Hey all, X back with his last contribution to the blog this week. This was a really light comic week for me, and as such, I have hardly anything to review for this post... Just two measly comics... Not only that, but JT doesn't have anything else to review! So basically, this post will consist of two reviews, one of which is a last issue! Since I'm not expecting anybody to read this, I'm just gonna blow through these as quick as can be.
Venom #35: Crazy Eddie confronts Flash at the High School Flash was teaching at, wanting a rematch of the prior night's festivities. Before things can get too explosive between the two, the Unnamed Alien from the past few issues pops up, attacking students and teachers alike. Eddie and Flash put their differences aside and team-up to destroy the Unnamed Alien. After fighting besides Flash, Eddie decides to leave Flash alone, but threatens that he'd return if Flash proved unable to control his symbiote. Hey, good stuff here! I enjoyed this story and really enjoyed the interaction between Eddie and Flash. I don't get what the hell was going on with the Unnamed Alien, as we learned nothing about it for three issues(not even it's name!), so I'm kind of perplexed as to why Cullen Bunn included it here. Besides that though, I have no real complaints. Score: 8 out of 10.
Dark Avengers #190(final issue): Basically the Dark Avengers manage to get back to their proper Earth thanks to Alternate Reed forcing the info out of the AIM agents who were wandering around for the past few issues. In the end, US Agent, Moonstone, Ragnarok, Trickshot and that Witch woman decide to remain as a team, while Skaar takes off(good riddance, bitch) and that Spider-Man lookalike gets stepped on. And that's about as much time as I want to take on this issue. The Dark Avengers trip home was way more complicated than I spelled out above, and included slivers of time... So you should be thankful I bottom lined it, 'cause it was all sorts of weird. I'm sad to say that I'm not going to miss this series... It's been treading water for a while, and the storyline with the alternate earth went on entirely too long for my liking. Oh well. Score: 6 out of 10.
And that'll do it for this week... Here's hoping next week is a bit more lively than this week's pitiful display. Until then? X out.
Showing posts with label Best of the Rest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best of the Rest. Show all posts
Monday, June 3, 2013
Monday, May 27, 2013
Best of the Rest! May 22nd edition.
Hey all, X here with the forth BotR post of May. How time flies... Anyway, I'll be doing only three reviews in this post(I know, only 3!?), while JT chips in with a few of his own... Or at least that's what I originally thought when I typed this up a few days ago! With JT nursing an injured hand, this is going to be an exceptionally brisk BotR post, since it'll only have my 3 reviews... So yeah, enjoy.
Daredevil #26: Wooo, I love this series!! The most important thing going on here is that after consulting with Foggy, DD realizes that the man behind all of his recent troubles is(drumroll, please), Bullseye!!! DD then manages to find the villain's base and defeat Lady Bullseye(!). This issue ends with DD approaching the iron lung containing the villain(Bullseye), with Ikari approaching DD from behind. Yup, this series is gold. Plain and simple. This was the second consecutive issue where I audibly said, "Holy shit!". In this issue, it was the page before the reveal when I realized what Foggy was drawing. Super, good, amazing stuff here. Score: 9 1/2 out of 10.
Teen Titans #20: This comic was bizarrely all about Trigon... Yep. Scott Lobdell was all, "You know what people want to read about in a comic book named 'Teen Titans'? A super old demon named Trigon." So yeah, we get Trigon's story, with a heavy emphasis on Raven. And in true Lobdell style, the Raven portions make little to no sense! He left Raven's mother alive so she could teach Raven humanity and love?! And then he STILL expected her to be all, "Yeah, cool. Let's destroy the earth and other relams, dad!" How does that even make sense!? Oh, and to top it all off, it looks like he also retconned the prior issue where Raven was controlling Tim, shifting that instead to one of Raven's brothers. So either a) editorial stepped in and told Lobdell he could no longer run with that story thread(and with DC's editors, that's a very real possibility), or b) Lobdell himself forgot he even did the Tim/Raven thing(also a very real possibility) . Anyway, Trigon's backstory somehow sets up next issue's confrontation between Trigon's sons and the Titans and Raven. This is such a headache to read every month... Score: 5 out of 10.
A+X #8: The first story is about Shadowcat and Spider-Woman trying to keep a magic meteorite away from AIM, Hydra and the Absorbing Man. Kitty actually allows Absorbing to touch the meteorite, thus gaining it's abilities, only so she could defeat the now powered Absorbing Man. Thus proving my long-time point that Kitty is an egotistical bitch. The second story has Hawkeye and Deadpool teaming up to rescue a restaurant owner from Captain Barracuda. Honestly, I should have hated this story, but I didn't... When it started I was thinking, "Hawkeye teaming with Deadpool?! Bah!" And yes, I did think, "Bah!" But by the end, the story had won me over. So yeah, not bad. Score: 7 out of 10.
Daredevil #26: Wooo, I love this series!! The most important thing going on here is that after consulting with Foggy, DD realizes that the man behind all of his recent troubles is(drumroll, please), Bullseye!!! DD then manages to find the villain's base and defeat Lady Bullseye(!). This issue ends with DD approaching the iron lung containing the villain(Bullseye), with Ikari approaching DD from behind. Yup, this series is gold. Plain and simple. This was the second consecutive issue where I audibly said, "Holy shit!". In this issue, it was the page before the reveal when I realized what Foggy was drawing. Super, good, amazing stuff here. Score: 9 1/2 out of 10.
Teen Titans #20: This comic was bizarrely all about Trigon... Yep. Scott Lobdell was all, "You know what people want to read about in a comic book named 'Teen Titans'? A super old demon named Trigon." So yeah, we get Trigon's story, with a heavy emphasis on Raven. And in true Lobdell style, the Raven portions make little to no sense! He left Raven's mother alive so she could teach Raven humanity and love?! And then he STILL expected her to be all, "Yeah, cool. Let's destroy the earth and other relams, dad!" How does that even make sense!? Oh, and to top it all off, it looks like he also retconned the prior issue where Raven was controlling Tim, shifting that instead to one of Raven's brothers. So either a) editorial stepped in and told Lobdell he could no longer run with that story thread(and with DC's editors, that's a very real possibility), or b) Lobdell himself forgot he even did the Tim/Raven thing(also a very real possibility) . Anyway, Trigon's backstory somehow sets up next issue's confrontation between Trigon's sons and the Titans and Raven. This is such a headache to read every month... Score: 5 out of 10.
A+X #8: The first story is about Shadowcat and Spider-Woman trying to keep a magic meteorite away from AIM, Hydra and the Absorbing Man. Kitty actually allows Absorbing to touch the meteorite, thus gaining it's abilities, only so she could defeat the now powered Absorbing Man. Thus proving my long-time point that Kitty is an egotistical bitch. The second story has Hawkeye and Deadpool teaming up to rescue a restaurant owner from Captain Barracuda. Honestly, I should have hated this story, but I didn't... When it started I was thinking, "Hawkeye teaming with Deadpool?! Bah!" And yes, I did think, "Bah!" But by the end, the story had won me over. So yeah, not bad. Score: 7 out of 10.
Monday, May 20, 2013
Best of the Rest! May 15th edition.
Hey all, X here to kick off what looks to be a pretty slim Best of the Rest post. Both JT and I had lighter than usual comic weeks, meaning we really don't have a load of books to look at. So yeah. But hey, JT(whose reviews will be in blue text) will probably grace us with more than the measly one review he gave us last week... Probably...
Nightwing #20: After some digging around, Nightwing manages to find the Prankster, who he suspects will be able to help him find Tony "The Man Who Killed Dick Grayson's Parents!" Zucco. However, the two get off on the wrong foot when Nightwing interrupts Prankster trying to kill a corrupt businessman. After a bit of a tussle, Nightwing ends up getting trapped in a glass box(really), with Prankster telling him the only way he'd escape was to remove his mask, thus revealing his identity. This comic was okay, I guess. I still think Prankster has some potential as a vigilante, even though he was coming dangerously close to becoming just another run of the mill villain. On the positive side, Tony "The Man Who Killed Dick Grayson's Parents!" Zucco only appeared on two pages, and that makes me happy. Score: 6 out of 10.
X-Factor #256: The team heads after Mephisto in an attempt to send him back to Hell. Meanwhile, Tier kills all the Hell-Lords Mephisto had locked up. Mephisto kills Shatterstar and Rictor before he is attacked by Tier. Before Tier can kill Mephisto, Guido kills Tier, which makes Guido the new king of Hell. Guido brings Monet back to life and then banishes her from his sight. So yeah, wow... This was a big miss for me... Guido as the devil? Tier, Shatterstar and Rictor dead? Mephisto unable to figure out to teleport away from Tier when he was attacked? Tier killing like 6 Hell-Lords in a small room? Yeah, bad, bad stuff here. Score: 4 out of 10.
FF #7: Wizard and his newest incarnation of the Frightful Four(himself, Blastaar, a brainwashed Medusa, and Bentley-23, who doesn't want to be there) attack the FF. Bentley-23 predictably betrays Wizard, which frees Medusa from Wizard's mind-control, leaving Wizard and Blastaar as the Not-So Terrible Two. After Wizard is defeated, Black Bolt takes him into custody for brainwashing his wife(AGAIN!) and decides to have words with him... Meh. The story didn't really do much for me, but dammit do I LOVE Mike Allred's artwork! Seriously, it's like the perfect art for a comic book, and you all know I don't usually care about art in a comic! So yeah, oddly enough, if not for the artwork, I'd probably have scored this comic lower. Score: 6 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #9: Hey, check it out, I'm still getting this comic! Weird... A mystery man is constructing gamma powered Crimson Dynamo units to be used in terrorist activities. The T-Bolts manage to take down a few of the units and are able to trace the units back to the man behind them, Elektra's brother. So yeah, I don't get why exactly I'm still collecting this series... I don't think I've given any issue a score over a 6! Methinks I'll be rectifying that when I get to the comic shop on Wednesday... Score: 5 out of 10.
Avengers: The Enemy Within #1: Yon-Rogg sends Captain Marvel and her teammates after various menaces to keep them distracted so he could steal the piece of the Psyche-Magnetron that CM had stored at her apartment. After saving her elderly neighbor from dinosaurs(way cooler than I just made it sound, actually), CM returns to her place with Spider-Woman and realizes that she had been burgled. Spider-Woman promises revenge. Finally, a good comic! Huzzah!!!!! Man this week has been brutal comic-wise for me... I enjoyed this one, and think it set-up the upcoming Avengers Assemble/Captain Marvel crossover nicely. This feels like an Avengers story should feel, which is a nice change of pace from Bendis and Age of Ultron... Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Iron Man #10: 451 tells Tony a story about how he first met Tony's father before Tony was born. Basically Tony's dad went searching for 451 after learning that he and his wife were unable to procreate. 451 then makes vague comments about Tony having more parents than he knew of... UGH!!! What the hell is happening here!? THIS is the story they think are going to grab movie-goers who just saw Iron Man 3?!? Really?! Come on, Marvel, this is a DC-esque bungle! You're better than this! Yeah, in case I haven't made it clear, I think this entire storyline is idiotic. Dumb, dumb, dumb. All I know is that we better discover that 451 was lying the whole time to be an ass or something. Anything else will be horrible. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Or, maybe JT won't review anything at all... Huh, go figure! I'm sure he'd blame his lack of reviews on me taking Nova #4, but don't buy JT's lame excuses! He's a slacker!! Slacker!!! On the plus side, unless he somehow manages to do -1 reviews next week, he'll definitely have more reviews next week than he did this one. But enough about that guy. Check back tomorrow for a Throwback post by yours truly. Until then? X out.
Nightwing #20: After some digging around, Nightwing manages to find the Prankster, who he suspects will be able to help him find Tony "The Man Who Killed Dick Grayson's Parents!" Zucco. However, the two get off on the wrong foot when Nightwing interrupts Prankster trying to kill a corrupt businessman. After a bit of a tussle, Nightwing ends up getting trapped in a glass box(really), with Prankster telling him the only way he'd escape was to remove his mask, thus revealing his identity. This comic was okay, I guess. I still think Prankster has some potential as a vigilante, even though he was coming dangerously close to becoming just another run of the mill villain. On the positive side, Tony "The Man Who Killed Dick Grayson's Parents!" Zucco only appeared on two pages, and that makes me happy. Score: 6 out of 10.
X-Factor #256: The team heads after Mephisto in an attempt to send him back to Hell. Meanwhile, Tier kills all the Hell-Lords Mephisto had locked up. Mephisto kills Shatterstar and Rictor before he is attacked by Tier. Before Tier can kill Mephisto, Guido kills Tier, which makes Guido the new king of Hell. Guido brings Monet back to life and then banishes her from his sight. So yeah, wow... This was a big miss for me... Guido as the devil? Tier, Shatterstar and Rictor dead? Mephisto unable to figure out to teleport away from Tier when he was attacked? Tier killing like 6 Hell-Lords in a small room? Yeah, bad, bad stuff here. Score: 4 out of 10.
FF #7: Wizard and his newest incarnation of the Frightful Four(himself, Blastaar, a brainwashed Medusa, and Bentley-23, who doesn't want to be there) attack the FF. Bentley-23 predictably betrays Wizard, which frees Medusa from Wizard's mind-control, leaving Wizard and Blastaar as the Not-So Terrible Two. After Wizard is defeated, Black Bolt takes him into custody for brainwashing his wife(AGAIN!) and decides to have words with him... Meh. The story didn't really do much for me, but dammit do I LOVE Mike Allred's artwork! Seriously, it's like the perfect art for a comic book, and you all know I don't usually care about art in a comic! So yeah, oddly enough, if not for the artwork, I'd probably have scored this comic lower. Score: 6 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #9: Hey, check it out, I'm still getting this comic! Weird... A mystery man is constructing gamma powered Crimson Dynamo units to be used in terrorist activities. The T-Bolts manage to take down a few of the units and are able to trace the units back to the man behind them, Elektra's brother. So yeah, I don't get why exactly I'm still collecting this series... I don't think I've given any issue a score over a 6! Methinks I'll be rectifying that when I get to the comic shop on Wednesday... Score: 5 out of 10.
Avengers: The Enemy Within #1: Yon-Rogg sends Captain Marvel and her teammates after various menaces to keep them distracted so he could steal the piece of the Psyche-Magnetron that CM had stored at her apartment. After saving her elderly neighbor from dinosaurs(way cooler than I just made it sound, actually), CM returns to her place with Spider-Woman and realizes that she had been burgled. Spider-Woman promises revenge. Finally, a good comic! Huzzah!!!!! Man this week has been brutal comic-wise for me... I enjoyed this one, and think it set-up the upcoming Avengers Assemble/Captain Marvel crossover nicely. This feels like an Avengers story should feel, which is a nice change of pace from Bendis and Age of Ultron... Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Iron Man #10: 451 tells Tony a story about how he first met Tony's father before Tony was born. Basically Tony's dad went searching for 451 after learning that he and his wife were unable to procreate. 451 then makes vague comments about Tony having more parents than he knew of... UGH!!! What the hell is happening here!? THIS is the story they think are going to grab movie-goers who just saw Iron Man 3?!? Really?! Come on, Marvel, this is a DC-esque bungle! You're better than this! Yeah, in case I haven't made it clear, I think this entire storyline is idiotic. Dumb, dumb, dumb. All I know is that we better discover that 451 was lying the whole time to be an ass or something. Anything else will be horrible. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Or, maybe JT won't review anything at all... Huh, go figure! I'm sure he'd blame his lack of reviews on me taking Nova #4, but don't buy JT's lame excuses! He's a slacker!! Slacker!!! On the plus side, unless he somehow manages to do -1 reviews next week, he'll definitely have more reviews next week than he did this one. But enough about that guy. Check back tomorrow for a Throwback post by yours truly. Until then? X out.
Monday, May 13, 2013
Best of the Rest! May 8th edition.
It's Monday, which means it's time for a brand spanking new Best of the Rest post. As usual, I'll bust out a few reviews, followed by JT, who will bust out a few reviews of his own, but in blue text. Considering the relatively small comic haul for both JT and myself, this post shouldn't be as long as the past couple of been. Okay, let's see which comic is up first for me...
Walking Dead #110: Rick takes a group of people to the Kingdom to meet Ezekiel and his group. Meanwhile, Jesus prevents Kal from betraying everybody to Negan and the Saviors. Michonne is initially pissed by Ezekiel's king act, but the two have a nice little heart-to-heart and seem to get along very well. Once we got past the Jesus stuff, this issue slowed way down. It does turn out that I like Ezekiel now! Kirkman did a great job of filling out his character, which means one of two things... Either a) he's going to die next issue, or b) he's going to betray Rick and company to the Saviors. Hopefully neither thing happens, but after reading as much of this series as I have? I would not be surprised. Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #4: AIM sends the stolen Iron Patriot armor loose, at which time it begins attacking individuals who had been targeted by America. To avoid a diplomatic incident, SHIELD sends Hulk to destroy the renegade armor. On top of that, SHIELD sends Nick Fury Jr, Mockingbird, Black Widow and Hawkeye to AIM Island to assassinate the Scientist Supreme. Meh, meh, and double meh. I swear, the name Secret Avengers is cursed for me... Regardless of who the writer is, or how much I enjoy their work, without fail, I can never get into this series... This one is getting dangerously close to the chopping block... Score: 5 1/2 out of 10.
Superboy #20: Dr. Psycho enlists Superboy's help in dealing with HIVE, which had sent agents after Psycho, who has gone rogue from them. Yeah, and that's it. Nothing much to say about this one, actually... It seems as if SB randomly bounces from one clandestine organization to another. Plus we all know Psycho is going to betray SB! There's one of the failings of the New 52, introducing a brand new character would work way better than slotting Psycho here, who will undoubtedly turn of SB. Score: 6 out of 10.
Ultimates #24: Cap learns that the leader of California was planning on blowing Sacramento up and heads there. Meanwhile, Iron Man escapes from the Californian leader and meets Cap in Sacramento Finally, Thor and Invisible Woman join the two and the four(okay, mainly Thor, Sue and Iron Man) manage to prevent the Stark Space Station from obliterating the city. This one ends with Cap deciding he didn't want to be president anymore since he was a soldier, not a politician. I enjoyed this one. We still have a threat in California and the West Coast Ultimates, and Cap has stepped down, which was pretty much a given. Good stuff here! Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Avengers Assemble #15AU: This takes place in Jolly Ol' London, where the only heroes left are Capt. Marvel, Capt. Britain, some woman named Excalibur, who is a healer, a guy named Computer Graham, who can enter computers, and a girl who has magic soccer(or I guess in this case, football) powers... Yep, really... Poor, poor London... Anyway, I've already wasted enough time on this rubbish(hey, when in Rome...). Basically Ultron kills everybody who tries to fight him. The end. Yeah, I picked this comic up on a whim and am now cursing myself for wasting the money... This comic was all sorts of terrible... A girl with magic soccer powers... Yeah, that's all for me... Score: 2 out of 10.
Avenging Spider-Man #20: I can't believe this series is at issue twenty already! Anyway, let's do this. This issue features Superior Spider-Man visiting the SHIELD Helicarrier after he stops a bunch of A.I.M. soldiers/scientists/nerds. It just so happens he's done so while Black Widow and Hawkeye are there for Secret Avenger stuff, while Dr. Bruce Banner is on board, and while the Russians have sent people to kill Chameleon so he doesn't leak government secrets. Spider-Man is there to free Chameleon because he's collecting real life Sinister Six trading cards, and sends his Spider-Bots to find him and cut the power. Before he can get to him, the Helicarrier is invaded by two dudes with skulls for faces that can burn you with their touch. Spidey heads to find Chameleon and finds bodies in his wake, and blames himself for their death's since he freed him, but quickly backtracks, saying if those guys hadn't invaded, he'd have had time to get there and stop Chameleon. We see Chameleon running to his freedom, wearing the face of his Doctor as Spider-Man heads off to find him and is confronted by none other than The Hulk! This was an interesting issue for me because I never really got into it. It just happened and here we are, I have no feelings either way which is kinda... bad if you think about it. Once again, this comic wasn't bad but I doubt I'll remember it this time next week. Score: 6/10
I know! I'm shocked too!!! I know you guys expected more reviews from me but hey, I'm a busy dude! Plus X took all the good books! :P Either way, expect a Throwback review from me tomorrow, and until then, this is JT, and my buddy X, signing off!
