Bought/Thought for July 15th, 2009 with SPOILERS!

[topdog1]

Aw crap, I missed Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #2... my shop must have been sold out.

I've still loving Mighty Avengers!

The sleeper book this week for me was Elektra Dark Reign #4. I didn't even read the first three books but this issue was incredible. I picked it up just to check it out (and yes, I'm one of those rubes who sometimes buys a book because he sees Wolverine on the cover) Elektra has a full re-match with Bullseye (now Hawkeye) and it plays perfectly with their legendary match up when Bullseye killed her. It is a great read. The recap filled me in perfectly so, I don't feel the need to buy the first three books. I'm in for the finale, however.

 

[iloveclones]

Pet Avengers has been great.

Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter #2 was surprisingly great as well. I expected to be somewhat entertained by it, much as I was with its first issue, but about 1/3rd of the way in I found myself really enjoying it. By the end, I got that giddy feeling I get when things click and a comic enters my "omg that was awesome!" range. Beta Ray Bill's slightly mad quest to destroy Galactus by starving him kicks into high gear this issue. He knocks the Silver Surfer around a bit while arguing the merits of said quest before Skuttlebutt provides a handy diversion and allows itself and Bill to escape to the next planet on Galactus' menu. Here's where things get good: He's greeted as a savior but, understandably, these beings don't want to give up their planet so that Bill can destroy it and starve Galactus, despite Bill's pleas with them to leave their world and start anew elsewhere. So Bill, with the help of the Voidian (a weapon designer with a somewhat maniacal bent), infects the people of this planet with a deadly virus and blackmails them with the cure. They comply, obviously, but their leader says that future generations will curse Bill's name from the crib to the grave. Bill's response? "They'll be alive to do so." That line is what really brought the whole issue and the mini-series as a whole together for me because it succinctly illustrates that Bill is a good man who's simply been pushed too far. It's a tricky plot to pull off, but Gillen does it well here. And then, as Bill watches the planet's destruction aboard Skuttlebutt, we get the best ending this issue could ask for: Bill reaches for Stormbreaker--used previously as proof of his righteousness during his debate/battle with the Surfer--and finds himself unable to budge it. If ever there were a way to get a Thor/Bill fan excited for the next issue, it's to craft a good story and leave them unable to move their respective hammers as a cliffhanger. I can't friggin' wait to see how this mini concludes.

On the art front, Kano does a damned good job on everything. His figures get a little loose at times, but that's not a big deal. He gives Bill an appropriate sense of weight and stockiness--this is an alien whose body was bio-engineered to be the most powerful thing his people could conceive of, after all.

I know this issue has pretty much zero chance of selling well, since Bill's series are generally consumed solely by me and the handful of other fans of his strange oddity of a character, but if I permit myself to dream up a Beta Ray Bill ongoing, Godhunter springs to mind as a pretty fine template to build it off of. Cosmic Thor + a little obsession + a dash of moral ambiguity and intrigue = a damned good read.

I'm totally on board with you Corpy, and would definately buy an ongoing if it played off of this. I love this mini. It might be the best thing that I read this week. I love this out-of-the-box solution that BRB has come up with to defeat Galactus. I knew it wouldn't be long before he had to start making deals with the devil that he didn't intend. I hope they are able to pull back by the end of the series and not turn him into a Cosmic version of Speedball/Penance. But so far, I'm liking the ride....

 

[Phaedrus45]

Two books I just read:

The Last Resort #1: Decent first issue that gives a brief introduction to the cast of characters that are on the doomed plane flight to a Zombie infestation. The cover caught my eye, and I'm a fan of Palmiotti's work; and, while I'm tired of all the Zombie comics that come out, this has a nice horror movie feel to it. My biggest complaint would be enjoying the art on both covers doesn't translate to the art inside the book. Still, I'll check out the next issue.

Walking Dead #63: This is the best deal in comics this week; because, for only $2.99, you get a full issue of Walking Dead and a full issue of Chew #1! (It's in Black and White, though...the original issue was in color.) I missed the first issue of Chew....but, after reading it, I'm kind of hooked. Smart decision by Image to promote this book in this fashion. Walking Dead was a bit better than the previous issues, and even though it's Part 2 of a current storyline, it's not hard for new readers to jump on at this point.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I'm totally on board with you Corpy, and would definately buy an ongoing if it played off of this. I love this mini. It might be the best thing that I read this week. I love this out-of-the-box solution that BRB has come up with to defeat Galactus. I knew it wouldn't be long before he had to start making deals with the devil that he didn't intend. I hope they are able to pull back by the end of the series and not turn him into a Cosmic version of Speedball/Penance. But so far, I'm liking the ride....

