That is how you do it, my friends. That, dammit, is HOW YOU DO IT! I want the party planning committee over at DC to go out and buy Siege. Don’t mess with the crossovers if you don’t want to, but look at the mini. That is how you do an event. After finishing issue #4, my love for the current state of Marvel and the promise of awesome stories in the future has just been blown through the roof.
Let’s tally this up, list style.
Likes
Just about everything Ares was involved with, including:
His speech to the H.A.M.M.E.R. agents
His realization that he was on the wrong side
His attack on Osborn
His death
That was Oh Shit Moment #1
Oh Shit Moment #2 when you see the reflection of Cap’s shield in Osborn’s faceplate
Oh Shit Moment #3 when you realize that the Void is in control, and you wonder how long he’s actually been in control
Captain America not recognizing Taskmaster
Tony taking over Osborn’s armor
Oh Shit Moment #4 when The Void takes out Asgard
Osborn with his face painted green
Spidey clocking Osborn
Iron Man’s outside-of-the-box approach to using the helicarrier as a bullet
I think Steve as the new head of S.H.I.E.L.D. (c’mon, with him in charge it’s GOTTA be renamed back to that) is genius. I’ve been enjoying Bucky as Cap and would have been put off with two Caps running around. I think this new deal is perfect.
Dislikes
This didn’t actually turn into a dislike until I thought about it for a bit, but Ares and Loki’s deaths are pretty meaningless. What is it for a god to die? They were both good scenes and gave weight to the moment (and to the Sentry/Void’s power), but really, they’re gods. How long until we see at least Loki return? I can actually see Ares staying dead, but Loki is THE baddie for Thor. He’s gotta come back some time.
I didn’t like Loki’s mea culpa. With what he said at the end of Siege: Loki when he’s talking with Mephisto, he’s graduated from simple (is anything simple with him?) mischief to mayhem. The total destruction of Asgard was the epitome of mayhem. I get that the realization that his whole plan went tits up was the catalyst for the heroes becoming super-duper powered, but that lasted for about three pages and accomplished jack-squat.
In the end, I thought that the death of The Void was too simple. All the power that was thrown at it earlier, and all it took was Thor cutting loose with some lightning? There’s been speculation that the Void was only killed because he wanted to die, and I’m okay with that. I’m not necessarily happy with how it happened, but I’m okay with the end result.
The main thing I liked about this mini was that you could enjoy it with only these 4 issues. That’s refreshing. The specials and tie-in issues expanded on what we saw, but they weren’t necessary to enjoy the mini. And yeah, there were some storytelling flaws, but I think they can take a backseat to the overall goodness of what we got.
I’m excited for the future of Marvel Comics. I don’t know where it’s headed, but I think I’m going to enjoy finding out.
Wow. I take two weeks off and I come back to a week that’s probably got as many comics to read as the past two weeks combined. Well, let’s get to it.
Avengers
Well, if nothing else, the storyline “Two Americas” wrapped up more or less nicely and neatly. Granted, no body means no death, so I’m sure we can expect crazy Captain America to show up in the future, but Falcon and Bucky/Cap saved the day and ended up pretty much unscathed. I’m a bit torn as to what to hope for with the future of this comic. I like Bucky/Cap, and I feel he’s earned the mantle. This is a legacy character who I got into on the ground floor with…well, not when he FIRST started being Bucky, but when he was brought back as the Winter Soldier. I’m okay if Steve/Cap only shows up in the Avengers. But, if we have to suffer back-up stories, I’d rather see two caps in the book than Nomad. That was just kind of brutal to endure. The tone was so different from the main story that it was just jarring and hard to get into.
I have absolutely no problem with books that are more talk and less action. I’m totally okay with that, but up to a point. The talk needs to still move the book. That’s where books like The Walking Dead fail, and where Invincible Iron Man thrives. This issue was Tony talking…a lot…but it didn’t keep the status quo. The talk moved the book and the plot along wonderfully. Tony Stark is back. Iron Man is back (“Who wants to ride in a stupid helicopter anyways?”). I can’t even begin to fathom where this book is going, and I’m so excited for the new journey it promises. For the last 25 months, this book has been one of the best books on the shelves, and I don’t see that ending any time soon.
Fall of the Hulks
Well, Fall of the Hulks: Red Hulk ended pretty well, and it’s got the failure of the Intelligencia all set up. There was actually precious little of the Red Hulk in the issue, but what he did was pretty important. I’d like to see him go up against Professor Hulk (I think that’s the correct name for the merged personalities of Banner and the other Hulks). Both are strong, but where Prof. is smart, Red Hulk is crafty. It’s been made painfully clear these past few months that crafty tends to beat smart.
Hulked-Out Heroes was both a misleading title and a big waste of time. First of all, there’s one Hulked-Out hero, not multiples. It’s all about Hulkpool and his quest through time to kill Deadpool. And it’s not even “our” time, just an alternate timeline. So he has this wacky adventure and returns to help out Red Hulk, and nothing at all was accomplished. Waste. Of. Time.
Second Coming
Peter David is one of my favorite comic book writers, and I know that he likes to throw out a some pretty cool “Holy shit!” moments, but I’m not buying the end of X-Factor. I’m calling dupes. They’re all dupes in that vehicle, just made up to look like Longshot and Rictor and whoever else was in the vehicle. Other than that, this was another great issue. I liked how Bastion was controlling Trask, and the beginning of the book DID throw me for a bit of a loop.
