I finally made it through the comic pile from vacation! Woot!
Captain America #1: OK, so, I'm trying not to let my fury over Marvel's decision to kill Bucky-Cap get in the way of my enjoyment of Steve Rogers taking up the shield again. This issue is pretty solid. Brubaker wisely decides to start the series with a story involving a strong supporting cast (Sharon Carter and Nick Fury), a mystery villain from Cap's Second World War days, and good ol' reliable Baron Zemo. It serves as a good way of introducing new readers to Cap (the whole point of this renumbered series) but also gives existing fans some familiar faces to be excited about seeing. The problem is that, for existing fans, Brubaker's treatment of the familiar faces is somewhat...clunky. For example, Cap's conversation with Sharon -- about how he thought she was Peggy, about how they had thankfully gotten past that, about how Peggy inspired Sharon to become who she was -- was almost difficult to read. I get that Marvel is essentially treating this series as a way for fans of the movie to get into the comic, so I guess we're going to have to suffer through that for a while. Similarly, although I can't say it was surprising, it was pretty cold how Bucky wasn't mentioned AT ALL. I haven't read "Captain America and Bucky" #620 yet, but, at some point, it would be nice to see Steve mention the fact that Bucky is dead, which, so far, he hasn't. Hopefully, the editors won't make Brubaker spoon-feed us plots for too long. Meanwhile, we've got the pretty art of Steve McNiven to distract us.
Captain America and Bucky #620: Similar to "Captain America" #1, Brubaker spends most of this issue giving us an introduction to Bucky Barnes, going over the sad story of his troubled youth, first as a kid with a hot temper, then as an orphan living on a military base. However, Brubaker has a freer hand here than he does in "Captain America," enabling him to avoid the awkward situations imposed on him by the editorial mandate in that title to introduce a well established character to a brand-new audience. Bucky isn't as well established as Steve, so Brubaker gets to take some liberties. Despite having read Bucky's origin numerous times, I found that Brubaker's take on it was somewhat different than we've previously seen, giving us a more emotionally realistic depiction of what it must've been like to have been a 14-year-old orphan living on a military base. Brubaker doesn't have much time for anything else here, but the story, to be honest, isn't really what matters about this issue. What matters is the hope that, by making the decision to keep Bucky "alive," at least in his past incarnation, we may actually see Bucky eventually return in his present incarnation. It's a long shot, but I think it's going to be hard for Marvel to keep this title going, month after month, and not face some sort of inevitable pressure to have one of its main characters -- who was killed in a totally gratuitous way -- return from the dead. At least, I hope it will be. Fingers crossed. Otherwise, I really wonder how long we're going to have two Captain America titles.
Venom #5: I have complicated feelings about this issue. On one hand, it's very well done. Remender does some really excellent character work on Flash, fleshing out how his motivation for success comes from a need to please his father, who never told him he was proud of him. It sounds a little cheesy, but Remender does a really great job making sure it's not. Flash, to me, has always been one dimensional: he started as Peter's bully, then almost overnight became Peter's friend, and we never really got all that much more. Remender is really bringing a character who's existed for 50 years or so to new places, and I applaud that. The conversations between Flash and Peter were great, particularly where Flash snaps at Peter and then quickly admits he sounds like his father. You can feel Flash fighting with all his might NOT to be his father here. All that said, the problem is that this series is just getting really, really dark. I mean, of course, on some level, a "Venom" series is going to be dark. I mean, Flash is playing host to a murderous alien symbiote after all. But, one of the intriguing parts of Flash taking on the symbiote is that Flash himself isn't all that dark. I mean, yes, he has his demons, but he's also kind of goofy and loveable. Remender needs to remember that in the midst of all the killing and darkness, or this series is going to get really difficult to read.
