Let me start out by saying I am not the biggest fan of this Wolverine appreciation month concept. The idea to give most if not all Marvel comics a Wolverine variant for a month is ridiculous. This character isn't over exposed enough? I do love some Wolverine like most do but enough is enough. I especially dislike that the covers have nothing to do with the title.

Having said that some of them look pretty cool. Such as this one for Ms. Marvel #38



Pretty damn sweet cover. Just wish it had been used for an X-Men title or one of the ten Wolverine titles. Just seems a waste to use as a variant cover for a non related title.

I figured why not do some quick reviews on stuff that came out this week as well as stuff I finally got out of my pull box called Limbo. So here we go!

Ms. Marvel #37 - Eh...not much here worth gushing over that's for sure. Probably one of my least favorite of the run. Plus come on Carol is as dead as Batman, Elvis and Tupac. Art was not very good either. Hopefully this is going somewhere better. D-

Guardians of the Galaxy #11 - Story was alright. The philosophical waxing was the best part. Loved Drax's explanation of how the Marvel Universe works basically. Pretty cool. Art was weak. C

X-Infernus #4 - Some great Nightcrawler in here. Variant cover with Illyana is gorgeous! Didn't mind the art but nothing I would write home from the Asylum about. Some development with Pixie and the not so surprise return of a chick whose brother calls her Snowflake. Fun read but nothing monumental. C+

Skaar Son of Hulk #9 - Again this title doesn't disappoint. Good art made great by the inkers and colorists. Pak does a great job with the story and leaves us with an ending that should take better pay off and be more than a shock ending that falls flatter than the Silver Surfer's board. B

Thunderbolts #130 - Didn't mind it as a Deadpool comic. The problem is this is a Thunderbolts comic. So while I was hoping for a Thunderbolts comic with a much edgier but yet deranged Deadpool I instead received a dumbass TBolts team who came across as way to comical for them to be taken serious when this whole thing is over. D

X-Men: Kingbreaker #4 - Awesome mini that serves as a great lead in to War of Kings. Everything here was top notch from words to pictures. Only thing lacking here for me was the cover. Didn't dig it too much at all. I would love to see the same team do a Starjammers book when War of Kings is finished. Oh and where oh where did that damned Phoenix Force soar off to? That should be interesting. A

Dardevil: Man Without Fear #116 - Brubaker + Aja = please sir may I have another. This team should make books forever. This is a Miller/Hitch combo IMHO. Their Iron Fist was spectacular and so was this. This is one of the first DD books I have ever purchased and I will be coming back. I know Aja isn't the regular artist but that's cool they hooked me for an arc at least. I also know Brubaker is leaving but we will deal with that when the time comes. Kingpin I feel bad for you brotha I really do. Now it's time for that sweet sweet revenge. A

X-Force/Cable Messiah War One-Shot - This was a mixed bag. Did a great job of setting the event up through recap and the action was great. The Bishop and Stryfe stuff to me was just lame ass. Did not enjoy that interpretation of Stryfe at all. Maybe I missed something here but since when is Stryfe a mix of Gambit and Wolverine. Hanging out in a bar after killing everyone and then just acting charming instead of psycho crazy ass regal like?! Blah! Bishop also is getting a weak rap here and coming off more and more like a lame ass D-List villian. The hint at the return of Apocalypse was sooooo enticing though! C+

Captain America #48 - Good stuff. Wrapped this arc up nicely. This was my least favorite arc during Brubaker's run but this was the best issue of it by far. I actually quite enjoyed it. Wish the arc would have been this good. The stuff at the end with Black Widow and Bucky Cap and Namor had way too much cheese factor for me though. B

New Avengers #51 - Wasn't a fan of all the art changes. Bachalo's stuff was my least favorite part of this issue. The stuff with Spidey unmasking AGAIN was done well but still was lame. I really thought he might leave i'm gonna be honest. I would have probably prefered it. It kind of invalidates a lot of what has happened since Brand New Day. That statement might endear itself to some though I realize this. The leadership stuff was good though I did dig Luke leading. Oh and an we make Dr. Strange the wicked badass he is again soon. Please? C+

Wolverine Origins #34 - Cool cover and great art. Writing wasn't too shabby either. Overall I enjoyed this for what it was which was a lot of action as this arc comes to the end next issue. Wasn't a huge fan of all the X-Men getting their asses handed to them by Daken though. I mean I know Marvel is building him up but at what expense? C+

So I just finished watching season 1's final episode of Wolverine and the X-Men. This show is fucking awesome! From beginning to end this show can't seem to find a way to disappoint. Granted it follows its own continuity but trust me you'll like it.

