Pull List for week of August 10, 2016

August 10, 2016

Reviews coming soon!!!

Dark Horse

Prometheus: Life and Death #3

The engineer has taken the ship to a new planet and woken up another one, but for what reason? The Colonial Marines and scientists are trapped with no safe way out and to make things interesting, a Predator is on their side.
The current Life and Death series is shaping up to be on par with Fire and Stone from a while back. It's interesting to see the Engineer work on his projects and using him ever since he was introduced in the movie makes sense. I'm not exactly sure of the role the Engineer plays even though I saw the movie and it implies he created specific races. A question that gets brought up in the series is "why is so hostile towards others" and it's a great question. Why is the Engineer hostile to other life forms that he may have created? Is he disappointed in them and wishes they were far or less superior than what he's hoping for? I'm not sure if that question is ever going to get answered, well at least not anytime soon.
The artwork is fairly decent and basically the same as all the other Life and Death books and the story is shaping up to have a huge impact on this particular universe. I wonder how of if  they are going to explain the Engineer's plan in regards to this series. Overall, if you liked Fire and Stone, this companion or continuing series is a great read. You don't really need to read Fire and Stone to understand this series but it will at least satisfy your fill if you think it's what you want. 8/10

DC Comics

All Star Batman #1

The big hype for this book is all over the place. Scott Snyder is writing the story and it involves 2-Face. The story involves Batman being chased out of Gotham because of 2-Face, with everyone attempting to collect on the reward.
The brand new arc and comic looks to be more of Snyder's work and writing and the artwork by John Romita Jr is astounding. I've always liked Romita's art for the style of grittiness it shows. He was a favorite of mine on the Punisher series and he is one of the best artists, in my opinion. I love how it just flows to the story and gives it the feel it needs to be great. The book is destined to be one of the better books in Rebirth but sometimes the hype might be what kills it. As long as these continue to work together, the book should do really well. 9/10

Deathstroke Rebirth #1

Slade Wilson is back in his old form and it's great. The story revolves around his past with sons and past associates. 

I've never made it a secret that I've always disliked young Slade because to me, that's not who he is anymore. It may be nice to see his past from time to but to fully keep him that way? Personally, not a good idea. The book looks to still rely on him still being a mercenary but it does bring up his past as well. The artwork by Carlo Pagulyan is pretty good but I've never seen his work before but like I said, it's pretty good. The story by Christopher Priest looks to be interesting and from what of Priest, he is going to take Slade into directions that he isn't going to like.

I got interested in Deathstroke back when his 80's series came out. I had heard of him before that when he fighting the Titans, but it was good to see him in his own book with his own adventures. When he got into it with Green Arrow in the 2000's, it seemed a little out of place as GA didn't seem like the guy who would have Slade as an arch nemesis. Overall, those series defined their relationship a little better and fleshed it out more.

With this new series, I hope that it lasts a while as his other series barely lasted 20 issues. 8/10

Detective Comics (1937-2011) #938

The Rise of the Batmen continues. Kate's father is the one leading the charge to take down Batman as well as Batwoman and her crew. 

The series itself is progressing quite nicely and it's interesting to see a Batman book that doesn't have Batman as the main focus. I kind of feel this might have made a better book if they had introduced as a new one and not in the pages of Detective. Overall, I like the flow and it is really good to see a different side to Clayface, which I'm mentioned before. Orphan, or Cassandra, is a great character who is a powerful ally because she is more dangerous than the entire team, maybe even Batman. The banter between Robin and Spoiler seems reminiscent of a possible relationship outside of the team dynamic and BatwomanThe problem lies in the fact that Kate's father knows most of all the player's identities so it's just a matter of seeing how it will play out.

The story by James Tynion is really good and I'm interested to see the ending, though I have a feeling someone will die. James hasn't really had a chance to flesh out the characters because they were thrown into the mix right away. He does show a little back story as to Kate's father possible motivation but it could be a throwaway. The art by Al Barrionuevo is flush with multiple action sequences and connection to the other panels, it really flows pretty well. Going forward, it will be interesting to see the conclusion to the story. 8/10

Earth 2: Society (2015-) #15

The Ultra Humanite is hurting the heroes and they have been hit hard! After last issue's revelation that the Ultra Humanite was the villain and that one of his wards was Batman's on, things go off the rails.

This version of Earth 2 came from the Future's End series a while back and it may end soon. I like the stories because it's set on a parallel Earth but I feel there isn't really a lot of stories left to tell for some reason. I just feel it. But overall the books has characters who are variants of their Earth 1 counterparts and they are nothing like them, which is good. It's good to see a character straddle the line between good and evil like Fury because she isn't really good or evil, just committed to their cause, which can be worse. The other characters like Superman and Power Girl have a tenuous relationship at best which really hasn't been explained. The devotion Huntress gives to Batman is dangerously touching with a hint of too much devotion. 

The story seems to be progressing pretty well, but again, I feel it's going to end soon. The artwork was a little new and hadn't seen it before and honestly, it looked a little cartoonish to me. 7/10

Flash #4

The Flash must deal with new, multiple speedsters caused by an unknown entity. But he has some help as well. 

