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Review: 'Faster than a Speeding Bullet: The Rise of the Graphic Novel'

Faster than a Speeding Bullet: The Rise of the Graphic Novel 2nd Edition

NBM, $14.99, 80 pages

Writer: Stephen Weiner

I'm a big fan of Weiner, a librarian who champions comics in libraries, schools and other educational environments. He's made it hi

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Review: 'New Guardians Annual' #1, 'Threshold' #1-2

Green Lantern: New Guardians Annual #1

DC Comics

$4.99, color, 48 pages

Writer: Keith Giffen

Artists: Scott Kolins, Andrei Bressan

Have I outgrown Keith Giffen stories?

I don't read Green Lantern: New Guardians regularly, so I don't know much about

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Review: 'Batgirl Volume 2: Knightfall Descends'

Batgirl Volume 2: Knightfall Descends

DC Comics

$24.99, color, 192 pages

Writer: Gail Simone

Artists: Adrian Syaf, Ed Benes

Reprinting Batgirl #0, 7-13 (May-Dec 12)

I liked The New 52 Batgirl to start with, and it's getting better.

In the first Bat

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Review: 'Spacehawk by Basil Wolverton'

Spacehawk by Basil Wolverton

Fantagraphics Books

$39.99, color, 266 pages

Writer and artist: Basil Wolverton

Reprinting "Spacehawk" stories in Target Comics (vol. 1) #5-12 (Jun 40-Jan 41), Target Comics (vol. 2) #1-12 (Mar 41-Feb 42), Target Comics (

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Review: 'Justice League of America' #1

Justice League of America #1

DC Comics, $2.99, color, 40 pages

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist: David Finch

It's only the first issue, so I won't pass judgment. But I'm having trouble with the central conceit of the series.

You've seen the house ads. Th

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Review: 'Katana' #1

Katana #1

DC Comics, $2.99, color, 32 pages

Writer: Ann Nocenti

Artist: Alex Sanchez

It's early yet, but so far, so good.

The New 52 Katana shares her name and her possessed sword with her pre-New 52 predecessor, but that seems to be all. This new

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Review: 'The Judas Coin'

The Judas Coin GN

DC Comics

$22.99, color, 104 pages

Writer/artist: Walter Simonson

I'm a huge Simonson fan, which may be why I was so disappointed with this effort.

When I read the solicitation for this book, I thought "I bet they're going to foll

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Review: 'Injustice: Gods Among Us' #1

Injustice: Gods Among Us #1

DC Comics, $3.99, color, 40 pages

Writer: Tom Taylor

Artists: Jeremy Raapack, Mike S. Miller, Axel Gimenez, Marc Deering

From Dark Knight Returns to Kingdom Come, we've all read a lot of possible dystopic futures for the

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Review: 'Batman' #17

Batman #17

DC Comics

31 pages, color, $3.99

Writer: Scott Snyder

Artists: Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion

This is going to be hard to review without giving anything away. And I don't want to give anything away, because Snyder has done a good job of p

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Revew: 'Green Arrow' #17

Green Arrow #17

DC Comics, $2.99, color, 32 pages

Writer: Jeff Lemire

Artist: Andrea Sorrentino

OK, this is more like it.

I read the first issue of The New 52 Green Arrow, then a year later the "zero" issue, and neither interested me in the least.

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Review: 'A New 52 Valentine's Day Special' #1

A New 52 Valentine's Day Special #1

DC Comics, $7.99, color, 64 pages

Writers and artists: Various

OK, I admit it: It's cute.

DC's Valentine's Day Special offers six stories mixing adventure and romance, with varying degrees of success. Catwoman re

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Review: 'Hellblazer' #300

Hellblazer #300

Vertigo, $4.99, color, 48 pages

Writer: Peter Milligan

Artists: Giuseppe Camuncoli, Stefano Landini

What kind of send-off do you give a character like John Constantine?

He's not really gone, of course -- he's just moved to The New 5

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Review: 'Vibe' #1

Vibe #1

DC Comics, $2.99, color, 32 pages

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artists: Andrew Kreisberg, Pete Woods, Wean Parsons

Amazingly, it does not suck.

The new Vibe is kinda interesting. He's an earnest young man who is a double victim of Darkseid's invasio

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Review: 'Vampirella Archives Volume Six'

Vampirella Archives Volume Six

Dynamite, $49.99, B&W and color, 392 pages

Writers and Artists: Various

Reprinting Vampirella #36-42 (Sep 74-May 75)

The issues of Vampirella reprinted here by Dynamite were coming out at roughly the same time (mid-197

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Review: 'Roy Thomas Presents The Heap Volume One'

Roy Thomas Presents The Heap Volume One

PS Artbooks

$47.99, color, 240 pgs.

Writers and Artists: Various

Collecting "The Heap" stories Dec 42-May 48

This is a fascinating book.

Not for the art or stories, which never rise above pedestrian. But the

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Review: 'Batman: Arkham Unhinged'

Batman: Arkham Unhinged

DC Comics

$22.99, color, 160 pages

Writers and Artists: Various

Reprinting Batman: Arkham Unhinged #1-5, which first appeared digitally.

I actually enjoyed the first "chapter" of this story enough that I had my hopes up that

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Review: 'Batwoman Volume 2: To Drown the World'

Batwoman Volume 2: To Drown the World

DC Comics

$22.99, color, 144 pgs.

Writer: J.H.Williams III, W. Haden Blackman

Artists: Amy Reeder, Trevor McCarthy

Collecting Batwoman #6-11 (Apr-Sep 12)

This collection made a terrible mistake for me as a reade

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Review: 'Hulk Smash Avengers'

Hulk Smash Avengers

Marvel Comics

$16.99, color, 112 pgs.

Writers and Artists: Various

Reprinting Hulk Smash Avengers #1-5 (Jul 12)

 

When I first heard of this project, I realized it owed its existence to the Avengers movie, but nevertheless thought

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Review: 'Space Family Robinson Volume Five'

Space Family Robinson Volume Five

Dark Horse Comics

$49.99, color, 219 pgs.

Writer: Gaylord DuBois

Artist: Dan Spiegle

Collecting Space Family Robinson #32-39 (Feb 69-Apr 74), March of Comics #328 (Jan 69)

 

While Western Publishing’s Space Family Ro

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Review: 'Silver Streak Archives Volume Two'

Silver Streak Archives Volume Two

Dark Horse Comics

$59.99, color, 282 pgs.

Writers and artists: Various

Collecting Silver Streak Comics #10-13 (May-Aug 41)

 

I can usually find something interesting in even the worst Golden Age collections, but Silv

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