Captain America #4

It's time for Captain America! Yeah, thus far this series has yet to really grab me, but it's written by Ed Brubaker, it's bound to get awesome soon, right?

Captain America #4:

What Happened: While Nick Fury, Sharon Carter and others hunt for Hydra and Jimmy Jupiter, Captain America is in Jimmy's fantasy world where everything is exactly how Cap always wanted it. Eventually Cap realizes that something is wrong and his paradise turns into a dirty, dingy hell. From there Bravo appears and rants about how that's what the real world looked like to him after he was expelled from Jimmy's fantasy world when Jimmy woke up. While Cap tries to battle Bravo in a world Bravo could alter to his will, Bravo's wife, um, Hydra Queen(?) is preparing to amplify Jimmy's powers to the point where he'd turn the real world into the fantasy world Bravo and Hydra Queen had been living in for the past 70 years. Sharon manages to shoot her way through Hydra's hordes and reaches the Hydra Queen and Jimmy, but is frozen when the Hydra Queen pulls a gun and aims it at Jimmy, threatening to kill the old man, trapping Cap in the fantasy world forever.

The Good: We finally know just what's going on with the story here. Bravo and his wife were disgusted by the real world and want to alter it to their Utopian world. Seeing Nick Fury back commanding people just seems right... I mean I liked Bucky as Cap and Steve as Commander Rogers, leader of the organization formerly known as SHIELD, but Fury back in charge just feels right... The fight between Cap and Bravo was cool since Bravo could control everything around the two.

The Bad: While I now know what the story here is about, I could care less about it. Bravo is an odd character in that(I think) he has some potential, but has thus far bored me. The cliffhanger wasn't exactly that great since the Hydra Queen killing Jimmy would trap Cap AND Bravo in the fantasy world as well as foil her plans, so you KNOW it's not happening.

The Verdict: Honestly? I'm glad the next issue is going to conclude this storyline. It just never clicked for me from the first part on. I can now firmly say, without a doubt, that this was the worst Ed Brubaker Captain America storyline I've ever read. With that said, do you want to know just how awesome Brubaker is as a writer? Even though I don't like this storyline it doesn't suck, I'd just classify it as not my cup of tea.

Score: 6 1/2 out of 10.Well if nothing else this was a unique fight.

Ultimate X-Men #3

First book up for tonight? The third issue of Ultimate X-Men. I honestly expect big things from this title(it's not shackled by the rules the 616 X-books are chained to), and yet it's rehashing an idea from the 616 X-books that I hate... That idea? The Purifiers...

Ultimate X-Men #3:

What Happened: Valerie Cooper, the US's advisor on mutant issues, is shocked to see Quicksilver meeting with the president. It seems Quicksilver wants to assist the US and as such is offering them Cerebro tech to help them locate mutants. Meanwhile William “I suck and am horribly boring” Stryker is planning something nefarious. Back in the Morlock tunnels, Shroud, Iceman, the Human Torch and Rogue are surprised to find a young mutant boy there. The boy and his brother(a big mutant worm looking thing) have brought Jimmy Hudson to the sewers in search of help. It seems Jimmy broke out of Stryker's jails and freed a bunch of fellow mutants before being shot and knocked out. Jimmy eventually wakes up and tells the X-Men(I guess that's who these mutants are now) that they had to move quickly before Stryker struck. Alas, Stryker has already enacted his crazy plan and blows up much of New York's Times Square while babbling about the Lord.

The Good: Jimmy finally showed up(and pretty much joined the X-Men). There's the highlight of this one. I am an unabashed mark for Jimmy Hudson, so I was really happy to see him do something other than get captured in this comic. I liked the parts with Quicksilver, and am intrigued to see what his(and the Scarlet Witch's) plans are. The art here is really good.

The Bad: I HATE WILLIAM STRYKER AND THE PURIFIERS. And it's not a good hate either. You know, like how I hate somebody like Sin. See, I hate Stryker because he's a boring character with zero redeeming qualities, whereas I hate Sin because she's a villain. On the one hand(with Stryker) I don't want to read about him at all because he adds NOTHING to a series. On the other hand I WOULD read a comic with Sin in it because I want to see her get her comeuppance. The hate I feel for Stryker is the kind of hate that will get me to drop a comic book because I don't want to see his boring ass...

