What I’m Getting Wednesday October 28

Politically speaking I’m so disappointed in what our government has become and one thing that recently came to mind is the way political dissent is being dealt with. Obama has essentially declared war on Fox News and is denying them access to the White House in some ways. I know that over the years one side has always called the other side names, but I first noticed a new wave of attacking opponents started with George W. Bush. If you were against the Iraq War you were almost considered a traitor and people were somewhat afraid to speak their minds, as the war continued that tact did not work. Obama and his crew now try to discredit anyone who goes against them. If I do decide to run for office I would court dissenting opinion. When I was in charge of some projects at Citicorp I looked for negative views of what I was doing. I found that often they pointed out legitimate flaws in what I was trying to do and I would adjust accordingly. If I heard their objection and found that it was opinion based and not fact based I would move forward with what I thought was right. I did not avoid dissent, I looked for it to force me to make what I was doing stronger or make me be able to explain it better. Instead we get politicians who want to shut down dissent and do deals behind closed doors. It is a shame Obama never provided the transparency and change he promised.

The books I’m looking forward to most this week are:

Arkham Reborn #1 (of 3) – David Hine is a perfect choice to restart Arkham. Arkham has a vibe to like no other place in comic books. The hype “Written by David Hine ;Art Jeremy Haun ; Cover by Frazer Irving. Following the Black Mask's destruction of Arkham Asylum in BATTLE FOR THE COWL, Dr. Jeremiah Arkham has rebuilt the Asylum following the design of his mad Uncle Amadeus. Intended as a model for enlightened treatment of mental illness, the building soon mutates into a torture house, and the inmates find themselves trapped in a living hell. And when Jeremiah starts hearing a voice from beyond the grave, it becomes painfully clear that the lunatics really have taken over the Asylum!”

Blackest Night #4 (of 8) – This event is making me enjoy an event. If this book and its offshoots continue to entertain as well as they have to date, this could be the best event ever done. DC says “Written by Geoff Johns; Art and cover by Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert. Summer's hottest event explodes in this critical issue! Hold on to your power rings, because the secrets behind the Blackest Night finally stand revealed! While Earth is evacuated, Hal Jordan embarks on a brave journey to the darkest depths to uncover the truth behind the Black Lanterns! You won't believe what he uncovers!”

Fantastic Four #572 – Hickman and Eaglesham have given me an FF series that I look forward to every month, thanks guys! This issue contains “This is the shocking conclusion to dramatic first arc from Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham that spins Marvel's first family into a bold new era of adventure. Be there to see Reed Richards SOLVE EVERYTHING. Part Three of Three.”

Green Lantern #47 – Another part of Blackest Night and Johns is cranking out hit after hit with this event. The word “Written by Geoff Johns; Art and cover by Doug Mahnke and Christian Alamy. BLACKEST NIGHT continues! The war between the Blue Lanterns and Agent Orange implodes as the universe darkens! But a strange turn will send this epic battle in an unexpected direction when Larfleeze has something he desperately hordes taken away from him!”

Madame Xanadu #16 – The return of Amy Reeder Hadley to this series. Her work has so won me over that even the great Mike Kaluta could not make me miss seeing her work on this series. The cards tell us “Written by Matt Wagner; Art and cover by Amy Reeder Hadley and Richard Friend. The original MADAME XANADU team of Eisner nominees Matt Wagner and Amy Reeder Hadley is back! When the gloss and polish of a 1950s Madison Avenue exec's wife begins to tarnish, Madame Xanadu's present investigation will stir up a rivalry from the powerful mystic's past.”

Superman Secret Origins #2 (of 6) – This is Geoff Johns week for the probable top books of the week. The first issue was great. In-between these covers “Written by Geoff Johns; Art by Gary Frank and Jon Sibal; Covers by Gary Frank. Geoff Johns and Gary Frank's exploration of the origin of the greatest Super Hero of all time continues! In this second issue, readers will witness young Clark Kent's initial journey into the late 30th century as Superboy and see how meeting the Legion of Super-Heroes shapes the Superman he will one day become! Plus, more on the beginnings of the young Lex Luthor!”

Ultimate Avengers #3 – Millar does a good action flick and with strong art it is always an enjoyable fast read, just don’t examine the plot too deeply. Marvel says “THE SEARCH FOR STEVE ROGERS CONTINUES! From the mad minds of MARK MILLAR (ULTIMATES 1 & 2) and CARLOS PACHECO (X-MEN), Nick Fury assembles a new team of deadly operatives to track down the renegade Captain America! But what will the Avenger’s resident marksman HAWKEYE have to say about Fury’s tactics and will these new faces make the cut when the %^&( hits the fan?”

