The Pick - October 27th

Holy hell, this is a HUGE week! Not only do we have three Blackest Night titles hitting shelves, but the long awaited Necrosha one-shot as well as at least two tie-ins to that! Besides that there is a swarm of new graphic novels and manga. It was a rough decision I had to make tonight, but one I'm happy with. Even with the new titles out, it's a reminder that going back to basics is always a good decision.

I'm making a new addition to the pick. If you scroll down, after each summary, I list the other titles out this week that you can read if you liked one of my picks. If you didn't, well...I really could give a damn. But I don't.

Enjoy, little minions!

1. Batman #692

Written & Drawn by Tony Daniel
Inks by Sandu Florea

After two Batman Reborn arcs under its belt, the Caped Crusader goes back to he who does it best. Tony Daniel, writer and artist of Battle for the Cowl returns to the signature title with an all new story. After last month's confusing cliff-hanger, Daniel leads us to just outside of Gotham where Batman is picking up the pieces of the False Faces. As it turns out, after a brief conversation between Two-Face and Black Mask in last months issue, we find out via a cameo of a scantily clad Selina Kyle that he's back at Devil's Square and up to no good.

Batman discovers that the Falcone family's youngest son has joined the criminal ranks of his father and siblings and is running a mysterious operation on land re-purchased from the government. There's a few comments that both Batman, Black Mask, and Mario Falcone make that leave you scratching your head. But just like he did before, Daniel leaves enough to make you want more. In addition to the great story-telling, his art is just as fantastic as ever... And I can't complain about the cheesecake of Catwoman since there's a nice amount of beefcake Dick Grayson to grin about.

Like Batman? Try:
Gotham City Sirens #5
Detective Comics Batwoman #858

2. World's Finest #1 (of 4)

Written by Sterling Gates
Art by Julian Lopez
Inks by Bit

Aside from a bit of confusing place-setting in the beginning, this turned out to be a lot better than I had first assumed! The title would suggest we are dealing with Superman/Batman, but since that's already taken, DC took a different route, bringing several characters from both franchises together. In this issue, we meet Christ Kent, Superman's adopted son and the new incarnation of Nightwing, who seeks out help from Red Robin Tim Drake.

The inclusion of The Penguin and Kryptonite Man only serve to pull you more into the issue, as it becomes apparent Penguin is attempting to auction off Nightwing's partner Flamebird. With their combined might, our superheroes managed to take the villain by surprise, thus ensuing Flamebird's safety. What's interesting is the end, when we find that Kryptonite Man has gone missing, only to end up in the surgery subject of a mysterious man.

The art is great, but nothing really baffling. I would say, however, that Lopez's pencils are incredibly accurate and gave way to even more daring inks. With two covers to choose from, it's really anyone's decision. But for a mini, this looks like it's going to be rather good!

Like World's Finest? Try:
Arkham Reborn #1

3. Necrosha One-Shot

Written by Craig Kyle & Christopher Yost
Art, Cover, & Variant by Clayton Crain

Aside from the  fact that this is Marvel's Blackest Night, this was a damn good read. With Selene getting her nasty little fingers on the T-O virus and using it to control her team of minions, she makes her way to the rumble that was once Genosha, renaming it Necrosha. As she takes a seat on her throne, the rest of the dead raise to do her bidding. Some begin a take-over of Utopia, others find that they need to finish what has already been started, and one hopes to change the future, but may have actually made things worse.

As a whole, this was pretty awesome. It takes a completely different road than BN, one that seems a little bit more foreboding and creepy. The art itself is pretty damn fantastic. My only argument against that is I think Crain draws his women with too-small heads. Aside from that, i love how they're using a single issue only to continue with other on-going titles. It can get a little confusing, but that's easily remedied so long as you get your hands on the little cardboard lists at your local comic book store.

Like Necrosha? Try
New Mutants #6
X-Force #21


That is is for this week... Like I said, it was hard picking what I liked best. After process of elimination from what I already reviewed and what was really just crap, I came down to these three guys. Check them out, kiddies!

-TCBC