G.I. Joe/Cobra #11 - With all these different iterations of G.I. Joe out there I sometimes get confused as to who exactly Cobra Commander is (or should be), but this dapper-suited, intelligent, sensible Commander with a photographic memory is the first truly inspiring and competent leader of a global terrorist organization/legitimate business that the Joes have had. That doesn't mean he's not fun, but he's a different, non-buffoonery kind of fun.
Strange Tales II #3 - while I get a big kick out of the humorous takes on the Marvel universe, pointing out, repeatedly, the absurdity the the superhero genre is built upon, I think I appreciate the more straightforward - earnest even - takes on the characters. I liked best Alex Robinson's slice-of-life college-aged Ben Grimm and Reed Richards going on a double-date story as it used it's short story form to maximum efficiency.
Captain America: Man Out Of Time #2 - The first issue, truth be told was a little weak, as Mark Waid's updating of Cap's resuscitation ran over familiar ground but with minor tweaks. This issue, however, was solid gold, introducing the anachronistic Cap to a disbelieving Rick Jones, acclimatizing to the modern era and, quite frankly, reminding the audience what Captain America's appeal truly is (something, I personally, have always had a hard time understanding, but think I get now).
X-Factor #212 - X-Factor and Thor team up on a mission to hell, and that guy Darwin who hasn't had much to say or do since he first showed up finally shows some usefulness, and how.
Mighty Crusaders #6 - If I can say one thing to writers who know that they're working on the last issue of a series or line or company, don't end it by saying goodbye or the big bravado and bluster rallying cry "wherever there is trouble, we'll be there" type speech, because that's pure Camembert, instead, leave them wanting more. Hint at the next big adventure to never come, make it seem like there some big idea waiting in the wings that the audience will never see, make it memorable rather that awkward. Frustrate the hell out of them with a cliffhanger. As much as people say they want closure, people remember that which doesn't give it to them even more. I say this because dammit I want more.
Batman and Robin #18 - I was reading an interview by Paul Cornell over at CBR and Cornell notes:
It kind of is startling where you see reviews of my "Batman And Robin," which is supposed to be as dark as dishwater, going, "Oh, this is a light-hearted Silver Age adventure." I don't think of this as a Silver Age adventure, guys.
"Dark as dishwater"? Oh Paul Cornell, you're having us on, aren't you? This second part is as 60's as it gets, complete with a plodding bad-guy-telling-the-good-guys-their-origin which ate up a good chunk of the issue and felt more Stan Lee than Grant Morrison, less Alan Grant, more Roy Thomas.
Mighty Samson #1 - I thought I had some past connection to the old Gold Key Mighty Samson, but turns out I was full of it, because reading this issue, (which contains both Jim Shooter's remake and a reprint of the original Gold Key first issue) I don't even have a slight tickle of familiarity with the series. A post apocalyptic story set hundreds of years in the future as New York and New Jersey tribes square off. I haven't read Kamandi, really, so it would be interesting to hear someone compare the two. I also thought there should be more traces of the 20th century strewn throughout (hammer home the fact that we've made a lot of shit that's never going away).
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