My Week In TV - 11/9/14

This week there were no new episodes of The Flash or Agents of SHIELD on Tuesday. ABC ran some hour-long special about Marvel Comics and their TV and movie forays, followed by election coverage. No idea why the CW had a repeat. But many of the episodes more than made up for it...

Gotham: The best episode of the series thus far. Not perfect. Still some wonky scripting and acting (I'm looking at you, woman who plays Barbara, Gordon's girlfriend) but much tighter. There was no weekly crime to solve, the entire episode focused on the aftermath of the Penguin's public appearance at Jim Gordon's arrest. I was hoping they'd keep this tighter focus but, instead, I've read in the past week of the forthcoming introductions of yet another two future Batman villains.

Arrow: The episode was titled "The Secret Origin of Felicity Smoak." Fun episode. Love her. (Her mother, not so much.)

American Horror Story: Freak Show: Wow, did this episode go places! Big revelations and plot turns, and guys in tighty-whities! I actually watched it a second time.

The Big Bang Theory: Big sweet moment when Amy starts to tell Sheldon something important and, after a minute, he stops here with "I love you too." Awwwwwwww.

Bones: I am beginning to wonder if I really need to keep watching this show. It's not awful but it's really rather standard. And with Thursday being a big TV night, maybe I can just let it go, or at least just watch episodes On Demand when I'm not watching anything else.

Scandal: I feel like this show is going in circles at times with the whole B613 thing. Someone needs to be stopped and other characters plot to stop them. And I can't fathom a seemingly smart White House chief of staff, who's played plenty of dirty tricks over the years, being stupid enough to get involved with a guy AFTER he learns the guy's a prostitute, start paying him for their "dates" and even shell out money for a place in lieu of hotel rooms. Shouldn't he suspect someone might be setting him up for something?

How To Get Away With Murder: After this one, only two episodes remain until we, the viewers, learn who actually killed Sam. So then all that's left is to find out how they get away with it? And this has me wondering what will happen in Season 2? I wonder if this show is sustainable?

The Simpsons: "Simpsorama," the crossover with Futurama. Sooooooo much better than the Family Guy crossover. Bender is sent back in time to kill Homer Simpson (as it turns out, because of something Bart did that led to creatures destroying New New York in the 31st century). Lisa: "Why must you kill my dad? Especially when cheeseburgers are doing the work for you?"

Family Guy: Another one I'm starting to tire of. Used to be kind of a guilty pleasure, although I don't really believe in that concept, but now it's more guilty than pleasure.

My Recent Comics 2-8-12

With my procrastinating and lack of rest time and such, I actually went to the store(s) on three different days for these. I can't remember exactly when, but I've had them a while. They've been sitting on a table waiting to get their day in the blog spotlight. So, for the sake of getting this out of the way once and for all, I'm only going to touch on a few of these.

Simpsons Comics 183, 184, 185
Simpsons Winter Wingding 6
Simpsons Super Spectacular 14 -- The story of the musical "Radioactive Man: Turn Up The Silence." Sound familiar?
Futurama Comics 58
Veronica 209 a.k.a Veronica Presents: Kevin Keller 3 (of 4) -- As with the first two issues, I actually found this at a bookstore -- Barnes and Noble, now that Borders is gone. I never picked up issue 4, however, which is too bad because it actually had a bit of a cliffhanger. Plus they actually mention Snooki and plug her book, "A Shore Thing." Wait -- did I just plug it too? And that Barnes and Noble is also where I bought...

My...Something...In Comics 9-28-11

I had three weird Wednesdays in a row in September. I made no trips to the comic book store, trips that used to be a given. DC may have abandoned me in favor of new, younger (they hope, desperately) readers with their DCnU business and the younger Superman wearing jeans, workboots and a baby blanket cape, but I'm still interested in the Bongo Comics books I normally get (Simpsons, Futurama) and any others that might attract me. I suppose it's possible that something DC puts out might be of interest, but right now I'm just not ready to go back to them.

Instead of making a trip each week, though, I may just go once a month and pick up whatever books I need to. That's what I did this past Wednesday, with the three Bongo books and two others I was interested in, that were either released during September or a bit earlier...

