So yeah, it's summer...

What with it being summertime and all, and most comics being kind of lackluster to just plain sucky(I'm looking at YOU, DC and Age of Ultron!), JT and I are gonna take a well deserved break now that the weather has heated up.  I'll still do a Best of the Rest type post on Monday or Tuesday, and JT will chip in whenever he has the chance, but things will definitely be slowing down a bit for the summer.  Just a word to the wise.  Until next time?  X out.

Taking a breather...

After some thought, I've decided not to review the rest of the comics I picked up last week, mainly due to a) being tired as hell from work, and b) the comics not being particularly good... So, for the record, the comics I won't be reviewing are Journey Into Mystery #638(which I'd give a 5 to), Voodoo #9(which was probably a 5 or so), Mighty Thor #14(which was around a 3), Secret Avengers #27(which I'd go with a 0 for), Teen Titans #9(which was about a 5 1/2) and Batman Inc #1(which I'd give about a 6 to)... So yeah, not exactly anything to write home about there... With the scores for those books being as lackluster as they were, I just couldn't get myself to spend the time punching out reviews for them. On top of all that, the blog has been feeling more like work and less like fun as of late, which is always a sign that it's time to take a step back and reconsider things... Anyway, I'll be back (after a very short break) on Wednesday with a fresh New Comic Day post, but until then? Vampire X out.

A Post!

So I managed to type up 8 “reviews”(and I'll explain the quotation marks in a few...) at work earlier today/last night. But here's the thing, I was pretty bare-bones with the actual reviewing due to, you know, limited time and only having an hour and not having the comics on hand and such. I also won't be able to post any scans for said comics, due to the fact that I didn't have my scanner with me at work. I MIGHT try to scan every comic I read and then just do a post(or two) of scans towards the end of the week(on one of my two days off), but we'll see how it goes. Consider the reviews I post later on today(say in about 12 hours) the beta test for what the blog will look like going forward. Naturally, comments and recommendations are appreciated on the upcoming reviews, as I'll use them to try to continue testing things out until I'm happy with what I post. That's it for me, the sun is out, therefore I have to go to sleep. Until later, Vampire X out.

Ch-ch-changes.

So I'm actually typing this up at 2:21AM and am on my lunch break at work. As I mentioned before, I was offered a full-time spot at the job I'm working at, at a higher pay rate! However, it's not all flowers and sunshine, since I'll be working overnight, and sleeping most of the day. In other words, I've become a vampire! Just without the flawless looks. And constant craving for blood. Now, this backwards way I'll be living until the next promotion/job change is going to obviously have some major ramifications for the blog... For one thing, my posts are going to become very sporadic. I'll be able to read the comics I get during my lunch breaks, and possibly even type up a quick review, but I won't be able to add scans or post anything until I get home from work. Sadly, I can see the blog suffering a lot from my added job responsibilities... Hopefully not to the point where I'll have to call it quits, but you never know... Worry not though, I've been doing this blog for a good 4 years now, I'm sure I'll figure something out. I just figured I'd let you guys know what was up and to expect lots of changes to my blogging schedule over the next few days/weeks... Well, that's it, the sun has risen so I'll be heading to sleep now, until later, Vampire X out.

New Comic Day... Maybe...

Hey there X-Maniacs, it's the most malfested comic book blogger on the net, X! Trust me, if you ever play Soul Calibur 5, that reference will make WAY more sense... Anyway, I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to make it to the comic book store tomorrow due to two factors... The first is the fact that I'm working tomorrow. I get out at 5, so that in and of itself shouldn't be a problem... The problem is the fact that my area is expecting some nasty winter weather... Now, if it was just some snow, no biggie. But we're supposedly going to get hit by an icestorm, and ol' X isn't too keen on driving an extra 25 minutes to the comic shop on roads covered with ice... So, if the various meteorologists around these parts are right(and really, who knows if they will be!), I probably won't be picking up this week's comics until sometime Thursday afternoon(after work). I figured I'd list the books I EXPECT to pick up this week here, so even if I don't wind up with them, you guys have some idea of what I SHOULD be getting eventually... Invincible #89, Amazing Spider-Man #680, Avengers #23, Ultimate Comics X-Men #8, Venom #13.4... Wow, THAT'S IT?!? Five comic books!? Wow... Considering I'm regularly coming home with 3 to 4 times that amount on any given week, I am shocked... Sure, that number may increase depending on if my shop has gotten I, Vampire #2 in, or if I see any impulse items worth picking up, but as it is right now, I'm only expecting to walk out of the comic shop with a lowly five books... Huh. I'm not going to name a Pick or Runt of the Litter in this post, in case I do decide to pick some other comic up from the rack whenever I do get to the shop. That's about all I can think to say right now. Here's hoping the weather isn't as bad as anticipated so I can pick up my measly five books tomorrow! Until next time, X out.

