Booster Gold #7

It is good to see Blue and Gold back together in action. Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz have put it all out there showing the ramifications of Booster's save of Ted. Basically all hell breaks loose this issue with the Blue and Gold team bouncing around assessing the situation. I had a lot of fun reading this issue. From the art team of Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapmund to the great characterization of both the lead characters and the backup crew, "Booster Gold" hits on all cylinders. If you haven't been getting this book, you should. It is one of DC's top reads and should be shooting up the sales charts. The creative team here have established "Booster Gold" as a pivotal comic read in the DCU.

So, what are you waiting for? Get out and get this book. You won't be sorry.

JLA Classified #52

I know many people have issue with John Byrne. Heck, I was reading the "Savage Dragon Archives Volume 1" and chuckled at Erik Larsen's not so subtle dig with his character Johnny Readbeard. I must confess that I truly love his art. He is shining in the closing "JLA Classified" arc and I'm enjoying it. Roger Stern's story continues to impress me with its great characterization of each hero. He gives each hero their own voice, motivations, etc. He knows these guys and gals very well. While the bad guy hasn't been that compelling the team work displayed is outstanding. You can see that the team members care about each other and have a good understanding of the tactical employment of each hero's powers.

I think if "JLA Classified" had been at this creative level that it would be continuing. If you haven't checked out the Stern/Bryne story arc, jump on and get the last couple of back issues. It is a great read.

Booster Gold #0

This issue kicks off the "Blue & Gold" arc. I was happy to see that Blue Beetle returned last issue and it seems that Johns & Katz intend to utilize Ted much in the same vein as Booster. For all of the Jaime haters out there. Johns & Katz go out of their way to show that Jaime is a part of the long history for the Blue Beetle moniker and go so far as to have Ted give Jaime his blessing. For those of you who have refused to check out Jaime's "Blue Beetle" monthly - now is a good time to shed the chip on your shoulder and try it out.

I have to hand it to the art team of Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapmund. The art in "Booster Gold" is consistently out standing. The crisp clean characters really pop off of the page. The "Zero Hour" tie-in here is really just for fun and the reaction of Extant and Parallax to the team's flyby is quite funny. "The Secret Origin of Booster Gold" covered here and we get to see the pain that Booster has to deal with. Johns & Katz keep the story moving a quick pace as our heroes jump from frying pan to frying pan.

This book still sits atop my pile as one of the best monthly reads going. If you haven't jumped on board, this issue is as good a point as any.

Booster Gold #6

"Booster Gold" continues to be a fun read - as long as you don't ask too many questions. I like time travel stories but writers Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz are giving me a headache with their version of the time stream. As we learned last issue "solidified time" deems that the future is open but the past cannot be changed. Now if this were completely true we really wouldn't have a story here. The primary thrust of the book is Booster going through time with Rip Hunter and fixing things. So we have the three Blue Beetles of different eras show up and assist Booster in saving Ted "Blue Beetle" Kord. The story moves a long at a fast clip and is a good read. While the outcome really wasn't in doubt for me, I thought Johns and Katz did a fine job of adding little character moments as the story moved from A to B. Dan Jurgens pencils were outstanding here.

This book reads like a summer action popcorn flick. I really dig this series and I'm looking forward to next month's Zero Hour tie-in.

Metamorpho: Year One #6 of 6

Issue #6 gives the reader a look at Metamorpho's first meeting with the JLA. Here writer Dan Jurgen's reaches into his Silver Age bag of tricks and does a fun job of making the introductions. I remember reading similar stories as a kid in the 70s and totally buying into the actions of the JLA here. As an adult, I can appreciate what Jurgens was shooting for and chuckle at it.

"Metamorph: Year One" was not a ground breaking minseries. It was a bread and butter consolidated retelling of Metamorpho's origin. I believe Jurgens was just looking to tell a good story without making any drastic changes to Metamorpho. He succeeded. However, what is presented here is so in line with canon that you really don't have to read the story. There are no shocking moments where you think, "I didn't know that" or "that was cool". You just get the nuts and bolts here.

The All-New Booster Gold #5

Damn! "The All-New Booster Gold" #5 has plenty of curve balls. Writers Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz provide further definition to their theory of time and time travel in an outstanding issue. Across the message board, many were asking how this book would handle the continuity issues when Booster saves Batgirl from the Joker's bullet. Well, lets just say the Booster Gold team does a fine job of handling that conundrum. We are also presented with a much darker version of Rip Hunter than has been shown anywhere else. Rip's a bit psychotic here and I like the deepening of his character. The introduction of the main time villians was nice as well. Jurgens and Rapmund continue to provide great visuals to go along with the tight story telling.

Once again, "The All-New Booster Gold" was a fun read. From the cover to the final splash page, the Booster gold team continues to impress.

Comic Adventurer 2007 Year End Review: The Outstanding

In 2007, DC rolled out two very fun titles “The All-New Booster Gold” and “The Brave and the Bold”. Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz have done a fantastic job with brining back Booster Gold into the DCU. Booster was a star of “52” and DC has capitalized on the good will from that series. From the first issue through this week’s issue #5, “The All-New Booster Gold” has been a fun read. I enjoy sitting down each month and savoring this book. Artist Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapmund have provided great art to back up Johns and Katz’s action packed and funny stories.