Walking Dead #110: Rick takes a group of people to the Kingdom to meet Ezekiel and his group. Meanwhile, Jesus prevents Kal from betraying everybody to Negan and the Saviors. Michonne is initially pissed by Ezekiel's king act, but the two have a nice little heart-to-heart and seem to get along very well. Once we got past the Jesus stuff, this issue slowed way down. It does turn out that I like Ezekiel now! Kirkman did a great job of filling out his character, which means one of two things... Either a) he's going to die next issue, or b) he's going to betray Rick and company to the Saviors. Hopefully neither thing happens, but after reading as much of this series as I have? I would not be surprised. Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #4: AIM sends the stolen Iron Patriot armor loose, at which time it begins attacking individuals who had been targeted by America. To avoid a diplomatic incident, SHIELD sends Hulk to destroy the renegade armor. On top of that, SHIELD sends Nick Fury Jr, Mockingbird, Black Widow and Hawkeye to AIM Island to assassinate the Scientist Supreme. Meh, meh, and double meh. I swear, the name Secret Avengers is cursed for me... Regardless of who the writer is, or how much I enjoy their work, without fail, I can never get into this series... This one is getting dangerously close to the chopping block... Score: 5 1/2 out of 10.
Superboy #20: Dr. Psycho enlists Superboy's help in dealing with HIVE, which had sent agents after Psycho, who has gone rogue from them. Yeah, and that's it. Nothing much to say about this one, actually... It seems as if SB randomly bounces from one clandestine organization to another. Plus we all know Psycho is going to betray SB! There's one of the failings of the New 52, introducing a brand new character would work way better than slotting Psycho here, who will undoubtedly turn of SB. Score: 6 out of 10.
Ultimates #24: Cap learns that the leader of California was planning on blowing Sacramento up and heads there. Meanwhile, Iron Man escapes from the Californian leader and meets Cap in Sacramento Finally, Thor and Invisible Woman join the two and the four(okay, mainly Thor, Sue and Iron Man) manage to prevent the Stark Space Station from obliterating the city. This one ends with Cap deciding he didn't want to be president anymore since he was a soldier, not a politician. I enjoyed this one. We still have a threat in California and the West Coast Ultimates, and Cap has stepped down, which was pretty much a given. Good stuff here! Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Avengers Assemble #15AU: This takes place in Jolly Ol' London, where the only heroes left are Capt. Marvel, Capt. Britain, some woman named Excalibur, who is a healer, a guy named Computer Graham, who can enter computers, and a girl who has magic soccer(or I guess in this case, football) powers... Yep, really... Poor, poor London... Anyway, I've already wasted enough time on this rubbish(hey, when in Rome...). Basically Ultron kills everybody who tries to fight him. The end. Yeah, I picked this comic up on a whim and am now cursing myself for wasting the money... This comic was all sorts of terrible... A girl with magic soccer powers... Yeah, that's all for me... Score: 2 out of 10.
Avenging Spider-Man #20: I can't believe this series is at issue twenty already! Anyway, let's do this. This issue features Superior Spider-Man visiting the SHIELD Helicarrier after he stops a bunch of A.I.M. soldiers/scientists/nerds. It just so happens he's done so while Black Widow and Hawkeye are there for Secret Avenger stuff, while Dr. Bruce Banner is on board, and while the Russians have sent people to kill Chameleon so he doesn't leak government secrets. Spider-Man is there to free Chameleon because he's collecting real life Sinister Six trading cards, and sends his Spider-Bots to find him and cut the power. Before he can get to him, the Helicarrier is invaded by two dudes with skulls for faces that can burn you with their touch. Spidey heads to find Chameleon and finds bodies in his wake, and blames himself for their death's since he freed him, but quickly backtracks, saying if those guys hadn't invaded, he'd have had time to get there and stop Chameleon. We see Chameleon running to his freedom, wearing the face of his Doctor as Spider-Man heads off to find him and is confronted by none other than The Hulk! This was an interesting issue for me because I never really got into it. It just happened and here we are, I have no feelings either way which is kinda... bad if you think about it. Once again, this comic wasn't bad but I doubt I'll remember it this time next week. Score: 6/10
I know! I'm shocked too!!! I know you guys expected more reviews from me but hey, I'm a busy dude! Plus X took all the good books! :P Either way, expect a Throwback review from me tomorrow, and until then, this is JT, and my buddy X, signing off!
Monday, May 6, 2013
Best of the Rest! May 1st edition.
Hey all, it's time for the first of FIVE Best of the Rest posts in May! Yep, May is one of those months where we're gonna end up with five Wednesdays, so I'll be getting even more comics, which means you guys will be getting even more reviews! So it's a win/win! Or a lose/lose, depending on your prerogative. Anyway, the usual rules apply here. I'll get this party started with a few reviews, and then JT will take over with a few reviews of his own, but in blue text. And if the last few BotR posts are any indication, much longer reviews than I've been busting out... Seriously, JT, when did you become Mr. Wordsmith!? I'm gonna hear it for that remark... Anyway, let's get this party started.
Thanos Rising #2: This issue brings us a 15 (or so) year old Thanos, who is on a quest to discover why he is different from all of his fellow Eternals. To that end, he's been dissecting various creatures, but has yet to find anything. The girl who is still hanging around him(who I STILL say is Death), recommends Thanos ply his trade on something more complex... To that end, Thanos kidnaps and kills two of his classmates, in the name of science. Or at least that's what Thanos tells himself at first. However, he soon realizes that he enjoys the torture and murder, and that when he is killing, he doesn't feel alone. Still, Thanos craves answers about why he's different, so this issue ends with Thanos capturing and preparing to dissect his own mother. Now THIS is more like the Thanos I remember! Sure, the stuff with the girl/Death probably doesn't need to be in here(I don't like the idea that Death had a role in Thanos's obsession with her), but I still could be wrong about her being Death... Who knows, maybe she's actually the woman who ends up bearing Nebula... Regardless, this mini-series is still hitting almost all the right notes for me. Score: 8 out of 10.
X-Factor #255: Mephisto ends up defeating the other Hell Lords and puts an end to the Hell on Earth war. He makes himself a palace and has apparently become the ruler of not only Hell, but the entire world. Tier decides that instead of hanging back he'd go and face Mephisto. Mephisto is aware of this and relishes Tier's challenge. Plus, Monet apparently dies while fighting Guido and Madrox is still a demon. I enjoyed this issue way more than the past few Hell war issues. Maybe that's because this storyline is coming to a close... I don't know. Anyway, this storyline is actually what the Age of Ultron SHOULD be. A self contained story in one of the Avengers titles... Just sayin'. Score: 8 out of 10.
Iron Man #9: Iron Man hires Death's Head to help him track down 451. However, it turns out 451 hired Death's Head first, and Death's Head leads Iron Man into 451's clutches. This one ends with 451 revealing he had been working with Tony's old man... Wha?! Um, yeah, this one was weird... I'm not even going to say anything about that ending yet... I'll give Kieron Gillen another issue before I flip out about Tony's father working with an alien who hadn't even been around until 3 issues ago... THIS is the story they wanted to coincide with Iron Man 3!? Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Indestructible Hulk #7: After some brawling between the Frost Giants and Thor and Hulk, one of the Frost Giants transforms into one of Bruce Banner's assistants and infiltrates the group... Didn't know Frost Giants could do that... The Frost Giants want access to Banner's portal technology, thus the ruse. However, SHIELD shut the portal down, which has left Banner and company stranded. Oh, and it turns out that Hulk actually didn't lift Thor's hammer last issue, it was only moving because Thor was calling it back to him... Which is what I was hoping to see here. Besides that, not much to say here. I'm not really feeling this storyline... It's not horrible or anything, it's just not my cup of tea. Score: 6 out of 10.
Ultimate X-Men #26: The all-female power struggle continues!!! Kitty and Mach 2 join forces since the US government wanted to take Utopia's land back. Jean decides to help them since she didn't want Utopia toppled by the government, because Jean wanted to absorb the Utopia mutants into Tian. And we find out that Psylocke has been manipulating both sides to her own ends. I don't know what the hell Brian Wood is going for here... He's already writing one X-Women book, why is he turning this series into another!? And how is Psylocke able to spy on, and mask her actions from Jean, who is, presumably, more powerful that Psylocke?! Seriously, if it wasn't for Jimmy Hudson, I would be SO done with this series... Score: 6 out of 10.
Invincible Universe #2: Stedman's forces manage to hold off the dragon long enough for Robot to fix up Liu. Liu manages to reabsorb the dragon and teleports away, not even thanking an irked Stedman. On top of that, Stedman's assistant dies during the dragon attack, which leads to us seeing a softer side of Cecil. So I liked this comic... Sue me. What can I say, I was always a mark for Cecil, so yeah, this comic hits just the right notes for me. Plus I've been a fan of Todd Nauck's work since Young Justice, so that helps. Anyway, if you're a fan of little known, obscure characters, like I am, then this is a series you should definitely check out. Score: 7 out of 10.
Detective Comics #20: In this issue we see Batman finally pursue Ignatius "Emperor Penguin" Oglivy after robbing a bank. Batman arrives at the former home of the Oswald Cobblepot and is met by the Emperor Penguin who is now a monster of a man. Having tampered with and used Man-Bat serum for speed, a serum from Poison Ivy to give him tough, bark-like skin, and venom to make him extremely strong. Emperor Penguin surprisingly beats the hell out of Batman and then ties a chain around his neck and hangs him from a tree. Batman is then saved by Cobblepot of all people, who wants his life back and is willing to help Batman to beat Oglivy. Batman takes the fight to Emperor Penguin a second time, this time fighting him as a monster instead of a man, and manages to take him down with acid and a high-powered taser. Afterwards, we see Cobblepot give Bruce Wayne back the building he'd stole from under him, renaming it after Martha Wayne, then telling Bruce he can have the spotlight, he just wants the shadows. In the epilogue we see Emperor Penguin take out the main boss in Blackgate Prison and deems himself "Emperor Blackgate". I liked this issue, Emperor Blackgate's backstory made sense, he's been built as a threat and I can easily see him taking the role Black Mask once had. This has been a pretty awesome first arc by Layman and I'm interested in what he has planned next. Score: 8/10
Earth 2 #12: In the most recent issue of Earth 2 we see the newly christened Doctor Fate finally engage in battle with Wotan. Across the world in China, Hawkgirl and Green Lantern investigate the death of GL's dead boyfriend and stumble upon a shipping container full of a bunch of dead Parademons. GL's ring notifies him that he's needed elsewhere and he heads off to join Flash in Boston while Hawkgirl continues the investigation. While the two mystical beings face off, Flash and Green Lantern run interference and keep the peace while protecting civilians and taking down the government officials that attack the heroes. Fate eventually takes down Wotan and banishes him to another dimension. Afterwards, Fate, Flash, Flash's Mom and Green Lantern, who reveals his identity of Alan Scott to his allies, offers them a place to stay, since the government knows who Jay and his mother are and are after them. Before they can take him up on his offer, Fate informs them that the evil Steppenwolf has taken control of a dangerous country named Dherain. This was a fine issue, nothing great but far from bad. My only problem was how Wotan was built as a threat in the last few issues and talked about how much better he'd become to best Doctor Fate, then he's easily dispatched in Fate's first battle as the new Doctor Fate. It hurt the credibility they'd used the past issues to establish. Score: 6.5/10
And that's it for Mr. Wordsmith! I planned on reviewing Green Arrow but due to an extremely busy weekend that leads into an extremely busy week, I didn't have the time. But it was my last issue, so sadly I don't plan on reviewing anymore issues. Now let me end this post before I give X more ammo to call me names for giving you guys detailed reviews. Speaking of which, be sure to check X's Throwback Tuesday post tomorrow for a good laugh. Til next time, this is JT, signing off!
Thanos Rising #2: This issue brings us a 15 (or so) year old Thanos, who is on a quest to discover why he is different from all of his fellow Eternals. To that end, he's been dissecting various creatures, but has yet to find anything. The girl who is still hanging around him(who I STILL say is Death), recommends Thanos ply his trade on something more complex... To that end, Thanos kidnaps and kills two of his classmates, in the name of science. Or at least that's what Thanos tells himself at first. However, he soon realizes that he enjoys the torture and murder, and that when he is killing, he doesn't feel alone. Still, Thanos craves answers about why he's different, so this issue ends with Thanos capturing and preparing to dissect his own mother. Now THIS is more like the Thanos I remember! Sure, the stuff with the girl/Death probably doesn't need to be in here(I don't like the idea that Death had a role in Thanos's obsession with her), but I still could be wrong about her being Death... Who knows, maybe she's actually the woman who ends up bearing Nebula... Regardless, this mini-series is still hitting almost all the right notes for me. Score: 8 out of 10.
X-Factor #255: Mephisto ends up defeating the other Hell Lords and puts an end to the Hell on Earth war. He makes himself a palace and has apparently become the ruler of not only Hell, but the entire world. Tier decides that instead of hanging back he'd go and face Mephisto. Mephisto is aware of this and relishes Tier's challenge. Plus, Monet apparently dies while fighting Guido and Madrox is still a demon. I enjoyed this issue way more than the past few Hell war issues. Maybe that's because this storyline is coming to a close... I don't know. Anyway, this storyline is actually what the Age of Ultron SHOULD be. A self contained story in one of the Avengers titles... Just sayin'. Score: 8 out of 10.
Iron Man #9: Iron Man hires Death's Head to help him track down 451. However, it turns out 451 hired Death's Head first, and Death's Head leads Iron Man into 451's clutches. This one ends with 451 revealing he had been working with Tony's old man... Wha?! Um, yeah, this one was weird... I'm not even going to say anything about that ending yet... I'll give Kieron Gillen another issue before I flip out about Tony's father working with an alien who hadn't even been around until 3 issues ago... THIS is the story they wanted to coincide with Iron Man 3!? Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Indestructible Hulk #7: After some brawling between the Frost Giants and Thor and Hulk, one of the Frost Giants transforms into one of Bruce Banner's assistants and infiltrates the group... Didn't know Frost Giants could do that... The Frost Giants want access to Banner's portal technology, thus the ruse. However, SHIELD shut the portal down, which has left Banner and company stranded. Oh, and it turns out that Hulk actually didn't lift Thor's hammer last issue, it was only moving because Thor was calling it back to him... Which is what I was hoping to see here. Besides that, not much to say here. I'm not really feeling this storyline... It's not horrible or anything, it's just not my cup of tea. Score: 6 out of 10.
Ultimate X-Men #26: The all-female power struggle continues!!! Kitty and Mach 2 join forces since the US government wanted to take Utopia's land back. Jean decides to help them since she didn't want Utopia toppled by the government, because Jean wanted to absorb the Utopia mutants into Tian. And we find out that Psylocke has been manipulating both sides to her own ends. I don't know what the hell Brian Wood is going for here... He's already writing one X-Women book, why is he turning this series into another!? And how is Psylocke able to spy on, and mask her actions from Jean, who is, presumably, more powerful that Psylocke?! Seriously, if it wasn't for Jimmy Hudson, I would be SO done with this series... Score: 6 out of 10.
Invincible Universe #2: Stedman's forces manage to hold off the dragon long enough for Robot to fix up Liu. Liu manages to reabsorb the dragon and teleports away, not even thanking an irked Stedman. On top of that, Stedman's assistant dies during the dragon attack, which leads to us seeing a softer side of Cecil. So I liked this comic... Sue me. What can I say, I was always a mark for Cecil, so yeah, this comic hits just the right notes for me. Plus I've been a fan of Todd Nauck's work since Young Justice, so that helps. Anyway, if you're a fan of little known, obscure characters, like I am, then this is a series you should definitely check out. Score: 7 out of 10.
Detective Comics #20: In this issue we see Batman finally pursue Ignatius "Emperor Penguin" Oglivy after robbing a bank. Batman arrives at the former home of the Oswald Cobblepot and is met by the Emperor Penguin who is now a monster of a man. Having tampered with and used Man-Bat serum for speed, a serum from Poison Ivy to give him tough, bark-like skin, and venom to make him extremely strong. Emperor Penguin surprisingly beats the hell out of Batman and then ties a chain around his neck and hangs him from a tree. Batman is then saved by Cobblepot of all people, who wants his life back and is willing to help Batman to beat Oglivy. Batman takes the fight to Emperor Penguin a second time, this time fighting him as a monster instead of a man, and manages to take him down with acid and a high-powered taser. Afterwards, we see Cobblepot give Bruce Wayne back the building he'd stole from under him, renaming it after Martha Wayne, then telling Bruce he can have the spotlight, he just wants the shadows. In the epilogue we see Emperor Penguin take out the main boss in Blackgate Prison and deems himself "Emperor Blackgate". I liked this issue, Emperor Blackgate's backstory made sense, he's been built as a threat and I can easily see him taking the role Black Mask once had. This has been a pretty awesome first arc by Layman and I'm interested in what he has planned next. Score: 8/10
Earth 2 #12: In the most recent issue of Earth 2 we see the newly christened Doctor Fate finally engage in battle with Wotan. Across the world in China, Hawkgirl and Green Lantern investigate the death of GL's dead boyfriend and stumble upon a shipping container full of a bunch of dead Parademons. GL's ring notifies him that he's needed elsewhere and he heads off to join Flash in Boston while Hawkgirl continues the investigation. While the two mystical beings face off, Flash and Green Lantern run interference and keep the peace while protecting civilians and taking down the government officials that attack the heroes. Fate eventually takes down Wotan and banishes him to another dimension. Afterwards, Fate, Flash, Flash's Mom and Green Lantern, who reveals his identity of Alan Scott to his allies, offers them a place to stay, since the government knows who Jay and his mother are and are after them. Before they can take him up on his offer, Fate informs them that the evil Steppenwolf has taken control of a dangerous country named Dherain. This was a fine issue, nothing great but far from bad. My only problem was how Wotan was built as a threat in the last few issues and talked about how much better he'd become to best Doctor Fate, then he's easily dispatched in Fate's first battle as the new Doctor Fate. It hurt the credibility they'd used the past issues to establish. Score: 6.5/10
And that's it for Mr. Wordsmith! I planned on reviewing Green Arrow but due to an extremely busy weekend that leads into an extremely busy week, I didn't have the time. But it was my last issue, so sadly I don't plan on reviewing anymore issues. Now let me end this post before I give X more ammo to call me names for giving you guys detailed reviews. Speaking of which, be sure to check X's Throwback Tuesday post tomorrow for a good laugh. Til next time, this is JT, signing off!
Monday, April 29, 2013
Best of the Rest! April 24th edition.
X here with the final Best of the Rest post of April. Yep, we're almost in May! Which is kind of surprising, because it seems like the winter JUST ended... But yeah, summertime and all that stuff. Anyway, this isn't a weather report, it's a comic post, so I should probably get to that. As always, I'll toss a few thoughts on the various comics I picked up this week, followed by JT the Great, who will post a few reviews as well, only in blue text. Um, other than that, get ready for a new Throwback Tuesday coming up tomorrow, typed up by none other than JT himself. I'm sure he'll have something more to say on that coming up. Okay, enough delaying, here's the first comic.
