Further NYCC announcements

New York Comic-Con has ended, thereby effectively ending convention season for the year with ostensibly the second biggest annual con (though early numbers suggest that it may have brought in more visitors than SDCC). I've already outlined some of the news that came out this weekend (including the announcement of a new Squirrel Girl ongoing, the new Ant-Man ongoing, the creative team change on HAWKEYE, and the cancellation of FANTASTIC FOUR) but there was plenty more that happened (sorry, I had put off reviews so late that I was busy with those all day and didn't get caught up on the news until TOO LATE. I really need someone to pay me for this, okay world?). Let's try and go beat by beat, with our friends from CBR.

Hickman and Ribic launch a new SECRET WARS

Marvel revealed this weekend that there's a long-game in place for Jonathan Hickman's TIME RUNS OUT arc and that it will lead to a brand new SECRET WARS. Readers will remember the original SECRET WARS from the mid-80s as a huge crossover event (one of the biggest, if not the biggest, to that point) from writer and eventual EIC Jim Shooter. It was...you know, kind of cynical at the time? Kind of a big money grab. Also, I do not love it. However, you have to imagine if Marvel is willing to go back to this well, no less with top flight talent like Hickman and Ribic, that they have to have something more planned. By the same token, is anyone else a little event-exhausted? I sure am. And SECRET WARS, if it keeps with its history and even with its Alex Ross cover (at left), will tie everyone up for a little while so don't expect it to be a one-and-done kind of event.

News about Netflix's new Daredevil series

NYCC had the first significant news and images for the upcoming Daredevil series, set to premiere on Netflix in 2015. Included in that news was a first look at Charlie Cox as both Matt Murdock and as Daredevil (donning a JRJR-esque black suit that the producers called "his first suit"), Rosario Dawson's role as Claire Temple (billed as a "nurse who works at night" and critically important to Matt's story, though it also seems like she'd be a good low-key but important character/actress to tie the four upcoming shows together neatly), Joe Quesada's concept art for the show (seen at left), and a nice panel with much of the announced cast (with plenty more announcements made this weekend). All in all, it's our first real news drop since Cox's casting and it sounds like everyone is optimistic about the pace at which this development is happening.





Weekly WOLVERINES book set to hit in January
Following the death of Wolverine and the loss of plenty of his secrets, an unlikely team comprised of heroes and villains such as Sabretooth, Mystique, X-23, and Daken will need to work together to uncover some of those lost secrets. Charles Soule and Ray Fawkes will head up the series, which will be an ongoing weekly series sure to break anyone's wallet who even considers buying it. Though there's been no price point revealed yet, I have to imagine it's minimum $2.99 but more likely $3.99, given Marvel's current release price average, meaning a prospective buyer would be spending about 16 dollars a month on this book. Yipes.

New Marvel Cosmic event set to kick off in February
Did I say I was sick of events? I meant GEEZ, LET'S GET SOME MORE IN HERE. In a move not unlike the changing of AXIS to AVENGERS AND X-MEN: AXIS, short and sweet ominous title THE BLACK VORTEX will actually be named GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY AND X-MEN: THE BLACK VORTEX because somehow Marvel made a name LONGER than AVENGERS AND X-MEN: AXIS (am I just capitalizing book names or am I shouting, no one will know). The event will be bookended by two issues of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY AND X-MEN: THE BLACK VORTEX with multiple crossovers in-between. The event will move through books like LEGENDARY STAR-LORD, CAPTAIN MARVEL, NOVA, ALL-NEW X-MEN, CYCLOPS, and some other yet-to-be-announced books (money on GAMORA, in the least). Well. On the other hand, I'm happy to see ROCKET RACCOON's not on that list so if Skottie Young stays attached and sticks to his typical issues, I guess I won't be too upset.

New SILK ongoing announced

SILK 1 cover by Dave Johnson

Following the character's recent introduction in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN, Cindy Moon, AKA Silk, will be getting a new ongoing written by Robbie Thompson with art from Stacey Lee. Thompson claims that the series will flesh out Silk and follow her "from bite to bunker." The new series is set to begin in February.














New SPIDER-GWEN ongoing announced

SPIDER-GWEN 1 cover by Robbi Rodriguez

A link so nice we used it twice. The hit Spider-Gwen from Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez's EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE 2 will be returning for a new ongoing in February. Latour and Rodriguez will return to the book, which is enough to make anyone excited, given the fun and the great look of Gwen's debut issue. Excited to delve more into that universe.













Juggernaut returning to the Marvel Universe in Yost's AMAZING X-MEN
Come January, the X-Men and likely some bad dudes will be racing to find the Ruby of Cyttorak, the gem that transforms anyone into Cyttorak's unstoppable Juggernaut, in Chris Yost's AMAZING X-MEN. The upcoming arc, titled "THE ONCE AND FUTURE JUGGERNAUT" will start in issue 15 of the current run and would at least seem to potentially expand the X-Men villains a little more than just Mystique and Sabretooth.

Limited series OPERATION S.I.N. to premiere in January
A new five-issue limited series exploring the Marvel Universe in WWII days is set to launch in January. Written by Kathryn Immonen with Rich Ellis art, OPERATION S.I.N. will involve characters such as Peggy Carter, Howard Stark, and the recently introduced Woodrow McCord (ORIGINAL SIN) fighting some aliens. I really like Kathryn Immonen and this will at least have a different focal point than most WWII releases from Marvel. Looking forward to Immonen's take on a recently well-spotlit Peggy Carter.

GAMORA ongoing scheduled for Spring 2015
Some news in that link just there about the new GAMORA upcoming, written by Guardians of the Galaxy co-screenwriter Nicole Perlman.

Also, G. Willow Wilson to have a four-issue arc on X-MEN
Same link, different news. MS MARVEL's G.Willow Wilson will have a four-issue arc on X-MEN starting in January with X-MEN 23. The arc will be titled "THE BURNING WORLD" and will kick off at a Burning Man-esque festival.

Women of Marvel variant line set for March 2015

Stephanie Hans' THOR 7 variant

Third time using the same link is purportedly the charm so here goes. Following the announcement of Phil Noto variant month in February (still excited about that), March will find Marvel releasing 20 Women of Marvel variants by such artists as Sara Pichelli, Stephanie Hans, Vanesa Del Rey, Jill Thompson, Stacey Lee, and Faith Erin Hicks. Pretty neat.













There was also a bunch of other news about things like a James Patterson miniseries, some STAR WARS bidness, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy cartoon, the upcoming animated feature film Big Hero 6 (which I think we can all agree looks great), and probably more, but we here at Marvels are focused on the comics and only occasionally on the peripheral stuff. Like how terrible the new animated shows are and how much we miss shows like Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes and Spectacular Spider-Man. Or how boring we find Marvel's Agents of SHIELD (though this season's debut had more interesting plot points than anything that happened last season). Or how interested in Big Hero 6 we are (pretty interested, you guys). Or those Netflix series that it occurs to me don't fall under the umbrella of comics but still got decent coverage in this here post. Look. Whatever.

Original Sin 4, Avengers 31

Original Sin 4
Aaron (w) and Deodato (a) and F. Martin (c) and Eliopoulos (l)

As the mysteriously led groups converge on a single location, led there by various data, each small group discovers it's part of a larger entity. They also find Bucky, the first one to arrive at the small station on the blue side of the moon. Though tempers flare (Gamora and Moon Knight aren't so pumped to have been ditched by Bucky and had to catch a ride with Rocket Raccoon), particularly as Bucky reveals the head of Nick Fury, things are explained a bit when Gamora stabs the head, shorting it out and proving it's a sophisticated LMD, and when an elderly Nick Fury emerges from a door in the station with several other LMDs.