I agree, this is definitely the kind of angst that can rock for an arc or two but will get boring over time. Gillen's previous one-shot with Bill featured him waxing philosophical on the absence of God thus: "If there is nothing but what we make in this world, brothers, let us make good." I'd like to see him get back to that (if only because it'd allow him to lift Stormbreaker again, which is sort of important to his character), but for now, this mini is exploring Bill in a depth we rarely see when he's cameoing in Thor's comic or hanging around other cosmic-types in crossovers.

 

[Manic]

This review, like all of my others, is mirrored at NuMutant.net.

Doctor Who #1
Writer: Tony Lee
Penciler: Al Davison
Publisher: IDW

“Silver Scream” Part 1 of 2

Back in March, IDW announced an ongoing Doctor Who comic series, after the success of Doctor Who: The Forgotten. Part of the big announcement was that the first issue will team the Doctor up with classic star of silent films Charlie Chaplin. They even released early cover art featuring a man who is clearly Chaplin. Unfortunately, as noted by writer Tony Lee, Chaplin’s estate wouldn’t allow IDW to use his name or likeness at the last minute. The result is a few last minute edits to the artwork and lettering, as Charlie Chaplin and his signature tiny mustache have been transformed into Archie Maplin with a comically large mustache.

The story takes us to the year 1926, at a party being held by Archie Maplin. The Doctor, of course, has crashed the party for the fun of it. He uses several aliases throughout the evening, calling himself Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Pee-Wee Herman, and (believe it or not) Harold Knowles from Isn’t It Wonderful News. The party is halted when a guest named Maximilian Love arrives. Maximilian is the biggest new name in Hollywood, which is a big problem since his name doesn’t exist in Hollywood’s major history.

The next day, the Doctor comes by Maplin’s studio and encounters Archie in what greatly resembles but is legally distinct from traditional Charlie Chaplin getup. Meanwhile, on the other side of the studio lot, an aspiring actress named Emily Winter tries to audition for Maximilian’s business partner Leo Miller, but it turns out Miller and Maximilian are aliens with ill intentions. They use a machine to steal Emily’s sense of hope and ambition, and transfer it to Maximilian to make him a better actor. The Doctor later sees the change in Emily, and he and Maplin decide to investigate Miller’s office. There they discover his machine of alien origin. Love and Miller then use a stun gun to knock out Maplin and the Doctor. Maplin’s hopes and talent will be stolen, but the Doctor wakes to find himself tied to railroad tracks without his sonic screwdriver.

As always, Tony Lee is crafting a fun story and has the most dead on 10th Doctor seen in comic book form. He’s a fantastic writer, and it’s always a joy to read his take on Doctor Who. That said, the art was less than pleasing. How much less than pleasing? It was ugly. Al Davison’s art was made tolerable only by Lee’s writing. The poses are stiff. Any character not made to resemble a real life actor has an undetailed face that sits awkwardly on its neck with dead eyes and a nonsensical haircut. And good god, the women look like men. If bad artwork can be a deal breaker for you, then it’s best that you avoid this ongoing until the next penciler takes over with issue #3.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Hahahaha, "Archie Maplin"? That kind of sucks, but at least they didn't scrap the whole story.

 

[StreetWarrior]

I'm really not feeling Utopia. I thought it would be great, but it's just kind of a mess. Also, they couldn't get the same artist for all 8 parts?! It's kind of distracting and Dodson, from part 2, is awful. Did anyone notice how bad his Venom was? Yikes!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Dodson has his moments. They usually involve women with large, jiggly boobies. His men are a mixed bag and everything he draws has a weird sheen that makes it look like plastic.

 

[Manic]

Once again, my review is mirrored at NuMutant.net. Because I can never resist the urge to be completely obvious, I've decided to review...

New Mutants #3
Writer: Zeb Wells
Penciler: Diogenes Neves
Publisher: Marvel

“The Return of Legion 3: Cognitive Therapy”

Legion is back, and his many personalities fully intend to kill everyone who defeated him the first time– starting with Danielle Moonstar. Thanks to a mishap with the local townfolk and M-Day, Dani is now powerless and trapped in a city jail cell. Legion is now free and knows where she is. How will Dani survive?

The issue begins with Legion’s Jack Wayne personality taunting Dani, threatening to rape her before he kills her. Despite being powerless, however, Dani is more angry than fearful, and tells him to bring it on! This scenario is rendered a bit moot, however, when Cannonball and Sunspot come blasting through the walls and dropkick Legion into next week. Dani thanks her teammates for the rescue, but then Sam does something incredibly stupid. He thinks that Dani is safe locked inside of the jail cell that Legion just had her cornered in, and decides not to let her out. Needless to say, Dani is a little upset.


