Bought/Thought April 19th

He didn't clock him, he broke his neck

 

Crossbones?

 

About time we got some Pirates in Daredevil. :x

 

Spoiler

Punisher

 

I'm betting it's Iron Man.

 

what do you care, you don't like Daredevil

 

Punisher sucks.

 

Daredevil- PICK OF THE WEEK! Wowzers. Brubaker is firing on all cylinders with this book. Every issue leaves me craving the next. Of course, the fact that every issue starts huge and ends with a bang doesn't hurt. Three issues in, and this may be Marvel's best book. 10/10

New Avengers- This arc is continuing nicely. Great action and some good character moments help, of course. Spidey's quips were great, and the interaction between Carol and Logan was great, too. Loved the spread of the powerless mutants, the Vision's role, the Sentry fight... all good stuff. 9/10

Justice- I don't care what any DC fanboy says, this is ten times better than Infinite Crisis. Amazing artwork, as always, a very creepy storyline and enough silver age flair for any DC fan. Just really, really cool. Plus, you don't need to have read the last 20 years of stories to understand it, which is also a plus. 9/10

Captain America- Brubaker rules on his monthlies. It may not be as good as Daredevil, but Cap still rocks. Good action, and I love seeing Sin and Crossbones tearing it up. 8/10

Nextwave- Why isn't this on Adult Swim yet? Also, I need Beer. 8/10

Spiderwoman: Origin- I think the reason that I enjoyed this more than, say, Brubaker's Doom mini, is because it's something that very few people are familiar with. Besides, Bendis did more than re-tell, he took a lot of exisiting plot threads and gave us a very interesting tale. Very action-movie like. The conclusion was fun, even if the "Athena survivors" felt tacked on. I really enjoyed the Luna Bros, too. They fit the tone perfectly. I'm a HUGE Alex Maleev fan, but I almost wish these guys would handle the on-going. 8/10

Wolverine: Origins- An interesting start. Not too big on Dillon's art, though. Call me crazy, but I'd personally rather see the artists from Way's recent arc handle it. Looking forward to the next few issues. 7/10

X-Men- Not bad. The final Horseman's identity wasn't much of a shocker, really. I did enjoy seeing the new sentinels (great designs) and Apocalypse's very interesting proposition for the members of the U.N. Looking forward to the conclusion. 7/10

Sensational Spiderman- Yawn. Artwork kinda sucks too. 5/10

 

I HATE the artwork in Sensational Spider-Man

 

Another merciful week for the wallet, although next week will, of course, be a wallet-busting, $30+ affair. Damn wiggy shipping schedules. Anyway, both of the big two's top selling titles came out this week, as well as yet another installment of Marvel's "cosmic event" thing. And DEAD-GIRL. Time to transform and roll out.

Like I say every week, this is a spoiler-full post.

DREAD'S BOUGHT/THOUGHT FOR 4/19/06:

JUSTICE #5: The Ross/Krueger/Braithwaite collaborative, bi-monthly "elseworlds" story continues to put out another satifying issue, although the taut story is slowed some by the bi-monthly schedule. A 12 issue tale is rather long even by today's standards, and given that this one has already been going on for 10 months and is barely at the midway point does take some of the punch out of the story. That is unavoidable, though, and at least it hasn't been late. Naturally, the Legion of Doom is still engaging in their most expansive, collaborative effort to take over the world and destroy the JLA yet, and they're still winning, by and large. The Atom's in the hospital due to a sniper, Aquaman's lying on Brainiac's operating table, Red Tornado's destroyed, Green Lantern's trapped in some black wormhole/void of space, the Flash can't control his speed and is racing all over, and most of the core League has been under attack by their dire foes. That means the cavalry is left to whoever survives, and the remaining "reserve" Leaguers, which include Elongated Man (and Sue's still alive and presumably un-raped) and Capt. Marvel. J'onn manages to escape Grodd's telepathic underwater-trap, and Wonder Woman rallies to fend off Cheetah. Left a crying, whimpering wuss begging for help last issue, Superman is saved from his attackers by Capt. Marvel (with a pose that runs counter to their meeting in KINGDOM COME) and leads him to the Batcave. Now, I was expecting Batman, the one JLA'er left unmolested by the Legion, to ride to the rescue and be the big savior, and so far that didn't happen, and I didn't mind the surprise; apparently he (and Alfred) have been mind-controlled by techno-worms, and Superman's just noticed some on his OWN skin (it's also good to see a Batman/Superman "fight" where Kal doesn't get schooled)! Hawkman and Hawkgirl manage to survive Toyman's attack and J'onn attempts to rally them, as the world continues to wonder why the LOD are playing saviors, and the League are nowhere to be seen. Obviously there is more than meets the eye, and when read in one sitting when it is finished sometime in 2007, this will likely be another instant classic. As it is, it is good, but the long breaks hurt it. Some of the dialogue seems stilted, though.

