(w) Brian Bendis
(a) Sara Pichelli
(c) Justin Ponsor
It's honestly kind of hard to keep track of how many reset buttons were pushed, and what exactly they changed, in the wake of Marvel's recently-concluded "Secret Wars" event. It's a bit confusing, and frankly I hope some of the more disgraceful aspects of the continuity (e.g. Gwen Stacy having stress-sex with Norman Osborn and bearing his children) have finally been expunged for all time.
Whatever was done or undone, Miles Morales is now in the "mainstream" Marvel Universe, with his "Ultimate" universe having been one of the casualties of the aforementioned Secret Wars. He's back in school, his best friend Ganke is still around, and he's still Spider-Man, albeit a little older than when last I saw him. Here, he faces off against a pretty heavyweight threat in the demon Blackheart, and manages to come out on top, and as a result manages to impress the Avengers (who have apparently not yet disbanded at this time, and who have not yet informally recruited him, but I'll get into that later) and none other than the original Spider-Man himself, Peter Parker, who is now a big-time CEO whose adventures take him well beyond the borders of the United States. Media starts debating about him, and a local "YouTuber" has posted a video in which she has happily observed, thanks to a gaping tear in Miles' costume, that he is a person of color (though whether he is African American, Indian or Latini American remains unknown). As a result of his adventures, though, Miles' grades have begun to drop, and both his parents and another family member revealed at the end of issue #2 are deeply concerned. Another person who has taken interest in Miles, though, is the erstwhile Spider-Man friend and now-full-time Spider-Man foe Felicia Hardy, a.k.a. the Black Cat.
I followed just about all of Miles Morales' solo books, only missing out on issue #12 of his last "Ultimate" title (and if anyone knows where to find one at retail level, please let me know), and to my knowledge, his mother died at the hands of the Venom symbiote, so seeing her alive was a bit of a surprise for me, though I have been seeing the ramifications of this "Secret War" all over the place (with another example being Charles Soule's "Daredevil"). Once I got past that, the story was a pretty breezy read, though decompression seems to rear its head against as Bendis essentially stretched Miles' fight scene with Blackheart over two issues. Still, I think this particular arc worked out pretty well; there was just the right amount of exposition to establish that this is no longer the Ultimate Universe, though I suppose at some point down the line a little more explanation will be in order.
I'm a little confused as to when this story takes place in the Marvel timeline, given that, over at "All-New, All-Different Avengers" Miles is now very much a part of Tony's ragtag team, whereas here, they seem to be meeting him for the first time. This is an advantage of books being released at the same time; it helps keep people updated. To his credit, Bendis keeps things pretty simple and easy to follow, though I think people new to this character will have to do a little back-issue hunting. Also, I was a bit wary, though, especially bearing in mind Bendis' penchant for disregarding continuity, even the stuff he himself creates.
One aspect of the book with which I had practically no problem, though, was Sara Pichelli, who had, for awhile, turned the art duties of this book over to David Marquez. While I am a big fan of Marquez's work, Pichelli is Miles' real "mom," and her art has quite conspicuously improved since she was last on this book, which says quite a lot considering that she was already turning in some exemplary work back then. Miles has aged a little bit since she first got on the book; he's gone from fresh-faced tweener to gangly teenager, though I confess I remain partial to the "kid" look he had in the earlier issues, and which he still has in the Avengers book where he appears, courtesy of Mahmud Asrar's interpretation.
For me, it's so far, so good with these two issues, and it's interesting to see what Bendis has in store for Miles, given that the somewhat ruthless Black Cat has apparently taken an interest in him.
8/10
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Thursday, March 17, 2016
Gradual Erosion of Humanity: A Commentary on The Walking Dead, Season 6
Considering how diligently I have reviewed The Walking Dead in the past, it may seem strange to readers of this blog that I have yet to post a single review for Season 6.
There are a number of reasons for this, one of them being that I missed the entire first half of season 6 in which a number of significant events happened, like the attack of the gang called the Wolves on Alexandria and the resultant collapse of its perimeter wall, which led to the town being overrun by walkers before Rick (Andrew Lincoln), his group and the remaining residents of Alexandria forcefully took it back at the beginning of part 2 of Season 6. I therefore began my viewing of Season 6 a little disoriented as I missed out on several context-providing episodes.