Sherlock Holmes Year One 6 (of 6): This book was marred by some sort of production error, it seems. The fourth and fifth pages have the exact same word balloons in the exact same position on both pages, with different art (so on page 4 words are being spoken by the wrong characters, or no one at all). It took me a while to figure out how to read this, and it seems there is missing dialogue that would clarify what's going on. (Good thing this was the final issue of the miniseries because it would otherwise discourage me from future purchases.) Once I got through that mixup, I found a satisfying explanation for the "Twelve Casears" murders orchestrated by Professor Moriarty.

Kevin Keller 2 (of 4): No, I won't be buying Archie Comics regularly to replace DC Comics. As with the first issue, the story revolves around a celebration (this time, Kevin's dad's birthday party) and Kevin telling Veronica stories about his life before moving to Riverdale, including how he handled some bullies at his last high school. I guess the final two issues will follow the same pattern. Once again, I found this in Barnes and Noble instead of a comic book store. And again, the cover has numbering in smaller print indicating that it's an issue of the Veronica series (plus I noticed the store receipt lists it as "Veronica 208," not "Kevin Keller 2"). It seems the publisher is trying to have its cake and eat it too. (Come to think of it, what does that saying even mean?)

My (Last*) Week In Comics 8-31-11

Well, today was the big day. The final issue of "Flashpoint," the end of the DC Comics Universe as we know it and the launch of the new DC Universe, or DCnU, to use the shorthand that someone came up with. (Was it DC themselves? Not sure.) The first of the 52 monthly titles, all starting with issue 1 -- even long-running Action Comics and Detective Comics -- was also released: Justice League #1. So let's get to what I bought today, and then we'll discuss this some more...

Flashpoint 5 (of 5): In this issue, the war between Wonder Woman's Amazons and Aquaman's Atlanteans has begun, and unless it's somehow stopped, will result in an earth-shattering cataclysm. The attempt by some of the heroes of this world, including the Flash and this alternate world's Batman, finally gathered in an attempt to stop it, isn't going so well. Then Eobard Thawne, a.k.a. Professor Zoom, the Reverse-Flash, shows up to make things worse for Barry Allen by explaining exactly how the timeline was changed so drastically. The revelation is quite a twist. How things are resolved essentially boils down to one man's love for his mother, and another man's love for his son, and the sacrifices both must make in order to restore the correct timeline. The Amazon-Atlantis war itself is mostly an afterthought. Some characters from the various tie-in series show up dramatically for a couple of pages, but the whole thing is pretty much in the background of the Thawne/Flash/Batman drama. The final 9 pages feature a two-page sequence which bridges the old and new DCU, and hints at an upcoming threat, followed by Barry Allen waking up back at his police crime lab job. I guess it's kind of a spoiler but we all knew that when this was over Bruce Wayne would be Batman again, so it's no surprise when Flash rushes into the Batcave to find Bruce/Batman. There's a nice conversation and a touching moment.

My Week In Comics 7-27-11

I need to bear down and get these posts out, as my online time might be limited in the coming days. And this was a heavy week because of two "Flashpoint" tie-ins and a couple of other books not part of my regular deal.

Action Comics 903: As with just about every series, this is the next-to-last issue before the reboot. So it's the next-to-last part of the "Reign of the Doomsdays" storyline, which I've found to be badly written. Between this and the walk-across-America story in the other Superman book, even though I detest much of what I've heard about the reboot it's arriving just in time.

Flashpoint: Project Superman 2 (of 3): This book, on the other hand, really surprised me. I enjoyed it much more than I expected. Held in a secret facility under Metropolis, young Kal-El (Subject One) is being experimented on and, ironically, it's General Sam Lane who's treating him with compassion to try and guide him into becoming the hero that Subject Zero couldn't be. We also meet Lionel Luthor and his son Lex, who is viciously attacked (thanks to some manipulation by Subject Zero and a timely push by Lionel) by Subject Two -- the dog we know in the regular DC world as Krypto. And young Kal meets young Lois Lane for the first time.

Flashpoint: Lois Lane and the Resistance 2 (of 3): Meanwhile, the all-grown-up Lois meets up with the Resistance in London, and they're after a prototype of an armored battlesuit that could help them fight against the occupying Amazons. But there's a traitor in their midst...

Gotham City Sirens 25: This time out the entire issue is focused on (and has narrative boxes from) Poison Ivy, as she escapes from Arkham with Harley Quinn, intent on killing Catwoman for her betrayal. I remember when this book was a lot more humorous. I liked it a lot more then.

Teen Titans 98: Somehow, and I suppose there's an explanation coming, Superboy-Prime (whose punches caused lots of changes in DC's continuity, but fortunately have nothing to do with the reboot in September) has returned and is out for vengeance (or something) against Superboy. The last page is amusing.

