Cocktail Of The Year 2011

Yes, it's that slightly embarrassing, self-concious moment once again when I tally up which comics have made me the happiest throughout the year.

As regular readers know, each week I get my comics and run through them, posting a short review and what I did or didn't like about them. At the end of each week's reviews, I post a panel that, quite simply, made me smile that week and it's those panels that earn their respective titles the Cocktail for that week. I've gone through the 2011 Cocktail posts and using a hideously complicated process that I'm not going to bore you with worked out who gets the awards.

What Brought You Here In 2011?

Every now and then I have a look at the keyword searches that brought people to this little corner of the comics blogosphere and, as a sort of end of year post, I figured I'd look at the biggest searches throughout the year . . . and some of the oddest.

Top of the list? The name of this blog:

Come on, people - while I'm really glad you're coming over here, just bookmark the damn thing!

Then there was that bloody picture that consistently skewed my stats every time Roy bloody Lichtenstein appeared in the news. You know, the one on the left there that I have deliberately not mentioned by name in this post and have even gone so far as to re-upload, calling it something else this time round so that people looking for work by that bloke who copied and "transformed" other artists' work won't come across this blog.

Sorry, bit of a rant there.

Anyhoo, it's not all doom and gloom that people come here for as a large number of searches - often, but not always, including Wonder Woman - were looking for dear old Power Girl:

Seriously - the amount of "Power Girl vs Wonder Woman" or "Wonder Woman vs Power Girl" searches that ended up here is kinda worrying.

For someone who's not a huge Batman fan, I found it perplexing that so many came here looking for "Damian Wayne" but I guess that was balanced by those looking for "Blackest Night annotations" (you're welcome, by the way), the Secret Six or Ambush Bug all of which, like Power Girl, I'm a fan of.

A Very Alan Moore Christmas

I hope Santa brought you what you asked for rather than what you deserved. I had a bunch of graphic novels from my lovely wife including some collections that I've been meaning to pick up for years:

The first of the Tom Strong trades and the two Tomorrow Stories collections. When America's Best Comics first came out, I pretty much stuck with The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as there's only so much money to go round. Since then, it's always been in the back of my mind to pick these up.

Talking of Mr Moore's work, I checked my news feeds the other day and Bleeding Cool have revealed the first character work for the forthcoming Watchmen prequels . . . which I had posted below but have removed since Bleeding Cool had a letter from DC . . . and I really don't want to piss off the lawyers.

I still want this to be a complete hoax but it's looking a little more likely that DC are going to go ahead and do it. That Bleeding Cool gets the scoop on this just adds to the bad taste it leaves in my mouth.

And yet, perhaps, sometimes things should be allowed to end.

Monday Memes #52

There really was no question of what I was picking for this last Monday Meme:

Merry Christmas everybody!

So that's it - 52 Monday Memes, one a week throughout the year. I hope you've enjoyed them!

Call in next Monday for the start of a new weekly series of posts called Who Was Who Is Who where I try and guess who's going to turn up in the new DCU by the end of next year.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Who'd Like A Cocktail? #159

Salaak obviously hasn't seen anywhere near enough buddy cop movies

Watchmen 2 - The First Pages Revealed

You can't keep anything a secret on the internet, we all know that. With all the talk of Watchmen sequels, prequels and spin-offs, it wasn't long before some pencil art started appearing . . .

Click the picture to go to the first of three full pages of new Watchmen art, my friends.

Who'd Like A Cocktail? #158

Parents - they have no idea how to talk to your girlfriend, do they?

Monday Memes #51

And as we enter the final stretch, I thought I'd once more dip back into the cover meme that sums up one of my favourite eras, when comics were still fun even amongst the serious stories: the Justice League group shot

Ah, the good old days, when Max Lord was still a good guy and Elongated Man was still alive.

And here's the issue that introduced the JLEurope group along with the last issue of Justice League: Generation Lost. I guess it's an indication of how strongly these characters are linked to the JLE/I that everyone on the 2011 JL:GL cover appears (even if as earlier versions) on the cover of the 1989 Justice League International cover.

Frankenstein, Agent Of S.H.A.D.E. #7

I'll include the solicitation:

"The siege on S.H.A.D.E. City comes to a bloody conclusion, and it may mean the end of the Creature Commandos! With the Hub under Humanid control and Nina’s evil monsters staging a coup, S.H.A.D.E. headquarters is in total disarray. But nothing can prepare Frankenstein for the terrible secret that lies beneath it all!"

but seriously, that cover should be enough to persuade anyone to buy it!

Just Add Boobs

Can someone please tell me how you get from this:

to this:

Oh, right . . . the Zenescope effect.

Perusing Previews - December 2011

Seriously? There are nine of these films now? The first one was a good, low-budget horror movie, the second a nice follow up, the third was okay, the fourth had some nice ideas ruined by the studio but nine? Can we stop them now, please?

Monday Memes #50

For the last Friendly Fire covers meme, I figured I'd do something special, something that highlighted one character that I've read in various incarnations over the years that always seems to end up fighting the people he works with.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Guy Gardner Friendly Fire Special:

As we saw in the recent Jurgens League posts, Guy and Superman were pretty much always at odds with each other and it didn't take long for them to come to blows.

