Red Tornado (2009-2010) #1-6 (DC Comics)Written: Kevin VanHook
Art: Jose Luisí and J.P. Mayer.
I don't really have much more than a base knowledge of the character, and unfortunately, VanHook doesn't do much to want to bring me back for more. The story is a little too "by-the-numbers", although isn't completely boring. Like the new Hollywood action movie of the week, there's a buttload of action, with a very basic amount of character development for good measure. Red finds out he has "siblings" consisting of the other three elements, fire, water and earth with the latter being completely insane and wanting to take over the world. That's really most of it right there. 5.5/10
North 40 (2009-2010) #1-6 (Wildstorm)Written: Aaron Williams
Art: Fiona Staples
I didn't know what to expect from this other than the fact that it was a horror title. Wildstorm can be hit or miss overall, but with this one, they totally hit it out of the park for me. Like the amazing love child of Stephen King's The Stand, HP Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, and your favorite super hero comic, North 40 is the story of a small southern town invaded by extradimensional forces of evil, released by "chubby nerd" and "goth girl". CN is the good guy in all of this, and manages to empower a few townspeople with powers similar to those of his favorite comic book characters, whereas GG turns a larger portion into variations of creatures from every horror movie you've ever seen. What follows is a very well executed battle of good vs. evil, right vs. wrong, with the townspeople's own personal lives and prejudices siding them on one side or the other. Lots of fun, great writing, and solid art. 8.5/10
Rapture (2009-2010) #1-6 (Dark Horse)Written: Michael Avon Oeming, and Taki Soma
Art: Michael Avon Oeming and Val Staples
I've always loved Avon Oeming's Powers art, and whenever he's donned the writer's hat, he's generally always managed to at least pump out a decent, fun story, and Rapture is no exception. While the dialogue tends to be a little too "simple", Oeming and Soma offer a different take on the end of the world scenario. À la Kingdom Come, earth has been nearly destroyed by feuding Metahumans, culminating with the near total collapse of the civilized world and the disappearance of all Metahumans. Enter Evilyn and Gil, who are separated right before the end of the world, and try to find their way back to each other. Evilyn is visited by an angel-like figure who gives her a spear to help save those around her from attacking cannibals, whereas Gil is tortured and beaten by a young boy given the same powers as Evilyn, but is unable to cope responsibly with this power. The story culminates with our leads finally meeting but seeing the world through entirely different eyes, and a couple of nice twists near the end that makes the ending near perfect. The general feel of the story itself reminded me of some of Robert Kirkman's super-hero books (but not so much his "end of the world" book), and would recommend this for anyone who enjoyed those. 7.5/10
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