Fantastic Four Issue 583: “Three, Part 1: In Latveria, the Flowers Bloom in Winter”

Fantastic Four Issue 583: “Three, Part 1: In Latveria, the Flowers Bloom in Winter”

It’s been impossible to read a Marvel comic over the past couple months and not know about this storyline. The ads have been everywhere and definitely sparked my interest. You tell me a long-standing fixture of the Marvel Universe is going to die, and I’m there. I’ve heard good things about Jonathan Hickman’s work on Fantastic Four going back to Issue 570, so I figured there was no better time than now to check it out. The issue does a decent job recapping recent events, from the FF’s interactions with the High Evolutionary and an assembly of inter-dimensional Mr. Fantastics, to Doctor Doom’s loss of intellect during the “World War Hulks” event. Part of the issue focuses on the FF battling against the forces of the High Evolutionary, but it’s largely unimportant to the central plot of the issue. The real star here isn’t even a member of the Fantastic Four, but rather Valeria Richards; Reed and Sue’s daughter. Valeria is as smart as her father, but as brash as her Uncle Johnny. She happens across a device in Reed’s lab that lets her in on what her father is up to. She realizes he’s overextending himself and putting everyone at risk. She turns to the most unlikely of allies for help and pays Doctor Doom a visit. The scenes between Valeria and Doom are easily the highlight of the issue. This issue marks the first with Steve Epting as artist. Epting brings an interesting style to Fantastic Four; the visuals look like nothing I’ve seen from the series previously. Much like his work on Captain America, Epting uses heavy shadows for detail and emphasis, and while I personally love the style, long time FF fans may be put off by it. All in all, the issue was fun, but not as spectacular as I was expecting. Then I read the epilogue. Those last two pages, told from the perspective of none other than the Silver Surfer, went a long way to setting up the future of this storyline. Those two pages alone have me eagerly anticipating the next issue of Fantastic Four. Fantastic Four Issue 583: “Three, Part 1: In Latveria, the Flowers Bloom in Winter” Marvel Comics Story: Jonathan Hickman Art: Steve Epting, Paul Mounts...

Thor Issue 615

Thor Issue 615

Thor has long been one of my favorite heroes. His sheer power backed by his sense of honor and duty have told some very entertaining stories over the years. The juxtaposition of ancient myth with the modern world gives the writers a tremendous amount of possibilities. When Thor was relaunched in 2007, J. Michael Straczynski chose to focus mostly on the myth, establishing Thor as the new Lord of Asgard in Odin’s absence. Now, Matt Fraction (current writer of Uncanny X-Men and Invincible Iron Man) has taken over the title, promising a return to Thor’s height of popularity in the 1980s. Back then, Walt Simonson took Thor and all his godly might and added in a sci-fi element, pitting Thor against galactic threats instead of just giants and demons. It was good, larger-than-life fun; everything you would want a comic to be. Fraction’s first issue goes a long way to delivering much of the same. In Straczynski’s run, Thor moved Asgard to Earth, and now some new threat is trying to take Asgard’s place in the order of things. All the specifics are explained by a scientist trying to gain an audience with Asgard’s leaders. It’s possible the scenes involving the scientist went on a little too long, but I thought it was entertaining, giving the reader a sense of the frustration the scientist was feeling trying to explain the concept to the dense Volstagg. In addition to Earth, the issue takes us to Alfheim, the realm of the Elves in Norse mythology. It introduces us to some random elf characters, and gets the reader to care about them just enough to be shocked when they’re all brutally murdered. This also serves as the introduction to an unnamed alien race looking to escape their collapsing realm, and they’re willing to conquer Alfheim, Asgard and any other realms necessary to do so. Each of the realms shown in the comic has a unique visual style; Earth is vibrant and full of life, Asgard’s tones are muted, Alfheim has a blue tint and the unknown dimension is obviously something beyond mortal comprehension. Ferry’s character artwork also conveys great emotion, especially the anguish Thor and Balder are experiencing with the recent losses in their lives. Also, maybe it’s just me, but I swear Thor is starting to look more like Chris Hemsworth. All the various elements come together for an overall enjoyable, if occasionally uneven issue. Fans of the character, like myself, will be excited with this new direction for Thor. Unfortunately, it may not be a good jumping-on point for newer readers, as it assumes an understanding of the characters and events. Thor Issue 615 Marvel Comics Story: Matt Fraction Art: Pasqual Ferry, Matt Hollingsworth...