The various groups have converged and are looking for answers, understanding now that maybe they've been lied to and suddenly they recognize how tenuous their groupings are and how distrustful they are of one another. There's a lot of sniping as everyone tries to feel each other out and tries to figure out his or her own role in this investigation. As such, the tension is written pretty well and Deodato's ability to draw just about any character in any situation pays off as he's forced to draw plenty of team scenes and fights and powers and so on and so forth. The book moves as fast as any of these issues have and Aaron's love of The Orb continues to shine through as he has the heroes bring the nonsensical root of all this along with them. Strong issue. Still unsure about the scale of this book (it doesn't feel like an event in a lot of ways, though so many are involved) but that's not a concern the book really needs to answer and, as such, doesn't affect an overall good performance.

Total Score: 5/5


Avengers 31
Hickman (w) and Yu (p) and Alanguilan (i) and Gho (c) and Petit (l)

The Avengers have been sent 500 years in the future now and Hawkeye, just as his future self predicted, won't go any further, falling away in the timestream and aging to dust. The Avengers aren't worried about him unduly, believing that this is what the Hawkeye they just met predicted. They're more worried, though, when they end up trapped in the future and when they learn that Ultron controls the planet with about 30 million humans surviving and future Thor working for the AI (who he claims is also the All-Father). The Ultrons take Cap and Black Widow away and plant a bomb in Cap while the future equivalent of Black Widow speaks in guarded language about wanting her own freedom. Enter time gem, sending Cap, Black Widow, and Starbrand (Thor and Hyperion fall away as Hawkeye did, ending back in Stark's lab with Clint) some five thousand years into the future.

The glimpses of the future continue to be interesting, if a little confusing. I think it's to Hickman's credit that we land in each future for less than an issue's length, just as it's to his credit that all of the future talk isn't winks and nods to the audience, as so many future time travel books are ("this event could happen!" or maybe "this Avenger has died!" or so forth; this book is doing a little of that by the way each future looks and occasionally a quick aside about, like future Thor saying he remembers when he was worthy of Mjolnir, but there are very few explicit, hitting you over the head kind of moments, which I appreciate). There's a lot to try and keep up with and it reads like a story that will make more sense in time, as is so often true with Hickman. Certainly more than readable now as is (and there are some good character moments, particularly as Cap is knocked out and dreams of the Illuminati, undoubtedly only enraging him further) but the true plot has yet to really come across.

Total Score: 4/5

Original Sin 3, Avengers World 7

Original Sin 3
Aaron (w) and Deodato (a) and F. Martin (c) and Eliopoulos (l)

While the Avengers in the immediate vicinity of the Orb (who, it turns out, was working alongside Oubliette's father Dr. Midas, all of which makes me quite glad I read Morrison's MARVEL BOY not too long ago) are sent reeling from the weight of their secrets (soon to be seen in all the tie-in books), the mysterious murder investigation boss's teams are spread out finding other such murders. Black Panther, Emma Frost, and Ant-Man examine bullets they've found while Punisher and Doctor Strange discuss the people who could shoot a target from such a huge distance. Meanwhile, Moon Knight, Winter Soldier, and Gamora explore space and find a trail of meteor-sized bullet casing that lead to a murdered sentient planet (not Ego the Living Planet, but similar enough that Gamora namedrops him). While Moon Knight and Gamora discuss how much this must narrow down the possible suspects, Bucky destroys their ship and teleports to Fury's base, where he's trying to glean more from the eye they've recovered. Winter Soldier proclaims that everyone has to pay for their sins and that there will be no more secrets before he shoots and stabs Fury and takes the eye.

In FEAR ITSELF, the last event he appeared in, Winter Soldier (at the time, Captain America) seemingly died in issue three. Now he returns to events as he seemingly murders someone in issue three of ORIGINAL SIN. There's a lot going on and plenty that's hinted at for us to read elsewhere (some pretty intense selling of the tie-ins as everyone starts to see their applicable secrets, with the most egregious being Thor yelling "BY THE SPIRES OF ASGARD, I HAVE A SISTER?") but the murder investigation and Bucky's apparent betrayal take center stage here. Like in any crime drama, it feels rather too early a reveal for Bucky to be the actual killer (not to mention that like, does he even know who the Watcher is?) but there's still clearly something pretty deep happening here. Also interesting is Fury's concern that everyone in the vicinity saw their secrets but he didn't see anything. Plenty happening, including a bit of less appealing salesmanship, but it's hard to read where this one will go next.

Total Score: 4/5


Avengers World 7
Spencer (w) and Caselli (a) and Mossa (c) and Caramagna (l)

Madripoor has lifted off the Earth on the back of an ancient dragon at the behest of Gorgon, who has defeated Shang-Chi while his teammates Falcon, Black Widow, and Wolverine try to calm riots on the street. Black Widow calls for extraction, saying it's futile to keep fighting there, while Falcon goes to find Shang. With no birds in the sky around them (what do you think Redwing does on his days off? Bird social worker?), it's up to Sam entirely to find the missing Avenger and he follows a drone leading away from the flying nation. The drone drops him at a giant airship hovering near by called the Circle (because it's circular). He enters and meets Xian Zheng, who informs him that the Circle is his ship and it's one of many new Chinese airships. He explains that China realized it had relied too much upon SHIELD and the Avengers when the war of the Builders struck and now they've put together their own force, called SPEAR, with their own team of heroes called the Ascendants including Weather Witch, Saber, Vector, Devastator, and the Monkey King (last seen in IRON MAN 2.0, I think). Zheng tells Falcon it's nothing that he need worry about, that they're all fighting for the same cause, just that the world looks to China for defense and protection and China hasn't provided it yet. He also asks Falcon to help deliver the message to the world, which he does by appearing on footage broadcast around the world with the new team.

Occasionally a series will delve into the politics of the world, moving away from the individual superheroes and the individual villains and giving us a look at the world that these heroes and villains have created and how it differs from ours. AVENGERS WORLD 7 is one of the times where such a look is smart and compelling. We've seen other country-sanctioned teams and loyal national heroes (Britain has the most obvious example but there are heroes in the Middle East and in Russia and in Japan and, well, pretty much everywhere our heroes occasionally visit) but there's nothing out there with the sort of power and reach that SHIELD has. Now we've taken a story that was interesting, featuring Gorgon raising Madripoor on the back of a dragon, and turned it into something else entirely, introducing SPEAR (the acronym is never explained by Zheng points out that there has always been the shield in the west and the spear in the east so, I mean, pretty much just a word, huh?). I like having Falcon run point on this because he's someone who can understand the need for something like this without feeling entirely threatened. He's worked with SHIELD, he's worked against SHIELD, and he understand the way the world is changing so he's skeptical and hesitant but ultimately willing to give this a shot. Cool idea overall, we'll have to see how this plays across the rest of this arc and the rest of the universe.

Total Score: 5/5

Guardians of the Galaxy 15, Thunderbolts 26

Guardians of the Galaxy 15
Bendis (w) and Bradshaw and C. Stewart (p) and Bradshaw, Stewart, and Wong (i) and Ponsor (c) and Petit (l)

The Guardians have been separated and captured with Rocket landing with the Kree (to be experimented on), Gamora left with the Badoon brotherhood (to be questioned about Thanos), Drax left to the Shi'ar (to be punished), newly acquired Venom attacked on Knowhere by the Skrulls, Groot left with the Brood, and Star-Lord being held on Spartax. They all seem to be failing at escaping except, as the issue ends, potentially Star-Lord. Despite the cover, no sign of Captain Marvel.

