Review- Queen/ Live At The Rainbow '74

Queen/ Live At The Rainbow '74 (Hollywood, 2014)

This is the holy grail, two soundboard recordings from 40 years ago. I bought the standard consumer edition 2 CD set, although there are a number of other configurations available (single CD, 4 LP set, Blu-Ray, DVD, etc.) Disc One is taken from the Queen II tour stop at the Rainbow in London, England in March of 1974. The band was on fire, with everything played punchier and rocking much harder than the recorded versions of those songs. While Queen thrived with studio magic they could cut the mustard live and go toe to toe with any heavyweight band of the era, even Led Zeppelin or Black Sabbath.

The track Guitar Solo would come to be known as part of Brighton Rock, as it is the guitar break from that song. It was already nearly fully formed here and would be recorded for the Sheer Heart Attack album later that summer. Why they broke up Son And Daughter into three separate tracks makes no sense. This solo fits neatly into the middle, but I guess if you really hate two and a half minute guitar solos you could hit skip and go right back into the song. They did the same thing with the song Drum Solo, splitting Keep Yourself Alive into three tracks. That one is even more asinine, as the drum part is merely a more fleshed out version of the fill toward the end of the recorded version and clocks in at around 30 seconds. This is repeated for both of these songs on Disc Two.

There are some non-album songs here, the encore Jailhouse Rock/ Stupid Cupid/ Be Bop A Lula medley and the B-side/1991 Queen II reissue bonus track See What A Fool I've Been. While the solos and reprises are given individual track numbers there are in reality only 12 songs here not counting recorded intro Procession. The set is split neatly with five songs off of each of their albums, the cover medley, and a B-side.

I have never seen Queen live and would have killed to be at this show, or any Queen show for that matter. Freddie Mercury was brilliantly playful with the way that he worked the crowd, all wink and no machismo like so many bands of the era. Roger Taylor kills it on drums and is criminally underrated. His and Brain May's backing vocals rule. This is an absolutely brilliant performance.

Disc Two was from their triumphant homecoming show at the same venue some eight months later. The band seemed more cocksure and seemed to put slightly less effort into impressing the audience, with their place in their hearts seemingly assured by this point. Tempos were slowed a pinch, being closer to the albums, while the then-new material off of Sheer Heart Attack was so different from the first two albums that the set didn't seem to flow quite as well. If I had to pick one show of the two I would go with the one on Disc One. Having said that, I would have been thrilled to witness the show captured live on Disc Two (Sides 5-8 for you vinyl people following at home). This era was the beginning of the shift that would turn Queen into a worldwide household name. One can only hope that this is the beginning of more archival live sets. I know that I would buy them all.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- For those of you who just walked in, this is the part where I dissect the packaging of a product. Those who buy mp3s and eBooks may be scratching their heads and thinking who cares, but to those of us who still value physical media this has some merit. The digipak has a trifold with a full hub for each disc. The booklet slides into the middle. This is a really nice package at this price point. 

Reviews- Free Comic Book Day offerings, Episode II

Free Comic Book Day offerings, Episode II

Free Comic Book Day 2014: Guardians Of The Galaxy #1 (Marvel, cover date May, 2014)

Bendis. Always Bendis. My 7 year old son was reading this but my wife confiscated it due to two swear words. I know, what am I doing letting my 7 year old read a comic book, right? These are sophisticated and for adults, man. And this is why the fanbase is shrinking and why endless reboots and gimmicks are the only thing propping this industry up on stilts. The fact that Bendis and Marvel slam anyone who speaks out about making their titles enjoyable to all ages further demonstrates why they don't get it. Childless adults join in the chorus of bashing anyone who speak out against this practice.

See, I am not pro-censorship; quite the opposite, but when you are aiming your property at children, and you are since you are slamming toys and tie-ins at them, then you have a certain responsibility to make that media accessible to and appropriate for them. If there are no new readers then they won't be old readers some day, Einstein. And what Brian Michael Bendis, Tom Brevoort, Joe Quesada and the rest of the clowns at Marvel don't get is that if parents won't let their kids read comics then those readers are lost. Lambast away, Brevoort, but the parents have the money, and if they decide that curse words in mainstream superhero comics are inappropriate then guess what? You lose, not them. There are plenty of other things vying for those dollars. I'm not going to be around forever...and when it comes to Bendis, I won't be around at all. My son enjoyed it, and that's the real shame, because I would have had no problem buying him this comic every month. Thanks to the reason listed above, my wife has seen to it that that ship has sailed.