The rest of the list:

Abe Sapien One Shot - In his earliest days as an agent of the B.P.R.D., Abe Sapien is sent on a simple mission to investigate a haunting following the death of a young boy. What he finds there is far stranger and more deadly. Mike Mignola and John Arcudi team with newcomer Patric Reynolds, who made his professional debut this summer on MySpace Dark Horse Presents, for this nightmare of corrupted innocence!

Ambush Bug Year None #7 (of 6) – Written by Keith Giffen and Robert Loren Fleming; Art by Keith Giffen and Al Milgrom; Cover by Darwyn Cooke. Our last issue of this stunning, award-winning literary masterpiece titled "Whatever Happened to AMBUSH BUG YEAR NONE #6?", takes us deep into the mind of Ambush Bug. The other 21 pages will be just as exciting, we promise.

Astro City Astra Special #2 (of 3) – Written by Kurt Busiek; Art by Brent Anderson; Covers by Alex Ross. While most people celebrate their college graduation by going to dinner, Astra and her boyfriend celebrate hers with a trip into The Gordian Knot, a cosmic caldera teeming with strange life and unusual encounters. It was meant to be a party, but for Astra, who has lived her whole life in the glare of the spotlight dealing with the bizarre and unexpected, it becomes much, much more!

Atom Eve & Rex Splode #1 (of 3) - Picking up right where the first ATOM EVE miniseries left off! See the secret origin of Rex Splode! See what shaped him into the man who tragically sacrificed himself in the Invincible War. Witness his first meeting with Atom Eve and learn their stunning secret!

Batman #692 - Written by Tony Daniel ; Art by Tony Daniel and Sandu Florea; Cover by Tony Daniel. BATMAN double-ships this month with Tony Daniel returning to the series as the new writer and artist after his best-selling BATTLE FOR THE COWL miniseries! With Batman pounding the pavement in search of Black Mask, Penguin on the run, and the completion of the new Arkham Asylum looming close, Gotham City has reached a boiling point! Guest-starring Catwoman and the Huntress and featuring the return of Gotham City's most notorious crime family!

Blackest Night Titans #3 (of 3) – Written by J.T. Krul; Art and cover by Ed Benes and Rob Hunter. With their backs against the walls of a battered Titans Tower, the few remaining Titans face their dead former teammates who have now become Black Lanterns! Meanwhile, one Titan discovers a secret weapon...but at what price?

Dark Reign The List: Punisher - Frank Castle has disabled much of Norman Osborn’s criminal underground, tarnished his well-groomed public image and attempted to assassinate him. Today Osborn returns the favor. With Frank still torn apart from his battle with the Hood, Osborn dedicates himself and every single HAMMER resource to one goal: killing The Punisher. To make sure they don’t fail, The Dark Avengers are going with them. Somebody has to die. Somebody will. Legendary artist John Romita Jr. returns to The Punisher, joined by regular series writer Rick Remender for this, the most ferocious battle of Frank Castle’s life. Plus, a preview of the next exciting chapter of the Punisher.

Dark Reign The List: Wolverine - The power mad Norman Osborn wants control of the Weapon Plus program. The eternally-surly Wolverine wants to stop him. The artificially-evolved super-sentinel Fantomex wants to shoot everyone in the face and zip away in his kick-ass flying saucer. The Kree warrior Marvel Boy just wants the hell out. And the all-new Weapon XVI wants to bring the world to its knees. And you should want to read it. PLUS: Jason Aaron’s never-before-reprinted first Wolverine story, from WOLVERINE (first series) 175—and more!

Detective Comics #858 – Written by Greg Rucka; Art by JH Williams III; co-feature art by Cully Hamner; Cover by JH Williams III. The shocking and tragic origin story of Batwoman begins here! In "Go" part 1, young Kate Kane and her family are kidnapped by terrorists, and Kate's life – and the lives of her family – will never be the same! Plus, the mystery behind the villainous Alice is at last revealed! Then, in The Question co-feature, Renee's search for a missing girl comes to a bittersweet end, leaving Renee with more questions and an even bigger mystery for her to solve. As long as she can survive the night, that is…

Dynamo 5 #25 - CHANGE IS HERE! In the wake of Father Gideon's devastating attack, Maddie's darkest secret is revealed - and it will change Dynamo 5 forever! Featuring 45 pages of all-new material, including five back-up stories by guest artists TIM SEELEY, FRAN BUENO, ANDIE TONG, MATEUS SANTOLUCCO and JOE EISMA each of which examines a different aspect of the changes that take place this issue and laying the groundwork for the future of the series!

