Young Avengers # 12 Review

Author: Allan Heinberg
Penciler: Jimmy Cheung
Inker: Robert Stull
Colors: Justin Ponsor

Better late than never? Although it pains me to say it: yes. But the delays have really hurt this book in sales. For some reason everyone just got to the idea of Ultimates coming out whenever and it still selling strong. That doesn't really hold true for YA. Obviously this book was supposed to be out before Civil War #2, so we already know what happens to Patriot in this book. To top that off this book is on hiatus while Heinburg goes on to concentrate on Wonder Woman and the OC.

So, let's get to the story. There is an agreement reached that Hulkling will spend half a year with the Kree and half with the Skrulls until he chooses who he will ally with. During this time he can make regular visits to Earth and if Teddy is harmed in any way or misses a visit, Iron Man states that the Avengers will end the Kree/Skrull war once and for all. Turns out that it wasn't Teddy at all, but a Super-Skrull. After that mess is all settled Billy takes them to the hospital where Captain America is ready to be a blood donor for Eli when they find his grandfather, Isaiah Bradley (the original Super Soldier), already giving him a blood transfusion which explains his super powers.

There is a really nice speech made by Kate about acceptance and it really makes Cap look like a chump. Cap eventually dubs her the new Hawkeye as she receives his bow and quiver. Next stop: the Avengers mansion to repair the statues of fallen Avengers. It's all about respect for Ant-man, Captain Marvel, and Mockingbird. Finally there is a ceremony for Teddy's mom; they announce their next mission will be to find Billy and Tommy's mom (Scarlet Witch). Tommy decides to stay with the team under the new code name Speed.

A great wrap up for a first year or more like two years. Just a couple of gripes, but really small ones. If Eli got a blood transfusion from his grandpa how did he get super-hearing and bulletproof skin abilities? Neither of those are part of a Super Soldier's powers. Also I was disappointed that Cap let Kate use the Hawkeye code name, since he technically is still around somewhere. Why not Mockingbird or Swordsman? Other than that, a perfect issue, with some beautiful artwork by Cheung. This is probably his strongest issue yet. I will be picking up Young Avengers/Runaways Civil War, but damn I'm going to miss the Heinberg/Cheung team. A solid A from me.

Gargoyles # 1 Review

Author: Greg Weisman
Penciler: Dave Hedgecock
Color Art: Will Terrell
Publisher: Slave Labor

Finally found a copy to read and review after searching for a week. At a time when I was watching strictly anime and completely hating on American cartoons ( hey I was a junior in High school, cut me some slack.) there were only two cartoons that I would even consider watching. Batman the Animated series was one of course and Gargoyles. When Disney released the DVD of the first season and the first half of the second season, I couldn't wait to get my hands on them. I watched them and damn, they were as great as they were the first time around. While most of us Gargoyles' fans are waiting the release of the final episodes on DVD, No the Goliath Chronicles don't exist in a true fan's eye, Slave Labor and the series creator Greg Weisman are feeding us something to chew on until then.

First I want to mention that a recap is done in about two pages. So it really doesn't feel decompressed. This issue feels like an opening for season 3 of the show. It picks up right where the last episode of season 2 left off. It gets right to the action and it tells new readers everything they need to know along the way. The Quarrymen (hooded ninja clan) make a return by trying to recruit volunteers to wage a war on the Gargoyles. Led by John Castaway, the villain from the last episodes of season 2, this issue really gives us the feeling that these guys were going to be some major players in season 3. We even get a feeling that the relationship between Goliath and Elisa has deepened, because of their small "date". I really can't wait for the next issue and I hope Weisman explores more of Lexington and Brooklyn in the next issue.

The Gargoyles look powerful and heroic. Elisa looks beautiful and strong, just like she did on the show. All the character emotions are captured well. Terrell’s colors are completely gorgeous, adding that extra touch of beauty to the story. Hell, we even get Greg Guler, original character designer, doing the covers of the comics. This really brought back some great memories and if this is the only format that the show will live on, I'm okay with that. A- If you are a fan of the show and you haven't purchased season 2 part 1, now is the time to do it. Disney is considering not releasing the remaining episodes on DVD, due to poor sales of the first set of episodes. So again, just a suggestion, if you are a fan of the show, you might want to purchase it now, or buy it for a friend.

Wolverine # 43 Review

This Review Was Submitted by Knightwingbk
Wolverine #43
Writer: Mark Guggenheim
Artist: Humberto Ramos

C’mon Omar, this issue of Wolverine was fantastic! I think that Guggenheim has a strong hold on the character, and he wrote a solid action story in this issue. Hell, he deep fried Wolverine! Never have I seen a deep fried Wolverine, and when I saw this, my mouth was agape. Wolverine, now on the trail of Nitro, follows him across the country, has a conversation with Tony Stark, and accompanies S.H.I.E.L.D to Nitro’s hideout in California.

I was really impressed by this issue, besides being a strong action issue, his conversation with Tony Stark was written very well. Tony questions Logan on what killing Nitro to do, and Logan brings up the fact that this is why Tony brought him onto the Avengers, because he was willing to go where others weren’t. It seems like that has been forgotten by Bendis in New Avengers but Guggenheim uses that here.

As I’ve said before, I love Humberto Ramos’ art. Period. Nitro and Wolverine look purely badass in this issue thanks to Ramos. Even Iron Man looks good. Ramos’ style here looks grittier than his previous work, more similar to his Revelations art (which he did for Dark Horse with Paul Jenkins) and you can tell he puts a lot of work into his art and still manages to be on-time. A great read, I give this issue an A.

My take on Wolverine #43
I feel like I have to say a few things about this issue. For the most part I agree with knightwingbk, but I have a few rants. I will skip how much I don't like Ramos on this book and get to some points. The dialogue seemed a little cliche at times. Wolverine cares, I buy that. But shit like this has happened before. Hell, when the mutant massacre happened so many morlock kids died and Wolverine didn't go after the marauders. Was it because they were ugly kids? Going after Nitro is a great idea, but it should have been an order, not Wolvie taking it upon himself to go and avenge innocent people. If that was the case, Wolverine would be taking off every other month to avenge innocent people.

The scene with Stark was good, I have to agree with knightwingbk, this is a strong reason why Wolverine does not belong in the Avengers. He doesn't listen to his leaders, he's just there, for sales. Now onto to the scene that really bothered me. Wolverine and his squad explode in front of our eyes. And when I mean explode, I mean there ain't shit left on Wolverine except for adamantium bones! My comment on that: BULLSHIT! I don't know if it was an artistic mistake, but there is not one single piece of flesh or organs in the last panel where Wolvie is just melting away before our eyes. What the fuck! Even Cell from DBZ needs one piece of brain fragment to regenerate. When the fuck did Wolverine get his Lobo-like powers? And the fact that he heals almost his entire body in the time that it takes Nitro to make a phone call? When did his healing ability get so fast? The guy was in a coma for an issue when Magneto ripped his adamantium out. Wolverine is already a bad-ass! We don't need to give him God-like powers to make him a better character, just stick to telling good stories. Not a bad issue or a great one, but its an in-betweener, so a C+ from me.

Amazing Spiderman # 533 Review

This Review Was Submitted by Knightwingbk

Amazing Spiderman #533
Writer: J. Michael Straczynski
Artist: Ron Garney

Just like last issue was good, this issue is better. This issue contains the aftermath of Peter’s momentous decision in Civil War #2. We see Peter’s reaction to his actions, his families continued support, other heroes’ reactions, but most importantly J. Jonah Jameson’s reaction. Pick up this issue simply to see how JJJ reacts, its better here than in Frontline #2. Also in this issue, Peter finally stands up to Tony Stark and stops being led around like a lapdog. He threatens Tony and tells him “You didn’t have a family until right now. If this goes wrong, if I end up regretting this, if anything happens to me, I want your word that you’ll take care of MJ and May.” DAMN!

Ron Garney is really impressing me with his art. Everyone is drawn carefully, and drawn well. His expressions are great and show what each character is expressing while they are speaking. If he stays on this book for a long time, he might become my new favorite Spiderman artist over Romita Jr. For Civil War this week get Spiderman, Wolverine, and New Avengers for sure. This issue lands a web filled A.

New Avengers # 21 Review

This Review Was Submitted by Knightwingbk
New Avengers #21
Writer: Bendis
Artist: Howard Chaykin

Two issues of New Avengers in two weeks. This is how they should handle late shipping on books, finish the book and keep the next couple of issues on the same schedule. Compared to how weird and confusing last week’s issue of New Avengers was, this issue was much better than the last because New Avengers has finally caught up with the rest of the Marvel Universe and is embroiled in Civil War! This issue focuses on Captain America, and I suppose takes place between issues 1 and 2 because Cap is collecting his “team” and he visits Spiderman only to see that he’s loyal to Tony. The beginning of the issue focuses on Cap’s thoughts and how he feels betrayed by everyone around him, and even his own country, that all of us don’t know what we want, whether we want to be free or to be safe, and that there is a difference between those two words. Cap evades S.H.I.E.L.D. yet again and flees to another bunker only to meet Sam Wilson, the Falcon. That’s where Cap goes to assemble this new team.

