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G-Man's Lucky Seven: 11/28/09

G-Man tries his luck with seven random comics.


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Heeeey, this is G-Man with your Lucky Seven.  We ran into a little bit of a problem this week.  My camera man wanted to spend Thanksgiving with his family.  He told me his cousin Jimmy would be able to fly to Vegas to film this week's Lucky Seven.  Problem is, Jimmy is a little...slow. When checking in his camera at the airport, he accidentally had it sent to Louisiana.  Rather than cancel this week's Lucky Seven (Lady Luck waits for no man...or woman), I thought I'd do my best to deliver a look at seven of this week's comics...to give you an idea of what is good and what is...not so good.  
 
This week, let's try to group the comics in order of greatness.  We'll also see what we end up with for our Wild Card.
 
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First up: The Goon #33 by Eric Powell.  It's been a few months since we've had a new issue of The Goon.  As part of Dark Horse's "Nine Quick Shots of Comics Joy," we get a nice self-contained story.  You can pick up this issue without worrying whether or not the story continues from the previous issues.  
 
This is no ordinary issue.  What sets this one apart from previous ones is, there's not text involved.  Eric Powell sets out to tell the story with pictures and symbols.  While some might feel this cheapens the story and makes for a fast read, it's not easy to tell a story this way.  This also gives you a chance to really marvel over Powell's amazing art.  When a mysterious woman comes to town being chased for a stolen necklace, what part will the Goon and Franky play in all of this?  Powell's dark art and subtle use of colors manages to bring an enjoying little tale.  
 
It's a simple story with some amazing art.  I would give this...a 5 out of 5.
 
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Next up is Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips' Criminal: The Sinners #2.  I've said it many times that I love the superhero comics.  Every once in a while, it's refreshing reading a comic that doesn't involve superpowers.  Continuing from the first issue, Tracy Lawless is still on the case of trying to figure out who is killing the untouchables.  He wants to get away from Sebastian Hyde's employment and finding this killer is the only way out.
 
Each issue of Criminal gives a look us a gritty look at a different world...the underworld.  Brubaker and Phillips' world is full of shadows and you never know who or what is lurking around the corner.  Throw in Val Staples' colors and the mood is set.
 
In this issue, will we find out who is killing these 'bad guys'?  You'll have to pick up the issue to find out.  If you're looking for a different kind of comic book, you should pick up this issue, or any of the previous Criminal volumes.  As a single issue, this might get a lower rating, but being that it's part of a bigger story, I would give this a 4.5 out of 5.  
 
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Here we have Justice Society Of America #33 written by Bill Willingham and Matthew Sturges with art by Jesus Merino.  "The Bad Seed" continues.  What happens when you're a superhero team and your base of operation is publicly known?  Why the bad guys attack, of course.  The Justice Society of America have seen better days.  Not only were they attacked from the inside, they're also facing a massive frontal attack by numerous deadly foes.  And let's not forget what happened to Mr. Terrific a couple issues ago.
 
Willingham and Sturges have seamlessly picked up the reigns on this book.  Reading the last few issues, you'd think they had been on board for some time.  Merino's art looks as if he takes the time to draw the team with the respect they deserve.  Often when you see a book drawn with so many different characters, some of them start looking the same.  That's not the case here.  There's a nice amount of detain in the characters and the background.  Things are also about to change...just take a look at the title.  
 
It was an enjoyable book.  The only problem is it felt like one big battle that abruptly ends.  Still, I'd give it a solid 4 out of 5.
 
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Next is the third volume of Powers by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming.  In a world full of individuals with superpowers, it's interesting to see things from the perspective of the police.  Things aren't always black in white here.  There are often crimes that have deadly endings.  Crimes that go beyond the investigation of someone wearing tights.  
 
Detective Christian Walker is the dedicated officer that handles these deadly cases.  What most people don't know, Walker used to be a superpowered, tights wearing hero himself.  Then one day he lost his powers.  Recently we've discovered that Walker's history is more complex than we thought.
 
Bendis and Oeming do an amazing job of bridging the police and superhero genres in this title.  We get a more realistic look at the idea of superpowered folk running around.  This clearly is not a comic for kids.  There is violence, swearing and even...boobies.  This issue makes a good jumping on point for new readers.  What is interesting now is Walker's new partner, Enki Sunrise, used to be in Internal Affairs and was actually investigating him before.  It makes for some awkward moments between the two.  The only downside is we don't get as much excitement as we have in past issues.  Still, the flashbacks in Walkers life continue to capture my interest, giving this book a 4 out of 5.
 
