Marvel April 2009 Previews

[CaptainCanada]

Newsarama

My usual:

Agents of Atlas #3 - cool to see New Cap branching out a bit; it's nice to see what other writers make of him (even if his regular writer writes him superbly), particularly given the lighter tone of most Parker stories.

Captain America #49 - one left before the big #50 (and then the big 600 the issue after), nice to see Sharon back in the game, though no cover (not ready, or is it a big surprise?).

Daredevil #118 - Fisk's return to the streets of New York has so much potential it practically bleeds. Can't wait.

Fantastic Four #566 - Millar and Hitch never disappoint for fireworks, so this should be interesting; and Millar has written a great Doom in the past, so I'm not concerned about this whole "Masters of Doom" thing like some are.

Incognito #4 - Heh, I'm still getting used to the tone of this book, which feels like "Criminal" but with character names like "Zoey Zeppelin" and "the Overkill Brothers".

Fred Van Lente doing the daughter-of-Thundra project is disappointingly enticing, since I've yet to be disappointed with any of his Marvel stuff but I don't have much interest in the character beforehand; possible trade wait there.

Still not sure whether Avengers/Invaders is worth sticking with.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

The hell is this All New Savage She Hulk business. Looks like they turned Thundra into a Hulk....lame.

 

[Manic]

Runaways #9...
God, I miss Jo Chen's covers.

 

[70namrepuS]

War Machine looks good..... as does DD Noir!

 

[Mr. Green]

The hell is this All New Savage She Hulk business. Looks like they turned Thundra into a Hulk....lame.

Some alternate timeline Thundra made out with the Hulk and used the DNA from his mouth to make a Hulk/Thundra test tube baby. It's not Thundra but it's a mix of her and the Hulk. I'll probably check it out. I like Hulk related stuff and Van Lente is the man.

It's funny that Pak and Van Lente not only work together but both have created Hulk offspring (Skaar and this Thundra-Hulk kid) and both have created teen heroes that primeired in Amazing Fantasy (Cho and Scorpion) that have both been related to Hulk in some way or another in the recent years.

 

[Sawyer]

Runaways #9...
God, I miss Jo Chen's covers.

Same. I freakin hate Humberto Ramos' art.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

Some alternate timeline Thundra made out with the Hulk and used the DNA from his mouth to make a Hulk/Thundra test tube baby. It's not Thundra but it's a mix of her and the Hulk. I'll probably check it out. I like Hulk related stuff and Van Lente is the man.

It's funny that Pak and Van Lente not only work together but both have created Hulk offspring (Skaar and this Thundra-Hulk kid) and both have created teen heroes that primeired in Amazing Fantasy (Cho and Scorpion) that have both been related to Hulk in some way or another in the recent years.

Seriously? That sounds ****ing awful.

 

[prince_dylan]

Don't get me wrong. I love me some Beta Ray Bill, but a Secret Invasion Aftermath in April? That just seems odd to me.

 

[Dread]

These are only partial preview solicts for April 2009, so there will only be partial thoughts from me!

- It appears Marvel sees "NOIR" as another cash cow alternate reality that means nothing to the rest of the line (see; MARVEL ZOMBIES, MARVEL APES, HOUSE OF M, etc). While reviews for X-MEN NOIR are mostly positive, I haven't heard as much praise for SPIDER-MAN NOIR. While DAREDEVIL makes more sense in that format, one could argue his stories are "noir" enough. Plus, well, THE SPIRIT flopped. It isn't like everyone is clamoring for that kind of thing all the time.

- AGENTS OF ATLAS #3 has a showdown with New Cap, with a lovely cover by Granov. If DARK REIGN has done anything positive, it has allowed AGENTS OF ATLAS to return with quite a unique gimmick and approach to their team, perhaps more so than before. Whether readers & retailers reward it will be another story, but at least we can't blame Marvel for it; they've promoted the debut issue decently with preview pages in almost every other comic for a month now.

- So Norman Osborn can command NAMOR in INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #12? Oy. It was bad enough when Dr. Doom all but claimed Osborn as being more dangerous than Eternity himself in SECRET INVASION: DARK REIGN, now Osborn can command the Sub-Mariner as if he was Scorcher or something? Still, after the stuff Stark did to Atlantis during CIVIL WAR (such as brainwashing Osborn into attacking one of their diplomats to provoke a fight to focus media attention away from the infighting) and after in the Initiative, Namor has good reason to want to fight Iron Man. But, sheesh, some dignity, fella.

- No cover for CAPTAIN AMERICA #49, but it promises to focus on Sharon Carter, and since it will flash back to Steve's death, I wonder if this will lay in some foundation for the "Whoops! Steve's not really dead!" angle that fans of Bucky dread but see as inevitable.