The Verdict: Yeah, that was the only thing I'd consider truly bad about this issue... But unfortunately, the main story is revolving around Stryker, which means I didn't enjoy the majority of this comic. Seriously, if almost ANY other villain was in Stryker's place, I'd have enjoyed this one WAY more. As it is, I just want this storyline to end, preferably with Jimmy digging his claws into Stryker's head, thereby ridding the Ultimate Universe of his annoying character forever! There is SUCH potential in this series, but as long as Stryker is in it, that potential can't be reached...

Score: 6 out of 10.Aww... He's just like his daddy!

Just A Quick Note...

Okay, quick comment before I get to this next review... Seeing as that I have 20 comics to review and post about before Wednesday, as well as a game that I'm VERY happy with(Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3), I'm going to use the DC style of review(with the good/bad/verdict format) to breeze through these comics just a bit quicker. If you want more info on a comic, don't be afraid to ask, as I'll happily fill you in on anything I may have skimped on during the post. Okay, on with the show!

Nightwing #3

Next book on the agenda? The third issue of Nightwing. So far this series(sadly, like many of the new DC books I decided to pick up) hasn't reached the levels I'd hoped it would. But, I am an optimist, and as such I'm hoping this series picks up starting here.

Nightwing #3:

What Happened: Dick Grayson is confronted by Haly's son at Haly's funeral, where Haly's distraught son rants about Dick stealing from him and such. Everybody chalks it up to grief and Dick ends up talking to Raya, who tells Dick a former friend of theirs(Zane) had become a crime booking agent based out of Chicago. Dick(as Nightwing) confronts Zane, and after a battle learns that Zane didn't set up Haly's death. From there Dick heads back to Raya and sleeps with her(what, he IS Dick Grayson!), but not before telling her he was going to stick with Haly's Circus. This one ends with Haly's son talking to Saiko to make sure Saiko was still planning on killing Dick.

The Good: This issue was fast paced and a quick read. The fight between Dick and Zane was fun and energetic. The art was strong. Zane DIDN'T figure out Dick's identity, thus making him the DUMBEST person in the known universe! Dick traveling with the circus gets him away from Gotham and Batman's shadow, which can't hurt.

The Bad: This issue didn't really DO anything... Nothing of any major importance happened, with the exception of Zane getting crossed off the suspect list(which we didn't even know he was on until THIS issue!) and Saiko coming back(which we knew was going to happen). Next issue has that damn Batgirl in it, which has me SERIOUSLY considering not picking it up... So Dick is going to be traveling with the circus, which means Nightwing will probably be constantly appearing around the circus... See the problem there?

The Verdict: To be 100% honest with you, after I put this comic down the first thought that came to mind was simply, “Meh.” This issue didn't accomplish anything. The villain we all knew wasn't dead came back, and the guy we never suspected was involved with Haly's death was cleared of any potential foul play. Was this issue awful? No. Will I remember this issue 3 minutes from now? No. It was the very definition of a forgettable comic book.

Score: 6 out of 10.So Zane could have simply shot Nightwing in the back of the head, but instead elected to beat him with the gun instead... Oooookay then...

Deadpool #46

It's Deadpool vs EVIL Deadpool! 'Nuff said!

Deadpool #46:

Summary: This issue gets started proper with Deadpool heading to his favorite Mexican restaurant in New Jersey, only to find that some fiend had blown it up. The fiend? EVIL Deadpool!!! Needless to say, the two Deadpool's meet and the fight is on. The two battle for a while until they run out of ammo, at which time they decide to reschedule the fight for later on after they'd reequipped... HA!!! Deadpool heads to the warehouse where he kept his good toys, but alas, EVIL Deadpool, knowing what Pool was going to do, had arrived first and had gotten his hands on Pool's good weaponry. However, it turns out Pool had rigged all of his good weapon warehouses with explosives after he ran afoul Norman Osborn back during the bad old HAMMER days, and blows the place up. Pool smugly figures that the explosion had killed EVIL Deadpool, until he thinks about it and realizes that if he had been able to take cover, EVIL Deadpool probably did as well. Pool turns around and finds EVIL Deadpool standing behind him with an automatic rifle, taunting him. Pool is pissed by this turn of events and tells EVIL Deadpool to just pull the trigger and finish it, but instead, EVIL Deadpool surprises Pool by ducking out out of sight. Pool is obviously confused by THAT turn of events, and stands there trying to figure out what EVIL Deadpool was going to do next, seeing as that they share the same brain and all. Pool is suddenly smashed in the head by a flying shield, which surprises him since that's NOT the move he would have made in EVIL Deadpool's shoes. When Pool turns to deal with what he figured would be EVIL Deadpool, he is shocked to see Captain America(!!!) standing there, telling Deadpool he was being taken in.

