Bought/Thought - 1/23/2013

[JewishHobbit]

I ended up buying more books than I planned for. First, I wasn't planning on buying Nightwing but I missed it. I ended up seeing the previous two issues at Books-A-Million earlier in the week so I bought and loved them. So I bought the newest issue as well. In addition to that, I also picked up Green Lantern Corps. I dont buy the book normally but I didn't know Green Lantern leads into that issue, which leads into the GLC Annual... so that's TWO issues of GLC that I wasn't planning on buying... one of them being five freaking dollars! I'm not enjoying this plot enough for this crap.

Anyhow, on to the reviews:

Green Lantern 16 - I've lost interest in this book since Simon Baz came in. We've been given enough tidbits with Hal and Sinestro to keep me coming back but I'm very bored with the Third Army plot. Fortunately, this issue was better than the past three and Simon became a bit more likable for me. I also really like B'dg. Fortunately, it sounds like the next issue moves on to the next thing.

Green Lantern Corps 16 - I was able to follow the book well enough, having not read a single issue of the title before now. The story from GL flowed into this one fairly nicely and the reader is given enough information to care about Guy's situation. John's portion was a little less accomodating but it wasn't anything huge. I will say that I loved the art. Pasarin was the only good thing about Emerald Warriors and I'm glad to see he's got another gig. I like Mahnke but I'd love to see Pasarin on the main GL title.

The story was decent but I'm ready to move on from the Rise of the Third Army. I'm just annoyed that I'll have to pay an extra $8 for a title I don't even buy just to get there.

Justice League 16 - Man, this Throne of Atlantis crossover is hitting all home runs for me. I loved this issue and feel for both Arthur and Orm. I get Orm's motivation for the attack, I get Arthur's struggle to save both worlds, and I get the Justice League's determination to stop Orm. All in all it's turning into a fantastic read. Orm is an awesome "villain" and this Atlantis threat feels like the full-scale challenge that the Justice League should be facing. And how great is that ending?! The Justice League reserves are introduced and sent into battle. Joining the League we now have: Black Canary, Black Lightening, Firestorm, Hawkman, Zatanna, Vixen, Green Arrow, Element Woman, Shazam, and someone named Gold Rush (who I've never heard of before). I'm curious how this all plays out (especially since Shazam's only been Shazam for a day or less in the backup story).

For the first time since they began, I'm enjoying the main title more than the Shazam back ups (which I'm kinda wanting them to move on with).

Nightwing 16 - Man, last issue was just amazing and this one blew that one out of the water. This two-issue tie-in to Death of the Family was some of the best Nightwing issues since the reboot. And MAN do I love Eddy Barrows' art!

So let's figure out what Joker's done to Dick so far: 1) killed his friend, Jimmy the Clown and strung him up at Amusement Mile. 2) Turned his his ex-girlfriend/semi-bad guy Raya into a psychopath who tried to kill him, she died and Joker had carved an invite into her stomache for Dick. 3) Joker then dug up tons of former employees of Haley's Circus and strung them up around Amusement Mile, which Dick and Haley's Circus has been trying to revive. 4) Joker blew up Amusement Mile. 5) Joker drugged the rest of Haley's Circus, including the cute little kid that Dick promised would be safe, and sent them after Dick. 6) Being that this isn't a happy ending sort of story, and that Joker did the same to Raya, it's safe to bet that everyone in Haley's Circus is now dead.

And Dick has had one sucky day leading into the Death of the Family conclusion in Batman 17. Man, I can't wait! I'm so sad that I dropped this title and sold the issues I had because I'm officially back on board.

Uncanny X-Force 1 - So I've been excited for this book because I love Fantomex and Bishop, and it's got them both. Having read it, I don't know what to think. First off... Fantomex kissing Cluster was just wierd. I don't know what to think about that because it was almost like he was making out with himself. It's just wierd. Puck was odd for me because I've not ready any Alpha Flight and have only had minor guest cameos with the character. How he acts here is not how I expected of him, and I don't know that I like it. Psylocke has flipped her lid and I don't care for it. Her cursing blocks were very distracting and kept taking me out of the story. Bishop... he had one page, so I'll get back with you on that one.

The art was good and the coloring was great... but I just don't know about the character depictions. I'll stick with it for a while, and it was decent, but I just expected to like it more. But then... how do you follow up on Remender's Uncanny X-Force? I mean, really.

Uncanny Avengers 3 - Speaking of Remender. I am so bored of this title. The delays killed it for me, which makes me look at this art and groan... just like when Cassiday was drawing Astonishing X-Men. I don't really care about Cap or Thor. I can take or leave Wanda. I get my Wolverine fix everywhere else. I love Havoc and Rogue but I'm not that impressed with their handling thus far (though Havoc had a decent showing here). The story with the Red Skull having Xavier's brain is interesting but spoiled by delays and I'm just bored now.

