34 posts tagged “marvel”

This is the last story of the FF, so all bets are off and anything can happen in this story. That's what attracts me about this type of story. They can do things that would never be allowed in a regular series.
 
The story starts with a bang, the last battle with Doom where the group suffers the biggest loss. After that there is a time jump which bring us to the new status quo of the entire solar system, all thanks to Reed.
 
There are many elements at play here, Alan Davis obviously wanted to cram as many classic FF characters as he could, as well the rest of the Marvel U. This story's scope is big.
 
Unfortunately all these elements don't really mesh together well, it seems implausible that they all happen at the same time. I thought there'd be a unifying thread, but there isn't.
 
That being sad I did enjoy each story thread on its own, and I obviously loved learning about the new status quo. The end feels a bit sappy, but I did feel for Sue. I thought that part was very well done.
 
The art is obviously gorgeous to look at. Davis doesn't pull any punches here. There is plenty to admire here. If I had a criticism is that at times it feels too crowded, too much color and not enough focus.
 
Still, I enjoyed this story for what it was.

 

This is a mini telling the story of the super soldier serum development, from a very different perspective. It starts introducing us to 3 characters, all African-American living their own lives in different parts of the USA.
 
Then they are drafted into the military and go to war (WWII). They end up in the same group, and that's when things start to go wrong. They are part of the experimentation for the super soldier serum. Some of them die from the experiments, some of them survive.
 
This was a very grounded story, not at all a superhero story. It was very much about the discrimination against blacks and the culture at that time. So when one of the soldiers was reading a Captain America comic I was wondering if this story was in the Marvel Universe at all. I got my answer soon afterwards.
 
I really liked how this tied into the Cap story, and what he does in the present. Somehow I felt touched by the last issue.
 
My biggest problem is that I was very confused while reading this story. There is a lot of information in each issue, however not everything is spelt out for the reader. Some things are implied, some other things I just didn't understand from the dialog. Luckily for me each issue has a "story so far" blurb, which is actually clearer than the comic pages.
 
The art by Kyle Baker is nice, but I could hardly distinguish the soldiers. Luckily he didn't have to draw too many superheroes, I really don't think his style is suited for a serious superhero comic. Maybe a parody though.

 

When I first heard of the concept of the Illuminati I wasn't sold on it. I thought it was just an excuse to have yet another secret society of superheroes. Reading this mini changed that impression though.
 
I thought seeing these heroes band together and intervene in some of the important events in Marvel history was neat. The first three issues were about three crossover events from the past. These were all interesting in how they deal with the problem.
 
The fourth issue was about the new Cap Marvel, which I am not sure who it is. I guess it's just too recent, so I haven't read it. This didn't resonate with me like the previous issues exactly for that reason. And as much as the opening dialog is funny/amusing, it didn't feel necessary.
 
The last issue is the big reveal of who is a Skrull, and it is the official start of the Secret Invasion. The war has begun, but there is no united front to deal with the enemy, especially after Civil War.
 
The art by Jim Cheung is again outstanding. He truly is my favorite artist at the moment. He tends to draw everyone as young kids, even his Iron Man suit looks "young", but they all have a distinct look, which is what matters. His storytelling is also very clear.
 
This mini has me pumped for what's coming up in Marvel next year.

 

Bendis is really laying the ground for next year's big event at Marvel. So in preparation for that I am catching up on his New Avengers. Spoilers follow.
 
His Civil War arc on New Avengers 21-25 showed us which side some of the Avengers chose and what were the consequences. Each issue stars one particular character and is penciled by a different artist.
 
Even though these stories are well integrated with the main Civil War series, they are basically self-contained stories that go deeper into the character's thoughts and some of their history. I thought these were well thought out character stories, as well as giving us some action and tie-ins with Civil War.
 
The art was mainly good, but reading them one after the other the difference was jarring. No matter how good Civil War was (or not), these felt like fill-in stories. I can't wait to read more and get closer to the Secret Invasion threads later on.

The next arc is Revolution (#26-31) where things really start heating up in the Marvel U. There are two time lines being

told in parallel. One is the aftermath of Civil War, where Cap's group is hiding from Tony Stark and his Mighty Avengers in Doc Strange's place. There is another confrontation between the two Avengers teams, which establishes their motives again.
 
The other time line takes place in Japan, and it involves Maya Lopez (Echo) being kidnapped by the Hand, lead by Elektra. Of course this is where the big reveal about the Secret Invasion is. Bendis also summarizes in very few words what's been happening since the beginning of this title, and ties everything to the Skrulls, though it's just a supposition at the moment.
 
There is also the return of Hawkeye, which is fine by me, but how he comes back isn't even explained, actually Hawkeye himself makes a comment about how that doesn't really matter.
 
After the big reveal in 31, the current arc deals with Trust (#32-37). Nobody trusts each other, everyone is suspect and Bendis does a good job of showing us that everybody could be a Skrull. However he also gives us a way to believe that everybody in this team is not a Skrull, thanks to a spell by Doc Strange. But of course we don't know if that really works.
 
The other thread in this arc is The Hood and his band of villains. The way Hood deals with Tigra is interesting, but in the middle of the Invasion as well as things happening in Mighty Avengers (Ultron, Venom etc...) this feels like filler.
 
The art in the last two arcs is by Lenil Yu, which I always liked but here is a little bit different. His line is rougher, making this a very dark book. However his layouts are always inventive.
 
There are 3 more issues before the Secret Invasion event starts. I usually read comics in arcs, not single issues, however I don't think I can do that with this series anymore. I am really excited about this storyline. This series has been conceived with the Secret Invasion, so everything will culminate in that story. My only worry is what is Bendis gonna do after that story?

