Shit I bought today

Man, Tax Free Weekend is awesome, up there with The Day After Thanksgiving!

Superman/ Batman #38: Darkseid is slumming it with the Gotham rogues gallery. Like a lot of the recent S/B story arcs, I'm not getting into this one this early in the tale. Killer Croc stole something that caused Superman to see Kryptonite all over the place, and this is somehow connected to Apokalips? It's like an M. Night Shamalamadingdong movie ... slow build that only serves to make the last 15 minutes the most important part, so just watch the first 15 minutes, then jump to the last 15 minutes and you've seen the whole film in 30 minutes.

Justice League of America #11: Vixen and Red Arrow (Speedy) are trapped under citywide rubble, so they share tender moments without fucking. But, and this might be a spoiler, which is okay because you probably won't snap it up anyway: Why do they spend the whole issue except the last four pages feeling trapped, only to realize that the rubble is on top of them, and they can swim through the water below them? They think up is down, but wouldn't gravity have told them that anyway? Doesn't your biological system just automatically detect where gravity pulls, if for no other reason than your circulatory system would feel weird, pumping against gravity?

Ghost Rider #13: Part of the "World War Hulk" run. Last issue stank, as it hyped a confrontation between Ghost Rider and Hulk on the cover, and Hulk only shows up on the last page. So, does #13 break the mold set up by #12? Only marginally ... Ghost Rider has a knock-down, drag-out with Hulk, but then, at the end, Ghost Rider just squats and leaves. There's more to it than that, but at the end of the issue, that's all that happens.

Brave & Bold #5: It seems as if, between this appearance and the JLA/ JSA crossover "The Lightning Saga," we are gearing up for Legion of Super Heroes relaunch v.infinitum. I have always liked the "Brave & Bold"/ "Marvel Two-In-One"/ "Marvel Team-Up" concept, and this launch does not disappointment. So far, we've had Batman, Green Lantern, Lobo, Supergirl, Blue Beetle II or III or IV (who's counting), and now the Legion. They are after two artifacts: The Book of Destiny (always a good standard plot device) and a reality-warping weapon called the haruspex. The only thing I don't like Legion stories is because there are usually twenty characters in every story, and that gets tedious over the course of an issue, much less 40-odd (which is the average for how long Legion series runs usually last).

Iron Man #20: Iron Man's battle with the Hulk continues from last issue. Stark gets captured. The Ballpark Franks ads, with the arms coming out of people's chest to feed them. It just doesn't make me wanna eat hot dogs, that's all I'm saying.

Mighty Avengers #4: Brian Michael Bendis is not all he's cracked up to be. The thought balloons in this title are a sign of that. I remember when thought balloons were good for internal monologue, but when the best it gets is a character thinking, "What?" then saying "What?" And do I need to know that a character is thinking, "Hm?"

Super Villain Team-Up #1 (of 5): Here's the Marvel version of DC's "Villains United." Plus, any chance to see MODOK and his big head & little appendages is welcome to me.

Avengers Initiative #4: I swear I just saw this issue's story on "Justice League Unlimited" last night. In it, Stargirl, STRIPE, Shining Knight, Green Arrow, and Vigilante faced a Hulk-caliber threat, going from crowd control to standing in for the Justice League. This followed that storyline almost to the letter.

Black Summer 0 and #1: Warren Ellis scores pretty high with this story, at least from the first bits of it. Horus murders the President, because Horus fights for justice and believes that the current regime is unjust in its actions. Can't wait to see where this goes.

Justice Society of America #8: I liked this series a little more before the relaunch. And so far, eight issues in, if still feels like their "building the team." Jesse Quick-slash-Liberty Belle takes center stage, and the JSA supports one of their own (Damage) breaking the law. And in a funny parallel, Damage has Nitro-esque powers, and the threat is that he'll explode in New York and kill thousands, which was what started "Civil War" in Marvel's universe. Just an observation.

Illuminati #4 (of 5): What's up with every recent Marvel miniseries only going five issues? Defenders, Marvel Zombies, Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness, Illuminati, World War Hulk ... all limited series that end in five. Illuminati is actually pretty smooth reading, as Prof X, Reed Richards, Namor, Dr. Strange, Black Bolt, and Tony Stark explore the secrets of the Marvel Universe. Not bad, and it's interesting to revisit some enjoyable facets of Marvel's history.

Punisher #50: Ennis brings back the character Barracuda. This is what bugs me about the MAX Punisher series: Following a really good arc, there's an unavoidable dip in quality in the subsequent arc, kinda like how only even Star Trek movies are any good.

Rue Morgue Magazine: I'm going to avoid even looking at the Rob Zombie Presents: Halloween article, and focus on the goods. The Bentley Little article is quite awesome, as he's a talented horror novelist. Artist Les Edwards is featured; he's way talented, even though I'm a bigger fan of the Basil Gogos style. All the reviews pan everything new, and praise everything old, which is the way it should be. I wouldn't mind scoping out that bio of the Cramps.

Mass Appeal (magazine): Love this freaking mag. There's an interview with a guy who brews homemade wine in prison. Anthony Anderson is destined to be this generations Michael Caine, and I don't mean that in a good way. RA The Rugged Man continues to bring the worthy, and he has a film due out (Bad Biology). I'm disappointed that cover chick/ actress Melonie Diaz isn't in porn. There's tons more cool shit in this mag, as in every issue, and I get happier each month that I switched my funds from "Scratch" to this.

Also in my bag:

Devil's Rejects (DVD): Got this on sale for $5.99, and anything even a penny more is a ripoff. But I like movies, and sometimes that includes shitty movies. But this has a second disc that features a making-of doc that runs about 2.5 hours, and I'd be willing to bet that the behind the scenes stuff is more entertaining than the film that came out of it. The commentary with Sid Haig should be pretty cool too, although it also features Sheri Moon Zombie, who's a fucking hag.

TNA - Destination X (DVD): I've been wanting to see Angle vs. Steiner since March, so now I'm "after Impact" away from seeing it firsthand. You know, on the Impact tip, I want to chime in that Abyss talking would mke more of an impact on my if his voice was less "growl I'm a monster growl" and more "Sandman from the Ghostbusters cartoon." "No more wars. No more fighting."

Patton Oswalt - Werewolves & Lollipops (CD): Shit made me laugh so hard, I almost had a couple of fender benders on the way home.