Bought/Thought October 28th, 2009 - SPOILERS

[IFryKids]

I'm afraid a lot of people reading Blackest Night will feel the same way. As much as I'm liking it, I feel like there would be a lot more weight placed on the other Lantern Corps if they were fleshed out a bit more, maybe if Johns took a little more time with each other them before starting Blackest Night. Having about 1 story arc for each one just doesn't strike me as being enough time for getting fans to care about them, even if the current story is good IMO.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Ambush Bug-Year None #7 of 6: After months...and months...and months of waiting, DC finally (doesn't) answer the probing question, "What ever happened to Ambush Bug Year None #6?" I'm thinking issue #1 must have come out almost a full year ago....and, that first issue was so damn good and funny. I remember the hype on the Bought/Thought thread about how good it was...so, I ran out (or, actually, called) my LCS, and had that hot little copy in my hand. Yep, it really was as good as everyone on here was saying. (Just popped onto the net, and issue #1 came out in July of 2008, it seems.)

So, cut to over a year later, and I see there is absolutely ZERO (or, should I say NONE) hype about the final, much-delayed final issue. Good reason for that to, as while issues 1-3 were pretty good and funny, these last three just fell flat, mainly because DC focused on the people within DC more than Ambush Bug and the characters in the DCU. I really can give a rat's pattoottie about Dan Didio, and having read 3 issues focused on him taking over the DC Universe really felt like this is probably more funny to the writers/artists/editors at DC than the fans of Ambush Bug.

SO, IN CONCLUSION.....pick up issues 1-3...and, forget they ever made issues 4, 5 and 7.

That concludes (maybe) my "DC, YOU SUCK" segment of the day.

 

[MightyAvenge]

When I read Punisher the List, I felt like I was really seeing an actual murder. Not because of the art, but because I really didn't expect it. I had this feeling in my stomach and I was shocked. This comic was awesome.

I stopped picking up Punisher a while ago, but this One-shot got me back into it. That is whats so good about a one-shot. I was at the comic shop talking with a worker, and he was like "I just don't see why they can do these one-shots in the main book". I told him Punisher the List is a good example of why you do a one-shot. People who already pick up Punisher, will pick it up. People who don't, are a lot more willing to try a one-shot. If the one-shot is successful, the customer will be more invested in picking up the regular title.

 

[squeekness]

Murder is what Daken does best. It was a more realistic outcome of that fight, what with Daken having the ability to heal and all.

 

[kguillou]

It seems like Murder is what Marvel does best lately. Marvel's best tactic to get people interested in a character is to kill them. Remember when Ms Marvel died earlier this year?

 

[Doc Destruction]

I'm really liking Blackest Night, but I agree what some of ya'll are saying in that the pacing in the past couple of issues has been a bit "off". It seems to be a case of "fight, escape, talk, repeat" over and over. It'd flow a lot better if Johns mixed up that formula a little more, than having it go step by step like that.

The Nekron appearance, while everybody knew it was coming, was still very cool. I'll be interested to see how Flash gets out of that scenario, since he's face-to-face with Nekron, Black Hand, AND Scar by himself. Too bad we have to wait an extra month to see that.

Green Lantern #47 was a lot of fun too. Atrocitus just became a lot more badass to me, and I can't wait to see what happens with him and Larfleeze in the next issue. I have a feeling that's going to be hilarious. I also liked the touch of Abin Sur indicating he knew the Indigo Lantern previously, getting blown to shreds before he could finish what he was going to say about her. I'm curious to see where that goes, as to whether or not the Indigo Lanterns can truly be trusted, if they have a more villainous agenda, etc.

I agree, being a red lantern fan. I wanted them to be MORE dangerous than they were, and having no heart to function is pretty damn well in line with that.

And Atrocitus vs. Larfleeze? I can't WAIT.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

It seems like Murder is what Marvel does best lately. Marvel's best tactic to get people interested in a character is to kill them. Remember when Ms Marvel died earlier this year?

Vaguely. But that didn't get me interested in her at all.

 

[kguillou]

My point exactly, deaths don't work for every character. Although admittedly, it worked well for Thor and Cap.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Cap succeeded primarily on the fact that Brubaker just had an awesome story going. Whether Steve died or not, Bucky's redemption would've been a really great story. Maybe not as strong if Bucky couldn't assume the mantle of Captain America in Steve's absence, but still great.

