A Week of Reviews 12/18/13

Today yielded bountiful returns in the way of comics, some of which I reviewed on Adventures In Poor Taste. This week we saw the end of a phenomenal series, the penultimate issue of another great book, a brutal yet tasteful spy comic and two X-Men comics, one much better than the other. Excluding a possible Thor review coming and a Red Sonja review that may also be written, here are your weekly reviews, written by yours truly:

Buzzkill #4 (of 4) 

My review: Is it Good? Buzzkill #4 Review
Comic Book Round-Up page: List of all Buzzkill #4 reviews
Dark Horse profile: Buzzkill #4 description and preview

Zero #4

My review: Is it Good? Zero #4 Review
Comic Book Round-Up page: List of all Zero #4 reviews
Image Comics profile: Zero #4 description and preview

Never Ending #2 (of 3)

My review: Is it Good? Never Ending #2 (of 3) Review
Comic Book Round-Up page: List of all Never Ending #2 reviews
Dark Horse profile: Never Ending #2 description and preview

All-New X-Men #20

My review: Is it Good? All-New X-Men #20 Review
Comic Book Round-Up page: List of all All-New X-Men #20 reviews
Marvel Comics profile: All-New X-Men #20 description and preview

X-Men #8

My review: Is it Good? X-Men #8 Review
Comic Book Round-Up page: List of all X-Men #8 reviews
Marvel Comics profile:

Buzzkill #4: Review on Adventures In Poor Taste

Hey Pull-List people,

I've got a cool new review up on Adventures in Poor Taste; it's of Buzzkill #4, and I loved it!

In case you haven't been following my writings about the series let me fill you in:

• I didn't write a review of Buzzkill #1, so there is nothing to see there
• I did, however, review Buzzkill #2, loving it so much that it was our comic of the week that week. Here's the link: Review: Buzzkill #2
• Directly after reading this issue I requested an interview with the writer himself, Donny Cates. I was so fortunate to get an interview with him. You can see that here: Interview with Donny Cates
• Come the next month I wrote a review for the third installment. If you want to read that: Review: Buzzkill #3
• And finally this week, I wrote a review for the final issue; this can be found through this link: Review: Buzzkill #4

Closing thoughts:

I really loved Buzzkill, all of it's interesting and fresh characters, it's clever writing and most of all: it's emotionally driven finale. It enhanced the experience to be able to talk with Donny, he's a really great guy and an extremely promising writer. Geoff Shaw is one of my current favorite artists, and that is not without reason. His work with shading is uncanny and he carries action better than anyone in the industry. I have been extremely pleased with this series and am more than a little let down now that it's over.

Pull-List 12/18/13

I know: I haven't posted in a while. You can see a lot of my recent writings on Adventures In Poor Taste if you so choose. But here we are again and I have a new feature for all you fine folk. This is what I'm looking at for this Wednesday:

The Pull-List

 All-New X-Men #20 (Marvel Comics)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Brandon Peterson

After a very disappointing last issue I am a little bit hesitant to see where Brian Michael Bendis is going to take X-23. Anyway, I will be reviewing this one on AiPT, I will post the link on Wednesday.

Buzzkill #4 (of 4) (Dark Horse)
Writer/Co-Creator: Donny Cates
Artist: Geoff Shaw
Co-Creator: Mark Reznicek

A couple months back I actually got an interview with writer Donny Cates, you can check that out here. This is (sadly) the final issue of Buzzkill. Although I got a free advanced review copy of this courtesy of Dark Horse I will be picking this up in my local store just to support this incredible team. I have written a review of this issue which will be posted for your viewing pleasure come Wednesday.

Zero #4 (Image Comics)
Writer: Ales Kot
Artist: Jordie Bellaire

My review of Zero #3 (my first review of the series) was actually shared by Image on both Facebook and Twitter. I'm back to review this issue and hope it will be just as good as #3. I will be writing a review, I'll post the link on Wednesday.

Deadpool #21 (Marvel Comics)
Writer: Gerry Dugan
Artist: Mike Hawthorne

Deadpool vs. S.H.I.E.L.D! I have heard great things about the current Deadpool run and want to see for myself. Unfortunately I will not be reviewing this on AiPT.

Indestructible Hulk #17.INH (Marvel Comics)
Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Clay Mann

I'm very excited to pick this series back up after I quit a while back when Walt Simonson left. I am extremely interested in Inhumanity and expect that under the pen of Mark Waid, Bruce Banner will play an interesting part in the event.

Never Ending #2 (of 3) (Dark Horse)
Writers: Adam P. Knave and DJ Kirkbride
Artist: Robert Love

I recently got an interview with Adam and DJ, you can check that out here:

I plan to review this one as well.

Saga #17 (Image Comics)
Writer: Brian K. Vaughn
Artist: Fiona Staples

Saga. 'Nuff said.

I do not plan to review this for the site.

Thor God of Thunder #16 (Marvel Comics)
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Ron Garney

Not entirely sold on this new storyline but still enjoying it. However, with Malekith being done so much justice in the recent Thor movie maybe Jason Aaron can turn things around. Might review it if I have time.

Umbral #2 (Image Comics)
Writer: Antony Johnston
Artist: Christopher Mitten

When Dave reviewed Umbral #1 last month he gave it a ten out of ten. I was not quite as enthusiastic about the first issue but enjoyed it nonetheless. I do not have any plans to review this issue.

X-Men #8 (Marvel Comics

Writer: Brian Wood

Artist: Muertas Part 2

Very excited to get to this one, loved it last month and plan on reviewing it again for the site.

That's it for this week folks! Tune in on Wednesday to get a total recap of my week in comics!

