Cyclops 2, Loki: Agent of Asgard 5

Cyclops 2
Rucka (w) and Dauterman (a) and Sotomayor (c) and Caramagna (l)

Cyclops and his dad are riding the galactic trail, exploring and finding some things out, all of which is old to Corsair but new to Cyke. They travel to Yrzt, which Corsair compares to Vegas. They meet with an old black market friend (since allegedly gone legitimate) of Corsair's and he buys himself some secret drugs while Cyclops hangs out in a Danger Room equivalent with the trader's daughter. As they prepare to leave the planet, they're accosted by some real jerks out to bring Corsair in for various crimes. Cyclops manages to fight them off but it costs Corsair his new drugs. Bad news for all, though, the jerks managed to get a tracker on Corsair's ship.

Cyclops is starting to learn just how big the universe is but learning starts at home as it's painfully obvious (particularly to us, MAYBE less so to him) that Corsair is hiding something from his son. The two of them are palling around the universe in a spaceship built for two with Corsair discovering how little his son knew about the universe at this age (the Cyclops he knows is a little more traveled) and Cyclops learning that his dad is a neat-o space pirate. It's a fun book and it reads pretty well, though it's maybe not the most thrilling thing out there just yet. Of course, it's very early for this book and Rucka is opening the door for bigger and better stories down the road.

Total Score: 4/5


Loki: Agent of Asgard 5
Ewing (w) and Garbett (a) and Woodard (c) and Cowles (l)

Loki arranges his heist on Asgardia, hoping to free the wrongfully imprisoned Sigurd while also, perhaps, working things to his own end. With the help of such notables as Thor (providing a distraction for Heimdall), Lorelai (helping with the actual break-in), Verity Willis (helping with a dumb name and inexplicable power), and Sigurd himself (helping to break himself out per a plan the two of them formed in a dumpster), Loki manages to free Sigurd and get he and Lorelai out before going to explore the rest of the area, where he finds the old Loki ready to strike.

Things are heating up so mildly in this book that you may just miss it. The Loki v. Loki fight has some interesting qualities to it but right now it feels like things are crawling to get there while other less important storylines (NO, I'm not going to get over Verity Willis, you guys) take center stage (it seems important to note that I've been reading comics long enough to know that the Verity Willis thing is very likely deeper than it seems on the outside but I'm still not ready to accept that as an answer to how stupid I find it). There's definitely more here than in a couple of the last issues (though they've rather bounced up and down) but I'm still not sure it's enough to really make this book overly worthwhile.

Total Score: 3/5