A word to the wise...

Okay, a quick word before we get back to the comic reviews... I recently got a new job, and as such, have a bit less time to sit around reading and reviewing comics. On the plus side, a job equals MORE comics, but on the negative side, a job also equals less free time... But job or no job, I STILL intend on reviewing every comic I pick up during the week, I just may have to be a bit brisker with the reviews. So, expect a bit less in the next several reviews, especially since I'm a bit behind as it is with my reviewing this past week. As always, if you want to know more about a comic I'm reviewing, leave a comment and I'll do my best to fill in any blanks left by my shoddy reviewing! With that out of the way, let's get back to the comics!

MIA.

Old X is going to be kind of MIA for the next few days... In other words, I probably won't be able to respond to comments in my regular expedient fashion... On top of that, I'm going to forgo my regular reviews for some super-brisk reviews. You'll know I'm busting out one of my quickie reviews by the titles of the posts. So, I will continue to get “reviews”(and I use that in the loosest definition possible) up, but other than that, at least until Sunday, my appearances around here may be sparse. But hey, as I always say, half-assed reviews are better than no reviews at all! X out.

The obligatory Merry Christmas post!

Hey there X-Maniacs, X here to take a moment to wish everybody a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! So far today I've been spending time with family and was given an AWESOME haul of comics from my sister(a slew of old issues of Captain America and Dr. Strange from the 70's!), so here's hoping everybody else is having a great day. I won't be able to review anything tonight, BUT, I DID manage to type up a few extra reviews last night, which I've scheduled to post tonight! So that's what'll be coming down the proverbial chimney for all of you good boys and girls later on tonight. As for now, here's a Christmas-y comic scan, and I'm off! X out.If Marvel ever created a shirt like that? I'd buy SEVEN and wear them every day of the week!!!

Another word to the wise!

Hey X-Maniacs, I just wanted to thank you guys for the well wishes and stuff, things seem to be getting back to normal for me family-wise, I'm still in full-out job hunting mode, but that shouldn't interfere with my blogging much. Nor should the crazy flooding my area was hit with last week. So as of right now, ol' X should be pumping out at least two reviews a day, as usual. As I said, thanks for the well wishes and stuff, you guys definitely make doing this blog worthwhile. Until next time, X out.

A word to the wise...

Hey there X-Maniacs. X here with some kind of crappy news. Besides trying to parlay this college diploma I have into a job(really!), some substantial family troubles have sprouted up that may have me being a bit less active around here... I'll still try to post something at LEAST once every couple of days, but if I miss a few reviews or my posts seem more brisk than usual, you'll know why. If by chance I can't post anything for an extended amount of time I may have to resort to some guest reviews. I've already checked with a certain fellow blogger who said he'd be willing to pitch in in a pinch, so at least there's that to look forward to. But who knows, maybe things will calm down in my life a bit and by this weekend everything will be back to normal... Damned life getting in the way of my blogging! Anyway, just so this post wasn't a total waste for you guys, here's a random post. I should have an abbreviated New Comic Day post up tomorrow(because come hell or high water I WILL be getting my comics!), and hopefully some sort of reviews. That's gonna do it for me for now, until next time, X out.Superman must be a horrible gossip! “By the way, do you guys remember my clone, Superboy? Well listen to this...”

Happy Days Are Here Again!

My new adapter arrived today for my laptop(a full day early, thank you Amazon!), meaning I am back online! Huzzah! With less time spent online thanks to my powerless laptop, I was able to read a whole slew of comics and trades, now it's just a matter of me getting the things I read reviewed... For tonight I'll be posting a 10 Thoughts post on the recent issues of Invincible(excluding the most recent issue, which will get a proper review), and hopefully tomorrow I'll be posting reviews for some of the books I picked up this past Wednesday. That's it, that's all, X out!

