Bought and thoughtfor the week of March 4th 2009 *spoilers*

[CaptainCanada]

In later years, though, Gladiator's power has been lessoned a bit; at one time able to pummel Colossus to near death and stretch the Fantastic Four to their limits (literally), he lost to Cannonball during the Joe Mad UXM era in the mid 90's and it all went downhill from there.

Brubaker and Yost both treated him as a heavy; he's the only person so far to defeat Vulcan in a straight fight.

But part of the problem with the Shi'ar in general is that we always exclusively see them from the ruling class and never see any sign of anyone or anything lower; such "rabble" exist just for crowd shots, but that is another digression.

I don't disagree that's an issue, but no moreso than with the Kree or the Skrulls (I mean, Black Bolt just did the same thing Vulcan did, with far less fuss or opposition).

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Honestly I don't think consolidation was the right or the smart move. From the position they were at from SI:War of Kings (or whatever that was called) I think the move to make was to straight up Alexander the Great / Ghengis Khan the **** out of everybody and everything in their path and worry about hammering an empire out of it when they found the time, because consolidation isn't something you do when you've got the next big threat sitting right on your (X millions of light years away) doorstep. I mean honestly why would you think that the various galactic powers spoiling for a fight are going to sit on their hands and wait for you to have your nice quiet wedding ceremony on the lovely little ice planet you just found? You've got Attilan as the fully mobile center of your empire / war machine so take that ***** out while the initiative is on your side and go start the fight on your own terms.

Eh, I guess Black Bolt was just shortsighted. The Inhumans seemed to decide that the Kree Empire was theirs by right, so they took it. I don't think they were really interested in expanding farther, and they probably didn't think Vulcan would be so brazen as to attack them with a frontal assault. Chalk it up to inexperience on the intergalactic stage or Vulcan just being bats*** insane or the Inhumans just having bad tactical foresight. Probably a combination of all three, really. I don't think it was out of character either way. Dumb, but every character's a bit dumb now and then. The Inhumans still kept slaves and never even thought an uprising was possible until Maximus actually made it happen, after all.

It also appears, at least from the new avatar (which is cool), that TheCorpulent1 has taken all the accusations of Balder being a complete tool/pawn in THOR in Loki's schemes a bit seriously. Interesting. For my money, Balder is looking no better than Gladiator.

I also am bemused that Marvel is so desperate for ad revenue that they are advertising for WONDER WOMAN's animated DTV on some of their back covers, which will only compete with their own DTV's, especially the just-released HULK VS. WOLVERINE.

Yeah, but Hulk vs. sucks, so Wonder Woman rightly should kick its ass.

You've raised good points about Balder over our many discussions, but I still hold to my original notion that Balder's not being stupid or naive, he's just being himself in the midst of some pretty far-reaching schemes delicately crafted by a guy who's better at scheming than basically everyone else on the planet put together. Thor, on the other hand, was naive and clouded by love for his brother, but he's a guy who's effectively just been allowed to grow up. He's bound to make mistakes. Those kinds of flaws make for good drama.

And the avatar is just 'cause Balder's new look is badass, plus I wanted a new avatar and I didn't want to just have a random picture of Thor. (And also for some lulz at your expense.)

 

[Dread]

Brubaker and Yost both treated him as a heavy; he's the only person so far to defeat Vulcan in a straight fight.

Vulcan was also less experienced then than he is now with his powers, which takes some rep away.

I don't disagree that's an issue, but no moreso than with the Kree or the Skrulls (I mean, Black Bolt just did the same thing Vulcan did, with far less fuss or opposition).

It helps that the Kree and Skrulls were involved in many better stories. Beyond the original Phoenix Saga, can anyone think of a genuinely good story that involved the Shi'ar? Where they weren't being annoying dip****s? Thought so.

Yeah, but Hulk vs. sucks, so Wonder Woman rightly should kick its ass.