Once I got back into the groove of things, however, I still wasn't entirely sure I had anything to say about this season. Rick hooking up with Michonne (Danai Gurira)? Abraham (Michael Cudlitz) developing an attraction for Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green), even as he carries on with Rosita (Christian Serratos)? I know these are natural human impulses, but when longtime characters hook up in an ongoing series it often means the writers are running out of ideas. Abraham's longings, at least, are based on things that happened in the comic books, but Rick's and Michonne's coupling, while not unbelievable, just seemed a little out of left field.
Another reason I had a hard time writing about this season was the introduction of the infamous Saviors. As anyone who has read the comic series in the last few years, a major character dies at the hands of Negan, the leader of the Saviors, and in fact, a recent episode offered quite a bit of foreshadowing. Now, in Season 6 none of the mainstays of the series has died so far; Rick's crew has remained pretty much intact since the death of Noah back in Season 5, so I think it stands to reason a major death is in the offing, and while there is at least one obvious candidate based on what happened in the comic books, the television show has been well-known to deviate significantly from the source material from time to time. It's virtually a given, though, that a major character will die at Negan's hands when he appears in the Season 6 finale, and the feeling of dread that comes with knowing that is not a pleasant one.
Finally, watching the last two episodes, I realized why this show is finally starting to lose its appeal to me. When Rick and his crew murder a gang of thugs in their sleep, even if it is to ensure a food supply from the community that these thugs were threatening, and even though they go through the trouble of showing Glenn momentarily agonizing over the decision before shoving a knife into a sleeping man's head, I realized that, for however long this show lasts, there's really nowhere to go but down, insofar as these characters' humanity goes.
I remember watching uncomfortably when Rick and his group, in a fit of revenge-inspired rage, murdered the cannibals of Terminus in cold blood, long after they had gotten the better of them. It was such an oddity; a scene that was both horrifying and satisfying at the same time. The cannibals of Terminus, having almost killed, cooked and eaten Rick and crew, definitely had that coming.
Anyone who's read the comics for the last few years knows who the saviors are, and what they're capable of, and the show has already offered hints as to what kind of people they are, but just the same, seeing Rick and his people slit the throats of sleeping people just made me realize that Rick and company are, at some point, pretty much going to run out of lines to cross.
When Alexandria was introduced at the end of Season 5 there was something refreshing about it, and how the writers had basically turned everything on its head. Suddenly, Rick was the hostile interloper, driven crazy by both his harrowing experiences and a conspicuous lack of female affection. Of course, in the end, Rick was right, Alexandria was nearly overrun, first by a gang called the Wolves, then by walkers, and it was, again, through grit, determination and a lot of violence that Alexandria was reclaimed from the walker horde. It was encouraging to hear Rick talking to Carl about a whole new world.
If the new world really was a wonderful place, though, then there wouldn't be a story left to tell. Sure enough, barely three episodes later, here Rick is shooting unarmed people in the head.
There was little doubt that the Saviors are very unsavory characters, and I'm sure the big reveal of Negan, as played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan, will be just as brutal as the pictures Glenn saw in the Saviors' headquarters portend it will be, but murdering them still didn't feel right.
Really, I don't know how much lower there is for these characters to sink in terms of what they're willing to do to survive, and the trajectory really is just inevitably downwards. That's the disadvantage of having a story like this, one about entropy, go on as long as this has. How much humanity can one strip away from a character and still have him or her be compelling? I suppose at some point the writers and directors of this show are going to find that out the hard way.
I just hope I'm not around to see it.
There are a number of reasons for this, one of them being that I missed the entire first half of season 6 in which a number of significant events happened, like the attack of the gang called the Wolves on Alexandria and the resultant collapse of its perimeter wall, which led to the town being overrun by walkers before Rick (Andrew Lincoln), his group and the remaining residents of Alexandria forcefully took it back at the beginning of part 2 of Season 6. I therefore began my viewing of Season 6 a little disoriented as I missed out on several context-providing episodes.