And yes, despite the Hal Jordan costume, that is Guy getting punched by Power Girl in an alternate timeline story where he became Green Lantern first and she was still Arion's grand-daughter.

And talking of Jordan, here he is as Parallax having a go at Guy after he became Warrior . . . and then, years later, Guy's strangling Jordan.

Get a room, you pair.

Who'd Like A Cocktail? #157

Uh-huh . . . that's how to start a story, alright.

RIP Jerry Robinson

Jerry Robinson has passed away.

This makes me sad.

Why So Scared?

Last week I mentioned next year's Lego DC Super-heroes game that features not just Batman but a whole host of other DC characters. Over at the Bricktuts site, they've got pictures of some of them:

I'm kinda wishing Lex Luthor came with a detachable wig, and note that you get either peace loving or warrior Wonder Woman, but the one that made me chuckle (and gave me this post's title) was Robin:

Why is his extra/alternate head so scared?!

What else can we expect? Hal Jordan being hit on the head with a variety of objects? Aquaman with a detachable hand? Pantha with a spring-loaded head?

Watchmen 2. Again.

A couple of weeks ago I put up a post about the rumours flying around the net about a Watchmen sequel or prequel or series of prequels that DC are apparently planning to announce and produce sometime next year.

Following that post, I set up a Google Alert for a couple of keywords around the subject and the links have flooded in.

Comics Alliance threw together a bunch of things they'd heard on Twitter with people mostly chiming in about how ridiculous the whole concept was - well, all except Rob Liefeld who's all for it if Dave Gibbons approves!

Topless Robot cover it as well while over at MTV Geek, Alex Zalben is positively salivating at the thought of some continuation / exploration of the Watchmen characters:

"So if we imagine that we’re not getting different events, so much as Silver Age set stories of the original Watchmen characters, why wouldn’t that be great – in the right hands, of course? We LOVE the characters in Watchmen, that’s why the book has had such a lasting and continuing aspect. Why not spend a bit more time with them on the comic book page?"

And he's not the only one. TheOptimist over at Comic Vine has put together a post where they not only say they're up for a Watchmen prequel but also a sequel as a "fully developed 12 issue mini-series detailing an entirely new saga featuring all the characters brought together once more for a new challenge." TheOptimist also challenges that issue of Alan Moore not being involved in any way and how that would affect fans' opinions:

"I'd first like to address the issue of Alan Moore. While perhaps I misread the tone of those times I encounter his commentary on the modern comics community, Alan Moore is one of those creators that I find to have the most negative attitude on the whole business. While his rationale may be supported by personal opinion and even some passionate evidence, his attitudes mirror that of a basher and a troll. Certainly this allowable, however, my appreciation for Alan's past work does not make him immune to my standard reaction to such dismissive and rude behavior, which is typically to respectfully disagree and then distance myself from that commentator in search of people looking for a more creative approach. If Alan hates the community so much, he should use his apparently omnipotent powers as the God of all things to do something about it."

Is it me or does that last sarcastic sentence not really tie up with their approach of "respectfully disagree"? TheOptimist then offers up ideas of what can be done with the characters; they're all as horrible as the ideas I threw off the top of my head in my original post.

Finally!

Just read that Lady Mechanika #3 is out in a couple of weeks.

And about bloody time, too!

Monday Memes #49

When looking for Face Off covers, I knew I had to include this one from the Justice League of America if only for the sight of an elephant wielding a mace against Wonder Woman not to mention a giraffe lunging a spear at Hal Jordan.

A spear held in its mouth.

Gerry Conway in the 70's everybody.

And look - this cover of Suicide Squad actually uses the term Face Off! Me and John Ostrander, man, we're totally, like, on the same wavelength, you know?

No Cocktail This Week

Awesome!

I know I posted a picture from Our Valued Customers just yesterday, but I saw this:

and just had to share it!

From The Mouths Of Babes

From the excellent Our Valued Customers site

That's Next Year's Birthday Present Sorted

I've never been a huge player of video games; I have an X-box with maybe half a dozen games and they all fall into two categories: Grand Theft Auto and the like or Lego. Sure, that's one extreme to the other but while I love the open world, mayhem inducing freedom of the GTA series, I thoroughly enjoy the light-hearted approach of the Lego games, particularly the Star Wars ones which I'm currently re-playing for the hell of it.

Imagine my delight, then, when I stumble across this bit of news - Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes to be released next year!

According to the article:

"This time, various characters from the "DC Universe" will be joining the never-ending battle on the sides of both good and evil. You can expect to see Lex Luthor, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern and others battling alongside and against the Caped Crusader, each possessing their own special abilities."

As it's due to be released next summer, I know what I'll be getting for my birthday.

No, You Didn't

The Crisis on Earth-Prime Corrections Service is once again happy to provide you with the following completely gratis.

First, a little context:

And now the corrected panel:

Feel free to print it, cut it out and stick in over the penultimate page of last week's Teen Titans #3. Doing this makes the dialogue between Red Robin and Bunker understandable.