With the little skirmishes between the X-Men and Bastion’s various minions going pretty well, you knew things would get absolutely horrible once the other shoe dropped. And if you don’t count Karma’s injury and Ariel’s (who?) death, X-Force is definitely where the shoe drops. Cerebra has already been knocked out of commission, and now Bastion cuts off communication between the mutants. Then he locates and goes after Hope. Rogue does a pretty awesome job of being bad ass, but she gets her but handed to her. We get another death (really…who was Ariel?) this issue, and it’s pretty major. I won’t spoil it, but Craig Kyle and Chris Yost do a great job of giving the death meaning and weight. It wasn’t pointless, like most of the deaths in Blackest Night. This will be felt for quite some time. I’d also like to give some kudos to artist Mike Choi and colorist Sonia Oback. While the art in this series has always been top notch, I’ve often complained that the coloring was way too dark and made the book a bit difficult to understand. No such complaint with this issue. Choi kept up the quality art that we came to expect from Clayton Crain, and Oback’s colors made everything pop out, even the darker pages with Wolverine’s group. This might be my favorite X-related book being published at the moment, or at least tied with X-Factor.
Siege
So between Mighty Avengers and New Avengers, we learn that in the final issue of Siege, Loki will fight the Void and aid the Avengers by granting them a power upgrade via the Norn Stones. Dammit! Stop the spoilers! Also, all the tech stuff that Pym was spewing just went over my head, therefore I didn’t much care for it. I think I kind of liked him better when he was a whiny bitch.
Unless I completely misunderstood what happened, and I don’t think I did, Bendis just ruined the final issue of Siege for everyone in New Avengers. So Loki takes the Norn Stones away from Parker, gives their powers to the Avengers, and they kick the crap out of the Sentry. I guess that’s how Siege ends. Thanks Bendis. I hope you have something else in that issue that redeems this massive spoiler. And lately this shouldn’t even be titled New Avengers. This has been more about the Hood for quite a while now. Looks as though that’s about over, though. I’m just kinda pissed about the Siege thing, though.
Well, the events in Siege: Secret Warriors were not what I was expecting. Phobos is a god. I figured he’d go after the Sentry when he found out his dad had been killed, not beat a bunch of Secret Service agents up and leave a note for the president. And the stuff between Nick Fury and Captain America just seemed forced and out of place. Especially when Fury stopped fighting to have a drink. I think this has been by far the weakest one-shot to come out of this event.
The action was light in Thor, but the set-up for the next issue (or the final issue of Siege, maybe) is set up and dripping with eventual mayhem. Kelda and the rest of the Asgardians get their second wind, and Loki admits to pretty much everything. He’s exiled, but think no one would have blamed Balder if he had just jammed a sword through his throat. I really like that the focus hasn’t been just on Thor, but on Asgard in general. I don’t find Thor all that interesting, but what we’ve seen lately has just been fascinating.
Well, this was an excellent end to an excellent chapter of the Thunderbolts. I was surprised that the end also had it set up for the new status quo, with Luke Cage in charge. I’m expecting some more good stories from this title. But looking back at this issue, again, it was excellent. Quicksilver handing Mr. X his ass. Ant-Man growing up…huh…I just got that. Paladin tasking himself with protecting the Spear of Odin. I can’t wait to see who Cage keeps around on the new team, who is brought in, and how everything is handled. This book has been consistently awesome since Stark gave the reins of the team to Osborn.
Spider-Man
First off, I’d like to say how disappointed I was that Captain Universe turned out NOT to be Professor X. I think that was a deliberate mislead, and I fell for it. I seem to recall reading that Juggernaut was going to be in Luke Cage’s Thunderbolts. The ending of his story in this issue of Amazing Spider-Man would do well to feed directly into that, so I hope its referenced. This was a good little storyline to provide a bit of a breather before we get to the return of the Lizard next month. And the back-up this issue was a short and curiosity-piquing story that looks to lead right into what I’m assuming is the final piece of The Gauntlet before The Grim Hunt starts.
Ultimate
I liked most of Ultimate Avengers 2. I liked the Punisher cutting a swath through organized crime. I liked his methods. I even liked his capture. But then it just got weird. Now, I’m not a big fan of the Punisher. I’ve enjoyed his book from time to time, but that’s when it is smartly written, pretty much all of his current series before it went sideways and he was remade into Franken-Castle. But I think some of the character’s appeal comes from the fact that he’s not dependent on bells and whistles. Well, super bells and whistles. He’s a man with guns. He’s not a man with a…wait a minute, I’ve just invalidated myself. I liked his current series when he was using the…reclaimed…villain tech. But I just don’t like Shield outfitting him like a super-Punisher. It’s weird. And let’s not get into the pre-Banner Hulk. I’ll reserve judgment on that until we get a little more info on him next issue.
X-Related
All the deep Southern slang in Deadpool made it somewhat of a difficult read, but it was a well-done one-off issue. Are all of the other half-assed Deadpool titles put out to really make us appreciate this one more? This one wasn’t as full of the funny as it has been in the past, but it’s just so much more well-written than the others, and it uses his personalities better. I could live very happily without the other titles as long as this one was going strong.
