This was a rather disappointing week in comics for me. A new issue of Captain America couldn't even save this week's lot of comics and there were even a couple of books I picked up that I wish I could get my money back on. This is only the initial batch of reviews, so, hopefully, something from the rest of my stack will make up for the first wave of books.UPDATE - Added Countdown to Mystery, Search for Ray Palmer and, finally, The Walking Dead as my Comic Book of the Week.
Comic Book of the Week
The Walking Dead #44Written by Robert Kirkman
Art by Charlie Adlard
This was easily the best comic this week. If you're not reading The Walking Dead, you are really missing out on an awesome comic book. Don't let the zombie premise fool you, this is an excellent drama and character piece first, zombie story second.
If you've been following along, you know that the Governor has rallied the people of Woodbury and is literally banging at the gate of the prison an army of heavily armed soldiers and even a freaking tank. After last issue's flashback to how the Governor survived, this issue finally gives us what we've been waiting for, the full out assault on the prison.
However, looks can be deceiving. That army is completely untrained and can barely hit any of the zombies several metres in front of them, let alone anyone in the prison, and they don't have enough ammo to spare mowing down the multitude of zombies amassed outside the prison. On top of that, we learn the tank is only for show and they can barely drive it, let alone fire it.
After the initial wave of bullets, Andrea, the resident sharpshooter, rushes to her position in the prison guard tower and begins picking off the would-be attackers. They all quickly take aim on her position in the tower and, even with their horrible aim, manage to graze her in the head. She eventually recovers and, with the help of the other shooters, manages to repel their attackers. Before they can celebrate or mount a counter attack, the issue ends with Andrea collapsing from her bullet wound and, as everyone is rushing to help her, Rick doubling over, revealing he took a bullet in the stomach during the battle.
Verdict - Must Read. Non-stop action with unexpected twists and turns that delivered on everything Kirkman promised. To think, this storyline is just getting started! The only thing I can complain about with this issue is how painful the wait for the next issue will be.
If you've been following along, you know that the Governor has rallied the people of Woodbury and is literally banging at the gate of the prison an army of heavily armed soldiers and even a freaking tank. After last issue's flashback to how the Governor survived, this issue finally gives us what we've been waiting for, the full out assault on the prison.
However, looks can be deceiving. That army is completely untrained and can barely hit any of the zombies several metres in front of them, let alone anyone in the prison, and they don't have enough ammo to spare mowing down the multitude of zombies amassed outside the prison. On top of that, we learn the tank is only for show and they can barely drive it, let alone fire it.
After the initial wave of bullets, Andrea, the resident sharpshooter, rushes to her position in the prison guard tower and begins picking off the would-be attackers. They all quickly take aim on her position in the tower and, even with their horrible aim, manage to graze her in the head. She eventually recovers and, with the help of the other shooters, manages to repel their attackers. Before they can celebrate or mount a counter attack, the issue ends with Andrea collapsing from her bullet wound and, as everyone is rushing to help her, Rick doubling over, revealing he took a bullet in the stomach during the battle.
Verdict - Must Read. Non-stop action with unexpected twists and turns that delivered on everything Kirkman promised. To think, this storyline is just getting started! The only thing I can complain about with this issue is how painful the wait for the next issue will be.
ACTION COMICS #859Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Gary Frank and Jonathan Sibal
Johns is trying his best to make this return of the Legion easier for the people, like me, that have never followed them before. Having dozens of new characters that you don't know thrown at you in a story can be quite overwhelming and that is my only real complaint with this issue.
Johns spends most of this issue bringing the reader up to speed on why the future is so out of whack in this storyline. Apparently, some washed out tryouts from the Legion, all of which were Earthlings, discovered Superman's Fortress of Solitude and perverted the facts about Superman's past to turn the entire population of Earth into a xenophobic, alien hating culture that hunts down any and all aliens and has ceded from the all treaties with other races. To accomplish this, he used a school setting with random children answering history lesson questions. It felt a little forced and out of place to be honest, but got the job done.
