May 18, 2007
There will be no more new reviews posted here. MixMaster, Worsel and Fast-Choker have teamed up and will be posting all new reviews on the MosherPit Blog. Reviews will include, comics, movies, toys, video games and anything else fun we can think of! So check it out now!
May 16, 2007:
Fallen Son The Death Of Captain America (Part 3)
Cover By: John Romita Jr. (variant cover by Michael Turner)
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Pencils: John Romita Jr.
32 Pages
Marvel, Rated T+
$2.99
Note - This issues should be read before New Avengers 30. Marvel is stupid for shipping it a week after. They really make me want to punch them in the nuts sometimes with the idiotic things they do. But anyway, here goes...
Okay, so the first two issues of this series blew donkey nuts and I was having my doubts about this and the rest of the series. Then I got the variant cover and I couldn't wait to read it -- straight to the top of the pile. This one is all about Tony Stark trying to find a replacemnt Captain America. And who does he tap? Just look at the variant cover to find out. This one also guest stars Patriot and Hawkeye from the Young Avengers. Very cool issue with a great ending that leads nicely into New Avengers 30.
Overall Rating A
Runaways Vol. 2 (Hardcover)
Collecting:
Ronaways Vol. 2 #1-12
X-Men/Runaways FCBD 2006
Writers: Brian K. Vaughan
Pencils: Adrian Alphona
Inks: Craig Yeung
Colors: Christina Strain
312 Pages
Marvel, Rated T+, $24.99
I was very excited to see that Runaways Vol. 2 was finally collected in a format other than those crappy digests. I started reading Runaways around issue 8, so I've been really wanting to catch up on these missing issues. Volume 2 picks up right where Volume 1 left off (if you haven't read it, go get it now!). The first eight issues introduce two new characters, Victor and Xavin. I love Victor's origin story, he really fits in with the group. Xavin isn't really my favorite, I feel like his character isn't so original. Then the third arc really gets fun when the team travels to New York City to help out Cloak and Dagger and they tango with Captain America, Wolverine, Spider-Man and the rest of the New Avengers. The art team is great as usual, except for the two fill in issues (#7-8) that took a bit of getting used to a different style. The final issue is a great original story from FCBD 2006 where the team has a run-in with the Astonishing X-Men who want to take Princess Powerful back to the Xavier Institute for school/training. Definitely a fun issue with some great art by Skottie Young.
Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 4 (Hardcover)
Collecting:
The Amazing Spider-Man #31-40
Writers: Stan Lee
Artists: Steve Ditko, John Romita
Marvel
$49.99
Alright ture believers, this is what The Amazing Spider-Man is all about! The first three volumes of the Masterworks collection are a good read, but this is where things really get cranked up a notch. Things really get interesting for Peter as he starts college at Empire State University and meets a bunch of new friends including Harry Osborne and the beautiful Gwen Stacy! Of course this is Peter Parker we're talking about though so things never go his way. And the Green Goblin really starts to make a name for himself as one of Spidey's top arch villans in a few of these issues. These stories may be dated since they were written in the mid 1960's, but the stories still hold up as classics. For anyone who is a Spider-Man fan and really wants to read about some of his early adventures and the origins of his enemies, this is the book to read. Excelsior!
May 9, 2007:
Annihilation, Book 2 (Hardcover)
Collecting:
Annihilation: Silver Surfer #1-4
Annihilation: Super Skrull #1-4
Annihilation: Ronan #1-4
Cover: Gabriele Dell'otto
Writers: Keith Giffen, Javier Grillo-Marxuach, Simon Furman
Pencils: Renato Arlem, Jorge Lucas, Greg Titus
312 Pages
Marvel, Rated A, $29.99
Part 1 - Silver Surfer
This was a great Silver Surfer mini. I was a huge Surfer fan in the '90s during Vol. 3 when Thanos came back and this series ranks up there with that. You've got Galactus, Thanos and many other Ex-Herald guest stars such as Firelord, Terrax and more (some I knew, some I didn't -- and for anyone who wants some background info, between ever issue throughout the book there are Nova Corps Worldmind bios on all the major players). And then you get to issue 4 and it is non-stop battle. The artwork is great, the Surfer looks sleak as ever and it fits in real well with the Prologue and Nova.