There was a lot of talking framed by a bit of a fight and ruses and double crossing in Wolverine: Origins. This series has been nothing but double-crosses and sleights of hand for quite some time. It seems like this story is going to be one where, in the penultimate issue, all will be revealed. But it’ll be confusing until then, and the final issue will be a fight. It’s a good story technique, but it’s been happening a lot lately. It’s getting kind of old. Can’t we just get a straight story some time?
Random Marvel Books
I’m fascinated with Fantastic Four because it looks like something grand and wonderful is happening or about to happen, but I’ve got no clue what it is, and frankly, I’m totally confused. There’s no flow from one issue to the next, and that makes things a bit confusing when you know everything is supposed to be linked in some way. I’m prepared to be blown away, though, when this plan comes together.
I’ll say this about Marvel Zombies 5, at least they’re doing something different. I like that they’re visiting other Marvel realities, but I’m done with these zombies. I really hope that Stack and Howard are able to deliver this cure to Morbius and we can finally get past this zombie business.
Um, did Secret Warriors all of the sudden turn into a romance book? Nick and Contessa, Daisy and James, Yo-Yo and…other guy. The only interesting bit about this issue was the Viper stuff. Is Hickman borrowing an idea from Jim Krueger and Alex Ross? I’d have to dig my Earth X issues out, but I’m pretty sure Madame Hyrda showed up just like this. Now lets see if she’ll end up controlling people by putting octopi, a la Starro, on them.
Brightest Day
I like how a bunch of the Green Lantern Corps are standing up to the Guardians, but really, how often does that happen and how often does it change things? And the law they repealed is new, so that doesn’t count. It just seems like impotent posturing on the part of the Lanterns. But the epilogue to Blackest Night was still told well. Mogo and the Perennial Tree was a nice touch, as was Kilowog’s leave-of absence as drill instructor. It’ll be nice to see him on the front lines and maybe get another story or two devoted to him. And Guy and Kyle have some rebuilding to do. Here’s hoping for some more excellent stories about the Corps in the future.
Justice League/Society
So, Chesire’s a bit of a whore, right? Kid with Roy, kid with Catman. I like Justice League: The Rise of Arsenal story better than Green Arrow’s, but that might just be because I can sympathize with Roy as a father. With his past, though, I’m surprised that no one is worried about him and the pain meds. Relapse would be the first thing I’d think about in a situation like this.
I’m pretty confused with the events in this month’s Justice Society of America. I mean, I understand all that happened, I’m just having a hard time seeing the bigger picture, I guess. Were the deaths actually part of the big plan? Am I wrong in thinking that the end was pretty abrupt? And I hate being blatantly mislead by covers. I’m okay with being teased, but the cover was a big fat lie. In no way was that “T-Day.” I’m guessing, though, since Dr. Fate is still trapped outside of the power dampeners, that he’s going to be the one to save the day. He’ll allow everyone (or a select few) to travel back in time and stop the Darkness Engine. I betcha.
Last Stand of New Krypton
Okay, be sure to read Superman before Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton. I didn’t do that, but really, I wasn’t all that lost. I know I sound like a broken record, but really, I’m ready to move on from this over-long plot. And really, when this is over, it’s still not over. We’ve still got Lane to deal with. Gah.
Superman: Last Stand of New Krypton was nothing if not disappointing. Did it accomplish anything? Well, it got rid of Mon-El. It got Luthor pardoned. Superman is Superman again. Lane and his forces are still angling for a war against the Kryptonians, which Zod is all to happy to facilitate. Brainiac is…somewhere with Brainiac 5. All this time spent for this storyline which was supposed to be so big…ALL THIS…and we’ve really got nothing. I can only hope that what comes next for Superman is better than what we’ve been given. I don’t see how it can be much worse.
War of the Supermen
Rather than creating another Superman section for Action Comics, I’ll put it here since it leads into War of the Supermen slightly. The writing for this book has been better than what’s been going on with Last Stand of New Krypton, but I’m liking the actual story less. I know how weird that is. I DO like how each book has focused on a different aspect of the Superman universe as Kal has been on New Krypton. I’d like to see that continue even after he returns to Earth.
As much as I didn’t like the ending (and most of the storyline in general) of Last Days of New Krypton, the Free Comic Book Day edition of War of the Supermen has me hoping for good things from this storyline. First of all, Zod isn’t wasting any time. While stalling Superman and admitting that he hasn’t changed at all, Zod has already unleashed his troops to invade Earth. So no beating about the bush; it’s on. The back-up that gave possible new readers a quick (very quick) recap on the past few year of Superman stories (minus the recent Last Stand of New Krypton) was well done and it set up the coming war nicely. Oh, please don’t let me down War of the Superman. I really want to like Superman, but the stories never hold me for long. Will this change that?
IDW Comics
I’ve got nothing against a relaunch of G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero. I enjoyed the comic immensely when I was a kid. But I got over my nostalgia for those Joes with the Devil’s Due series. Now I’m really loving the current take on the Joes. I see the market for this type of comic and don’t disparage against it, but right now it’s just not my thing.
As much as I’m enjoying G.I. Joe and G.I. Joe: Origins, those two titles are blown away by G.I. Joe: Cobra II. And apparently I’m not the only person who thinks that, because the title is now going from a mini to a monthly. If the quality keeps up, that’s awesome news. The only thing that’s going to confuse me is how to reconcile this with my collection’s spreadsheet, because the title will be dropping the II from its name. Oh well; insignificant. There’s so much intrigue and mystery surrounding Cobra, which is the opposite of what we’re getting from the main Joe book. I like being kept in the dark when I’m teased with tiny tidbits and the hope of something great is around the corner. So yea that this book is going monthly.