I thought that the story was weak but did enjoy the artwork. There are two back-up features in this comic: The Thanos preview from the forthcoming graphic novel which might be interesting, and the Spider-Man preview for the Spider-Verse crossover, which looks craptastic.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 1.5 out of 5.

Rise Of The Magi #0 (Top Cow/Image, cover date May, 2014)

ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZzzzzzzzZzzzz.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 0.5 out of 5.

All You Need Is Kill/ Terra Formars split book (Haika Soru/ Viz Media, cover date May, 2014)

Viz Media is a Manga company, and since I am not big on Manga this didn't do much for me. For what it's worth, I liked Terra Formars more than I did All You Need Is Kill.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 1.75 out of 5.

Entropy FCBD (Epicenter Comics, cover date 2014)

This has a 22 page preview of the forthcoming Entropy series as well as two back up stories, Vegetable and Crosses. I found the back-up stories more entertaining than the main event.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 3.25 out of 5.

Bleeding Cool Magazine Free Comic Book Day 2014 (Avatar Press, cover date May, 2014)

I like magazines. I still subscribe to several even in this digital age, believe it or not. I spend too much time on gadgets and it is nice to break away from screens. Plus, I have an aversion to reading electronic gadgets on the toilet.

I do not rate magazines.

Free Comic Book Day: Project Black Sky (Dark Horse, cover date May, 2014)

Take one long defunct Golden Age hero (Captain Midnight), add one obscure yet fondly remembered by a handful of Silver Age fans character (Brain Boy) and you get Project Black Sky. It's a solid enough read, but there is no way on Earth that I am buying this. If someone wants to give me a copy I will review it, though.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Review- Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Marvel Studios, 2014)

Holy crow. This might just beat out The Avengers as the most satisfying comic book movie adaptation ever made. Normally my eye twitches with a sharp stabbing pain behind it as I watch these films, battling to retain control of myself. I almost always want to stand up and shout at the screen Wrong! Wrong! How can you idiots greenlight this crap! Does no one on staff actually read comic books? So on and so forth. My only gripes with this movie are the Chevrolet product placement and one or two edits. Seriously, that's all that I have! This movie fricking rocks.

I have been using this product. It has helped my writing tremendously. 

Seeing several scenes from the comics come to life on the screen was incredible. Scenes such as the Batroc boat hijacking from the Roger Stern and John Byrne run and countless scenes from the Ed Bruabker run. Things that once lived only in my imagination brought to life.

Everything is perfect. On the action scale this is an “amps to 11” affair. If you have not yet seen this film, then you may want to exit this review right now, because I am going to be fairly liberal with the SPOILERS from here on out. Cap fights Batroc The Leaper! Arnim Zola lives! Stephen Strange (a/k/a Doctor Strange) is mentioned! Sharon Carter, Agent 13 is revealed! Hydra! Fucking Hydra!!! Cut off one head and two more shall take its place! The Winter Soldier is done to perfection! The Falcon is awesome! Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch are in the first of the two post-credits scenes! Christ, what more could anybody want out of one film? Dissing this movie because it has too much action is like not liking a song because it rocks too much or not linking an orgasm because it lasts too long. There is something really, really wrong with you if this movie doesn't rock your socks off.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

Review- John Carpenter's Asylum #5

John Carpenter's Asylum #5 (Storm King, 2014)

Writers: Bruce Jones with Sandy King and Trent Olsen

Artist: Leonardo Manco

Colorist: Kinsun Loh

A mere seven weeks since issue four was released comes the latest installment of John Carpenter's Asylum. Jackson's demon is playing a game of demonic possession leapfrog with Daniel Beckett, Father Leone, and Detective Duran. This being a Horror comic, it should come as no surprise that someone in the cast could meet an untimely end, and yet there you have it. Someone does die...only I won't tell you who. I was kind of shocked by it, and there is a great sequence where it happens. I can't provide any images this time out because most of them would tip the hand that this issue holds. Sorry to be so vague, but this is one that you will have to read for yourself.

The flashback sequence is incredibly effective, with the coloring (or lack thereof) giving it a grainy old film stock quality. Leonardo Manco and Kinsun Loh have once again outdone themselves. Their “camera angles” are more effective than most films these days. The edits that snap in your mind are more visceral than they would be in any movie. I have to admit that I would love to see this brought to life on a screen at some point, but for now I am thrilled that it is the exclusively in comic book medium. The quality hasn't budged an inch in five issues. I can't wait for the next issue!

