Comics this week

As I said in last week's picks post, I just started a new paying job so, look behind the curtain here, things might get a little more erratic around here. Hopefully everything keeps up the way it has but it could mean a number of things, including shorter posts or cutting books from my review slate. Longtime readers (or anyone who can search through a blog) know that I try to review every major Marvel release every week. I don't really want to cut that, necessarily, but, you know, I might. Don't worry, I'll keep you posted. So how do we kick off this testing ground? Why, with 17 new books of course!

Captain Marvel 16
This issue, like the last, is slated to tie-in to the Infinity event, which is actually pretty compelling for Captain Marvel right now. Last issue she went Binary to defeat foes and save her team after we learned that the events of The Enemy Within left her memory out of whack. In last week's Avengers, we saw her questioned by the Builders and learn of J-Son's betrayal. Plenty happening right now for Captain Marvel, it'll be interesting to see where the phenomenal Kelly Sue DeConnick takes this one. There are also some hints in the works about a change in the Captain Marvel format, as the book is missing from solicits not too long from now. There's been no word of cancellation and DeConnick herself has said not to worry about things. Some day we'll probably learn more.

Infinity 3
The event continues and it's set up both of the Marvel Universe's fronts, one fighting the Builders in space and one fighting Thanos on Earth. Plenty happening here and, as I've said since the start of the event, enough to justify making Infinity an event. Still, as we reach the halfway point of the main series (and presumably of the event as a whole), this is a crucial time for Infinity to show that it's not planning on slowing down. The events that have happened in the book and in the crossovers makes me feel like there's enough plot to keep pushing forward without losing momentum but this issue needs to prove it. Issues 3 and 4 will have to carry a fair amount of weight as events tend to lose steam in the middle before jumping to their thrilling conclusions. Hopefully this book won't lose any of its steam and will keep giving us a big story.

New Avengers 10
Even though I've liked this crossover a bit less than I've liked some of the others and less than I've liked the book when it's not busy crossing over, there's still a very interesting story here and one that's likely to get even more interesting as Namor has now betrayed Black Panther (if you can call it a betrayal) to Thanos' Black Order, saying that Wakanda is where the object Thanos seeks is hidden. There's been deserved tension between Panther and Namor since before the start of this series and it's all coming to a head now. It's a little hard for me to see this whole thing winding down without one of them dying. This is both exciting for fans (a Namor/Panther fight will be awfully impressive) and a little heartbreaking for me (I love both characters. Panther probably a hair more, but geez guys).

Thunderbolts 15
I really liked the last issue of Thunderbolts. It was fun and smart and quick and the art matched the tone extremely well. I'm looking forward to this issue, though perhaps a bit warily. I'm hoping that it keeps up the tone and the feel from the last one as our newest creative team continues its work on the book. The story itself could be interesting as a team of super mercenaries takes on a big crime family with the backing of every gang in New York. This issue, like the last one, is also marked as an Infinity tie-in. It only came up tangentially last time (with Venom noting that the Avengers were off-world and Frank adjusting his game plan accordingly) but I'd expect it to play a little bit of a bigger role here. Maybe not though. Something interesting to note about Infinity: though I'm still a little suspicious of it, four of my five most anticipated picks this week are directly related to it so I guess it's going pretty well after all.

X-Men Legacy 17
I assume we'll get the conclusion of David and Cyclops' fight this week, as I'd be surprised if it carries another issue. The tone of the last issue was pretty fun despite the seriousness of the situation for David. Though we've had a remarkable 16 issues so far, everything about David's character continues to be compelling and interesting, as well as fun to watch. I'm still not tired of going into David's head and seeing the powers there (and the still very smart concept of his monologues being broadcast inside his mind) nor am I tired of him using those powers. His personality is extremely well-defined and stands apart from just about every other character in the Marvel Universe. We're talking about a story about a very powerful but conflicted man whose somewhat absentee father, beloved by everyone he comes into contact with, was killed attacking his father's killer, who was like family to the father. This is pretty much Hamlet and, despite this, I still think he's a wonderfully original character and frankly I like this better.