WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON IN THE DCU

Reading the debut issue of DC's most recent (and supposedly last) crisis has got to be one of the oddest experiences of my comicbook reading life.

I knew that I was yet again reading a well-crafted story by Grant Morisson.. and JJ's uber awesome interiors made me giggle with delight page after page. Now surely, you would say that these are the makings of an event worthy of being called a DC 'Crisis'? But no, something still kept me from thoroughly enjoying the comic:

I had no freaking idea what's going on.
Okay, so maybe I exaggerated on that one. But still, much of what I know seems to be in a blur, it's almost as if the comic I'm reading is set on a different Earth that is very similar, but not quite the same. Luckily, there's still hope for those still interested to get their heads wrapped around what's happening in Final Crisis (like yours truly)... FC Mastermind Grant Morisson decided to have a little chat with Newsarama. The inconsistencies present in the comic books that were supposedly leading up to FC being one of the focal points of the discussion.


An excerpt from the interview:
"Well, the way it worked out was that I started writing Final Crisis #1 in early 2006, around the same time as the 52 series was starting to come out, so Final Crisis was more a continuation of plot threads from Seven Soldiers and 52 than anything else. Final Crisis was partly-written and broken down into rough issue-by-issue plots before Countdown was even conceived, let alone written. And J.G. was already working on designs and early layouts by the time Countdown started. There wasn’t really much opportunity, or desire, to modify our content at that stage." -Grant Morrison

So basically, everything that the fans have read about the greater DCU ever since the conlcusion of 52 means shit. Way to screw the fans over DC.

Even with the obvious mishandling of Final Crisis, I still think this series is worth a shot. Right now, It looks like it will probably read better when collected in a trade, but I've never been one to wait.

As issue #2 hits the shelves this week, I will go to the comic shop with an open mind and a renewed sense of hope. *sighhh*

WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR CAPTAIN AMERICA #36
Captain America is one of the few comics that manages to melt my face on a monthly basis. Ed Brubaker has set such a high standard of quality in this title that anything less than a great issue would be disappointing. Luckily, "Disappointment" isn't part of Bru's vocabulary. This month, he delivers yet another excellent issue from the Steve-Rogers-less(?) comic. There are a myriad of reasons why Captain America is so good, but what stuck out the most for me this issue is the last few panels. I'll say it again, SPOILER ALERTS ON.


First things first... Whatever is in that tank, Brubaker has already said that it's NOT A CLONE, and no it's also NOT A SKRULL. Capische? Good. Moving on...

I may have overreacted the first time I saw these panels. But c'mon, it's Steve effin' Rogers! I never realized just how much I missed his presence in the title until I saw "him" in that tank. But when I got to think more about it, I realized that this could be bad. If it's not a clone or a Skrull, then what is it? I highly doubt that it's the real Steve Rogers... so what, is it a robot?? There's a possibility that Bru may have written himself into a corner here. But Ed has never given me reason to doubt his storytelling prowess before, so why should I start now? Oh well, at least one question that's been nagging in my mind is answered:


Captain America #39 Cover. On Sale June 2008

READ ED BRUBAKER's INTERVIEW WITH NEWSARAMA

GERRY ALANGUILAN'S RIVETING COMIC SERIES IS ONLINE AND TA-DA! IT'S 100% FREE!


WASTED has been online for quite sometime now but I've only recently found out, so I decided to share it with those of you who haven't had the pleasure of reading it yet. Now I don't think there's anything more I can say to convince you further on how good Wasted is, Warren Ellis' short review(below) should be testament enough of the quality that this book has to offer.


BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Wasted is a comic book series written and drawn by Gerry Alanguilan and published by Alamat Comics since July 1994 through July 1996. It was first released as an eight-issue photocopied comics and later collected into one volume by Alamat Comics in 1998, releasing a total of 500 copies. The entire story was serialized in several parts on the pages of PULP Magazine in the Philippines beginning in 2000, and eventually compiled the story once again as Wasted: The Final Edition in 2003, releasing 2000 copies.

Wasted tells the story of Eric, a musician who loses his dad and his girlfriend, and goes on a rampage in the city looking for twisted justice and ultimately, death.

WASTED contains one of the most powerful introductions I have read in the graphic novel genre. Alanguilan brings such an honest and realistic approach on what can drive a man to the brink of insanity. The first five pages had me hanging on to Eric's every word.

        
WASTED's first four pages.. click images to embiggen.

