Avengers #17: This issue is OK, though it felt rushed, to be honest. Aaron is trying to fit in a lot of plot here, so he resorts to having important sequences, like the Legion of the Unliving taking on the Winter Guard right before the Avengers arrive, occur off-panel. The battle itself between the Avengers and the Legion is fine, though Aaron again hurries the battle between Blade and Colonel, with Blade defeating him too easily. He also rushes to the conclusion that Dracula planned the entire "civil war." The Colonel is revealed to be his son, Xarus, and Dracula's goal all along was to get the Russians to imprison him in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, apparently because the radiation somehow heals him. (I'd love to see the physics of that.) But, this revelation doesn't explain why Dracula was willing to sacrifice all his subjects in Transylvania just to move his kingdom to Chernobyl. Couldn't he have just...snuck into the Exclusion Zone? Did he have to be invited to an entire geographic space? It isn't like Chernobyl is a house. Overall, it was still a strong arc, but I feel like an extra issue would've made it all the better.
Avengers: No Road Home #6: Although I know the authors are stoked about getting to use Conan and I'm loving Aaron's run on "Conan the Barbarian" itself, this issue was a dud to me. Even with the expanded length, they cover too much ground, literally and narratively. Conan and Wanda seem to cover the entire Thurian continent in search of the thieves who stole the shard. Some of the individual moments are great, but the authors move off them too quickly to advance to the next location. The arrival at Shadizar is a great moment, but it would've been even more impactful if I still hadn't been trying to figure out where they had been before they got there. Moreover, this specific flaw exacerbates the problem that I have with the regular series, where Aaron (and now the trio here) are telling stories across Conan's lifespan. Here, he loves Bêlit, but we haven't even met her in the regular series yet. I get that Conan fans will recognize all these various timeframes and characters, but it's a challenge for a newbie like me. As such, it feels like too much of the authors playing with a toy, particularly given the fact that Conan's presence here is a stretch from the start. I initially thought that they were going to connect Nyx with the Night-God whose worshipers Conan and Wanda encounter on the way to Shadizar. How cool would it have been if they had gone to all this trouble to shield Wanda's eyes so Nyx wouldn't know that they found the shard, only for the "Night-God's" worshipers to successfully open a portal to her? These missed opportunities are what make me feel like the authors are rushing through this mini-series just like Aaron is rushing through "Avengers."
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #4-#5: For the fact that these issues involve Peter learning Aunt May has cancer, they're not as devastating as you'd expect them to be. But, it isn't necessarily a bad thing, to be honest.
In issue #4, Tayor wraps up the Underworld storyline in a fantastic way. The villain arrives demanding Spider-Man and the Rumor turn over his daughter and grandchildren, and they refuse. Fighting ensues. But, before we get there, Juann Cabal provides one of the greatest panels I've ever seen, akin to the famous Hawkeye mask covering Hawkeye's hawkeye. As Peter tells Johnny the story of saving Leilani from her father from the top of an alternate Empire State Building, Cabal given us a Super Mario Bros. background to underline the point. It is...mind-blowing. Moreover, during the aforementioned above-ground fight, he delivers an amazingly (heh) kinetic panel showing Peter dodging the thugs' bullets while also saving a cat and setting up the fight's denouement when Peter manages to web every gun and pull them towards him. The emotional denouement comes when a crowd gathers around Spidey to stand with him, eventually forcing the Kingpin -- who arrived on the scene to force Spider-Man and the Rumor to surrender Leilani and the kids -- to break his deal with the villain. This entire arc has been great from start to finish, focusing on Peter's New York as promised.
Even after Aunt May arrives in Peter's apartment in issue #5 to tell him she has cancer, Taylor keeps up said focus, when Peter catches one of the homeless kids from the neighborhood stealing a car. When it turns out he's running from his mother's abusive boyfriend, Spidey -- feeling a little guilty that he got distracted and broke the kid's wrist -- actually helps him steal said car to prevent from getting arrested. (I guess Peter learned how to drive at some point...) Peter winds up webbing the car above an alley to allow them to escape the ensuing police, a sequence you kind of have to see to appreciate. Peter brings the kid to see Dr. Strange, who (somewhat reluctantly) sets the arm. Peter confesses he broke the wrist because he's distracted by May's illness, and Dr. Strange jokingly refers to making a deal with an interdimensional demon to help her, though suggests that it could bring an eternity of torment. (Ha!) Peter wisely passes, and Dr. Strange tells him that some things are beyond magic and medicine. After originally telling Aunt May he has "a lot going on right now" when she asked if he'd go to chemo with her, he's there when she arrives, with the nurse touchingly referring to him as her "son." I always love the moments when May and Peter acknowledge their mother-son relationship directly, and this one is no different. Did I roll my eyes at Peter's initial response of saying that he was too busy to be at her appointment? Yes, because Peter probably wouldn't have responded that way. But, Taylor is killing it so much in this series, I can look past it. Also, Cinar and Woodard's art is so impressive here (including a beautiful Peter) that they convey emotions that Taylor's script alone doesn't necessarily convey.
In other words, just like "Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man," this series is increasingly my go-to Spider-Man series, no matter how much I like what Nick Spencer is doing in the main title.