- Considering how low GHOST RIDER's sales are, I'm amazed it hasn't been announced as canceled. It sells at 24k, only a few thousand copies above MOON KNIGHT, RUNAWAYS, and CAPTAIN BRITAIN & MI-13. Granted, it hasn't slipped below 24k copies within half a year, so it may be getting stable. The Rider's tenacity is astounding. Anyway, while this isn't one of my top books, Aaron has made a much more enjoyable go at it than Way did, and has done the title favors since landing aboard. Hopefully, Tony Moore's art will be an upgrade from Haut, who is alright but whose art I don't care for a whole lot. It reminds me of SAM AND TWITCH from 90's Image.

- FANTASTIC FOUR #566. More proof it has been a bad year for Dr. Doom. He acts like a chump to the Mighty Avengers and loses to the Sentry, which is akin to the Undertaker losing to Richard Simmons. Then he gets to languish in jail as if he was Electro before being kidnapped and used as a power source. And now Dr. Doom is in a story where he is literally BEGGING for help from his "masters" who he never mentioned before. This is a character who has refused to kneel before Elders of the Universe and in fact usually sought their power, or would have rather been atomized than submit to them. We've all seen that SECRET WARS cover. His only saving grace was killing an alternate reality version of Susan, which wins him the PROCTOR AWARD OF PETTINESS for 2008. While Millar writes a better Doom than Bendis ever could, the monarch has fallen a long way from his once perch as Marvel's supreme supervillain. Now, he barely earns a spot at Norman Osborn's table.

- IMMORTAL IRON FIST has seen a dip in sales since Fraction & Brubaker left, which is a shame because SWIERCZYNSKI's debut arc on the title wasn't bad, even if the last issue was pointless. I am looking forward to where he takes things for the 8th City arc. He won be over when he actually had Danny Rand DEFEAT the antagonist of an arc, which neither Brubaker or Fraction accomplished. Here's hoping Duane can go for a two-fer.

- I gave up on RUNAWAYS after the Whedon/Ryan run, but I miss those Jo Chen covers, too. Ramos is nowhere near close. The two covers he did for Vaughan's second volume run are a hiccup in what was 24 issues of great covers.

 

[Dread]

Don't get me wrong. I love me some Beta Ray Bill, but a Secret Invasion Aftermath in April? That just seems odd to me.

That's odd? How about that HOUSE OF M: CIVIL WAR mini that was just finished this week? HOUSE OF M was an event from 2005 that was nixed from continuity via a reality warp and Marvel is still milking it.

I can't wait for HOUSE OF M: SECRET INVASION: WORLD WAR HULK ZOMBIE APE CLUSTER****, a 14 issue epic at $4.99 a pop.

 

[Sawyer]

- It appears Marvel sees "NOIR" as another cash cow alternate reality that means nothing to the rest of the line (see; MARVEL ZOMBIES, MARVEL APES, HOUSE OF M, etc). While reviews for X-MEN NOIR are mostly positive, I haven't heard as much praise for SPIDER-MAN NOIR. While DAREDEVIL makes more sense in that format, one could argue his stories are "noir" enough. Plus, well, THE SPIRIT flopped. It isn't like everyone is clamoring for that kind of thing all the time.

All true, but overall, I would rather read the Noir line than anything with the word Apes in the title. I mean, really! There is no point to it.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

See X-Men Noir sucked to me. Spider-Man Noir was much more interesting and better.

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

- So Norman Osborn can command NAMOR in INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #12? Oy. It was bad enough when Dr. Doom all but claimed Osborn as being more dangerous than Eternity himself in SECRET INVASION: DARK REIGN, now Osborn can command the Sub-Mariner as if he was Scorcher or something? Still, after the stuff Stark did to Atlantis during CIVIL WAR (such as brainwashing Osborn into attacking one of their diplomats to provoke a fight to focus media attention away from the infighting) and after in the Initiative, Namor has good reason to want to fight Iron Man. But, sheesh, some dignity, fella.

Well hopefully it will come off better in the comic. Still Namor vs. Iron Man! I'm stoked for that.

 

[Texas]

Newsarama

My usual:

Agents of Atlas #3 - cool to see New Cap branching out a bit; it's nice to see what other writers make of him (even if his regular writer writes him superbly), particularly given the lighter tone of most Parker stories.

Captain America #49 - one left before the big #50 (and then the big 600 the issue after), nice to see Sharon back in the game, though no cover (not ready, or is it a big surprise?).

Daredevil #118 - Fisk's return to the streets of New York has so much potential it practically bleeds. Can't wait.

