Amazing Spider-Man #797: OMFG, I totally had chills. Gage and Slott build so brilliantly to the end here, it’s like reading the Stern era of Spider-Man, where every panel seemed to advance one of several mysteries. We begin with the Goblin holding someone hostage; over the course of the issue, you really keep changing your mind who it is. Peter? MJ? Liz? Aunt May? Normie? Meanwhile, we get our hearts crushed alongside Peter as MJ starts to take off Peter’s shirt and then stops when she sees the Spider-Man costume. It’s honestly the first time since “Brand New Day” I can remember them addressing their break-up under the "new" conditions. MJ tells Peter they both would feel guilty if he gave up being Spider-Man for her, and she admits the city needs Spider-Man more than she needs Peter. It’s hard not to disagree with her, given how amazing her life is right now. But, Peter’s life isn’t amazing. When she sends him out the window as Spider-Man it’s hard not to agree with him that he’s hit a new low. But, this issue is really all about Norman. He implies he’s put Harry’s nanny Emma on the board for an as-yet-unrevealed reason, and he rips out Phil Ulrich’s heart after Phil mistakenly believes Norman is still powerless. But, it’s the end that makes this issue so great. Jonah is revealed to be the hostage, and he tells Norman Spider-Man will beat him because he even did so after Norman threw “his” girl off the bridge. GAME FUCKING ON! Based on the parameters of the spell Dr. Strange wove so everyone would forget Peter’s identity, Norman suddenly remembers everything now that he's learned Spidey's identity. He calls it the itch he couldn’t scratch. (Based on the web of connections he built on his serial-killer board, he probably would’ve guessed it if the spell hadn't actively been preventing him from doing so.) I really didn’t expect the authors to kick it up so many notches here. We really do seem to be heading toward a do-or-die battle between the two of them. I’m so fucking excited. This series hasn’t sung like it does here for a really long time, since possibly “Big Time.” Combined with “Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man” — and particularly, at long last, the amazing art on both series — it’s a great time to be a Spidey fan.
Avengers #683: This issue isn’t a miss exactly, but I can’t say it’s the same quality as the other issues so far. As ghosts continue to rampage through the hospital, Nadia decides to sacrifice herself to touch the Pyramoid and save everyone. She does so by shrinking Beast and sending him into Jarvis’ brain with an antidote to the alien parasite. It’s a solid moment, and it's probably the first time I really thought about Nadia as an honest-to-goodness Avenger. But, surprisingly, the Pyramoid rejects her, and she chases after Hank to save Jarvis instead. The weirdest part of this issue is the authors go to great lengths to explain that people shrunk to microscopic size subsist on Pym particles (since they’re smaller than oxygen molecules). But, they then defy all scientific reason by showing Hank as able to see Jarvis’ memories, as if the memory center of the brain is like a movie theater. It’s odd, to say the least. At any rate, Jarvis awakens and, as expected, confirms Voyager was never an Avenger. However, before Hank and Nadia can stop her, Voyager uses her powers to grab the spirit Pyramoid and hide in a bunker within the hospital. (At least, I think she does. I originally thought she grabbed the Pyramoid so she could be transported to the Gamemaster and Challenger directly, as if it were her goal all along. But, when I read the next issue, I realized it wasn't the case, that she simply hijacked the Pyramoid. But, I don't understand how the hospital has a bunker.) Beast's exposure to Jarvis' memories is what makes him believe Jarvis when he insists Voyager wasn't an Avenger, because Hank (conveniently) didn’t see her in Jarvis’ memories. We’ll see where that goes from there.
Hawkeye #16: OMG this series was, like, the bestest series ever and I’m truly heartbroken to see it go. I had no idea how Thompson was going to wrap up so many loose ends, but she totally did it. It was all so emotional, you guys. I totally cried when Kate convinced Eden to bring back her daughter to say good-bye. Thompson builds to the moment perfectly, as Clint offers to let Eden kill him because he understands what it’s like to lose someone who love so much, someone who serves as your compass. (Seriously, I was a BuckyNat guy, but I think I'm now a HawkNat guy.) Meanwhile, Kate uses Clint distracting Eden to swipe her suitcase of blood samples, and Eden panics because it has her daughter's blood. She is then forced to reveal the truth to Kate; she hadn’t resurrected her daughter (a question we’ve all had), because the person only appears for a short time. Later, when Eden dismisses Clint as a liar putting on a show to give Kate time to swipe the blood samples, Kate disagrees, saying (truthfully) he was probably the only person not lying. She just gets these characters, you guys. Eden is a great character, and I hope we see more of her. Meanwhile, I loved the moment where we learn Kate’s mom has been watching from the shadows all this time. In fact, Thompson leaves us with a new mystery here, as we learn Kate’s mom has some sort of deal with Masque. Plus, her mom makes Masque abandon Kate’s body, which Masque agrees to do since it hasn’t developed powers and is “nothing special.” (Kate’s mom disagrees.) Also, Johnny is an Inhuman or mutant! He even saves Kate’s life. (You’d think he would’ve shown us that earlier, given the frequency of dangerous moments they've faced, but it is what it is.) I’m not sure what I’m going to do without Kate and her gang in my life. [Sigh] Finger-guns forever!