Teen Titans #19: Wonder Girl leads the Titans against Trigon, who's attacking New York. This surprises Raven, since she was randomly brainwashing Beast Boy(seriously, where the hell did THAT come from?!), and hadn't been told an attack was coming. Raven and Beast Boy join up with Trigon and attack the Titans, while Trigon gives Psimon(who was caught in the crossfire of this fight) enhanced powers. The army shows up to deal with Trigon, and somehow this all leads to Psimon killing the army guys with a mind blast. Trigon then magically disappears, while Raven seems pissed that he committed murder... As for the Titans, they seem to think Trigon did all this to make them look bad in the court of public opinion... First off, a confession... I read this comic right after I read Young Avengers #4, and in plain English, the writing in YA makes this series look like crap. Literal crap! But, even if I hadn't read a series that's everything THIS series SHOULD be, I'd still call this issue garbage. It made NO SENSE!!! Trigon, the ruler of his own dimension, staged a fake attack on Earth to discredit the Titans?! And Raven was angry that this led to murder?! Wasn't she just mind controlling Tim a few issues back?! In a battle between Trigon and the Titans, PSIMON is the guy who's instrumental in the finish?! What the hell is wrong with Scott Lobdell?!?!? Score: 3 out of 10.
Invincible #102: Thragg attacks Nolan, and we learn that Nolan was the rightful ruler of the Viltrumites by blood. However, Nolan tries to tell Thragg that he has no interest in the throne. That falls on deaf ears though, as Thragg is determined to kill Nolan. However, the other Viltrumites randomly appear on the moon and attack Thragg, having heard his admission of guilt. Nolan tells the Viltrumites to let Thragg go, and he takes over as their king. Plus, Mark proposes to Eve. What a weird issue... SO MUCH happened! I was chatting with JT, and he said it best, imagine if you missed this issue?! You'd be SO lost come issue #103! So yeah, Nolan is suddenly king of the Viltrumites(where did THAT come from!?) and Mark is getting married... Okay then. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
I, Vampire #19: Last issue! Mary comes back to life empowered by Heaven(I think...) and helps Andrew defeat Cain and Lilith, as well as save the planet. Cain ends up with Lucifer, who intends on tormenting him for the rest of time. Tig is still alive(WHY?!?), and still evil, and leaves with another evil vampire. Mary dies, having fulfilled what she had to do, and redeemed herself. Andrew pledges to go after the evil vampires with his vampire dog. I liked this issue. Everything wrapped up kind of quick, but this was the last issue, and that happens in finales I'll miss this series, and I'll definitely miss Andrew and Mary. Joshua Hale Fialkov did a good job here giving us some interesting characters. Score: 7 out of 10.
Morning Glories #26: So I was going to review this comic, but when I was done, I legit had no idea what I had just read... And I don't mean in a "It sucked so bad I was confused" sort of way, I mean I literally don't know what I just read... This is a series I should probably start reading 6 issues at a time instead of monthly, 'cause it's confusing as hell! Score: NA
FF #6: Dragon Man realizes Bentley and Medusa are gone, so Scott sends She-Hulk and Ahura to inform the Inhumans. Meanwhile, Scott and Darla humble the Yancy Street Gang. This one ends with the Baxter Building being teleported to the Negative Zone. I liked this issue. It makes me feel like I kept the right Fantastic Four series. I like the main characters, I finally like one of the kids(Ahura), and I'm hoping this Yancy Street Gang junk goes way on the back burner now. Score: 7 out of 10.
A+X #7: First story sees Iron Man and Beast have to face an out of control Hulkbuster(that was reprogrammed by a slick Bruce Banner), while story #2 has Iceman and Thor battling Frost Giants. Hey, you know what? This issue? It was actually GOOD!! Like, both stories! That may be the first time that's happened since this series kicked off! I personally liked the Beast/Iron Man tale more, but both were solid, so hey, a win for this series! Huzzah! Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Injustice: Gods Among Us #4: This issue starts with Superman confronting Batman about not helping find his parents in the last issue, with Superman ripping the cowl off of Batman's face in a moment of rage. Their conversation ends when Aquaman starts attacking some hunters that are hunting whales. Green Lantern, Shazam and Wondy show up, but so do the Atlanteans, and they make the major mistake of attacking Wonder Woman. They engage in a fight which leads to Aquaman calling the Kraken to deal with his allies, but Superman shows up and makes Arthur call it off, while holding him by the neck. Aquaman calls it back but makes a power play bu having his forces stand at every beach around the world, to show Superman who runs the sea. Superman retaliates by having Hal encase Atlantis in an orb which Superman, Shazam and Wonder Woman lift and move to the Sahara desert. Well damn. Aquaman meets with Wonder Woman and agrees to pull his forces back if they return Atlantis, and asks her to tell Superman he's sorry about what happened with Lois. The issue ends with Wonder Woman telling Superman of Aquaman's deal, but not mentioning his condolences for Lois, further driving a wedge between the two men. I enjoyed this issue, it really goes a long way in showing how unreasonable Superman has become, how powerful Aquaman is, and how far this Wonder Woman will go to get what or should I say who she wants. Score: 8/10
Scarlet Spider #16: This issue opens with Madame Web, Julia Carpenter's letter to Kaine from a few issues back that he never received. It basically says he should leave and go to Mexico like he planned because "she" is going to kill everyone, whoever that is...maybe Aracely? The rest of this issue takes place at the Rodeo with Kaine and his wacky cast, with Kaine mistakenly hurting Annabelle's feelings by saying they can't be together. This is interrupted by a drunk hero-turned-villain named The Armadillo (Think Rhino...but as an Armadillo..) who shows up, breaks down the walls (Jericho style!) and cries about how his girlfriend, Daisy, left him. Scarlet Spider tries to stop his reign of terror by telling him he needs to let her go, because sadly the monster's never get to be with the girl, but she surprisingly runs up and takes him back, saying she didn't think he loved her anymore because he was distant. This inspires Kaine to try to be with Annabelle, which he does after knocking out her meathead ex-boyfriend and plants kiss on Annabelle, but unbeknownst to Kaine, Kraven and his daughter are watching from afar. The issue ends with a flashback to two days ago, as we see Annabelle burning the letter for Kaine from Julia. I really enjoyed this issue, they're still doing the monster card but this was better and we got some growth for Kaine, but we see Kraven is still in the game, and Aracely's powers are being used more. And I didn't see the ending coming at all, maybe Annabells is bad news. Man, these are supposed to be short reviews!!! Score: 8/10
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #22: In this issue, Miles tries to convince Maria Hill that he's not Spider-Man, but once word comes in Venom is attacking the hospital where his dad is, she tells him he'll get there first, and to save people but wait until the Ultimates are there to face Venom. He takes off, scaling a building in front of her and pursues Venom while his mom watches on. Venom manages to absorb Spidey but Miles' mom, Rio, starts shooting Venom with a gun she picked up off of a unconscious officer, telling Venom to give back her son. Venom grabs Rio but that upsets Miles enough for him to power out, sending the symbiote flying everywhere, leaving the man in the suit vulnerable as he's gunned down by police. Surprisingly, Venom is not Eddie Brock, but a black man named Marcus Conrad. Miles checks on his mom but finds that she's been shot very close to her heart, she's clearly proud of Miles but with her dying words tells him not to let his father know, as she dies in his arms. The next day Miles wakes up at Ganke's house as reality sets in that his mother is gone. He cries and rips up his suit, yelling "No More!" as the issue comes to a close. I really enjoyed this issue, with Hill knowing Miles' secret, seeing how proud Rio was of her son, you could see her face, excellent job by Sara Pichelli. The only problem I had was the fact that the villain was basically a no one but held a grudge against Spider-Man and his family, that seemed...odd but I'm sure they'll explain why he hated them so much. We've seen Peter throw the costume away a few times, but this seemed different, although we know Miles will stay Spidey. Score: 9/10
Man.... I really gotta make these reviews more brief! Ah, what can I say, I like to paint a picture with my words. Anyway, that's it for this week's best of the rest post. I'll be back tomorrow with a comic picked by mi hermano, X, for Throwback Tuesday, and If you thought Perry White's Magic Cigars were crazy...wait until you see what the Man of Tomorrow was doing like sixty years ago. Anyway, til then, this is JT, signing off!
Teen Titans #19: Wonder Girl leads the Titans against Trigon, who's attacking New York. This surprises Raven, since she was randomly brainwashing Beast Boy(seriously, where the hell did THAT come from?!), and hadn't been told an attack was coming. Raven and Beast Boy join up with Trigon and attack the Titans, while Trigon gives Psimon(who was caught in the crossfire of this fight) enhanced powers. The army shows up to deal with Trigon, and somehow this all leads to Psimon killing the army guys with a mind blast. Trigon then magically disappears, while Raven seems pissed that he committed murder... As for the Titans, they seem to think Trigon did all this to make them look bad in the court of public opinion... First off, a confession... I read this comic right after I read Young Avengers #4, and in plain English, the writing in YA makes this series look like crap. Literal crap! But, even if I hadn't read a series that's everything THIS series SHOULD be, I'd still call this issue garbage. It made NO SENSE!!! Trigon, the ruler of his own dimension, staged a fake attack on Earth to discredit the Titans?! And Raven was angry that this led to murder?! Wasn't she just mind controlling Tim a few issues back?! In a battle between Trigon and the Titans, PSIMON is the guy who's instrumental in the finish?! What the hell is wrong with Scott Lobdell?!?!? Score: 3 out of 10.
Invincible #102: Thragg attacks Nolan, and we learn that Nolan was the rightful ruler of the Viltrumites by blood. However, Nolan tries to tell Thragg that he has no interest in the throne. That falls on deaf ears though, as Thragg is determined to kill Nolan. However, the other Viltrumites randomly appear on the moon and attack Thragg, having heard his admission of guilt. Nolan tells the Viltrumites to let Thragg go, and he takes over as their king. Plus, Mark proposes to Eve. What a weird issue... SO MUCH happened! I was chatting with JT, and he said it best, imagine if you missed this issue?! You'd be SO lost come issue #103! So yeah, Nolan is suddenly king of the Viltrumites(where did THAT come from!?) and Mark is getting married... Okay then. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
I, Vampire #19: Last issue! Mary comes back to life empowered by Heaven(I think...) and helps Andrew defeat Cain and Lilith, as well as save the planet. Cain ends up with Lucifer, who intends on tormenting him for the rest of time. Tig is still alive(WHY?!?), and still evil, and leaves with another evil vampire. Mary dies, having fulfilled what she had to do, and redeemed herself. Andrew pledges to go after the evil vampires with his vampire dog. I liked this issue. Everything wrapped up kind of quick, but this was the last issue, and that happens in finales I'll miss this series, and I'll definitely miss Andrew and Mary. Joshua Hale Fialkov did a good job here giving us some interesting characters. Score: 7 out of 10.
Morning Glories #26: So I was going to review this comic, but when I was done, I legit had no idea what I had just read... And I don't mean in a "It sucked so bad I was confused" sort of way, I mean I literally don't know what I just read... This is a series I should probably start reading 6 issues at a time instead of monthly, 'cause it's confusing as hell! Score: NA
FF #6: Dragon Man realizes Bentley and Medusa are gone, so Scott sends She-Hulk and Ahura to inform the Inhumans. Meanwhile, Scott and Darla humble the Yancy Street Gang. This one ends with the Baxter Building being teleported to the Negative Zone. I liked this issue. It makes me feel like I kept the right Fantastic Four series. I like the main characters, I finally like one of the kids(Ahura), and I'm hoping this Yancy Street Gang junk goes way on the back burner now. Score: 7 out of 10.
A+X #7: First story sees Iron Man and Beast have to face an out of control Hulkbuster(that was reprogrammed by a slick Bruce Banner), while story #2 has Iceman and Thor battling Frost Giants. Hey, you know what? This issue? It was actually GOOD!! Like, both stories! That may be the first time that's happened since this series kicked off! I personally liked the Beast/Iron Man tale more, but both were solid, so hey, a win for this series! Huzzah! Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Injustice: Gods Among Us #4: This issue starts with Superman confronting Batman about not helping find his parents in the last issue, with Superman ripping the cowl off of Batman's face in a moment of rage. Their conversation ends when Aquaman starts attacking some hunters that are hunting whales. Green Lantern, Shazam and Wondy show up, but so do the Atlanteans, and they make the major mistake of attacking Wonder Woman. They engage in a fight which leads to Aquaman calling the Kraken to deal with his allies, but Superman shows up and makes Arthur call it off, while holding him by the neck. Aquaman calls it back but makes a power play bu having his forces stand at every beach around the world, to show Superman who runs the sea. Superman retaliates by having Hal encase Atlantis in an orb which Superman, Shazam and Wonder Woman lift and move to the Sahara desert. Well damn. Aquaman meets with Wonder Woman and agrees to pull his forces back if they return Atlantis, and asks her to tell Superman he's sorry about what happened with Lois. The issue ends with Wonder Woman telling Superman of Aquaman's deal, but not mentioning his condolences for Lois, further driving a wedge between the two men. I enjoyed this issue, it really goes a long way in showing how unreasonable Superman has become, how powerful Aquaman is, and how far this Wonder Woman will go to get what or should I say who she wants. Score: 8/10
Scarlet Spider #16: This issue opens with Madame Web, Julia Carpenter's letter to Kaine from a few issues back that he never received. It basically says he should leave and go to Mexico like he planned because "she" is going to kill everyone, whoever that is...maybe Aracely? The rest of this issue takes place at the Rodeo with Kaine and his wacky cast, with Kaine mistakenly hurting Annabelle's feelings by saying they can't be together. This is interrupted by a drunk hero-turned-villain named The Armadillo (Think Rhino...but as an Armadillo..) who shows up, breaks down the walls (Jericho style!) and cries about how his girlfriend, Daisy, left him. Scarlet Spider tries to stop his reign of terror by telling him he needs to let her go, because sadly the monster's never get to be with the girl, but she surprisingly runs up and takes him back, saying she didn't think he loved her anymore because he was distant. This inspires Kaine to try to be with Annabelle, which he does after knocking out her meathead ex-boyfriend and plants kiss on Annabelle, but unbeknownst to Kaine, Kraven and his daughter are watching from afar. The issue ends with a flashback to two days ago, as we see Annabelle burning the letter for Kaine from Julia. I really enjoyed this issue, they're still doing the monster card but this was better and we got some growth for Kaine, but we see Kraven is still in the game, and Aracely's powers are being used more. And I didn't see the ending coming at all, maybe Annabells is bad news. Man, these are supposed to be short reviews!!! Score: 8/10
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #22: In this issue, Miles tries to convince Maria Hill that he's not Spider-Man, but once word comes in Venom is attacking the hospital where his dad is, she tells him he'll get there first, and to save people but wait until the Ultimates are there to face Venom. He takes off, scaling a building in front of her and pursues Venom while his mom watches on. Venom manages to absorb Spidey but Miles' mom, Rio, starts shooting Venom with a gun she picked up off of a unconscious officer, telling Venom to give back her son. Venom grabs Rio but that upsets Miles enough for him to power out, sending the symbiote flying everywhere, leaving the man in the suit vulnerable as he's gunned down by police. Surprisingly, Venom is not Eddie Brock, but a black man named Marcus Conrad. Miles checks on his mom but finds that she's been shot very close to her heart, she's clearly proud of Miles but with her dying words tells him not to let his father know, as she dies in his arms. The next day Miles wakes up at Ganke's house as reality sets in that his mother is gone. He cries and rips up his suit, yelling "No More!" as the issue comes to a close. I really enjoyed this issue, with Hill knowing Miles' secret, seeing how proud Rio was of her son, you could see her face, excellent job by Sara Pichelli. The only problem I had was the fact that the villain was basically a no one but held a grudge against Spider-Man and his family, that seemed...odd but I'm sure they'll explain why he hated them so much. We've seen Peter throw the costume away a few times, but this seemed different, although we know Miles will stay Spidey. Score: 9/10
Man.... I really gotta make these reviews more brief! Ah, what can I say, I like to paint a picture with my words. Anyway, that's it for this week's best of the rest post. I'll be back tomorrow with a comic picked by mi hermano, X, for Throwback Tuesday, and If you thought Perry White's Magic Cigars were crazy...wait until you see what the Man of Tomorrow was doing like sixty years ago. Anyway, til then, this is JT, signing off!
Monday, April 22, 2013
Best of the Rest! April 17th edition.
Hey all, X back again with a new Best of the Rest post. Between myself and JT(whose reviews with be in a blue text), there should be plenty of comics to check out. So instead of talking about it, let's get to it!
Venom #34: Yes! This is exactly what I want from this series! This issue starts off with Toxin kicking Venom's ass, which leads to the mysterious cannibal showing up to join the fight. However, Toxin is all, "Who invited you, bitch?!" and proceeds to BITE the head off of the cannibal! That in turn leads to Venom biting off one of Toxin's arms! Excellent!! Toxin shrugs that off, grows a new arm and continues the ass-kickery. Venom finally halts the assault by injecting Toxin with the serum that keeps his own symbiote under control. Toxin rushes off since his symbiote was acting up, and Venom drags his battered ass to a rooftop to recuperate and prepare for round two. So yeah, Cullen Bunn just needs to keep doing this. Every single issue. Because this issue rocked. Score: 8 out of 10.
Iron Man #8: 451 manages to get Tony his armor before Tony is murdered by Death's Head. That leads to a massive brawl between Iron Man and DH, which 451 uses as a distraction to deactivate the cloaking device the Voldi had been using to hide from the Celestials. The Celestials arrive and obliterate the planet and everybody on it. Needless to say, Tony doesn't appreciate 451's actions and announces that he would have vengeance. This issue was a meh for me. It wasn't awful by any stretch, the fight between Tony and DH was cool, and I enjoyed 451's swerve, but I'm not going to remember this issue past tomorrow. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Daredevil #25: Matt finally comes face-to-face with one of his tormentors, a guy wearing a facsimile of his original yellow attire named Ikari(which means 'Fury' in Japanese). Oh, and Ikari? He has all of DD's enhanced senses. The two have a spectacular battle across the rooftops of Manhattan, ending up in a sporting goods shop. DD manages to set off the sprinkler system, and hopes that his foe's inexperience with his hyper-senses will cause him to become totally disoriented by the noise and falling water. And it's a great plan. Except for one thing... Ikari isn't blind! Ikari beats the ever-loving hell out of a shocked Matt, who has no choice but to turn tail and run away, all while Ikari yells taunts after him. Yeah, this issue? Awesome. I NEVER saw the swerve with Ikari having his sight coming, and when Matt realized Ikari COULD see? Amazing! I wanted to scream FOR Matt! That's how perfect the reveal was. Amazing work by the incomparable Mark Waid. Score: 9 1/2 out of 10.
X-Factor #254: Hey, this "Hell" storyline is still going on... Okay... Tier decides he doesn't want to kill the Hell-Lords, which pisses Polaris off since Tier kind of has to or everybody is screwed. Meanwhile, Mephisto is unsurprisingly knocking off the other Hell-Lords, polishing off Hela right after she had killed Asmodeus. Jezebel, Possessed Madrox and Guido attack X-Factor since Jezebel needed Tier if she had any hope in defeating her father(Mephisto). That leads to a showdown between Monet and Guido. This issue was solid. Much like most of this storyline. It's okay. It's not great or anything, it's okay. To be honest, I'm to the point where I'm waiting for this storyline to just end already... Score: 7 out of 10.
Nightwing #19: So Dick Grayson is in Chicago now, as he's decided to track down and capture Tony Zucco, who, in case you were unaware, killed Dick's parents. The cops hate Nightwing because the cops in Chi-town hate costumed heroes, and Dick is broke because he won't ask Bruce for money. Because they're feuding again after Death of the Family and Damian's death. But honestly, do those two really need a reason to feud?! They're almost always pissed at each other for one reason or another! But I digress... So yeah, Dick has no money and has to take a roommate in his apartment... Because that's smart for a masked hero like Dick... Anyway, it seems Zucco, who was the person who murdered Dick's parents, is the mayor's chauffeur or something... The mayor is corrupt, it seems. On top of that, the Prankster is punishing criminals. So yeah, Dick's first issue in Chicago? Not perfect. But hey, it wasn't awful, so there's that! I have to say, even though he appeared on a grand total of one page, the Prankster seems extremely interesting. I liked the costume and I liked his brand of vigilantism. So I'll be looking forward to seeing more of Prankster and less of Tony Zucco, who was the man responsible for the deaths of Dick Grayson's parents. In case you hadn't heard... Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Dark Avengers #189: This is the penultimate issue of this series, and I have to admit, I won't really miss it... It started off with such promise, but man did it fall apart quickly... Basically Evil Dr. Strange dies when he randomly explodes. That frees Skaar from Evil Strange, so Skaar can finally attack Evil Thing. Ragnarok picks up that dimension's Thor's hammer(wait, how?!), which makes him turn into a guy who looks like the Executioner... And AIM is still up to something, but damned if I know what! Yeah, I don't have anything else to add to that issue... Score: 4 out of 10.