You've raised good points about Balder over our many discussions, but I still hold to my original notion that Balder's not being stupid or naive, he's just being himself in the midst of some pretty far-reaching schemes delicately crafted by a guy who's better at scheming than basically everyone else on the planet put together. Thor, on the other hand, was naive and clouded by love for his brother, but he's a guy who's effectively just been allowed to grow up. He's bound to make mistakes. Those kinds of flaws make for good drama.

And the avatar is just 'cause Balder's new look is badass, plus I wanted a new avatar and I didn't want to just have a random picture of Thor. (And also for some lulz at your expense.)

I liked HULK VS.

I don't care for WONDER WOMAN as a character at all so I likely won't bother with her DTV, unless I don't have to pay to see it.

Nice to know the origin of the new avatar. It does look cool.

Without repeating myself, both Balder and Gladiator appear to be "by the rule book" boy-scouts who don't let little things like people or circumstance sway them from adhering to the letter of what they believe in, even when that is counter-productive or even dangerous to their worlds. Most people usually just call that being a pawn, but apparently others feel differently. The problem with that approach is that if one doesn't discriminate, that simply means adhering to something that is outdated. The Constitution would simply be a piece of paper if it couldn't change. The throne of the Shi'ar is just a chair; what matters is who rules from it and how. A conflicted character who does absolutely nothing to solve his conflict is annoying, and often deserves their turmoil.

I prefer drama that doesn't rely on characters being clueless despite all prior evidence, but to each their own, of course.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I'm sure Balder will come through in the end. He's gone against the throne in the past; it just takes him a long time to finally convince himself that it's the right thing to do. His loyalty is his own worst enemy. Plus, Thor himself seemed to believe his punishment was just for the time being, even though he knew Loki's hand was involved somewhere.

 

[Dread]

I'm sure Balder will come through in the end. He's gone against the throne in the past; it just takes him a long time to finally convince himself that it's the right thing to do. His loyalty is his own worst enemy. Plus, Thor himself seemed to believe his punishment was just for the time being, even though he knew Loki's hand was involved somewhere.

We shall see.

 

[Keyser Soze]

The latest issue of Daredevil just got 5 stars in Comic Book Resources. It's rare for a comic to get 5 stars on CBR, and in my experience all but unheard of for a mainstream superhero comic to get it. I must say I'm eagerly anticipating getting my hands on it today even more now.

 

[Brainiac 8]

As of WOK #1, I am pleased and psyched for more. I can't wait to see what Richard Rider and Darkhawk bring to things, and I honestly do hope that despite the appeal of Black Bolt taking names against Vulcan, that Havok isn't denied the emotional resolution to his conflict against his brother that has been set up in KINGBREAKER and about a year of UXM. It would be wrong to cheat him of his, basically, "This is for the Nova Corps!" moment. Lord knows Havok could really use it. I look forward to the rest, as it should be, and has been, under Abnett & Lanning space comics. ANNIHILATION has spawned us years of great space material, great enough to actually have me bother with collecting it for the first time ever, and actually liking it. WAR OF KINGS so far seems to be no exception.

This is my only request. Let Black Bolt and Vulcan fight, but the last battle, that final blow, let us hope they give that to Havok.

It would be a fantastic conclusion to the Vulcan epic. I mean this story has spanned four series so far, and this event. (Deadly Genesis, R & F of the Shiar empire, Starjammers, Kingbreaker)

Out of everyone, Alex deserves that chance to beat Vulcan.

 

[Phaedrus45]

With the start of our new season of Contest Of Marvels in the RPG thread, I haven't had a chance to read any of the new comics; but, I promised myself that I wouldn't do any debating of characters today, and just read some of my comics.

But, first! Last night, I saw the midnight showing of Watchmen. The beginning seemed a bit corny; but, after 20 minutes, things got much better. This is a pretty hard R-rating, though. Lots of CGI penis in it, sex (which just had most of the crowd giggling), and ultra-violent. But, it really had to be, in being true to the comic. It's just under 3 hours long; but, it didn't feel like it. Great casting, too!

