This week's picks!

Smaller slate of books out this week means that, unless we hit an improbable 50% amazing books mark, the selection process is more about picking the clear winners and then, the far trickier part, deciding who takes third place. In a week with more books, there's a far greater chance that you have four or five deserving books so the trouble becomes trying to pare down to how those four or five rank. But we should have plenty for this week, right?

Captain Marvel 17

The final entry of this volume of CAPTAIN MARVEL, which has been a truly tremendous run and which I imagine will continue to be tremendous when DeConnick moves to the next volume, starting early next year. I'm interested to see the changes between the two books (Captain Marvel...in SPACE) but, for this book, it's been a near perfect series and this was an absolutely perfect send-off. Very sweet, very character-driven, wonderful book. I don't think this book could have turned out any better than it did and to end this run of it (even if it's just ending for a month or two before kind of restarting) here, in an issue focused on the people in Carol's life as much as on Carol herself, is an absolutely perfect decision. Definitely one of the best series of this year (I know, we're getting to the time of year where people have to start thinking about best of lists. Gross) and a beautiful and meaningful and emotional ending for it. Perhaps the saddest thing about this series ending (particularly saddest in the respect of "it's starting over again soon so don't get too sad") is that it seems the end of DeConnick and Andrade teaming up, which was the most amazing team-up. What an artist, that guy.

X-Men Legacy 19

Okay it was either this or CAPTAIN AMERICA and neither one is ever really off of these pull list picks but I went with X-MEN LEGACY because this one is rather sticking with me more. I talked a lot about how DeConnick made this last issue of CAPTAIN MARVEL more impressive and emotional by playing a long game (long con) and making all of the characters in Carol's life mean something, making it a far bigger impact when she has to fall back on them. Spurrier's done very much the same thing in LEGACY in a very different way; he's built a resourceful, smart, sympathetic, and extremely powerful, if entirely broken (borked, as David would say) character throughout the length of this series only to now show us just how hard it is to be that character. David has such a well-defined personality and such a specific voice that building an entire issue where we see the culmination of all of the events of the series and their repercussions while also watching him battle through those repercussions and try to find a way out. And that's before we even TALK about the evil Xavier and the shadow of the Phoenix. Come on guys, great stuff.

Thor: The Dark World

SURPRISE, this one's not a comic. If I had picked a comic it would have just been CAPTAIN AMERICA and we all would have been like "hey, look at all this diversity Tim's pulling out, X-MEN LEGACY and CAPTAINS MARVEL and AMERICA. Not at all like any other week!" You guys are being awfully judgmental, huh? Anyway, I get the chance to throw a major Marvel movie in my picks once every six months or thereabouts so you can bet I'm taking my chance to do it now. Really fun movie, not without its faults (more tomorrow!) but ultimately a really well-done, exciting, fun movie. Bonus: the casting of Christopher Eccleston as Malekith is pretty well hidden so you very rarely, if ever, think of him as the ninth Doctor while watching the movie. But sometimes you do. And sometimes that hurts. Anyway, lot of fun, can't say much more but I will tomorrow. The idea of the thing, though, is that it makes my top picks of the week because you should really check it out. I'm sure Marvel Studios could use your support.



Best book that was repeatedly mentioned in this post but not actually given a spot

Captain America 13
Pretty good, you guys!

Cataclysm - The Ultimates' Last Stand 1, Daredevil Dark Nights 6, Fantomex MAX 2

Cataclysm - The Ultimates' Last Stand 1
Bendis (w) and Bagley and Hennessy (a) and Keith (c)

Galactus is in the Ultimates Universe and he's ready to eat some worlds up, specifically Ultimate Earth. He shows up and Miles Morales is the first one on the scene, wondering what he can possibly do against the behemoth standing over the world. Fortunately, it's not long before the other Ultimates show up but, unfortunately, it's after Galactus blows up a sizable portion of New Jersey. Iron Man's readings on Galactus reveal that he's come from the 616 and Tony has legitimately no idea how to stop him, particularly as the combined might of their heroes seems to weigh not at all on Galactus. Tough fight incoming for the Ultimates and the rest of the world.

