Masquerade #1 ~ A bit of old skool fun here, with our plucky heroine up against a Nazi maniac with a giant psychic robot - that alone is worth taking a look at, don't you think? This issue is a complete story, which is a positive - knowing nothing about Project Superpowers or whatever this is spinning off from, I wasn't looking for a story that'd make assumptions about how committed as a reader I already was - and it covers a lot of ground, with solo woman-versus-Nazi-robot action (and some neat ingenuity), an origin story/flashback sequence, and a bunch of other heroes showing up to help out in the big fight, which demonstrates the broader retro style I imagine this comic is aiming at. Next up, apparently, there'll be more of this multi-hero stuff, which I'm not too sure about - retro superheroes aren't really my cup of tea, all things being equal (plus they're all guys, the other ones who turn up here) - but this issue entertained me enough that I'll give it a go.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars #4 ~ I wouldn't say I dislike this comic, but it kind of just seems to be meandering along in a rather nondescript fashion, rather than doing anything really interesting or surprising. The Clone Wars TV series, while it's had some run-of-the-mill episodes, has also had a few that stand out as being different, not at all what I thought I'd see - mainly the ones focusing on the clones, actually - and the comic is firmly in the run-of-the-mill camp, which I'd characterise as 'Anakin and Obi-Wan have adventures'. A bit more of a big-picture feel comes in this issue, with a proper link between the slavers and the Separatists, but overall I'm missing that feeling of organised military conflict, rather than heroes vs villains, that I'm looking for.
Patsy Walker: Hellcat #5 ~ As it always has been so far, this issue finishes off the story with a big heaping helping of crazy. And it still works - in fact, this issue manages to wrap everything up and tie a nice bow on it, dispelling my vague concerns earlier on that, as strangeyl enjoyable as the ride was, it'd feel a bit odd in the end due to lack of coherency. Here there really is a real, honest, non-crazy story about people having the kind of problems that real people have, which Patsy has to deal with at the same time as she's handling such superheroic mayhem as escaping certain death by falling off a cliff in a 4WD with a giant stone wheel packed full of Yeti and propelled by a rocket-powered tree. There's a cute little rabbit in one panel, watching the drama with a box of popcorn - that sums it all up, really. But like I said, here we get the resolution of the real story beneath the weirdness, and it works - it's solid, entertaining, and genuine. I don't know how much this title might have appealed to your everyday superhero fans, but I hope it did well - I'd like to see more of Patsy's crazy Alaskan adventures.
Fire and Brimstone #4 ~ Most of this issue is the big fight scene (commenced last issue) between Fire and Brim on one side, and the gigantic hell bat demon on the other. The action is solid, and the issue is peppered with witty dialogue and cute gags (including one of those it-keeps-being-funny rolling sequences where Fire searches her pockets for the right tool for the job) - the characterisation of the two women is very Buffy-and-Faith, in the classic sense of the straight-laced serious one and the happy-go-lucky anarchic one, and just the right note of cooperation and antagonism is struck.
Soulfire: Shadow Magic #3 ~ Things really start to get moving here, with massacre, betrayal, intrigue, and a cute flashback opening that develops into a wicked twist ending - a real "Oh, f&$%!" moment. There's a lot of cutting around - sometimes a scene will only last for one page - which may be troublesome if this is the first issue you picked up, but (I imagine) readers who've been following along from the start will be conversant enough in who's who and what they're up to by now that they'll follow the quick-cut style, and it's worth it for the sense of momentum that develops over the course of this issue.
The Invincible Iron Man #8 & #10 ~ I'm missing #9, which is the second of the 'World's Most Wanted' arc - I initially bought just #10 to see what was going on in Iron Man, what with Marvel reshuffling characters between titles post-Secret Invasion, since I'd heard this was where Maria Hill wound up. Yup, she's here, and yup, she's awesome. Pepper Potts is around too - Tony, Maria and Pepper are kind of the book's triumvirate by the looks of things (which makes it 2/3rds heroine, plenty good enough for me) - and more good news, she's the great Pepper of The Order; unsurprising, since Matt Fraction is writing this. So, Fraction, Pepper, Maria, plus Tony seems very much like the unfailingly entertaining, energetic Tony portrayed by Robert Downey Jr. in last year's movie - so long as those all hold true, I'm buying this (and I haven't even mentioned some of the other awesome stuff going on because it'd be spoilery).
