blacker ops

drive-by readings

Uncanny X-Force #1 (Marvel) "The Apocalypse Solution, Chapter One" Rick Remender Jerome Opeña Dean White Cory Petit Esad Ribic (cover) Clayton Crain/Rob Liefeld/J. Scott Campbell/Marko Djurdjevic (variants)

what we learned: X-Force just won't die. and though the previous hype for this new incarnation came across as cheesy, Rick Remender's take is fresh and his choice of characters and characterizations are on the money. the new team follows the money trail to a resurrected Apocalypse, and Archangel himself has made the decision to clearly kill the S.O.B. its also refreshing to see someone use Deadpool for his talents as a coldblooded wisecracking skilled killer that he is, and not simply as the premiere wisecracking raconteur of the MU. this is clearly the best work of Jerome Opeña's burgeoning career.
oh shit moment: gone are the days of simply killing human footsoldiers of the anti-mutant forces. Remender ups the ante and puts our heroes in real harm's way. i don't expect this original team to be still intact at the end (you could say the same thing about the past incarnations, but its probably the vibe of this new team).
what's next: the best time to kill Apocalypse is while he's a child.


no one explains how Warren lies down on his back.

hail to the king

drive-by readings

Marvel Universe vs The Punisher #3 (Marvel) "Partner in Crime" Jonathan Maberry Goran Parlov Lee Loughridge Cory Petit

what we learned: Patient Zero, Spider-Man himself, makes a deal with Frank, to leave him alone and every uninfected human like him, as long Frank dispatches the "King of Death" that's taking out his tribe and recovers his mate (MJ who else?). leading a ragtag group of warriors including Deadpool, Frank learns the job is a bigger crap sandwich than he thought.
oh shit moment: four issues are not enough to deal with each and every death in the Marvel U. and with Frank doing scorched earth, this should be shock and awe at its finest.
what's next: what's the deal with the Kingpin?


uh oh ... so that's what Brand New Day means.

you happy puppets

drive-by readings

Deadpool Team-Up #890 (Marvel) James Asmus Micah Gunnell Rob Stull John Rauch Jeff Eckleberry Humberto Ramos/Edgar Delgado (cover)

what we learned: insurance salesman Machine Man (ahaha) stakes a claim to Deadpool for all the property damage he's caused through the years (ahahaha). however, same insurance company is currently held hostaged by disenfranchised customer Puppet Master, who has an axe to grind (or clay to mold) because of greedy corporate executives.
oh shit moment: Puppet Master ends up getting tossed outside the window, which eerily mirrors how the damn fat cats think about us common Joes.
what's next: hey, editor: several words that rhyme with Gorilla: Sarsaparilla, Pancho Villa, Umbrella.


yes, Mr. Masters, just like yours.

patient zero

drive-by readings

Marvel Universe vs The Punisher #2 (Marvel) "Warrior of Heaven" Jonathan Maberry Goran Parlov Lee Loughridge Cory Petit

what we learned: after dispatching the Hulk to Green Heaven, Frank gets a distress call and rescues a priest and a child (and taking care of Venom along the way). they get into a philosophical discussion of ethics in the time of cannibalized people, but then Deadpool regenerates himself and distracts Frank so Patient Zero - which then makes sense as its revealed its Spidey (or Spidey-Rodent) - can have a chat with the Punisher over tea and crumpets.
oh shit moment: was it that easy to kill the Hulk?
what's next: there should be something more to this rather than just survival of the fittest, no?


can we have an Official Handbook on How Frank Kills Everybody?

just to mess with your head ...

... going into this nice long weekend, with an American legend sleeping with the little boy inside you.

things i liked this week

Avengers #1 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/John Romita Jr./Klaus Janson/Dean White/Cory Petit
Avengers - reformed! Kang - in da house! Wonder Man - on the verge of becoming a douchebag (again)! Hulk - on the loose! Next Avengers - now part of the 616! me - hoppin'!

Batman: Streets of Gotham #12 (DC)
Paul Dini/Dustin Nguyen/Derek Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands

i like this book for its consistent quality output, not to mention the longtime partnership between artist and inker. "The Carpenter's Tale" is an interesting one - an SFX expert hired for the 'Death of Batman' movie may be way out of her depth (yes, "her") - but am intrigued more about Damian's wheeling and dealing on the side. not unlike his dad (example, bribing Mirror Master, JLA #12).