Not too much to this issue but pretty much exactly what there needed to be. We don't get a ton of character or depth of plot or anything like that; what we get is the immensity of the threat Galactus presents and the impact that the Ultimates, this Earth's greatest superhero team, has on them. It's a very worrying prospect for the universe and for the team and, though there's not much else to say about what happened in the issue, the threat speaks volumes. I think that CATACLYSM 0.1 last week was a better issue for characterization and the theoretical threat Galactus poses to the Ultimate Universe, exploring the idea in the differences between the 1610 and the 616 and how difficult it's always been for the 616 to stave off Galactus while highlighting just how much better equipped they've always been to deal with it. This issue is important, then, for showing the physical threat of Galactus. No more theoretical, no more "oh geez, this could go badly;" this issue needs to show "oh geez, this is going really badly." I think it accomplishes that pretty well. We'll see where the event goes from here.

Daredevil Dark Nights 6
Palmiotti (w) and Silas and Decastro (a) and Fabela (c)

Matt, alongside a random FBI agent named Keller, is escorting witness Nestor Canosa, a New York dishwasher who happened to see known drug lord Oscar Gomez stab popular DJ Brian Adams in a back alley, to Miami to testify against Gomez. We'll get back to this ridiculous summary sentence in the analysis just...just keep in mind how convoluted it sounds, even in the writing of it (sorry). When the group lands, they stop off at their hotel where Matt finds New York superhero friend Misty Knight lounging by the pool. They don't have a ton of time to catch up (though the sheer volume of words might make you think differently) as Agent Keller crashes out of a window and into the pool. He surfaces to tell Matt that Canosa is under attack. Matt and Misty run up to find a couple of attackers in the hotel room. Matt, now costumed, sends Canosa out of the room where Keller picks him up to try to protect him. However, the two separate groups are swarmed by backup and Keller is shot repeatedly, leaving the men no resistance in taking Canosa. Matt and Misty continue their investigation and track the kidnappers by their getaway car, crashing the party and finding out that Canosa is already gone, possibly still alive.

Jimmy Palmiotti has been around for awhile but I mostly know him as an inker. He's been on plenty of good books and he frequently worked alongside Joe Quesada, most notably (for me) on Quesada's artistic run on DAREDEVIL. I haven't seen a ton of his writing work; really my only experience with it is this year's WHAT IF...AVX. Between that and this first issue of Palmiotti's three on DAREDEVIL DARK NIGHTS, I think it's safe to say he is a pretty awful writer. I'm not thrilled with the story, which is both cliché and overly convoluted, but it's his exposition and his dialogue that are real killers. My first sentence in my summary paragraph was actually not far off from what's written, though it's about 15 sentences shorter. It's an incredibly slow book, one that really should be over by word count maybe ten pages in, again, particularly when the story is so cliché. Even THAT doesn't really cover it, though, as the writing is simply awkward. There's a distinct lack of, and I know this is going to sound weird and petty, contractions and it throws off every line of dialogue. Contractions are really something that you don't notice until they're not there. The phrasing of every contraction-lacking line suddenly becomes remarkably robotic and stiff which then, in turn, makes the would-be more natural lines sound out of place. It's just a mess. And I'm not particularly a fan of the art, to make matters worse. It's a little upsetting, assuming this trend will continue (and I'm willing to make that assumption after similarities between this and the writing of WHAT IF...AVX), that this arc will end what has been, in the least, an enjoyable Daredevil series.

Fantomex MAX 2
Hope (w) and Crystal (a) and Loughridge (c)