DC Retroactive: Superman - The '70s 1 (of 1): DC is doing a bunch of one-shot specials which pay homage to the 1970's, 1980's and 1990s. Each book will have a new story set in the specific decade, plus a reprint of a story from that era. In this case, the new story in part deals with a little drama between Lois Lane and Lana Lang over their love, Superman, which the old story tells how the Earth-Two Superman came to marry Lois Lane.

Futurama Comics 56: Fry blows up the Earth. Not really. It's a theme restaurant called Earthies. It leads to, among other things, Bender being chased down while on the Internet for illegal music downloads -- by the artists whose music he downloaded.

My Week In Comics 5-25-11

This week I bought two DC books and two from Bongo Comics. However, after some news broke today, I'm not sure I should even bother writing about the books of one of these companies. (I will, of course, but not in this post. If you follow the comic book publishers' doings, you already know what I'm talking about. If the news hasn't gotten to you and you don't care to go searching for it, I will enlighten you in my next comic book post.)

Action Comics 901: So "Reign of Doomsday" has actually turned into "Reign of the Doomsdays." There are four of them now (plus the original, who's incapacitated at the moment), thanks to Lex Luthor. Each has powers similar to the Super-person it went after (for example, Superboy's Doomsday has tactile telekinesis). A new character is introduced, and some of Superman's dialogue is off. Can you ever imagine him answering a question with "Ha! What can I say? Busted!" And now this whole thing, dumb dialogue and all, is threatening Earth. Not that it will matter in a few months...

Gotham City Sirens 23: The Joker and Harley Quinn are reunited...and it feels so good, unless you're in Arkham Asylum with them. As chaos reigns, Poison Ivy arrives to break up the happy couple, while Catwoman tries to stay out of it. Bonus: both Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson in costume. Two Batmen for the price of one! Not that it will matter in a few months...

Simpsons Summer Shindig 5: Let's see...we have the Springfield Bear Patrol in action. Remember the "We're here! We're queer! We don't want any more bears!" chant? Apparently this was an outgrowth that hasn't been explored

My Week In Comics 3-23-11

Business (or, the number of books I'm buying) has picked up the last couple of weeks, after that barren week where nothing awaited me in the store...

Batman, Incorporated 4: ...and it helps (or hurts?) that this series had an issue delayed, and now comes out with its second issue in three weeks. And they're weaving a story that includes flashbacks and current events, bringing old continuity involving the original Batwoman into play and getting the current Batwoman into the fray, with all of it affecting the situation Batman and El Gaucho are in down in Argentina.

Justice League of America 55: This is the next tie-in to the "Reign of Doomsday." As in the recent "Outsiders" issue featuring this storyline, the Doomsday stuff is squeezed in with other events involving the current iteration of the Justice League, but Doomsday's next target doesn't even show up until the very last page. The story is continued in a couple of weeks in Superman/Batman Annual #5, so why not just put the whole thing there?

Supergirl 62: Blue Beetle and Miss Martian join Supergirl and Robin as they track down the mystery man who created the superhero-tracking app as part of his plan to destroy the young heroes, and his connection to the Cadmus story that Lois Lane is investigating is beginning to make itself known. But it's a five-part story, and this is only the third installment.

Futurama Comics 54: Leela is abducted and taken to the planet Westminsteria, where she's going to be sold at a pet shop to a customer who will enter her in their annual Pet Show. Sound familiar? And in a second story starring Zapp Brannigan, his lieutenant Kif is promoted to captain, thanks to a timely...sneeze?

My Week In Comics 1-26-11

I might as well knock this out since it's 2 a.m., and I'm awake, and I'm waiting for the end of a podcast I'm listening to so I can listen to two songs I downloaded using part of the $10.00 iTunes gift card I received from Philadelphia Weekly...besides, I only bought two books this week:

Action Comics 897: There's almost no action in this issue, just lots of talk. But it's terrific, as Luthor tracks down another of those Black Lantern energy spheres. It's in Gotham City. Specifically, at Arkham Asylum. To be precise, somehow the Joker has it. Not only that, but there's a twist near the end. And the last page, a setup for the next issue, brings back a very fun character.

Futurama Comics 53: The Planet Express crew has to make a delivery and things go awry...of course, that could be the plot of just about every episode of the TV series, not to mention these comic books...anyway, things go awry when the package they're delivering turns out to be more than it seems.

