much.
Here's what I read this week:
The last one, American McGee's Grimm, is a graphic novel. Aside from that, the books are posted in order of how well I liked them.
I considered the Aquaman/Justice League crossover to be one big book in the number two spot.
So, my favorite book this week was Batman Arkham City End Game #1. It was great! I've had it in my stack for a while, but just haven't gotten around to reading it for some reason. I guess it's because I was too busy with all the Death of the Family stuff. It's definitely a book I'd recommend, though.
Next is Aquaman 16 and Justice League 16 and 17. These were the last books in the Throne of Atlantis crossover. I'm not a huge fan of either Aquaman or Justice League, but I really enjoyed this story. If I wasn't already planning of cancelling most of my monthly subs and moving to trades, I'd probably keep reading both these titles. The art on Aquaman is amazing, as well. It took me longer than usual to read Aquaman because I spent so much time looking at all the incredible art.
Legends of the Dark Knight #5 was interesting. I always enjoy this book, and enjoyed this issue as well. It was probably the weakest issue so far, though.
Batman and Robin #17 was a super quick read. I think this is the last issue with Damian alive, but I could be wrong. It was a nice story, especially knowing that Damian is going to die soon. I read the annual knowing that Damian was about to die, too, and I think that adds a layer of sadness to the whole issue.
Batgirl #17 was okay. It wasn't overwhelmingly bad or good, just okay.
Star Wars Purge: The Tyrant's Fist #2 was also okay. I think a lot of these Star Wars books are much better when read in trade, so that's what I'll be doing with future stories. I had forgotten most of what happened in the first issue, so I didn't care a whole lot about this issue.
I'm going to lump Justice League Dark #16 and Suicide Squad #17 in the same category. I don't like these books, don't care about them and have no problem dropping them. Sorry if that sounds mean, but it's true. I just read these this week to get them out of the way.
The graphic novel I read this week was American McGee's Grimm. I can't remember what prompted me to buy this book because it's a very out of the ordinary purchase for me. I liked reading it, but probably won't ever read it again. It did make me laugh a few times, though, and I enjoyed the art.
This post is all about comic con!
I don't really even know where to start.
We got tickets in February, and the time actually passed pretty quickly.
Friday was the first day and it was awesome. I tried to be conservative with my purchases so I wouldn't be completely out of money the rest of the weekend, and I did pretty well.
We got some free stuff, and here's a picture of what I bought.
1.) Battlestar Galactica shirt
2.) Dharma Initiaive shirt (LOST)
3.) Venom/Spiderman/Carnage print
4.) Deadpool VS. Deathstroke print (coolest thing ever!)
5.) White Deadpool sticker
6.) Green Boba Fett sticker
7.) Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe, signed by Cullen Bunn
8.) X-Force : Sex + Violence
9.) Secret Invasion
10.) Wolverine : Weapon X Adamantium Men
We ate some awesome food on the trip, so I'm going to talk about that stuff on here as well. Friday we stopped at Jack in the Box on the way to STL and I got one of their new Hot Mess sandwiches, which was amazing. I was a little drunk already when we ate.
For dinner we planned on going to the steakhouse in our hotel, but it was WAY too expensive. We got our menus and quickly decided to leave before we spent $150 just on dinner! We went to the hotel bar instead and I had a burger very similar to the one I had at Jack in the Box, with jalapenos, onion strings and pepper jack cheese. We also got what they called "fancy fries," but they weren't really all that fancy.
On the second day we decided to visit the arch before going to the con. I've lived so close to it all my life, but never actually been. We didn't get to go to the top, but it was still fun to see the museum at the bottom.
Aren't we cute in our Deadpool shirts?
We got a little drunk after that, then headed to the con.
It was super crowded on Saturday and I was so hot, especially after drinking. I think we decided to eat before really buying much of anything. We had this awesome steak and cheese sandwich they were selling at the con.
Then we started shopping. I didn't get many books the first day, so my goal was to get more books the second day.
1.) X-Men : Deadly Genesis
2.) Voodoo Child
3.) Star Wars Jango Fett
4.) The Sixth Gun Book 1, signed by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt
5.) Serenity Those Left Behind Book 1
6.) Haunt of Horror
7.) Strawman issue 10
For dinner that night we went to T.G.I. Friday's and I got a steak with mashed potatoes and vegetables. I also got two really good blackberry Long Island iced teas. After dinner we went to the con's after party for a while, which was fun. We drank "Wizardtinis" and I had an orange juice and vodka. It was way too hot, though, so we didn't stay long.
