10.13.10 Releases: “It’s Compromise That Moves Us Along”

The first volume was really uneven for me, but it’s impossible to ignore all of the indie talent in Strange Tales 2 #1 (Marvel). Featuring the writer/artist double threats of Rafael Grampa, Kate Beaton, Frank Santoro, Dash Shaw, Shannon Wheeler, Jillian Tamaki, Jeff Lemire, Kevin Huizenga, Jhonen Vasquez, Gene Yang, and Nick Gurewitch. $4.99 is a little steep, but you basically had me at Rafael Grampa and then sealed the deal with Dash Shaw. I had just about given up on this book, but kept getting pulled back in with the lure of good artists. First it was Yanick Paquette, then the promise of Frazer Irving, and now I see Ryan Sook on Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #5 (DC), the penultimate in the mini-series. DC is absolutely milking this “return” with one-shots galore (see Bruce Wayne: The Road Home this week) and other minis like Knight & Squire. If it wasn’t for Sook, I’d be out. These mixed emotions aside, the definites this week include Northlanders #33 (DC/Vertigo) from Brian Wood, Sweets #3 (Image) from Kody Chamberlain, Invincible Iron Man #31 (Marvel) by Matt Fraction, Echo #25 (Abstract Studio) by Terry Moore, and Warlord of Mars #1 (Dynamite Entertainment) by… not sure, but yeah, for $1 it doesn’t matter much, for that price I’ll gladly sample a book about pulp hero John Carter, especially since Dynamite has done fairly well with these reimaging projects.