X-Men Issue 3: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 3”

X-Men Issue 3: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 3”

Issue 2 of the new X-Men took the story to an interesting place. Jubilee finally gave in to the vampire corruption spreading through her body and left Utopia. Additionally, Cyclops came up with the most insane plan ever; to resurrect Dracula and use him as a weapon against the other vampires. Normally, I don’t like tie-in comics, but this is one of the few occasions where it works. The search and recovery of Dracula’s remains was handled in two completely separate issues; the head in Namor: The First Mutant #1 and the body in the Curse of the Mutants: Storm & Gambit one-shot. The two issues told stories relevant to the central plot, but not vital, so a fan could read them if they want, but not miss out on anything too important if they don’t. Obviously, Dracula is none too happy with his current situation. His son has taken over as Lord of the Vampires and he wants his revenge, but he doesn’t want to help Scott-freaking-Summers to get it. Recently, we’ve seen Scott stand up to Professor Xavier, Magneto and even Norman Osborn like they were nobody. It’s nice that Gischler has finally presented him with someone he can try to stand up to, but is more than happy to put him in his place. I like Badass Cyclops as much as anyone, but if the character’s going to develop any further, he needs to deal with someone he can’t steamroll in a conversation. The rest of the issue features Jubilee diving into her role as a vampire and Wolverine’s efforts to save her. By the conclusion of the issue, they come together and the ending is definitely an unexpected twist. It’s solid writing and pacing, continuing to intertwine the separate plots into one cohesive story. Between that and Medina’s continually fantastic art, X-Men has become one of my most anticipated titles every month. X-Men Issue 3: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 3” Marvel Comics Story: Victor Gischler Art: Paco Medina, Juan Vlasco, Marte Gracia...

Amazing Spider-Man Issue 641 “One Moment in Time, Part 4”

Amazing Spider-Man Issue 641 “One Moment in Time, Part 4”

I’m actually getting tired of talking about this storyline. It started off quite well in Issue 638, but has been experiencing a steady decline in quality. It’s now absolutely clear that Quesada had no solid plan for how to execute this story. Well, maybe he had a plan and it just sucked. Over the past decade, Quesada has been an integral part of Marvel as Editor-in-Chief. He’s been a good decision maker and has taken the company from the brink of disaster to the top of the mountain. He’s even a good artist, though his style is very mid-90s. One thing he isn’t is a writer. Sure, he’s had some solid ideas for storylines, but he’s always had actual writers to steer the ship. As much criticism as “One More Day” has received over the years, it at least made sense. Sure, J Michael Straczynski didn’t want to write it and phoned in a lot of the dialog, but the story itself worked. At this point, “One Moment in Time” just doesn’t make sense. The story continues with Doctor Strange meeting with Iron Man and Mr. Fantastic on the astral plane. The plan is to use a massive spell to make everyone forget Spider-Man’s true identity. Apparently, it’s something they’ve done before with the Sentry, and the operation requires all three of them. The problem with this scene is the characterization. Strange manages to talk Stark and Richards into agreeing with him, which is something they, Stark specifically, simply would not do. Peter’s decision to abandon Tony and the Pro-Registration side during the Civil War was simply unforgivable to Stark. He had so much hatred for Peter at the time of this story, he simply would not have agreed to this plan. If previous issues of “One Moment in Time” have established that the timeline has not changed, why would Stark continue to hunt down Peter and the other renegade heroes, even after deciding to give Peter his secret identity back? It just doesn’t make sense. Then, Peter decides he doesn’t want everyone to forget; he needs Mary Jane to share his secret. Once everything is over, MJ completely freaks out. Apparently, she doesn’t want to be the only one to know Peter’s secret. Wait a minute, prior to Peter publicly revealing his identity, MJ was the only one to share his secret. Sure, they decided not to get married, but still lived happily together for years. Now, she can’t handle it anymore? There’s some sort of explanation that somehow MJ knowing Peter’s identity would put her family at risk, but in the end, it just doesn’t make sense. Why, after all this time would MJ decide that she can’t be with Peter, that somehow things would be better if he were to somehow go on being Spider-Man without her knowing? Even worse than the character shift with Tony Stark, this goes against everything that’s been established for Mary Jane, both in the original continuity and within “One Moment in Time” itself. At the end of “One More Day,” despite the tremendous upheaval it created, readers were left with hope. MJ swore to Peter that they were meant to be, and that eventually they would be together again. “One Moment in Time” was supposed to reinforce the story of “One More Day.” Instead, all it did was tear it down, pissing off many of the fans they had left. Amazing Spider-Man Issue 641 “One Moment in Time, Part 4” Marvel Comics Story: Joe Quesada Art: Joe Quesada, Paolo Rivera, Danny Miki, Richard Isanove...

Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 2 of 9

Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 2 of 9

This issue turns out to be even more fun than the first. It picks up right where Issue 1 leaves off, with Magneto finding his “grandsons.” He tries to take off with Wiccan and Speed, and chaos ensues. The other Young Avengers aren’t about to let a known terrorist take off with their friends, and the actual Avengers aren’t letting the kids go anywhere, with or without Magneto. After some fighting and pulling the kids back and forth, Wiccan magics the kids and Magento to Wundagore, the Scarlet witch’s birthplace. Walking through the countryside, Heinberg takes the opportunity for some character development. We see some nice moments between Patriot and Hawkeye, as well as Stature and Vision. Of course, the big focus is between the twins and Magneto, but it’s nice to see them not dominating the story. All of the Young Avengers are well-developed characters, and they each get a little bit of love. While we do get more romantic developments, none of the problems I had with the first issue in that regard are present here; it’s just good, solid character development. Of course, if the Scarlet Witch is a feature of the story, it’s not long before Magento’s other offspring shows up. Quicksilver makes a dramatic entrance, completing the family reunion. There are some great scenes with him and Speed until his attention turns to his father. Considering Magneto tried to kill him the last time they met, the two do not get along. Everything builds to a stunning resolution, nicely setting up the next issue. Avengers: The Children’s Crusade #2 features great writing, great character development, a solid plot and truly phenomenal art. That being said, there are too many negative aspects of this comic that I can’t overlook. Due to contractual obligations to DC, Heinberg’s work on Young Avengers has been sporadic over the years. As I mentioned in my review of the first issue, some of the anachronisms are very noticeable. Reading this now, it’s clear to me this story was intended to occur before the Civil War. That’s four years ago. The result is a story conceptualized in 2006 being shoehorned into the continuity of 2010. Some things just don’t match up. I can overlook some of the inconsistencies with the Avengers, since they’re a minor part of the story. However, the characterizations of Magneto and Quicksilver are just off, completely contrasting recent developments in comics like Uncanny X-Men and Mighty Avengers. As good as it is, I just have trouble connecting with this comic. Additionally, I made a mistake in my first review; I said this title would be publishing every two weeks. Instead, it’s publishing every two MONTHS. At nine issues, it will take a year and a half for this miniseries to finish. That is more of a time investment than I’m willing to give a “miniseries.” As such, I will likely not be reading any future issues. Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 2 of 9 Marvel Comics Story: Allan Heinberg Art: Jim Cheung, Mark Morales, Justin Ponsor...

Shadowland Issue 3 of 5

Shadowland Issue 3 of 5

I can’t believe I ever doubted this miniseries. Diggle, Tann and the rest of the creative team just seem to get better with each issue. Shadowland 3 brings about some interesting developments. On the bright side, we no longer have to worry about Matt Murdock’s soul. Apparently, it’s his damn mind that he’s lost, going so far as to order his ninja to kill his former friends. The ensuing battle rapidly gets out of hand, with Daredevil even outmatching Iron Fist and Shang-Chi in hand-to-hand combat. Only the stunning arrival of one more ally gets them out of Shadowland alive. As if the fight at the top of the tower isn’t enough, complete chaos has erupted in the dungeons. Ghost Rider doesn’t like being controlled and the last thing anyone wants to do is piss off the Spirit of Vengeance. Amidst the flames, chains and ninja, Moon Knight is also unleashing his badass best. I just have one question, though I may not like the answer; where was he keeping that costume? Outside, all hell is breaking loose in Hell’s Kitchen. The foul presence corrupting Daredevil and those around him is starting to effect the civilians, as well. Battered, beaten and clueless our heroes regroup and attempt to come up with a plan. We finally get a glimpse as to what the Hand’s endgame is in all this, with Cage & Co seemingly screwed as Daredevil continues to increase his ranks. Altogether, this was a very successful issue. It did a great job closing out the first half of the story, both sides having engaged each other and fallen back to regroup. The outside factors of Moon Knight, Ghost Rider and even Kingpin are put in place and the overall plot is starting to mesh together. Right now, I’d put Shadowland on par with Civil War in quality, just on a slightly smaller scale. Shadowland Issue 3 of 5 Marvel Comics Story: Andy Diggle Art: Billy Tann, Victor Olazaba, Christina Strain...

