October picks

The leaves are falling off the trees outside my window, so what better way to kill time than to sit down and look through tpb solicitations for October!

Marvel has finally decided to reprint Marvel Zombies vol. 1 which has been impossible to get for a long while now. As everyone has been talking about this one, and I don't like not to be in the know, this is pretty high on my pull list. I managed to dig out an old CBR interview with Kirkman and Phillips.

Also from Marvel is Daredevil: Crual and Unusual. I haven't been reading Daredevil lately, but I do mean to start doing it, so I might try to figure out a good jumping on point. This could be it.

Only a couple of months after One More Day, Spider-Man fans are treated with the first Brand New Day tpb. I've heard lots of good stuff about this one, so I'm definitely getting this. I managed to find a CBR interview with Guggenheim from around the time this was originally published.

The good times don't stop here, however, as Marvel is also releasing X-Men: Messiah Complex and Mighty Avengers vol. 2: Venom Bomb in October! It's a big month for Marvel, and my wallet will be that much lighter for it... I'm still pretty angry with Marvel for releasing the tpb version of Messiah Complex after Divided We Stand, but both Brand New Day and Mighty Avengers: Venom Bomb are released quite shortly after the latest books of those series, so I consider that a small compensation. I can live with delays due to artisis taking their time, but I don't want to hear about delays caused by consideratins of sales of HC versions!

These days I mainly read Marvel, but I also keep an eye on what's coming out from other publishers. DC is releasing Ex Machina vol. 7: Ex Cathedra, Hellblazer: The Family Man, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier (TPB) and Northlanders vol. 1: Sven the Returned.

I haven't read Ex Machina myself, but I've been told it's pretty good, so I'll probably give it a try some day. I remember Harris from when he was drawing Starman (written by James Robinson). That's a great series, and I was very impressed with Harris' artwork.

I used to buy the Hellblazer monthlies and when I was reading it, it was an excellent series. I definitely recommend trying it out, although the art work can be a little so-so in the early issues.

The two League... books that's been published are excellent comic books, highly recommended. Black Dossier is supposed to be a sort of Official Handbook for the series. I heard it's pretty heavy on text, so if lots of characters makes your head hurt you should be careful with this.

Northlanders has been gathering some attention, and since it's the first book of the series I'll try this one. Also, it's about vikings so it can't be totally bad. Here's an interview with the writer of the series, Brian Wood.

That's what I've put on my list of books to look out for in October. If you agree or disagree or you feel I missed out on something, please feel free to drop a comment. Thanks to Collected Comics Library for compiling the solicitations list!

Astonishing X-Men Vol. 4: Unstoppable

Collects Astonishing X-Men #19-24 and Giant-Size Astonishing X-Men #1 written by Josh Whedon and drawn by John Cassaday.

The X-Men find themselves on the way to the Breakworld, the alien world about which it has been prophesied that it will be destroyed by Colossus. They've been hijacked by the mysterious agent Brand to thwart the Breakworldian's plan of destroying the Earth to save their own planet. On Breakworld the X-Men get caught up in a civil war between the totalitarian establishment and an underground group of rebels, and they must race against time to save not just one but two worlds. Along the way the reader gets heart pounding action, warm emotions and a story that at it's core is about human nature taken to the extreme. This book draws together all the plot threads that Whedon and Cassaday has been sprinkling throughout their run, and it all ends with a magnificent finale.

Whedon and Cassaday's Astonishing X-Men has been receiving tons of praise, and even a couple of awards, so I may just be piling more on top of that by saying that this is a damn good book. It won't just leave you gasping for more, you'll be, yes, i believe the expression is 'flabbergasted'.

When Whedon writes dialogue, it reads like real super heroes talking. When Cassaday draws characters they don't just pose and flex their muscles, they stand and move like real super heroes. The cast is mostly made up of characters from the X-Men's golden age (think Claremont/Byrne) and they even feel as if they were taken straight out of those stories. Each character has an important role to play in the story, and they all get panel space enough to play their part. Even Cyclops is pretty cool here, and doesn't feel as if he were just put in there to whine and argue with Wolverine.

On top of handling the characters perfectly, Whedon also delivers something which I think is rare in super hero comics: a really good story. Mind you, once in a while a good story pops up, but really good stories are rare. Whedon actually has something interesting to say here, and his story will make you think if you're receptive to such impulses. But that doesn't stop the two creators from packaging the story in a blast of an action packed and thrilling tale, and thus the book, as well as the whole run, serves as a perfect example of how great super hero comics can be. Whedon and Cassaday give here a powerful display of that rare and miraculous skill it is to be able to combine a magnificent story with subtle characterization. This is as good as Millar and Hitch's Ultimates, maybe even up there with classics like the Phoenix Saga.

