Showing posts with label Spider-Man. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Spider-Man. Show all posts
Thursday, August 4, 2011
miles away
this is my take on the whole New Ultimate Spider-Man brouhaha, and also intertwined with Midtown Comics' contest on getting your mug on an upcoming issue of the 616 Spidey.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Spidey and his Fantastic Friends
FF #2 "Doom Nation"
Amazing Spider-Man #659 "Fantastic Voyage, Part 1 of 2"
and here i thought these two were linked story-wise; turns out its not. i totally enjoyed both anyway.
right after the drafting of now-accomplished nerd Spider-Man as Johnny's replacement, Jonathan Hickman surprised me by bringing Doom into the equation. well, not really because this was hinted back in earlier issues. i just thought he was going to join the Future Foundation as a tenuous member, a la Magneto in the current X-Men. maybe he still is, because he's not one to miss an opportunity to tout his intelligence (at least by the end of this issue). however, Reed should be more worried about Valeria (whom Doom named, in her revised origin), who seems to be getting or causing more trouble than Franklin when he was her age. she's probably too smart for her own good.
even as distracted as Reed can be, i don't think he would easily forget that was how Tony Stark came back to his proper senses in the recent Siege. oh well.
so, dumb-as-a-rock Doom ostensibly made a deal with Valeria to help him recover from his brain damage and be back to being the scumbag genius that he is, and they manage to do so, by copying some files from Doom ward Kristoff's own noggin. interestingly, Reed makes the moral if difficult decision to go along with it, even when given the chance to get rid of his longtime arch-enemy permanently. and what's the price Valeria demands? for Doom to defeat her dad. uhhh, what?
super-nerd Parker, also not a fan of Doom, at least is honest about cracking jokes regardless.
there's more to this than meets the eye, though. the next issue's preview show the return of the well-meaning yet blinded Reeds, and maybe that's what Doom needs (or Valeria wants Doom) to beat.
over in Spidey's own book, the foursome take a journey to an island they had visited early in their original incarnation, where Ben played Blackbeard the Pirate and get some gems back to a tiger-stroking Doom (heh) who had Sue as a hostage. anyway, some radioactive anomaly is emanating from this island and geeks just need to investigate radioactive anomalies.
funnily, with the attack-happy locals exercising their fear of strangers, its the FF's reputation that saves them (or is it the other way around). Dan Slott and Fred Van Lente continue their knack for snappy hilarious patter, which makes me wonder why they didn't get them to write Spider-Man a loooong time ago.
ending up fighting zombie pirates (eh?), the fun gets doubled as Benjie
reprises his award-winning role, courtesy of Mr. Parker's quick
thinking.
just like over in Avengers, we see that our heroes end up cleaning after old foes (think Spidey's rogues gallery ... his best baddies, minus the Goblin of course). with the promise of more ass-kicking, errr ... booty-kicking next issue, i can't wait!
FF story: A- art: A-
ASM story: A+ art: A
Amazing Spider-Man #659 "Fantastic Voyage, Part 1 of 2"
and here i thought these two were linked story-wise; turns out its not. i totally enjoyed both anyway.
right after the drafting of now-accomplished nerd Spider-Man as Johnny's replacement, Jonathan Hickman surprised me by bringing Doom into the equation. well, not really because this was hinted back in earlier issues. i just thought he was going to join the Future Foundation as a tenuous member, a la Magneto in the current X-Men. maybe he still is, because he's not one to miss an opportunity to tout his intelligence (at least by the end of this issue). however, Reed should be more worried about Valeria (whom Doom named, in her revised origin), who seems to be getting or causing more trouble than Franklin when he was her age. she's probably too smart for her own good.
even as distracted as Reed can be, i don't think he would easily forget that was how Tony Stark came back to his proper senses in the recent Siege. oh well.