The remainder of the issue introduced us to the defenders of this future Earth in the form of the previously mentioned Earth based Legion washouts. I'm not really sure what to make of them, as I mentioned, I know nothing about the Legion outside what is given to me in this story. So, I'm not even sure if they are a credible threat or how powerful they really are, but the Legion seems to be in trouble and most of the members are already captured or are in prison camps.
However, I feel this issue was a much better offering than the first one and, with a few exceptions, Frank's art is much better thist ime around.
Verdict - Check It. Legion fans might view this as a Must Read, but coming in fresh, it's a bit overwhelming for me and I'm sure anyone else who is not a Legion faithful. Still a solid read that's worth checking out at the very least.
Johns spends most of this issue bringing the reader up to speed on why the future is so out of whack in this storyline. Apparently, some washed out tryouts from the Legion, all of which were Earthlings, discovered Superman's Fortress of Solitude and perverted the facts about Superman's past to turn the entire population of Earth into a xenophobic, alien hating culture that hunts down any and all aliens and has ceded from the all treaties with other races. To accomplish this, he used a school setting with random children answering history lesson questions. It felt a little forced and out of place to be honest, but got the job done.
The remainder of the issue introduced us to the defenders of this future Earth in the form of the previously mentioned Earth based Legion washouts. I'm not really sure what to make of them, as I mentioned, I know nothing about the Legion outside what is given to me in this story. So, I'm not even sure if they are a credible threat or how powerful they really are, but the Legion seems to be in trouble and most of the members are already captured or are in prison camps.
However, I feel this issue was a much better offering than the first one and, with a few exceptions, Frank's art is much better thist ime around.
Verdict - Check It. Legion fans might view this as a Must Read, but coming in fresh, it's a bit overwhelming for me and I'm sure anyone else who is not a Legion faithful. Still a solid read that's worth checking out at the very least.
CAPTAIN AMERICA # 32Written by Ed Brubaker
Art by Steve Epting
While this was another solid issue from Brubaker and Epting, it was not their best effort. After the break neck pace this series has been moving at since Captain America died, it was inevitable that an issue would come along that would fall flat. That's not to say this issue was bad. It was still heads and shoulders above just about every other book, but compared to previous issues of this series, it's clearly the weakest issue in a long time.
What happened this issue to make me feel this way? Well, Black Widow and Falcon go into the sewers following the trail of Sharon Carter, who betrayed and shot the two unsuspecting heroes a couple issues ago. How do they find her trail? Falcon's pet bird apparently followed Sharon after she blasted them and is relaying that information to Falcon.
Alright, ignoring the absurdity of this premise (yes, I know he can understand his bird, but the bird was knocked out as well several issues ago, but somehow woke up early and followed Sharon), let's follow up on what happens in the sewers. Falcon and Widow beat up random, faceless henchmen for about 15 or so pages while Faustus makes his escape. The end.
Sure, there were other things happening in this issue, like the cop out from last issue's cliffhanger, but for the most part, it was a generic action issue. Heroes miraculously find the villains base, bust in, beat up guards while the villains make their escape. Heroes can't pursue villain because they have to save a falling Bucky, whom the villains threw out the back of their plane.
Verdict - Check It. Usually give this a Must Read, but this issue was just plain average and, if you compare it to previous offerings from this series, almost mediocre in comparison. Note, compared to the insanely high quality of previous Captain America issues, not compared to stuff like Countdown or what have you. It still blows those out of the water in terms of quality.
What happened this issue to make me feel this way? Well, Black Widow and Falcon go into the sewers following the trail of Sharon Carter, who betrayed and shot the two unsuspecting heroes a couple issues ago. How do they find her trail? Falcon's pet bird apparently followed Sharon after she blasted them and is relaying that information to Falcon.
Alright, ignoring the absurdity of this premise (yes, I know he can understand his bird, but the bird was knocked out as well several issues ago, but somehow woke up early and followed Sharon), let's follow up on what happens in the sewers. Falcon and Widow beat up random, faceless henchmen for about 15 or so pages while Faustus makes his escape. The end.
Sure, there were other things happening in this issue, like the cop out from last issue's cliffhanger, but for the most part, it was a generic action issue. Heroes miraculously find the villains base, bust in, beat up guards while the villains make their escape. Heroes can't pursue villain because they have to save a falling Bucky, whom the villains threw out the back of their plane.