Unless you're a completionist and you're looking to obtain this whole series, it's worth missing this one. There are tiny little glimpses of character in the way each Guardian reacts to his or her capture (Rocket shows fear for the slightest moment, Gamora refuses to stop fighting, Drax threatens calmly but sighs to his deceased wife, etc.) and obviously we see where everyone is but that's pretty much all that happens in twenty pages of book. There are as many double page spreads in this issue as I've ever seen and it ends up just meaning that we get less story in fewer meaningful pages. There's no doubt in my mind that this could have been done just as effectively in ten pages and we could have had another half issue to move to the next step, maybe featuring, oh, I don't know, star of the cover Captain Marvel. Seriously. Look at that cover. Is that the cover of a book that doesn't see nor hear about Captain Marvel in the slightest? It's a low score for this one, then, not because it's a particularly bad book but just because it slows things down at a time when things don't really need to be slowed down and it means you're paying full price for half a book's worth of content (not to belittle Nick Bradshaw and Cameron Stewart's work, which is fine but didn't blow me away to the point where I'll ignore a stagnant story).

Total Score: 2/5


Thunderbolts 26
Soule (w) and Diaz (a) and Silva (c) and Sabino (l)

Ghost Rider's been eaten by a swamp monster thanks to Leader's treachery and Elektra and Punisher have been crushed by a cliche. Deadpool saves Leader from Cordoba and his men, enraged by what they've been through, but it doesn't stop Leader from trying to kill Deadpool as they go into the temple. Deadpool sees through the ruse and stabs Leader but leaves him alive enough to still enact his plan and send Deadpool into a pool of lava. Leader moves forward to find the artifact their after, the head of a long dead Celestial left here by the ancient Deviants, a race the Celestials created then deemed imperfect and unfit to inherit the world. The Deviants killed the young Celestial and left the head here, hoping it could transform their people into something more capable but then lost it to time and struggle. Now Red Hulk's former men have found it and Mancuso, the one who reached out to Red Hulk, explains (after Red Hulk kills his one-time lover scientist lady who turns out to be a Deviant looking for this exact thing) what's happened since he found it. Leader arrives, drinks some Celestial blood, and has his head explode from the power. With his whole team dead, Mancuso tells Red Hulk that he has two options: for Mancuso to kill him and give him the death he seeks or to work for the light. After a moment's hesitation, Red Hulk chooses the light and we're transported back to the very start of this mission, where Red Hulk tells the team that they're actually going to do something else now.

It's Charles Soule's last issue on THUNDERBOLTS, which is rather a shame because he took this book that I found somewhat middling, even if it featured a team that really intrigued me, and he immediately made it something fun and fresh, completely worthy of my one-time excitement. Still, he leaves the book on an up-swing, with the team all alive and perhaps destined for bigger and better things. It's definitely entertaining to see how the final deaths play out (Deadpool has a particularly nice moment as he sees through Leader's attempt to kill him, though it still leads to Leader killing him) and it leaves the book in an interesting place where we know what these characters would have gone through and how they would have acted in this adventure but now this adventure never happened so they don't necessarily know how it would have played out. Ben Acker and Ben Blacker have a really interesting job to take on and I'm excited to see what they produce. But let's not forget to laud Charles Soule for his fantastic take on this book and for, as I see it, righting the ship as soon as he jumped on to it.

Total Score: 5/5

Guardians of the Galaxy 14, Thunderbolts 25

Guardians of the Galaxy 14
Bendis (w) and Bradshaw w/Masters, Nauck, and Wong (a) and Ponsor w/Keith (c) and Petit (l)

The Guardians are being picked off one-by-one and separated. Rocket, Groot, and Starlord are attacked in the ship by Spartax warships while Gamora is chased down elsewhere by the assassin who had previously tried to capture her and while Drax and Venom (??) shop for new weapons on Knowhere. All Guardians are captured, leaving Venom behind on Knowhere and leaving Starlord to have an uncomfortable talk with his dad, who promises that they'll all be dealt with and that no one is coming to save them just as Captain Marvel takes to space. Also featured in this double-sized anniversary issue are stories from legendary GUARDIANS scribes Andy Lanning (who "writes" a story about Groot's origin. Hint: he is Groot) and Dan Abnett, who tells a tale set a thousand years in the future about the future Guardians of the Galaxy needing to go back in time to stop some stuff happening that would ruin their future.

Story
The best way to describe this story is abrupt. For thirteen issues, the Guardians have been wreaking havoc and staying a step ahead of the Spartax Empire and fighting the good fight through the galaxy. Until they weren't. Just today. No hand wrapping around them, no strategy employed to cut their engines and leave them defenseless. Just...caught. I legitimately had to wonder if I had missed an issue where something happened that allowed them to be caught or that explained why Venom was there. Turns out: NOPE, the last issue was still in the midst of that crappy TRIAL OF JEAN GREY crossover and so everything happening here IS still as abrupt as it seems. It feels like we're missing an issue and it's KIND OF an important issue we've missed? Like, we can still catch up, I suppose, but there's a lot of "I guess this is happening now?" feeling to the book. 3/5

Character
Peter Quill has some insomnia and thinks about why and thinks about what women he has crushes on and what ones he doesn't and ugggggh. Then Drax and Venom go and banter at a weapons seller showing that Drax doesn't know the word "cool" and uggggggh. Look, I have some problems here as ever. Also, Venom acts very nearly goofy out in space which, you know, granted it's a pretty big deal to him but Flash is a decorated vet and one who has to maintain control over his symbiote all the time. Maybe he wouldn't be so goofy all the time? 2/5

Writing
A bit of back-and-forth here but everyone's separated and there's too much abrupt story happening for it to really hurt anything. The opening ongoing narration from Quill is as close to that as it gets and it it GRATING though the case can be made that it's just a mind drifting while it does anything but sleep. Putting aside the strange character problems and the abrupt story, there's nothing particularly wrong with the writing, though it's kind of like grading a student's paper with a bad or non-existent thesis: it doesn't matter if the support is great or in-depth or whatever, there's no way it can be proving what it sets out to prove because a bad thesis means there's nothing there to prove (yeah, I've graded some PAPERS, yo). 3/5

Art
I was a little nervous about Bradshaw on this issue. He's clearly a pretty good artist but I've seen him most recently on one of the INHUMAN titles that Fraction wrote prior to Soule's entrance on INHUMANS and it upset me in the way that Medusa looked so feminized in that kind of "big eyes, soft features, bursting breasts (horrifying, that wording) etc." way. No such issues here though the armored Gamora is the only female until the last page reveal of Captain Marvel. Still, good work across the board this time out. 5/5

Miscellaneous
Seriously, were we missing an issue?

Total score: 3/5


Thunderbolts 25
Soule (w) and Diaz (a) and Silva (c) and Sabino (l)

The woman who arrived on the boat at the end of the last issue, Helen, was part of the team Ross sent out but only insofar as she was the researcher who told them about the artifact and was then left behind. They have a thing. Anyway, the sea monsters aren't quite done attacking and they start to pull apart the ship. Ghost Rider manages to get them to shore by using his chain to pull the ship away. However, Leader whispers an incantation that makes his demonic fire go out before he himself can get off the ship and he's ripped apart by the monsters while everyone else looks on. The other T-Bolts push on but their guide Cordoba reveals to Leader that he knows he's responsible for Ghost Rider's death. Leader admits it but also reveals that he knows Cordoba's men are in the woods following them. They form an alliance for all of two minutes before Leader outs him to his team, causing them all to flee. The rest continue to the temple, where Red Hulk demands Leader wait outside (with guard Deadpool) and guide them over the walkie. He quickly betrays them and Elektra and Punisher end up in a death trap themselves.