I've said it before. It's lucky the next arc is one of my most highly anticipated stories of the year or I'd likey not even bother coming back for issue 4. Thank god Cassaday was removed. He shouldn't have been on the title to begin with. I think Acuna or whoever it is would have been a better fit for this story anyway.

Wolverine & the X-Men 24 - This was a decent issue, a pause from the nonsense arc we just finished. It was essentially a relaxation date issue featuring Kitty & Bobby, Logan & Ororo, Hank & Brand, and Idie & Broo. Things don't all go as planned but it ended up a decent read. I wasn't a huge fan of the art, but that might just be because it wasn't Bradshaw. All in all, good issue that has me curious about the next one.

Oh, and it's good to see this issue pulled heavily from All New X-Men. I wondered if it would ignore it or not. Jean shows up and Kid Omega has some thoughts about her that could have gotten him smacked. And Beast is his new form now. Good on the continuity.

I'm kinda eager for this whole Hellfire Club kids thing to be done though. Getting bored with lil' Mister Kilgore.

Young Avengers 1 - The other new title of the day. The first thing I'll say is that McKelvie draws the heck out of this book. I'm not one to typically comment on things like this but he draws one attractive Kate Bishop!

As for the plot, it was just sorta okay. My first gripe is that, yes, the YA quit toward the end of Children's Crusade, but then they got back together on the last page or two. Here, they're still done. How does that happen? What happened to editorial? Yeah, it helps in the shaking up of the team, but what's done is done. Why ignore it to make a freaking better start for the new series? Stupid.

I also didn't like that Kate just randomly hooked up with Marvel Boy. I don't know why but as a rape victim I don't really see her just hooking up with strangers (which he obviously was since she didn't recognize him until morning). And how does a girl randomly hook up with an alien who lives above our atmosphere? Will we be shown that?

I did like all the stuff with Billy and Teddy. The dealings with Teddy's mom encourages me that this could really be a Young Avengers book, as it still deals with things from their past. It brought up Teddy's death, which looks to be a major factor of the first story, and it referenced the YA/Runaways Civil War mini, which I assumed no one remembered. So kudos on Gillen, though that should be no surprise with his grand track record.

So yeah, it was a good issue with a few things I didn't like. I wish I knew more about Kid Loki and Miss America Chavez but I'll learn more about them as the story moves on I suppose.

Scratch that... someone explain Kid Loki to me. I know nothing about the kid other than he's Loki. Help a hobbit out!


Best and Worst of the Week

Best: Nightwing 16 - This was nearly a tie with Justice League but I think Nightwing just eeked passed it. It was just all kinds of messed up, in a good way, and I think Higgins and Barrows knocked it out of the park. Great issue... great couple of issues. Definately blew the Batman & Robin tie-ins out of the water.

Worst: Uncanny Avengers 3 - Maybe it's my growing jadedness on the title's lateness but I just read this whole issue with a frown. With the exception of a scene with Havoc, I just didn't care a lick about any of it.

 

[runawayboulder]

I really enjoyed UXF #1. Yeah, the blocks were stupid but I like the overall tone that it's the spiritual successor to the previous volume.

 

[JewishHobbit]

Okay... I feel better. I know better than to trust my memory and so I looked at the last issue of Children's Crusade. I apparently read more into that final scene than was intended. The team disbanded and were then pulled together by Captain America and Carol Danvers (asked to dress in their costume). Cap then told them that whether they were Young Avengers or not, they'll always be Avengers. And that's it. There was no mention of them being together again.

So okay, that makes me feel LOADS better about that problem. It also explains a bit more as to why Patriot wouldn't be in the issue. He stopped being Patriot entirely and moved away at the end of Children's Crusade and wasn't even there when Cap called them together. So it actually makes sense that he wouldn't be in the new ongoing (at this point).

Speed should still be around but there's a slight mention as to where he went in this issue and he's showing up in issue 6 (I think it was) so I'm okay with that.

So yeah, Young Avengers just bumped up from a mediocre decent book to good

 

[JewishHobbit]

I really enjoyed UXF #1. Yeah, the blocks were stupid but I like the overall tone that it's the spiritual successor to the previous volume.

It definately read as the spiritual successor to Remender's title. I liked it alright, it just wasn't what I was expecting. I'm holding judgement until after the first arc is finished and the title is established.

 

[Mad Ones]

Starting with my favourite of the week, working my way to my least favourite (though I thought everything was quite good this week).

Avengers #3: I think this has to be one of my favourite Marvel Now issues so far. The art and the story really complimented each other to create a big brawl that excuses the extremely slow pacing of the first two issues. Despite the fact that I don't know a lot of characters on the roster, I really like this team, but I think the art helps. Like, I don't know who Hyperion is, but he looked awesome fighting the Hulk, and Captain Universe was the best part of the issue. I also love seeing Cannonball and Sunspot get some action. My one criticism is that Ex Nihilo and Abyss were let free, despite killing thousands on earth with their creation bombs. But I love these new villains, so I'm glad they have room to return again soon.

