Swamp Thing #18 sees Scott Snyder wrap up the Green’s battle with the Rot and give a compelling end to the complex relationship between Swampy and Abby. But in the end, All New X-Men #8 sees Brian Michael Bendis keep bringing compelling character interactions with the original five X-Men being part of the present day. One freaks out, another is freaky. I’ll leave it at that.

Star Wars #1 from Brian Wood finally unveiled itself to the masses. Even amongst the concerns of Dark Horse’s holding of the Star Wars comic license, Wood still managed to get a great book out. And you’d think we’ve seen it all with this series set in the original trilogy’s timeline, but Wood somehow makes it all seem fresh.

When it comes down to it though, Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic can do no wrong with Thor: God of Thunder #4. It’s beyond words how exciting this book has become as it explores one nasty villain making an impact on Thor’s entire lifeline. It speaks to Aaron’s diversity in writing and Ribic’s Conan-esque drawings that grabs the reader from the get-go. I look forward to how they’re going to wrap this up and future arcs.

We first tackle Batman Inc #6, as Grant Morrison and Chris Burnham keep the pace going in Batman’s quest to stop Talia’s reign with Leviathan. Some great character dynamics with Bruce and Talia and a shocking death at the end that upped the ante. Burnham’s pencils are the real story, bringing every emotion to life as this war rages on.

We then say see you later to American Vampire with issue #34′s look into the past and future. Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque breathed new life into the vampire genre for the last 3 years and while the hiatus is not something we like to hear, it’s only going to mean better stories when the creative team is ready to move forward with this mythology.

Lastly, the pick honors go to Bendis and Immonen making All New X-Men a treat with issue #5. We’re really seeing a resurgence of X-Men in the last few years and this keeps the trend going. One could have easily balked at bringing the original five to the current timeline and call it a fad, but it’s brought some excellent character interactions and dialogue that Bendis is known for. Immonen is the icing on the cake with his slick pencils, though you have to wonder how long he can keep it up with this book seemingly coming out weekly. It’s a ride I’m enjoying nonetheless.

It’s that time once again. I quickly take a look back at 2012 and look forward to 2013, but otherwise – we’re narrowing it down to the top 5 books of CBF for the year and picking the one that stood out. A strong list, but only one can prevail. What are your thoughts on the top picks for 2012?

Best to the new year!

I’d like to say that’s the appropriate theme for the 2012 comic book review edition of the CBF podcast. Bringing both Daniel M. Clark and Jon Stump onto the show together will do that.

This is where we dissect the year of comics and its future. Many bold topics were discussed:

• DC losing ground with its New 52 and the falling of Vertigo
• The good (Marvel NOW!) and not so good (AvX) of Marvel
• Image having probably its best year since their inception 20 years ago
• Our favorite series and what you should be picking up that’s under the radar
• Our concerns for the industry as a whole and what 2020 is going to look like
• Who the heck may becoming a Brony?

Agree? Disagree? This was definitely the most honest podcast we’ve done and it speaks a lot to where comic books are supposedly heading. Give it a listen.

I’ll be back soon to close out the year of 2012 with the Quick Pick of the Year!

Marvel NOW has not been discussed much on this site, but shout-outs to a couple that are personifying the creative jolt that Marvel is getting with their titles:

• All New X-Men #3 is making me wish Bendis was writing X-Men a while ago.
• Avengers #1 is banking on Jonathan Hickman and Jerome Opena to bring the goods. It’s a solid start, but not mind-blowing. Patience is required though because this is a Hickman book now.