Nightwing #58: This issue is a little heavy handed with the narrative, from Hutch's extended meditation on why he's not "cut out for this vigilante crap" to Joker's Daughter's eyeroll-inducing diatribe about the elites to Bab's earnestness in telling "Ric" that Dick would be proud of him. But, Lobdell and Kaplan still do a solid job of showing how Ric's membership in the Nightwings happens organically, to the point where this new status quo starts feeling more and more familiar. But, it's really Moore and Bonvillain who shine here; Hutch is so beautifully rendered in the first few panels that he looks almost lifelike.
Uncanny X-Men #14: Rosenberg continues doing a solid job here. By the end of the issue, you get the sense that Scott is going to find himself with his hands full of mutants, and Rosenberg implies then it'll really start to get interesting. After all, he added Logan in issue #11, Havok, Magik, and Wolfsbane in issue #12, Dark Beast and Multiple Man in issue #13, and now Chamber in this issue. (I don't really count Karma and Mirage from issue #12 since they've unfortunately been non-entities.) In other words, this issue really gets Scott's little war going. So far, he's really just struck against O.N.E. for holding Havok, Multiple Man, and the New Mutants and then Dark Beast. In this issue, we have the team chase down Reaper (only to learn he's depowered and not working with the MLF) and help the remaining Morlocks relocate to Chernaya after eliminating the fascist opposition forces left after X-Force's sojourn there. (I think they're the same place? If not, Marvel is really pushing the limits of credulity to make two made-up Eastern European countries into mutant havens with fascist uprisings.) Why do they need to relocate the "remaining" Morlocks, you ask? Because the Marauders killed the rest of them...again. (I'm imaging the Marauders are moving up Scott's hit list.) Also, the move to Chernaya killed a few too birds with one stone, as Scott and Logan got Valerie Cooper to agree to do them favors if they do her favors (like eliminating said fascist opposition forces). In other words, Scott's got a lot of irons in the fire. But, the team takes a well advised moment to celebrate the "small victories" only to have Captain America crash the party. Again, Rosenberg is doing a great job of making each issue complicate Scott's life even further, but I'm also glad he's giving the team some time to bond as well. As Jono himself implies, no one on this team has enjoyed a good run over the last few years. Most of them really need these wins, even if it's clear whatever limited roll that they're enjoying now is going to come to an end.
West Coast Avengers #9: This issue is great. It's like Thompson hit full speed as we got to the top of the mountain and she's just letting us enjoy the free fall as we make our way down the other side. Ramone and Johnny are children of a Dora Milaje? Ramone's powers allow her to fuse permanently with vibranium? Johnny and Marvel Boy might forget Katie and get together themselves? Katie's mom is a vampire? Each new development builds off previous developments, so it doesn't all sounds as random as it does here. Plus, we get the usual adorable crazy moments, like discovering Jeff the Shark loves Quentin and likes to sit in his lap. (The panel where Jeff is actually sitting in Quentin's lap should win Gang Hyuk Lim some sort of award. That, and the panel where Gwenpool, Quentin, and Ramone all put their hands to their chest in faux outrage, like they're grabbing their Southern ladies grabbing their pearls, after Kate's mom reveals that they're dealing with vampires, not Skrulls.) I've said it before, and I'll say it again: as Quentin's t-shirt says, West Coast, Best Coast!
The Wild Storm #21: As we approach the end, each issue seems much more focused now. Jenny Sparks' trip through Skywatch's computer system allowed her to discover the existence of Midnighter and Apollo. Wisely, she realizes their defense of the village meant not only that they were preventing Skywatch from making more people like them and the Mayor but also that they were probably good recruits for the still-forming Authority. Meanwhile, Miles orders Ivana to start creating a narrative that an "extranational terrorist network" is ramping up its activities in nuclear-armed countries, and it leads her to call someone to report that they "may have a situation." Bendix seems to believe IO shot down some Skywatch ships, but I can't tell if he's confusing Midnighter and Apollo's attack with IO or if he's referring to that fight at Skywatch's ground base a few issues ago. Bendix is ready to burn down the world, but Lauren warns him that he should focus on IO specifically to prevent them from having "supply issues." To help the Doctor recognize Skywatch ships when they enter orbit, Angie provides her with a device that allows them to communicate telepathically, projecting to her images of a Skywatch ship. (Interestingly, Angie is super aggro all issue, and it takes the Doctor confronting her to make her admit the events of the last few weeks are weighing on her.) Elsewhere, Jackie finds some sort of device in the IO equipment room, and the guy that Miles hired to kill her is on her tail. Later, Jenny confirms that the bot attack IO launched on Skywatch (though I think it was really the Wild C.A.T.s) allowed them to see the Skywatch space station. Jenny then observes that everything that's happened since Cray tried to kill Marlowe has meant that "the most powerful people in the world are terrified of everything and everyone," putting the world on the brink of annihilation. I'm not sure if Ellis is describing their world or our world, but there we are.
(NB: I tagged this post "Nova" because Richard appears in "Guardians of the Galaxy" #3, but I didn't review it. It's a fine issue; it just didn't seem to merit much discussion at this phase of the story.)
Also Read: Batman #67; Dungeons & Dragons: A Darkened Wish #1; Guardians of the Galaxy #3; Marvel's Spider-Man: City at War #1; Star Wars #63; Thor #11
No comments:
Post a Comment