Once I got back into the groove of things, however, I still wasn't entirely sure I had anything to say about this season. Rick hooking up with Michonne (Danai Gurira)? Abraham (Michael Cudlitz) developing an attraction for Sasha (Sonequa Martin-Green), even as he carries on with Rosita (Christian Serratos)? I know these are natural human impulses, but when longtime characters hook up in an ongoing series it often means the writers are running out of ideas. Abraham's longings, at least, are based on things that happened in the comic books, but Rick's and Michonne's coupling, while not unbelievable, just seemed a little out of left field.
Another reason I had a hard time writing about this season was the introduction of the infamous Saviors. As anyone who has read the comic series in the last few years, a major character dies at the hands of Negan, the leader of the Saviors, and in fact, a recent episode offered quite a bit of foreshadowing. Now, in Season 6 none of the mainstays of the series has died so far; Rick's crew has remained pretty much intact since the death of Noah back in Season 5, so I think it stands to reason a major death is in the offing, and while there is at least one obvious candidate based on what happened in the comic books, the television show has been well-known to deviate significantly from the source material from time to time. It's virtually a given, though, that a major character will die at Negan's hands when he appears in the Season 6 finale, and the feeling of dread that comes with knowing that is not a pleasant one.
Finally, watching the last two episodes, I realized why this show is finally starting to lose its appeal to me. When Rick and his crew murder a gang of thugs in their sleep, even if it is to ensure a food supply from the community that these thugs were threatening, and even though they go through the trouble of showing Glenn momentarily agonizing over the decision before shoving a knife into a sleeping man's head, I realized that, for however long this show lasts, there's really nowhere to go but down, insofar as these characters' humanity goes.
I remember watching uncomfortably when Rick and his group, in a fit of revenge-inspired rage, murdered the cannibals of Terminus in cold blood, long after they had gotten the better of them. It was such an oddity; a scene that was both horrifying and satisfying at the same time. The cannibals of Terminus, having almost killed, cooked and eaten Rick and crew, definitely had that coming.
Anyone who's read the comics for the last few years knows who the saviors are, and what they're capable of, and the show has already offered hints as to what kind of people they are, but just the same, seeing Rick and his people slit the throats of sleeping people just made me realize that Rick and company are, at some point, pretty much going to run out of lines to cross.
When Alexandria was introduced at the end of Season 5 there was something refreshing about it, and how the writers had basically turned everything on its head. Suddenly, Rick was the hostile interloper, driven crazy by both his harrowing experiences and a conspicuous lack of female affection. Of course, in the end, Rick was right, Alexandria was nearly overrun, first by a gang called the Wolves, then by walkers, and it was, again, through grit, determination and a lot of violence that Alexandria was reclaimed from the walker horde. It was encouraging to hear Rick talking to Carl about a whole new world.
If the new world really was a wonderful place, though, then there wouldn't be a story left to tell. Sure enough, barely three episodes later, here Rick is shooting unarmed people in the head.
There was little doubt that the Saviors are very unsavory characters, and I'm sure the big reveal of Negan, as played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan, will be just as brutal as the pictures Glenn saw in the Saviors' headquarters portend it will be, but murdering them still didn't feel right.
Really, I don't know how much lower there is for these characters to sink in terms of what they're willing to do to survive, and the trajectory really is just inevitably downwards. That's the disadvantage of having a story like this, one about entropy, go on as long as this has. How much humanity can one strip away from a character and still have him or her be compelling? I suppose at some point the writers and directors of this show are going to find that out the hard way.
I just hope I'm not around to see it.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
The Boys are Back: A Review of Black Widow #1
(w) Mark Waid
(a) Chris Samnee
(c) Matthew Wilson
It was with barely-contained excitement that I opened my copy of Black Widow #1 yesterday. This was my most-anticipated title of 2016, considering it marked the reunion of my favorite team of creators, Mark Waid and Chris Samnee, along with colorist Matthew Wilson. I'm happy to report that they were every bit as good as I remember them to be, if not even better.