Review: Batman and Batgirl #21

I really hate what the New 52 has done to Batgirl. She is no longer an interesting, engaging, fun, character. Rather, everyone likes to write her so she is constantly wallowing in self-pity and blaming herself for all her family's problems. This issue was no different. Although I have complete trust in Peter J. Tomasi as an author and storyteller, I think he really screwed up this issue. Batgirl is not made interesting at all and Batman is the same angry, half-insane dad we've seen throughout this entire saga. The whole issue Batgirl is building confidence to confront Bruce. When she eventually does, it's kind of underwhelming. She is just a whiny, little, complainer who says the same thing as everyone else in the Bat-Family. I am also heartily disappointed in Patrick Gleason for have leaving after 20 issues. I want you back Pat. This new guy is crap.

Review: Age of Ultron #10

Now, Marvel, you're just wasting my time. I was on board for the first four issues of AoU. I was even down with the next couple of issues. Last issue was a disgrace to humanity. I can't give this issue any higher praise.
First, let me say, I hate having art switch on me in the same book. You realized that there were ten pencilers on this book. Right? What good can come out of ten pencillers? That's right: not much. The constant art switches where a pain in the rear, and I hate Bryan Hitch in the first place.
The whole, "time capsule, message to the past, Hank Pym" narration is ok. It doesn't really make sense. But hey, who the hell cares if something makes sense? The whole issue was about some team of Avengers or faction or whatever (I hate the Avengers) so I lost interest about 4 pages in. The rest was kind of surprising if you have a giant knowledge of the entire Marvel Universe. I just know about the X-Men, so I wasn't shocked too bad. Some of the storytelling during the Universe morphing was kind of cool, but only kind of. I am so glad this series is over. I didn't understand the last pages at all; but I hope the ending doesn't affect Guardians of the Galaxy too much.

Review: Guardians of the Galaxy #3

For some reason, I just feel like nothing has gone on in this title. I really want this series to move out of this phase it's in, whatever phase that is because it isn't very interesting. The story is kind of all over the place with this issue. We see the tastefully named J-Son (I was being sarcastic) have a meltdown in front of the most powerful people in the Galaxy. Nice move Captain Wonder Name. Everyone decides their sort of sick of the guy. Of course you would only think of that now. Although I resent Steve McNivens' use of computerized art he does draw some kick-ass landscapes. All of the intergalactic hoo-ha is Star Wars-esque and quite beautifully drawn. I, however, dislike the way Mr. McNiven draws faces quite a bit. Tony Stark has a meltdown towards the beginning of the issue where he is just screaming at seemingly nothing for the Avengers to Assemble. Yeah. 'Cause that'll work Iron Man.
As we found out last issue the Guardians were imprisoned by some Baboon warship or something like that. Anyways, I kind of enjoy seeing the agents on the ship who are assigned to take all of the weapons debate over whether such "primitive" objects are considered weapons. I always like reading dialogue written by Bendis, but this isn't his best storytelling. It is nice to see the team all together at the end, especially the scenes with Groot. I will stay with this book until the next arc, but if that doesn't blow my mind I think I might be dropping it.

Review: Batman #21

Zero Year is here! But...it's not mind-blowing. A lot of people have been calling this issue "decent" and "not as good as expected" but I think they aren't giving it credit for what it was. It is really easy to start multiple story threads when you have a team or group of characters, but the Batman title doesn't have a lot of people featured in it so you can imagine why it would be considerably harder to start multiple threads at once. Nonetheless, master comic author Scott Snyder manages to deliver a very intriguing first chapter of this epic.
 I honestly would have put this issue down if once again I had to witness the death of Bruce's parents. EVERY SINGLE BATMAN ORIGIN STORY IS THE SAME. This issue instead starts in a Gotham of the past that was not at all as nice a place to live as it is in the present. Batman is not the man we are used to seeing, and his rogues gallery is not quite the same either. We are reintroduced to a villain we met briefly in the #0 issue. This would of course be Red-Hood and the Red-Hood Gang. Batman saves a truckload of hostages in the most creative and enjoyable getaway in comics. We then see Bruce talking to Alfred about some plans and whatnot and the Red-Hood Gang seem to come up more than once. What I found particularly interesting is that the gang is just a bunch of random people with guns. They could be your neighbors, spouses, or best friend. The last scene of the book was a universe building moment where Bruce and his Uncle talk about family matters. Bruce wants to "stay dead" for various reasons, but his Uncle is opposed to that. Just from that one conversation the Wayne family tree can be made just a little larger. The flashback and the backup story were also entertaining, fitting nicely as part of the Origin Story.

Review: Thor: God of Thunder #9

This book shows comics at it's best. Although it may not have been the best issue of the series, the storytelling was some of the best I have ever seen in comics. As the people consistently reading this blog know, I really hate fight scenes. I think comics can be so much more than two people punching each other. The thing that really sucks is the lack of words, therefore the lack of time I have to spend reading the book. This issue was a fascinating mix of both. There was a fast-paced, interesting fight sequence, but kept the narration consistent throughout. The issue felt a lot longer than it actually was, probably due to the fact that there weren't a ton of splash pages. Each Thor was a unique fighter on their own and they did get split-up and reunited many a time through out the book. Jason Aaron managed to invent a new power for the oldest Thor that turned out to turn the tides of the battle more than once. Esad Ribic's art shines (as always.) The art style, especially the colors, totally fit the book. I really think that when Jason Aaron wakes up in the morning and thinks about how he can torture his readers the most. Almost all of the titles he writes end up in disarray by the end of the first issue. This doesn't turn out to be for the worst at the end of this issue when it: " rains Thors." Everything is going to hell, but that's the way Mr. Aaron likes it. Anyways, I am very pleased with this installment of the best ongoing series from Marvel. I am hoping that the God bomb arc can end smoothly in two issues.