Bendis finally has an idea and a story to tell that is actually succeeding. I’ve always liked his Captain America in New Avengers, and he is just as strong here. Sam Wilson the Falcon is written with the usual ebonics, with all the ain’ts, brotha’s, and y’thinks. Not even Bendis’ Luke Cage talks like that, so why does Bendis make Sam Wilson talk like that? I would think that Sam Wilson was better educated than Luke Cage and would not be using all of the ebonics he is using here.

This is my first experience with Howard Chaykin’s art and it takes awhile to get used to. He has a rough, loose style that lends itself to this gritty story, and I liked it but my complaint is that it looks like he left a lot to the colorist. Every shot of Cap’s uniform and shield looks like Chaykin did not bother to draw it. Cap’s scales on his uniform are perfect in every panel, and if you’ve ever drawn Captain America, you can’t get the scales to be perfect. Also the shield is completely color done. There are no inked pencil lines of the star or stripes on the shield. In one panel it seems like Chaykin did not even bother to draw the star in the middle of Cap’s chest! Now that is just plain lazy, the scales I can understand, but the friggin star? Lazy!

Art issues aside, pick up this issue if you’re enjoying Civil War. A solid B because of how much an improvement over last week’s issue, and because it is a strong issue overall.

Comic Book Classic Vault:Ultimate X-Men Volume 1: The Tomorrow People Review

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:

Writer: Mark Millar
Artists: Adam & Andy Kubert

Wow. A knockout story for Mark Millar re-introducing the X-men to millions of readers. The reader jumps right into the story, as the Sentinel program already exists, Magneto has already been terrorizing the human race, and Professor X assembles his first team of X-men in the first issue. Talk about moving fast. So much happens in this book that there is no slowing down. Right away, we are in the midst of a Sentinel attack, and we are introduced to the Ultimate world in the form of TV News captions. After that we see Jean Grey meet Beast, Storm, and Colossus and invite them back to Professor X's mansion to form the X-men. Still in that first issue, they go to New York City to rescue Bobby Drake from the Sentinels! Did I mention we also meet the Brotherhood of Mutants, Magneto, and catch a glimpse of Wolverine?

Needless to say, the pacing is racing along in this book, which is what makes it such a fun read. Instead of your usual, take 6 issues to assemble the team or establish your hero (CoughUltimateSpidermanCough) Millar starts us right away, throwing us into the universe and never looks back. We only have one flashback in these entire 6 issues, where Professor X recounts how he ended up in a wheelchair from Magneto. Issues 2 sees the X-men "rescue" Wolverine, and issues 3-4 they try to rescue the Presidents daughter, and finally in 5-6 confront Magneto and battle Sentinels. Millar just never lets up; as we're racing along he develops his characters on the battlefield through banter and post-battlefield conversations. Wolverine is much more of a badass in the Ultimate Universe than the 616. Let’s just say he does much more than just pine for Jean Grey. Millar writes these teenagers without all the "yo-yo-yo's" and "wassups" and shows their youth through their naiveté in the stories. Cyclops is the leader on the field but he is unsure of his leadership abilities, causing him to make mistakes. Jean Grey is a lot different than her counterpart. I feel she is stronger here, than she ever has been in any X comic I've read. Another way she is different, is that Jean is actually fun. I never had any fun reading the 616 Jean, but I sure do here! Iceman, Beast, and Colossus are all pretty similar so far to their 616 counterparts, but in these first 6 issues, even though they are given a lot to do, they are not as developed as Cyclops, Jean, Wolverine, or Magneto.

Professor X is almost missing here, aside from a few short scenes, he leaves the leading of the X-men to Cyclops. One would think he'd be in their heads telepathically orchestrating the battle, but Millar does not use that here. Magneto is far more prominent here than his old friend, and like 616 Magneto, he is just as villainous if not more. This being the beginning of the war, he may be a little soft. At one point he lets the X-Men go after a battle, whereas 616 might have killed them.

Millar smartly gets rid of the yellow spandex for all the heroes, going for a more streamlined uniform look, a la the X-men movies. He does give a reason for the Uniforms, calling them cloaking devices of their mutant gene so that the Sentinels do not detect them. Millar does a lot of smart things in this book. Like anything he writes, there is no reason for nothing, and an explanation is given for everything, although some are more fleshed out than others. If Bendis had written this arc, we would have gotten a dialogue and banter heavy X-men, and had seen the team go on their first mission at the end of issue 6, rather than issue 1. Millar was a smart choice for the book, keeping the pacing up and making the characters stronger rather than changing them dramatically as some may have feared with this relaunch.

The art here is top-notch. The Kubert brothers frenetic style is a perfect match for Millar and the X-men. I never felt the art was forced or wrong on any page. One thing I did like, was that the flashback and television sequences in the first issue are inked and colored differently than the rest of the book. Almost as if they were colored right over the original pencils. This sets it apart from the rest of the book and is not distracting from the story as say, the Jim Lee flashbacks were in the Hush storyline where sometimes both flashback and present existed on the same page, but were so drastically different. My one complaint, thumbing through it now, is that there seems to be little or no backgrounds unless the script calls for it. Some panels are looking at floors, walls, and sky. You can tell what they are but missing from the art are all the cracks in the tiles, in the asphalt, and the clouds in the sky! Sure let the colorist do all the work, whatever. But that is my only complaint about it, other than that it is great to look at. This book gets a solid A. Go and pick it up if you haven't already. A great introduction to the series.

Superman The Animated Series Volume 3 DVD Review

Superman: The Animated Series Volume 3
Writers: Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, Rich Fogel, Hilary J. Bader etc.
Voices: Tim Daly, Dana Delany, Clancy Brown, David Kaufman, etc.

I’ll admit, by now you all realize that Spider-Man is my favorite hero. But when someone asks me who inspires me to be a better person and realize my potential, it is Superman who always comes to mind.
Superman isn’t your run of the mill spandex clad crime fighter; Superman is a symbol of hope and heroism. He makes everyone feel special and safe. Let’s face it; Superman is the definitive hero and a true role model to people of all ages.

With Superman’s return to theaters this Wednesday, Warner Brothers pleased fans around the world with a plethora of both live action and animated adventures of the man of steel. I picked up this final installment of the Superman animated series first, and I have to say I couldn’t put this down! The 18 episode set presented here shows Superman at his finest. The set includes some incredible team up episodes featuring Batman, Robin, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and Lobo even stops by for a brief appearance. The episodes that really shine in this set are the Darkseid episodes. Hinted at in season 2’s “Father’s Day” episode, Darkseid and his followers finally attack Earth and place the man of steel in challenge unlike any he has ever experienced before.

Before I start blabbering about the Darkseid episodes, I want to comment on “Little Girl Lost”, a two part adventure introducing Kara Zor El, AKA Supergirl. I had only seen Supergirl from her appearances on Justice League Unlimited, so seeing her appear on this set was a real treat. Kara and Jimmy are both enthusiastic teenagers who are often ignored when they speak of a threat of something worth looking into. Pairing these two together in this two parter was great, and when Kara first appeared in her Supergirl outfit, well, it was defiantly a WOW moment!
Guess what? This two parter also featured Darkseid! That guy just can’t leave Superman and his cast alone can he?

I loved the episode “Knight Time”. I’m sure you have all seen it, and it is one of my favorite episodes from the entire Superman series. When Superman puts on the Batman costume and attempts to help Robin find Bruce, its classic. Clark hates “sneaking around” and being mysterious. Its brilliant watching Clark as Batman takes down Bane. The Mad Hatter had this major “holy shit” look on his face when Bane fell. The Green Lantern Team Up episode “In Brightest Day” was incredible. I love John Stewart, but I wish Kyle was used as GL in the Justice League series. Kyle and Jimmy’s friendship was great (Kyle got rejection letters from DC comics about his artwork he sent in!) and Sinestro was a major foe. This guy was nasty, but Superman and Kyle finally brought him down.