so, dumb-as-a-rock Doom ostensibly made a deal with Valeria to help him recover from his brain damage and be back to being the scumbag genius that he is, and they manage to do so, by copying some files from Doom ward Kristoff's own noggin. interestingly, Reed makes the moral if difficult decision to go along with it, even when given the chance to get rid of his longtime arch-enemy permanently. and what's the price Valeria demands? for Doom to defeat her dad. uhhh, what?
super-nerd Parker, also not a fan of Doom, at least is honest about cracking jokes regardless.
there's more to this than meets the eye, though. the next issue's preview show the return of the well-meaning yet blinded Reeds, and maybe that's what Doom needs (or Valeria wants Doom) to beat.
over in Spidey's own book, the foursome take a journey to an island they had visited early in their original incarnation, where Ben played Blackbeard the Pirate and get some gems back to a tiger-stroking Doom (heh) who had Sue as a hostage. anyway, some radioactive anomaly is emanating from this island and geeks just need to investigate radioactive anomalies.
funnily, with the attack-happy locals exercising their fear of strangers, its the FF's reputation that saves them (or is it the other way around). Dan Slott and Fred Van Lente continue their knack for snappy hilarious patter, which makes me wonder why they didn't get them to write Spider-Man a loooong time ago.
just like over in Avengers, we see that our heroes end up cleaning after old foes (think Spidey's rogues gallery ... his best baddies, minus the Goblin of course). with the promise of more ass-kicking, errr ... booty-kicking next issue, i can't wait!
FF story: A- art: A-
ASM story: A+ art: A
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
why is Fantomex swinging from a web and hanging with the F3?
because that's not Fantomex, idiot. that's your friendly neighbor Spider-Man (who went from zero groups to two majors - next up, X-Men and Guardians of the Galaxy). and Jonathan Hickman's about to wow us even more (like he hasn't already with S.H.I.E.L.D.)
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Peter and Tony, sitting on a couch
and with this, we say Amen to the Pandora's Box opened by Civil War (God bless its soul).
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
webbing up
Electro? the Vulture? Kraven? what character will Rhys Ifans play?
seriously? i want the Sinister Six. with Alfred Molina back as Doc Ock!
seriously? i want the Sinister Six. with Alfred Molina back as Doc Ock!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Friday, September 3, 2010
hail to the king
drive-by readings
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.
 | 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.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
patient zero
drive-by readings
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?
 | 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?
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Saturday, July 31, 2010
basic instincts
drive-by readings
what we learned: we learned that the Marvel brain trust is never exempt from capitalizing on mindless spinoffs that do not advance the plot of the main storyline whatsoever and will cook up any excuse for mindless pummeling between their characters. i guess Marvel vs Capcom or Ultimate Alliance is not enough.
oh shit moment: you did not just say the Smithsonian museums are boring. what are these, the flexing of the id? yeah, probably.
what's next: let's just have Hulk and Skaar kill each other once and for all. or make a pure Marvel-characters-only fighting game on all platforms with killer graphics and no plot at all.
sheeeeesh. even for Peter Parker, that's inane.
 | World War Hulks: Spider-Man vs Thor #2 (Marvel) Kieron Gillen Chris Eliopoulos Jorge Molina Paul Pelletier Ronan Cliquet Patrick Scherberger Scott Koblish Edgar Delgado Rachelle Rosenberg Chris Sotomayor Clayton Cowles Barry Kitson/Dave McCaig (variant cover) |
what we learned: we learned that the Marvel brain trust is never exempt from capitalizing on mindless spinoffs that do not advance the plot of the main storyline whatsoever and will cook up any excuse for mindless pummeling between their characters. i guess Marvel vs Capcom or Ultimate Alliance is not enough.
oh shit moment: you did not just say the Smithsonian museums are boring. what are these, the flexing of the id? yeah, probably.
what's next: let's just have Hulk and Skaar kill each other once and for all. or make a pure Marvel-characters-only fighting game on all platforms with killer graphics and no plot at all.
sheeeeesh. even for Peter Parker, that's inane.