Basically, issue #1 is a 20-page chase sequence, in which Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, escapes from a Helicarrier in mid-flight, having stolen an undisclosed item then fights off a series of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to make good her escape.
Were it anyone except this team telling this story, I honestly don't know if they could have pulled it off with as much panache. I really love how Waid and Samnee basically hit the ground running with this story, and give the reader quite the mystery to chew on until the next issue comes out. After all, really engaging spy stories involve uncovering one mystery after another, and Waid and Samnee have laid down a pretty confounding one right off the bat.
What's striking is how there's minimal dialogue in this issue, and Black Widow herself doesn't even speak until the very last page, and even then only utters two words. Waid lets Samnee, who has taken on plotter duties with this series, do most of the storytelling, and he really runs with it.
Of course, stretching out a chase scene over an entire issue, no matter how talented the creative team, means that pretty much nothing else happens, and so it's understandable to decry what appears to be a bit of decompression, though given that this is apparently Samnee's first full plotted issue (he wrote and drew a short story in a Daredevil anthology last year), I'm willing to cut him a bit of slack, especially considering the eye-popping artwork that he and colorist Matt Wilson have turned in here, and especially considering that the lot of them now have me waiting on bated breath to see what happens next.
8.7/10
(a) Chris Samnee
(c) Matthew Wilson
It was with barely-contained excitement that I opened my copy of Black Widow #1 yesterday. This was my most-anticipated title of 2016, considering it marked the reunion of my favorite team of creators, Mark Waid and Chris Samnee, along with colorist Matthew Wilson. I'm happy to report that they were every bit as good as I remember them to be, if not even better.
Basically, issue #1 is a 20-page chase sequence, in which Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow, escapes from a Helicarrier in mid-flight, having stolen an undisclosed item then fights off a series of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to make good her escape.
Were it anyone except this team telling this story, I honestly don't know if they could have pulled it off with as much panache. I really love how Waid and Samnee basically hit the ground running with this story, and give the reader quite the mystery to chew on until the next issue comes out. After all, really engaging spy stories involve uncovering one mystery after another, and Waid and Samnee have laid down a pretty confounding one right off the bat.
What's striking is how there's minimal dialogue in this issue, and Black Widow herself doesn't even speak until the very last page, and even then only utters two words. Waid lets Samnee, who has taken on plotter duties with this series, do most of the storytelling, and he really runs with it.
Of course, stretching out a chase scene over an entire issue, no matter how talented the creative team, means that pretty much nothing else happens, and so it's understandable to decry what appears to be a bit of decompression, though given that this is apparently Samnee's first full plotted issue (he wrote and drew a short story in a Daredevil anthology last year), I'm willing to cut him a bit of slack, especially considering the eye-popping artwork that he and colorist Matt Wilson have turned in here, and especially considering that the lot of them now have me waiting on bated breath to see what happens next.
8.7/10
Budding Frenemies: A Review of Spider-Man/Deadpool issues #2 and #3
(w) Joe Kelly
(a) Ed McGuinness (pencils) Mark Morales (ink)
(c) Jason Keith
Having read the first three issues of one of Marvel's runaway best-selling titles, I can't help but constantly ask myself the same question: why on earth didn't they think of this sooner? Placing this book in the hands of Joe Kelly and Ed McGuinness, the creators arguably most commonly identified with the Merc with a Mouth after creators Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza, was really a stroke of creative and marketing genius, and now that the Deadpool film is a bona fide blockbuster, Marvel looks well-positioned to ride that particular gravy train all the way to the bank for quite a while.
In issue #2, Deadpool continues to stalk Spider-Man, but more importantly Peter Parker, who is supposed to be his next target, not knowing, of course, that they are one and the same. Peter's company is about to launch a very significant product, but things go awry when a whole horde of Goblins shows up, and it may take both Peter and new Spidey Miles Morales to take them down...or, it may all be the trickery of Mysterio, in which case Deadpool may yet be of some service to them.