Sadly, I didn't take pics of everything I got on day 3. I know I got a totoro/batman car sticker and a LOT of books. I also got stuff for the kids - a spiderman purse/backpack for Lailah and a Lego Star Wars Darth Maul light-up keychain for Izak.
I'll try to list all the books I got, but I may miss a couple.
1.) Heaven, LLC book 1
2.) Rising Stars : Born in Fire
3.) Manhattan Projects book 1
4.) 30 Days of Night : 30 Days 'Til Death
5.) Daredevil Noir
6.) Wolverine Weapon X Files
7.) The Zombie : Simon Garth
8.) Rest
Lunch was another one of those steak and cheese things from the convention, and dinner was two more Hot Mess sandwiches from Jack in the Box on the way home.
This was another crazy week. Less crazy than last week, but still crazy.
At work we've been preparing for our state evaluation. We were prepared - as prepared as we could be.
Mrs. J had to ask off work for Monday and guess who showed up on Monday?
That's right! The woman from the state showed up and stayed while we had a sub.
If you know anything about kids, you know that they are never very well behaved with a substitute teacher in the class. Strike one.
I was informed, though, that we didn't yet have a substitute teacher lined up. Kids were showing up and there was no teacher there other than me, and I'm not a teacher. I'm just an aide. It's illegal for me to be there teaching 20 kids by myself, and this is all happening on the day we're being evaluated.
Awesome!
It all worked out, though. Someone got there right when the bus was pulling away, and she was someone most of the kids already knew. That helped a lot!
Of course, that whole story has absolutely nothing to do with comics
I did, however, have a very comic-full week.
Do you like that new word? Comic-full. Full of comics. That's the kind of week I want to have every week!
So, this week was comic-full because 1.) I got a fat box of comics in the mail and 2.) WIZARD WORLD COMIC CON WEEKEND IN STL!
My first con ever! It was awesome! I'll talk about that more tomorrow, though.
On to what I read this week...
I liked everything pretty well this week. It's hard to choose a favorite.
The Judge Dredd books are great. I loved issues 1 and 2, and issues 3 and 4 were no different.
Happy was interesting, definitely something I wish I would have waited to buy in trade. I did wait and read all four issues together, though. For some reason they were very late getting to me. I just got the last issue last month and I think they came out either in November or December. It's a nice, twisted little Christmas tale. Some parts are a bit unclear. This may be one I'll have to reread to fully understand. It was a unique story, though, and I enjoyed it.
Morbius was good. I didn't know much about the character going in, so it wasn't quite what I expected. It was enjoyable, though, and I'm going to keep reading.
Finally, Uncanny X-Men. It was pure awesomeness! I've gone from knowing very little about the x-men, to being a huge fan of them all because of how darn good all these Marvel NOW x books are! I bought quite a few older trades at the con this weekend, too, and I'm sure they'll be just as awesome or better. This is definitely a title I recommend, along with Uncanny X-Force and All New X-Men.
That's all for this week. Hopefully I'll be posting about the con either tomorrow or Tuesday.
Sadly, I didn't read much this week.
I read most of my comics at work during my lunch break, but this week was crazy. We had a sub Monday through Wednesday. Monday I didn't work in the afternoon, so no lunch break. Tuesday I felt kind of awkward because the sub sat right across from me during lunch. Wednesday I didn't work. Thursday and Friday were normal days, for which I was very grateful.
Hopefully I'll get to read more this week because next weekend is COMIC CON!!!
Anyway, on to the list of comics read
The best book this week was definitely ASM 700. I didn't even read the ASM series, but this issue was so good. I knew a lot of the back story because of spoilers posted online, so I didn't feel lost or like I didn't know what was going on. I realize I'm quite late reading this issue, but I felt a little nervous touching the pages. I want it to stay in super good condition, even though I don't really plan on selling it. It's just a nice addition to my collection. Now I can finally start reading Superior Spider-Man!
Another reason ASM got the number 1 spot is because the other issues I read this week were a bit lackluster.
I really liked Thunderbolts and Cable and X-force when they first came out, but the stories are getting stale. I'm ready for this first story arc to be over in both issues so hopefully they will pick up and get interesting again.
Red Hood and Nightwing were both books I started picking up with Death of the Family, and now that the event is over I'm uninterested. Each of these issues dealt with the aftermath of that event, though, so I wasn't quite as bored as I was with Catwoman last week.
I think this is my last issue of both Red Hood and the Outlaws and Nightwing. If something really great and interesting happens, I'll pick it up in trade.
I'll also be getting a big fat comic book shipment sometime this week or next week. I'm not sure how to handle that yet. Posting a list of everything I get will be boring, but posting cover pics will be time consuming. I may decide to do an unboxing video instead. We shall see.