Monday, July 19, 2010
arachnot.phobia
so apparently there's this Spider-Man story arc where blood relatives of the late Kraven the Hunter go after the rocky Fantastic Four member known as the ... what? it's not The Grimm Hunt? well, why dincha say so?
just kidding. Spidey's back in capable hands the last couple of years and the recent 'Gauntlet' theme, with all his classic rogues gallery coming back to bitch-slap him was just the prelude, orchestrated by Kraven's family, to finally bring down their arachnid enemy and resurrect their patriarch. i figured i'd wait till the conclusion of the arc before i put it in my two cents worth (roughly 1/8 its value because of the economy).
so what's the deal? first off, i can't believe anyone would call himself "Kraven the Hunter". it sounds cool and all, but Kraven or 'craven' means 'cowardly' or 'characterized by abject fear'. i don't think anyone who fancies himself to be a hunter would like to be seen in that light. is this in reference to the Wizard of Oz, because Kraven is dressed up up in lion gear? ah, i know. its the media who gave him that nickname. Sergei Kravinoff. Kravinoff the Hunter. Kravin the Hunter! then someone makes a typo.
the main perpetrators of this scheme is Kraven's wife Sasha and his purported daughter Ana, and recruit Kravinoff's (crazy) son Alyosha. first up, kidnap Madame Web and Mattie Franklin (the Other Other Spider-Woman). the Madame, for her prognosticating abilities (and in a way, responsible for psychically drugging Peter), and Mattie, as a sacrifice to revive (with assistance from Diablo and Electro) the other Kravinoff son, Vladimir, who now becomes Taylor Lautner. oh, sorry, was that a lion-like creature? again, with the lions. uh, duh.
hunters like to stalk obviously, and no amount of restraining orders will keep them away. Spidey clone Kaine (i try not to think of the '90s, honestly) gets fragged but manages to warn Peter of the impending danger. he's somehow mysteriously being me when i get annihilated by allergies, but manages to rescue (in a way) Arachne (Julia Carpenter - the Other Spider-Woman) from Ana and Alyosha. strangely, they never did date.
another figure from Peter's past shows up: Ezekiel (gaahhh! too many Spiders!), who confirms the "war between hunters and spiders". and just in time, they get to save Araña (who's like the Dora the Explorer of the Spider family) from the Kravinoffs. or not. Spidey's not a hundred percent, so he keeps slipping up, and the hunters take Spider-Woman 2 and Spider-Girl. but wait - if they need just his blood to resurrect their Daddy, why don't they just go get Spidey outright? all this dancing around - and the altruistic Ezekiel leads him right into their trap (CGI and special effects provided by Mysterio), with Ezekiel revealing himself to be the Chameleon (their uncle Dmitri, natch!) - its just theatre. were they aiming for Tonys?
and when the deed is finally done:
do we really get Kraven? or someone who's already short of a few braincells further reduced?
ok, this series was dedicated to JM DeMatteis and Mike Zeck, who were responsible for Kraven's Last Hunt (and Kraven's suicide) and may be an aside saying, "we're gonna bring him baaaaaaaaaack - and y'all can do nuthin' about it!"
Spider-Man as it turns out, is the thread that holds the web together. and if he's weakened or dead, the web is broken. kinda like the Force. so all the creatures in NYC get restless (where's Animal Man when you need him?) and for some, like the lions (yes, the lions) get back to basics and attack humans. you know Hizzoner J. Jonah Jameson is going to blame Spider-Man for all of this the next day, right?
whooop. there it is.
Kraven, for what its worth, finds the whole thing distasteful (he retired on top, fer chrissakes - why would he want to come back?), and even the Chameleon is having second thoughts about it too. even i would be creeped out if i had a daughter who wanted to please me (ok, that didn't turn out right) the way Ana pathetically and desperately wants his approval. she even stabs him when he goes nuts (ok, that was courtesy of Madame Web).
even worse, its not Peter Parker's blood that brought him back ...
yes, apparently, Mysterio is not the only one who knows about sleight-of-hand and special FX. Kaine pulls a last-minute switcheroo, and thus giving hope that we can close the door on this cloning thing. but no ...