Thoughts: This... Comic... Was... AWESOME!!! First off, I must have laughed through the ENTIRE issue... And as I've said before, the main thing I want out of a Deadpool comic is to be entertained, and I sure as hell was with this one. Besides that, the story, the dialogue and the art? They were fantastic. The interaction between Pool and EVIL Deadpool was flat out perfect. And the Cap appearance at the end? I NEVER saw that coming for one second. Now I score Deadpool comic books a bit differently than I score regular comic books in that I'll score it higher if it's funny even if other aspects of it aren't up to snuff. With that said, not only does this comic get a 10 as a Deadpool comic, it gets a 10 as a regular comic. This one ruled.

Score: 10 out of 10.Why did he do it? Because he's EVIL! That's why!

Amazing Spider-Man #674

First off, above the “Amazing Spider-Man” logo on the cover of this one it says, “The World's Greatest Super Hero!”... I can't argue with that. Anyway, back to the issue at hand. Spider-Island is over, Peter Parker screwed up the magic spell that protected his identity from being revealed, and lost his girlfriend as a result. This issue should lay the groundwork for the next big Spidey story, but instead of rambling, let's get to the review!

Amazing Spider-Man #674:

Summary: Spider-Island is over! Huzzah!! Unfortunately, several folks from outside New York City still think stepping foot in Manhattan will get you spider-powers, and as such many disenfranchised youths are coming to NYC. One of these kids is met by a strange woman who offers to give him something better than spider-powers, the ability to fly... Hmm... From there we learn there has been a rash of what appear to be teenage suicides to the untrained eye, but to the eyes of Spidey and his former girlfriend Carlie, look like strange murders. The two end up meeting by chance at a coffeehouse and decide to pool their resources to try to get to the bottom of the murders. As for the kid from earlier, he is given a set of Vulture-style wings and accompanies the woman and two other guys to do some burglaries from various high-rise apartments. After snatching a mess of cash, the quartet head to a club, enter a backroom and are met by their leader, and the man who gave them their wings, the Vulture.

Thoughts: Here's the deal... The Vulture is one of those characters that as a comic book fan I just can't connect with... Call me crazy, but I don't have much in common with a 70 year old criminal who steals stuff while flying around with a pair of wings. However, Dan Slott may be on to something here... Vulture as a low-level gang boss, giving out his tech to get others to do his dirty work is way more sensible than the Vulture himself committing the crimes. Other than that, there was nothing much to say about this comic. It was a good, solid read. There was stuff I didn't mention in the review, like Spidey running afoul the cops, and Mary Jane in a club, but since it didn't really lead to much, I figured I'd skip it. All in all, no complaints here.

Score: 8 1/2 out of 10.I love the utter confusion of the cops here... “What do we do?!?!?”

Red Hood and the Outlaws #3

Next up is the first DC comic I'll be reading this week... Basically the only thing this comic has going for it is the characters in it, as I haven't enjoyed the story one bit. Will that change with this issue? Well I sure as hell hope so, but since this is DC we're talking about, I'm not gonna hold my breath.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #3:

What Happened: Red Hood and his gang(do two followers make a gang?) make their way into the secret chambers of the All-Caste to try and catch the Untitled who killed the All-Casters. Before entering the secret chambers, the Outlaws have to leave their best memories with some 4,000 year old boy... Uh-huh... Anyway, the Outlaws end up battling a giant monster in an effort to reach a clue that the Untitled left for Red Hood that would lead him to the Untitled. While the Outlaws are battling the monster, the 4,000 year old is looking through their prized memories. For the record, Starfire's was killing a guard who was watching her after she had been captured, Arsenal's was Killer Croc talking him out of suicide(WTF?!?) and Red Hood's was spending time with Bats back when he was still Robin. Anyway, the trio manage to defeat the monster and get the clue(a snowglobe of Colorado) and leave, getting their memories back, except for Jason, who didn't want his.

