Comics this week

Another somewhat short week with a bittersweet bent to it; somehow Dark Avengers is releasing its last issue this week without me realizing ahead of time. I'm somewhat depressed about it, but I suppose I'll get into that more when I choose it as one of my five to watch for this week. SPOILERS, Dark Avengers 190 is on there.

Captain America 7
I'm excited for this book whenever it comes out. Of course, Cap's my favorite hero out there so I know I'm likely to be excited for it for my own personal reasons but I can't stress enough how interesting I'm finding this series. From seeing new angles of Steve's life (including as a child and as a father) to leaving Cap in a place where the flag on his uniform doesn't really mean much and he can't hope for support to come, every part of this series is dedicated to exploring different facets of Steve Rogers and Captain America and it's all great.

Dark Avengers 190
I was rather sad when I checked the new comic list and saw that this was the final issue of Dark Avengers for a few reasons. First and foremost, this book has been interesting all the way across and has featured a team of villains who might be heroes in a place where heroes are villains. Very interesting in its conceit. Also, it follows a trail of other cancelled books like Winter Soldier, Age of Apocalypse, and Red She-Hulk which have all featured heroes who maybe aren't quite popular enough to sustain a solo book but also don't really fit into any team or take place somewhere on the outskirts of the Marvel Universe. There are books far more deserving of cancellation and there are corners of the MU that are over-saturated with books so we see too much of them. Dark Avengers was different and had already gone to different places. Also, it means (unless I'm forgetting something) Jeff Parker isn't writing a regular book for Marvel and that's a shame after fun runs on Dark Avengers and Red She-Hulk. Hurtful, guys.

New Avengers 6
I love this book. I don't know if there's more to say than that. I love everything this book has done and every place its been willing to go. It's a very dark story with appropriately dark characters delving into the darkest places they can go. They've been trying to keep the incursions on the down-low and have attempted to keep the information between only themselves, to the point of erasing Cap's memory of the disasters. However, it's going to be awfully hard to do that for this issue as the newest incursion is happening over Latveria. Adding Doctor Doom to this mix is very exciting for me. Doom fits so interestingly into this equation and I'm thrilled about where this could go.

Uncanny X-Force 5
This is going to be a very important issue for Sam Humphries' X-Force issue as it's the issue that will bridge the first two arcs. The first arc wasn't a bad arc but it certainly didn't blow me away either. This issue will help establish the team and its goals and the way that the team interacts with one another outside of an event. Not to say that an event won't start up in this issue (it probably will) but there's likely to be a bit of cool-down to establish the team a bit further. This issue will be crucial for setting up the rest of the series so here's hoping for a strong showing.

X-Men 1
Brian Wood and Olivier Coipel return into the Marvel Universe with a new X-Men title. The most notable thing about this series, though, is the decision to make the team an all-female one, featuring Storm, Kitty Pryde, Psylocke, Rogue, Jubilee, and Rachel Grey. There are some cases where this kind of team would feel like pandering (and make no mistake, Marvel comics should absolutely be pandering. Well, not pandering, but they should 100% be featuring more female driven-comics) but this team works on paper. It's a very powerful team with a lot of character but also it seems to have a reason for these women to come together. They don't feel just thrown together out of nowhere, they're all friends and they're fighting for the same causes, by and large. This is a big deal book because Marvel needs to see more female-led books survive and thrive. It's also a flat X-Men book, without any sort of bells or whistles on the name. This isn't X-Treme X-Men or All-New X-Men. This is X-Men, plain and simple. Calling this book "X-Men" shows a dedication to this team and the female-led principle, now the audience (and the writer and artist) need to make that pay off.

Gambit 10, Thunderbolts 7, Fury MAX 10

Gambit 10
Asmus (w) and C. Mann w/ Kirk and S. Mann and Leisten (a) and Rosenberg (c)