Young Avengers #1: It was a really good first issue and set up. Despite eventually liking a book, some Marvel Now #1s have bored me, but not this issue. It's nice to see Billy and Teddy's relationship develop, with both characters coming across as emotionally complicated and interesting. I'm glad Gillen has invested time in making their relationship three dimensional and important to the overall theme and story. And the plot is fantastic and left me wanting to read the next issue immediately. I've never read anything with Noh-var in it, but i liked him here. I love how Kate more or less reflected on the fact that he was a super sexy alien boy listening to 60s music haha. There wasn't much Miss America Chavez and Kid Loki, so I look forward to seeing them more.

Uncanny Avengers #3: It would be higher if wasn't for the narration boxes. The story is actually really dark, disturbing, and depressing. Countless mutants are killed in a Red Skull induced mob rage, while Thor becomes a disturbing Nazi symbol. I don't mind it going to dark places, and it's the best book for dealing with mutant/human relations, but the narration boxes took me out of the issue. One of them actually read: "But this is no ordinary man. This is Captain America, his resolve unwavering. Skull's hatred finds no grip on his noble heart..." Really? I can't stand Captain America most of the time, let alone when the writing is this cheesy.

FF#3: FF continues to be better than the Fantastic Four. We get a lot of set up to what seems like will be a really cool arc. Scott Lang is really carrying this title as the emotional crux, and I look forward to see where this Doom thing goes. As always, the art was energetic and vibrant. This title is really intriguing, though I'm not sold on Miss Thing yet (and all the Yancy Street crap).

Uncanny X-force #1: I love Psylock and Storm's redesigns, and am happy that they're both being treated right. Storm's costume is a new favourite of mine. It looks like an X-men costume, it's regal, but still lets her look edgy enough for X-force. And don't get me started on Psylock's costume. It's only 1000x better than the bathing suit. The pacing was all over the place though. It jumped around too much, and made Bishop's entrance and the Fantomex and Cluster reveal (ew) seem really random. I also didn't really care for Puck. I like it for now, but if it doesn't get better I'll just stick to seeing these costumes in X-men.

 

[runawayboulder]

I didn't mind the narration boxes in Uncanny Avengers. I like the words floating outsides the border, it felt kinda old school.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

So yeah, it was a good issue with a few things I didn't like. I wish I knew more about Kid Loki and Miss America Chavez but I'll learn more about them as the story moves on I suppose.

Scratch that... someone explain Kid Loki to me. I know nothing about the kid other than he's Loki. Help a hobbit out!

Kid Loki came about through a whole lot of scheming on Loki's part. He brokered some deals with hell lords like Mephisto and Hela to keep his soul out of their reach when he died, so when he finally did die at the end of Siege, his soul was reborn in the body of a human boy. Thor finds him and restores his divinity, but he stays a child and his memory only extends to his childhood. The remainder of his experiences are still out there in a kind of astral form of the old Loki, but that Loki explains to Kid Loki that he orchestrated this whole thing to give himself a second chance, so Kid Loki keeps old Loki in the form of a magpie he calls Ikol. Ikol, while keeping him innocent of old Loki's crimes, does tell him about his previous life and Kid Loki feels guilty about what a jerk he was. He decides to be better this time around (it's unstated, but the subtext is clearly that he wants to use this second chance to become more like his brother, whom he idolizes a bit).

But Kid Loki is still, at his core, Loki, so even when he has good intentions and wants to help people, he goes about it in some of the most unscrupulous, underhanded ways possible. For example, during Fear Itself, all of Asgard was aware of the prophecy that Thor would die fighting the Serpent. Kid Loki was the only one who saw that Thor might actually be able to fight his way past that fate and survive... so he orchestrated events behind the scenes in order to make sure Thor would die, since he knew undoing the first half of that prophecy would also undo the second half: that Thor's death would stop the Serpent and save everyone.

As for Miss America, she was introduced in Vengeance as part of the new Teen Brigade, which wasn't so much a superhero group as a bunch of like-minded teen activists using their powers to do all kinds of stuff, some heroic, some not-so-heroic, all in order to ultimately preserve balance in the universe because they were being influenced by the In-Betweener. As Kid Loki said, she's super-strong, mostly invulnerable, and she can fly.

If at all possible, you should totally read both Vengeance and Journey Into Mystery. They're both excellent, even though Vengeance didn't turn out to be anything remotely like what it seemed like it would be about (ads for it made it look a lot like a spiritual successor to Acts of Vengeance).

 

[def28]

Enjoyed most the marvel now books this week. Thought UXF was a pretty wild switch up. I can see why some arent too happy with Psylockes limited vocab and it may have forced the tone of the book a bit much when not needed. But it didnt stop me from enjoying it. Psylockes taken alot of **** from the past year so I thought it was kinda cool to see her lash out. Im guessing whatever happened between her and Fantomex pushed her further. Overall good stuff, Storm fit alot better then I thought and Im glad they tied in the events from WATX. Those two went well reading back to back.