The Good: Since we got some action here, the painful dialogue was turned down a bit. Roy seemed like less of a tool here. The prized memories was a novel way to do an origin story.

The Bad: We still don't know anything about this Untitled nor much about the All-Caste. Who exactly was the 4,000 year old and why wasn't he killed by the Untitled? The prized memories were all pretty lame. The story here is just plain confusing...

The Verdict: Eh. That sums up my thoughts on this one in a nutshell. I mean it was kind of cool to see the Outlaws in their pasts, but the story here is still a major letdown. Don't get me wrong, I WANT to like a series that stars Jason Todd and Roy Harper. I really do. But thus far this series hasn't done it for me.

Score: 6 out of 10.Really?

Venom #9

Next up, Venom. This has been one of the better comics coming out of Marvel as of late, which isn't really a surprise with how hot Rick Remender has been lately. That guy has been on a crazy writing roll! Let's see if that strong writing continues here.

Venom #9:

Summary: Okay, this issue picks up after the Spider-Island event, with Manhattan still slowly recovering. Venom is swooping around town looking out for trouble(as well as avoiding his personal life) when he comes across a giant tank that runs some security guard over on it's way to a bank. The tank tears open the safe and plucks out the money before Venom attacks it. Venom gets some intelligence on the tank from the army and learns it's driven by some goof named the Hijacker who obviously saw the chaos from Spider-Island as an ideal chance to swipe some loot. Venom chases after the tank but it goes airborne and lands right near a woman and her young son. At the speed he was going, the Hijacker can't swerve in time, and Venom is unable to get in front of the tank, leaving the woman and her boy to be flattened. The Hijacker is a bit disturbed by that turn of events, but rationalizes the murders to make himself feel better. As for Venom, Flash loses all control of the symbiote(or more likely hands control over TO the symbiote) and turns into old school, teeth, claws and tongue Venom... Sweet! Venom attacks the tank, but is unable to break into it and the Hijacker manages to seemingly run over Venom before taking to the water and making it back to his base scot-free... Or does he? The Hijacker emerges from his tank to check out his haul for the day is is shocked to discover that Venom had hitched a ride underneath the tank. Venom beats the utter hell out of the Hijacker all while Flash thinks that he COULD take the Hijacker to the cops... While the beating continues, Flash begins to think of what the Hijacker stole from the boy and his mother and does nothing as Venom toys with the Hijacker a bit more before biting his head off and spitting it out(!!). From there the scene shifts to later on at Flash's apartment where he is elated to see Betty Brant walk in, unharmed from the Spider-Island events. Betty inquires if Flash told his mother about the death of his father, but Flash admits that he didn't, and also tells Betty that he lost the letter his father gave him to read in the event of his death. Luckily, Betty had a spare copy(huh?) and reads it to Flash, ending this issue.

Thoughts: Now this was a fantastic issue! The only gripe I had about it, and the only thing that kept it from a perfect score, was the ending with Betty and the letter. If this issue had ended with Venom walking out of the Hijacker's base after killing the criminal, easy perfect score. That's how great this issue was. I really don't have all that much to say. Flash's(and the symbiote's) reaction to the woman and her son's death was perfectly executed, and the fact that Flash/the symbiote killed the Hijacker in the end instead of Flash suddenly coming to his senses at the last second was one of the more realistic comic book reactions I've read in some time. Usually the hero will beat the tar out of some villain after the villain has done something heinous, but will catch him/herself before delivering the deathblow. That's exactly what I expected to see happen here. Venom making the Hijacker beg for his life and then Flash stopping just short of murdering the man. When Venom bit the Hijacker's head off and then spit it out? I have to admit, my mouth dropped, but in a good way. Was that the way Captain America or Superman would have handled the situation? No, of course not(although Cap biting off the Red Skull's head is a bit intriguing to me...), but it WAS the way a normal person with the power Flash had would have reacted. As usual, Rick Remender delivered the goods here... Big time.

Score: 9 1/2 out of 10.All that's missing is the “Finish Him! Dun dun duuuuunnnn...”