Review: Secret Invasion #7 (of 8)

Or – “And We Still Have Almost NO Idea What’s Going On…”

SI2.jpg

The art of the big crossover event has changed over the years.  The first one, (in my memory, anyway) Secret Wars, was done almost entirely outside of the regular titles’ continuity, with the individual heroes stories jumping forward a few weeks in time, while the miniseries played out separately for the rest of the year.  Crisis on Infinite Earths took place everywhere at once, causing for weird moments where characters we expected to see in one place turned up in another.  Civil War annoyed me with it’s tendency to put the home titles in low gear or idle while we waited to see what played out in the main title.  Secret Invasion has done a little bit of all of these, in that the Avengers titles have been indefinitely suspended in favor of Skrully Flashback Theatre, whereas Spider-Man’s home books completely ignore that anything called Skrullapalooza even happened, except for that “Mary Jane vs. Sinister Six Super Skrull” miniseries, and both Fantastic Four and X-Men have done their crossover bits as separate from their regular minis.  Last issue, our heroes rallied, banding together for the big fight…  What happens this issue?

More After the Jump >>

Review: Ultimate Origins #5

They meddled in God’s domain

ultimateorigins5picon.jpg

I love how Marvel introduced the Watchers into the Ultimate Universe.  Throughout the five issue run of Ultimate Origins, they have been the silent central characters who bare witness to all the key moments in this universe’s history.  And now that this prequel to Ultimatum is over, it suddenly clicks.  Beware! Major Spoilers of Ultimate Origins #5 ahead!

More After the Jump >>

Review: Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #2 (of 5)

Or – “They Had Me At Hello.”

L3W1.jpg

Can I just say that I HATE the vertically aligned giant theme covers for Final Crisis and Final Crisis by-products?  Not only is it nigh-impossible to get a decent cover scan, they have to cram whatever they’re trying to show you into 1/3 of a standard comics page, which compresses the visual information into a tiny little space and crams everything together.  But enough whining.  Legion fans and detractors alike have long complained that the logistics of a team with 25 members are impossible to coordinate, and I can certainly feel their pain.  This series promises THREE DISTINCT VERSIONS of most of the characters from that 25 member team, as well as the vast majority of the evil types that the 30th Century has to offer, all wrapped up into one.  Will it be as accessible as the first issue was?

More After the Jump >>

Superman and Batman vs. Vampires and Werewolves

Oh… Dear… God… NO!

SBvsVW1picon.jpg

I can understand the zombie craze.  I can appreciate the love affair with the undead vampire.  I can even go so far as to say werewolves have their place in story telling.  But dear jeebus, why’d you have to convince someone in DC editorial that Superman & Batman should take on Vampires and Werewolves?

More After the Jump >>

Review: Nova #17

Or – “Two Guys With A Lot In Common…”

No1.jpg

Richar Rider and Chris Powell.  Two characters designed to be the next Peter Parker.  Each wearing a strangely shaped bucket on their head, empowered by alien forces, using their powers to fight crime.  Both former New Warriors, both summarily cancelled after a couple dozen issues.  The main difference?  Nova’s third shot at series fame seems to have actually stuck, while Darkhawk has been used as not much more than a prop in the inscrutable and unnecessary Loners miniseries… 

More After the Jump >>

Review: Booster Gold #13

Echinoderms.  Why’d it have to be echinoderms?

boostergold13picon.jpg

You gotta love time travel.  Not only do you get to warp the universe around you to make all the bad things go away, you also get to warp the universe around you to make the good things happen.  Such is the case with the greatest hero no one has ever heard of and his Time Lord Chrononaught Time Master son.  What?  That’s a spoiler that was revealed like… three issues ago!  Oh Geez, gimme a break!  Here, put this starfish on your face, and the bad spoiler man will go away.

More After the Jump >>

Hero History: The Legion Of Substitute Heroes

Or – “Sometimes You Have To Work Your Way Up To The Big Leagues…”

There’s a lot of confusion regarding the early days of the Legion and their recruiting practices. Bouncing Boy got in, but Radiation Roy did not. Matter-Eater Lad got the nod, whereas Animal Lad was told no. The reasoning behind this has been the subject of much discussion (though I like Geoff Johns’ recent revelation in Action Comics that some of the Legion rejects were rejected because Saturn Girl could tell that there was something wrong with their minds) but the whole issue really seems to boil down to “Who Do We Like Best?” Come on, we’re looking at a bunch of teenagers, even with vast super-powers, and teenagers do a lot of stupid, arbitrary, exclusionary stuff. We should be glad that the team wasn’t smoking super-elastic fluid, or piercing their pancreas. Some heroes who didn’t make the cut, though, wouldn’t take ‘No’ for an answer, knowing that their day in the sun was just around the corner. These stalwart few decided to prepare themselves for the inevitable moment when they would be the ones called upon to save the day. This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Lydda Jath of Kathoon… Ral Benem of Mardru… Ulu Vakk of Lupra… Staq Mavlen of Schwar… Drura Sehpt of Somahtur… Peter Dursin of Earth… Dag Wentim of Zwen… The Legion of Substitute Heroes!

Subs1.jpg

More After the Jump >>

Review: Atomic Robo #3

In which Robo meets the Sparrow, and all hell breaks loose

atomicrobo3picon.jpg

Can you believe it’s been a full year since the first Atomic Robo issue hit the stands, rocking the world of Major Spoilers, and making us fans of the snarky robot with a past that goes all the way back to Nikola Tesla?  Can you believe this is the second review in a row, Tesla has made an appearance?  Did you know I still can’t afford the Tesla automobile (ahem – tip jar to the right)?  Did you know Atomic Robo once had a fellow espionage agent in Europe?  Should I stop asking questions, and get to the damn review?

More After the Jump >>

Review: RASL #3

Bending space just got a whole lot more interesting

rasl3picon.jpg

If you haven’t read the first two issues of Jeff Smith’s RASL, stop reading right now, call or visit your local comic shop, and beg your shop keeper to get you those precious issues.  Without them, your life is not complete.  Okay, so maybe I’m exaggerating just a bit, but the fact remains, RASL proves that indie titles can be good, and sometimes even awesome.

More After the Jump >>

Review: Green Lantern #35

Retconning the retcon

greenlantern35picon.jpg

The Sinestro Corps War brought me back to the Green Lantern titles.  I soaked up every issue, rediscovering old friends, and meeting new ones.  It was enough for me to pull out my battered trade of Emerald Dawn and Emerald Dawn II to relive the origins of Hal Jordan, and his beginnings that would lead him to be the greatest Green Lantern of them all.  So when Geoff Johns and DC Comics announced the Secret Origin story arc for the Green Lantern book, I was a bit concerned.  Emerald Dawn and Emerald Dawn II aren’t that old, and to get a story that retcons the retcon could be problematic.

More After the Jump >>