Review: Wolverine & The X-Men #31

This issue did what it was supposed to, and then a little more. The purpose of this issue was to introduce us to the Hellfire Club and Faculty of the Hellfire Academy and give us a tour of the school. I have to say; Jason Aaron is a master of creating new characters. Honestly, who else would think up a mutant named Snot who has lethal sneezes? Answer: no one. I take that back. Maybe Brian Michael Bendis. But only maybe. Anywho, I think that what Jason Aaron is doing with the school is kind of questionable. When the teacher to student ratio is 13:8 you don't want to be threatening their lives at every turn. Every. Single. Teacher. Yells at kids and tells them they're going to die. Even though Mystique is a great character and might have potential in the role of teacher, she does treat her only class a little harshly. All of the classes seem a little random as well, I mean, Xenobiology? Seriously? I think the Hellfire Saga Prologue didn't accurately reveal the Jean Grey runaways intentions all that accurately. Oya and Kid Omega are undoubtedly trying to escape the school, but not without stealing a little inside information first. My favorite part of the issue was when Kid Omega meets Kade Kilgore for the first time. They are both such great personalities and it is so much fun to see how they handle coming face to face with one another. The ending is ominous, I am really excited to see how Jason Aaron handles this one. The art is great from Nick Bradshaw, it's great to have him back on the book.
Definitely a great issue even if there weren't many appearances from the usual X-Men. I'm sorry that these reviews are coming in a little late. I had a ton of books last night and am trying to work through them all.

Review: Savage Wolverine #6

My expectations couldn't have been lower. I thought that after Frank Cho's decent run on the book would just melt into the hell we like to call a team-up book. Thankfully, it did not. I found that this title continued to be high-quality (in both art and writing) and did include some characters I was glad to see.  I found this in the front of the book: "Editor's Note: This story takes place awhile back. Like, at least, before last October. So don't get all out of sorts about continuity."
Thank you Marvel! That is the kind of thing I am looking for in comics. With all of the titles on a specific character sometimes quality is compromised for how the stories connect with one another. Marvel is basically saying: "Screw making sense! We want to give our readers a good time!" And that they have. I enjoyed all of the parts Elektra starred in during this issue; but really, can you go wrong with Elektra? Answer: no. She is silent as always but plays an interesting role in bringing Wolverine into the fray. The story of the Kingpin is equally compelling. For once Wilson Fisk is not in control. Quite the opposite: he is forced to do many things that will not benefit him at all. All of the Avenger cameos in this book were thoughtful and necessary. Almost all of the book revolves around a glimpse of a scene that I presume took place in a previous Avengers title. I really despise the Avengers but thought they were written well and got some god snark and one-liners out of Logan. I can't say I understand all of the forces at play in this situation Logan has gotten himself into, but I can say with a fair deal of certainty that a little ignorance will not keep me from enjoying this arc.

Review: Kick Ass 3 #1

I was so so so so so so so excited for this issue. But when I saw it on the top of my stack I was nervous, almost scared to pick it up and read it. I thought that it would disappoint me, I had such high expectations. God, I was so wrong. This is an awesome #1 issue. Most of the issue was devoted to Justice Forever busting Hit-Girl out of jail. Which eventually turned out to be a bust. The rest of the issue explains what is happening in the life of Kick-Ass, Marty, Todd and Justice Forever. It turns out Marty got into college and Kick-Ass and Todd are living in an apartment and working at a burger joint. Dave really needs Kick-Ass more than Dave so he is crime fighting more than usual. The one case we got to see Kick-Ass work was lots of fun to watch. It seems he has matured and become much better at, well, kicking ass. He has a sidekick and comes crashing through windows. I found the writing to be as funny and great as ever, the note Hit-Girl left Kick-Ass was brilliant. The best scene in the whole book, no doubt, was when Todd and Dave are posing at the graveyard to look badass. It is very immature and disrespectful yet at the same time funny. I think Mark Millar needs to tone it down just a smidge on the Batman references  it seems like he is just trying to piss Marvel off by using DC characters' names in his Marvel-ish book. I hope to buy all of the variants of this issue, as it was a very good issue. 

It's about 12 o'clock so I'm calling it a night. Thanks for reading all of the reviews. You guys are the best a guy can hope for!

Daredevil: Dark Knights #1

I had no idea what I was getting into when I bought this issue. When I saw that it was a series of classic-style Daredevil stories I went for it. I think it was a quite rewarding issue, and a series that should not go unnoticed. Lee Weeks does a phenomenal job telling the story both through the art and the writing. Quotes are hard things to incorporate into comics in a meaningful way. The biblical references in this book were poignant throughout. The prologue did a very nice job explaining the origin for anyone who forgot. The rest of the issue was just pure comic bliss. The author starts a story thread with a family taking a car trip and hints towards an accident. Meanwhile we see our hero, as Matt Murdock, in the hospital with no memory. During all of that we learn that there is a whiteout city wide. The rest of the story floats seamlessly between the time before Matt was in the hospital and the time he is defending the hospital. DD's radar sense was handled well too, relying mostly on sound. The way the author depicts it is unique in having words floating around Daredevil's head. He surprises all of the doctors and nurses by his heightened senses and combat abilities. Eventually by the end of the book they do find out that he is Daredevil, but he doesn't seem to care. It is a rewarding moment at the end of the book when Daredevil gets suited up and leaps off the rooftop, but sort of a fail how he crashes down immediately. Yet another thread is started in this issue as we learn about two kids barely surviving an accident and needing transplants. The first-responders during the storm are quite like those in real life. My reading buddy points out a line in particular: "Having any second thoughts?" "Nope. Same as if it was my daughter."
Great issue! If you have not already bought it head to your local comic book shop now or buy it online here: http://www.comixology.com/Daredevil-Dark-Nights-1-of-8/digital-comic/DIG004494