Thor I agree with, though. But they really committed to Thor's death. He was out of the picture for almost 3 years. And then, of course, JMS did a great job of bringing him back with some of the better parts of his Silver Age roots combined with more modern sensibilities and, once again, he succeeded largely on the basis of the great story. But I do think Thor being gone for so long influenced a lot of people to try his new series out who might not have given him a chance if he came back just a few months after he died.

 

[Phaedrus45]

Two steps forward, three steps back

Teen Titans #76: Yep, that seems to define DC. Remember again a little over a year ago, when DC decided they'd have two Titans titles, one featuring the return of the original line-up, called "Titans," and the other featuring the younger generation of DC heroes. Well, neither book has amounted to much of anything...and, that original idea for Titans has now gone out the window. Now, Teen Titans has Beast Boy and Raven in their line-up...and, both books have the same problem that we've been reading about since "Year One" began. They can't keep a steady line-up, and the team is in shambles. (Wait! Ummm....isn't that the exact same storyline we've been reading in Justice League of America lately...and, even before then, during Year One, AGAIN!!!)

Yep, DC lacks original ideas, especially with these damn team books. (WAIT...isn't this the same thing we've been seeing in Outsiders for the past couple years now??!!??) I think the only team that has it together is Secret Six. I'm thinking DC needs to change their name from DC to UC. Cause, this isn't Decent Crap...it's just Utter Crap.

Justice Society Of America #32: Well, Justice Society is better than Justice League...but, even it's been drastically slipping, especially after the Gog storyline. Here is another DC team book where the team members just aren't getting along. At least the team member can stay together...it's just they have waaay too many team members. They have been trying to bring in some new, younger characters..but, that's ruined the book more than helped it.


The good news is I've been saving what I believe will be another great issue of Superman - Secret Origin for later today.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Fantastic Four was predictable, but never let it be said that predictable = unsatisfying. This was a wonderful arc and showed in no uncertain terms why "our" Reed is the best. Nathaniel's words toward the end of the issue sum it up perfectly: Reed has it in him to be both good and great, and he proves it with his climactic choice in this issue. So, yeah, if you read comics purely for shocks and thrills, go find yourself a Millar comic and be happy. But if you don't mind a little sensible character work and poignant emotion in your comics, this issue is excellent. And for me personally, it's great to be this enthusiastic about the FF again. I haven't enjoyed them this much since Waid.

I'm loving Hickman's run so far. It's like he's taking the spirit of Millar's run (huge and absurd ideas) but is far superior in the execution.

Blackest NightIt seems like Johns could've spread the content of these two issues out across them better. Anyway, I just hope next month the pace will finally pick up. Oh, wait, that's right, there's a "break" next month for no bloody reason at all that will further draw things out and drain my interest in this crossover.

The break is going to happen in January. Blackest Night #5 and #6 will arrive in November and December.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Oh, I thought it'd be split in half for some reason. Well, hopefully there will be some kind of forward motion in the plot next month, then.

As for Hickman's FF run, I don't think he's taking anything from Millar's run specifically except super-smart Val. Huge and absurd ideas have been as much a part of the FF's core as the family dynamic for decades. I mean, Waid had Reed, Sue, and Johnny go to Heaven to rescue Ben. Lee and Kirby introduced the Watcher, Galactus, and the Silver Surfer in the FF's pages. Franklin is destined to become God, Jr. someday.

 

[Mike555]

X-Factor 50-In a word confusing bad issue for me to start reading X-Factor.
Anti-Venom New Ways To Live 2 of 3-Cool issue a little boring with must of it being talking and stuff but the ending rocked.
Ares 1 of 3-Hilarouis issue looks like Ares really hates athena the soldiers were funny to.
Ms.Marvel 46-This really lived up to the previews awsome issue if you love Ms.Marvel and Moonstone GET IT!
More to come later.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Haha, yeah, X-Factor #50 must be one of the very worst issues to start reading at. Probably would've been better if you'd held out another couple months and started with #200 in December.

 

[hippie_hunter]

As for Hickman's FF run, I don't think he's taking anything from Millar's run specifically except super-smart Val. Huge and absurd ideas have been as much a part of the FF's core as the family dynamic for decades. I mean, Waid had Reed, Sue, and Johnny go to Heaven to rescue Ben. Lee and Kirby introduced the Watcher, Galactus, and the Silver Surfer in the FF's pages. Franklin is destined to become God, Jr. someday.

