shadowboxing

drive-by readings

Shadowland #3 (Marvel) Andy Diggle Billy Tan Victor Olazaba Christina Strain Guru eFX Joe Caramagna John Cassaday/Laura Martin (cover) Tan/Olazaba/Guru eFX (variant cover)

what we learned: with the Ghost Rider sent by the Kingpin to rile things up in Shadowland, it basically turns a testy dialogue into an all-out punch-a-rama, broken up only by the guns of the now-unFrankencastled Punisher. Daredevil, miffed that his minions are not even worthy of battling the Pet Avengers, goes out to find his champion (hint: his name begins with a B and he's dead). Master Izo, the wiseass pint who started this shit in the first place, tells the heroes of the true power behind everything, because that dude right there is no longer Matt Murdock. well, let's see if Moon Knight can take him (oy, your woman's messed up).
oh shit moment: aside from Shang-Chi realizing he's not all that cracked up to be, it probably was when i realized who the hell Matt was digging up. nice revival there, Marvel. death never really means anything - they never try anymore.
what's next: Daredevil gets hornier. just to point out too, that because of scheduling issues, Shadowland #3 jumps in front of whatever you are reading about FrankenCastle, Shadowland: Moon Knight, and Shadowland: Daughters of the Shadow. hey, what are the odds that Bullseye is gonna be the next Man Without Fear?


Shang Chi never felt so embarrassed, not even during his first cancellation.

dark side of the moon

drive-by readings

Shadowland: Moon Knight #1 (Marvel) "Shadowknight" Gregg Hurwitz Bong Dazo Jose Pimentel Matt Milla/Chris Sotomayor Joe Caramagna

what we learned: its too much to put in one issue, but anyway, Daredevil apparently "wants" Moon Knight (who's just minding his own business; its Daredevil's fault he didn't accept Avengers membership), so he puts into motion an alleged acolyte of Konshu to recruit another psycho to be the god's avatar. bad news for Jake/Steve/whoever he is this week, because he has to face this challenge but at the same time consider that Marlene is pregnant and they're engaged.
oh shit moment: did i just say he has to protect his back?
what's next: crazy versus crazy. i'll bet on crazier.


never get on Big Bird's bad side - Sesame Street will never be the same.

the weekly hits

The Thanos Imperative #2 (Marvel)
Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning/Miguel Sepulveda/Jay David Ramos/Joe Caramagna (cover: Aleksi Briclot)
what we learned: this whole Cancerverse War became officially big time with the addition of Galactus and the Celestials. however, for some reason, Ben Urich is not covering this conflict. boooooo!!!
oh shit moment: Guardians kicking some faux Defender butt, and Thanos permanently ending the faux Defender butt.
what's next: why are Major Victory and Namorita anomalies? were they secretly resurrected with a White Lantern? will Thanos gain the upperhand after all is said and done? and will Urich make it to the front lines before this series ends??

the Thanos Halogen Headlight Upgrade Imperative

Tom Strong & The Robots of Doom #2 (ABC)
Peter Hogan/Chris Sprouse/Karl Story/Todd Klein/Darlene Royer
what we learned: mostly the backstory of how his Nazi son Albrecht brought about the Fascist world victory, and where the Dero really came from. looks like the situation is bleak. but wait! somehow Tom's faithful robot butler overrode his reprogramming and sends him back in time to fetch his younger self and play as the Tom/Tom Club! (yeeeessh, did you pay Chris Franz and Tina Weymouth their royalties?)
oh shit moment: the Dero apparently wiped out the African population. they must've been programmed by white people.
what's next: Tom/Tom Club playing at a venue near you this summer!

hello, Pneuman!

Justice League: Generation Lost #5 (DC)
Judd Winick/Keith Giffen/Aaron Lopresti/Matt Ryan/Hi-Fi/Steve Wands (cover: Tony Harris/JD Mettler, variant: Kevin Maguire/Hi-Fi)
what we learned: Max Lord really wants to reform the Justice League International. and the new Rocket Red is a gas. somehow a sombre Booster Gold is not the overinflated jerk i remember.
oh shit moment: not much, unless you count Max comparing himself to God. ya believe this guy?
what's next: is there a foreshadowing here that Blue Beetle is going to die, and Ted Kord is going to be resurrected? nah, that's just fanboy rumor-mongering.

because the world needs more Giffen/DeMatteis/Maguire JLI madness and mirth, that's why!

