Against my Better Judgement

This is an idea for a new column that I mentioned yesterday. I buy a lot of comics. Many times I'll leave the comic shop with more titles than I originally intended on buying. Sometimes I end up picking up something great, and that makes everything totally worth it. Many times I buy a lot of crap books. This column is going to focus on the latter. And instead of just being a Negative Nancy, I'll offer up some suggestions. So here are some comicbooks that I bought against my better judgement:

Since most of those Marvel books I've recently reviewed can fit under this category, I'll start with Thanos Rising.

I gave this the benefit of the doubt because of Jason Aaron and Simone Bianchi, and I'm a huge fan of space operas.

This went against my better judgement because this is a retconning of Thanos's origin, and just like the other space opera characters that I love, Marvel is focusing on Thanos as a sad teenager. Although this has a much stronger script than Nova or Guardians of the Galaxy, I don't want to see the badass characters that I love as sad teenagers. And Marvel knows this. Look at the cover over to your left. It features a badass adult Thanos with what I assume to be alien blood all over his face and not some crying teenager.

What you should buy instead is Stormwatch 19. This is the first issue written by Jim Starlin, who is the reason that we all love Thanos in the first place. No interior art, but Starlin is also providing covers. This issue features a brand new Stormwatch team which has the Weird on its roster.

Harbinger Wars 1

I gave this the benefit of the doubt because I've enjoyed the Valiant relaunch so far, and because Harbinger has been one of my favorite new Valiant titles. I was really hoping that this was good and that I didn't have to give it up. 

This went against my better judgement because Bloodshot is the only new Valiant book that I really didn't like, and crossovers are always a mess. I'm either supposed to buy three books instead of one for four months or buy one book and not really get the whole story. Companies always say the stories are self-contained, but have you ever known that to be true? And even when the stories start off well, I'm always tired of them by the end.

What you should buy instead is Hulk 6. Walt fucking Simonson drawing the Hulk pounding on Frost Giants with Mjolnir. 'Nuff said.

A Valiant Effort

I really enjoyed Valiant Comics during their first go-round about 20 years ago. It was a new tightly-knit sci-fi based superhero universe that focused on good stories in a period when comics centered around flashy art, claws, and guns. I was a lot younger, but I remember that first wave of Valiant titles to be really high-quality. Like anything else, the line got spread thin when expanded, and the company eventually got bought out by Acclaim who really only wanted the characters to make video games.

Especially after the article I wrote yesterday, it's hard to imagine any publisher outselling the big two, yet Valiant and Image both had top-selling books. Anyway, they've tried to reboot a few times over the years. This summer they've put out four books, and seem to be off to a good start.

X-O Manowar
I'm enjoying this book quite a bit. I vaguely remember the Valiant characters and kind of their deals, but it's been a very long time. My friend tells me that the opening arc is just an expanded retelling of the original zero issue (a gimmick that Valiant started for those who don't remember) which I have read, but again, a long time ago. But whatever. It's barbarians fighting bug aliens. What's not to like?

Harbinger
This is easily my favorite. And it's a really great way to start a team book. It focuses on one character at his very lowest point until he eventually meets the rest of the team. It sets a tone as opposed so that you essentially get to know the character and develop pathos.

Bloodshot
Bloodshot wasn't one of the original characters, and like some of the other Valiant additions, seemed more centered around guns as was the zeitgeist. He's pretty much an invincible soldier. This kind of stuff generally doesn't appeal to me.

Archer and Armstrong
This was OK. I remember the original series being more of an odd couple humor-based thing. Without giving away the plot, I guess my biggest problem was the very overt social commentary. As much as I enjoy satire, it seems out of place in an action-oriented book. But it's only one issue. Maybe as it goes on, it will flesh out the buddy dynamic.