 

I wasn't blown away by Planet Hulk like a lot of people, so even though I was interested in World War Hulk, I didn't have very high expectations. It turns out I like this better then Planet Hulk.
 
This is a very fast paced action packed simple story: Hulk returns to Earth looking for revenge. The whole mini is about Hulk battling the earth heroes, in particular Black Bolt, Iron Man, Reed, Doc Strange, Sentry.
 
I like the way the heroes keep finding ways to stop Hulk, but this time he is really unstoppable. I am not sure I buy that people would love the fighting arena and cheer for the Hulk, but I liked that Hulk wants the heroes to know what he went through.
 
The twist at the end was expected, someone else was responsible for the destruction of Sakaar, we just didn't know who exactly.
 
The art by John Romita Jr is perfect for this title. His fighting scenes feel epic, just the way he draws Hulk, the big Iron Man combat suit, the demon Doc Strange, the Sentry... they all look massive and powerful.
 
There is a victim to this war, but I won't spoil it here. The final page is just a tease for future titles.
 
Overall I really enjoyed this story. I am not sure I am that excited about the future Hulk titles though. Do we really need 3 series?

 

This recent mini by Neil Gaiman revives the Eternals concept created by Kirby and tries to once and for all fit them into the Marvel Universe.
 
Gaiman pretty much keeps the mythology intact (with some exceptions) and creates a story where the Eternals all lost their memory, but little by little they realize their true identity and what they lose by not being humans.
 
This is a pretty tipical story, and it feels very familiar (it even felt like House of M). There is plenty of action, and also a lot of exposition about the past.
 
All this is very well drawn by John Romita Jr. His style is perfect for this epic story, especially when it comes to drawing the Celestials. Every page drawn by JRJR already feels bigger than usual, and when he drawn a giant God it really shines.
 
The ending was surprising to me, a bit underwhelming. Minor Spoiler ahead. The story seems to bring to a huge fight with a Celestial, instead it just stops there, simply presenting us with the new status quo, one where the Eternals are part of the Marvel Universe, in fact Iron Man knows about them.
 
This ending felt like the setup for an ongoing series, except there is none. I felt disappointed by this. The story is fine, not very exciting or particularly original. The art is very good and perfect. I just wish Neil Gaiman would write his own stories, instead of writing what Marvel wants.

 

I'd heard good things about this mini, so I decided to check it out.
 
Even though this story heavily references old obscure stories, I thought the summary pages about past stories were very well done, so I didn't think  I was missing anything. I had all the relevant information in the comic itself, without needing to go back and look for those stories.
 
However I must admit at first I was a little bit confused, and I had to re-read the first few pages of issue 1. But that went away pretty quickly and I was caught in the present story.
 
And as good as this adventure was, I wasn't exactly impressed by it. It just felt like I'd read something like that already, even though this was a well done comic.
 
The art is very clear, perfect for this type of superhero/adventure story. Kirk has certainly improved.
 
Overall it's not a story for me, maybe not anymore. I am looking for something a little bit more substantial and deep. But this was a very well done fun story.

 

Years ago Peter David was writing the X-Factor title starring a group of mutants employed by the US government. This time out things are very different, and they start and star Jamie Madrox, the multiple man.
 
The mini-series Madrox re-introduced him and his powers as well as his new status quo, as a P.I. I really liked that mini which had a definite detective/noir feeling to it, including Jamie being the narrator. That also helps us understand his powers and mental state.
 
At the end of the mini his friends change the name of his agency to X-Factor, which brings me to the regular series. This series took a slightly different approach to the mini, in that the noir is toned down, while the Decimation/M-Day consequences are amped up.
 
I liked the Singularity link to Madrox, which reveals secrets about his past. Madrox is definitely the main attraction for me, the way his power works is just so inventive psychologically. The power itself is simple.
 
I was surprised to discover that this is actually not a secondary title, but a main X-title. In fact this is probably the only title that deals directly with m-day, which is supposed to be a huge event in the X-universe.
 

I am not sure I liked the resolution of Mr. Huber's plan. I liked the character and his motivations, I just think he should have been more invincible, having the powers of all mutants in the world. Instead he just left as if nothing happened.
 
I do like Layla Miller, a very interesting character, though her knowledge is a little too perfect. I'll have to go back and re-read the end of House of M.
 
In the end I expected a little more noir in this series, just as the mini teased (that mini reminded me of Alias by Bendis). Instead the agency felt like an excuse to introduce more typical superhero events in to the book.
 
The art wasn't very consistent, but I never disliked any of it. I also wasn't impressed by it either, I just wish they could find a regular artist that can leave his mark on these characters.
 
Overall this is surely a good title, I am curious to see how it does in the upcoming event.

 

Edangered Species is not exactly a crossover. This is a story that runs as 17 chapters, each an 8 pages back-up story running in the 4 main X-Titles, at no extra cost.
 
This story is about Beast's search to the imminent extinction on the mutant population. There isn't a lot of action here, but a lot of characterization for Beast, as well as an examination at the mutant situation from many different angles.
 
This is not really necessary to read, but it really analyzes the consequences of m-day, which were not really addressed in the regular series.
 
I think this story is perfect for new readers, so I obviously enjoyed it.
 

One of the main questions I had after reading the Carey run on X-Men was why did Gambit leave the X-Men. So I went and found that storyline, Blood of Apocalypse.

This is the last arc in Peter Milligan's run on X-Men. It features the return of Apocalypse, how he chose his horsemen and how he transforms them. Basically the usual Apocalypse story.

However this time he is a little bit different, he is more human, but we never discover why he is like that, at least not in this story.

I also got my answer regarding Gambit, but it wasn't satisfying at all. At least now I know his motives. If this is how the whole Milligan run read like, I am glad I didn't read it.

The art by Larroca is very similar to his more recent work.