Kraven takes matters into his own hands (despite his better instincts) and challenges Spider-Man to a hunt. and even provides the clothing (where the hell did he get the black costume?). by the way, did we mention that Peter did another rising from the grave act? and he's the jokester in the Avengers.
now he's the Spyder (not the sports apparel brand), and he's laying the smackdown on anyone related to Kraven. the strange part is, Kraven gives his "marching orders" but chills out as everyone gets picked off one at a time. then when we get to the inevitable, mano-a-mano, the Spyder gets the upper hand - and takes the high road. because he's the goddamn thread that holds everything together. he's not like Daredevil!!
so, the Kravinoffs teleport out of there (lucky Chameleon slinks back into the concrete jungle with 3 million dollars tax free) and end up in the Savage Land. Kraven dispatches Sasha and Vladimir due to philosophical differences (and when i say "dispatch", i don't mean "sent to the crime scene"). Julia becomes the new Madame Web, and Araña updates her duds with Julia's black costume. Kaine, meanwhile, is dead as a dodo one moment, then rises from the grave too the next. apparently, he will become the first Tarantula who isn't remotely Hispanic.
the whole thing holds up. although i would rather have dead villains stay dead (yeah sure), Kraven is probably the last great Spider-villain that needed to be brought back (please do not bring back the goddamned Jackal!), in keeping with the whole Spider-Man revival (which has been great in the last few years after the awkward One More Day/Brand New Day). its a bit heavy into mysticism and the fantastic, which is a Joe Kelly trademark, but that works well with the Kraven angle. it just became a lot more creepier though, with Ana presumably winning her survival challenge with Alyosha, and returning to jump-start a tribe with her Papa. eeewwww.
by the way, the best line (and a critique of superhero comics in general) is this:
that applies to heroes too!
-----
Amazing Spider-Man #634-637
just kidding. Spidey's back in capable hands the last couple of years and the recent 'Gauntlet' theme, with all his classic rogues gallery coming back to bitch-slap him was just the prelude, orchestrated by Kraven's family, to finally bring down their arachnid enemy and resurrect their patriarch. i figured i'd wait till the conclusion of the arc before i put it in my two cents worth (roughly 1/8 its value because of the economy).
so what's the deal? first off, i can't believe anyone would call himself "Kraven the Hunter". it sounds cool and all, but Kraven or 'craven' means 'cowardly' or 'characterized by abject fear'. i don't think anyone who fancies himself to be a hunter would like to be seen in that light. is this in reference to the Wizard of Oz, because Kraven is dressed up up in lion gear? ah, i know. its the media who gave him that nickname. Sergei Kravinoff. Kravinoff the Hunter. Kravin the Hunter! then someone makes a typo.
the main perpetrators of this scheme is Kraven's wife Sasha and his purported daughter Ana, and recruit Kravinoff's (crazy) son Alyosha. first up, kidnap Madame Web and Mattie Franklin (the Other Other Spider-Woman). the Madame, for her prognosticating abilities (and in a way, responsible for psychically drugging Peter), and Mattie, as a sacrifice to revive (with assistance from Diablo and Electro) the other Kravinoff son, Vladimir, who now becomes Taylor Lautner. oh, sorry, was that a lion-like creature? again, with the lions. uh, duh.
hunters like to stalk obviously, and no amount of restraining orders will keep them away. Spidey clone Kaine (i try not to think of the '90s, honestly) gets fragged but manages to warn Peter of the impending danger. he's somehow mysteriously being me when i get annihilated by allergies, but manages to rescue (in a way) Arachne (Julia Carpenter - the Other Spider-Woman) from Ana and Alyosha. strangely, they never did date.