In issue #3, Spider-Man has decided to "hang out" with Deadpool in view of his surprisingly altruistic actions during the Mysterio attack, in which Wade actually stopped Mysterio without killing him. As it turns out, this involves a trip to Bolivia, where the pair of them, accompanied by Deadpool's ragtag band of mercenaries, take on a couple of blasts from Spidey's past, supervillains Styx and Stone both of whom have gotten a bit of an upgrade since Spider-Man last saw them. Meanwhile, Deadpool continues to hatch his mysterious plot against Peter Parker's life.
Even more than the first issue, each of these issues is a complete, satisfying read which, at the same time, ties into a bigger narrative tapestry, with biting dialogue (as one would expect by putting two of the Marvel Universe's chattiest characters together), spot-on characterization for Spidey (and I presume Deadpool), remarkably well-staged action sequences, and some really stunning art by superstar McGuinness who, in my opinion, should get a shot an a Deadpool-free Spider-Man book sometime in the future. This is an artist who understands Spidey's body language in action, and he is fortunate to be paired with Kelly, who, as both a former collaborator and Spidey writer himself, understands that quite well.
Kelly's shown an outstanding knack for single-issue stories and the tales he has woven in these last two issues are an improvement over the first, but what's really got me intrigued is the ongoing thread involving Deadpool's contract on Peter Parker's life, something which will certainly come to a head soon. The question is, though: once that thread is resolved, how will Kelly justify having Deadpool spend so much time around Spider-Man? Well, if anyone can answer that question, Joe and Ed certainly can.
8.5/10
(a) Ed McGuinness (pencils) Mark Morales (ink)
(c) Jason Keith
Having read the first three issues of one of Marvel's runaway best-selling titles, I can't help but constantly ask myself the same question: why on earth didn't they think of this sooner? Placing this book in the hands of Joe Kelly and Ed McGuinness, the creators arguably most commonly identified with the Merc with a Mouth after creators Rob Liefeld and Fabian Nicieza, was really a stroke of creative and marketing genius, and now that the Deadpool film is a bona fide blockbuster, Marvel looks well-positioned to ride that particular gravy train all the way to the bank for quite a while.
In issue #2, Deadpool continues to stalk Spider-Man, but more importantly Peter Parker, who is supposed to be his next target, not knowing, of course, that they are one and the same. Peter's company is about to launch a very significant product, but things go awry when a whole horde of Goblins shows up, and it may take both Peter and new Spidey Miles Morales to take them down...or, it may all be the trickery of Mysterio, in which case Deadpool may yet be of some service to them.
In issue #3, Spider-Man has decided to "hang out" with Deadpool in view of his surprisingly altruistic actions during the Mysterio attack, in which Wade actually stopped Mysterio without killing him. As it turns out, this involves a trip to Bolivia, where the pair of them, accompanied by Deadpool's ragtag band of mercenaries, take on a couple of blasts from Spidey's past, supervillains Styx and Stone both of whom have gotten a bit of an upgrade since Spider-Man last saw them. Meanwhile, Deadpool continues to hatch his mysterious plot against Peter Parker's life.
Even more than the first issue, each of these issues is a complete, satisfying read which, at the same time, ties into a bigger narrative tapestry, with biting dialogue (as one would expect by putting two of the Marvel Universe's chattiest characters together), spot-on characterization for Spidey (and I presume Deadpool), remarkably well-staged action sequences, and some really stunning art by superstar McGuinness who, in my opinion, should get a shot an a Deadpool-free Spider-Man book sometime in the future. This is an artist who understands Spidey's body language in action, and he is fortunate to be paired with Kelly, who, as both a former collaborator and Spidey writer himself, understands that quite well.
Kelly's shown an outstanding knack for single-issue stories and the tales he has woven in these last two issues are an improvement over the first, but what's really got me intrigued is the ongoing thread involving Deadpool's contract on Peter Parker's life, something which will certainly come to a head soon. The question is, though: once that thread is resolved, how will Kelly justify having Deadpool spend so much time around Spider-Man? Well, if anyone can answer that question, Joe and Ed certainly can.
