• All Star Western 8: This continues to be a great comic. Palmiotti and Gray manage to make Jonah Hex a complete bastard and somehow still likable. In this issue he gets to play off a group of villains who can’t be faulted for expecting him to side with them, some legitimately good vigilantes as opposed to Hex’s amoral attitude and the still wholly unsuited for crime fighting or police work Dr. Arkham. Moritat’s art isn’t quite as polished here as it has been, though it is still excellent. And the back-up is just the greatest. A

• Aquaman 8: Reis’s art is perfect superhero art and Johns is as on as he’s ever been. In this is vintage Johns, weaving a simple but satisfying superhero story with great skill. The amount of characterization for both the young Arthur and his team, the Others, is amazing considering the small space Johns has to tell it. John’s young Aquaman is angry and reckless, not quite as heroic as one would expect but young enough that he is understandable. Plus, there are some great moment between Aquaman and Mera. B+

• Batman 8: Another great issue of Batman from Snyder and Capullo. I get the feeling that the Court of Owls hasn’t been discovered by Bruce because they haven’t been active for some time, given the wide range of targets they are attacking. Things look really grim for Gotham and for Batman and though I know Batman will win because he is Batman, I still like how this is shaping up. It is a great start for this sort-of crossover. B+

• DCU Presents: Challengers of the Unknown 8: This is a bad comic. I had high hopes at the start of this, even with the reality show backdrop, but this just doesn’t make a lot of sense. It doesn’t even have an ending. It just sort of stops with no resolution. It leaves a significant bad taste. D

• Flash 8: This is good stuff. Flash explores the Speed Force and meets Turbine, a new version of his old rogue the Top. I liked the explanation for the accidents caused by the speed force and why exactly the Flash can use it. The main draw, as usual, is the art. Manapul is the best. A

• Green Lantern Corps 8: The start of the trial of John Stewart leaves me cold, but Guy being commended by the Guardians is one of the best twists this title has had in years. Guy is such a jerk I can’t see this lasting long, but his bafflement was worth it for this issue. B

• Justice League 8: I love John’s more comedic take in this comic. Green Arrow’s attempts to join the league play out like an episode of the old JLU cartoon, though I am less found of the Martain Manhunter part. Even though all of these characters are serious in their own titles, in JL they seem to be cutting loose and having fun. It is a good take. The Shazam back-up is nice so far, but no a lot has happened. B+

• Kirby Genesis 7: This is still chaotic, but finally there are some answers. I love the chaos. As long as the last issue brings things home satisfactorily this has been one fine series. This is really good. I’ll have more to say when its finished. A-

• New Mutants 41: I realized something with this issue: I don’t really care about this comic anymore. I liked it when I started reading it. This issue should have been a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun. The team goes to Madripoor for a night out and just party. If I cared at all about the relationships of these characters I would have loved this. But I just don’t care. C

• Supergirl 8: I think this is the best I’ve seen George Perez’s art look in a long time. It is really good. I also like that this issue starts to integrate Kara into Earth civilization. The reintroduction of Silver Banshee in a possible more heroic role is great. I really like Siobhan as a supporting cast member for Supergirl. Another good issue. B

• Superman 8: There really isn’t anything here because there is never any doubt that Superman is going to reject Helspont’s offer. The alternate reality is a terrible possible future, but not a likely one. The best parts are the bits with the supporting cast. This book is still much better than the first 6 issues, but there is not a lot worthwhile in this issue. C-

• Voodoo 8: If this was the route this title was going to take, then they should have done this 3 or 4 issues ago. Fallon was an interesting character, and killing her sucks. It makes most of the first 7 issues seem like a waste. I am still interested to see how this whole thing turns out, but I am mostly staying for the art. Sami Basri just gets better and better. I like him almost as much as Manapul or Chiang. C

• Wonder Woman 8: Azzarello and Chiang’s trip through twisted myth gets back on track after an off issue. For a superhero title, WW feels surprisingly like anything might happen. This issue is back to the high quality of the first few. As always, Chiang’s art is phenomenal A-