X-Force: Sex & Violence #1 (Marvel)
Craig Kyle/Christopher Yost/Gabrielle Dell'Otto/Cory Petit
what we learned: apparently, Kyle and Yost wanted to explore more of Neena and Logan's relationship (wait, didn't he have a girlfriend or that one died too?) since that X-Men 2001 Annual and that spiffy X-Force cover (whoa, Mike Choi!). and it might not pass editiorial muster, if it just said "Logan/Domino: Sex". because as we know, Americans are horrified by sex in mass media, but violence? bring it on!!! so, here we have Domino on the run from the Assassins Guild, because as a mercenary with scruples, you get dragged into the wrong crowd who hired you, then turn the tables on them.
oh shit moment: art's a bit murky but that's a great visual complement to the clanging sounds you hear in your head seeing Domino pulling bullets out of herself.
what's next: more sex! more violence!

yeah, Josh ... talk to the effing Hand!

Iron Man #28 (Marvel)
Matt Fraction/Salvador Larroca/Frank D'Armata/Joe Caramagna
who got chumped by Hammer? Tony Stark! who doesn't remember his one-night stands? Tony Stark! who's gonna build an non-gas powered car in six weeks? Tony Stark!!

Avengers Academy #2 (Marvel)
Christos N. Gage/Mike McKone/Jeromy Cox/Joe Caramagna
what we learned: so the next generation of Avengers could potentially be the next gen of bad guys? of course! but the drama between the students don't compare to the crap that goes on with the teachers. i mean you got noted wife-slapper-cum-Skrull/robot-banging-Scientist-Supreme Hank Pym as headmaster, what else is gonna happen? well, they're at least updated somewhat with pop music. or whatever passes for that these days.
oh shit moment: borrowing a trick from Josh Whedon's Astonishing X-Men, the new class is subjected to an impromptu survival session. just when Finesse and Reptil were about to kiss. dammit, man!
what's next: not only does Pietro get away with his shit, he's likely going to pass on his life lessons to a volunteer. wonderful!

oh-oh-oh! oh-oh-oh-oh!!

Batgirl #12 (DC)
Bryan Q. Miller/Lee Garbett/Pere Perez/Walden Wong/Guy Major/John J. Hill (cover: ArtGerm)
what we learned: Batgirl aces her final exams, rescues her mentor, and turns a friend away from the dark side. even if they cancel this book, she's too good a character to be killed off. you hear that, DC Editorial??
oh shit moment: can i say its that awesome cover by ArtGerm? i never looked at Stephanie Brown this way before. and at the same time, she's slapping me upside the head for looking this way.
what's next: Oracle has a Proxy, and a capable successor.

i think she's describing how she's going to be expelled from school because one too many missed homework.

Batman #701 (DC)
Grant Morrison/Tony Daniel/Ian Hannin/Jared K. Fletcher
what we learned: what really happened between Batman R.I.P. and the ending of Final Crisis? the God of Comics finally deigns us dust bunnies worthy of knowing. but then again the first of a two-parter doesn't provide much except there's a definite connection between the Hidden Room in the Wayne Manor and whatever Dick Grayson unearthed in the past issues of Batman & Robin regarding the Wayne family line. also, who knew Bruce liked mulligatawny soup?
oh shit moment: deleting pictures of our exes just like everyone else. though i assume there's a backup somewhere. hwahahahaa!
what's next: was it really Thomas Wayne who engineered sending Bruce back through time? man, Morrison not only thinks one step ahead, he thinks one thousand steps ahead.

"and you beat it out of the Soup Nazi just like i like? awesooooome!!!!"

Vengeance of the Moon Knight #10 (Marvel)
Gregg Hurwitz/Juan Jose Ryp/Andres Mossa/Joe Caramagna (cover: Francesco Mattina)
look who's playing well with others. but you know, Steve, you still better keep a close eye on this Moon Knight character.

Hack/Slash: My First Maniac #1 (Image)
Tim Seeley/Daniel Leister/Mark Englebert/Crank! (covers: Seeley/Nei Ruffino/Erik Jones)
what we learned: additional backstory for stabby heroine Cassie Hack, whose long-awaited film debut is still long-awaited. here she's trying to fit into a high school but tracking a long-dead farmer who kills kids that won't git off his farm.
oh shit moment: slasher stories/movies practically write themselves, but you gotta surprise the viewer. this one involves barbed wire.
what's next: this is pre-Vlad, so it'll Cassie doing her lone wolf thing. am sure her newfound 'friends' will end up dead by the end of this.

huhhh-huhhh ... he said 'bone'. huhhh-huhh.