ANNIHILATION: NOVA #1: The only ANNHILATION title I planned on buying (aside for PRELUDE) and the inevitable conclusion), and overall was left happy with what I got. Now, before someone says it, YES, Nova is easily Marvel's answer to DC's now-hot Green Lantern titles, but this is hardly new. Nova's origin, circa the 70's, literally reeked of an attempt to "imitate" some of that GL goodness, so seeing Marvel play that card again now is hardly unrealistic for the character, and is in fact a decent approach to it. Once again, Nova is the last remaining member of the Nova Corps alive, and he's directed by their "Worldmind" to survive and save what is left of Xandar by absorbing all of their "Nova Force", and becoming ION...wait, wrong title. No, he simply gains a sleeker, updated costume and risks going insane with power (much as "Super-Nova" once did) the longer his body must remain a vessal. Rider, meanwhile, is not happy about taking orders from an alien machine and compares him to his dad, as well as wants bloody revenge against Annihilus' armada for destroying the Corps. Nova's anguish and response is easy for someone who has undergone wartime "survivor's guilt" or some PTSD. Space stories, naturally, allow for all sorts of metaphors into "real life", which is why they have appeal. And why Marvel's ignored them for a while; metaphors take work, and it's easier to have someone leap over rooftops and fight the Kingpin. Drax makes an appearence at the end, and the first issue is off to a good start to hopefully make Nova a contendor again. "Marvel's GL" is a much better niche than "yet another teen hero", eh? Especially since the New Warriors seem to be the whipping boys of Joe Q these days. And unlike Spider-Man, I actually like Nova's new armor. I'll likely be in the minority. It's certainly better than his last "costume update" during the last NW stab about 6 years ago.

Oh, and despite ANNIHILATION being important to Marvel, one doesn't think that it will tie into CIVIL WAR, much as DC managed to tie in ADAM STRANGE/RANN-THANAGAR and SHADOWPACT into their event. Also, if Silver Surfer is busy in his own ANNIHILATION title, how is he appearing in PLANET HULK as a GLADIATOR reject? For lord's sake, seeing the company that INVENTED cohesive universe continuity being completely unable to pull it off in the age of cell phones and email is utterly, unforgiveably pathetic.

NEW AVENGERS #18 Speaking of being utterly, unforgiveably pathetic, here comes Marvel's A-title. The book that has their A-list characters, their A-list writer, constantly what they consider A-list art, and achieves...almost consistant mediocrity (its mediocre run spinkled with a handfull of good issues and a near equal amount of near abysmal trash). This book was supposed to be a trend setter, the best thing since underware, and by and large, the team is written better by other people. Consistantly. Regardless, THE COLLECTIVE continues on its merry way, and actually this story isn't so bad, if only because the New Avengers are FINALLY taking on a threat that is actually worthy of that sort of team, instead of, well, facing jobbers like Sauron and The Hand. The problem? The Collective, as he is, has been hinted at by Bendis for months, so the big reveal this issue loses some of its teeth (basically, he's a postman from the North Pole who has been embued with all of the "energy" that mutants lost from M-Day, because despite the MU being filled by meta-class genuises, their universe is ruled by principles from 4th grade science, because the writers themselves are not scientists). The Collective, as he is, is also nothing more than a walking plot device, not unlike Doomsday. His design is simple and really not as keeping, he has zero personality, and simply seems to rampage mindlessly and hurt/kill whoever the story demands. This arc is far better than "RONIN", though, and even if Collective is a bit lame, it is good seeing the New Avengers fully assemble (yes, even Sentry shows up) to tackle an enemy that really challenges them. Its also good to see Spider-Man use his brain for once, as he figures out the identity of the Collective at SHIELD. Meanwhile, Iron Man and Ms. Marvel get "OWNED" big time by Collective, as he is able to use the powers of every mutant who lost theirs on M-day, which basically makes him almost omnipotent in terms of power. Not even Sentry can battle Collective toe-to-toe for very long (and it becomes obvious that he's basically a mentally challenged stand-in for Thor). Despite the big reveal not being such a surprise, the story is paced out very well. Oh, and the Young Avengers show up for a page, but only because Bendis needs Vision to show up in the story, and I suppose it is good to see Vision doing something with the Avengers, even if he sounds nothing like the Vision 2.0 that Heinberg writes. As usual, Bendis likes inserting wisecracks when they feel inappropriate to say, especially by adults in the middle of a crisis (save Spider-Man, of course, because that's his schtick). Overall, not a bad story, one of the better arcs of NEW AVENGERS so far, just such a shame that their first REAL challenge is such a flat, boring, non-character. Maybe the reason some villians get overexposed is because of modern creators being utterly unable to create any NEW ones. I mean, its not like anyone will be wearing a T-Shirt with Sammy Silke or Geldoff on it.

Not the best issue of NEW AVENGERS, but easily amung the Top Five. Granted, that may not be much of a milestone. When a mediocre series has a "decent" outing, is it really an accomplishment? When one's expectations are nearly zero, it skews the scales a bit.