I myself am a huge fan of the Fox X-Men animated series but I have to admit this show gives it one hell of a run for its money. Had the Fox series not been such a staple of my childhood I may have had to even give this one the edge. It just has so many, "oh shit! no way!" moments.





We are constantly shown fan favorite characters through out the season that will make most X-Fans flip their wigs. Here are some of the characters:

• All pictured in the accompanying image
• Hellfire Club
• Archangel/Angel
• Blink
• Apocalypse
• New X-Men galore
• Mr. Sinister
• Sentinels
• Marauders
• Polaris
• Quicksilver
• Scarlet Witch
• Marrow
• Bishop
• Vanisher
• Domino
  

Honestly just to many too list.

The season focuses on Xavier disappearing and turning up in the future. While this honestly seems very much like a Zordon and the Power Rangers relationship, with Xavier's body living in a tube in stasis and using floating head talking to communicate, it is pretty cool. The other two main plots are finding Jean who also vanished as well as the looming threat of the Sentinels and government backed mutant roundups.

As the season progresses though the gears shift in crazy ways that no one will see coming and everyone will enjoy. The show twists constantly and turns viewers on their heads as new characters come in and out and new menaces rear their heads. The last episode itself is a huge twist. The very end of the episode should have all X-Men fans who have been enjoying the books since at least the mid 90's shitting their pants in anticipation of the next season. I know I was and still am.

So check this show out if you haven't already and let me know what you all think. I promise you won't be let down by this animated masterpiece.

Alright last category for the week of 3/18/09 here. Much like the other two this is a shorty.

5. X-Men Legacy #222 - This title had top artist and writer nods. Placing 5th for artist and 5th for writer. This has been a fun title that has done a lot of tweaking of the X-Universe. Some has been for the worse some has been for the better. This issue was one of the betters as we are seeing a lot of development with the characters of Rogue and Gambit.

4. Wolverine: Old Man Logan #71 - This crazy look at the potential future of our favorite hairy Canadian canucklehead has been a great joy ride. This title was awarded 2nd in artists and 4th in writers for this week. This issue pushed the story forward finally after a bit of time where it felt like this title was just going to be a more violent road trip movie. The end of this issue could potentially change the whole direction of this story.

3. Amazing Spider-Man #588 - 3rd for covers and 2nd for writing gets this title in at the 3rd spot for title of the week. While it obviously had writing and covers I enjoy the art was also great. Any other week and it probably would have been a top 5. It actually was 6th on my list so there is that. Really enjoyed all the elements of this title and where it left us going forward into the future. It left many stories available such as where does the whole Lily/Menace and Harry/Goblin relationship go?!

2. X-Factor #41 - Pulled down 3rd for covers and 3rd for writing. Lot going on here. Rahne has some good moments. Madrox and Layla together in the future. Don't want to go into much detail here because PAD as been so eager to keep people from spoiling things. Just believe me this has been a great title recently and this title ratchets it up another level.

1. X-Force #13 - Death, destruction and New X-Men appearances galore! This title was nominated in all three categories. 1st in covers, 3rd in artists, and 1st in writing. The trio of Kyle, Yost and Crain are pumping out some great stuff. This title almost seems like the main x-title honestly. It ties into more of the other x-titles than any other book does and it seems to be one of the highest quality on a consistent basis.

So the two titles of the week so far this month are Ghost Rider #33 and X-Force #13. Stay tuned later in the week to find out the last title of the week for March.

This will be another short and sweet one. This week we should be back on track and doing it the old way. But who knows how we'll do it. Maybe people like it better this way?! Let me know what you think people. So here we go top writers!

5. Mike Carey (X-Men: Legacy #222) - So this was a really good issue. Starting to get somewhere I think. Rogues characterization has been really spot on as has Gambits. I love seeing those two characters written well. I just hope this arc concludes with the two of them being part of a new X-Men team lead by Xavier. Who knows where Carey is going with this though. I'll be there to find out though and that's in very large part to the writing here.

4. Mark Millar (Wolverine: Old Man Logan #71) - This has been a really great arc. While it doesn't take place in continuity it still has me connected to the characters. It still has me feeling slightly sad when something happens to a character like Hawkeye who gets an abrupt ending to his story here. Hopefully now though berserker Wolverine will make his return and Millar as we know can write that quite well.

3. Peter David (X-Factor #41) - Let this title never end! PAD has been amazing here. This title has been good since the start. For a bit there it was good but nothing great. Almost resting on its laurels. Not anymore the last few issues have provided us with twists, turns, and killer cliffhanger endings. This is a book that only seems to get better issue after issue. Can't wait for the next one after the way PAD left us hanging on the last one!

