This Week's Comic Stack 4/7/10

The Good:

• Superman: Secret Origin #5- Johns manages to bring in lots of bits from the many origins that Superman has had yet make it new. He even ties in the current arcs. I know this is the fourth or fifth revamp of his origin in the last ten years, but I am loving it.
• Superman: Last Stand Of New Krypton #2- Things don't look too good for New Krypton, as the story hits its halfway point. TBC in Adventure Comics next week
• Lone Ranger #21- A truly horrifying comic as Cavendish strikes at the Ranger's last family members. It's masterfully written and drawn, but so terrible in what happens.
• Uncanny X-Men #523- Fraction handles his part of the X-over well, touching on stuff from last week's Second Coming and moving forward with Cyclops' plans for each separate team. I also like that the New Mutants are given a chance to shine, or will be if people pick up that title next week. I think Fraction does a pretty good job in trying to get people to do that the way he sets it up.

The Alright:

• The Flash Secret Files And Origins: 2010 #1- I the story, an insomniac Barry races to his childhood house he meets with all the speedsters who apparently can sense what each other (or just Barry) is feeling. Meanwhile, the Rogues gather in a hideout of the original Mirror Master and a giant mirror that says "In case the Flash returns break glass". The rest of the issue is an (re)introduction to the Barry Allen Flash world. Central City, the crime lab, the Rogues are all covered.
• Zorro: Matanzas #3- The tension is amped up as Zorro confronts Machete with his father's life in the balance. The rage he feels at seeing his wounded father threatens to undo the support of the people.

In Trade:

On sale this week at my local comic store was the Immortal Iron Fist Vol. 4: The Mortal Iron Fist. This is the arc that Duane Sweiczynski takes over as writer from Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction. That's a hard act to follow, but he does very well. While not quite as good as the previous volumes, it's still worth picking up.

Also on sale were back issue "trades"- that's all the issues of a mini sold together as a set. So I picked up the DC mini series Empire. This was a rare Mature Reader title with a DC logo and not a Vertigo one. An out of DCU story, it is about a super genius mastermind who has taken over the Earth (for the benefit of all). Written by Mark Waid, it is almost a trial run for Irredeemable. Except instead of a Superman type hero versus the world it's a Lex Luthor/Dr. Doom type that the world fights against. Art is by Barry Kitson and is beautiful, but sometimes graphic. Waid and Kitson would go on to launch the new Legion Of Super-Heroes title after this. Check it out if you like Irredeemable and Incorruptible.