Gotham City Sirens #5 - Written by Paul Dini ; Art and cover by Guillem March. Harley Quinn takes center stage this issue as the girls deal with the after effects of Hush's deadly manipulations over the last few months. Plus, don't miss a surprise guest-star!

Guardians of the Galaxy #19 - Will Kang Conquer the Guardians? Rocked by the aftershocks of War of Kings, Star-Lord’s team – now castaways across shattered timelines – are desperate to find a route home before all possible futures fuse into one dark nightmare! Guest-starring the original Guardians of the Galaxy (sort of) and the infamous time-traveling despot who may be their only hope!

Incredible Hercules #137 - The face-off Herc fans have been clamoring for since his series began is here at last! God of Strength versus God of Thunder! Adamantine mace versus uru hammer! Olympian versus Asgardian! Incredible versus Mighty! That's right -- HERCULES battles THOR! The Odinson discovers the Lion of Olympus has been impersonating him and he's out to prove nothing beats the original! Then, in #137, the epic Secret Origin of Amadeus Cho concludes! He learns his connection with the original MASTER MIND EXCELLO and the identity of who really killed his parents! And once Amadeus knows this, will he look to reunite with Hercules... or destroy him?

Justice Society of America #32 - Written by Matthew Sturges and Bill Willingham; Art and cover by Jesus Merino. The seismic rift among the members of the Justice Society deepens due to the strange actions of several new team members as well as some long-seeded conflicts! It all leaves them dangerously weakened as their home base faces assault from an army of bounty hunters who plan on collecting the price on the head of each and every member of the Society!

Last Days of Animal Man #6 (of 6) – Written by Gerry Conway; Art by Chris Batista and Dave Meikis; Cover by Brian Bolland. Animal Man R.I.P.! Buddy Baker sees only one way to take down the Mirror Master's daughter Prismatik and her homicidal partner Bloodrage – and even if it works, Animal Man won't walk away from the fight! Will there be anything left to send home to what remains of his family? This future might not have a future at all…

Marvel Masterworks Atlas Era Menace Volume #126 - Written by STAN LEE & MORE Penciled by BILL EVERETT, RUSS HEATH, JOE MANEELY, GENE COLAN, JOHN ROMITA, JOE SINNOTT, GEORGE TUSKA, WERNER ROTH, PAUL REINMAN, SHELDON MOLDOFF, JOHN FORTE, ROBERT Q. SALE, TONY DIPRETA, AL EADEH, BOB POWELL, JACK KATZ, SEYMOUR MOSKOWITZ & MORE Cover by BILL EVERETT In 1953 horror comics were king and Atlas editor-in-chief, Stan Lee, launched a new title to make a bid for the throne-and that title was MENACE! Backed by the best of the best in his art stable-Bill Everett, Russ Heath, Joe Maneely, Gene Colan, John Romita, Joe Sinnott, George Tuska-Stan's new title became a high-water mark for pre-Code horror. Chock full of page after page of werewolves, vampires, zombies, ghosts, ghouls, double-dealing women and stone-cold killers with a sense of morality as dark as the ink on the page, MENACE lived up to its name-and how! It also showed hints of the Mighty Marvel future to come with running editorial commentary by Stan, reader contests, and characters like the infamous Zombie by Stan and Bill Everett, who would become the Marvel Age's own killer zombie, Simon Garth. MENACE is a must-have for all aficionados of comics' rollicking pre-Code days and the perfect entry point for readers looking to take their first adventure into the Atlas Era! Collecting MENACE #1-11 304 PGS

Ms Marvel #46 - WAR OF THE MARVELS: THE FINAL CHAPTER There’s only room for one Ms. Marvel, and both Carol Danvers and Karla Sofen will kill to take the mantle. It’s the ultimate showdown of Dark Reign as the lines between good and evil are blurred…and the last Ms. Marvel standing will face the surprise ending of the year!

New Avengers #58 - The Hood's control over his turf is challenged. Big time. And you won't believe by who. And you won't believe where the Hood is getting his newfound powers from. A big status quo change for the power brokers of the Marvel Universe. Guest-starring the Cabal. All that and guess which Avengers hook up this issue. And by hook up... we mean " hook up".

Northlanders #21- Written by Brian Wood; Art by Leandro Fernandez; Cover by Massimo Carnevale. The next NORTHLANDERS epic begins now! Set in Viking Russia in A.D.1020, "The Plague Widow" examines a year in the life of a remote settlement under siege by a contagious outbreak. The residents of this village are so focused on shutting the outside world out, they don't think about who they're shutting themselves in with. Mixing equal parts crime, history and survival fiction, this is the most brutal NORTHLANDERS story to date!

