New Year, New Comics

I realized two things after reading my newest batch of comics. One, that many of them sucked (more on that in a second). And two, that I am going to wait until I have several issues (if not the whole run) of a title before I read them. I read so much that keeping track of what goes on from one month to the next becomes almost impossible, and it is hard to maintain any interest or enthusiasm if it feels like you're starting from zero every month. With that said, let's see what I have to say about this month's comic books.

First Born #3
At last I got to find out how things turned out for Sara and her as of now newborn baby. The conclusion of the three-issue limited series was good, and the artwork by Stjepan Sejic was very cool as usual.

Iron and the Maiden #0
I have cared less and less for this book as the issues have been coming out. This is the last one, and even though the artwork is good, I really couldn't bring myself to care about the irrelevant story that is told. I am certainly not getting the next IATM miniseries coming out soon. Sorry.

World of Warcraft #2
I confess that I was sick when I read this, but its badness boggled my mind (or maybe it was the cold). The thing is, the artwork seemed worse than in the first issue, and the story coldn't hold my interest for more than one page at a time. I'm giving it a couple more issues, then I'll read those four, and if I'm still meh about it, I'll drop it.

Madame Mirage #4
Kenneth Rocafort's artwork was, as usual, gorgeous. Paul Dini's story was also good. However, I kept feeling a bit lost, maybe because I didn't have a clue how issue three ended. I really need to re-read those issues, because I do like this series.

Witchblade #112
This is supposed to be my favorite book, but it was so awful that I am still angry. Ron Marz's story about a threat to Sara's newborn child is not exactly mesmerizing, but the worst part by far was Rick Leonardi's "art". The artwork is so horribly, horribly awful that I almost cried blood when I was reading the comic book. In fact, the pictures were so abysmally bad, so grotesquely horrid, that I really couldn't enjoy the story because of the visuals. Why does Leonardi draw with his pen up his ass? I think he would do better if he used his hand instead. And if you tell me he was actually using his hand, I'm simply not going to believe you. Rick Leonardi's artwork is the worst thing to happen to Witchblade in the last 12 issues. Furthermore: it probably is the worst thing to have happened to Witchblade ever. I don't own every issue of the series, but it is hard to imagine worse pictures. Only two things kept me reading. One, the knowledge that he was only raping this issue and not the next one. And two, that Stjepan Sejic's steady run on the title begins in only four months. I doubt Leonardi will ever read these lines, but if he does, I have a message for him: stay away from the books I like. Please, oh please.

WildStorm: Revelations #1
I picked up this issue after seeing a preview on Newsarama. Apparently, it follows the events told in WildStorm: Armageddon, a limited series I never bothered with. However, Nemesis, Savant, and Backlash (Jodi, not Marc) star in this book about a quest to save the world from destruction, and I like those characters. Also, the artwork didn't look bad, so I decided to give it a chance. And lo and behold, it probably was the best book I read this month. Scott Beatty and Christos Gage's story was entertaining and well told, if not exactly original, and Wes Craig's roundish style was actually quite good, dynamic, and kinetic. Count me in for the next five issues!

The Clockwork Girl #0
I had also seen a preview for this series on Newsarama, so I decided to check it out. It's a fairytale about monster boys, clockwork girls, and two scientists and their rivalry, and even though it's obviously targeting a younger audience, the story by Sean O'Reilly and Kevin Hanna looks good, and the pictures by Grant Bond look even better. I will certainly come back for more!