READ THE ENTIRE COMIC (WITH COLORFUL PAGE-BY-PAGE COMMENTARY BY GERRY ALANGUILAN HIMSELF) BY CLICKING THE LINK GIVEN IN THIS ARTICLE. HAPPY READING GEEKS!
All images owned by Gerry Alanguilan. Visit his website @ www.alanguilan.com

This awesome website contains comic strips, mock covers etc.. all poking fun at famous comic book characters mostly from Marvel & DC comics. Lots of goods stuff for fanboys (and fangirls!). Enjoy geeks!

The following strip is my personal favorite. A parody of Batman's infamous one-liner from Infinite Crisis #1
Special thanks to karthikcg for the link!


DISCLAIMER: PassFailStudios.com is a digital parody comic about Comic Book Characters. The original characters are owned by Marvel, DC and other respective copyright owners. PassFailStudios uses the names and images of these figures for the purposes of satire. The opinions and words expressed on this site should not be construed as text from Marvel or DC comics.

A RETROSPECTIVE/INTERVIEW BY IGN, A 5-PAGED PEEK AT THE FINALE and A QUICK REVIEW BY THE STACK.

MASSIVE SPOILERS ABOUND!!!

I never really got into Y: The Last Man. Mainly because I wasn't able to start from issue 1 and I didn't want to jump in the middle of the series. Nevertheless, I've heard nothing but good things about the adventures of Yorick Brown and his monkey Ampersand, and plan to pick the whole series up in trades (There are no announcements of HC releases as of yet).


Y: The Last Man #60 PREVIEW



      
IGN provides us with a detailed article covering the beginning of Y: The Last Man to the end, and even managed to chat with Vaughan about the upcoming movie trilogy(?) of the series. I didn't read the whole thing in fear of being spoiled. So if you haven't been following the series, read at your own risk!


THE STACK'S REVIEWThe last issue of Y The Last Man is finally here. Did this last issue give us the closing we were hoping for? Here's our thoughts on Y The Last Man and issue #60. Spoiler alerts on


RELATED ARTICLES:
>>Newsarama's A GOODBYE TO Y.. An interview with Massino Carnevale & Jose Marzan Jr.
>>ComicBookRescources interviews Brian Vaughan on "Y:The Last Man" and "LOST"

A fellow geek is selling his comics. So for anyone interested, do visit his Multiply site. You just might find that old issue you've been looking for. Happy hunting!

From Paul Yap's original message:
i have a childhood comic collection which i need to dispose ASAP. would you know anyone who would be interested in buying them? or trading them or something? it's just gathering dust in my house. hope you could save my comics from being forgotten!

the prices here are just based from some website. prices are negotiable. very negotiable. oh, it also comes with an official marvel comic box. i'm also willing to sell them as a whole. thanks!

paul yap
polyap@gmail.com

If you have any questions about these comics, please direct them at the link given above. ^_^

THE BIG TWO ARE ALL BUT READY TO SHIP OUT THEIR 2008 TENTPOLE EVENTS. WHICH ONE'S BETTER?

IT'S A GOOD TIME TO BE A COMICS FAN

FINAL CRISIS (DC Comics)
Written by: Grant Morrison
Artist: J.G. Jones
So far: FC is a seven-issue miniseries that begins in May 2008
Touted as the finale of the Crises trilogy, Final Crisis is the culmination of the events that has been years in the making. Starting in Identity Crisis, Infinite Crisis, 52 as well as Countdown.
The Big Bad: Darkseid of Apokolips (?)


Jason Todd welcomes Forerunner to the DC Multiverse (Countdown 46)

SECRET INVASION: THE INFILTRATION (Marvel)
Written by: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Leinil Francis Yu
So far: Secret Invasion is an eight-issue miniseries that begins in April 2008
Like FC, this is where all of the recent Marvel events come to a head. Brian Bendis has been working on this storyline for years, planting seeds in past arcs such as Avengers Disassembled, Civil War.. among others.
The Big Bad: The Skrull Empire


Iron Man slugs it out with a souped up Skrull (New Avengers: Illuminati #5)
The boys at Newsarama.com has started a poll on the readers as to "Which 2008 Comic Book Event Are You Most Looking Forward To?" Surprisingly***, Final Crisis leads by a slim margin (so far) and is gaining momentum.

Which one do YOU think is better?
NOTE: If you're just starting to get acquainted with comics again after a long time and have a quadrillion questions about these coming events, ask away! There are a lot of geeks here that'll be glad to fill you in on the details. ^_^

***Surprising because DC's weekly event, Countdown to Final Crisis, is such a disaster. This just shows how much pull Grant Morrison has on DC readers.