I will say I'm not sure how well non-fans of the comic will like the story. I did see three people walk out, about 30 minutes before the end of the film. People are so used to superhero movies, like Batman, Iron Man, and Spider-Man, they might not be expecting this type of film.

War of Kings #1: Great kick-off to this event. Enough has been said about it already, I noticed; so, I'll just say I agree with the average rating of 8/10. It's a pretty good read; but, it won't blow you out of the water.

Hulk-Broken Worlds Book One: This series presents four 8-page stories from Hulk-related stories we've seen in the past. This issue focuses on House Of M, Microverse, Hulk 2099, and Future Imperfect. The stories are alright. The best is the first, House Of M. We get to see what happens when Betty comes to Australia, seeking refuge from Magneto. The worst is Hulk 2099; the art did nothing for me, and the story was pretty awful.

6/10

Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk #3: Picking up where we left off three years ago, this issue pretty much catches everyone up on what happened before. (It's a six-issue mini now; I think before it was supposed to be 4-issues...but, I could be wrong.) I liked this issue a lot. It's got great humor, good action, and it makes me hate the idea that the Ultimate Universe will (might) be ending. There are many good stories that are waiting to be told, and having it be in an alternate world, where anyone can die ... or where you can tweak their characterizations ... is perfect for writers wanting to stretch their creative freedom.

As I said, there are a lot of humorous moments, as Logan is narrating throughout; and, even though it's been quite a while since I read this comic, he updated me nicely. Loved the ending, and can't wait to see who this She-Hulk is. (At least I'll get an answer to that long before I'll probably find out who Rulk is.)

8/10

Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #45: This might have come out last week; as, the owner of my LCS said he thinks I didn't get this in my box. Still, it's worth mentioning, because shock of all shocks, it pretty darn good. Filled with many humorous moments, Mordecai Midas dreams of joining the Fantastic Four, gaining fame, taking over creative control, and getting rich. Assisting him is Madame Masque, who creates opportunities for Midas to show his heroics...although, he is constantly stumbling and bumbling his efforts. It's not hard to achieve; but, this might be the best issue of MAF4 yet. It gets a pretty high rating, and it might be from the shock of reading something good from this title.

8/10

BTW, I'm going to start watching the Watchmen DVD this weekend that came out this week. Has anyone seen it yet? Can you tell me what you thought? I'm dying to find out what people think of it.

 

[kguillou]

Originally posted by Dread

I liked HULK VS.

I don't care for WONDER WOMAN as a character at all so I likely won't bother with her DTV, unless I don't have to pay to see it.

I said the same thing Dread but trust me you should give it a shot, its actually pretty good, and its surprisingly mature in content. i never cared for wonder woman at all til i saw the DTV.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Hmm... now I'm a bit wary because I actually do like Wonder Woman already...

 

[BrianWilly]

It's sort of very good, but it is very much Ultimate Wonder Woman. They take massive short cuts with a lot of details, focus on some odd traits of the character, and then skip things entirely that you'd think would make sense to mention.

But for a solo movie, it's quite good. Action, humor, etc.

 

[bryanss3]

The latest issue of Daredevil just got 5 stars in Comic Book Resources. It's rare for a comic to get 5 stars on CBR, and in my experience all but unheard of for a mainstream superhero comic to get it. I must say I'm eagerly anticipating getting my hands on it today even more now.

Thats great it's probably my favorite issue of the week. I love how Brubaker can take an obvious story and completely make it work.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

It's sort of very good, but it is very much Ultimate Wonder Woman. They take massive short cuts with a lot of details, focus on some odd traits of the character, and then skip things entirely that you'd think would make sense to mention.

But for a solo movie, it's quite good. Action, humor, etc.

I heard it was more Golden Age Wonder Woman.