Also good to see WATX is out of the Frankenstein arc and back at the school. Solid issue.

I didn't mind the narration boxes in Uncanny Avengers. I like the words floating outsides the border, it felt kinda old school.

I dug it too for that reason. Had a very classic feel to it. Thought it was more enjoyable then the previous 2 issues.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Green Lantern: New Guardians #16: Kyle battles his emotional dead zone in this issue--love. Ironic given that he was always a pretty lovey-dovey guy. He had lots of girls over the years, but he was always more of a serial monogamist than a womanizer. This issue shows that his issues with love go all the way back to his father's abandonment of him, a part of his past that is rarely touched on but which I thought was used to good effect. Alex is the only girlfriend mentioned, which I guess makes sense since Jade can't exist with Alan Scott shunted off to Earth-2 and Donna Troy hasn't been mentioned anywhere (much like several others from her generation of the Teen Titans, unfortunately). But what we get works as a satisfying emotional conflict, especially given the direct line drawn from Kyle's absent father to his attachment to Ganthet, which I'd never really thought about but easily fits. By the end of the issue, Kyle's mastered the Star Sapphire power and obtains the full White Lantern shebang. Then, according to the last page, I guess the Third Army stuff ends in a GLC Annual and we get more event stuff in the next issue of GLNG with this First Lantern guy. Joy.

A+X #4: This series has been a lot of fun. It had a rocky start with that first issue, but the last two have been very light-hearted good times. This issue continues that tradition with a gorgeously cartoony, goofy tale of Spider-Man (Original Recipe, not Superior) and Beast (still cat version, not bald... whatever) in a possible future where Beast creates a race of blue cat-people and turns all the dead humans into zombies. Weird, yes, but that's fast becoming what this series excels in: random oddities with an Avenger and an X-Man. It's a simple formula that works surprisingly well. The second story is a little less aggressively strange, featuring Captain America and Quentin Quire b****ing at each other, basically. They bond a bit in Cap's mind, though, and by the end they have a grudging fondness for each other. Also, tiny MODOKs! Everything is better with MODOK.

Uncanny Avengers #3: Yeah, this was really late, which puts it on my s*** list a bit. But Remender salvages it by making it a good issue. The Red Skull and his S-Men fight the X-Vengers, so it's mostly an action issue. There are some nice character moments, though. The best was Havok and Cap. The worst was Thor being duped by a Nazi again. Granted, this time it was mind control so he's got a bit more of an excuse than just being a young, arrogant *****e, thankfully. Cassaday's art is good but totally not worth these delays. Everyone still looks vaguely like a stern pug, as is Cassaday's way. I'd say I'm looking forward to the next issue, but it's probably gonna take forever to get here too, so I'll probably have forgotten this issue by the time it arrives.

Avengers #3: A nice, taut first arc brought to a close under Hickman's pen. I enjoyed the first issue immensely, and the second and third have mostly lived up to the potential promised there. It almost felt like it was all wrapped up a little too conveniently, but I giving Hickman the benefit of the doubt that more will be revealed with Captain Universe, so I'm thinking of this more as a precursor to things that will probably boggle my mind later. The expanded team comes into play, but the focus remains on the original roster, for the most part. Thor gets a nice moment when he gets free. I've noticed that creators lately seem to love portraying Thor as this massive game-changer; he gets free or shows up on the scene or whatever and suddenly the tide changes. Usually with a lot of lightning. It's great as a Thor fan, but I wonder if other readers might be finding it a bit stale given that it happens so often. Happened in Uncanny Avengers too, this very week. Regardless, I'm still jazzed for this series because of Hickman's reputation for grand ideas, even though this particular issue had kind of a weak ending to the first arc. I'm very intrigued about what Cap as life and Iron Man as death means.

Young Avengers #1: Solid issue. I could've done without Noh-Varr in general and Kate in her post-coital scene with him, but that was the only real low point to the issue. Teddy and Billy are adorable and Kid Loki is, of course, pure awesome. I'm curious to see how Miss America fits into all of it and what exactly Kid Loki knows about what's going on with Billy. Teddy's not-quite-mom should be pretty interesting, by the looks of that last page, too. Jamie McKelvie's art is lovely, if a bit plain; he really needs to stop giving dudes earrings, though.

 

[cthulhu]

Kid Loki came about through a whole lot of scheming on Loki's part. He brokered some deals with hell lords like Mephisto and Hela to keep his soul out of their reach when he died, so when he finally did die at the end of Siege, his soul was reborn in the body of a human boy. Thor finds him and restores his divinity, but he stays a child and his memory only extends to his childhood. The remainder of his experiences are still out there in a kind of astral form of the old Loki, but that Loki explains to Kid Loki that he orchestrated this whole thing to give himself a second chance, so Kid Loki keeps old Loki in the form of a magpie he calls Ikol. Ikol, while keeping him innocent of old Loki's crimes, does tell him about his previous life and Kid Loki feels guilty about what a jerk he was. He decides to be better this time around (it's unstated, but the subtext is clearly that he wants to use this second chance to become more like his brother, whom he idolizes a bit).

