Hello dorks. It's been a while since I last posted a review. Sorry about that. You all know how time simply flies. Plus I have somewhat of an excuse; I've been very busy with school. Why didn't I write any reviews over the winter break, you ask? Well you'll have to figure that out for yourself.

I have one book I want to review tonight. I'm going to review a book that actually came out last week. It was so good that it needed two weeks for me to fully appreciate it. Will Eisner's The Spirit #10, written by David Hine. This month's issue features a very cool cover pose of The Spirit dodging some bullets. The title of the story, Crime and Punishment actually pays homage to the famous Russian novel by Fyodor Dostoevsky. The two plots are very similar. Many of you literary types out there will be familiar with the basic plot structure of Crime and Punishment(1866). The ex-student, Raskolnikov, plans the murder of a corrupt pawn-broker. In this comic rendition, the criminal Roscoe Kalashnikov(great name) takes center stage instead of the title's namesake. This one-issue story leaves the typical genre of hardboiled fiction and the whodunit to focus on the psychological aspect of the criminal's mind. Within the book, we follow Kalashnikov as he comes to terms over his guilt of the pawnbroker's murder. Along the way we get a fascinating glimpse into his inner fears, including the typical Freudian issues of parental abuse mixed with an intense fear of bugs. Really, just like the novel it was based off of, the plot of this story isn't so much the murder and the investigation by the detective, but the plot of Kalashnikov's mind as he journeys through its dark interiors. The ending leaves the reader satisfied if not a little creeped out by the sense of folly fate leads us into.

I really dig what is going on with this new volume of The Spirit. The artwork by John Kantz and Gabriel Bautista really emphasizes the grittiness of the city along with its superb use of dull colors. Also, the writing by David Hine is just excellent. I also like the ambiguity of what era these stories are exactly set in. True to its origins, the book features many aspects of a pulp-era 1930s and 40s gangster-ridden American city. But along with that we get traces of the modern and contemporary, specifically in some of the younger characters who act as The Spirit's sidekicks and close friends.

This book really isn't getting the attention I feel it deserves. To me it has become one of those top deckers, the books I immediately place at the top of my stack of comics to read. The First Wave line of books published by DC Comics have really drawn me into the pulp era of literature. Another series I like includes Doc Savage, though I feel it has a lot of catching up to do to match The Spirit for my affection. The revival of the pulps is a great thing, and like film noir, which has had its revival, I believe that this is a time for the neo-pulp to resurrect itself.

This has been Matt Reviews. Thank you and goodnight.     

I don't know about you guys, but this week has been a great week for me concerning the comics I collect and read! From the pulp hero of Doc Savage to Mike Carey's The Unwritten, I couldn't be happier in the books I bought this week.

First on my list today, I will be reviewing DC's Birds of Prey #4, written by Gail Simone, with art by Ed Benes. This is the final issue of the first story arc and I was really looking forward to some closure concerning the new threat the team had to face. In the first issue they encounter the deadly White Canary, hell bent on bringing pain and suffering to the Birds of Prey and those that are close to them. I really like how Gail Simone brings us Black Canary, aka Dinah Lance's thoughts as she grapples with this mysterious threat. Though this is part 4 of the 4, we do get a nice cliffhanger into where the series will be going from here. I've never read the first Birds of Prey series, but what really intrigued me into picking up the new series was the idea of an all-female team. Not only do they look really hot, but they are very strong female characters, who have humanity, but can also kick your ass if you try to mess with them. Even though he plays a small role in the story, I'd have to say my favorite character is Hawk aka Hank Hall. Being the only male on an all-female team, he really sticks out as this macho jock jerk, which is both amusing and interesting, seeing how he interracts with the women of the group.

Next I wanna talk about Doc Savage #5. Taking over from writer Paul Malmont, B. Clay Moore takes us into the next phase as Doc Savage and his crew seek refuge after the lightning attack on their home base. I gotta be honest, the first story arc wasn't my favorite but I do enjoy the pulp feel of the book, and have really been enjoying the First Wave books, also featuring The Spirit, and The Bat-Man. This issue was really fun because it's a stand alone tale where we see the normally powerful Doc Savage in a really vulnerable state. His team goes to Greece where he has to put his trust into a crime lord, who offers him a safe place to gather and recoup. I also really like Doc's team of men, who include Ham, Renny, Johnny, Tom, and Monk, each with their own unique skills and personalities. DC has done a great thing bringing back the old 1930s pulp characters to new 21 Century readers. Brian Azzerello, who is writing the main First Wave miniseries, will soon take over the Doc Savage series. What else can you expect from the writer of 100 Bullets and Johnny Double, but excellence?

Finally for this week's reviews, I wanna discuss The Unwritten #16, written by Mike Carey. This is classic Vertigo, smart and entertaining. This is a great issue because we get many answers to previous questions we all had for what was really going on with Tom Taylor and the shadowy literary organization out to get him. Tom finally meets his missing father for the first time in the series, and these two have some serious father/son issues to work out. Trying to explain to his son why he is so important and how they must defeat this evil organization who control the world through its literature, their meeting is cut drastically short by the arrival of the assasin Pullman. I don't wanna spoil too much, but death is involved. Meanwhile Lizzie has her own troubles, struggling with her identity as a literary character from Dicken's novel Our Mutual Friend, living in the real world. This series has been nothing but a joy to read, and I hope it lasts far into the years to come.

These three I wanted to highlight, but other great reads this week were Superman #702, Daytripper #9, and Zatanna #4.

For next week's books, I'm looking forward to the epic conclusion to Star Wars: Legacy, in issue #50. Also next week, Harlan Ellison will unveil his new comic miniseries, based off his tv pitch, The Starlost, titled Phoneix Without Ashes. Finally Cullen Bunn's The Sixth Gun #3, will be waiting eagerly in my pull to be read.

This has been Matt's reviews for the week and I will see you all next week.