Story
Tons going on here, enough that I kept wanting to shorten the summary and couldn't figure out where to do it. In fact, I should have PROBABLY gone deeper than I did but GUYS, read the book instead. There's so much happening and it's largely really interesting. The Ghost Rider twist was something unexpected and sharp, brutal and efficient enough to be jarring without feeling like a hook. The Leader has some great moments as his long con continues to play out at the expense of the team. Plenty happening but without ever getting too absurd or too abrupt. 5/5

Character
Everyone has a couple of good looks here but the main focus is on Leader and his sudden but inevitable betrayals. It's crafty and it's clever and it's hard, thanks to his movements with Cordoba, to figure out what his angles are, which is exactly how we should be seeing Leader since he's smarter than all people ever, more or less, so we should never know his true motives. It's the kind of sharp characterization that drove Hickman's SECRET WARRIORS series and others like it. 5/5

Writing
Thanks in large part to the characterization of Leader and the way that he drives the plot here, the tone is always a little bit uncomfortable, which is perfect. You're never supposed to know exactly how to feel about what's happening. The abruptness of Ghost Rider's death, the turn on Leader by Cordoba and the turn on Cordoba by Leader, all of it keeps the reader off-guard and it keeps the tone from settling in to something either too fun or too serious and it instead sticks into this strange "how should I feel?" place that fits everything Soule wants to do. 5/5

Art
The art looks maybe a little more cartoony than it has been but it steps it up to make sure things are tense as the big moments occur, like Ghost Rider being ripped apart or the fall of Punisher and Elektra and their caress as the walls close in on them (slower than haunted house spiked walls but not as slow as evil scientist spiked walls). Overall it fits the tone and feel of the book pretty nicely. 5/5

Miscellaneous
I like the cover on this one but it's the first time in quite some time that I haven't absolutely loved the cover on a THUNDERBOLTS issue. Sigh. All good things, I suppose. Strange that the 25th issue of THUNDERBOLTS, a far riskier book than something with X-MEN in the name written by one of the biggest names in comics over the past decade doesn't get a celebration.

Total score: 5/5

Iron Man 24, Captain Marvel 2

Iron Man 24
Gillen (w) and Ross (a) and Guru eFX (c)

Tony's trip into Svartalfheim is not off to a great start as he has been quickly spotted. He's able to fight off the first wave of Dark Elves but his stealth suit isn't really made for combat and so he's forced to flee when Malekith attacks and before Shevaun can send the weapon he needs. He escapes into the woods and hides out, hoping that he left enough of a trail for his pursuers to track him. Malekith, who holds four rings (Spectral, Incandescence, Remaker, and Lightning), divvies up his rings among the search parties, giving the leader of each a different ring and keeping the Remaker for himself. Shevaun sends the gun, tailor made to defeat elves and rings alike, to Tony's new location and he's able to use it to put down the holder of the Incandescence ring, taking it back, but he's forced to cloak again when the others arrive. Malekith taunts him, knowing that he's around, and really cuts to the core of Tony. When he and the rest of the elves leave, preferring to wait for Tony's eventual emergence rather than searching him out. Shevaun suggests that Tony use the third and final available portal to come home with a partial mission success but he refuses, furious with Malekith. Instead, he has Shevaun send his big, dwarf-killing armor to him.

It's a real culture clash over here as Tony learns that the Dark Elves are maybe a little bit more than he bargained for and that maybe he's not entirely prepared to wage war against them. Just when those thoughts are settling though, Malekith, who used Tony's flesh to see into his heart, starts talking about Tony being an unwanted child and how the Dark Elves are no strangers to unwanted children; they just tend to eat them because, as Malekith puts it, what else are they good for? It calls back on some of the thoughts that Tony has had to put aside in order to deal with his city and the Mandarin rings but that are clearly still pretty powerful in his mind. That alone would make for an interesting story but putting Tony in Svartalfheim up against a vicious enemy powerful already wielding three rings that make him much more powerful seems like the recipe for success. We'll see next how the Dark Elves, with a notable hatred for iron, deal with one of Tony's offensive suits instead of his defensive one. Plenty of good stuff happening here and I think the adrenaline is really about to start pumping.

Captain Marvel 2
DeConnick (w) and D. Lopez (a) and Loughridge (c)

Captain Marvel is transporting the Nowlian girl Tic to the planet Torfa, where supposedly the rest of her people have been moved after the Builders destroyed their home planet. She and her ship, with an AI named Harrison, and her cat Chewie who, apparently every single person on Earth refused to watch (not that unbelievable), are intercepted by two smuggler ships guarded by a mercenary ship. She explains her mission but the mercenaries, on the order of their client, fire on her anyway. The ship takes damage quickly and Carol is forced into the fight herself, directing Harrison to protect the medical bay and get the thrusters up while she deals with and/or distracts the ships. Out in space she begins to tear apart the smuggler ships. The mercenary ship flees as the Guardians of the Galaxy show up to dispatch the ship on her tail. Carol's ship and the Guardians' ship link so that Rocket can help with the repairs but he pretty quickly starts attacking Chewie, swearing that it's a Flerken and not a cat. Carol and Star-Lord separate them and she finds out that Torfa seems to be a poisonous planet so perhaps bringing the girl there isn't the best plan. Meanwhile, the gunfire as Rocket attacked Chewie woke up Tic and she emerges as Star-Lord reveals to Carol that he's the son of J-Son, which isn't what Tic wanted to hear. She flees into Carol's ship, locking them all on the Guardians' ship in the hopes that she'll be able to steal it. Captain Marvel sets out after her by herself in the depths of space, anxious to get her ship back and to rescue her cat.

Good introduction of the Guardians here, with whom Carol is primed to spend a good amount of time. She's immediately accepted and the DeConnick does a pretty good job writing all of the Guardians, though we really only get extended dialogue and looks at Star-Lord and Rocket. In addition, any thought that the book might suffer unduly from the loss of Carol's supporting cast (Wendy, Spider-Woman, Tracy, Kit, Frank, etc) should be more or less assuaged here. We're only an issue removed from her leaving them all behind and going into space but it's clear that DeConnick's take on Carol and her character alone are certainly capable of carrying a book. Obviously the introduction of the Guardians and the hint from the first issue that Captain Marvel will form a team of her own don't hurt things but regardless, Carol has returned to this book as the same strong and confident character, totally able to drive a book, that she left the last series as. David Lopez's art is remarkably good and he draws a mean Carol as well as a mean suited-up Captain Marvel, all of which I was happy about and, admittedly, a little relieved about because I did not particularly care for Lopez's cover. Fans of the last series should absolutely be picking this one up. It has the same heart and the same enthusiasm as the first series, not to mention that there are already a couple of irons in the fire for story ideas and new characters. Even if you didn't read the first series, check this one out, see if the tone is for you. I find it hard to think it isn't.

Guardians of the Galaxy premiere trailer

So the full trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy just premiered and...it's a little weird. It's very set on explaining who the Guardians are, which makes sense given that they're such an unknown. They also have an interesting dilemma in that they're the first team movie that didn't have, you know, a handful of movies to set it up. The tone is also decidedly different from any other Marvel Cinematic Universe offering thus far, going for an extremely light feel. It wants you to think back to the fun of the Star Wars franchise and to the fun, particularly, of the Mos Eisley Cantina. Chris Pratt's Peter Quill, AKA Star-Lord, shows up first with a pair of headphones and later he gets into a fight he can't win for those same headphones. There's definitely some character there but I'd worry that the character ends up being a bit cliche. More so I worry about the two shots of Gamora we get in the trailer, one where she's topless with her back to us and one where she's whipping her hair in some fight. Granted, Gamora does have some amount of exploitative personality in the comics but I wouldn't have complained if they left it out of the movie and the trailer is making me believe they're not about to.

It's honestly still too little to get a good sense of the movie, obviously, so I won't be posting a big review of this trailer like I did with the recent Super Bowl spots, but it's a pretty good read of the effects and the overall look of the movie, which is not unimpressive. It's hard not to be compared to Star Wars, as is the case whenever there's some sort of space caper movie, because Star Wars is, you know, Star Wars. Still, the look of this movie doesn't go too far off of that so we'll see how this one looks. Also, Karen Gillan looks surprisingly good blue and nearly unrecognizable so, you know, that's a plus.