Verdict - Check It. Usually give this a Must Read, but this issue was just plain average and, if you compare it to previous offerings from this series, almost mediocre in comparison. Note, compared to the insanely high quality of previous Captain America issues, not compared to stuff like Countdown or what have you. It still blows those out of the water in terms of quality.
COUNTDOWN PRESENTS: THE SEARCH FOR RAY PALMER: GOTHAM BY GASLIGHTWritten by Brian Augustyn
Art by Greg Tocchini
This was another decent addition to the Search for Ray Palmer series of one-shots. I'm not sure if it's because the Red Rain Elseworlds were some of my favourite Elseworlds or if this issue was actually worse, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as the Red Rain outing. It was still a fun trip to the Gotham by Gaslight world and I have to admit, this world's Blue Beetle showing up as the person marked by Palmer was a nice addition.
However, aside from a quick romp through this world, not much else happens. There's a small subplot of what appeared to be Man-Bat, especially after they introduced Langstrom, but the twist at the end where they have it end up being manifestations of Kyle's ring, an after effect of their encounters with the vampires of the Red Rain Earth, was an unnecessary addition to what could have been a straight forward and entertaining introduction to the Gotham by Gaslight Earth.
However, I must say, the issue did get me to pull out my old copy of Gotham by Gaslight and has me hoping for a mini-series or one-shot dedicated to this Earth without all the Challenger nonsense.
Verdict - Check It. Started as a fun reintroduction to the Gotham by Gaslight Earth, but an unnecessarily complicated plot twist at the end kind of ruined it. Still worth checking out if you enjoyed that old Elseworlds story or just curious as to what this Earth was all about.
However, aside from a quick romp through this world, not much else happens. There's a small subplot of what appeared to be Man-Bat, especially after they introduced Langstrom, but the twist at the end where they have it end up being manifestations of Kyle's ring, an after effect of their encounters with the vampires of the Red Rain Earth, was an unnecessary addition to what could have been a straight forward and entertaining introduction to the Gotham by Gaslight Earth.
However, I must say, the issue did get me to pull out my old copy of Gotham by Gaslight and has me hoping for a mini-series or one-shot dedicated to this Earth without all the Challenger nonsense.
Verdict - Check It. Started as a fun reintroduction to the Gotham by Gaslight Earth, but an unnecessarily complicated plot twist at the end kind of ruined it. Still worth checking out if you enjoyed that old Elseworlds story or just curious as to what this Earth was all about.
COUNTDOWN TO FINAL CRISIS #23Story by Paul Dini
Breakdowns by Keith Giffen
Script by Paul Dini
Art by Tom Derenick
Countdown took a noticeable dip in quality this week. I really thought having Paul Dini actually writing the entire issue this time would be a positive.
Instead, I feel like I missed a week of Countdown somewhere along the way. Where did this Earth-3 version of Zatanna come from? Is there a random tie-in I missed along the way that introduced her and showed how Superman Prime captured her? What reason did Superman keep her around? To restrain Myxzptlk? When did Ultraman become Monarch's second in command? When did Forerunner become "displaced"? When did Lord Havok join up with Monarch's army and why did Monarch replace Ultraman with him as his second in command?
This week's issue felt like something from several months ago, back when Countdown was at its worst. By this, I am referring to random things happening for random reasons, characters doing things simply for the sake of doing them - all with no logical explanation for them. These are all things the old Countdown used to rely on each and every week. Did we need that Earth-3 version of Zatanna or was it just Dini indulging his love for that character and sticking her in the story for no reason at all? Am I to assume Prime destroyed Earth-3 like he did with Earth-15 and that he decided not to kill her for some unknown reason? What were the Dominators doing in this issue? Is Lord Havok's mini-series going to explain why he joined Monarch? Am I expected to pick up that series to find out?
On top of all the random questions and occurrences, the bulk of this issue consists of Superman Prime going "Bawww, I hate everything, help me destroy the Multiverse" and Myx just laughing in his face. Did we need an entire issue of that? The entire issue failed to progress any storylines and we have gone yet another week without the Rogues or Challengers, arguably the best storylines from Countdown.
