"Aztek: the Ultimate Man" by Grant Morrison, Mark Millar, and Others

Grant Morrison AND Mark Millar wrote this one.  Yeah, the art inside is pretty bad, but I was hoping that the story made up for it.

I'm not up on Aztek's backstory, but apparently it has something to do with some secret, South American society that trains warriors for a coming showdown with an evil god.  Every so often they elect a champion, and this champion wears a special helmet that allows him or her to use some kind of "fourth dimensional power."  The power accessed is non-chronological in nature, so I'm thinking that the fourth dimension accessed must be something other than time.

Anyway, it's probably not worth thinking about.

Aztek spends this TPB adjusting to modern life, and having somewhat amusing conversations with other superheroes.  It's not nearly as good as anything Morrison did with Animal Man, and light years away from Millar's work on The Ultimates.  If it's not quite boring, it's not quite interesting either.

"52: Volume One" by Grant Morrison and a Bunch of Other Guys

I'll be damned if I can figure out where "52" fits into the DC continuum.  I feel fairly confident that it occurred after "Infinite Crisis," somewhat confident that it occurred after "Countdown to Final Crisis," and unsure of whether it occurred before or after "Final Crisis."

I would offer plot details, but I've only read Volume One.  I'm not sure how many volumes there are total, either.  I have the feeling there are at least two more.  I guess I could look that up, but I'm lazy.

As far as I can figure, there was some kind of rift in spacetime, and a bunch of superheroes went out to fix it.  A lot of them died, Superman lost his powers, and Batman and Wonder Woman took a vacation.  In the wake of the "big three's" departure, a host of other would-be superheroes rush in to protect the innocent.  The only problem is that many of these wannabes are far from model citizens.

I liked this comic book, but not nearly as much as "Infinite Crisis."  The art is very uneven, probably due to the fact that it was released weekly for a year.  There are some great ideas here, and I would be interested to see how these ideas are developed over the next few volumes.

"All Star Superman" by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely

"All Star Superman" was part of DC's plan to "reinvent" their superheroes for the 2010s.  Their plan began with this comic book, and also with Frank Miller's disastrous "All Star Batman and Robin."

I'm happy to say that "All Star Superman" is A LOT better than Frank Miller's comic.  This mellow, laid-back version of Superman is a nice departure from the grimness of most modern comic books.  Superman doesn't waste any time brooding, and he comes across as a very likable guy.

The only problem is that Lex Luthor has found a way to give him cancer, and he struggles with the question of whether he should tell Lois about it.  Along the way he encounters an array of super-powered adversaries, dispatching most of them with little difficulty.

Grant Morrison's writing shines in this book.  Unlike his work on "Final Crisis," this chapter in the Superman saga feels both immediate and human.  A character like Superman is always going to be difficult to relate to, but Morrison pulls off this feat with an admirable level of polish.  Frank Quitely's art is also impressive without detracting from the story.

I may have complained about Morrison's popularity in other entries, but "All Star Superman" leaves no doubt that he is one of the best comic book writers out there.  "All Star Superman" left me with a feeling that any great story should impart.  "All Star Superman" left me wanting more.