Guardians of the Galaxy 11, Miracleman 2, Thunderbolts 21

Guardians of the Galaxy 11
Bendis (w) and Pichelli (a) and Ponsor (c)

The Guardians of the Galaxy are still on the search for Thanos and still hunted by J-Son for defying his orders to stay clear of Earth. This doesn't stop Peter Quill from going to all of his favorite seedy places either hoping they won't look in some place so obvious or hoping to get into a fight, depending on who you ask. He, of course, ends up being drugged by a Skrull bounty hunter and carried away. The Skrull doesn't get far, though, as Gamora and Angela happen to be nearby and see the female Skrull coming out of the bar with Quill. The two stop her and Angela, to the chagrin of Gamora, beheads her. They all return to the ship to find that Rocket has bugged a Badoon frequency and they hear talk of a recent council meeting that ended with the Shi'ar vowing to take Jean Grey from Earth and put her on trial for her crimes as the Phoenix. The Guardians decide to stop it and, as we saw in the last ALL-NEW X-MEN, arrive just a few moments too late.

One of my problems with GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (and, in truth, Bendis as a whole on occasion) is that it sometimes feels like it wants to wholly disregard the rest of the Marvel Universe, both from the past and in the present. There's a debate about whether a writer in comics should be bound by a character's often long and complicated chronology or if that writer should tell the story worth telling with the character, even if it conflicts with something in the history. I tend to believe more in the latter because I think times change and these characters are ridiculously old in some cases. However, I think some deference should be paid to the character itself. For example, I think Peter Quill did have that wry sense of humor back in his past but he was a bit more serious and a bit more of a true leader type, reluctant as he may be to accept it. This one seems like a full-on goof with an occasional Mal Reynolds-like flair for the dramatic. I think part of his change to flippancy is the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie, which has cast Chris Pratt, known best for his comedic turn as Andy in Parks and Recreation, in the role of Peter Quill. Still, it paints a different picture of Quill in the comics than what we'd seen before, seemingly changing his character to something it wasn't. In terms of the present-day incongruities, J-Son betrayed the council in INFINITY and, I guess I took it as assumed, the council knew of his betrayal. Captain Marvel and the Avengers knew for sure, I suppose it's possible that Captain America, learning the news, wouldn't have told anyone else in the council? It...seems unlikely. Yet here they are, their whole council reconvened and not mentioning it with J-Son flippant as his son for no real reason. Perhaps this, and other Bendis books, are meant to only be read as one series, telling the story he set out to tell with the characters with which he set out to tell it. Maybe they read perfectly fluidly by themselves. But when you're part of a bigger universe like this, you at least have to play by the rules of that universe a bit, not just when they're helpful to you (the Shi'ar must punish Jean Grey for her crimes as the Phoenix).

Miracleman 2
Moore (w) and Leach (a) and Oliff (c) and Anglo (w and a)

A couple more collected stories from WARRIOR as we see the first meeting between Mike Moran and Johnny Bates since Moran's memory of Marvelman returned. Johnny Bates, of course, was Kid Marvelman back in the early days but now, claiming to have lost his powers in the explosion that killed Young Marvelman, he's a normal human who owns an incredibly successful tech company. He invites Mike and Liz to his offices to talk but Mike quickly realizes things aren't as they seem. He asks Liz to leave and accuses Johnny of still having his powers and of lying for some nefarious purpose, which is certainly the case as Johnny reveals that he kept his powers after the explosion and now found himself the most powerful being on Earth at 16 and with no one to stop him. He, of course, is now a sociopath who wants only to rule and to destroy and his powers are stronger and he's more experienced than Marvelman. He annihilates Marvelman in combat and turns to face London as he wonders what to do next.

It's certainly an enticing story, one with an equal parts tragic and terrible villain for Marvelman's return to the modern era (safe and sound in good old 1982). It's a classic superhero story as the superhero gains his powers (or, in this case, regains) and finds himself pitted against an ultimate foe, someone seemingly better than him in every way and who has a personal connection to our hero. Most interestingly, this book reads like a modern comic more than most other books from the early '80s, without too much over explaining and with art that would fit into today's pantheon as well as any other era's. For someone who is solely a modern day reader, you may find the narration captions a bit overkill (though there are still some books that employ narrative captions today, they're far and few between. The biggest example I can think of from current Marvel is UNCANNY AVENGERS but even that one varies in how often it uses them, issue-to-issue) but that doesn't take anything away from the writing. Good book, certainly worth checking out and comparing to the books of then and now. Or just reading it because it's pretty good.

Thunderbolts 21
Soule (w) and Barberi (a) and Silva w/ Campbell and Mason (c)

The majority of the Thunderbolts are in Hell with Ghost Rider while Elektra and Punisher await their return with something resembling patience. In Hell, Ghost Rider tries to find a personal hell, a hell crafted specifically by a demon to ensure maximum punishment and pain to a single inhabitant, because those are easier to return to Earth from. However, their search for the perfect hell draws the notice and ire of Mephisto, who had since claimed Red Hulk as his own personal plaything. Unfortunately for Mephisto, he's no longer ruler of Hell and can't really enforce his ownership over the hell mark on Red Hulk's chest. This leads Leader to an idea: make an actual deal with the actual devil to get them out of Hell and put Mercy in it in exchange for dethroning the new ruler of Hell, who, of course, turns out to be Guido, formerly of X-Factor. Meanwhile, Elektra and Punisher go on an assassin journey as Elektra gets a job while the others are out of town. As Punisher begins to question how Elektra can know that she's assassinating people who deserve it, the entire house they're staking out is abruptly and violently destroyed. Mercy appears to Elektra, fresh off destroying the house, and demands to know where Red Hulk and Leader are.

Another good issue as the Thunderbolts are separated and have plenty to deal with on their plates. There's a nice moment for Leader as he gets to exercise his brain a bit constructing a legally binding contract with the devil. It's also an interesting juncture for the reader as we have to wonder whether he's putting things in there that will hurt Red Hulk or, say, Deadpool, who wants his own secret request added into the contract. Meanwhile, Ghost Rider chats with Venom about the purpose of the team and seems into the idea, leading to the probable induction of a new teammate. It's all made even more compelling as the Thunderbolts realize that Guido is the new ruler of Hell and they'll have to kill someone who's been a pretty good guy in the past in order to get what they want and fulfill their promise to Mephisto. As if that weren't enough to entertain, Elektra and Punisher, the two potentially least powerful members of the team (or, at least, most human, somehow), have to face down Mercy while the Thunderbolts in Hell get their business together. Should be a fun time because this book is constantly a fun time.

New Avengers 13, Guardians of the Galaxy 10

Hey all, sorry for the wait for these reviews. Some important issues here (okay, one, in NEW AVENGERS) so I didn't want to skip this week or anything but I took last week off after the remarkably long year-in-review and year-ahead posts. Sorry!


New Avengers 13
Hickman (w) and Bianchi (a) and Dell'Alpi (c)

It's a tale of two universes as we get a look at our Illuminati juxtaposed with a look at Earth-23099 which has come up with a similar team to solve the problem of these incursions. Also similarly, Earth-23099 has had a recent influx of Inhumans as Maximus the Mad, king of their Inhumans, set off a Terrigen bomb on their planet. Back on the 616, Black Swan warns the Illuminati that they need to be prepared for the other enemies they'll face, on top of the incursions, and advises them to focus on the Black Priests, who jump from world to world via what she and they call a mirror, allowing them to see between dimensions with relative ease. Reed realizes he's already built one in the Bridge (back from Hickman's run with the FANTASTIC FOUR and FF books) and they use it to look in on 23099, who have just run up against the Black Priests and find themselves severely outgunned. The Black Priests kill them with very little effort and, sensing an open mirror nearby, shoot a quick threat at those watching.