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Hulk #17 gives us the ending to the Code Red storyline.  Things have been getting interesting seeing Doc Samson working with Red Hulk.  Despite Samson's double cross last issue, it's appearing as if there is a deeper, darker side to our green-haired friend.  We're also seeing Red Hulk's character begin to evolve.  Whether this will be a good or bad thing remain to be seen.  We are getting closer to finding out his true identity.  Every time Red Hulk does an inner monologue about his youth, it leaves you on the edge of your seat, wondering who exactly he is.  We also have Red She-Hulk's identity to wonder about.  I like a good mystery.  What drives these individuals and who or what caused them to turn into red...hulks?
 
Normally I rave about the issues of Hulk.  Unfortunately, this one didn't sit with me as well as the recent issues.  The conclusion of the Code Red story was just too tidy for my liking.  Red Hulk had the problem with Domino discovering his identity.  There is some resolution over that.  It just seemed like it fit together too neatly.  I also didn't like Silver Sable's portrayal here.  But I suppose given everyone she was dealing with, it makes a little sense.  I'm not sure how I feel about Red Hulk's action towards the end but I am looking forward to his next confrontation with Samson.  With this issue, I have to give it a 3.5 out of 5.  I liked Ian Churchill's art but the story ended too conveniently for my taste.
 
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Superman #694 continues the Superman action without Superman.  Mon-El has some tough shoes to fill...or should I say boots?  With Superman on New Krypton, Mon-El is doing his best to take Superman's place.  While I have been fascinated with Mon-El in the past, there's something about him now that doesn't quite get me as excited.  
 
When he starts doubting his ability to fill in for Superman, he talks to the one person that can help, Martha Kent.  It's a fitting choice but almost comes across as a little bit corny.  I won't argue that Martha did an amazing job of raising Clark to be a noble heroic person.  I just don't know if I need to see her giving others in the Superman family a pep talk.  Also seeing Bizarro causing havoc in Metropolis felt a little off.  Sure Bizarro is off his rocker but the way he's portrayed here feels more deadly than his appearance last week in Superman/Batman #66.  
Things are going to change for Mon-El.  I have been digging his appearances in this title but this one didn't quite do it for me.  Even though his costume gets a little tweak, I have to give this issue a 3 out of 5.  The good news Mon-El will figure out where his place should be.  The bad news is his powers are acting wonky and that's not a good thing in the middle of a fight...
 
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Now what will our wild card give us this week?  It's none other than Jericho Season 3: Civil War #1.  Jericho was an interesting show when it first came on.  The idea of nuclear attacks against the United States and seeing the small town try to pick up the pieces along with the hidden undertone of a bigger conspiracy was intriguing.  I have to admit, I started losing interest.  Apparently I wasn't the only one as the show was canceled after the first season.  The remaining fans campaigned and the show was brought back for seven episodes in the second season...only to get canceled again.  Now we have a comic series giving us what would have been the third season.
 
TV and movie adapted comics never seem to really work.  The story is from "the Jericho writing staff" and the comic is written by Dan Shotz and Robert Levine.  I suppose my main question would be, how many people still care about this show?  I do think it's great that those that have been sticking it out and have been trying to keep the show alive will get to see the story continue.  Realistically, I don't know if all the remaining Jericho fans will turn to a comic book to get the rest of the story.  
 
Being that I basically gave up on the show during the first season, maybe I'm not the best person to review this issue.  But that's the luck of the draw.  Fans of the show will be able to dive right in and should enjoy seeing what Jake Green and Robert Hawkins are up to now.  If you haven't been keeping up with the show (like myself), there is a nice recap on the first few pages that bring you up to date, even if you hadn't watched a single episode.  Unfortunately, I have to give this a 3 out of 5.  I'm sure fans of the show would rate this higher.  I might come back for the second issue.  Like with the show, I haven't fully decided if I'll be fully committed to the series.
 
There you have this week's Lucky Seven.  We had some bad luck with the lack of a camera and our luck did lean a little towards the non-superhero titles, as some have asked for in the past.  Hopefully you are enjoying this week in comics.  We'll see what's in store for us this coming week.  Cheers!