BOUGHT/THOUGHT for Wednesday, May 2nd.

[Phaedrus45]

Phaed, you're not a fan of Kolins?

Nope, can't say I am. I didn't focus so much on the art, at first. I knew it didn't lend itself to my enjoyment of the comic; but, upon looking at it again, I just don't see anything that makes me like what he does. I'm not good as describing why I like or don't like something, especially art. But, here are points that bother me about it.

*Looking at his drawing of eyes...or lack of. Most times, it looks like everyone has their eyes closed. Drawing of faces remind me of facial drawings I'd see from teenagers in art class in high school. Just look at the mouths he draws. And, he tries to use shadows in his drawings; but, he makes Talisman look like she's got a 5 O'clock shadow when she's talking to Iron Man and Ms. Marvel on the computer screen.

 

[Phaedrus45]

The Hulk's actually thinking, focusing his rage on those who actually deserve it, and planning now. That adds a whole new dimension to WWH for me.

I'll just touch on this point. Yeah, I realized this was about the only new part of this issue. It just wasn't enough for me to be so hyped about a humongous issue that really didn't jump start the World War Hulk for me enough. For me, I understand they were showing that Hulk's rage was uncontrollable when thinking about the heroes on Earth who threw him into space. But, in reading Planet Hulk, they did a good enough job in showing him as a thinking, focused Hulk just fine. And, when Armageddon finished, I found him to be focused enough. (Actually, when I think about it, I could never image the Planet Hulk version of The Hulk to be willing to meditate...so, maybe this actually rings false to me.)

 

[Dread]

I actually forgot about FCBD, because I was tired after work, so I was stuck getting leftovers the day after. Naturally, I didn't get Slott's Spider-Man (which may be mailed to me). But I did read ASTOUNDING WOLF-MAN #1 by Kirkman. It's a rather straightforward werewolf-as-superhero sort of book that reminded me a lot of Marvel's Werewolf-by-Night, only with more broad strokes. Man gets bitten in the woods, somehow recovers, but transforms into a nasty beastie at night. Just as his curse is discovered by his security & wife, a mysterious stranger shows up, promising to train him in how to use his powers for the greater good, and apparently himself a vampire. It's quite simple, the sort of quirky hero action Kirkman likes outside of WALKING DEAD, but I liked it. Marvel's too grim and self-important to do that sort of thing line-wide, so whatever books I can get that in, I will. It didn't hit the ground running as much as INVINCIBLE or DYNAMO 5 from Image, but I'll definately be looking out for issue #2. It could be a fun post-Hellboy work.

I didn't get WWH PROLOGUE because I don't much care for yet another event, especially one that took place on a book I haven't read in about 3 years. What I will read of WWH will be through crossovers of books I am already getting, like GHOST RIDER or whatever. But not more. It is interesting, though, that it looks amazingly like DC's recent "Black Marvel Vs. the World" WWIII, although will probably work out a bit better for Marvel than it has for DC.

 

[PhotoJones]

At first, I was excited by the idea of WWH. But as you said, one gets "event weary" after awhile. The first offerings came to the LCS, and my wallet passed on them. I skimmed through them, and may still pick them up next week, but I really don't feel like I'm missing much. I'm sure WWH is a hoot to read, but there are so many other books I've already committed my money to (Invincible, DMZ, Daredevil, Iron Fist, Captain America, Ant-Man, Elephantmen, Mighty Avengers, New Avengers, Casanova, The Killer, Wolverine, Fell, Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers: Initiative, American Virgin, Exterminators, Wormwood: GC, ect...). Civil War was huge itself, but the fact that you really need to pick up 2 books (Hulk, WWH) to tell the story is just too overwhelming for me right now. I'll skim through, read the boards and catch it in trades.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I'll just touch on this point. Yeah, I realized this was about the only new part of this issue. It just wasn't enough for me to be so hyped about a humongous issue that really didn't jump start the World War Hulk for me enough. For me, I understand they were showing that Hulk's rage was uncontrollable when thinking about the heroes on Earth who threw him into space. But, in reading Planet Hulk, they did a good enough job in showing him as a thinking, focused Hulk just fine. And, when Armageddon finished, I found him to be focused enough. (Actually, when I think about it, I could never image the Planet Hulk version of The Hulk to be willing to meditate...so, maybe this actually rings false to me.)

I haven't read Planet Hulk yet, so I can't really say whether his portrayal in the WWH Prologue was in line with his portrayal there. But I tend to give a lot of leeway to things involving major upheavals in characters' lives. Those are logical, realistic breaking points in established behavior. Losing a wife or a child is bad enough, but losing a wife, an unborn child, and an entire world made it believable enough to me that the Hulk would go off the deep end a bit.