But when Waid left the book, it felt as if those huge, awesome, and absurd ideas were just gone and Millar went back to that. The ultimate flaw was that he just sucked at it's execution.

Dare I say, I freaking love Valeria

And to quote IGN: "Hickman's Fantastic Four is quickly becoming one of the more memorable runs on the title, and easily deserves mention in the same sentence as Waid and 'Ringo and, if the current level of quality persists for years to come, perhaps even Lee and Kirby."

Fantastic Four in three issues has become one of my favorite books now.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Yeah, this was an unbelievably strong first arc. I hope Hickman keeps it up. I'm looking forward to how he handles the much lighter adventures of Johnny, Ben, Frank, and Val next issue, too.

 

[Mike555]

X-Factor 50-In a word confusing bad issue for me to start reading X-Factor.
Anti-Venom New Ways To Live 2 of 3-Cool issue a little boring with must of it being talking and stuff but the ending rocked.
Ares 1 of 3-Hilarouis issue looks like Ares really hates athena the soldiers were funny to.
Ms.Marvel 46-This really lived up to the previews awsome issue if you love Ms.Marvel and Moonstone GET IT!
More to come later.

More Reviews
The Incredible Hercules 137-Cool issue but i am not a fan of ameadous cho.
X-Men Forever 10-Sucked as expected.
Hulk 16-Awsome but i hope Domino and Elektra are alive.

 

[Phaedrus45]

A light at the end of the tunnel

Superman #693: It can't all be bad for DC, right? Well, yeah...but, not in the case of this title. It's just hard to get past the fact you're reading a Superman title....and, there's no friggin' Superman to be found within! Nope, we're still stuck on the adventures of Mon-El. And, just like with Action Comics and Supergirl, we're still stuck with that most evil of bad guys, General Lane. (Ok, that last part was bad sarcasm.) General Lane just seems like a crappy version of Norman Osborne, set to change Earth's view on their Kryptonian heroes, enlisting the bad guys to make that change. (Heck, just like with Marvel sending their bad guys to a prison in another dimension, so does General Lane.) Please, can this storyline just be over. Even Superman's World Of Krypton needs to come to a quick end; because I have to think it's dragging everything else down.

Let's hope 2010 gets DC a bit more back to normal on one point: Bruce Wayne alive and being Batman, and Superman back in his main two titles. (The bad part of this is, no doubt, going to be spin-off titles...so, not only will be have Adventure Comics, Supergirl, Superman, and Action Comics, we'll also have Mon-El and Nightwing/Flamebird.)

World's Finest #1: This series was as bad as the other DC comics were...it just wasn't great. For those expecting World's Finest to feature Batman and Superman....nope! Just like with the Bat and Sup's titles, we get the cast-offs. In this first issue, it features Red Robin and Nightwing(Sup's Nightwing), and they are brought together to take on Penguin, who has captured Flamebird. The story is ok, but by the time I finished reading it, I felt as if I was getting a promotional story for Action Comics and Red Robin. Next week, we get Robin (must be Bruce's son) and The Guardian. Yep, just promoting the secondary characters of both of the Big Two.

Arkham Reborn #1: Finally, things are looking up for DC. Great first issue of this three-issue series! Jeremiah Arkham has reopened Arkham Asylum (what must be for the umpteenth time), and along with the reopening, has decided to redo the direction of the therapy and cells within the walls. This spins directly from the excellent Battle For The Cowl Arkham one-shot, and we quickly learn things are not exactly what they appear. I loved this...can't wait for the next issue!!! It's only too bad that some miniseries drag on for 6 issues...and, this one will be done in three.

Batman #692: I'm still not excited about Nightwing being Batman. I really do pick up this title for some good Bruce Wayne-style adventures. But, thankfully, Tony Daniel gets away from all the "am I good enough to replace Bruce" crap, and basically gives us a standard Batman tale, with a few tweeks to fit in Dick. Good story, great art, and some good, old-fashioned Batman Villians. Yep, this should be good!!!