Atlas #1 (Marvel)
Jeff Parker/Gabriel Hardman/Elizabeth Breitweiser/Ed Dukeshire (cover: Terry/Rachel Dodson)
wasn't sufficiently intrigued before (liked: crossover with T-Bolts, X-Men), but now with framed 3-D Man on the run, and possibly joining them, all bets are off.


X-Factor #205 (Marvel)
Peter David/Val De Landro/Pat Davidson/Jeromy Cox/Cory Petit (cover: David Yardin/Nathan Fairbairn)

a Second Coming tie-in, David neatly segues Bastion's plans into whatever he's had in mind for Madrox's team, but it doesn't look like X-Factor Investigations can be separate any longer. i mean, if they're all dead by the end of this thing. and hmmm, an uneasy alliance with Baron Mordo may be in the works.

X-Men Legacy #236 (Marvel)
Mike Carey/Greg Land/Jay Leisten/Justin Ponsor/Cory Petit (cover: Adi Granov, variant covers: David Finch/Matt Banning/Peter Steigerwald/Mike Choi)

sorry to be playing like a broken record, but Second Coming maintains its breakneck pacing (Siege? what Siege?) and am thoroughly enjoying the heck out of it. our merry band of mutants are now trapped inside a sphere covering the San Fran area, and uber-Nimrods have arrived to finish the job. we also see the first team-up with the Avengers 4.0, and its fun, despite some awkward jokey dialogue between gods, mutants and mortals. now i wonder when Hope is going to pull her weight.

Zatanna #1 (DC)
Paul Dini/Stephane Roux/Karl Story/Pat Brosseau/John Kalisz (variant cover: Brian Bolland)

and y'all thought Z was sexy naughty! now. must. buy. statue. what about this debut issue? ummm, she owns crowds. and she pwns demons. yeah, that's it.

Rescue (one shot) (Marvel)
Kelly Sue DeConnick/Andrea Mutti/Jose Villarubia/Clayton Cowles (cover: Travel Foreman/June Chung)
well, this should be called "Are Those Your Gloves or Are You Just Happy to See Me" ...ok, moving right along - at least someone remembered who Happy Hogan was, and i for one, am glad to see him make a reappearance here (although it is really about Pepper). whether Tony cut off his life support or not, i want him, or better yet Pepper herself, to beat the snot out of Spymaster for causing the events that led to Happy's coma. and now let us sing, "God bless you please, Missus Frac-shi-on, we like this book than you will know, woh woh woh ..."


Deadpool #23 (Marvel)
Daniel Way/Carlo Barberi/Juan Vlasco/Marte Gracia/Joe Sabino (cover: Jason Pearson)

Deadpool's quest to become a good guy brings him to Vegas, where he finds his old pal Weasel working as a glorified security guard. now that sounds like a good gig, right? but am just not sure about Grizzly - shouldn't he be in jail after serving with Osborn's Thunderbolts?

War of the Supermen #3 (DC)
James Robinson/Sterling Gates/Cafu/Bit/Blond/John J. Hill (cover: Eddy Barrows/JP Mayer/Rod Reis, variant cover: Aaron Lopresti/Matt Ryan/Brad Anderson)

to rescue the dying Kryptonians, Flamebird restarts the sun as yellow - and cough, cough, conveniently only saves Superman and Supergirl. General Zod wants payback - and the Earth is doomed. man, at this rate, nobody would insure anyone anymore - everything's force majeure.

Invincible Iron Man #26 (Marvel)
Matt Fraction/Salvador Larroca/Frank D'Armata/Joe Caramagna (cover: Carlos Pacheco)
i only have one question: was the fat programmer that Spymaster bought out at the beginning really Robert Kirkman?


Superman/Batman #72 (DC)
Paul Levitz/Jerry Ordway/Steve Wands/Pete Pantazis (cover: Fabrizio Fiorentino)

ex-publisher Levitz returns to full time writing, and here he puts Lois Lane in mortal danger from a Superman-worshipping cult. only Bats is around to help, but will he be there in time? Ordway's art seems enhanced, and maybe its because he's inking himself, and the Pantazis coloring.

