Buy Pile Report

So, my day began with Action Comics #870 (you can read the previous post for the report) and it just kept getting better.

OK, so there were minor bumps on the road, but for the most part, the rest of my Buy Pile was some great stuff. And no comic this week was better than another Geoff Johns' finale, Green Lantern #35. In one swift motion, Johns not brought everything from this arc full circle with the current situation in the world of Green Lantern, but he also silenced the critics who questioned why we needed this hefty seven-part "Secret Origin" arc. In showing Hal Jordan openly question the Guardians, it better explains just how an inexperienced GL like Hal had been for a long time established such a give-and-take relationship with these revered "Guardians of the Universe," which certainly plays into the current situation of the Guardians changing the Book of Oa through their own fears. Granted, since the truly interesting sections of this arc were encompassed in Hal's interactions with Sinestro and the Guardians, the arc probably didn't have to last seven issues. But, good things come to those who wait, and this fantastic ending only has me more excited for the upcoming "Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns."

Now, while Johns has been regaling us with tales of Hal's past, the sister book of this series has been doing the heavy lifting. It continued in Green Lantern Corps #29, in which a good portion of the story was spent better detailing exactly who the Violet Lanterns of Love are. And sure, stories like this are not quite as awe-inspiring as GL #35 was, but in the end, when "Blackest Night" is in full swing, I can guarantee you're going to be glad you read this one. As a side story, we watched as Guy and Tora encountered some more relationship bumps (although, after the whole death, rebirth thing, can anything else be considered a bump), and it all made me anticipate, and fear, the idea that Tora may become a Violet Lantern. As a longtime fan of the character, I'd hate to see it happen, but since her Resurrection she has been pretty quiet, so maybe this has been the plan all along?

Say what you will about the inaccessibility of Final Crisis: Revelations #3, but for my money no series has detailed exactly how Darkseid's Anti-Life takeover happened like this series has. The duration of this story takes place in the moments right after the equation spread, and Greg Rucka does a fantastic job here of putting us in the shoes of a devine being as they wonder how a "God" is managing to defeat the wishes of the actual God they know and serve. Oh, and while they go through this crisis of faith and confidence, did I mention Vandal "Cain" Savage is hunting down the Spectre for a little payback?

I know "Final Crisis: Revelations" has been branded inaccessible, but you really don't need to know the backstories of these characters to take this ride with them. The series is just that well done, and for as almighty as some of these characters are, the questions of crises of faith are questions we can all relate to. I can only hope more readers give this series a try.

In the Marvel world, Secret Invasion: Inhumans #3 provided us all with a Skrull fix. And while this penultimate issue was largely spent pushing the storyline along, there was more than enough to find interesting if you at all know the story of the Inhumans. I won't spoil it all, but I will say in the pages of this issue, Crystal is promised to Ronan the Accuser. Yeah, you can figure that one out for yourself. But at the same time the Royal Family is rushing around to save Black Bolt, he's being tortured in a most human way by the Skrulls. Frankly, I loved the nature of torture, too, because its an idea I've thought about since this Invasion began. As I said, I don't want to spoil it. Either way, this is still my favorite of all the "S.I." tie-ins.

Finally, I picked up X-Men: Original Sin #1, the first of a five-part crossover between "X-Men Legacy" and "Wolverine Origins." I was not impressed. I haven't liked the idea of Wolverine having this son (who's character is basically what X-23 was two years ago, only a male), but more than that, I don't like when writers revert to writing Wolverine as a raging lunatic. And while I understand we're supposed to get that Wolverine is a desperate man in these pages, I just wasn't sold on just how many friends he flipped out on here, with a very short fuse. And, to make matters worse, the big reveal in the final page has been DONE already in "Ultimate X-Men." If the out-of character shenanigans continue like this, it's going to be a very long crossover.

Oh well, it was still a great week. And now, if you excuse me, I'm off to begin reviewing EA Sports' "NBA Live 09." Jealous?