When the chapters in this book came out as single issues, the book was criticized for it's massive delays. With this book as my exhibit A, I will argue that it was all worth it. And if people are tired of delays between single issues, they should just wait for the trades... I will recommend this book to anyone, just remember that you should read the three books that come before it. But don't worry, they're just as good. If you want to read X-Men, this is the best book you can get. In fact, it's probably the best book that Marvel has put in a long while. The only bad thing about it is that it's also the end of Whedon and Cassaday's run on Astonishing X-Men...

10/10

Spider-Man: One More Day

Collects Amazing Spider-Man #544-545, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #24 and Sensational Spider-Man #41 written by J. Michael Straczynski and drawn by Joe Quesada. Also contains interviews with Straczynski and Quesada taken from Marvel Spotlight: Spider-Man - One More Day/Brand New Day.

This book could also have been called Spider-Man: The Retconning. Or maybe Spider-Man: Continuity Kills. Or how about Spider-Man: Spidey's Life Sure Has Become A Mess Lately, But Now We're Gonna Start All Over And Also, MJ Has To Go. After six years of Straczynski, it's time to start all over for our arachnic friend, and it all starts here. This is not so much a Spider-Man story as it is a meta story, a story between stories, or continuities if you will. It hints at the beginning of a new age of Spider-Man, a simpler Spider-Man that is closer to what originally made him great. It's also a farewell to a character that readers of Spider-Man have grown to love (or hate, depends on whether you're an MJ-guy or a Gwen-guy...) and a farewell to a writer who will be remembered for revitalizing the series but also for a couple of stories that made fans cry for all the wrong reasons. I know this story received a lot of criticism when it originally came out, so I'm probably going to catch some flak when I say that I actually quite enjoyed it.

This book highlights what I consider the strength and weakness of the American style of comics, namely the heavy focus on continuity. Continuity has given us great story lines and magnificent runs and Spider-Man is a prime example of this. To this day people are still discussing whether Gwen Stacy was or was not the right girl for Peter Parker, and at a certain level that is great. But at the same time continuity makes a book more and more complex while at the same time restraining the writers. And sometimes the best thing to do is to start all over. Marvel's Ultimate line is proof of this, and I don't think it's a coincidence that Marvel's original universe is beginning to look more and more like the Ultimate universe.

Considering the consequences of what is going on here, whether the story itself is well told or not becomes a minor issue. But it just so happens that Straczynski does deliver on this, his final Spider-Man story. The plot itself is not important, what is important is the words, the feelings and the emotions. Peter and MJ know that this is the end, even though they don't want it. And Straczynski and Quesada actually succeed in conveying the sadness of the situation very well. The story is very emotional, and old time Spidey readers will have a hard time not felling a tear or two. A lot of effort has gone into making a story where the pictures talk as loud as the words, and it seems that Straczynski and Quesada have had a good understanding of each other when working on this book.

I have to admit I was surprised at the relatively high quality of the art in this book. It's been a while since Quesada did something like this, but apparently he hasn't lost the touch. Danny Miki is credited as inking part of the book, and I suspect this is the latter half, because that half does look a lot better than the first, which is a little rough in places. This book certainly leaves me wanting for Quesada to do more artwork, but I understand he's pretty busy doing other stuff, so it probably isn't going to happen anytime soon.

Whether you will like this story or not is going to depend on several things. First, do you want Spider-Man to start all over? Second, do you want to see MJ go? If the answer to any of these questions is no, you might want to find something else to read. If you're open for change, I suggest you give it a try.

7/10

X-Men: Blinded By The Light

Collects X-Men #200-204 written by Mike Carey with art by Humberto Ramos, Chris Bachalo and Mike Choi.

This book starts pretty much where X-Men: Supernovas ended. The X-Men, led by Rogue who is still suffering from being the unfortunate host of some 8 billion alien minds, is investigating a series of mysterious murders, which leads them into an ambush set up by the Marauders. To make matters worse, the Marauders have planted traitors in the X-Men's midst, and the X-Men face defeat at the hands of their enemies. Only Iceman and Cannonball manage to escape, and they must try to find out what the Marauder's true goal is. This leads them back to the X Mansion, where more mayhem ensues, again with the defeat of the X-Men as the end result. Meanwhile, New X-Woman Blindfold is having disturbing visions of the future, and the book ends with her setting up the stage for the next big X-event, Messiah Complex.