Daredevil #508 (Marvel)
Andy Diggle/Antony Johnston/Roberto De La Torre/Matt Hollingsworth/Joe Caramagna (cover: John Cassaday/Laura Martin)
what we learned: the White Tiger is slowly pushing "Lord" Daredevil into doing the bidding of the Snakeroot, and at the same time, endangering his former friends. also, i'm in the minority here, and i love John Cassaday, but i don't think he fits into doing Shadowland covers. grim and gritty is not just his style.
oh shit moment: the real moment was in Shadownland #1 with the apparent death of Bullseye. here we get the requisite Elektra appearance. who's next, Stick? by the way, where is Bullseye's body? the Hand always resurrects a potential asset.
what's next: Ben Affleck vs. Jennifer Garner!

it means, your movie sucked! you need a reboot!!

Superman #701 (DC)
J. Michael Straczynski/Eddy Barrows/JP Mayer/Rod Reis/John J. Hill (covers: John Cassaday/David Baron/Alex Sinclair)
Superman walks across America and goes to toe to toe with ... Joe Q. Public. its an interesting premise, right on the heels of the Kryptonian War and Superman questioning his role again in his adopted planet. the fact that he even deigns to do so, earns him a lot more of Lex Luthor hate points.


note: because of Blogger's technically-limited tag constraints, there's a bunch of other books that's going to show up in other posts. actually, maybe i should start making individual posts for the Weekly Hits. which means, this is going to be last time i'm putting everything in a basket. thanks, Blogger.

aligned moon

drive-by readings

Vengeance of the Moon Knight #10 (Marvel) "Team Player" Gregg Hurwitz Juan Jose Ryp Andres Mossa Joe Caramagna Francesco Mattina (cover)

its great to see Juan Jose Ryp in a non-Warren Ellis blood-and-gore-raining Avatar-published work. it may not fit his style in the long run, but he does a good job here - the level of detail and line work can be dazzling. thumbs up.

so, what do we make of 616's resident loony hero? well, there was a time when he wasn't that loony, and Gregg Hurwitz thankfully brings that part of him back. maybe its just luck that he got over the hump by himself, just in time for Captain America Steve Rogers to offer him (Secret) Avenger membership. last couple of times this happened, Moon Knight spurned Iron Man and escaped a lopsided battle with Norman Osborn.

now we see him becoming a team player for Rogers' weird bunch (how long is this thing going to be a secret?), and reining in his murderous urges for the most part. he's like the Hulk, since you're not sure if he's gonna snap sometime soon (Rogers could have implanted him with nanotech failsafes for all we know). although it seems MK is the wild card or odd man out here, i don't think Hank is suited for fighting pirates, or deep sea creatures (experience with S.W.O.R.D. notwithstanding). i don't know, it just seems really ... off. he's the science guy, sure he'll get his licks in once in a while, but generally his best work is figuring out how to save lives without breaking bones or sweat. also, seriously, its Moon Knight who figures out a way off a sinking ship? not Hank? not War Machine carrying the whole piece of ship deck where they're standing?

as for Moon Knight, i have high hopes for this gig working for him this time. he may be a low-rent Batman (hey, look, Daredevil has a white haired cop with a moustache for a supporting character now), but he'll have his spots and roles. right now, its to be an Avenger. welcome to the big leagues, Marc. let's just say WCA, no matter how kooky & lovable it was, doesn't count.

only the shadow knows

this summer, the pages of Daredevil explode as his very own event, Shadowland commences. that's good news for Foggy because he's kinda missed being the collateral damage in his pal Matt's everyday adventures with the Hand and the Kingpin and your everyday street crime.

Marvel has been releasing teaser images in recent weeks, and we would be remiss (oh, you can't imagine how much we've been remissing) not to take a look at them. and praise them. and make smart-ass comments. minus the 'smart' part.

right off the bat, we're suspicious of this cover (let's assume it is). how many times have we been scammed, bait-and-switch tricks pulled on us, with such fantastic-looking covers depicting events that never really happens in the actual book? i mean seriously. if you're making a cover, we expect it to be a snapshot of what's going on inside. for all we know, the story's about Spidey and the Punisher holding hands, hopping along Ninth Avenue while eating Italian ices. WTF, dude.

speaking of the Punisher ... does this mean some magical event is going to restore Frank back to his original human dick self, completely eradicating Frankencastle from our memories? definitely, this isn't the Punisher MAX version. maybe he makes a deal with Mephisto too? or maybe kill off the useless Parker (Robbins, The Hood) and comes back to life. i want a rematch with Daken!!!

one more thing about that cover: hope Pete had Reed and Tony make him some bulletproof duds (passphrase is "unstable molecules"). that's easier than Spider Armor eh?

how much you wanna bet there isn't much of a throwdown here? unless Cage and Fist are still thinking "you're a goddamn Skrull, lady, and we're taking your head off!", this is one of those scenes where they preen and posture, and then decide to work together. The Heroic Age: Back to Status Quo.