My Week In Comics 11-24-10

Back by popular demand! Okay, not so popular demand. Fine, no demand at all. Too bad, though, because this is MY blog! ;-) This collection is from two weeks ago. Last week I only bought one and this week I'm only getting one or two, so I'll combine last week and this week into one post. For now, we go wayyyy back into the mists of time. Back when these books were released, Barack Obama was President, Michael Vick was quarterbacking the Eagles and I was only 48 years old...

Action Comics 895: This issue guest-stars Vandal Savage, a supervillain who is immortal. This makes him unique. Unlike Superman and so many others who have died and been brought back to life, Savage doesn't die to begin with. Makes it much easier to keep track. Anyway, he has a compound that contains two of the spheres which have the Black Lantern energy that Luthor wants to access, so you just know these two aren't exactly going to cooperate with each other.

Batwoman 0: That's right, A zero issue before the "official" beginning of the new ongoing series in February. It's meant to serve as a reintroduction of sorts to the character, with the newly returned Bruce Wayne surreptitiously investigating the latest crimefighter to take on a Bat-identity -- both in and out of costume. Why is that distinction important?

My Week In Comics 9-30-10

Three books here, and only one this coming week...unless I get the second printing of something recent that I somehow missed. (I'm being cryptic on purpose. Guess if you want, though.)

Action Comics 893: So I know, just from years of reading DC Comics, that there's a powerful, super-intelligent gorilla called Grodd. (Here, Grodd is the latest to encounter Lex Luthor, his Lois Lane android and his team of employees on their quest for a black power ring.) I don't recall buying many books that actually featured Grodd, so forgive me when I ask: why does Grodd use a combat spoon and when did he start eating brains? Anyway, even without Superman in his own book this is an entertaining ride. The book now also a second feature that stars Jimmy Olsen, with the goal of reinventing him a bit -- still getting into lots of adventures, but a lot more current than young and nerdy. It also introduces the character of Chloe Sullivan, created for TV's "Smallville," into the DC universe.

Gotham City Sirens 16: I complained about this series recently, but this issue is an improvement from recent ones, so I won't be dropping it just yet. This story arc guest-stars Zatanna (in Gotham because, believe it or not, Batman has technology that can detect magical activity) and Talia al Ghul (there because she learns of a threat against Catwoman).

Futurama Comics 51: They've already run all the new episodes on Comedy Central, at least for now, so once again the only new stories are in this book. As usual, wacky circumstances lead to something even more wacky -- in this case, Fry becoming the new royal chef of Omicron-Persei 8.

Randomness: Celebs Make Out, Come Out, Comics

Here are some unrelated items that caught my eye today...

• This isn't going to get me to listen to a music station with commercials, but morning show DJ Elvis Duran, whose Z100 (New York City) show is syndicated and airs on Q102 here (where he used to work in the 1980s -- I vaguely remember him being on in the afternoon at one point) came out on his show today in a very matter-of-fact way.

• Speaking of coming out, if any more long-time closeted Republican officials want to come out now, and then whine about how hard it was to be gay and working in the GOP, read this. Then go have a really blunt chat with your remaining GOP friends -- I say "remaining" because I bet some of them drop you like a hot potato -- about how despicable you've all been for so many, many years and how it has to end now. If you can't do that, then go fuck yourself, because I (among others) surely won't.

• Did Adam Lambert really make out with Scissor Sisters' Jake Shears while Katy Perry looked on? Watch this and find out!

• Sometimes the scheduled release date of a comic book is delayed. When such a book is connected to other books/storylines, it can be a problem. So the news that a book I thought would be out a couple of weeks ago, issue 5 of the "Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne" miniseries, has now been pushed back to October, just makes me laugh. There are all of these special one-shot issues due in October that are tied into Bruce Wayne's return, not to mention the regular monthly Batman books and that horrendous "Time Masters: Vanishing Point" miniseries. Unless everything's getting pushed back, there will probably be plot points mentioned in these other books that spoil what happens in "B:TROBW." (Would that acronym would be pronounced "be-tro-bwoo" or "buh-tro-bweh" or...?)

• But there is good news in comic book land: after 17 years of publishing Simpsons Comics, Futurama Comics and a bunch of related titles, and even a couple that had nothing to do with either show, Bongo Comics...finally has a website!