Detective Comics #858: While the first storyline was only ok, the art by J.H. Williams III is fantastic! I really love the two different styles in each issue, where the Batwoman art looks so different from when Kate's out of costume. This new storyline, though, feels on par with the art. Rucka does a great job of giving us the backstory on who Kate is, and what happened in her past. I knew only tragedy would befall the end of this first part, showing her past with her twin...but, it doesn't take away from the story at all. It's just as powerful, and makes me like Batwoman's character even more than ever before. (And, that was something severely lacking in the previous stories I've read.)

Again, once Bruce gets back, I guess we'll have a few spin-off titles, just as with Superman, probably. Nightwing, I'm sure...and, now Batwoman. Well, if Batwoman stays this good, I'll definitely be on board. (But, GEEZ, they do have too many Gotham titles right now. Luckily, most are pretty darn good, so I'll keep buying.)

 

[Phaedrus45]

The Incredible Hercules 137-Cool issue but i am not a fan of ameadous cho.

Ya know, I know some people really like that character, but he's always bored the holy crap out of me. I've liked the current Hercules storyline, with him pretending to be Thor...but, Cho...God, I wish Bendis would kill him off!!!!

 

[Mike555]

Me to there are to many "Brainy" characters.

 

[Shockdingo]

Anti-Venom: New Ways to Live #2. + Additional thoughts for Brock's future

I'm enjoying Brock's new (some say old) direction. First off I really love the art; it has a nice dark tone to the colors, yet they aren't muddy or bland. The expressions were quite detailed; I loved whenever Brock frowned, there was just something about it that I haven't seen in other Venom artists. (it often seems that the only expressions he's been drawn with are- mouth open slobber in triumph, open slobber mouth in pain)

This was not an action heavy issue, but I did enjoy it, the interactions between the characters were a highlight. Brock is really trying to show that he's changed, but he is still struggling and quick to anger. I love the bit when Henry, Frank and Eddie are crossing the border, quite funny. I'd love to see a more with the three of these guys together, but too bad the next issue is the last and Frank is...well. Nice bit of continuity; Frank is totally prepared to fight Brock, but with the new Anti-Venom "symbiote" fire doesn't bother him. Things aren't looking too good for Jenna, here's hoping she makes it through this mini, what Brock needs is a supporting cast, with someone to care about and to ground him, it will do him some good. The care he has for her is something that Brock hasn't had before, and if handled right, it could help him along on his new path. Speaking of Jenna, if I had one issue with this, it was how Punisher was threatening to shoot past Jenna stating "She's just a junkie..." I was hoping it was a bluff, it just seems like weird writing that Frank would be so harsh on her, I mean if she was a hardcore dealer and such I can see him being quick to act, but...I dunno it just didn't feel right.

My feelings about Brock's new direction are hopeful, I think that the simple addition of him healing could take him far. In another thread I had a concept of how this could promote Eddie as a hero in the public eye:

It's the final bits of Marvel's next event, the heroes have beaten the threat, he curses and then uses trusty ol' plan D(oom). It is a desperate gamble. People, animals, even other heroes are infected with some virus or entity, things are looking grim; directly striking down the bigbad in this state would kill all connected to him, and there are simply too many for acceptable losses. Eddie has been helping from the sidelines throughout the event, but is still unsure of himself and how he can help. Spider-man convinces him that he's got a new lease on life for a reason, he can do good! He can make a difference now that it counts. Eddie then gets to the heart of the disastrous virus/ possession and goes nuts with the healing tendrils; for those of you who have played or seen footage from Prototype, think of the overdrive move where Alex shoots out a massive amount of tendrils in every direction. Anyways, Eddie is straining himself and has nearly reached his limit, but he has wiped out the problem without harming anyone and thus he has severely weakened the perpetrator. Bigbad is stunned long enough for one of the heavy hitters (I'm thinking Thor, I'm in a Thor mood as of late) to tear open a hole into space and blast the resident bigbad into space. Couple of minutes later he goes boom. This gets Brock some respect (not everyone trusts him, though he's surprised at those who do) he's exonerated of the charges from fighting the Thunderbolts and is even offered membership on a team. Maybe not the best of ideas, but I think it would be interesting and actually show additional growth; Brock actually working to do good, but instead of bashing skulls goes for a more passive and far reaching branch of heroism.

I dunno, I'm flappin me gums again meehearties...wait it's not pirate day! Doh!

