Post-Crisis Comic Book Previews for 12/03/09

Slim pickings this week after the end of month diluge of books last week.  Still some books of note for this week's Post-Crisis Previews, particularly with two new Blackest Night miniseries starting, Flash and Wonder Woman, as well as Marvel kick starting the upcoming Siege event with the Cabal one-shot.  My most anticipated book is probably Kieron Gillen's debut on Thor, which should pick up directly from where JMS left the title in last week's Giant Size Finale.

Also of note is that comics are apparently delayed this week.  Everyone is listing them as December 3rd, so reviews will be pushed to Thursday unless they ship in Canada early.  Hit the jump for a look at Ryan and my pull lists for the coming week. 

BLACKEST NIGHT: THE FLASH #1 (OF 3)
Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Scott Kolins

The Flashes of Two Cities - Barry Allen and Wally West - battle the undead Rogues. Will the legendary speedsters be able to handle the Black Lantern Rogues' revenge? Plus, witness the resurrection of Barry's greatest enemy, the Reverse Flash in this hyper-speed miniseries event reuniting the fan-favorite FLASH creative team of Geoff Johns and Scott Kolins!

Kirk: Final Crisis: Rogues' Revenge blew me away and was one of the best miniseries last year.  I'd be a fool to skip the same team back again for the Blackest Night version.

BLACKEST NIGHT: WONDER WOMAN #1 (OF 3)

Written by Greg Rucka

Art by Nicola Scott

Fan-favorite writer Greg Rucka returns to chronicle the adventures of the Amazing Amazon in the DC Universe’s darkest hour! Black Lantern Maxwell Lord has risen and he seeks revenge and retribution for his murder at the hands of Diana. Look for unexpected changes to await Wonder Woman in the course of this series as she plays a major role in the War of Light against the Blackest Night.

Kirk: Greg Rucka back on Wonder Woman is enough for me to pick this up.  I'll give it one issue to prove it's not just another generic Blackest Night tie-in. 

Ryan: I made a promise to myself that I would only read one Blackest Night tie-in miniseries from each wave. Last time it was Titans and this time it is probably going to be Wonder Woman, if for nothing else to just to see if Greg Rucka can bring the same magic to this miniseries that made his run on the Wonder Woman ongoing so great. Plus, how can I say no to a Nicola Scott-drawn comic?

DARK AVENGERS ANNUAL #1
Written by Brian Bendis
Art by Chris Bachalo

Bendis and Bachalo launch from the pages of New Avengers and reunite for this very important DOUBLE-SIZED chapter in the Dark Avengers saga. Captain Marvel a.k.a. Marvel Boy found out he was surrounded by madmen and villains and ran for the hills. But no one gets out of Osborn's grip that easy…Will a new hero rise in the Marvel Universe or will Captain Marvel be seduced to the dark side? Also, the Sentry's true self revealed!

Kirk: Marvel Boy is a member of Dark Avengers?  Who would have thought.  He's appeared on more covers than actual pages of the book, so I'm actually curious to find out what he's been up to besides a great team-up with Fantomex over in The List - Wolverine issue.

FALL OF THE HULKS: ALPHA

Written by Jeff Parker

Art by Paul Pelletier

M.O.D.O.K. The Leader. Mad Thinker. Egghead. Red Ghost and the Super-Apes. Doctor Doom. They make up the secret group who have analyzed every victory and every defeat in the Marvel Universe to create the perfect battle plan that results in FALL OF THE HULKS! The origins and shocking truths of some of Marvel's most dangerous villains are revealed as the biggest HULK EVENT yet begins! From fan-favorite creators JEFF PARKER (AGENTS OF ATLAS) and PAUL PELLETIER (WAR OF KINGS) comes this tale of the “Smartest There Is” and their quest to prove it, once and for all

Ryan: If it weren’t such a slow week, I would probably pass on this simply because of the bad taste the first few issues of Jeph Loeb’s Hulk left in my mouth (the last Hulk/Incredible Hulk comics I read). But, there aren’t many books this week and I’ve been itching to read a good Hulk story.

GI JOE #12

Written by Chuck Dixon

Art by SL Gallant

The concluding issue of THE BETRAYERS arc! The ultimate fate of SCARLETT and SNAKE EYES! And DESTRO must prove his loyalty and value to COBRA or die! All are judged, some will live and one will die as this epic ends and a new one begins as the shadow war goes on!

Ryan: It feels like this arc has been dragging on forever! I’ve been enjoying the slow debut of Cobra and the Scarlett/Snake Eyes stuff has been great, but I’m glad that we’ll finally be closing out this story this week as I’m very excited to se what Chuck Dixon has in store now that Cobra has been revealed!

