Best of #1, 2005 edition . . . Mini-series

A couple of things. I'm going to follow Chris' advice and just lump everything together. I just don't have enough non-Marvel books not to. Two, this will only consist of things I actually bought. So Villains United, while very good, ain't here because I didn't care enough to spend money on it. Three, please remember this is being done by a human, thus it's subjective, and at the mercy of my biases, which are many and often highly irrational. With that said, let's get started. Only five candidates in this category.

Runner-ups (runners-up?) - Justice League Elite. I know why I finished this series (I'm a completist), I just can't figure why I started it. I don't read Superman books, I know nothing about the Elite, really don't much care. I must have had some reason, but it's gone now.

Ghost Rider - The only reason this isn't in the top two is because it's not done yet. Unless Ennis completely screws the pooch, Clayton Crain's art is enough to boost this up there, though I can see what people mean when they say people look too plastic. Ok, moving on.

3rd place - JSA Classified 1-4. Ok technically this was a story arc, but as I don't plan on buying JSA Classified again, I look at it as a four-issue mini. I like the art, I like Power Girl, though I'm still trying to pin down exactly what it is about her personality I like so much. I just can't seem to find the right word. And Johns has a reputation for making magic, so I figured this would be pretty awesome. I was disappointed.

Here's the thing, I read issue #4. Psycho Pirate tells Power Girl "You're a Kryptonian from a universe called Earth-2!" My reaction - Ok. So what? Why does that make her powers fluctuate? Why can't she remember her true origin? I mean, there are plenty of people from Earth-2, like all the old guys in the JSA, none of them seem to have this problem. And so on. I had to read Infinite Crisis #2 to understand what the big deal was. Which means, this didn't do what it said it would, tell her origin, so it can't do any better. Tsk, tsk, Mr. Johns. Very shoddy.

2nd place - Green Lantern: Rebirth - I'll say this right upfront: I don't get Hal Jordan. I don't get what the big deal is about him, why he's so special. Regardless of how hard Johns or Scipio, or the guys at the store try to educate me, I just don't care about him. I was fine with Kyle Rayner as Green Lantern, I don't need the others, and would have rather Jordan died. But, as the Shrew pointed out when she reviewed the book, this isn't written for fans like me. It's written, and I quote, 'for people who when you ask why Hal Jordan is the best, they say "Because he's Hal."' To which I say, uh, ok.

But Johns set out to bring Hal back, and to follow the Jean Grey/Dark Phoenix style; bring him back so that he's absolved of guilt for what the extremely powerful entity did (Credit to Comics Should Be Good, for a post that mentioned Jim Shooter's edict about any return of Jean Grey making her blameless for what the Phoenix did). And damned if he didn't. Is it a copout? Hell yes. But I also think it's an example of Johns' greatest strength, the ability to reach into his butt, and remove the finest silks and polished rare gems from within. I mean, an emotional electromagnetic spectrum? A giant yellow fear thingy? But it worked. As far as I can tell, only two heroes don't trust Hal: Batman, who everyone ignores because he's a paranoid looney, and Hawkman, who everyone ignores because he's a jerk.

I do want mention the art was mostly very nice. Some of the light/shadow effects were quite beautiful. And Johns didn't kill Kyle, which was good, and is probably why I bought the series in the first place. I figured it was Kyle's last stand, so I better enjoy him while I can.

Two minor beefs: One, I thought the lantern symbols popping off the uniforms was kind of silly. It seems like a waste of energy. Two, are the Guardians really more powerful than the Spectre? I mean Smurfs versus God's Hand of Vengance?

1st place - Grimjack: Killer Instinct. I told you there would be bias. I was too young to read Grimjack when it came out (my pre-K years), but my cousin had the first 48 issues, and gave them to me, and I decided I loved the book. And this, as sort of a prequel to John Gaunt's series, does all I could ask for. Violence? Check. Some funny observations/comments by Gaunt, especially during fights? Check. A particularly nice death for a vampire? Check.

The story answers several questions, like why Gaunt used the alias of Chaney, how Gorden Munden can work at Munden's Bar, but Gaunt owns it. How Gaunt's old partner, Roscoe, lost his eye (unlike Deathstroke, it didn't involve getting shot by his wife). And so on. Plus, telekinetic mime assassins, with a gateway to a pocket dimension where their torsos should be! You can't tell me that isn't cool.

I think what makes the story work is that Ostrander and Truman remember what makes their character special and it's all there. Aspects of his life as an arena fighter, as a soldier in the Demon Wars, as a cop, all of which affect the way people look at him. His understanding of magic, courtesy of his time studying with a wizard. The fact that his style of going for the heart of the matter usually ends up costing him. And the fact that he lives in a place where every street corner can have it's own reality, which has all sorts of creative possibilities. The Grinner was back, and for me at least, it was good.