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

Review- John Carpenter's Asylum #4

John Carpenter's Asylum #4 (Storm King, no cover date. Copyright 2013 even though issue wasn't released until February 12, 2014.)

Writers: Bruce Jones with Sandy King and Trent Olsen

Artist: Leonardo Manco

Colorist: Kinsun Loh

Evil is real and it is everywhere. Ancient evils, forgotten evils. Why, even the fate of this very issue was halted by evil. This issue was scheduled for release the day before Thanksgiving, but was derailed by Hurricane Haiyan and the resulting health problems with colorist Kinsun Loh. Then the holidays, which caused the printer and Diamond Comics Distributors to dally. Then the flipping Polar Vortex, which snarled many things in America. Finally, finally, I got the issue in my hands this week. To use an old Alan Moore-ism, no one in five years' time will care that issue 4 was three months late, they will only care if issue 4 was good. And it is.

The battle between good and evil continues to heat up, with Father Leone seemingly the only one even remotely prepared to do battle with it. As glimpses of Hell creep into the mind of Father Beckett you can almost feel the heat, as his possession grows more complete. This series remains a great read, and I only hope that I won't have to wait three months until the next issue. 

 

There is an almost cinematic quality to the framing in many of the scenes in this issue, courtesy of artist Leonardo Manco. You can almost feel the whiplash edits and imagine a nanosecond camera angle change, something all the more impressive when you consider that these are static images on a page. I really do feel that comic books are the ultimate storytelling medium. You have the visuals of a movie combined with the depth of a book. I might be what you would call biased. Your mileage may vary.

Why can tiny Storm King sell a comic for $3.99 with heavy duty paper and an even heavier cover with no advertisements while Marvel and DC sell comics with cheaper paper (and...shudder...self covers) and the comic being one third ads for the same price? I know that I'd rather drop four bucks on this than anything either one are doing these days.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

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Review- The Black Crowes w/The Blind Boys of Alabama @ Terminal 5 in New York City, NY, on October 26, 2013

The Black Crowes w/The Blind Boys of Alabama @ Terminal 5 in New York City, NY, on October 26, 2013.

My wife and I celebrated 10 years of marriage with a weekend trip to New York, with the main event being The Black Crowes. Terminal 5 is a nondescript building without so much as a marquee on it. Indeed, if not for seeing the line going in, one wouldn't even know it was a concert hall. New York's infamous Hell's Kitchen didn't scare me one bit...at least the watered down 21^st century version that I saw. By Detroit standards it was Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.

The venue is a narrow, cavernous beast with three levels. We were really close, being 9-10 rows from the stage if there were seats. The sound was incredible from where we were. I normally like to poke around venues and see how it sounds in different spots, but we got there before the openers and didn't want to lose our spot. Various Yelp users seem to hate the place, citing sound quality as the #1 complaint. It was great from where we were...in the front. This place holds 3,000 people, and I did walk around all three floors when we arrived. Looks like the third floor would blow if you were stuck up there.

This was my third Crowes show this year, and like the one we caught in August, they opened with Under A Mountain. I've got to say that the fellas were on fire right out of the gate. Chris was wearing a Neil Young and Crazy Horse ¾ sleeve baseball jersey with a black body and white sleeves. Awesome. Gone was a great one to hear live, as I've never heard them play it before. Exit...shit, what can you say other than wow? I mean, seriously, if you want to dig deep, then this is holy grail shit. I have this one on the bootleg from the Tall sessions, but I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined that they would dust this off live. Never. It's a really hard funk type of song that I can't figure out why they've never used on an album before. 

No Use Lying was The Crowes at their darkest live. The eerie guitar effect on the intro, the red lights...Chris looked and sounded positively evil, like some evil wizard. He sounded incredible tonight, easily his best vocal performance out of however many Crowes/solo shows I've been to. His voice was clean and he was singing high with no cracks or clipping notes. Everyone was singing good tonight, and the band was mighty fierce. My favorite Crowes gig has always been the February 1999 show at the State Theatre in Detroit, and this was really close to matching it. 

Black Moon Creeping was up next. Virtue And Vice is always great to hear live. By Your Side is an underrated album that seems to be overlooked live, so I was happy to hear it. Again, Chris Robinson's vocals were great. He was really working the stage tonight. He always does, but he was like a caged panther or something, really into it. The whole band seemed really, really into it. They seemed to have tapped into something really cool this year and it bums me out that they are going back on hiatus after this tour wraps in December. I would love to hear a new album with their spirits this high.