What follows is Sam & Bobby tag-teaming against Legion and his many personalities. One of those personalities sits on the ground and begs for the duo not to hurt him, but is secretly using his powers to remotely attack Dani in the jail. With nowhere to run, Dani is nearly impaled through the head, but is quickly rescued by Magma and Magik. After realizing that Dani is still under attack, Sam and Bobby rush back to the jail, but Sam is greeted by Dani’s left hook to the jaw. Dani then runs out to find herself enough guns to give Rob Liefeld a chubby.

​

Magik remembers that Karma’s mind is still trapped inside of Legion, and decides that maybe it’s time to rescue her. Sam & Bobby inform her that everyone who goes near Karma’s body becomes pulled in to Legion’s mind via Karma’s mental powers, and warn Magik to stay away. Magik doesn’t listen, and teleports to Karma’s body. She immediately gets pull in to Legion, and becomes trapped among Legion’s many personalities. She then summons her soul sword and kills a few of her more hostile mind-mates.

First of all, I want to commend Neves on not only drawing Legion’s freaky signature eyebrows, but drawing a few close-up panels that make his eyes look like how most artists draw Professor Xavier’s. It’s not often you can look at a comic book character’s relative and think “yeah, that’s definitely his son.” I also have to give credit to Adam Kubert and Justin Ponsor for the cover, which features a humorous amount of guns and a few John Woo doves for good measure.

As for the story, Wells is crafting not only a reunion of some old characters, but he’s clearly recalling as much old continuity as possible. Not only do the characters reference specific details from their pasts (some of which eludes me, but doesn’t make the story any less enjoyable), but Sunspot is actually being called “Bobby” again instead of “Berto.”

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

Yeah Utopia is sucking. I was imagining some kind of epic throwdown between the X-Men and Dark Avengers. It all feels so... meh.

 

[KingOfMars]

Blackest Night #1 is all I read because I've been watching Beast Wars again like it's going out of style. I'd forgotten just how fun that series is. Anyway, BN #1 was good. The transitions BW mentioned in particular, with the human GLs all serving to segue into other parts of the DC universe and their reactions to all the superhero deaths over the years, was pretty masterful storytelling. When Johns isn't retconning up a storm to fit his fan-fic whims, he's still a pretty damned good writer. The reveals of the Black Lanterns was also handled really well. The Martian Manhunter swooping down and declaring Hal and Barry are supposed to be dead was particularly effective because 1) it's true, they did both cheat death pretty recently, and 2) it's coming from the Martian Manhunter, whom everyone in the DC universe loves like a wise uncle. That's some scary s*** when you stop to think about it--betrayal, horror, and guilt all wrapped up in one cookie-loving package direct from Mars. I liked that Johns outed Scar (in pretty spectacular fashion) right in the first issue of BN, too. I was getting kind of bored of her playing the Guardians right under their noses. Guy's reaction to the risen GLs and Ivan Reis' art were also good. My absolute favorite part of the issue, however, was getting to see the Hawks beaten to death. I didn't remember quite how much I hated them until I was faced once again with Carter's overriding angst at everything and Kendra's simpering, whiny bulls***. I hope they reincarnate soon so it can happen all over again.

when did everyone start hating hawkman and hawkgirl? did i miss something? havent read anything with those characters for quite a while but always remember having a certain affinity for them.

 

[BrianWilly]

I see that I missed the memo wherein Corp is everyone. Well, that does explain a lot.

I did like the Hawks' old series pre-OYL, but they've been pretty mishandled lately.

 

[SouLeSS]

Yeah Utopia is sucking. I was imagining some kind of epic throwdown between the X-Men and Dark Avengers. It all feels so... meh.

"Scott Summers. Cyclops.
Leader of the X-Men
Owner of a jet-pack".

I laughed so ****ing hard at that for some reason.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

when did everyone start hating hawkman and hawkgirl? did i miss something? havent read anything with those characters for quite a while but always remember having a certain affinity for them.

I never liked Hawkgirl except for one issue of JSA where she and Zauriel bonded, and I recently started hating Hawkman because the entirety of his personality seems to have devolved to "he's angry" for the past couple years.

 

[Dread]

"Scott Summers. Cyclops.
Leader of the X-Men
Owner of a jet-pack".

I laughed so ****ing hard at that for some reason.

Let's not forget "Hurler of children into the future"...

 

[TheCorpulent1]

"Setter of assassins on said children at the first sign of trouble," too.

 

[Evil Twin]

I never liked Hawkgirl except for one issue of JSA where she and Zauriel bonded, and I recently started hating Hawkman because the entirety of his personality seems to have devolved to "he's angry" for the past couple years.

Which is one of the reasons I'm finding Kyle Baker's take a breath of fresh air.