Also, about the meditation, I figured it was just the bond between the Hulk and Hiroim that made him agree to it. This whole thing started because Iron Man, Dr. Strange, et al. betrayed the Hulk. Dr. Strange in particular must've been a horrible blow to the Hulk, who tends to take companionship pretty seriously, given that the Defenders were the closest thing he ever had to a family while Valkyrie and the others were on the team. Now the "patriarch" of the family betrays him. Same with Iron Man. The Avengers welcomed him as a founding member but then kicked him off over a misunderstanding, and now Iron Man--the chief aggressor in the early Avengers' conflict with the Hulk--screws him over again. He's bound to have lost what little faith he had in other beings after that. But then he gets to Sakaar and forms a genuine bond with his Warbound--and, for once, not just a bond that centers on their trying to help Banner, but a bond that actually embraces the Hulk rather than Banner. Then he almost killed one of them in his blind rage. If another offers him a way to make sure that never happens again, I could see the Hulk trusting their bond enough to go along with whatever he suggests, including meditation.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Final Thoughts:

One day I'll get through a week's comics. Anyway, here are some final quick thoughts on some of the remaining books I got to read today.

Marvel Zombies vs. Army of Darkness #3: With each new version of Marvel Zombies, it gets a bit more comic and a lot less thrilling. The original version from Ultimate Fantastic Four was an amazing look at a world overtaken by zombies. When Marvel Zombies came out with their first miniseries, it was a nice read (starting out better than it ended); but, some of the thrilling aspects of the Zombies started to take on a comedic aspect. Now, with Marvel Zombies Versus Army of Darkness, the Marvel Zombies have jumped the shark. It's now way too silly and the inclusion of Army of Darkness to explain the Marvel Zombie mythos really has taken it too far. 6/10

Amazon's Attack #1: This came out last week; but, it didn't end up in my box. After reading reviews last week, I was expecting to absolutely hate this comic, but came away surprised. I've never really read many Wonder Woman comics; so, the history of the Amazons aren't known to me. From what I understand, those reviews didn't like the way the writer didn't respect the Amazon's rich history. For me, I loved this version of the Amazons. From the beginning with the killing of the father and son, I was hooked. This is an invasion! I'm definitely back for issue #2. 8/10

Thunderbolts Presents Zemo #4: Last year, Marvel gave us the history of Dr. Doom, and this year we are presented the history and lineage of Zemo. The concept of forcing the present time Zemo to go throughout the years, witnessing the many Zemos of his past, works well and keeps the story modern while telling of the past. Plus, Marvel keeps the readers wondering if Helmut is truly changed or just masking himself from others of his true character. By the end, just like in Thunderbolts, there isn't a clear indication of whether he's changed or just intelligently bidding his time until his next evil plans sees fruition. 8/10

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #18: Dang, it still bugs me to see Miyazawa's excellent cover art; then have to see Hahn's lesser art inside. (Egads! A bird just flew into my office!!! UGGG!!! TWICE!!!! Maybe it doesn't like the bald eagle flying around outside.) Anyway, Hahn isn't bad...it's just when you are used to a certain writer/artist combo, it's hard to move on sometimes.

This is another really good issue. As Liz puts it so well, this issue is about going out with someone who you like, but don't feel "that way" about; and, trying to be there for them and yet avoid hurting them. For Mary Jane it's Harry, and for Spidey it's Firestar. McKeever does such a great job relaying the emotions and feeling of these teenagers without having to delve into the real serious issues teenagers today face. (And, that's a good thing. The book would have a completely different, less-innocent feel if Mary Jane is debating the use of drugs, teen pregnancy, or school shootings. After all, part of comics is to take us away from our problems.) I'm loving they are going beyond just Mary Jane, and we are getting to see some of the relationship problems with Peter. The reader really feels for Firestar. Plus, the final page really throws a surprise element into the Mary Jane/Harry mix. (AGGGG...the bird just flew back into the office!!!) 9/10

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #20: I just can't get into Peter David's Spider-Man. His attempts at trying to bring back Peter's old core characters who used to hang around just seems too forced and poorly written. Plus, the Nurse Arrow character hasn't interested me in the least bit. To me, FNSM is the worst of the Spidey books. This was one bad issue. 3/10


Astonishing X-Men #21: I figure when I get to reading the reviews, I'll again see a bunch of people kissing Whedon's ass, saying how this is the best X-Men comic ever. For another issue, it does very little for me. We end up getting very little advancement in plot, a lot of relationship building, all the while waiting for the action to begin. Hopefully next issue will pick things up. Right now, it's all drama. 7/10

Green Lantern #19: The back history of Star Sapphire is explained for those of us new to Green Lantern as Hal Jordan and Carol Ferris fight for their lives. Only 16 pages long because of the addition of a backup tale, the real treasure is the second installment of "Tales of the Sinestro Corps," which will lead up to what seems to be an exciting future event. This book usually takes a back seat to Green Lantern Corps for me...but, with events building up involving the Sinestro Corps, I'm really raising my interest in this title. 8/10

