THE CAT'S MEOW: What's Good on the Shelf This Week-Year 2 - Week 22 ___________________________________________________________________________
Reviews by John Norris, February 03, 2008

ADOLESCENT RADIOACTIVE BLACK BELT HAMSTERS #1: “The Next Generation” (Teen/Young Adult)

Keith Champagne (w); Tom Nguyen (p/i); Moose Baumann (c); Zach Matheny (l); covers by Tom Nguyen & Michael Avon Oeming

Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment

Format: monthly series

Concept: The Hamsters return in this new series.

In this issue : In 1977, NASA inexplicably sent four hamsters into space to investigate a strange mass of radioactive gelatin that was hovering over the Earth. Due to exposure from the radioactive mass, the four hamsters quickly changed, evolving into something NEW. Something ADOLESCENT. Something RADIOACTIVE. Crash landing in the Himalayas , the Hamsters were found by a hidden monastery of monks who nursed them back to health, training the group in the martial arts. And now they're back and Dynamite's got them! Under the watchful eye of original series creator Don Chin, writer Keith Champagne (Countdown: Arena) is joined by artist Tom Nguyen for a comic book series unlike any the world has ever seen! Ninjas! Barbarians! Huns! Monks! Hamsters! This one's got it all! Look for the special Hamsters alternate cover by Michael Avon (Mice Templar) Oeming! (from dynamiteentertainment.com)

Review: In order to even kind of understand what's happening in this debut issue, it helps to know the series' history. So think back to the 1980's. TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES had become a big hit, and several small press publishers responded with mutant animal teams of their own. The first (and probably most successful) of these unofficial parodies concerned four NASA-trained hamsters who were sent into space and came back mutated, were taken in and trained in martial arts by monks. Their names: Chuck, Bruce, Jackie & Clint. (You can probably guess who they were named after.) Now keep in mind that the first story in this new series is called “The Next Generation,” which means that the original four guys are nowhere to be seen. In fact, they are only mentioned in passing. Instead, we have a new team consisting of Rock, Arnold , Jean Claude, Steven and Lucy. (Again, you can probably guess the origin of their names.) This is an entertaining first issue, though it will leave you with several questions which hopefully will be answered in future issues. One thing, however, is quite clear: Nguyen's art, complemented by Baumann's colors, is quite pleasing to look at.

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MADMAN ATOMIC COMICS #6: “Crushed in the Court of the Crimson King!” (Teen/Young Adult)

Mike Allred (w/p/i); Laura Allred (c); Nate Piekos (l); cover by the Allreds

Publisher: Image

Format: monthly series

Concept: Frank “Madman” Einstein returns in an all-new series.

In this issue: Frank "Madman" Einstein and the Atomics have ganged up in an all out effort to save the Universe. But it will come at a tragic personal cost. Lives will be lost. And there will be no turning back, no reprieves, no sneaky tricks. Death comes calling for keeps! But for who? Who?!! (from imagecomics.com)

Review: Frank Einstein and the Atomics are trying to save the universe from an Intergalactic Maniac whose means of dispatching people are…interesting, to say the least. Or at least, that's what it LOOKS like. One thing's for sure: in this series, things aren't always as they seem. It's a save-the-universe story as only the Allreds can tell it.

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MARVEL ADVENTURES FANTASTIC FOUR #32: “Cowboy Up” (All Ages)

Joe R. Lansdale (w); Ronan Cliquet (p); Amilton Santos (i); Lee Loughridge (c); Nate Piekos (l); cover by Kirk & Anderson

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: Irradiated by cosmic rays and transformed to possess superhuman powers, they joined together to fight evil. Mister Fantastic, the Invisible Girl, the Human Torch and the Thing. Together they call themselves the Fantastic Four!

In this issue: Gather ‘round, lil' doggies. Ol' Ben Grimm's done been hijacked from our time an' shot back to the Old West, where varmints and vandals ruled the day! Even if Benjy teams up with one of the past's greatest heroes, STEAM RIDER, can he manage to hightail his way back to the present? Crack that whip! WHOO-PTCH! (from marvel.com)

Review: Talk about your tall tales…Ben Grimm accidentally gets transported back in time to 1885, where he gets captured along with Steam Rider and another creature. There's really not much to say about this issue. It's not the best or the worst I've read, just very…offbeat. Same goes for the artwork; it's not the best, but I will admit that Steam Rider and his horse look cool.

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ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #118 (Teen/Young Adult)

Brian Michael Bendis (w); Stuart Immonen (p); Wade von Grawbadger (i); Justin Ponsor (c); Cory Petit (l); cover by Immonen & Richard Isanove

Publisher: Marvel

Format: monthly series

Concept: The bite of a genetically-altered spider grants high school student Peter Parker incredible, arachnid-like powers.

In this issue : It begins here…“Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends!” Things are changing in the young life of Peter Parker: Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four is now his buddy---and the hot–headed super hero has taken a liking to Peter's classmate, Liz Allen! But something is horribly wrong with Liz—something that will soon affect the life of every student at Midtown High—including Peter's ex-girlfriend, Kitty Pryde! (from marvel.com)

Review: Not only does Bendis have a knack for great dialogue, but he also really knows how to get inside the minds of teenagers, a skill that is on display in full force here as six different characters communicate their thoughts in the first eight pages or so. After the intensity of the previous story arc, it's refreshing to see the young people just being young people again, without a villain in sight. That doesn't mean, however, that everything will go smoothly for long. Immonen nicely captures the characters' expressions, and with von Grawbadger and Ponsor, provides a HOT final image.

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COLLECTIONS

NEW AVENGERS/TRANSFORMERS TP collects NEW AVENGERS/TRANSFORFMERS #1-4.

To be reviewed in next week's column:

JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED #42

By thy side,

John “Figaro” Norris

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