G.I. Joe #18 (IDW)
Chuck Dixon/SL Gallant/Gary Erskine/Andrew Crossley/Chris Mowry (covers: Kelsey Shannon/Robert Atkins)

a paintball training exercise goes belly up as a Joe team finds itself against two Cobra soldiers, instantly morphing into live fire action. only Covergirl's (yes, Covergirl!) instincts save the day. man, you guys better step up.

Ultimate Avengers 2 #2 (Marvel)
Mark Millar/Leinil Francis Yu/Gerry Alanguilan/Laura Martin/Cory Petit

so there's another Hulk, someone who came before this Ultimate Hulk we know? apparently, he's a badass gangster using the Third World as his toilet. exactly the kind of guy Samuel Jackson, i mean, Nick Fury needs for his black ops team, because they need to take down ... the Ghost Rider? do tell.

Atomic Robo & the Revenge of the Vampire Dimension #3 (Red 5)
Brian Clevinger/Scott Wegener/Ronda Pattison/Jeff Powell
let's just say this put the icing on the cake:

things i liked this week

Batman and Robin #11 (DC)
Grant Morrison/Andy Clarke/Scott Hanna/Tony Aviña/Alex Sinclair/Patrick Brosseau
devils, bats and sextons, oh my! Damian's probably not gonna forgive his mom.

Shield #1 (Marvel)
Jonathan Hickman/Dustin Weaver/Christina Strain/Todd Klein (cover with Gerald Parel)
Marvel history buffs, this one's for you. everything you know is ... well, let's just say nobody really knew anything. can you imagine the spinoffs? i vote for one that features Agents walking between the raindrops of (and influencing) Marvel events in the last twenty years (Jasper Sitwell, come on down!).

Superman: Secret Origins #5 (DC)
Geoff Johns/Gary Frank/Jon Sibal/Brad Anderson/Steve Wands
terrific story by Johns, with Luthor, Lois Lane's douchebag military dad and his tool protege all coming together to take down the naive Superman. this should have been the material to reboot the Superman franchise (especially considering Johns' history with the films and the Donners).


Uncanny X-Men #523 (Marvel)
Matt Fraction/Terry Dodson/Rachel Dodson/Justin Ponsor/Joe Caramagna (cover: Adi Granov, variant cover: David Finch/Peter Steigerwald)
although the Dodsons turn in some work not up to par with their standards (the X-Men teleporting a couple of times to cover a few feet?), Matt Fraction's handling of the newest X-crossover has been all pedal-to-the-metal, which i am liking. Scott's about to pay big time for authorizing X-Force, but first they have to bring back Hope and Cable safe and sound. not that easy.


Red Robin #11 (DC)
Christopher Yost/Marcus To/Ray McCarthy/Mark McKenna/Guy Major/Sal Cipriano
if Bruce Wayne is already here, what is Tim Drake doing running around looking for him though?

say it! "Red Robin ....... yuummmmmm!"

The Boys #41 (Dynamite)
Garth Ennis/Darick Robertson/Simon Bowland/Tony Aviña
Malchemical joins the bunch of retard ... oppps, sheltered superheroes in SuperDuper, and a chance meeting with Hughie adds to Butcher's suspicions. this is not going to end in a good way.


Thor and the Warriors Four #1 (Marvel)
Alex Zalben/Gurihiru/Dave Sharpe
Power Pack meets Pet Avengers in their quest to ask Thor for golden apples to cure their grandma. aaaaaawwwww. the only thing i need to point out is, didn't the kids meet Thor way back in the Mutant Massacre? why does it look like they're not sure he exists?


Turf #1 (Image)
Jonathan Ross/Tommy Lee Edwards/John Workman/John Barber (variant covers: Jim Steranko/Duncan Fregedo)
vampires in Prohibition era New York. i thought it was Punisher Noir. well, minus the vampires. let me guess: honorable vampire teams up with honorable mobster against the beasts. and i'm not even referring to the earth-bound bloodsuckers.


Wolverine: Weapon X #12 (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Ron Garney/Jason Keith/Cory Petit
Deathloks! Old Man No Hand Logan! Buckaptain America! Butterfly Effects! wooooooooh!

Captain America/Black Panther: Flags of Our Fathers #1 (Marvel)
Reginald Hudlin/Denys Cowan/Klaus Janson/Pete Pantazis/Joe Sabino
the Hooters vs. Nazis vs. Wakandans. i meant the Howlers, dammit!!! USA! USA! USA!