But Kid Loki is still, at his core, Loki, so even when he has good intentions and wants to help people, he goes about it in some of the most unscrupulous, underhanded ways possible. For example, during Fear Itself, all of Asgard was aware of the prophecy that Thor would die fighting the Serpent. Kid Loki was the only one who saw that Thor might actually be able to fight his way past that fate and survive... so he orchestrated events behind the scenes in order to make sure Thor would die, since he knew undoing the first half of that prophecy would also undo the second half: that Thor's death would stop the Serpent and save everyone.

If at all possible, you should totally read both Vengeance and Journey Into Mystery. They're both excellent, even though Vengeance didn't turn out to be anything remotely like what it seemed like it would be about (ads for it made it look a lot like a spiritual successor to Acts of Vengeance).

Journey into Mystery is excellent - highly recommended. There are also more details about kid Loki *spoilers* at the end of JIM old Loki took possession of kid Loki's body so now Loki is the same evil Loki he has always been. What happens in Young Avengers is the first continuation of this major status quo change and Im interested in seeing what Loki is up to. Its good that Gillen gets to continue his story and Im on Young Avengers until Loki or Gillen leaves.

 

[THANOSRULES]

Young Avengers #1- I was a huge fan of the old mini and gave this a shot also based on the rave reviews the book got in newsarama...and basically it felt kinda underwhelming. The book was ok..I like how it was acknowledged that Noh-Varr was actually from another dimension (somthing bendis seemed to avoid, and it's still never been ironed out that Morrison's Marvel Boy was actual transported to a non-616 earth)...but although inventive i don't really think the crazy paneling for the Skrull fight was really effective.

The heart to heart featuring Wiccan and Hulkling was well written, but the following events just seemed very awkward with the new mother.

All in all it was only OK. I don't see what is here that needed to be raved about so much. I'll hang on for a bit, but not what I expected.

Avengers #3..have to admit I was underwhelmed by this wrap up issue. Agree that the sentence for Ex Nhilo and crew seemed a bit light..but the art was fantastic and I still found enjoyment. I think it was a good call for a solid 3 issue arc to start this book..I would just prefer if the dots connected a little better in the finale..not a huge fan of the Dues Ex Machina we got from Captain Universe...but it also intrigued me. Man this team is stacked...how is Ultron going to deal with them?

 

[StreetWarrior]

Avengers #3..have to admit I was underwhelmed by this wrap up issue. Agree that the sentence for Ex Nhilo and crew seemed a bit light..but the art was fantastic and I still found enjoyment. I think it was a good call for a solid 3 issue arc to start this book..I would just prefer if the dots connected a little better in the finale..not a huge fan of the Dues Ex Machina we got from Captain Universe...but it also intrigued me. Man this team is stacked...how is Ultron going to deal with them?

I have to agree with you. I loved the first two issues of Hickman's Avengers but the third felt like a bit of a letdown/anti-climax. I understand that Ex Nhilo and his cohorts are galactic level threats but how many people died/mutated in the transforming of earth? Regardless, this book is still leaps and bounds above the previous Avengers volume and I'm excited to see where the next arc leads.

 

[StreetWarrior]

Avengers #3 - While I did not enjoy this issue as much as I had the first two installments of Hickman's relaunch, this book is far from bad. The threat are dealt with a bit abruptly, a deus ex is used to resolve the problem, and no real resolution is brought to the story. However, this is only the third issue and I have faith that Hickman will deliver in upcoming arcs. Writing: 3/5; Art: 5/5; Final Score: 4/5

Uncanny Avengers #3 - I want to love this title. I really do. Remender's work on Venom, Uncanny X-Force, and Secret Avengers has been absolutely phenomenal. While this book hasn't been terrible, it just doesn't seem to live up to the hype or the author's capabilities. Further, IMO the delays are killing this title. How can excitement be built for a book when there's a month and a half wait (or more) between each issue? It really kills all momentum. Anyway, the writing and story were solid but, again IMO, the "S-Men" are unbelievably lame and this threat has little build-up. I almost would have preferred to see the Red Skull start small and build to his grand attempt at taking over New York City. Also, if there was ever a threat that could use a large gathering of Avengers (and X-men) it would be keeping the peace in a city-wide riot. Still, all complaints aside, I did enjoy the issue and have no plans of dropping the title any time soon. Writing: 4; Art: 3 (Really, this is the art that deserved such a delay? Do your job, Cassady!) Final Verdict: 3.5/5

Off-topic: Cassady should be fired for this behavior. I know I can't turn in assignments late at work - why should this be any different. The man's an experienced professional. It's time to act like it.

 

[THANOSRULES]

I don't really like how the red skull has been drawn...just something almost silly about the way he looks.

