Once a month the amazing staff at 8th Dimension Comics selects a pile of the best new releases for us to peruse and judge.
Tony Chu is an FDA agent who has the ability to get psychic impressions by consuming things, including pieces of corpses. He's like Ned from Pushing Daisies, but gross because John Layman thought him up. Nonetheless, it's a good book that manages to be both poignant and ridiculous at the same time, all Asian stereotypes about honor mixing with cybernetic FDA cops kicking ass in order to take down a dangerous diet drink company that is really a front for an egg cult. If you're missing the violent irreverence of Sam Keith, I would definitely pick up Chew, and #31 is a great place to start.
Rating: 7 of 10
The Red Skull has returned with his dreams of an Eternal Reich, but now he possesses the telepathic powers of Professor X. He descends onto New York City inciting a race riot against mutants that the new mixed team of X-Men and Avengers is almost powerless to stop. Even Thor finds himself beaten and in thrall to the terrifying power the Skull now wields. It's an almost perfect superhero story that involves just the right amount of punching and depth. Old school has never been more fun.
Rating: 8 of 10
A young, troubled Lebanese man named Simon Baz is our latest Green lantern, having received the merged power rings of Hal Jordan and Sinestro when they were sucked into a dead realm by Black Hand. Initially, the book was little more than a tired '90s-style re-imaging seeking to make a statement about overcoming racial fear, and Baz was eye-rollingly "gritty." The storyline has picked up nicely, though, with the promise of huge secrets about the Lantern Corps being discovered by Jordan and Sinestro while Baz does the unthinkable and heals a dying friend with the power of his ring. There may be more to the new GL than I initially thought.
Rating: 7 of 10
