Another week, another round of event gear-up. DC is getting their ducks in a row for another go at COUNTDOWN, another weekly series after 52, and WW3. Marvel, on the flipside, has quietly shifted to THE INITITAIVE which promises as many chapters as CW, only may actually prove to be more subtle and thus stronger. At least for now. As usual, some books will be counted as tie-in's that have little to do with it, and some won't that reference it heavilly (much like THE ETERNALS technically having more to do with CW than CW: X-MEN). How do these books fare?
Oh, and my LCS was out of
PUNISHER: WAR JOURNAL. I like the book, but whether I get it depends on my mood to chase it down across Brooklyn or Manhattan.
And I STILL haven't found the time to post in the
DYNAMO 5 & INVINCIBLE topics in the MISC. COMICS section. Guess being postive requires more time.
As always, full spoilers. If I repeat myself, forgive it. Or skip it. This is America, isn't it?
DREAD'S BOUGHT/THOUGHT for 3/14/07:
52 WEEK #45: For a while in the beginning, the book attempted to balence focus over several "stars"; Black Adam, Booster Gold, Steel, Ralph Dibney and Question/Montoya. But as the last 45 weeks have come by, out of all of them, Black Adam has officially emerged from the pack as the unofficial star of 52. He and his story have seemed to get the most consistant full-issue focus and consider that WW3 involves around the world fighting him, that makes sense, to take a year to build him up. And coming as an outsider, who never read JSA and never gave two spits about Black Adam before, I believe it was successful. As the ruler of a Middle Eastern land, that instantly allows us to have some "real world" sensibility. Yes, if you really want to dig deep, the story suggests that Middle Eastern terror is merely responding to being provoked, which has been the Liberal drumbeat since before 9/11. But frankly this isn't ULTIMATES 2 and I don't believe the political bleating is heavy enough to warrent going that far. This is about Black Adam. He gained control of a nation and was ruling it with an iron fist, making all sorts of anti-U.S. alliances with other powers (like China and their league of heroes with ridiculously long names), except Intergang. Then Isis came into his life and he started to mellow, and then Osiris helped that. But then the Suicide Squad, run by "yet another evil secret gov't agency" via Amanda Waller provoked Osiris into murder and now Intergang has created four "Horsemen" to attack Kahndaq. Naturally, Black Adam survives and having been conviently given Isis' dying blessing of vengence, basically goes tearing about a nation that harbors Death, before ripping into Death itself. And it seems all this ties back to Dr. Sivana on Oolong Island, who still has a mad-on fetish for anything "SHAZAM". Meanwhile, the world reacts; some of China's heroes are hesitant and thoughtful, believing that BA was provoked, but they need to be prepared anyway. Atom-Smasher FINALLY seems to have gotten the hint that working with a squad of ruthless criminals-turned-federal hitmen is no way to redeem oneself, making him smarter than Speedball right now. And Checkmate is readying to have to challenge Black Adam, who easily is a "Superman" level demigod in terms of power, reaking millions of casualties in his search. In way, 52 portrays BA in a sort of Frank Miller-ish way; you understand that he was provoked, and is wanting pure vengence, and that is understandable and in fact sympathetic. Yet the tale doesn't shy away from noting that BA is anything close to rational or compassionate, as he slaughters innocent civilians of Bailya to both attempt to "lure" Death (in a way it worked) and to vent his frustration at being unable to save his wife. Montoya attempted to reason with him, but that went nowhere. In a way, Black Adam has gone from "anti-hero" to "sympathetic villian", and note that the two are NOT the same. Just because you can understand where a villian's motives are doesn't mean his/her actions are justified or not immoral; a factoid Marvel all but forgot with Iron Man this year. In a way it seems like a shame that I think 52 is not going to have a "finale" and simply may peter out to fuel the NEXT event, which frankly is a tease. But at least the ride so far has been enjoyable.
JLA CLASSIFIED #36: My last issue, as the Slott/Jurgebs tale "THE 4TH PARALLEL" is over, with the dimension-wide plot of Slott's Mary Sue, Red King, is finally undone by JLA's from more than one dimension. This title seems to be the dumping ground for "random" JLA scripts that don't make it into the core title (especially as it has an A-list team on it now), and I am curious as to how long ago Slott wrote it, because he worked at DC for quite a while before Marvel noticed him. The story isn't bad, but I can easily say it's probably the worst thing from Slott I have read in a while, which is in itself amazing as it beats the tar out of some writers doing their best work. There's nothing BAD about it, it just feels way too conveluted for it's own good, and some bits are cliches, and due to limitations these characters have to make lifetime, earth shattering decisions within a mere panel.