Shazam - The Monster Society Of Evil #3: One of the best things about the bought/thought thread is in reading about a book someone else has enjoyed, going out and picking it up, and discovering it is just as good, if not better, than what you were expecting. With this title, there was not way I was going to pick it up. I gave Shazam's recent miniseries a try, and after three issues in decided it was total crap. So, when I saw The Monster Society of Evil appear on my pull list, I looked at it, looked at the 5.99 price tag, and thought, "No Way!" But, after reading a couple really good reviews, I broke down and picked up issues 1 & 2 and I'm glad I did. Jeff Smith is the perfect fit for this book, as he brings back the innocence and beauty of classic storytelling. (And, if you liked Bone, there will be many elements from it that you'll recognize in these pages.) Smith really gets the right amount of light-hearted comedy within an action-oriented book. (Hmmm....I'd love to see him doing Spidey. Many writers today seem to struggle relaying Peter's sense of humor; but, Smith's style would work well.) 10/10

Sensational Spider-Man Annual #1: This comic captures the beauty of Peter's and Mary Jane's relationship perfectly! Many times, I see bad writers (or, more to the fact, people writing badly, as I don't think Peter David is a bad writer, just not good with Spider-Man) telling a story, and the marriage of Peter and MJ seems to be either boring or repetitious. I find myself missing the old days, where Pete's love life (or lack there-of) was something to enjoy reading. With one issue, Matt Fraction has made me want the marriage to stay intact...made me realize that this marriage thing could work...if only they had someone invested in their relationship and probably more knowledgable about the things that worked and those that didn't. 9/10

Well, that gets me through all but nine of my comics for this week. I should definitely get to 52 before the day's over; or, at least before I pick up Countdown tomorrow.

 

[spideyboy_1111]

i have a question... i bought the new wolverine issue... and Thornn and feral appeared with sasquatch and wolfsbane at the end... but... didn't both Thornn and feral clearly lose there mutant gene in house of M? i remember them powerless and holding eachother in the city...

i mean i like idea of sabertooth, wildchild, thornn, feral all showing signs of an ancient mutant trait. I mean when i first got into X-men as a kid, i always wondered if there was a connection between Beast and Wolverine because they both at the time sported a very very similar hair cut.. add to that Thornn and Feral have the same hair pattern as well..

but i do realise the continuity errors... esp since sasquatch appeared at the end, and he's officially not a mutant. but i like the idea

 

[Phaedrus45]

52: Finally got to this issue. Not really sure how I feel about it. It definitely is one of the best buys you'll ever find, a double-sized issue for only $2.50. But, a few things came to mind: One, you really didn't need to read issues 1-51 in order to understand or enjoy the last issue. (Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing is debatable, I guess.) Second, the idea that there were multiverses wasn't that big of a surprise. I thought we knew this at the end of Infinite Crisis. Third, I really hated the way they decided to make each of the 52 worlds different by having Mr. Mind vomit up a different history into each one. To me, it made no sense and came across rather idiotic. 8/10

 

[PhotoJones]

i have a question... i bought the new wolverine issue... and Thornn and feral appeared with sasquatch and wolfsbane at the end... but... didn't both Thornn and feral clearly lose there mutant gene in house of M? i remember them powerless and holding eachother in the city...

According to Loeb, there's something else going on that has yet to be explained, but he did acknowledge that they'd been depowered.

i mean i like idea of sabertooth, wildchild, thornn, feral all showing signs of an ancient mutant trait. I mean when i first got into X-men as a kid, i always wondered if there was a connection between Beast and Wolverine because they both at the time sported a very very similar hair cut.. add to that Thornn and Feral have the same hair pattern as well..

but i do realise the continuity errors... esp since sasquatch appeared at the end, and he's officially not a mutant. but i like the idea

I'm sure Loeb realises that Langowski's not a mutant, and all will be explained. Considering he only appeared on the very last page of the last issue, I think it's a bit early to be claiming "continuity error", as nothing's been explained yet.

 

[Ahura Mazda]

For a laugh I just got exiles in the mail having subscribed to it....of course the issue is over a month old.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Was it any good? I figured Claremont would've run it into the ground by now.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Exiles is one of those books that has been consistently good since issue #1. I'm a bit surprised, as it didn't seem like Claremont could write a good X-Men related book anymore. But, his stories have been solid. When Exiles finally reaches issue #100, and if I looked back on the many comics to reach that milestone, it might be the most consistent of the bunch. (Regardless of what you think of the Ultimate titles, Ultimate Spider-Man was pretty good when it started out...but, it sure hasn't been consistently good. There have been many lowpoints, especially looking at their issue #100. I just can't think of any point where I've not like Exiles.)

 

[TheCorpulent1]

The fact that Claremont immediately introduced 616 Psylocke to the team annoyed me to begin with, but I think I might try his run out. I've missed the Exiles. I'm still not down with the whole Proteus-as-Morph thing, though. That was Bedard's one major misstep, in my opinion.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Ah, you're right about the Proteus-as-Morph being the low-point...but, I actually liked Psylocke in Exiles, moreso than her return in the X-Men's regular title.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I just didn't like the idea of any 616 characters being main characters in Exiles. Crossing over with the 616 universe every now and then is fine, but Exiles has always been about coasting the fringes of the omniverse and seeing all the crazy alternate versions of established characters. Having a 616 character as a team member makes it feel too anchored to the mainstream Marvel universe. Like I said, though, I'll probably go back and get Claremont's first few issues, or first arc, if it's already done.