Verdict - Avoid It. Unless you want to read about Superman Prime crying for 22 pages straight, just avoid wasting money on this issue altogether.
Instead, I feel like I missed a week of Countdown somewhere along the way. Where did this Earth-3 version of Zatanna come from? Is there a random tie-in I missed along the way that introduced her and showed how Superman Prime captured her? What reason did Superman keep her around? To restrain Myxzptlk? When did Ultraman become Monarch's second in command? When did Forerunner become "displaced"? When did Lord Havok join up with Monarch's army and why did Monarch replace Ultraman with him as his second in command?
This week's issue felt like something from several months ago, back when Countdown was at its worst. By this, I am referring to random things happening for random reasons, characters doing things simply for the sake of doing them - all with no logical explanation for them. These are all things the old Countdown used to rely on each and every week. Did we need that Earth-3 version of Zatanna or was it just Dini indulging his love for that character and sticking her in the story for no reason at all? Am I to assume Prime destroyed Earth-3 like he did with Earth-15 and that he decided not to kill her for some unknown reason? What were the Dominators doing in this issue? Is Lord Havok's mini-series going to explain why he joined Monarch? Am I expected to pick up that series to find out?
On top of all the random questions and occurrences, the bulk of this issue consists of Superman Prime going "Bawww, I hate everything, help me destroy the Multiverse" and Myx just laughing in his face. Did we need an entire issue of that? The entire issue failed to progress any storylines and we have gone yet another week without the Rogues or Challengers, arguably the best storylines from Countdown.
Verdict - Avoid It. Unless you want to read about Superman Prime crying for 22 pages straight, just avoid wasting money on this issue altogether.
COUNTDOWN TO MYSTERY #3 (OF 8)Written by Steve Gerber and Matt Sturges
Art by Justiniano and Walden Wong and Stephen Segovia
This series is really shaping up to be one of the best Countdown tie-ins. Both stories were excellent this month, but I'm not sure exactly how the Dr Fate story is related to Countdown though. Maybe he will eventually show up to combat Mary Marvel and Eclipso or maybe DC just didn't think a Dr Fate mini-series would hold its own without the tie-in status, who knows?
Speaking of Fate, this issue explores more of the new Fate's abilities and gives us a trip to his inner self after meeting up with a possible love interest at a magic shop. The computer subroutine acting as a new age magician spell was a nice touch with this new age of magic in the DC Universe. However, this story is still a little lacking on the action and magic. A bit too much inner dialogue and soul searching, but otherwise still entertaining.
The Eclipso back up story more than made up for the lack of action in the Fate story, but again suffered from lack of story and explanation for what's going on. It's like these two stories are on the opposite ends of the spectrum and if they both met half way, this series would be incredible. This time around saw Eclipso duking it out with the Creeper before catching up with an entertaining Batman and Plastic Man encounter. Segovia draws an incredible Batman and I'd love to see him get a crack at a Batman title. In fact, he does an excellent job with all the art in the Eclipso story.
Verdict - Must Read. Two entertaining stories that compliment each other nicely. Not a perfect book, but definitely enjoyable. Check it out, one or both of the stories should appeal to you.
Speaking of Fate, this issue explores more of the new Fate's abilities and gives us a trip to his inner self after meeting up with a possible love interest at a magic shop. The computer subroutine acting as a new age magician spell was a nice touch with this new age of magic in the DC Universe. However, this story is still a little lacking on the action and magic. A bit too much inner dialogue and soul searching, but otherwise still entertaining.
The Eclipso back up story more than made up for the lack of action in the Fate story, but again suffered from lack of story and explanation for what's going on. It's like these two stories are on the opposite ends of the spectrum and if they both met half way, this series would be incredible. This time around saw Eclipso duking it out with the Creeper before catching up with an entertaining Batman and Plastic Man encounter. Segovia draws an incredible Batman and I'd love to see him get a crack at a Batman title. In fact, he does an excellent job with all the art in the Eclipso story.
Verdict - Must Read. Two entertaining stories that compliment each other nicely. Not a perfect book, but definitely enjoyable. Check it out, one or both of the stories should appeal to you.
