A Return to Form, Somewhat: Daredevil #4

(writer) Mark Waid
(artist) Chris Samnee
(colorist) Javier Rodriguez

Last month's "Daredevil #3" was extremely disappointing in that it had Matt Murdock acting extremely out of character, putting his fate in the hands of someone who had not shown him, at that point in the story, if he could be trusted.

Here, Waid changes gears a little bit as Max Coleridge, a.k.a. the Shroud, helps Matt out against one of his oldest enemies, the Owl, whom the pair of them teamed up to take down last issue. Still, the Owl's got an ace up his sleeve that keeps the blind crimefighting duo from taking him in, and Matt is back to square one. Thanks to some valuable intel picked up by his new partner-in-crimefighting Kirsten MacDuffie, Matt is soon back on the trail of his old nemesis.

I still don't buy that Matt would trust someone like the Shroud, but Waid at least moves on from that story point quickly enough to make me forgive that lapse and enjoy the rest of the story, even if it isn't quite up to the standard Waid has set with this series. There isn't much of Matt using his brain here, just his acrobatic and fighting skills as he escapes from one tightly guarded place in the beginning of the issue and breaks into another towards the end. Still, the issue is well-paced, and I have to admit I'm intrigued at how Waid appears to be setting up a pretty significant story arc for the Owl, even as he wraps this one up. That would be a welcome development; apart from the time Brian Bendis used the character to develop the "Mutant Growth Hormone" drug during his run on Daredevil, very few writers have taken the character too seriously. I'm genuinely looking forward to seeing Waid and Samnee take a crack at making him a proper menace for my favorite blind superhero.

Speaking of Samnee, he's firing on all cylinders, as usual.  This guys has really cemented his status as one of my favorite artists of all time, and my favorite on this particular character. The thought of him and Waid cooking up a storm for DD in the months to come has my mouth watering. Javier Rodriguez is in top form as well, and I'm looking forward to him taking over the book for two issues for the "Original Sin" crossover in a few months' time. This book has, to my mind, the best rotating creative team in the business right now.

I found Foggy Nelson's absence from the issue quite conspicuous, and the last page made it clear that next issue will be pretty much all about him. Given how oblique the storytelling has been on exactly what the game plan is regarding his character, I am extremely interested to see what happens next issue.

8/10

More Retro Fun: A Review of The Amazing Spider-Man #1.2

"Learning to Crawl, part 2"

(writer) Dan Slott
(artist) Ramon Perez
(colorist) Ian Herring

Dan Slott's "between the lines" miniseries "Learning to Crawl" continues, and this issue takes place in between and around the events of 1963's "The Amazing Spider-Man #1" in which Spider-Man tries to join the Fantastic Four, only for their first meeting to go sour. Peter continues to grapple with his problems; he cannot explain to the school counselor why he is always withdrawn, and why he actually has a black eye. Peter makes up a generic excuse that ends up sounding like a wrongful accusation of Midtown High jock Flash Thompson.  Meanwhile, Clayton Cole, who now dresses up as a superhero, outfits himself with an interesting sound-based gadget, and calls himself "Clash," takes his admiration for Spidey up a notch, and even arranges a meeting with him with the help of some big bucks. All told Peter ends up making one good decision, and one he may yet regret.

I quite enjoyed this issue, as I did the last one. Slott writes a meaty issue that tells a full story, even as it leads into the next installment, and it's particularly remarkable that he was able to pack as much as he did into it, considering that he only had nineteen pages to work with this time, which is Marvel's shitty way for docking the readers one page after last issue's extra page. Of course, the page shortage isn't Slott's fault, although I have to say, I still have some problems with the basic premise of the miniseries.

Clearly the purpose of this series is to launch "Clash," whether as a hero or as a villain, and although he starts out as wanting to be the former, the closing pages of the issue seem to suggest that he goes the way of Syndome in the Pixar's The Incredibles. Either way, though, by situating his origin so near so near to Spidey's, Slott will either have to throw this Clash in jail by the end of this series, send him to the Negative Zone, kill him or otherwise remove him from the picture for at least the next ten "comic-book years" to account for his absence from fifty-one years of Spider-Man stories. That's really just the problem with retcons, along with all of the anachronisms I pointed out from the first issue.

This is a shame, because as narrative flow goes, this issue is magnificent, no matter how derivative the origin story of "Clash" feels. This is the Spider-Man I grew up with: a guy always wanting to do the right thing but who all too often makes bad decisions along the way; I loved the way Slott handles Peter's quandary with the guidance counselor, and the subsequent run-in with Flash Thompson. It's really wonderful stuff, and more than the ham-handed retconning of a new character into Spidey's past, is this aspect of the series that makes it worth reading.  Ramon Perez gives more of his magnificent Steve Ditko/Tim Sale hybrid art and on top of it all is a magnificent Alex Ross cover. The first one just featured Spidey in costume and actually looked pretty generic, but this one, with Silver Age Peter's tensed-up face, actually said a little something about the story inside the comic book, even if the representation was more impressionist than literal.