As usual with Carey, a lot of stuff is going on here, and the reader better pay attention, or important details might go lost. Also, this book is not for the uninitiated, and solid knowledge of most matters X is an advantage. Old fans will cheer (or grind their teeth, it depends I guess...) at the return of Gambit, and although a Gambit/Rogue subplot is not taken to it's end, there is certainly one set up here. There are a couple of surprises here, namely the traitors (no names given here...) and the return of Gambit, and this, combined with a good dose of well executed action, makes for a very entertaining read. One thing that I particularly enjoyed was that the X-Men really get their behinds handed to them in this book without actually accomplishing anything, something which we rarely see to this degree.

The focus in this book is on minor X-characters, mostly Iceman and Cannonball and the New X-Men is also given a good deal of space. Iceman and Cannonball are both interesting characters. They compliment each other well, and turn out to be good vehicles for keeping the story moving. Given the number of characters and the amount of pages dedicated to action scenes, however, character moments can seem rushed, but I guess this isn't really what the fans crave anyway...

The story is divided into four chapters and an epilogue, and the idea is obviously that it will lead up to Messiah Complex. How this flows together with Endangered Species, another lead-up to Messiah Complex, I don't know, but the stories ran in the same issues, so I guess it all works out.

The art is all very good, with Ramos handling most of it and doing a good job. Whether you like Ramos' distinct style is a matter of taste, I personally think it suits the X-Men well, and I particularly enjoy the action scenes. The combination of Iceman and Cannonball make for some quite spectacular visuals at times, and the sheer number of different characters being put on the pages here is quite mind numbing. The only complaint I have here is that the art of the main story and the art of the epilogue are so different in style, that the visual cohesiveness of the book is degraded some, but one might argue that Choi's style actually suits the epilogue better than Ramos's would. Although Choi is obviously an accomplished artist, I don't really fancy the way he makes the eyes look as if they were air brushed on the page, I think it looks a little girlie...

This was in many ways a very satisfying read, but you should be warned that it's pretty complex due to the dense plot and large number of characters appearing. Of course, many, including myself, see this as a good thing, and it is one of the reasons the X-Men have such a strong fan base. The book continues in the same vein as X-Men: Supernovas, but overall it's more focused, and this provides for a slightly better read. It's hard to set them apart, though, and they could just as well have been collected as one book. X-Men: Blinded... doesn't really stand on it's own storywise, so if you decide to get it, you should be prepared to also make shelf space for at least X-Men: Messiah Complex and probably also X-Men: Supernovas.

7/10

World War Hulk Event

This is a review of the WWH event as a whole, not just the main WWH book. For a review of the book go here. This is also the final review of my World War Hulk Review Marathon, and I must say I've been looking forward to getting here. The event hasn't been all shiny pearls and now I'm looking forward to reading some non-Hulk books!

The quality of an event like WWH is naturally very dependent on the quality of the main book, and although this is certainly a decent read, it is by no means top of the pops. My main fault with this book is that although it constantly attempts to convince the reader that this is pretty much the greatest crisis to ever happen in the MU, I was far from convinced that this was really the case. I read about Galactus in FF. I read about Dark Phoenix. And I read about a thousand other Marvel stories where the fate of the world was hanging by a thread. And this story just does not give me the same feeling of impending doom that many of those other stories did. In essence, the main book fails to set the atmosphere for the event as a whole.

The spin-off titles of the event are a varied bunch. The best ones are the Marvel event mainstays: Front Line and Damage Control, but the WWH: X-Men book also has some pretty good stories in it, specifically Avengers: The Initiative and Iron Man. I would recommend people to not buy the Gamma Corps and Warbound books. They are both of outrageously low quality and actually detract from the overall enjoyment of the event. The rest of the books I recommend to those who actually want to read the whole thing.

Except for Front Line and Damage Control and maybe Inredible Herc, however, the spin-offs don't really add a lot to the event. It's as if there's been little or no editorial work done here to give the stories a sense of unity, and this is a shame because that could potentially have made reading the whole event that much more rewarding.

I also find it strange that there are stories with characters that are completely unrelated to the main story, such as the X-Men and Ghost Rider, but no stories with some of the characters that are most affected by it, such as the Inhumans, the Fantastic Four and Dr. Strange. These are of course touched upon in the main book, but wouldn't it be obvious to go deeper with each character in their own series?

World War Hulk should probably be thought of as a fill-in event between Civil War and Secret Invasion. You won't see the MU in a different light after reading this, and the staus quo is pretty much the same as before. If anything, it does tell a story where major Marvel characters do questionable things, although the whole sending the Hulk into outer space thing actually happened before WWH...