 

[CaptainCanada]

General Lane just seems like a crappy version of Norman Osborne, set to change Earth's view on their Kryptonian heroes, enlisting the bad guys to make that change.

Seems to me he's more like DC's General Ross (which, given that I recall Johns saying that the one Marvel title he would choose to write now, given the opportunity, was Incredible Hulk, makes some sense).

 

[Vort]

Vort Quickies:

XForce 20 - Solid comic, getting the team back together again for the big Necrosha event. Really liked the X23 portion of the book and really liked Wolvies thoughts of trying to get X23 to be a kid somehow instead of being an assassin. That has to touch a nerve with Wolvie and his past with Weapon X. Lets see if it plays out though.

New Avengers 58 - Damn good read I thought. I really liked the chase scene with the avengers and how Cage's wife freaks out with the news of him being hurt. The addition of "We got a plan" from Ms.Marvel was a nice setup. But you really have no suspense on how Cage is going to be ok or not, or if he escapes thanks to the latest Thunderbolts comic. Even if you thought Marvel would obviously let him get away, it still hurts the read knowing the outcome.

Hulk 16 - Bleh. The addition of She-Rulk, the double cross....bleh. I did like Samson in the book, and it looks like this book is setting up the upcoming Hulk series "Fall of the Hulks".

Punisher Dark Reign the List - Best comic of the bunch and the best of "the list" runs I've read so far. I'm not one for usually being suckered into buying a comic just because someone

Spoiler

dies.

but this was well done and the way a one shot comic should be written. I loved the fight between daken and frank. I just have no idea where the writers would want to take it from here, and not expecting good things. But this comic has me picking up the next Frank Castle mag to find out, which was probably Marvels ploy.

Necrosha #1 - I haven't been following Xmen comics except for xforce recently, and had the feeling that alot of the stuff I was reading I kinda needed to be following along the other comics. Overall I enjoyed the setup but I don't know if I liked it enough to buy all the tie in comics. At least I might wait to read other reviews for the tie-ins before making up my mind.

 

[Dread]

Hefty week to end October for me, 8 books total. As always, reviews are up at Examiner first, since they pay me: http://www.examiner.com/x-19829-Bro...tober-28th-2009-The-PreHalloween-Monster-Mash

As always, full spoilers ahoy.

Dread's Bought/Thought for 10/28/09:

DYNAMO 5 #25: Running a month late (and a week away from being later), but that's nothing new for DYNAMO 5, which often seems to come out about as often as JMS issues of THOR. This time, it's a 45 page annual sized issue at $4.99, which comes in at barely .2 a page (with zero ads). Co-creator and series regular artist Mahmud Asrar draws the 22 page lead story, and according to Jay Faerber on the letters page, this will be his last regular issue. He cites scheduling (Asrar lives in Turkey) as well as Asrar wanting to move onto other things; considering he's drawn a few issues of stuff for Marvel's space line, I can guess one possible avenue. Ironically, Faerber got his writing chops at Marvel, writing NEW WARRIORS (among other books). While it will be a shame to see Asrar go, Faerber has managed to get some decent fill in talent before, and the stories that come after the 22 page lead one are all drawn well.

Faerber essentially also promises another hiatus (as if one issue every 2-3 months didn't count) as well as the possibility of the book continuing as mini-series instead of ongoing issues, which he compared to HELLBOY & BPRD stuff at Dark Horse. Thankfully, he didn't mention his own mini, GEMINI, a supposed 5 issue mini that has to date maybe shipped 4 issues within a year or more. He doesn't mention sales, but I am curious if this is also a factor; the title only sold two issues at $2.99 because of low sales, and there is no word if the sales on the trades have picked up slack. At the very least, Image hasn't canceled the title.

In terms of story, this issue for anyone reading will not only go down as a climatic finale to the latest arc, but an issue that either has a creative twist at the end or the issue in which D5 jumped a shark. In this story, Maddie Warner's forgotten son, Mike, has become "Father Gideon" (even though he isn't really a priest) to manipulate Synergy, the D5's old enemy, and another step-sibling, who has all of Capt. Dynamo's powers within her, into aiding him in revenge. To that end he has kidnapped the team and their founder, and stripped them of their powers via a gun stolen from the FLAG agency (the Faerber version of SHIELD). Fortunately, Spencer (the half-alien) retained an enhanced physique thanks to the drug "flex" that he used to take, and initiates an escape. The five are zapped by the gun to regain their powers, only this time it seems they have all swapped powers. Spencer, who lost his ability to shape-shift (and is thus always in alien form now) uses his new found telepathy and cunning to resolve the conflict, but it's only a beginning. FLAG is planning to replace the Five, Synergy is still out there, and the D5 have to come up with new costumed identities and cope with their new found powers. The showdown is satisfying and so is Asrar's final full length art chore.

