Weekly Comics - February 25th, 2009

Big (and pretty good) week, plus new trades with Warhammer Fantasy Omnibus from Boom!, Starman Volume 2 hardcover and Atomic Robo Volume 2.

Avengers The Initiative #22 (Ramos seems to be trying out a Simonson-esque style, and it sometimes works and sometimes really, really doesn't. Despite some difficult moments, though, I really liked the story, mostly due to Gage using New Warriors and other C-listers very effectively in this story)

Captain America #47 (Guice turns up the gritty on his art, and while it's not as clear as his usual stuff, it's a beautiful stylistic fit for Cap, and Brubaker's tale of another dark secret in Bucky's past is pretty interesting. Plus, as always, some of the best espionage/action in comics)

Doctor Who The Whispering Gallery (Great art, meh story, didn't really think Moore & Reppion captured the Doctor's voice)

GI Joe Origins #1 (I like everyone involved in this, but it's a bit of a mismash. Jarring changes in art, a jumbled story and some really unbelievable attempts at making the Joe training "extreme" make this a touch disappointing... I'll still want to see where it goes, but it was an overly busy opener)

Green Lantern #36-38 (I finally dove into the Green Lantern stuff, and now I definitely want to go back and read the Sinestro Corps War. Great visuals by Reis, and Johns takes what could have been a lame concept, the rainbow lanterns, and makes it pretty damn cool)

Incredible Hercules #126 (The origin of the Marvel Hercules is a really fun story, but the best part of this issue is an Amadeus Cho solo story with art by Takeshi Miyazawa)

Mighty Avengers #22 (Yeah, I think I'm done. Sketchy artwork, a mismash of characters and a jangled plot, not to mention some kinda annoying takes on the characters I do like, makes for a mediocre read)

Nova #22 (Once again, it looks like Richard Rider is screwed and cosmic events are going to turn very, very bad. Abnett & Lanning really know how to do high stakes galactic superheroics)

Star Wars Legacy #33 (The Mon Calamari side stories are the least interesting part of the book, but I kind of like the Imperial Knight they've introduced here)

Thunderbolts #129 (I see now why Diggle was twittering about how much fun he was having writing the bad guys. It comes through in this book, as Norman Osborn frames Samson and uses his black ops team to set himself up as a hero. Kudos to Diggle for making Obama skeptical despite it all, so he comes off as smart. The multiple artists are a bit of a bummer, but it's all solid at least, even if I do wish Deodato had stayed onboard this book rather than decamping for Dark Avengers)

The Umbrella Academy Dallas #4 (We're into the point of the series where I start having trouble following it, but it's still tons of fun, beautifully illustrated and sure to read great when the collected edition hits)

Usagi Yojimbo #118 (Loving the new story, and I need to go back and see where the demon hunter first appeared, because he's a cool as hell character)