DC Comics

This is the day the world dies! No one can withstand the Rot, it has chosen it’s Black Queen and she will rule the very fabric of reality!

Snyder’s darkest book to date, Swamp Thing #5, is a complete assault to the senses. Visually traumatic and emotionally jarring, it will nest itself within the recesses of your consciousness, waiting there until you slip into a calming slumber — just to assault you again as you close your eyes! 

Dr. Alec Holland can no longer run from his responsibilities as the avatar of the Green. It is not because he has finally chosen to accept his fate, it is because he no longer has the luxury of a choice. While he has been trying to find answers to a past life, one he can barely remember, the Rot has been moving with urgency against him. A veritable life or death chess match, Alec has lost far too many moves from indecision. Now, all he hears is the whispering voices of the Rot as it utters the word — checkmate!

This book will seize your attention and not let go until you give into it’s overwhelming sickness! Snyder is a classically trained maestro of the horror genre and he is conducting his most disturbing symphony for us right now! Although Yanick Paguette is absent from interior art chores this time around, Marco Rudy does a phenomenal job of rendering the pure viciousness of the book. His style, especially the splash pages, remind me of Tom Mandrake’s work on the Spectre series oh so many years ago. It is perfect for the Vertigo-esque style of this book!

Filled with horrifying revelations and pushing the characters to their breaking points, issue five is now the catalyst for things to come. The road from Snyder’s Swamp Thing to Lemire’s Animal Man is growing ever shorter — you need to get this book now before they converge! Don’t be the last to get to your local comic shop, you may just miss out on this amazing book!

Travis is a young man with a lot of likes. He likes fast cars, records by The Nocturnes, he likes girls in poodle skirts and cigarettes. Like I said, he has a lot of likes. But he only has one love. The love of killing vampires!

Chapter two of the “Death Race” storyline comes out of the gate full throttle, shifting gears between Travis’ past and present faster than a race down Deadman’s Curve. Through flashbacks, Snyder shows us there is a depth to this “greaser” that we never knew, and maybe don’t want to. Tragedy seems to have nestled its way into the soul of Travis, and nothing will help rectify that incessant ache like killing the man that is speeding away from him. The man that killed his parents!

This is a fabulous issue, loaded with tension, slamming gears and revelations! After the — what I thought to be not on par — “Beast In the Cave” storyline, Snyder is firing on all cylinders with the past two issues. Excitement pummels you as the “Rock A Billy” style tale slams into drive and you are forced to hold on as Travis’ world is sent careening over the edge. The youngest vampire hunter and coolest cat since the originator Skinner Sweet, must decide how much he is willing to lose in order to exact revenge. Especially when his prey is even more vicious when cornered!

Snyder and Albuquerque have outdone themselves on this issue. To create a character that fans instantly love is no small feat, but to have done it twice in a twenty-three issue span — completely unheard of! I hope that we get to see the character of Travis far past the four issue arc of “Death Race.” He is unique and multi-faceted, a true pleasure to read.

So roll up your boot cut jeans, tuck a Lucky Strike behind your ear and get your motor runnin’ to the nearest soda shop with the newest copy of American Vampire! It’s the coolest daddio!

Just like their older counterparts, the Justice League, the Teen Titans must face a dire threat while the team is still in it’s infancy. But at least the Titans know who they are fighting against, not that it will help them much!

N.O.W.H.E.R.E., an international organization that has been collecting young metahumans for unknown reasons, has set their sights on Wonder Girl to be their next acquisition. And who better to collect the reluctant hero than their top science experiment — Superboy! 

From issue one, Lobdell and Booth have created a book that has thoroughly blown me away! They have brought a newfound richness to the core characters, while creating some amazing new ones as well. Though some of these characters have been around for decades, Lobdell makes them completely accessible for new readers and completely exciting for ALL readers. The way he has amped up their personalities, Kid Flash especially, brings excitement to the reader and a smile to your face. The infighting, the lack of control, teen angst and the overall camaraderie of these new found friends in the face of overwhelming odds, harkens back to the days when five mutants first enlisted in a school for gifted youngsters. It is a pleasure to read characters that have been given so much depth in such few issues. Lobdell truly has a vested interest in the development of these heroes and it shows.

Teen Titans #5 is vibrant, fierce and explosive with a break neck pace! It exudes excitement on every page, culminating in a violent crescendo that leaves everyone rocked to the core. Lobdell and Booth have created something quite special here and you owe it to yourselves to check it out. You will not find a better written teen dynamic book on the shelves today!

I’m just going to throw this out there — THIS BOOK IS COMPLETELY INSANE! And I love every single moment of it!

Jeff Lemire and his entire artistic crew have created something that is equal parts disturbing and fascinating. A cornucopia of twistedness that assaults the senses, Animal Man is a book that is beyond expectations for any genre! It is something that worms it’s way inside you and nestles within, scratching you tediously until you want to scream! 

Issue five is a blur, a quickened pace to the story because there is a true need to run. The third Hunter has stalked it’s prey long enough and now it must feed. And Buddy Baker’s family is the main course! Buddy, Maxine and “Socks” rush to save them, but who will be there to save the trio once the Hunter sets its gaze upon them? Maxine makes a decision that will not only forever change the dynamic of the book, but that of the entire DCnU as well! There is only one hope for triumph over the Rot, but it lies in the pages of another book! 

Look at the cover to this book. It is one of the most horrific covers I have ever seen! Now, imagine a book that mimics that grimacing emotion on every page and you will understand Animal Man. It is completely amazing how Travel Foreman can conceive of such horrific images and still be able to sleep! There is a section of the book where the Hunter shows Buddy just how the Rot will change Maxine when they get their hands on her. It is quite disturbing and yet utterly amazing! The caliber of talent on this book, from art to prose, is unfathomable! Other than Scott Snyder’s Swamp Thing, you will find nothing like this book on the shelves today. 

If you are not reading this book you are missing out on something that will change your mind about the landscape of comics today. It is a rare and wretched book that deserves more than just a mere moment of your time. And once you read one issue, you will be hooked like a rotting piece of meat on the end of barbed wire! Ewwww! But oh so good!