OK, now onto Darkseid. In the two parter, “Apokolips Now!” Darkseid and his minions invade Earth. Superman literally gets the shit beaten out of him. Thanks to the bravery of Dan Turpin, the people of Metropolis still defy Darkseid when Superman is his captive. This episode was stunning and gave a huge feel on danger and uneasiness. The scene when Darkseid appears with Superman (who is beaten and his costume is ravaged) literally had me jumping off the couch! Plus, I never saw that ending coming. Darkseid fries Dan Turpin and leaves, leaving Superman and all of Metropolis in shock and grief. (I also got teary eyed, I admit to
it!) This was a huge storyline that was dark and full of despair and misery. But damn if it isn’t beautiful and amazing.

Alright ladies and gents, this is the episode you have been waiting for. The series finale, “Legacy” has got to be one of the most beautiful and moving cartoons of all time. Darkseid captures our hero and messes with his mind, making Superman think Darkseid is his father! What’s worse, he orders Kal-El to invade Earth as his own planet. Thanks to the love of Lois Lane, our hero realizes who he is. To bad that Lex Luthor has supplied the military with a Kryptonite bazooka! Lois saves Superman in part two, and when Superman realizes the world hates and fears him, he goes off to Apokolips to finish Darkseid once and for all. I won’t ruin the ending if you haven’t seen it, but let me say it gave me Goosebumps. A beautiful and dark ending to the world’s greatest hero’s animated series.

So get up off that couch, race to your favorite store and pick up this DVD set. There are four commentaries on selected episodes (one commentary is an easter egg, it’s not hard to find) trailers for upcoming DC DVD’s, and a fantastic look at Superman season 3 with producers Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and Alan Burnett. I give this DVD set a solid A+. You will laugh, cry, and have a great time watching the man of steel in some of the best episodes of a comic book hero ever!

Comic Book Classic Vault:Superman For All Seasons

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artists: Tim Sale & Bjarne Hansen

I picked this book up mainly to read a good Superman story before Superman Returns opens, and lo and behold I did not pick the wrong book! The book is not an origin story, it’s closer to a study on what makes Superman tick, why he does what he does. Each section, in the form of a season is basically a self-contained story narrated by a supporting character. Pa, Lois, Luthor, and Lana each narrate a season, and have their own particular story to tell about Superman. Each of these stories works, not for the action inside it, but for the narration that accompanies it.

Pa Kent narrates spring, where he reminisces about Clark's last days in High School before he leaves Smallville. In this time period, we see Clark's relationship with Lana and Pete, and Ma and Pa's reservations about letting Clark leave or how they raised Clark. It’s not so much that Clark is manifesting his powers for the first time, it’s that all of his powers manifest fully. He flies for the first time, he can no longer cut his hair, and we see how Pa can sometimes resent Clark for all his strength. It's here that Clark realizes how he can change the world, being only one man, and that it is his responsibility to do so.

Next we have Lois narrating summer, and it revolves around a classic Superman storyline. Lois Lane in trouble and Superman saves her and gives her a ride home. In this book, we find out why Lois Lane has an infatuation for Superman. Jeph Loeb beautifully illustrates Superman's speed, when during one word of Lex Luthor's, Superman grabs a gun out of a terrorists hand in three beautifully rendered panels. Rather than have two panels with the before and after, we have three, where in the middle panel we see a red and blue blur lunging both forward and back retrieving the gun. After Superman retrieves the gun, in classic Lois Lane fashion she kicks the guy in the balls to get his hands off her.

Lex's chapter, fall, explores Lex's love for Metropolis and his jealousy of Superman as the city's golden boy. Lex sets up a scheme in this chapter, not to harm the city, but to make Superman feel helpless. For Lex, it’s not about hurting people, it’s about making Superman feel helpless and stupid, the way Superman makes Lex feel. For Lex, this is poetic revenge.

The last chapter, winter, is narrated by Clark's high school love, Lana Lang. In this chapter we explore how Lana fell out of love when she found out Clark's secret. Up until that point she was ready to have her head Krypto-spermed off (via super-sperm) and get married to Clark. She explores Clark's feelings of responsibility and how that responsibility got in the way of her love.

This story works because of Jeph Loeb's spot on characterizations. Superman feels warm, kind, powerful, and gentle all at the same time. Clark Kent never feels like a bumbling idiot, but only a simple farmboy. Ma and Pa exist outside of their usual old man and old lady characters, but as real people, and consistently act as parents. Lois is headstrong and smart as a whip. The explanation of Lex's hatred of Superman works more than his madman persona he sometimes has. To me, and apparently Jeph Loeb, Lex Luthor works better as a smart businessman trying to win back his city's affections.

I dont know what it is about Jeph Loeb when he works with Tim Sale, but at least for DC, he seems to write better when Tim Sale is illustrating him. Long Halloween, Dark Victory, and now For All Seasons will be added to his list of best works. Sale draws Superman really bulky, built like a farmboy not a body builder. As usual, he can draw really good looking women, and his cityscapes are grand. What really makes the art stand out, are the colors by Bjarne Hansen. The book looks like they watercolored the actual pages in the book in front of you. It may be the good quality paper, but the packaging makes the book shine. The colors, handpainted instead of computer painted give the book emotional warmth and cool, and cold, whatever each season calls for. In other hands, the seasons may feel less pronounced, but in this colorist's hands, the format of the book and title make it all come together. For a light and good Superman tale to get you in the mood for Supeman Returns, pick up this solid A of a book.

Picture of the Week!

Joshiebear just seems to be taking over with his submissions. Thanks guy! I love this one.

About Heroes Episode 21

Let's talk about more new books! 52, Superman-Batman, Astonishing X-Men and more!

Listen to About Heroes, Episode 21

As Far as I'm Concerned the ONLY All-Star Book

All-Star Superman #4 Review

Writer: Grant Morrison
Art: Frank Quietly

This is my Book of the Week right here. I love the mix of all the genres and I’m pretty sure that this book is in the middle of genre-creation as we speak but that might be a little presumptuous on my part, but fuck it this book is a good read! It mixes sci-fi with epic monster battles that actually wrap up in one issue! It has the spacemen side of Sci-fi down pat with a little Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory mixed in. Lets not forget twisted Zombie oddities like the Bizarro men and the G-types, and lets not forget the humor side of things, this book is full of tiny little quips here and there, for new and old fans alike. I don’t think I’m leaving anything out, sure there are lots more genres but we’re only into book four and I’m not listing books 1-3 so get over it. Oh, there is even a Gypsy’s Curse that Jimmy Olsen goes on and on and on about, so count in voodoo witchcraft and all that jazz too.

So this issue wasn’t as good as the last but the last issue was phenomenal, which is pretty damn hard to top. I really enjoy where Morrison is at in his writing with this book and in Seven Soldiers from what I’ve read. He is better that ever before in terms of his creativity and that’s not to say that he can’t get any better, it’s just a current observation. Books like these where he is allowed to reinvent not only the character but also when you tackle an icon like Superman your really attempting to reinvent the entire Superhero concept. Some might disagree with me that Morrison is on his way to succeeding but I know after reading this I’ll never look at the hero in the same light. Sure Superman can kick 50-ft monsters down on main street any old day of the week but just some of the things that he’s doing in these books just make me very intrigued and excited to read more.

The thing I like the most about these stories is the fact that they are almost self contained, I think the first issue was an overall issue for what the series would be about and each issue after that has had that first issue undertone. I just find it so much easier to accept a book that is bi-monthly and almost tri-monthly when the stories are self-contained. This was Jimmy Olsen and Superman’s issue, the last two issues were Lois Lane and Superman but very different, one taking place in the fun house…I mean fortress of Solitude and the next issue was a Super-Lois Lane with the power to make three men fight at one time! What I mean to say is that the last page isn’t a fucking cliffhanger, I don’t have to wait three months to find out that Krypto shot Jimmy Olsen when he was trying to take the babies candy (I made this up…me and Matt Groening).

I guess there isn’t much else to say about the overall issue, the last issue was better but this issue doesn’t disappoint by any means, A. I would like to note that I wish Frank Quietly would add a little bit more background or have someone else do it, but fuck I can do without seeing the Taj-Mahal if the book comes out in two months when it is supposed to.

Double Sized Reviews: The Flash #1

The Flash: The Fastest man Alive #1 Review

Writer: Danny Bilson & Paul Demeo
Artist: Ken Lashley

Dan Didio said that the first Flash that you would see in the book would not necessarily be the “New Flash: Fastest man Alive,” which would make sense, being that that first Flash shown is Jay Garrick saying he’s the fastest man alive but then making mention of the fact that he is slowed down a bit since he can’t tap into the speed force. This right away sounds confusing because much of this issue is a head-scratcher. However, before I get into the things that flaw the overall flow of the book I should mention that this is one of the few OYL books that does not leave me wondering what happened n the 52 week gap. Sure there might have been some things going on that might help explain some stuff but you get the overall picture.

(If you don’t want a single thing from this issue spoiled than don’t read this review, however I will try to leave most of the spoilers out, one shining reason for that is because I can’t entirely be certain who the new Flash is).

