Browsing: Review

Or – “You Don’t Need Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man In Every Issue.” The Avengers are one of those teams that has had so many different incarnations that there’s no real “iconic” interpretation of the team. People talk about the Big Three, but the original lineup didn’t actually contain all of them. More importantly, the concept of what an Avenger IS has changed many times. The point of the original “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes” mini was to reimagine the original five members of the team. The new series takes the same tack with a more difficult crew, the team of…

Tales of the Expected The 2006 installment of Tales of the Unexpected featuring The Spectre, and a backup with Dr. 13 kicked off with a bang that got me in all the right places. Now that I’ve had a chance to absorb issue two, are my tingly places still tingling, or is it more of the same?

Or – “Everything That You Once Knew Was Wrong Is Wronger Still…” If you’ve been reading, (and I thank you if ya have), you may have noticed that I have an affinity for team books. In most cases, the bigger the cast, the happier I am. This is a common malady among comic fans my age, and most of us blame it on The Legion. I was introduced to the 30th century through the digest-sized reprints that DC put out in the early 80’s, reprinting the seminal run from Adventure Comics lo those million years ago. At the time, the…

Heroes Will Fall Week 27 is a bad one for 52. Not in the storytelling, but rather in the tragedy of the heroes’ lives. After following the events of this week, including another of my Crack Pot Theories of the Week, you’re going to sit up and say “Whoa!”

Or – “You Are Somewhat Distracted By The Second-Person Narrative…” As a sometimes-retailer, Marvel’s giant “Civil War” crossover is puzzling to me. Virtually all the issues of all the comics Marvel has printed in recent months have been affected, many of them forced to ship late for fear of tipping crucial plot points, and the entire continuity of the Marvel Universe has been tangled up together like the Giant Spaghetti Monster in the sky. As a reader, it’s maddening, as things happen that don’t get explained until weeks later (i.e. the revelation of the spoilery death in “Cable & Deadpool”…

Or “A Mystery Within An Enigma Wrapped In Bacon and Deep-Fried In Batter.” Recently, I mentioned on the forums how DC’s Shadowpact comic was adhering to the fanboy rule of thumb regarding the Star Trek movie franchise: the odd-numbered issues leave me cold, whereas the even-numbered ones give me hope to come back for the next time ’round. With this issue, Outsiders officially joins the Roddenberry Rondelay, with an issue that adds yet another layer of questions, a terribly unfortunate tonsorial decision and some serious bad behavior.

Or – “Why Isn’t It Called Sophomores?” My manager at the comic store has made much of the recent “revelation” that today’s comic buyers consist mostly of men in their thirties with excess disposable income. Tom points out that anyone who’s ever BEEN in a comic book store should recognize that comics are geared for, marketed to, and frankly, really only affordable by this target group. So, it should be no surprise that one of Top Cow’s recent hits hearkens us back to the glory days, the time when we believed we were cool, despite all the evidence to the…

Paul Dini Truly Missed Dr. Phosphorus is back! I never knew he left. Once presumed dead, it is up to the Batman to track the fiery doctor. This issue also finds Paul Dini taking a break, while Royal McGraw steps up in an attempt to fill some big shoes. Does the shoe fit?

Or “Warren Ellis Is Either A Genius or Bug*#&@ Crazy. Possibly Both.” It is with an uncharacteristic sense of foreboding (for both me and for NextWave) that I start reviewing this book. Reports out of Marvel indicate that issue 12 will be the last regular issue of NextWave, but that it may continue as a series of miniseries in the future. That’s too bad, because this book is the most all-out fun I’ve had with a Marvel title since they cancelled the first volume of New Warriors, waaay back in the late 90’s. (And we’ve all seen how well THAT…

Clone Saga: Part 5 Clone Stacy is really the new Carnage, Aunt May is still lying on the floor, and Nick Fury is ready to kick some spider butt. We also find out what Creepy-Parker Clone is doing with Mary Jane. Get ready to rumble as the Clone Saga continues as only Bendis can bring it.

Parting is such sweet sorrow The halfway point in the incredible weekly serial is upon us, and it is time for teams to part to complete their leg of the journey. But parting is never the end of the book, but the beginning of the next chapter.

“He Doesn’t Have to Shoot You Now.” “He Does SO Have to Shoot Me Now!” Oh Shadowpact, your wacky adventures and skewed continuity have readers split on whether or not they should love you or hate you. Issue six kicks off a new storyline, but has Shadowpact gone to the dogs?

Or “Will You, Won’t You, Will You, Won’t You, Won’t You Join The Dance?” The “Countdown to Infinite Crisis” tie-in miniseries were a mixed bag. “Rann-Thanagar War” was interesting, but in trying to show us the sheer scope of a war, it ended up feeling like a series of unrelated vignettes. “Day of Vengeance” was excellent, “OMAC Project” good but strange, but in my mind, the real gem of the line was “Villains United.” Not only did it establish the Society (And who’d have thought that a concept like the Secret Society of Super-Villains would be a hot commodity in…

Creepy glimpse into the mind of a killer When I first learned about Zenescope Entertainment’s Se7en miniseries based on the film of the same name, my first thought was, “How can you make a good comic book based on a movie that we already know everything about? What else is there to learn?” How about the background of those victims of the Seven Deadly Sins?