Gambit and Fence make a plan with Joelle to get to the secret HYDRA base that, according to information from an ex-HYDRA officer, was used by Baron Von Strucker to defeat death. Joelle's stated plan is to find whatever serum or formula HYDRA came up with and use it on her dying daughter. Gambit and Joelle travel to the base, a skull-shaped snow base in Canada, and use the access codes the ex-HYDRA officer gave them (or rather, the ones Gambit stole when he got involved at the villain club last issue). The deeper they go into the base, they begin to realize that their HYDRA officer wasn't exactly the highest-ranking, so his codes stop working at a certain point and leave Gambit and Joelle fighting their way through horrible defensive abominations. They make their way to the serum, take it, and manage to escape by snowmobile. After camping out in the snow together overnight, Gambit and Joelle wake up to find Rogue standing over them. Meanwhile, Tombstone has tracked down Fence and demanded the whereabouts of Joelle and Gambit. Fence tries, to his credit, to get Tombstone to back off, citing Joelle's daughter. Tombstone reveals that Joelle is not what she claims to be.
This was a fun issue, sure, with all the staples of Gambit books so far. There's a bit of repetition throughout that gets a little stale (Gambit constantly reminds everyone that he's been in situations like this before, and he and Joelle constantly affirm that they're trusting each other in this) but overall the book's enjoyable enough. Tombstone seems intent on bringing us somewhere in this Joelle storyline, which is something of a relief. I'm interested to see how the introduction of Rogue to this story will play out. Frankly there's not much else to say about the issue. It reads like every other issue of Gambit so far, which is neither a bad thing nor a particularly ringing endorsement. The book has been fun so far but ten issues that feel like they're spinning their wheels a bit makes you worry about the longevity of a title like this. I'm on its side, though, for now. It's a fun book with an interesting main character, though Gambit books don't have a history of lasting. We'll see how the next few issues shape up.

Thunderbolts 7
Way (w) and Noto (a) and Guru eFX (c)

The key to this book, at least in my mind, is the team itself. When the first issue came out, I absolutely picked it up because of the team presented on the cover. I was very interested in this black-and-red team because it was so clearly not a team. Everyone in the book is used to working by him or herself primarily (with the possible exception of Flash, but Venom tends not to get along with people). The first arc was interesting because it took that team and physically divided them while creating emotional divides between them. We left the first arc with no one trusting team leader Red Hulk, Deadpool angry with Punisher for his fling with Elektra, Punisher angry at Red Hulk for bringing Leader on to the team, and Venom particularly angry with their time in Kata Jaya. Issue seven takes a well-planned turn by putting the team in the same place again and making that place a submarine. Is there still a story happening here? Sure. But I don't really care about it, not yet anyway. Deadpool has an uncomfortable exchange with Elektra, which leads to Deadpool assuming her relationship with Punisher has continued though it hasn't (or at least, not by way of an actual relationship). As a result, Deadpool has spent time in the not-Danger Room (pretty much just a Danger Room) killing Punisher 300 times, according to Red Hulk. Meanwhile, Red Hulk has to deal with a mutiny as the rest of the team gets sick of his lies and one another. He handles it easily enough and explains the coming plot; the transport that left Kata Jaya just before them was carrying the materials, Ross explains, for a Gamma bomb. He has Leader looking over the schematics in the hopes that he'll be able to prove or disprove his theory. This is all going on with the backdrop of a CIA issue wherein a terrorist cell they didn't know existed seems to have blown itself up or, as they privately suspect, was dismantled by something (there's a great appearance by the Uncanny Avengers as the CIA tries to figure out who was responsible. "Look at what I'm carrying...does it look like a broom to you?" Captain America says, holding his shield. "Clean up your own mess." He then returns to fighting AIM, riding giant, rocket-propelled gorillas. THAT'S the story I want to read). Leader bursts in to Ross' briefing saying that it's not a bomb they're building; it's a battery. Enter gamma-powered robotic suits as the upcoming villains.
I like the way this book has been structured, especially as the pieces start to come together on the heels of the first arc. I think, looking back, that I got a little dismayed by how little the team, which had interested me in the book in the first place, was interacting with one another. Have faith though, says Daniel Way. We simply went through all of that to make it more important for the team to be trapped in a submarine together. Good issue and the foundations are all there for a good book. I have to say, too, I was a big fan of the Noto art over the Dillon art. I could stand to look at the characters' faces.

Fury MAX 10
Ennis (w) and Parlov (a) and Loughridge (c)