Nova #3: In this issue of Nova, we see our protagonist run into The Watcher. He eventually is able to see through the Watcher's eyes that there are a ton of ships in the distance, but since he doesn't know what to do with that knowledge, he heads back to Earth. On Earth, Sam's mom hints she may know about Sam using his dad's helmet and says he can talk to her about anything. After that, Sam is approached by Gamora and Rocket Raccoon, who tell him he's the last of the Nova Corps and they start training Sam. In the midst of training, the Guardians mention the army that's on the way to attack Earth, and Sam tells them he saw it, thanks to the man on the moon, so they send Sam on recon since his Nova helmet can see the cloaked ships. The issue ends with Nova getting blasted in space by the ships, so I guess they can see him. Oops. I enjoyed this issue, it was nothing spectacular but it was a solid read. Score: 6.5/10
Captain Marvel #12: This issue focuses on Cap Marvel and Deathbird's aerial fight with Cap confined to her flying bike. After a long, tough battle, Cap finally defeats Deathbird, but has to fly at the end to due so, which weakens Cap due to the lesion on her brain. Throughout the issue we see her doctor talking to another doctor, the new one having dealt with a case like this before. It turns out his patient was Captain Marvel's friend, Helen Cobb, although she supposedly died in a fire. The doctors meet Cap at home to give her some news that we aren't privy to until the next issue. The issue ends with the mysterious man in the park revealing himself to be Yon-Rogg, now fully powered due to Captain Marvel's fights with Deathbird powering him. This was another solid issue, I enjoyed the fight with Deathbird but all the Doctor mumbo jumbo kinda slowed things down for me. I'm not familiar with Yon-Rogg but after looking him up and seeing he's the one that kidnapped Carol which led to her getting her powers, I'm excited to see where this goes. Score: 7/10
Justice League #19: This issue opened with Jason Todd and Alfred talking, so yeah, that's a free point from me. The two are attacked as some mysterious man who makes his way through the scan and past Batman's retinal scanner somehow to Bats' contingency room, as he has a case with a plan to beat each member of the League. The mystery man steals Superman's case, which has Kryptonite. Batman eventually returns and Jason is beating himself up for not hearing the intruder sneak up on them but Bruce says she's just glad Jason and Alfred are okay. After some help from Aquaman and Cyborg, they aren't able to figure out how this person got in or what they were after, Batman seems to know but plays dumb. Meanwhile, Superman and Wonder Woman fight some terrorists in Kahndaq, but Americans aren't allowed there, so Kahndaq is contemplating waging war on America. Batman meets with Supes and Wondy and they discuss how they went about things when he reveals he knows their dating, and also that someone came to the Batcave and took something to hurt Superman. The issue ends with Firestorm and the Atom, two of the newest Leaguers being attacked in the Watchtower by none other than Despero, wearing a Kryptonite ring. I enjoyed this issue surprisingly. I definitely didn't expect for this review to be so long. I enjoyed seeing Jason and Alfred, so... do more of that, Geoff Johns. I also enjoyed seeing Supes and Wondy fighting crime, and the odd way they influence one another, kinda reminds me their relationship in of Injustice: Gods Among Us. Lastly, this mystery man that knows Bruce could be interesting if done the right way, I'm curious to see who he is and why he'd help Despero, since I don't think it's him. Oh, and I like the new Atom, she rocks. Score: 8/10
Alright gang, that's it for me and mi amigo. Tomorrow, expect a new type of review from X, which he'll explain then, but until now, on behalf of buddy X, this is JT, signing off!
Venom #34: Yes! This is exactly what I want from this series! This issue starts off with Toxin kicking Venom's ass, which leads to the mysterious cannibal showing up to join the fight. However, Toxin is all, "Who invited you, bitch?!" and proceeds to BITE the head off of the cannibal! That in turn leads to Venom biting off one of Toxin's arms! Excellent!! Toxin shrugs that off, grows a new arm and continues the ass-kickery. Venom finally halts the assault by injecting Toxin with the serum that keeps his own symbiote under control. Toxin rushes off since his symbiote was acting up, and Venom drags his battered ass to a rooftop to recuperate and prepare for round two. So yeah, Cullen Bunn just needs to keep doing this. Every single issue. Because this issue rocked. Score: 8 out of 10.
Iron Man #8: 451 manages to get Tony his armor before Tony is murdered by Death's Head. That leads to a massive brawl between Iron Man and DH, which 451 uses as a distraction to deactivate the cloaking device the Voldi had been using to hide from the Celestials. The Celestials arrive and obliterate the planet and everybody on it. Needless to say, Tony doesn't appreciate 451's actions and announces that he would have vengeance. This issue was a meh for me. It wasn't awful by any stretch, the fight between Tony and DH was cool, and I enjoyed 451's swerve, but I'm not going to remember this issue past tomorrow. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Daredevil #25: Matt finally comes face-to-face with one of his tormentors, a guy wearing a facsimile of his original yellow attire named Ikari(which means 'Fury' in Japanese). Oh, and Ikari? He has all of DD's enhanced senses. The two have a spectacular battle across the rooftops of Manhattan, ending up in a sporting goods shop. DD manages to set off the sprinkler system, and hopes that his foe's inexperience with his hyper-senses will cause him to become totally disoriented by the noise and falling water. And it's a great plan. Except for one thing... Ikari isn't blind! Ikari beats the ever-loving hell out of a shocked Matt, who has no choice but to turn tail and run away, all while Ikari yells taunts after him. Yeah, this issue? Awesome. I NEVER saw the swerve with Ikari having his sight coming, and when Matt realized Ikari COULD see? Amazing! I wanted to scream FOR Matt! That's how perfect the reveal was. Amazing work by the incomparable Mark Waid. Score: 9 1/2 out of 10.
X-Factor #254: Hey, this "Hell" storyline is still going on... Okay... Tier decides he doesn't want to kill the Hell-Lords, which pisses Polaris off since Tier kind of has to or everybody is screwed. Meanwhile, Mephisto is unsurprisingly knocking off the other Hell-Lords, polishing off Hela right after she had killed Asmodeus. Jezebel, Possessed Madrox and Guido attack X-Factor since Jezebel needed Tier if she had any hope in defeating her father(Mephisto). That leads to a showdown between Monet and Guido. This issue was solid. Much like most of this storyline. It's okay. It's not great or anything, it's okay. To be honest, I'm to the point where I'm waiting for this storyline to just end already... Score: 7 out of 10.
Nightwing #19: So Dick Grayson is in Chicago now, as he's decided to track down and capture Tony Zucco, who, in case you were unaware, killed Dick's parents. The cops hate Nightwing because the cops in Chi-town hate costumed heroes, and Dick is broke because he won't ask Bruce for money. Because they're feuding again after Death of the Family and Damian's death. But honestly, do those two really need a reason to feud?! They're almost always pissed at each other for one reason or another! But I digress... So yeah, Dick has no money and has to take a roommate in his apartment... Because that's smart for a masked hero like Dick... Anyway, it seems Zucco, who was the person who murdered Dick's parents, is the mayor's chauffeur or something... The mayor is corrupt, it seems. On top of that, the Prankster is punishing criminals. So yeah, Dick's first issue in Chicago? Not perfect. But hey, it wasn't awful, so there's that! I have to say, even though he appeared on a grand total of one page, the Prankster seems extremely interesting. I liked the costume and I liked his brand of vigilantism. So I'll be looking forward to seeing more of Prankster and less of Tony Zucco, who was the man responsible for the deaths of Dick Grayson's parents. In case you hadn't heard... Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Dark Avengers #189: This is the penultimate issue of this series, and I have to admit, I won't really miss it... It started off with such promise, but man did it fall apart quickly... Basically Evil Dr. Strange dies when he randomly explodes. That frees Skaar from Evil Strange, so Skaar can finally attack Evil Thing. Ragnarok picks up that dimension's Thor's hammer(wait, how?!), which makes him turn into a guy who looks like the Executioner... And AIM is still up to something, but damned if I know what! Yeah, I don't have anything else to add to that issue... Score: 4 out of 10.
Nova #3: In this issue of Nova, we see our protagonist run into The Watcher. He eventually is able to see through the Watcher's eyes that there are a ton of ships in the distance, but since he doesn't know what to do with that knowledge, he heads back to Earth. On Earth, Sam's mom hints she may know about Sam using his dad's helmet and says he can talk to her about anything. After that, Sam is approached by Gamora and Rocket Raccoon, who tell him he's the last of the Nova Corps and they start training Sam. In the midst of training, the Guardians mention the army that's on the way to attack Earth, and Sam tells them he saw it, thanks to the man on the moon, so they send Sam on recon since his Nova helmet can see the cloaked ships. The issue ends with Nova getting blasted in space by the ships, so I guess they can see him. Oops. I enjoyed this issue, it was nothing spectacular but it was a solid read. Score: 6.5/10
Captain Marvel #12: This issue focuses on Cap Marvel and Deathbird's aerial fight with Cap confined to her flying bike. After a long, tough battle, Cap finally defeats Deathbird, but has to fly at the end to due so, which weakens Cap due to the lesion on her brain. Throughout the issue we see her doctor talking to another doctor, the new one having dealt with a case like this before. It turns out his patient was Captain Marvel's friend, Helen Cobb, although she supposedly died in a fire. The doctors meet Cap at home to give her some news that we aren't privy to until the next issue. The issue ends with the mysterious man in the park revealing himself to be Yon-Rogg, now fully powered due to Captain Marvel's fights with Deathbird powering him. This was another solid issue, I enjoyed the fight with Deathbird but all the Doctor mumbo jumbo kinda slowed things down for me. I'm not familiar with Yon-Rogg but after looking him up and seeing he's the one that kidnapped Carol which led to her getting her powers, I'm excited to see where this goes. Score: 7/10
Justice League #19: This issue opened with Jason Todd and Alfred talking, so yeah, that's a free point from me. The two are attacked as some mysterious man who makes his way through the scan and past Batman's retinal scanner somehow to Bats' contingency room, as he has a case with a plan to beat each member of the League. The mystery man steals Superman's case, which has Kryptonite. Batman eventually returns and Jason is beating himself up for not hearing the intruder sneak up on them but Bruce says she's just glad Jason and Alfred are okay. After some help from Aquaman and Cyborg, they aren't able to figure out how this person got in or what they were after, Batman seems to know but plays dumb. Meanwhile, Superman and Wonder Woman fight some terrorists in Kahndaq, but Americans aren't allowed there, so Kahndaq is contemplating waging war on America. Batman meets with Supes and Wondy and they discuss how they went about things when he reveals he knows their dating, and also that someone came to the Batcave and took something to hurt Superman. The issue ends with Firestorm and the Atom, two of the newest Leaguers being attacked in the Watchtower by none other than Despero, wearing a Kryptonite ring. I enjoyed this issue surprisingly. I definitely didn't expect for this review to be so long. I enjoyed seeing Jason and Alfred, so... do more of that, Geoff Johns. I also enjoyed seeing Supes and Wondy fighting crime, and the odd way they influence one another, kinda reminds me their relationship in of Injustice: Gods Among Us. Lastly, this mystery man that knows Bruce could be interesting if done the right way, I'm curious to see who he is and why he'd help Despero, since I don't think it's him. Oh, and I like the new Atom, she rocks. Score: 8/10
Alright gang, that's it for me and mi amigo. Tomorrow, expect a new type of review from X, which he'll explain then, but until now, on behalf of buddy X, this is JT, signing off!
Monday, April 15, 2013
Best of the Rest! April 10th edition.
Hey all, X here to herald in a brand new BotR post. Not only that, but this is the 3,000th post here at the blog! That's A LOT of posts! Speaking of a lot, I picked up a slew of comics on Wednesday, so it should go without saying there are gonna be A LOT of comics covered in this post. As always, I'll get things started and JT will pitch in towards the end of the review. JT's text will be in blue. With so many comics to dig into, let's end the intro and get to the main event.
Alpha: Big Time #3: In this issue, Alpha DOESN'T screw up! Huzzah for the greatest hero ever!! He saves that girl he likes in school from a fire(and she naturally knows who he is, because she's not a moron), and talks to Doc Parker about his powers, which seem to be growing. However, the main villain of Pittsburgh takes umbrage at a hero being and town, and since everybody knows who Alpha is, decides to pay his family a visit. So yeah, this comic? You know I loved it! I read it from cover to cover with a smile on my face. I just can't help but to love this character, and this series. Alpha is honestly what all teenage heroes SHOULD be. Score: 8 1/2 out of 10.
Ultron #1AU: With all of the other Runaways dead, Victor has been saving whatever kids he could find in destroyed Los Angeles. Luckily for him, the various Ultron patrols can't seem to figure out what he is, and as such haven't killed him. Oh yeah, and Victor has been hiding his powers from the kids he was rescuing, while subtly using them to hide from Ultron. At least until one of the kids sees him doing robot-y stuff, and the Ultrons attack. It's then that Victor decides to stop slinking around in the shadows, afraid of Ultron and finally fights back. This was another really good comic. Man, with the exception of AoU #5, I have been having some GREAT luck with my comic reading this week. I liked the art, and the writing nailed Victor perfectly. This is a character that needs a much bigger place in the Marvel U. Score: 9 out of 10.
Walking Dead #109: This issue dealt with Jesus and Rick putting their plan to attack Negan in motion. Rick informs certain people from his group(Andrea, Carl, Michonne), while Jesus tells a select number of folks at the Hilltop. However, by the end of this one, Jesus seems to realize that one of the guys he told was in Negan's pocket. This was an okay issue. I mean, nothing really happened, I wasn't blown away by it, but it was a fine way to kill a few minutes. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Hawkeye #9: This issue gives us a look at the four most important women in Hawkeye's life(Mockingbird, Black Widow, Kate and Spider-Woman). Plus it advances the story with the mob having it out for Clint by having an assassin kill Clint's neighbor, Grills. So we had action, comedy, and Kate calling Clint a bitch. Yup, this one checked all the boxes for me. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Thor: God of Thunder #7: Current Thor and Future Thor get together and prepare an attack on Gorr's planet. Meanwhile, Gorr captures Young Thor and forces Young Thor to work on Gorr's master plan... A gigantic bomb. No complaints with this one. Gorr is still a great villain, and I enjoyed seeing the two Thors interact. The reveal at the end wasn't something I was all excited over(so Gorr has a big bomb... Even though he's killed most every god without a giant bomb...), but I'm sure Jason Aaron has a reason Gorr is concocting that bomb. So yeah, again, good stuff here. Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #3: AIM's scientist supreme and a few henchmen drop in on a weapon's expo, claiming they had every right to be there since they were members of a UN recognized country. Needless to say, that leads to Nick Fury(jr) and Daisy Johnson fighting AIM. A US senator ends up getting killed during the ruckus, and AIM escapes with the Iron Patriot armor, which they seemed interested in using Mentallo to pilot. Also, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Mockingbird find a half destroyed Jocasta at a wrecked AIM base. Hey, I liked this comic too! What's going on this week?! I'm still not 100% sold on AIM as the main antagonists here(they seem too faceless without somebody like MODOK leading them), but I'm slowly starting to get into this story. Plus, anytime you throw Hawkeye, Black Widow and Mockingbird into a comic I'm gonna be a happy camper. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Fantastic Four #6: Reed decides to take the kids to the Big Bang. For SCIENCE!! While there, they find a body floating around in the void and rescue it. It turns out the body is an older version of Blastaar, and he attacks. Franklin uses his powers to send Blastaar back outside before the ship is critically damaged. Ah, there we go... I knew my comic reading luck was too good prior to this issue. So yeah, I didn't like this issue at all. The F4 are too cardboard for my tastes here, and the two kids are incredibly irritating. Like to the point where I've stopped reading their dialogue because they piss me off so much. Besides that, there's nothing interesting happening here... Oh no, something mysterious is wrong with Ben! Oh no, Reed has a mysterious disease! Oh no, Sue is pouting! This series just isn't for me, so I'll be dropping it come Wednesday. Score: 2 out of 10.
Superboy #19: This issue actually gives us SB's full origin(um, shouldn't that have happened in the zero issue?), as well as Harvest's. Harvest is from a future where humanity is at war with the meta-humans, who have taken to abusing their powers. As for SB, he is a clone of Lois Lane and Superman's son, Jon. Jon was taken in by Harvest after his parents thought he had died. Why? Because Harvest intended on using Jon to kill every meta-human, since Jon was the most powerful of the metas. However, Jon was messed up due to his hybrid Kryptonian/human DNA and wound up in a coma, so Harvest created a clone to try to help Jon(who he came to love like a son). So yeah, SB is the clone of the son of Lois and Supes, and that? That is SOOOOO much better than SB as the clone of Supes and Lex, or Supes and a random scientist. I have to say, this issue was really good. Like, surprisingly so! I'm usually blasting Scott Lobdell's work, but he brought his A-game here. Harvest became a deeper character, while SB has an origin that I like. I still don't understand why we didn't get this in issue #0, but hey, at least we got it here. Score: 8 out of 10.
Ultimates #23: The leader of California sends Tigra and Quake from the West Coast Ultimates to attack Cap at the White House. Meanwhile, WCU member Vision has stolen Tony Stark's nuclear satellite and has sent it hurdling towards Sacramento The leader of California figures that will be seen as an attack on California and will lead to the west coast states banding together against Cap and the rest of the country. This issue was kind of a snoozer for me. I just never got into it. So yeah, that's all I have to say about this issue, actually... Score: 5 out of 10.
Batman and Red Robin #19: In this issue we're introduced to Carrie Kelley, a college student that had apparently been tutoring Damian for thousands of dollars, as well as her blonde roommate that wears purple. (Hint, hint?) Anyway, She goes looking for Damian at his home but no one answers. Bruce starts looking into her life and when he tells her that her services are no longer needed, she asks where Damian is, causing Bruce to leave without answering. Also, Batman heads off to find Frankenstein with the intent of having him help resurrect Damian. Frankenstein is not on board with this, and neither is Red Robin, who finally pops up when Alfred asks him to go check out Bruce's location. Tim tries to stop Bruce but ends up getting punched in the face for his troubles. Sensing that Batman will do whatever he has to, Frankenstein blows up his lab/lair, leaving Batman at square one, now very pissed at Tim for interfering on his quest to resurrect Damain. This was a weird issue, considering Red Robin was barely in it and his name's in the title, but it was far from bad, plus Bruce dealt with Denial on his first of the five steps of grief. Next is Anger, and Red Hood is involved! Score: 6/10
Wolverine #2: In this issue, Logan is pursuing a child that seems to be mind controlled by some kind of alien-like being, as we see it's mind controlling other people as well. Logan wants to stop the being without hurting the kid, but he has a laser gun that basically disintegrates people on impact. Logan tries to talk the mind controller down and distracts it long enough to disarm the kid, who then leaps off of the building while still being controlled. Logan leaps after him and catches the kid, then lands with his body taking the impact. Logan and the kid survive, but someone else now has the laser gun, but they're dealt with by Nick Fury, who shows up to help Logan investigate the mind controllers. The issue ends with The Watcher showing up, meaning this is a big problem. I enjoyed this issue, It's weird how a story with Wolverine facing a kid could be this entertaining but it was, also Cornell has a penchant for mind control, doesn't he? Score: 7/10
Saga #12: This issue starts with us seeing some of Prince Robot's time on the front lines during the war, where he's saved by a medic that promptly dies afterwards. From there we see him take a call that basically motivates him to find Alanna and Marko and get home to his family. Prince Robot heads off to meet the author of the book Alanna read when she fell in love with Marko, and the author basically says he wrote it for a check and doesn't believe in what he wrote. He and Prince Robot share some words before the author reveals his son, a former war hero, hanged himself in the bathroom upon returning home from war. Prince Robot calls his son a coward and the author pulls a weapon on him, but Prince Robot shoots him in the leg first. Prince Robot decides to wait at the house for Marko and Alanna, knowing they'd seek out the sympathizer, but doesn't realize they're already there, hiding upstairs and aware of the Prince's presence. I enjoyed this issue, I like that everyone is humanized so no one really feels like a bad guy, everyone has motivation so it seems real. Prince Robot, The Will, Marko and Alanna, even Gwendolyn to a degree. Score: 7.5/10
And that my friends, is the Best of the Rest. I'll be here tomorrow with the final review of the comic week, Uncanny X-Men #4. And I probably will have short reviews for the week after while I play Injustice until my eyes bleed. Lol, anyway, til next time, this is JT, signing off!