Deadpool Corps #1 (Marvel)
Victor Gischler/Rob Liefeld/Adelso Corona/Matt Yackey/Clayton Cowles
i know, i know, its like the umpteenth Deadpool book in last few years. amused by the Prelude, i couldn't resist checking what trouble they'd all get into. now if they just put Humberto Ramos in here on art instead of 'Pool's co-creator ...

who will not wield the shield?

via @stephenwacker

things i liked this week

Batman: Streets of Gotham #10 (DC)
Paul Dini/Dustin Nguyen/Derek Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands
holy shit. what is this? am i really warming up to Damian? really? OMGOMGZSASZOMG!!


Power Girl #10 (DC)
Jimmy Palmiotti/Justin Gray/Amanda Conner/Paul Mounts/John J. Hill
here's six words for you: never trust a girl named Terra. ok, that's a bit unfair. Ultra Humanite's in da house, you dig?


Green Lantern #52 (DC)
Geoff Johns/Doug Mahnke/Christian Alamy/Rebecca Buchman/Keith Champagne/Randy Mayor/Gabe Eltaeb/Carrie Strachan/Rob Leigh (variant cover: Shane Davis/Sandra Hope/Barbara Ciardo)
doesn't Sinestro in all white with that pedophile moustache look creepy to you? but it was worth the price of admission to see him get chopped in two and have John Stewart lead a team sever all Black Lantern connections.


Deadpool #21
Daniel Way/Carlo Barberi/Sandu Florea/Marte Gracia/Joe Sabino (cover: Jason Pearson)

its the conclusion of the Hit-Monkey story (what's next? Hit-Dolphin?). giggly fun: Reed Richards acting as a proper dad, Deadpool assuming Spidey's identity (don't ask), that banter between two similarly-looking costumed dorks, and of course, a monkey at a funeral.

Thor #608 (Marvel)
Kieron Gillen/Billy Tan/Batt/Rich Elson/Christina Strain/Matt Hollingsworth/Joe Sabino (cover: Mico Suayan/Laura Martin)

all you need to know: Volstagg versus Ragnarok (he'll always be Clor to us)!!! and having said that, we didn't know the fat guy can JUMP.

Thunderbolts #142 (Marvel)
Jeff Parker/Wellinton Alves/Nelson Pereira/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne (cover: Adi Granov)

Jeff Parker actually was on leave during the last two pages of this issue, because James Robinson snuck in and promptly inserted Roy Harper in. hey, that's not Roy.

New Avengers #63 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/Mike McKone/Dave McCaig/Albert Deschesne (cover: Stuart Immonen/Wade Von Grawbadger)
more Siege tie-ins, focusing specifically on two of Marvel's memorable couples (Luke/Jessica and Clint/Bobbi) while kicking ass in Asgard. did we see Mockingbird in any of the teasers for the new Avengers books coming out? uh oh.


Superman #698 (DC)
James Robinson/Javier Pina/Bernard Chiang/Blond/John J. Hill (cover: Julian Lopez/Bit/Santiago Arcas)
ladies and gentlemen, live at the New York Comedy Club ... Leeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeex Luthor!!


Uncanny X-Men #522 (Marvel)
Matt Fraction/Whilce Portacio/Ed Tadeo/Justin Ponsor/Joe Caramagna (cover: Terry Dodson, variant cover: Mark Brooks)
Kitty Pryde fans, rejoice!! by the same token, Kitty Pryde fans, weep!!!


Amazing Spider-Man #626 (Marvel)
Fred Van Lente/Michael Gaydos/Joe Caramagna (cover: Michael Del Mundo)
you know where Spidey isn't a loser? in the Avengers books!!


Mighty Avengers #35 (Marvel)
Dan Slott/Khoi Pham/Craig Yeung/John Rauch/Dave Lanphear/Morry Hollowell
creepy Henry Pym
making out with Jocasta
while Ultron's about.

Avengers - The Initiative #34 (Marvel)
Christos N. Gage/Jorge Molina/Andrew Hennessy/Edgar Delgado/Joe Caramagna (cover: David Yardin)

the Initiative guys (principally the ex-New Warriors) get their shit together and finally make a stand. over in the Siege of Asgard, Taskmaster goes for A-list status and maybe fails. despite all the Siege hoopla and coordination nightmares, this issue holds up heading towards its finale. cancellation time, fellas.

