Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #1: Hells Yeah, Guy Gardner!

Guy Gardner is probably my favorite of the Green Lanterns. From his days in the JLI to his current status quo as one of the more bad-ass Green Lanterns, the man has always managed pique my interest and keep me glued to the page to see whatever it is that he's up to. So naturally, when I found out that Guy would be the focus character of his own Green Lantern book (with Kilowog as his partner, no less) and that one Peter J. Tomasi was heading up the writing duties, I knew that if I only read one Green Lantern book, this would be the one.

This issue gets us started off with exactly the kind of thing I want from a book like this; Guy Gardner chasing a space truck through space on a construct motorcycle and then immediately proceeding to kick ass and take names. Great way to start off the first issue of a Guy Gardner comic! And then we immediately go into our regularly scheduled first issue; setting up our plot and the various threads that will be weaved within it. Is it bad? No. Is it boring? Again, no. But there isn't much happening yet, though what we are getting to see is pretty interesting enough that I'm definitely sticking with this one for at least another issue. My only real problem here is the lack of Kilowog in this issue, but it looks like that will be rectified in the next issue.

In terms of art, this is pretty standard. Nothing special, but not at all bad. There's really not much else to say about it other than that. Though I will note that that is an awesome cover. And I actually like the art here a lot more than what we get in the interior of the comic. Hopefully all the covers are this awesome.

So there we have it, a decent first issue; I'll definitely be coming back for more, but I'm still not entirely sold yet (though I'm going to say it's a safe bet that I'll be sticking on this one for the long run!) And with a next issue promise of "Poozer Hunting" I'm going to say it's a safe bet that Kilowog will be in the next issue.

RASL Pocket Book 1/RASL #8 Review: I'd put something witty here, but I'm too busy being blown away!

Jeff Smith is easily one of my favorite comic book writers/artists ever. His Bone series is one of the titles that got me to fall in love with the medium and it's probably the series that I will introduce my non-existent children to whenever I inevitably try to push the hobby onto them. So needless to say, I'm reading his current work, RASL and doing so with a huge appetite for Jeff Smith-y goodness. Today, I'm going to tell you why YOU should be reading this book.

First off, the first pocket book (a smaller collection of the first seven issues, not to be confused with the women's accessory) is out, and it's one hell of a deal. For a mere one-time payment of just $18, you can have the first seven issues, each sold individually for $3.50 (or $24.50 all together). That's right, you save a whole $6.50!

But let's face it, why not just save all your money and NOT buy this book, right? Well stop right there buddy, because this is a tale of espionage, betrayal, love, and SCIENCE! Oh, and a brief, interesting look at the late great Nikola Tesla (sadly, Atomic Robo NOT included.) The Story of Robert, former scientist turned into reality hopping art thief named RASL, is truly a riveting tale that will draw you in, get you excited, and leave you wanting more immediately after finishing that last page. If you're looking for great science fiction, you will not find yourself dissatisfied here.

And Smith isn't just a gifted writer; he's easily one of the best cartoonists ever to work in American comics. While your mind is busy spinning in circles over this awesome tale, your eyes will find themselves in love with Smith's visual work; be it beautiful women or creepy moments of science fiction goodness, there isn't a single page of bad visuals anywhere near this book.


But what happens when you're done and you've read it enough times that you can recite it all from memory? Well, then either learn to have some patience, or get yourself issue #8, picking up exactly where we left off and starting up the next chapter of the story. It probably won't do much to feed your hunger, but it should wet the appetite a little until issue #9 comes out in October. Here, more of the pieces of the puzzle come together and we meet some familiar faces. And there's also a neat little bibliography at the back of the pocket book with a list of works that Mr. Smith used as inspiration for this, which coupled with his awesome Bone series, should keep you plenty occupied until the next batch off issues come out (sadly he's only putting out three issues a year, which means this will be going for a good bit of time to come.)

Whatever you do, though, make sure you don't miss out on this series; it's a slow burn, but it's well worth it!

The Gauntlet 2: Reviewapalooza aka Oops I forgot to review...

Hey there, tiny reader base! I'm angry at myself for slacking off lately, so to make it up here comes "The Gauntlet"!

Red Robin #15 might just be the best book I've read this week, with the third chapter of "The Hit List" being perhaps my favorite issue of this story yet. The issue deals with Tim trying to keep the secret identities of the entire Bat-family secret (as Vicki Vale seems to have figured it all out), and he does so by tricking the public into thinking that Tim Drake has been shot and that Red Robin has stopped the assassin who tried to get the kill, Scarab. Fabian Nicieza has been doing a bang up job on this book since he took over for Chris Yost and I look forward to this new status quo for Tim making for some interesting stories for the immediate future. Marcus To also does a great job on this book, where he draws what might be the cutest damn Miss Martian ever. Jump on this one if you haven't already, because it's damn good.

Secret Six, while not the other contender for best book this week, was awesome. This issue takes place almost like an Esleworlds story, with the Six being re-imagined into the Wild West, with a surprise appearance of Slade Wilson, also re-imagined for the setting. Gail Simone has yet to disappoint with this book and if you aren't reading this book yet, pick this issue up because it's a great point to start on.

Meanwhile, over at Marvel, Jonathan Hickman continues to do a bang-up job with every and anything he's writing there. S.H.I.E.L.D. #3 (my other choice for best book this week) is out this week and it gives us a new way to look at Nostradamus and another of history's greatest minds that I won't name, because you should be reading this. This is the kind of book that I've wanted from mr. Hickman when it came out that he would be working with Marvel and I am so glad that it's not disappointing. As a nice little bonus we get an awesome little transcript of the conversation between Pope Gregory XIII and Galileo about Galactus which is pretty awesome to read. This is just an all around fantastic book.

Speaking of Fantastic, last week gave us another of Hickman's current Marvel books, Fantastic Four. This issue has us looking back on Reed and Ben in college, where they went to school with Victor Von Doom, and then we get to see Reed's father appear right out of the pages of Hickman's S.H.I.E.L.D., looking for help to fight off his doppelganger from another reality. This is a nice little issue, with the best part being Reed having to suck up his pride and ask Doom for help which Doom does with the aid of his large assortment of weapons (because Doom had Doomsday devices in college, too). Neil Edwards does a decent job on pencils here, though I'm counting down the issues until Epting takes over (583 cannot get here soon enough!). If you're reading S.H.I.E.L.D., then this will be an interesting issue for you, and if not buy it anyway.

Hellboy: The Storm continues to be an awesome follow-up to the last mini, and it continues to be a book everyone should be reading. Hellboy continues his journey across Europe and he continues to face off against the various beasts and demons that get in his way. We're building towards something huge and I'm excited to see what it is. Duncan Fegredo also continues to provide amazing art for this book, giving us art that looks like Mignola's without feeling too forced, and I love it for that reason. If you aren't reading this book than do yourself a favor and get started on those trades and then slap yourself for not jumping on this thing already.

Finally, we have Doomwar which ends this week which goes out on a decent bang. We end with everyone showing up for one final showdown with Doom who now controls all of the Vibranium in the world, which means he has his claws in just about everything. Everything looks like it's going to end in Doom's favor and that we'll have to put up with an overlord Doom status quo (which actually sounds awesome), but then T'Challa hits us with a huge bomb that will actually have an impact as he brings in a huge change in status quo for himself and the entire country of Wakanda. If you're a huge fan of Doctor Doom or Black Panther than this is the book you need to be reading, though at this point you should wait for the trade.

So there it is, six reviews to make up for a few weeks of inactivity. Each of these books is something you should be reading. I'll probably be back before Wednesday with a big RASL review, so look for that when it hits!