THE CAT'S MEOW: What's Good on the Shelf This Week-Year 3 - Week 39 ____________________________________________________________________
Reviews by John Norris, June 01, 2009

MARVEL ADVENTURES AVENGERS #36: “Which Wish?” (All Ages)

Paul Tobin (w); Jacopo Camagni (p/i); Sotocolor (c); Dave Sharpe (l); cover by Ig Guara & Sotocolor

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: Super-soldier from World War II. Weather Goddess. Super-strong alter ego of scientist Bruce Banner. Spider-powered web-slinger. Giant-sized crimefighter. Brilliant armored inventor. Feral mutant brawler. Together, they are the world's mightiest heroes, battling foes that no single super hero could withstand. 

In this issue: When the Avengers take some time out of their busy schedules to attend a neighborhood block party / flea market, Tigra discovers a magic necklace and accidentally unleashes an ancient genie that has two goals in mind: giving Tigra her requisite three wishes, and seeking terrible vengeance on the "dire villain" who trapped him in the lamp... a certain green Hulk! Can Tigra simply WISH this problem away? You'd think so, but magic wishes sure do have their way of back-firing! It's a supernatural battle royale! (from marvel.com, modified)

Review: It's a nice day at the flea market until Tigra accidentally sets a genie free.

Getting three wishes isn't so bad, but when the genie has it in for the Hulk…THAT'S bad! The sequence in which Tigra dreams of ways her wishes could go wrong is great. But the whole issue is filled with some nice punch lines and hilarious facial expressions, particularly Spider-Man's.

PHANTOM: GHOST WHO WALKS #2: “End War,” part 2 (Teen/Young Adult)

Mike Bullock (w); Silvestre Szilagyi (p/i); Bob Pedroza (c); Josh Aitken (l); covers by Joe Corroney & Rick Leonardi and Terry Austin with Renato Guerra

Publisher: Moonstone

Format: monthly series

Concept: "The Ghost Who Walks" comes alive, as the classic comic strip character is put through his paces in all new adventures. Thrilling adventure fraught with dire peril!

In this issue : The new direction continues, as the Phantom takes on a darker tone in today's Africa ! Ripped from today's headlines, Kazi's End War continues as The Phantom enlists the help of a family friend, but helping the Phantom is proving to be deadlier than anyone could have imagined! And the implications of what they uncover will change the Phantom's world, forever. And beginning this issue, there will be extra Phantom action, as Moonstone serializes Phantom prose stories! (from grahamcrackers.com)

Review: Things are exploding all over—literally—as tensions mount and the war escalates. As the Phantom comes closer to discovering the truth, the situation just gets worse. That's another reason why I think this series is one of the best out there; there's a sense of real danger for both the Phantom and Diana, which I don't feel in a lot of books. It causes me to pull for the Phantom that much more. As Ed Rhoades says in his article, his “mortality and willingness to do what is right because of and in spite of the law are appealing to the vicarious need for justice in the eyes of readers on a global level.” Bullock's prose story, “White Knight,” adds to the excitement.

TINY TITANS #16 (All Ages)

Art Baltazar & Franco (w); art & cover by Baltazar

Publisher: DC

Format: monthly series

Concept: It's all your favorite Titans, in their cutest possible form!

In this issue: It's another ordinary gym class with Coach Lobo for the Tiny Titans until Supergirl and Kid Flash decide it's the perfect day for a race around the world. The race isn't theirs alone as some of the other Tiny Titans decide they don't want to be left out. And see just what happens when the Atom and the Molecule compete in a shrinking contest. (from dccomics.com)

Review: It's one of the great questions in comics: who's faster, Superman or the Flash? In this issue, the same thing is asked of Supergirl and Kid Flash. There are some other questions raised as well: Why can't a kid named Speedy run fast? How did Coach Lobo get his muscles? (For that matter, how did Lobo end up as a gym teacher in the first place?) Why won't Raven run? Who knew Lobo likes Captain Marvel comics? All these questions and more are hilariously answered by Baltazar and Franco. Check out Franco's cool Supergirl/Kid Flash pin-up!

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #132 (Teen/Young Adult)

Brian Michael Bendis (w); Stuart Immonen (p); Wade von Grawbadger (i); Justin Ponsor (c); Cory Petit (l); cover by Immonen & Richard Isanove

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: The bite of a genetically-altered spider grants high school student Peter Parker incredible, arachnid-like powers.

In this issue: ULTIMATUM HAS TAKEN OVER THE WORLD!! SPIDER-MAN IS MISSING!! Friends are enemies and enemies are friends as tensions mount to insane proportions. And yes, your eyes do not deceive you: MJ versus Kitty... to the death!!! (well, they slap each other a little) (from marvel.com)

Review: It's certainly NOT a good time to be in New York City right now. As if the Hulk and a mutant terrorist disaster weren't enough, now Spidey gets to deal with out-of-control magic creatures from another dimension. This is CRAZY stuff, with Immonen providing some CRAZY artwork. Fortunately, Bendis inserts some amusing moments as well, such as the Hulk giving Spidey some ‘tude.

Look out for: You'll see dead people. No blood, but the images are a bit disturbing just the same.

To be reviewed in next week's column:

AGENTS OF ATLAS #5

CARS: THE ROOKIE #2

INVINCIBLE #62

By thy side,

John “Figaro” Norris

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