"No rest for the wicked" seems to be the mantra of this series and it takes every word of that mantra seriously. The series has been among the most interesting since its start and it's interesting because of the layers it has. We already have a compelling story about other Earths incurring on our universe and destroying worlds but the cast of characters that Hickman's chosen has made the difference for this one. Granted, these characters already existed in this team (with the notable exceptions of Beast, replacing Charles, and Panther, who refused to join the first iteration) but Hickman has brought them together on this to underscore the ethical choices of what's happening and what's yet to happen. The Illuminati are a team that, by their very existence, is morally questionable (big brains making covert decisions for the rest of the world) and throwing them up against a problem that now regularly threatens the Earth continues to be such a cool idea. Presumably it will only continue to get more confusing from here as the cast of adversaries grows (we already know about the Mapmakers, who may be on Earth already and now we have the Black Priests and the promise of more) but it feels like it will all be worthwhile.

Guardians of the Galaxy 10
Bendis (w) and Maguire (a) and Ponsor (c)

Gamora and Angela set out on a secret mission of their own to lay waste to a Badoon slave-trade world that Gamora suspects may know the whereabouts of the now-missing Thanos. They attack, they chat, they stop a piece of the slave-trade, etc. One of the Badoon mentions having some sort of deal with Angela's people, which flusters her, but Quill, when he and Rocket arrive on the scene, waves it off as just a lying Badoon, deciding that his point has been underscored when the Badoon also claim that Thanos is on Earth. Next up: the Trial of Jean Grey.

Some decent action and not too bad to see Gamora and Angela in action, even if it requires turning more of a blind-eye to the Angela costume. I do get that she's a character imported from another series, SPAWN, and that this costume is her costume from that and it therefore makes her recognizable and it's her legacy and so on and so forth but SPAWN also isn't particularly well known for its progressivism. It's tricky to be attempting to develop her as this strong female character but then have a double-page spread where you can see an absurd amount of skin. There's an argument to be made, probably, about her being a strong woman and having a strong sense of sexuality but she doesn't really have that, at least not at the moment. It's not like she's some sexual being and the way she's being written is showing her as someone who is equally comfortable on the battlefield and expressing her sexuality, unafraid to show her body; instead, she has something of a blank personality right now and fights a bunch. I don't think Gamora's at her strongest either. If the cover is any indication (or if a lot of the way he's writing this and, you know, his history), boy am I not excited for the inevitable Bendis love triangle. And, again, somewhat shorter than normal book out of Bendis (another series that seems to be hitting at about 18 pages an issue, which is striking since I see so many comic book writers cutting scenes they don't want to cut to limit the book to the average 21-22 pages) with altogether too many words. Speaking of words, words cannot begin to describe just how uninterested I am in the upcoming Trial of Jean Grey.

Guardians of the Galaxy 8, Cataclysm 0.1

Guardians of the Galaxy 8
Bendis (w) and Francavilla (a and c)

The Guardians of the Galaxy are approaching Earth and have discovered, then, that Thanos' army is pretty well in control of its airspace about now. Gamora insists that they charge in and show her dad (Thanos, you guys) who's boss but Quill prefers they make a plan, which they do after some amount of tension and Gamora setting out on her own to attack Thanos himself. They receive a distress call from Abigail Brand at the Peak and Quill decides it's not a trap and that they have to save her and the Peak before it's turned on the Earth. He and Rocket stealth their way in and bust her out before attempting to fight their way to the command center, counting on air support from Drax and Groot. Unfortunately, by the time they call those two in, they're rather busy and embroiled in their own fight. Plus side, though, when it looks as if all is lost, Angela shows up and busts her way into the space station to save them (probably).

Solid action here as the Guardians get involved in the universe-spanning events of Infinity, albeit in the part that doesn't span the universe but rather just Earth. There's some decent characterization though occasionally it swings hard on an emotion and it comes up just a little short. In this case, it's Gamora bursting with anger at Quill for wanting to plan their attack on Thanos. Of course, there's more to Gamora's emotions than simply the need for haste, adding on the turmoil she feels about her father and the imminent threat he poses, but it does seem more than a little sudden and rash for Gamora. Again, though, Bendis' strength comes out of dropping some of the back-and-forth dialogue here as we have a bit of a faster paced and more coherent book, one that doesn't lose its focus and its tone while those elements battle for control over snappy, out-of-place dialogue. There's a bit here but, as I've said in the past, a bit doesn't hurt. A bit establishes character and the like. It's when you have more than a bit that things go downhill. Instead, it's another solid Guardians issue that brings the Guardians themselves to the fight against Thanos, a place they're rather used to being.

Cataclysm 0.1
Fialkov (w) and Suayan, Pierfederici, and Kirk (a) and Woodard (c)

Galactus is in the Ultimate Universe and it could spell the end for that branch of Marvel. The Vision of that universe, a female android, if we're applying genders, was built to detect and protect the world from the Gah Lak Tus swarm and so is shocked to find that a piece of that swarm ended up beached in the Bahamas during the Hunger event without her notice. She and boyfriend Sam Wilson go to investigate and Vision interfaces with the swarm member, learning of Galactus' arrival in the Ultimate Universe and learning of his history in the 616. She immediately recognizes the threat and needs to go see for herself, understanding that it will likely mean her death. There's a scene where she weighs her Earth's chances against Galactus, given its history, that compares the Ultimate Universe to the 616 and boy does it highlight some things. She eventually arrives by Galactus and urges him to stand down. When he refuses, she attacks with her impressive weaponry. It backfires, though, as he absorbs her shots and turns them on her, ultimately destroying her and leaving her floating in space. Before her system shuts down, she sends a message back to Earth, primarily to Sam Wilson who she realized, in the end, that she truly loved and warning them that they'll need everybody's help to stave off Galactus, including and perhaps centered on the incarcerated and absolutely crazy Reed Richards.

Certainly a nice little book to set the stage for us and Fialkov again delivers on his mantra of showing characters on their absolute worst days. Despite the fact that this story is one mostly meant to illustrate the dangers posed to the Ultimate Universe with Galactus' arrival and, as an aside to that, to establish the differences between the universe Galactus came from and this one, Fialkov does a solid job in one regular-sized issue, creating a full character in Vision, who has a crisis of self (or as much of one as an android can have) and realizes who she really is in her dying moments. On top of that, as I mentioned above, there was a nice little summation of the differences between the two major universes under Marvel's umbrella, particularly highlighting the plight of the mutant in this world, the loss of Spider-Man, the craziness of Reed Richards, the decimation of the superhero community, and the flaws of the Ultimates vs. the Avengers. Really helps put things in perspective while giving off the distinct feeling of "aw man, it's going to be pretty tricky for them to fight off Galactus." Good book, nice way to build interest for the event.

Captain Marvel 14, Guardians of the Galaxy 5, Ultimates 28

Captain Marvel 14
DeConnick (w) and Hepburn w/ Sandoval (a) and Troy (c)

The Enemy Within storyline ends as Carol discovers that the the source to all of Yon-Rogg's power, to his return, is a piece of him stored away in her mind all these years. With that piece, now amplified by the sentries Yon-Rogg has put into place, the former Kree commander has used the psyche-magnitron to bring all manner of Kree weaponry and haunts from Carol's past to real existence. That includes the dinosaurs we've seen, Deathbird, the Brood attack, and everything else strange in this crossover recently. For the finale, Yon-Rogg has whipped up his biggest creation: a duplicate of Kree-La, the capital city of the Kree home world, which he intends to bring down on New York City. Will the Avengers stop the signal from the sentries or will Carol have to take matters into her own hands?

