What Are You Reading?

[Dr. Insomniac]

Heroes in Crisis somehow manages to outdo Identity Crisis in melodrama.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Just finished reading Thor: God of Thunder. For as much praise as the God Butcher story gets (which I certainly liked), a lot of my favorite stuff from that run actually comes from after that arc.

Now I'm reading Loki: Agent of Asgard in conjunction with Thor & Loki: Original Sin, which I will complete both of before moving onto Jason Aaron's next Thor run (with Jane Foster as Thor).

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I'm still working my way through the Jason Aaron's collective run on Thor. I finished God of Thunder and the Thor and Loki spin-off of Original Sin as well as Original Sin the main event, and realized that although I also saw it show up in a reading list for Aaron's Thor run since he worked on that event, it actually hard barely anything to do with that run other than Thor losing the ability to lift Mjolnir for some reason. That makes me wonder whether it is really worth it to read Axis or not, since that also showed up as tying into Aaron's run, however after the main Original Sin comic book (which was a convoluted mess, IMO), I'm kind of weary of reading through another event. That's especially if it barely ties into the main Thor run at all. If I can just skip that, then I'll go straight ahead into starting the Jane Foster era of his Thor run. The funny thing about Aaron is that I'm not a fan of his Thanos mini-series and found his Doctor Strange material from the past few years to be rather average at best. However he really nails Thor in a way that makes me want to keep reading more of his take on the character and his mythos. That said, I think I've learned that the same is true of a lot of comic book writers. They try their hands and various different projects, many of which may not work out since they aren't really a good fit for that property, but what really counts are the ones where their love and passion for what they are writing really shines through. In that regard, Matt Fraction has an incredibly boring take on Thor that was a slog to read through, but his Hawkeye run helped to completely redefine the character going forward and is currently my favorite Marvel comic.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that a comic book writer's (more specifically those working for big franchises like Marvel or DC) successes count for more than their failures.

Oh, also, I got this:



I just couldn't resist and I figured at the rate that these volumes would release at, it was a perfect way for me to start reading this series properly after wanting to get into it for all of these years.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Awesome! Hope you enjoy Berserk! I bought the deluxe edition a while back too, and while I'm not crazy on the price point it really is a great release. The large paper size is awesome because the art is dense with details that are gorgeous to appreciate enlarged on high-quality paper stock. 3-in-1 collections will work great for the series too, especially with this first book, which essentially contains the entirety of the first arc with a little bit of the start of Golden Age thrown in. Since I haven't collected the series yet I'm gonna be keeping up with the remainder of these releases, and luckily they'll be coming out infrequently enough that I won't have to blow my book budget on them too often. 

[Mustang]

One Piece

Not fully caught up but I made it past the cake arc. The arcs leading up to it weren't bad imo (especially dressrosa) it's just that none of the villains, outside of Doflamingo felt threatening; almost filler-ish. I feel like both Sanji and Zoro (probably even Brook) could've handled Hody by themselves (especially considering where I'm at now). Caesar just feels like a joke. I'd go as far as to say that Vergo (?) felt more like a threat over Caesar, but overall the arcs were entertaining. Zoro, to me just don't feel like he's had a challenge at all.

Character wise, it was Zoro and Ace that kept me going throughout the earlier arcs before the Whitebeard war. Now it's more or less Zoro and that damn Law. Law's not on the same level as Ace in terms favorite but he's damn near. I like his design overall and his demeanor is something I'd favor. Back then my favorite characters were Ace, Shanks, Zoro and Mihawk. Law pretty much makes 5 with Katakuri making 6.

Now Luffy. That character trait is something I will always hate, but I respect him the most (out of all the characters with that airhead mentality). Gear 4 is a crazy idea and it's something I never would've thought of or imagined him developing into. Coming from Street Fighter perspective (I hate stretchy characters) I'd love to see this design implemented in an actual fighting game (Make it happen ASW) and seeing it in motion is something else. I am anxiously waiting for what other forms Gear 4 can take form of (I gotta imagine a tiger or lion)

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I really feel like One Piece had a really tough time finding it's footing again after the time-skip. It eventually got back on track, but man did it take it's time getting there. Things have been consistently pretty great since Whole Cake Island, though, IMO, especially with the higher level characters making things feel like a real challenge for the Straw Hat crew, again.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I've been reading Keith Giffen's run on Justice League International and it has been an absolute blast so far. I'm only one volume in but the team dynamic is already more well-established than most team books that I've read at this point, and the humor still holds up remarkably well today, especially the political satire despite it being in reference to different events going on in the world at the time it was being written. This also found a way to keep Guy Gardner as a genuinely rude, hot-tempered, misogynistic ass-hole while still coming off as legitimately funny (usually because he's the butt of the joke) rather than annoying, especially with Batman constantly keeping him in check. This is also one of my favorite iterations of Booster Gold that I've read so far. This series has the potential to be among my favorite DC reads if it managed to somehow maintain this level of quality throughout it's run.