My Week In Comics 7-21-10

Procrastinating again. Sorry. And this particular week was rather busy, too.

Time Masters: Vanishing Point 1 (of 6): "The search for Batman begins!" the cover says. Well, except it actually began in the "Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne" miniseries. This picks up, sort of, after the point in issue 2 of that series where the group trying to find the lost-in-time Batman -- Rip Hunter, Booster Gold, Superman and Green Lantern -- disappeared (into the 15th century, as it turns out). There's a bit of a flashback explaining how and why Hunter learned of Batman's being thrown back in time and why he and Booster want Superman and Green Lantern along. There are also some developments in the 21st century which are related, I suppose, although I have no idea how. And considering what I'm feeling about the "Return of Bruce Wayne" series (for that you'll have to wait until the next comic book update), this series might go by the wayside, or it'll be one of those I keep buying because I want the complete series.

Supergirl 54: The good news is that Kara finally decided to get back into costume. The bad news is there's a Bizarro Supergirl in town and she's taking prisoners. But she doesn't seem to be the only one involved in kidnapping. Whether this other plot is related or a setup of a future story arc isn't clear.

Batman Beyond 2 (of 6): Future Gotham has a new Batman. It also has a new Catwoman, it seems. Meanwhile, attacks on enemies of the original Batman continue, with another old Bat-villain seemingly behind them.

Superman/Batman 74:

My Weeks In Comics 5-27-10 and 6-2-10

I'm going to combine two weeks into one post, since I procrastinated again and because while I bought five books last week, there was only one this week. So, starting with last week's haul...

Superman: War of the Supermen 4 (of 4): Everything that's been going on in the Superman titles for the last couple of years came down to this. A war between the survivors of New Krypton, led by General Zod, and the Human Defense Corps mastermined by General Sam Lane, with Superman's team (including Supergirl, Superboy, Steel, etc.) essentially caught in the middle, knowing that if they failed it may mean the destruction of both the human and Kryptonian races. All kinds of death and destruction occurs from start to finish. Then imagine the whole thing happening in an hour and 40 minutes. You know, I've been geeking out about this since I first heard about it, and it really delivered.

Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne 2 (of 6): Bruce Wayne's next stop on his journey through time is early colonial times, when they executed people for being witches. Always fighting for justice, even in his memory-deprived condition, Bruce tries to protect one such woman. Meanwhile, the group trying to track him down (including Superman and Green Lantern) runs into some trouble of their own. There's a separate miniseries that is going to tie into this one that's due to start next month, and hopefully it will elaborate on some of what's going on here, because I'm a bit confused about the premise they've introduced: that if Bruce returns to his own time on his own, everyone will die.

My Week In Comics 3-24-10

Okay, so I've fallen behind again so I'll be brief...

Batgirl 8/Red Robin 10: These were the two that were released a couple of weeks earlier, but I didn't pick them up right away. One of those little crossovers, I decided to buy them after all. I guess I can quote a certain American Idol judge:  for me, for you, it was just alright, dawg.

Superman 698: The third part of the "Last Stand of New Krypton" tale. This, on the other hand, is so much more than just alright, dawg.

Green Lantern 52: Racing towards the end of the "Blackest Night." And, as befitting a story that started with the premise that "the dead shall rise," someone is seemingly killed, only to return to life. It kind of seemed a bit like filler, though.

Superman/Batman 70: Somehow I thought the storyline of the last few issues was ending here, but it's not, and I'm not that interested in it anyhow. Do I bother to pick up the conclusion or not? Hmmmmm.

Futurama Comics 48: Zoidberg gives up his medical practice to become a lawyer, plus a sort of mash-up of "Jack and the Beanstalk" and "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." Meanwhile, new episodes of the show are supposed to debut on Comedy Central in June. Yay!

Victorian Undead 5 (of 6): Another story that's almost done. Things look bleak for England because of all the zombies. Sherlock Holmes has a plan to save the nation, but the prime minister doesn't like it. Ah, bureaucracy.

My Week In Comics 1-27-10

How the hell am I supposed to write about the 12 books I ended up buying? I have enough trouble when it's three or four. Ah, well. A little about each one will have to suffice.


The Atom and Hawkman 46: Another one-issue-only "Blackest Night" revival, but actually quite important to the main story.

Green Lantern 50: Also, obviously, "Blackest Night"-related. The only problem is that what happens at the end of the book is revealed on its cover.

Supergirl 49: Finishes off the Silver Banshee story from last month, and someone important apparently dies. Ooooh.

