Offhand Opinions on My 37th Birthday

Today I turned 37. My opinion cannot be challenged (for another few minutes, until February 24 begins). The key to offhand opinions is it’s a gut reaction with bare bones analysis. I tell you if it’s worth buying in a basic Yes or No situation. Ron’s pick of last week Green Lantern: Rebirth 6(DC). My pick for this week is Spider-Man/Human Torch 2 (Marvel). Remember Zach, these are offhand opinions, not in-depth opinions. (And yes, the mention of my birthday is a tacky attempt to elicit last minute birthday greetings...)

Spider-Man/Human Torch 2
Slott/Templeton/Nelson
Slott and Templeton are perfectly capturing the vibe of an era. To see Captain Stacy, alive again and knowing Peter’s talents took me back to comics I loved. And yet there’s a modern sensibility to the tale, without tainting my memories. It’s a nice balance. And oh yeah, Human Torch’s reaction to Vulture is a great scene.
Yes

Hellblazer 205 (Vertigo)
Carey/Manco
Is it just me, or is Gemma immensely more interesting than her Uncle John Constantine. The shift in the story’s direction was a nice change from the predictable path it had been in this arc.
Yes

Excalibur 10 (Marvel)
Claremont/Lopresti/Adams
When you have a character say: “I’ve been killed.” or something to that effect, am I the only one slightly annoyed when the character lives…wait for it…by operating on himself? Yea, Claremont is the Charlie Manson of comic book writers sometime…throwing crazy stuff on a piece of paper and we just buy it…no matter how insane it might be in the cold light of normal reading comprehension levels.
No

Uncanny X-Men 456 (Marvel)
Claremont/Davis/Farmer
A number of characters, in the heat of absurd battle--I mean, it’s just plum silly crap drawn beautifully by Alan Davis—get fixated about what the characters should call X23, other than X23, of course.
No

X-Men 167 (Marvel)
Milligan/Larroca/Miki
Milligan is a great writer in my book…when he’s not dabbling in overwrought and overused mutantville. This is as bad as Chuck Austen and I have to wonder how much of this junk is sheer editorial mandate.
No

Rogue 8 (Marvel)
Bedard/Moline/Magyar
In two issues, Bedard and Moline have turned this comic series around. The artistic POV of Rogue absorbing someone’s memories was particularly refreshing.
Yes

The Flash 219 (DC)
Johns/Justiniano/Livesay/Wong
The return/reinvention of Professor Zoom borders on nonsensical. I’m not quite sure how he and Cheetah are helping each other, but more importantly I can’t wait until blind Wonder Woman reaches its predestined, continually annoying conclusion. And I normally love Johns’ Flash.
No

The Amazing Spider-Man 517 (Marvel)
Straczynski/Deodato Jr./Brooks
Somebody finally explained to me this was in essence the return of Molten Man. The original Molten Man was uninteresting to me, and this return perfectly captures the original’s (lack of) spirit.
No

Fantastic Four 523 (Marvel)
Waid/Wieringo/Kesel
I am so glad this is not the last issue for Waid and Wieringo, as the conclusion of this really unique arc actually fizzled out toward the end. That being said, the final resolution shows a great deal of promise leading up to the final issue of Waid and Wieringo’s run.
No