Captain America #1: OK, so, I'm trying not to let my fury over Marvel's decision to kill Bucky-Cap get in the way of my enjoyment of Steve Rogers taking up the shield again. This issue is pretty solid. Brubaker wisely decides to start the series with a story involving a strong supporting cast (Sharon Carter and Nick Fury), a mystery villain from Cap's Second World War days, and good ol' reliable Baron Zemo. It serves as a good way of introducing new readers to Cap (the whole point of this renumbered series) but also gives existing fans some familiar faces to be excited about seeing. The problem is that, for existing fans, Brubaker's treatment of the familiar faces is somewhat...clunky. For example, Cap's conversation with Sharon -- about how he thought she was Peggy, about how they had thankfully gotten past that, about how Peggy inspired Sharon to become who she was -- was almost difficult to read. I get that Marvel is essentially treating this series as a way for fans of the movie to get into the comic, so I guess we're going to have to suffer through that for a while. Similarly, although I can't say it was surprising, it was pretty cold how Bucky wasn't mentioned AT ALL. I haven't read "Captain America and Bucky" #620 yet, but, at some point, it would be nice to see Steve mention the fact that Bucky is dead, which, so far, he hasn't. Hopefully, the editors won't make Brubaker spoon-feed us plots for too long. Meanwhile, we've got the pretty art of Steve McNiven to distract us.
Captain America and Bucky #620: Similar to "Captain America" #1, Brubaker spends most of this issue giving us an introduction to Bucky Barnes, going over the sad story of his troubled youth, first as a kid with a hot temper, then as an orphan living on a military base. However, Brubaker has a freer hand here than he does in "Captain America," enabling him to avoid the awkward situations imposed on him by the editorial mandate in that title to introduce a well established character to a brand-new audience. Bucky isn't as well established as Steve, so Brubaker gets to take some liberties. Despite having read Bucky's origin numerous times, I found that Brubaker's take on it was somewhat different than we've previously seen, giving us a more emotionally realistic depiction of what it must've been like to have been a 14-year-old orphan living on a military base. Brubaker doesn't have much time for anything else here, but the story, to be honest, isn't really what matters about this issue. What matters is the hope that, by making the decision to keep Bucky "alive," at least in his past incarnation, we may actually see Bucky eventually return in his present incarnation. It's a long shot, but I think it's going to be hard for Marvel to keep this title going, month after month, and not face some sort of inevitable pressure to have one of its main characters -- who was killed in a totally gratuitous way -- return from the dead. At least, I hope it will be. Fingers crossed. Otherwise, I really wonder how long we're going to have two Captain America titles.
Venom #5: I have complicated feelings about this issue. On one hand, it's very well done. Remender does some really excellent character work on Flash, fleshing out how his motivation for success comes from a need to please his father, who never told him he was proud of him. It sounds a little cheesy, but Remender does a really great job making sure it's not. Flash, to me, has always been one dimensional: he started as Peter's bully, then almost overnight became Peter's friend, and we never really got all that much more. Remender is really bringing a character who's existed for 50 years or so to new places, and I applaud that. The conversations between Flash and Peter were great, particularly where Flash snaps at Peter and then quickly admits he sounds like his father. You can feel Flash fighting with all his might NOT to be his father here. All that said, the problem is that this series is just getting really, really dark. I mean, of course, on some level, a "Venom" series is going to be dark. I mean, Flash is playing host to a murderous alien symbiote after all. But, one of the intriguing parts of Flash taking on the symbiote is that Flash himself isn't all that dark. I mean, yes, he has his demons, but he's also kind of goofy and loveable. Remender needs to remember that in the midst of all the killing and darkness, or this series is going to get really difficult to read.
X-Men: Schism #2: I initially wasn't sure I liked this issue, but, in retrospect, I think it was actually really well done. We begin to see the first signs of the split between Cyclops and Wolverine, and it doesn't go down the way you think it would. I enjoyed that Wolverine was actually suggesting the X-Men take what, depending on your point of view, was the more "right" path, in advocating that they turn over Quentin Quire to Steve Rogers. It shows that Aaron isn't playing the differences within the mutant community as black-and-white (Wolverine: irrational, Cyclops: rational). Cyclops seems to be undermining the good he's done in bringing the X-Men more in line with the superhero community by harboring Quire, but it makes sense, given his fears, as a leader, that the situation could deteriorate significantly and threaten all mutants everywhere. I'm still not entirely sure what to make of the kiddie Hellfire Club. Aaron I'm sure will elaborate on who Kilgore's other friends are, but, at the very least, I do like the re-imagining of the Hellfire Club becoming a pro-humanity organization that found itself corrupted by the mutant reign. I'm not sure what the intergalactic connection was, but I'm sure we'll get an answer soon. All in all, I keep wanting more, which is a good sign (and a different feeling from say, I don't know, "Fear Itself").
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