8.5/10
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Truly New and Different: A Review of the First Story-arc of All New, All Different Avengers (Issues #1 to #6)
written by Mark Waid
drawn by Adam Kubert (issues #1 to #3) and Mahmud Asrar (issues #4 to #6, back-up story in issue #1)
colored by Sonia Oback (issues #1 to #3) and Dave McCaig (issues #4 to #6, back-up story in issue #1)
Recent events have fragmented the Avengers. Tony Stark is broke, Steve Rogers' age has caught up with him, and the various other members have gone their own separate ways. However, circumstances conspire (as they often do), and soon Tony, Sam Wilson, once known as the Falcon, now known as Captain America, and the Vision, find themselves banding together with a handful of new recruits, the new Spider-Man (Miles Morales), the new Nova (Sam Alexander), the new Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), and the new Thor (Jane Foster) and forming an altogether new Avengers team, to face an extremely formidable threat: Kang the Conqueror. Worse still, he's conscripted a number of people to help him, like the murderous Warbringer, the mercenary Cyclone, the time-hopping Equinox and a shocking surprise recruit, which, all told, may prove too much for the newly-formed team.
I had wanted to review this arc issue by issue, especially after reading the much-hyped issue #4 (featuring the kiss between the new Thor and the new Cap) but couldn't get around to it, but I still think the arc as a whole is worth reviewing, especially for those on the fence about collecting this title.
The good news is that Mark Waid is in top form here, writing a pretty organic story as to why the various heroes involved should get together. It plays out better than the way Brian Bendis set up the "New Avengers" back in 2005, especially in terms of how he shoehorned Wolverine into the lineup, a fact which Waid pokes fun at in this series. The inaugural story arc is divided into two three-issue mini arcs and the whole thing is a very engaging read. Each of the four "new" Avengers gets ample "hero time" over the six issues, and it was nice to see Waid playing to each character's strengths. In particular, I really liked how Miles Morales used his brain to beat one of the bad guys in issue #6.
The even better news is that the artist lineup is superb. The nigh-legendary Adam Kubert lends his talents to the first three issues, but for me the real find is relative newcomer Mahmud Asrar, yet another recruit from the independent comics scene, whose work evokes Stuart Immonen and, in some instances, Adam Hughes. It's hard to find artists that have a handle both on action and character moments, but Asrar has them down pat. This new generation of artists like him, David Marquez and Sara Pichelli truly are taking comics to new visual heights.
As a flagship Avengers title, this one isn't bad at all. I have a hard time keeping track, considering there are three of them (one of which even has Deadpool, for some reason). I hope Marvel at least lets the team have a decent run before it inevitably reboots the title, as they have been wont to do for the last several years.
8/10
drawn by Adam Kubert (issues #1 to #3) and Mahmud Asrar (issues #4 to #6, back-up story in issue #1)
colored by Sonia Oback (issues #1 to #3) and Dave McCaig (issues #4 to #6, back-up story in issue #1)
Recent events have fragmented the Avengers. Tony Stark is broke, Steve Rogers' age has caught up with him, and the various other members have gone their own separate ways. However, circumstances conspire (as they often do), and soon Tony, Sam Wilson, once known as the Falcon, now known as Captain America, and the Vision, find themselves banding together with a handful of new recruits, the new Spider-Man (Miles Morales), the new Nova (Sam Alexander), the new Ms. Marvel (Kamala Khan), and the new Thor (Jane Foster) and forming an altogether new Avengers team, to face an extremely formidable threat: Kang the Conqueror. Worse still, he's conscripted a number of people to help him, like the murderous Warbringer, the mercenary Cyclone, the time-hopping Equinox and a shocking surprise recruit, which, all told, may prove too much for the newly-formed team.
I had wanted to review this arc issue by issue, especially after reading the much-hyped issue #4 (featuring the kiss between the new Thor and the new Cap) but couldn't get around to it, but I still think the arc as a whole is worth reviewing, especially for those on the fence about collecting this title.