IGN's EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN BENDIS AND TOM BREVOORT on Marvel's major 2008 event!


This is actually only PART ONE of a series of interviews to be conducted monthly until Secret Invasion hits the stands. Since this is just the first, there really aren't much Revelations that took place.. they did show covers for upcoming Secret Invasion related issues. Enjoy!



"And, man, the art is so gorgeous. It's going to be the book Yu is remembered for."
-Brian Bendis

He is, of course, referring to Filipino comic book artist Leinil Francis Yu. WOOT!

MARVEL TRASHES 20 YEARS OF SPIDER-MAN CONTINUITY... along with everything else

I've never been compelled to post something devoted to a topic that I'm not entirely thrilled with, but the somewhat unique and controversial nature of One More Day has prompted me to make an exception.

Spider-Man: One More Day is a 4-part crossover storyline that concluded last 12/26/07. It connected all of the Spidey books and were released in this order:
Amazing Spider-Man #544
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #24
The Sensational Spider-Man #41
Amazing Spider-Man #545

For those readers who haven't had the displeasure of reading J. Michael Straczynski's farewell run on Spider-Man (A run that lasted eight years), I can only think of three words to best describe this story arc: WHAT. THE. FUCK.

In exchange for your Aunt's life, you will have to give up --Wait for it-- your Marriage. (For someone evil, you'd think Mephisto would come up with something more creative than Peter's f*cking marriage. Talk about lame)

In a nutshell, MARVEL (and when I say MARVEL, I mean Joe Quesada) retconned most of what has happened in Peter Parker's life in the past two decades. Among the major changes are:

Peter and Mary Jane were NEVER married
Peter no longer has organic web shooters.
Peter never revealed his identity to the world
Harry Osborn is alive and well again
Forgetting the blatant bastardizing of everything Spidey fans have read over the years, one must wonder the unavoidable chain reaction that these changes will result to. The Best Shots crew at Newsarama said it best:

"Did JMS’s entire run get retconned? Is Amazing Spider-Man now being told several years in the past? What was new Peter’s role in all the major events that have happened since his original wedding day? For Example: Maximum Carnage, the Clone Saga, House of M, his joining the Avengers, Civil War… aren’t these stories now fundamentally changed? Mary Jane provided a sense of balance to Peter, and also had interactions with just about every major super-hero in the Marvel Universe; how does this butterfly effect harm/advance them? Shouldn’t some characters have died or not have died as a direct result of never having been exposed to MJ? Didn’t Peter stop wearing the black costume because it frightened his wife (who was reminded of Venom)?"


See those gold shiny things around Peter & MJ? Those, kids, are how Evil Retcon Dust looks like

Joe Quesada's been lobbying to break up the Peter/MJ marriage for a long time now. I always thought that he'd eventually get his way, but NEVER in this manner. What the hell was he thinking!? Sadly, no matter how monumentally retarded One More Day was, I won't be able to resist checking out Brand New Day just to see what happens next. I will not be surprised if most, if not all other Spidey fans will do the same. So in essence, Joe Q still wins... F*ck!

I originally intended this to be a more detailed article, but I just can't stomach delving deeper into the problems these changes will cause. Besides, I was mightily impressed at Newsarama's coverage on the topic. They really did cover all of the bases. It's a freakin' looooong article, but you can always just skip to the parts that interest you.

We are at the dawn of a new year. As 2007 comes to a close, IGN takes a look back at the year in comics with its annual awards. It's been a quite a ride for the most part. Captain America Died, The Hulk returned to Earth, Sinestro formed his own corps, The first new mutant since House of M... crazy stuff. Check out IGN's picks for the best of the best in comics in 2007!



There are also lots of goodies for all kinds of geeks, with awards in MOVIES, TV, VIDEO GAMES, SPORTS and many more!

Gelatometti is a blog shared by several comic book artists, one of which is Jim Lee. Sketches, Deviant page links of the artists.. etc. Lots of good stuff for comics fans. Here's a taste:


(Left)The Joker by Jim Lee. (Right)Wonder Woman by Michael Lopez

Most of the sketches are in Hi-Res. So you can try and take a stab at coloring them if you want... nice

Be prepared to have your Face Rocked!
If you love comic books, then I'm sure you'll have a blast in Face Rockery... the brainchild of the brilliantly geeky mind of Baddie. Take a tour around the comicverse the way BigBaddie (and DOOM!) sees it.