DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 26 2012

DC COMICS

OCT120152 AQUAMAN #15 $2.99

OCT120144 BEFORE WATCHMEN NITE OWL #4 (RES) (MR) $3.99

OCT120146 BEFORE WATCHMEN NITE OWL #4 COMBO PACK (RES) (MR) $4.99

OCT120147 JUSTICE LEAGUE #15 $3.99

OCT120151 JUSTICE LEAGUE #15 COMBO PACK $4.99

Marvel Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 26 2012

MARVEL COMICS

OCT120626 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #700 $7.99

OCT120625 AVENGING SPIDER-MAN #15.1 $2.99

Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 26 2012

DARK HORSE COMICS

AUG120059 EERIE PRESENTS EL CID HC $15.99

AUG120080 STAR WARS OMNIBUS CLONE WARS TP VOL 03 REPUBLIC FALLS $24.99

Image Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 26 2012

IMAGE COMICS

OCT120450 HIP FLASK OUROBOROUS (MR) [DIG] $4.99

OCT120448 MARA #1 (MR) [DIG] $2.99

Comics from Diamond Distributors for December 26 2012

COMICS & GRAPHIC NOVELS

OCT120842 CROSSED BADLANDS #20 (MR) $3.99

OCT120845 CROSSED BADLANDS #20 END O/T WORLD CVR (MR) $3.99

OCT120844 CROSSED BADLANDS #20 TORTURE CVR (MR) $3.99

OCT120843 CROSSED BADLANDS #20 WRAP CVR (MR) $3.99

OCT120874 DEATHMATCH #1 [DIG] $1.00

OCT120992 SHADOW SPECIAL #1 $4.99

Albert Avilla Reviews: X-Men Legacy #1

X-Men Legacy #1
Marvel Comics

Reviewed by Albert Avilla

Writer: Simon Spurrier
Pencils: Tan Eng
Inks: Craig Yeung

“Prodigal” (Spoilers!)
The story begins in the mind of David Haller, where he has set up a prison system to control his alternate personalities. Apparently, the system had been working until one of the inmates, Ksenia Panov, notices a weakness. David returns to the real world, where he is working with Merzah the Mystic to deal with his insanity. David seems to be doing well, even healing others from their mental illnesses. He has a moment when he loses his concentration and Panov attacks at this time. David gets his control back and Panov is put back in her brain cell.

At that moment in the real world, David deals with a group of restless natives; by the time he’s finished, they want to worship him. Then all heck breaks loose when David feels the death of Xavier. The prison in his mind is destroyed, and the compound and the surrounding areas in the real world are also destroyed. We are left with two ominous battles looming: (1.) David fighting the X-Men and ( 2.) David fighting his evil alternate personalities.

As a set up issue, this is not a bad story, but if the coming battles are not awesome, then I’ll feel that this was lost money. I want to judge an issue on its own merits, but that is hard to do when it is a part of a story arc. With a character as powerful as Legion, the challenges that he faces must be more powerful than he is. We need to see our heroes face insurmountable challenges. Mr. Spurrier has his own challenge of beginning to create stories where Legion will be challenged on a consistent level. Having Legion on the edge of loosing his sanity and going ballistic will always maintain a certain intensity in any story.

I respect the talent of artists, but I have taken on the role of reviewing books for the public. I have to have the integrity to say blah when I feel blah. The art in this book makes me feel blah. The faces are blah. The characters are blah. The backgrounds are blah. The details are blah. It might be the reason that X-Men Legacy does not put the wow in Marvel Now.

I rate X-Men Legacy #1 Read a Friend’s Copy. #3 (of 5) on Al-O-Meter Ranking

Review: YU-GI-OH! ZEXAL Volume 2

YU-GI-OH! ZEXAL, VOL. 2
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CREATOR: Kazuki Takahashi
WRITER: Shin Yoshida
CARTOONIST: Naohito Miyoshi
TRANSLATION & ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Taylor Engel & Ian Reid, HC Language Solutions
LETTERS: John Hunt
ISBN: 978-1-4215-4980-4; paperback; Rated “T” for “Teen”
200pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.99 CAN, £6.99 U.K.

In the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal follows Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s. The manga made its debut in the Japanese manga magazine, V Jump (February 2011). Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal the anime debuted in April 2011 in Japan and in North American half-a-year later.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal is set in futuristic Heartland City. The series focuses on Yuma Tsukumo, a hot-bloodied young fellow who wants to become Duel Champion. He is accompanied by Astral, a mysterious spirit that only Yuma can see. Together they search for Numbers, special cards that hold Astral’s memories and are also highly sought after.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, Vol. 2 (The Numbers Hunter!!) welcomes the Numbers Hunters, duelists looking for the 100 Numbers cards. Welcome Kaita! In order to return his brother, Haruto, to normal, Kaita must find all 100 cards in order to appease Dr. Faker. Faker uses Haruto’s powers to assault Astral World, in addition to his other plots and machinations with partner, Mr. Heartland.

Meanwhile, Yuma’s pals: Kotori Mizuki, Tetsuo Takeda, Cathy, Takashi Todoraki, and Tokunosuke Hyori, form the Numbers Club to help Yuma find Numbers. Their first mission takes them to the amusement park, Heartland, where Yuma has a date with the duelist, Captain Corn.

[This volume includes a Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card.]

Of the few Yu-Gi-Oh! manga that I’ve read, this is most kid-oriented. The Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal manga is about a kid with questionable talents who struggles to learn to get better. The manga is like that – a youngster struggling to get better. It has the elements of being a high-quality manga, but right now, it has a lot of characters and too many dangling plotlines. Perhaps things will come together over the course of the series, but right now, young Yu-Gi-Oh! readers will like it.

B-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux