Booster Gold (2007 Series) #45

June 18, 2011

Title: Turbulence Part Two (A Flashpoint tie-in)

Writer: Dan Jurgens
Art: Dan Jurgens
Finished Art: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Hi-Fi Designs
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
Cover: Dan Jurgens
Editor: Rex Ogle                 
Publisher: DC Comics

Trapped in the world of Flashpoint, Booster Gold has been mistaken for an Atlanean invader. The military sends its greatest weapon out to take him in – the beast called Doomsday, controlled by the mind of General Nathaniel Adam.

Once again, Booster Gold is giving us out best look at the world of Flashpoint outside of the main series itself. Booster being the only person we know of besides Barry who remembers the real Earth, we get a good look at just how things have changed. The Doomsday/Captain Atom mixture is particularly interesting, and particularly harrowing for Booster, who now finds himself fighting his friend in the mind of a creature that nearly killed him once before. Booster also finds an interesting new ally this issue, one with a secret of her own.

Dan Jurgens, as always, owns this character. He writes and draws the most classic, heroic depiction of the character that anybody ever has, and uses his art to really tell the story, not just look pretty. Although I’m sad this title will come to an end during the DC Relaunch, I’m really happy that Jurgens will keep Booster in his stewardship in the new Justice League International title. With any luck, he’ll even be able to pick up some of the threads this title will leave hanging.

Rating: 8/10

Cable and Deadpool #41

June 10, 2007

Quick Rating: Good
Title: Fractured Part Two
Rating: T+

As the Hecatomb battle ends, Deadpool arrives at the ruins of the battle.

Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Pencils: Reilly Brown
Inks: Jeremy Freeman
Colors: Gotham
Letters: Dave Sharpe
Editor: Nicole Boose
Cover Art: Skottie Young
Publisher: Marvel Comics

This book picks up right on the heels of X-Men #199. Rogue has absorbed the minds of the Hecatomb, Sabretooth is free and causing havoc, and Deadpool is ready to have a little fun. This issue is pretty good, and is considerably better than the main story it’s crossing into. (In fact, having read this, I finally understand exactly what happened in X-Men.)

Much of the issue is concerned with Cable ruminating on the “death of his dream,” while a far more interesting segment deals with Deadpool fighting off Sabretooth long enough for Domino and one of the survivors of the massacre to escape. For the first time in months, Cable and Deadpool get more or less balanced amounts of screen time this issue, and their stories even wind up converging.

Reilly Brown and Jeremy Freeman do an okay job on the artwork. The Deadpool/Sabretooth fight is particularly good, while the rest of it is effective enough to tell the story, if nothing spectacular.

This is a pretty solid issue, and like I said, it actually helps clarify the X-Men storyline, so if you’re still scratching your heads over that mess, picking up this book can only help you out.

Rating: 7/10

The Living Corpse Annual #1

April 18, 2009

The Living Corpse Annual #1 (Zenescope Entertainment)
By Ken Haeser & Buz Hasson

I’ve read The Living Corpse before, but I’m not a regular reader. I had to pick up this annual, though, to see his interaction with our old pals from Hack/Slash, Cassie and Vlad. As our favorite slayer-killers make their way to the northeast to seek out the brutal beast called the Jersey Devil, the encounter the sentient zombie who has been sharing their mission to send the brutal dead back to the grave. We get the typical “heroes misunderstand each other then fight” scene, only to be followed up by a pretty surprising revelation about Cassie and the Corpse having a shared past. I rather wish Haeser had dealt more with that idea, as the main story from there is kind of run-of-the-mill. Misunderstanding ends, heroes team-up, fight the monster, repeat. The artwork is a little iffy as well. It works for the Corpse, and even to Vlad when he’s got his mask on, but Cassie doesn’t really look right in this style. It’s not bad, but I wouldn’t say it’s a must-read for Hack/Slash fans.
Rating: 7/10