Iceman #11: As Grace admits in the letters page, he didn’t have a lot of time to wrap up the story he was telling. Whereas Thompson in “Hawkeye” had been telling a very specific story over the course of her 16 issues, Grace had taken an arc-by-arc approach for this title. As such, the cancellation of this series feels more sudden than “Hawkeye’s.” All that said, he does his best, and it’s good. Bobby asks out Rictor to lunch, and Rictor notes the ridiculousness of a lunch date, showing Bobby’s cluelessness persists even in his out iteration. Rictor serves mostly as a sidekick here as Bobby’s mother calls him to ask for help as their reclusive neighbor starts displaying powers. Through flashbacks, Grace shows us Bobby’s long struggle for acceptance as his parents tried everything — including a priest — to "cure" him, and you don’t have to be an English major to read that part of the story more than one way. I admit I wish we would’ve seen the moment when Bobby met Charles Xavier and realized it was OK to be a mutant (or, at least, that someone thought it was OK to be). But, Grace wraps up the story nicely enough, as Bobby realizes he doesn’t need time with a boyfriend or a team; he just needs some time for him. Grace leaves him on as solid of footing with his parents as we’re going to get, and it’s a nice way to end a series that I sincerely wish had been longer.
Infinity Countdown #1: Honestly, a lot doesn't happen here, but it doesn't really matter, because it's just fun. Drax saying "Uh-oh" as he and Talonar witness the Chitauri arriving above Xitaung? Awesome. Groot curing the Gardener of Loki's poison and him restoring Groot to his factory settings? Better. Groot then hailing his friends and telling them it is time to kick ass? Fantastic. Logan leaving the Space Gem for an alive Black Widow in the back of a toilet in her Madripoor safehouse (from "Uncanny X-Men" #268)? Brilliant. OK, I guess a lot did happen in this issue.
Infinity Countdown #1: Honestly, a lot doesn't happen here, but it doesn't really matter, because it's just fun. Drax saying "Uh-oh" as he and Talonar witness the Chitauri arriving above Xitaung? Awesome. Groot curing the Gardener of Loki's poison and him restoring Groot to his factory settings? Better. Groot then hailing his friends and telling them it is time to kick ass? Fantastic. Logan leaving the Space Gem for an alive Black Widow in the back of a toilet in her Madripoor safehouse (from "Uncanny X-Men" #268)? Brilliant. OK, I guess a lot did happen in this issue.
Rogue and Gambit #3: My greatest fear right now in life is this series is going to end with Gambit and Rogue not remembering the amazing progress they've made in therapy. Thompson gives us a step-by-step tour of their best and worst moments, including the Antarctica incident from "Uncanny X-Men" #350 that I still remember clear as day, 21 years later. If they do remember, nothing could possibly stop them. I mean, what better therapy is there than beating up former iterations of yourself and your partner?
Star Wars #44: Ooo, Leia, you sneaky daughter of a gun. I honestly had no idea where Gillen was going for most of this issue, as the Mon Cala regent refused Leia’s request to provide the Alliance with his mercantile fleet, given the risk the Empire’s response could have for his people. (We learn the former king had rebelled against the Empire, and Mon Cala was still paying the price.) Leia — a princess of Alderaan, as Luke himself notes — understands...and then contacts Trios about breaking out the Mon Cala king who rebelled. I did not see Leia committing to regime change coming, and I can’t wait to see where Gillen takes us.
Star Wars #44: Ooo, Leia, you sneaky daughter of a gun. I honestly had no idea where Gillen was going for most of this issue, as the Mon Cala regent refused Leia’s request to provide the Alliance with his mercantile fleet, given the risk the Empire’s response could have for his people. (We learn the former king had rebelled against the Empire, and Mon Cala was still paying the price.) Leia — a princess of Alderaan, as Luke himself notes — understands...and then contacts Trios about breaking out the Mon Cala king who rebelled. I did not see Leia committing to regime change coming, and I can’t wait to see where Gillen takes us.
X-Men: Red #2: Taylor really nails it here. It seems like the X-Men will just retreat into their asylum in Wakanda, but Jean receives a plea for help from Trinary, an Indian technopath who saw Jean's speech at the United Nations, and off they go. We learn the message was actually time delayed, as Trinary has already been imprisoned for compensating all women in India for the 25 percent gender pay-gap. She's in trouble because she took it from the bank accounts of India's 25 richest CEOs. (As Honey Badger says, I think we all have a new hero.) Jean telepathically hijacks Lakshay Singh, the douchey head of India’s mutant defense force, and the team uses his knowledge to make their way to Trinary. Along the way, Taylor reminds you just how powerful Jean is as a telepath. But, all obviously doesn’t go smoothly as a group of anti-mutant protesters rush the prison's gates. Jean is able to put most of them to sleep, but three of them are able to resist her suggestion (possibly due to Cassandra Nova's influence, but I'm just guessing there). Her need to focus on the gun-toting trio forces her to drop her hold on Singh, who activates a Sentinel. The twists and turns show the attention Taylor is paying to this series, telling stories on multiple levels at different speeds. But, he also succeeds in showing Jean as a unique figure among the X-Men, not just because of her power but also the loyalty she inspires. After a lackluster first issue, I'm interested to see where we go here.
Also Read: Captain America #699; Spider-Man #238; Venom #163; X-Men: Gold #23
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