A new format with more summary notes and key happenings from this past week’s issues:

ADVENTURE COMICS # 4 Blackest Night Tie In

Major Developments: Alexander Luthor comes back as a Black Lantern along with everyone that Prime has killed to destroy Prime. We also find out that  one of the Legions is from Earth Prime as the have a copy of Final Crisis Legion of 3 Worlds .

Shocking Last Page: Alexander Luthor tells us Spoiler Alert next issue Superboy Prime Dies!

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Writer Rich Johnston, Art by Eric J.

There was a point where I thought of doing this review in the same styles as the book backwards in parts. That being said, This book gets four out of five stars and you should Put It On The Stack. Ok all joking aside, this special feels like a Dr. Who episode. The Doctor

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Written by Geoff Johns; Art and cover by Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert;

The most highly anticipated book of the summer hit and it lived up to the hype and then some. We start the issue with Black Hand (fresh off his death and rebirth in Green Lantern) exhuming Bruce Wayne’s body.

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Amazing Spider-Man Annual #38

Peter Parker realizes that Ben Reilly may have been responsible for the death of an entire family.

Dark X- Men The Beginning #1

3 separate stories here so here we go:

Norman Osborn convinces Namor to join the X-Men team he formed.

Osborn comes up to Mimic and tells him he is perfect for his team.

Dark Beast tells Osborn he is in for the team and is the Green Goblin’s biggest fan.

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Agents of Atlas #7

          Mr Lao tells James about the missing information of the history of Atlas.

Cable #16

Bishop arrives with an army to kill Hope.

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Time for a new column around Calliope’s Realm where we reveal what is on the last page of all (or at least most) of the books for the week. This is the inaugural DC edition to be followed by a Marvel and Indy comic edition. We will attempt to keep this a weekly column in order to help everyone who has missed a book that week. So without further ado here we go:

Action Comics #877

  Two Kryptonians used their powers to rob a bank and kill a bunch of guards. Listed as to be continued.

Azrael Death’s Dark Knight #3 of 3

Picture of Azrael saying the Gotham City is finally ready for true justice, as he is about to kill a criminal. Also a note that a new Azrael monthly series is coming.

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Batman Battle For The Cowl The Underground #1

  Great story and artwork in this set the stage for the Gotham City Sirens series that will debut post BFTC. 4 out of 5 Batmen.

Put It On The Stack.

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Batman Battle For The Cowl Commissioner Gordon #1

  Very good story that shows that Gordon can hold his own even without Batman as he takes out Mr. Freeze. Solid artwork and a good story. 3 out of 5 Batmen.

Put It On The Rack

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Amazing Spider-Man #588

  Another not so great issue of the book, with really rushed looking artwork by the normally solid JR JR. This was the big pay off for all the plotlines since BND and it really fell flat. The only interesting part was the last page with Norman Osborne meeting Menace and welcoming her to the family. This book needs another reboot. 1 out of 5 Spider-Villains.

LEAVE IT ON THE RACK.

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Action Comics #875

  The first issue in the new direction for the title is a pretty solid one. The artwork looks very dynamic, and we find out the NIghtwing and Flamebird are on Earth to stop 6 Kryptonians that escaped the Phantom Zone. We also find out the secret ID of each Nightwing (Chris Kent) and Flamebird (Thara Ak-Var). 3 out of 5 Justice Leaguers.

Put It On The Stack.

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Written by Kevin Smith; Art by Walt J. Flanagan; Cover by Adam Kubert;

The buildup from the previous two issues was wasted in the first 10 pages of the book. Onomatopoeia gets a head shot in at Batman and appears to kill him. The Joker is upset by this and states that he wanted to kill him.

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Written by Geoff Johns; Art by Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert; Cover by Shane Davis and John Dell

Another great issue. We start with a quick interlude with Carol Ferris calling Hal Jordan’s house and getting "Cowgirl" instead. We then move to where we left off last issue with Hal Jordan becoming a Red Lantern.

