It’s the final week of DC releases.  Out of the final batch, what’s worth it?  What won’t I be picking up a second issue?  Find out below.

All-Star Western #1 – Wow, a very impressive start.  Personally, I’m iffy on westerns. I either really enjoy them or downright hate them.  Jonah Hex is a character I’ve had little interaction with.  I saw the movie (horrible), read some of the comics (most pretty good).  I went into this only knowing it involved him and not what else to expect.  Taking place in Gotham, the story is a straight rip of Jack the Ripper, nothing too original, but it’s really good.  At Hex’s side is a young Arkham who studies not just the killer, but Hex, giving a very interesting point of view.  A solid comic that I’m afraid too many people will overlook from the title and it’s price.

Story: 9 Art: 8.25 Overall: 9

Aquaman #1 – It’s funny, I went into reading this what that “Aquaman is a joke character” in the back of my head.  The issue heads that off and just outright addresses that.  You can’t help but feel bad for the character when reading this and coming through a comic having an emotional response is impressive.  This issue just knocks it out of the park, and is up there as being one of the best of the new DCU.

Story: 10 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.75

Batman: The Dark Knight #1 – The art is the draw here as it plays a bit and crosses over with the other Bat titles.  It’s anarchy at Arkham as a jail break ensues.  The story is ok, but it’s the art that’s the draw.  Some amazing work here visually.  It seems out of all of the groups of titles, the three Bat titles is pretty impressive.

Story: 8.5 Art: 10 Overall: 8.75

Blackhawks #1 – Out of the two “war” comics it looks like this one will be the one to survive.  The story looks like it focuses on a UN military organization that’s supposed to be covert.  They’re around for?  Not quite sure, that’s not answered.  But, there’s a lot of talk about threats from nanites and some solid characters.  It’s an entertaining comic, definitely enough to check out the second issue.

Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5

The Flash #1 – I loved the previous volume of The Flash.  Not being a fan before it drew me into the character and got me interested.  This latest volume has the same fun feel to it and the same amazing art.  The Flash was a key figure in the previous DCU and I’d expect him to be so in this one too.  A very fun series that has as much energy and speed to it as it’s main character.

Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5

The Fury of the Firestorm: The Nuclear Man #1 – A slightly different take on Firestorm gives us a interesting story involving how the particle that created the character would really affect the world and why the two individuals who make him up would dislike each other.  The first issue is all set up focused heavily on the characters with some action thrown in there and that’s exactly what you’d expect from a comic written by Gail Simone.

Story: 8 Art: 8.25 Overall: 8

Green Lantern: New Guardians #1 – Kyle Rayner gets the focus here as it seems this series will really look at the various Corps. that exist.  For some reason rings are leaving their users and heading to an unknown destination.  The story is interesting if you’re a Green Lantern fan, but I can see everyone else not caring much.  Definitely enough to get me to come back for a second issue.

Story: 8 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8

I, Vampire #1 – Read the full review here.

Justice League Dark #1 – A very interesting first issue that’s high points is the small details that’s added through out.  Overall, it’s an interesting concept, but screams of an attempt to merge the feel of a Vertigo comic with the DCU.  It’s a cool concept so far and those small details were so good, I’ll be back for the second issue.

Story: 8.25 Art: 7.75 Overall: 8

The Savage Hawkman #1 – Gone is the talk of cycles of life and love, instead we’re stripped down to Carter Hall, a man who struggles with the fact he’s Hawkman.  Again, we have a comic that focuses as much on the character as it does the character and impressively, makes me interested in a character who I’ve only disliked in the past.

Story: 8.25 Art: 8.25 Overall: 8.25

Superman #1 – Clark Kent and Superman as a brooding/emo uninteresting character.  The first issue of the series seems to have focused more on The Daily Planet than Superman himself.  The threat too was a bit of a let down.  It seems that even after the reboot, Superman might still be struggling.

Story: 7 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7

Teen Titans #1 – I got a X-Men vibe from this series that sees a shady government organization tracking down teenage metahumans.  That gets Red Robin to spring into action to get them together.  It’s a been there, done that story, but the character interaction so far is interesting and there’s the thing with Superboy that has me wondering what the hell it’s all about.

Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5

Voodoo #1 – More focus will be on the fact that Voodoo is a stripper than the more important bits about the story.  With recent issues with DC towards women, unfortunately Ron Marz has the bad draw of his comic coming out after that.  The story is interesting involving an alien invasion, but it has two strong female leads.  One is Voodoo, who is more than she seems and the other is an agent tracking her that shows she’s tough and not to be messed with.  It’s a comic with some great art and a lot of solid moments.  I’m sure many will overlook it and for all the wrong reasons and that’s a shame.  There’s a lot of layers here with what can be interpreted as commentary over the whole DC and women mess and about the comic book reading audience themselves.

Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5