Nova #30 - “Starstalker” Part 2 finds Nova and his fledgling Corps pitted against a threat from another dimension, forced to team up with the galaxy’s deadliest bounty hunter, and coping with a blast from the past!

Punisher #10 - “DEAD END,” Part 5 Finally! It’s the Punisher vs. the Hood! The new kingpin of crime has torn Frank’s world down around him, now he twists the knife embedded in Frank Castle’s chest in an act so cruel, so malicious, it’ll go down in the history of villainy. The gloves are off and anything goes in this sadistic face-off as Frank Castle and Parker Robbins attempt to kill each other by tearing each other’s souls apart. How much will Frank compromise to punish the guilty? There are worse things you can do to a person than kill him. Much worse.

Secret Warriors #9 – GOD OF WAR PART THREE OF FOUR! Nick Fury's secret base is infiltrated by Norman Osborn and H.A.M.M.E.R., and with Marvel's super spy on a top secret mission, the kids have to fend for themselves. It's Ares, Bullseye and Iron Patriot versus the Secret Warriors. GOD OF FEAR.

Superman #693 - Written by James Robinson; Art by Fernando Dagnino and Raúl Fernandez; Cover by CAFU. It's a special issue set entirely within General Lane's Project 7734 headquarters! Learn more about the mysterious Mirabai, Codename: Assassin and Atlas, and witness Lane ply information out of his latest…acquisition. All this plus revelations about Lex Luthor and Brainiac!Meanwhile back in Metropolis, big trouble comes calling. Hint: Him am not Superman!

Teen Titans #76 - Written by Felicia D. Henderson; co-feature written by Sean McKeever; Art by Joe Bennett and Jack Jadson; co-feature art by Yildiray Cinar and Júlio Ferreira; Cover by Joe Bennett and Jack Jadson. Guest-starring Beast Boy and Raven! With the Teen Titans unraveling at the seams, two former members must return to Titans Tower to help Wonder Girl right the sinking ship! If only it were that easy…And in the Ravager second feature, Rose uncovers a horrific black market. And she deals with it the only way she knows how: with blood.

The Web #2 – Written by Angela Robinson; co-feature written by John Rozum, Art Roger Robinson and Hilary Barta; co-feature art by Tom Derenick and Bill Sienkiewicz; Cover by Stanley "Artgerm" Lau. The Web finds himself in over his head as he plunges deeper into the criminal underworld looking for the elusive villain Dr. Archer. With his calls of duty piling up, The Web gets caught in a terrible death trap and in his civilian I.D., he's found himself rolling with made men. Has the new hero overplayed his hand already? Plus, the Hangman begins tightening the noose on San Francisco's organized crime, but he finds resistance in the form of the Ugly Man!

Wildcats #16 - Written by Christos Gage; Art by Shawn Moll and Drew Geraci; Cover by Ryan Sook. The assault on Max Faraday's island begins! The Wildcats fight a war against Tao's army to save planet Earth. Can they enlist an embittered Majestic to help them – or will he seal the team's doom?

Wonder Woman #37 - Written by Gail Simone; Art by Bernard Chang; Cover by Aaron Lopresti. It's a civil war – and the world hangs in the balance! Zeus has made Achilles ruler of the Amazons, and Diana finds herself in battle against the people she loves most! And what is the secret behind the sudden rash of pregnancies on Paradise Island?

World’s Finest #1 (of 4) - Written by Sterling Gates; Art by Julian Lopez; Covers by Phil Noto. After tracking down a threat to The Man of Steel – and all of Metropolis – Red Robin must team up with the new Kryptonian Nightwing to end this mysterious threat and rescue Flamebird. But is all this just a red herring to distract the heroes from an even bigger threat to Gotham City and New Krypton?

X-Factor #50 - Worlds and times collide in this double-sized conclusion to the year long storyline that has revitalized X-Factor. Will the Summers Rebellion triumph as is supposed to happen...or will it be derailed? Will Madrox make it back to his own time? Will Siryn, Monet and the rest of the team have their final showdown with Cortex? Will we actually learn just how it is that Layla Miller knows stuff? Will someone die? The answer to at least some of these questions is: Yes.

This is a big week of mainly just comics. A ton of good looking stuff is coming out. This week still feels like too many books for what I’m targeting and I should have dropped off the Dark Reign The List books, but once I get close to the end of something I tend to finish it. Also I’m only getting three books outside the big two. I did not count FVZA #1 from Radical as I have already read a preview copy and have a review up but that is another book that is coming out Wednesday that is well worth reading.