I changed my mind, I don't want to review this one, you guys. One of the extremely few joys of not getting to do this for a living is that I can pretty well pick-and-choose what "review every Marvel book" means by my own personal standards. There are, of course, a handful of books I've skipped because they didn't really fit the superhero brand I'm looking for on this blog and there are a handful that rank somewhere below my level of noticing (there was a weird tie-in between Wolverine and some, I don't know, Kitchen Nightmares like TV show? I, uh, I skipped that one and just didn't tell you guys). This one I'm begging out of, despite absolutely adoring Fantomex as a character and being, in the very least, mildly interested in the art of the book (and more than mildly interested by the amazing Francesco Francavilla covers on the series), because I find the book so ridiculously gratuitous. Here's the thing that's kind of hard for me, as a self-proclaimed reviewer, to justify though: I've complained about MAX books not going far enough simply because it made the MAX line feel unnecessary to be used to tell a story that any other book could tell. It seems like Hope and Crystal are giving us a book meant for a MAX line with ridiculous amounts of swearing, sex (both implied and not-implied and consensual and not consensual), and violence. But that doesn't mean it's worth reading. I think gratuitous is probably the word that most fits and it's something I don't really want to get into. If you want this book, read it. If you don't, I don't blame you one bit. I don't and so, fortunately, I won't.

Amazing X-Men 1, X-Men Legacy 19, Longshot Saves the Marvel Universe 1

Amazing X-Men 1
Aaron (w) and McGuinness and Vines (a) and Gracia (c)

Nightcrawler is still around in some capacity (whether or not to say he's technically alive, as it were) and has been peering down on his old life from what, for all intents and purposes, is Heaven. As much as he longed to qualify for Heaven as a religious man when he was alive, he finds himself unfulfilled there, wishing he was still back with his friends as an X-Man. We seem to have peeked in on him at the right time, though, as he suddenly finds himself embroiled in a siege on Heaven led by none other than Nightcrawler's father, the demon Azazel. Meanwhile, back at the Jean Grey School, new teacher Firestar is having some problems getting adjusted to the fast-paced style of the school. On her first day, she helps Hank McCoy follow a couple of bamfs to a portal they've built deep within the recesses of the school. They call the rest of the staff down and worry about what the portal is and what it can do when a bunch of red bamfs (Azazel's crew, apparently) jump out of it, trying to keep the X-Men from entering. Eventually, though, the portal pulls a couple in and Wolverine and Northstar find themselves in Heaven, watching Azazel's pirate ship attack and hearing tell of a blue elf.

I wondered what kind of tone Aaron was going to bring to this book. Right now he's writing two major ongoing books at Marvel, THOR: GOD OF THUNDER and WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN. The two are entirely different books starring entirely different casts of characters (BREAKING NEWS FROM THE MARVELS BLOG: Thor and the X-Men are different!) and, thus, have entirely different tones. I appreciate the difference in tone; if the two books featured entirely different characters and plots but had the same tone, it would seem incredibly incongruous. However, that doesn't guarantee that both tones will fit both books. I have often pointed out that I don't particularly like the tone of WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN and that it feels more goofy and less serious. I think there's a place for that in comics, a medium birthed from that sort of thing (not with, say, the golden age stuff, just with comics in general, hence the name), but it permeates and leaves a sort of disconnect between characters from one book to another. Again, I think there's a place for it and I think there are ways to make it work even within these titles, but it doesn't work for me as the ongoing feel. This is my roundabout way of saying that that's the feeling I'm getting right from the start from AMAZING X-MEN. I was a little on edge waiting for this book, wondering what approach Aaron was going to take; the seriousness and weight of THOR or the zaniness and comedy of WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN. It seems the latter and I'm a little put-off already. McGuinness' art is solid though I most recently saw him in NOVA and I can't help but see Nova's face on just about every front-facing character, particularly tricky to see when that face is someone like Azazel. We'll have to see how this one shapes up.

X-Men Legacy 19
Spurrier (w) and Huat and Yeung (a) and Villarrubia (c)

The Xavier that was in David's head is loose and wreaking havoc on an unprepared world while David himself is contained at the Peak, the base of SWORD operations, by Abigail Brand. The weight of the situation is expressed to him by one-time foe Aarkus the Aetheric, the original Vision who went a little crazy in his solitude on the moon and decided mutants were a threat that needed to be purged (way back in X-MEN LEGACY 9, true believers). Aarkus has seen the errors of his way and snapped out of it in time to try to help the world defeat the evil Xavier. He explains to a power-suppressed David that Xavier is essentially a manifestation of David's hate and it's spreading that hate all around the world, powered up by its new body. David, though, is doing his best not to listen as he tries to wrangle the powers in his brain, even with his powers being suppressed by SWORD. He manages to take down old standby Tyrannix the Abomanoid and start hunting through Aarkus' head. He can't help but hear the state of the situation from Aarkus as he tries to ignore it and push forward, trying to get any sort of idea of where this is all heading from Aarkus' mind, where he finds Aarkus thinking about "the weapon," something vague and undefined to David but that is clearly the next part of the plan. He eventually pushes his luck and asks Aarkus about it, realizing too late that the weapon is meant to be tested on David before being set loose on evil Xavier. That weapon? Aarkus explains that it is the clutch-mate, rescued by a younger Aarkus himself, of a more powerful bird in the Marvel Universe. It's the shadow of the Phoenix.

