Posted by Richard Pulfer on Feb 26th, 2008
I’ve had a pretty busy week as far as graphic novels go - I’ve finished three in one week, including Mystic Arcana and Annihilation parts Two and Three. I’m usually not reading this many trades in one week, but then again, nasty weather has kept me from the comic shop for the third time in a month.
Mystic Arcana is Marvel’s attempt at a Books of Magic - that is, a continuity-wide feel for magic that is unique to the M.U. While it’s nowhere near as prolific as Books of Magic (nor is it written by Neil Gaiman), it still does pretty well, bringing something Marvel has been sorely lacking for some time. The story revolves around Ian McNee, one-time-contender for Doctor Strange’s job, as he tries to rally the magic of the Marvel Universe. As he does so, side stories emerge revolving around other chief magic users such as Magik, Black Knight, Sister Grimm and the Scarlett Witch. While it lacks the cohesive nature of Books of Magic’s straight-forward narrative, every story and every issue is effective individually, even if the overall story is a bit convoluted. There’s also a really great Tarot card section breaking down all the archetypes of multiple major Marvel characters in Ian McNee’s notes. For as big as this book, it’s certainly worth your buck if you’re still looking for a Harry Potter fix.
Annihilation continues to surpass basically everything Marvel and DC has on its place - including, and not limited to Civil War and Infinite Crisis. Still, like Mystic Arcana, the story is a bit disjointed. Book II introduces new status quo’s for the Silver Surfer, the Heralds of Galactus, Ronan the Accuser and the Super-Skrull - but with the exception of Surfer, Galactus and his ex-Heralds, very few of these characters cross path in the course of Book II. Still, the results are certainly worth it - especially in regards to Super-Skrull’s ambiguous yet engaging portrayal. Book III, on the other hand, features all the characters from the first previous books in last stand against - what else - Annihilation. If you’re a Nova fan like me, this is the book you’ve been waiting for, but you still have to wade through Book II to understand what’s happening. This isn’t a big deal - both are equally well-done, and well worth the price of purchase.
For this week, I definitely recommend Captain America #35. I especially like how the new Captain America is foiling Red Skull’s attempt to plunge the American economy - and people - into chaos, and considering how Bucky’s predecessor didn’t fare too well unraveling Skull’s manipulations, we have to wonder how the match-up between former teen sidekick and all-consuming adversary will play out here.
Mark Millar and John Romita Jr. are launching a book called Kick-Ass this month. What it is about, I have no clue, but it’s got my attention regardless.
New Warriors are finally launching a new storyline after the Night Thrasher-centric storyline last time. I’m hoping this new storyline reaches the intensity of the comic’s initial debut - the continuity-heavy second story under-utilized most of the cast, but from this week’s cover, that doesn’t seem to be the case.
Lastly, on the Marvel side, there’s Young Avengers Presents #2, with the spotlight on Hulkling, written by Illuminati writer Brian Reed. With Captain Marvel back in the M.U., this story brings about Hulkling’s meeting with his father. It should be interesting to see if Annihilation crops up any here as well, with the Hulking the heir apparent for the ravaged Skrull empire.
Not much on the DC side . . . again . . . but once again, the shining grace is Justice Society, with a 13th issue to puts Kingdom Come Superman beside DC’s current continuity supes. There’s also many of the new members the book has been hinting at for the past couple of months, as well as more on the case of a serial killer striking at legacy heroes throughout the DC Universe.
That’s really about it for this week. See ya next week!
Posted in comics, entertainment, geek
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