"I can't sacrifice this entire universe just to save another; but oh well." Plus, IMO, Slott never topped his first chapter. Still this chapter has good generic superheroics from the league without the angst, which in these times feels almost ancient. Slott also gives some props to Plastic Man, which is a noble effort. And even if they are simplified, he gets the cast right. Good for a diversion.
GHOST RIDER #9: The last issue's depiction of CASUALTIES OF WAR seemed dubious as the only mention of it is in one panel, but this one makes it more apparent, although it is stretching the relevence at best. In CIVIL WAR #5, and P:WJ #2 or #3, Jack O'Lantern gets shot and killed by the Punisher. In GHOST RIDER, Jack O'Lantern is back from the dead with demonic new powers, and the reason? "Lucifer", who has been retconned without reason as Ghost Rider's creator over Mephisto, decided to animate his corpse. In a way it is a shame as I am starting to get tired of the "GR fights Satan every issue" schtick, almost as if in every episode of THE BATMAN, Batman fights The Joker. Once or twice is okay, but if this lasts for every arc, it may feel like a drag like BLUE BEETLE. Still, Way can write a good Ghost Rider brawl and Texeira's art is pretty good. I will say this, though; at least when Brubaker does a glaring retcon, like in DEADLY GENESIS, Brubaker doesn't pretend it isn't what it is. He digs into the history and attempts to rework it, reexplain it, make it work. It works for IRON FIST, because a lot of his past was vague, but sucked in DEADLY GENESIS, utterly. But at least Bru made the attempt. Way did this retcon and pretends it's not a retcon, and that's unforgiveable, especially since the movie version even used Mephisto! And it really pisses me off because if not for that, this would be a B+ book, but with the stink of that flaw that hovers over it (especially as GR is always fighting Satan), it can't do better than B- to me. And it frustrates me. An outright aweful book is one thing, but a book that could be great but is held back by ONE stupid mistake is even more irksome. It's not a deal-breaker for me, though. It's still solid Ghost Rider adventure. I wonder if Way will play up the angle of "Ghost Rider mistaken for the murders of children" to have an excuse for some Pro-SHRA heroes coming after him. I mean, superteams are cropping up all over the nation now, it would make sense and Ghost Rider hardly looks "friendly". I mean if they're going to do a CASUALTIES OF WAR, at least really run with it.
IRREDEEMABLE ANT-MAN #6: I know the premise is "the adventures of a *****ebag superhero", but Eric has really got nothing on Iron Man lately. As I noted above, Eric is more of an "anti-hero" and Iron Man has slowly nudged into the "sympathetic villian", the mastermind with a "cause for the greater good", like Dr. Doom, Magneto, Darkseid, et al. But no, Eric just wants to get by with the least amount of effort possible, look at nekkid ladies and score. Tell me you don't know a guy who'd do that with superpowers. Tell me you wouldn't consider it...at least for a second. Anyway, this issue finally wraps up the origin and gets all the "timelines" in order, finishing up the flashbacks and getting us fully into the present, explaining how Mitch got scarred (Eric accidentally burned half his face with his jet-fumes in their rematch fight) and getting us up to issue #1 and beyond for their 3rd fight. Kirkman is running on a blend of dark humor and madcap humor; a book about such a scoundrel really shouldn't be this fun, but it is. So, Ant-Man manages to trash Mitch's "seeker" tool to remain undetected for a while, Mitch is due to be tossed out of SHIELD so finding Eric is really his only goal in life, and Eric just wants to get buy, score with ladies, and has odd fantasies that he eventually will join the Avengers. After stowing away in Ms. Marvel's handbag, he may get his wish! Unlike ULTIMATE X-MEN, where Kirkman is obviously lost throwing various ideas against a wall, here he has a clear, focused, precise idea of what he is doing, and the book is all the better for it. Unlike BLUE BEETLE, which is fun but a bit generic, ANT-MAN is like nothing I've read from a Marvel "hero" in a good long while, which is just the kind of spark that a C-List franshise like Ant-Man needed. Sure, it's a Cult Status, but that is better than Zero Status (see anyone rooting for a Brother Voodoo series? That is what I mean). Plus, in a way it matches the "legacy" of the man who have been Ant-Man being shadey; Pym has had no end of emotional issues, Scott Lang started out a thief, and Eric is what he is. The other two more or less "reformed" but Eric doesn't seem to be in the mood to, and that could work for him. This is a Marvel where Green Goblin and Bullseye are beloved superheroes, and where Capt. America gets spat upon. The Mighty Avengers await you. At least Eric won't risk unleashing The Void if his favorite character dies on LOST or something. I'd say "it's the best title you're not reading", but a lot of the posters here do read it. It's the mainstreams who give it a pass, and that is a shame. If any book needed a tie-in boost, it's this one. And as Eric's entire world started from SHIELD, it does make some sense. Cory Walker teams with Kirkman for the next issue, and it should be a doozy. With a few of my usual beloved books over for the moment (ANNIHILATION, DR. STRANGE: OATH) or in turmoil (RUNAWAYS), plunky little ANT-MAN is rising in the ranks of the fave of the "pull" list. One of Marvel's more unique relaunches. I am glad Marvel is giving it a chance (it will outlive THE THING).