Ah, we’re treated with another wonderful issue of Locke & Key: Crown of Shadows. I loved how the book used nothing but splash pages for the first half of the book when Tyler was fighting the giant shadow monster. That was pretty damn cool. And I’m loving how it’s going to be these kids vs. this massive evil. That’s definitely something Hill is taking away from his father; shades of It. Kinsey and Tyler are also finally settling into their new school and community, and that’s awesome. Angst and melancholy is only fun to read for a bit; everybody needs some happiness and stability.
Image Comics
Walking Dead has been an odd little duck for quite a while now. I get that the book isn’t about the zombies, but about this group of people trying survive in this new world. So there’s not a lot of action, and there is a lot of talking. And this issue, along with a lot of recent issues, keeps reiterating the same things over and over again until you get to the final, shocking panel. It always makes me want to get into the next issue, but I’m always disappointed…until that final, shocking panel. I do like the twist, though. After all the worry and skepticism and pessimism about this new place they’ve been welcomed into, our group may actually turn out to be the bad guys.
Before I get to the reviews and thoughts on last week’s comics, I’d like to take a moment to mention my excitement about something. Here is an excerpt taken from an article on Comic Book Resources regarding James Robinson’s current plans:
“James said he has no intention of ever bringing his fan favorite character, Jack Knight, back, but that if he did, it would have to be a big event and not something like the extra/final issue of “Starman” that was recently released.”
While I’m disappointed to hear that there aren’t any plans for Jack Knight, I’m pleased to know that Robinson would want it to be something big and not gimmicky.
“The upcoming "Shade" series will be 12 issues, but more will come if the need is there. The series will be broken down into three-issue arcs, with every fourth issue a "Times Past." Robinson wants to make sure the first 12 issues are perfect before he tries to continue on with the character in an ongoing. While he couldn’t reveal much, he did mention that the artist for the first arc is both highly regarded and an interesting choice that fans might not expect, but he can’t say who she is.”
This is the news that got me excited. I’ve always thought that a Shade series written by Robinson would be a no-brainer. The possibilities are endless, what with his age and the mystery surrounding him. He’s a virtual blank slate, even with all the attention Robinson paid to him in his Starman series. The only thing that would have made me more excited about the news would be hearing that Tony Harris would be providing cover art.
Okay, on to reviews.
Necrosha-X
So, that’s the finale in X-Force. Not bad, but the usual complaint still applies, and I assume that it will until a new artist is found. Not that I’m calling for one. I like Crain’s work when I can make out what it is, and the darkness really does fit the title. My main problem with this story is something I’m going to tackle more in Blackest Night #8 because it upset me more there than it did here, but that’s the mass resurrection of dead characters. I’m assuming though, as opposed to what happened in Blackest Night, the ones who escaped Selene’s destruction are still technically dead. I guess there are a bunch of mutant zombies running around now. But how will the demise of Selene affect their “programming”? Will the resurrected good guys go back to being good? Hmm, something to ponder.
Realm of Kings
Well, Medusa’s a bitch, isn’t she? If it hadn’t been for the fact that she beat the crap out of Gorgon, I’d think that Maximus is playing her. I like the take over in Imperial Guard at how Gladiator is handling being thrust into the political spotlight, rather than how Medusa has been handling it in Realm of Kings: Inhumans. I imagine that all of this will come back and bite her in the ass when Black Bolt returns, because you know he will. If Necrosha-X and Blackest Night has taught us anything (and really, comics during the last 30 years) is that nobody stays dead, not even Bucky.
Second Coming
I probably should have read all the X-Men books from the end of House of M until X-Men: Second Coming. I know the general details of what has happened, but I know nothing of specifics, and I think those would help a bit. Is it too much to ask that, for a few months at least, we lay of the events? Necrosha-X ends this week, and the Nation X banner just came off the books. We’ve still got Siege going on and Fall of the Hulks. Is there no time to just take a step back and relax? Eh, I guess that’s what the Kitty Pride story in Uncanny was for. Anyways, this issue does a good job to show us the villains and let us know the main thrust of the story: Hope and Cable are back and the bad guys want to kill Hope in order to destroy mutants for ever (wow, subtle much?). It’d be a lot easier to root for hope if we knew HOW she was going to save mutant-kind; fictional faith can only keep me interested in a story for so long.
Siege
Yet another issue of Dark Wolverine that didn’t actually happen. I feel so cheated when books do that. And how strong are his claws? I wasn’t under the impression that they were laced with adamantium like his daddy’s are. Aren’t they just bone? Is that enough to gut an Asgardian? So have we actually learned anything about Daken? I’m not so sure we have.
New Mutants was an odd little book. It carried the Siege banner, but didn’t actually impact the storyline. Remember when Osborn had the Avengers attack the X-Men and Moonstar went to Hela to ask for assistance? Well, Hela is calling due the marker now that a bunch of Asgardians are dying. This is actually a story that can be passed up by both New Mutant readers and readers of Siege…unless you’re a big fan of Thor and his mythos, then I guess you’d want to check this out. Casual readers, though, can bypass this.