Fantastic Four #566 - Millar and Hitch never disappoint for fireworks, so this should be interesting; and Millar has written a great Doom in the past, so I'm not concerned about this whole "Masters of Doom" thing like some are.

Incognito #4 - Heh, I'm still getting used to the tone of this book, which feels like "Criminal" but with character names like "Zoey Zeppelin" and "the Overkill Brothers".

Fred Van Lente doing the daughter-of-Thundra project is disappointingly enticing, since I've yet to be disappointed with any of his Marvel stuff but I don't have much interest in the character beforehand; possible trade wait there.

Still not sure whether Avengers/Invaders is worth sticking with.

I must have miss this, so Marvel is going back to original numbering for CAP ?

 

[Mr. Green]

See X-Men Noir sucked to me. Spider-Man Noir was much more interesting and better.

I liked X-Men Noir more because it was more unexpected. I really like where they're going with it.

 

[GNR]

DD is constant quality,cannot wait to see how he brings Fisk back.

Cap's been great,but Ross' art has been off at times and his storytelling isn't the greatest.I'd rather see Guice or Perkins rotating with Epting.

Tradewaiting Iron Fist and Incognito.

 

[Dread]

All true, but overall, I would rather read the Noir line than anything with the word Apes in the title. I mean, really! There is no point to it.

Is there a point to any of the alternate reality mini's?

Well hopefully it will come off better in the comic. Still Namor vs. Iron Man! I'm stoked for that.

Yeah, it should be interesting. I just think that the only reason Norman Osborn is in this position is due to popularity, even though his character history, what with seeming like a crazed killer as recently as CIVIL WAR, makes him realistically unlikely to be in this situation. But, popularity trumps logic as often in comics as it does in pro wrestling.

Oh, and here are the X-related solictitations, which still include CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI-13, at CBR:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=19595

Thoughts:

- The sheer amount of Wolverine comics are staggering. Yes, I know he is getting a movie. But, damn! I almost want to hop into the Delorian and make sure he was never invented in the 70's. Imagine what the future of comics would look like!

- CAPTAIN BRITAIN & MI-13 #12 has an interesting cover, and it seems to cement an alliance between Dr. Doom and Dracula. Frankly, I am wondering why Dracula needs a "treaty" with Doom considering he's not ruling Latveria right now, but any proper use of Marvel's former greatest villain is a plus for me! Go Cornell!

- I will be getting the Wolverine Handbook. I like those Handbook things.

- X-MEN FIRST CLASS is returning for a four issue mini, although why they couldn't just have continued the ongoing for another 4-5 issues, I don't know. Price maybe? Anyway, I will get that. I should trade wait, but I will likely buy it weekly.

 

[CaptainCanada]

Frankly, I am wondering why Dracula needs a "treaty" with Doom considering he's not ruling Latveria right now

Norman said he was going to send him back at the end of the one-shot, I believe, which presumably would basically be delivering the place back to his rulership.

I must have miss this, so Marvel is going back to original numbering for CAP ?

I'm just guessing on that, but #600 corresponds with #51, two anniversary-type stories back-to-back seems too good to pass up. And this is the same year where some other titles (Thor, Hulk) are scheduled to revert (Daredevil would be in the same boat).

 

[Dread]

Norman said he was going to send him back at the end of the one-shot, I believe, which presumably would basically be delivering the place back to his rulership.

Someone didn't tell Mark Millar, because Dr. Doom was clearly in prison after the MIGHTY AVENGERS battle for his last arc and still was in prison as of the most recent issue.

Unless, of course, FANTASTIC FOUR's continuity is still borderline irrelevant, which is probably why it can't seem to sell above 64k during this run.

 

[cerealkiller182]

Regarding the NOIR books:

They are kinda enjoyable. I think at this point I like the Spiderman one a little more than the X-Men, but regardless they have been pretty fun.

Im excited for Daredevil. I think he just complements the gimmick better than the other 2

 

[Manic]

Oh, and here are the X-related solictitations, which still include CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI-13

I'm still not getting my hopes up. Cancellations happen in 6-issue cycles. I'll relax a little when #13 is announced.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Why god? Why? Why so many god damn Wolverine titles?

 

[Manic]

Because apparently God gave up on Marvel.

 

[Jennifer Walters]

Why god? Why? Why so many god damn Wolverine titles?

Wolverine Appreciation Month? Gugh. I want a Squirrel Girl appreciation month. Actually I want a Squirrel Girl vs Wolverine fight now. And I want her to beat him FIVE times then tell everyone he wears women's panties. I just really can't stand the Wolverine character right now.

 

[THANOSRULES]

Isnt Prior continuity and or current stuff irrelevant to Millar?

It always has been.

I can't believe Bendis and Millar can be at 1 studio at 1 time.