I'm definitely finishing this particular miniseries. For all its flaws, it's arguably the best Spider-Man book on sale today.

8.5/10

What's Old is New Again: A Review of Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man #2 [SPOILERS]

(writer) Brian Michael Bendis
(artist) David Marquez
(colorist) Justin Ponsor

There's no getting around this; last issue both Ultimate Norman Osborn and Ultimate Peter Parker came back from the grave, and the timing couldn't be worse for current Ultimate Spider-Man, Miles Morales, who is still reeling from the fact that his dad has dropped off the face of the earth after finding out his secret identity, and is struggling with the decision of whether or not to tell his girlfriend, Katie Bishop, his secret as well. Worse still, there are a couple of masked, superpowered crooks who appear to have the powers of Spider-Man hijacking dock shipments. The last issue ended with Miles actually meeting someone who appears to be Peter, and this issue, things get a little ugly.

It's been a little over three years since Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley put Ultimate Peter Parker in his grave and replaced him with the controversial half-African-American, half-Puerto-Rican Miles Morales as Spider-Man. A lot has happened to Miles since then; he's fought his uncle or the Ultimate Prowler, Ultimate Venom, Ultimate H.Y.D.R.A., he's met the "616" Peter Parker and even fought alongside him, he's lost his mom and taken part in an effort to save his world from being eaten by Galactus. In short, he's no rookie. Still, not even all of his experience as Spider-Man could have prepared him for the shock of meeting the boy he replaced. After all, not only was Peter buried; just two issues back (Ultimate Spider-Man #200) all of Peter's supporting cast held a memorial for him. This is not the "616" universe, after all, where, since the resurrection of Jean Grey in 1985, death has virtually ceased to mean anything. Here, main characters tend to stay dead (so far), so Peter's reappearance is a big thing, although Miles most likely called it right when he guessed the reason for Peter's apparent resurrection, which I will not spoil.

It's a nice, meaty issue in terms of developments in the story. Sure, it's a slow burn, but the good news is that a lot still happens here; Bendis is pacing himself well with this particular arc. Also, I genuinely enjoyed the depiction of the confrontation between old and new Ultimate Spider-Man; the feelings were genuine, and even though, naturally, the reader is meant to root for Miles, we cannot fault Peter for his actions, at least not for the moment. There is no doubt in my mind that this character is not what he appears to be, and it's to Bendis's credit that he totally has me interested in finding out what he really is.

Again, I cannot praise David Marquez's work enough. I was ready to drop this title after issue #200 but the guy just keeps me coming back for more. I was never a fan of Ultimate Peter Parker's look, whether it was drawn by series pioneer Mark Bagley or even his successor David Lafuente, but Marquez's take manages to look distinct from the "616" version while at the same time making him recognizable somehow as Peter. Marquez's action sequences are incredible, and I really, really look forward to the inevitable showdown between Miles and whoever the ultimate villain of this story turns out to be, because it's looking really crowded so far, which makes things all the more interesting.

9/10

Why Is This Title Being Published Again? A Review of Inhumans #2

(writer) Charles Soule
(artist) Joe Madureira
(colorist) Marte Gracia

So, the new era for Inhumans continues. The issue features the newly-Inhuman Dante beginning his training in handling his new abilities, a guest appearance by Captain America as he helps Inhuman Queen and leader Medusa recover tech from fallen Attilan that has fallen into Central Park, and a mysterious purple-faced stranger who visits Medusa and who may or may not have answers for her regarding her still-missing husband, Black Bolt.

Two issues in, and to my mind, Marvel really haven't justified this book's reason for being, apart from more eye-catching art from Joe Madureira who will, unfortunately, be gone after issue #3. The appearance by Captain America, while it receives some perfunctory justification from the script, feels like little more than an attempt to boost sales, which haven't been all that impressive for a book featuring art by a superstar like Joe Mad. And the new character who is supposedly getting launched by this series gets precious little to do other than yell a lot at the beginning of the issue, get punched in the face, and then get immersed in a tank of water while delivering a one-liner about the heavy metal band Slayer. Classic stuff...not.

The good news is that Joe Mad delivers yet again, and I was particularly intrigued by his take on classic Inhuman character Gorgon, who now appears to be cousins with the Minotaur, judging by his animal-like legs. Of course, the action sequence he illustrated kicks all kinds of butt, but again, not really in service of a greater story.

I began to wonder if I wasn't just getting sick of reading comic books, when I purchased two this week which I will review next and which, quite simply, were both amazing reads, and it then occurred to me the overall storytelling in this title, as in the last one I reviewed, simply isn't very good.

Since Marvel has failed yet again to make a case for this book as far as I'm concerned, as I said before: after Joe Mad is gone from this book, so am I.