Clayton Crain's bombastic covers doesn't always translate well to interiors, and there are days that the black ink threatens to cover everything just like that Gulf Coast oil spill. see Necrosha.

Ghost Rider's hasn't been back to the Big Apple since World War Hulk by my reckoning, so not sure what he's doing here. maybe its to test the mettle of the newest Secret Avenger, Reverend Syung Mun Moon ... i mean Moon Knight. after all, its a battle for the soul of Khonshu. what? its a battle for the soul of New York?! bummer.

i immediately recognized the cover, and it should have been re-done by somebody else - Clint Langley, Alex Maleev, Marko Djurdjevic, even Clayton Crain. if you're going to ape someone else's cover that previously signified heartbreak and loss, i don't think anime style is going to cut it. not Niimura's style anyway. maybe he could have done it in black and white?

so what is the point here? Elektra's mourning the loss of Matt's soul, right when he took the leadership of the Hand, promptly joining the Dark Side? doesn't look like she's mourning though. maybe she's pissed because she was supposed to be the Hand boss. then that whole Skrull thing happened ...

now these are the coolest teasers of them all: Wolverine holding up two trophies - one's Bullseye and the other a Hand mask (or maybe that represents Daredevil - who hasn't had a good night's sleep since Bendis started writing him). the ace of spades in his neck is a nice touch, though it shouldn't appear on the second image. not unless Bullseye got his mask ripped off (first image), takes a fallen Hand ninja's mask and tosses another card at Logan's neck, and ending with the same disastrous results (second image).

should be a very interesting summer for DD and his fans (of course i'm in!).

heckling from the peanut gallery, part 4a

the call to assemble has gone out again, and we the people, the huddled masses of collateral damage from the disassembling, house of m-ing, civil warring, planet hulking, secret invading, and dark reigning, exercise our right to yell our opinion from the streets, as is our democratic right. we had the regular Avengers, then it was the New Avengers', followed by the young pups of Avengers Academy, excruciatingly, Marvel has revealed four of the not-so Secret Avengers in recent weeks. most of the speculation on who the characters are looks to be correct. they shoulda just drawn stick figures, just to drive fans even nuttier.



"what, you can't pick a permanent team??"
"does Trish Tilby know about this? by the way, she still claims you're gay."
"say, how do we know you're not the Dark Beast??"



"and which personality are you this time?"
"you know the sign on your chest means 'cent', right? like fitty cent?"
"the Zapata Bros are waiting for you to call for their shot at the big time."
"i don't think you're striving enough. wait, that was Khonshu talking."



"are you sure you don't want to go back to the Defenders?"
"Dani Moonstar wants you to help her out of Utopia."
"you know if you run into the Hulk, he can swing you and Moon Knight by your capes and toss you across three state lines, right?"
"so have you lost control before? do tell ..."



"you know you're still Iron Man lite, right?"
"hey, can you transform into a cool car?"
"how do you eat peanuts?"

snaps: Vengeance of the Moon Knight #5

... where Marc/Jake/Steven/whatever his name is this week, comes face to face with a resurrected Bushman (hey, i didn't know Necrosha extended this far ... or Blackest Night). and he pulls a trick where his costume/armor is intact while he goes out fighting in his underoos. who does he think he is - Tony Stark? also, Jay Leisten's inks take the rough edges out of Jerome Opena's previous style.

Brandon Lee really hated crows.



have you seen Franken-Castle??



considering you're like the black sheep of NY superheroes ... ummmm, no.



and why is the movie version of Jonathan Crane in this book?



glad to know he didn't forget his luchadore lessons from the Zapata Bros.

get a room already!!

the new Apollo & Midnighter!


can you feeeeeeeeeeeeel the love tonight???

a familiar knight

somewhere, Dan DiDio is twirling his moustache and fiddling with his cellphone, contemplating on calling the DC lawyers. he calls Joe Quesada instead and rants.



but Quesada says "hey! you have a "Dark Knight"! that means no moons! do you or do you not see a moon in the picture? thought so." DiDio is left with a dial tone.

he then goes back to ripping up alternative scripts to the ending of Final Crisis.

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Moon Knight: Silent Knight

the killing time

cliffhangers of the week!

riding high on their laurels post-Secret Invasion, the T-Bolts go for a much vaunted target: Moon Knight!

ahhhhh ... screw it. like either of them is really gonna end up dead.

Moon Knight #24
Mike Benson/Mark Texeira/Javier Saltares/Dan Brown/Joe Caramagna


the fight to control Wolverine's long-lost son hurtles towards its conclusion with the kid about to throw down with his pop.


