This Week's Stack by Sean Stoltey

Star Trek: TNG/Doctor Who Assimilation2 #3 - Scott & David Tipton w/Tony Lee, J.K. Woodward and the Sharp Brothers - What can I tell you about this series that I haven't brought up before?  If you watched Doctor Who in the 70's and 80's and were also a big fan of the the Original Series Star Trek, you are going to love this issue.  

Keeping with the subplot of the Doctor remembering things about the Trek universe while realizing that he didn't know them before, we are treated to an adventure with the original Trek cast along with the Tom Baker version of the Doctor.  Man oh man, was that cool.  The art is handled by a different team for this sequence and it really sets it apart from the rest of the book.  It definitely feels like a flashback of some kind.

There are not a lot of solutions found in this issue, mostly more questions raised.  It was kind of like watching an episode of LOST.  So, of course there is moment at the end of the "episode" that makes you really want to see the next issue.  Kudos, once again, to the whole team for doing a crossover that is actually entertaining AND in character.

Captain Marvel #1 by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Dexter Soy - So Ms. Marvel is taking on the Captain Marvel name.  The irony being that when she left the Air Force, the character was a full Colonel.  This is a book that I really want to like, and I almost succeed.  I want to like it, because I agree with some folks out there that there are not enough female-driven comics in the mainstream.  I honestly don't blame the companies though.  As Spider-Man writer Dan Slott pointed out, it's a business and fans have to vote with their wallets.  The companies keep trying to push female solo books, they try to embrace diversity; but if the fans aren't buying it then they can't afford to publish it.  All that aside, it was an alright book.  There's some fun to be had here.  I hope that DeConnick plans to keep the fun tone going forward as that was the best part of the book.  It opens with Carol Danvers (Capt. Marvel) taking on the Absorbing Man with Captain America.  They make fairly short work of him, but the scene is used to highlight the fact that Cap sees Carol as an equal.  He is, in fact, the one that tells her she should stop being Ms. Marvel and become Captain Marvel.  

For a comic book that wasn't written by Robert Kirkman, there is a lot of inner-monologueing in the book.  Because of that, it is odd that we learn more about Carol through her interactions with other characters than we do in her inner monologue.  To be more accurate, there isn't much in  her monologue we couldn't have learned from some more action and dialogue.  I'm old school, I don't mind the inner monologue, but this one just didn't sit too well.  I just wanted her to stop talking to herself and hit more things.  Maybe the shortcoming is mine, I don't know.  Some new history and supporting cast are introduced.  At least it was mostly new to me as I hadn't read the Ms. Marvel series.  I've always liked the character, just haven't tried her solo yet.  

The art on the inside is not at all like the poppy colorful fun art on the cover.  Not to say Soy is all that bad, his style just doesn't immediately seem like a fit for this particular book.  There is one moment, a transition between pages where I almost felt like he had decided to redesign the costume one day and didn't feel like going back and fixing the other pages.  Mostly, though, I just felt like his darker, almost painterly style just didn't set well with the character or the story.  I think it could have popped a little more with a lighter, peppier tone to the art.  The issue sets up enough and shows enough promise for me to try a few issues, but it's going to have to set that hook pretty soon.

Revival #1 by Tim Seeley and Mike Norton - Closest I can come to a description is that Fargo, The Walking Dead and the X-Files had a baby.  It seems on a recent Christmas in the area of Rothschild, Wisconsin that a lot of dead people came back to life.  They aren't really zombies.  At least not in the "classical" sense.  The area has been quarantined and life is attempting to return to normal while the government figures out what exactly is going on.  There's a bit of behind the scenes at the police station, family drama, something spotted in the woods and then some good old fashioned violent mayhem and mystery.  Also, some pretty gross stuff involving teeth.  This one has some interesting characters, an intriguing plot and some good horror elements all thrown into the pot.  Our main character is Officer Dana Cypress, daughter of the police Chief and seemingly connected to every plot and subplot in the book.  She is a single mother and older sister and despite who her dad is, those two relationships seem like they are going to have the most connection to any answers that will be found.  As with a lot of my reviews, I don't want to delve to deep into this.  I want you to enjoy the discovery and the surprises.  This one is definitely worth picking up.  I will be doing so for the foreseeable future.

I'll try to be back for more this week.  Let me know what you guys are reading out there.

Sean Stoltey, writer, raconteur and retired rabble rouser, hails originally from California's Central Coast but currently resides in Southern California's BEAUTIFUL--San Fernando Valley. Screenwriter, Comic Book author, these are things he does because he's too poor to be a Producer or Publisher.

Sean has been reading comics, watching movies, reading books and selling his soul (or at least his hearing) to Rock'n'Roll for as long as he can remember. He has been discussing and arguing about these things for almost as long. 

So now he has come here to throw his opinions in your face as well and hope that, even if you don't agree, hopefully you will enjoy them. For the record: Kirk was the greatest Enterprise Captain, Han was the only one that shot, Led Zeppelin was the greatest Rock band to walk the Earth and Keith Richards is the coolest undead person to walk the Earth. Coolest living people are my sons and my Mom and Dad. My Dad F---in' rocks, and my Mom can kick your ass.

You can ask Sean anything at http://www.formspring.me/WWest3001 contact him via twitter @WWest3001 or boring old e-mail at SeanStoltey@yahoo.com