Thank you.

(I really need to get out more.)

Monday Memes #48

Whether International or Young . . .

whether All-Stars or Society . . .

If there's Justice somewhere in your team's name, at some point you'll be charging towards us.

Who'd Like A Cocktail? #156

Yeah, Kyle, you'd have thought that, wouldn't you?

So She Said . . .

The Crisis on Earth-Prime Corrections Service is pleased to present to you the following item at absolutely no cost:

Save the above picture, print it, cut it out and, using the child-friendly adhesive of your choice, paste it over the same panel on page 6 of Voodoo #3.

That way this panel now makes sense and your enjoyment of this otherwise splendid issue can continue unabated.

You're welcome.

Watchmen Sequel?

The idea of a Watchmen sequel has been floating around for a year or two now and Timothy Callahan over at CBR tackles the question, posed by a reader, of "How do you feel about the prospect of "Watchmen" spin-offs in general and about Darwyn Cooke's upcoming effort in particular?"

Of course, the question takes for granted that a) there will be a spin-off and b) that Cooke is going to be connected to it in some way. Before tackling that question, Callahan offers up something that's worth remembering:

"Alan Moore himself talked about telling more stories in the Watchmen universe. He would have written a Minutemen miniseries, had he not scuffled with DC and ended his tenure there. "Watchmen" was not, at the time, or even for a few years after, regarded as a monolithic masterpiece. It was just a comic. A really good one."

It's very easy to have a knee-jerk reaction about a sequel to Watchmen, particularly as we can be 99.99999% certain that Moore will have absolutely nothing to do with it and will pour laconic scorn over it as soon as someone tells him. If he's not going to be doing it - and Dave Gibbons has sort of said that DC shouldn't do it - then no-one should, right?

Won't Somebody Please Think Of The Children!

From the back cover of last week's The Stand: The Night Has Come #4:

And from that very same issue:

Come on, Marvel - if you're going to put a label on your comics advising of "strong language" don't $%^#ing £*!^y out and censor the $%~@ing words!

Monday Memes #47

I've been lucky a few times this year with these Monday Meme posts - Valentine's Day fell on a Monday so I went with Romance; 4th of July got the I Want You posters; and most recently Halloween provided me with a chance to show some appropriate covers.

So today being the 21st November, I thought I'd go with Romance again.

Why? Because it's my wife's birthday!

Here's two titles Ly's enjoyed over the years: the excellent Preacher and the stunning League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

She's a big fan of The Boys as well but the Green Arrow / Black Canary Wedding Special is in here just because I like Amanda Conner's art!

Happy birthday, darling!

Who'd Like A Cocktail? #155?

See? It's not all bad.

Not Coming To A Comic Shop Near You

So there I was, browsing the net the other day, following links from one page to another when I ended up on deviantart. I've browsed there a few times but found myself looking at - and then searching for - mocked-up comic covers.

What can I say? It was a quiet afternoon on a weekend.

Here's a few I liked:

Batwoman by RottenVomit

So If A Stranger Calls You . . .

When the new 52 titles were being released earlier this year, there were two main reasons I decided - after a little deliberation - to pick up Voodoo despite knowing next to nothing about the character.

One was the artist Sami Basri who has surpassed all my expectations when he replaced Amanda Conner on Power Girl, producing gorgeous, clean lined art that was different from Conner's distinctive style but which still worked on the title.

If Basri was going to be doing the art on Voodoo, that was a point in it's favour for me.

The other main reason - perhaps the biggest one - was the writer: Ron Marz.

Being a long-time DC fan, one of my favourite characters was always Green Lantern Hal Jordan. And then, in the midst of what I thought was a good run, DC elected to boot Jordan out of the title and have Marz introduce a complete new guy, someone we'd never seen before: Kyle Rayner.

All Star Western #6

From the solicitation:

"Jonah Hex fights a giant bat to the death! But even with his winged foe slain, will he and Amadeus Arkham survive being trapped in a cave with the lost tribe of Miagani Indians? Hex and Arkham must enlist help – including some familiar faces and some surprising saviors – if they’re going to make it out of this death trap and bring justice to the enslaver of Gotham’s underprivileged children."

Seriously, just that first line of "Jonah Hex fights a giant bat to the death!" should be enough for you to know you have to buy this.

Darkseid's Back

Actually, it's his front that's been revealed as DC show off Jim Lee's redesign of the DCU's big villain who, as they say, "has not appeared inside a DC comic since early 2009" . . . unless you count Justice League: Generation Lost #14 (November 2010) or DCU: Legacies #8 (February 2011) that is.

But anyway, here's the new look Darkseid:

Is it me or has the old fella put on a couple of pounds in the last couple of years when he's been hanging around in Limbo? He was always a sturdy chap but now he seems sort of . . . portly.

Still, at least he's lost the little mini-skirt he had for a while which left nothing to the imagination and led to more than one Basic Instinct style moment, like the time he flashed his own son Orion:

or when he gave Mary Marvel a bit of a shock in Countdown To Final Crisis:

No wonder she dropped her Soder Cola.