Captain America #604 (Marvel)
Ed Brubaker/Luke Ross/Butch Guice/Dean White/Joe Caramagna (cover: Gerald Parel)

what made me happy about this issue? the Falcon bringing the ass-kicking for a change. Sam, you are a credit to your race! in other news, Bad-Cap & Bucky go to the Hoover Dam for a swim.

A-Team: Shotgun Wedding #1 (IDW)
Joe Carnahan/Tom Waltz/Stephen Mooney/Alfredo Rodriguez/Neil Uyatake (cover: John K. Snyder III/Jason Wright)
is this gonna be the plot for the A-Team movie (uh, because director Joe Carnahan is involved)? if so, its pretty damn exciting. Hannibal and the team ride shotgun for a wedding of the daughter of an old friend, because there's a mysterious threat. i bet there's a betrayal around here somewhere. and Face already hooked up with the bride.


Nemesis (Marvel/Icon)
Mark Millar/Steve McNiven/Dave McCaig/Chris Eliopoulos (variant cover: Leinil Francis Yu)

i kinda miss Mark Morales inking McNiven. and what's with the Nurse Jackie reference but the president's not umm, up to date? i guess nobody wants to go there. c'mon, let the speculation on optioning this as a movie commence.

things i liked this week

in no particular order:

Secret Six #19 (DC)
Gail Simone/Jim Calafiore/Jason Wright/Travis Lanham (cover: Daniel Luvisi)
this series, just like its characters, is downright dangerous and unpredictable. a slam-bang smash every month.


Batman & Robin #10 (DC)
Grant Morrison/Andy Clarke/Scott Hanna/Alex Sinclair/Pat Brosseau
suddenly this title got interesting again. yes, it ties in with the whole return of the one and only Bruce Wayne. Morrison gets the characterization right on the money. and am i the only one who finds Oberon Sexton cool?

Wolverine Weapon X #11 (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Ron Garney/Jason Keith/Cory Petit
Deathlok! Captain America! Wolverine! and of course, beers! what's not to like?

Punisher Max #5 (Marvel)
Jason Aaron/Steve Dillon/Matt Hollingsworth/Cory Petit (cover: Dave Johnson)
i don't know which is more cringe-inducing: Wilson Fisk's ability to not care about anything, or Frank's final punch-up with The Mooninite Mennonite.


Hellboy: Bride of Hell (Dark Horse)
Mike Mignola/Richard Corben/Dave Stewart/Clem Robins
yeah i know, this is a bit late, but hey, better late than never. Mike Mignola's stories are never boring.


Criminal: The Sinners #5 (Icon//Marvel)
Ed Brubaker/Sean Phillips/Val Staples
The Sinners comes to a fitting end - doesn't that remind you a bit of the Boondock Saints? and with all the beating Tracy Lawless got in this issue, i felt as if i got pulped myself.


The Waking #1 (Zenescope)
Raven Gregory/Vic Drujiniu/Mark Roberts/Crank! (cover: David Finch)
its like if the cast of Friends got smarter and became detectives. with snappy dialogue. oh, and dead people wake up. where have we seen that before?


Prelude to Deadpool Corps #2 (Marvel)
Victor Gischler/Whilce Portacio/Jamie Mendoza/Thomas Mason/Clayton Cowles (cover: Dave Johnson)
somebody should explore this alternate dimension more: a topsy-turvy Xavier School featuring the X-teens that spirals into chaos everyday because of Wade Wilson. loads of fun!


Amazing Spider-Man #624 (Marvel)
Mark Waid/Tom Peyer/Paul Azaceta/Javier Rodriguez/Andres Mossa/Joe Caramagna (cover: Michael Lark and Jodi Wynne)
and here we go. with all the complaining Marvel got about Peter's direction in life, well here it is, Spidey fans: the bottom of the barrel. oopps, wait. what's that? it gets even worse?


The Sword #22 (Image)
Luna Brothers
hurtling towards its action-packed finale. not for the squeamish.

Wolverine: Savage (one shot, Marvel)
Ryan Dunlavey/Richard Elson/Veronica Gandini/Dave Sharpe (cover: J. Scott Campbell)
Wolverine preparing sushi! no joke!!


Daytripper #4 (Vertigo/DC)
Fabio Moon/Gabriel Ba/Dave Stewart/Sean Konot
another bittersweet tale from the acclaimed tandem of Moon/Ba. perfect for the rainy weekend.