Post-Crisis Comic Book Previews for 05/02/12

Happy Post-Crisis Comic Book Previews to you! I'm excited to be coming into the start of May, as there are a lot of dandy books coming this way in the next five weeks, including lots of goodies on the morrow. So hit the jump to see my thoughts on the upcoming Dial H #1, Tick #100, X-O Manowar #1, and lots more!

ANIMAL MAN #9

Written by Jeff Lemire

Art by Steve Pugh

• “EXTINCTION IS FOREVER” part one of three!

• Separated from Buddy, the rest of the Baker family is in terrible danger!

• Guest-starring JOHN CONSTANTINE!

Grant: Okay, I figure I should get this out of the way at the start: I'm really not impressed that DC has followed Marvel's lead and is lazily doing all of their solicitations in point form of three or four sentences. Look, I get that solicitations don't hold quite the same importance that they once did, but the excessive laziness of the Big 2 is frustrating and kind of insulting. I think it necessarily isn't too much to ask to be given a paragraph about each book every month. Is that really such a hard thing to accomplish? I wouldn't complain if they spent the time they saved working to make their comics better, but considering some of the stuff they put on stands, that clearly isn't what they're doing. (Please note: this rant does not apply to Animal Man in particular - I have really been digging this book and am really excited to see what's next!)

BATWING #9

Written by Judd Winick

Art by Marcus To & Ryan Winn

• “NIGHT OF THE OWLS” continues here!

• BATWING arrives in Gotham City just in time to fight the chaos the Court of Owls has unleashed! Outgunned and on unfamiliar turf, can Batwing survive?

Grant: I know I didn't get the chance to review Batman #8, but turning the Court of Owls into one of the first New 52 events has not done a heck of a lot to endear the group to me. I'm still not really sold on the concept of this group of bad guys who are so ballin' that they've hidden their existence from Batman since before he was even born and are now coming out from the woodwork to wreck havoc or whatever. I maintain that it cheapens Batman's character by creating villains who are predicated on the notion that they are better than he is. I also figure that this event won't do much to improve my opinion on the group, considering that I sincerely doubt that any actual important good guys will bite the dust due to the Court of Owls' yet to be explained decision to attack Gotham City, which will only show how Batman and company were actually better than these feathered fiends. (All that being said, I'm excited for Batwing with Marcos To on art duties - he's pretty good!)

DAREDEVIL #12

Written by Mark Waid

Art by Chris Samnee

• It’s lawyers in love as Matt Murdock finally makes some time for assistant district attorney Kirsten McDuffie.

• The best reviewed comic of the year continues as Waid and Rivera welcome aboard new artist Chris Samnee (Ultimate Spider-Man).

Grant: To continue my seeming streak of negativity, I feel like the shine is starting to come off of Daredevil a little. While the art has been absolutely phenomenal (and Chris Samnee joining the team is a great way to keep that going), the writing hasn't always been able to keep up. It seems increasingly common for Mark Waid to lose track the major threads of a storyarc, resulting in underwhelming or unsatisfying conclusions to the stories of late. The recent Omega Effect crossover, while not exclusively Waid's doing, was certainly an example of this, where when all was said and done, nothing at all had changed for Daredevil. It looks like things might be moving forward finally, but we'll see if a sense of purpose can be sustained.

DIAL H #1

Written by China Mieville

Art by Mateus Santolouco

• A brand new series by bestselling and Hugo award winning novelist CHINA MIEVILLE!

• What would happen if you discovered the H Dial, an unbelievably powerful artifact that turned you into a super hero?

• And what if you found out that the world is threatened by this very device that’s become your uncontrollable obsession?

• These are just the first questions asked in this thrilling and inventive storyline that introduces the strangest super heroes and super villains in the DCU while exploring the boundaries of reality!

Grant: I don't really know what to expect from this series, so I don't have any strong feelings either way. My main draw for picking it up is that a good friend of mine is a big China Mieville fan. So much so that he lent me a copy of his book of short stories, and while I was happy to go through it, I didn't really dig it. However, I trust my buddy's opinions and seeing that Mieville is coming to give comic books a shot, I'm more than happy to see if his switching mediums might switch my opinion of his writing. I'm hoping the answer will be a resounding "yes!"

SWEET TOOTH #33

Written by Jeff Lemire

Art by Jeff Lemire

A very special issue of SWEET TOOTH as we check in on “The Continuing Adventures of The Big Man and The Little Boy.” It’s a children’s story unlike any other – and a major step forward in the series.

This issue will be printed in a special sideways format.

Grant: Ooo. I'm a sucker for comics that try something new / use gimmicky tricks (depending on how you look at it), and hearing that this issue of Sweet Tooth will be printed in a sideways format immediately piques my interest. Admittedly, I'd be grabbing this issue either way, but it's always nice to see creators you follow and trust trying something new and pushing the envelope. I have a good feeling that Jeff Lemire's little experiment will make for a most excellent addition to this ongoing story.

TICK #100 TICK MEETS INVINCIBLE

Written by Benito Cereno

Art by Les McClaine

Celebrate the 100th issue of The Tick with a 48-page full-color blockbuster co-starring Robert Kirkman's Invincible! In a full-length 24-page epic, Invincible is transported to The Tick's universe where the two mighty heroes confront the combined threat of the master criminal Chairface Chippendale and a mysterious and menacing new villain who makes even Chairface look like an ordinary umbrella stand! A story so awesome it requires two planets and at least one moon to contain it! Added bonus, 'The Story of The Tick,' a 20-page full-color history of The Tick's illustrious career!

Grant: I love The Tick. I haven't read a ton of the comics, but the animated Saturday morning cartoon was the bee's knees. Seriously, that was easily one of the best things on TV when I was younger. From the handful of issue I've seen from Benito Cerno's recent iteration of the character, it seems that he's done a great job of combining the comic with the show. And seeing that Robert Kirkman's will be putting in a special guest appearance, I'm more than willing to put down some hard earned coin to check out this centenary issue!

X-O MANOWAR #1

Written by Robert Venditti

Art by Cary Nord

It's the comic book event a decade in the making! The all-new Valiant Universe kicks off with a landmark, oversized # 1 issue of X-O Manowar by New York Times-bestselling author Robert Venditti (The Surrogates, The Homeland Directive) and Eisner Award-winning artist Cary Nord (Conan)! Born into battle, Aric of Dacia -- heir to the throne of the Visigoth people -- has never known peace. After a brutal encounter with a mysterious enemy known as The Vine leaves him a prisoner on an incomprehensible world, the only hope Aric has of returning to his family and saving them from slavery is to seize a weapon of incalculable destruction and become X-O Manowar! The Vine destroyed Aric's world. Now he will give them war.

Grant: I've been waiting to get my hands on this book since my chat with Robert Venditti those many moons ago, and now the time has finally arrived! Considering how excited about the project he was and how good his writing normally is, I have a good feeling that this issue will be a "Book of the Week" contender (it also doesn't hurt that Cary Nord's work looks so fine). Bring it on!

While this post started off a little on the Nancy Negative side, I am genuinely excited for the books coming out this week. There's a lot of good here (awful solicitations aside), and I can't wait to get my hands on them. What about you? What book are you most excited to read this week?