Posted by Richard Pulfer on Mar 18th, 2008
Though he’s got forty dupes and a lot of experience on X-Factor, Jamie Madrox is still Jamie Madrox, and not always Sam Spade. In the issue #29, a depressed Jamie thinks Siryn is among the several members leaving the team, unaware his teammate is actually trying to tell him she’s pregnant with her child. Good one, Jamie . . .
I picked up the first issue of Teen Titans: Year One. It’s funny and charming, but not enough really happens outside of what we already know. Seeing young Wally West freak out waiting for Robin to respond to AIM was pretty funny, but not even the entire team shows up in this issue, leaving me begging for me. It looks to be a good series, but its not necessarily a good start.
On the lightest note possible, the final issue of Cable and Deadpool went out with a bang as Deadpool battled Venom-possessed dinos with the aid of the Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, the Mighty Avengers and a timely assist for the time-lost Cable. I’m really going to miss this book - I hope Marvel doesn’t forget its humor in the months to come - Secret Invasion is going to really need it - but with Deadpool popping up in next summer’s Wolverine, I doubt the Merc with a Mouth will stay out of the limelight for long.
Countdown to Mystery was made all the more relevant by Steve Gerber’s passing, but the story is really starting drag on, as Kent Nelson gives up the mantle of Doctor Fate for the second straight time. Just deal with it already! With only two issues left in this back-up story, I’m really hoping for a solid conclusion to this once-must-read comic.
I’m glad to see they’ve fixed Chamber . . . errr . . . Decibel’s new look in New Warrior. Perhaps to avoid recognition of Chamber in the first place, they actually gave him a sleeveless shirt, a kilt and high white collar - I kid you not. Now he’s back to the simple trenchcoat, and though he still looks like a pint-sized Apocalypse, the look is starting to work better. Meanwhile, Night Thrasher prepares to manipulate his team to a certain end, so what and which purpose is unclear.
Nova, as I’ve said before, is Marvel’s Must-Read book. While it’s heads and tails above most anything else in Marvel Continuity, its starting to fall into the dreaded hype trap. Nova’s been traveling to the Phalanx home world for so long, to have Warlock pop up and say “Sorry, can’t help you.” is something of a letdown. And he also has to fight a giant robot. Here’s hoping the next issue has more thrills and chills than this more pedestrian product.
Justice Society of America, on the other hand, is DC’s Must-Read book and still up to form. New members include the Kingdom Come version of Lightning and the enlisted great-grandson of FDR, who I think might just bear some resemblance to the KC baddie Magog. And the Kingdom’s main protagonist Gog is mentioned in the last page, as the bloodied Mr. America mentions him stumbling into the JSA Headquarters.
Finally, horror writer (and yes, son of Stephen and Tabitha King) Joe Hill’s Lock and Key is IDW’s latest horror read. I like Hill sets up the main character Tyler, who moves to the small town of Lovecraft (maybe a bit too obvious) after his father is brutally murdered. On the other hand, the villains of the series aren’t so well-developed, as we see the murderer of Tyler’s father conversing with a mysterious entity in the prison toilet. Perhaps the entity just doesn’t look that intimidating from the toilet bowl, but I felt the entry of the supernatural into the already gritty and emotional comic was too abrupt and jarring. However, this comic definitely bears further reading.
On the Marvel side, Captain America #36 amps up the intensity on Bucky’s freshman foray as the new Captain America. The issue includes plenty with Black Widow, Red Skull, Dr. Faustus and Sharon Carter - the later having been mostly out-of-spotlight since the end of the last storyline, especially after she pulled the trigger on the last Captain America! With a story rooted in America’s current economic plight, Brubaker’s Captain America is one of the relevant books on the stand to date.
I haven’t heard good things about Captain Marvel - there’s just so darn many of them between too characters, and so far, it seems Marvel has bungled the return of the first one to it’s main universe. There are big things going on in the pages of Captain Marvel regardless, tying directly into the events of Secret Invasion - and even posing the question the newly-resurrected protagonist may be part of the Invasion!
With his current book canceled, Deadpool is appearing in Wolverine: Origins #23. It’s basically Deadpool trying to kill Wolverine . . . a lot. Since he’s been killed just about every conceivable way (before his healing factor kicks in), it’s doubtful this will bring anything new to the as-of-yet-still-unnecessary Wolverine book, but who knows what Deadpool’s crazy brain will brood. The artwork by Steve Dillon (Preacher, Punisher) also aids in bringing the madcap violence to life.
X-Factor, in the meantime, is tying into Divided We Stand as well as X-Force. The issue depict Madrox and his dupes - armed - facing off with the Purifiers. This has consistently been the best X-book with the possible exception of Astonishing, and unless something changes in Divided We Stand, its going to stay that way.
Catwoman, meanwhile, has Selina Kyle managing to piss off Lex Luthor AND the Joker - two figures who lead about seventy percent of the Who’s Who of DCU Baddies. With Catwoman now on the run from villains galore, this book - another consistent goodies - just keeps getting better and better.
And lastly, do my eyes deceive me, is it . . . yes, its the SUPER FRIENDS. DC is starting this book to hook ‘em while they’re young through a hot new toy line at Mattel. Unfortunately this issue bears very little resemblance to the Super Friends of my youth, which is a shame. Instead of hooking both nostalgic old viewers along with younger new ones, DC has put out a far-too-cutie version wih hardly any of the style. I wish there was more to say here.
Posted in comics, entertainment, geek
| email this article
If you liked that, try...
- Comic Rundown: Space, Sorcery and Half-Skrulls
- Comic Rundown: Skrulls Down Right
- Comic Rundown: Now with 100% more Skrulls
- Comic Rundown: Tin Soldiers And Super Soldiers
- Comic Rundown: Colbert Vampire Skrulls
Podcast RSS
Devin de Gruyl
March 18, 2008 at 5:09 pm
…When did Steve Gerber pass? o_O This is truly the first I’ve heard of it.
[Reply]
Richard
March 18, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Steve Gerber passed away several weeks ago. I had read his illness had prevented him from making headway on the Dr. Fate script. It’s a shame because - up until the last issue - its been consistently one of the most inventive takes on the character.
[Reply]
March 18th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
Jeez… I’ve been seriously out of the loop, then. ><;;
Real shame, too. Gerber’ll probably be best remembered for the whole Howard the Duck thing (including his stand for artists’ rights in the comic industry), but he was also an innovative storyteller in the medium as well, even if he didn’t get the recognition of other, more prominent “names” in the field. He’ll be missed.
[Reply]
Richard Pulfer
March 19, 2008 at 12:28 am
For anyone curious about Gerber’s impact on comics, click my name to see a Broken Frontier tribute. I can tell you one thing - his presence in comics isn’t limited to Howard the Duck alone, and always tends to turn up where you least expect. Devin’s absolutely right - the industry just lost one of its key innovators.
[Reply]