For some reason, I just visited the Raging Bullets website for only the second time since I returned from the University of Missouri two weeks ago.  It’s been that kind of month, people.  But, I had an awesome time working as a reporter for a couple weeks in Columbia, Missouri and the surrounding areas.

Having just checked out the site, I see that Sean and Jim are having a discussion on the show about pull lists and it got me thinking about how I decide what’s on mine.  Ultimately, it comes down to three criteria.

1) Character

Of course, I want to read my favorite characters, so all the Super-books are a must.  These will always be on my pull list, no matter what’s happening in them right now. Take Action Comics, for example.  I’m still not completely sold on the whole Lex Luthor storyline, but I know that somehow it’s all going to tie back to Superman.  And now that there’s going to be a Jimmy Olsen co-feature, I have more of a reason to stick with it.

I went crazy a while back and started getting all of the Bat-books, but recently I’ve pulled back on them.  I dropped Streets of Gotham and Gotham City Sirens, even though they were enjoyable enough.  But ultimately, I find that books like Batgirl and Red Robin along with the main Batman title are giving me enough of the family to get me by.

And sometimes, I pick up a book because I want to know more about the character, which is exactly what happened with Green Lantern.  Yeah, I know it had to do with Blackest Night, but I definitely understood what was going on in that book better because I was reading the main title and had an understanding of the world he lives in.

Anything with the Question/Renee Montoya character is an automatic for me.  Her co-feature in Detective Comics was an added bonus to Batwoman.  And, I’m beginning to like the Atom/Ray Palmer character more and more as well.  I know I’m forgetting some.

2)Writer

Geoff Johns, Gail Simone, James Robinson, and Greg Rucka are just four writers who could attach their names to the most obscure character in the DCU and have me eating out of their hands.  They all have a track record of writing stories that keep me interested and even make me question everything that came before it.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard any of these writers apologize for creating a story arc that angered fans, and that makes me respect them even more.  Admittedly, I’m probably one of a handful of fans that enjoyed Robinson’s Cry for Justice, but I’ve never heard him apologize for writing it (though he may have apologized for angering fans) and that’s what I love.  Robinson will also be the guy who wrote Superman for a year without actually writing the title character, but he made me care for the characters in the book anyway.

I try to make it a habit not to complain about the writing, but do everything I can to praise it.  And the best way I know to praise an author’s work is to continue buying it and supporting it.

3)Curiosity

That’s right, curiosity.  I’m curious.  What’s the real story on Booster Gold?  Let me pick up a few issues and find out.  What’s the deal with this new book called Secret Six that everyone’s raving about? (Okay, I admit that I didn’t read it right away, even though Gail Simone writes it.  I’m a horrible person, I know.)  I’ll pick up a few back issues and see why everyone’s so giddy.  Vigilante? R.E.B.E.L.S.?

I didn’t stick with all those books.  Vigilante didn’t keep my attention, and Brainiac 2 in R.E.B.E.L.S. really got on my nerves.  Other people had plenty of good things to say about those books; they just didn’t work for me.

Picking a pull list is tough. I’ve been constant the last few months, but I know that I’m going to have to consider some changes in the coming months.  Batman, Inc., Superboy, and Batwoman are all coming down the pipeline in the near future, and my budget is about maxed out, so I know  I’ll have to think about dropping some books.  It won’t be fun, especially since I’m enjoying so much of what I’m reading right now.