Part 2 - Super Skrull
Okay, first reaction when I opened this one up was that I grabbed a Marvel Adventures book. The art style is totally different than all the other Annihilation books I've seen, it is much more cartoony. But beyond that, once you get into the story, it really doesn't matter. And if you want action and destruction, all you have to do is turn a few pages and this book gets right into it. I do have one problem with this book though, and that is Civil War. Early on Super Skrull turns to Reed Richards to get him into the negative zone. He tells Reed all about the Annihilation Wave and how he wants to recruit an army from the Negative Zone. Reed agrees and sends him through the portal. First, why would Reed send him there if that is where the new prison is for all the non-registrators? And why would he give him plans to build his own portal to get back? Second, why didn't Reed tell anyone else about this? Don't you think a global threat like this might be a unifying force? Perhaps we'll find out more in the Nova series (in issue 2 Nova tells Tony he sent a message to Reed). Anyway, beyond that little gripe, it is a fun read with lots of action.
Part 3 - Ronan
Well I must say this was the weakest of all the mini's. The story didn't tie into Annihilation much until the fourth issue. It is mainly about Ronan trying to clear his name after he was exiled from the Kree Empire. The story is okay, it just is a bit of a let down after the awsomeness of the previous minis. The artwork is kind of a cross between the Silver Surfer and Super Skrull minis. It is not my favorite, but it works for the story of a backworld planet. Overall, since you are getting it in book two, you might as well read it, and if you are a completest like me and like to know everything, it is worth a read to get all the background info. Also, the Nova Worldmind comes in handy again because I didn't recognize most of the characters, but after reading a few bios I remembered them, they just looked a lot different than when I had seen them previously.
Anyway, go buy Book 2! Book 3 ships in June! And read Nova montly!
New Avengers 30 (The Initiative)
Cover By: Leinil Francis Yu
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils: Leinil Francis Yu
32 Pages
Marvel, Rated A
$2.99
Okay, after I trashed this title last month I gotta give it some props here. I still think Yu's scribbles suck, but I'm startin' to dig the story. The beginning starts off a bit flat when Iron Man's Avengers come looking for Luke Cage's Avengers, but that is done in a few pages. (Side note, if Ms. Marvel is supposed to be the leader of the Mighty Avengers, why is Tony always barking orders? Lame.) Anyway, after Iron Jerk leaves, who shows up? Well, I don't want to spoil it so I won't say, but if you know me, it is a character I have been waiting to see return for a long time. We also find out who the new Ronin is and we get back to the storyline that began way back in the first story arc of New Avengers. This book is still not what I think of as an Avengers book, but this book really has some potential, lets see where it goes. If you want a more traditional Avengers book, go pick up Mighty Avengers and see the heavy hitters take on a new Ultron.
Overall Rating B+
Star Wars Legacy 11
Cover By: Jan Duursema
Writer: John Ostrander
Pencils: Jan Duursema
32 Pages
Dark Horse
$2.99
Last year sometime when Dark Horse did a relaunch of their Star Wars line I picked up a few of their new titles -- Knights of the Old Republic, Rebellion, and Legacy. Due to budget constraints this is the only one that lasted more than 5-6 issues. It is cool to see a fresh Star Wars book that isn't bogged down with too much history. There is a lot more freedom for the witer since this is an un-explored time period over 137 years after The Battle of Yavin. This issue features some cool cameo's of characters from that past, both of which are two of my favorites. This book is written well as a true ongoing saga where each issue just leads into the next rather than having 3, 4, 5, 6 part story arcs. The artwork and color are great. They capture the feel of the Star Wars universe very well. If you're a Star Wars fan, check this one out, I think it is the best of the four Star Wars books out there right now.
Overall Rating B-
April 11, 2007:
New Avengers 29 (The Initiative)
Cover By: Leinil Francis Yu
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils: Leinil Francis Yu
32 Pages
Marvel, Rated A
$2.99
Well, this just isn't the Avengers book I've been looking for yet. First off it is the weirdest Avengers line-up I've seen in a long while. Second, for all the promise of the big New Avengers vs. Mighty Avengers in all the previews, there really isn't much of anything going on in the issue. Thrid, I think Ms. Marvel is written awful -- totally off character. Plus she is supposed to be the leader of the Mighty Avengers, but it taking a back seat to Tony the whole issue. Fourth I don't really like Yu's art. He's good, don't get me wrong, but I don't think the gritty style works for an Avengers book. It works for Gaydos on Alias and Maleev on Daredevil (okay, and issue #26 of New Avengers), but not here. It appears Bendis is trying to make this another gritty book though and I'm just not sure it fits. Hopefully next issue we can just see some action vs. lots and lots of ninjas -- I'm getting curious to see where that storyline has been going since the first arc of the series.
