Comics this week

Astro City #12-Thus far, almost all the stories in this series are uplifting tales of the lives of the men, heroes and villains of this great city. However beneath all the glamour, there is a dark side to Astro City and writer Kurt Busiek don’t let you forgot it. The story this issue is on a small-time bank robber and it’s a credit to Busiek’s writing ability that he managed to pull it off. On paper, the idea of a normal bank robber in a city packed with gods and superhumans seems ridiculous but Busiek managed to craft a tale showing the evolution (and devolution) of such a man. What’s more is that he managed to make him understandable! Kudos to the man for showing once again that superhero comics need not always be about superhumans and gods.

Green Lantern Corps #31- After the slightly weird start to the latest GL crossover “Uprising” last week, the crossover is showing signs of life in this sophomore issue. Part 2 of “Uprising” show a jailbreak by the captured GLs but not before some of them were snuffed by the Durlan alliance. Things do get a little confusing with the action skipping from one area to another but the energy and the return of an old favorite makes this one of the better GL Corps issue in a long time.

Superman/Wonder Woman #8- This issue is Part 3 of the Superman “Doomed” crossover. I am not collecting the crossover because I’m not missing much. When Superman and Doomsday fight, story tends to take a backseat to the action and this is the case again in this crossover. I didn’t collect the first 2 parts of “Doomed” and I could tell you how the story goes. Maybe this is to the credit of writer Charles Soule who managed to give an overview of the story without much problem but I think it’s more likely due to the fact there’s little to no story here.