JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #1 FACSIMILE EDITION
While this is the first issue of the Justice League of America’s title, it is not their first appearance. Right before Christmas of 1959, Editor Julius “Ahhh, Bean Soup” Schwartz decided that his plans of reviving the Justice Society of America characters as science based modern version was working so well over in his Showcase title, that he went for a full-on team up book in Brave and the Bold #28. The group got a three issue run there and then graduated into their very own title and this is it. Written by Gardner F. Fox, it set up the standard JLA story guide and set the standards for art by the fabulous Mike Sekowsky. It also introduced the three eyed tyrant Despero (and this was before DC ruined him by having him walk through the beam of fire from the Peter Davidson’s 5th Doctor Who episode Planet of Fire and get steroided up on gamma ray like the Hulk). This is a true great from the Silver Age of Comics. 10 out of 10 Grahams.
GODZILLA RIVALS VS MANDA #1 IDW COMICS
It’s yet another swing and a miss for IDW’s various Godzilla titles. But those should be relegated to the titles where Godzilla gets involved with skateboarding kids or Power Rangers, not their collection of one-shots featuring secondary kaiju that we love. Apparently, IDW’s target audience for their Godzilla titles has gone to the 6 to 11 year old range as Jake Lawrence’s story and art make this a perfect Little Golden Book and that’s not a bad thing unless you wrap it up in a killer Michael Shelfer and Saul Morales cover that is bound to catch the eye of old and young Godzilla fans alike. No disrespect to Lawrence’s artwork but I really would have loved to see the issue done by the cover artists. The story of Manda’s life, he finally gets cover credit and it’s on a kids book. 4 out of 10 Grahams.
NYOBI OUTBREAK #2 ANTARCTIC PRESS
The creative team of Larry P. Higgins, Juan Antonio Ontiveros, and Dan Olvera continues to weave an interesting modern take on the erupted (re: mutant) issues in the Superverse. Nyobi is still learning to deal with leadership and the extent of her powers. The storyline does a good job of explaining the ins and outs of the problems but also keeps from pointing out who are the heroes and who are the villians here. There aren’t a lot of rights and wrongs here and picking a side isn’t as easy as it seems. Fans of mutant books should be checking this one out. 8 out of 10 Grahams.
FLORIDA MAN VS HOGZILLA #1 AMERICAN MYTHOLOGY
Creator Mike Baron’s lovable character is back and is all over the place like we like him. Wherther Gary is smuggling tarantulas on a plane that is about to explode or his bride Krystal is headed back to prison after way too many issues to go over here, the gang hasn’t changed. And while I love how the Hogzilla aspect of the story is starting to get introduced, I will admit to hoping to see a little more of it. Especially after seeing the Joe Bob Briggs movie featuring the feral swine. Still, this is a worthy follow up to the Floriday Man history. 8 out of 10 Grahams.