Comics Round-Up: October (3)

Here are the comics I've been reading at the end of October. Christmas is coming, which means a tightening of the belt, so I'll be dropping some titles soon. Some titles are coming to an end anyway, others I haven't followed up on some promising first issues (or not found them easy to come by). On the other hand, there are some interesting miniseries starting up, so we'll see what we see. Last issue of the current run of Saga is due out tomorrow, and is going to get lumped in with the November reviews.

TMNT/Ghostbusters #1  (of 4) (IDW)

My local comic shop are struggling with the whole putting aside comics for customers when they say they will, so I buckled and downloaded this. It's worth it, although I'll still look out for a print copy so that I can fully appreciate the artwork (I mostly read downloads on my phone, which is convenient, but hardly ideal). If you're a child of the 80s/early 90s, this has got to be an exciting prospect, a Turtles/Ghostbusters crossover.  I really like the set-up they've used, using three different artists to differentiate between the various dimensions and time periods. Given that this jumps from mediaeval Japan to modern day New York, then to a different New York, introducing a new villain and bringing the characters together, it's surprisingly coherent. Very good fun so far.

Amazing Spider-Man #8 (Marvel)

An unremarkable issue this week. The interplay between Spidey and Ms Marvel is still great, but the story itself is nothing special. It ties into yet another Spider title that I haven't followed, so the significance is probably lost on me, Still, the improved focus on Silk is good stuff, and I'm very pleased that the creators have made a conscious decision to change her costume into something with a bit more class. There's another "Edge of Spider-Verse" installment, this one set in the MC2 universe and following May Parker, Peter's daughter. Given that this is an established character and reality they can hit the ground running, but it's still just a vignette as opposed to an actual story. It's all building up to the main event kicking off this month.

Rocket Raccoon #4 (Marvel)

Aw, poor Rocket. This finally gets into some actual story alongside the silliness, as Rocket faces another member of his people... or so it seems. It's still great fun, especially when all of Rocket's ex-girlfriends turn up for the reckoning (he used to date a Galactus lady?!) There's even a tiny bit of gender politics thrown in. Briefly.

Wild's End #2 (Boom!)

What's so good about this title is how seriously it takes itself. It's an absurd premise told completely straight, and is really quite gripping for it. That's not to say there aren't some really sick jokes in there too. A straightforward tale about the horrors of war... with talking pigs.

The Multiversity: The Just (DC)

The third release in Morrisson's Multiversity series is the first misfire. The idea behind it - a reality where all crime has been stopped and superheroes are nothing more than bored, attention-grabbing slebs - is cute, but doesn't really have much mileage for a story. Earth-Me is populated by the offspring of the Justice League and its enemies, and while seeing the different characters' relationships play out has some appeal, the whole thing runs the risk of being as vacuous as the culture its parodying. Still, the ongoing plot, with a force breaching the dimensional walls through a cursed comicbook, is moving on nicely.

Thor #1 (Marvel)

I've finally got hold of this - it, predictably, sold straight out - and while it's a decent enough read, it's not the new beginning it was marketed as. In honesty, I doubt Marvel is really capable of doing a fresh start on any of its titles, they're all so bogged down in continuity. So, while this is the new issue one, it's very much continuing on from the previous volume, albeit with enough handy exposition to roughly get what's going on. Hoping that it improves next issue as we actually get to meet the new Thor.

Edward Scissorhands #1 (of 5) (IDW)

IDW continues to prove it's the publisher that owns the media tie-in market, with a not-particularly-timely sequel to the classic 1990 film. Kate Leth's story shows promise, dealing with Kim's nearly grown-up granddaughter searching for the truth about Edward, and Edward's misguided decision to awaken one of his maker's other creations. I'm not sure about Drew Rausch's artwork though. It's certainly very Tim Burton-y, but not really in keeping with the tone of the story. Eli is an interesting creation, with his mechanical claw hands - could Vincent Price's character just not do hands? - and it has the confidence to go for pages with virtually no dialogue, but this has yet to prove itself to me.