2. Marc Guggenheim (Amazing Spider-Man #588) - While I really miss the MJ and Peter relationship I gotta admit I have enjoyed these stories set in Brand New Day. The Spidey Brain-Trust now know as the Web-Heads are why. Guggenheim has given us a great character arc here and provides plenty of action as well. This issue in particular was a heart breaker but so is the life of Peter and those who surround him.

1. Craig Kyle and Chris Yost (X-Force #13) - These guys plus an X-Title is guaranteed gold for Marvel and fans. They are amazing writers and you can tell by the way they off characters but still fanboys keep coming back. This issue was no exception a they rid another mutant from the world with the promise that two more could go next issue. They can do the blood and gore fighting like no other but they also have touching moments with Rahne here that should keep everyone happy.

So there you go! We now have two of our three nominees for Writer of the Month. First being Peter Tomasi (Green Lantern Corps) and now Craig Kyle and Chris Yost (X-Force). Stay tuned later this week as I run down this weeks top 5 and we get our last nominee!

I know these are wicked late! I will do these sweet and to the point.

5. Scott Eaton (X-Men: Legacy #222) - This was some dynamic stuff that I really enjoyed. Nothing off the charts amazing but still some really enjoyable art.

4. Jerome Opena (Punisher #3) - This art is awesome! I love the sketchiness to it. It is perfect for a Punisher title. It is just amazingly raw. I also LOVE the way he draws the Hood. Would love to see a Hood book with Opena on art chores.

3. Clayton Crain (X-Force #13) - Again like I stated with the covers I really like his stuff. The digital painting technique is different from a lot of what is going on at the big two currently. It is gritty and works really well with whats going on here in X-Force.

2 Steve Mcniven (Wolverine: Old Man Logan #71) - McNiven is something fantastic. He is such a great artist when it comes to the dynamic event feeling books. He just has the whole big blockbuster feel while maintaining the integrity of detail and emotion.

1. David Finch (Ultimatum #3) - While the title is amazingly out of control ridiculous I have enjoyed it. I have especially enjoyed the art here. Finch has brought his A-Game every time out and this is no exception. The panel with Giant Man biting off Blob's head then spitting it out was fan-fucking-tastic!

So there you have it. So as far as nominees go for March's Artist of The Month we now have Tony Moore (Ghost Rider) and David Finch (Ultimatum). One more artist this week and then we will review and pick the Artist of the Month.

Well today is that day that we all wait for ladies and gentlemen. New Comic Day! The day where no matter how hard the economy is hitting your wallet you can still justify dropping 3-4 bucks on some paper with pretty pictures and words in it. All held together with three staples. Yours and mine visual crack.

In looking at the shipping list it appears to be X-Men week. Just about every x-title under the sun comes out this week. Not complaining just wish it was a little more spread out so there wont be a week where there are no x-titles.

So what am I picking up from this weeks offerings? Whats going in the box? Let's take a look.

Taking Home:

Amazing Spider-Man #588
Amazing Spider-Man: Extra #3
Dark Avengers #3
Thunderbolts #130
Punisher #3
Ultimate X-Men #100
Ultimatum #3
Uncanny X-Men #507
Wolverine #71
Wolverine: Origins #34
X-Factor #41
X-Force #13
X-Men Kingbreaker #4
X-Men: Legacy #222
Young X-Men #12

Pull Box:

Azrael: Death's Dark Knight #1
Supergirl #39
Deadpool Annual: Games of Death
Spider-Man Noir #4

So most of it's coming home with me this week.

Gotta say I am noticing a trend. It seems that most of my comics are now Marvel. For awhile there I was getting a pretty equal amount from the big two but as money has gotten tighter I find myself looking to drop titles and mostly they end up being DC. I really think the quality of their books has decreased a fair amount in the last couple of years. Exceptions of course for anything written by Geoff Johns. If Marvel ever snagged him DC would be in for some serious hurt.

Well things can change and sometimes comics don't come in so we will see if this list changes or not. I'll try and get on later tonight with some thoughts and what not on this weeks bounty. So all five of you that come here and the two of you that follow check back and see whats what!

Here are my favorite 5 covers from this week. I have picked them based upon a few factors. Each factor is worth 5 points and the points are totaled to give the cover a rating Some of those factors are:

Style - Is it unique and something new or just classic and clean.
Pop - How much does it pop out to the readers eyes when it's sitting on the shelf.

