Wright-Sized Pull List, 3-28 & 4-4

Updates will be scarce for a while as I work on getting my life back in order.
***
Batman 664
Three Ghosts of Batman
-- Probably my favorite issue of Morrison's BATMAN run yet. I didn't enjoy the Batman and Son arc much -- the inter-family dynamics never surpassed the two-dimensional, it felt to me -- but this was really fun. It's nothing breathtakingly innovative or anything, just a very well-written, strong superhero story. There's nothing at all bad about "just" being that, though.

This felt like Morrison giving his ALL-STAR SUPERMAN treatment to Batman. There was that sense of the story telling us, "This is what I, Grant Morrison, see as Batman being all about," the sense of him checklisting -- and I'm not attaching any criticism to that word -- through the elements that he sees as being definitive Batman.

Even the art seemed better somehow. I've never been much of a fan of either Kubert brother, but this issue clicked for me. That shot of Batman against the neon ads oozed presence.

I'm a little worried about the whole serial-killer-dressed-as-Batman plot. There's the danger of going down the road of cliché there, what with the hero who uncovers serial killings that are being covered up because the killer has pals in high places. No, who I am I kidding? I'm not really worried. After getting so much enjoyment out of this issue, I'm in far too optimistic a mood for that.

One thing..why is the title of this issue what it is? There's the musclehead disguised as Batman, one, and the actual Batman, two... Who's number three?

Fables 59
Burning Questions
-- Argh, my question wasn't picked! Blast it, how can I sleep at night until I know what Beauty's reaction was to finding out Beast had gained control over his transformations!

I'm surprised this issue was enjoyable as it was. I've never associated Willingham's writing with rip-roaring humor. There are amusing jokes throughout FABLES, but I can't recall anything "ha-ha" funny. And the same goes for the stories here really, but it still works. It's a charming "day-in-the-life" affair, giving us some rare glimpses of the normal activities of the characters when they're, for once, not busy keeping their heads above the water. It's not something we see too much of, which is what makes it such a treat.

And the formerly-giant pigs were absolutely adorable.

Gargoyles 3
Clan-Building, Chapter 3: Invitation Only
-- With this issue, we get our first genuinely new story. It's good stuff. It's nice to see Weisman is taking advantage of the comic book medium (e.g. the first page being a splash of the invitation) instead of simply writing TV-episodes-divided-into-panels.

We see a lot of story stands here, not just an A plot and B plot, but all the way to an E plot or something. I'm fan of that sort of diversity, so I enjoyed it.

One of the things I like about the show is that one had no idea what would happen next. Anything and everything was up for grabs, nothing could be taken for granted. From what we see in this issue, it looks like the comic is continuing in that fine tradition.

What does Thailog want? Why does Demona want that crystal? How will the dinner party go? What's Mr. Hacker's real agenda? Who knows! I have no idea, and isn't that great.

Buffy Season Eight 2
The Long Way Home, Part Two
-- As I thought, now that the first issue's set-up is out of the way, the quality spikes up, here in Issue 2.

Given that Andrew never seemed to be more than a well-intentioned-but-ineffective twit on the show, I'm finding it a little bizarre that they'd make him a slayer instructor. What exactly qualifies him for such a task? It did make for a pretty funny scene, though.

I like that, like the show, despite being called BUFFY, this comic is halfway to having a true ensemble cast. We got nice moments with various main characters this issue. The spread focus keeps things fresh.

And the thrill of seeing Whedon telling Buffy stories without the constraint of a SFX budget hasn't died out.

Jack of Fables 9
Jack of Hearts, Part Three: Luck Be a Lady
-- At this point, I'm most interested in what's going on with Mr. Revise and the Pages. The hints about their past and their current goals definitely upped my curiosity and, consequently, my interest. Was that a map of some sort of Homelands counterpart to America? Hmmm.

It's interesting how Revise actually treasts Melissa with something other than mild contempt. Looks like the dynamics over at Golden Boughs aren't as simple as they first appeared.

The parts of the issue about Jack are good, too. Fun. I've said in the past that I think Jack's narration captions are somewhat overdone, but I didn't feel that way this time. For whatever reason, this time around they felt just right.

Still not a big fan of Gary, though. While the way Tony Akins draws the character's "friends" makes for terrific visuals, Gary himself doesn't interest me much. In fact, I'm kind of hoping he won't be a permanent sidekick; his abilities are helping Jack out a whole lot, while I want to see more of Jack worming his way out of nasty situations via his base cunning instead.

Superman 661
Dangerous Lady
-- There seemed to be a disconnect between this issue's art and writing in a way I can't quite put down. The body language and facial expressions of the characters weren't... specific enough? Does that make an ounce of sense?

The real highlight here is the interactions between Lois, Clark/Superman, and Diana/Wonder Woman. There's something very... convincing about it all.

I can't say the story's villain did a great deal for me. I don't find myself eager for her comeback, at least. Still, she serves her purpose well enough, and it's not like she was designed to be someone with staying power instead of a one-timer (or at least I don't think she was).

Also, the way her defeat was illustrated was lacking, in my opinion. The art for those panels conveyed very little in the way of energy or drama.

Overall, this was a decent issue, though below the standards of the rest of Busiek's run so far. (In fairness, this issue was co-plotted.)