THE CAT'S MEOW: What's Good on the Shelf This Week-Year 3 - Week 38 ____________________________________________________________________
Reviews by John Norris, May 26, 2009

LOCKJAW AND THE PET AVENGERS #1 (All Ages)

Chris Eliopoulos (w); Ig Guara (p); Colleen Coover (Frog Thor origin art); Chris Sotomayor (c); Nate Piekos (l); covers by Karl Kerschl & Romain Gaschet and Niko Henrichon

Publisher: Marvel

Format: four-issue miniseries

Concept: And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Earth's mightiest heroes were unaware of a threat greater than all of them could handle. And on that day, a teleporting puppy scoured the world to assemble a team of animals to fight the foes no single beast could withstand!

In this issue : Strap on your collar and hop on-board the adventures of LOCKJAW, LOCKHEED, REDWING, HAIRBALL, and an all-new FROG THOR!

Review: They say that a dog is man's best friend, but Lockjaw, the Inhumans' dog, may prove to be mankind's best friend as well. He finds a potentially harmful Infinity Gem (one of six, which are explained on the first page) at almost the EXACT MOMENT Reed Richards warns the Inhumans about it, but Medusa just tells him to teleport away. So he takes mattes into his own hands and summons a new team of heroes: Frog Thor, the X-Men's dragon Lockheed, Falcon's pet Redwing, Speedball's cat Hairball, and just for good measure, Ms. Lion. (If you don't know who Ms. Lion is, just read the issue.) Eliopoulos fills the issue with some hilarious dialogue, and Coover handles the Frog Thor origin sequence nicely, but the real reason to pick up the issue is to enjoy Guara and Sotomayor's beautiful artwork, which is a cut above the artwork found in some all-ages comics.

MARVEL ADVENTURES SPIDER-MAN #51: “PVP (Pete vs. Pete)” (All Ages)

Paul Benjamin (w); Juan Santacruz (p/i); A. Street (c); Dave Sharpe (l); cover by Nolan & Guru eFX

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: Bitten by an irradiated spider, which granted him incredible abilities, Peter Parker learned the all-important lesson, that with great power there must also come great responsibility. And so he became the amazing Spider-Man!

In this issue: Think Spidey's the only guy that can stick to stuff? Meet PASTE POT PETE!!! God of glue! Advocate of adhesive! Will he turn the Wallcrawler into the Wallstucker? (from marvel.com)

Review: Paste Pot Pete…sounds like a goofy name, right? But when you're overconfident, even goofy villains can be a threat. Such is the case here. At first, Pete comes off as annoying; unsuccessfully trying to capture Spidey just like every other villain. But after a scene in the Daily Bugle, the tables are turned. This, of course, does not prevent Spidey from delivering his usual hilarious dialogue (and Benjamin makes sure there's plenty of it), and Santacruz & Street make Spidey look great, especially in the joyous final panel.

MARVEL ADVENTURES SUPER HEROES #11: “Fire and Ice” (All Ages)

Louise Simonson (w); Jon Buran (p); Jeremy Freeman (i); Sotocolor (c); Dave Sharpe (l); cover by Tom Grummett & Guillem Mari

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: Join the Marvel Heroes for some amazing adventures.

In this issue: Thunder gods! Lying gods! Father gods! Giant nasty monster dudes bigger than skyscrapers! Join comic legend LOUISE “WEEZY” SIMONSON as she presents another epic tale featuring THOR, god of thunder!!!! (from marvel.com)

Review: Simonson returns with another great Thor tale. Loki's up to his old tricks, trying to defeat Thor by putting him between a rock and a hard place…or, in this case, between fire and ice. To do this, he enlists the frost giant Bragmir and the fire demon Raskk. And for those who don't know Thor's story, Simonson provides a nice recap in the middle of the battle. But what she really does here is show the effects of parental neglect. Bragmir received no love from his father or clan, so he turned to the first person to tell him he was worth something…and that person was Loki, the WRONG choice. But Thor makes an important distinction between upbringing and personal choices. It's a lesson for adults and children alike.

SUPER FRIENDS #15: “?” (All Ages)

Sholly Fisch (w); J. Bone (p/i); Heroic Age (c); Travis Lanham (l); cover by Bone

Publisher: DC

Format: monthly series

Concept: Introducing SUPER FRIENDS - a brand-new series for younger readers to meet the heroes of the DC Universe, based on the hot toy line from Mattel! Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash and Aquaman are here to save the day - and be your friends, too!

In this issue : Batman doesn't like to talk about it, but it's his birthday! Unfortunately, all the Super Friends keep disappearing as Batman faces taunts from the mysterious villain The Unknown! Will Batman solve this new mystery, or has he finally met his mysterious match? (from dccomics.com)

Review: No, that question mark is not a typo. The real title is as mysterious as our heroes' latest case, which means that guessing the title is half the fun. And what kind of reviewer would I be to deprive my faithful readers of some fun? A new villain named The Unknown mysteriously appears and, through a series of events, starts picking off the Super Friends until only Batman is left. What's more, he not only goes where VERY few villains have gone before, but he even quotes a line from Batman's 1966 movie. Talk about knowing someone! One thing I know is that Fisch and Bone have delivered another entertaining issue that really does keep you guessing until the very end. Activities include “Copy-Bats,” a Secret Identity Dress-up Kit, and “Happy Bat-Day,” where Superman reminds us that Batman's been around for 70 years!

To be reviewed in next week's column:

THE PHANTOM: GHOST WHO WALKS #2

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #132

By thy side,

John “Figaro” Norris

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