On the manga side of things, I haven't ventured too much put of currently running WSJ titles in a while, but I've started reading Witch Hat Atelier and I've been thoroughly impressed so far by it's distinct and memorable artwork along with it's light-hearted yet narratively focused tone. This also has an incredibly well-designed magic system that arguably rivals HXH's Nen system and could possibly even surpass it. This is Kingkiller Chronicle level of good design, at that. Also, Coco is a thoroughly enjoyable lead that manages to make the innocent, naive, and eager to learn and grow protagonist archetype feel somehow fresh.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Jojolion for the last couple years has been a frustrating read. Everything after Damo's death feels directionless and there are only hints as to who the main villain is. I've been watching some videos to help me make sense of the plot, and while they definitely clear up the puzzle plot at the moment, I'm still stuck questioning how Araki is going to tie this all up. Or maybe I should wait 2 decades when David Production makes the anime.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I've been reading The Immortal Hulk. I haven't ever read a solo Hulk book prior to this but I'm liking this run a lot. It's very accessible to new readers and really tells this story more as a psychological thriller than a normal superhero book. It's the kind of tone that would be perfect for the movies if they ever tried to make a new Hulk solo film (probably won't happen since Universal still owns the rights).

I particularly like how it gives the story more of a horror set-up with The Hulk only coming out at night rather than being triggered through rage. I also like how this is a smarter version of The Hulk that has something of a Punisher-esque persona. This version of Bruce Banner is also an inherently more interesting character than most other versions that I've been exposed to.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Reading through Lucifer by Mike Carey. The tone and aesthetic's got a very Amadeus feel to it. Half of it, at least. I'm only a few arcs in, but it quickly develops a formula where a young woman from a shitty background gets an even worse deal in life because they indirectly get involved with Lucifer's game. And then it happens to another young woman. And another. Not saying that's bad, but the pattern gets repetitive and a sign this comic was meant to be read on a monthly issue basis instead of trades.

And as Jill Presto keeps showing up, it's growing more obvious that she was meant to be Zatanna but DC's editors said no and forced Carey to make another character.

[Dr. Insomniac]

Decided to read One More Day for curiosity's sake, and because Nick Spencer's been jabbing a stick at it recently. Always either skimmed through the book or used angry forum posts and video essays to avoid reading it in full. Reading it a decade after the fan rage was at its high, the comic's as awful as its reputation suggests, but it's also really funny like the part where Doctor Strange gives Peter a long-winded speech about the inevitability of death even though both of them have seen friends and enemies rise from the dead tons of times. Or the scene where Peter turns into Gabe Newell and whines about escapist fiction not matching real life. Or how all of this is indirectly Tony's fault.

I can't think of a big superhero comic that ruined their character as much as this did. At least with the awful Batman comics like ASSBAR or Widening Gyre, they're set in AUs and have lasting impact whatsoever. Even the X-Men seem to be healing from that Inhumans push a few years ago. Maybe Heroes in Crisis roughed Wally West up, but not to this degree. And the saddest part is they could have written a comic that ruins Peter and MJ's marriage without all the bullshit. Keep Aunt May getting shot, but Peter steals experimental Stark tech from Tony to heal her in desperation and anger at his former comrade, but knowing this makes him one of the world's most wanted criminals for stealing from the director of SHIELD, he has to run away from his old life and break all ties with Mary Jane lest SHIELD's more morally gray divisions target her. A spider without a web to lean back on. New storytelling opportunities by making Spidey an outsider superhero again. No reality-warping hi-jinks or superheroes with the powers and knowledge to heal vital organ failure too incompetent to stop a bullet wound on an old lady. JMS' run wouldn't have ended on a retcon that erases his entire tenure. But they didn't do that. Instead, we got the Spider-Verse comic and Doc Ock possessing Peter.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I actually really enjoyed Superior Spider-Man.

But yeah, while I haven't read it, everything about OMD sounds awful, and it's no wonder the series had so much trouble finding solid footing again after the damage of that story-line.

This may just be a rumor, but I've heard it said that Joe Quesada made it an editorial mandate to break up Peter and MJ.

[Avaitor]

This may just be a rumor, but I've heard it said that Joe Quesada made it an editorial mandate to break up Peter and MJ.

Rumor? I thought that was common knowledge.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

It probably is. Keep in mind that I'm pretty poorly versed in all of the behind-the-scenes politics that have gone on at Marvel aside from some of the most notorious cases during the Stan Lee era.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I just caught up with Act Age today. I literally binge-read 57 chapters (from where I had last left off) in two days. I haven't binge-read anything in literally YEARS. It's so fucking good it's kind of scary.

I'd be annoyed that it isn't more popular stateside, but until just a few days ago I was one of the people brushing it off until a later date, so that'd make me a hypocrite, lol.

Granted, it does get off to a slow start which is why I initially took a break from it, but it's been top-notch as fuck ever since the Tenkyu Theatrical Company arc. I haven't done this in a while but this is one of those series that I feel confident enough about recommending to others. If anyone gets a chance, definitely look into this manga. It's absolutely worth your time.