INCREDIBLE HULK # 111Written Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente
Art by Khoi Pham
Oi, what did I just read? It felt like something out of the 90's, and I mean that in a bad way.
This issue picks up after WWH #4. Dr Strange was just captured and Cho, Hercules and the rest of the renegade heroes are left to clean up the mess from the battle, helping random people trapped and what have you.
Before they can return to their clean up crew status, Wong, Dr Strange's assistant, comes out of the rubble requesting aid in recapturing the essence of Zom, which fled Dr Strange's body after he was defeated.
Our would-be heroes make this job their own and go in search of the escaped essence of Zom. Where did it go after the battle with Hulk? Why, straight into a nearby destroyed Hulk Buster Armour. Yes, this mysterious entity can apparently take control of inanimate objects like Iron Man's destroyed armour. And how do our heroes stop this all-powerful foe? Cho, the seventh smartest person on Earth, uses a Game Boy to hack into a broken off piece of the armour, which in turn allows him to hack into the Zom Buster. Not even a DS, but the old fashioned, original edition, brick sized Game Boy. Right. I love comic book hax0ring.
Zom decides since his armour is busted that he will enslave Cho, who Angel knocks out with a simple kick to the head and Wong recaptures the essence in his magic jar.
Verdict - Avoid It. Seriously, do not waste your time or money on this abomination. If you were expecting some big development explaining the title's change to Incredible Hercules, you'll be disappointed, as Herc barely appears this issue.
This issue picks up after WWH #4. Dr Strange was just captured and Cho, Hercules and the rest of the renegade heroes are left to clean up the mess from the battle, helping random people trapped and what have you.
Before they can return to their clean up crew status, Wong, Dr Strange's assistant, comes out of the rubble requesting aid in recapturing the essence of Zom, which fled Dr Strange's body after he was defeated.
Our would-be heroes make this job their own and go in search of the escaped essence of Zom. Where did it go after the battle with Hulk? Why, straight into a nearby destroyed Hulk Buster Armour. Yes, this mysterious entity can apparently take control of inanimate objects like Iron Man's destroyed armour. And how do our heroes stop this all-powerful foe? Cho, the seventh smartest person on Earth, uses a Game Boy to hack into a broken off piece of the armour, which in turn allows him to hack into the Zom Buster. Not even a DS, but the old fashioned, original edition, brick sized Game Boy. Right. I love comic book hax0ring.
Zom decides since his armour is busted that he will enslave Cho, who Angel knocks out with a simple kick to the head and Wong recaptures the essence in his magic jar.
Verdict - Avoid It. Seriously, do not waste your time or money on this abomination. If you were expecting some big development explaining the title's change to Incredible Hercules, you'll be disappointed, as Herc barely appears this issue.
IRON MAN: DIRECTOR OF S.H.I.E.L.D. ANNUAL # 1Written by Christos Gage
Art by Harvey Tolibao
I believe this issue was supposed to be a homage to the old Nick Fury series, but it just didn't do it for me. I would have preferred another issue of the main Iron Man series over this. That or my money back.
The issue's premise is that Madame Hydra rules the country of Madripoor. Tony wants her deposed so she can't run Hydra terrorist cells as the head of state, which affords her diplomatic immunity, thus preventing overt action from SHIELD. His plan? Infiltrate the country in a covert mission as a visiting billionaire playboy, one whom the entire world knows is Iron Man and the current director of SHIELD. Brilliant.
Once inside the country, Tony meets up with his SHIELD informant, who is promptly killed, and then goes on to meet up with the resident militant group's leader, Tyger Tiger. From there, Tony meets up with Madame Hydra, broadcasts her speech about how the people of the country are chattel she can do anything she wants with and this causes a revolt in the entire country, which ends with Tyger Tiger as the new leader of the country.
Verdict - Avoid It. I honestly want my money back after reading this. If you enjoy the actual Iron Man series, this is a complete departure from the style and tone of that series and I found this issue missed all the marks it was trying to hit with the spy and espionage premise.