Thanos Rising #3

A lot of people didn't enjoy the first two issues. I was not part of that group. Still, I understand why people said what they did. I do think this issue far exceeded the first two.
Thanos's life is in complete disarray. Every time he tries to settle down and start a new life he just can't do it. That is part of the reason this issue is so messed-up. All he is doing for the first third or so of the book is having children with women then forgetting them. He does join a group of Space Pirates. I heartily enjoyed watching Thanos get treated the way he did; It's ironic to see such a big, bad villain getting teased for not wanting to kill. I always love Jason Aaron and thought his writing was particularly good in this installment. He managed to give every character a voice and dialect that seemed like it fit the character. I loved the amount of inner-monologue in this issue, making it feel like a very personal Thanos story. Although the fight scene between Thanos and his abusive captain didn't make sense it was well handled and seemed organic to the story. The ending of the book was no giant shocker but still a good ending. The very last page is as disturbing and stomach-churning as they get. I hope next issue is just as good, I would love to see some characters from the rest of the Marvel Universe come into play!

Review: Age of Ultron #9

Good issue, bad conclusion to the story-arc. I know it isn't the official conclusion, but the series could definitely end here. Thank god Wolverine hightailed it out of the Morgana Le Fey timeline. Not to say I understood that at all. I totally don't get how two Wolverines were in the same room when one of them murdered Hank Pym. And I don't get where one of them got their costume. The banter between the two Wolverines is very, very entertaining. I think they came to a reasonable solution together with Hank and Sue. As I said, it would have been enough to stop at that! I think the best part of the issue by far is when the Wolverine's decide which one of them should die at the other's hand. The result is not shocking, but kind of sad. It has been a fun ride, but I'm glad it's winding down. I can't stand it that the last three issues just got erased from Marvel history like that. Totally disappointing. I do like Carlos Pacheo's art style, but I was really loving +Brandon Peterson 's. I am really excited to meet him at Comic Con. When all is said and done, this was a fine issue. I am scared almost to think what next month will hold and will definitely not be picking up the spin-off series. Well, I've sort of run out of things to say. Until next time!

Review: All-New X-Men #12

I had absolutely no hope for this issue: Uncanny Avengers, major fights, Captain America, all things I hate in comic books. Like always, Brian Michael Bendis did not disappoint  It was not a giant fight scene like the cover might suggest, it was a diplomatic meeting in which the X-Men explained their opinions. With a little bit of fighting. But still, I was happy by the way the interactions between the two teams played out, Young Cyclops meeting Havok was an awesome conversation and Jean Grey's unhappiness with Wanda Maximoff was even better. It was very nice to see Havok meet his younger brother at the best stage in his development, and it was even better to see Cyclops meet his older brother. Of course Captain America has to be reprimanding Alex the whole time: "Alex, I told you not to. Alex, we agreed. Alex, this isn't what we came for." God, I can't stand Captain America. The drawing from one of my favorite Marvel artists, Stuart Immonen, was surprisingly sub-par this week. I thought he was very good with page layout but some of his faces looked atrocious.
Through my reading of the X-Men I haven't really "met" Jean Grey. Even if I did, I think the character is brought the most Justice under the pen of Mr. Bendis. It is really fun to watch her go snooping around in other peoples thoughts, although what she finds infuriates her. The only fighting happens right after this. I thought the fighting was well done as it sent a message to the reader: "Don't piss off Jean Grey!" She took down freakin' Thor! Captain America (of course) accuses the O5 of crimes they so clearly didn't commit. Wolverine offers up his, correct among other things, opinion that the person behind all of these crimes is Mystique. No duh! We also get a glimpse into the dynamic of Mystique's squad; something I have been enjoying quite a bit more over the past 4-5 issues. I have also been waiting for the epic moment when the O5 an Mystique and her gang clash. That promises to be a good issue. I love Wolverine taking charge at the end of the issue, the last line is extremely gratifying. But, as I have said before, Wolverine is not the solution to complicated problems. On another note, Scott Snyder is a god.

Batman: The Dark Knight Annual #1

I was very excited for this issue. As any continuous Sam's Pull-List reader knows, this series is one of my favorite Bat-Books at the moment. The writing is great, the narrative flows along nicely and the new art switch isn't half bad. This issue does not tie into the main series; so naturally I would suggest it to any reader who is not already picking this series up. It is an eerie issue at best. The whole story feels like Gregg Hurwitz was trying to write a halloween/horror story but decided he had to throw some Batman villains in at some point. This is not at all bad. The meeting of the villains is believable, they all receive a letter telling them to meet the other two. We don't get to see who the mystery-letter-sender is until the very last page, but anyone with half a brain could figure it out pretty quick. Anyways, these villains (Penguin, Scarecrow, Mad Hatter) stumble around a "haunted mansion" like fools, complaining about the goddamn Batman all the while. I think that Gregg Hurwitz's writing genius really kicked in about halfway through the issue when MILD SPOILERS Penguin trips a music player and Three Blind Mice starts playing. The paranoid bad-guys hatch a plan to escape that eventually leads them into a corn-field-type maze. The connection between the song and the situation is perfect and seems like a horror movie. The villains disband after a short mishap with Scarecrow toxin in which they all face their pasts a little bit. SPOILERS END HERE. I think this issue is hinting at a Penguin story-line after the Clayface one. All I can say is: this series is great and the sooner we get to a new arc the better. Mad-Hatter is ready to be put in jail.