So Jay has been doing the lightning thing solo since IC and it seems to be working well enough. I like his flashbacks and the color scheme of the narration captions is always helpful with multi-narrator story lines, even if by default they are harder to grasp. It slowly starts to get weirder as the book goes on though. We switch gears tremendously over to Bart Allen and his current living situation OYL and we get his flashbacks, which I guess includes a bizarre flashback/futureback thing (whatever), that seems to be the most unnecessary two pages in this book, but oh well.

Aside from the book being a little hard to follow, I like where it is going and I like the page layouts. I don’t care for the artwork that much, the shadow work is awful, and I think that is what hurt the pencils so much, its alright if you like plain old average realism lacking heavily in the “unique quality” department, but like I said I like the layouts and the colors are really nice. The ending almost looked like a different artist, which leads me to the spoilers.

Spoiler Alert- On the fourth to the last page of the book it looks like Bart’s friend Griffen is being burned alive by lasers and hot liquid, I don’t really know what tapping into the dormant/dead speed force would accomplish but that’s what Bart does, and this makes him the new Flash, I guess (which I might add I called on the Podcast). I like the idea of him taking up the new Flash (come on, who really thought it would be poor old Jay, who I love, but come on), I wish it had been executed differently but this is good enough. He says at the end that he doesn’t want to use the speed force; he seems to have some problems from Wally’s apparent death. Then at the back in the solicitation it says the new Flash has a decision to make, and there is Jay in the background and I guess on the other side is Griffen Bart’s friend. - End Spoiler

I think Kid Flash fans will really like this book. I like the fact that mentally Bart is having problems adjusting to growing up so fast. I think Griffen is a twat but a must-have buddy. I hope Jay sticks around in this book because a mentor is something Bart could really use, but will probably turn away from in the end. The most import thing to note I think is the difference that DC is taking from the Wally West Flash to the Bart Allen Flash. You might think at first that a kid becoming the real Flash would be even more of the things that people love about Wally but Bart seems to be in a depressed, and lost state, and it doesn’t seem that becoming the Flash will really solve any of those problems but really make them much worse. I like that in some of my heroes for its complexity but I don’t know how hardcore Flash fans will feel about it. I’m going to go ahead and give this book a C+ because I liked it almost enough to give it a B- but the drawbacks were too obvious to over look.

Knightwingbk was badass enough to throw in his own review of the book, and since we at About Heroes are open to all opinions here you go:

Well, well, well, who is the new Flash? Who the fuck knows by this issue! It focuses on Bart for most of the issue, but he doesn't do anything Flash-like till the very end. We have a series of Flashbacks, (get it?), that talk about the previous flashes, and they are talking to Bart, although Wally is missing. The story is really disjointed, the flashbacks are not all at once, they are spread through the issue, and it really breaks up the story. The first four pages of the book seem unnecessary, since we aren't told what is going on, or who the bomber is. After that Jay Garrick scene, he's thrown away until 3 panels at the very end of the book. I liked seeing Bart being normal and working at age 20, since that’s close to my age, I related to that, but his roommate’s an ass, and the S.T.A.R. Labs story is intriguing, but it is nowhere near as good or hooking as Wonder Woman #1 was, hopefully it will pick up next issue. There is a cool scene at the end, Bart and his buddy are caught in an explosion, with some chemicals, Bart somehow taps into the Speed Force, bringing on some lightning, kind of that old recurring Flash origin happens in this issue. Oh yeah, the only Flash costume we see is Jay Garrick, so nothing what we want yet.

I like the artist, Ken Lashley, but the four inkers on the book really ruin him. The first four pages, with the inks, the colors, and the rain effects make Lashley's art look muddled. After the first four pages, the art takes a turn for the better, as its clear and crisp, but you can still tell when the inkers change. I'm looking forward to the next issue, because of Lashley's art; check out 52 #7 for more of his great artwork. Overall, this issue is a C-. It’s not a necessary pick-up, but its not going to be worth anything for its fantastic story in 50 yrs because of the lack of a fantastic story. Just like Ion #1, the story hasn't started by the end of the first issue.

Astonishing X-men # 15

Author: Joss Whedon
Artist: John Cassaday
Cover: John Cassaday

I love Whedon. I don't think I laugh out loud while reading a title as much as I do while reading Astonishing X-Men. He has this intricate plot going that keeps you guessing as to Emma's motives, but throws in humor at the turn of the page, which keeps you wanting to read as well. For example, when last we saw Wolvie he was with Cassandra Nova, and returning to his bit a couple of pages later he starts his famous catch phrase, "I'm the best at what I do. And what I do is…" But the next page shows him stating, "is so terribly pretty!" while cutting out paper dolls. Cassaday did a fine job of portraying Logan as a young British school girl. Yes, not only does he go girly, but Whedon added in the nice touch of an accent.

Every turn of the page brings something great. You're never bored or just coasting through. Characters aren't forgotten either. The young girl who trained with Wolverine (and was almost killed by him) who has the mutant ability to create a force field bubble suit gets to save his butt this time by fending off Beast. Rasputin gets a great fight scene with Shaw who antagonizes him so that he will be able to use all of the kinetic energy against him in the end. I forgot that was his power…, so I was so rooting for Colossus, who forgot that was his power as well, so the whole fight ended up being a surprise for me.

I love the paneling set up in all of the issues. Very simple format, with whole pages devoted to facial expressions (which Cassaday is so great at!) that tell more of a story and what's going on with a character than a lot of comics tell in three pages.

Finally, the ending is a wonderful cliff hanger. I'm so glad Whedon brought the story back to Pryde, who started the whole Astonishing run with "Professor Xavier is a jerk!" Not only are things being told through Emma's point of view, but also through Kitty's, and this is something Whedon does very well: write strong female characters. (I can't wait for his Wonder Woman movie!) I've always liked Kitty, but now she is definitely one of my favorites. I love Wolvie, but I'm awfully glad he isn't the main focus.

Speaking of which,… Whedon seems to have made a homage to Uncanny X-Men #132 with the ending of this issue. In #132, Harry Leland increases Wolverine's weight and makes him fall through the floors of the Hellfire Club Mansion, and he ends up in the sewer below. He is the only one in the next issue who can fight the Hellfire Club (the name of the group Emma's in right now in Astonishing; just gots some new members). He turns around and says, "Now it's my turn." Kitty does the exact same thing in Astonishing; she even strikes the exact same pose. It's so perfect; I love it! X-Men #133 was the turning point for Wolverine becoming ever so popular…wait, notice how I get his accent from this issue of Astonishing when I talk about him?… ;) Anyway, hopefully this will do the same for Kitty Pryde, 'cause she deserves it! A+

Eternals # 1 Review

Author: Neil Gaiman
Penciler: John Romita JR.
Covers: Rick Berry, John Romita JR, and Oliver Coipel

First of all, like I said in the pod cast, I'm not crazy about the art work, but I love the front cover. Very dramatic and mysterious. The story so far…not that mysterious. I'm not familiar with Kirby's work on the Eternals in 1970s (I love how Gaiman throws in a reference to the 70s by one of the characters), but this issue seems more of a "catch up if you don't know the story" type of deal. Ike Harris, aka Ikaris, is an eternal being who is trying to convince a doctor-in-training, Mark, that he is also an eternal being named Makkari. The back story of eternals, deviants, dinosaurs, humans, why the earth was made, etc. is interesting enough, but like I said, I haven't read Kirby's original work, so I don't know how close to the original it is. I'm sure Gaiman is going to take it in a different direction, but with this first issue, I'm not seeing it yet. I would expect him to weave in the back story for the reader to discover a bit at a time like in Sandman, rather than use the cliché "Hi, I'm not human, and you're not either, let's be friends" argument right off the bat. I guess the mystery is: why did the celestials create the eternals, deviants, and humans to begin with?

My favorite part was when the two women Abi and Sersi have a conversation for three pages. I just love the way Gaiman writes dialogue! Again, like in Sandman, he hooks you in to a story about normal, everyday people before they get into some wacky shit. I wanted to keep reading about Sersi planning a party and teasing her friend rather than go back to Ike and Mark.

The facial expressions Romita, Jr. drew hurt my face. Let me explain. All Mark and Ike do is tilt their heads down at an angle and look up, trying to see past their huge eyebrows (do their eyebrows set them apart as eternals…?) Anyway, they always have that smirk on their faces. I know if I do that facial expression too much, it starts to give me a headache, so while reading the book, I started to have sympathy pains!

Although I'm not crazy about civil war, I like the reference to superheroes registering in Sprite's PSA about the law. Nice touch. Stark makes an appearance as well. He has Thena (an eternal) perfect a weapon, but there's no reference to civil war; it just seems to be good old military weapon development.

