WLG #257: Taxes And Freedom!


By Michael A. Diaz

It is a SUPER light week for me this week, which works out well for me because tomorrow is TAX DAY in the United States.

Also, and this is much more personally important, tomorrow I make the final payment on my car. Now THAT is exciting. I have not OWNED my own car since...1997.

Wow, that actually sounds kind of sad.

But, it's true.

In 1997 I leased a Cavalier for two years; then, in 1999 I upgraded to a two-year lease on a Chevy Malibu. I actually wanted to buy that car, but I was a financial idiot at the time and, well, I couldn't keep it. In fact, to this day I still kind of miss that car. It was awesome.

I wish I hadn't been so stupid with money back then.

Sigh....

So, when I turned that one in I had to scamper about and with my horrible credit was finally able to lease Ford Focus for three years. During that time I got my stuff together and was able to finally put some money away. I had started looking at Pontiac Vibes in the Spring of 2004 and was going to buy one come the Summer. But, as fate would have it I got a great deal in the Spring and GM ate one of my last two payments on my Focus lease. Ever since I've been driving the Vibe, and honestly, I LOVE it.

And as of tomorrow it is mine.

Wow.

I feel so adult.

And old.

Enough of that nonsense. Instead, let’s talk about the fact that I am getting a nice tax refund and I need to know which comics/collections/graphic novels/trades I should be buying. I see that 100 Bullets is coming to a close this week, and though I’ve never checked the book out it was always one of those things that I MEANT to check out eventually, only, I never did. Maybe I should start buying those trades now.

You see, as a comic book geek, there are completed series in trade that I like to collect in order to get the whole story. I did it with Lone Wolf and Cub, Akira, Preacher, Y: The Last Man, and now The Walking Dead. However, the last one is still an ongoing series, so there are long wait times. I need to start collecting trades of something that is done, but is long and substantial. I did buy the first couple of Sandman trades, and though I risk my comic book geek “cred” when I say this, I haven’t even finished the first one yet. I am sure the series gets better, but the first collection was really running slow for me and I put it down somewhere and don’t remember where, nor where I left off.

I really should find that and start reading it again.

The point is, I need MORE collections to entertain me, so any suggestions you have, please, send them my way.

Thanks!

And now, let’s see What Looks Good...

DC


GREEN LANTERN CORPS #35 $2.99 (Peter J. Tomasi / Patrick Gleason)

OK, so the Green Lanterns are kind of being split apart and facing many different foes on many different sides. I won't go into it at length like I did last week, but suffice it say over in Green Lantern you've got Hal Jordan taking on yet another new Corps, this time the Orange Lanterns. Over here in ....Corps we've got several criminals holed up in the various sciencells, not the least of whom are various members of the Sinestro Corps, a group that wants to pretty much kill ALL of the Green Lanterns.

So when the GLC captures a member of the Red Lanterns (Rage), who, by the way, have the power to deplete the Green Lantern energy, they throw him into yet another one of their sciencells, surrounded by other enemies of the Corps. Though the enemy of my enemy may not always be one's friend (case in point, the Red Lanterns seem to want to destroy members of the Sinestro Corps as well), if you let enough of those enemies out of their cells chances are enough of them are going to create a ruckus.

In short, we're looking at a full scale riot deep within the heart of Oa.

Sweet.

LOVE this book right now.


MARVEL


PUNISHER WAZ ZONE: THE RETURN OF MA GNUCCI HC $24.99 (Garth Ennis / Steve Dillon)

Ennis.

Dillon.

The Punisher.

Seriously, can a mix like that DO any wrong?

I didn't think so.

Well, of course I loved this mini-series when it came out, but a part of me wishes that I waited just a little bit and picked this up instead. I should know by now that something like this is going to be collected by Marvel just a few weeks (or, just a single week later in some cases) after the last issue is published. Seriously, I look at this thing and drool a little bit, thinking to myself "I really am lacking in hardcover Punisher collections."

And I am.

I think I own Return To Big Nothing, Kingdom Come, and Intruder as far as hardcover Punisher collections go, and those are all from the late 80's/early 90's when Marvel was actually putting out things like hardcover original graphic novels (somewhat like the French "albums" that are so popular over on that side of the pond).

Yeah, I have the original issues, but this would look SO awesome sitting on my bookshelf, once I get one that is.

What comics did you get geeked out about this week? Just stop by the WLG message boards (see link below) and share!

See you next week!

Peace!

-Diaz