Spider-Man
Raise your hands if you think that that is Professor X in the Captain Universe garb at the end of Amazing Spider-Man? Yeah, me too. This is yet another solid issue of Amazing Spider-Man, and the stories have really been harkening back to when I first got into comics, and Spidey specifically. There’s no mystical Spider-totem mumbo jumbo, no clones, and no organic web-shooters. This is a down-on-his-luck hero who fights the good fight. While there was no actual fighting to speak of in this issue, we got Spidey being all altruistic with trying to help the Juggernaut (of all people) out. I also like that the editorial boxes have been reinstated over the past few years. I never understood why they were removed.
X-Men
Is it too much to hope that Deadpool Corps is better than Prelude to Deadpool Corps? This mini was pretty bad. And we still don’t know what enemy the group is facing. At least we know that it’s of cosmic importance and who was responsible for tasking Deadpool with recruiting his corps.
I’m not quite sure what the point of the latest issue of Wolverine: Origins was. I assume Mariko or her death will play some part in this new storyline, otherwise we just got a recap of things we should have already known. I felt really cheated by the issue. And I miss Doug Braithwaite’s art. Scot Eaton wasn’t bad, just not what I wanted. And Daken shows up to help him out with whatever is coming next. Really? Does something happen during the end of Siege to where they can stand each other? THAT needs an explanation.
Other Marvel
I’ve never been much of a Cloak and Dagger fan, but this one-shot had a really solid story with some nice art. It wasn’t ground-breaking and a must-read, but it wasn’t a pile of crap, either. Lately, it seems like everything I’ve read has been at one end of the spectrum with no room for the middle. Sometimes, and nice middle-of-the-road story is all you need. We were quickly reintroduced to Cloak and Dagger, found out that they are not in fact mutants, and probably set them up for a new mini. Kudos to Stuart Moore and Mark Brooks for such a solid one-shot.
Was the irony intended in Fantastic Four when Medusa said, “Black Bolt has a saying.” No. No he doesn’t. And when a rocket is launched to the moon from the heart of New York City, where does the first stage fall to? When launched from Florida, the boosters or whatnot falls into the ocean, right? When Reed announces first stage separation, where does that first stage fall to? As for the story itself, it doesn’t suffer quite as much as the previous two issues of having too grand a scope in too little of a package. But where is this city traveling from that it hasn’t heard about the death of Black Bolt? Or are they viewing him as some sort of messiah figure? I think I’m going to need a massive, dumbed-down recap before Hickman gets to his big storyline that he HAS to be working on. This all has to be leading up to something great.
Blackest Night
This final issue of Blackest Night was a steaming pile of crap. Y’know, I should expect stuff like this from massive crossovers by now, but I still have hope. They almost always sound awesome and promising up front, then fall flat. Also, whenever there’s a main mini with other books that tie into it, I hate how the main book is usually filled with gaps that you HAVE to pick up the other books for. I’ve noticed that being more of a problem with DC than Marvel, as far back as Crisis on Infinite Earths, but especially horrible with events like Millennium, War of the Gods and Invasion. And real quick, let me say that Ivan Reis did a great job of providing definition and clarity to the amount of characters Geoff Johns made him vomit onto the page. There were just way too many characters in this, but Reis did an admirable job with it. No, I blame Johns for dropping the ball on this crapfest. Johns did a relatively good job at explaining why the formerly-deceased heroes became Black Lanterns, and then they just happened to become White Lanterns when Hal merged with the Entity? Why not when Sinestro did it? And now, thanks to the white rings, all the Black Lanterns are now alive? That’s ridiculous. Did that need to happen? EVERYBODY’S alive again? It’s stupid. It’s just stupid. There, I said it. And the line Hal said at the end, “I think dead is dead from here on out.” Sure, like we haven’t heard that before. That used to be the mandate over at Marvel, too, and that didn’t last. Sigh, at least it’s over…until Brightest Day starts, I guess.
Justice League/Society
James Robinson did an AMAZING job in Justice League this month of making sure all the characters are where they need to be for other books. It ended up whittling down a daunting line-up into just a team of four. I’m okay with that. It was too crowded and too Titans-centric to begin with. I hope that when all is said and done, Robinson picks a concrete line-up and sticks with it. There seems to have been a lot of turn-around lately. I don’t know what I think of the Multiverse angle yet. We’ll see.
Wait, did I miss something? When was the last time the Justice Society fought the Fourth Reich? Lighting seemed to know them, so it had to have been relatively recently, but I don’t recall them EVER fighting them, at least not since Geoff Johns brought the team back to popularity years and years ago. As for the current battle, well, I’m kind of tired of Mr. Terrific flaunting his terrificness around. What I enjoyed was the last few pages, the planning stages of a breakout that’s going to happen where the heroes, I’m assuming, will attempt to go back and alter the past. I liked the interactions and attention to detail (Michael’s beatings, using and disposing of toilet paper, etc.). After a ho-hum start, this could turn into a pretty decent story.
Last Stand of New Krypton
To rank the three stories in this issue of Adventure Comics, I’d have to put the Car-Vex story on top, with the Legion story following and the Superboy/girl story a distant third. That was just a bit too sappy and sugary for my tastes, what with bringing all the Kryptonians (sort of) together to fight the common enemy. It had to happen, but I don’t have to like it. I liked the Brainiac story for what it was, a comparison of Brainiacs throughout history. As much as I like Superman, though, I don’t like that he’s so important to all of time. His death by Brainiac destroys the universe? Whatever. But the Car-Vex story, a story about treachery and sacrifice, was definitely the high point of the issue. In such a small amount of pages we see Officer Romundi forced to betray one of her own and we’re shown why it hurts so much. Good job.