More really cool stuff here and my feelings on this book are pretty well-documented. That's why it pains me to say that it seems like this series is officially ending with issue 24, as documented by Si Spurrier both from his own Tumblr and on the X-Men Legacy Tumblr. Okay, I actually want to rephrase that. Nothing is official, first and foremost, and certainly not about the series itself. However, it does seem as if Si Spurrier's run on the book will end with issue 24 and I have to imagine they won't put David on anyone else either. If the book continues past that, I'd expect it to focus on another character or another couple of characters. I could be wrong but that's the feeling I'm getting from Spurrier's responses and just from the conceit of the character on the whole. No one has done more for a severely complicated character than Spurrier has for David, even if it meant complicating him more. This is another stellar issue with David forced to face the consequences of his actions which certainly seem a little less than noble when seen from an outside perspective, as Aarkus displays them here. It's been a phenomenal book and I'm really sad to see that it's ending, though we all kind of knew this was coming and I'd rather have Spurrier leave it on the top of its game instead of letting it stagnate. And it just makes me all the more excited for Spurrier's X-Force.

Longshot Saves the Marvel Universe 1
Hastings (w) and Camagni (a) and Milla (c)

Longshot, the luck-based superhero born from the Mojoverse and most recently a member of X-Factor, gets his own improbable mini-series helmed by Dr. McNinja writer Christopher Hastings. We get a bit of a look into the day-to-day life of Longshot, who doesn't totally understand the workings of his own luck powers but understands enough to know how to make them work for him. He can use the power to help others and be pure of heart or else he risks the luck turning sour. For example, he considers using his powers to get money to buy a taco (or to be given a taco) and, as his powers begin to activate, an explosion occurs in the house behind him as criminals bust into a safe, a series of events that Longshot claims were put into action by his eventual decision to luck his way into some tacos. Longshot enters the apartment to help the people inside, a woman and her scientist father, who he feels responsible for putting in harm's way. Meanwhile, a strange new villain searches the streets of New York for Longshot, going on a killing spree of people who happened to have good luck any given moment. This does not include an incredibly unlucky Reed Richards and Tony Stark, who have discovered something in their lab and are trying now to get rid of it in a safe way. Eventually, all the storylines converge as the villain tracks Longshot to the apartment and Reed and Tony end up detoured by at the same time. The scientist Longshot saved attacks the villain with his own cosmic radiation gun but the shot goes through him, hitting Reed and causing him to lose control of his shape-shifting and destroying the truck he and Tony were traveling in. A briefcase flies to Longshot's side and reveals a cosmic cube inside, which Longshot inadvertently uses to tell the villain to "get lost." The world reorganizes on the moment and we see a reimagined day where the woman Longshot saved thwarts the explosion in her apartment before it starts, Tony and Reed don't discover anything, and SHIELD has laws in place against unregistered sorcerers that allows a hit squad to attack Longshot.

