written by Margaret Stohl
penciled by Carlos Pacheco
inked by Rafael Monteriz
colored by Marcio Menyz
flashback sequences illustrated and colored by Marguerite Sauvage
With Joe Danvers Jr. having woken from his coma and getting steadily better, Carol starts thinking about heading back to the Avengers, even as she struggles with how nonchalant her mother seems to be about the fact that her husband, Carols' father had an affair years ago. To Carol's shock, apparently even Joe Jr. knew about the affair. Unfortunately, Carol doesn't have the chance to really talk things out with her mother as the Kree warrior who's been tracking her down since the first issue finally shows up. Things get violent, and then...surprising.
This issue's made a few waves in comic book news circles for the revelation made here, which I won't spoil, but perhaps the real good news is that this is the first time that this miniseries has shown any real signs of life, and I don't just say that because things start blowing up in this issue. No, things get interesting because Carol's mom finally starts getting animated in her conversations with Carol about her dad's secret past, Joe Jr. shares his own recollections about Joe Sr.'s secret love, who may have been something other than human, and everything comes to a head when the Kree warrior hits town with heavy ordnance. In short, this is the kind of pacing that could have benefited the book two issues ago, but hey, better late than never.
Carlos Pacheco, for the first time since this miniseries started, really comes alive in these pages, as do his inker Rafeal Monteriz and his colorist Marcio Menyz. Maybe they're just responding to the fact that this is the first script that's really given them something to sink their teeth into, from the more mundane panels like Carol's mom openly losing her temper with her to the action-packed skirmish between Carol and the Kree drones, to the shocking final splash page. Ironically, it's Marguerite Sauvage, whose work I've regularly been praising, who kind of let me down this issue, which makes it a good thing that Pacheco and crew are doing all the heavy lifting.
There are two issues to go in this miniseries, and that's plenty of time to unravel the mystery that's surrounded Joe Danvers Sr.'s apparent affair AND give readers some Kree-punching goodness. I'm glad Stohl's scripting has finally picked up the pace and I hope she carries the momentum over the next couple of issues.
8/10
Sunday, September 23, 2018
Assembling in the Arctic: A Review of The Avengers #8
written by Jason Aaron
drawn by David Marquez
colored by Justin Ponsor
After finally wrapping up his somewhat disappointing "Dark Celestials" epic a couple of months back, Jason Aaron delivered a one-shot origin story for the Ghost Rider of 1,000,000 B.C. which I honestly found so weak that, after enduring months of disappointment with this title, I didn't even bother to review it, even for Sara Pichelli's artwork, which, incidentally, was below her usual standard in that issue.
Fortunately, Aaron manages to bounce back a bit with this issue, in which the new team finally has a chance to officially assemble, and the next big storyline, one involving the infamous Roxxon corporation and Namor, the Submariner, is set up. Interestingly, upon their defeat of the Dark Celestials, the "light Celestials" make a gift to the Avengers of the gigantic carcass of the Progenitor, the Celestial who, according to the last story, gave birth to humanity, which is effectively the new Avengers' Tower. Defeated yet again, Loki delivers a brief soliloquy on how the Avengers owe their very existence as a team to him before he is whisked away by the Celestials to pay for his crimes. Doctor Strange takes his leave, opting to serve as a reserve member, but for everyone else, namely Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel and new recruit Ghost Rider, this is now their new headquarters.
This is a relatively quiet issue, considering that Aaron wasn't much for talking-heads type narratives for the first story arc, but it's effective storytelling in that it quickly takes stock of what happened in the last arc, finally settles in the new team, and immediately sets the stage for the next big adventure. It was actually an effective epilogue to the last story arc, with the new headquarters being introduced and with Loki finally being dealt with (though of course, we know he'll be back).
Also, after the extremely uneven art that resulted from having Ed McGuinness and Paco Medina alternate on this title, I'm hoping for some consistency with A-list artist David Marquez on board, even though he's had Carol Danvers sprout a hilariously long mane of hair after she spent the first story arc with a crew cut. I'm glad Marquez came along, to be honest, because I'd already resolved to drop the book after McGuinness left considering how disappointed I was by the first few issues. I'm glad my patience with Aaron has paid off as well, because I've known this guy to be a talented writer, albeit one who just lost his stride during the first arc.
8/10
drawn by David Marquez
colored by Justin Ponsor
After finally wrapping up his somewhat disappointing "Dark Celestials" epic a couple of months back, Jason Aaron delivered a one-shot origin story for the Ghost Rider of 1,000,000 B.C. which I honestly found so weak that, after enduring months of disappointment with this title, I didn't even bother to review it, even for Sara Pichelli's artwork, which, incidentally, was below her usual standard in that issue.
Fortunately, Aaron manages to bounce back a bit with this issue, in which the new team finally has a chance to officially assemble, and the next big storyline, one involving the infamous Roxxon corporation and Namor, the Submariner, is set up. Interestingly, upon their defeat of the Dark Celestials, the "light Celestials" make a gift to the Avengers of the gigantic carcass of the Progenitor, the Celestial who, according to the last story, gave birth to humanity, which is effectively the new Avengers' Tower. Defeated yet again, Loki delivers a brief soliloquy on how the Avengers owe their very existence as a team to him before he is whisked away by the Celestials to pay for his crimes. Doctor Strange takes his leave, opting to serve as a reserve member, but for everyone else, namely Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel and new recruit Ghost Rider, this is now their new headquarters.
This is a relatively quiet issue, considering that Aaron wasn't much for talking-heads type narratives for the first story arc, but it's effective storytelling in that it quickly takes stock of what happened in the last arc, finally settles in the new team, and immediately sets the stage for the next big adventure. It was actually an effective epilogue to the last story arc, with the new headquarters being introduced and with Loki finally being dealt with (though of course, we know he'll be back).
Also, after the extremely uneven art that resulted from having Ed McGuinness and Paco Medina alternate on this title, I'm hoping for some consistency with A-list artist David Marquez on board, even though he's had Carol Danvers sprout a hilariously long mane of hair after she spent the first story arc with a crew cut. I'm glad Marquez came along, to be honest, because I'd already resolved to drop the book after McGuinness left considering how disappointed I was by the first few issues. I'm glad my patience with Aaron has paid off as well, because I've known this guy to be a talented writer, albeit one who just lost his stride during the first arc.
8/10
The Rescuers: A Review of Captain America Annual 2018
written by Tini Howard
penciled by Chris Sprouse and Ron Lim
inked by Karl Story, Walden Wong and Scott Hanna
colored by Jesus Aburtov, Erick Arciniega and Israel Silva
The year is 1944. The Second World War is almost over, and Captain America and Bucky are on a reconnaissance mission, deep in enemy territory, when they stumble upon an emaciated woman wandering through the forest. They follow her, only to find that she is one of three people who have escaped from a concentration camp and are hiding in a goat farm. They are Marta, the woman Cap and Bucky followed, and a Roma, Iskra, a Jewish woman, and Volya, the son of Russian immigrants with a dark (but somewhat predictable) secret that impels him to escape Germany at all costs. Cap and Bucky have their work cut out for them as they must now help these three escape to safety, even though they're basically surrounded by Germans.
Marvel's been pretty fond of these "back in the 40s" stories featuring Cap and Bucky, and in truth they've been made even more interesting following Bucky's resurrection and simultaneous retcon into a juvenile killing machine. I was a huge fan of the Captain America and Bucky miniseries that Ed Brubaker, Marc Andreyko and Chris Samnee produced seven years ago, around the time of the first Captain America movie. That was nostalgia done right, and even though that series revisited an old, frequently used story setting, each issue really did feel, like an "untold story."
