Category Mike Logsdon

Mar 26 2013

Invincible 101

invincible 101 Today, Mikyzptlk and Zach are discussing Invincible 101, originally released March 20th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: The “One Hundred and 1st Issue” of Invincible is upon us and series creator Robert Kirkman is clearly just as excited about his next 100 issues as he was with his first 100. While the events of the previous story arc are still weighing over the heads of our main characters, Kirkman delivers with new and interesting shifts in the status quo for Invincible and his supporting cast. Continue reading →

Mar 26 2013

Deadpool 6

deadpool 6

Today, Michael and Ethan are discussing Deadpool 6, originally released March 20th, 2013.

Michael: Do you prefer read something that’s hit-or-miss but bold? Or something that’s consistently at the high-end of mediocre. I’ve always preferred the former – The Kids in the Hall is one of my favorite shows of all time, but I’ll readily admit to roughly forty percent of the series being unwatchable. If you work too tightly or literally within the genre, everyone’s bored and everything you’ve said been’s said a million times and we hate you. If you play too loosely the structure or assume to much about our shared context, everyone get’s uncomfortable and the word “why” tends to get thrown around. Deadpool #6, the final issue in the arc, mostly hits the sweet spot for an irreverent comedic comic. Brian Posehn falters only when he veers to far into the hyper-referential discombobu-zone, but considering that so many “funny” comics just are criminally lame, even Deadpool’s missteps are a treat!
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Mar 22 2013

Justice League of America 2

JLA 2

Today, Mikyzptlk and Michael are discussing Justice League of America 2, originally released March 20th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: Motivations, we’ve all got them. It’s what drives us to do whatever it is that we do. Geoff Johns is intent on letting us in on what drives his characters in his latest series. Not only that, but it seems that he’s using these motivations to drive the story forward. That leaves us with yet another issue that is mostly a bunch of characters yammering on. Fortunately, what they are yammering on about is fairly interesting, and the story that’s unfolding is getting more intriguing by the page.

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Mar 18 2013

Fantastic Four 5

fantastic four 5

Today, Mikyzptlk and Jack are discussing Fantastic Four 5, originally released March 13th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: Ah families, they come is all shapes and sizes, but they all have one thing in common. At the end of the day, they’ll always have your back. The Fantastic Four have always been Marvel’s First Family. Series writer, Matt Fraction, makes sure to keep that in mind as we go into issue 5. But how exactly does a family of space faring superheroes interact with one another and work out their problems? As it turns out, the same way that everyone else does.

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Mar 14 2013

Batman 18

batman 18Today, Mikyzptlk and Scott are discussing Batman 18, originally released March 13th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: The death of a loved one is something that is incredible hard to face. It’s also got to be something incredibly hard to write about, especially when you have to do so in a superhero comic where action and adventure is normally the name of the game. With the recent death of Robin The Boy Wonder, the Bat-writers have been tasked to deal with his death in their own way. Scott Snyder manages not only to continue the story of his new character Harper Row, but seamlessly and organically ties her story into the death of young Damian Wayne.

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Mar 12 2013

Superman 17

Alternating Currents: Superman 17, Drew and Mikyzptlk

Today, Drew and Mikyzptlk are discussing Superman 17, originally released March 6th, 2013. This issue is part of the H’el on Earth crossover event. Click here for complete H’el on Earth coverage.

Drew: Last month, Patrick compared Superman 16 to a joke with an aborted punchline — the entire issue was spent building towards a payoff that simply evaporated when we finally arrived. Superman himself has a very similar experience in Superman 17, when he comes face to face with the Oracle, who shows Superman a confusing series of images, but disappears before giving any explanation. It’s a frustrating experience for Clark, one that very pointedly reflects my reactions to both this issue, and the H’el on Earth event as a whole. Continue reading →

Mar 8 2013

Swamp Thing 18

swamp thing 18 ROT

Today, Shelby and Scott are discussing Swamp Thing 18, originally released March 6th, 2013. This issue is part of the RotWorld crossover event. Click here for complete RotWorld coverage. 

Shelby: I’m going to be honest with you all: I’m at a loss, here. I’m not sure where to begin. Swamp Thing has been one of my favorite titles since I picked it up around issue 6. Scott Snyder’s Alec Holland is a conflicted man, trying to find his place in the world, but ultimately following his heart. Yanick Paquette’s art is horrifyingly beautiful, so beautiful I was inspired to permanently ink it into my skin. Add a couple star-crossed lovers, disgusting zombie creatures, and the destruction of the DC universe, and you’ve got something pretty special on your hands. This issue marks the end of Rotworld, the end of Snyder and Paquette’s work on the title, and the fates of Abby and Alec; it’s no wonder I’m feeling a little bittersweet about this write-up.  Continue reading →

Mar 7 2013

Green Lantern 18

green lantern 18 wrath

Today, Mikyzptlk and Patrick are discussing Green Lantern 18, originally released March 6th, 2013. This issue is part of the Wrath of the First Lantern crossover event. Click here for our First Lantern coverage. 

Mikyzptlk: One of my favorite movies of all time is The Shawshank Redeption where Andy Dufresne is convicted of murders he did not commit. He spends twenty years in prison suffering one horrible thing after another until he decides he’s had enough. He no longer wants to suffer but knows that the only way to escape said suffering is to endure even more of it. He ends up crawling through the sewage pipe to escape, but on the other side finds freedom and a new life. I couldn’t help but think about Andy while reading the conclusion to Green Lantern 18 as Hal finds himself in similar situation. While Hal may not have to crawl through a river of shit to escape, his path to freedom may be even worse.

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Mar 6 2013

Talon 5

talon 5

Today, Shelby and Mikyzptlk are discussing Talon 5, originally released February 27th, 2013. 

Shelby: Anytime there’s some sort of big upheaval, you usually here the phrase “a return to normalcy” bandied about. When some serious shit goes down, we the people just want things to go back to the way they were before everything went wrong. Unfortunately, sometimes there’s just no going back, as proven by the history of the phrase itself; it was first used by Warren Harding in reference to World War I. Instead of the return to normalcy he was looking for, we got the Great Depression and World War II. So, what do you do when, try as you might, there’s just no going back to normalcy? Continue reading →

Mar 1 2013

Batman Incorporated 8

batman inc 8

Today, Mikyzptlk and Drew are discussing the Batman Incorporated 8, originally released February 27th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: Spoiler Alert. Hahaha, just kidding. Fuck you very much, internet. Alright, now that I’ve gotten that out of my system–Seriously, couldn’t you have just kept your mouth shut for a few more days?!? Okay, it’s okay, I’m all better now. As I write this, I’ve just finished reading issue 8 of Grant Morrison’s Batman, Inc. and I’m still not quite sure what to make of things. We all know by now that Damian “The Boy Wonder” is dead. And though I have some wild theories that say he’s not actually dead, the issue leaves us with that conclusion. Grant Morrison has stated (a bit earlier than he should have mind you) what the death of Damian means in the greater sense of the themes he was presenting us with, but I’d like to focus on the character of young Damian and what his death means in the context of the world in which these characters live. I’ll leave the heavy lifting to Drew.  Continue reading →