Alpha: Big Time #3: In this issue, Alpha DOESN'T screw up! Huzzah for the greatest hero ever!! He saves that girl he likes in school from a fire(and she naturally knows who he is, because she's not a moron), and talks to Doc Parker about his powers, which seem to be growing. However, the main villain of Pittsburgh takes umbrage at a hero being and town, and since everybody knows who Alpha is, decides to pay his family a visit. So yeah, this comic? You know I loved it! I read it from cover to cover with a smile on my face. I just can't help but to love this character, and this series. Alpha is honestly what all teenage heroes SHOULD be. Score: 8 1/2 out of 10.
Ultron #1AU: With all of the other Runaways dead, Victor has been saving whatever kids he could find in destroyed Los Angeles. Luckily for him, the various Ultron patrols can't seem to figure out what he is, and as such haven't killed him. Oh yeah, and Victor has been hiding his powers from the kids he was rescuing, while subtly using them to hide from Ultron. At least until one of the kids sees him doing robot-y stuff, and the Ultrons attack. It's then that Victor decides to stop slinking around in the shadows, afraid of Ultron and finally fights back. This was another really good comic. Man, with the exception of AoU #5, I have been having some GREAT luck with my comic reading this week. I liked the art, and the writing nailed Victor perfectly. This is a character that needs a much bigger place in the Marvel U. Score: 9 out of 10.
Walking Dead #109: This issue dealt with Jesus and Rick putting their plan to attack Negan in motion. Rick informs certain people from his group(Andrea, Carl, Michonne), while Jesus tells a select number of folks at the Hilltop. However, by the end of this one, Jesus seems to realize that one of the guys he told was in Negan's pocket. This was an okay issue. I mean, nothing really happened, I wasn't blown away by it, but it was a fine way to kill a few minutes. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Hawkeye #9: This issue gives us a look at the four most important women in Hawkeye's life(Mockingbird, Black Widow, Kate and Spider-Woman). Plus it advances the story with the mob having it out for Clint by having an assassin kill Clint's neighbor, Grills. So we had action, comedy, and Kate calling Clint a bitch. Yup, this one checked all the boxes for me. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Thor: God of Thunder #7: Current Thor and Future Thor get together and prepare an attack on Gorr's planet. Meanwhile, Gorr captures Young Thor and forces Young Thor to work on Gorr's master plan... A gigantic bomb. No complaints with this one. Gorr is still a great villain, and I enjoyed seeing the two Thors interact. The reveal at the end wasn't something I was all excited over(so Gorr has a big bomb... Even though he's killed most every god without a giant bomb...), but I'm sure Jason Aaron has a reason Gorr is concocting that bomb. So yeah, again, good stuff here. Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #3: AIM's scientist supreme and a few henchmen drop in on a weapon's expo, claiming they had every right to be there since they were members of a UN recognized country. Needless to say, that leads to Nick Fury(jr) and Daisy Johnson fighting AIM. A US senator ends up getting killed during the ruckus, and AIM escapes with the Iron Patriot armor, which they seemed interested in using Mentallo to pilot. Also, Hawkeye, Black Widow and Mockingbird find a half destroyed Jocasta at a wrecked AIM base. Hey, I liked this comic too! What's going on this week?! I'm still not 100% sold on AIM as the main antagonists here(they seem too faceless without somebody like MODOK leading them), but I'm slowly starting to get into this story. Plus, anytime you throw Hawkeye, Black Widow and Mockingbird into a comic I'm gonna be a happy camper. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Fantastic Four #6: Reed decides to take the kids to the Big Bang. For SCIENCE!! While there, they find a body floating around in the void and rescue it. It turns out the body is an older version of Blastaar, and he attacks. Franklin uses his powers to send Blastaar back outside before the ship is critically damaged. Ah, there we go... I knew my comic reading luck was too good prior to this issue. So yeah, I didn't like this issue at all. The F4 are too cardboard for my tastes here, and the two kids are incredibly irritating. Like to the point where I've stopped reading their dialogue because they piss me off so much. Besides that, there's nothing interesting happening here... Oh no, something mysterious is wrong with Ben! Oh no, Reed has a mysterious disease! Oh no, Sue is pouting! This series just isn't for me, so I'll be dropping it come Wednesday. Score: 2 out of 10.
Superboy #19: This issue actually gives us SB's full origin(um, shouldn't that have happened in the zero issue?), as well as Harvest's. Harvest is from a future where humanity is at war with the meta-humans, who have taken to abusing their powers. As for SB, he is a clone of Lois Lane and Superman's son, Jon. Jon was taken in by Harvest after his parents thought he had died. Why? Because Harvest intended on using Jon to kill every meta-human, since Jon was the most powerful of the metas. However, Jon was messed up due to his hybrid Kryptonian/human DNA and wound up in a coma, so Harvest created a clone to try to help Jon(who he came to love like a son). So yeah, SB is the clone of the son of Lois and Supes, and that? That is SOOOOO much better than SB as the clone of Supes and Lex, or Supes and a random scientist. I have to say, this issue was really good. Like, surprisingly so! I'm usually blasting Scott Lobdell's work, but he brought his A-game here. Harvest became a deeper character, while SB has an origin that I like. I still don't understand why we didn't get this in issue #0, but hey, at least we got it here. Score: 8 out of 10.
Ultimates #23: The leader of California sends Tigra and Quake from the West Coast Ultimates to attack Cap at the White House. Meanwhile, WCU member Vision has stolen Tony Stark's nuclear satellite and has sent it hurdling towards Sacramento The leader of California figures that will be seen as an attack on California and will lead to the west coast states banding together against Cap and the rest of the country. This issue was kind of a snoozer for me. I just never got into it. So yeah, that's all I have to say about this issue, actually... Score: 5 out of 10.
Batman and Red Robin #19: In this issue we're introduced to Carrie Kelley, a college student that had apparently been tutoring Damian for thousands of dollars, as well as her blonde roommate that wears purple. (Hint, hint?) Anyway, She goes looking for Damian at his home but no one answers. Bruce starts looking into her life and when he tells her that her services are no longer needed, she asks where Damian is, causing Bruce to leave without answering. Also, Batman heads off to find Frankenstein with the intent of having him help resurrect Damian. Frankenstein is not on board with this, and neither is Red Robin, who finally pops up when Alfred asks him to go check out Bruce's location. Tim tries to stop Bruce but ends up getting punched in the face for his troubles. Sensing that Batman will do whatever he has to, Frankenstein blows up his lab/lair, leaving Batman at square one, now very pissed at Tim for interfering on his quest to resurrect Damain. This was a weird issue, considering Red Robin was barely in it and his name's in the title, but it was far from bad, plus Bruce dealt with Denial on his first of the five steps of grief. Next is Anger, and Red Hood is involved! Score: 6/10
Wolverine #2: In this issue, Logan is pursuing a child that seems to be mind controlled by some kind of alien-like being, as we see it's mind controlling other people as well. Logan wants to stop the being without hurting the kid, but he has a laser gun that basically disintegrates people on impact. Logan tries to talk the mind controller down and distracts it long enough to disarm the kid, who then leaps off of the building while still being controlled. Logan leaps after him and catches the kid, then lands with his body taking the impact. Logan and the kid survive, but someone else now has the laser gun, but they're dealt with by Nick Fury, who shows up to help Logan investigate the mind controllers. The issue ends with The Watcher showing up, meaning this is a big problem. I enjoyed this issue, It's weird how a story with Wolverine facing a kid could be this entertaining but it was, also Cornell has a penchant for mind control, doesn't he? Score: 7/10
Saga #12: This issue starts with us seeing some of Prince Robot's time on the front lines during the war, where he's saved by a medic that promptly dies afterwards. From there we see him take a call that basically motivates him to find Alanna and Marko and get home to his family. Prince Robot heads off to meet the author of the book Alanna read when she fell in love with Marko, and the author basically says he wrote it for a check and doesn't believe in what he wrote. He and Prince Robot share some words before the author reveals his son, a former war hero, hanged himself in the bathroom upon returning home from war. Prince Robot calls his son a coward and the author pulls a weapon on him, but Prince Robot shoots him in the leg first. Prince Robot decides to wait at the house for Marko and Alanna, knowing they'd seek out the sympathizer, but doesn't realize they're already there, hiding upstairs and aware of the Prince's presence. I enjoyed this issue, I like that everyone is humanized so no one really feels like a bad guy, everyone has motivation so it seems real. Prince Robot, The Will, Marko and Alanna, even Gwendolyn to a degree. Score: 7.5/10
And that my friends, is the Best of the Rest. I'll be here tomorrow with the final review of the comic week, Uncanny X-Men #4. And I probably will have short reviews for the week after while I play Injustice until my eyes bleed. Lol, anyway, til next time, this is JT, signing off!
Monday, April 8, 2013
Best of the Rest! April 3rd edition.
Hey X-Maniacs, X here to start another Best of the Rest post. As always, I'll toss a few reviews out there, and then my erstwhile lackey, JT, will add a few reviews. JT's reviews will have blue text. And yeah, enough talk, let's knock these reviews out.
Indestructible Hulk #6: Bruce and his science crew use some uru Thor lent SHIELD(that's weird...) to find some mysterious element in Jotunheim(where the Frost Giants lurk). Thor from the past shows up(wha?!) as do Frost Giants. Bruce hulks up, and all of this leads to Hulk lifting Thor's hammer... Yeah, under no circumstances should Hulk ever lift Thor's hammer. So I'm guessing either a) the hammer rose because it was heading back to Thor, or b) this is a wacky alternate dimension where anybody can lift the hammer. Regardless, this issue seemed kind of average-ish to me. With Mark Waid and Walter Simonson, I was expecting more than this. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Stormwatch #19: What the HELL happened to this comic?! Ugh... This issue was horrible, and nearly impossible to figure out... Some aliens kill Adam One at the beginning of time(?), which alters reality(you'd think DC would shy away from doing THAT...), leading to Stormwatch being called Skywatch. with (some) different members. It was a mess and it ended with a Lobo appearance. So yeah, I hated it and hope that Jim Starlin rights this ship really fast. This used to be my favorite DC comic... Score: 3 out of 10.
Hypernaturals #10: We seem to be inching ever closer to finding out that Sublime was right and that the Quantinuum AI may just be up to no good. Or maybe it's just trying to protect humanity... Regardless, Sublime has had more than enough of working with the Hypernaturals and takes off. As for Evil Sublime, he's attacking Thinkwell's homeworld. So yeah, I finally managed to read this series, from issue #1-10, and I liked it. DnA doing a space tale is always a good thing, and this series is no different. Sublime is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine too. Score: 7 out of 10.
Venom #33: This issue revolves around Toxin(Eddie Brock) battling against the mysterious(still unnamed!) cannibal from last issue. The cannibal escapes from Toxin and ends up running into Venom. This one ends with Venom knocking the cannibal out and coming face-to-face with Toxin. Which is what I've been waiting for!! This issue proved something important to me... If Cullen Bunn stays away from all the demonic and supernatural junk, he CAN write a good Venom series! He proved it with the U-Foes and he proved it again here. Eddie vs a cannibal? Flash vs the cannibal? Flash vs Eddie? Yes, please! Here's hoping Bunn stays away from demons and lets Flash face the types of threats you'd expect a spider-family member to face. Score: 8 out of 10.
Winter Soldier #17: So yeah, some stuff happens and this issue ended... *sigh* Fine, I'll try a bit harder than that... Nick Fury's disembodied head tells Bucky to go after the Electric Ghost, who went all Super-Joker and committed like 57 terrorist acts in one day. Bucky ends up going to the Ghost's satellite(wait, what?!) and is defeated by her. Oh yeah, and Bucky's elderly sidekick, Robards, defeats a mini-MODOK off panel because why not. Yep, I'm done with this series. This comic was as bad as anything I've read all year, and I'm not gonna waste my money anymore. Bucky, you deserve so much better than this... Hopefully this book gets cancelled and a better writer gets a new series down the road. Score: 0 out of 10. The first imperfect score in quite some time...
Ultimate X-Men #25: Jean heads to Utopia because Kitty is an arrogant bitch in Jean's mind and shouldn't be leading the mutant people. Amen, Jean!!! Besides that, Jimmy is plotting with Warpath from Mach 2's crew and Psylocke is plotting against Mach 2. So basically, we have a 4 way power struggle brewing between Kitty, Mach 2, Jean and Psylocke... Um, couldn't there be ONE male character trying to take leadership of Utopia?! I mean, FOUR women are vying for the throne!? Very, very weird... Needless to say, I'm in Jean's corner, because Evil Jean is awesome. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Green Lantern #19: We pick things up with Hal Jordan who now inexplicably looks exactly like Geoff Johns for some stupid ass reason still in Black Hand's ring as he contemplates his next move. Sinestro's returned to Korugar to get help from his people to take on the First Lantern, but he shows up and feeds off of their emotions. When Sinestro manages to save his people, the First Lantern changes it so he didn't, cause he can change time or something. Anyway, The First Lantern destroys Korugar, leaving Sinestro floating through space and his planet's debris when he finds himself in front of his Yellow Lantern. Also, Hal decides to kill himself while in the ring so he can wield the Black Hand's Black Lantern powers, so he flings himself off a cliff. Well, I hated this. I don't know much about the lantern because I refuse to follow GL Corps, New Guardians and Red Lanterns to keep up with this storyline. The way he changed it so Sinestro lost after winning was a giant screw you to the readers, and it looks like Sinestro will be wielding fear again. Plus, Geoff Jordan annoys me... how do you just randomly change Hal to a pudgy faced Geoff Johns? Ugh. Score: 2/10 only because Geoff Jordan killed himself.
Green Arrow #19: After the odd cliffhanger of Ollie falling to his death in the last issue, we see Ollie survives (SHOCKING!!!) and engages Komodo in battle. Surprisingly, Oliver manages to get the drop on Komodo, but Oliver is suddenly shot with an arrow by Komodo's daughter. Komodo's unhappy about her showing up and Ollie uses the distraction of her and the police to get away. The issue ends with Oliver being picked up by his newest tech guy and pulling an arrow out of his leg before blacking out in pain. This issue fell flat for me, the first two issues started out promising but Komodo and his daughter and the mystery of Oliver's longtime dead dad is not keeping me interested. I'll probably give this series one more issue and if things don't turn around I'll end up dropping it. Score: 4/10
And that's it for this week's Best of the Rest post! I had a few books I wanted to include but I haven't gotten around to reading them yet, so ah well. Due to my busy schedule, X is going to post a scan or something tomorrow since the only two books I've read and planned on reviewing were better as blurbs than full reviews. Anyway, til next time, this is JT and his erstwhile lackey X, signing off!
Indestructible Hulk #6: Bruce and his science crew use some uru Thor lent SHIELD(that's weird...) to find some mysterious element in Jotunheim(where the Frost Giants lurk). Thor from the past shows up(wha?!) as do Frost Giants. Bruce hulks up, and all of this leads to Hulk lifting Thor's hammer... Yeah, under no circumstances should Hulk ever lift Thor's hammer. So I'm guessing either a) the hammer rose because it was heading back to Thor, or b) this is a wacky alternate dimension where anybody can lift the hammer. Regardless, this issue seemed kind of average-ish to me. With Mark Waid and Walter Simonson, I was expecting more than this. Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Stormwatch #19: What the HELL happened to this comic?! Ugh... This issue was horrible, and nearly impossible to figure out... Some aliens kill Adam One at the beginning of time(?), which alters reality(you'd think DC would shy away from doing THAT...), leading to Stormwatch being called Skywatch. with (some) different members. It was a mess and it ended with a Lobo appearance. So yeah, I hated it and hope that Jim Starlin rights this ship really fast. This used to be my favorite DC comic... Score: 3 out of 10.
Hypernaturals #10: We seem to be inching ever closer to finding out that Sublime was right and that the Quantinuum AI may just be up to no good. Or maybe it's just trying to protect humanity... Regardless, Sublime has had more than enough of working with the Hypernaturals and takes off. As for Evil Sublime, he's attacking Thinkwell's homeworld. So yeah, I finally managed to read this series, from issue #1-10, and I liked it. DnA doing a space tale is always a good thing, and this series is no different. Sublime is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine too. Score: 7 out of 10.
Venom #33: This issue revolves around Toxin(Eddie Brock) battling against the mysterious(still unnamed!) cannibal from last issue. The cannibal escapes from Toxin and ends up running into Venom. This one ends with Venom knocking the cannibal out and coming face-to-face with Toxin. Which is what I've been waiting for!! This issue proved something important to me... If Cullen Bunn stays away from all the demonic and supernatural junk, he CAN write a good Venom series! He proved it with the U-Foes and he proved it again here. Eddie vs a cannibal? Flash vs the cannibal? Flash vs Eddie? Yes, please! Here's hoping Bunn stays away from demons and lets Flash face the types of threats you'd expect a spider-family member to face. Score: 8 out of 10.
Winter Soldier #17: So yeah, some stuff happens and this issue ended... *sigh* Fine, I'll try a bit harder than that... Nick Fury's disembodied head tells Bucky to go after the Electric Ghost, who went all Super-Joker and committed like 57 terrorist acts in one day. Bucky ends up going to the Ghost's satellite(wait, what?!) and is defeated by her. Oh yeah, and Bucky's elderly sidekick, Robards, defeats a mini-MODOK off panel because why not. Yep, I'm done with this series. This comic was as bad as anything I've read all year, and I'm not gonna waste my money anymore. Bucky, you deserve so much better than this... Hopefully this book gets cancelled and a better writer gets a new series down the road. Score: 0 out of 10. The first imperfect score in quite some time...
Ultimate X-Men #25: Jean heads to Utopia because Kitty is an arrogant bitch in Jean's mind and shouldn't be leading the mutant people. Amen, Jean!!! Besides that, Jimmy is plotting with Warpath from Mach 2's crew and Psylocke is plotting against Mach 2. So basically, we have a 4 way power struggle brewing between Kitty, Mach 2, Jean and Psylocke... Um, couldn't there be ONE male character trying to take leadership of Utopia?! I mean, FOUR women are vying for the throne!? Very, very weird... Needless to say, I'm in Jean's corner, because Evil Jean is awesome. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Green Lantern #19: We pick things up with Hal Jordan who now inexplicably looks exactly like Geoff Johns for some stupid ass reason still in Black Hand's ring as he contemplates his next move. Sinestro's returned to Korugar to get help from his people to take on the First Lantern, but he shows up and feeds off of their emotions. When Sinestro manages to save his people, the First Lantern changes it so he didn't, cause he can change time or something. Anyway, The First Lantern destroys Korugar, leaving Sinestro floating through space and his planet's debris when he finds himself in front of his Yellow Lantern. Also, Hal decides to kill himself while in the ring so he can wield the Black Hand's Black Lantern powers, so he flings himself off a cliff. Well, I hated this. I don't know much about the lantern because I refuse to follow GL Corps, New Guardians and Red Lanterns to keep up with this storyline. The way he changed it so Sinestro lost after winning was a giant screw you to the readers, and it looks like Sinestro will be wielding fear again. Plus, Geoff Jordan annoys me... how do you just randomly change Hal to a pudgy faced Geoff Johns? Ugh. Score: 2/10 only because Geoff Jordan killed himself.
