Snap Judgments: Countdown #34, The Boys #10, Lucha Libre #1

Geekanerd's Snap Judgments gives you Triple-S comic reviews: short, sweet, and spoiler-free.

Countdown #34 (DC)

Thought I'd give this title another chance. Aaaand it let me down again.

Things started out promisingly enough, with Batman interrogating Piper and Trickster. The Bat's rooftop shakedowns rarely disappoint. But this spark of excitement is soon extinguished, and we're soon wading through boring fake science talk, two scenes that take place in laboratories, Clarion the Witchboy looking like a drag queen, and Holly Robinson fighting Harley Quinn in Gladiatorial Combat. Actually that last part was okay. But still no bang for your buck. Wake me when Eclipso comes back.

Hope Springs Eternal - Disappointment + Harley Kicking Holly Robinson in the Face = C-

Reviews for The Boy #10 and Lucha Libre #1 (awesome) after the jump...


The Boys #10 (Dynamite Entertainment)

Now that this arc is over, I can finally stop buying this book. Not that I haven't been enjoying The Boys - it's been fun, but when reading a hard, nasty series like this, I'd prefer to revel in the opulence of a trade paperback, rather than lurch along every month with single-servings of depravity. But that's just me.

This issue lacked the head-busting finale I was expecting, and continued with an annoying habit of playing gotcha games with certain character's perceived homophobia. I'm all for defying expectations, but how many times do we need to be told that men who use gay epithets may not, in fact, hate gay people after all? Wow, the more you know! On the plus side, this issue features a wonderfully over-the-top epilogue that encapsulates the series' attitude towards super heroes, and for once doesn't involve a splash page of a woman being sexually assaulted. It involves something getting sexually assaulted, but I wouldn't want to spoil the details of that whimsical surprise.

Unsatisfying Mystery Solved - More Lessons + A Touch of Humanity + Absurdist Perversity = C+

Lucha Libre #1 (Image)

It's a good time for Latino characters in comic books. Jaimie Reyes (Blue Beetle) is the best written teen character in the DC Universe, Renee Montoya is getting her own sexy, sexy series, and now we've got Lucha Libre, a slam-bang cartoon style series about five Mexican dudes in wrestling masks who fight monsters in East L.A. I hasten to add that none of these books are in fact written by Latinos, but...well...let's focus on the positive here.

Written by Jerry Frissen, ish #1 introduces a huge cast of characters, including an evil bug-eyed Elvis impersonator, stereo-stealing werewolves, bickering aliens, and of course our heroes, the Luchadores Five. The unblinking absurdity never seems forced, and the tone recalls the comedic glory of Sam and Max, and that, my amigos, is high praise indeed.

Even more impressive is the art, drawn and colored by Bill. Just Bill. His backgrounds are beautifully detailed, and his more subtle depictions of the characters go a long way in supplying some of the depth that can feel lacking in Frissen's writing.

Rockin' Toon Art + Bonkers Plot + Great Extra Story - A Wee Bit Light on Characterization = A-

Garth Ennis' Virgin Comics Project Revealed

Having parted ways with DC over the eyebrow-raising content in The Boys, writer Garth Ennis will be working with Virgin Comics on a new series that re-imagines a classic character that Ennis calls the British equivalent of "...Captain America, our Superman, our Batman; he's all of them rolled into one."

Who could it be? Click the jump and end the suspense!


That's right kids, Dan Dare! Originally a 1950s British comic book hero, Dare was a dashing space-pilot in the far-flung future of the 1990s. And if Monty Python's fixation with Biggles taught me anything, it's that Brits love their pilots. World II R.A.F glory and all that, wot. Dare was kept alive over the last five decades in U.K video games, comic books, and TV series, but until now has never really made it across the pond.

Variety describes the plot of the new Ennis series:

"New books will have Dare emerge from a self-imposed exile, the result of his disgust with politics and the post-nuclear warfare that has destroyed North America and much of Asia -- leaving the U.K. as the world's last remaining superpower."

Interestingly enough, the excellent Children of Men also had a post-nuclear holocaust scenario where the U.K was the only superpower left standing. Must suck to lose an Empire.

With Garth Ennis at the helm, you might expect this re-envisioned Dan Dare series to amp up the hewn-limb and disturbing sex content. However, a Gnerd source tells us this is a particularly important project for Ennis, and one he's wanted to do for a long time. Perhaps we'll see a take on the series that might surprise thoes who think they have Ennis' writing style Simon Pegged. As a fan of both Ennis and several Virgin Comics titles (Walk-In was one of the best books around during it's sadly short run), I'll be looking forward to meeting Mr. Dare for the first time.

Via Variety and Cinematical.

Snap Judgements: Blue Beetle, Thunderbolts, and The Boys

Today on Snap Judgements, three spoiler-free quickie reviews of comics out today, June 27.

Blue Beetle #16 - The Return of Brainstomp Demonface!

Everyone's favorite wife-killer/vengeance god Jean "Eclipso" Loring is through with all that "orbiting the sun" bullshit...now she's back on earth, stealing magic babies! It's a DC book alright! But what does this have to do with Blue Beetle? Well, not a lot. This book deals more with Traci 13 (who?), the issue's true protagonist. She does allow Jaime to tag along for the big fight, but he's really just there to flirt with.

The verdict on Blue Beetle plus reviews of Thunderbolts #115 and The Boys #8 after the jump.


This issue's biggest miss is the constant Wheadonesque teen-snark-speak, which is usually delivered with a much keener ear by writer John Rogers. But the book is saved by some funny touches involving the always ironic rules of magic, and some very touching (though possibility invented) continuity concerning the link between Eclipso and Traci 13 (who?).

Jean "Brain Stomp" Loring + Cheesey Teen Speak = C+


Thunderbolts #115 - Smashy Smashy II

Last week, this book gave us a big long street fight that was incredibly boring, featured a bunch of bland splash pages, and generally felt like Warren Ellis decided to take a snooze in the backseat and left artist Rain Beredo to drive for a while. This week's issue at first seemed to be more of the same - the 'Bolts are still fighting some unregistered Superheroes, aaand.....they fight. BUT - in this issue, the characters say interesting things to each other while they fight, the action is much more fluid and exciting, and there are some big plot-changing reveals. Still a few too many bulked-out Venom splash panels, but at least there's some dismemberment to show for it.

Bullseye Bein' Crazy + Whiny Penance + Dismemberment = B+


The Boys #8 - Not That There's Anything Wrong With That...

From the start, this series has played fast and loose with attitudes of misogyny and homophobia. Even for a comic book. But when the TPB was released earlier this month, I gave it a chance and found that it was too funny and engaging to write-off as shock-schlock. And though last month's issue made me cringe with a page discussed here, the lead male protagonist's attitudes towards gay men are discussed directly in this issue, as our anti-heroes investigate the murder of a gay teen. As the issue begins, it seems that nice-guy Hughie has a more accepting attitude than epithet-spewing manly man Butcher, but as events move forward we're shown that the way they actually act around gay people tells a different story. All the lead characters still treat gayness as something to be tolerated and not necessarily accepted, but I suspect that since this arc will last until at least issue #10, these issues will continue to be explored. The plotting and dialogue is spot-on as always, make sure you read Butcher's dialogue like Michael Caine for maximum effect.

Casual Prejudice + Meta Commentary + Realism? - Easy Answers = B


Tune in Friday for PANEL DISCUSSION, to find out which comic panel wins the Geekanerd Award for Best Acting, Greatest Hit, and the coveted Banana Randomizer Award For Achievement in WTF.