Wow, that summary went on WAY longer than I expected it to. There are books that do that sometimes, for better or worse, and leave me with a better understanding of what happened or leave me confused as to why it took so long to explain it. I've tried on occasion to tone my summaries down and inevitably end up with long summaries again, maybe after a week or so of doing relatively well with shorter ones. Infinity hasn't helped that, with double long books regularly requiring extra explanation and therefore skewing all of my summaries in general longer. Clever readers might notice that currently I'm stalling for time as I try to think more about my opinions on this book. Here's the thing: it's not a bad book. It's fun enough, there are nice character moments, there are neat little ideas peppered throughout. It just feels...odd. I can't put my finger on it. Part of it might have to do with the wordiness of it; for all of its fun atmosphere and dialogue and characters, it's one of those books where you reach halfway through it and go "geez, there's HOW MUCH more of this left?" Unfortunately for Hastings, I think that's inherent to a book like this, which features a character readers don't know too much about and who hasn't really headlined his own book, even strange mini-series, in a couple decades. Still, the book is fun and the art fits it really well. I'm hoping that the next issue, which will certainly need to explain more of this current plot, will be able to kind of solidify its tone and will have to dedicate less time to simply explaining who Longshot is.

Tiny "Thor: The Dark World" review

I don't want to review too much just yet because technically the movie isn't out yet and I don't want to let any spoilers out of the bag (that said, SORRY IF THIS SPOILS ANYTHING FOR YOU) so I plan to go super-basic with just first impressions and give a more full review on maybe Monday.

Really fun movie, definitely another win in Marvel's book. There were certainly bits that felt a little coincidental and really existed to bring our plot and characters together but they're easy enough to overlook. I'd say the movie's biggest flaw, by about tenfold, was Kat Denning's character Darcy, who appears far too much in this movie, a complaint I had with the first Thor although she was in that one less. A couple of forced laugh bits here and there but some truly wonderful humor at points and really solid characterization and acting pretty much all around. Like I said, I plan to go more into this and more spoiler heavy when more of the world has gotten a chance to see it (okay, Monday, not that much more of a chance but you're lucky I'm waiting now) but for now, the takeaway is that I really liked it and I'm looking forward to seeing it again.

OH, also, if they make a SANDMAN movie at any point (preferably soon for this plan), they REALLY need to cast Tom Hiddleston. He'd be amazing.

Si Spurrier combining and taking over X-Force

More news! Si Spurrier, writer of the phenomenal X-MEN LEGACY, will be taking over for both Sam Humphries and Dennis Hopeless as he combines the two ongoing X-Force teams into one team, starring Cable, Psylocke, Fantomex, and Marrow following the four-part crossover between the two series "Vendetta" early next year.

I like Dennis Hopeless a lot and I've liked his series and I think Humphries is coming along on his series so I'm a little sad to see the shift here BUT I'm not terribly sad because this sounds amazing. I absolutely love Spurrier's work and an interview of his (http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2013/11/07/x-force-comic-book-series/3464365/...I would link it more casually but I'm on my phone and there aren't many options for that) is super encouraging. I just love his take and his view on characters and I'm particularly interested in his ideas for Fantomex, who I love anyway. Very, very excited. Also in that interview is mention of an X-Force movie? I'll look into that more later, hmm?

Mighty Avengers 3, Marvel Knights Spider-Man 2

Mighty Avengers 3
Ewing (w) and Land and Leisten (a) and D'Armata (c)

Shuma-Gorath continues its attack on the city, allowed some access through Thanos' attack and protected by Ebony Maw's manipulation of Dr. Strange, while Spider-Man tries to save a gravely injured Spectrum. Blue Marvel arrives on the scene just in time to stall Shuma-Gorath and begin the healing process on Spectrum, who he gives extra photons to in order to boost her weakened areas which previously non-existent anti-photons have attacked. The process is painful but it strengthens Spectrum and saves her life. Amidst all the terror, Power Man and White Tiger return to the scene to help. Under the direction of the mysterious Spider-Hero, Power Man summons chi from all over the city and focuses it on White Tiger, who unleashes the Tiger God on Shuma-Gorath, effectively weakening it enough for Blue Marvel and Spectrum to destroy its physical presence in New York. As the fight ends, a nearby reporter asks them about their team-up and Luke dubs them an official Avengers team.