You should read this book. I know I've been a staunch supporter of this series since its inception and have done nothing but recommend it on this blog but really, you should read this book. It's another good story with a lot of great art and amazing character moments. Captain Marvel has become one of the best defined characters of the Marvel Universe in an immensely short time. My girlfriend and I were talking about her character the other day and she felt, as the one who has read more of the Ms. Marvel back-catalogue, that this series was very slightly a departure from the character we've seen. There are aspects there for sure, like her loyalty and her dedication to duty, but she's stronger and more decisive, more strong-willed in this series. It's not anything that DeConnick has hit us over the head with but it's certainly there and it's certainly defined. Unlike other writers, DeConnick doesn't have someone piping in to say "gee Carol, you're so strong-willed!" every five minutes, preferring instead to show and not tell with her characters and their actions. Be prepared for some changes in the Captain Marvel Universe, which spans particularly across Captain Marvel, Avengers Assemble, and Avengers. If you want to get in on the ground floor of understanding what she's going through, pick up this issue. No spoilers here, at least not yet. But boy is it hard not to spoil things. Another great issue, solid event overall. This event isn't in the style of a really big, universe spanning event. Instead, it's an event in that it spans two separate books telling the same story. A crossover, really. I would argue, though, that it was a necessary one and a well-executed one. It's not an event in the same way Marvel does where the plot takes precedence and everyone's just along for the ride. Here this story has very specifically to do with Captain Marvel and the Avengers Assemble team is her team, so they're there because the threat requires them but also because their teammate requires them. One of the nice things about Avengers Assemble has been DeConnick's dedication to showing them as a real team who likes each other and who works well together. Of course they needed to be in this storyline as one of their own is directly threatened. Good choices all the way through.

Guardians of the Galaxy 5
Bendis (w) and Pichelli (a) and Ponsor (c)

Peter Quill felt the rip in space-time from issue ten of Age of Ultron and it's haunting him. Despite being wanted by the Spartax armada, he makes his way to Rigel 7 to talk to Mantis, hoping she has some knowledge of this or that she's heard something in her travels. She hasn't but she recommends he talk to someone more connected than she, though also significantly more dangerous, if he wants answers. Meanwhile, Neil Gaiman's creation Angela from the Spawn comics has been dumped unceremoniously into the Marvel Universe and, though she doesn't know why she's here, she wants revenge for it.

The issue starts with a long scene between Rocket and Tony about fixing his armor and about Gamora, which gives us a little more insight into both of their characters. It's rife with that snappy dialogue Bendis loves (working slightly better here since both characters are supposed to be snappy-ish throughout their histories) and Bendis uses Rocket to straight up tell the audience what the characters are about (humans are unimpressive and unevolved, Gamora has daddy issues, etc.). From there, they discover Angela, leaving Peter back on Rigel 7 (they don't know where he and Drax are) so they can fly back towards Earth to stop her from getting too close. Finally, Peter takes a trip across the galaxy to talk to the mysterious and dangerous foe who, if you've been paying any attention to Marvel in the last year, you will probably immediately identify, though the book doesn't reveal it officially until the last page, dragging a few pages worth of dialogue out first. Neil Gaiman is credited as a consultant on this issue, which signifies his "return" to Marvel, as Marvel has been thrilled to repeatedly announce. Not sure if he's actually going to come back in a role greater than that as we continue with Angela, his creation and for whom he got involved in a long legal battle with Todd McFarlane. The rips in space time are clearly going to be a big deal in the upcoming Infinity event and in this series presumably among others so it's useful to see them discussed and actually weighing on a character, but overall the issue moved a bit predictably.

Ultimates 28
Fialkov (w) and Di Giandomenico and Ruggiero (a) and Charalampidis (c)

Things are as bad as they've been for the Ultimates with Reed Richards, Hulk, Quicksilver, and Kang (revealed to be Wanda Maximoff) gathering the Infinity Gems one by one, now only one away from having the entire set. Meanwhile, Tony Stark appears dead, Cap, Thor, and Hawkeye have all been injured, captured, and contained. Fury has a team prepped and ready to move but Reed's team is more powerful and is backed up by patrolling Herbietrons. All is not lost, though, as Iron Man has safeties built into his armor that even Reed didn't foresee and that begin wreaking havoc the minute Reed attempts to synch with the armory. To make matters more complicated, Reed's team is at odds with one another and unhappy to need to work together. Will the Ultimates be able to stop Reed et al before they send their newest recruit to the center of the Earth to recover the last gem?

Another solid issue of this arc from Fialkov as everything is falling apart for everyone. Somehow Tony's death seems to have helped the team and hurt Reed at the same time and we're really starting to see more of the cracks in the armor for Reed's team. Reed has started creating doppelgängers out of his own flesh (weird) and Pietro points out, pretty accurately, that those are the only people Reed could ever love. Meanwhile, Hulk is angrier than ever with humanity but kept in check by the Herbietrons. Pietro and Wanda, as always, are their own entity and hard to classify. I will say, as someone who isn't as familiar with the Ultimate Universe as with the 616, Reed's attitude is a strange one. He's far more flippant and casual than the Reed of any other dimension we've seen, which is a little weirdly jarring. Still, the writing is good and the story is better. Each character seems to be getting his due (not so much her due since there are only like, three women currently appearing among all the men and only two of them have lines in this book...one of those women is simply nagging) and the plot is moving well enough to keep readers interested. Should be interesting. Don't be surprised if it ties into Fialkov's other Marvel book Hunger, as both take place in the Ultimate Universe and have to do with the possible destruction of the world and more.

Gambit 14, Journey Into Mystery 653, Nova 5

Gambit 14
Asmus (w) and Pham (a) and Roseberg (c)

Following the long story all connected to Joelle, Gambit gets a different case sent his way. Or rather, he's sent its way, I suppose, by Pete Wisdom of England's MI13. Wisdom, who we last saw being very annoyed with Gambit way back in Gambit's first arc, has made a bit of a huge mistake and needs Gambit to, on the down low, rectify it. A powerful book of fairy magic meant to harness some of the creatures in the fairy realm (England is full of that kind of stuff in Marvel). The book is the Faerie Grimoire and it was meant as a peace offering to those in the fairy realm and a girl stole it right out from Wisdom's nose. He needs Gambit to help get it back. The two snipe each other a bit (well, in truth, Wisdom snipes at Gambit a bit and Gambit enjoys himself altogether too much) and they put their plan in action, which involves Gambit posing as a magic store clerk (yes, they have magic stores in England) and sleight of handing the book away from her when she's distracted. It doesn't go particularly well as she recognizes Gambit and reveals herself to be a Death Reaper, which is some sort of scantily clad black magic practicer, from the looks of it. Gambit breaks free from her by kinetically charging some piercings on her face but it gives her enough time to start summoning from the book. Gambit tackles her and they both fall through a portal into the fairy world, where a bunch of fairies have already professed their love for Gambit and attack the Death Reaper, saving him and ending the book, save for one page that shows his return to Earth as a knight to the fairy people, infuriating Wisdom.

There are things to like about this issue but not a ton. The dialogue between Pete and Gambit is the highlight but there are times that even that borders on over-the-top. There's a story in here that might have been worth telling but it's very bogged down by a need to have everyone in the world kiss Gambit. The end of the issue, a severe deus ex, almost makes it feel like Asmus started it when he had more time to work with the story, then had to shut it down quickly to give enough time to write a final arc before the series ends after Marvel cancelled the book. That might be me making excuses for the book but, even if that's not what happened, it's the way that it felt.

Journey Into Mystery 653
K. Immonen (w) and Schiti (a) and Bellaire (c)

After Beta Ray Bill and Scuttlebutt (his ship) crash into the Avengers Jupiter base, where Sif is trying to help Gaea rest, Bill and Sif have a chance to catch up a bit. He tells her about the ship that's crashed and they argue a bit about how best to proceed. Bill and Sif set out to try to find both Gaea and Bill's girlfriend amidst the wreckage. Sif manages to find Bill's girlfriend and tries to transport her, wounded, to healing tech that Tony has in the base. She gets her there but she fears she was too late, as she dies in the tech. Bill finds them and is somewhat cold about her death. Sif asks for answers and he's unable to give many, explaining that something like a haze fell over him, blocking his memories a bit. That fits with whatever's been happening here too, as we saw Sif at the start of the issue confused about her predicament and unsure what she remembers. At first, the audience thinks it's just grogginess from the crash but it seems deeper than that now, with this new reveal. It also explains why people keep forgetting about Gaea. When Sif remembers, she takes off back into the base. Gaea is missing from her chamber and the audience sees her descending somewhere into the planet, into a place where Bill had stumbled searching for his girlfriend and which had rejected him, nearly killing him.