The rest of the issue are 2-5 page tales covering each member of the team coping with their new power and coming up with a new costume/codename. Highlights include Hector, who got Scrap's super-strength, becoming a nerd with brute force as "Smasher", Gage (the jock) seeming to prefer flight to telepathy, even if he can't land properly (and still mourning that he didn't get super-strength, as per cliche); slap on some armor and he's Ramjet. Bridget, who got too used to serving the Caitlin Fairchild role of the team, has to get used to "laser vision" and dons Cyclops-like shades as "Supervision". There are some downsides. The story comes very close to a moral of, "it's perfectly alright to take steroids and it will have long term benefits, so long as you are an alien and know to quit before an O.D. turns you into a giant lizard", even if some of the rest of the stuff with Spencer is pretty good. Livvie, formerly the high flying Slingshot, though, represents my biggest problem with the power swap. She essentially becomes able to shape-shift into animals (and not people, like Spencer could) as Menagerie; she also wears a choker for no reason, and she now reminds me way too much of Vixen from DC's JLA. I usually feel Faerber is too talented to need to resort to ripping off a JLA D-Lister, and while Livvie was usually a solid character, this is one instance where I think she had a stupid plot turn. The idea of a team of sibling heroes suddenly swapping powers itself isn't that unique; POWER PACK did that a few times. But it works for DYNAMO 5 in theory, and it will be up to additional issues to convince me it worked 100%. Still, it works for about 3-4 out of 5, which is a better track record than a lot of shifts to X-Men characters.

One could argue that DYNAMO 5 within 25 issues (across 3 years) has gone through a few "formula" shifts for team books. The mentor with hidden secrets, the team breaking up over trust issues (and the forming of a variant squad for a few issues), and now a power swap (which the Fantastic Four have done a few times, they're just not all flesh and blood relations). Faerber's book has always been about executing this formula well, and it continues here. But, part of what I liked about Gage/Scatterbrain was the twist of the hulking jock having telepathy, a 100% non physical power. Now that he can fly and has armor to smash through buildings, while the alien gains telepathy and comes closer to being "J'onn Lite" (there we go again with DC comparisons) with his "steroid stats", some of that unique angle to the squad is lost, at least at this point. Again, maybe with an arc to sell this idea and I will eat this critique, but for now the twist at the end is mere potential, and for every character who I think it helped (or did no harm to), for another I become concerned. Of course, it may only last about 4-6 issues much like some of the other formula arcs, so one never knows. On the other hand, NOBLE CAUSES had a few characters go through some permanent shifts, and to end this too quickly would expose it as a gimmick. If the idea has any strength, it is that it will draw the Five together, as they will all rely on the past experience of each other while they relearn how to be a superhero team.

Still, an issue I anticipated and in the end I greatly enjoyed; just as good if not better than plenty of Marvel & DC team books that effortlessly sell double or triple what D5 does.

INVINCIBLE PRESENTS: ATOM EVE & REX SPLODE #1: A title even Robert Kirkman jokes is too long; if only Marvel's X-office had that kind of sense of humor. This is a sequel to the ATOM EVE mini from last year, done by the same creative team (only without the Cory Walker covers). Benito Cereno writes, Nate Bellegarde draws & inks, the reliable Bill Crabtree colors, and Robert Kirkman acts as "story editor", which is essentially *****ing rights. Despite the title, Atom Eve only shows up on the last page; the rest of the issue is fleshing out Rex Splode's origin.

The dilemma is telling the origin of a character who, in the main INVINCIBLE title, is dead, which is a fact Kirkman addresses in the back. Apparently Eve's arc in INVINCIBLE will be more fleshed by this, as well as give fans who miss Rex a final chance to see him in action. Kirkman "vows" that Rex is dead forever, but I imagine he once said the same about Angstrom Levy. Apparently, Rex was a poor inner city kid starving with poor, ruthless parents who gladly sell Rex to a shady suited agent figure for a cash windfall. Rex is all but adopted by the agents, Radcliffe, and goes on explosive raids for him after being trained in combat and implanted with his artificial explosive implants. He seems to go after "bad people", but starts to question things when he is ordered to blow up the Pentagon. It is here where he stumbles upon meeting Eve.