I like the Fury MAX book because it feels like an indie comic with the backdrop of a "normal" Marvel world. It's nice to occasionally pull back from the capes of the superhero world and read a book about a mostly normal (though pretty darn crafty) guy somewhere in the espionage world. I do think that there's too much swearing.
Let's step back and take a look at that line real quick, shall we? It occurs to me that I've complained about swearing in several books. I complain about excessive swearing in books where excessive swearing appears, I've complained about Bendis' fake swears in Guardians of the Galaxy, I've complained about Humphries' black-box swearing in Uncanny X-Force, etc. I'm not opposed to swears. I'm not on some campaign to remove swears from modern day society. I swear somewhat frequently myself. I don't do it in this blog so much because it's typically not necessary and usually sloppy writing. There are typically better words to use. I think it's fair to toss it into fiction occasionally because you're creating human characters and humans swear. I don't really like it when people swear non-stop in fiction because I tend not to run into people who swear that much and it takes me out of the book when you throw that many unnecessary words at me. Swears don't upset me. Bad writing does. Let's head back to Fury MAX 10.
So a problem with the MAX line is the ability to swear pretty much at will. I can usually get past that but by and large I find it overdone. Still, there's an interesting story happening here, and one that's not so outrageous you have to suspend disbelief. I love comics (obviously) and I love superhero comics, but clearly you go in with a level of suspended disbelief. It's nice occasionally to have a story that seems like it might be real. In this case, Fury is recounting his time surveying an American armed support group in Nicaragua in 1984. The questions and plot mostly revolve around whether or not the American forces are getting into the drug-dealing game with material from Nicaragua. It's a compelling story that seems to be going in a very interesting place as a captain on the base has just been found dead, holding a gun in front of a pile of cocaine. It's a compelling story set in a compelling world that isn't particularly foreign to readers (unless it's a child reading, in which case STOP READING THE MAX LINE). Good place to start this arc.

LOOK

Guys, I'm sorry. Again. I swear for-real posts tomorrow. I'm going to try to get myself caught up which means marathoning late in the day if I can. I'm hoping I can. But look guys, it's Valentine's Day. My girlfriend (who, don't forget, can be found here) would be not thrilled if I spent the hour between work and bed on things not her. And I don't like to make my girlfriend not thrilled.


However, it's Valentine's day so let me just tell you that I love you all. Anyone that's ever read my blog, ever clicked on it when I've linked it, ever stumbled on it, ever glanced at it because of the pictures, anything. The idea that I get to do this and even one person looks at it is amazing to me. So I love any and all of you. To a point, you know. I mean, I don't know all you guys, I can't just give my unwavering love. But as far as I CAN, in good faith, go, I love you.

Red She-Hulk 61, Punisher: Nightmare 1, Iron Man 3 Prelude 1

Red She-Hulk 61
Parker (w) and Pagulayan and Alves (a)

I admit when I was bemoaning the lack of female-driven titles while praising Captain Marvel (there IS still a lack and I DO still praise Captain Marvel) I had completely forgotten Red She-Hulk was a book. I give myself some leeway since it only switched over to focus on her a few books ago and Wikipedia tells me she only became Red She-Hulk in 2009, but the blame is still on me. It's largely still on me because I do like what I've read of this book. There's a nice bit of soft science tying together a plot with Betty being tracked by Machine Man as he tries to apprehend her for the Avengers before ultimately joining up with her. Before this, I'd seen her crop up in Fear Itself and The Defenders, which I quite liked. I like the idea of a Hulk becoming a Hulk late into a world where Hulks are so present. There's not so much of the "WHAT AM I? WHAT HAVE I BECOME?" and more of the "boy, I'm really strong and really powerful and I'd like to go punch things that are bigger than me." She admits as much in this issue, telling Machine Man that her inhibitions seem to disappear when she's red, a feeling she seems to appreciate. In those times, she explores and seeks out thrills, unlike many of the Hulks before her. It's a fun and more loose way of looking at a Hulk and it's definitely appreciated.

At the end of last issue, she changed from her still-humanlike Red Hulk form into a far more Hulk-like form after being set upon by enhanced super-soldiers of the "Echelon Project," designed solely to make more superhumans but apparently actually working (unlike so many other projects like this). When she looked like she would lose the fight, Machine Man notes, she turns more Hulk and thus loses more of herself. The Echelon Project leader contains her before Machine Man frees her and whisks her away to give her a chance to power down. She goes full human and explains to Machine Man what exactly is going on with her. There's a great sense, to build on the inhibitions idea in various Hulk forms, that very different things matter to her as Betty Ross and as Red She-Hulk. As Red She-Hulk, she's very upset at an ancient, hidden pyramid that stole her "BIG-%#& SWORD." When she follows leads about what could have happened in the pyramid, now as Betty Ross, she's more intrigued by the mystery and less attached to the sword.