Green Arrow #19: After the odd cliffhanger of Ollie falling to his death in the last issue, we see Ollie survives (SHOCKING!!!) and engages Komodo in battle. Surprisingly, Oliver manages to get the drop on Komodo, but Oliver is suddenly shot with an arrow by Komodo's daughter. Komodo's unhappy about her showing up and Ollie uses the distraction of her and the police to get away. The issue ends with Oliver being picked up by his newest tech guy and pulling an arrow out of his leg before blacking out in pain. This issue fell flat for me, the first two issues started out promising but Komodo and his daughter and the mystery of Oliver's longtime dead dad is not keeping me interested. I'll probably give this series one more issue and if things don't turn around I'll end up dropping it. Score: 4/10
And that's it for this week's Best of the Rest post! I had a few books I wanted to include but I haven't gotten around to reading them yet, so ah well. Due to my busy schedule, X is going to post a scan or something tomorrow since the only two books I've read and planned on reviewing were better as blurbs than full reviews. Anyway, til next time, this is JT and his erstwhile lackey X, signing off!
Monday, April 1, 2013
Best of the Rest! Week of 3/27/13.
Hey all, X here to finish this week off with a BotR post! Last week I was joined by my king, the illustrious JT. This week? This week I'm not sure if JT is here or not... So yeah... If he does decide to add a few comics, you'll know it's him by the blue text. If he doesn't decide to join in? Then just ignore everything I just typed... Okay, with that taken care of, let's get into it.
Fantastic Four #6AU: This was the obligatory Age of Ultron tie-in issue. Now, I'm sure you're wondering, "But X, aren't the F4 doing the whole Swiss Family Robinson thing? How are they involved in this event?!" To that I respond, "Marvel wants money!!! And event crossovers equal cash!" Basically, Black Panther somehow contacts Reed through space and time and tells him that Ultron had attacked the Earth. The F4 leave the kids behind and return to Earth, where they are killed one by one by Ultron's droids. Only Sue survives, and she ends up with the resistance. I actually enjoyed this issue. But I think it was the Ultron fan in me who enjoyed this and not really the F4 fan. I can't help but enjoy a comic that sees Ultron masquerade as Dr. Doom, and then proceed to kill the Thing. Yeah, there were some holes and the F4 being a part of this event felt a bit forced, but still, I liked it. Score: 8 out of 10.
Teen Titans #18: Ah Scott Lobdell... This issue opens with five pages of Tim Drake crying over Damian Wayne's death. He literally cried for FIVE straight pages! I don't know when Tim and Damian became so close, but there ya go. From there, Tim heads to the Titans and complains about them not doing enough to protect teenage heroes. To that end, Tim and the Titans attack the Suicide Squad since Amanda Waller had captured a teenager with powers. But wait, it turns out Waller did no such thing, and that Tim only went after the Squad to make a mysterious deal with Waller. And then Trigon flew through the sky on a three-headed horse. Really! I don't even know what to make of this series anymore... Last issue Tim was possessed by Raven and making out with his female teammates left and right. This issue Tim wasn't possessed by Raven... Maybe... Unless he was when he was with Waller... Possibly... So by this point, I have NO clue as to whether Tim is possessed or not... But Trigon DID fly around on a three headed horse. Of that I am sure. Score: 6 out of 10.
I, Vampire #18: This was the penultimate issue of this series. All I can really say about this is that it looks like Tig finally died(YAY!!!) and Mary came back from the dead. Again. This issue just flat-out didn't click for me. Of course it didn't help that Constantine-lite was hanging around. So yeah, sadly, I didn't enjoy this one. Still, I'll miss this series when it's gone, because the early issues were great. Score: 4 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #7: The "team"(and I use that term as loosely as possible) are now on-board a submarine. Flash wants to mutiny against Rulk because Rulk hasn't been forthcoming with information... Or something. Rulk beats everybody up, and then tells them that he had been using them to clean up areas where there were gamma bombs. But wait! It turns out Rulk was wrong and that somebody has been creating gamma batteries instead of bombs. Meh. I'm giving this series two more issues, if it doesn't improve? I'm done. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
A+X #6: Two stories in this comic, as usual. The first one stars Wolverine and Captain Marvel. They're playing poker, they argue a bit, a villain attacks, but ends up joining the game. The second story gives us Thing and Gambit beating the Yancy Street gang in poker... Yup, two stories, two tales about poker... And yes, that is indeed very weird. I enjoyed the Wolvie/Marvel story more out of the two, but I can't say I'd recommend either story unless you're a hardcore fan of the four characters here. Score: 5 1/2 out of 10.
FF #5: Hey look, it's another FF comic! In the same post! Madness!! This comic has nothing to do with the Age of Ultron storyline, which is especially weird, since it would make more sense for this team to deal with Ultron since they're still on Earth and all... Anyway, Old Torch goes crazy after some guy touches his coat and tries to torch a neighborhood. Scott and the gang end up defeating him and let Herbie watch over him. Alex heads to Latveria to seemingly warn Doom of Scott's plans. The reveal at the end shows us that Medusa is secretly working with Wizard... Damn it! This is a series that I would drop without a second thought... If it would get bad! Instead, I find myself enjoying this series, when I know I shouldn't! If I'm being honest, I can see myself dropping F4 before I drop this title... How weird is that! Score: 8 out of 10.
Hey crew, JT here with two reviews for the BOTR post so we can end things on a good note. So here are my reviews for Scarlet Spidey and Morbius, The Living Vampire.
Scarlet Spider #15: This issue featured Aracely running from Los Lobos, but she's eventually caught by the sibling Werewolves. Before they can do anything, a blood thirsty, six eyed, freaky looking Kaine shows up and engages Los Lobos. Kaine manages to rip out the brother's eye, and stabs him through the chest with his... spider...leg or whatever their called. He then pulls a Superboy Prime and rips the Werewolves arm off, causing the sister to pick up her brother and run. Kaine goes to attack Aracely but she somehow connects with him, through her powers and I guess Kaine's memories, and he sheds his horrible skin and is himself again, with a long beard and shaggy hair. From there, Aracely helps Kaine get back to his normal self by cutting his hair, going to get his tattoos redone since they've been removed due to his full body healing, and he gets back to his life, but now he knows he doesn't have to wonder if he's a monster, he definitely is. From there we see Julia Carpenter, still in her coma, whisper Kaine's name, as well as see someone else saying The Culling will soon began. No one tell Marvel that DC did a story called The Culling like a year ago. The issue comes to a close with Aracely being possessed and the Male Werewolf being killed by some old dude with a beard. (This review was way longer than I expected.) So basically, this entire story was pointless, everything is how it was before except now Kaine has given into The Other, knows he's a monster...for now, and Aracely is possessed. Score: 4/10
Morbius The Living Vampire #3: In the last issue we saw Morbius bite a chunk out of Noah the gangster's neck. He's immediately shot at but dodges the bullets until Noah's hideous girlfriend shoots Morbius in the neck. Once Morbius wakes up from...being shot in the neck, she tells Morbius to use his doctor skills to save her boyfriend or she's going to torture Morbius and kill his friends, a girl by the name of Becky, and the kid she babysits, Henry. Morbius agrees to help and fights his blood lust to do so, but Noah wakes up halfway through and attacks, so Morbius slams him down and kills him in the process. Oops! The issue ends with Noah's ugly girlfriend entering the room to see Noah dead then yelling that Morbius and his friends are dead!!!! Well...this issue was not as strong as the first two. Nothing happened in this issue either really, it was kind of filler. Morbius bit a chunk out of a dude's neck in the last issue, he tried to save him and he died in this one. So you literally could've skipped this issue if issue two ends with Morbius biting Noah and issue four starts with Noah being dead. So... yeah. Score: 3/10
And that's it for us, thanks for dropping by the check out the best of the rest post for this week, and be sure to check out my review tomorrow for Injustice: Gods Among Us #3. On behalf of my buddy X, and myself of course, this is JT, signing off!
Fantastic Four #6AU: This was the obligatory Age of Ultron tie-in issue. Now, I'm sure you're wondering, "But X, aren't the F4 doing the whole Swiss Family Robinson thing? How are they involved in this event?!" To that I respond, "Marvel wants money!!! And event crossovers equal cash!" Basically, Black Panther somehow contacts Reed through space and time and tells him that Ultron had attacked the Earth. The F4 leave the kids behind and return to Earth, where they are killed one by one by Ultron's droids. Only Sue survives, and she ends up with the resistance. I actually enjoyed this issue. But I think it was the Ultron fan in me who enjoyed this and not really the F4 fan. I can't help but enjoy a comic that sees Ultron masquerade as Dr. Doom, and then proceed to kill the Thing. Yeah, there were some holes and the F4 being a part of this event felt a bit forced, but still, I liked it. Score: 8 out of 10.
Teen Titans #18: Ah Scott Lobdell... This issue opens with five pages of Tim Drake crying over Damian Wayne's death. He literally cried for FIVE straight pages! I don't know when Tim and Damian became so close, but there ya go. From there, Tim heads to the Titans and complains about them not doing enough to protect teenage heroes. To that end, Tim and the Titans attack the Suicide Squad since Amanda Waller had captured a teenager with powers. But wait, it turns out Waller did no such thing, and that Tim only went after the Squad to make a mysterious deal with Waller. And then Trigon flew through the sky on a three-headed horse. Really! I don't even know what to make of this series anymore... Last issue Tim was possessed by Raven and making out with his female teammates left and right. This issue Tim wasn't possessed by Raven... Maybe... Unless he was when he was with Waller... Possibly... So by this point, I have NO clue as to whether Tim is possessed or not... But Trigon DID fly around on a three headed horse. Of that I am sure. Score: 6 out of 10.
I, Vampire #18: This was the penultimate issue of this series. All I can really say about this is that it looks like Tig finally died(YAY!!!) and Mary came back from the dead. Again. This issue just flat-out didn't click for me. Of course it didn't help that Constantine-lite was hanging around. So yeah, sadly, I didn't enjoy this one. Still, I'll miss this series when it's gone, because the early issues were great. Score: 4 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #7: The "team"(and I use that term as loosely as possible) are now on-board a submarine. Flash wants to mutiny against Rulk because Rulk hasn't been forthcoming with information... Or something. Rulk beats everybody up, and then tells them that he had been using them to clean up areas where there were gamma bombs. But wait! It turns out Rulk was wrong and that somebody has been creating gamma batteries instead of bombs. Meh. I'm giving this series two more issues, if it doesn't improve? I'm done. Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
A+X #6: Two stories in this comic, as usual. The first one stars Wolverine and Captain Marvel. They're playing poker, they argue a bit, a villain attacks, but ends up joining the game. The second story gives us Thing and Gambit beating the Yancy Street gang in poker... Yup, two stories, two tales about poker... And yes, that is indeed very weird. I enjoyed the Wolvie/Marvel story more out of the two, but I can't say I'd recommend either story unless you're a hardcore fan of the four characters here. Score: 5 1/2 out of 10.
FF #5: Hey look, it's another FF comic! In the same post! Madness!! This comic has nothing to do with the Age of Ultron storyline, which is especially weird, since it would make more sense for this team to deal with Ultron since they're still on Earth and all... Anyway, Old Torch goes crazy after some guy touches his coat and tries to torch a neighborhood. Scott and the gang end up defeating him and let Herbie watch over him. Alex heads to Latveria to seemingly warn Doom of Scott's plans. The reveal at the end shows us that Medusa is secretly working with Wizard... Damn it! This is a series that I would drop without a second thought... If it would get bad! Instead, I find myself enjoying this series, when I know I shouldn't! If I'm being honest, I can see myself dropping F4 before I drop this title... How weird is that! Score: 8 out of 10.
Hey crew, JT here with two reviews for the BOTR post so we can end things on a good note. So here are my reviews for Scarlet Spidey and Morbius, The Living Vampire.
Scarlet Spider #15: This issue featured Aracely running from Los Lobos, but she's eventually caught by the sibling Werewolves. Before they can do anything, a blood thirsty, six eyed, freaky looking Kaine shows up and engages Los Lobos. Kaine manages to rip out the brother's eye, and stabs him through the chest with his... spider...leg or whatever their called. He then pulls a Superboy Prime and rips the Werewolves arm off, causing the sister to pick up her brother and run. Kaine goes to attack Aracely but she somehow connects with him, through her powers and I guess Kaine's memories, and he sheds his horrible skin and is himself again, with a long beard and shaggy hair. From there, Aracely helps Kaine get back to his normal self by cutting his hair, going to get his tattoos redone since they've been removed due to his full body healing, and he gets back to his life, but now he knows he doesn't have to wonder if he's a monster, he definitely is. From there we see Julia Carpenter, still in her coma, whisper Kaine's name, as well as see someone else saying The Culling will soon began. No one tell Marvel that DC did a story called The Culling like a year ago. The issue comes to a close with Aracely being possessed and the Male Werewolf being killed by some old dude with a beard. (This review was way longer than I expected.) So basically, this entire story was pointless, everything is how it was before except now Kaine has given into The Other, knows he's a monster...for now, and Aracely is possessed. Score: 4/10
Morbius The Living Vampire #3: In the last issue we saw Morbius bite a chunk out of Noah the gangster's neck. He's immediately shot at but dodges the bullets until Noah's hideous girlfriend shoots Morbius in the neck. Once Morbius wakes up from...being shot in the neck, she tells Morbius to use his doctor skills to save her boyfriend or she's going to torture Morbius and kill his friends, a girl by the name of Becky, and the kid she babysits, Henry. Morbius agrees to help and fights his blood lust to do so, but Noah wakes up halfway through and attacks, so Morbius slams him down and kills him in the process. Oops! The issue ends with Noah's ugly girlfriend entering the room to see Noah dead then yelling that Morbius and his friends are dead!!!! Well...this issue was not as strong as the first two. Nothing happened in this issue either really, it was kind of filler. Morbius bit a chunk out of a dude's neck in the last issue, he tried to save him and he died in this one. So you literally could've skipped this issue if issue two ends with Morbius biting Noah and issue four starts with Noah being dead. So... yeah. Score: 3/10
And that's it for us, thanks for dropping by the check out the best of the rest post for this week, and be sure to check out my review tomorrow for Injustice: Gods Among Us #3. On behalf of my buddy X, and myself of course, this is JT, signing off!
Monday, March 18, 2013
Best of the Rest! Week of 3/13/13.
Hey there X-Maniacs, X here with some explaining to do... So I've become horribly obsessed with Civilization 5, and have been spending entirely too much time playing that game. At the expense of the blog. Yeah, I know, bad X... Truth be told though, it's not completely my fault, as the past two weeks have seen me bring home a ton of mediocre books... I've been giving out 7 out of 10's like there's no tomorrow! To rectify things(and to make sure I post more than JT!), I'm gonna dust off that old tried and true blog post, The Best of the Rest! Basically, I'll take a quick look at everything I've read(and haven't reviewed), and throw some thoughts out there. Don't expect in depth reviews(or competent work, but if you're reading this, you probably don't expect anything competent to begin with!), just some thoughts, and a score. Okay, we set? Great. Let's get this polished off.
Walking Dead #108: Jesus takes Rick to see Ezekiel, who has a tiger... Yeah, I'm not sure how a frigging tiger managed to live through the zombie apocalypse, or ended up with Ezekiel, but here we are. Ezekiel wants to team up with Rick's group and attack Negan, however, Rick has some reservations when he sees that one of Negan's men had defected to Ezekiel's side. I enjoyed this issue, as always. Kirkman is always strong here. Negan is still a wonderfully over-the-top asshole, and I can't wait to see him get his comeuppance from Rick, although I will be really sad to see him go. He's a fantastic villain... Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #2: Dammit, I want to love this series... I really do... But so far I'm just not feeling it... This issue brings Taskmaster into the fold, as SHIELD rescues him from Bagalia(that villain country that isn't at all a rip-off of DC's Zandia...). But wait, it looks like Tasky is a double-agent. I mean, I should like everything going on here... Taskmaster, obscure villains like Crossfire and Mentallo, Nick Spencer writing it all, but it just hasn't clicked for me yet. I'm still hopeful here, but that hope is slowly diminishing. Score: 4 out of 10.
Thor: God of Thunder #6: This issue was the Gorr origin extravaganza!! And it was pretty good, as expected. We find out why Gorr hates gods(they failed his family repeatedly), and see where he gets his powers from(aliens). Like I said, this was a good issue. Would I have liked to see some Thor? Yes, of course. Even with no Thor at all, this was still one of the better books I read this week, so no complaints here. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #6: And the storyline from hell continues... It's been SIX issues now! And the team is STILL doing their first mission!! Madman died here, so that's a plus, but I just want the team to get the hell off that damn island and fight some real villains already! Thankfully, the first part should be accomplished with the next issue, but really, where's Baron Zemo and some Masters of Evil to fight these T-Bolts?! Instead we're getting a Punisher/Elektra/Deadpool love triangle... Weird... Score: 3 out of 10.
Superboy #18: This series continues to be oddly readable. Probably because there are three writers here, meaning we have Tom DeFalco and Tony Lee to filter Scott Lobdell's garbage. Superboy spends this issue fighting Plasmus, while Dr. Psycho takes a peek into SB's mind. Oh yeah, Lex Luthor is in SB's mind for some reason... To be honest, this issue is kind of what Thunderbolts needs. A protagonist(Superboy) battling an antagonist(Plasmus). Simple. Throw in Dr. Psycho and Lex(kind of) and you have a good comic! From DC! Go figure. Score: 7 out of 10.
Fantastic Four #5: Have I mentioned that I hate Franklin and Valeria? I have? Good, because this issue did nothing to change that. Those two are so annoying. Throw in a story that sees Julius Caesar turn out to be a time-travelling alien shape-shifter(yup...), and you have a recipe for disaster. On the plus side, we're moving forward with the main storyline, as Sue has learned of Reed's condition. But on the negative side? Everything else. Score: 3 out of 10.
Ultimate X-Men #24: I am still so conflicted about this series... It's really not bad... If I overlook my blinding hatred of Kitty Pryde... How is she the leader of mutantkind... I mean Storm is RIGHT THERE! But yeah, back to the story. Mach Two and the evil mutants are up to no good, Utopia is flourishing and elements of the government aren't pleased to see that. It's really not bad. I like most of the characters here. Jimmy is awesome, I like seeing Warpath and Psylocke with the evil mutants, even Mach Two has potential as a mini-Magneto. But Kitty... Grrr... Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Huzzah, I'm done! Seven comics, one post. I very well may try to do a post like this every week on Monday. That way I can to three or four in depth reviews for Thursday and Saturday, while covering everything else on Monday. But, as with everything I do, that's subject to change. Anyway, hope ya enjoyed reading this(I actually enjoyed typing it up!), and until next time, X out.
Walking Dead #108: Jesus takes Rick to see Ezekiel, who has a tiger... Yeah, I'm not sure how a frigging tiger managed to live through the zombie apocalypse, or ended up with Ezekiel, but here we are. Ezekiel wants to team up with Rick's group and attack Negan, however, Rick has some reservations when he sees that one of Negan's men had defected to Ezekiel's side. I enjoyed this issue, as always. Kirkman is always strong here. Negan is still a wonderfully over-the-top asshole, and I can't wait to see him get his comeuppance from Rick, although I will be really sad to see him go. He's a fantastic villain... Score: 7 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #2: Dammit, I want to love this series... I really do... But so far I'm just not feeling it... This issue brings Taskmaster into the fold, as SHIELD rescues him from Bagalia(that villain country that isn't at all a rip-off of DC's Zandia...). But wait, it looks like Tasky is a double-agent. I mean, I should like everything going on here... Taskmaster, obscure villains like Crossfire and Mentallo, Nick Spencer writing it all, but it just hasn't clicked for me yet. I'm still hopeful here, but that hope is slowly diminishing. Score: 4 out of 10.