I recommend getting the main book to those who like to read major Marvel events, just don't expect to be rolling around on the floor with joy. If you get the main book, I also recommend getting the Front Line and Damage Control books. The other books I recommend to those who get the main book, and who also have an interest in the characters featured or who want to get a glimpse of some Marvel books they otherwise wouldn't read. Just stay away from the Gamma Corps and Warbound books!

5/10

Mighty Avengers Vol. 1: The Ultron Initiative

Collects Mighty Avengers #1-6 written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Frank Cho.

The Avengers are back! Not the new beat working-in-the-shadows New Avengers, ooh no. This is the Avengers as we know them, facing off against the best villains the MU has to offer with the stature of a real powerhouse team. Iron Man, newly appointed leader of Shield, decides to build a new team of pro-registration Avengers and chooses Ms. Marvel as their leader. Together they assemble a team of old and new faces and immediately they're thrown into battle against a new version of Ultron, this time appearing in female form (and nakkid!).

Pretty much the whole book is about the Avengers fighting Ultron, and I probably won't reveal too much by saying that they do win in the end. But this book is not so much about Ultron, although the story is pretty good, this is about the characters - what they think, what they say and how they interact. In a stroke of genius, Bendis reintroduces the thought bubble, and uses this to reveal to us what each of the characters actually think of the others, and it's not all nice! My favorite example is Hank Pym's conversations with Ares, whom he obviously thinks of as very intellectually challenged and refers to as Thor-Lite.

In spite of all the big muscles and great action, this book is really about the characters. Before reading the book I was sceptical about the new roster, but Bendis makes it work to perfection with great characterization. Not using classic Avengers characters, such as Thor and Cap, gives Bendis the freedom to do whatever he wants with the team, and to create an as of yet unseen team dynamic for the Avengers.

So the Avengers are back and they are the powerhouse of the MU, as they should be, but they are different. I remember reading The Ultimates and thinking "Wow, wouldn't it be cool if MU Avengers was like this!". Bendis manages to give Mighty Avengers the same kind of coolness factor, while still infusing the book with it's own voice.

Cho is an excellent choice as the artist for this book. His clean line work and detailed panels make the Mighty Avengers seem that much more mighty, while at the same time showing the darker side of the characters just as well. Cho's action scenes are epic and his conversation scenes are filled with atmosphere. When leafing through the book you really notice the attention to facial expressions that Cho is putting into his work.

I'll recommend this book to anyone with a taste for super heroes. Not only does this book re-establish the Avengers right in the center of the MU, Bendis and Cho also re-restablish the Avengers as one of the Marvel books you just need to read. So go get it now!

9/10

World War Hulk: Damage Control

Collects the World War Hulk: Aftersmash one-shot written by Greg Pak and drawn by Rafa Sandoval and World War Hulk Aftersmash: Damage Control #1-3 written by Dwayne McDuffie and drawn by Salva Espin.

The Aftersmash one-shot deals with the situation in NY as the dust settles from the WWH brawl. Although the Hulk is gone, his soldiers are still left and they're not giving up so easily. Without a leader to show them the way, however, the different races start fighting among themselves, and the resident heroes have to step in to avoid further damage to the city. Besides leading into the Warbound and Damage Control stories, this story deals with what happens to some of the major characters of the WWH spin offs, such as Hercules, Amadeus Cho and Tom Foster (Goliath's nephew) right after WWH has ended. The story is a bit confusing as it attempts to wire up almost every remaining plot line from WWH, but the result is not all bad. The art is ok, nothing spectacular although some of the pages are very nicely composed.

The main piece of the book, however, is definitely the Damage Control story. As far as I know there hasn't been a Damage Control story since Civil War, so it seems to have become a title that is brought out of the closet after each major event. What I really liked about this story was the characters. They're not super heroes but they each come out very distinct and very funny. From mrs. Hoag who shows Tony Stark that being the director of Shield doesn't mean he can just commandeer everyone around to the construction foreman who has to keep a straight face while negotiating with a talking Chrysler building. Also, Tom Foster aka. (Black) Goliath, plays a major role in the series.

There isn't really any plot to speak of here, it's more like three stand alone stories, but the humor and the far out situations more than make up for that. The art is excellent and the coloring does it's share to make it even better. Espin's style is perfect for a humor book like this. I suspect a lot of time was put into the art, so we probably shouldn't expect this kind of art in a monthly book any time soon.

This book contains one so-so story and one really good story. It is by no means required reading, but if you've picked up WWH and are up for more, I recommend getting this one. If nothing else, then just for the Damage Control stories.

6/10