Okay, you know the drill, and if you don't here it is: It's the Dose, it's not really "Weekly" at all, but it does present you with quick, spoiler-free reviews of however many comics I've managed to consume since the last time I posted.

This week, we will begin with a sort of "Weekly Dose Correction":

House of Mystery #19: Last time around, I erroneously indicated that my extremely brief "review" of HOM was for issue number 19. It was not, since 19 only just came out. By way of penance, I will give you a little more detail about this one. Things really come to a head in this issue, with the house surrounded by ghosts and invaded by worse. The mini-story this time around fills us in on what Cain's been up to since he became homeless, and Harry's problems seem to be accelerating. It's another great issue, with another easy "A" from me. Plus....it features the spine-chilling menace of...the Tent of Terror! Come on, people!

Black Widow: Deadly Origin #1: I gave this a shot because I've always thought this character could use a spotlight, and the cover looked cool. It was okay, and the art in the flashback sequences is great, but it was not $4.00 worth of comic book by any means. This gets a "C-", and it probably doesn't get me to come back for issue 2, either.

Secret Six #15: Gail Simone invites John Ostrander back to write a full issue focusing on Deadshot. Ostrander is the man who gave this character life, and that fact shines through nice and clear. The art by Calafiore is okay. His figures always looked really stunted to me, like we're just a step and a half away from this being a Lego video-game. Still, the story wins out. "A-"

Booster Gold #26:Ah, Blackest Night tie-ins, you have come for us all! It's Jurgens handling the "rise" of Black Lantern Ted Kord, and it is a well done issue, but the real action is obviously being saved for next time. For $4.00, I want more punch, please. Still, it's a "B+."

Doom Patrol #4: I did not buy issue 3 of this series because I just didn't care about the "black hole" bad guy thingy. However, this dreaded Blackest Night tie-in intrigued me, and I'm glad it did. Some great black lantern choices, and a very surprising one in particular keep this interesting. Also, the Metal Men back-up is just awesome. A cautious "B+" to this one.

Assault on New Olympus #1: I have no idea why this wasn't put out as just another issue of the Incredible Hercules book. It's extra-long, sure, but it doesn't have the impact that a "Special" one-shot should have, either. Lots of the trademark fun of the Van Lente/Pak chemistry is here, but the issue really feels a bit too heavy on the "set-up" and not enough on the "action." I liked it fine, but I gotta go with a "B" here.

X-Babies #1 and #2:Marvel Mini-Series experimentation project is go! This mini-series caught my eye online a while back, and I'm really enjoying it so far. Seems as though the Marvel comics I like best are the ones that exist outside or just to the left of the mainstream continuity. This is pure fun, and the retro back-ups are a nice feature, too. They're not the highest grade this week, but an "A-", combined with being such a great surprise, earns them the cover for this week's column.

Necrosha #1 and X-Force #21: Okay, so I was in NYC and needed something to read. Plus, the apparent total gall of Marvel to pull this story off right after DC's "Blackest Night" kind of amuses me. Now that I've read two issues? It's not bad at all. The story really has its own rationale, and the execution is pretty darned good. I could do without the sheer messiness of the X-Force art, but otherwise, this was good, guilty pleasure kind of fun. It gets a "B" in my book.

Hulk #16:I have been known to defend the pure brainless fun of this series in the past. I will not be doing that for this issue. The writing just sinks like a stone here, to levels of page-wasting shenanigans that I could never have expected. Maybe Jeph Loeb let his buddy Rob write this one on the sly? Hey, maybe Rob's been writing the whole series! That would be a pretty good trick, eh? Regardless, this issue gets a "D" for "Dumb."

Iron Man Armor Wars #1, #2, and #4:Yes, I needed something to read while I was out getting mall food court dinner on an errand run. And yes, I picked these up even though the place I was at was missing issue #3. Like I said about the X-Babies, there's just something I really like about these stand-alone, not-really-in-continuity Marvel Books. A writer I've never heard of (Joe Caramagna) and an artist I know and like (Craig Rousseau) turn this into a fun, classic Marvel superhero adventure, and even with issue 3 missing, I still had a blast with it. "A-"

That's the Dose for now, folks! See you next time.