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COVER BY: BILLY TAN
WRITER: BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
PENCILS: BILLY TAN
INKS: MATT BANNING
LETTERED BY: COMICRAFT

Despite what the wraparound cover shows we do not get a "Dark" Avengers VS New Avengers showdown this issue. We start off with the New Avengers watching the introduction of the "Dark" Avengers. We then have a couple of pages of artwork where no one moves and they all continue to stare at the screen.

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Written by Geoff Johns; Art by George Pérez and Scott Koblish; Covers by George Pérez                                                                                                                                   Normally I save the critique portion for the end of the review , but this book is too good to hold back the praise. For everyone that was complaining that Final Crisis the main series made no sense, direct your eyes this way.

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Amazing Spider-Man Extra #2

  Two stories that are much better than most of the recent regular run of the book. We get an Anti-Venom solo story and a fun Spidey-Wolverine Team-Up. Dark, but good art in both stories. 3 out of 5 Spider-Villains.

 Put It On The Stack.

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Batman #685

  The second part of the Hush storyline sees Hush captured and imprisoned in Wayne Tower by Nightwing and Robin. This should lead to Hush teaming up with Damian to take over all of Bruce Wayne’s life. Good story, decent artwork. 4 out of 5 Batmen.  Put It On The Stack.

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Amazing Spider-Man #584

  Cheesy dialogue between supervillains about the importance of voting, a dated 90’s Alannis Morrisette joke, and a lackluster reveal about Menace’s ID (Harry Osborne) and the ID of the Spider Tracer Killer. The book needs a serious revamp and a steady creative team. 1 out of 5 Spider-Villains. Leave it on the Rack.

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      Directed by Henry Sellick 

Dakota Fanning     …    Coraline (voice)

Ian McShane     …    Mr. Bobinski (voice)

Teri Hatcher     …    Coraline’s Mother / Other Mother (voice)

Keith David     …    The Cat (voice)

Jennifer Saunders     …    Miss Forcible (voice)
    Dawn French     …    Miss Spink (voice)
    John Hodgman     …    Coraline’s Father / Other Father (voice)

We were lucky enough to see an advance screening of the film which opens in wide release February 6th. Henry Sellick has directed both the Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach so he knows his way around stop animation filming.  Usually 3-D movies have only a few 3-D effects and most are lackluster or just some random thing popping out at you. This movie is designed to be seen in 3-D as the entire film and not just some stunt work. As such it is a much better 3-D experience and is without a doubt the best 3-D film I have ever seen. (This even includes Nightmare Before Christmas).

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Just a few quick reviews of last week’s books before moving on to this week’s big books.

Faces of Evil Solomon Grundy #1

  We find out the origin of Solomon Grundy and see him reincarnated as a human. He is also told by the Phantom Stranger that he can break his curse and the Green Lantern Alan Scott will help. This book is also a prelude to Blackest Night. Good art, interesting story. 3 out of 5 JSA-ers.Put It on the Stack

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  As he proved while writing Batman the Animated Series, Paul Dini is a great storyteller, even when not writing Batman specifically. This issue is part one of a Hush two-part story and follows the fall and rise of Hush. For those who do not know, Hush is Dr. Tommy Elliot former childhood friend of Bruce Wayne, who has discovered his secret and is jealous that Bruce’s parents died and left him with all of the money, while his parents held him to Bruce’s standards. When we last saw Hush

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Marvel will be up later on today or early tomorrow.

Justice Society of America #22

  The final chapter of the Gog saga ends rather abruptly as Superman-KC tears off his head and mounts him to the source wall. Then he heads back to his time and we get to see his world age all the way up to 1000 years in the future. OK issue but a really quick ending for Gog. 3 out of 5 JSA-ers.

