Short and Sweet

52 46
The end is in sight. I don't know about anyone else, but is there anything more fun than an island occupied by a bunch of loony evil scientists? I feel so sorry for Black Adam, but I'm sure that won't last. Oh, and there was some other stuff in the book, too, with Luther.

Anita Blake 4-5
Definitely a "Guilty Pleasure." Aside from sometimes being unable to tell the male characters apart, other than by their hair, and not always by that, I've gotten quite hooked on this. Anita has a nice narrative voice. I've never read the novels, so the comic will do nicely.

Birds of Prey 104
The current Birds and the Secret Six. Can it get better than that? Lovely cover with Big Barda. Now, here's a cover with a large-chested woman posed so her boobs are leading the way, yet they don't stand out to the detriment of the woman, herself. This is a nice rendering of a sexy, confident female warrior. Scott and Hazelwood did a great job on art chores. The facial expressions inside were wonderful. Helena and Thomas Blake were wonderfully funny together, and he never looked sexier than in a tux and five o'clock shadow. "Did you just hit me with a meatball?" Priceless.

Brave & Bold 2
With GL and SG. And some more with Batman, along with Blue Beetle to hint at next issue. I like that this version of B&B is featuring a long story with characters weaving in and out instead of the single issue stories with new pairings each time of the old version. I've read a few reviews of this, some positive, some negative, especially regarding the portrayal of Supergirl. I can see that, in light of all the other questionable or objectified portrayals of Kara recently, that her flirting with Hal can be viewed as more of the same. But for me, it isn't quite that. She comes across as a 17-year-old girl who has serious issues about belonging somewhere and being properly socialized, an area in which she's lacking. Clearly, her upbringing wasn't the best and since arriving on Earth, she's been the object of Batman's suspicions and Superman's overprotection. She's spent some time with the Amazons, and had a lot of crazy things happening to her. She's trying to fit in. Sure, she sounds dumb, but 17-year-olds flirting with older men usually do. Yet she used her ingenuity and flushed out the bad guy. And her costume looked a lot better, too. I enjoyed this, both for the art (kudos to Perez and Wiacek) and the fun banter between Hal and Kara.

Checkmate 12
A good conclusion to a solid, personal story. Two members of the team with personal vendettas deal with their issues in very different ways. Tommy had every reason to want Bane dead, yet he shows restraint, putting the mission first. Beatriz however, doesn't, putting her father above the team and the mission, but owns up to it at the end. Nice, complicated, messy. Just like real life. I'm looking forward to seeing Amanda Waller getting her comeuppance. At least, I hope she does, the bitch, but not until she puts up a good fight.

Grifter/Midnigher 1
First off, I don't know Midnighter, except for a few things I've read, ie that he's gay. I'm not even sure where he normally appears. I'm getting this mini-series because of my obsession with Cole Cash. I enjoyed what I read, even if it took a while to see Grifter. But I am confused. In the WildCats books I've read (all of the last series and much of the first via compilations), I don't recall him having this mental ability to control others. Can anyone enlighten me? I also suspect this series will conclude before we see WildCats 2. Well, I hope that's not true.

Justice Society of America 4
Gosh, what a beautiful cover. This book is just gorgeous to look at. I really like Ted's son and I hope we learn about his meta abilities. He's a wonderful character, complex from the gitgo. The scenes with Damage were very moving, especially the bit about his mask and his need for it. Nicely done. Also, Jesse is far better in this as Liberty Belle than she was in the Titans as Jesse Quick by Grayson, Faeber, etc. That was her, right? The character folks on the DC boards happily dubbed a "skank"? And I for one love that Power Girl will be leading the team. Sure, some of the men would be great leaders, but Mr. Terrific is busy with Checkmate, Alan and Jay are getting a bit out of touch with the younger generation, and Carter can be a stubborn jerk at times. PG, as the veteran female on the team, will be great in the job. This level of responsibility is just what she needs, for her personal evolution as well as her place in the DCU as more than just a pair of boobs. Oh, and can we get better teasers for the upcoming stories?

Shadowpact 11
Another fun book. I love these characters. They're not the top tier, or even the second tier, but they work hard, they care about each other, and they're willing to sacrifice. The temporary new members did fine. And I love Etrigan as a coat rack.

The Spirit 4
Aside from having the best cover of the week (sorry JSA), this issue broke with a tradition by having Silk Satin, the guest female agent, narrate the story. At first, I thought it was the Spirit's narration because it's his book, but I should've known better by the cursive font. Ah well. I'll try to remember that Darwyn Cooke isn't above tweaking our expectations by playing with conventions. After all, he put our hero in the role of lad in distress, with Silk needing to rescue him, then sacrificing herself to get the bad guys and keep him safe. But all is not lost. It looks like she'll be back. At least, I hope she will. She's too much fun.

Supergirl 15
A real WTF? issue. A typical teenage abusive relationship story that Buffy, the Vampire tv show did much better. At least, Kara wised up and got back at the jerk. I like when she kneed him. Someone really needs to give her some dating advice. Donna Troy, maybe? But someone needs to. Soon.