Lazy, lazy X...

Hey guys and gals, I just wanted to throw a quick update out there. I just finished my homework(at the sound of the tone it will be 12:45 AM... Beeeeep...)and some studying(although not nearly enough)for a science test tomorrow and I realized I haven't been to this blog since sometime Friday... For that matter I haven't visited any of my amigo's blogs since Friday as well... Yeah, I've become a blog slacker. So once I get home from school tomorrow(say around 5 or so)I will check my posts, respond to comments AND check out and annoy several of my fellow bloggers. Fun, fun, fun! So there we go, just a quick bit of housekeeping around here before I finally lay my weary head to rest. Just so that this post isn't a total loss(and has SOMETHING to do with comics)here's a random pic that I had stored on my computer for some reason. X out.Batman, kidnapping and tying up teenage boys since 1939.

This and that.

Hey all, happy Friday! I kind of wanted to post something today, if only to stay connected with the blog. My EPIC review of Superman: Secret Origin is still in the process of being finished, so I'm unable to post that, and most of the comics I've read lately haven't really caused me to think, “Boy, I NEED to review this comic for the masses!” So what to do... Well, since this IS a comic blog first and foremost I might as well talk comics. Last night I read Shadowland: Daughters of the Shadow #2, Shadowland: Power Man #2, Shadowland: Moon Knight #2, Detective Comics #869, and Captain America: Patriot #2. I didn't like Moon Knight at all, while the rest were pretty good. None of them really blew me away, they were just good solid reads. If I had to pick a best out of that bunch, I'd go with Cap: Patriot. I also finished up, “The Last Days of Animal Man” trade at school today. To be honest, I don't know why I decided to read it, it was one of those spur of the moment, grab the first trade you see sort of decisions, and I have to say, I'm glad I did read it. It was WAY better than it had any right to be. Animal Man never appealed to me in the least, but this story actually caused me to care about the title character, something I didn't believe could be done. Basically the story is set in the near future where Animal Man learns that he's losing his powers, which causes him to go through several stages of grief. I'd easily recommend it. With Animal Man out of the way, Kick-Ass is the next trade to find its way into my book bag. Here's hoping it's as good as I've been hearing. Besides all that, I've been slowly making my way through the many Green Lantern back issues I seem to have accumulated(mainly thanks to my sister). You see, my sister is a huge Kyle Rayner fan and actually collected the last Green Lantern series from issue #51 to... whenever that series concluded. After she finished them up, she gave 'em to me(like a year ago...)and I'm just now getting around to them. I'm up to issue #89 and so far I'm enjoying them WAAAAAY more than the current Green Lantern series. Unlike Hal Jordan, who really doesn't have any compelling stories left to tell, I've been finding many of Kyle's stories to be interesting and original. I can fully understand why DC went the direction they went with the Green Lantern series back in the 1990's.

Okay, that takes care of the comic book portion of this post. Next let's get to Fallout 3! After getting home from the art gallery(which I'll get into later...)I finally started the game over again with a new, scumbag sort of character. I will admit to taking a perverse pleasure in ignoring Butch's plea to help his mother during the break out from Vault 101 stage. Plus blowing his head off after I told him I wouldn't assist him was like icing on the cake... The cake of EVIL! Sorry, that was really lame... Anyway, Butch shouldn't have messed with me at my tenth birthday party. If you ask me, he had that bullet coming(anybody who's played Fallout should get that). From there it was off to the Capital Wasteland to make a name for myself as the baddest man to ever walk the planet. It should be a blast.

As for the old personal life, I had to go to an art gallery for my English class earlier tonight. That was probably the first time I've ever been to an art gallery, and it's pretty safe to say that it'll be the last time! It was all just weird... I mean, when I think art I think pictures, portraits, sculptures, etc. Sure, there were some pretty decent paintings there, but then there were just weird, WEIRD things... Some of them I got a chuckle out of(such as a painting depicting Sarah Palin as the Anti-Christ), some things left me feeling uncomfortable(like the painting of Adam banging Eve against a tree in the Garden of Eden), and others(most of them actually)left me feeling absolutely perplexed(how the HELL is a block of wood with the word “painting” across it considered art???). It was bizarre... Now I have to try to pick out one piece of art and write a 2-3 page paper on what I thought about it, what I thought the artist was trying to say, how they used light/dark and symbolism to try to make their point, etc. Normally I really enjoy writing(as I think this blog proves), so I have no problem starting a paper, but this time around I'm drawing a total blank... The paper is due next Friday, so I have about a week to try to make heads or tails of what the hell I was looking at today. Besides that, I've been thoroughly enjoying the current season of Hell's Kitchen, so if anybody wants to talk about that, be my guest(I'm looking at JT and Falisha!). Same goes for the Ultimate Fighter series, which is another of my guilty pleasures. That's gonna do it for me tonight. I'll be doing some quick studying for my science test on Monday, reading a few more issues of Green Lantern(as well as two or three new books)before calling it a night. Before I go though, here's an Impulse scan. Why an Impulse scan? Why not? See ya around, X out.Now THIS is art!