I cannot, unfortunately, say the same for this story, which seems to be less about Captain America and Bucky and more about the three escaped prisoners they meet. Here, we meet characters who break the usual narrative trope of Jews fleeing the Holocaust, as only one out the three of them is actually Jewish. Howard, descended (like most Americans) from immigrants, presents Marta, a Romani, and Volya, a Russian who was in the camp for a very distinct reason. Notably, both of them have considerably more exposure than Iskra. Unfortunately, because of limited pages and Howard's desire to reveal Volya's thinly-veiled secret late in the issue, we really don't learn a whole lot about any of these characters, and as a result they, Cap, Bucky, and the story all lose out.
In short, unlike The Amazing Spider-man Annual I just reviewed, which revisited a beloved period from a well-known character's past and found a surprisingly fresh story to tell, this story, seems content to swap out an actual story with a heavy-handed attempt at pushing an advocacy, yet again using Nazi Germany as an analogue for Trump's America. While that parallel is certainly not undeserved, it seems to have been given premium over the storytelling itself, which is a shame, because Howard has shown a knack for some pretty snappy dialogue as shown by the exchanges between Cap, Bucky and the prisoners, and some interesting characterization. Again, though, because of so little time to develop these characters, they barely get to leave an impression.
I suppose I'd have been a lot kinder to this story had I not been so blown away by Saladin Ahmed's work over in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual, but one thing this book does have over that one is Chris Sprouse's crisp art, which gets a teeny-tiny boost from the ever-reliable Ron Lim, who works on a few pages here as well. Sprouse, whose work I knew about over when he was working at DC and on Alan Moore's Tom Strong books, is a great choice for this period setting, and he does not disappoint at all. He's not quite Chris Samnee, but hey, I'm okay with that.
6.5/10
penciled by Chris Sprouse and Ron Lim
inked by Karl Story, Walden Wong and Scott Hanna
colored by Jesus Aburtov, Erick Arciniega and Israel Silva
The year is 1944. The Second World War is almost over, and Captain America and Bucky are on a reconnaissance mission, deep in enemy territory, when they stumble upon an emaciated woman wandering through the forest. They follow her, only to find that she is one of three people who have escaped from a concentration camp and are hiding in a goat farm. They are Marta, the woman Cap and Bucky followed, and a Roma, Iskra, a Jewish woman, and Volya, the son of Russian immigrants with a dark (but somewhat predictable) secret that impels him to escape Germany at all costs. Cap and Bucky have their work cut out for them as they must now help these three escape to safety, even though they're basically surrounded by Germans.
Marvel's been pretty fond of these "back in the 40s" stories featuring Cap and Bucky, and in truth they've been made even more interesting following Bucky's resurrection and simultaneous retcon into a juvenile killing machine. I was a huge fan of the Captain America and Bucky miniseries that Ed Brubaker, Marc Andreyko and Chris Samnee produced seven years ago, around the time of the first Captain America movie. That was nostalgia done right, and even though that series revisited an old, frequently used story setting, each issue really did feel, like an "untold story."
I cannot, unfortunately, say the same for this story, which seems to be less about Captain America and Bucky and more about the three escaped prisoners they meet. Here, we meet characters who break the usual narrative trope of Jews fleeing the Holocaust, as only one out the three of them is actually Jewish. Howard, descended (like most Americans) from immigrants, presents Marta, a Romani, and Volya, a Russian who was in the camp for a very distinct reason. Notably, both of them have considerably more exposure than Iskra. Unfortunately, because of limited pages and Howard's desire to reveal Volya's thinly-veiled secret late in the issue, we really don't learn a whole lot about any of these characters, and as a result they, Cap, Bucky, and the story all lose out.
In short, unlike The Amazing Spider-man Annual I just reviewed, which revisited a beloved period from a well-known character's past and found a surprisingly fresh story to tell, this story, seems content to swap out an actual story with a heavy-handed attempt at pushing an advocacy, yet again using Nazi Germany as an analogue for Trump's America. While that parallel is certainly not undeserved, it seems to have been given premium over the storytelling itself, which is a shame, because Howard has shown a knack for some pretty snappy dialogue as shown by the exchanges between Cap, Bucky and the prisoners, and some interesting characterization. Again, though, because of so little time to develop these characters, they barely get to leave an impression.
I suppose I'd have been a lot kinder to this story had I not been so blown away by Saladin Ahmed's work over in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual, but one thing this book does have over that one is Chris Sprouse's crisp art, which gets a teeny-tiny boost from the ever-reliable Ron Lim, who works on a few pages here as well. Sprouse, whose work I knew about over when he was working at DC and on Alan Moore's Tom Strong books, is a great choice for this period setting, and he does not disappoint at all. He's not quite Chris Samnee, but hey, I'm okay with that.
6.5/10
Friday, September 21, 2018
Sleep-Crimefighting: A Review of The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #43 (2018)
written by Saladin Ahmed
drawn by Garry Brown
colored by Lee Loughridge
I'm happy that in the last few years, Marvel Comics has revived the tradition of "Annuals" or extended one-shots that showcase talents that don't work on the regular books. I've bought two of them this week, and I'll review the one I liked better first.
Back in the 1980s, during the "Secret Wars" storyline that was actually created to promote a line of toys by Mattel, Spider-Man, along with several other heroes, fought on a distant planet called Battleworld, and picked up a little souvenir in the form of an alien symbiote, which went on to become his costume, until he finally learned what it was and rejected it. That story, which was told quite exhaustively and effectively back in the 80s, remains a pretty significant point in Spidey's career.
Interestingly, however, writer Saladin Ahmed managed to find a story that happens between the lines of that seminal symbiote saga that Tom DeFalco, Rick Leonardi and Ron Frenz told back in the day. There's a brief portion of that saga, barely even half a page, that shows Spidey leaping through the concrete canyons of New York, with the storytellers revealing that, throughout all this, Peter is sound asleep and that it's the symbiote that's actually doing all the bounding. Ahmed's story is premised on the simple question: what if, aside from just jumping around while Peter was asleep inside, the symbiote fought crime too? He's able to pull this off by telling the story from the symbiote's point of view. It really is an entertaining yarn, which not only features classic characters like the Black Cat (a staple of that era) and Hammerhead, but even includes a logical, plausible reason why the characters involved have never before discussed the events that unfolded in this "untold story."
Ahmed's writing is, for the most part, rock solid here, and while I'd previously had no interest in checking out his work on Black Bolt (not an Inhumans fan), I have enjoyed this story enough to consider checking out his upcoming run on the Miles Morales relaunch title in a few months' time. Even though the story is told mainly from the point of view of the alien symbiote, something that hadn't been done in its pre-Venom days, Ahmed shows he's got a good handle on what makes Peter Parker tick. I also liked how substantial he managed to make this story feel. This is a huge improvement over the last two Spider-Man Annuals I've read, neither of which I actually reviewed here, precisely because of how inconsequential they felt from a writing perspective.
As much as I'd love to wax lyrical about how perfect this standalone story is, there are two things that keep me from doing so, one pretty minor, but the other one somewhat major.
The minor thing that bothered me was how, at the ending of the book, when Peter actually goes to see Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four about the symbiote, something he did in the original story as well, his mask is off and his face exposed to Reed. This is glaringly out-of-character for a pre-Civil War Spider-Man. In fact, one of the most memorable images from that story was Spider-Man swinging around in a spare Fantastic Four costume with a paper bag over his head in order to protect his secret identity. Sure, Reed clearly doesn't know who Spider-Man is here, as he refers to him by his hero name, but it would have just sealed the deal if this story, which up until that point had been pretty airtight from a continuity perspective, had also given a nod of respect to that crucial aspect of Peter's character.