X-Men: Legacy #218
Mike Carey/Scot Eaton/Andrew Hennessy/Jason Keith/Brian Reber/Cory Petit


what? another Bullseye sighting? Norman Osborn cleans house, and sics his most ethics-challenged dogs to do it. if Bullseye doesn't get to really whack anyone next issue, that makes him only good for killing Goliath Skrulls. his stock is really plummeting like the stock market. if you want to hire a hitman, you'd be better off hiring the Punisher.


Thunderbolts #126
Andy Diggle/Roberto Dela Torre/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne

lonely is the knight

Moon Knight
Charlie Huston/David Finch/Danny Miki
Marvel


Moon Knight is one of those fringe B-List characters who can wow you a few times, then be uninteresting most of the time. it was nuts to make him an Avenger, because basically he's Batman without the capability to work well with others. but left alone, he can be a little iffy sometimes, and mostly better left with cameo appearances, not a full-fledged ongoing series. that being said, the Doug Moench/Bill Sienkewicz run of the '80s seems to be the defining period of the character.

apparently, someone at Marvel (would that be you, Mr. Joe Quesada?) thought this soldier-of-fortune/avenging-knight-of-an-Egyptian-god shtick still had some legs in it, so they brought in crime fiction writer Charlie Huston to pen a few stories. if this is gonna be a successful experiment like Brad Meltzer over at DC, that remains to be seen.

the new series serves as a re-introduction for casual readers who Moon Knight is, but at the same time keeping his previous timeline intact. we find Marc Spector (who used to have to two other aliases and a gazillion multiple personalities) a broken man, doing nothing but pop pills and brood all day. he has apparently lost all hope to live, abandoned by his girl and his friends, and subsequently has no desire to continue the work for his god, Konshu.


he even talks to Konshu, blaming him for his ills, because he feels abandoned. even his ex, Marlene thinks years of doing the superhero thing made him completely lose his marbles (if not his balls). having died and resurrected a couple of times can do that to you (that, and being demoted to the D-List and not being invited to superhero Christmas parties).

"uh ... you mean, like Iron Man?"

this six-issue arc devotes its energies to getting Spector back into the game, and practically reintroducing himself to his supporting cast. Spector apparently seems to have been in a daze for a long time, as he discovers his driver/pilot/sidekick Frenchie is ... gay.

that should make you choke on your italian sausage

long story short: somebody tries to kill Frenchie, Spector is galvanized back into action. so why didn't anybody try to do this earlier? the villains of the piece are the new Committee, children of the previous one, who instead of whacking Spector while in a vulnerable state, try to toy with him and recruit him to their cause, before giving up and finally giving him a thumbs down. if there's one thing we've learned over the years on how NOT to get things done, its by forming a committee.

the Committee hires the Taskmaster, the ultimate mercenary, whose "special power" is his ability to mimic anyone's skills, to kill Moon Knight. Taskmaster doesn't usually indulge directly in these pursuits; he prefers training the bad guys in the Marvel universe. however, the new Sony Bravia came out and he needed the fast cash to avail of the post-Christmas price slash at Best Buy.

"H-D-T-V, babyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!"

so Marlene, despite being an ex, knows what to do in emergency situations, and brings an injured Spector to his secret lair in Long Island (what th-?) where he has a storage facility of vehicles, weapons and costumes (what th-?, again).

to the Batc- ... eeep! wrong Cave!


here we have a Lambda-class shuttle taking off from - oops. wrong movie set.

Moon Knight goes off and does the avenging work he does so well, not to mention, reciting the slogan he learned by rote.

"gimme a V, gimme an E, gimme an N, gimme ... ah what the crap, just say it!!!"

Taskmaster, like most teachers, is big on the theories and sorely lacking on the practical execution. once Moon Knight gets back into the cowl, he's toast.

at least he has a sense of humor

Huston leaves us a twist wherein we are left to ponder whether Spector was indeed jumpstarted by the events around him, or whether ... his fractured brain concocted all of this crap.


i have no doubt Finch's art fits the bill here. its just that i can't help seeing his previous works, Ascension and/or The Darkness, in most of it. at least the New Avengers have bright colors. that being said, i managed to snag his autograph for a couple of my books, and wonder if he was undergoing chemotherapy (really, he slightly resembles the ex-KGB agent who claimed he was poisoned by Russian President Vladimir Putin's minions, but with a bright, unpoisoned smile of course).


gratuitous violence? what gratuitous violence?

now that we got one more psycho hero loose on the streets, let's see if the next storyline keeps us interested.
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issues read: #1-6