 

[WeeZiTe]

Avengers #3- This issue was a little bit of a letdown. I really enjoyed the villains that this series introduced and this issue kind of nullified them. The last page was definitely interesting though. The dynamic between Cap and Tony is great. I was looking at solicitations and saws that issues 4 and 5 are coming out in the next two week, so it looks like this series is going to start ramping up quick.

Deadpool #4- This series is a lot of fun and I really enjoy it. Tony Moore's art is absolutely perfect for it. The only thing that annoys me is that it's almost too silly. I've said it before, but one of my favorite Deadpool moments ever was the Deadpool/Evan scene in the last issue of Uncanny X-Force. I want to see more of that Deadpool. Anyway, the Dead Presidents arc continues here. It's still a lot of fun but is just starting to wear thin.

FF #3- I absolutely love this series. This was one of my questionable NOW buys, but it's turned out o be one of my favorite series. This issue was hilarious... From Lang realizing how creepy it was to be hiding in the flowers to the adventures of the Moloids, Fraction is killing it on this title. Plus, Allred's art is just perfect for this series. Everyone should be checking this out.

Green Lantern #16- I feel like this arc has been going on forever already, but I liked this issue. Baz is growing on me, but I still miss the Sinestro/Hal stories. Their teamup was like a fun buddy cop movie. But yeah, Baz is start to earn his keep with this issue and I'm excited to see where this goes now. But yeah, this arc has been way too long. Not every arc on a major DC title has to be like 6 issues long with tie-ins across other titles. It gets tedious.

Justice League #16- I'm absolutely loving this arc so far. This finally feels like a Justice League worthy story. I've become a pretty big Aquaman fan because of Johns and he's shining in this arc. Watching him try to be a member of the Justice League while still trying to follow Atlantean law so as to not piss off Atlantis has been fun. I'm interested to see where this goes next. Plus, the last page of the issue is very exciting. This series is finally good and it's not a moment too soon.

Mind MGMT #7- I love this series. This issue starts Book Two of the series. Meru gets a little too close to Mind MGMT than they would like so Lyme steps in to help her out. Now they're on and recruiting reinforcements. Very awesome.

Nightwing #16- I really, REALLY enjoyed this issue. I love Nightwing as a character and in general, I love Higgins, too, but after a strong start, Nightwing has been a mediocre title for awhile. Last issue was pretty good and this issue was great. Joker has completely destroyed Nightwing's life to the point where I don't even know where he goes from here. Higgins was on Kevin Smith's Fatman on Batman podcast the last two weeks for a long interview (which you all should check out, it was a great interview) and he described what's to come in Nightwing and it all sounds great. He's setting out to write a definitive Nightwing story where he stands on his own. I hope he's successful because I love the character and Higgins seems like an awesome dude. But anyway, check out this issue, it was great.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #16- This, on the other hand, was kind of a set up issue. The problem with these second DOTF tie in issues is that nothing can be resolved in these titles until after Batman #17 comes out. So most of them are useless. This is one of those useless titles. It's not poorly written or drawn, it's just that there's nothing that you can really do right now. That's the problem with these tie ins, it holds other titles back. And this is coming from somebody that has absolutely been loving DOTF.

Uncanny Avengers #3- THIS is more like it. This title has been a big letdown for me so far, but this title has finally lived up to the hype. Red Skull has invaded New York, used his powers to allow New Yorkers to "see" the X-Gene, and attack anyone who has it. The Uncanny Avengers spring into action to stop them, but are also affected by Red Skull/Xavier's powers, especially the non-X-Gene members. Absolutely fantastic issue. I like Cassidy's art a lot and he does a great job here, but I can't wait until he's off the title so that we can get this series on a more consistent basis.

Wolverine and X-Men #24- This series got back to it's roots in this issue and it was a lot of fun. This issue focused on the school, the students, and the teachers relationships. We also got to see Jean Grey from the All New X-Men interacting with the characters from the school. Kitty and Bobby's date was great. So was the scenes between Wolverine and Storm. I love it when this series doesn't take itself too seriously and has issues like this. This is when the title is at it's best. We already have All New X-Men and the upcoming Uncanny X-Men to focus on the more serious issues facing the X-Men. Let this title focus on the relationships and fun aspects of the team.

 

[Dread]

A short but mostly sweet week. Spoilers ahoy.