The story by Joshua Williamson is moving along nicely and smoothly and with the artwork by Neil Googe is a sight to behold. The way the characters flow within the Speed Force is really nice and Neil makes it work for the book. I look forward to more of them working together on future stories. 9/10  

Flintstones #2

The Flinstones is slowly becoming one of my favorite books. This most recent issue takes a stab at commercialism and it is hilarious. I love how the book took stabs at people obsessed with buying everything, which was labeled "crap", which itself was ingenious. It also took shots at religion and the whole vitamin scheme. I won't spoil it for you, but it was a really good read.

I love how the writer is taking shots at commercialism in such a nuanced way, it could fly over people. Fred seems kind of aware and it was funny when he freaked out when he saw the TV for the first time. Fred is just a simple person and even though he jacked up all muscular like most books, which I think is a mistake, you can tell the writer is trying to interject the old Fred from the cartoon. Pebbles make an appearance and it's hilarious how he's introduced and Barney has a little father-son bonding time. Again, it's funny and pokes fun at certain things but I won't give it away.

The art is very stylish and bright and all the vibrant colors give a good feel to the characters and everyone else. 

One last thing, it's a surprise at the end and it makes you appreciate the comic a little bit more, especially if you grew up watching the show. 9/10

Red Hood and the Outlaws #1

The Red Hood is back and he's going dark. The past comes back as well but not what you would think. 

I wonder how this book is going to perform with just Jason in the lead right now. It seems like they may add others, so we'll see. I like Jason when he has someone to bounce things off because it makes him more relatable and a little bit more likable as well. Until the book really gets going, you can't really get a good read on where the story is going either. Right now, it's been said but there is a vagueness to it. 7/10

Marvel

Darth Vader (2015-) #24

The penultimate issue! One more issue and the series is over but not Darth Vader's story. 

Has Vader been neutralized? What do you think?

I will keep saying it that this series has been one of the best series in the past 2 years and will be sadly missed. It's not easy to give Vader an essence of that makes you feel sorry for him as well as rooting for him. As the series progressed, it delved into most of the things we know about Vader and some things we don't.

The storyline coming out of Episode 4 is expanded and given flesh, so to speak. It shows how Vader is the powerhouse he is and not to be taken lightly. Even the recent Vader Down crossover shows what kind of power Vader really has. There have been other stories about Vader in the past, but a majority of them dealt with when he had just become Vader, so even though he was powerful, it was used more as a blunt instrument and not with such precision as now because Vader has had time o hone his skills. His arrogance pays off because he KNOWS he's is going to win and that's what makes him even more dangerous, As for Dr. Aphra, I really hope we see more of her as she makes for an interesting character. She knows she's dealing with the devil and knows the eventual penalty awaiting. The artwork is very bright and flows into every panel and it also tells the story written. We all know Vader will show up in other issues, it's just a matter of when. 9/10 

Deadpool and Mercs For Money #2

The Mercs are in it now. First, they got their collective butts handed to them by a teenage girl and now have to deal with Radioactive Man. 

The comic is a Slapstick, pardon the pun, of a book. The characters are all mercs but act like children sometimes. With Deadpool developing a conscious, it makes it hard for him to do the things he used to so willingly.

I'm not sure that the book works as stand alone book, considering it's a collection of misfits. At one time, most of these characters had their own books but all that has changed. I believe they work more as a limited series and even appearing in other books. I do like the art of the book even though it seems like it's all over the place, but that's what makes it work somewhat. I'm not sure the story works out as the whole bringing people in for experimentation thing is going to work out. 8/10

Old Man Logan (2016-) #10

Logan future and present collide and it gets bloody. Someone who Logan will eventually kill is here now and has Lady Deathstrike tied up, which is no easy task.

With the book ending soon, I wonder how they will actually do that. Will they send Logan back to the future with the knowledge he's acquired? Or will he go back and it be stripped from him?

The story is one that brings a lot of the previous series into it and it will be interesting. The art by Andrea Sorrentino is gritty but not really dark, It seems kind of close to Romita as if the artist was honoring him but not enough to copy his style. 8/10

Spider-Man 2099 (2015-) #13

A Civil War tie-in. Ulysses has a premonition of  something happening in the future and Miguel has to find out what. Plus a special appearance by a couple of 2099ers. 

I love how this and other books are connecting to the 2099 universe even though that line mostly failed. The story seems all over the place, though. Not sure how to get a bead on it. The artwork is fine and dark and bright at the same time, bouncing back and forth to 2099. 7/10

Spider-Man/Deadpool (2016-) #8

The bromance seems dead, doesn't it? Well considering Parker is mad about being killed, I could understand. The story jumps back in after the previous issues bouncing around everywhere. Glad it's back.

The dynamic between these two is a combination of witty banter and even more witty banter, with them getting even more aggressive. The villain is someone I've never seen so it's just a matter of time to when he's fully revealed. 

The relationship between these two is or was pretty solid until recently. I feel if that whole Deadpool killing Spidey hadn't been there, this would make a great comedic book. The current story seems like it will last another 3 or 4 issues before they move onto something else. 

Hopefully, the book will evolve into the great buddy book I hope it will be. 8/10