Comics of April 4, 2018

As much as I would like to get a lot of book editing done this month, I doubt I’ll be able to. That’s partly because I’ll be watching a lot of the Commonwealth games this next week, or at least a lot of the swimming. I’m also trying to step up my work outs now that I’m physically used to my new job. I also happen to be getting further and further behind on my comic reading outside of Wednesdays (got a pile of trade paperbacks I haven’t read yet). So that also means I won’t likely post my next two Star Wars blogathon entries until at least next Thursday. And I’ll probably just end up editing or writing a bunch of short stories after that as a warm up to a larger edit in May.

But before all that, it’s time to talk about comics. This week, I picked up All-New Wolverine 33, Star Wars 46, Red Sonja 14, I Hate Fairyland 18 and Superman 44. And because I’m working evenings, and I plan to wake up as early as possible to watch the first night of swimming finals tomorrow, there won’t be full reviews this week.

All-New Wolverine 33 is good. It kicks off the Old Woman Laura storyline with a very different alternate future than we normally see. For the most part, the world seems to be a better place. The only major threat left to global security is, big surprise, Latveria. Without spoilers, this comic gives Laura a reason to complete at least one last mission, and it’s two-fold. One last kill, and one last rescue, all in Latveria. Considering this series was recently announced as cancelled to make way for a new X-23 solo series and Logan taking back the Wolverine name (still not sure how I feel about that), this story arc sort-of feels like a culmination of what writer Tom Taylor has been doing. It’s also a reminder that in the realm of comics, very few changes remain permanent. Anyway, those who have enjoyed All-New Wolverine up to this point will likely enjoy this.

Star Wars 46 is fun. It’s sort-of a setup issue for a very daring rescue operation for Mon Calamari royalty. Saying much more will spoil the fun. Kieron Gillen is building this series up to both Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi at the same time, and he’s doing it brilliantly so far. This series is definitely worth checking out for Star Wars fans, whether you like the new movies or not.

Red Sonja 14 is great. It seems to be building up to this series’ conclusion. Red Sonja and the Hyrkanian professor manage to escape hell, only to land in Hyrkania hundreds of years after Red Sonja left. The wizard has all but taken over the land and is only rising in power further. The final confrontation is going to be pretty crazy by the looks of it. As much as I enjoyed Red Sonja’s journey in the modern world, it’s nice to see her back in her home territory again. Fans of the character will likely enjoy this comic, and this series.

I Hate Fairyland 18 is entertaining as usual. This comic glimpses at Fairyland’s inner politics, while also bringing back a major character from the very first story arc. It also seems to be flashing back a bit to before Gertrude arrived back in Fairyland after somehow landing in fairyland hell. Writer Scottie Young somehow even made Fairyland’s politics entertaining. This is a boundlessly creative comedic series, and it’s worth checking out if you’re just looking for a purely entertaining comic.

Superman 44 is fun. In the words of Superboy, “This place [Bizarro World] is so confusing”. It’s hard to talk about this comic’s story as it is a bit confusing, but as usual with Bizarro, it’s confusing in an entertaining way. The Bizarro family that mirror’s Superman’s own is also a neat comparison. Not sure what else to say but if you’re a Superman fan, you’ll likely enjoy this series.