Review: X-Men #1

It is nice to see an X-Book handled outside of BMB's control and even better to see an all female cast getting done justice. This book is practically soaked with plot and intrigue.  I think it is safe to assume that coming up with a really juicy first arc is mainly to get readers attention from the get-go. Well, they do get my attention as we learn about two siblings who were separated at birth. This story itself has lots of potential and we could have just explored these two mysterious characters for the rest of the issue. But then it just wouldn't be an X-Book. Jubilee, it turns out, has taken an orphaned baby off of the streets of a place where the young child wouldn't have been able to survive on her own. The X-Ladies, or at least a group of them, rendevouz on a train where they talk about this new child. Jubilee is sneaky as she senses a mysterious man stalking her but doesn't make the fact that she senses that known to her follower. Thankfully the mystery man gets caught and brought into custody by the investigative team Psylocke and Rachel Grey. This is a neat interaction. I found the art in this issue to be solid throughout and really good when it came to characters and costumes. I thought that the organization of the panels was brilliant. One too many inkers is all I have to say that is negative. I think that this book is a much needed addition to the X-Men roster of Marvel NOW. I am very excited to see where they take the story about these new siblings.

Review: Wolverine and the X-Men #30

As prologues go, this was one of the best I have ever seen in comics. The masterful Jason Aaron starts all of the story-threads that I presume will continue throughout the Hellfire Saga. Beast' trip to space with Broo was at first kind of sad, for those of us who have read the first run, and very clever for anyone reading now. The connection to the Hellfire Squad is there completely but this little episode serves as an entertaining little tale as well. Beast is one of my favorite X-Men because of his dialect and I feel as though Jason Aaron utilized that in this issue. However, I think that Jason Aaron's writing was slightly sub-par today in other areas. With so many moving parts, the writing was more re-capping events that already happened instead of writing actual, human conversations. This angers me as I think he is one of the most talented writers in the industry. I thought that what happened at the Jean Grey School with the several "transfers" to the Hellfire Academy was quite clever and entertaining but at the same time really sad. I say this because it is really unfortunate to see the school falling apart after all of the hard work Logan has put into building it. My only real complaint with this issue was the art. I didn't even care to learn the artists name I hated it so much. It looked completely goony and computerized. STAY AWAY FROM MY WOLVERINE & THE X-MEN YOU HACK! I love this book and don't want it ruined by some crap artist. I will definitely be on the Wolverine and the X-men train for as long as it keeps chugging right along. I look forward to the Hellfire Saga.

Review: Indestructible Hulk #008

I'm afraid that another one bites the dust. I don't think this series is bad and certainly wouldn't naysay it, but I've just had enough. I'm afraid this goes for the Avengers and all of S.H.I.E.L.D. I just can't think of any conceivable way to care less about these people's lives. I think that's whats turning me off of Indestructible too. I really just don't want to hear all of Bruce and his science team ramble on about their horrible lives. I really do sympathize for you Patricia, I just don't want to hear about it in my comics. Thanks. I think Mark Waid is an incredibly skilled author and has the capability to make some awesome action scenes, I just don't think he is right for me. Some of the action sequences in this book were phenomenal. I do enjoy Walt Simonson's art. It is a little cartoony and pencil-heavy, but who am I to judge. I think that the Frost Giants are drawn particularly well. I love some of the graphic design on the interior as well as the cover. All-in-all this issue serves well as a conclusion but not much more. As I hinted to before I will be dropping this from my Pull-List after much contemplation. I would like to continue to hear great things about this title even if they're not coming from me.

Review: Savage Wolverine #005

I am totally with this series, 100%. I love Frank Cho's artwork, except for the sexist stuff. (Seriously?) I am, excitingly and boastfully, going to meet him in the all-too distant future at the Boston Comic Con, August 3-4. BUT, this post is not just an advertisement for Frank Cho and Boston Comic Con, this is a review of Savage Wolverine #5.

I don't think it was such a bad idea bringing Hulk to the savage land. It is always a hard task bringing outside characters into a title that they don't belong in. You could say his appearance was a little forced and wasn't much more than a "Hey, look! There's Hulk!" But I will disagree. His time spent in the savage land was much needed as a villain emerges that Logan and Shanna could never handle on their own. This would of course be Swamp-Things' larger cousin Larry, or rather, the Dark Walker. Really no one calls him Larry.

MY NAME ISN'T LARRY!

Sorry for the crappy image.

The ending to Hulks' time in the book was completely WTF. I didn't even understand it; let alone like it.

But Hulk wasn't the only character in this book, you may be aware I bought Savage Wolverine not Savage Hulk. Although that has potential. The other characters really don't do much outside of commentating on the action unfolding in front of them. We get a pretty badass kick out of Shanna, but nothing more. And Wolverine has a pretty sweet stabbing scene too. The dialogue is pretty smooth; especially from Amadeus Cho, a pretty good character. He talks Wolverine out of his normal Snikt-ness, people should learn by know that Wolverine is not the solution to any problems, complicated or not. He is also not the only character in the Marvel Universe but yet somehow manages to show up in more than seven titles monthly. ANYWAYS, (sorry for the tangent) I think this arc wrapped up pretty nicely, introducing a formidable seeming villain at the end, and I hope the next arc won't fail to disappoint  even if it is just Wolverine Team-Ups.