A quick update and a legitimate excuse!

So two nights ago I posted that I wanted to do a few reviews, and that I'd try to have them up by Wednesday night. Well you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men... See, I'm currently halfway finished with my summer Spanish course(only 11 days and 3 more tests to go!), and while I've been doing GREAT(so far I've gotten a 94%, 98% and a 96% on my first three tests!), the current topic is REALLY tough. For those of you who have taken some Spanish classes, I'm dealing with the preterite and imperfect tenses, and when each should be used. Going into this course, my professor warned us all that this would easily be the toughest topic, and it sure as hell is! It took me a good hour and a half to just do the homework, and then I spent an extra hour or so trying to study this stuff. So what this all means is that with the test on Thursday, there's NO way I'm going to be able to get any posts up until Thursday night at the absolute earliest, with sometime Friday being way more likely. Sorry, but getting an “A” in this class is more important then comics. Trust me, that line surprises me too! :-) I'll still make sure to check the blog out nightly to respond to any comments you guys leave, as well as frequenting my favorite blogs, but don't expect to see any substantial new material up until after I'm done with this test. I'll throw up a VERY quick New Comic Day post on Wednesday, but expect it to be pretty brief, since I should be studying like a madman come Wednesday afternoon/evening. So there you have it, my legitimate excuse for not doing those reviews anytime soon. Just so this post isn't a complete waste of time for whoever decides to read it, I'll end it with another scan of an alternate Batman costume. That's it for me, my tank is empty, and I NEED some sleep pronto! X out!From Batman: Knight Gallery(1995).

Summer School Blues!

Ugh, between the 95 degree weather outside today and the first day of classes, I am a wreck tonight! I have to say, I don't foresee myself posting many reviews here during the next six weeks, because summer school is HARD work! But then again, I kind of expected that since I'm trying to learn 5 months worth of material in just 6 weeks. Tonight for example, I have 8(!)pages of Spanish homework, and I have to try to learn about 100 vocabulary words for the first test, which is on Friday... That's THIS Friday! Oh, and I have a test every single Thursday after this week for the next 5 weeks... This is going to be a LOOOONG summer! Well, I really have to start doing some flashcards, and finish up my homework, BUT, I'm gonna post a random scan just to break up the monotony of my schoolwork.

Before I go though, I'm still trying to think of easy little posts I can put up every now and then... You know, something that I can put together in 10-15 minutes just to stay connected to the blog. I'm thinking about more random scans, or a versus type post(you know, X vs Y, who should win and why), but if anybody can think of something quick and easy, I'm more then willing to entertain it. So anyway, enjoy the scan and X out.You've got to laugh at Hal's confidence here... "She IS a woman"...(From Trinity #1, Aug. 1993)

And thus ends the blog vacation that never was.

This was supposed to be the final day of my alleged blog vacation, which turned out to be not much of a vacation at all actually! Tomorrow I'll be going back to posting full reviews for some comics, although I have to say, I DID enjoy doing these past few reviews in three sentences or less. I think that format may be sticking around. As a matter of fact, since I have 4(!)issues of Teen Titans to catch up on, I plan on doing those reviews in three sentences or less. Who knows, maybe I'll just keep doing short reviews! They may be short and crappy, but they do save me lots of time, and with school looming in just 13 short days, I can use every spare minute I can get!

I'm still on vacation... Kind of...