Over in “The Brave and the Bold”, writer Mark Waid really shines with this team-up series. The first six issues set up the device that Waid uses to keep this series moving forward. One of my favorite all time artist, George Perez, is back in top form with this series and delivers every month. He draws the best Supergirl out there. I highly recommend that if you haven’t read the first six issues that you go out and get the hard cover collection that just came out this week. I enjoy this read immensely.

In “The Sinestro Corps Wars” Geoff Johns, Dave Gibbons, and Peter J. Tomasi delivered a galaxy spanning tour de force. I believe DC was caught off guard with how good (and popular) that this story was. From “The Sinestro Corp Wars” #1 right through to the epilogue in “Green Lantern Corps” #19, this story was engrossing, action packed, and, most of all, fun to read.

Finally, one writer has jumped up high in my top ten writers of all time. Robert Kirkman, writer of “Invincible” and “The Walking Dead”, captured my imagination. I didn’t jump onto either book until this year. Well, twelve TPBs later and hitting the monthlies this last month, I have definitely become a true Kirkman fan. If you haven’t tried out either of these Image titles by Kirkman, you should grab the first TPB of each and see what they are like. I highly recommend it.

Countdown to Adventure #4 of 8

Don't let the Forerunner cover fool you. The stars of this book are Buddy, Kory, and Adam and artist Allan Goldman. Goldman with inks by Julio Ferreira truly does an outstanding job in this issue. Goldman's pencilling reminds me of some early George Perez or Dan Jurgens. High praise as I love both of those artist. Writer Adam Beechen does a good job of propelling the story forward as the virus takes hold. I especially liked Adam Strange's portion of the story. Beechen shows why Strange is the real hero of Rann. Buddy and Kory's story is interesting as well and Goldman's Buddy looks like he may have feelings for Kory.

I gave up on the backup story....boring.

It would be better if DC would promote the book more for the Adam, Kory, & Buddy story and expand the page count for this story as well.

Booster Gold #4

One of DC's best mothlies, "Booster Gold" continues to deliver. Booster continues to work with Rip Hunter and teams up with Barry Allen Flash and Wally West as Kid Flash. It was great to to see the Cosmic Treadmill utilized in this issue. The reveal of Supernova's identity was done well. Both Geoff Johns and Jeff Katz bring a really depth of character to the main players in this book. The pain of Booster loosing his best friend Ted Kord is always evident. It is also nice to see Rip Hunter given something more to do than be "exposition guy". Dan Jurgen's art is, as always, exceptional and has a timeless feel.

"Booster Gold" sits a top my stack as a first read every month. Johns and company have done an impressive job of handling this B-list character. I highly recommend jumping on this title sooner rather than later as next month's time intervention looks to be quite interesting.

Metamorpho Year One #3 of 6

Since I have "Batman and the Outsiders" on my pull list, my local comics shop thought I'd like to read "Metamorpho Year One" and put it in my box. I probably would not have requested this even if I had known it was coming out, but the fist three issues have been an interesting read. Writer Dan Jurgens is going for an action/adventure flavor instead of straight out superhero action. Rex Mason is portrayed as a handsome adventurer with his eye on the bosses daughter. All of the elements of Metamorpho's origin are here with Rex's boss Simon Stagg playing the villian role and Rex' girlfriend, Sapphire Stagg, playing the confused/mixed feeling girlfriend. The action and intrigue really gets rolling in issue #3 with the addition of Stagg's advesary, Maxwell Tremaine. Mike Norton's pencils and Jesse Delperdang's inks provide good visuals. However, I preferred Jurgen's layouts in the first two issues. Metamorpho is drawn a little too skeletal in the face for my liking as well.

Dan Jurgens has been one of my favorite writers over the years and he his having fun with Metamorpho. While the story is connect the dots as Metamorpho's origin is pretty basic, Jurgen's adds enough action, romance, and intrigue to keep it interesting.

Booster Gold #2

"Booster Gold" has rapidly shot up my first read list. Writers Geoff Johns & Jeff Katz have taken a joke character and really instilled a sense of purpose. Booster's supporting cast of Rip Hunter and Skeets also really shine in this book. The layouts by Booster Gold creator Dan Jurgens and finishes by Norm Rapmund are exceptional. While the main story of intercepting Sinestro so that Guy Gardner never becomes the Greatest Green Latern was executed quite well, the one page cut away to the original Blue Beetle intrigues me the most. I know at some point in the near future Booster will attempt to save Ted Kord (Blue Beetle II) from being killed. I am not a die hard Ted Kord fan, but there are a lot out on the internet ranting about his death. I'm looking forward to see Booster's story move forward as he meets other DC Universe characters and, just maybe, figuring out how to save Ted's life.

This book is fun. It brings a lot of what is missing from DC's bigger names and harkens back to a time when comics could be about adventure and being a hero, not grim, gritty, and reality.