Now, the major thing that bothered me about this book was how downright ugly the art was. When Marvel's marketing for this issue consisted solely of the cover by ACO and Marcelo Maiolo I kind of worried a little bit that they weren't showing us interiors and now, having read the issue, I see that I was a bit right to be concerned. Garry Brown isn't the worst artist I've ever come across, but he is a distinct step down from Ryan Ottley, whose work adorns the monthly title. I get that Brown has a specific style, but it's a terrible fit for this kind of story. Loughridge's murky coloring doesn't do the book any favors either. Was neither Ron Frenz nor Rick Leonardi available for this? Either one of them would have knocked it out of the park, and would probably have been able to remind editorial that back then, Spider-Man wouldn't have shown his face to anyone, not even a fellow superhero.
It's a shame this book stumbled in something as important as the art, because that little goof involving Peter's secret identity notwithstanding, I still think this was an outstanding story that cements Ahmed's credentials as a Spidey writer, which is a very good thing considering his upcoming gig, even if it is a different Spidey he'll be writing.
Anyway, for anyone who enjoyed the symbiote saga back in the 80s, I still recommend this comic book.
7.9/10
drawn by Garry Brown
colored by Lee Loughridge
I'm happy that in the last few years, Marvel Comics has revived the tradition of "Annuals" or extended one-shots that showcase talents that don't work on the regular books. I've bought two of them this week, and I'll review the one I liked better first.
Back in the 1980s, during the "Secret Wars" storyline that was actually created to promote a line of toys by Mattel, Spider-Man, along with several other heroes, fought on a distant planet called Battleworld, and picked up a little souvenir in the form of an alien symbiote, which went on to become his costume, until he finally learned what it was and rejected it. That story, which was told quite exhaustively and effectively back in the 80s, remains a pretty significant point in Spidey's career.
Interestingly, however, writer Saladin Ahmed managed to find a story that happens between the lines of that seminal symbiote saga that Tom DeFalco, Rick Leonardi and Ron Frenz told back in the day. There's a brief portion of that saga, barely even half a page, that shows Spidey leaping through the concrete canyons of New York, with the storytellers revealing that, throughout all this, Peter is sound asleep and that it's the symbiote that's actually doing all the bounding. Ahmed's story is premised on the simple question: what if, aside from just jumping around while Peter was asleep inside, the symbiote fought crime too? He's able to pull this off by telling the story from the symbiote's point of view. It really is an entertaining yarn, which not only features classic characters like the Black Cat (a staple of that era) and Hammerhead, but even includes a logical, plausible reason why the characters involved have never before discussed the events that unfolded in this "untold story."
Ahmed's writing is, for the most part, rock solid here, and while I'd previously had no interest in checking out his work on Black Bolt (not an Inhumans fan), I have enjoyed this story enough to consider checking out his upcoming run on the Miles Morales relaunch title in a few months' time. Even though the story is told mainly from the point of view of the alien symbiote, something that hadn't been done in its pre-Venom days, Ahmed shows he's got a good handle on what makes Peter Parker tick. I also liked how substantial he managed to make this story feel. This is a huge improvement over the last two Spider-Man Annuals I've read, neither of which I actually reviewed here, precisely because of how inconsequential they felt from a writing perspective.
As much as I'd love to wax lyrical about how perfect this standalone story is, there are two things that keep me from doing so, one pretty minor, but the other one somewhat major.
The minor thing that bothered me was how, at the ending of the book, when Peter actually goes to see Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four about the symbiote, something he did in the original story as well, his mask is off and his face exposed to Reed. This is glaringly out-of-character for a pre-Civil War Spider-Man. In fact, one of the most memorable images from that story was Spider-Man swinging around in a spare Fantastic Four costume with a paper bag over his head in order to protect his secret identity. Sure, Reed clearly doesn't know who Spider-Man is here, as he refers to him by his hero name, but it would have just sealed the deal if this story, which up until that point had been pretty airtight from a continuity perspective, had also given a nod of respect to that crucial aspect of Peter's character.
Now, the major thing that bothered me about this book was how downright ugly the art was. When Marvel's marketing for this issue consisted solely of the cover by ACO and Marcelo Maiolo I kind of worried a little bit that they weren't showing us interiors and now, having read the issue, I see that I was a bit right to be concerned. Garry Brown isn't the worst artist I've ever come across, but he is a distinct step down from Ryan Ottley, whose work adorns the monthly title. I get that Brown has a specific style, but it's a terrible fit for this kind of story. Loughridge's murky coloring doesn't do the book any favors either. Was neither Ron Frenz nor Rick Leonardi available for this? Either one of them would have knocked it out of the park, and would probably have been able to remind editorial that back then, Spider-Man wouldn't have shown his face to anyone, not even a fellow superhero.
It's a shame this book stumbled in something as important as the art, because that little goof involving Peter's secret identity notwithstanding, I still think this was an outstanding story that cements Ahmed's credentials as a Spidey writer, which is a very good thing considering his upcoming gig, even if it is a different Spidey he'll be writing.
Anyway, for anyone who enjoyed the symbiote saga back in the 80s, I still recommend this comic book.
7.9/10
Monday, September 17, 2018
Marvel Addresses "Gamergate"...Sort of....A Review of Marvel Rising: Alpha, Marvel Rising: Squirrel Girl and Ms. Marvel and Marvel Rising: Omega
written by Devin Grayson, Ryan North and G. Willow Wilson
drawn by Georges Duarte, Ramon Bachs, Irene Strychalski and Roberto diSalvo
If I understand this correctly the "Marvel Rising" miniseries is essentially a promotion for an upcoming animated series featuring Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Doreen Green, aka Squirrel Girl in leading roles. That would explain the overtly cartoony illustrations and the relatively kid-friendly storytelling approach.
In this story, Doreen works part-time teaching a class on game programming to help high school kids get into STEM, at the very same school where Kamala studies. Also studying at this school is Ember Quade, a gaming prodigy whose life in the real world is somewhat less than ideal, as she is always being moved from one state, and consequently one school to another. As a result, she is often bullied, especially by boys who can't take losing to a girl and only has one friend, whom she's only ever met online. She also has a secret: having been exposed to the Terrigen Mists that were released all over the world a while back, she also has super powers. When the bullying becomes too much for Ember to bear, she summons, albeit unwittingly, video game monsters that Kamala and Doreen have to fight, and when her mysterious online friend invites her for a meetup, things really start to get out of control, and Ms. Marvel and Squirrel Girl end up needing a bit of help, and fortunately, they get it from America Chavez and Inferno, aka Dante Pertuz. When Ember's mystery friend, however, turns out to be a deadly, longtime bad guy with a penchant for death traps, even the four of them might not be enough to save Ember.
I'm normally not a fan of these TV tie-in/promotional comics because Marvel usually enlists D-list talent to work on them, but it pleases me to note that this miniseries is an exception, at least far as the art is concerned. With an art team like Duarte, Bachs, Strychalski and diSalvo, this book is all win in the art department, though Duarte does the heavy lifting. It's all entirely consistent with the tone that writer Devin Grayson, who gets a helping hand from Unbeatable Squirrel Girl writer Ryan North and Ms. Marvel writer G. Willow Wilson, has set.
Speaking of the story, though, I have a few issues. For one thing, as much as I liked the back-and-forth between Ms. Marvel, Squirrel Girl and the other characters, I'm pretty sure this story could have been told just as effectively in a 40-page one-shot, or, if one wanted to stretch it a bit, a two-part series with 30 pages each. Either way, 100 pages (and I'm not even counting the Free Comic Book Day prequel) were way too much for a story that was not only inconsequential in the grand scheme but fairly standard, without any significant twists or turns. As cash grabs go, this was a pretty shameless one. One could practically just take out "Marvel Rising: Ms. Marvel and Squirrel Girl" and the story would still manage to make sense. That's how much filler there was here.