5/22/13

This is the second of two light weeks, last week we had five, this week we have four. I think that an acceptable amount of books per week should be six. It is a nice number of books to read and review. Before reading every week I always look through my stack and make an order of what I am going to read. This week it was so hard to choose what to read first. Everything just looked so good. I am so much more a Marvel fan than a DC fan right now, it's sort of like DC books are sort of a chore to read rather than a pleasure. This shouldn't be the case. I do enjoy Dark Knight, though this weeks was a touch disappointing. I enjoy Batman, Batman and Robin and usually Batman Inc. I just think there needs to be a little more wow and a little less, just the bare minimum. So, I would like to once again invite you to scroll down the page and keep reading this weeks reviews.

• Batman: The Dark Knight #20

I really genuinely like this series, and I think it should not be overlooked by any Bat-Fan. If you want a more traditional Bat-Story that is still entertaining, go with this title. Gregg Hurwitz is really establishing a nice solid base for Batman's rogue gallery, something that hasn't been done before. I have to say, in contradiction to that, this issue was not very good. The beginning was utterly nonsensical and seemed sort of hackish. I always think that the narrative flows smoothly, but unfortunately I can't say that about this book. I thought the brief connection to the rest of the Bat-Universe with a short, "My son is dead." Was unnecessary and not particularly thoughtful. I thought that SPOILERS the capture of Bruce's girlfriend was handled quite well, less gore and brutality than normal. What really disappointed me about this issue was the lack of a flashback. I guess there isn't a ton more to tell about the Mad Hatter's backstory, but I guess you could come up with something and have it symbolize something else in the Batman story. Just a suggestion. The art was good, a trippy and very dark style. I thought it particularly shined during a torture scene. It gave the scene a grim feel that made me almost sick to my stomach. There was a two-page splash that was just gorgeous. I won't give away the end, I'll simply say it was super predictable and kind of disappointing to tell you the truth. There is one more issue in this arc and I  have to say I am excited, I just think the ending should, and probably will be really good.

• Batman Incorporated #11

I am grateful this issue exists, but not grateful it exists right now. Last issue Grant Morrison got us so riled up about Bruce's next course of action, and this issue had nothing to do with that. For those of you who don't know already, this issue was a stand-alone story of Batman of Japan, Jiro Osamu. The beginning is kind of cute and introduces us to Internet 3.0, a new alternate reality. The dialogue is OK but just that. It is very golden age in a sense with lots of recapping in the dialogue and not taking anything for granted. I.E. ""This isn't over!" "You got that right!" "But they got away." "For now."" Come on, this isn't the '50s. I did, however, enjoy the plot. This new Dynamic Duo was quite interesting and it was nice not to have a story set in Gotham/New York for once. I would have definitely bought this book if it was a one-shot, I am not quite sure I am thankful to DC for sneaking it under the title: "Batman Incorporated." I could definitely see a series where all we saw was different stand-alone stories of members of BI. I just think that this series that they already have going is the right one to do it in. ANYWAYS, the villains in this story were absolutely brutal, which was nice, in a non-sadistic way. These were interesting villain who we didn't quite understand the motives of. Later it is revealed who they are and their behavior is justified. The ending was satisfying enough. I was a little disappointed with the fact that this break from the normal series was not written by Grant Morrison, but it was just fine as an issue.

• Uncanny X-Men #6

I have heard very sour reviews for this title, but I have come to enjoy it. There are already more than one title that showcases the Jean Grey School so it's kind of nice to visit the other side of things for a while. This issue was slow but beautiful in a way. I really enjoyed how for the first time in these six issues the Uncanny X-Men came together as a team. They are an interesting group of kids and adults acting like kids. I think that even though Cyclops is looked down upon in all of the X-Books I feel like he has really matured since AvX. I wouldn't be surprised if he came back to the Jean school to apologize again and the whole school came with him. Although it's not as fun without Emma poking around in peoples head, I'm glad in a way that she lost her powers as well. The ending with S.H.I.E.L.D is pretty good and the dark horse is awesome. All in all there was some great art and some good storytelling in this book. The pace was a little slower than usual but the situation was a cool one. Limbo is definitely a place the X-Men should visit more often. I think Magik is a potentially good character and would prosper under the pen of a skilled writer. I honestly think Frank Miller would write a badass Magik mini-series, just a thought.

• Talon #8

I have been really enjoying this arc but was super-skeptical about the future of the series after last issue. Nothing much happened this issue other than Calvin getting resurrected and turned into a non-human Talon. The court threatens to kill the Washingtons, not gonna happen, and Sebastian is nowhere to be seen. I did like the flow of the story especially a two-page splash that showed Calvin's whole life flashing before him. The art changed this issue which was OK but didn't add anything to the book. I am excited to see where James Tynion takes this book on it's Bane arc.

Tune in next time for more reviews!

5/15/13

This week was sort of disappointing  in fact it was the first week in a long time I debated dropping a title all together. There were a few good books, but nothing awesome from DC. I was also very happy to learn lots of new information about both the upcoming Battle of the Atom storyline and the Hellfire Saga. So without anymore general talk I would like to start reviewing some of this weeks new comics.

• Age of Ultron #8

I, unlike many others, was excited by the prospect of the Defenders and the alternate universe going-ons in this title. This issue goes in-depth and gives readers a really good feel for this other Marvel U. I enjoyed seeing how Tony Stark has become sick with power and really enjoyed seeing the Defenders defy him and break in to save Sue. I think of all of the other-universe characters Xavier and Frost are the best. Bendis didn't change much in terms of powers or appearance but rather gave them a new relationship that is far different than that of the normal continuity. Their dialogue is the best in the book filled with great dialogue. I also really enjoyed reading as Wolverine told future-Stark their initial plan and hearing Tony tell them that he knew that his alternate-universe self would have prevented that. I think that this series is still going strong but I just can't predict how they are going to end it. Anyway they do end it, I'll be there to see it.