I have to admit, I'm a little disappointed in the 1st issue. Maybe there was some editing choice in there, but just seems like the whole story is laid out in one issue. No cliff hanger to speak of, don't have to think too hard to try to figure out clues, all the stuff I like about Gaiman! Hopefully, issue #2 will pick up the pace. C

Claw the Unconquered # 1 Review

Author: Chuck Dixon
Art: Andy Smith
Colors: Wildstorm FX
Covers: Andy Smith and Ethan Van Sciver

Two barbarian books this week, one a conqueror and the other unconquered. So does that mean if Conan were to fight Claw nobody would win? Probably. Claw the Unconquered was a comic from DC that debut way back in 1975. I found claw in a stack of comics I bought at a yard sale back in 1989. I was really fascinated by the character, because he was never as popular as Conan, always in his shadow, but he had some awesome creative teams on his book such as: David Michelinie, Keith Giffen, and Ernie Chua. Now it seems that DC is letting Wildstorm handle this new relaunch of the book.

Spinning out of the Red Sonya/ Claw one-shot, this miniseries further explores the adventures of Valcan Scarmax the mercenary otherwise known as Claw! You really didn't need to pick up the Red Sonya/ Claw to understand what's going on with the story. We have everything we need here thanks to Dixon. A solid beginning to a new quest thanks to an enchantress, some brutal battles, and of course the help of Mardak, Haxa, and Vivardi to get more violence for our buck!!

The dialogue is just like the comics I remembered, but never thought about. For example some of the phrases and words Claw uses doesn't make any sense for his time period or world, such as: Jackass. But, that's the way this book was always written so it’s not really Dixon's fault. Damn, the guy can deliver an action pack story and Smith flatters his story so well. He doesn't seem like your typical Wildstorm artist, he has more of an old school Bart Sears look to his artwork. His action sequences are top notch, it's not too over the top, but it gets the idea that this is a violent era across. If this is what the rest of the series will be like then count me in. A-

Superman/Batman # 27 Review

Author: Mark Verheiden
Artist: Kevin Maquire
Cover: Ethan Van Sciver

Verheiden's first issue and I think it will probably be some people's last. This is a stand alone issue that can be a bit confusing if you don't know much about the Pre-Crises characters, particularly the Earth 2 Supeman (Kal-L), Batman, Huntress(Bruce Wayne's daughter Helena) and Powergirl (Kal-L's cousin). But even if you know about them, it's still a bit confusing. Here is what happens in this issue:

Superman and Batman find themselves inside the bodies of the Huntress and Power Girl. Keep in mind this is all happening in Earth 2, so Bruce and Supes are older and Bruce is now Gotham's commissioner and a retired superhero. Somehow the Utlra-Humanite managed to do this with the help of Brainwave and Solomon Grundy, and the Joker might be pulling the strings, but before everything is revealed Supergirl (Flamebird) wakes Power Girl (Nightwing) up from what seemed to be a dream.

It's kind of confusing because we really don't get any explanation as to why PG is remembering Earth 2 events. So does that mean that she remembers Earth 2 or everyone remembers Earth 2? I hope Verheiden explores this in further detail down the road. What got a bit confusing for me was the fact that although Supe's and Bat's minds are in the bodies of Power Girl and Huntress, they don't sound anything like Supes and Bats. They sound more like the Huntress and PG. Now this could be, because the minds of PG and Huntress are still in their bodies somewhere, but once again this isn't explained.

I really appreciate what Verheiden is trying to do, but I don't think it was very well executed. Maguire delivers some of his best art since his run on JLA Classified. He has a dirty cartoon feel to his art, but it fits the scene in this story and his action sequences are pulled off really nice. Not a great story, but I think Verheiden's real stories are coming in the forms of arcs. Stand alone issues are hardly a good way to judge a new writer on a book, but I see a lot of readers being confused with this one, not that they weren't with the past arc Loeb wrote. C+

New Avengers # 20 Review

Author: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Mike Deadato
Inker: Joe Pimentel
Colors: Dave Stewart

To quote Wolverine from this very issue: I've had problems with AAAAARGGHHH New Avengers in the past. Well he didn't exactly say that but close. I always thought putting Spidey and Wolvie on the Avengers was a horrible idea and I think Bendis agrees with me, because all they do is stand around while Captain America and Iron Man do everything. But that is the least of my gripes. Let's look at that cover, we all know Magneto would get his powers back...so who do we throw at him! Iron Man, Wolverine, and Cap's shield. But, I think that was a joke, because even Spiderman comments on that.

Bendis tries to clean up an old cluster fuck instead of creating one with this issue. The Collective (Michael, the mail man!) arrives in what is left of Genosha the Avengers to confront Magneto. He claims to be Xorn and wants to give Magneto the power of the Collective. I'm assuming this is Xorneto, because he mentions killing thousands in Magneto's name. He wants to give Magneto the power because he feels Magneto is the only one who could lead a group of zombie mutants. ehhh..... To comment on this, I have to give Bendis props for what he was trying to clean up, but it doesn't really work, because everything that was stated in this issue we already fucking knew! Sorry but it takes more than "scream my name bitch!" to clarify the whole mess of Planet X and afterwards.

A depowered Magneto tries to fight with all his will, but it’s useless. Again the Avengers come to save the day! But not all of them. Who knows where the fuck Ronin is at and why Ms. Marvel is hanging out if she's not really a member? So with the help of Shield Agent "Quake" the Avengers take down Magneto and Iron Man uses his empty suit to store the energy and flies with Sentry to the sun. Okay a quick comment on how they take Magneto out. Am I to believe that not Xavier, Shadowking, Jean Grey, Emma Frost, and not even Game Master, the most powerful telepaths in the world could knock Magneto out with his helmet on? But fucking “Quake” can create a small earthquake in Magneto's head.....if I was five, I would buy that, but I've been reading comics way too long to let that slide.

The issue ends with a happy ending for everyone: Shield didn't have to blow up the island, Spider-man got two or three jokes in, Sentry finally got to fly someone into the sun, and Wolverine got revenge for his dead best friends!!!! Ohhh no wait, he didn't! What the fuck? The first people that took Logan in and actually accepted him as a fucking human being don't get avenge? Isn't the name of this fucking team THE MOTHERFUCKING AVENGERS?!!!!! Poor James and Heather Hudson and Puck all they are now in Bendis' eye are dead Alpha Flight. Because killing off an entire team of characters that have been around for over 25 years really added to the story.

I think someone needs to take Pimentel' ink off the book. He seems to be making a mess of Deadato's strong pencils. The art is just looking horrible; this is not what I would expect from a so called A-list book. I didn't hate everything about the issue I thought the characterization of Magneto was damn good and I think that was it. Just to top things off at the very end the helicopter carrying an arrested Magneto blows up, because Magneto hasn't died enough times in the last few years. Thank you Mr. Bendis, for proving to me once again why this book is not for me. D

Uncanny X-men # 474 Review

Author: Tony Bedard
Penciler: Roger Cruz
Inker: Victor Olazaba
Cover: Mark Brooks

Looking back at my comics and rereading Uncanny X-men 174, never in a million years would I have suspected 300 issues later this title would be this bad. I understand that Bedard is just trying to wrap up Claremont's story, but shit, it really feels like he gave up halfway through it.

So the First Fallen isn't really a bad guy? And Jamie Braddock isn't either? What the hell was all the build up for? I'm quite sure this is not what Claremont intended, with the exception of the last two pages which continues into Uncanny X-men Annual 1. I don't know if Bedard understands that Jamie is crazy or not...this book just read so bland. But alas it's finally over...Claremont didn't even get to say a proper goodbye to his characters do to his time off.

I still think Roger Cruz is a bad artist, even if this is one of his better days. I have never seen so many faces change in characters since I read the last book he drew. He is so inconsistent with his faces that on the same page in four panels Psylocke looks like a different character. A bad finish and I'm actually looking forward to the overly hyped Brubaker run. D+

Onslaught Reborn!!! In Liefeld's Eyes.

Here is a picture posted on Rob Liefeld's webpage for the upcoming Onslaught Reborn book. Liefeld + Onslaught = How can this go wrong? I hope you caught the sarcasm that I laid down pretty thick!

My Ideal Wolverine!

As many of you know, from listening to the podcast or just reading my Wolverine reviews, I don't really like the way Wolverine has been looking in comics lately. He's either too pretty, too tall, too clean, or he looks like a kid. I took it upon myself, during a meeting at work, to give you an idea of what I'm looking for. Keep in mind I was limited to my tools I was using on a crappy laptop. Come on does this guy not scream out: Badass!?