X-STATIX PRESENTS: DEAD-GIRL #4: This weird, wacky, and entertaining series by Milligan and Allred is almost finished, and I am still enjoying the ride. Dr. Strange and Dead-Girl's posse of dead heroes, consisting of some random Marvel figures and X-Statix, find the location of the forces of the Pitiful One, just as he and the Ancient One (who is evil for some reason, like Miss America) find Strange's mortal body and seek to kill the good doctor for all. It also becomes obvious that Dr. Strange seems to fancy Dead-Girl, as he literally dives into an otherworldly pit to save her. Wong manages to escape and warn Strange, but it seems to be too late by the cliffhanger ending. This series is a bit bizarre and I'm sure the fact that many characters seem to be acting in such strange, off-character ways can be off-putting. I've found myself enjoying this read, though. Sad that Marvel didn't feel the need to give Dr. Strange some sort of billing in the story, as he's easily just as important as Dead-Girl and the X-Statix here (and has had more panel-time). And it's actually been one of the better Dr. Strange outings for me, of course this is coming off of DEFENDERS and JMS LOVES THE MATRIX (otherwise known as STRANGE

 

I would just like to say my suspicions of th' "new" Batman villain in LODK was in fact dead-on. Check th' B/T thread from when th' last issue came out, and you'll see I said it was a villain whose name began with M and ended with E. And now, I have two weeks worth of books to read.

 

Daredevil #84: This issue was packed, and really delivered well. Ever since Bendis's departure, Brubaker hasn't missed a beat so far and the story keeps getting better and better. Matt is searching for clues as to who killed Foggy, and got a name thanks to a little visit he paid Hammerhead. Like in issue #82 when Brubaker took over the book, this issue left me excited for the next one.

10/10

Captain America #17: CA this month followed greatly with the 65th Anniversary Special, Steve confronts the daughter of Gretchen Tolin (Bucky's old love during the war) and is that much closer to figuring out where and why Bucky went to visit her in the first place. What can I say, the book has everything a comic should have, action, love, and a solid story. Great way to end the two part arc, can't wait for the "Twenty-First Century Blitz" arc to begin next month.

9/10

Robin #149: I really loved this issue, and how Tim was using more of his detective skills to his advantage. The whole mystery of where is Cassandra Cain is seriously starting to pick up, we see Lady Shiva visting Tim as she believes someone for the League of Assasins is behind all of it. Toward the end, Tim finds a very small piece of paper which was written in Native American language. After finally decoding it, he finds out it's a ransom note believed to be from the kidnappers of Cassandra and asking him to bring her father David Cain or they'll kill her. Again, the art and action of the issue really grabbed me and the arc has no flaws thus far.

9/10

 

More NEW AVENGERS #18 THOUGHTS:

- Bendis admittedly displays a grasp of past Marvel History by noting several instances, including Danver's time with the X-Men and Spidey's lack of automotive skill (he has driven cars and motorcycles before, he's just not very good at it). However, on the last page, Bendis gives his reason for why current comics don't have "footnotes from the editor" anymore. He claims that they broke the 4th wall in a story and interuptted it, of course assuming that what HE thought is what WE think (I seem to remember reading countless classic Marvel stories that had them, even into the late 90's, and not really feeling that they "interuppted" flow. Of course, comics before the 21st century weren't nearly as pretentious). He also claims they're obsolete because fans can just use "the internet" to answer any questions they have. This is true, but footnotes weren't HANDBOOK bios, they just directed you to a current or back issue number, showing that the writer knew what they were doing. Heinberg does the next best thing in YA, noting what issues he is citing in the letters page.

- Admittedly, this is one of the better arcs of the New Avengers in action, but I really feel that the Collective being a flatline, plot-device "monster" is just a bit weak. If all that "mutant energy" had to go somewhere, couldn't it have gone into, oh, maybe an Avenger foe? Maybe one of the few remaining mutants left? Like WHIRLWIND? Would anyone have seen it coming? Of course, Marvel would have ruined it 2 months in advance...

 

Depends on the orders of the book....


they might have ruined it 3 months in advance.

 

Touche'.

Joe Q all but throws a hissy fit because DEADLY GENESIS is being "underordered" and selling in merely the Top 15 instead of, presumably, the Top 10 or better. Meanwhile, poor Dan Slott looks at sales for THE THING, a far better book, and must be thinking, "My good, Joe, I'm DROWNING here, can't I at least get what HOWLING COMMANDOES got?"

Seriously, buy THE THING. All of you.

 

I bought the first issue did nothing for me.

 

Sketchy/cartoony... comic booky would you say?

 

I like Dwyer's art, but I will agree that I preferred DiVito on THE THING. But we'll see how the issue goes. Hopefully the book can be saved; I definately want more than 8 issues.

 

X-Men 185 - Alright issue. Apoc's proposition was awesome. I really dislike the way Larroca draws Rockslide. 7/10

New Avengers 18 - I thought this issue could have been a lot better.. Bendis either writes too much or too little. All his action sequences were "wtf moments" like Carol getting barraged with attacks and whatever The Collective did to Sentry. Also, is there ever an inappropriate time to crack jokes. They're in a life/death situation and Spidey's license comes up; seriously? 6/10