Superman 696: Picks up where Action Comics #885 left off two weeks ago. With the final issue of Superman: World of New Krypton out tomorrow, we'll be that much closer to the War of the Supermen!

World's Finest 4 (of 4): The miniseries featuring the first team-up of Superman and Dick Grayson-as-Batman is done, but it turns out there's a connection between this story and General Lane's plans for New Krypton.

Superman: Secret Origin 4 (of 6): It occurs to me that the title is misleading. There's really nothing "secret" about this. It's still just another revamp of how Superman became Superman and began his heroic career in Metropolis. Some parts I like, some I don't. This book tells the story of his first battle with the Parasite, and the way the book depicts Parasite's method of gaining strength begs the question: "Is it possible to give Superman a hickey?"

Batman and Robin 7: Dick Grayson has surprising plans for Bruce Wayne's lifeless body. Which is odd, considering how only Tim Drake has believed it possible to bring Bruce back. The way I see this particular story arc ending (considering DC Comics' already announced plans for "The Return of Bruce Wayne"), I'm not sure I'll pick up the next two issues.

Detective Comics 861: In the start of a 3-part arc, Batwoman is after a twisted criminal that was once sought by Batman (the original, not the current), with the past story told in flashbacks.

Gotham City Sirens 8: Much different tone than in the previous 7 issues. There's a different writer on this issue; not sure if it's a permanent change or not. If it is, I may not be buying this book much longer.

Teen Titans 79: Anyone who used to read the Milestone comics line knows that the characters of the Milestone Universe have been merged into the DC Universe and that Static is now a member of the Teen Titans. Thus, this story, in which Static returns to his hometown of Dakota after a long absence.

Victorian Undead 3 (of 6): The "Sherlock Holmes vs. zombies" story continues. Very much still enjoying this.

Futurama Comics 47: This was kinda fun, but I've run out of words, so...

My Week In Comics 11-25-09

I've got eight books to write about. This is a bit much. I'm going to try something: writing just one pertinent sentence about each one.

Superman 694: Mon-El returns to Metropolis with a new uniform, new way of talking...and a new attitude!

World's Finest 2 (of 4): The Guardian and Robin take on Parasite and Mr. Freeze, and the new Robin is just as much a snot-nosed punk in this book as he is in the Batman books.

(Hmmmm...I kinda like this one-sentence deal...)

Detective Comics 859: Continuing Batwoman's origin story, this issue features lots of girl-on-girl action and the disgrace of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell military policy -- with gay activist Lt. Dan Choi getting a credit for "his generous assistance in research for this issue." Presumably not on the parts featuring girl-on-girl action.

(Dammit, that's two sentences! Curse my snarky attitude!)

Green Lantern 48: There's a note at the start that says "This takes place before Blackest Night #6," which is odd, because it also takes place before Blackest Night #5, which came out the same day...

Blackest Night 5 (of 8):...and sees the battle get worse as Batman's skull temporarily gets a body and a Black Lantern ring, leading to Superman and a bunch of other previously-dead heroes transformed, and not in a good way.

(There, one sentence for two books! I'm back on track!)

Superman: Secret Origin 3 (0f 6): This new version of the arrival of Clark Kent in Metropolis (which is grittier and a tad meaner than it's usually depicted, with a Daily Planet that is in pretty sad shape) manages to not quite feel right and at the same time borrow from the first Christopher Reeve "Superman" movie.

Gotham City Sirens 6: The girls finally dispose of ex-Joker henchman Gagsworth A. Gagsworthy, a.k.a. Gaggy(!?!), with the help of their carpenter and, in Harley Quinn's case, knowledge gleaned from Bugs Bunny cartoons.

Futurama Comics 46: Planet Express delivers a package and wacky adventures occur...and occur...and occur...it's like it's a book-length Möbius (comic) strip.

My Week In Comics: 9-30-09

Four books this week. Next week -- which is tomorrow...or actually today since it's after midnight -- I only have one book to buy. I may not make the trip to the store since I'll be busy watching the Phillies' playoff games the next two afternoons and then leave for Washington, DC for the weekend.

Green Lantern 46: Continuing with "Blackest Night," but not the events taking place on Earth (the ones featuring Superman and Batman that are so much fun, for example). The problem with this is, it involves characters I don't know much about, and don't care much about; although it's not a bad book, for me it doesn't quite have the same impact.