5/10

Wow...Just...Wow: The Complete Waste of Money That was Guardians of the Galaxy #15

(writer) Brian Michael Bendis
(artists) Nick Bradshaw and Cameron Stewart

The Guardians of the Galaxy are separated, and this issue shows the reader what each of them is doing.

Hyperbole aside, this is one of the worst comic books I have ever had the misfortune of reading, and I inherited a vaguely racist 1957 issue of "The Lone Ranger." Bendis' script is as rote and by-the-numbers as they come, and is clearly meant to pass the time till next issue without anything meaningful happening, and worse, Bradshaw's Art-Adams-aping that he tries to pass of as art is particularly poor this issue, and again, he doesn't even finish the whole story, with Cameron Stewart stepping in to do the final few pages.

Worst of all? Captain Marvel (Carol Danvers), who appears on the cover, is NOWHERE IN THE BOOK.

Gahd. Eff you Marvel.

0/10

From the Back-Issue Bin: A Review of Cloak and Dagger #9 (1986)

(writer) Bill Mantlo

(artists) Arthur Adams (pencils) Terry Austin (inks)

(colorist) Glynis Oliver

This issue saddened me for a number of reasons, even as it entertained me.

First of all, since writer Bill Mantlo suffered irreparable brain damage due to a hit-and-run way back in 1992 and has since needed institutional care, he hasn't written (and won't ever write another) comic book.  It's a real shame, considering that, in addition to co-creating these characters, he is also responsible for the creation of the soon-to-be-world-famous Rocket Raccoon, one of the most prominent characters of Marvel Studios' upcoming film Guardians of the Galaxy. 

It also saddened me to see Art Adams' work on a full twenty-two pages of story because it made me think of how seldom the guy works on comic book interiors. The last book he actually worked on, Ultimate X, is over three years old and was part of a failed attempt to reignite flagging interest in Marvel Comics' "Ultimate" line. He's drawn covers for nearly every major character these days, mostly Marvel books, but apart from the aforementioned Ultimate X and HALF of a three-issue Hulk story arc, he hasn't really turned more than a few pages of interior art, with his latest effort most notably being two or three pages of Brian Bendis' All-New X-Men #25, which was yet another "jam" issue.

The thing is, I've wanted this issue since I was a kid, way, way back when I saw the November checklist in another Marvel comic book, so when my favorite retail shop was able to track the issue down I simply jumped at the chance to add it to my collection.

The story is simple enough; Cloak and Dagger find themselves in France after having stowed away on a boat while chasing a drug syndicate. Dagger, influenced by their "traveling companion" Bill Clayton falls in love with the circus and becomes their star performer, while Cloak remains intent on chasing down the bad guys until they've paid for their crimes. Unfortunately for Dagger, the whimsical fantasy of the world she has embraced meets up with the grimy violence of the world she has been living in, and tragedy ensues.

Although the story is self-contained, it is clearly part of a larger narrative thread, and feels a little bit beholden to it at times. What’s really striking was how the comic book was very much a product of its time, also known as the “grim and gritty” era of comics that spawned books like Daredevil: Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns and Watchmen. After all, Cloak and Dagger weren’t chasing down some muscled supervillain but a bunch of run-of-the-mill drug dealers. Despite Mantlo’s efforts to conform to that era of storytelling, though, the issue still feels distinctly clunky in the narrative, like an after-school special more than a hard-hitting tale of vigilantes taking on the drug scourge. The dialogue just gets a touch too heavy-handed at times, and it’s a little laughable at one point to see Dagger yell “killer” at one of the gangsters she confronts. For Pete’s sake, nobody actually calls someone that, not even in the 80s. If they wanted to avoid the more adult-sounding “bastard,” editorial could have allowed Mantlo to use the word “murderer” which isn’t potty mouthed and which sounds a lot more natural.

Adams’ art was a strange fit for the rather dark story, considering that his lively, Disney-inspired work is better-suited to more fantastical stories.  I also found rather halting his distinctly 80s styling for the characters. While I wasn't impressed by the way the art told the story, as an Adams fanboy I daresay my cup ran over, especially with Adams’ frequent collaborator (back then, anyway) Terry Austin inking over Adams pencils. I also saw why it was so easy for me to fall for Adams’ work back then; the shoddy printing quality of the issue went a long way towards masking the flaws in the workmanship. And it irked me that like so many prominent comic book artists, including the likes of Jim Lee, Adams seemed simply incapable of drawing black people properly, which was a bit of an issue here considering Cloak’s ethnicity. I think Adams has improved his craft since then (this issue is nearly thirty years old, after all) but it was still a treat, in a time-capsule sort of way, to see his pencils as they used to be.

This particular series ended only two issues after #9, but I have no interest in tracking down the other issues of the series.  I am glad, however, that I picked this one up.

7.5/10