The issue's premise is that Madame Hydra rules the country of Madripoor. Tony wants her deposed so she can't run Hydra terrorist cells as the head of state, which affords her diplomatic immunity, thus preventing overt action from SHIELD. His plan? Infiltrate the country in a covert mission as a visiting billionaire playboy, one whom the entire world knows is Iron Man and the current director of SHIELD. Brilliant.
Once inside the country, Tony meets up with his SHIELD informant, who is promptly killed, and then goes on to meet up with the resident militant group's leader, Tyger Tiger. From there, Tony meets up with Madame Hydra, broadcasts her speech about how the people of the country are chattel she can do anything she wants with and this causes a revolt in the entire country, which ends with Tyger Tiger as the new leader of the country.
Verdict - Avoid It. I honestly want my money back after reading this. If you enjoy the actual Iron Man series, this is a complete departure from the style and tone of that series and I found this issue missed all the marks it was trying to hit with the spy and espionage premise.
THUNDERBOLTS: BREAKING POINT # 1Written by Christos Gage
Art by Brian Denham
Well, we now know that Ellis is probably the only one that can do the new Thunderbolts any real justice. This issue, while technically sound from a writing and art standpoint, just falls completely short of the bar set by Ellis and Deodato. It felt as if Gage and Denham were trying their best to imitate the actual series writing and art instead of telling their own story, with their own voices.
After a brief encounter with an unregistered character, the Thunderbolts return to their base. There, Songbird runs into her long lost mother, the same mother who was a drunk and abandoned her when she was a child. Apparently, she has returned to cash in on Melissa's popularity as a Thunderbolt. After a brief chat, Melissa tells her to stay out of her life forever. Her mother, a recovering alcoholic, later dies in a car crash, where she was found with trace amounts of alcohol in her blood. Melissa mourns a bit and then goes on a mission with the team where she acts fairly cold, more in line with how Moonstone typically acts.
This all ends with Moonstone confronting Songbird about her recent behaviour and mother's death. Songbird reveals Moonstone had a brief conversation with Melissa's mother which, apparently, caused her to start drinking again and is why she died. Now, it shows this conversation in the issue and it consists of Moonstone saying Norman Osborn is a billionaire and director of the Thunderbolts. How this relates in any way, shape or form to Melissa's mother's death is beyond me.
I honestly have no idea what the point of this issue was and the "revelation" was a complete bust to me. What was the point of it? I don't see how Moonstone is responsible for her mother's death or how that conversation meant anything in the grand scheme of things.
Verdict - Avoid It. It's a rather dull issue that tries to imitate a much better writer's interpretation of these characters and fails miserably with a lackluster reveal at the end. Unless you absolutely must have every single thing related to the new Thunderbolts, don't bother with this one-shot.
After a brief encounter with an unregistered character, the Thunderbolts return to their base. There, Songbird runs into her long lost mother, the same mother who was a drunk and abandoned her when she was a child. Apparently, she has returned to cash in on Melissa's popularity as a Thunderbolt. After a brief chat, Melissa tells her to stay out of her life forever. Her mother, a recovering alcoholic, later dies in a car crash, where she was found with trace amounts of alcohol in her blood. Melissa mourns a bit and then goes on a mission with the team where she acts fairly cold, more in line with how Moonstone typically acts.
This all ends with Moonstone confronting Songbird about her recent behaviour and mother's death. Songbird reveals Moonstone had a brief conversation with Melissa's mother which, apparently, caused her to start drinking again and is why she died. Now, it shows this conversation in the issue and it consists of Moonstone saying Norman Osborn is a billionaire and director of the Thunderbolts. How this relates in any way, shape or form to Melissa's mother's death is beyond me.
I honestly have no idea what the point of this issue was and the "revelation" was a complete bust to me. What was the point of it? I don't see how Moonstone is responsible for her mother's death or how that conversation meant anything in the grand scheme of things.
Verdict - Avoid It. It's a rather dull issue that tries to imitate a much better writer's interpretation of these characters and fails miserably with a lackluster reveal at the end. Unless you absolutely must have every single thing related to the new Thunderbolts, don't bother with this one-shot.
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1 comments:
Oh boy. Another two throwaway One-Shot / Annuals from Chris Gage.
Thanks for keeping me from buying two books I was hesitant about to begin with!
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