Thor: God of Thunder #6: This issue was the Gorr origin extravaganza!! And it was pretty good, as expected. We find out why Gorr hates gods(they failed his family repeatedly), and see where he gets his powers from(aliens). Like I said, this was a good issue. Would I have liked to see some Thor? Yes, of course. Even with no Thor at all, this was still one of the better books I read this week, so no complaints here. Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Thunderbolts #6: And the storyline from hell continues... It's been SIX issues now! And the team is STILL doing their first mission!! Madman died here, so that's a plus, but I just want the team to get the hell off that damn island and fight some real villains already! Thankfully, the first part should be accomplished with the next issue, but really, where's Baron Zemo and some Masters of Evil to fight these T-Bolts?! Instead we're getting a Punisher/Elektra/Deadpool love triangle... Weird... Score: 3 out of 10.
Superboy #18: This series continues to be oddly readable. Probably because there are three writers here, meaning we have Tom DeFalco and Tony Lee to filter Scott Lobdell's garbage. Superboy spends this issue fighting Plasmus, while Dr. Psycho takes a peek into SB's mind. Oh yeah, Lex Luthor is in SB's mind for some reason... To be honest, this issue is kind of what Thunderbolts needs. A protagonist(Superboy) battling an antagonist(Plasmus). Simple. Throw in Dr. Psycho and Lex(kind of) and you have a good comic! From DC! Go figure. Score: 7 out of 10.
Fantastic Four #5: Have I mentioned that I hate Franklin and Valeria? I have? Good, because this issue did nothing to change that. Those two are so annoying. Throw in a story that sees Julius Caesar turn out to be a time-travelling alien shape-shifter(yup...), and you have a recipe for disaster. On the plus side, we're moving forward with the main storyline, as Sue has learned of Reed's condition. But on the negative side? Everything else. Score: 3 out of 10.
Ultimate X-Men #24: I am still so conflicted about this series... It's really not bad... If I overlook my blinding hatred of Kitty Pryde... How is she the leader of mutantkind... I mean Storm is RIGHT THERE! But yeah, back to the story. Mach Two and the evil mutants are up to no good, Utopia is flourishing and elements of the government aren't pleased to see that. It's really not bad. I like most of the characters here. Jimmy is awesome, I like seeing Warpath and Psylocke with the evil mutants, even Mach Two has potential as a mini-Magneto. But Kitty... Grrr... Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.
Huzzah, I'm done! Seven comics, one post. I very well may try to do a post like this every week on Monday. That way I can to three or four in depth reviews for Thursday and Saturday, while covering everything else on Monday. But, as with everything I do, that's subject to change. Anyway, hope ya enjoyed reading this(I actually enjoyed typing it up!), and until next time, X out.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
The Best of the Rest! 4/30/11
You know what I just realized? That I should be calling these mass review posts, “The Best of the Rest!” I mean seriously, why not? So yeah, I'll be dusting off that old X-Man's Comic Blog original and putting it back in play. So there you go, 5 reviews, one Best of the Rest post!
Uncanny X-Men #535.
Synopsis: A giant spacecraft is entering the Milky Way, making a beeline for Earth. Agent Brand of SWORD decides to call the X-Men for assistance... What, were the Avengers AND FF unavailable?! Lord Summers the First selects The Whore, Good Magneto, Colossus, Shadowcat, Danger and of course, Wolverine to head into space with him. The mutants and Brand manage to get onto the alien ship, and sure enough, it contains citizens from Breakworld seeking the help of their Powerlord, Colossus.
-First, a quick disclaimer... I HATED Joss Whedon's ENTIRE Astonishing X-Men run(sorry Buffy fans) in general, and his Breakworld stuff in particular.
-I wasn't joking in that synopsis... Why would Brand call in the X-Men as opposed to the Avengers or FF who have WAY more experience with space-related crises?
-So we get Danger, Brand, and Breakworld all in the same issue, on the same mission... It's a Whedon reunion!!!
It's a Whedon-bonanza!
-Against all odds, I found myself enjoying this comic, when I fully expected to hate it... Either Kieron Gillen is a miracle worker, or I was in a REALLY good mood when I read this comic... I'm gonna go with the second choice.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Wolverine #8.
Synopsis: Wolverine is possessed... Still. While he is trying to fend off the demons in his head with the help of the Whore and a few allies, Storm is trying to prevent Fantomex and Dr. Nemesis from completing the mission they were handed by Lord Summers, to kill Wolverine's possessed body. Eventually Nightcrawler enters Wolvie's mind and brings Jean Grey(!!!) with him. After Jean tosses the Whore and Wolvie's other friends out of his head, she manages to assist Wolvie in purging the demons from his mind, ending the threat of Possessed Wolvie, but leaving Wolvie craving revenge against those who caused him to become possessed to begin with.
-So the question is, were Nightcrawler and Jean real or simply figments of Wolvie's imagination? Was the Elf sent by heaven to assist his longtime friend? We never really find out, which is fine by me.
-Jean's another interesting case... The Whore seemed sure that Jean was simply a manifestation of Wolvie's subconscious, but Jean was able to expel the Whore from Wolvie's head... Would Wolvie himself be powerful enough to toss the Whore, a skilled telepath, out of his mind without help from the real Jean? Hmm...
More Jean, less Emma equals a very happy X.
-Well, whether it was or wasn't Jean, seeing my all-time favorite X-female again was fine by me!
-Jean telling Wolvie not to go looking for revenge, and then Wolvie immediately deciding he was going to go looking for revenge was such a Wolverine thing to do...
-Hell, let's post another Jean image before I end this review! :P
Jean...
Score: 8 out of 10.
Detective Comics #876.
Synopsis: This issue starts off with one hell of a mystery. It seems that somebody has left the corpse of a 43 ft long, 4.2 ton Orca Whale in the lobby of a bank in Gotham. So how did it get there, and more importantly, WHY was it there? That's the question Dick Grayson has to figure out. After some detective work(this is DETECTIVE Comics!), Dick learns that a) the head of the bank is named Sonia Branch, the seemingly reputable daughter of the man who murdered his parents, and b) one of Sonia's assistants was inside the dead whale. Dick tries to talk to Sonia and gets nowhere, but bugs her place and learns that someone was trying to blackmail her. Dick follows the signal to the car dealership of a known gun runner and gets trapped in the dealership's compactor.
-I can say, with a clear conscious and no doubts, that Detective is the best Batman book on the shelves today. Scott Snyder is doing a bang-up job here!
-Something I really like about Snyder's writing is how well he dialogues both Commissioner Gordon and Dick Grayson.
-Are we now officially to the point where it's an unwritten fact that Gordon knows Dick is Batman? I mean Dick really isn't hiding it. I guess Gordon is just going through the motions and pretending that he doesn't know nowadays.
Dick might as well just wear the Batman cape while Gordon is around!
-Sonia being Tony Zucco's daughter is a nice touch, and helps makes the case personal to Dick.
-Oh, and for the record, there's NO way Sonia is clean. No way!
-Other than that, I really don't have anything else to say here. This was another really good effort from Snyder and the Detective crew.
Dick Grayson: Man of a few words.
Score: 8 1/2 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #12.
Synopsis: After a quick escape attempt foiled by Beast, Steve Rogers and the Prince of Orphans, John Steele is hooked back up to one of Beast's machines and Steve manages to get back into John's mind. Eventually Steve helps unlock a buried memory that had been plaguing John for years as we learn the Shadow Council had manipulated John's mind to make him into their agent using... um, an inter dimensional portal? Now free from his brainwashing, John is eager to get back at the Council, and Steve has just the plan...
-Well, I guess even the best comic book writer in the business is due a stinker every now and then. I've repeatedly stated my unwavering love of Ed Brubaker's work, but this issue just did NOTHING for me.
-I don't care about John Steele...
Sorry John, I just don't care about you!
-I don't care about the Prince of Orphans...
-And I BARELY care about the Shadow Council...
-It was cool seeing Steve Rogers back when he was still Captain America fighting a giant bug though!
That's the strangest Nazi weapon yet!
-I honestly don't know what the ritual the Shadow Council was preforming did, nor do I know why it turned Steele evil. *shrugs*
Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #12.1.
Synopsis: Somebody dressed as the US Agent(or The Captain if you prefer) has stolen a list of government informants who work with bad people(Hydra, AIM, etc) and revealed it for the world to see. With the names of 419 government informants exposed, Steve Rogers realizes that there was no way he'd be able to save every one of them. As such, he deploys the Secret Avengers to save one informant who revealed her information out of altruism, not greed or the promise of reduced jail time. Unfortunately, the Secret Avengers are too late, and the woman is dead. Needless to say, Steve is pissed, and spends the rest of this issue hunting, finding, beating up and then preaching to the faux US Agent.
-This was Nick Spencer's first crack at this title, and I think he did a pretty solid job. I could have done without Steve's preaching at the end, but all in all? I liked this one.
-So Ed Brubaker's last issue of this series was #12, Spencer will become the writer for the Fear Itself tie-ins, and then Warren Ellis takes over... I gotta say, if given a choice, I'd take Spencer over Ellis ANY day.
-Beast continues to be the MVP of this team for me. I mean, I like pretty much all of the characters here, but Beast always stands out to me in this series.
-The Secret Avengers failing to save the informant was a definite surprise. I was expecting Moon Knight to rush in and save the thankful woman... I guess we can't always have a happy ending, which was the point of this one.
-Any time I get the chance to post Steve Rogers laying a beatdown on someone, you KNOW I'm going to take it!
Now that's a beating!
Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Uncanny X-Men #535.
Synopsis: A giant spacecraft is entering the Milky Way, making a beeline for Earth. Agent Brand of SWORD decides to call the X-Men for assistance... What, were the Avengers AND FF unavailable?! Lord Summers the First selects The Whore, Good Magneto, Colossus, Shadowcat, Danger and of course, Wolverine to head into space with him. The mutants and Brand manage to get onto the alien ship, and sure enough, it contains citizens from Breakworld seeking the help of their Powerlord, Colossus.
-First, a quick disclaimer... I HATED Joss Whedon's ENTIRE Astonishing X-Men run(sorry Buffy fans) in general, and his Breakworld stuff in particular.
-I wasn't joking in that synopsis... Why would Brand call in the X-Men as opposed to the Avengers or FF who have WAY more experience with space-related crises?
-So we get Danger, Brand, and Breakworld all in the same issue, on the same mission... It's a Whedon reunion!!!
It's a Whedon-bonanza!-Against all odds, I found myself enjoying this comic, when I fully expected to hate it... Either Kieron Gillen is a miracle worker, or I was in a REALLY good mood when I read this comic... I'm gonna go with the second choice.
Score: 7 out of 10.
Wolverine #8.
Synopsis: Wolverine is possessed... Still. While he is trying to fend off the demons in his head with the help of the Whore and a few allies, Storm is trying to prevent Fantomex and Dr. Nemesis from completing the mission they were handed by Lord Summers, to kill Wolverine's possessed body. Eventually Nightcrawler enters Wolvie's mind and brings Jean Grey(!!!) with him. After Jean tosses the Whore and Wolvie's other friends out of his head, she manages to assist Wolvie in purging the demons from his mind, ending the threat of Possessed Wolvie, but leaving Wolvie craving revenge against those who caused him to become possessed to begin with.
-So the question is, were Nightcrawler and Jean real or simply figments of Wolvie's imagination? Was the Elf sent by heaven to assist his longtime friend? We never really find out, which is fine by me.
-Jean's another interesting case... The Whore seemed sure that Jean was simply a manifestation of Wolvie's subconscious, but Jean was able to expel the Whore from Wolvie's head... Would Wolvie himself be powerful enough to toss the Whore, a skilled telepath, out of his mind without help from the real Jean? Hmm...
More Jean, less Emma equals a very happy X.-Well, whether it was or wasn't Jean, seeing my all-time favorite X-female again was fine by me!
-Jean telling Wolvie not to go looking for revenge, and then Wolvie immediately deciding he was going to go looking for revenge was such a Wolverine thing to do...
-Hell, let's post another Jean image before I end this review! :P
Jean...Score: 8 out of 10.
Detective Comics #876.
Synopsis: This issue starts off with one hell of a mystery. It seems that somebody has left the corpse of a 43 ft long, 4.2 ton Orca Whale in the lobby of a bank in Gotham. So how did it get there, and more importantly, WHY was it there? That's the question Dick Grayson has to figure out. After some detective work(this is DETECTIVE Comics!), Dick learns that a) the head of the bank is named Sonia Branch, the seemingly reputable daughter of the man who murdered his parents, and b) one of Sonia's assistants was inside the dead whale. Dick tries to talk to Sonia and gets nowhere, but bugs her place and learns that someone was trying to blackmail her. Dick follows the signal to the car dealership of a known gun runner and gets trapped in the dealership's compactor.
-I can say, with a clear conscious and no doubts, that Detective is the best Batman book on the shelves today. Scott Snyder is doing a bang-up job here!
-Something I really like about Snyder's writing is how well he dialogues both Commissioner Gordon and Dick Grayson.
-Are we now officially to the point where it's an unwritten fact that Gordon knows Dick is Batman? I mean Dick really isn't hiding it. I guess Gordon is just going through the motions and pretending that he doesn't know nowadays.
Dick might as well just wear the Batman cape while Gordon is around!-Sonia being Tony Zucco's daughter is a nice touch, and helps makes the case personal to Dick.
-Oh, and for the record, there's NO way Sonia is clean. No way!
-Other than that, I really don't have anything else to say here. This was another really good effort from Snyder and the Detective crew.
Dick Grayson: Man of a few words.Score: 8 1/2 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #12.
Synopsis: After a quick escape attempt foiled by Beast, Steve Rogers and the Prince of Orphans, John Steele is hooked back up to one of Beast's machines and Steve manages to get back into John's mind. Eventually Steve helps unlock a buried memory that had been plaguing John for years as we learn the Shadow Council had manipulated John's mind to make him into their agent using... um, an inter dimensional portal? Now free from his brainwashing, John is eager to get back at the Council, and Steve has just the plan...
-Well, I guess even the best comic book writer in the business is due a stinker every now and then. I've repeatedly stated my unwavering love of Ed Brubaker's work, but this issue just did NOTHING for me.
-I don't care about John Steele...
Sorry John, I just don't care about you!-I don't care about the Prince of Orphans...
-And I BARELY care about the Shadow Council...
-It was cool seeing Steve Rogers back when he was still Captain America fighting a giant bug though!
That's the strangest Nazi weapon yet!-I honestly don't know what the ritual the Shadow Council was preforming did, nor do I know why it turned Steele evil. *shrugs*
Score: 4 1/2 out of 10.
Secret Avengers #12.1.
Synopsis: Somebody dressed as the US Agent(or The Captain if you prefer) has stolen a list of government informants who work with bad people(Hydra, AIM, etc) and revealed it for the world to see. With the names of 419 government informants exposed, Steve Rogers realizes that there was no way he'd be able to save every one of them. As such, he deploys the Secret Avengers to save one informant who revealed her information out of altruism, not greed or the promise of reduced jail time. Unfortunately, the Secret Avengers are too late, and the woman is dead. Needless to say, Steve is pissed, and spends the rest of this issue hunting, finding, beating up and then preaching to the faux US Agent.
-This was Nick Spencer's first crack at this title, and I think he did a pretty solid job. I could have done without Steve's preaching at the end, but all in all? I liked this one.
-So Ed Brubaker's last issue of this series was #12, Spencer will become the writer for the Fear Itself tie-ins, and then Warren Ellis takes over... I gotta say, if given a choice, I'd take Spencer over Ellis ANY day.
-Beast continues to be the MVP of this team for me. I mean, I like pretty much all of the characters here, but Beast always stands out to me in this series.
-The Secret Avengers failing to save the informant was a definite surprise. I was expecting Moon Knight to rush in and save the thankful woman... I guess we can't always have a happy ending, which was the point of this one.
-Any time I get the chance to post Steve Rogers laying a beatdown on someone, you KNOW I'm going to take it!
Now that's a beating!Score: 7 1/2 out of 10.
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Best of the Rest! January 22nd edition.
Hey all, I won't bore you all with a long winded intro, instead I'll just go right into my two topics du jour and then to the reviews. Onward!
I want to buy Iron Man #500... Can you spare $150?
So I was going through the solicits on Tuesday to see what I'd be grabbing from the comic book shop come Wednesday, and I noticed that Invincible Iron Man #500 would be released. That's good, since issue #500 was the start of a new storyline(or so I thought), one that I'd be following from the beginning, unlike the last story, which I started reading at the 3rd or 4th part. Since this is one of those MEGA, GALA, SUPER anniversary issues Marvel LOVES to put out, not only was Iron Man released with one cover, it also received several variant covers. Now I personally have never understood who would buy a $3/$4/$5 comic book for an extra amount of money simply because of the cover, but somebody must, because Marvel REALLY loves putting out variants. Anyway, IM #500 had 4 different covers, so I figured I'd take a look at them just for kicks. You had the original cover which was $5, a JRJR cover for $18, a Marko Djurdjevic cover for $50(!)and a Joe Quesada cover for $150(!!!!)... Yes, that's right, one hundred and fifty dollars for a comic book you could instead buy for $5... I mean really, who in the WORLD would pay an extra $145 for a COVER?! Maybe if the comic was made of gold and had an I-Pod built into it I'd consider paying that much money for a NEW comic, but $150 simply for a cover?! I can't rationalize that at all...
Good-bye DC... It's been fun.
The rumors state that Chairman Johns, aka he of no original ideas, will be renumbering many DC series during the sure to be sucktacular Saint Barry Allen love-in Flashpoint ala the awesome Age of Apocalypse from Marvel back in the 90's. I've already stated that I WON'T be buying any DC Flashpoint issues as a protest due to DC allowing Chairman Johns almost unlimited power to destroy the DCU as he sees fit, but now it appears that DC will be dragging even more titles into the black hole of creativity that I'm sure Flashpoint will be. Let me state this in as plain a manner as I can. I buy a lot of comics, both Marvel and DC. Lately my enjoyment of DC comics has been waning, while my enjoyment of the Marvel books has been growing. I WILL NOT buy ANY DC comic that carries the Flashpoint banner. So let's say for example DC decides to have the Secret Six x-over with Flashpoint. That means I won't buy the Secret Six for as long as Flashpoint is ongoing. Furthermore, once I stop buying a book like Secret Six, there's a really good chance I won't bother picking it up again once Flashpoint ends, since I'll probably have started picking up other Marvel/Image or indy books to fill the void. I've enjoyed reading about the DCU these past four years or so. I've brought TONS of DC comics, as this blog is a testament to(as of right now I have 1,001 posts with a “DC Comics” label). I honestly think Flashpoint will be my breaking point, and the thing that destroys my interest in DC once and for all... I hope that isn't true, I mean if I was able to withstand the unadulterated awfulness that was Secret Invasion from Marvel, maybe I'll be able to stand Flashpoint, but the outlook seems bleak, and I fear I'll be saying good-bye to those DC characters I still do enjoy. I hope you're happy Chairman Johns and his brainwashed Silver Age cronies, you're about to lose a huge fan...
Okay, let's get to the reviews. Up first is Widowmaker #3(of 4). We get things started with Black Widow sending Hawkeye into a Dark Ocean Japanese brothel with the hopes of getting some information about the Dark Ocean organization. Basically, the Dark Ocean is an evil Japanese organized crime organization run by Ronin that has been killing several international spies. Hawkeye blows his cover almost immediately and is attacked by the women in the brothel. Black Widow rushes in to help and confronts the leader of the brothel, the Madame. The Madame explains that she was working with Ronin and that once Ronin's plans come to fruition she'd be an emperess, not just a simple Madame. After dropping some more vague hints, she disappears, leaving Widow not only knowing where Ronin was, but WHO he was. Meanwhile, Mockingbird and Dominic Fortune go after the Russian side of the Ronin mystery, and after beating up and tricking Russian soldiers, they head to an island that was disputed by the Russians and the Japanese. Upon arriving at the disputed island, Mock and Fortune meet up with Hawkeye and Widow, who had arrived moments before. The heroes share notes, and Ronin walks out of a temple, at which time Black Widow attacks. She takes Ronin down and unmasks him to reveal the Red Guardian, her ex-husband. Ronin explains that he was sickened by the democratic Russia, and wanted to take out the leaders of both Russia and Japan to create a new world power. This issue ends with Ronin forcing a volcano to erupt on the disputed island, figuring the destruction of the island would distract the Russian and Japanese governments enough for him to swoop in and kill all of their leaders. Well, we finally found out who Ronin was, and what his plans were. That was a major plus here, because the first two issues basically had the heroes running about aimlessly. I really don't have much more to say than I enjoyed this issue and am looking forward to seeing how the heroes will be able to stop the insane plots of Ronin. Score-wise, let's give this one a solid 7 1/2 out of 10.