About Heroes Episode 20

Nick (The Dude) joins us for a discussion of occupations in a world of super-heroes, a roundabout with this week's books, and lively debate over 52 and Civil War 2.

Listen to About Heroes, Episode 20

Sensational Spider-Man 27 Review

Writer: Roberto Aguire Sacasa
Artist: Angel Medina and Scott Hanna

In this issue we find out that a mysterious asteroid known as the Rock of Life is responsible for emitting the radiation throughout New York that is making Spidey and his animalistic friends go bonkers these past issues. The Stergon talks about how he discovered the rock during his travels and realized its power. He had it shipped to a scientist in New York, realizing the rocks power would start to fill the city with the feral radiation. Spidey confronts and attacks Stergon.

Reed contacts Spidey and tells him he has to encase the rock in a seal to stop it from emitting its power.
Apparently the iron Spidey costume has symbiotic properties as it slivers off his back and encases the Rock. Spidey takes care of Stergon and almost kills him, stating how Spiders are the most powerful and all that nonsense. Luckily, our hero stops himself and saves the day. Puma and Black Cat clean up Lizard and Vermin, and things go back to normal for the time being. Madame Web watches Peter and MJ, and states how things are only going to get worse for our hero. Guess she read Civil War #2 huh?

Thoughts/Comments:
Not bad, but not perfect either. I enjoyed this arc, but it still doesn’t stand out as one of my all time favorites. But, it was great seeing some odd and old Spidey foes again. I mean, seriously, I never would have guessed Stergon to be behind this. I didn’t care for how the costume acted like a symbiote, but it could have been worse. Also, the Black Cat went home with Puma! What the hell? Back off Puma, the Black Cat is mine! ;) All in all, this arc had its ups and downs, but the new team did OK. I give this issue a B-and the overall “Feral” arc itself a B.

Ultimate X-men 71 Review

Ultimate X-Men #71
“Phoenix?” Part 3
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Ben Oliver

I really wish X3 movie Phoenix was as nasty as Ultimate Phoenix! Sure, Movie Phoenix was a serious threat, but Ultimate Phoenix is down right nasty! She actually wants to melt Lilandra’s kidneys and make her suffer! I loved it, showed what a powerful entity she really is.

Now, let’s get to the story. Bascially, it’s the X-Men and Emma Frosts’ students versus the Brotherhood at a homecoming dance. With the help of Elliott Boggs, AKA the Magician, the X-Men defeat the Brotherhood.
Elliott has some good moments, I loved how he took out the Blob by tampering with the environment around (and
underneath) him. Fun stuff. Plus, Cyclops acts like a leader and actually does stuff. I’m really upset how Cyke was treated in X3, but Ultimate Cyclops is front and center.

Meanwhile, Lilandra confronts Jean who is all crazy in Phoenix mode. Phoenix is serious! Charles has to come in and stop Jean who is about to melt Lil’s internal organs! Charles shuts down Jean’s mind and she returns to normal—for now at least. The Shiar technician who analyzed Jean’s blood states there is no trace of the Phoenix to be found and tells everyone Jean is suffering from a split personality disorder and she if fruity and insane. Jean is shocked by this and Lilandra and friends leave. Jean cries herself to sleep with a bunch of little green Phoenix goblins surrounding her.

I was about to say how lame this revelation was, until I read the last page. The technician talks to someone on the phone and states that Jean is in fact, the actual factual Phoenix! He states how Shaw was right about Jean being Phoenix, and Shaw was a fool. The Technician tells the telephone that the Hellfire Club will indeed find a way to control Jean and make the Phoenix their slave!

Thoughts/Comments:
I really was upset with how this issue was going until the big reveal at the end! That rocked! I’m so glad Jean is actually Phoenix and not some crazy loon. The fight with the X-Men and Brotherhood was OK, kind of dull though. I liked how we saw more of Elliott and his powers, and Cyclops did stuff! Once more, Ultimate Phoenix is really nasty and takes pleasure out of making others feel helpless. I can’t wait until they do a full out Phoenix story arc in the Ultimate Universe. Have it involve the other Ultimate heroes!

Hmm, maybe Ultimate Dark Phoenix is the mini Bendis and Silvestri are working on? Nah! It’s fun to dream though. I don’t like the art, but the story was fun. I give this issue a B.

Picture of the Week!

Since we missed out last week I figured we double up this week! So here you go, again submitted by joshiebear.

Cable and Deadpool # 29 Review

Author: Fabian Nicieza
Penciler: Ron Lim
Inker: Pat Davidson
Cover: Mark Brooks

That cover really is a way for Marvel to unintentionally remind me what the inside of this book once looked like. Mark has an amazing anime-like style to his art and he is really missed in this series, but I think he is more at home with New X-men. The inside of this book is another way Marvel unintentionally reminded me how great of an artist Ron Lim is. Back in the 90's Lim used to draw 5 books a month, yes his style can be a bit repetitive, but who now a days can do 5 books a month? Hell some artist need 4 to 5 months to get out one fucking book! But that's another bitchfest for another day. I think I already did enough bitching with my Wolverine Origins review.

Flag Smasher was assassinated last issue by none other than Domino. This issue picks up where the last one left off; Cable is the new president of Rumekistan and Domino has her doubts. Since appearing in New Mutants 98 (okay so technically that was Copycat, but ohh well) Domino has always been Cable's right side. Over the years he has been the cause of many of her troubles and she has seen his ideas turn to dust. It's really obvious to see why she doesn't trust Cable. I thought the whole scene at the end where he doesn't think she would shoot him was played out perfect. I don't think I have ever seen Cable so moved in my years reading about the character.

In the meantime Deadpool is taking down Citizen V, for no apparent reason other than just a fight. That's why we love Deadpool, because he really doesn't think things out, he just acts with his impulses. Every time I read this book, I remember that reading comics can make me feel smart. I mean who else would quote Aristotle and Nietzsche in a Deadpool comic and makes it flow well?

Another great issue by Nicieza...ahh two Nicieza books to balance out the Wolverine Origins book that came out this week. Lim is the perfect replacement artist for this book. I actually hope they ask him to stay on board, because if anyone can pump out a monthly book its that guy. The only drawback to his art was his inker Davidson. I think his style cleans up too much of Lim's heavy lines that I'm used to. B+

Wolverine Origins # 3 Review

Author: Daniel Way
Artist: Steve Dillon
Colors: Dan Kemp
Covers: Joe Quesada
Cover: Simone Bianchi

It's Wolverine Vs. Nuke!!! And let me tell you the 2.99 is way too much for a price of admission. This issue actually read more like Nuke Origins guest starring Wolverine. It's all action, with the exception of the few flashbacks. When the hell are they going to start telling us about Logan's past? Before we get started with the review, I wanted to take back something I said in my past reviews. This is a first for me, because I am a man of my word. In the past I said that reading Way's Wolverine felt like being analy raped! Well, after reading this story it actually feels like someone is taking a rubber mallet and smashing my balls with it!!! There....that is one of the few times that I ever take anything back I say.

So far all Logan has been able to remember is Bucky killing his wife and unborn child and that he helps recruit Nuke for the Super Soldier program. This book really focuses on Nuke's past more than Wolverine's. Logan just happens to guest star in Nuke's origin. What the fuck is going on here? The flashback shows Wolverine killing a woman with gun and making an innocent man commit suicide. That innocent man happens to be little Frank's (Nuke) dad. So Wolverine had something to do in creating Nuke. That's fine, but portraying a hero as a fucking dick is not a way to write a good guy story. Yeah, I know Wolverine's past has some things he's never been proud of, but this story here, makes him look like a fucking heartless dick!!! Shooting a woman in the face!!! Come on! What kid is going to think to himself: "Man that's bad ass! I want to be just like Wolverine when I grow up!!!"

I can't imagine anyone in charge of this book or Marvel Comics for that matter approving stories like this. I know its a Marvel Knights like book and its supposed to be grittier, but this is just damn out of character. I really hope they don't feed me the bullshit that Logan has really been a straight up dick all those years and everything we've read has just been memory implants. And look what we have at the end of the book!!! Captain America ready kick Wolverine's ass. Hell the way Daniel Way is going, maybe we'll find out Captain America was really the one that raped and killed Silver Fox!!! Hell yeah Way, that's some good story telling there. I refuse to believe this book is set in Marvel continuity. I'm still praying for Superboy Prime to punch the fuck out of Way and for Scarlet Witch to erase this book out of my memory.

