Fear Itself: Spider-Man #1: This issue suffers from a similar problem I'm having with "Fear Itself: The Home Front," which is that the story seems to be running ahead of where we are in the main title. Yost frequently refers to "the fear" here, with everyday people essentially giving into their greatest fears. In "Fear Itself: The Home Front," we saw a mob almost killing Speedball as revenge against all super-humans; in this issue, we see a second-generation Iranian-American get attacked by a mob for September 11th. But, nothing we've seen in the main title really explains why people would be acting this way. This issue makes it seem more like the Serpent (or someone) is sending out subliminal messages stoking people's fear, instead of them responding to some sort of attack from a member of the Worthy. As such, although this issue is fairly well scripted, I found myself just constantly wondering why everyone was behaving the way they were behaving. I'm hoping we'll get some more clarity in the next installment of "Fear Itself." In terms of what Yost does here, thought, it's a good issue. It covers similar themes as the Speedball story in "Fear Itself: The Home Front," giving us a look at how the actions of the super-human community affect the every-day lives of "regular" people. I'm pretty sure every secondary title that Marvel is going to publish is going to address this theme, so, if you're just now starting to read "Fear Itself," I'd say just pick your favorite character and stick with his/her title.
Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt #1: I saved this book as one of the last of my current stack to read because I had exactly no interest in it. I actually didn't even remember subscribing to it; I probably did right when "Fear Itself" was announced. I had already decided to cancel it before I read it. But, then I read it. "Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt" is actually the best of the whole "Fear Itself" bunch, combining the high action of "Fear Itself" with the street sensibilities of "Fear Itself: The Home Front." I have no idea who any of these characters are (Thor Girl?); from what I can tell, they all played small parts in the "Civil War" cross-over and its aftermath. But, McKeever does so well in presenting them as flawed and human characters -- particularly Prodigy, who we meet right away -- that he immediately sucks you into their world. I can already tell that I'll buy any book with Prodigy after this whole affair ends. If you're reading "Fear Itself," you should buy this book.
New Avengers #12: OK, if this book didn't have "Avengers" in the title, I'd drop it like a hot potato. Nothing happens this issue...again. Mockingbird is still in critical condition, and we're supposed to believe Bendis is going to kill her. We're also supposed to believe that Victoria Hand is secretly working for H.A.M.M.E.R. Here's the thing: even if both were true, I still wouldn't care. I like Mockingbird as a character. I was a fan of "Avengers West Coast," and I was happy to discover she was resurrected, of sorts, during "Secret Invasion." But, if Bendis is just going to casually throw away her character, I'm going to find it hard to take anything he does seriously, because he's just showing that he can change anything willy-nilly. But, of course, if he just finds a miraculous way to save her, I also won't be able to take him seriously, because he'll have wasted part of my life on waiting for the inevitable revelation that she doesn't die. Ditto Victoria Hand. But, this whole discussion is moot because, if the last few issues are any guide, nothing will happen ever and, 100 issues from now, we'll still be waiting to discover if Mockingbird survives. The 1950s Avengers story is similarly stalled. We never discover why Nick Fury and his Avengers are fighting a Captain Fauxmerica and the Red Faux. I think we actually know even less than when we started. We're also no closer to discovering if (and I'm beginning to doubt it) these stories are in any way connected. Basically, I spent $3.99 on this issue when I could've just read "New Avengers" #11 again and gotten the same result.
New Mutants #25: As a result of "Age of X," I felt like I hadn't read this book in ages. I had forgotten some of the details of the "Fall/Rise of the New Mutants" arcs, which were complicated enough to understand even when I had the details fresh in my mind. If I remember correctly, it's still unclear if Illyana has regained her soul, despite the fact that she now has possession over the bloodstones that contained the pieces of her soul. We don't really get an answer here, but I think it's safe to say it's going to be a while before we resolve that issue. Abnett and Lanning, meanwhile, really get to work propelling us into a new status quo. First, we see Dani step into the leadership role, with Sam admitting he was overburdened, in part because of the drastic actions he had to take during "Fall/Rise of the New Mutants" and in part because of the psychological trauma inflicted on him during "Age of X." (Also, it's fair to remember that "Fall/Rise of the New Mutants" happened while he was still trying to recover from "Hellbound".) The leadership transition works well, because Abnett and Lanning foreshadow it with the opening battle and cement it with excellent scenes between Dani and Sam and then Dani and Cyclops. I was legitimately thrilled to see Dani and Sam kissing again. I never really bought Sam and Lila or Sam and Boom-Boom, but Sam and Dani make sense. They're a couple that really makes me happy, and I hope we let them be happy for a long while. Also, I'm excited about the new direction that the series will take, with the New Mutants resolving the X-Men's unfinished business, a mission similar to the one they had in their X-Force days. I had thought Nate Grey was dead, but I always liked Nate, so I'm glad to see we've resurrected (or, at least, rediscovered) him. I'm also glad, frankly, that we're probably going to be seeing a little less of Illyana. Everything about Illyana is confusing and I think we could really use a break from her constant drama. All in all, as I think is obvious from this review, Abnett and Lanning do an amazing job here, ably building on the foundation laid by Wells. I can't wait to see where this series goes.
X-Men #11: This issue is OK. Professor X recounts a story of meeting a good vampire in Africa in the 1950s in an attempt to convince Jubilee that she can find a way to handle becoming a vampire. The story itself is a pretty clichéd "searching for trouble on safari in Africa" story, full of bar fights in dodgy saloons and sexy Russians with big guns. As such, it feels like Gischler kind of phones in the story, but it's still more or less entertaining. It's a shame, though, because it returns us to the lackluster "Curse of the Mutants" story, just after Gischler really hit a home run with the Spidery cross-over. Less vampires, more fun, Victor.
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