I wonder if I have to review everything every week...

Of the thirty singles I read this weekend, only six actually came out this week. Since Youngblood wasn't one of them, that review will have to wait another month. Or three.

Batman #676: I also read issue #675 and, reading them back to back is kind of weird. In #675, he seems back in peak physical condition after his whole "dying for four minutes" thing, but then in #676, he's tender and off his game. Which is just jolting. As for the issue itself, really good. There's a luchadore business man, the plot is finally moving forward, and (sadly) Tony Daniel's art is welcome after the last issue's ugly renderings.

Booster Gold #9: I love this book. Even this issue, which may be the weakest so far, is still just great. It's a bit darker than the earlier issues, but still a fun read.

Serenity #3: It's an episode of Firefly. If you bought this because you like Joss Whedon and Buffy, you were probably disappointed and/or confused by this. Luckily, because this is written like a graphic novel instead of a three issue miniseries, so even people who liked Firefly were confused, too.

Twelve #5: Between this and the "monthly" Thor, I am liking J Michael Straczynski again. Sure, Amazing Spider-Man fell really hard under his watch, and Bullet Points ranks as one of the worst things I forced myself to read (including Countdown, and that was 51 issues). But with this, he has an idea and he's seeing it through. Sure there are preachy bits (visiting under-priveleged schools), but I personally liked the slight twist (bend, really) that hit the Laughing Mask. Did not see it coming. Really, really good stuff.

Wolverine #65: I really will buy just about any Wolverine comic. Luckily, this was actually pretty good, RetCons and all. It's not gonna win any awards, but Jason Aaron shows he can handle established characters and continuity well.

Guy Richie's Gamekeeper: Series 2 #3: I enjoyed the first volume of this. The high concept here is: Punisher as an actual sociopath. He's taciturn, he kills without remorse, he gets revenge. Volume 1 (at the time just known as "Gamekeeper") was written by Andy Diggle and the lead character spoke maybe three lines an issue and killed gangsters with abandon. Series 2 is written by Jeff Parker, who makes everything too talky, including the anti-social anti-hero from the first volume. While not enjoying it as much as I had the first volume, it was okay. Until now. This issue is just, well, by fits boring and just terrible. The "plot twist" at the end is, quite possibly, the worst plot twist EVER. Not just because it's a cliche, but because it is so out of left field, and involves characters who have only existed for a year that it undermines the eight issues that came before it, making you wonder why you should keep caring about a comic from a third-rate publisher "directed" by Mr. Madonna, who hasn't made a good movie in ten years. Terrible, terrible stuff. I'll keep reading it, though (like Countdown or Bullet Points), but I won't like it.

And that's it, probably for the week. We'll see.

-Paul