What I'm Reading... Yes, I'm Reading, Surprise!

The temperature is rising, flowers are blossoming, bears are clearing the sleepy seeds from their eyes, and yes, sadly, network television has entered it's summer break leaving us with wondering thoughts of and theories of how Jack and crew will return to the Island, will PB (Pam Beasley) & J (Jim) survive the summer with Pam in New York, and was that really Earth that the crew of the Galactica set foot on? Yes, it's time to put those clickers down and focus out attention to another sort of activities that can only become available during the simmering summer months. No I'm not talking about frisbee or softball. I'm talking about Comics! No, not the funny ones, the one with pictures and balloons! Come on, did you really think I'd be spending my summer out in the sun. Hell no! I need SOMETHING to keep me inside and away from exercise. With the exceptions of Last Comic Standing and the new show Swingtown, I've been burying my pasty noodle in comic books. So I figured I'd post a list of what I'm reading and a very brief comment about each series.

Transformers - There are several series of comic books for The Transformers: Revelations (The next phase of the main story arc in the retelling of the Transformers original characters. This series is a much needed update to the great characters, but poor story front he original. Very mature themes, realistic relationships, and great incorporation of current events.) Movie Sequal: The Reign of Starscream (Not a terrible sequel to the 2007 blockbuster toy commercial by Michael Bay.) and finally the soon to come out Animated series (Based on the newly revamped "Ben 10" style cartoon on Cartoon Network. If the comic is anything like the show it should be great fun in an acceptable medium. Looking forward to it.)

Pax Romana, Transhuman, Red Mass for Mars - I'm lumping these together because they are all written by critically acclaimed writer Jonathan Hickman who's premiere comic, The Nightly News, was a smash hit. He writes all three but he only illustrates Pax Romana. His style and aesthetic make you feel like you're reading a frakin' novel. He crams so much information and story into 32 pages you almost feel tired after reading one issue. Which is great because by the time the next one comes out you'll have fully digested what he was trying to get across. The artwork in Pax Romana is amazing and his ground breaking story telling techniques are a wonderful change of pace from the mundane comics that litter the shelves today. I highly recommend The Nightly News. I'm only half way through the six issue series and it's already blown me away.

Whew! Speaking of tired... well, I'm going to wrap it up for now. I'll come back at you later with more of what I'm reading.