Comics

The Shadow #19

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The Shadow #19Although I’m not the biggest fan of Andrea Mutti’s art in the issue, The Shadow #19 marks a good opportunity for those looking for a place to jump in on the title. The issue not only begins a new story arc involving the mysterious past of the man known to the world as Lamont Cranston but also reintroduces Margo Lane, The Shadow’s network of spies around New York City, and his ability to coerce information out of unwitting allies (such as the police commissioner) as The Shadow searches for a connection between the Russian mob and a series of kidnappings of young women from wealthy local families.

Putting both his network and the intimidation tactics of his alter-ego to good use, Cranston manages to locate and save every single victim but what he finds at the scene will force The Shadow to leave New York City and journey halfway around the world to understand what the box containing a severed finger wearing a ring very much like his own signifies. The issue sets up the larger mystery with a single-issue tale that works well all on its own. Worth a look.

[Dynamite Entertainment, $3.99]

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Red Sonja #5

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Red Sonja #5Writer Gail Simone’s opening arc continues as Red Sonja returns down the mountainside with her bodyguards Ayla and Nias to receive the rest of the cure for the plague slowly destroying her body and exact vengeance on her former friend Annisa for killing the king who freed them both from the pit while leaving his kingdom to die of plague.

Dealing mostly with Red Sonja returning from her exile and slowly regaining her strength and fire at witnessing the atrocities of a woman she once loved as a sister, Red Sonja #5 spends most of its time setting up next month’s final issue to the opening arc as the two warriors step into the arena to battle one more time.

The issue does end with a bit of a twist as both women come face-to-face with a common foe from their past suggesting that the epic final battle between the two warriors that the storyline has been leading to may not occur in the arc’s final issue (or perhaps at all if both don’t survive the attack of their former slave master). Worth a look.

[Dynamite Entertainment, $3.99]

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Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #1

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Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #1Okay, there are two things you should know about me before we begin. 1) I love me some classic Batman. And 2) I love me some classic Scooby-Doo. What happens when you throw these two things together for the first issue of Scooby-Doo! Team-Up #1? You get the most fun Batman comic I’ve read in more than two years!

While checking out rumors of an man-sized bat-creature in the area, Scooby-Doo and Mystery, Inc. run into Batman and Robin who are chasing down scientist Kurt Langstrom who has transformed into Man-Bat. Fans of Scooby-Doo Meets Batman will enjoy the lighthearted tone and fun of the all-age comic that delivers plenty of action as the Scooby Gang help the Dynamic Duo take down a group of masked robbers as well as the creature himself. And I can’t tell you how much I love seeing Batman back in his classic costume (although with better art than in those Scooby episodes).

Both young and old fans should find something worth picking up here in a comic I couldn’t help but smile through as I turned every single page. Best of the Week.

[DC, $2.99]

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Uncanny X-Men #14

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Uncanny X-Men #14With Battle for the Atom finally over, thing get back to normal for Cyclops and his students. Realizing Cyclops’ hard-love approach is not working on Benjamin Deeds, Emma Frost decides a more delicate approach is needed to find out the just how much the transmorph can actually do.

As Emma correctly surmises, Deeds not only can transform his own form to closer resemble those nearer to him but he also produces a chemical reaction (when not screwing up) which gives him an unexpected level of trust with those he has just met. A little trip to Atlantic City puts the kid to the test, and when he finally gets the hang of it Summers even sends the blissfully-ignorant young man directly into a S.H.I.E.L.D. facility with what amounts to a declaration of war.

Uncanny X-Men #14 thankfully jumps right back into a new story while not spending too much time on the latest X-Men crossover and it gives us a look at Deeds unique power-set that the comic takes from an odd curiosity to incredibly useful in the span of a single issue. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $3.99]

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Samurai Jack #2

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Samurai Jack #2Samurai Jack‘s quest to gather the remaining Threads of Time leads him to a small village ruled by a pair of perfectly synchronized warriors known as Dis and Dat whose twin attack is too much for our hero.

After facing defeat, Jack discovers the source of the twins perfect synchranicity: Threads of Time woven into both of their tunics allowing the pair to act as one. Challenging Dis and Dat to a rematch, Samurai Jack severs the link and quickly dispatches the two ruffians and freeing the local people from constant fear.

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