Superman 692: This issue could have been called "Revelations" because we learn where both Mon-El and John Henry Irons are (not in the same place or in the same condition), among other things. Still, trying to piece together the whole puzzle of what all of these things are leading to -- all we know is that Superman is involved in a huge event next year, as if what's going on now isn't huge enough -- is not easy.

Gotham City Sirens 4: I complained about the last issue because it didn't feature its stars. No complaints this time, as Catwoman and Poison Ivy are out to rescue Harley Quinn from Hush (pretending to be Bruce Wayne). Of course, she doesn't even realize she's in trouble. Then there's The Joker, who's also after her...

Futurama Comics 45: "Anthology Of Interest II" -- in which everyone uses the Professor's What-If Machine to find the answers to questions such as "What if Bender ruled the world?" Since there were two episodes of the TV series with the same plot, and they were called "Anthology Of Interest I" and "Anthology Of Interest II," shouldn't the story in this book be "Anthology Of Interest IV"?

Futurama is saved!

Good news, everybody! It now looks like the "Futurama" voice actors will return to the revived show after all. Clearly the powers that be at 20th Century Fox TV read this blog and saw the error of their ways.

This Week's Comic Books 7-22-09

The "Blackest Night" event goes on, while a tie-in to "Final Crisis" ("Final" -- as if) finally ends, many months late. But wait, there's more...

Green Lantern 44: This picks up one of the plots begun last week in the first issue of "Blackest Night." While investigating the theft of Bruce Wayne's skull from his grave, Hal Jordan and Barry Allen (Green Lantern and the Flash), both of whom were once dead and now alive again, are attacked by the Black Lantern Martian Manhunter, who wants to return them to their prior non-living status. In the midst of the action, some great dialogue between Hal and Barry really added to my enjoyment.

Gotham City Sirens 2: Speaking of Bruce Wayne, he's back! Well, not really. It's the villain known as Hush, who had his face surgically remade to look like Bruce. "Bruce" is telling reporters of a plan to use "his" fortune to aid Gotham when he's kidnapped by some two-bit thugs, but escapes with the help of one of the stars of this series. So, technically speaking, a criminal is attacked by other criminals, but is rescued by yet another criminal, who doesn't realize the trouble she's getting into. I love this book so far.

Supergirl 43: Another book I've gotten to enjoy, although only recently. There was a recent iteration of Supergirl (the Matrix/Linda Danvers one) that I really enjoyed, but she wasn't popular because she wasn't Superman's cousin Kara Zor-El. So DC rebooted, sending Linda away and reintroducing Kara Zor-El as the one true Supergirl. At first the new series (with a new #1 issue -- gotta love reboots) was, frankly, awful. I stopped buying it pretty quickly. Recently, a combination of a new creative team, revamping Kara's personality to make her a lot more interesting, and a closer tie-in to events in the Superman books have won me back.

Final Crisis: Legion Of 3 Worlds 5 (of 5): This miniseries was tied in to the "Final Crisis" events, but there have been so many delays between issues that I hardly remember what happened in the first four, other than that DC managed to find a way to resurrect two more recently-dead heroes. There are also a whole bunch of members of the Legion of Super-Heroes (from the 31st Century, dontcha know) from different parts of the multiverse. They all finally find a way to win, and everyone lives happily ever after (until the next time they're killed) except the hero-turned villain known as Superboy-Prime. His final (for now) fate is most entertaining.

Futurama Comics 44: The voice actors may no longer work on the TV series, but they'll always be in my head when I read this book. After barely passing Spaceship Traffic School and regaining their licenses, Fry and Zapp Brannigan make a bet and race to the end of the universe. Always a few laughs in this book.

This is no way to bring back Futurama!

It seems that none of the actors who did the voices for "Futurama" are going to return when production on the series resumes. They want more money than the producers, Twentieth Century Fox, are willing to pay.

The success of reruns on Cartoon Network, and then Comedy Central, led to the making of some made-for-DVD movies (which later aired on Comedy Central as individual episodes), which then led to Comedy Central buying new episodes. But without the actors, why bother? You can get almost anyone to do voices, but when a talented actor establishes a particular voice, you lose something when he or she is replaced. No one's ever really been able to duplicate the late Mel Blanc as Bugs Bunny and so many others, and there's no one who can replace anyone on "The Simpsons."

This annoucement could be a negotiating tactic. Let's hope so, because otherwise the future looks bleak for "Futurama."