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Just a few books from DC this week:

Flash #247 -Final Issue

  The title goes out with a whimper as the JLA helps Wally bring Linda back to life and save the kids. After that he decides to retire with them and enjoy life. Bring on the return of Barry Allen. 1 out of 5 Flashes.

Reign In Hell # 6 (of 8)

  All out war as we see Lobo vs Zatanna, Dr. Fate vs Lady Blaze and a fight to the death between Lord Satannus and Neron. You can tell from the cover who wins. Fun issue. 3 out of 5 Metal Men.

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Indie reviews late Sunday or Monday if possible.

Amazing Spider-Man #580

  Spider-Man battles the Blank, in a done in one fairly uneventful story. The art by Lee Weeks is a big improvement for the book. 3 out of 5 Spider-Villains.

Astonishing X-Men Ghost  Boxes #2 (of 2 )

  2 more alternate reality stories, including a Cyclops suicide story. Still not worth the $3.99 for only 16 pages of story, but more interesting than the first part. 2 out of 5 X-Men.

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Some good reads this week:

Action Comics #872 New Krypton Part 7

  Metallo and Reacton kill some Kryptonians, Luthor takes over Brainiac and unleashes his robots, and the Creature Commandos return. Great artwork, Great story. 4 out of 5 Batmen.

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This issue starts us off with Emma Frost receiving a letter inviting her to Avengers Mansion for a meeting with Norman Osborn. Dr. Doom is already there once she arrives and then we have the obligatory solo entrance where  everyone has their own introduction. For a moment I thought I was watching the WWE. Osborn then comes in and monologues his way through

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Written by Grant Morrison; Art and covers by J.G. Jones, Carlos Pacheco and Jesus Merino

We start with the trial of Hal Jordan before the Guardians and Alpha Lantern Kraken. She has accused him of hosting a New God and being responsible for crimes. Guy Garderner and Kyle Raynor show up to reveal that Kraken is actually Granny Goodness reborn. She starts to drain the central power battery in order to give all the power of the Green Lanterns to Darksied.

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Doctor Who The Forgotten #4

  Martha and the Doctor fight the Spiders as he gains back more of his memory and we get flashbacks to the Doctor defending Peri and Ace and the Doctor fighting aliens and blowing things up. 4 out of 5 Metal Men.

Necronomicon #3

A history lesson on the Necronomicon and the creation of a device that allows the unseen to be seen and the true nature of things to be revealed. 2 out of 5 Zombies.

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Small week for DC so only a few quick fire reviews:

Justice Society of America #21

  The Gog saga continues as the JSA learns his true purpose and the real price of asking Gog for help. Solid issue, but a little slower moving than the past couple of parts. 3 out of 5 JSAers.

Terra #3

Terra goes to the center of the Earth to return home and find help for Geo-Force. Ok Issue, always enjoy Conner’s artwork. 2 out of 5 Batmen.

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In keeping with the new format I have split the Quick Fires into Marvel, DC, and Indie books.

Amazing Spider-Man #579

  Mark Waid finishes up the two part Shocker tale with a team-up, a betrayal, and the almost reunion of J. Jonah Jameson and his father. Much better artwork in this issue. 4 out of 5 Spider-Villains.

Cable #9

  Cable Versus the Cockroach Humans and Bishop takes out the X-Men. Nice pacing, very smooth artwork. 3 out of 5 X-Villains.

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Tarot Witch of The Black Rose # 53

  I have been debating whether or not to review this book, but that one phrase inside of the book made it a must review, sheerly for the title. A gaggle of dead nurses, are taking back body parts that were donated or not real from the living. There are the obligatory T & A shots as well. Not much substance to the book, but then again I think the audience for it is defined to a certain genre. I generally like most horror books, especially those that deal with magick and witchcraft themes, but this book is nothing more than a collection of pin-ups. I will refrain from a rating on the book since it really has nothing of comparable quality of genre to relate it to. However, it is definitely designed for readers 18 and up.