another figure from Peter's past shows up: Ezekiel (gaahhh! too many Spiders!), who confirms the "war between hunters and spiders". and just in time, they get to save Araña (who's like the Dora the Explorer of the Spider family) from the Kravinoffs. or not. Spidey's not a hundred percent, so he keeps slipping up, and the hunters take Spider-Woman 2 and Spider-Girl. but wait - if they need just his blood to resurrect their Daddy, why don't they just go get Spidey outright? all this dancing around - and the altruistic Ezekiel leads him right into their trap (CGI and special effects provided by Mysterio), with Ezekiel revealing himself to be the Chameleon (their uncle Dmitri, natch!) - its just theatre. were they aiming for Tonys?
and when the deed is finally done:
do we really get Kraven? or someone who's already short of a few braincells further reduced?
ok, this series was dedicated to JM DeMatteis and Mike Zeck, who were responsible for Kraven's Last Hunt (and Kraven's suicide) and may be an aside saying, "we're gonna bring him baaaaaaaaaack - and y'all can do nuthin' about it!"
Spider-Man as it turns out, is the thread that holds the web together. and if he's weakened or dead, the web is broken. kinda like the Force. so all the creatures in NYC get restless (where's Animal Man when you need him?) and for some, like the lions (yes, the lions) get back to basics and attack humans. you know Hizzoner J. Jonah Jameson is going to blame Spider-Man for all of this the next day, right?
whooop. there it is.
Kraven, for what its worth, finds the whole thing distasteful (he retired on top, fer chrissakes - why would he want to come back?), and even the Chameleon is having second thoughts about it too. even i would be creeped out if i had a daughter who wanted to please me (ok, that didn't turn out right) the way Ana pathetically and desperately wants his approval. she even stabs him when he goes nuts (ok, that was courtesy of Madame Web).
even worse, its not Peter Parker's blood that brought him back ...
yes, apparently, Mysterio is not the only one who knows about sleight-of-hand and special FX. Kaine pulls a last-minute switcheroo, and thus giving hope that we can close the door on this cloning thing. but no ...
Kraven takes matters into his own hands (despite his better instincts) and challenges Spider-Man to a hunt. and even provides the clothing (where the hell did he get the black costume?). by the way, did we mention that Peter did another rising from the grave act? and he's the jokester in the Avengers.
now he's the Spyder (not the sports apparel brand), and he's laying the smackdown on anyone related to Kraven. the strange part is, Kraven gives his "marching orders" but chills out as everyone gets picked off one at a time. then when we get to the inevitable, mano-a-mano, the Spyder gets the upper hand - and takes the high road. because he's the goddamn thread that holds everything together. he's not like Daredevil!!
so, the Kravinoffs teleport out of there (lucky Chameleon slinks back into the concrete jungle with 3 million dollars tax free) and end up in the Savage Land. Kraven dispatches Sasha and Vladimir due to philosophical differences (and when i say "dispatch", i don't mean "sent to the crime scene"). Julia becomes the new Madame Web, and Araña updates her duds with Julia's black costume. Kaine, meanwhile, is dead as a dodo one moment, then rises from the grave too the next. apparently, he will become the first Tarantula who isn't remotely Hispanic.
the whole thing holds up. although i would rather have dead villains stay dead (yeah sure), Kraven is probably the last great Spider-villain that needed to be brought back (please do not bring back the goddamned Jackal!), in keeping with the whole Spider-Man revival (which has been great in the last few years after the awkward One More Day/Brand New Day). its a bit heavy into mysticism and the fantastic, which is a Joe Kelly trademark, but that works well with the Kraven angle. it just became a lot more creepier though, with Ana presumably winning her survival challenge with Alyosha, and returning to jump-start a tribe with her Papa. eeewwww.
by the way, the best line (and a critique of superhero comics in general) is this:
that applies to heroes too!