MOON KNIGHT #8: The first page says, "this story takes place shortly before CW #6-7", which got a "no sh**, Sherlock" sort of reply from my mind. In a way that takes some of the oomph of the story, but Finch's pace as an artist has been no secret so it was probably unavoidable. In a way the CASUALTIES OF WAR thing involves explaining why Moon Knight wasn't involved in the CW, considering he technically was a member of the West Coast Avengers for a stretch (a point not made in the book; Cap seemed to only know him as an ex-soldier/merc). Cap basically shows up and tells Marc to stay out of his way because he's unstable and little better than Castle, which in a way rings hollow because Cap allowed Punisher to work for him either out of desperation or extreme gullibility (did he REALLY expect Castle to stop offing villians?). Marc naturally notes that he isn't interested in their "capture the flag" battle because the streets are full of enough baddies who need to be maimed. But despite all this, this tidbit really has almost nothing to do with Huston's story and seems to have been thrown in as an aside to justify another tie-in. Marvel & Huston will play the "it was a plan all along" card, but Huston obviously wants to play with his "ladykiller" story, and the CoW thing is merely a distraction. It's a decently written distraction, but a spade is a spade. However, Khonshu is easily becoming one of the funniest characters in comics, at least in a "grim, dark" sort of way (the god, or Specter's insane mind, begs him to kill Cap & Iron Man throughout). Huston is showing his history by alluding that the killer who is seeking out Moon Knight is the Midnight Man, an obscure villian from the 70's-80's who was the father of Jeff Wilde, MK's former sidekick-turned-evil-cyborg-much-like-Bucky-only-10-years-earlier, Midnight. MK thinks he is dead, but naturally death is overrated these days (and it seems he has been "pieced" together, perhaps cybernetically like his son was). MOON KNIGHT is a character much like IRON FIST in that he has very few "good" rogues which means you either need to immediately use the few he has, as Huston did last arc, or invent new ones, or reinvent old ones. The benefit in a way is that low profile villians rarely attract hoopla if you alter them. Change Kingpin, and no way the fans will accept it. But do something new to a Z-Lister and almost anything is better than oblivion, and they usually are blanker slates. The tie-in is a distraction to the main story and while not a bad read, I am more interested in the actual story. Hopefully Huston can keep both on track. I also look forward to Mico Sauyan next issue; his sketches on Newsarama looked good and hopefully he can keep up a faster pace than Finch, who seems to need 5-7 weeks an issue. Still, another successful Marvel revamp that, like GHOST RIDER and unlike ANT-MAN, sells decently.
NEW AVENGERS #28: I wonder which will sell better this month: MA #1 or NA #28? Surely Marvel doesn't care either way as both are locks for an instant Top 5 for March, if not higher. Now, quibbles with this issue/story aside, I think it is still fair to say that so far, NEW AVENGERS is one of the few titles that actually improved in quality from CIVIL WAR, at least barring that awkward Hawkeye/Scarlet Witch mess. True, only 2 issues in and there are problems, but this is beating THE COLLECTIVE, easilly. Bendis is essentially using Kirkman's schtick to have the past/present in one issue in a jumble, only it isn't as seemless, perhaps because Bendis' tone is more serious. Highlights? This team seems to have more chemistry than the last incarnation, with everyone having teamed up many times either recently or in the past, and they all are on the same side of the social agenda. Yu's art is also not as bad here as it has been in some other works, although out of everyone his Dr. Strange and Spider-Man fare the worst. He also insists on mutant veins on people's arms like they were THE TOXIC AVENGER or something. The interesting thing here is, Marvel's general stance on CW and the Pro-SHRA looking like villians stance is officially, "we did our best to fool readers, but maybe went too far" and there has been some attempt to backtrack on that. But Bendis has no such delusions, and no one at Marvel is going to DARE challenge him. His Iron Man is a lying, manipulative egomaniac who has no quibbles about evoking the honor of a dead teammate to lure former friends into a trap, something Dr. Doom usually deams as a hobby. Bendis has no intention of having Iron Man be some "tragic hero" type, he just is sticking with the fascist *****ebag schtick. Marvel would rather kill 100 customers in cold blood than dare say "no" to Bendis at this stage, so if you like this honest take at modern Iron Man, enjoy. It is despicable, though, argueably moreso than some of what Eric O'Grady has done considering IM should know better. And there also is another scene of more SHIELD commandoes/soldiers appearing out of nowhere to attack Luke Cage than to attack any supervillian in the last 15 years. This works for NA but seems laughable if you buy into the "shared universe" thing that a crossover is supposed to evoke. So MOON KNIGHT can slaughter date-rapists in alleys and escape undetected in a limo (and even converse with detectives), but Luke Cage goes out for milk and he has a F'ing platoon up his rear? Where was this during MAXIMUM CARNAGE? Or whenever Rhino, Shocker, the Wrecking Crew, Mr. Hyde, etc go on almost weekly crime sprees? Man, maybe it IS because he's black.
