Wolverine: Killable by Paul Cornell (art by Alan Davis)

Wolverine, Vol. 2: Killable by Paul Cornell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I feel very wishy-washy on this one…the concept I like; Wolverine having to reassess how he does things due to losing his healing factor.

What? I’m as surprised as you were Cary…though I already knew about this, and read Vol. 1 of this title, I didn’t recall that taking place…shows how well it was written that a major thing like that happens and I don’t remember.

Cornell is hit and miss, but mostly miss. This is 2.5 Stars

Yup. So Beast gets all sad that Logan is now Human, and boohoohoo. Everyone thinks he’s going off, and he does, so Kitty follows him.

There’s one decent passage where Thor comes down to drink with Logan and tells him that he loves Midgarders so much because they’re mortal, and that with time, Logan will realize what a great gift it is. Frankly, I think Logan as written by most GOOD writers would have him make a few snide remarks, but file that away as decent advice. Cornell has him start a fight with Thor…while NOT able to heal…ya. Good idea.

There’s some stuff about SHIELD and a virus from the microverse (how Wolvie lost the healing in the first place) taking over Earth, and that leaves Nick Fury Jr. to look like a dolt and have TERRIBLE dialogue.

“We’re Facing Impossible Odds!”
“There’s Just Too Many of Them!”

So in a Mall in Alberta (because of course, they’ve built a mall over the site where James Howlett/Logan/Wolverine grew up) Kitty and Logan fight off Hand ninjas (did you know that Sabretooth is the head of the Hand now?) and spend way too much time in stupid arguments with mall cops about how “Muties” are so bad news…Muties? is it 1987?

Anyhow, Alongside Victor Creed we’ve got Mystique, Silver Samurai, and Lord Deathstrike (not Lady, but Lord..he’s kinda…dumb). All fighting and way too much talking from Kitty’s inner monologue…

Sabretooth shows up, and to prove he’s REALLY EVIL he tells Logan he won’t kill him even though he’s totally defeated, because he wants to let it sink in that he’s much better than Wolverine, and he wants Logan to get old and fall apart and then he’ll maybe put him out of his misery in a nursing home…

So the title is apt: Wolverine IS Killable. But not in this volume.

Missed opportunity here…could have been GREAT in a better writer’s hands.

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Release Day Review: Batman, Vol. 5: Zero Year – Dark City by Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo (Illustrations)

Batman, Vol. 5: Zero Year – Dark City by Scott Snyder

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

4.5 stars

Origin of the Giant Penny!
Ok, maybe nobody else cared, but I thought it was cool of Snyder to give that massive Penny that Bruce keeps in the Batcave, a fresh start.
Dear Mr. Snyder,
Could you do the Dinosaur next?
Sincerely,
Anne

This is the second arc of Zero Year, which is Snyder’s New 52 origin story for Batman.
It’s not as dark as some of the previous origins, but it’s not exactly light and fluffy, either.
This is a younger version of the Dark Knight. He’s fallible, relatively inexperienced as Batman, and more mouthy than what we’re used to seeing.
He sort of reminds me of Dick Grayson, with the snappy comebacks during fight scenes, you know?
Did I just say Snappy?
Holy shit. I did.
Did you know, that every time someone uses snappy in a sentence…
Somewhere an angel gets his AARP card?
That’s deep, man. DEEP.

Anyhoo. Edward Nigma (last seen abandoning Wayne Industries) has returned as a full-fledged super villain.
The Riddler!
He’s planning on taking Gotham hostage, and cleansing the earth, so to speak.
Can Batman unravel the clues fast enough to stop him?
Surprisingly…not at first.
Butbutbutbutbut, you say. He’s the goddamn Batman!
Yeah, not so much. Or at least, not quite yet.
Butbutbutbutbut, you say. Batman is too well-prepared to be caught unawares!
Yeah, but nobody is born with Bruce Wayne’s level of paranoia. That sort of thing is learned.
I mean, unless you’re schizophrenic, of course.
So, I’m thinking that by showing Batman pull an epic fail, Snyder is giving us a solid reason for his wildly detailed contingency plans.
And also the Penny. Because, really, that was a highlight for me.

There were a couple of scenes I raised my eyebrow at, but, on the whole, this was another solid Snyder/Capullo team-up.
And if you’re not reading this title, then you need to turn in you Cool Kid card.
Seriously.

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Review: Runaways Vol 1: Pride and Joy by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona

Runaways, Vol. 1: Pride and Joy by Brian K. Vaughan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this book years ago – probably when it was still an active series in its early, obsessive days of new wild-eyed fans who couldn’t believe comics could be this good.

At the time I thought it was a little juvenile for my tastes – who would I be kidding, a grown man reading a comic about a group of teenagers? So I think I put it away and tried to forget how skeezy I felt, and returned to stuff that was a little more age-appropriate (or at least didn’t make me think of how many perverts drooled over the teenaged girls in this book). Weird thoughts, but almost certainly among those in my head at the time (along with “Why did I move to this rain-infested town?” and “When will Americans finally figure out how to write an unambiguous date?”).