-----
Amazing Spider-Man #634-637
Sunday, June 6, 2010
things i liked this week
Justice Society of America #39 (DC)
Bill Willingham/Jesus Merino/Jesse Delperdang/Rob Leigh/Allen Passalaqua
Avengers Prime #1 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/Alan Davis/Mark Farmer/Javier Rodriguez/Chris Eliopoulos
Superman/Batman Annual #4 (DC)
Paul Levitz/Renato Guedes/Jose Wilson/Steve Wands (cover: Art Germ)
The Thanos Imperative #1 (Marvel)
Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning/Miguel Sepulveda/Jay David Ramos/Joe Caramagna (cover: Aleksi Briclot)
Invincible #72 (Image)
Robert Kirkman/Ryan Ottley/Cliff Rathburn/FCO Plascencia/Rus Wooton
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #37 (Marvel)
Karl Kesel/Paulo Siqueira/Fabio D'Auria/Joe Caramagna (cover: Marcos Martin)
Spidey meets Cap - the original - for the first time. but if Cap first saw him back in Avengers vol. 1 #11, how come he's been using a computer to track down Spidey? it must be that fluid Marvel timeline. also, i bet Cap still uses AOL to get on teh 'Net.
Captain America/Black Panther - Flags of Our Fathers #3 (Marvel)
Reginald Hudlin/Denys Cowan/Tom Palmer/Pete Pantazis/Joe Sabino (cover: Cowan/Sandu Florea/Pantazis)
worth the price of admission: the Armless Tiger Man! man, the Red Skull sure knows how to pick 'em!
Avengers - The Origin #3 (Marvel)
Joe Casey/Phil Noto/Albert Deschesne
the fledgling Avengers track down the Hulk in a circus, where the collateral damage is bound to be high. and they're likely to make mistakes because they're inexperienced and a tad excited about this whole superheroing thing. excellent work by Phil Noto.
Secret Warriors #16 (Marvel)
Jonathan Hickman/Gianluca Gugliotta/Sunny Gho/Dave Lanphear (cover: Jim Cheung/Mark Morales/Justin Ponsor)
just like the best spy-vs-spy conflicts, am already at a loss as to what's going on. yeah i know the ugly guys are the bad guys, but with Nick Fury being revealed as a member of a Shadow Council taking care of the Serpent Crown (Serpent. Hydra. Leviathan. scary creatures.) - unless that was an LMD and Hickman and Bendis are laughing at my confusion. and now, another betrayal. looks like nothing changes in Fury's world, S.H.I.E.L.D. or no S.H.I.E.L.D. i miss Stefano Caselli though.
Hercules - Twilight of a God #1 (Marvel)
Bob Layton/Ron Lim/Mike Cavallaro/Dave Sharpe
no Amadeus Cho, but no matter - Herc's still up to his old shenanigans, mostly saving the world and being drunk. hey, old people need their meds - fact of life. but those pills of lucidity may not save him from an enraged Silver Surfer looking for some payback. catfight!!!
The Brave & The Bold #34 (DC)
J. Michael Straczynski/Jesus Saiz/Rob Leigh/Tom Chu
i took a stab at this, and i liked it. time travel, black holes, a randy robot and a pink fluff. wheeeeee!
Bill Willingham/Jesus Merino/Jesse Delperdang/Rob Leigh/Allen Passalaqua
and this is how i like my alternate future crisis stories - although it reeks of Days of Future Past (and its not even a broad comics event in any case), the idea that the super-Nazis have taken over the world and defeated most of the good guys, has got me cheering the resistance led by Mr. Terrific. but right at the last second, a twist - aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh. looking forward to the conclusion (and let it be not a post-event narrative a la Secret Invasion #8)
Avengers Prime #1 (Marvel)
Brian Michael Bendis/Alan Davis/Mark Farmer/Javier Rodriguez/Chris Eliopoulos
the Avengers Big Three in an in-between days adventure before the Avengers relaunch (man, how do these guys breathe?). divided fans of Iron Man and Captain America should not miss this, as i expect chockfulls of fanboy goodness (though there might be some mis-characterizations).
Superman/Batman Annual #4 (DC)
Paul Levitz/Renato Guedes/Jose Wilson/Steve Wands (cover: Art Germ)
probably the best Batman Beyond story in years, Terry McGinnis gets to be in an unlikely teamup with an aging Superman in a downtrodden Metropolis to go up against who else, but longtime nemesis Luthor. is this a sign that McGinnis will get to be featured in more high profile stories soon? continuity freaks will nitpick this, but hell, i just want me some Batman Beyond. looks like Paul Levitz didn't miss a beat.