Another minor quibble, which you can file in the "Sally Floyd" logic; if it is okay to complain to Cap about "not deciding sooner" which would have saved lives, why not complain at Dr. Strange for the same thing? He chooses to harbor allies and use his magic to aid them only AFTER the war is over, the nation lays shattered and some heroes (and dozens of civilians) lay dead? This is the same mage who literally travelled to Hell and back to save Wong from a natural illness when medicine had failed him, yet did nothing but get stoned with the Watcher while friends and allies died in the streets? I know it's not really Bendis' fault, as it wasn't his decision, but it still seems slightly jarring. Better late than never, I suppose, as Dr. Strange has harbored/assembled heroes plenty before. It does seem a little odd that Luke Cage is belting orders over Dr. Strange or Wolverine (who, groan all you like has led the X-Men in rare occasions, although he never liked to), but Cage has grown during his time here and under Bendis so I can buy it for the time being. Leaders aren't always the ones with the most experience or knowledge, but the ones who rise to the task when they have to and are clear and concise. I would expect a little more from Dr. Strange, though. Maybe he can take on an advisor/sage role. So far, for all the hoopla, Iron Fist is just sort of "there", contributing very little except for a few lines and an earthquake-punch last issue. So, while in the past they've been manipulated and lied to by Ms. Marvel and Iron Man into a trap (and, FYI, why could Wolverine smell that "Cap" was a fake, but Dr. Strange and all his billion spells, and his EYE OF AGOMOTTO which is all but MADE to see through illusions, could not!?), in the present, they hover around Echo as she OD's. They dodge the Hand at Silver Samurai's house, and at least Bendis remembers the guy has lost a hand, and about his rivalry with Logan. Sadly, their bickering comes off as infantile at best. "You cut me!" "You cut me first" "Waaa, I want my bah-bah!" Bendis has the fantastic ability to make everyone he writes sound like an emotionally stunted 7 year old, from heroes to cops to fanatics to gods. At one time this was considered a naunce, but has become very annoying, and could all but be written by computer program. Up next is, sigh, yet another fight with Elektra and ninjas. The Mighty Avengers are actually fighting villians like Mole Man and Ultron, and the NA are still fighting F'ING NINJAS! Despite starring Iron Man's Amazing Thugs, MIGHTY AVENGERS may be on better track to catch more of the classic feel of the franchise. NA remains,
"Bendis Presents: Superheroes" despite all the attempts to say otherwise that it is an "Avengers" title. They're essentially more like SECRET DEFENDERS now. Still, not a bad issue, and definately better than some of the arcs pre-CW.
Yes, yes, I know, the Ronin stuff is a rehash, and calling this team "Avengers" is shallow...but as a team unto theselves, I'd argue they gel better than the pre-CW roster did. Hopefully Iron Fist does more; he really needs some blockbuster rep from an A-Book.
. That could be because I'm flawless and never spell anything wrong, thuogh.
) and Jeanty manages to keep the characters distinct while fully bringing them into the comic book realm. As with the writing, the art--especially its divergence from photorealistic actor portrayals--makes the comic feel truly like a new season of Buffy, if that makes any sense. Strip away the familiar performances and faces and you find that the cores of the characters are still there, with their identities and voices intact--Buffy's still a petite blonde who can kick an incongruous amount of ass for the size of her frame, Xander's still the normal dude who's adapted himself into a witness for all the weird crap that goes on, Dawn's still a petulant ball of angst, etc.--and that, like the writing, made me feel like this was the Buffy I'd known all the time, rather than adaptation of the "real" Buffy from TV.
, Geek 
.