They did Sister Luck at the August Detroit area show, and this was only the second time that I have heard them do this one live. Everything about tonight had a point, like the band was really going for the throat. Even the jammy intro to Thorn In My Pride had a sense of urgency to it. Whatever it was that they were into tonight, bottle that shit up. It worked. 

Nonfiction is always done in different arrangements live, and I've seen it go from cool to maddeningly dull. Tonight's version was cool. Isn't It About Time was tonight's Rich Robinson lead vocal spot cover tune. Then we got Soul Singing. The crowd loves it. My wife loves it. Obviously the band loves it, because I can't get away from it live. It is the only song in their entire catalog that I would classify as getting on my nerves. I can't put my finger on why, but I just can't dig on this song. It has become a running gag between my wife and I whenever they launch into it. 

Sting Me, Twice As Hard, and the Hard To Handle/Hush/Hard To Handle medley gave the crowd the one-two-three punch that the band has been doing for this tour. The songs change every night, but they tend to do a few songs in a row, usually singles, to bring it home for the more casual fans in the crowd. I can dig it.

The encore was monumental. I love every album that the band has done, and dig hearing stuff live from all of them. I knew something was up when Chris slung a guitar around his neck. He was a surprisingly good lead player on Wee Who See The Deep. While that song was great, the next song is what really blew my mind. The Led Zeppelin B-side Hey, Hey What Can I Do capped off a great night. My wife was bummed that we didn't get Remedy, but I can live with that tradeoff. Seriously, go back and peek at that setlist and tell me you wouldn't have been happy with this show.

Like the other two shows that I caught on this tour, they played a tight 2 hour set that left the crowd begging for more. I've seen The Crowes do three plus hour shows that have left the audience begging for mercy. Better to leave everyone wanting more. I'm bummed that this is it for who knows how long. Two years? Ten years? Hopefully sooner than later. 

On the walk back to our hotel room we saw the work crew put up the Christmas decorations at Radio City Music Hall. We walked by it on the way to the show and none of that stuff was up yet. Crazy. My Mom always wanted to see this city, especially Radio City Music Hall. It kind of bummed me out but we had a great trip overall. 

Review- John Carpenter's Asylum #3

John Carpenter's Asylum #3 (Storm King, 2013; no cover date- released on October 9, 2013)

Writer: Bruce Jones

Artist: Leonardo Manco

Colorist: Kinsun Loh

To quote Keanu Reeves in The Matrix: WHOAH. This series hasn't exactly wasted a lot of time in the first two issues, but things really get moving this month. Not only does it hit the fan like a bloody stump, but it gets shredded and splatters everywhere. Detective Duran and Father Beckett find themselves in way over their heads, and I can't see them getting out of this mess.

Everything is high quality as usual for this series. Leonardo Manco and Kinsun Loh are beasts. Every panel is a camera angle, and every panel is perfect. I also have to give mad props to letterer Janice Chiang. I admittedly loathed her style in the '80s and '90s, but she has truly perfected her craft here. Lettering is one of those subtle things that can make or break a story. You might not think that something so seemingly insignificant could be as important as the words or the brushstrokes, but you would be wrong. It can make the difference between being readable and being really enjoyable. Bravo!

This title is among the best on the stands today, and is one of the few titles so compelling that I must read it every month as opposed to waiting for the trade...which I will also buy if and when it is released.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 5 out of 5.

Review- Wolfman Band/ The Go/ Redd Kross @ PJ's Lager House on Friday, April 12, 2013 in Detroit, MI

Wolfman Band/ The Go/ Redd Kross @ PJ's Lager House on Friday, April 12, 2013 in Detroit, MI

PJ's Lager House is a fascinating place. The building itself is over 100 years old and it has that awesome ceiling work from the 1930s found in many buildings in Detroit. Tonight was sold out, and the body heat makes things heat up pretty quick in there. Those with a fear of rubbing elbows with strangers would do well to stay away. Those of us who like stiff drinks and Rock and Roll quickly feel right at home. 

I'm going to let you in on a little secret: I adore werewolves. Sure, I likes my vampires, but only the old school ones, not those Twilight ones. Werewolves are untainted by poseurs and soccer moms. One of my dreams is to see the '70s Horror comic book Werewolf By Night made into a movie. Until then, I have the Wolfman Band. Not one werewolf, but an entire band of werewolves. This made perfect sense to me for some reason. I mean, who wouldn't enjoy watching werewolves play instruments and sing songs? I recognized snippets of songs played, such as Is It My Body? by Alice Cooper. If the band had offered shirts with werewolves on them for sale they probably would have gotten a drunken T-shirt purchase out of me by the time they were done. 