Red Circle
As with the Shield a week or so ago, I find that I’m liking The Web, rather enjoying it, but I can’t find any one reason. The art is good…not great, but good. Same with the writing, the characters and the plot. I’m a little disappointed, though, that the bit I enjoyed most was actually the inclusion of Oracle and Kitcat. I don’t mind that these books and characters have now been folded into the DCU, but you’d think they’d be good enough to stand on their own.
Other Stuff
This issue of G.I. Joe: Cobra II has thoroughly confounded me. I thought Chameleon and Le Tene were the same person. I Chameleon was masquerading as Le Tene to find Chuckles. I guess I don’t remember the first mini all that well, or came to an incorrect conclusion at the end of it. I should probably reread it. I thought Chuckles speech to Chameleon in his camp was very generic. “I’m a rebel. I’ve seen it all and my way is the only way.” It could have been from any buddy cop movie with a tough-as-nails system bucker and wide-eyed rookie. I am loving, though, seeing the more clandestine side of Cobra. I like this part of the reboot the most. All the cloak and dagger and mystery. The Joes are giving just about everything up to the reader, while Cobra is cloaked in this air of secrecy. That’s what is keeping me coming back for more.
Okay, I think I’m getting it. Irredeemable is heroes against THE hero, and Incorruptible is THE villain versus other villains. As an idea, I like it. As it is, though, it’s just falling flat. Both series are. If dude wants to be a hero, go after the Plutonian. Fighting your old buddies won’t do crap if the Plutonian is still going to kill everybody else.
Not a whole lot to look forward to today, but what there is promises to be pretty damn amazing. Buncha books from some big events.
Avengers
Two stories in Avengers vs. Atlas, and both of them seemed to be fillers. Both teams pooled forces to take down the Hulk, and all it took was a song by Venus. Other than that, the only point was to try and understand the time fluctuations, which really didn’t happen. The back-up was amusing, but just pointless. It seemed like it would be more at home in an annual or an anthology book.
Although Spider-Woman was probably one of my least favorite Brian Michael Bendis books, it was still a book that I thought could have ended up being pretty darn good. I liked the idea of Jessica hopping around the globe looking for Skrulls and other rogue aliens on Earth. But Maleev stretched himself too thin with this book and the corresponding motion comic, so we get this lackluster mini, instead. I hope we’ll see Jessica as an agent of S.W.O.R.D. revisited at some point in the future.
Deadpool
I’m happy I stuck with Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth. While not the laugh-a-minute book that the main DP book is, it’s still gotten very entertaining. I think I like him fawning over Dr. Betty and Professor Veronica (yeah, I get it…but Peter David did it better in Incredible Hulk). Now, are we supposed to assume that the gang brought Headpool back to the wrong zombie infested dimension, since a whole and “healthy” zombie Deadpool showed up? That’s what I’m going with. And who’s the guy with the sword?
Prelude to Deadpool Corps is just…no. No no no. I get Lady Deadpool. I was somewhat amused by Kid Deadpool. Dogpool though? No. No no no.
Doomwar
It’s definitely war (DOOMwar) in Wakanda as the Dora Milaje make the Spartans look like a Boy Scout troop and Shuri and T’Challa carve their way through any Desturi they find in the palace. Doom has apparently killed all who were with Ororo except for T’Challa’s mother, but by the time T’Challa reaches Doom, she’s nowhere to be found…and neither is the vibranium. Ooh, that’s gotta hurt. I hope we get to find out how Doom got past that final lock. It was supposed to be the trickiest.
Fall of the Hulks
I like how Hulk parallels Incredible Hulk each month. And having them come out the same week works well for that, too. Hulk follows Red Hulk and Incredible Hulk follows banner, and they pretty much end the same. Rulk teases us about his identity this issue (I still think it’s Talbot), letting us know that Banner knows who he is, and then he infiltrates the Intelligencia’s helicarrier (which I thought was gold). A bunch of heroes also show up, as well as Deadpool, and by the end of the issue they’re all Hulked out. So Fall of the Hulks is now over, and World War Hulks starts next month. I’m still entertained, so I’ll still be looking forward to it.
Incredible Hulk was pretty confusing. I get the end, it’s just everything that led up to it. The problem with comics that contain a lot of explosions is that’s it’s difficult for the artist to make everything else around those explosions clear. How much of this story actually happened in Banner’s head, and when was he captured by the Intelligencia? Was it at the point where everybody got turned into Hulks, or is that part of his dream? And assuming that the Hulkification of the soldiers actually happened, how did that come about? Is the Intelligencia actually working for the military, or is this some rogue agenda by Talbot and Ross (is he still dead?)? The answers to these questions better make sense, or I’m going to feel extremely cheated.
Realm of Kings
The thing I liked least about this storyline was the name: Realm of Kings? I guess I just don’t get it. Is that what the invading force is from? Eh. Realm of Kings: Inhumans was a good story, mainly about a reluctant leader and his former comrades. This issue brought it all together and really made the impending invasion seem like a threat. It looks as though Thanos is going to be the next big bad before the invasion begins. He’s been a good foe in the past (assuming that he’s going back to his evil roots), so this could be a good little intermission.