Next up we head to DC and Secret Six #29. This comic actually crosses over with the last issue of Action Comics, although I have NO idea what issue that was, and I'm not really interested in figuring it out. Picking up from that issue of Action, the remote control rigged to blow up Lex's building is sitting precariously on top of its button. Lex acts nonchalant about it, which annoys Vandal Savage, but Lex has good reason not to care, as he sits in his chair and erects a force field around himself, sure that he'd survive the explosion. Lex taunts Vandal a bit and then has a bunch of guns set their sights on Scandal Savage, telling Vandal that if he doesn't disarm the bomb, he'd ventilate Vandal's daughter. Vandal stomps over to the remote and tries to shut it down, but realizes that it was stuck... D'oh! With the bombs now activated and counting down, Lex sends Black Alice away to try to find as many bombs as she could, while Vandal asks Lex to at least allow his daughter into the force field. Scandal says that she wouldn't go unless the rest of her team was saved as well, so Lex says fine, provided Vandal admitted defeat. Vandal reluctantly does as asked, and Lex allows Vandal, his underlings and the Secret Six into the force field just as the building blows. From there, Scandal slugs Lex for threatening to have her killed earlier and leaves with the Six, while Lex and Vandal decide to stick together, ending this issue. Hey, this was the first time in AGES I enjoyed an issue of the Secret Six! Of course Gail Simone did try to ruin that by emphasizing Ragdoll, who is just painfully unfunny by this point. This story would have been SO much better had it simply focused on Lex and the two Savages. Instead we get Ragdoll narrating the thing. Ragdoll was funny back when he was still new, back when Simone first brought the Six together, but right now he's just tired... I get it, he's a sexual deviant and screws monkeys. Yawn. Whatever. The Ragdoll annoyances really brought down what could have been a great comic and simply left it a very good comic. I mean I still REALLY enjoyed this comic, but I can't help but feel it could have been better. As it was though, I'd easily recommend this issue and the Action Comics that set it up, as this was a fun little two-part crossover. I'll give this issue an 8 out of 10 for a score.
Heading back to the Marvel Universe, here's X-Factor #213. After his confrontation with Hela last issue, Darwin seems to be having some difficulty ridding himself of her death influence. Jamie catches up with Darwin in Vegas, and Darwin tells Jamie he wouldn't be returning with Jamie to X-Factor Investigations until he was able to purge Hela's influence. With that, Jamie returns to the rest of the team and they complain that he should have done more to help Darwin. Shatterstar tells Rictor that Wolfsbane's child wasn't his, which is something Rictor had figured out two issues back. Shatterstar tells Rictor that he met the father of the unborn baby while fighting Hela, and Rictor decides he needed to clear the air with Wolfsbane. Rictor heads to Wolfsbane and tells her he knows about the baby's father, and was wondering why she lied. Wolfsbane tells Rictor that she didn't want to be responsible for Rictor going to Hell(on account of him being gay)and figured a baby with her would have kept him with her and away from Shatterstar. The two talk, and Rictor once again reiterates that Wolfsbane leaving him didn't “turn” him gay, and that with a baby on the way she had more important things to worry about then Rictor's soul. This issue ends with Pip the Troll(who X-Factor saved from Hela last issue and was serving as X-Factor's receptionist)seemingly plotting against the team over the phone with somebody. This was really an aftermath/set-up issue, and it was a VERY strong one at that. Wolfsbane seems to finally have come to terms with Rictor's homosexuality(or at least as much as she can with her ultra conservative upbringing), Darwin has left the team for the time being, while Pip has joined and seems to have some sort of plan against the team formulating. Really good stuff here, but what would you expect? It's written by Peter David. For a score, I'll go with an 8 out of 10.
Sticking with Marvel, here comes the final part of the I Am An Avenger mini-series with issue #5. We have three stories here, so let's get started. The first one is a suicide prevention PSA starring Captain America. A teenager with a lousy life heads up to his roof to jump when he spots Cap battling against the forces of Hydra. Cap puts down the Hydra goons, but a huge Hydra robot lands to continue the battle. Cap flings his shield at the robot, but it knocks it away, right over to the kid on the rooftop. Without his shield, the robot manages to take advantage of Cap, and the kid decides to try to help Cap by tossing the shield back, hitting the robot. The robot blasts at the kid, destroying everything around him but somehow leaving the kid unharmed, which gives Cap the opportunity to destroy the robot. Cap looks over at the kid and gives him thumbs up, and the kid heads back inside to call the suicide prevention hotline. Story #2 deals with Ant-Man sneaking around Avengers mansion(or thinking he's sneaking around Avengers Mansion). After some sleuthing, Quicksilver approaches Ant-Man and tells him that he was vouched for by Steve Rogers, meaning he had no reason to sneak around the Mansion like a criminal. After some thought, Ant-Man leaves the Mansion and walks in the front door, being welcomed by the team. Finally we had a little 3 issue story about the Young Avengers wanting to play baseball, but realizing it was raining outside, and we all know it's IMPOSSIBLE to play baseball outside, lest the universe implodes. Man are baseball players a bunch of wimps... ANYWAY, Thor arrives and wonders why the kids were standing around with clubs(HA!), and they stammer that they were just hanging out. Finally realizing what they were up to, Thor taps his hammer and clears the storm. However, after seeing Thor, the kids decide to head back inside to train as opposed to playing around. I actually liked all three stories in this mini. Not loved, but liked. The Ant-Man one was probably my favorite, but as a HUGE Young Avengers fan, I also enjoyed their little mini-story. What more can I say, this was a perfectly acceptable comic, and what kind of score do we give perfectly acceptable comics around here? How about a 7 out of 10.
One more and we're done. I'll close this post out with another Marvel book in Uncanny X-Men #531. I don't remember if I posted a review for Uncanny #530, but I guess that's neither here nor there. This issue begins with most(if not all)of the mutants living on Crazy Mutie Island(Utopia)suffering from a strange flu that was robbing them of their powers. Lord Summers(who has also taken ill, but is no-selling it)walks along the hallways of Crazy Mutie Island looking in at all of his various sick soldiers. The few X-Men who were off of Crazy Mutie Island are told by Lord Summers they can't return to Crazy Mutie Island until they've figured out what was causing the flu, so they decide to look into the Collective Man's attempt to take over the crime gangs of San Francisco's Chinatown. From there we head to the Sublime Corporation's Secret Offices where Lobe(the leader of the Sublime group)is toasting his 5 fake X-Men. Back on Crazy Mutie Island... Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz............ Oh wow, I must have fallen asleep out of absolute boredom! Um, where was I? Oh who cares. This issue ends with Sebastian Shaw falling out of Fantomex's ship and powering up from impact of the fall, much to the rage of Emma Frost. Sorry, this issue was just painfully boring. I don't care about this weird rehashing of the Legacy Virus storyline. I don't care about the Sublime Corporation and the fake X-Men(if it wasn't for the dumb “No More Mutants” proclamation, we wouldn't NEED fake mutants!), and I SURE as hell don't care about Emma Frost and Sebastian Shaw! After reading Invincible Iron Man, I KNOW Matt Fraction can do better than this, but I'm now of the mindset that NO writer can really make the X-books worth reading again until Marvel FINALLY undoes the damage done during the House of M. With the Scarlet Witch's return in Avengers: The Children's Crusade, hopefully this will be the year “No More Mutants” is retconned and the X-Men are once again led by Professor X and head back to X-Mansion, where they belong. For a score, I'll go with a 3 1/2 out of 10, which is almost generous...
I want to buy Iron Man #500... Can you spare $150?
So I was going through the solicits on Tuesday to see what I'd be grabbing from the comic book shop come Wednesday, and I noticed that Invincible Iron Man #500 would be released. That's good, since issue #500 was the start of a new storyline(or so I thought), one that I'd be following from the beginning, unlike the last story, which I started reading at the 3rd or 4th part. Since this is one of those MEGA, GALA, SUPER anniversary issues Marvel LOVES to put out, not only was Iron Man released with one cover, it also received several variant covers. Now I personally have never understood who would buy a $3/$4/$5 comic book for an extra amount of money simply because of the cover, but somebody must, because Marvel REALLY loves putting out variants. Anyway, IM #500 had 4 different covers, so I figured I'd take a look at them just for kicks. You had the original cover which was $5, a JRJR cover for $18, a Marko Djurdjevic cover for $50(!)and a Joe Quesada cover for $150(!!!!)... Yes, that's right, one hundred and fifty dollars for a comic book you could instead buy for $5... I mean really, who in the WORLD would pay an extra $145 for a COVER?! Maybe if the comic was made of gold and had an I-Pod built into it I'd consider paying that much money for a NEW comic, but $150 simply for a cover?! I can't rationalize that at all...
Good-bye DC... It's been fun.
The rumors state that Chairman Johns, aka he of no original ideas, will be renumbering many DC series during the sure to be sucktacular Saint Barry Allen love-in Flashpoint ala the awesome Age of Apocalypse from Marvel back in the 90's. I've already stated that I WON'T be buying any DC Flashpoint issues as a protest due to DC allowing Chairman Johns almost unlimited power to destroy the DCU as he sees fit, but now it appears that DC will be dragging even more titles into the black hole of creativity that I'm sure Flashpoint will be. Let me state this in as plain a manner as I can. I buy a lot of comics, both Marvel and DC. Lately my enjoyment of DC comics has been waning, while my enjoyment of the Marvel books has been growing. I WILL NOT buy ANY DC comic that carries the Flashpoint banner. So let's say for example DC decides to have the Secret Six x-over with Flashpoint. That means I won't buy the Secret Six for as long as Flashpoint is ongoing. Furthermore, once I stop buying a book like Secret Six, there's a really good chance I won't bother picking it up again once Flashpoint ends, since I'll probably have started picking up other Marvel/Image or indy books to fill the void. I've enjoyed reading about the DCU these past four years or so. I've brought TONS of DC comics, as this blog is a testament to(as of right now I have 1,001 posts with a “DC Comics” label). I honestly think Flashpoint will be my breaking point, and the thing that destroys my interest in DC once and for all... I hope that isn't true, I mean if I was able to withstand the unadulterated awfulness that was Secret Invasion from Marvel, maybe I'll be able to stand Flashpoint, but the outlook seems bleak, and I fear I'll be saying good-bye to those DC characters I still do enjoy. I hope you're happy Chairman Johns and his brainwashed Silver Age cronies, you're about to lose a huge fan...
Okay, let's get to the reviews. Up first is Widowmaker #3(of 4). We get things started with Black Widow sending Hawkeye into a Dark Ocean Japanese brothel with the hopes of getting some information about the Dark Ocean organization. Basically, the Dark Ocean is an evil Japanese organized crime organization run by Ronin that has been killing several international spies. Hawkeye blows his cover almost immediately and is attacked by the women in the brothel. Black Widow rushes in to help and confronts the leader of the brothel, the Madame. The Madame explains that she was working with Ronin and that once Ronin's plans come to fruition she'd be an emperess, not just a simple Madame. After dropping some more vague hints, she disappears, leaving Widow not only knowing where Ronin was, but WHO he was. Meanwhile, Mockingbird and Dominic Fortune go after the Russian side of the Ronin mystery, and after beating up and tricking Russian soldiers, they head to an island that was disputed by the Russians and the Japanese. Upon arriving at the disputed island, Mock and Fortune meet up with Hawkeye and Widow, who had arrived moments before. The heroes share notes, and Ronin walks out of a temple, at which time Black Widow attacks. She takes Ronin down and unmasks him to reveal the Red Guardian, her ex-husband. Ronin explains that he was sickened by the democratic Russia, and wanted to take out the leaders of both Russia and Japan to create a new world power. This issue ends with Ronin forcing a volcano to erupt on the disputed island, figuring the destruction of the island would distract the Russian and Japanese governments enough for him to swoop in and kill all of their leaders. Well, we finally found out who Ronin was, and what his plans were. That was a major plus here, because the first two issues basically had the heroes running about aimlessly. I really don't have much more to say than I enjoyed this issue and am looking forward to seeing how the heroes will be able to stop the insane plots of Ronin. Score-wise, let's give this one a solid 7 1/2 out of 10.
Next up we head to DC and Secret Six #29. This comic actually crosses over with the last issue of Action Comics, although I have NO idea what issue that was, and I'm not really interested in figuring it out. Picking up from that issue of Action, the remote control rigged to blow up Lex's building is sitting precariously on top of its button. Lex acts nonchalant about it, which annoys Vandal Savage, but Lex has good reason not to care, as he sits in his chair and erects a force field around himself, sure that he'd survive the explosion. Lex taunts Vandal a bit and then has a bunch of guns set their sights on Scandal Savage, telling Vandal that if he doesn't disarm the bomb, he'd ventilate Vandal's daughter. Vandal stomps over to the remote and tries to shut it down, but realizes that it was stuck... D'oh! With the bombs now activated and counting down, Lex sends Black Alice away to try to find as many bombs as she could, while Vandal asks Lex to at least allow his daughter into the force field. Scandal says that she wouldn't go unless the rest of her team was saved as well, so Lex says fine, provided Vandal admitted defeat. Vandal reluctantly does as asked, and Lex allows Vandal, his underlings and the Secret Six into the force field just as the building blows. From there, Scandal slugs Lex for threatening to have her killed earlier and leaves with the Six, while Lex and Vandal decide to stick together, ending this issue. Hey, this was the first time in AGES I enjoyed an issue of the Secret Six! Of course Gail Simone did try to ruin that by emphasizing Ragdoll, who is just painfully unfunny by this point. This story would have been SO much better had it simply focused on Lex and the two Savages. Instead we get Ragdoll narrating the thing. Ragdoll was funny back when he was still new, back when Simone first brought the Six together, but right now he's just tired... I get it, he's a sexual deviant and screws monkeys. Yawn. Whatever. The Ragdoll annoyances really brought down what could have been a great comic and simply left it a very good comic. I mean I still REALLY enjoyed this comic, but I can't help but feel it could have been better. As it was though, I'd easily recommend this issue and the Action Comics that set it up, as this was a fun little two-part crossover. I'll give this issue an 8 out of 10 for a score.
Heading back to the Marvel Universe, here's X-Factor #213. After his confrontation with Hela last issue, Darwin seems to be having some difficulty ridding himself of her death influence. Jamie catches up with Darwin in Vegas, and Darwin tells Jamie he wouldn't be returning with Jamie to X-Factor Investigations until he was able to purge Hela's influence. With that, Jamie returns to the rest of the team and they complain that he should have done more to help Darwin. Shatterstar tells Rictor that Wolfsbane's child wasn't his, which is something Rictor had figured out two issues back. Shatterstar tells Rictor that he met the father of the unborn baby while fighting Hela, and Rictor decides he needed to clear the air with Wolfsbane. Rictor heads to Wolfsbane and tells her he knows about the baby's father, and was wondering why she lied. Wolfsbane tells Rictor that she didn't want to be responsible for Rictor going to Hell(on account of him being gay)and figured a baby with her would have kept him with her and away from Shatterstar. The two talk, and Rictor once again reiterates that Wolfsbane leaving him didn't “turn” him gay, and that with a baby on the way she had more important things to worry about then Rictor's soul. This issue ends with Pip the Troll(who X-Factor saved from Hela last issue and was serving as X-Factor's receptionist)seemingly plotting against the team over the phone with somebody. This was really an aftermath/set-up issue, and it was a VERY strong one at that. Wolfsbane seems to finally have come to terms with Rictor's homosexuality(or at least as much as she can with her ultra conservative upbringing), Darwin has left the team for the time being, while Pip has joined and seems to have some sort of plan against the team formulating. Really good stuff here, but what would you expect? It's written by Peter David. For a score, I'll go with an 8 out of 10.
Sticking with Marvel, here comes the final part of the I Am An Avenger mini-series with issue #5. We have three stories here, so let's get started. The first one is a suicide prevention PSA starring Captain America. A teenager with a lousy life heads up to his roof to jump when he spots Cap battling against the forces of Hydra. Cap puts down the Hydra goons, but a huge Hydra robot lands to continue the battle. Cap flings his shield at the robot, but it knocks it away, right over to the kid on the rooftop. Without his shield, the robot manages to take advantage of Cap, and the kid decides to try to help Cap by tossing the shield back, hitting the robot. The robot blasts at the kid, destroying everything around him but somehow leaving the kid unharmed, which gives Cap the opportunity to destroy the robot. Cap looks over at the kid and gives him thumbs up, and the kid heads back inside to call the suicide prevention hotline. Story #2 deals with Ant-Man sneaking around Avengers mansion(or thinking he's sneaking around Avengers Mansion). After some sleuthing, Quicksilver approaches Ant-Man and tells him that he was vouched for by Steve Rogers, meaning he had no reason to sneak around the Mansion like a criminal. After some thought, Ant-Man leaves the Mansion and walks in the front door, being welcomed by the team. Finally we had a little 3 issue story about the Young Avengers wanting to play baseball, but realizing it was raining outside, and we all know it's IMPOSSIBLE to play baseball outside, lest the universe implodes. Man are baseball players a bunch of wimps... ANYWAY, Thor arrives and wonders why the kids were standing around with clubs(HA!), and they stammer that they were just hanging out. Finally realizing what they were up to, Thor taps his hammer and clears the storm. However, after seeing Thor, the kids decide to head back inside to train as opposed to playing around. I actually liked all three stories in this mini. Not loved, but liked. The Ant-Man one was probably my favorite, but as a HUGE Young Avengers fan, I also enjoyed their little mini-story. What more can I say, this was a perfectly acceptable comic, and what kind of score do we give perfectly acceptable comics around here? How about a 7 out of 10.
One more and we're done. I'll close this post out with another Marvel book in Uncanny X-Men #531. I don't remember if I posted a review for Uncanny #530, but I guess that's neither here nor there. This issue begins with most(if not all)of the mutants living on Crazy Mutie Island(Utopia)suffering from a strange flu that was robbing them of their powers. Lord Summers(who has also taken ill, but is no-selling it)walks along the hallways of Crazy Mutie Island looking in at all of his various sick soldiers. The few X-Men who were off of Crazy Mutie Island are told by Lord Summers they can't return to Crazy Mutie Island until they've figured out what was causing the flu, so they decide to look into the Collective Man's attempt to take over the crime gangs of San Francisco's Chinatown. From there we head to the Sublime Corporation's Secret Offices where Lobe(the leader of the Sublime group)is toasting his 5 fake X-Men. Back on Crazy Mutie Island... Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz............ Oh wow, I must have fallen asleep out of absolute boredom! Um, where was I? Oh who cares. This issue ends with Sebastian Shaw falling out of Fantomex's ship and powering up from impact of the fall, much to the rage of Emma Frost. Sorry, this issue was just painfully boring. I don't care about this weird rehashing of the Legacy Virus storyline. I don't care about the Sublime Corporation and the fake X-Men(if it wasn't for the dumb “No More Mutants” proclamation, we wouldn't NEED fake mutants!), and I SURE as hell don't care about Emma Frost and Sebastian Shaw! After reading Invincible Iron Man, I KNOW Matt Fraction can do better than this, but I'm now of the mindset that NO writer can really make the X-books worth reading again until Marvel FINALLY undoes the damage done during the House of M. With the Scarlet Witch's return in Avengers: The Children's Crusade, hopefully this will be the year “No More Mutants” is retconned and the X-Men are once again led by Professor X and head back to X-Mansion, where they belong. For a score, I'll go with a 3 1/2 out of 10, which is almost generous...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)