DREAD'S BOUGHT/THOUGHT FOR 1/26/13:

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: THE SECRET HISTORY OF THE FOOT CLAN #1-2: Isn't that a title which is short and concise? Regardless, it appears as if the regular TMNT comic book series as written by Kevin Eastman and Tom Waltz will take a break this month, and to fill this void IDW has provided yet another mini series. This is naturally in addition to the "TMNT: Micro-Series" which also runs alongside the regular series. In fairness to IDW, rarely are all of these series on sale at the same time, which is a blessing at $3.99 an issue. Regardless, as the cover suggests, this mini series sees Mateus Santolouco co-write and draw the untold origin of the Ninja Turtles' most dangerous enemies. Erik Burnham also co-writes the script, with Joao Vieira on colors. The series skillfully mingles the actions of the present and the past as the Turtles and their allies Casey and April seek out more knowledge about their enemies by attending lectures by a Dr. Miller, a scholar of feudal Japan. Unfortunately, the Shredder and Karai also learn of him and quickly kidnap him to utilize him to recover lost resources. The Turtles are thus forced to try to rescue him as the ugly history of the Foot's rise to power and ultimate corruption play out in flashback. Much like the core series, this story mingles Eastern mythological elements (a three tailed fox witch and reincarnation) with science fiction (the source of immortality being from Dimension X). The artwork is quite good with the writers capturing the voices of the characters from the ongoing series well. This may merely been an appetizer in between main courses, but it has been a satisfying appetizer.

UNCANNY AVENGERS #3: Now running roughly a month behind schedule due practically entirely to the glacial pace with which artist John Cassaday draws, this premiere "Marvel NOW" launch continues with its first story arc, "The Red Shadow". Picking up from the last issue back in the end of November, the Red Skull (or at least yet another secret clone of him) has gained psychic powers via grave-robbing and is leading his band of genetic minions (the S-Men) into the streets of Manhattan to whip the masses into an anti-mutant killing frenzy. He has successfully captured and possessed Rogue and Scarlet Witch as his pawns, while the composite squad of Avengers (Capt. America and Thor) and X-Men (Havok and Wolverine) take to the streets to do what good they can. Writer Rick Remender delivers on a lot of scenes of action and harrowing horror, although the dozens of narration boxes may remind readers of how Chris Claremont used to write comic books. Is the overdose of exposition a sign of this arc being wrapped up sooner than once pitched due to Cassaday's schedule? If so, it is ironic since the last time Cassaday drew a monthly ongoing series which didn't encounter extreme delays was exactly on February 30th, year two thousand and never. Highlights include some of the battles and dialogue, and how deliciously evil Remender writes the Red Skull as being. Lowlights include Cap being able to shrug off mind control one page and succumb to it the next, and Havok's awkward costume design which attempts to overcompensate for being corny and thus becomes lame. Not as good as some of Remender's other works, but still entertaining.

WINTER SOLDIER #14: While not the final issue of this series, this is the final issue of the series written by Ed Brubaker; in fact, it is his last issue of anything written for Marvel in the near future. With artwork by the ever reliable Butch Guice with Brian Thies on inks (and two colorists), this also wraps up "Black Widow Hunt", which has seen the heroine brainwashed by mad ex-Soviet super agent Leo Novokov and pitted against James "Bucky" Barnes and his allies. Barnes was even willing to once again become a brainwashed Soviet assassin himself to try to track down Natasha, which backfired. Now he finally comes into a showdown with Novokov, mostly because the story has to end somewhere. The showdown is climatic and entertaining, although it certainly comes at a heavy price - the forced end of his romance with Natasha. It does give the ending a bittersweet taste, and it caps off a long run on the character for Brubaker which began in "Captain America" and led to this new series. Barnes was obviously the character nearest to his heart, and thus this run ends on a better note than his eight year run on Cap did. It is easy to imagine many readers jumping off this book here, as matching Brubaker on the character he virtually re-created from scratch and made commercially viable will be no easy feat.

YOUNG AVENGERS #1: It certainly has been a long and strange trip for Marvel's "Young Avengers" franchise. Originally launched in spring 2005 by "Grey's Anatomy" writer Allen Heinberg and artist Jim Cheung as a twelve issue ongoing series, it sought to create the first major "teenage superhero team" franchise at the house of ideas since the demise of "New Warriors" which wasn't connected to the X-Men. After 2006, Heinberg chose to focus more on his day job and Marvel allowed the franchise to wane, lingering in annual mini-series (two of which co-starred "The Runaways") or random appearances elsewhere. It wasn't until 2010-2012 that Heinberg and Cheung would return to the characters in "Avengers: The Children's Crusade", a nine issue bi-monthly series which ran late even on that schedule. Ending last March, the series killed off two team members, cleaned the slate of Scarlet Witch and spent most of its character building effort on Wiccan/Billy Kaplan.

As 2013 gets underway, Marvel has finally handed the reigns to this franchise to proven franchise writer Kieron Gillen on a long term basis with a second ongoing series - something the company was unwilling to do for six years. It is an era where Christos Gage's "Avengers Academy" - a series which filled the gap left behind by "Young Avengers" with a team of new, young heroes - was canceled after roughly 40 issues and its characters promptly left to limbo or slaughterhouse series such as "Avengers Arena". For this task, Gillen essentially reunites his creative team from "Phonogram"; artists Jamie McKelvie and Mike Norton, alongside colorist Matthew Wilson. As he explains in the last page, Gillen is seeking to re-create the series for a new year and with the cast being older and having a new perspective. He's also altered the cast a bit.

