Weekly comic books are a big part of my life and below is a list of what I’ll be picking up this Wednesday along with cover artwork and previews courtesy of Comixology’s Pull List app.

Eight books officially on the list this week, but I’m on the fence about the second issue of Brian Wood’s Star Wars series from Dark Horse. There are also a bunch of variant covers for the latest Uncanny X-Men #1 shipping today that I’m sure I’ll track down, so “eight” isn’t really a number I’d put much stock in.

• BATMAN #17 – Death of the Family concludes and we’ll finally learn exactly what the Joker is serving up for Batman. This has been a bold and disturbing story from Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo that follows perfectly from what they’ve established since issue #1. I didn’t pay much attention to any of the other Bat-titles that this series touched on and it seems like I haven’t missed a thing, although I have heard good things about the Batgirl and Batman and Robin issues this story set up.
• CABLE AND X-FORCE #4 – I want to like this series a lot more than I do. It has Cable and Hope along a host of other characters that I’m interested in, but I feel like it’s taking a long time to establish itself. There’s a certain mystery surrounding the action and that should have the opportunity to unfold, but so far it’s lacked a bit of cohesion from issue to issue. If I was holding it to the same standard I am for the Marvel Now line outside of the X-books, I may not have made it past the first issue. For now, I’ll continue to give it a chance. 
• CYBER FORCE #3 – Even though I don’t remember much from reading earlier incarnations of Marc Silvestri’s Image series Cyber Force, this miniseries has provided a fun return to that world. I’m particularly enjoying learning about the various generations of cybernetic technology used to power the characters. The book is also free so there’s no reason not to try it out.
• THE MANHATTAN PROJECTS #9 – Jonathan Hickman‘s pair of Marvel Now Avengers series have really taken off in the first few issues and we began to see the larger story being told in those two books unfold last week. As intriguing as that story is, nowhere does Hickman cut loose more than in The Manhattan Projects. An advance look at the issue promises more crazy as the Los Alamos science team continues to consolidate power.
• SECRET AVENGERS #1 – A Marvel Now debut coming hot on the heels of Rick Remender‘s finale to the previous volume just last week. I’m sure a new direction is in store and I’ll read the first issue, but I think I might be ready to step away from the Secret Avengers franchise for a while.
• UNCANNY X-MEN #1 – Even though this title just relaunched in 2011, this latest debut is kind of a big deal to me. The first volume of Uncanny is the heart of my collection and the place where I started reading comic books. I hated to see it end, but I truly enjoyed Kieron Gillen’s volume that followed X-Men: Schism. I was sad to see that volume (and Gillen) gone from the X-line back in October. The shelves have been without an Uncanny X-Men series since that time and the hiatus, along with the fact that Brian Bendis‘ All New X-Men is fantastic, makes his relaunch of Uncanny (along with a personal favorite artist in Chris Bachalo) something I’m really looking forward to. I’m also planning to track down some of the variants shipping for this issue and a full report will arrive here on MLD before the week is through.
• WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN #25 – A milestone issue for Jason Aaron‘s X-series. It looks like this will be one of the few titles that will escape a Marvel Now relaunch, but its days on my pull list may be numbered. I’ve fallen a few issues behind and I’ve always felt the series was a bit silly for my tastes. It also doesn’t help that I’m getting a much more satisfying story out of All New X-Men with some of the same characters (particularly Kitty Pryde who was my main draw for this series).
• X-MEN #41 – The final issue of the 2010 X-Men series. I can’t say I’m sad to see it go as it always seemed a bit superfluous, but I am considering picking up the Dale Keown final issue variant for this book if it’s readily available in my local shop. While this series never really thrilled me, I am interested to see Brian Wood’s female-focused Marvel Now relaunch. A lot of the characters featured in the promotional images are at odds, and I’m curious to see how they’re able to put their differences aside when the story begins. 