Well, I think you know by now how well I enjoyed the story, but let's talk about the rest of the team in this book. Steve Dillon is an excellent artist. His close-ups of facial expressions are done damn well and he makes it really believable for two characters just sitting around talking, but this book has been action packed! That is where Dillon falls short and all his faces look practically the same. He doesn't belong in this book; I really wish he was back on the Punisher. Dan Kemp makes the colors sharp with the right amount of brightness, nothing too flashy, which is what Dillon really needs. I really hope the people that are buying this poorly written shit (in my opinion) aren't just buying the damn book to get both covers. If you are, save your money and buy Baby Geniuses 2!!! I'm sure you'll get more of an emotional rollercoaster out of that! D-

Civil War 5 comment

Okay, I really tried to keep the spoiler from Civil War 2 and not mention it on our main page. But fuck it! I'm sure everyone knows what's happened already. This is the cover of Civil War 5. It shows Peter getting his ass owned by Green Goblin, Venom, and Bullseye (when the fuck he became a Spidey villian is anyone's guess)! Anywho, here is my little comment on how that cover doesn't deliver the impact its suppose to. Out of all the villians to go after Parker, why choose two that know his identity already and one that has nothing to do with the character! Why go after him? Why not go after his family and friends? That cover looks like it should have been the trade to the Spider-man Hush tpb errr I mean Marvel Knights Spider-man! I wouldn't be surprised if the person with the gun is Speedball! I promise to hold all my other comments until the podcast which as most of you know will be up on Monday. Just wanted to sneak my two cents in.

Thunderbolts # 103 Review

Author: Fabian Nicieza
Penciler: Tom Grummett
Inker: Gary Erskine
Color: Soto Color's J. Brown

Wow, knightwingbk is on a roll with his reviews. Figured I'd join in the fun with one of my personal favorite books. I think most of you know how much I love Fabian's work, he is probably the most underrated writer working in the industry. His books always make me feel like a kid again. Teaming him up with my favorite Robin artist, Tom Grummett was a mach made in, well I guess not really Heaven...maybe Comic Heaven where you only stay for two years and then you get to come back.

When I say that he brings out the kid in me, I mean it. It's the way he can write for multiple characters and give them all their personalities, its the way he does his research and knows the character, and its in the way he can make a book feel oldschool with enough new things to keep you interested. There is a prime example of that oldschool feel to it. Nicieza has all the characters explaining their powers while they use them. I remember a time when every issue of X-men had to explain what Wolverine's bones were made out of or for that matter how flesh turns into organic steel when describing Colossus' power. It may seem kind of cheesy and pointless to most readers, but every once in a while it feels like going back home to me.

The main story is one to be expected of TB readers. Who else to get besides semi-heroes to hunt down villains. Zemo agrees to help Stark bring in some villains, however as revealed on the last page, Zemo has been capturing villains weeks before anyone asked him to. What Zemo is planning to do with his closet full of villains is anyone's guess, maybe this is the foreshadowing of a new TB team. Fabian as always acknowledges continuity happening in someone else's book with a TV panel in the back ground that shows events happening in Civil War #2. If you haven't read CW 2 then I won't spoil what that is, but if you have or don't care then Click here .

Another fantastic issue, despite being forced to tie into this year's summer crossover. There is so much oldschool in this issue not only from the writer and artist, but even the colorist gives it a bit of a touchup. Speaking of art, Grummett is a fantastic artist that can carry some excellent action panels and still deliver believable facial expressions. New Thunderbolts? I think not! 103 and still holding strong! A-

Nightwing # 121 Review

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:

Writer: Bruce Jones
Artists: Paco Diaz & Bit

What the Hell? This story has strayed so far from its first 2 issues. I feel like this story is less about the 2 Nightwings and Jason Todd than it is about the weird monster shit going on. The two Albino Twin goons? I'd rather Dick be fighting and foiling them than the orange monster dude. I like the artist more than the original one at the beginning of this arc. I like Cheyanne, I like Dick being a model, cuz hell, if they are all so good looking super heroes, why wouldn't they be a model? I don't think it will last forever, but its fun because of the Cheyanne character.

I don't like the creepy monster dude, are we ever going to get an explanation as to what the fuck he is? Jason Todd? Earth to Bruce Jones, what the fuck is up with him? I wish Jason was still the Red Hood, and I think Judd Winick wrote him better. It feels like he's doing this just to annoy Dick, not as a vengeance thing as it was with Bruce. And he's incapacitated for the whole issue! WTF! This feels like they threw it together once they decided that they were not going to kill Dick Grayson in Infinite Crisis. I'd rather have waited for the OYL Nightwing to start now, with a good story, rather than the one we have now. Oh, and did the whole DCU miss the fucking fact that Dick PROPOSED TO BARBARA before the jump? Have they addressed that in Birds of Prey at all? Or was that Devin Grayson just messing with our heads? D for this ish, hope it picks up soon!

Green Lantern Corps # 1 Review

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:

Writer: Dave Gibbons
Artist: Patrick Gleason

I ever mention how much I loved the Green Lantern Corps mini-series? Go pick up the issues, or the trade when it comes out b/c it is good!

This new ongoing is by the same team, artist, writer, whatever, and that spells good stories and characterizations. As usual, the book starts off with a bang on an alien world with some newbie lanterns battling some other aliens, and having trouble. I like the lantern Natu, who is the same species as Sinestro, and feels that her post as GL is cursed, and that having Sinestro's old ring is a curse. It adds a lot to her character. Guy Gardner is great here, when we first see him he is being Guy, wanting his shore leave. GL's have shore leave? That adds a whole new layer to the Corps, that it sort of acts like a Navy, adding a feeling of structure without having to do a lot of explaining. Oa has planet armor? Cool, but the design is a little obvious and hokey, guess we can't all look like Mogo. There is a plot, although it’s only the first issue so there isn't much. You have the battles with Natu, Gardner & Kilowog on Oa, and the Rannian Thanagarian pair that was in the mini make an appearance. It’s all the Corps, so what more could you ask for? I think I will be picking up this book since the Hal Jordon & Ion titles won't be visiting Oa that much unless it involves their characters, leaving this title for our Guy Garner fix. Where is Jon Stewart? Will he make an appearance in this book sometime later? I know he's "undercover" but damn, he can’t leave to go to Oa? I love the cracks from the other GL's about Humans as primates. Funny as hell.

The art is great. I like Dave Gibbons now, I wish someone like him was on Ion, and not that Tocchini guy. It's clear, crisp, and a nice mix of realism and comic art, which it has to be because this is a Sci-Fi book. A good start, go pick this up. B

Checkmate # 3 Review

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:

Writer: Greg Rucka
Artist: Cliff Richards

Well, ok... This issue was not as good as issue number 2, but the plot thickens, and after a first read, I can safely say I am confused. All of the players in Checkmate, Black Knight, White Queen, etc get confused, their characters are not all familiar to me, so I need the constant reminder at the beginning of each issue to remind me. It’s almost like they need a roll call page at the beginning similar to the Marvel ones, but simply a layout of the structure in the organization. The issue starts off with Sasha and Fire, among others on a mission, then switches to the castle, Checkmate's Homebase, and then stays there, almost forgetting about Sasha on the mission, unlike the last two issues. I don't know what Kobra is in the DCU, or what the hell Cyclosarin is (some chemical) and what it does, so the plot is not as gripping as the blackmail, UN plot is in the book.

This issue is a fill in artist, and at first I thought it was Jesus Saiz again, but 3 pages in I realized it was not, and I felt let down b/c his art made the Omac Project and the first two issues what they were. The guest artist is a close match to Saiz, but as always, I miss the regular artist on a series. Did I mention that Lee Bermejo's cover is beautiful? I love the use of white and black, the chess pieces, and the images they are using on the cover. Fantastic cover! Overall a C+ because it was confusing as hell but a good read nonetheless.

Superman # 653 Review

This Review was Submitted by knightwingbk:

Writers: Busiek & Johns
Artist: Pete Woods

WOW! This issue rocked! The penultimate issue of the Up Up & Away arc and I'm wondering what is next after this issue? Superman foiled Luthor, is the next issue gonna set up the new status quo? Either way I can't wait. Johns and Busiek are great on this arc, I'm looking forward to the follow up 3 part arc in superman by Kurt Busiek. This is the first time I've liked Superman comics. I like the character, but the stories haven’t interested me, until this arc. The Kryptonian crystal comes into play, as well as the Kryptonite that Luthor has been storing up. But somehow, it feels like all the build up we had with the villains has not paid off yet. I'd rather have 3 issues of Luthor fight than one, no telling what the next issue will be. All that aside, this is an all action issue, what an issue of Superman should be like! And I thought it was great to see Jimmy Olsen be Superman's Pal once more, rather than his best friend that never talks to him at all, like he was previously in the Superman books.

