An uninspired choice of title, I do apologize as I'm a bit fried but let's get to the reviews:
Secret Warriors #17: This book hangs in the balance. Already shaved down from 60 issues to 30 or so, the lead artist has left for other projects and sales are hanging in the mid to low range. Admittedly, it is impossible to initiate anyone into this book without having them start at issue #1 and very few people are willing to do that right now. I can only hope that Hickman keeps his head up and keeps writing the hell out of this book. He is such a talent and when this all wraps up, it is going to be a huge part of his bibliography for years to come. Each issue has been fantastic and this one is no different. Beginning the new arc, "The Last Ride of the Howling Commandos" we begin to see the final pieces get into place as Nick Fury's PMC unit celebrates one last time before what may potentially be their final mission. Also great to finally see some of the other caterpillars for the first time in over two years. These combined with a great last page are why I love this book so much. Fantastic dialogue, excellent characters and incredibly deep plot. Vitti has become the new lead artist here and his work is solid. but Casseli is definitely missed. My only real criticism is that after more than two years of having one of the most recognizable covers on the stands, Marvel broke away from that to showcase the Heroic Age banner. B+
Avengers #2: I don't know what has gotten into Brian Bendis, but I'm damn glad of it. For three weeks in a row now I've read a Bendis book that just absolutely smashes it out of the park. I was initially critical how rushed the initial issue was but those concerns fall away as the writing keeps the narrative tightly focused on the adventure at hand rather than worrying about ironing out continuity. Plenty of standing around chatting by the heroes, but also loads of great dialogue, especially from Tony Stark. I know plenty of people are upset with how Marvel Boy is being handled and I agree that "Protector" is the most ham fisted naming ever, but after an issue, I'll let it slide. Fantastic stuff by JRjr here, I really dug the 2099, Days of Future Past and Age of Apocalypse nods and the cliffhanger spread is absolutely awesome. I didn't think it was possible but the Avengers stock continues to rise and the next issue will only get better. A
Amazing Spider-Man #635: Anyone buying singles right now but not buying Spider-Man, does not like good comics. It is absolutely insane how good this book is. After how powerful #634 was, I had no clue how Joe Kelly was going to top himself, but he did. The plot on this story is absolutely off the rails providing homage to Kraven's Last Hunt, The Clone Saga, JMS's run, The Gauntlet and all kinds of crazy stuff. The involvement of the "other Spiders" makes perfect sense and you can't help but fist pump and pep talk Peter as he goes through this issue. Michael Lark continues to bring his A game to the world of Spider-Man and I'd expect nothing less. The bonus material is alright, it is frustrating to only get 2 Marcos Martin pages a week, and Fimura brings his unusual style to another stale "lost tale." Neither outshine the main book, but given that ASM is in the middle of its best run maybe ever, that isn't surprising. A+ (It is pretty hard to talk about this book without delving into spoilers, but good lord just read it.)
X-Men Legacy #237: I want so badly to just write, "Was ok" and move on, but that wouldn't be fair. Another chapter that hits "good" on the solid factor but just isn't that great. The dire threat of the Nimrods is wrapped up quickly with out X-Force ever really feeling like it was in danger and the last page cliffhanger is only a cliffhanger because I was so bored with the plot that I never bothered to put the time into figuring out how that particular thread would work out. Greg Land manages not to wreck things too badly again and even manages to put together a decent spread page. Two chapters left by Kyle and Yost, hopefully they end this with a bang. B-
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