The good news is that Mark Waid is in top form here, writing a pretty organic story as to why the various heroes involved should get together. It plays out better than the way Brian Bendis set up the "New Avengers" back in 2005, especially in terms of how he shoehorned Wolverine into the lineup, a fact which Waid pokes fun at in this series. The inaugural story arc is divided into two three-issue mini arcs and the whole thing is a very engaging read. Each of the four "new" Avengers gets ample "hero time" over the six issues, and it was nice to see Waid playing to each character's strengths. In particular, I really liked how Miles Morales used his brain to beat one of the bad guys in issue #6.
The even better news is that the artist lineup is superb. The nigh-legendary Adam Kubert lends his talents to the first three issues, but for me the real find is relative newcomer Mahmud Asrar, yet another recruit from the independent comics scene, whose work evokes Stuart Immonen and, in some instances, Adam Hughes. It's hard to find artists that have a handle both on action and character moments, but Asrar has them down pat. This new generation of artists like him, David Marquez and Sara Pichelli truly are taking comics to new visual heights.
As a flagship Avengers title, this one isn't bad at all. I have a hard time keeping track, considering there are three of them (one of which even has Deadpool, for some reason). I hope Marvel at least lets the team have a decent run before it inevitably reboots the title, as they have been wont to do for the last several years.
8/10
Reset Button: A Commentary on the Daredevil's New Status Quo as Contained in Daredevil #1, #2, #3 and #4
written by Charles Soule
drawn by Ron Garney
colored by Matt Milla
I have been a fan of Daredevil for over twenty years, and the creative run of writer Mark Waid and Chris Samnee, that ran for over four years, remains one of my very favorites. I initially had intended to drop the title after their run ended late last year, but when the new creative team of Charles Soule and Ron Garney started getting favorable reviews I decided to give at least the first full story arc a shot.
As I had predicted, the new creative run marks a return to a more "noir" storytelling approach, and the color palette Matt Milla uses here is so muted that the comic, save for parts of Daredevil's costume, is actually in black and white.
Matt Murdock has left California for New York, and through a method that has been left unexplained to the reader for now, he has managed to get everyone in the Marvel Universe, save for one person, to forget his secret identity. He's been reinstated to the New York bar, but rather than work his traditional role as a defense attorney, he's taken on a different challenge; he now works at the district attorney's office, where he faces a considerable challenge in attempting to prosecute a mysterious religious leader named Tenfingers. Now that he's a prosecutor Matt fights Tenfingers on two fronts; in the courts and as Daredevil, but from the look of things he may have met his match, especially since Tenfingers has learned a thing or two from the group he used to hang out with, namely the Hand. Fortunately, Daredevil has a bit of help in the form of an apprentice/sidekick, the undocumented immigrant Sam, who moonlights as the crimefighter Blindside to protect Chinatown from the likes of Tenfingers.
I'm actually glad Soule and Garney made a clean break from the past status quo, and that the reason it came undone was apparently something to do with the recently-concluded Secret Wars event. I'm especially glad that it's with regret that Matt realizes what he gave up, as a firm nod to what came before, even as the new team heads in their own direction.
That said, even though this run sets out to do something entirely different, it still doesn't quite grab me the way the last series did.
For one thing, the stories feel a little "slow-burn" for me, like a throwback to Bendis' decompression days. One of the strengths of Waid's storytelling was his ability to craft issues that for the most part, could serve as "done-in-ones" and parts of a larger tapestry. A sterling example of this would be the issues leading into Daredevil's most recent showdown with Bullseye, in which several of the five-issue arc worked on their own and as part of the larger narrative. Soule clearly attempts that here, but most of the issues fall flat, largely because the action scenes seem to just meld into one another. Much has been said about Soule's being an attorney, but thus far, Matt has yet to have any courtroom exploits so it's hard to judge whether or not this will be an actual asset to the storytelling.
Speaking of people supposedly bringing their real-life skills to their storytelling, artist Ron Garney, whose style is actually well-suited to this minimalist, noir-inspired storytelling, is a rather noticeable step down from Samnee, not only as a draftsman but as a storyteller and even as a fight choreographer, which is kind of ironic considering he's supposedly a jiu jitsu practitioner and even instructor. His fight sequences are mostly limited to splash panels and the usual cheat of having Daredevil's foot or fist in someone's face. I guess it really doesn't follow that a martial arts expert would necessarily be the best person to draw a fight scene. I think it's worth pointing out, though, that this specific presentation of the art somewhat flatters his artwork, which would not look anywhere near as good in a more colorful book like, say, All-New Avengers.