Pete Woods is back in this issue, and he feels a bit off. His first issues were fantastic, this one feels a little rushed. Some panels, Superman & Luthor are on par, other panels, they look a little off. Look on page 12 (comics pages not ads) in the middle of the page, that close up of Luthor just looks weird. The rest of the book, the backgrounds, the Crystal ships, and Jimmy Olsen are great, but it feels off when Luthor and Superman are on panel. Was he rushing some pages? Anybody else feel this way? All in all a solid issue. A-

I am The Goddamn Grifter!

There is no way to avoid them....Newsarama isn't even bothering with spoiler warnings in their main tag lines. But anyway, DC gave newsarama the cover to issue 1 of Wildcats. I've never been a huge Wildcats fan, but the original was the epitome of 90's look to comic book heroes. Wildcats 3.0 was actually decent, so I'm excited about this, especially with Grant Morrison coming on as writer. Of course this news let's us know two things: 1) Grifter survived the wounds from Captain Atom Armageddon and 2) All Star Batman and Robin will probably wrap up with issue 6 (if the fucker ever comes out) by September. Damn, even Todd McFarlane is drawing one of the alternate covers.

Ultimate Galactus Review

This Review was submitted by Joshiebear!

Well, it started with what looked like an innocent Ultimate X-Men /Ultimates crossover, and turned into something more Sinister. The mis-spelling (however correct pronunciation) of one of Marvel's biggest baddies. Gah-Lak-Tus. Wooo! They even debuted Ultimate Vision too! How could they mess this up? Here's the short version of what started cool and slowly became what it ended up being. Stupid sub-mediocre crap.

Ultimate Nightmare.

Well this is where it started. We have the X-Men on one hand responding to these world-broadcasted Telepathic-Imagery that consists of death and aliens and dying and lots of alien-ish deathy dying doomy doom. Everyone in the world is freaking out, but only two groups decide to do anything about it. The X-Men and the Ultimates, whose Psi-Operatives have pretty much done the same thing as Jean Grey and Prof. X has done. They pinpoint the source of the Psychic broadcast to the Tunguska Wasteland in Russia. Both teams (X-Men: Jean Grey, Colossus and Wolverine. Ultimates: Black Widow, Captain America, Nick Fury, and Falcon) book it (unaware of each other) to the site to see what's the hizz-haps, and hero vs hero goofy-ness ensues, but not to Marvel's usual (ridiculously silly) extent. The source of the broadcast was found to be a long-forgotten Russian Military Do-Hickie, which conveniently allowed for both teams to encounter their own obstacles, be it in the form of mutated russian commies who've been eating each other for the past few decades, or Russia's answer to Captain America. Yup, you guessed it, Captian Russia. (Btw, I think what Ultimates is doing about every country making a Captain is retarded. America. Britain. NO MORE.) What makes the deal even sweeter is that Captain Russia has constructed a sheild with the pelts of his former comrades, who, I suppose, he finally ate. Anyway, as mentioned earlier, the two teams do bump into each other and have a bit of a tiff, but it is, thankfully, short lived. For what they find at the core of the facility makes them put any cookie-cutter differences aside. The remains of Ultimate Vision are hanging in a lab, and it's babbling about the end of the world and some honkie named Gah-Lak-Tus.

All in all, I DID enjoy this series. I mean, I'm always a sucker for throwing heroes together, and I'll admit, even though the idea of Captain Russia is gay, the fight was still pretty neat. Cap Ruskie really had a hard-on for stomping Cap, and Cap had a hard-on for....well being American, as usual. All in all, I would probably give this 5 issue run a B-.....

BUT THEN THERE'S MORE!

Of course they wouldn't mention Galactus...er...Gah-Lak-Tus....y'know what? I'm just saying GLT from now on, and you're just gonna have to understand that I'm talking about a Planet Eating Uber-Villain (which it didn't end up being) instead of a sandwich, ok? So, onward and DOWNward we go!

Ultimate Secret.

Man, this whole thing is kinda fuzzy in my head, cuz this is where the suck really started to seep in, but I'm gonna do my best. Basically, this is where we find that all this GTM crap is really a setup for what we know would come eventually. Ultimate Kree-Invasion. Well, in all probability, I can't see them not attempting an Ultimate Kree-Skrull War. Anyway, back on topic, We're at a U.S. military base in New Mexico, where we find a Carol Danvers working with Captain Mahr Vell, who is secretly spying on us lowly humans as part of a mission from his Kree buddies to keep us grounded and out of the stars until GLT comes along and makes a entre of us. He is exposed as an alien when an invisible Kree warrior attacks a revolutionary space-shuttle embarking on a test-launch. Now that Mahr Vell is outted, Fury questions him and finds out about the whole plan for the Kree to keep it's thumb on us to keep our violent habits out of the solar system. Fury calls in the Fantastic Four Thor, and Iron Man. Once they arrive, Fury catches them up on the events of Ult. Nightmare and what's happened with Mahr Vell. Reed nerds out because of the alien factor, and then the aliens invade in order to finish the job the single Kree was supposed to do earlier, since NASA had another ship up and running in no time. Thor, Nick Fury, Thing, Johnny Storm, and the Black Widow take on the Alien Army and thwart them, while Iron Man, Mahr Vell, Reed, and Sue take the ship up to a Kree ship, kick it's ass, steal it's data, and blow it up (in so many words). Now they have some intel on GLT. DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN. C-

So. Carol Danvers and Mahr Vehl is a plus, but all in all, this didn't even have much to offer. Basically it's just the Segway into the final battle. Sigh Let's just get it over with...

Ultimate Extinction.

This is where the whole sha-bang goes down. GLT is coming and it seem as though we have very little chance of efficiently doing anything about it. Throw in a Misty Knight, what looks to be kinda sorta Silver Surfer (referred to as Paul Maitreya), but only he has these weird angular wings. Anyway, the story opens with our heroes (including a newly reconstructed Vision, who has taken a female form) learning all they can about GLT from the Kree ship's data. They find that GLT isn't some huge guy sporting a purple helmet like he is in the 616, "he's" a ton of huuuge space-ships that kill all life on the planet they target and then suck the energy from the planet's magnetic field, thus efficiently killing the planet. Meanwhile, Misty Knight has a run-in with our "Silver Surfer" as the leader of a cult. We find that he (and a lot of others like him) were sent to earth by GLT to inspire mass suicide in an attempt to expedite the killing of all living things on the planet. They end up fighting, which is kinda fun. She throws him out a window after he tries to electrocute her like the Emperor in Star Wars. When he lands, she throws a fire extinguisher out the window at him, and just before it hits him in the noggin, she shoots it and blows it up, but alas, to no avail. He just juices her with more electricity. By now, Captain America and Falcon are on the scene, and they have some punches to throw as well. Maitreya retreats and the heroes go back to camp, this time with Misty Knight in tow. They go back to the Triskelion, where Prof. X and Jean Grey are ready to try and make psychic contact with GLT to see what's up. GLT gets pissed at the thought of having an organic thing inside it's head and gives Prof. X a nose-bleed. Meanwhile Reed Richards is making a suped-up version of the inter-dimensional thingamajigger that gave the F4 their powers in the first place to use against GLT. There's a weird sub-plot thingie with all these clone people that are bald being in another cult and bum-rushing the Triskelion, but basically, Prof. X, Jean Grey, and Vision all decide to try and really garble GLT's head while Reed fires off his ultimate weapon (which is to open a portal to a baby universe, launch a nuclear weapon into it, start a 'big bang' and then redirect it to the GLT units that are hovering above earth. Reed executes his plan, destroying 20% of the GLT's and Xavier gets the entire human race to think fuzzy thoughts with him and then hurls a big old Love-Bomb at GLT, which repels it away. End 'o' story. The kicker? Nick Fury, says he's greater than God. A-burr? He didn't really do anything! He just fought and barked orders and played Samuel L Jackson! ARGH! D

Ok, so here's why I think this sucked. There was no big confrontation with GLT! The 'FIGHT' at the end of the whole thing was just a bunch of weird, somewhat unrelated bald cloney people that a few of the heroes took care of at the Triskelion! I mean yeah, they did bring in everybody (cuz the x-men swoop in at the last minute to help out) but it wasn't for more than a few pages, and then it just kinda resolves. No big bang! I mean....this whole thing can be compared to War Of The Worlds. The thing that defeats the impossibly strong and oppresive alien force is plain old human buttwipe. Where's the fun in that? I always thought it was at least somewhat excusable in WotW just because it's an old story and it has a message to it, but man, GLT shoulda been more of a physical threat in my book. This whole thing was a bland dish of mediocrity with some Ultimate Debuts added in for spice The official count is 8, I think. Sam Wilson/Falcon, a prototype for Crimson Dynamo in the Tunguska base, Vision, which had 2 types, the torn up giant male version, and the human-sized reconstructed female version, GLT, Jess