• Wolverine and the X-Men #029

Never in comics have I ever seen a futuristic world handled so perfectly. I'll get to that in a minute. The layout of the book was like so: Wolverine's speech, awesome, flashback, awesome, Wolverine's speech, awesome, flashback, awesome, Wolverine's speech, awesome, burying a time-capsule, awesome, flash forward to the future, inexplicable awesome. What I have just described was the first half of the book which was executed perfectly. Wolverine's speech is thoughtful and meaningful and contrasts well with the flashbacks. We get to see some good Beast action and a brief Wolverine memory. We then see the Jean Grey School 25 years later with a much older Logan. Just because I am getting to blogging early in the day I have time to list all of the references/easter eggs in this issue. So here goes:

• Jean Grey School has new locations internationally in the future.
• The original teachers are on portraits on the wall.
• Carmen Drake is a snowman who phases through walls.
• New students:
• Warren Worthington IV
• Kubrick Quire
• Charlene Xavier
• Rose Logan
• Summer Grey
• Many more
• "This must all be from right before...before the....(Holds up Idie's bible)...Ah, hell." --Logan.
• Thunderbird and Phoenix are alive and in this timeline.
• Eye-Boy is now Eye-Man and is an X-Man.
• Worthington Industries is still trucking along.
• Another mention of "last time" and time-travel.
• No one remembers burying that time-capsule.
• Mentions of:
• Hellfire Academy
• Azazel and his Pirates
• The Black Order
• Butchress Mondo
• Sabertooth's Secret Plans
• The New Brotherhood
• The Apocalypse Crusade
• Jean
• Wakanda's Sky City 5
• Captain China
• Shark Woman's X-Force
• Krakoa Corps.

We then switch back to the present where 2 GIANT spoilers are released. These change the game completely and set everything up for the upcoming Hellfire Saga.

My opinion: The art is really bad for this series especially but I guess every artist can't suit my fancy. I thought the writing was just phenomenal and the whole book had an incredibly good narrative.

I am really excited to see what happens next as this book ends with lots of intrigue.

• Red Hood and the Outlaws #20

I was really excited that this book had shed it's god-awful writer, the infamous Scott Lobdell. I was also really excited about the ending of the last book. If you haven't already read it this is what happened: Jason has shown up to save the rest of the Outlaws but it turns out that he has lost his memory. This book tells us why he did choose to forget his past. Kori and Roy all experience Jason's memories and learn that no matter how bad they want their friend back it was his choice to forget them and it must have been for a good reason. I don't have much more to say about the book other than it was an ok read, much better than it used to be, just still not great. I do enjoy how the writer goes back and really introduces Jason in a way that hasn't been done before. The art is ok, a little screwed up at times but who are we to critique?

• Batgirl #20

+Steven Viscido got me into this series and I am glad he did. It is a pretty solid series that has some intrigue. After some serious moping from the events of the last arc, Batgirl gets back on track while hunting down the Ventriloquist  I like series that instead of focusing on the main character of the book focus on the villain/s that character is fighting. One of my favorite books coming out of the Bat-Office is Batman: The Dark Knight. We get to see the Ventriloquist's backstory while seeing her wreak havoc on Gotham the same way we do the Mad Hatter in TDK. I really like this approach as it makes rogues really easy to write about in other stories. I really liked how brutal this book was and how dirt-nasty Gail Simone wrote the Ventriloquist. I will definitely stick around for this arc, especially considering how interesting the end of the book was.

• Catwoman #20

DON'T READ IT! I REPEAT, DON'T READ IT! I DROPPED THIS BOOK ABOUT FOUR PAGES IN. YOU WILL NEVER SEE ANOTHER REVIEW OF CATWOMAN ON THIS BLOG! I WAS TERRIBLY WRONG TO BUY IT!

• Nightwing #20

I really enjoyed Nightwing last month and was sure that it was on a different path now that Dick was in Chicago. I did enjoy this issue but there wasn't really a ton to enjoy. There were those pages of teen-flirting that Dick has to take part in every single issue, but hey, I knew I was getting in to that by reading Nightwing. The art is fantastic and especially shined in a scene where Dick plays cards with an informer. I really enjoyed the last sequence where Dick is caught in a trap by the prankster who is turning out to be quite the villain. The trap is well thought through and would be really hard for anyone to escape, even Dick. Like Red Hood and the Outlaws this issue was good, but only good.

• 
  

X-Men: First Class a Second Look

I watched X-Men: First Class almost a year ago when it was first released to theaters. Since then I have read innumerable X-Comics and studied the X-Men very carefully, there was something about that team that appealed to me more than any other super-team. Spotting the First Class movie at a friends house I looked it over a second time and found myself not remembering any of the film. So I asked if I could borrow it and my friend being the great guy he is lent me the movie. I watched the movie in the comfort of my own house on a nice Saturday morning. By itself it was a very good movie, but as an origin story for the X-Men it was atrocious. I still to this day don't understand why Marvel makes origin stories that are different than the ones already written in comics. If you have 100s of stories sitting in front of you and you have to make a movie about the characters in those books, I mean the logical thing would to completely disregard everything everyone wrote in those books and make up some story that fans won't be able to relate to or remember. Right? Instead of making fans and long-time X-People happy when they see their favorite super-team on the big screen instead we have to groan when we see Beast is a teen in the '60s. I will admit that Marvel makes great movies, better than DC, but they just have to start getting their characters right. I really don't see why Matthew Vaughn didn't start off telling the story of the Original 5 and The Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters. I would love to see the story of The Dark Phoenix Saga unfold on screen. Instead we have to watch this brutal story of Magneto exacting revenge on everyone he ever met. We don't want to see that, Marvel. We want to see the interesting characters that we are so used to seeing. I am still not done with Marvel Movies, I am looking forward to Days of Future Past (beside myself), The New S.H.I.E.L.D TV show and the Cap movie. Be sure to tell me what you are looking forward to in the comments below.
Thanks,
--Sam Roche

BTW Marvel, if you put Emma Frost in another movie she better not be in the Hellfire Club this time.

