Sequential Art - December 29th, 2011

Currently house-sitting for a friend, and having a nice relaxing time. Jump is doing only one issue over a three-week span, so the scans were late last week (no Big 3) and we probably won't have our next chapters until mid-January. Ah well, it's not like I'm totally without reading material.

Table of Contents

Comics
All-Star Western #4
Aquaman #4
Flash #4
The Ray #1

Manga
One Piece ch.651
Naruto ch.568
Bleach ch.478
Beelzebub ch.138
Rosario to Vampire II ch.48
Hajime no Ippo ch.960
Kimi no Iru Machi ch.164
History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi ch.458

Volumes
No volumes this week!

Rating System
MVP = Most Valuable Pages. Best issue or chapter of my week.
STAR = Good comic being good, makes me want to keep reading it.
GLUE = Not outstanding, but not bad. Could be worth reading.
FUNK = Good series has an off week. Haven't lost faith yet.
BENCH = Subpar comic. Doubting its value. Needs to redeem itself.
CUT = Bad comic. Not worth continuing to subscribe.

 All-Star Western #4

#4 was a better issue than #2 or #3, but I'm still going to drop it. All-Star Western is clearly not going to tie into any part the greater DC universe, and I was let down by the rushed conclusion to the first arc. Amadeus Arkham is an okay narrator, but he can get annoying and I dunno how long his implausible sidekick status to Jonah Hex will last. The end story starring Barbary Ghost was quite solid, but not a saving grace. BENCH





 Aquaman #4

I definitely liked this story, but its action was lacking. Could have spent an entire 'nother issue on it. Aquaman takes on a huge crowd of Trench, then is almost eaten by their queen? Awesome fight scene, right? Nope, just a few crowd pages before Aquaman breaks free and SEALS THEM INTO A BURSTING VOLCANIC VENT HOLY SHIT. Underwhelming action, but a satisfying conclusion followed by a little boy telling Arthur that Aquaman is his favorite superhero. Aww. GLUE



 Flash #4

We finally see what Manuel Lagos and Mob Rule are all about, and it's a series of flashbacks that is compelling backstory and elegantly presented - Flash's art team is in my top three or four of the relaunch. After checking up on side characters, we finally get to Flash in the last third of the book, who miraculously survived being shot in the head, and reveals/acknowledges a weakness to his new powers. Next month's finale is going to be awesome. MVP




 The Ray #1

Mediocre. The Ray #1 is a typical origin story. Freak accident, Korean-American guy gets light powers, makes it difficult for him to keep clothed. This comic had some decent action shots (no real consistent action, though) and okay characters, but I was underwhelmed because I felt like throttling the main character. His 3rd-person narration is that of an annoying, sarcastic teenager, without the wit and charm of a Peter Parker or a Dick Grayson. Not a bad comic, but I won't continue with it. BENCH



 One Piece ch.648

Lots of dialog in this chapter, but it sets the scene for the next major conflict in the series. The mugiwaras are going up against Big Maam, one of the long-mentioned, little-known Four Stars who appears to be an enormous, terrifying woman with a huge mouth and endless appetite. Really, though, this chapter succeeded because of Luffy sticking it to Maam over the telesnail. STAR






 Naruto ch.565

Well, like this week's One Piece, Naruto was also a little big on dialog, but I liked it. We learn a bit more about the tailed beasts and jinchuuriki, and more about what makes Naruto and Bee special among jinchuuriki. Conversation between Naruto and Son Goku was pretty nice, but I hope that next week we get some more combat. GLUE







 Bleach ch.475

Surprisingly no flashbacks, but lots and lots of reconciling and opponents walking away from the battlefield slowly (I'm a little shocked that only one died). Bleach needs to get into some more exposition chapters again, but hopefully without introducing a new host of characters. Still waiting for that Rescue Chad From Hell arc. FUNK







Beelzebub ch.138

Great combat chapter. Not a lot of person-to-person action, exactly, but oh man is there some destruction. Oga makes quick work of Jabberwock, and in such a fashion that his allies are worried for his humanity. Powerful shit's going on with baby Beel, and the school is destroyed again. This could be a trend. GLUE

Rosario to Vampire II ch.48

Rosario is not only better than ever, it's got some high-tier art and combat that reminds me of the best chapters of similar cheesecake battle manga like Tenjou Tenge (this is a compliment, believe it or not). Fong Fong justifies his position in the group by having his secret skills awaken, and the result is a bunch of crazy Chinese summons followed by crazy Chinese martial arts. My buddy Honya needs to get off his ass and translate some more chapters! STAR

Hajime no Ippo ch.960

Still a little too slow-moving, but we are getting a little development. Itagaki's starting to overthink his high-speed tactics and is slipping into poor decision-making as a result; I'm pretty sure Saeki is setting a trap for him. Hopefully one of these two fighters (probably Saeki) makes some progress soon. FUNK

Kimi no Iru Machi ch.164

Adorable chapter. Yuzuki writes a letter to her dad, Haruto acts like a nervous doofus, and Yuzuki's stepmom reminds them to use protection like a responsible adult (we don't want any Suzuka-esque pregnancies now, do we?). I still think Rin is into Haruto and that thread has potential, but this reconciliation with Yuzuki's dad was a good step for the series. I must wonder, though, where's the next struggle coming from? Rin's brother? Some new girl? Either way I'm reading it. GLUE

History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi ch.458

A few huge developments. Cheesecake out of Miu and Skank Princess (technically they are developments, and they are definitely huge), Kenichi gets captured, and Hongou acts the strong and silent type. Soon we should have Sakaki and/or Hongou vs. Jenazad on our hands, which is exactly the payoff this arc needs. Oh, and Miu seems more brainwashed than ever. Creepy. GLUE

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Next week should have a lot less manga, but four comics issues and at least two new volumes. For now, I'mma enjoy some more Mario Galaxy on my Wii and Disgaea 4 on my PS3.