There's a lot happening here and it's pretty masterfully executed as pieces of the story make themselves evident to us when they need to be made evident and not a moment sooner. There's a lot of strange tension between Sif and Bill but it's written well and it often gives way to arguing or jokes of a sort. The story itself is an interesting one but we're a bit too early into it to tell how interesting it will remain. Let's assume pretty interesting. The saddest part about this series is its impending cancellation. This story feels like it could go on a bit longer and it's the sort of series that you feel deserves a sort of wrap-up issue but, with only two issues left, it's hard to imagine that there will be time for that. Depressing times as another good book winds down. Ugh, you guys, Red She-Hulk only has one more issue. WHAT IS THIS WORLD?

Nova 5
Loeb (w) and McGuinness and Vines (w) and Delgado (c)

Sam gets his helmet back out of the hands of Titus and uses it to rocket Titus away from his home for a moment while he runs and grabs the Ultimate Nullifier. His mom sees him in the Nova gear right as he's about to take off, a problem he decides he'll have to deal with later. Nova follows Titus to the spot he was blasted, which happens to be in front of a couple of the cool kids from school (including Sam's love interest). He protects them easily from Titus before grabbing him and space-jumping him back to the point in space where the Chitauri fleet is waiting. Titus is astounded by the decision, laughing at how stupid it is. Nova, separating himself a bit from Titus, pulls out the Ultimate Nullifier, prepared to use it on the whole fleet if he needs to. Titus tries to grab the Nullifier from him and ends up activating it, creating a sort of black hole in Chitauri space that everything gets pulled into, including, despite Sam's attempt to save him, Titus himself. The black hole closes and Gamora and Rocket Raccoon appear behind Sam to congratulate him and to take the Ultimate Nullifier for safe-keeping. He refuses and brings the Nullifier to the Watcher instead, who seems pleased with his actions. Then he returns home to talk with his mom, who is not upset with what he's doing as she always knew he would. He vows to find and save his father, who is still out there somewhere.

Everything wraps up with a nice little bow at the end of Nova's first arc. It wasn't a bad ending just like this isn't a bad book, per se, but every step seemed a little predictable. The introduction of this new Nova Corps is an interesting decision and could lead to pretty neat things but, by and large, this first arc was fairly cookie-cutter stuff. You can kind of read every beat as it's happening and it leads to asking what audience this book is aiming to grab. I would say this, more than something like Wolverine and the X-Men (which I have similar questions about), is an all-ages book that is meant to get kids more into comics. There are things here for adults to enjoy but not that many. If that's the intent, I think this book is probably doing fine. If it's not the intent and this is meant to be a serious addition to the Marvel Universe, I don't think it can last at this rate. However, the change in Novas from Richard Rider to Sam Alexander tells me that I am right. I'm so smart, guys.

FF 8, Guardians of the Galaxy 4

FF 8
Fraction (w) and M. Allred (a) and L. Allred (c)

The Baxter Building has reappeared in New York, fresh out of the Negative Zone and carrying, unbeknownst to our team, a hitchhiking Annihilus. Alex Power sees the report in the newspaper and tells Doom that he should probably be heading home now to help those kids deal with what happened. Doom strikes him and drags him to a holding cell, where he's keeping Alex's parents. Alex will do what Doom says from now on, Doom decrees. Meanwhile, the FF leave Dragon Man in charge of the kids and head to Himalayas, former site of the Inhumans' Attilan. There Medusa offers herself up for challenge from any Inhuman who thinks he or she could protect the children of the FF better than Medusa has, given her recent brainwashing. No one challenges her, which frustrates She-Hulk. She-Hulk views the Inhumans at this little tribunal as a bunch of yes-men and she believes that they should consider replacing Medusa for this. Medusa herself seems a little unsure of whether she's qualified or not but it's She-Hulk who really drives the point home. Back home, Bentley-23 and Ahura have returned to the Baxter Building and are promptly set upon by the other children, who call them "bad guys." Traps have been set all around the building and Bentley-23 and Ahura must try to navigate them while explaining that they're not bad. Or rather, that he is, he was born to be, but he's no different than before. Ahura is increasingly annoyed by everything but Bentley is pretty patient with everyone, eventually winning them over and complimenting Tong's new lifestyle choice. Later, in the Inhumans' flying city, Medusa comes to She-Hulk in her bedroom and gives her the chance to speak more as no one else will. It goes badly and the two end up in a scuffle. The two crash through several walls, including into what seems to be a hallway that Scott is walking down on his cellphone. He breaks the two up and tells them that Dragon Man has reported that Alex Power has returned home. Back home, old John Storm wakes up again, still screaming about Doom, and we find out that Doom, joined by Annihilus now, is getting information from an outside source: a young Kang the Conqueror, sometime in his life between Iron Lad and Kang and going by Immortus (changed from Kid Immortus by his girlfriend Ravonna).

A lot happened here, which seems to be the norm for this book. They don't match up against villains every issue or even every few issues but plenty continues to go on behind the scenes for our heroes. Here we've set up a rift in the FF, a spy among them, questions about worthiness on the team, and a few key villains teaming up with their eyes on the FF. Immortus is an interesting choice of villain and one I hadn't seen coming. Yes, Kang is kind of all over the Marvel Universe right now but he's in a great spot here. If this is at a time where we've somewhat recently left Iron Lad of the Young Avengers behind, which his attitude and youth seem to point at, his last bit of time on Earth saw his then girlfriend killed in front of him while the Avengers refused to let him go into the future to try to save her, as he'll eventually attempt with Ravonna (fifty year old spoiler). That girlfriend? Cassie Lang, daughter of Scott. Who killed her? Dr. Doom. All kinds of questions come up with this villain team-up and it's exciting to see where it's all going to end up.

Guardians of the Galaxy 4
Bendis (w) and Pichelli (a) and Ponsor (c)

The Guardians have escaped the Spartax guard and now celebrate at a shady bar, especially praising Groot who saved them all. Drax is drinking a fair amount and getting pretty belligerent, Peter is trying to attract a woman he found, and Tony is still fretting a bit about Earth. Rocket gives him a sort of phone that will allow him to call back to Earth from pretty much anywhere. Tony and Gamora flirt briefly and pretty quickly end up back in a room on the ship together. We flash from the bar to post-coitus and Gamora decides she's going back to the bar. On her way back, she's targeted by an assassin and shot in the back. The shot stuns her and her attacker, Maxilin the Accuser, comes to brag a bit about how she didn't even seem to realize there was a bounty on her head and how he so easily brought her down. She, of course, gets up and beats the crap out of him, only being brought down again when she tries to use his gun which will only work for him. Down again and this time with fewer tricks left, she's surprised to find Maxilin shot instead of her, as Rocket and the rest of the Guardians come around the corner, fleeing the bar which is quickly filling up with Spartax royal guard. They head back for the ship, where Tony has just called home to ask Pepper how things are going and if Earth is okay (it is). As they make their way to the ship, the audience sees Maxilin, still alive, slink away.

It seems if anyone is enlightened by Peter's announcement to the Spartax about they're corrupt king, it's not the Spartax royal guard and so we haven't eliminated any sort of fugitive feel for the team. Add on the bounty hunter(s) who will no doubt be coming after Gamora and the intrigue of whatever has caused those hunters to come after her and we have a bit of a story developing. The issue moves pretty well and Pichelli's art continues to stand out. There's a little of the back-and-forth dialogue but "a little" isn't detrimental. I think I can pretty easily say this is my favorite Bendis book coming out right now (I'll be ranting about two others tomorrow), though it's still too early for me to deem it a particularly successful book. I like a lot of where it's going and what it's doing but we'll have to let it feel itself out more.