The Thanos Imperative #1 (Marvel)
Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning/Miguel Sepulveda/Jay David Ramos/Joe Caramagna (cover: Aleksi Briclot)
and here we go! with the Cancer-verse growing by the minute and their version of Mar-Vell aiming to wipe out death in this universe of ours (well, isn't that a good thing?), the Guardians of the Galaxy try to balance things out by reinjecting Thanos into the equation. this series is not to be missed as usual, with the great space opera work DnA have been churning out in the past few years, but am a bit apprehensive that this is their swan song and they're going out with a bang. a big bang.
Invincible #72 (Image)
Robert Kirkman/Ryan Ottley/Cliff Rathburn/FCO Plascencia/Rus Wooton
the Viltrumite War begins and it looks like major characters will not survive. when Invincible ends, they should just make a coffee table book of all its gory moments. that's a conversation starter.
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #37 (Marvel)
Karl Kesel/Paulo Siqueira/Fabio D'Auria/Joe Caramagna (cover: Marcos Martin)
Spidey meets Cap - the original - for the first time. but if Cap first saw him back in Avengers vol. 1 #11, how come he's been using a computer to track down Spidey? it must be that fluid Marvel timeline. also, i bet Cap still uses AOL to get on teh 'Net.
Captain America/Black Panther - Flags of Our Fathers #3 (Marvel)
Reginald Hudlin/Denys Cowan/Tom Palmer/Pete Pantazis/Joe Sabino (cover: Cowan/Sandu Florea/Pantazis)
worth the price of admission: the Armless Tiger Man! man, the Red Skull sure knows how to pick 'em!
Avengers - The Origin #3 (Marvel)
Joe Casey/Phil Noto/Albert Deschesne
the fledgling Avengers track down the Hulk in a circus, where the collateral damage is bound to be high. and they're likely to make mistakes because they're inexperienced and a tad excited about this whole superheroing thing. excellent work by Phil Noto.
Secret Warriors #16 (Marvel)
Jonathan Hickman/Gianluca Gugliotta/Sunny Gho/Dave Lanphear (cover: Jim Cheung/Mark Morales/Justin Ponsor)
just like the best spy-vs-spy conflicts, am already at a loss as to what's going on. yeah i know the ugly guys are the bad guys, but with Nick Fury being revealed as a member of a Shadow Council taking care of the Serpent Crown (Serpent. Hydra. Leviathan. scary creatures.) - unless that was an LMD and Hickman and Bendis are laughing at my confusion. and now, another betrayal. looks like nothing changes in Fury's world, S.H.I.E.L.D. or no S.H.I.E.L.D. i miss Stefano Caselli though.
Hercules - Twilight of a God #1 (Marvel)
Bob Layton/Ron Lim/Mike Cavallaro/Dave Sharpe
no Amadeus Cho, but no matter - Herc's still up to his old shenanigans, mostly saving the world and being drunk. hey, old people need their meds - fact of life. but those pills of lucidity may not save him from an enraged Silver Surfer looking for some payback. catfight!!!
The Brave & The Bold #34 (DC)
J. Michael Straczynski/Jesus Saiz/Rob Leigh/Tom Chu
i took a stab at this, and i liked it. time travel, black holes, a randy robot and a pink fluff. wheeeeee!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
heroic snaps!
this week, we get sneak peeks on various books (characters) that would litter the Heroic Age, and we give them grades based on these shorts. all subjective, of course. that would be the indication of personal interest, of course.