Good stuff happening in Guardians of the Galaxy. Well, good stuff for the reader, not so much the Guardians, or at least half of them. Phylla keeps getting pulled in all sorts of directions and ends up releasing the inhabitant of a familiar cocoon. Familiar if you know anything about Warlock. Of course, there’s a bit of a twist. A nice one, too. Also, Peter proves again why he’s the leader of the motley group as he secures a seat on the Galactic Council for the Guardians. This has been, by far, the best book during this whole Realm of Kings storyline.
I don’t like it when characters come back from the dead as a past version of themselves, so I don’t think I’m going to like Namorita’s return in Nova. I already don’t like that Tony Stark’s rebooted brain is from before the Civil War (second time he was replaced by a younger version of himself), and now we’ve got a pre-Stamford ‘Nita back in the Marvel Universe. And really, was that the whole point of this Sphinx story? To bring her back? Her? I get bringing Steve Rogers back, and Thor, and Superman and Batman and all the important people, but her? And next month has to do with Thanos, who had a pretty good death during Annihilation, so sure, let’s just bring all the dead people back, even the crappy ones.
Siege
Well, the revelation in Dark Avengers that it was the Sentry/Void that took out Doom in the Siege: Cabal one-shot was kind of anti-climactic. I was hoping for someone more surprising, more off the wall. Sure, it makes sense, but, I don’t know, I was expecting more of a jaw-dropping reveal. Anyways, you would assume that THAT would be the big thing in this issue, but nope. That’s not even secondary, it’s an afterthought. No, Bullseye completes the assignment that Osborn gave him last issue, and, wow, the Sentry/Void is incredibly stupid if he’s going to take Osborn’s word that Bullseye had nothing to do with Lindy’s death. Surely nobody on the rest of the team buys it. And is it just me, or does the Void’s outline and mouth look a bit like Onslaught? I’ve read the Sentry’s Wikipedia entry, and I think I’m more confused about the character than I was before. Could the Sentry actually be Onslaught? That would be a twist.
I expected a little more from the latest issue of Siege. I expected more of an outrage at what Sentry did to Ares. I expected a more inspiring splash page of Cap’s shield smashing into Osborn. Those complaints aside, it was still a good issue, and it managed to surprise me. Seeing Iron Man back was great. The enormity of the Sentry’s power is what surprised me, and having him be the actual “big bad” of the story was a nice twist. Osborn’s green-painted face was nice, and I would have felt cheated if Spidey wouldn’t have gotten his punch in. It’s all over next month, so I’m expecting a HUGE battle, somewhat larger in scope than the Asgardian battle we were shown.
This issue of Siege: Embedded pretty much dealt with Ben Urich and his photo-journalist friend running away from H.A.M.M.E.R. goons. No Asgardians, least of all Volstagg, appear in this issue, so the fun of last issue is gone. I was surprised with how quickly the ending came up and thought, “This is it?” I hope the last issue is a little more satisfying.
Spider-Man
Amazing Spider-Man was truly amazing this week, amazing and heart-wrenching and powerful. I’m glad we’re getting “stuck” with the original Rhino, but I feel incredibly bad for the guy. I know he blames Spidey for Oksana’s death, but I also wonder if he’ll go after the Kravinoffs since they put Aleksi in the new Rhino’s sights. This and the other Rhino story have probably been my favorites out of the Gauntlet. I hope he has a large role in what’s to come.
X
I think I’ll give X-Factor Forever a chance since it’s only a limited series, but my X-Factor will always be the government-sanctioned reboot team written by Peter David. That’s the era that I got into the X-books, and although I’ve caught up with just about all the previous issues, Guido and Jamie and Pietro and Rahne and Lorna and Alex will always have a place in my heart. But this mini looks promising. Apocalypse seems to be the main villain, and he’s recovered Hodge from the Genosha wreckage to apparently meld him with Master Mold. I think I can dig on that, ‘cause that’s what’ll keep me coming back. As for X-Factor, well, I like the characters as they are now. Seeing them like this, especially a younger Iceman, is just kind of weird. But we’ll see how it goes.
It seems like, in every book lately where somebody has a plan, that plan is actually to tell his enemy the plan because it’s not actually the plan, while keeping everyone (including the reader) in the dark. So how far back in Wolverine: Origins did Wolvie go to Deadpool and The Answer for this brilliant plan of his? I’m getting to hate this little device. But maybe this means we’ll get a nice Wolverine/Deadpool team-up next issue. That could be fun.
X-Men: Legacy focuses on Rogue and her duties on Utopia as a counselor and mentor. She ends up siphoning off a bit of the Cuckoos’ telepathy and wanders the island. There’s a run-in with Gambit and Magneto, all the while focusing on trying to help Indra deal with how his powers impact his faith. It was a really well-written issue. There’s a bit of humor while Rogue tries to feel her way around the Cuckoos’ telepathy, but it’s also somewhat of a touching issue. You feel that Rogue really belongs on the island as a mentor to all of these young kids.
Other Marvel Books
Lots of reminiscing to be done in Hercules: Fall of an Avenger. And since the reminiscing is about Hercules, it’s humorous with a heartfelt quality. Thor tells a tale about drinking, Namor about fighting, and Alflyse about, well, the Elven Tickler. The Agents of Atlas back-up deals with Venus and Namora traveling the globe and putting Herc’s mortal assets to rest. It’s a right and proper tribute to the Prince of Power with a bit of a twist regarding Amadeus Cho’s next step in life.