For me, the bigger sin here was the wasted opportunity to address what is arguably the scourge of pop culture of the last few years, namely gamergate, which is easily one of the most hateful things to happen to a fan community. Grayson touches on it briefly as she shows Ember being bullied by boys after she's beaten them in an online game, which sets her on her journey to super villainy, but never mentions it again, choosing instead to have Ember spout of some hackneyed "I don't need your help" dialogue. I get that this is basically aimed at kids (though it is rated "T" for teens) and that there were probably marching orders to avoid topics that were too controversial, but given that gamergate is a controversy that involves the abuse of women, I would have hoped that Grayson, one of the few prominent female writers at Marvel, would have given this topic more than just passing mention. If anything, the fact that she mentioned it at all, only to fill up the rest of the story with fluff, did the people who have genuinely been affected by this phenomenon a disservice.
So all told, this series has got very good artwork, a so-so, overextended story, and a sadly squandered opportunity to address a very topical issue. I don't really see myself coming back for a regular series, assuming one is in the pipeline, but this was at least worth checking out, if only for the art.
6/10
drawn by Georges Duarte, Ramon Bachs, Irene Strychalski and Roberto diSalvo
If I understand this correctly the "Marvel Rising" miniseries is essentially a promotion for an upcoming animated series featuring Kamala Khan, aka Ms. Marvel, and Doreen Green, aka Squirrel Girl in leading roles. That would explain the overtly cartoony illustrations and the relatively kid-friendly storytelling approach.
In this story, Doreen works part-time teaching a class on game programming to help high school kids get into STEM, at the very same school where Kamala studies. Also studying at this school is Ember Quade, a gaming prodigy whose life in the real world is somewhat less than ideal, as she is always being moved from one state, and consequently one school to another. As a result, she is often bullied, especially by boys who can't take losing to a girl and only has one friend, whom she's only ever met online. She also has a secret: having been exposed to the Terrigen Mists that were released all over the world a while back, she also has super powers. When the bullying becomes too much for Ember to bear, she summons, albeit unwittingly, video game monsters that Kamala and Doreen have to fight, and when her mysterious online friend invites her for a meetup, things really start to get out of control, and Ms. Marvel and Squirrel Girl end up needing a bit of help, and fortunately, they get it from America Chavez and Inferno, aka Dante Pertuz. When Ember's mystery friend, however, turns out to be a deadly, longtime bad guy with a penchant for death traps, even the four of them might not be enough to save Ember.
I'm normally not a fan of these TV tie-in/promotional comics because Marvel usually enlists D-list talent to work on them, but it pleases me to note that this miniseries is an exception, at least far as the art is concerned. With an art team like Duarte, Bachs, Strychalski and diSalvo, this book is all win in the art department, though Duarte does the heavy lifting. It's all entirely consistent with the tone that writer Devin Grayson, who gets a helping hand from Unbeatable Squirrel Girl writer Ryan North and Ms. Marvel writer G. Willow Wilson, has set.
Speaking of the story, though, I have a few issues. For one thing, as much as I liked the back-and-forth between Ms. Marvel, Squirrel Girl and the other characters, I'm pretty sure this story could have been told just as effectively in a 40-page one-shot, or, if one wanted to stretch it a bit, a two-part series with 30 pages each. Either way, 100 pages (and I'm not even counting the Free Comic Book Day prequel) were way too much for a story that was not only inconsequential in the grand scheme but fairly standard, without any significant twists or turns. As cash grabs go, this was a pretty shameless one. One could practically just take out "Marvel Rising: Ms. Marvel and Squirrel Girl" and the story would still manage to make sense. That's how much filler there was here.
For me, the bigger sin here was the wasted opportunity to address what is arguably the scourge of pop culture of the last few years, namely gamergate, which is easily one of the most hateful things to happen to a fan community. Grayson touches on it briefly as she shows Ember being bullied by boys after she's beaten them in an online game, which sets her on her journey to super villainy, but never mentions it again, choosing instead to have Ember spout of some hackneyed "I don't need your help" dialogue. I get that this is basically aimed at kids (though it is rated "T" for teens) and that there were probably marching orders to avoid topics that were too controversial, but given that gamergate is a controversy that involves the abuse of women, I would have hoped that Grayson, one of the few prominent female writers at Marvel, would have given this topic more than just passing mention. If anything, the fact that she mentioned it at all, only to fill up the rest of the story with fluff, did the people who have genuinely been affected by this phenomenon a disservice.
So all told, this series has got very good artwork, a so-so, overextended story, and a sadly squandered opportunity to address a very topical issue. I don't really see myself coming back for a regular series, assuming one is in the pipeline, but this was at least worth checking out, if only for the art.
6/10
Sunday, September 16, 2018
Family Ties: A Review of Daredevil #608
written by Charles Soule
drawn and colored by Phil Noto
Matt Murdock aka Daredevil finds himself facing an unusual problem, even for him: having allied himself with Frank McGee in his quest to take down Wilson Fisk, who, he has learned, apparently cheated during the elections that made him Mayor of New York City, he now finds himself chasing down a realized version of a one-time figment of his imagination, Mike Murdock, a fake "twin brother" identity he had created years ago, who has been given life by the powers of one of McGee's associates, an Inhuman named Reader who can actually create things simply by reading them. That same erstwhile figment holds Matt's very real one-time law partner Foggy Nelson hostage, and leaves Matt with the uncomfortable decision of how to deal with a man who truly believes himself to be "real." It is within Reader's power to erase was has been created, but can Matt bring himself to wipe this strange creature out of existence? The answer could prove pivotal to Matt's mission.
As I've long suspected, this story arc is leading up to something very big for this character, quite possibly a relaunch to coincide (more or less) with the 20th anniversary of the Marvel Knights line of comic books which revitalized a flagging Marvel Comics back in 1998 and which, quite arguably, helped lay the creative groundwork for what eventually became the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Daredevil was the crown jewel of that line, back in the day, and so it is fitting that after months of just letting Soule do his own thing on this book, for better or worse, Marvel are finally building up the hype train for this latest story, and Soule is definitely delivering the goods here, especially with this chapter that may not be heavy on action, but which promises to have a pretty big impact on things to come.
While Soule brought DD back to his noir setting with Ron Garney, it's really interesting to see him working with a decidedly more colorful artist in Phil Noto, whose work on the last three issues has been consistently good, and who, apparently, is going to see this all the way through. I have to say, I much prefer Noto's renderings nowadays to his work back on the ill-fated Black Widow title he worked on with disgraced writer Nathan Edmonson. I'm glad Soule's brought him on board, because artistic consistency has been one of the recurring problems of this book over Soule's three-year run.
Having Daredevil face off against Kingpin is so old-hat for this character by now that it can be a real challenge to introduce new elements to keep such stories fresh, and to his credit, Soule has done exactly that. He already upped the ante considerably by planting Fisk in City Hall, but now he's added even more spice to the mix, and it should be very, very interesting to see how this all plays out in four issues' time. If this is Soule's swansong on the book, I have to say he's really pulling out all the stops for this one. This final story may be the one to get people to mention him alongside the likes of Frank Miller, Brian Bendis and Mark Waid.
8/10
drawn and colored by Phil Noto
Matt Murdock aka Daredevil finds himself facing an unusual problem, even for him: having allied himself with Frank McGee in his quest to take down Wilson Fisk, who, he has learned, apparently cheated during the elections that made him Mayor of New York City, he now finds himself chasing down a realized version of a one-time figment of his imagination, Mike Murdock, a fake "twin brother" identity he had created years ago, who has been given life by the powers of one of McGee's associates, an Inhuman named Reader who can actually create things simply by reading them. That same erstwhile figment holds Matt's very real one-time law partner Foggy Nelson hostage, and leaves Matt with the uncomfortable decision of how to deal with a man who truly believes himself to be "real." It is within Reader's power to erase was has been created, but can Matt bring himself to wipe this strange creature out of existence? The answer could prove pivotal to Matt's mission.
