Welcome to a brand new feature on Multiversity Comics! Once a month at the end of the month we are going to put together a wrap up of all the hits and misses of comics of that month. We’ll go over what we think is the best and worst and possibly provide you with what you missed. It should be pretty fun. So join me, your host with the most, as I provide to you the first ever This Month In Comics!
BEST BOOK OF THE MONTH: Adventure Comics #1
I don’t think I can rave enough about how much I loved this title. I bought both the regular edition and the variant, and I tell every person I know to read it, even those who aren’t big comic fans. I make no secret of the fact that I love Connor Kent and that I think that he’s better than Superman, and I believe that this series shows a great deal of promise. The artwork in the issue is phenomenal (that image above is the wallpaper to my computer) and the writing really connects you to Connor. All around A+++. I’ve said it once but I’ll say it again: get this comic, put this book on your pull, and thank me later.
Runner Up: Blackest Night #2
WORST BOOK OF THE MONTH Hulk #13 and #14
Honestly, I can’t express my disdain for this series enough. I know what you’re thinking: “Why keep reading it?” You know why? Because I read everything. I reviewed the last Archie comic! Plus, at this point, I just HAVE to know who Rulk is. It just keeps getting more and more ridiculous though. Deadpool and Crimson Dynamo? The X-Force? Where is the plot development? Aside from the mystery, why the heck should any of us care who Rulk is? It’s just annoying at this point. Loeb says he just writes the best stories he can tell, and if this is an example of that then it’s not much. If I had the will power, I would ditch this book faster than a rotten apple, but I can’t. I will keep reading until Rulk is revealed and then I will drop it. It’s just sad knowing that this is the man responsible for books like The Long Halloween, the various superhero color books, and my favorite Batman villain, Hush. THIS is what he now writes? What a waste.
Runner Up: Greek Street, Power Girl
BEST SCENE OF THE MONTH The reveal of Romulus (Wolverine: Origins #39)
Look at that! How long has it been that we’ve been wondering who the heck this guy is? Or rather, what the heck he looks like? We know who he is: he’s the architect of Wolverine. But as far as we know, he just looked like a shadow. Now we know what he looks like, and honestly, with the way comics go I was surprised. It seems these days that we get a lot of teases as to the identity of villains but we don’t get a lot of honesty as to who they are (Loeb, I’m looking at you). With this, we finally saw Romulus, and he is bad ass. I mean, look at that guy. Bad. Ass. I love it. Very surprising and very welcome.
Runner Up: Deadpool’s most recent breaking of the 4th wall (Deadpool: Suicide Kings #5), Blackbolt’s Sacrifice (War Of Kings #6)
WORST SCENE OF THE MONTH: Archie choosing Betty over Veronica (Archie #600), the final page of the Spirit #32
Let’s be all honest with ourselves here: if you had the choice between the awesome blonde girl who likes to party and have a good time, or the dark haired uptight girl whose father hates you but is rich, which would you pick? You’d probably pick the rich girl because you want the money, but it’s the wrong choice. Betty clearly had more feelings for Archie then Veronica did, and his picking Ronnie was just a poor outcome for his whole life. Good job Archie – you should have gone with Jughead.
Continued belowRunner Up: Archie not choosing Jughead
BEST WRITER OF THE MONTH: Geoff Johns
Take a look at that. You see that? That’s all of the output Geoff Johns has single handedly put out this month alone. You might remember the Author Retrospective I put out, but this man owns the DCU right now. He really does. He is so amazingly prolific, and every single one of these books is golden. All of them. If you didn’t pick up all 4 this month, I don’t know what to tell you. You really need all 4 in your library, and every issue that follows those. Geoff Johns is the best writer in the DCU stable right now, even above Grant Morrison at this point, and me saying that is saying something. This month also saw me devoting the time to reading all of his run on Justice Society of America, and good God is that amazing. This man is pure brilliance wrapped up in one of the most humble packages I’ve ever seen. Seriously – pick these books up.
Runner Up: Peter David (X-Factor), Jason Aaron (Wolverine: Weapon X), Warren Ellis (Do you even know how many books this man puts out a month? It’s ridiculous)
WORST WRITER OF THE MONTH Jeph Loeb
Do you see the face the Hulk is making? See the face Bruce Banner is making? This is the face I make because Jeph Loeb still has work. ‘Nuff said, honestly.
Runner Up: Daniel Way (Deadpool)
BEST ARTIST OF THE MONTH JH Williams III (Detective Comics)
Look at that. Do I really have to justify this? Honestly – it’s beautiful. I was very unexcited for Detective Comics when it was announced Dini was leaving and the focus would be on Batwoman. Detective Comics was my favorite Batbook and I was ready to give up on the book due to the subject. Then I saw the art. Good God. I read this book just for the art. Did you pick up issue 1? Those first few pages were jaw dropping. JH Williams III is amazing and he needs some more appreciation.
Runner Up: Ron Garney (Wolverine: Weapon X)
WORST ARTIST OF THE MONTH: Rich Leonardi (Vigilante)
I was really excited for a new Vigilante series, and having it penned by Marv Wolfman seemed like a real treat. The actual fact of the matter is, though, that this series is pretty garbled and disappointing, and the artwork doesn’t help. It honestly just looks rather phoned in. The shading is screwed up, the colors are off putting, and I get that the Whale is supposed to be an ugly guy but he just looks kind of derpy in the above segment. Plus, the V on Vigilante’s helmet is never the same between panels. It’s just poor, and Vigilante is usually at the bottom of my reading list.
Runner Up: Ian Churchill and Chris Giarruss (Hulk), Leonardo Manco (War Machine), Terry Dodson and Luke Ross (Uncanny X-Men/Dark Avengers: Utopia)
BEST OVERLOOKED BOOK OF THE MONTH: Atomic Robo
While this image is not from this month’s Robo, I think the point is still clear. We pimp out Atomic Robo a lot, and I feel like this is an excellent time to once again get the word. This is a book you need to read. This is a book that wants you to read it more than any other book out there. This book needs you almost as much as you need it. It’s got robots, excellent humor, and more science than you could ever want. We put out an interview with writer Brian Clevinger this month, so do yourself a favor and check that out. Then go out and get yourself some Robo trades. Maybe a t-shirt and a poster while you’re at it. The only person you’re hurting by not reading it is you.
Runner Up: The Unwritten, Chew, Irredeemable