As an addendum to last week’s list, I found myself adding Iron Man #6 and Venom #31 to my collection before Wednesday was through. Neither were under consideration until I saw them. Iron Man‘s “Godkiller” cover and the Phoenix flames piqued my interest and I’m always willing to give a Kieron Gillen penned book a shot. Venom  caught my attention when Brave New Worlds in Olde City pointed out that the title character had not only moved to Philadelphia, but took up residence in what appeared to be an apartment above their Second Street store.

Check back every week to see what’s on My Latest Pull List and please share your thoughts on these titles and everything you’re reading this week in the comments.

Brock Lesnar should continue to have a major role after his attack on The Miz last week and the destruction of Vince McMahon two weeks ago. Will his WrestleMania opponent emerge tonight?

Valentine’s Day arrives later this week, but will romance be in the air on Monday Night Raw tonight? Will the matchmaking go beyond the confines of the ring? Will the sparks between C.M. Punk and The Rock continue to fly? Are we due for yet another “Rock Concert” with the show coming to us live from Music City, Nashville, Tennessee? More importantly will anyone get new (and better) entrance music?

With the Elimination Chamber is less than a week away and WrestleMania looming on the horizon, the landscape can and will change as each Monday passes.

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Weekly comic books are a big part of my life and below is a list of what I’ll be picking up this Wednesday along with cover artwork and previews courtesy of Comixology’s Pull List app.

Seven new books on my list for the first week of February.

• ALL NEW X-MEN #7 – I can’t get over how much I’m enjoying this book. Like so many Marvel Now books, it was a lot all at once when it started, but I find myself looking forward to each issue. The change of artist from Stuart Immonen to David Marquez takes nothing away from Brian Bendis‘ strong entry into the X-titles. Like issue #6, this issue features another X-Men 50th Anniversary variant, this time in the form of Nick Bradshaw’s cast from Wolverine and the X-Men.
• AVENGERS #5 – Three weeks in a row is right at the limit of too much for me, even when it’s Jonathan Hickman. Luckily, this is an odd numbered issue and so far they’ve been hits with me.
• FEARLESS DEFENDERS #1 – I committed to trying the first issue of all the Marvel Now titles, but this isn’t one I’d have picked up otherwise. This seems like something that should have launched out Marvel’s Fear Itself event, but I didn’t follow any of the follow up titles for that one. Valkyrie has been a major character in Secret Avengers and Venom, but I don’t know what this series has in store.
• NEW AVENGERS #3 – This ranks just after All New X-Men as far as my top books from Marvel Now. The return of the Illuminati, the Infinity Gems, and a threat to the multiverse hit all the right notes for me.
• SECRET AVENGERS #37 – Final issue? I’ve thought that for three issues now but I think this is really it. I’m interested to see how Rick Remender‘s Descendants storyline wraps up, but it feels a bit anticlimactic for some reason.
• SUPERIOR SPIDER-MAN #3 – I’m really on the fence with this series. I picked up issue #2 without planning on it and I’m probably going to get #3 tomorrow. When it comes right down to it, this just isn’t the Spider-Man I want to read about and I may have lost the patience to see where it goes.
• X-FACTOR #251 – Peter David is great at bringing long running story lines together and the Hell on Earth War is no exception. It’s also great to see Polaris with a larger role.

Check back every week to see what’s on My Latest Pull List and please share your thoughts on these titles and everything you’re reading this week in the comments.

One thing that won’t stay in Vegas, the annual tradition of pointing at the WrestleMania sign ad nauseam.

Raw arrived in Las Vegas last week with Raw Roulette in tow. There are plenty of newsworthy items to discuss in the fallout from the Royal Rumble, but we’d prefer that most of what happened on the show stayed in Vegas. The most newsworthy item since last Monday is the announcement of Bruno Sammartino on the list of 2013 WWE Hall of Fame inductees. Yes indeed, it is time for a Warm Up… since hell just froze over.

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