So without further ado here are the top 5:

5. Green Lantern Corps #34 (Cover By Patrick Gleason)

• Style - It's gritty as all hell that is for sure. Love seeing Arkillo is still missing his finger. Very brutal very well done. Nothing to unique though. 3/5
• Pop - It definitely jumps out to you and says hey look at me some shit is going on here that you really should see. It is an action cover that draws the eye. 4/5
• Relevance - The cover features a great fight from the issue. It portrays the viciousness of that battle and does not lead the reader astray from what to expect inside. 5/5
• Iconic Value - While it is a great cover it does not have the lasting ability to be remembered as one of the greats. In the end it is just another fight cover despite its great quality. 0/5
• SPRI Total 12/20

4. Ghost Rider #33 (Cover By Arthur Suydam)

• Style - Nice dark style for the cover. The Caretaker appears very haunting and focused. Classic Suydam work. 4/5
• Pop - It definitely stands out to the reader but it isn't bright and flashy so it wont draw all the eyes. It will be appreciated by those who like Suydam's art though as it is one of his recent best. 3/5
• Relevance - Great static pose with the main character of the issue. Does not tell us a lot of what happens inside but it lets us know that the main character is Caretaker. 3/5
• Iconic Value - It all depends on how the character of the Caretaker evolves and whether or not she becomes a larger part of the Marvel tapestry. As it stands now though it is the most iconic of her. 3/5
• SPRI Total 13/20

3. Astonishing Tales #2 (Cover By Kenneth Rocafort)

• Style - This is a unique style that I really enjoy. It takes the sketchiness of Lenil Yu and makes it a tad cleaner but keeps the grit. The way the characters are posed really makes for a great layout. 4/5
• Pop - It doesn't really pop out all that much. It has the Punisher and Wolverine though which will surely draw readers eyes to it. Interestingly and too its credit instead of having Wolverine (Marvel's cash cow) front and center they use the Punisher. 3/5
• Relevance - This is a hard one to rate based on the fact that it is an anthology. It really is only relevant to one story in the whole thing. This sadly hurts it's overall rating. 3/5
• Iconic Value - It has some iconic value for sure. It is a great static image. It has two great Marvel characters that everyone loves to see together. Will be people remember this always? Probably not. Will people remember it when they see it? Most certainly. 3/5
• SPRI Total 13/20 Despite the tie with Ghost Rider I gave this the nod for the 3rd spot because I prefer it over the other just barely.
  

2. Batman: Battle For The Cowl #1 (Cover By Tony Daniels)

• Style - I really like the cover it is Daniels style but definitely feels as though it is playing off Jim Lee's Hush covers a bit. This time though Nightwing is at the forefront of the Bat troops. Nothing to unique here though very mainstream. 3/5
• Pop - It stands out in that it has a lot of Bat characters that we all love. Nightwing standing in the foreground with everyone behind him really stands out and makes him look like A-List character he is and should be treated as. 5/5
• Relevance - It really isn't a moment from the comic but it sets the tone for what we are bound to see which is a lot of characters from the Batman titles as we get a new status quo. So in that regard it has relevance but nothing that can be literally taken from the interior. 4/5
• Iconic Value - High iconic value here. This is Nightwing as he presumably gets ready to take up the mantle of Batman. This is the beginning of what many assume is Nightwing running the show and these supporting characters falling in behind him. Add the riff on Lee's Hush cover and this is a great iconic Dick Grayson. 5/5
• SPRI Total 17/20

1. Action Comics #875 (Cover By Andrew Robinson)

• Style - This one has some great painted style. Love the colors and the figure placement. Overall this one comes across as very unique compared to the others that I got this week. 5/5
• Pop - I think the blue and red colors used in this cover really give everything a great sense of pop. It grabs you and makes you look it all over. It is another one that grabs you and makes you want to thumb through it. 5/5
• Relevance - It is the beginning of an arc that puts Flamebird and Nightwing as the new protagonists of the title so it does a good job of placing them in the front with the evils they face in the back. Not a literal scene from the title but still quite relevant. 4/5
• Iconic Value - It has a very iconic feel but really doesn't accomplish much but looking very cool. It will be remembered as a cool cover but not one of the coolest of all time I think. 3/5
• SPRI Total 17/20 Again despite a tie with Battle for the Cowl I gave this one the edge because it seemed more unique and different. Something about it I really enjoy and stayed with me as I read my books this week.

So there you have it my favorite covers this week. Stay tuned next week as we do it all over again. Then at the end of the month I will take the top covers from each week and crown a best cover of the month. Then again at the end of the year as we do cover of the year.