Well, as you can see by the 6 new mini-reviews I posted tonight, I'm still on my vacation. Feel free to comment on any of the comics I posted about tonight, especially if you want to know more then the few brief words I posted about each. I'm not going to be posting anything new to the picture site tonight, but I promise I'll definitely have a new DC theme up for tomorrow. As for my vacation, I think I'll continue doing mini-reviews tomorrow(Tuesday)and Wednesday, and come Thursday I'll end my little blog vacation and return to doing full reviews(although I did notice that my mini-reviews are getting longer and longer as I go along!). Okay, I think that'll be all for tonight, thanks for reading, and Avengers Assemble!!!I've been meaning to post this image for a while now... There's no time like the present I guess!

It's vacation time!!!

So as you can see, this isn't a Flashback Friday post. If you want to know where it is/why it isn't here, check out the opening paragraph of my Black Widow #2 post for an explanation. Anyway, since I'll be going back to school in a little over two weeks, I've decided to take a bit of a break from blogging the next few days... You know, enjoy what's left of my vacation before the specter of school is upon me again. But I know I can't just ignore the blogs for a few days, because if I do, I'm not going to want to come back... It's happened before... So I'll ask you, my loyal X-Maniacs(heh heh)what you think I should do... I could just post a Random Scan every day I'm on vacation(I don't really like that idea since that's what the pic blog is for), I could post scores for everything I read, with no review, which is what I'm leaning towards, although I don't think that would look very good... Then again, maybe I could post like a single sentence about each comic I read(or a VERY brief paragraph), along with the score and a scan from the comic, although, once again, I'm not sure how that would look... Or of course I could just post nothing for the next few days, and hope that I'd come back to the blog feeling all fired up and ready to go again(although knowing the way I am, I tend to doubt that...). I'm open to any ideas/suggestions, just let me know what you think I should do by tomorrow night(Saturday night), so I can implement it. I'll still respond to any comments that are being left for me, and check other blogs, but I'm just not too keen on spending upwards of 2 hours a day doing blog work... So there you have it. Let me know what you guys think, leave me a few comments, and I'll have SOMETHING up tomorrow... I'm just not sure what!

NOT Comic Gazing: 4/21/10.

Well, I've finally finished off that damn history paper that had been hanging over my head like the Sword of Damocles(8 pages on Pres. Wilson's Fourteen Points speech...), BUT I still have some studying to do since I have an Accounting exam coming up on Friday... On the plus side, once I'm done with this week, it's relatively clear sailing until the end of the spring semester, which falls sometime in the middle of May. Sure I'll still have a few tests and papers due here and there, but nothing like the one I just finished up.

And so it's Wednesday, which means I'm SUPPOSED to go Comic Gazing, but all I really want to do is finish up my Accounting work so I can get some sleep in preparation for my Philosophy quiz tomorrow... Ugh. I haven't even checked out what books came out this week, I just haven't had the time. However, I WILL have this week's Comic Gazing post up tomorrow night come hell or high water. After that, I'm hoping to get a few reviews posted for Friday, although in all honesty I really haven't had the chance to read much this week. Anyway, just so this post isn't a complete waste, I'm going to throw a random Justice League comic scan up.Wow, I think it's safe to say that Guy Gardner was THE most unlikable hero of the 90's! From Justice League America #39(June 1990).

A very lazy post, plus a Random Scan!

I am officially on Spring break!!! Yay for me! Now, since I have no school to deal with you'd probably think that this means I'll be putting up even more posts then usual, right? Wrong! As my first official act as a deadbeat, I plan on taking a sleeping pill, and sleeping until 12 o'clock tomorrow afternoon. Since I don't intend on being conscious much longer, I obviously won't be posting any new reviews tonight. As for tomorrow, I'm currently planning on doing a few reviews, but there's a slight problem with that idea... I started playing Dragon Age: Origins on my PS3 today after school, and I got HOOKED! Damn that JT and his spot-on recommendation of that game! It's as good as he said it was! I think I put in about 7 straight hours after I got home, so yeah, if that happens again tomorrow, I'm not sure what I'll be posting tomorrow... It's not all good for me though, as I got an e-mail from my online comic book shop, and found out that the estimated time of arrival for the comics I ordered this past Wednesday(that would include Blackest Night #8)is April 8th, next Thursday! Ugh, that is an agonizingly long wait for a comic I'm practically dying to read... Umm, and that's pretty much it I guess. As promised at the top of this post, here's a random comic scan, and before I go, as always, Long Live The Legion!From Wolverine Origins #33(April 2009).