Sure, call me biased, but as much as one should judge this story and this team on their own merits, I will inevitably use their predecessors as my yardstick, especially since the book to which they have moved, Black Widow, has just launched an awesome first issue (which I will review shortly).
It's a little early to judge if this run will go down as one of the all-time greats, but the team is off to a decent, if not particularly outstanding, start.
7.5/10
drawn by Ron Garney
colored by Matt Milla
I have been a fan of Daredevil for over twenty years, and the creative run of writer Mark Waid and Chris Samnee, that ran for over four years, remains one of my very favorites. I initially had intended to drop the title after their run ended late last year, but when the new creative team of Charles Soule and Ron Garney started getting favorable reviews I decided to give at least the first full story arc a shot.
As I had predicted, the new creative run marks a return to a more "noir" storytelling approach, and the color palette Matt Milla uses here is so muted that the comic, save for parts of Daredevil's costume, is actually in black and white.
Matt Murdock has left California for New York, and through a method that has been left unexplained to the reader for now, he has managed to get everyone in the Marvel Universe, save for one person, to forget his secret identity. He's been reinstated to the New York bar, but rather than work his traditional role as a defense attorney, he's taken on a different challenge; he now works at the district attorney's office, where he faces a considerable challenge in attempting to prosecute a mysterious religious leader named Tenfingers. Now that he's a prosecutor Matt fights Tenfingers on two fronts; in the courts and as Daredevil, but from the look of things he may have met his match, especially since Tenfingers has learned a thing or two from the group he used to hang out with, namely the Hand. Fortunately, Daredevil has a bit of help in the form of an apprentice/sidekick, the undocumented immigrant Sam, who moonlights as the crimefighter Blindside to protect Chinatown from the likes of Tenfingers.
I'm actually glad Soule and Garney made a clean break from the past status quo, and that the reason it came undone was apparently something to do with the recently-concluded Secret Wars event. I'm especially glad that it's with regret that Matt realizes what he gave up, as a firm nod to what came before, even as the new team heads in their own direction.
That said, even though this run sets out to do something entirely different, it still doesn't quite grab me the way the last series did.
For one thing, the stories feel a little "slow-burn" for me, like a throwback to Bendis' decompression days. One of the strengths of Waid's storytelling was his ability to craft issues that for the most part, could serve as "done-in-ones" and parts of a larger tapestry. A sterling example of this would be the issues leading into Daredevil's most recent showdown with Bullseye, in which several of the five-issue arc worked on their own and as part of the larger narrative. Soule clearly attempts that here, but most of the issues fall flat, largely because the action scenes seem to just meld into one another. Much has been said about Soule's being an attorney, but thus far, Matt has yet to have any courtroom exploits so it's hard to judge whether or not this will be an actual asset to the storytelling.
Speaking of people supposedly bringing their real-life skills to their storytelling, artist Ron Garney, whose style is actually well-suited to this minimalist, noir-inspired storytelling, is a rather noticeable step down from Samnee, not only as a draftsman but as a storyteller and even as a fight choreographer, which is kind of ironic considering he's supposedly a jiu jitsu practitioner and even instructor. His fight sequences are mostly limited to splash panels and the usual cheat of having Daredevil's foot or fist in someone's face. I guess it really doesn't follow that a martial arts expert would necessarily be the best person to draw a fight scene. I think it's worth pointing out, though, that this specific presentation of the art somewhat flatters his artwork, which would not look anywhere near as good in a more colorful book like, say, All-New Avengers.
Sure, call me biased, but as much as one should judge this story and this team on their own merits, I will inevitably use their predecessors as my yardstick, especially since the book to which they have moved, Black Widow, has just launched an awesome first issue (which I will review shortly).
It's a little early to judge if this run will go down as one of the all-time greats, but the team is off to a decent, if not particularly outstanding, start.
7.5/10
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