I'm interested to see where this team is going more than I'm interested in these first few issues. Starting a team in the middle of an event is tricky business and allows for just about no relationship building which leaves this team feeling cobbled together and a bit slap-dash. I think there is a part of this book where that is supposed to be true; these aren't the heroes that went to space to fight the aliens or the ones who are gathered in Wakanda, these are the heroes who were left-over. Not to say they're not a formidable team, they're just not a team. As a result, it's hard to judge the book based on what we're seeing in these first few issues. On top of that, we have a character whose true identity has yet to be revealed, two young characters with little experience, a Spider-Man who isn't Peter Parker, and a hero of a bygone age starring alongside Avengers veterans Luke Cage and Monica Rambeau. It's a strange team and one that will require team-building if the series is to last, something that, as I said, wasn't particularly possible in these first few issues. If anything, kicking this off in an event gives Ewing a chance to showcase the physical strength and problem-solving skills of the team, leaving the team-nature to later. As I said, the team is formidable for sure, just not really team, as yet, which will have to be worked out as the series progresses.

Marvel Knights Spider-Man 2
Kindt (w) and Rudy (a) and Staples (c)

Spider-Man finds himself falling from the sky into water amidst the wreckage of a plane and needs to recount the events of the last fifteen minutes. Aboard the plane, he fought Sandman, Shocker, Hydro-Man, and Mysterio, fairly big name Spidey villains and ones who probably shouldn't be, on the best of days, fought in a constricted space. Spider-Man walks us through the fights, revealing that his spider-sense does more than just warn him of incoming danger, it helps him plot his attacks; a bad attack plan will cause his spider-sense to go off while a better plan will leave it silent. Pretty neat, huh? Anyway, he uses this to best his enemies before bursting out of the plane while it disappears (maybe? The art and the writing both get a little vague at this point) and he heads for the ocean as he wonders who it is behind all of this, who's rallying the troops here and as a word floats through his head: who is the kingpin of all this?

Another interesting story with really stunning art and some surprisingly good characterization. I say surprisingly because this doesn't feel like it's a book meant to be exploring too deep into Spider-Man's thoughts; it feels more like an intense fight-based book meant to really elevate the artist more than anything else and to put layout and comic design above story and character. That's not entirely the case, though, as we see an interesting introspective side of Spidey, one which can't help wondering about the repeated failures of his villains and about their mental states as he defeats them. He recognizes that, despite all of his hardships, he's never the one who ends up in prison or losing the majority of the fights so the look in the villains' eyes as he knocks them out is beyond anything he's aware of. It's an interesting side of Spider-Man, who is one of the more introspective and sympathetic heroes in the Marvel Universe already. Again, though, it's the art that really elevates this book to a new level. It's very cool and very unique, though sometimes it does get a little in the way of the storytelling. Sometimes it's a little hard to follow and to understand what exactly is happening but by and large, it's an easy enough story and enough of a well-known character that there's very little the art can do to hinder the writing. It's not like we're trying to guess Peter Parker's motives or we're trying to guess at the motives of his enemies. We get all that, we get this story (though it's still a little in the shadows) and so there's plenty of leeway for the art. Spectacular art.

Marvel partnering with Netflix for new original programming!

Oh man guys, this is a pretty big one. On the heels of the probable success of ABC's Marvel's Agents of SHIELD and the ongoing success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Thor: The Dark World premieres in America THIS VERY EVENING), Marvel has announced a partnership with Netflix to produce four brand-new serialized programs leading to a mini-series event. The four live-action series will be focused on individuals Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage, ultimately leading to the mini-series The Defenders which will presumably team the four to fight in Hell's Kitchen.

This is a bombshell of an announcement. Marvel has only recently reclaimed the rights to Daredevil after a long stint with Fox (that saw the creation of Daredevil in 2003 and Elektra, for some reason, in 2005 - check out the "How Did This Get Made" podcast this week for the HDTGM team's thoughts on Daredevil along with special guest and one-time Daredevil writer Ed Brubaker) and the company has been working out ways to celebrate that news. On top of that, rumors of a Heroes for Hire or Jessica Jones series have swirled for the last few years as both of those properties lend themselves more to a lower budget, serialized project than something like Thor or Iron Man. All in all, this is a huge announcement with extremely high hopes and what I would call an extraordinarily high ceiling. Of course, it could always go the other way but LET'S NOT THINK ABOUT THAT NOW, LET'S ALL JUST GET OUR HOPES REALLY REALLY HIGH.