I had a pretty mixed week. The Book of the Week was Superman Confidential #5. The Shit Book of the Week was Omega Flight #4. I gave out 3 "F"s this week. I normally give out 1. I chose Omega Flight amongst all of them because I had the highest hopes for it initially. The Publisher of the Week was DC.

DC
DC had a really great week. I had 7 DC books and they had an average directly between A- and A. They were the Publisher of the Week and had the Book of the Week in Superman Confidential #5.

Superman Confidential #5 - How can you go wrong with Darwyn Cooke and Tim Sale? Well? I'm waiting for an answer. In truth, I don't think that it's possible. This is awesome. It's Superman and it's a story about Kryptonite. On paper, I shouldn't give a shit. The thing is though, Cooke and Sale are doing a hell of a job with it. Sale's pencils are some of my favorite out there right now and Cooke's writing is spectacular. Cooke has actually made Superman sympathetic and likeable to me. We've discussed Superman a lot around here, and I always end up at some approximation of "I don't like him. He's too powerful and he's a douche." In this though, he learns of his vulnerability to Kryptonite and it actually makes him happy that he could possibly die because it makes him feel more human and makes his life feel more precious. That's powerful stuff and I applaud Cooke for finding an angle that I'm actually interested in. I suppose that this proves that my usual disdain for Superman is more disdain for the writers that have written him and the stories that they've chosen to tell.

Cooke's writing goodness doesn't stop with the story or dialogue either. The narratives are also fantastic. One example from this issue would be: "Above it all stands Gallo, a dark prince in a mad kingdom." This statement wrapped his also impressive background narration about Las Vegas. It worked flawlessly. It would seem that some writers plot well, some write narrative descriptions well, and some write dialogue well. The best can do all three of these things. Cooke is such a writer.

I've got one more "Cooke is amazing" example for you. Ma Kent is telling Superman that she worries about him but that it worth it. She says this:

"Of course I worry for you. I'm your mother. But I'm so proud of you. I see the good that you do. And that all seems worth one old woman's worry."

How fucking good is that! Wonderful indeed.

I don't want to sell Sale short here (heh). It's just easier for me to go on about Cooke's talents than it is for me to do the same for Sale's. Sale has a unique and unbelievably excellent style. The comic book industry would do well for itself to find a way to get more work out of him. Maybe they make a deal with someone to add hours to the day????? Satan? Anyone? Who's coming with me? Ah, nevermind. A+

Green Arrow Year One #1 - This was really good. I've been very excited for this book and it delivered. There were some things that I was slightly annoyed by in terms of timeline (example: stealth bomber). Otherwise though, it was very good. I can't wait to see where this goes. I love Jock's art. It was fantastic. A-

Countdown #42 - This was really good. I'm glad that I'm reading it. I'm going to go through it point by point as I have nearly every week so far. It may seem that I like it less than I say that I do. This isn't the case. I don't hate anything about it. I just feel like there are opportunities for it to be better.

I was glad to see the Rogues stuff. I liked it.

I liked the Mary Marvel stuff as I always do but I am beginning to wish that they were doing something bigger with her. A team-up with the Riddler is kind of petty. I realize though that it is early.

The stuff with Holly Robinson is a bit better I guess. I've never really warmed up to this storyline. The whole Harley Quinn as an Amazon thing is not really to my liking.

I love the Jason Todd/Donna Troy/Monitor Jim story. I honestly wish that it got more pages each week. Ideally, Monitor Jim would've had a bit more dialogue. The guys they talked to about Ray Palmer were kind of annoying.

Karate Kid - now there's a guy that I never want to see again. He is the only thing that I come close to hating in all of this. I just don't care.

The Jimmy Olsen stuff is either becoming more palatable or the reduction in pages devoted to it is serving it well. Snarky? never

The History of the Multiverse backup was cool again. I like that DC is doing this and that they did expository backstories in 52. It makes it easier to stay abreast of all of the history.

The art was probably better than it has been yet.

One last thing, the Ball Park/Mad Magazine ad is the most annoying advertisement in the history of advertising. B+

Green Lantern #21 - This was really good. I'm actually thinking of going back and reading some Green Lantern. That being said, I don't like any of them but Hal. There were two or three distinct moments in the book when I wanted to kick Guy Gardner in the face. The art was cool. Yaaay Sinestro Corps War! A

JSA #7 - This was really cool. Nearly all of the suck of the Lightning Saga is gone. There was the small Superman and Starman thing that shot out from it, but it wasn't too bad. I'd say that JSA is back. Citizen Steel is cool. I'm really interested in his story. I'm not sure that I even mind that he's the 715th member of the team. The art was good. A

Fables #63 - This was good. It was more preparation for the coming war. It's all still setup for the big collision. B+

DMZ #21 - This was really good. It consistently delivers every month. I won't even consider reading it in trade. A

Marvel
Marvel had a terrible week with a C- average. They had the Shit Book of the Week in Omega Flight #4.

Deadpool GLI Summer Fun Spectacular - Well, "Spectacular" was the right word for this. I nearly didn't buy this because it was the GLI and I wasn't all that interested. I am really glad that I did. It was hysterical and silly. I genuinely can't recall having as much fun reading a comic in a while. On the art front, some of it was pretty bad. This one shot had 4 fun stories for under $4. nice. The best part was getting to see Deadpool without PikaCable. A

New Avengers #32 - This story really good. I'm excited for the whole Skrull thing now which is a complete turnabout in my opinion.

The art blows though. I know people like it but there were several pages during the crash where I couldn't even make out what was going on. I know its a plane crash and it's suppossed to be confusing but a little clarity never killed anyone. C

Nova #4 - This was cool. I enjoyed it. I'm interested in seeing where this goes next. That alone says something about the high quality level of the book. This isn't a story written for "my tastes", at least not on paper. B

Omega Flight #4 - So this was not so good. Ok, let's not mince words - it sucked. hard. I spent most of the book questioning why I was reading it. It left me with questions and pissy comments. Here they go:
1) Is the word 'canuck' a slur? I always thought that it was. I'm hoping that one of the Canadians around here can set me straight. If it is, why is Marvel using it in their books?
2) What's up with Sasquatch? I can't even take him seriously. Every single time he's on panel I laugh. He looks like he was assembled from hair removed from bathtub drains all over Canada. Is he indeed the Pube Monster?
3) What the fuck? Demons? Seriously? Were all of the enchanted polar bears being held back by editorial?
4) I was really excited for this book when it was announced. It has turned out to be unfounded excitement. I am sad for you Canada. You may have universal healthcare, but Omega Flight REALLY sucks. (there should be like 10,000 smilies here - don't take it personal)

Ick. F

Ultimate X-Men #84 - This was better than it has been. Overall though, Kirkman's run has been disappointing. I'm either becoming tired of the X-Men or I'm becoming tired of bad X-Men stories. Sadly, there hasn't been too much difference in either of those options lately. D+

WWH Gamma Corps #1 - Yeah, I know that it's my fault for buying it. This was horrid and from now on I'm only reading WWH, IH, and Front Lines (the first one was good). Mess from top to bottom. The character designs for the members of the Gamma Corps are some of the worst I've ever seen (that Rob Leifeld didn't do). F

X-Factor #21 - This was really good. I like it nearly every month. The Endangered Species backup was horrid. A

Anita Blake something something #1 - Total piece of shit. I'm never reading any Anita Blake stuff again. I fell asleep twice reading it. F