 

[fifthfiend]

Eh, I guess Black Bolt was just shortsighted. The Inhumans seemed to decide that the Kree Empire was theirs by right, so they took it. I don't think they were really interested in expanding farther, and they probably didn't think Vulcan would be so brazen as to attack them with a frontal assault. Chalk it up to inexperience on the intergalactic stage or Vulcan just being bats*** insane or the Inhumans just having bad tactical foresight. Probably a combination of all three, really. I don't think it was out of character either way. Dumb, but every character's a bit dumb now and then. The Inhumans still kept slaves and never even thought an uprising was possible until Maximus actually made it happen, after all.

Good point. I'd have preferred to have seen the characters being smart but I can't argue that their dumbness was against their established character.

 

[Dread]

This is my only request. Let Black Bolt and Vulcan fight, but the last battle, that final blow, let us hope they give that to Havok.

It would be a fantastic conclusion to the Vulcan epic. I mean this story has spanned four series so far, and this event. (Deadly Genesis, R & F of the Shiar empire, Starjammers, Kingbreaker)

Out of everyone, Alex deserves that chance to beat Vulcan.

I agree. Plus, you could argue that Black Bolt has plenty of reason to engage Gladiator instead if they want to give him a massive opponent to fight. But, yeah, in the end Vulcan is Havok's enemy, and beating him should be his moment. There needs to be emotional punch to something like that. Look what it did for Richard Rider.

 

[BrianWilly]

I heard it was more Golden Age Wonder Woman.

Steve Trevor's presence as a love interest, along with his personality being much more nerdjock tool instead of competent veteran, makes it feel very much Golden Age. Steve was pretty much a tool then, too.

Also she doesn't fly, and has an invisible jet that's never ****ing explained. But the general plotline and mythology is very much of the modern age.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Hmm. Bit of a shame about the invisible jet, but otherwise that doesn't sound bad at all. Netflix, what.

 

[CaptainCanada]

Steve Trevor's presence as a love interest, along with his personality being much more nerdjock tool instead of competent veteran, makes it feel very much Golden Age. Steve was pretty much a tool then, too.

It seemed more Silver Age to me (since none of Marston's politics makes it in; incidentally, I love how on the DVD documentaries everybody does Olympic gymnastics to avoid mentioning anything about Marston's personal life).

 

[BrianWilly]

"He was very 'radical' for his time! So 'progressive!' So 'forward-thinking'!"

 

[Manic]

I'm unfamiliar with Marston's thinking. What's the skinny?

 

[Anubis]

He lived in a manege a trois with two chicks. Like threes company with f**king!!! And he also created the lie detector.


......the man was a God.

 

[CaptainCanada]

I'm unfamiliar with Marston's thinking. What's the skinny?

He was a firm believer in polyamoury and BDSM (hence, the heavy bondage overtones in the Golden Age Wonder Woman; Marston believed that "loving submission to authority" would lead to a more peaceful world), and lived in a three-way relationship with his wife Elizabeth Marston and a woman named Olive Byrne for years (four children between them, though adoptive in Byrne's case); after his death in 1947, the two women lived together for another 40 years, until Byrne's death in the 80s.

 

[Anubis]

I said it better.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

He was a firm believer in polyamoury and BDSM (hence, the heavy bondage overtones in the Golden Age Wonder Woman; Marston believed that "loving submission to authority" would lead to a more peaceful world), and lived in a three-way relationship with his wife Elizabeth Marston and a woman named Olive Byrne for years (four children between them, though adoptive in Byrne's case); after his death in 1947, the two women lived together for another 40 years, until Byrne's death in the 80s.

Sounds like a pretty happy family to me. The BDSM bit is kind of an odd thing to inject into a superheroine, but all comics had their weird parts in the Golden Age.

 

[Manic]

Yeah, that certainly explains the invariably numerous amount of Golden Age Wonder Woman pictures with Diana and other Amazons tied up.