It's a great idea, one that's both inherent to the Hulk mythology and a bit warped for her purposes. She is certainly a different Hulk than the others, though she shares the same powers. For regular Hulk, there's no middle ground stage. He's either Banner or he's Hulk. There's still a sense of Banner within Hulk, to varying degrees depending on the writer or the time or whatever magics they apply to him, but it's never as pronounced as with Red She-Hulk, or even regular type She-Hulk, for that matter. That's always been a weird sticking point for me about the Hulks; She-Hulk far prefers the Hulk side of her and doesn't shy away. Certainly she's lost control in the past and will do it again in the future, no doubt, but there's never been the sort of feeling of a totally changed person. Meanwhile, Hulk is typically very much one or the other. This issue of Red She-Hulk helps explain away a good amount of that, with different degrees of Hulking. It's a very good idea put to good use here. Machine Man is a solid character dug up from depths of Marvel for it. The art in the book is very strong in its action and settings, which are varied and they're beginning to delve into the recently storied history of SHIELD. Overall, solid book on what has so far been a solid title. Worth reading.

Punisher: Nightmare 1
Gimple (w) and Texeira (a)

I'm not really a Punisher guy. I never have been. I've always kind of thought he's been a one-trick pony and I hate that. It's also why I hate when people who don't know Captain America try to portray Captain America. In video games, he's always like "These colors don't run!" and "I've been fighting since before you were born!" We get it, video game developers, he's got a flag on his chest. That's kind of the first thing we saw. But to people who know Cap, there's more there than just crazy patriotism. In fact, crazy patriotism isn't really there (despite the flag bit). With Punisher, it's always been "these guys are bad, I'm bad too, but a different kind, so I'll kill them."

Here's the inherent hypocrisy of that, in case you didn't catch it. I like Cap because I read deeper than his costume. I don't like Punisher because I don't. I've read maybe 15 books total that really have to do with Punisher, and half of those are from the perspective of other characters (his Civil War appearances, when he jumps into Daredevil, etc.). I don't know how much goes on between the costume. I will say, in my defense, that just about every one of those books did follow the same formula. I will also say, against my defense, that I was compelled enough to read on then denounced Punisher as a weak character EACH TIME. As this blog continues, I hope to stay on top of just about every Marvel book. That will include a heavy dose of Punisher. I've read some of this most recent series, Greg Rucka's take, and I've been at least willing to keep going in many cases. So we'll see if any of this changes.

On to Punisher: Nightmare 1. We get a lot of Punisher backstory here (which, despite my distaste for the character, I do know already) and so it kind of drags a bit to readers who know. Still, it works well enough as it's interspersed with fragments of his non-origin story past and with the way the origin story scene plays in his head on a constant loop. It's also important to have it there in terms of building this story, introducing a new character who is going through almost exactly what Castle went through when he became Punisher. Another war vet, wife and kid, finally home from the war and his family gets murdered in the crossfire of a gang assassination. This one had some issues in the war differentiating between the good guy he was and the murderer he could be on the battlefield. I'm not sure if that parallels Castle's war days (where I know he was a good soldier and he must have learned a whole bunch, but I'm not sure if he was as kill-happy as Johnny) but it certainly parallels his once-days and his now-days. Gimple and Texeira paint a good picture of Castle-now as the Johnny persona, the murderer person of John Niman. Castle-then was likely more like John's J persona, the diplomat, the intelligent family man. There are two extremes with Frank, before Punisher and Punisher. Johnny is both in one. It's an interesting concept and I'll keep with the book because personality interests me. Even if I've written Punisher off as having a one-track personality, it's still a personality of a sort and examining it from all sides is something that intrigues me.


Iron Man 3 Prelude 1
Gage (w) and Kurth (a)

This book is meant as a movie-tie in for Iron Man 3, which is interesting to me because it's only a two book limited series and I don't think that will bring us to movie release date, but I might have that release date wrong? Oh well, just seems early is all. Anyway, it's standard stuff, establishing characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe like Tony, Pepper, Coulson, and Rhodes. This story, actually, focuses on Rhodes. Tony designs a new War Machine suit for him, with his own weapons instead of Hammer weapons and Rhodey takes it to war, only to find out that he's up against the Ten Rings, the same organization Tony escaped from in the original Iron Man. It's a smart premise and keen-eyed fans will have already noticed by now that Iron Man 3's antagonist is set to be the Mandarin, he of the ten rings (GET IT, TEN RINGS?). So the Ten Rings of the first movie was just a cell of the entire organization which is no doubt run by Mandarin. Anyway, they don't know all this (they know about the cells, not about the Mandarin) in this issue and Rhodey is trying to find any information he can on the organization as a whole, which is supplying heavy weapons to them.