As I've long suspected, this story arc is leading up to something very big for this character, quite possibly a relaunch to coincide (more or less) with the 20th anniversary of the Marvel Knights line of comic books which revitalized a flagging Marvel Comics back in 1998 and which, quite arguably, helped lay the creative groundwork for what eventually became the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Daredevil was the crown jewel of that line, back in the day, and so it is fitting that after months of just letting Soule do his own thing on this book, for better or worse, Marvel are finally building up the hype train for this latest story, and Soule is definitely delivering the goods here, especially with this chapter that may not be heavy on action, but which promises to have a pretty big impact on things to come.
While Soule brought DD back to his noir setting with Ron Garney, it's really interesting to see him working with a decidedly more colorful artist in Phil Noto, whose work on the last three issues has been consistently good, and who, apparently, is going to see this all the way through. I have to say, I much prefer Noto's renderings nowadays to his work back on the ill-fated Black Widow title he worked on with disgraced writer Nathan Edmonson. I'm glad Soule's brought him on board, because artistic consistency has been one of the recurring problems of this book over Soule's three-year run.
Having Daredevil face off against Kingpin is so old-hat for this character by now that it can be a real challenge to introduce new elements to keep such stories fresh, and to his credit, Soule has done exactly that. He already upped the ante considerably by planting Fisk in City Hall, but now he's added even more spice to the mix, and it should be very, very interesting to see how this all plays out in four issues' time. If this is Soule's swansong on the book, I have to say he's really pulling out all the stops for this one. This final story may be the one to get people to mention him alongside the likes of Frank Miller, Brian Bendis and Mark Waid.
8/10
Sticking the Landing, but Only Just: A Review of The Amazing Spider-Man #5 (mild spoilers)
written by Nick Spencer
penciled by Ryan Ottley
inked by Cliff Rathburn and Ottley
colored by Laura Martin
The one comic book I have enjoyed more than any other of the last several months finally concludes its first story arc, as Peter Parker finally confronts his now separate Spider-Man persona with a vaguely-conceived plan to reunite the two of them, a plan which may prove somewhat difficult to implement. Meanwhile, shadowy forces moving against Spider-Man continue to push their own sinister agendas forward.
While this story may not necessarily have been the profound treatise on the human condition that a story about power without responsibility may have initially promised, the book does deliver what I think Spencer and Ottley set out to do, which is to give readers some old school Spidey fun with a bit of heart and a few hints at what's to come. I do have to say that, given the build-up, the manner in which Spencer wrapped up this little dilemma was a bit too neat, but I understand that the story basically had to end where and how it did. I also feel that the subplot running through the series, in which the somewhat predictable mystery villain finally stands revealed, didn't really have the intended impact, at least, not for anyone familiar with the character. I suppose it might have made a deeper impression on newer readers.
So, as tempting as it is to grade this new team on their entire run, which I have consistently enjoyed from the get-go, I have to say that the Spencer/Ottley team slightly disappoints with this issue, though not too much. I really like the lighthearted tone that Spencer employs, which he manages to maintain even when Peter is lying in a bloody mess after a bomb explosion. I confess, though, that this scene kind of had me worry that Spencer may spend too many issues in the future either exploiting Ottley's talent for drawing bloodied characters or pandering to his apparent penchant for doing so (I have no idea which it would be). With a few exceptions over the years, Spider-Man isn't really a character whose stories are best told through extreme violence, and certainly not the stomach-churning gorefests that Ottley got used to drawing over on Invincible. If they want to depict Spidey in a bloody mess like he was in Coming Home, I hope they are at least judicious about it. Ottley's work, as these last five issues have shown, is about so much more than ultra-violent punch-ups, and I really look forward to more from him in these pages.
That little concern aside, though, it's clear that these guys picked a tone and stuck to it, and while they didn't exactly reinvent the wheel with their storytelling, they've definitely established themselves as a team that can take this book to new heights. I'm definitely sold on Spencer's writing and could see myself picking up his acclaimed work on Superior Foes of Spider-Man sometime in the future.
7.5/10
penciled by Ryan Ottley
inked by Cliff Rathburn and Ottley
colored by Laura Martin
The one comic book I have enjoyed more than any other of the last several months finally concludes its first story arc, as Peter Parker finally confronts his now separate Spider-Man persona with a vaguely-conceived plan to reunite the two of them, a plan which may prove somewhat difficult to implement. Meanwhile, shadowy forces moving against Spider-Man continue to push their own sinister agendas forward.
While this story may not necessarily have been the profound treatise on the human condition that a story about power without responsibility may have initially promised, the book does deliver what I think Spencer and Ottley set out to do, which is to give readers some old school Spidey fun with a bit of heart and a few hints at what's to come. I do have to say that, given the build-up, the manner in which Spencer wrapped up this little dilemma was a bit too neat, but I understand that the story basically had to end where and how it did. I also feel that the subplot running through the series, in which the somewhat predictable mystery villain finally stands revealed, didn't really have the intended impact, at least, not for anyone familiar with the character. I suppose it might have made a deeper impression on newer readers.
So, as tempting as it is to grade this new team on their entire run, which I have consistently enjoyed from the get-go, I have to say that the Spencer/Ottley team slightly disappoints with this issue, though not too much. I really like the lighthearted tone that Spencer employs, which he manages to maintain even when Peter is lying in a bloody mess after a bomb explosion. I confess, though, that this scene kind of had me worry that Spencer may spend too many issues in the future either exploiting Ottley's talent for drawing bloodied characters or pandering to his apparent penchant for doing so (I have no idea which it would be). With a few exceptions over the years, Spider-Man isn't really a character whose stories are best told through extreme violence, and certainly not the stomach-churning gorefests that Ottley got used to drawing over on Invincible. If they want to depict Spidey in a bloody mess like he was in Coming Home, I hope they are at least judicious about it. Ottley's work, as these last five issues have shown, is about so much more than ultra-violent punch-ups, and I really look forward to more from him in these pages.
That little concern aside, though, it's clear that these guys picked a tone and stuck to it, and while they didn't exactly reinvent the wheel with their storytelling, they've definitely established themselves as a team that can take this book to new heights. I'm definitely sold on Spencer's writing and could see myself picking up his acclaimed work on Superior Foes of Spider-Man sometime in the future.
7.5/10
Another Late Review: The Life of Captain Marvel #2
written by Margaret Stohl
penciled by Carlos Pacheco and Marguerite Sauvage
inked by Rafael Fonteriz and Sauvage
colored by Marcio Menyz and Sauvage
Still reeling from the revelation that apart from being an abusive parent, her father Joe was also an unfaithful husband, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel struggles with the quandary of whether or not to reveal to her mother the love letter she has discovered showing the illicit affair even as the two of them spend their days caring for Carol's comatose brother Joe. In the meantime, a deadly visitor from outer space lands and starts making its way to Carol's hometown in Maine.
This series is truly one of Marvel's infamous slow burn stories, with scant plot movement being stretched out over multiple issues. The plot moves along much more briskly this time, with the immediacy of Carol's dilemma regarding her late father's apparent infidelity and the impending arrival of the character who will presumably be her foe providing tension that was regrettably absent from the last issue, whose extra pages made its meandering nature all the more apparent, but it still feels too thin for a five-issue miniseries.
I get that this is more about the demons in Carol's head than any external threat, and Stohl's pacing is definitely much improved here, but honestly, I'm really no fan of issues where precious little happens, whoever the main character may be, and this book is really no exception.