Shadowland Issue 2 of 5

Shadowland Issue 2 of 5

Shadowland #1 did a very good job of setting up this miniseries. Daredevil killed Bullseye, the Hand are slowly taking over New York and Matt Murdock’s friends and allies are trying to bring things to a peaceful conclusion. After his fight with Bullseye last issue, Daredevil shows surprisingly little emotion. If he’s not upset at actually killing someone, then at least he should be happy to have finallly defeated his greatest enemy. His growing detachment shows just how much of a hold the Hand has on him, though their ultimate goal is still a mystery. Luke Cage and Iron Fist once again try to talk to him, but they’re bringing reinforcements this time, with their old Heroes for Hire buddies and Spider-Man tagging along. Additionally, we see Moon Knight infiltrate Shadowland and Kingpin summon the freaking GHOST RIDER. I was a little unsure what to expect going into this miniseries, but this issue had enough of a wow factor to completely grab my interest. The art continues to be impressive, setting the mood perfectly. Drawing Ghost Rider is no easy task, and Billy Tann hits it out of the park here. The big fight at the very end of the issue leads me to believe that the art team is more than up to the task of doing justice to this large cast of characters. With major players like the Punisher and Elektra still to make their promised appearances, Shadowland is shaping up to be a big, epic piece of summer fun. At least at this point, the tie-ins don’t seem to be taking anything away from the core title, which was a major concern of mine going into this event. While I can’t speak for all of the tie-ins, I did rather enjoy the first issue of Shadowland: Moon Knight. I loved the relaunch of Moon Knight a couple years ago, but the art style on Vengeance of the Moon Knight made me stop reading his solo series. The quality of the Shadowland tie-in was very impressive, and does a great job of tying his individual story in with the miniseries. Moon Knight is going to be PISSED when this is all over. Shadowland Issue 2 of 5 Marvel Comics Story: Andy Diggle Art: Billy Tann, Victor Olazaba, Christina Strain...

X-Men Issue 2: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 2”

X-Men Issue 2: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 2”

Victor Gischler, where have you been hiding? There are plenty of great writers in the comic industry lately, and Marvel and DC both seem to be trying to get as much mileage out of them as possible. Some just seem to be perfect for their respective titles, like Geoff Johns on Green Lantern or Matt Fraction on Invincible Iron Man. When it comes to X-Men, Gischler just gets it. With such a large cast of characters available, it’s easy for things to become overcomplicated. Gischler, however, seems to have a solid plan for which characters best fit the story and how to utilize them. Wolverine, Storm, Emma Frost and others all bring different angles to the plot, and it never seems like Gischler is using them just to use them. As part of Marvel’s initiative to bring the X-Men out of isolation and interact more with the rest of the Marvel Universe, Blade makes an appearance here to assist the X-Men with their vampire problem. Of course, Blade is the obvious choice to guest star, but his introduction and interaction is so seamless, you’d almost think he’s a long-lost mutant returning to the team. It’s something that goes wrong in comics all too often. The biggest issue with many comics is pacing. If the plot moves too quickly, it becomes too hard to follow, but if you spend too much time explaining things, it’s just boring. Gischler effortlessly juggles several plot points in this issue; the X-Men trying to figure out a plan, the vampires plot to take over and the corruption of Jubilee. In the end, the story makes about as much sense as possible for a premise this bizarre. The tension increases bit-by-bit over the course of the issue until the final pages. Knowing the extremes the vampires are taking this war to and the plan Cyclops has come up with to counter them, I simply can’t wait to get my hands on the next issue. X-Men Issue 2: “Curse of the Mutants, Part 2” Marvel Comics Story: Victor Gischler Art: Paco Medina, Juan Vlasco, Marte Gracia...

Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 1 of 9

Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 1 of 9

First of all, this book SHOULD have been called YOUNG Avengers: The Children’s Crusade as that’s the team it focuses on. The actual Avengers only make small appearances, and even those are a bit awkward. There’s a disclaimer at the beginning of the book stating that there would be some continuity discrepancies due to its long production cycle. The story takes place after “Siege,” and I can deal with Iron Man wearing the wrong armor. However, having the WRONG CAPTAIN AMERICA is something that just makes the story feel awkward. Continuity issues aside, I really did enjoy this issue, though. It picks up on some plot threads that have been established over the last few years. Unfortunately, the Young Avengers haven’t been strong sellers, so many readers will just have to jump on. That said, Heinburg does a good job filling in the important parts without too much exposition. At the start, Young Avenger Wiccan goes a bit too far with his powers, which are magical in nature. The last time a magic-oriented mutant lost her powers, the Scarlet Witch was responsible for the deaths of several Avengers and later the near-genocide of the mutants. “The Children’s Crusade” refers to the Young Avengers’ quest to find the Scarlet Witch and reunite her with her lost twin sons. That’s right, it has long been hinted that brothers Wiccan and Speed were the lost sons of Scarlet Witch and Vision, if not biologically, then at least spiritually. All in all, it’s a fun issue, but is nothing more than a big set-up for the upcoming story. Thankfully, it’s a story we’ll get through rather quickly as the nine issues are being published bi-monthly. However, I have a request for Marvel. In many youth-team books, the writers feel the need to create romantic relationships between the characters. Possibly in an effort to connect with some of today’s youth, many of those relationships are gay. Now, I have no problem reading a book with a good romantic subplot, regardless of orientation. X-Factor is a recent good example. The relationships between Madrox and Siryn, as well as Shatterstar and Rictor (two males) don’t take away from the book as a whole. However, Young Avengers, much like Runaways before it, feels the need to beat the reader over the head with it. Hawkeye and Mockingbird don’t spend entire pages staring longingly into each others eyes, TALKING about kissing. It either happens or it doesn’t and the book moves on. Stop speaking down to your audience, Marvel. Accept that your readers are either mature enough to handle a homosexual relationship or not and stop treating it differently than a traditional one. Avengers: The Children’s Crusade Issue 1 of 9 Marvel Comics Story: Allan Heinberg Art: Jim Cheung (Pencils), Mark Morales (Inks), Justin Ponsor (Colors)...

X-Men Issue 1: Curse of the Mutants, Part 1

X-Men Issue 1: Curse of the Mutants, Part 1

I’m a bit conflicted on the necessity of this title. To be honest, the X-Men family of books is big enough as it is. Comparing it to Marvel’s other big super-team, it’s surpassing the Avengers franchise in terms of monthly publications. However, many of the Avengers have their own solo titles for character development, leaving the team books for larger stories. With the exception of Wolverine, none of the X-Men have solo titles, so the team books have to carry the weight of both character development and overall plot advancement. The franchise has been doing well enough in recent years, with Uncanny X-Men carrying both weights, but then again the X-Men haven’t really DONE anything. So, I’d say there’s a definite role for X-Men in the lineup, but it may be one title too many to expect people to buy. Though, that’s a discussion better left for another time, once we’ve seen how well things play out. On it’s own, how does X-Men #1 stand up? Quite well. I’ve loved Victor Gischler’s work on Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth, and he handles the higher profile of this title with ease. Coming out of Gischler’s Death of Dracula one-shot, “Curse of the Mutants” is a story that essentially boils down to “X-Men vs Vampires.” The story starts with the de-powered Jubilee returning to the spotlight at the center of a vampire-terrorist attack. The vampires have developed a virus and are trying to increase their ranks by infecting the people of San Francisco. The story moves from one plot point to the next quickly and seamlessly, maintaining a solid pace throughout. Paco Medina’s artwork compliments the story perfectly. His designs capture each character as they should. Even a new reader can tell from the artwork alone, before they even say a word, that Cyclpos is the confident leader and Wolverine is the sarcastic muscle. Getting that much character through just from the art is an important factor for a book that will likely feature many of them. His facial expressions, while a bit cartoony at times, even further add to this effect. If you’ve seen any of Medina’s previous work on Deadpool, you know the guy can handle action. In the end, X-Men #1 works as a single issue. It works as the start of a new storyline. It even works as the start of a new era for the X-Men franchise. However, as the first book of an entirely new title, it falls a bit short. It lacks the “wow” factor that every title launch really needs to be successful. X-Men Issue 1: Curse of the Mutants, Part 1 Marvel Comics Story: Victor Gischler Art: Paco Medina (Pencils), Juan Vlasco (Inks), Marte Gracia (Colors)...

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