One of the more interesting bits to me is that there's an Avengers tie-in sequence in here too. Though it's certainly a nod to the blockbuster and ground-shattering movie, it's used more as an explanation to Rhodes' whereabouts during the event. It's a question that didn't ever come up to me until I saw it in this issue, but where WAS Rhodey? You'd think that another Iron Man suit would be invaluable in that attack on New York and the army would certainly send him. This issue explains that he's just cleared up a hostage situation in Asia and, even at supersonic speeds, it would take him hours to get to New York and then he gets attacked by what appear to be more Mandarin forces ANYWAY.

Take this issue for what it is. It's providing some sort of backstory for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and doesn't really tie in to the Marvel 616. Still, Gage is a good writer and makes the story interesting and answers some questions about that Universe. It's somewhat fun because, though the characters resemble their 616 counterparts, there are clear differences and this kind of book allows the writer and the artist to render their own interpretation of that character. Not a bad book. If you're looking to get into comics and your way in is the movie, this would be a great way to jump in. Something with characters you're familiar with and where you don't feel like you need the decades of history to understand the comic. This just requires knowing about a couple movies you probably already know about. It's not so bad for a full-on comic fan too; good writing, good art, intriguing story. Better than a lot of movie tie-in books, for sure.

Marvel Comics: The Untold Story

Sean Howe's Marvel Comics: The Untold Story is just about the most empathetic non-fiction book I can imagine. It's weird thinking that, as biographies and autobiographies all search for (and typically find, for good ones at least) a perfect line between whatever the subject's mighty feats are and the inherent humanity in the subject. The humanity and flaws of the subject are often painful (and thus often more compelling) to read, as we naturally are inclined towards sympathy for the lows of a person's life. Marvel Comics is all that and more.

Marvel Comics: The Untold Story covers the more than 70 years of Marvel comics, in its various forms, names, locations, people, etc. Howe does a phenomenal job of making the story accessible for non-comics fans, explaining away Marvel characters in a sentence without feeling the need to delve into their long and convoluted backstories unless it serves to highlight a writer/artist/editor's struggles (it's not so easy to explain away characters that quickly when you care about them, as Howe does). However, he doesn't shy away from comic fans either, the ones more likely to actually buy the book. He builds to a reveal of a character or a person in Marvel's history that fans reading the book will likely be familiar with and giggle upon seeing. There was one point where Howe was talking about the creation of a new X-Men character, a time traveler, and had trouble choosing one name, especially when the editors got involved. One of the names floated was "Cable" and, as a comic fan, I couldn't help but shout at the book "IT'S GOING TO BE THAT ONE." It's fun, it's delightful, it's inside, it's outside, and it cares about the people. It's a detailed and fantastic look into the history of one of the big two comic companies.

The more important thing to me about the book, though, is the mood. As I touched upon at the beginning of this post, there is a real sort of empathy throughout the book. At Marvel's highest times, the most creative, the most free, the most fun, you read at a furious clip and feel lifted up and inspired by the writers and artists and creators. There were times when I would stop reading during those parts and need to go write, to go create, because it felt wonderful to do so. But with the good comes the bad. Whenever Howe goes into the harder times of Marvel (of which there are plenty), the pace slows painfully and you trudge through the name-calling and the lawsuits and the layoffs. It's not a damning of Howe to say the pace slows painfully; it's the opposite. It's the exact way you're supposed to feel reading those sections, creatively empty, hurt, frustrated, uncertain. It's hard to get through, but it's worth it, and the idea that another upswing (as Marvel is is now, thanks to freer range in comics and their movies) is on the way is motivation enough.

The book is great. It comes from a clear place of love, a love of the characters and of the people who created them. It's a painful testament to the skill and hard work of Jack Kirby and often it paints a clear picture of both sides of the creator-owned vs. company-owned debate still raging in comics today. Howe doesn't pick a side (wouldn't be much of a biography if he had) but he explains both in detail and lets the reader choose. He shows where most creators landed on the decision and who is still fighting for or against it today. Comic fans will find the history fascinating and this fight in particular, one that defines the comic industry better than any other, interesting and relevant, in the wake of the recent Before Watchmen series. There's plenty here for fans and non-fans alike (though I'd probably weigh it more heavily on the "fans" side). I'm not much of a non-fiction/biography reader in that I don't tend to mind them but I certainly don't go out of my way to read them. Still, I'd heartily endorse reading this. It flies by and you really do put it down and start thinking about it and keep thinking about it until you pick it up again.



I'll be back on later today, depending on when I get to the comic store, for new reviews. Otherwise, my review week starts tomorrow.