Wait, has the Golden Age Vision shown up before this? Until he mentioned the Thinker, I just assumed we were seeing a conversation between he and the Torch in the past. The art in this book is ugly, and the Mad Thinker looked like a doughy tub of lard. As for the story itself, I guess this has all got to do with Nazis. These are Golden Age heroes, after all. I wish that the art was a bit better, because bad art makes it hard to enjoy a story sometimes.
Blackest Night
As with books with lots of explosions, books with lots of characters can also become quite confusing. Green Lantern Corps has corps members from all across the ring spectrum teaming up to take out Black Lanterns in Earth orbit and the black power battery in CoastCity, so there’s no shortage of soldiers in this book. I sometimes forget that Ice was dead for a while, so it came as a bit of a surprise when her black-ringed self tussled with Guy for a bit. And after shaking off his own black ring possession, Kyle had to relive his first failure as a Green Lantern, the death of his then-girlfriend Alex. We then get to see where the Anti-Monitor has been during this whole shebang, and Guy comes up with a pretty clever solution to the problem surrounding the Anti-Monitor. Too bad it doesn’t go quite according to plan. While I’ve been enjoying Blackest Night, I’m ready for this book to be scaled down a bit. There are just too many characters running across the pages and it can be a bit difficult to keep up at times.
Fall of Green Arrow
The only time I read Green Arrow regularly was when Kevin Smith brought him back. And just that first storyline. I never much cared for him. Or for Hawkeye, for that matter. Not much into bow and arrows (although Ollie is the closest thing to a good character on Smallville). But since I stuck through Cry for Justice, I thought I’d check out the ramifications in Fall of Green Arrow. The Rise and Fall one-shot was pretty bad, but this issue was pretty good. I have no doubt that Ollie will be redeemed and all his sins forgiven, but I’m liking his fall so far.
Last Stand of New Krypton
Supergirl picked up right where Last Stand of New Krypton left off, with Brainiac attacking and the Legion arrested. There’s lots of punching in this book, and Supergirl and Mon-El share a surprising kiss. Kara also gets her mom to pardon the Legion, allowing them and her to head to Brainiac’s ship to free the rest of the cities that have been bottled. I guess it was a good story; I just don’t care any more. DC has run this story into the ground, and now that it’s about over, I just don’t care.
Red Circle
Not a lot to say about the Shield. It’s a very solid book, but not all that remarkable. I like how the hero is just a soldier who follows orders and chain-of-command while not trying to overshadow the non-enhanced soldiers. I also like the flashbacks to when Higgens just got the suit and was actually doing normal training rather than just letting the suit do all the work. As for the backup, I don’t recall the Fox from the Impact books…although I didn’t last more than a handful of issue past the beginning of the run. I’m not a fan of Michael Oeming, though, and his artwork really takes me out of the story.
Vertigo
I got American Vampire for the Stephen King story, and it was mediocre at best. I didn’t even bother with the main story (or is this an anthology?). I’m slightly burned out on vampires, or at least entertainment that’s focused on them. I’ve watched all seven seasons of Buffy about three times, same for Angel. I just finished the second season of True Blood and I’ve got the books, but I haven’t read them yet. I tried to read Twilight, but it was a horribly written book and I couldn’t get through a quarter of it. I think I only lasted about 10 minutes into the movie. So, yeah, I think I’m going to take a rest on vampires until this summer when True Blood returns.
Other DC Books
Okay, if anyone is going to revisit the destruction of CoastCity, Dan Jurgens is the man to do it. He was the one that destroyed it and brought Superman back, right? I still don’t like all this time-travel stuff because, as I’ve said before, it’s just impotent posturing. But Michelle is now back, and we get to see a grown-up Booster Gold. The scene with him and Rip was nice.
I know a lot of times the Demon’s rhyming is thrown out the window by writers who, I guess, just aren’t creative enough. JMS does a great job in Brave and the Bold of keeping the rhyming in while not making it sound hokey or ridiculous. I like that this was a bit of an unknown chapter in the lives of Aquaman and Etrigan, two different characters who apparently come together once a year to save the world for no accolades or recognition of any kind. Artist Jesus Saiz did a great job of conveying the scope of the impending tragedy as well as the power of Aquaman and Etrigan. Another great done-in-one issue. You don’t see a lot of those anymore.
Other Books
I LOVED the ending to Locke and Key: Crown of Shadows. Joe Hill has been crazy creative with coming up with different types of keys and the different things they did. And now the giant key? Just awesome. And Gabriel Rodriguez’s art is tight and clear, and he makes the shadows really come alive. It’s spooky. Also, Hill has really done a great job of making the three kids into strong, likeable characters. Like all good characters, though, they’re still a bit flawed and real…well, except for Bode, maybe. That’s a neat kid.
Okay, I buy the fact that initially Bette hid her affair from the group. I get it. She was ashamed, and she didn’t realize what Tony would end up doing. But once he started really going bat-shit crazy and murdering people in the thousands (millions?), I find it a bit difficult to believe that she wouldn’t have stepped up and said, “Here. Here’s how we stop him. Let’s just do it, I’ll tell you how this came to be after we’re done.” So Plutonian is just a kid throwing a tantrum, Samsara is actually possessed by the world’s most diabolical villains, Charybdis is now a power-hungry egomaniac, and Bette Noir is a bit of a slut. Is this book going to show how ALL heroes are really irredeemable? ‘Cause that would kind of suck. Sure, I like my heroes to be human, but I still like them to be heroes.