Carlos Pacheco, who already delivered decent work last issue, actually steps up his work here, but isn't really given a whole lot to draw.
One definite highlight of this book for me, though is Marguerite Sauvage, whose work is really gorgeous to behold. I'd be more willing to forgive the shortcomings in the storytelling if her work adorned most of the issue rather than Pacheco's. I have no idea how long this woman has been illustrating comics but I'd definitely like to see more of her stuff. There's far too little of her work here, though to really affect the overall grade I'm giving this issue.
Having started this miniseries I intend to see it through, but I don't really see myself following Carol Danvers' adventures on a regular basis the way I follow those of Kamala Khan or Earth 65's Gwen Stacy.
6.5/10
penciled by Carlos Pacheco and Marguerite Sauvage
inked by Rafael Fonteriz and Sauvage
colored by Marcio Menyz and Sauvage
Still reeling from the revelation that apart from being an abusive parent, her father Joe was also an unfaithful husband, Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel struggles with the quandary of whether or not to reveal to her mother the love letter she has discovered showing the illicit affair even as the two of them spend their days caring for Carol's comatose brother Joe. In the meantime, a deadly visitor from outer space lands and starts making its way to Carol's hometown in Maine.
This series is truly one of Marvel's infamous slow burn stories, with scant plot movement being stretched out over multiple issues. The plot moves along much more briskly this time, with the immediacy of Carol's dilemma regarding her late father's apparent infidelity and the impending arrival of the character who will presumably be her foe providing tension that was regrettably absent from the last issue, whose extra pages made its meandering nature all the more apparent, but it still feels too thin for a five-issue miniseries.
I get that this is more about the demons in Carol's head than any external threat, and Stohl's pacing is definitely much improved here, but honestly, I'm really no fan of issues where precious little happens, whoever the main character may be, and this book is really no exception.
Carlos Pacheco, who already delivered decent work last issue, actually steps up his work here, but isn't really given a whole lot to draw.
One definite highlight of this book for me, though is Marguerite Sauvage, whose work is really gorgeous to behold. I'd be more willing to forgive the shortcomings in the storytelling if her work adorned most of the issue rather than Pacheco's. I have no idea how long this woman has been illustrating comics but I'd definitely like to see more of her stuff. There's far too little of her work here, though to really affect the overall grade I'm giving this issue.
Having started this miniseries I intend to see it through, but I don't really see myself following Carol Danvers' adventures on a regular basis the way I follow those of Kamala Khan or Earth 65's Gwen Stacy.
6.5/10
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Some Helping Hands: A Review of Captain America #3
written by Ta Nehisi Coates
penciled by Leinil Francis Yu
inked by Gerry Alanguilan
colored by Sunny Gho
After a disappointingly redundant issue #2, Ta Nehisi Coates bounces back somewhat with an issue that kicks his story arc into high gear.
On the trail of Power Enterprises, the unseen cabal responsible for the deadly super-soldier attacks upon American civilians, Cap gets help from T'Challa, the Black Panther and his trusty General Okoye, both of whom are after Ezekiel Stane, who very recently took part in an attempt to overthrow T'Challa and who is said to be among the chief architects of this shadowy new operation. T'Challa has a plan to take down the "Nukes" or the super-soldiers modeled after Frank Simpson, who long ago menaced Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen. Meanwhile, Sharon tracks down the lead that Thunderbolt Ross has given her, which may lead her right to the main bad guy herself, Selene. While preparing for his big attack on Power Enterprises, Steve learns something quite surprising about the time that HYDRA ran America: their methods may have been despicable, but they actually did quite a bit of good, like fixing schools, providing healthcare and even jobs, and from the look of it, Power is intent on keeping up the good work, even if all this almost certainly comes at a price.
I've said a few unflattering things about Coates' past work, as recently as issue #2 of this series, but one bad thing I can't say about him this time around is that he scrimps on action, because three issues into his run, every single issue has featured some pretty intense action sequences. This one, fortunately, feels a bit more consequential than Steve's throwaway punch up with the Nukes last issue.
More interestingly, though, Coates presents a somewhat different take on the HYDRA takeover of America, i.e. the revelation that they actually got things done. Coming from an avowed progressive like Coates, the devil's advocate argument as to the potential virtues of an authoritarian setup similar to what HYDRA had in place, albeit briefly is intriguing to look at, especially when one considers this has actually happened in real life. For example, the infamous Muammar Gaddafi, for all of his crimes against his people, had actually done some pretty good things with respect to social services like education and healthcare before his was deposed and eventually killed by rebels. This is genuinely engaging stuff; we're not even talking about people being fooled by fake news like they have been in the United States (and here) about the manufactured virtues of certain politicians.
Rather, Coates poses the question of how to get people to turn their backs on a system that actually works for them, and while he sets the issue aside for a while to get back to the action, the fact that he brought it up in the first place sets the stage for something potentially a lot more interesting than just another punch up with the big bad guys.
Helping carry Coates through all of this are the legendary art team of Leinil Yu, Gerry Alanguilan and Sunny Gho, who have yet to stumble in this run. This really is a winning creative team here, and while I don't imagine it'll stay together for very long, things being the way they are, I'm fairly certain I'll be able to enjoy the remainder of their work together as long as they keep up this overall standard of quality.
8/10
penciled by Leinil Francis Yu
inked by Gerry Alanguilan
colored by Sunny Gho
After a disappointingly redundant issue #2, Ta Nehisi Coates bounces back somewhat with an issue that kicks his story arc into high gear.
On the trail of Power Enterprises, the unseen cabal responsible for the deadly super-soldier attacks upon American civilians, Cap gets help from T'Challa, the Black Panther and his trusty General Okoye, both of whom are after Ezekiel Stane, who very recently took part in an attempt to overthrow T'Challa and who is said to be among the chief architects of this shadowy new operation. T'Challa has a plan to take down the "Nukes" or the super-soldiers modeled after Frank Simpson, who long ago menaced Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen. Meanwhile, Sharon tracks down the lead that Thunderbolt Ross has given her, which may lead her right to the main bad guy herself, Selene. While preparing for his big attack on Power Enterprises, Steve learns something quite surprising about the time that HYDRA ran America: their methods may have been despicable, but they actually did quite a bit of good, like fixing schools, providing healthcare and even jobs, and from the look of it, Power is intent on keeping up the good work, even if all this almost certainly comes at a price.
I've said a few unflattering things about Coates' past work, as recently as issue #2 of this series, but one bad thing I can't say about him this time around is that he scrimps on action, because three issues into his run, every single issue has featured some pretty intense action sequences. This one, fortunately, feels a bit more consequential than Steve's throwaway punch up with the Nukes last issue.
More interestingly, though, Coates presents a somewhat different take on the HYDRA takeover of America, i.e. the revelation that they actually got things done. Coming from an avowed progressive like Coates, the devil's advocate argument as to the potential virtues of an authoritarian setup similar to what HYDRA had in place, albeit briefly is intriguing to look at, especially when one considers this has actually happened in real life. For example, the infamous Muammar Gaddafi, for all of his crimes against his people, had actually done some pretty good things with respect to social services like education and healthcare before his was deposed and eventually killed by rebels. This is genuinely engaging stuff; we're not even talking about people being fooled by fake news like they have been in the United States (and here) about the manufactured virtues of certain politicians.
Rather, Coates poses the question of how to get people to turn their backs on a system that actually works for them, and while he sets the issue aside for a while to get back to the action, the fact that he brought it up in the first place sets the stage for something potentially a lot more interesting than just another punch up with the big bad guys.
Helping carry Coates through all of this are the legendary art team of Leinil Yu, Gerry Alanguilan and Sunny Gho, who have yet to stumble in this run. This really is a winning creative team here, and while I don't imagine it'll stay together for very long, things being the way they are, I'm fairly certain I'll be able to enjoy the remainder of their work together as long as they keep up this overall standard of quality.
