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The Week in Comics #6/7

I actually bought comics the week before last, just a couple because I wanted more money to drop into the account before I spent a lot. Instead I dropped with illness and never made it back to the comics shop. So, here are some thoughts about those...

Legion of Super-Heroes #10 - If nothing else, I like this issue for its use of the Legion Espionage Squad (in this case, Phantom Girl, Chameleon Boy, and Chameleon Girl). They are investigating the Durlan situation that this title has been involved in since its return. Throw in some smug Brainy as acting leader until Mon-El comes back, some Ultra Boy/Wildfire action, and Dawnstar coming out of her coma and you have a solid issue.

Amazing Spider-Man #654.1 - I can't remember the last time I bought an issue of this book - something that Marcos Martin drew, I think. This issue is one of the "Point One" jumping-on issues Marvel is doing this year and I'd heard Dan Slott talking about it on iFanboy's Don't Miss podcast, so I thought why not. Really, though, this book could be Venom #0 because it sets up that upcoming series. As far as setups go, though, this is a solid one and makes me glad I'd already preordered the series. There is a two page spread at the end teasing upcoming stories and I'm thinking about sticking with the book (though I left the new issue at the store on Wed.).

That does it for Week #6...onto Week #7...

Action Comics #898 - Lex Luthor's tour of DC villains continues with Larfleeze under the steady hands of Paul Cornell and Pete Woods. I knew nothing about the Orange Lantern coming into this (such as the fact he's actually the only one) and while I don't leave as a big fan, I do see the appeal. Much more interesting to me was the reveal of who has been controlling the Lois robot all along - it sets up a very interesting showdown for next issue. Still don't know that I care about the black sphere mystery; for me, it's been more effective for bringing Luthor into contact with all these villains.

Detective Comics #874 - I have a huge crush of Francesco Francavilla's art and this issue does nothing to dissuade me of that. He does a fantastic job on two stories in this issue - the dread-filled talking head tale of Commissioner Gordon and his psychopathic song and a team-up between Batman and Red Robin that shows Dick is still suffering lingering effects from the poison he ingested in the last story arc. Francavilla also does the colors and knocks the moody oranges and reds out of the park. Of course, Scott Snyder is the one telling these tales and he is doing a stellar job as well. I love it when mainstream books are of this high quality.

Superman/Batman #81 - I enjoyed the two Chris Roberson issues so much I thought I would come back for Cullen Bunn's four issue run, "Sorcerer Kings." Yup, magic is involved, which brings in Phantom Stranger and Shadowpact. They come across Superman, who dies, and then encounter a Batman who seems to be from an alternate world. The kicker? It's not. While the set-up didn't blow me away, I'll come back for the next installment at the very least.

Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom #6 - I've had the final issue to this mini-series sitting in my file for a few months now and it was high time I bought and read it. It's a bit of an anti-climatic issue as far as the big time travel plot but it really places focus on Tom's relationships both good and bad. I'm glad that Peter Hogan and Chris Sprouse will be back with another series later this year.

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