As I had hoped: things are working themselves out.  Well, first, they worked themselves in–to my bag; and then I had to pull them out–you know, to read them and whatnot.  Now, after having read the lot of ’em, I’ve gained a bit of clarity, thanks, of course, to the creators themselves, who have helped me make my decisions–both for the better and for the worse.

Hey Mr. Shop Guy put comics in my bag/I want to read till I’m unconscious

• Justice League of America #4 (Read it!  Brett Booth?  Already?  Yup: I judged this one by a name on the cover.  And through just about the entire book, I was content–no, ecstatic in knowing that I’d be casting it off with all of the other Geoff Johns titles I didn’t care for.  [That’s, umm, all the other Geoff Johns titles, by the way.]  Then came the end, which, for all intents and purposes, should have been the end of my JLA experiment; but it didn’t play out that way.  Not that it blew my mind.  Well, it blew somebody’s mind.  Ain’t willing to say whose ’cause that’d be a spoiler, now wouldn’t it?  As it stands, however, looks like I’m on for #5.  Cats!  No: Bats!  Ack!  I mean: Rats!  Aw, heck, whom am I fooling?  I mean all of ’em.)

JLA #4

• Lost Vegas #3 (Read it!  As of this issue, Lost Vegas is officially off probation.  The story has finally caught up with the art.  I’m doubling down going forward–especially since I’m loving McCann’s Mind the Gap after having knocked out the first trade.)
• Adventures of Superman #1 (Read it!  Loved it.)
• The Shadow: Year One #3 (Read it!  Got to the end, asked myself: “Do I really care?”  The answer?  If the Shadow didn’t know before, he knows now: I’m done with this one.  It’s a rarity, you know: usually, if I make it past the second issue of a mini, I’m down with the entire series.  Not this time.)
• Clone #7 (Read it!  A bit of a backslide, sure, but it’s still engaging enough.)

Clone #7

• Fury: My War Gone By #12 (Read it!  Some seriously powerful moments.)
• The Westwood Witches #1 (Read it!  The premise is really smart; the execution, not so much.  Not too sure if there was enough to warrant another issue.)
• X-Men #1 (Read it!  A better first issue than any of the other X-Now! books.  And I’m not just saying that because I’m hooked on The Massive.  OK, maybe I am.)

X-Men #1

• The Wake #1 (Read it!  Speaking of The Massive.)
• TMNT #22 (Read it!  Not bad.  Santolouco’s art is terrific.  Gorgeous cover.  Not sure if I was grabbed enough by the story to try another.)

TMNT #22

• Indestructible Hulk #8 (Read it!  Thank goodness we’re done with the Thor bore.  Plus, it’s worth noting that Mark Waid seems to have an all-of-a-sudden not-so-subtle addiction to fatal afflictions.  If I weren’t aware before, I’m certainly aware now!)
• Deathmatch #6 (Read it!  Familiarity hasn’t bred contempt till now.  The Anti-Meridian?  Uh oh.)

What did you get in your bag this week?

Turning pages,

Scott