Captain America #695: Waid makes the right call in starting from a place of hope. He’s going to have to spend a whole bunch of issues detailing a world where not everyone trusts Steve anymore. But, honestly, the world right now is grim enough. We don’t need to lose all hope. Waid has Cap travel to a small town in Nebraska he saved from a group of white supremacists called the Remnant right after he was unfrozen. They renamed the town after him, and they hold a Captain America festival every year. They believe in Steve, even if some people are mad he didn’t return from “the trap” earlier than he did. Steve isn’t just there to soak in the adoration: his intelligence sources discovered a reformed Remnant was going to attack the festival, so he’s on hand to stop it. Waid clearly has big plans for the Remnant, and he seems to be inspired by the “debate” we had during the inauguration when someone punched Richard Spencer. Waid is clearly on the “always punch a Nazi” side, and Cap is the living embodiment of that principle. Waid sometimes gives short shrift to characters’ emotions (see his current "Avengers" run), but he’s pretty on target here when it comes to the townspeople’s adoration for Steve. A grown-up version of the girl Steve saved ten years earlier is there, a stand-in for the reader when it comes to Cap inspiring us. I hope Waid maintains a firm grip on those emotions as he has Cap navigate this strange new world.
Iceman #7: After the OG Champions make short work of the Sentinels (since, after all, they're not fully programmed Sentinels), Bobby and Judah resume their date. Grace makes the brilliant call of having Bobby refuse to dish the next morning after Angel tells the team he didn't come home that night. I like the idea of Bobby having some privacy, even from us. I don't need this series to descend into gay porn, after all. (Hopefully someone'll just handle that on DeviantArt.) Instead, Bobby tells the story about how he was a sexist asshole the first time he met Natasha and how she (unsurprisingly) called him on it. The guys give him a gentle ribbing for his awkward attempt at hitting on her, but Darkstar tells him not to be embarrassed; he doesn't have to be, because it's part of the journey that brought him to where he is now. Bobby holds onto his newfound sensitivity by visiting the Sentinel engineer and encouraging her to contact one of his old professors at UCLA, since she should be teaching mechanical engineering and not working in props. It's a lovely moment: he comments on the importance of having professors believe in you. In the end, he finds himself at the Mansion enjoying life happening around him. But, he also realizes the X-Men don't need him in the same way anymore so he decides to move to Los Angeles! Hurrah! My wish came true! Complicating matters, his mom discovered his younger self (Lil' Bobby, as Warren calls their younger counterparts) is in the present. Again, there are moments where I feel like we're off a beat or two in this series, but Grace seems to have a better handle on Bobby with each passing issue. I'm definitely here for the long haul.
Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #6: I said a few issues ago this series is becoming my Spider-Man series, and this issue proved it. It’s the most emotional Spider-Man issues in years, and it reminds me of the good ol’ days. Zdarsky might’ve been hired to write a funny Spider-Man, but he delivers two amazingly multi-faceted characters in this issue as Jonah and Peter go head to head. Each one gives as good as he gets, as Jonah argues hiding behind the mask makes Spidey a coward (noting cops have to live with the consequences of their actions) and Peter reminds him he’s used his power and wealth to try to kill him several times (and endangered civilians' lives in the process). But, Jonah is left broken when Peter tells him he’s nothing, admitting his vendetta — something he promised Marla he’d get past, as Zdarsky reminds us — is the only thing he has left, since it’ll be the only thing to prove it all hasn’t been futile. Zdarsky does a brilliant job building the tension to this moment, and it’s released when Peter reveals his identity to Jonah, to convince him he’s not alone. Wow. Just wow. It’s really a spectacular (heh heh) issue, and every Spider-Man fan should read it. For years now — really, ever since “One Day More” — Marvel has bent over backwards to make sure its characters’ continuities doesn’t change. But, they throw off that caution with abandon here, and it’s well worth it. Game fucking on. Move over, Slott. Our new Spider-Man storyteller is here. #issueoftheyear
Spider-Man #234: Wow, a lot happens here. First, Fabio returns, and we learn he left because he’s in love with Lana and he figured Lana would fall into Miles’ arms after he beat up Hammerhead for her. He’s thrilled to see Miles is instead dating Barbara, but Miles is a little stupefied when he learns Lana loves him. For her part, Lana is having a rough time. Her mother is someone called Bombshell (as I’m sure long-time readers know), and she’s just been freed from prison as the result of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s collapse. But, Lana makes it clear she’s a hero now and tells her mother that she never wants to see her again. Miles decides to follow an ambulance not in his uniform as part of his ongoing uncertainty about using the Spider-Man identity. But, most importantly, Uncle Aaron is back as the Iron Spider, thanks to Ceres the weaponsmith. He’s putting together his own Sinister Six (including Bombshell) to steal a decommissioned S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier. Interestingly enough, he outright says this Earth isn't his world, which again raises the question how much everyone here knows about their current circumstances. Miles is going to have a rough few days.
Also Read: Astonishing X-Men #5; Avengers #673; Darth Vader #7
Also Read: Astonishing X-Men #5; Avengers #673; Darth Vader #7
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