Amazing Spider-Man #633: Shed concludes this week and by now you know that I've been passing out the kool aid to anyone who will listen about how great this story has been, and the final issue did not disappoint. It was however a lot quieter than I had anticipated, which wasn't bad at all. The evolved Lizard is going to be an interesting character for writers to use in the future now that it is clear Curt Connors is officially gone and a potential journey towards hero-dom could be quite interesting. A lot of credit to Zeb Wells for opting to conclude this arc with a lot of emotional power versus a giant fist fight, especially with ASM double shipping this week, those final pages were a subtle and powerful bridge into Joe Kelly's Grim Hunt story. Bachalo is as brilliant as ever and after three weeks, I don't have much more to say about what he brings to the table. A lot of love also to Emma Rios, whom I was skeptical of at the beginning, but performed admirably, especially in the final pages. This story was absolutely stellar and I do not regret my pushing it so hard in the least. A
New Mutants #14: Second Coming marches on this week, inching its way towards the finale and after 11 weeks, it really can't get here fast enough. I'm over rallying speeches, I'm over dramatic moments and I'm through with pointless deaths. Bring on the final confrontations, bring on the manifestation of powers and let's end this thing. At this point, I'm going to really need to be blown away by the finale, because with three issues to go now, I'm not sure how they're going to confront Bastion, save the city, save the future, resolve this three year Hope story and not have it feel like a rush job. At this point however, I fully expect Cable to die in the future, which will cause Hope to jump start the X-gene and rather than be an ending, Second Coming will only be the beginning of the next phase of X-stories. Plot complaints aside, this issue did have some enjoyable scenes, Legion was used in a very interesting fashion and it was great to see Colossus actually victimized, rather than simply off panel. The art was also handled well, given that it was comprised of 6 members, they kept everything looking uniform and solid. B-
Amazing Spider-Man #634: This is it. What everything has been building towards since last June. The Grim Hunt, and holy cow is here in a big way. Starting the story off a few days after #633, Peter is at rock bottom, adding swine flu to his list of burdens. I can't say too much about the plot because things take off from the very first page, including some serious call backs to the Clone Saga, JMS's run and some hints that have been dropped over the last year or so. Some serious care and energy went into this story and it shows. Joe Kelly has really kicked things off with a bang and has turned in one of the best ASM issues of the year, the last few pages alone were probably some of the most difficult and tear jerking panels I've read since.. well since I Kill Giants. Truly heart-wrenching stuff. Was great to see Michael Lark back on the pencils, his faces look goofy on occasion, but he absolutely killed this stuff with his fluid movements and subtle touches that really brought the story to life. The back-up features were alright, I don't think anyone particularly cares about another "Secret Kaine story" written by J.M. DeMatteis, but it was fun to see Max Fiumara back in Spidey's world. I was a little disappointed to find out that the Stan Lee/Marcos Martin joint is only 2 pages a week, but I'll take Marcos however I can get him. I have no clue how they're going to trump themselves next week, but I have every confidence that they will. A+
Brightest Day #4: The instant this story stops being a stream of blue-balling cliffhangers, it is going to take off in a huge way. There is so much talent in each issue that it is absolutely frustrating how poorly paced it has been. Things are slowly picking up, with Martian Manhunter's story missing in action and the Aquaman pages were re-purposed for the new Aqualad. Thankfully the biggest gains were made for Aliveman, who at this point is probably the main character of the story, but my largest frustration comes at the lack of Firestorm pages, primarily because I'm anxious to know if my theory about the revived heroes being converted Black Lanterns is correct. All things considered, the art is great in these issues, but with Reis, Syaf, Clark and Prado, who can be surprised by that. At this point you are either buying this or not, depending on how it all turns out, trade waiting may be the best idea. B
New Avengers #1: It is insanely frustrating how enjoyable this book was. Last week I remarked that I couldn't understand how Bendis wasn't translating the quality of his Ultimate Spider-Man comics into his Avengers work and it looks like he decided to show me the business. New Avengers was everything Avengers wasn't. Organic, natural, fluid, and filled with characters that felt like themselves instead of being puppeted around. I'd almost dare say that half the reason this issue was so good, was because Spider-Man and Wolverine barely do a thing. Luke Cage in the front and center is really the key here and his interactions with Victoria Hand especially let Bendis's talent for dialogue shine. Even the unrevealed enemy-as-driving force feels less forced than last month's encounter with Kang, as the tension builds in juxtaposition with the blossoming New Avengers. Carrying over from the last volume, the team of Immonen, Von Grawbadger and Martin continue to do fabulous things: this book looks great, reads great and flows fantastically. I think it will be difficult for even those who dislike JRjr over on Avengers to dispute that this is a visually impressive book. Overall, my only complaint is that there is no credit to Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction for the lifting of the great idea to elaborate on Doctor Voodoo's spells and where they came from. A+
The Black Cat #1: In a week with 4 Spider-Man comics, this was actually the one I was most looking forward to. Jen Van Meter and Javier Pulido set up a Felicia Hardy story that is running concurrently with the Grim Hunt, and while those details are still developing, the inital story is still fantastic. As a long running member of Spidey's supporting cast, I may be wrong but I don't think Felicia has ever received the level of background that Van Meter provides here, generating a supporting cast of the Cat's own: from the women who handle her gear to the men who provide her with information. It was great to have a look past the "independent woman"facade she is always written with, for a better look into her life. Everything about the story feels genuine, the dialogue is natural and the events of the book are perfectly suited to a street level hero with a more minor super-power. Visually, this comic pops. From the people I've talked to, Javier Pulido tends to get lost in Marcos Martin's shadow, but as an individual talent, he is just as skilled as Marcos, if not more. With a fantastic use of panel construction and unique layouts, Pulido's talking scenes feel just as fluid as the action, eliminating any chance for a dull moment to even exist. I was very surprised at how lengthy this comic felt, even more so than the other Spidey issues this week. With Shed having been concluded, this may be my new Spider-Man comic to push on everyone, as it was absolutely fantastic. A
No comments:
Post a Comment