Wonder Woman, Vol.2 – “Guts” (DC)

Writer: Brian Azzarello | Artist: Cliff Chiang (#7-8, 11), Tony Atkins (#9-10), Kano (#10) | Inks: Dan Green (#9-) | Colors: Matthew Wilson

Wonder Woman goes to hell! After playing Poseidon, Hades, and Hera against each other, Hades strikes back by kidnapping Zola and trapping her in the Underworld. It’s up to Wonder Woman — with a little help from the God of Love and the God of Smiths — to break Zola out. But what is Hades’ real game, and once you get into the land of the dead, how exactly do you get out?

Collects: Wonder Woman #7-12

I rather enjoyed the first collection of Azzarello’s run on Wonder Woman. Chiang’s artwork is great, and Azzarello’s story has some surprises and is a pretty interesting interpretation of Greek Mythology. Where the first collection, “Blood” was strong, “Guts” didn’t live up to my expectations as much as I had hoped – mainly because there’s a bit of a weak middle-section. Otherwise, though, this is still pretty interesting and it does end on a strong note.

“Fables” Deluxe Vol.5 (Vertigo)

Writer: Bill Willingham | Artist: Mark Buckingham, Steve Leioloha, David Hahn, Lan Medina, Andrew Pepoy, Dan Green | Colours: Daniel Vozzo

In these tales from FABLES #34-45, Boy Blue undertakes a mission of revenge as he uncovers the Adversary’s true identity! Plus, Jack’s adventures in Hollywood and Mowgli's return to Fabletown!

This is another very strong addition to the series, and I really enjoyed “Homelands” and “Arabian Nights & Days”. “Jack Be Nimble” was also very good, but as the seed of a new spin-off series, and despite featuring one of my favourite characters, it didn’t have quite as much punch. Of course, “not as much punch” when talking about Bill Willingham is still very high quality, so this is nevertheless probably one of my favourite collections.

“Wonder Woman, Vol.1: Blood” (DC New 52)

Writer: Brian Azzarello | Artist: Cliff Chiang, Tony Akins (ch.5&6) | Inks: Dan Green (ch.6) | Colours: Matthew Wilson

Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, has kept a secret from her daughter all her life – and when Wonder Woman learns who her father is, her life will shatter like brittle clay. The only one more shocked than Diana by this revelation? Bloodthirsty Hera – so why is her sinister daughter, Strife, so eager for the truth to be told?

I took a gamble with this one. I’ve never read anything related purely to Wonder Woman (and only a few issues of Justice League), so have no history with the character. I’ve also not read much of Azzarello’s stuff – in fact, I’ve only read the first issue of Spaceman, which I thought was... well, not good. So, I figured I might be on safer ground here (I’ve also picked up volume one of 100 Bullets, which I’ll review pretty soon). Thankfully, I was not disappointed with this book, and I rather enjoyed it.

“Animal Man, Vol.1: The Hunt” (DC)

An intriguing, twisted, and bizarre series.

Writer: Jeff Lemire | Artist: Travel Foreman, John Paul Leon ("Tights") & Steve Pugh | Inks: Jeff Huet & Dan Green | Colours: Lovern Kindzierski

In these tales from issues #1-6 of the new series, Buddy Baker has gone from “super” man to family man – but is he strong enough to hold his family together when Maxine, his young daughter, starts to manifest her own dangerous powers? As these new abilities continue to terrify Buddy and his wife Ellen, things take a turn for the worse as Buddy and Maxine begin a journey into the heart of The Red.

This series received a rather unprecedented amount of praise, when it was first coming out. I wasn't able to find a copy of issue one in stores for a long time and, coupled with my only being newly returned to comics, this just seemed a little too weird for me. Nevertheless, when this collection was finally released, I decided I wanted to know what all the fuss was about. Given what I now know about comics, I can see why this was popular. However, I’m not sure it was really for me, despite some very cool things about it…