Sword And Sorcery Sunday: Queen Sonja #4

BAD THING: As good as Mel Rubi's art usually is, his rendering of Sonja's costume of late has been ridiculous even by the standards of sword-and-sorcery comics. The chainmail bikini is barely covering her body, much less holding it securely so that everything isn't bouncing around when she's running or fighting.

Yes, I'm ashamed I put that much thought into this too.

GOOD THING: At least the story - in which Sonja leads a rebellion against a usurping, corrupt noble to aid a gang of warrior sisters - is a riveting one and a welcome change from Brian Reed's story at the end of the most recent Red Sonja book.

And here's a bonus - Sonja is in real armor at story's end.



The Final Verdict: Despite some serious cheesecake - even by the standards of this book and the sword and sorcery genre - the story saves the book. Grab the trade if you haven't already been reading this book.

Sword And Sorcery Sunday: Conan The Cimmerian #17

Since all of the sword-and-sorcery comics I subscribe to came out within the last two weeks, I hearby declare this Sword and Sorcery Sunday! Look for reviews of a magical bend throughout the day.



GOOD THING: Truman continues the frame-story from last issue with another frame story. This with Conan thinking back of how he lost his position of command after a failed attempt to rescue his liege mistress' brother, shortly after encountering scavengers working over the body of one of his fellow soldiers.

BAD THING: While the story is full of action - and I appreciated the use of some old characters from the Kurt Busiek run - it's a little unbelievable that the Princess Yasmela (one of Robert E. Howard's weaker heroines) would independently turn against Conan as quickly as she seems to in this story.

It's also a little unbelievable that she would give Conan permission to attempt a rescue of her brother without giving him something as basic as a description of what said brother looks like...

The Final Verdict: Despite a minor case of the character being bent to serve the plot, still a ripping yarn worthy of Robert Howard himself.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Cinderella: From Fabletown With Love #3

GOOD THING: The central conceit of this mini-series - princess turned spy Cinderella teams up with prince turned spy Aladdin to locate some illegal magical artifacts - really comes into its own with this issue, as the similarities between the two heroes are played up and the begin to find some common ground despite their differing styles.

BAD THING: The scenes where the differences are played up, though... oy!

This may be the mythology geek in me getting nit-picky but seeing Aladdin portrayed as a Muslim of any stripe seems a bit off given that his story was originally a Chinese legend that made its' way into the Arabian Nights myths. Of course since Fables are supposed to be empowered by the beliefs of Mundanes and most Mundanes see Aladdin as a surprisingly un-ethnic Arab...

It still bugs me.



The Final Verdict: All of the imagination and action that used to be a staple of Fables in a wonderful little mini. Can we have more, please?

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Weird Western Tales #71

GOOD THING: Three Words: Zombie Jonah Hex.

BAD THING: There's not a lot of substance here. The story with Jonah Hex and the descendant of his arch-enemy aside, this is just your basic zombie horror story. The only thing that separates this from any other zombie story is the added twist that the zombies in this case are Old West heroes from the classic days of DC Comics.



The Final Verdict: It's a rippin' yarn. The kind of story that could almost only be told in the comic book genre. It's not particularly deep but it is what it is: a story full of zombie cowboys fighting scientists and superheroes while chasing after what is essentially a cursed ring. If that sentence doesn't raise your interest, then you'd best skip this one.

One Good Thing And One Bad Thing About Suicide Squad #67

GOOD THING: If I have to pick just one awesome thing out of an entire comic where the Secret Six break into Belle Reeve and are ambushed by the current Suicide Squad as part of Amanda Waller's plan to get Deadshot back on her team... I'd have go to with newbie Secret Six member Black Alice's assessment of her new teammates.

That is, for those of you who have trouble with the font...

Bane: I don't like the big bossy guy very much.

Catman: Looks like an ad for Grant's Gym and he SMELLS like concentrated DUDE.

Jeanette: Either she's NUTS or the world's most committed COSPLAYER.

Deadshot: I don't know. I can move mountains and he STILL freaks me out.

Ragdoll: He is creepy and deformed and effeminate and all COVERED in twisty scars. That's so hot. Hot hot HOT!

BAD THING: As utterly awesome as this issue is, it has precious little to do with Blackest Night. Sure, there's some scenes of The Fiddler discussing his connection to The Secret Six AND The Suicide Squad at the start and a whole mess of ex-Suicide Squad members rising from the dead at the end... but none of this is connected to the cool story in the middle.



The Final Verdict: A truly awesome story and a must read for all fans of Suicide Squad or Secret Six. Not a lot to do with Blackest Night... yet. I suspect what little there is is set-up for Part Two.