It's been years since The Go played a show for the general populace of Detroit. While many in the building were here to see headliners Redd Kross, my wife and I came for The Go. My kids are early risers and so I have become accustomed to going to bed early. Luckily I was off today and managed to get a good nap in so I could go the long haul. They came on around 11 and played for roughly 30 minutes, with everything played tonight coming off of the new album Fiesta. The songs were all played at 78 speed with little or no breaks between them. Voices Rant On seamlessly shifted gears into Beyond the Beyond, ditto Live Inside A Hole and So Let's Pinch. It Always Happens To You was a lot of fun live. I'm A Dot In Place seemed to lose it's snarl when sped up but was still very cool. I love the lyric Girl I'll never live without it, try it now you'll dream about it. 

The Go is once again a five piece, and I noticed that they also had a new drummer. I'm thinking that the new guitarist and bass player were from Magic Jake and the Power Crystals but I am not certain.

For Me Alone and Can't Rely On It were both great at 78 speed. The latter lost some of it's bubblegum sound at that tempo but still worked. Tease My Ears is one of my favorites off of the new album. Ya Gimme That Feelin' was my favorite of the night, hitting that magical hypnotic space in the brain that makes you involuntarily move to it. I've even watched my 3 year old daughter do it. In The Go's home dimension on Parallel Earth, the band appeared on an episode of the '60s Batman TV series. They use the song's hypnotic groove to entrance people, making them dance uncontrollably and commit crimes while they are helpless. They played pied piper villains that crash some society ball, with all of the fat cats dropping their watches and jewelry into sacks as the band plays the song while wearing bandit eye masks and black and white striped shirts. Hilarity ensues as Batman and Robin crash the scene and are forced to do the Batusi while The Go steal the Batmobile. 

During Dirty Room I noticed that the horn parts were played as twin harmonies on guitar. They sounded like the original Alice Cooper band's harmonies when played that way. After Last To Know Bobby Harlow shouted “Fiesta!” (as heard on the opening of the LP) and that was it. I wanted more more more but them's the breaks. It's better to be left begging for more than screaming for mercy at a show's length.

I hung out for a while, catching the first few songs by Redd Kross. They were fast and punchy and the kids seemed to love them. By kids I mean folks my age and older. There were many an old school Punk in the room, crawling out of the woodwork and out from under rocks to catch the band's first Detroit gig since 1997. One guy was even carrying around his personalized license plate that read RDKRSS or something similar.

My wife was tired because she worked, and so we ended up leaving during them. The room was so packed that we couldn't see it very well anyways. I did feel bad leaving during them, because I know how many folks were unable to get tickets to this show. It sold out pretty quick.

Review- Morbius The Living Vampire #3

Morbius The Living Vampire #3 (Marvel, cover date May, 2013)

Writer: Joe Keatinge

Artist: Richard Elson

Color Artist: Antonio Fabela

It is tough following monthly comics. I have no idea how I did it last century. I've been all about collected editions since I returned to the hobby a decade or so ago, and Morbius marks the first time that I've followed a series in the single issue periodical format since 1989/1990. I'm convinced that the one extra sale from me will save the book from cancellation, or so my wishful thinking goes. Such is my love for this character and my desire to see this series continue ad infinitum. The 5 week wait between issues 2 and 3 was agonizing.

Things go from bad to worse for our dear Dr. Michael Morbius. While initially trying to stay out of everyone's way, he ends up trying to help out and makes things worse, both for himself and everyone around him. Having not fed for days, he gave in to his hunger and attacked the Brownsville crime boss, Noah St. Germain. Now the people whom he was trying to help are afraid of him because he's a vampire, and Noah's girlfriend Rochelle shoots him through the neck because he attacked her boyfriend. 

Morbius is taken captive but manages to talk his way out of torture by saying he can save St. Germain. Rochelle has one of her boys tailing Becky and Henry (the people Morbius is trying to help) and has orders to kill them if her boyfriend doesn't get saved by Morbius. Morbius is a medical doctor, and try as he might too much blood has been lost and too much time has passed. Morbius might be fast with those hollow bones, but he's not faster than a cellphone.