8/10
Friday, September 14, 2018
Early Days: A Review of Daredevil Annual 2018
written by Erica Schulz
illustrated by Marcio Takara
colored by Marcelo Maiolo
Crime writer Erica Schulz and Incredibles artist Marcio Takara bring us a tale from Daredevil's past, to a time before his longtime ally Misty Knight started working with him and other superheroes.
Both DD and Misty Knight find themselves on the trail of a mobster who's been hiring chemistry geniuses in his desperate search for someone who can synthesize a cure for his cancer, based on a formula purloined from S.H.I.E.L.D. Misty doesn't trust DD, or superheroes in general, but comes to realize that DD (who in his secret identity as attorney Matt Murdock, knows the law just as well as she does) can be handy to have around in the fight against crime.
It's a simple enough story, one that, if I'm honest, seems a little thin to stretch over an extra-sized issue. Even the Amazing Spider-man annual from last year (which I didn't review), managed to justify stretching its story out over all the extra pages, and there was even a bit of a payoff as a little detail from that story featured in Dan Slott's final story arc. Also, I'm generally not a huge fan of stories in which the lead character is basically a guest star in his own book, but Misty Knight is a compelling enough character to sustain interest throughout.
The real highlight here, though is Takara, whose detailed work hearkens back to the stunning renderings of 80s icon Mike Golden. Everything about his art, from the basic figures to the rendering to the action, is a real treat. This guy's got some old school flair, especially considering how he's actually relatively young. It's really gratifying that most of the current generation of superstar comics illustrators have well and truly broken away from the worst excesses of the 90s like cross-hatchings everywhere and an overabundance of pouches.
I am enjoying Charles Soule's current story, but this flashback is also a pleasant enough distraction.
7/10
illustrated by Marcio Takara
colored by Marcelo Maiolo
Crime writer Erica Schulz and Incredibles artist Marcio Takara bring us a tale from Daredevil's past, to a time before his longtime ally Misty Knight started working with him and other superheroes.
Both DD and Misty Knight find themselves on the trail of a mobster who's been hiring chemistry geniuses in his desperate search for someone who can synthesize a cure for his cancer, based on a formula purloined from S.H.I.E.L.D. Misty doesn't trust DD, or superheroes in general, but comes to realize that DD (who in his secret identity as attorney Matt Murdock, knows the law just as well as she does) can be handy to have around in the fight against crime.
It's a simple enough story, one that, if I'm honest, seems a little thin to stretch over an extra-sized issue. Even the Amazing Spider-man annual from last year (which I didn't review), managed to justify stretching its story out over all the extra pages, and there was even a bit of a payoff as a little detail from that story featured in Dan Slott's final story arc. Also, I'm generally not a huge fan of stories in which the lead character is basically a guest star in his own book, but Misty Knight is a compelling enough character to sustain interest throughout.
The real highlight here, though is Takara, whose detailed work hearkens back to the stunning renderings of 80s icon Mike Golden. Everything about his art, from the basic figures to the rendering to the action, is a real treat. This guy's got some old school flair, especially considering how he's actually relatively young. It's really gratifying that most of the current generation of superstar comics illustrators have well and truly broken away from the worst excesses of the 90s like cross-hatchings everywhere and an overabundance of pouches.
I am enjoying Charles Soule's current story, but this flashback is also a pleasant enough distraction.
7/10
Two-in-One: A Late Review of Daredevil #606 and 607
written by Charles Soule
drawn by Phil Noto
Yet again I've fallen behind in reviewing this series, in part because of work but also because I found myself a bit nonplussed by the competent but unremarkable conclusion of the last story arc.
I should not have been quite so hasty, as it seems that Charles Soule, in what I am sure is the final story arc of this series before a major relaunch, judging by Marvel's marketing moves lately, has come up with something pretty entertaining.
Issue #606
At the end of the last arc, Matt Murdock aka Daredevil, having resigned as Wilson Fisk's Deputy Mayor of New York, happened to hear, with his heightened hearing, Fisk's Lieutenant Wesley mutter "good thing he doesn't know you cheated in the election" or something like that, to Fisk, which has set the current story in motion. Murdock is now on a mission to expose Fisk's duplicity and take him down, and for this he approached Frank McGee, the one time investigator for the Inhumans who would not only be more than happy to help, but who also brings a couple of pretty valuable players to the team: Doug Ramsey, aka Cypher, a mutant who can translate any language, and Reader, an Inhuman who can actually bring things into existence just by reading about them. However, Matt's crusade may hit a bit of a snag when he has a run-in with Hammerhead and his goons robbing a bank, but even moreso when a completely unexpected figure from his past breezes into town.
I quite like Soule's non-linear approach here; it makes the issue feel that much more packed, which isn't an easy thing to do in an era of 20 to 21-page stories. The overall pacing is good, and Soule does a canny job of setting up Matt's mission.
While it's been fun watching Soule introducing new characters in this series, ranging from Blindspot to the Inhumans and even the Ordo Draconum, it's equally refreshing to finally see him bring back a couple of classics. Kingpin's return was almost a foregone conclusion, but having a much more humorous character show up at this point in Matt's life brought back some much-needed fun that's been missing since Mark Waid left the book. I also like the fact that Soule has brought back Cypher, one of Chris Claremont's most underrated characters who, after being a regular mainstay of the New Mutants back in the 80s, never seems to stay in one place for very long. I still maintain he'd be great in an espionage-type story, maybe alongside the Winter Soldier.
Soule is joined here by his Poe Dameron collaborator Phil Noto, and while I can't really say I'm a big fan, he definitely does solid work, sort of like a more talented Alex Maleev.
Issue #607
After running into his "twin brother" Mike Murdock who is actually an alias Matt Murdock assumed many, many years ago to throw people who suspected his secret identity of his scent, Matt sets out to find out exactly who, or what, he is. After trouncing some c-list thugs in the Bar with No Name, which was where Mike showed up in the first place stirring up trouble, Matt takes Mike to an Inhuman "expert" to figure out what he is, and solves the mystery of his existence. When the time comes to solve this little problem, though, things go awry.
This issue wasn't quite as well put together as the last one, but if nothing else Phil Noto's art improves noticeably, and some of the humor lands pretty well. Soule does his best to keep the exposition on who Mike Murdock is short, and Noto helps with some lively illustrations that really pop thanks in no small part to Mike's gaudy wardrobe, but it still feels ever-so-slightly clunky. Unfortunately, Matt's whole "get Kingpin" mission is completely sidetracked here, but fortunately, this little subplot is genuinely interesting, even if it does feel a little thin to be stretched out till next issue (or more).
This weekend, I'll pick up #608 and get all caught up.
Issue #606: 8/10
Issue #607: 7.5/10
drawn by Phil Noto
Yet again I've fallen behind in reviewing this series, in part because of work but also because I found myself a bit nonplussed by the competent but unremarkable conclusion of the last story arc.
I should not have been quite so hasty, as it seems that Charles Soule, in what I am sure is the final story arc of this series before a major relaunch, judging by Marvel's marketing moves lately, has come up with something pretty entertaining.
Issue #606
At the end of the last arc, Matt Murdock aka Daredevil, having resigned as Wilson Fisk's Deputy Mayor of New York, happened to hear, with his heightened hearing, Fisk's Lieutenant Wesley mutter "good thing he doesn't know you cheated in the election" or something like that, to Fisk, which has set the current story in motion. Murdock is now on a mission to expose Fisk's duplicity and take him down, and for this he approached Frank McGee, the one time investigator for the Inhumans who would not only be more than happy to help, but who also brings a couple of pretty valuable players to the team: Doug Ramsey, aka Cypher, a mutant who can translate any language, and Reader, an Inhuman who can actually bring things into existence just by reading about them. However, Matt's crusade may hit a bit of a snag when he has a run-in with Hammerhead and his goons robbing a bank, but even moreso when a completely unexpected figure from his past breezes into town.
