Or - “I Honestly Have NO Idea When These Books Came Out…”

Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends…  much like the harassment you get when you wear the pizza suit and dance on the corner in front of a Cici’s.  Even when you’re cutting back on comics purchases, like I have, the urge to review more comics than there is time to review them is strong.  Makes me with there were 8 days a week, actually.  Thus, we at Stately Spoilers Manor have created this handy, dandy method of touching upon things going on at Penny Lane, down the long and winding road, even across the universe.  So why don’t we do it in the road, throw some Norwegian wood on the fire, cause it’s a helter skelter ride through a day in the life of comics!

…

Yellow submarine.

(more…)

Or - “Three Weeks Of Comics In Handy Bite-Sized Servings!”

A side-effect of reading as many comics as I do comes when, after a particulary heavy week of reads, you find all the stories kind of blurring together into one.  It makes for some pretty entertaining nightmares as well, like the one where Wonder Woman was guarding the galaxy against marauding zombies who wanted to shape-shift into teenagers and make out while simultaneously refitting all of our cars to fly and emit fire, and also giving our grandparents cyborg limbs that glow in the dark.  So, I got that going for me…  which is nice.

(more…)

Or - “Because I’ve Fallen Further Behind Than Ever Before…”

I have to tell you, two weeks of being unable to type without crying like a little girl really makes your work pile up.  The last couple of weeks of comics have been a tumultuous ride, with a whole lot of minor things happening that made me happy.  An old favorite disappoints, while a surprise contender impresses the heck out of me.  British vampires, time-lost Arcturans, underground civilizations, the chupacabra, and a fifty-foot stalk of marijuana await you, beyond the fold!

(more…)

Or - “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone…”

Having been a married man for over a decade now, I’m always puzzled by the utilization (or the lack thereof) of marriage in comic book stories. With the notable exception of Reed and Susan Richards, whose marriage is one of their defining characteristics, most comic marriages fare pretty badly. In the post “One More Day” comic universe, it’s clear that most of the editorial staff holds marriage in the same sort of regard as the people who write the “I win this wrestling match and win your woman” angles in professional wrestling. Now, DC is giving us a title that stars a married couple, and I’m waiting to see how long it is before they end an issue with one of them storming out in anger and threatening divorce.

(more…)

Not sure how I feel about this. While I like the Black Canary character, the tarted up 80s punk style they have going for BC in CW’s Smallville doesn’t seem right. Lose the Priss makeup (that’s a Blade Runner reference folks), give her a long blond wig, and things will fall into place.

Check out the YouTube trailer and weigh in with your own opinion.

Or - “Occasionally, It’s Good To Have A Nice SHORT Mystery Cliffhanger…”

The look on Batman’s face right there is absolutely priceless. It reminds me of the moment where the Janitor hugged Carla on Scrubs, picking her up and shaking her side to side like a bear mauling a bull-moose, then sat her down, only to have her remark “I thought you were going to kill me.” His response? “I fought the urge.” Heh. Still, you know that something dramatic happened for anyone to wrap their arms around the Dark Knight, though if you read the Wedding Special, you may have a hint as to why.

(more…)

DC Comics has announced the Green Arrow/Black Canary Wedding Special has sold out and is going back to press for a second printing.

“It was a wonderful surprise that all the fans RSVP’ed for the event and apparently enjoyed the pasta bar,” says writer Judd Winick. “I’m thrilled that interest in the Special is so high, I’m wowed that everyone showed up to see the 30-year courtship finally reach its zenith, and most of all that people got to see Amanda Conner strut her stuff. It’s an awesome issue, and we’re all very, very proud. We’re hoping the DIVORCE SPECIAL we’re planning does as well. (I’m kidding, but, y’know, these two lovebirds are trouble.)”

The second printing is scheduled to arrive October 17 with a cover by Ryan Sook.

While they haven’t sold out, DC said The Black Canary Wedding Planner, and JLA Wedding Special are still available for reorder.

Take the jump for the Green Arrow/Black Canary schedule

(more…)

Or - “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, And Deathstroke Too.”

Now, I’m not the best person to ask whether you should get married (it should be noted that I was only engaged for about six months after having known the woman for about four days) since I’ll always recommend the institution, but for Dinah and Ollie there is one question I have to ask. Why would she say yes to a man who not only lied to her about the death of her adoptive daughter, but let her believe Sin was dead for several days? Not that I doubt that she’s crazy about him and has been for years, but what she took as proof of his devotion to her, I took as proof that he still wants to do her thinking for her. Either way, they’re finally on their way to the altar, and we haven’t had a good wedding day fistfight since my friend Karl got hitched back in ‘96…

(more…)

Or - “Never Ever Try To Come Between A Mother And Her Child…”

For a master assassin, Merlin is kind of an idiot about the simplest things. Black Canary’s adoption of Sin, protegee of the League of Assassins, put her in a role that, while unfamiliar, suited her very well. Unfortunately, a combination of “event comic” and “editorial caveat” combined to put the JLA’s chairperson in a situation where motherhood wasn’t exactly a simple option. Add to that the ongoing efforts by the assassins to regain their premiere killer (since Black Canary had already cost them the services of Lady Shiva) and the involvement of Black Canary’s neer-do-well ex-husband and her erstwhile fiance Green Arrow’s dark doppelganger, Merlyn, and we’ve got a recipe for disaster…

(more…)

Or - “Single-Parenting Is Never Easy. Single-Parenting An Assassin Is Nigh Impossible.”

I’ve long been of the opinion that raising a child all by yourself is one of the most difficult propositions in life, certainly as difficult as superheroing, in it’s own way. Black Canary has embarked upon an attempt to combine both into one lifetime, and it’s not without it’s complications. With her near-future plans involving something borrowed and something blue, I’m interested (and a little bit concerned) to see how her compeer relationship with Sin is going, and more importantly, where the journey will take them.

(more…)

DC has released a sneak peek of Black Canary #1 that arrives this week.

(more…)