Returning team members are Kate Bishop/Hawkeye, Hulkling/Teddy Altman, and Wiccan/Billy Kaplan. Considering that she also co-stars in "Hawkeye" by Matt Fraction and David Aja which has won rave reviews, Kate is arguably the most popular and exposed of the cast right now. New cast additions are the younger Loki from Gillen's recently ended "Journey Into Mystery" run, Noh-Varr/Marvel Boy/Protector from recent Avengers comics, and Miss America Chavez from Joe Casey's "Vengeance" mini series. The entire cast appear in this issue, although they do not unite. Kate and Noh-Varr have hooked up in space and fight some spare Skrulls. Loki is mystically watching things from afar and trying to avoid being stomped by Chavez. Teddy and Billy are living together with the latter's parents, trying to sort out their stance as young heroes. To this end Billy seems to meddle with alternate reality affairs, which may bring about a very dangerous and unexpected outcome.

This is a debut issue which succeeds because of its flair more than the sum of its parts. It strings together a lot of great, exciting, and at times even heart rending scenes featuring three groups of characters which barely start to mingle by the end. There is no stern overreaching plot or premise beyond what the characters forge for themselves. However, the artwork is simply stunning and there is a youthful attitude to the work which makes the issue read better than it seems. While some of the emotional beats between Teddy and Billy are harrowing, there is an overtone upbeat tone to this work, much like many pop songs. Even the cover screams bright colors, which is a rarity these days.

While the void left by the end of Avengers Academy may be tough to fill, now is perhaps the ideal time for a great new "Young Avengers" series to emerge in its place. Having proven his chops on "Thor", "Uncanny X-Men", "AVX: Consequences", and "Journey Into Mystery", Gillen thus far has risen to that challenge and assembled his own capable team for such an undertaking. A second issue is a must buy, as it should be.

 

[moraldeficiency]

Kid Loki came about through a whole lot of scheming on Loki's part. He brokered some deals with hell lords like Mephisto and Hela to keep his soul out of their reach when he died, so when he finally did die at the end of Siege, his soul was reborn in the body of a human boy. Thor finds him and restores his divinity, but he stays a child and his memory only extends to his childhood. The remainder of his experiences are still out there in a kind of astral form of the old Loki, but that Loki explains to Kid Loki that he orchestrated this whole thing to give himself a second chance, so Kid Loki keeps old Loki in the form of a magpie he calls Ikol. Ikol, while keeping him innocent of old Loki's crimes, does tell him about his previous life and Kid Loki feels guilty about what a jerk he was. He decides to be better this time around (it's unstated, but the subtext is clearly that he wants to use this second chance to become more like his brother, whom he idolizes a bit).

But Kid Loki is still, at his core, Loki, so even when he has good intentions and wants to help people, he goes about it in some of the most unscrupulous, underhanded ways possible. For example, during Fear Itself, all of Asgard was aware of the prophecy that Thor would die fighting the Serpent. Kid Loki was the only one who saw that Thor might actually be able to fight his way past that fate and survive... so he orchestrated events behind the scenes in order to make sure Thor would die, since he knew undoing the first half of that prophecy would also undo the second half: that Thor's death would stop the Serpent and save everyone.

As for Miss America, she was introduced in Vengeance as part of the new Teen Brigade, which wasn't so much a superhero group as a bunch of like-minded teen activists using their powers to do all kinds of stuff, some heroic, some not-so-heroic, all in order to ultimately preserve balance in the universe because they were being influenced by the In-Betweener. As Kid Loki said, she's super-strong, mostly invulnerable, and she can fly.

If at all possible, you should totally read both Vengeance and Journey Into Mystery. They're both excellent, even though Vengeance didn't turn out to be anything remotely like what it seemed like it would be about (ads for it made it look a lot like a spiritual successor to Acts of Vengeance).

One add on about loki, at the end of JiM (featuring him) the good version of kid loki was double crossed by the spirit of the evil loki. The kid killed himself and let the evil version take his place although no one knows this (which was evil loki's plan, have the kid make him seem good and friends with everyone so he could go about his business undetected). As a result of this the loki in YA looks like the good version but is unbeknownst to everyone actually the evil ruthless loki.

Sidenote: that last issue of JiM was so freaking good but so freaking sad. Loki dying saying "damn you all..." it was just perfect.

 

[moraldeficiency]

Journey into Mystery is excellent - highly recommended. There are also more details about kid Loki *spoilers* at the end of JIM old Loki took possession of kid Loki's body so now Loki is the same evil Loki he has always been. What happens in Young Avengers is the first continuation of this major status quo change and Im interested in seeing what Loki is up to. Its good that Gillen gets to continue his story and Im on Young Avengers until Loki or Gillen leaves.

Or just this ^.

And yeah it was a freaking amazing read. Rarely do you see any comic put together so well from start to finish with each word and action having consequences laid out.

(Hey leah grows up to be hela right? is that the take on what her ending was from you?)