I quite like Soule's non-linear approach here; it makes the issue feel that much more packed, which isn't an easy thing to do in an era of 20 to 21-page stories. The overall pacing is good, and Soule does a canny job of setting up Matt's mission.
While it's been fun watching Soule introducing new characters in this series, ranging from Blindspot to the Inhumans and even the Ordo Draconum, it's equally refreshing to finally see him bring back a couple of classics. Kingpin's return was almost a foregone conclusion, but having a much more humorous character show up at this point in Matt's life brought back some much-needed fun that's been missing since Mark Waid left the book. I also like the fact that Soule has brought back Cypher, one of Chris Claremont's most underrated characters who, after being a regular mainstay of the New Mutants back in the 80s, never seems to stay in one place for very long. I still maintain he'd be great in an espionage-type story, maybe alongside the Winter Soldier.
Soule is joined here by his Poe Dameron collaborator Phil Noto, and while I can't really say I'm a big fan, he definitely does solid work, sort of like a more talented Alex Maleev.
Issue #607
After running into his "twin brother" Mike Murdock who is actually an alias Matt Murdock assumed many, many years ago to throw people who suspected his secret identity of his scent, Matt sets out to find out exactly who, or what, he is. After trouncing some c-list thugs in the Bar with No Name, which was where Mike showed up in the first place stirring up trouble, Matt takes Mike to an Inhuman "expert" to figure out what he is, and solves the mystery of his existence. When the time comes to solve this little problem, though, things go awry.
This issue wasn't quite as well put together as the last one, but if nothing else Phil Noto's art improves noticeably, and some of the humor lands pretty well. Soule does his best to keep the exposition on who Mike Murdock is short, and Noto helps with some lively illustrations that really pop thanks in no small part to Mike's gaudy wardrobe, but it still feels ever-so-slightly clunky. Unfortunately, Matt's whole "get Kingpin" mission is completely sidetracked here, but fortunately, this little subplot is genuinely interesting, even if it does feel a little thin to be stretched out till next issue (or more).
This weekend, I'll pick up #608 and get all caught up.
Issue #606: 8/10
Issue #607: 7.5/10
A Tale of Boys and Their Stiff, Pointy Things: A Review of Fence Vol. I
written by C.S. Pacat
drawn by Johanna the Mad
colored by Joana LaFuente
This title was not on my radar at all. What happened was that while I was at my preferred local comics shop picking up my regular titles, my daughter saw one of the single issues on the shelves and, smitten with the art, asked me to pick it up. I suggested we just wait for the trade paperback instead, as I didn't know how long the series would run, and my daughter has a shelf for her collected editions anyway.
It took some waiting, but a little over a week ago she finally got her hands on the first volume of Fence, which collects issues #1 to #4.
Fence is the story of Nicholas Cox, the illegitimate son of Olympic fencing legend Robert Coste, who yearns to follow in his father's footsteps and is willing to go to great lengths to do it, including enrolling under a scholarship in the elite boys school Kings Row where he may get his only shot at fencing glory. Unfortunately, despite his raw talent, he didn't start of with the best of trainers, which means he faces a tough time against the school's talented fencers, who include Harvard, Eugene, and the fencing prodigy Seiji Katayama, whose only loss came at the hands of Cox's half-brother, and Coste's legitimate son Jesse. But Cox isn't about to let these obstacles get in his way.
I've never been a manga fan, much less a sports manga fan, and while I enjoyed "imitation" anime like Avatar: The Last Airbender, I'm not so sure I can say the same about this "imitation" manga, though for the most part I quite like Johanna the Mad's crisp artwork. I like how Pacat really dives into the world of fencing (having apparently dabbled in it quite a bit herself in her student days); her explanations of the sport, which could easily feel a bit too expository, are woven quite well into the narrative. I also like how easily Pacat establishes why Cox goes through life with a massive chip on his shoulder; it's not too forced.
I chuckled a bit at all the homoeroticism taking place in an all boys' school, with one of the prominent supporting characters, Bobby, basically being a transgender girl (though he's consistently referred to as "he" so I find myself a bit confused at how the terminology works) and another supporting character, Aiden, screwing a fair share of students, even rival fencers, in more ways than one. I suppose it's the sort of thing that can happen in a boarding school for boys, though I honestly don't know if such a school would allow a boy to go around wearing skirts. Wonderfully tolerant of them, I suppose.
What I didn't appreciate at all is that this collected edition doesn't end the story. I was irritated enough that Marvel has been doing this with quite a few of their more recent story lines, and figured that an independent comic book wouldn't be as rude, but the story ends on absolute cliffhanger, without even a vaguely satisfactory ending. That's quite a shame, because it's an otherwise interesting read, especially for someone who's lived on a diet of superhero comics for years.
I have to say, though, that this would probably make a comicsgater apoplectic...which is why it would be a great Christmas present for any comicsgater you know! :)
6.5/10
drawn by Johanna the Mad
colored by Joana LaFuente
This title was not on my radar at all. What happened was that while I was at my preferred local comics shop picking up my regular titles, my daughter saw one of the single issues on the shelves and, smitten with the art, asked me to pick it up. I suggested we just wait for the trade paperback instead, as I didn't know how long the series would run, and my daughter has a shelf for her collected editions anyway.
It took some waiting, but a little over a week ago she finally got her hands on the first volume of Fence, which collects issues #1 to #4.
Fence is the story of Nicholas Cox, the illegitimate son of Olympic fencing legend Robert Coste, who yearns to follow in his father's footsteps and is willing to go to great lengths to do it, including enrolling under a scholarship in the elite boys school Kings Row where he may get his only shot at fencing glory. Unfortunately, despite his raw talent, he didn't start of with the best of trainers, which means he faces a tough time against the school's talented fencers, who include Harvard, Eugene, and the fencing prodigy Seiji Katayama, whose only loss came at the hands of Cox's half-brother, and Coste's legitimate son Jesse. But Cox isn't about to let these obstacles get in his way.
I've never been a manga fan, much less a sports manga fan, and while I enjoyed "imitation" anime like Avatar: The Last Airbender, I'm not so sure I can say the same about this "imitation" manga, though for the most part I quite like Johanna the Mad's crisp artwork. I like how Pacat really dives into the world of fencing (having apparently dabbled in it quite a bit herself in her student days); her explanations of the sport, which could easily feel a bit too expository, are woven quite well into the narrative. I also like how easily Pacat establishes why Cox goes through life with a massive chip on his shoulder; it's not too forced.
I chuckled a bit at all the homoeroticism taking place in an all boys' school, with one of the prominent supporting characters, Bobby, basically being a transgender girl (though he's consistently referred to as "he" so I find myself a bit confused at how the terminology works) and another supporting character, Aiden, screwing a fair share of students, even rival fencers, in more ways than one. I suppose it's the sort of thing that can happen in a boarding school for boys, though I honestly don't know if such a school would allow a boy to go around wearing skirts. Wonderfully tolerant of them, I suppose.
What I didn't appreciate at all is that this collected edition doesn't end the story. I was irritated enough that Marvel has been doing this with quite a few of their more recent story lines, and figured that an independent comic book wouldn't be as rude, but the story ends on absolute cliffhanger, without even a vaguely satisfactory ending. That's quite a shame, because it's an otherwise interesting read, especially for someone who's lived on a diet of superhero comics for years.
I have to say, though, that this would probably make a comicsgater apoplectic...which is why it would be a great Christmas present for any comicsgater you know! :)
6.5/10
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