I feel that this will read a lot better in a trade paperback with the entire story in front of you. As an individual issue it is very good but not great. This is not a slight against Joe Keatinge's writing, Richard Elson artwork, or Antonio Fabela color art; they are all wonderful and top notch. I guess that I've gotten so used to having a complete arc in front of me when I sit down that it is hard for me to digest the monthly serial. Like Morbius needing to feed, I will be scratching at my arms and head, twitching and shaking while waiting for my next fix of this title.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I am used to the self covers now. I am not fond of them but am used to them. 

There are 20 pages of story, an introduction page and a letters page.

Paper rating: 4 out of 5. The paper used in modern comic books is way better than the pulp paper that everyone seems to pine away for.

Review: Free Comic Book Day 2012 offerings

Free Comic Book Day 2012 comic books

Here's what I thought of this year's offerings.

Voltron Force: Shelter From The Storm (Viz Media)

Writer: Brian Smith

Artist: Jacob Chabot

While this is clearly aimed at children who watch the animated series, I enjoyed this quite a bit. Not enough for me to buy it, but I would not hesitate to get this for my son if he knew who the heck Voltron was.

Avengers: Age of Ultron 0.1 (Marvel)

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis

Artist: Bryan Hitch (pencils) and Paul Neary (inks)

Wow, this is actually pretty damn good for Bendis. I only winced once at his dialogue. This is a huge set-up issue for the Age of Ultron arc, and it looks great. Hitch's artwork is tremendous. I am looking forward to reading a Bendis book, believe it or not. I have several in my backlog to get through first, so maybe I should get cracking. Now don't go thinking that I have gone all soft on Bendis or anything. The vast majority of his stuff that I've read has sucked. It's just that I feel that if I am quick to condemn his shoddy work, then I must be equally quick to praise his successes. Credit where credit is due and stuff.

DC: The New 52 #1 (DC)

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Jim Lee and others.

This is a sampler of the various genres of the New 52, and aside from the first 3-4 page story, I am uninterested in any of it. What can I say? I'm more of a Marvel guy.

Spider-Man: Season One (Marvel)

Writer: Cullen Bunn

Artist: Neil Edwards

So Ultimate Spider-Man isn't good enough for the Millennials? How many reboots and re-tellings of Spider-Man's origin do we need? This is okay for what it is, but I'll stick with Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's origin story, thank you very much.

Mouse Guard, Labrynth, And Other Stories (Archaia)

Writers: David Petersen and others.

Artists: David Petersen and others.

In what is clearly the most elaborate Free Comic Book Day item ever, Petersen and Archaia give us this digest sized hardcover with a sampling of the various titles in the line. This must have cost them a fortune, as it even has sewn binding. I enjoyed The Mouse Guard story but have been reluctant to buy it for fear of being sucked into still another title.

The Hypernaturals (Boom)

Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning

Artists: Brad Walker, Tom Derenick, and Mark Irwin

The future, where heroes are everywhere riff recycled so many times that it's almost fresh. Almost.

Worlds of Aspen 2012 #1 (Aspen)

Nothing here makes me want to buy anything by this company. Not my cup of tea.

Image 20 (Image)

Revival by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton has piqued my interest. I'll be in for the eventual collected edition. Near Death seems okay, but I can already tell that if I buy it that I will only read it once and then dump it on eBay in one of my purgings, so I will save myself time and money and just borrow it from a friend or the library.

Valiant 2012 (Valiant)

This is very polished stuff. I can appreciate fine craftsmanship, even if the stories are not what I am looking for. I wasn't around for their first pass 20 years ago, so I have no nostalgic longing to see these concepts reworked for the 21^st century.

Transformers Regeneration One #80.5 (IDW)

Writer: Simon Furman

Artists: Andrew Wildman (pencils) and Stephen Baskerville (inker)

Much like what IDW has done by bringing back Larry Hama on G.I. Joe, IDW has brought back the creative team for the back half of the Marvel run, continuing the Marvel continuity and numbering from the '80/90s. I enjoyed this quite a bit, and will try to resist the urge to buy this. Try to.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Vertigo/DC)

Adaptation of Stieg Larsson's novel by Denise Mina

Artists: Leonardo Manco and Andrea Mutti

This seems interesting. This genre isn't really my cup of tea, but Manco's artwork makes this more appealing to me. I passed this on to my wife, who is a huge fan of the books. I might check this out or, better yet, buy it for her and read her copy.

Also picked up Dinosaurs Vs. Aliens (Liquid; not pictured above) for a friend, and read it. While it is written by Grant Morrison and lushly illustrated, I will be passing on it. It's lame.

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