Bellegarde's art is solid and naturally Crabtree's colors match his work on INVINCIBLE, and the writing style matches up well, as did the ATOM EVE mini. Considering Rex was her "first everything", embellishing on this for three issues will help Eve overall, which is a worthy goal (and perhaps a mea culpa to fans irritated with her "non-death" in INVINCIBLE). It wasn't the greatest thing ever but a perfectly enjoyable launch to a 3 issue flashback mini.

AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #20: Met Christos Gage at the Wizard run BIG APPLE COMIC CON a few weeks ago, he signed some issues of this and is a cool guy. At any rate, while this issue wasn't quite good enough for me to review on Examiner this month, it still is a reliably solid issue. Sales, sadly, have been slipping steadily since Dan Slott left, and it could be argued that sales on this book had never found their level, always waxing and waning with line-wide tie in's. That is part of the hook of the book. However, Christos Gage has taken that foundation and build brick-by-brick a series were forgotten characters, both new and old, may only get a few pages every issue, or less, to shine, but shine they do. If any book proves the old axum, "there are no small parts, but small actors/writers", this is it; Gage can make a cameo for a few panels seem wonderful, or a romance that buds within barely 5 pages seem natural. Compared to how, say, Cornell struggles with his Young Masters in DARK REIGN: YOUNG AVENGERS and it is especially telling how ripe this book is with goodness.

As the cover shows, Penance/Robert Baldwin gets a bit of focus. The subplot for the last few issues is that the Osborn/Hood administration wants Penance stable enough to use on the field, but doesn't want him being sane or remembering his past. Turned into a near parody of emo/grim by Paul Jenkins, Gage has shifted that into full on psychosis, to the point where "Penance" remembers little about his past beyond glimpses, and assumes because Trauma doesn't tell him about it, that he's correct about his fears. Trauma comes close to cracking on Hood and Penance, and it seems that Baldwin's pet cat Neils may have returned. At any rate, the story seems to scream for a conclusion where Penance meets with his old New Warriors allies with the Resistance, and that is how this issue ends. There's a lot more than that, though. Tigra and the powerless Komodo form an alliance while Osborn and Hood seem to try to get Night-Thrasher on their side by offering to revive his brother, even offering a grasp of the Grevious NEW WARRIORS run (where Donyell was willing to steal tech from super-villains and travel through time to try to save Dwayne). Trauma starts to crack and ends the issue being fully possessed by his father, Nightmare.

Constrictor also has a key moment, saving people from a falling plane and earning the respect, and romance, of Diamondback. It is probably a downgrade since she used to date Capt. America in the 90's, but Gage remembers that Constrictor isn't all bad. He tried to reform in THE THING and beyond hanging out at a few of Hood's meetings hasn't done much that was bad once A:TI started, serving on their shadow team.

Taskmaster is slowly but surely also coming to form as an efficient middle management figure for Osborn, settling affairs when Hood is unable to (without flipping out) and earning Osborn's respect. While it is a shame he didn't return to the more functional (and less obviously evil looking) UDON suit, bit artists have a flair for the old Perez attire. Or at least David Finch did in MOON KNIGHT, and no one has dared question the wisdom of David Finch. In fact the only downside is that Osborn claims that Taskmaster's actions don't have to be hidden like Hood's, but given that Taskmaster looks about as heroic as Skeletor, and considering Boomerang of all people got a new costume, it is odd that some change in wardrobe wasn't required. But that's just a detail; while Taskmaster still hasn't beaten anyone cool in about twenty years (Deadpool beat him by DANCING once, and Deadpool beats NOBODY these days), Gage is going a long way to write him as a cunning, pragmatic figure.

Rafa Sandoval gets a break, but Jorge Molina manages to draw the issue well with no blips, beyond him remembering that Tigra has a tail (that Sandoval keeps forgetting). Essentially, Gage's A:TI is a book where any character who shows up, big or small, is handled well and eventually does something cool or says something cool. This issue, it was Penance, Trauma, Tigra, Komodo, Constrictor, and Taskmaster. The only shame of it is watching it tumble down the Top 50-60 in sales, although I imagine it will easily make it to issue #35-#36 before a relaunch/cancellation, which is the high side of normal for launches in the Joe Q era. Next to MIGHTY AVENGERS, which Gage also co-writes, it's one of the best Avengers titles to read, month in, month out.

