Comic Proportions

Dark X-Men No. 1
Published by Marvel Comics. Written by Paul Cornell. Pencils by Leonard Kirk. Inks by Jay Leisten.

The Deal: Norman Osborn’s hand-picked team of mutant villains/anti-heroes posing as heroes investigate a strange and dangerous mutant entity.

The Verdict: Yes this book is superfluous and an unnecessary by-product of the whole “Dark Reign” story line, but — thanks to writer Paul Cornell and artist Leonard Kirk — the comic manages to be quite entertaining. You may remember Cornell and Kirk from their great run on the now-dead Captain Britain and MI13 comic; the duo has a knack for crafting hilarious dialogue, spot-on characterization and cinematic action sequences. That said, do you really need to but Dark X-Men? Probably not. But it’s a good read.

Reviewed materials provided by Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find: www.heroesonline.com.

Batman and Robin No. 6
Published by DC Comics. Written by Grant Morrison. Pencils by Philip Tan. Inks by Jonathan Glapion.

The Deal: Grant Morrison churns out another issue of his new Bat-book, which stars the new Batman (ex-Robin/Nightwing Dick Grayson) and the new Robin (Batman’s asshole bastard son).

The Verdict: WTF just happened? I read this issue, like, twice, and I have no idea what’s going on here. In other words, Morrison is doing what he’s known for — crafting weird and ambiguous superhero tales. The art is pretty horrendous in places, using heavy blacks to cover up flaws. I’m not feeling this issue one bit.

Reviewed materials provided by Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find: www.heroesonline.com.

Doctor Voodoo: Avenger of the Supernatural No. 2
Published by Marvel Comics. Written by Rick Remender. Art by Jefte Palo and Gabriel Hardman.

The Deal: It’s the second issue of Marvel’s new magic-centric monthly superhero comic book, starring the new “Sorcerer Supreme of Earth” — Doctor Voodoo (replacing Dr. Strange, who previously held that position).

The Verdict: I liked the first issue better, where the book’s protagonist went head-to-head with Dr. Doom and worked to help human beings with human problems in his medical clinic. This time around, Remender falls into the classic “magical superhero” trap by showing Dr. Voodoo use a number of ill-defined powers while he’s in a series of ill-defined situations. Those are the main reasons why Dr. Strange never really worked — take a guy who can do … what exactly? … and put him on some bizarre astral plane battling ectoplasmic yadda yadda yadda. Yeah. I liked the first issue better.

Reviewed materials provided by Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find: www.heroesonline.com.

Superman: World of New Krypton No. 9
Published by DC Comics. Written by Greg Rucka and James Robinson. Art by Pete Woods and Ron Randall.

The Deal: Superman’s adventures on the rescued planet of New Krypton continue.

The Verdict: This book is all political intrigue and machinations … and that’s all good, but where’s the wonder? I mean, here’s Superman’s chance to finally hang out with living, breathing Kryptonians — folks he figured he’d never meet — but he never, for a second, just basks in the wonder of it all. As a reader, that aspect of the book screams out every single issue. It’s interesting, but it’s missing heart.

Reviewed materials provided by Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find: www.heroesonline.com.

Armor Wars No. 1
Published by Marvel Comics (for its Ultimate line). Written by Warren Ellis. Penciled by Steve Kurth. Inks by Jeff Huet.

The Deal: The Ultimate Marvel Universe is still healing from the whole “Ultimatum” crisis; New York is in ruins and the global economy is in ruins (sounds familiar, eh?). In the midst of all this chaos, Tony Stark (aka Iron Man) returns to the Big Apple to retrieve some personal property and runs into two new players — one good and one bad.

The Verdict: I’m not the biggest fan of the Ultimate Universe (I didn’t read any issues of Ultimatum), but I do like the Ultimate version of Iron Man. The Ultimate Stark’s personality is less like the one found in the regular Marvel Universe (he’s a rather mopey dude) and more like Robert Downey Jr.’s take on the character in the movie — a fun drunk with loads of charm and great dialogue. And like Downey, Ultimate Stark carries the book, which features a pretty standard, straight-forward (yet exciting) plot. I’ve never seen Kurt’s art, but his work is good … sort a cross between Steve McNiven and Bryan Hitch. All in all, it’s an excellent read.

Reviewed materials provided by Heroes Aren’t Hard to Find: www.heroesonline.com.