So last week, not a lot that impressed me on the shelves… this week made up for it.

Green Arrow #75 (DC – Winick / McDaniel / Owens) – I find it interesting that when a series is coming to an end, a short hiatus or at least a change in the format – DC turns up the action. We see here the all-and-out Ollie versus Slade. One of the best action scripts that I have seen in a long time. Green Arrow and his entourage are in a “winner-takes-all” fight to the finish with Deathstroke and his new right hand man. The fight pinnacles as Slade has Black Canaray with a blade in her mouth, Ollie backs off and offers himself up instead… giving a classic soliloquy about the fight being between him and Deathstroke and Ollie offering his life up to finish it all. Slade refuses is ready to take them both out when the JLA show up. Only due to a last-ditch granade laces with Kryptonite and all sorts of other things (Slade said it cost him several million and several lives to make) does Slade make a narrow escape to fight again another day. Winick, McDaniels and Owens out do themselves in what is bound to be seen as a classic issue. The Issue ends with Ollie asking Black Canary to marry him. The answer / engagement continues in the Black Canary Limites series coming this summer and Green Arrow as a series is put on hold while the Green Arrow: Year one book is revealed soon.

Issue grade: A

Batman #665 (DC – Morrison / Kubert / Delperdang) – I know this has been out for several weeks, but I figured it was still okay to put this up given issue #666 isn’t due out uintil the end of July. On top of everything else DC has done in the past couple years, having Grant Morrison turn up the fear factor and hardcore drama in Batman has got to be on the top of Dan Dido’s achievement list. This issues covers so many things, it’s hard to know where to start… what happened to Batman in the cave in 52, Casebook X, a hunter using Batman’s worse personal fears to get to him, Robin trying to show he has backbone… Kubert’s art matchs the pace of Morrison’s high speed story. I fyou haven’t been getting this, make sure to put it on your trade list!

Issue Grade A

Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four #3 (Marvel – Parker / Wieringo / Von Grawbadger) – This limited series is quite possibily the most under-rated book this Spring / Summer. The story takes place out of continuity, which is a little bit of break for the fanboys – imagine reading a FF or Spider-man story not dealing with Civil War or a movie tie-in. The well-told family-friendly story revolves around an alien race that has come to our planet to mesh and creat a symbiotic and more utopian relationship with Earth and it’s inhabitants. It has non-stop action, the characters you love in believable situations, great dialouge (Jeff Parker has nailed the Spider-man / Johnny Storm relationship), a manipulation of Dr. Doom… and fights with giant bugs.  This is the type of story that gets people hooked on comics.  You can still probably get this series at your local comic shop… very much worth the effort.   A complete blast from start to finish!

Issue grade: A

 Series grade: A

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