"Admissions"
Christos N. Gage/Mike McKone/Jeromy Cox/Joe Caramagna
the first Avenger-in-training makes his appearance and he has the power of the Jurassic Park trilogy! Reptil, experimented on by H.A.M.M.E.R. (man, i hate paying taxes!!), is broken out by Avengers not asked to be on Avengers or Secret Avengers or New Avengers. hey, does this mean Hank and Tigra are gonna be an item? y'know, on account of Tigra having a baby Hank? what -? that was a Skrull?! when did that happen?? (B+)
25 mph? you're slower than molasses, kid.
"Heroes for the Ages"
Jeff Parker/Gabriel Hardman/Giancarlo Caracuzzo/Elizabeth Breitweiser/Ed Dukeshire
ok, i already said i just grabbed on the bumper of the bandwagon. geez. i just wonder what's wrong with this world that there's always something bad happening somewhere. even sunny Hawaii. (B)
i keep referring to him as Jimmy Choo.
"Coppélia"
Kelly Sue DeConnick/Jamie McKelvie/Matt Wilson/Nate Piekos
i don't think i need this to convince to follow the Black Widow's adventures, especially if drawn by Daniel Acuña. Natasha takes a break from Avenging (avenging who, really?) and goes back to the spy biz from time to time. and just in case nobody bothered to check Wikipedia, the title of the ballet directly correlates to the tiny dancer/weapon she breaks out here. (B-)
you hit like a girl! uh ... wait ...
"Big Trouble in Little Chinatown"
Jim McCann/David Lopez/Alvaro Lopez/Nathan Fairbairn/Cory Petit
my thanks to Jim McCann for opting for the freelance gig to at least continue scripting Hawkeye and Mockingbird. pretty much in Dark Reign, Clint Barton was all bluster and no muster. maybe this time he'll be doing something useful. and who is Bobbi talking to, you think? my bet is her old boss, Nick Fury. (A-)
how about porn? or two people, one cup?
"Top Dog"
Jeff Parker/Kevin Walker/Frank Martin/Albert Deschesne
now that's a sneak peek! Parker lays some more groundwork which makes sense (ex-T-Bolts Fixer and Mach 5 redoing security, Osborn being frog-marched among inmates) and positions Cage (albeit in a telegraphed move) to draw the line and yet make his pitch. for reform. there's a new sheriff in town. (A)
"Thumb On The Pulse"
Kurt Busiek/Marko Djurdjevic/Jelena Djurdjevic/Dave Lanphear
is this Busiek's first Marvel work in years? can't remember. but its a familiar refreshing method, this time a take on Hitler-moustache-rocking, all-around-blowhard JJJ who for some reason is still mayor of NYC (Mitchell Hundred and Bloomy would laugh), and how he reacts to the Heroic Age. though it ends differently than you expected, well no, not really. (A)
a message in three panels - a fine collaboration between Busiek and Marko the Awesomeness
"A Date with The Doctor"
Rick Remender/Chris Samnee/Matthew Wilson/Dave Lanphear
while we won't be seeing a regular Doctor Strange, er ... Sorcerer Supreme book anytime soon, and maybe its better that way. is there a market for magic books? sure there is. but in this economy, this should work like Hellboy - a series here and there, but still building continuity. Dr. Voodoo can also make regular appearances all over the place, especially if writers handle him well like Remender. by the way, what did Steve Rogers ask Stephen Strange? and how come he didn't ask Dr. Voodoo? (B+)
uh, what did i miss? where's Monica?
"Diplomatic Incident"
Paul Cornell/Leonard Kirk/Paul Mounts/Dave Lanphear
this just reminded me why i miss the Cornell/Kirk duo on a Captain Britain/MI:13 book. oh wait, there could still be one in the future, right? and on that note, who else hasn't been offered Avengers membership? me, apparently! (B+)
that means Brian's not gonna sleep because it'll be 9 GMT to 5 PST job!
"N.Y. State of Mind"
Dan Slott/Ty Templeton/Jorge Maese/Dave Lanphear
and of course, Spider-Man, despite being a member of the Avengers and practically just a goddamned real frikkin' hero many times over, still gets shit from New Yorkers. ease up once in a while, fellas!! (B-)
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Enter the Heroic Age, Age of Heroes #1
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