So this is the list of comics I actually ended up getting this week:

Action Comics #875
Batman: Battle for the Cowl #1
Batman: Cacophony #3
Booster Gold #18
Green Arrow/Black Canary #18
Green Lantern Corps #34
Secret Six #7
Superman #685
Superman: World of New Krypton #1
Madman: Atomic Comics #14
Astonishing Tales #2
Captain Britain and MI: 13 #11
Deadpool #8
Ghost Rider #33
Immortal Iron Fist #23
Invincible Iron Man #11
Skaar Son of Hulk #8
Ultimate Wolverine Vs Hulk #3
X-Men Noir #4
X-Men: Nightcrawler One-Shot

I know some of this didn't come out this week and is old but I don't always get everything new the week it comes out. Some things go into my pull box to be picked up at a later date.

You can expect some short reviews either tonight or tomorrow and the rest later in the week.

Oh baby it's Wednesday! Can't pick up all my comics today but I am going to get the most important ones. Well most important to me that is.

Let's see today I should be picking up:

Green Lantern #38 - This along with Green Lantern Corps are must pick ups. Geoff Johns is having such an epic run on this title and I am dying to get to Blackest Night thanks to the lead in stories we have been getting.

Justice Society of America #24 - Another Johns title that is a must read. Sadly though counting down to his final issue on the title.

Captain America #47 - Who would have though Bucky could be as cool as Steve?!

Mighty Avengers #22 - Gotta admit that I didn't really dig the first issue of Slott's run. I am more of a New Avengers guy than a classic Avengers guy. Never got into the Avengers title till Bendis got his hands on it.

Ms. Marvel #36 - They are going to kill Carol and replace her with Moonstone...still letting that sink in but Brian Reed has consistently made this an enjoyable read for me so I'm gonna stick with him and it. One complaint though is the current Ms. marvel costume will probably be going away fro awhile since Moonstone has been wearing the classic belly button exposing one with the cape. Oh well.

New Avengers #50 - Anniversary issue but for $5 it better be fucking spectacular. I am really hoping there is not some stupid ass backup reprint issue in there. Those reprint backups for an extra couple bucks is getting old.

Ultimate Spider-Man #131 - Kinda iffy on this whole Ultimatum thing. While contrary to many people at my LCS I actually have been enjoying the end of it all. I am just wondering when it is all said and done if Marvel hasn't given me a perfect out on the Ultimate U so I can save some cash.

Wolverine Origins #33 - I have such a love/hate relationship with this title. Been loving it lately though.

X-Force #12 - Can't wait for this one. It has a lot of things I love about the X-Verse in it that I can't get anywhere else. New X-Men kids, high action constantly, running plot lines with payoffs nearly every issue, and most importantly a lot of continuity is played with here in bringing in the big bads of the title. One of the best X-Titles currently by far.

So finally in time for DVD to become as extinct as Chuck Austen's comic book career X-Men the animated series from FOX has arrived! I mean as much as I appreciate it, will buy it, and am glad to see it finally happen could we have not made this less of a sloppy release?

Here are the episodes included in the volumes:

VOLUME 1

Disc 1
Night of the Sentinels (Part 1)
Night of the Sentinels (Part 2)
Enter Magneto
Deadly Reunions
Captive Hearts
Cold Vengeance
Slave Island
The Unstoppable Juggernaut

Disc 2
The Cure
Come The Apocalypse
Days Of Future Past (Part 1)
Days Of Future Past (Part 2)
The Final Decision
Till Death Do Us Part (Part 1)
Till Death Do Us Part (Part 2)
Whatever It Takes

VOLUME 2

Disc 1
Red Dawn
Repo Man
X-Ternally Yours
Time Fugitives (Part 1)
Time Fugitives (Part 2)
A Rogue's Tale
Beauty & The Beast
Mojo Vision

Disc 2
Reunion (Part 1)
Reunion (Part 2)
Out of the Past (Part 1)
Out of the Past (Part 2)
The Phoenix Saga (Part 1): Sacrifice
The Phoenix Saga (Part 2): The Dark Shroud
The Phoenix Saga (Part 3): Cry of the Banshee
The Phoenix Saga (Part 4): The Starjammers
The Phoenix Saga (Part 5): Child of Light

So while they are at least in order of episode I really wish this could have been done much more like Batman TAS. A little better packaging and more than two discs a volume would have been great. I am sure releasing these things as two disc sets at the suggested retail price of $23.99 is an attempt to draw this out and make more money off fans who have been waiting forever for it. How about some special features? commentary? Non existent my friends! Anything really would have been an awesome addition, to what appears to be a quick cash grab from fans, but it just isn't in the cards or the packaging for that matter. Oh well on April 28th I'll probably be picking these things up so I guess that makes me the idiot who allows things like this to happen. What can I say I'm a whore who wants to take it then complain. Who's with me?!