DARK REIGN: YOUNG AVENGERS #5: Running at least a month or so behind schedule, this finale, as well as this mini overall, is a bit of a mess. An ambitious mess, but still a mess. This climax comes down to a giant fight between the Young Avengers, the "Young Masters", and a few spare Dark Avengers, Iron Patriot, Sentry, Daken, and Bullseye. At least Venom took a break. Mark Brooks, once again does art and cover, and it all looks fine. The art isn't the problem.

The problem is the story is disjointed, and is more of a YOUNG MASTERS, GUEST STARRING THE YOUNG AVENGERS tale. This is a problem considering that Marvel's insistence that the YA franchise be on hold for however many years co-creator Allen Heinberg wants before, supposedly we are told, returns to it, has resulted in the YA characters being years behind. They're still barely above cipher level, and they have been in print for some 4 years now. Stature and Patriot are the closest to being fully fleshed, and they have Dan Slott and Ed Brubaker, respectively, to thank for that. Cornell, coming off the canceled CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI-13, came up with the idea to focus about 75% of this tale on his new teen characters, most of whom are either evil, sort of evil, or not sure if they are evil. They're not bad characters, but within 5 issues that seem to try a lot harder to come off as unique as, say, characters that Abnett & Lanning create in NOVA. In a week where Christos Gage or "DnA" can seem to nail a character down within a few pages, the fact that Cornell still seems to be in sketch mode on his Masters after 5 issues (nearly 3 of which exclusively starred them) is disturbing.

I won't lie; the book has some cool moments. Patriot's stand against Osborn (and Kate's reaction), as well as Stature taking on Big Zero, were both exciting. There are some fun lines here or there, like Hulkling's to Daken. The problem is that a series of moments is not a story, and a character has to be more than a design and a few phrases. Cornell has Melter make a point about how the Dark Avengers are as "useless" as they are, but by now the amount of times Osborn's team can lose a fight decisively and yet remain in power is bordering on the comical; Sentry is dispatched with within a few pages, Bullseye can't even overpower Kate Bishop, and so on. The only book where Sentry hasn't looked like a complete puss I've seen in a while was VENGEANCE OF THE MOON KNIGHT #2. Can't Thor just beat him down and zap him to limbo for another five years already? At one point Executioner refers to his team as "masters" to the YA, but by now it came across as both forced and too little, too late.

This mini has been a misfire. It introduced a few "Young Masters" and while some have some potential they're mainly just sketches and designs. The only YA who got to do something remotely interesting was Speed's little romantic subplot with Coat-Of-Arms, but that went nowhere. I won't say that Cornell moving from CB&MI13 to this was as much of a drop as when Kurt Busiek went from KINGDOM COME to X-O MANOWAR...but it's close. This hasn't been a terrible series, and it had it's moments, but the YA are doing more in MIGHTY AVENGERS than here, and I'll have forgotten half this series in a week. An ambitious misfire, but a misfire in the end. Has it's moments, though, despite itself.

 

[Optikal]

X-Force 20 - This has been consistently one of my favorite overall books since the new incarnation began. However #20 was possibly the weakest for me personally. Normally I love X23 but damn, this Not Forgotten arc did absolutely nothing for me. Rahne bores me too and the book would be stronger without her and her boyfriend cutting the story up. Anyways, onwards and upwards to Necrosha.

New Avengers 58 - My favorite Avengers title. Loved the book overall, even though it feel like the general direction is just treading water to see see through to the 'Siege' event.

Green Lantern 47 - Blackest Night is becoming so frustratingly repetitive already. I hope Johns has a plan to turn it up a gear in the near future because I'm very close to dropping it. On the bright side, my boy Atrocitus finally gets some much-needed development and a massive boost in the Bad-Assery department. Good stuff

I just wish I wasn't so poor right now. I still need to pick up:

The List - Punisher
War Machine 10
Necrosha 1
Ultimate Avengers 3
Ultimate Armour Wars 2
Punisher 10
Hulk 16