Overall Rating C+
Nova 1
Cover By: Adi Granov
Writer: Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Pencils: Sean Chen
32 Pages
Marvel, Rated T+
$2.99
For anyone who hasn't read Annihilation (which I highly recommend), this book basically covers everything you need to know about Nova and his recent time in space (he's basically like Ion and the Green Lantern Corps). The cover art by Adi Granov is pretty sweet and the interior art and color fit the character and story very well. The bright coloring reminds me a bit of New Warriors Volume 2. I like the interaction with Worldmind and Richard, reminds me a bit of Firestorm and the professor. The big payoff here is going to be when Nova confronts bucket-head Iron Man next issue!
Overall Rating B+
Loners 1 (of 6)
Cover By: Jason Pearson
Writer: C.B. Cebulski
Pencils: Karl Moline
32 Pages
Marvel, Rated T+
$2.99
I wasn't sure what to expect when I got this book (I didn't even remember ordering it to be honest), but I thought it was pretty good. If you like books about teen heroes like Runaways this book puts an interesting spin on things. Six former heroes have gathered together in LA in an AA type support group to try to stop being heroes after the fallout from Civil War. But don't worry, it's not all talk -- several of them quickly fall off the wagon and get into some action with some MGH dealers from their past. I like the artwork, the style fits well and reminds me a lot of Runaways (of course it helps with colorist Christina Strain on board from Runaways).
Overall Rating B
Danger Girl Body Shots #1 (of 4)
Cover By: Nick Bradshaw
Writer: Andy Hartnell
Pencils: Nick Bradshaw
32 Pages
Wildstorm
$2.99
The Danger Girls are back! I missed last year's Back in Black mini (now in TPB), but was able to jump right back into the series with no problem. The story reads just like a spy movie with a great opening action sequence leading to a nice spread title page. This time around the girls are after the Master Key and we aren't quite sure yet who they're up against. Keep reading to find out! The artwork is just as good as J. Scott Campbell's. The color tones are more muted than the original series bright colors, but it all still looks sharp.
Overall Rating B+
April 4, 2007:
Annihilation, Book 1 (Hardcover)
Collecting:
Drax The Destroyer #1-4
Annihilation Prologue
Annihilation: Nova #1-4
Cover: Gabriele Dell'otto
Writers: Keith Giffen, Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning
Pencils: Mitch Breitweiser, Scott Kolins, Ariel Olivetti, Kev Walker
244 Pages
Marvel, Rated T+, $29.99
The Drax mini series was pretty good. Not too much going on, but it explains how he gets smart again and also where his side-kick Cammi comes from. I believe this was published before all the Annihilation stuff came out, but it fits in well with the story because it gives you a good introduction to the character if you're not familiar with him.
Annihilation Prologue is where it all starts going to hell. Annihilation Day starts here, and there is a good introduction of Nova and we see Drax and Cammie again, but the second half of the issue really just seemed like preview pages of the other 3 books. Ronan, Super Skrull and Silver Surfer only had a few pages max.
The last four issues in the Hardcover are Annihilation: Nova #1-4. This is where the action really picks up! Without spoiling much, lets just say Nova teams up with Drax, Cammie and another special guest star to take on the entire Annihilation Wave all on their own. There are also some good bio's for most of the major players in Annihilation at the end of each issue so if you're not up on all your cosmic mojo you'll be all caught up.
Several people recommended this event to me and I have to agree, so far I've enjoyed it better than Civil War. Don't worry if you're not up on all your cosmic heroes, if you start here you'll be all caught up by the time you get to Annihilation in Book 3. (Note: Book 2 comes out May 2, followed by Book 3 in the summertime.)
Detective Comics 829/830 (E. May/L. May)
Cover By: Simone Bianchi
Writer: Stuart Moore
Pencils: Andy Clarke
32 Pages
DC
$2.99
Regular writer Paul Dini took a two month break here and we got a story by Stuart Moore and Andy Clarke. This story was a bit weak in my opinion. I think Tim Drake/Robin was not written very well which kind of ruined the story for me. I also didn't really like the way Tim was drawn in a tux -- he just seemed off character. The basic story had potential -- a terrorist tries to blow up Wayne Tower -- I just don't think it was executed well. I will definitely look forward to Paul Dini coming back next month. His one-shot stories are great -- I definitely recommend picking them up.
Fallen Son The Death Of Captain America (Part 3)
Runaways Vol. 2 (Hardcover)
Marvel Masterworks The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 4 (Hardcover)
Annihilation, Book 2 (Hardcover)
New Avengers 30 (The Initiative)
Star Wars Legacy 11
New Avengers 29 (The Initiative)
Nova 1
Loners 1 (of 6)
Danger Girl Body Shots #1 (of 4)
Annihilation, Book 1 (Hardcover)
Detective Comics 829/830 (E. May/L. May)