MICE TEMPLAR: DESTINY #5

Written by Bryan J.L. Glass and Michael Avon Oeming

Art by Victor Santos

When the Maeven Archers joined their brother Templar in civil war, their sisterhood suffered the same fate. Now Cassius is reunited with his lost love, Llochloraine, but must fight her jealous husband Ronan in a duel to the death. While, at a secret training camp that prepares the next generation of Templar and Maeven to overthrow the tyrant King Icarus, Karic puts his own prophesied destiny to a test that may cost his life.

Ryan: I’ve been pumped since the beginning of the Mice Templar franchise to see the Maeven Archers in action and I’m glad that the time has finally come! When you add in the intrigue with Cassisus’s former love and the secret training camp, this issue is shaping up to be very exciting.

NOVA #32
Written by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Art by Andrea Di Vito

A REALM OF KINGS ISSUE! It’s the long-awaited and shattering return of one of the Human Rocket's greatest foes...the Sphinx! Nova and Darkhawk are missing and presumed dead—and they really will be dead if they don’t put aside their roles of hunter and hunted! Can the galaxy’s top cop team up with the galaxy’s most wanted to stop a rising menace from the past...and the future? Find out what a huge threat the immortal Sphinx poses to the Marvel Universe, and discover why CosmicBookNews.com raves “tightly paced, beautiful to behold, exciting, and fun…from beginning to end, NOVA will keep you on the edge of your seat.”

Kirk: Sphinx?  DnA are reaching way back for that one.  I'm on board for anything Abnett and Lanning have in store for Nova, but this one has me anticipating it more than usual.

SIEGE: THE CABAL #1
Written by Brian Bendis
Art by Michael Lark

THE SIEGE STARTS HERE!! Remember when you were first introduced to the Cabal, the gathering of the most sinister members of the Marvel Universe, and you said to yourself: Well, that's going to blow up in everyone's face! Well, you were right and it happens right here!! Norman Osborn faces off with Doctor Doom and his mysterious threat to Doom is revealed. All of this is setting the stage for next month's explosive event: SIEGE! 

Kirk: Most of the titles I'm reading are involved in this event, so may as well jump in on it.  I just hope Bendis consults someone for Doom's dialogue.  He writes the absolute worst Dr Doom imaginable.

THE BOYS #37

Written by Garth Ennis

Art by Darick Roebrtson

High in the French Pyrenees lies the little mountain village of Franglais, as quiet and peaceful a place as you could imagine...until her favorite son comes home. The Frenchman's origin is finally revealed, in a pulse-bounding tale of seething passion, vile betrayal and classic Gallic melancholy. Who is Black Pierre? Why is the lovely Marie not there to welcome her beloved Frenchie home? And how can one croissant change everything? Find out in The Boys 37!

Ryan: One of my biggest complains about The Boys for some time has been the lack of development on the supporting members of the team—all we’ve really seen is Butcher and Hughie. The last arc helped bridge some of that gap by covering the origin of Mother’s Mlik, but this issue is really going to start filling in that development in earnest as we know next to nothing about Frenchie. Having been burned by this series too many times in 2009, I’m keeping my expectations low.

THOR #604
Written by Kieron Gillen
Art by Billy Tan

Has Doctor Doom crossed a line…? And what role did Loki play in Doom’s sinister plans? What did Loki know…and when…? Now, as Thor heads to Latveria to settle the score, only one thing can happen: Thor sitting Doom down and having a serious chat about their feelings. By which we mean, STATE-OF-THE-ART SLEDGHAMMER SKY-SCRAPING SUIT-SMASHING SUPERHEROICS! Billy Tan (NEW AVENGERS) draws the action-packed escapades while Kieron Gillen (NEW UNIVERSAL: 1959, DARK REIGN: ARES, Phonogram) starts his six issue run. Hold onto your runestones, True Believers – things get hectic quick!

Kirk: JMS's last issue was good, but lacked any kind of closure and felt like it was phoned in to finish out his tenure.  The preview for this issue actually impressed me more than JMS's work on that final issue.  Add Gillen's fantastic job on the Beta Ray Bill miniseries earlier this year and I'm actually really looking forward to this issue.

ULTIMATE COMICS: SPIDER-MAN #5

Written by Brian Michael Bendis

Art by David Lafuente

It’s the knock-out drag-out you've all been waiting for! Spider-Man versus Mysterio!! Who will team up with Spidey to save the day? And will they get there in time??

Ryan: I’ve actually found that the Spider-Man/Mysterio conflict is the least interesting part of this series. The last issue did end with a great cliffhanger, though, and I’m sure that we’ll see some of Spider-Man’s hero friends show-up to help the webslinger. There hasn’t been a weak issue for this series since the relaunch, so this could definitely be the book to beat this week.

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