The Demon of DC!

"Gone, gone, the form of man. Rise the demon ETRIGAN!!"

What if you had the powers of the mighty demon Etrigan? Super strength, extreme durability, the power to produce hellfire and energy, super speed, agility, a healing factor, magic, the power to do extreme rhyming, and more! He is weakened by holy powers and iron. The demon Etrigan is truly a great character. Created by Jack Kirby when his Fourth World series was about to be cancelled, he created a new character, hoping him to be so bad that they would HAVE to keep the Fourth World series. However, Jack was annoyed when he got EXTREMELY good reviews, and he had to keep going with Etrigan. When Jason Blood, an immortal since he is bound to Etrigan, says the rhyme above the picture, he becomes the mighty demon Etrigan! Etrigan is the son of Belial, a demon from Jewish culture. Merlin, his half brother, became angered when he couldn't discover Etrigan's secrets, so he bonded him to Jason Blood, a knight in Camelot. Centuries later, he discovered the poem that made it so he could become Etrigan. Etrigan has since become an incredible superhero. Go Etrigan!

-Bobby Lovett

What would it be like if a child was a Green Lantern?

I know, a child may have great fear of what's to come or not that much will. But what if there was one? What if someone had enough will and the power to overcome great fear? Well, we all know children, especially small ones, have great imaginations. I wish I still had my own from when I was 4 and 5. Kyle Rayner had a great imagination. Let's amplify that, by a LOT. If a kid was a GL, they could defeat nearly EVERYONE. They could harness the true power of a Green Lantern and gain the power to destroy planets, or even SOLAR SYSTEMS, with the wackiest things imaginable. You would never see it coming. NEVER. No one would. He could kill SUPERMAN, even. Superman could walk up and be like "hey little guy, how you doing?" and he would just blast Superman to smithereens. That is how I would imagine the youngest Green Lantern the corps has to offer. That's all! Remember to leave a comment below!

-Bobby Lovett

Bobby

Hello everyone, my name is Bobby Lovett. I am Sam's friend and long time love of comics. Literally since I was, like, 5. Anyway, since then I have gained far more interest and knowledge about comics, it's history, turning points, characters, and more. I have much to talk about and still much to learn, so I hope you guys can help me! I will be posting much more often now, starting today. Thanks everyone!

-Bobby Lovett

5/8/13

I always like Batman if it's by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. And I was really into Wolverine. Needless to say those were the books I was looking forward to most this week. I guess I was looking forward to the wrong books, the two I didn't mention, Thor: God of Thunder #008 and Batman and Red Hood #20 were just terrific. They were so good I would be willing to pay double for both of them. So, with a very short amount of comics pulled, therefore a very short amount of reviews: here are your weekly reviews.

• Batman #20

I really love this book. Both the writing and the art are consistently some of the best work in the industry. I am even enjoying this new Clayface storyline, even though Clayface is a meh villain. This issue just didn't quite do it for me. The beginning of the issue was confusing and chaotic with Clayface fighting Bruce Wayne in the Batcave, OH MY GOD! Lay off spellchecker! Batcave is a word, sheesh. And yes sheesh is a word too. Anyways, Batman: It is disheartening that a villain was able to break into the Batcave, now Scott Snyder has written that the Joker and Clayface have seen the Batcave, but still neither of them know that Batman is Bruce Wayne. Kind of ridiculous, right? Batman and Lucius Fox are thrown into a very dangerous situation, which I am not at liberty to tell you the outcome of. There is a very iffy nod towards Batman Beyond. I think while it may be kind of a fun Easter Egg at first, tying those two realities together will be continuity hell. BREAKING NEWS I just noticed that the way Greg Capullo draws jaws is a lot like the way John Romita Jr. draws them. Here: look at this helpful diagram:

=

I don't know, they looked similar to me.

Clayface makes Batman face a lot of his demons, though, and that's always interesting to see. Although it make sense, the ending wasn't extremely satisfying. The very ending was great, we see Batman shed a tear for his son. Tell me what you thought of this issue down in the comments below. Also make sure to tell me how you feel about Batman: Zero Year in the comments.

• Wolverine #3

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE READ THIS BOOK BEFORE YOU READ THE REVIEW! SPOILERS TO FOLLOW!

I was so excited to see where they were going with the appearances of the Watcher and Nick Fury in the last issue. However, one cancels the other out as Logan tries to convince Nick that he saw the Watcher, but Nick doesn't much care. What follows is an extremely queer scene in a bar where we meet a bunch of people we don't give a damn about.

I've got my eye on you Marcus H. Harold.

So after introducing all of these meaningless people, Wolverine gets a bullet taken out of his shoulder that ends up giving them a lead. Because the attacker would totally be that careless. Wolverine and Fury hop in a S.H.I.E.L.D car and stealth their way to a warehouse, because villains in a warehouse hasn't been done before. 

Wolverine dives, climbs, breaks, enters and snikts only to find himself in front of a bunch of android-person-suit-things. Really bad character design.

Seriously? What is that guy?

After a lot of meaningless violence and one funny reference Wolverine escapes. The ending is kinda promising, but nothing special. I am still really looking forward to #7 where Killable starts. That just looks EPIC!

• Batman and Red Hood #20

This is one of the best issues I have read in a very long time. I am not going to lie, I almost cried during some parts of this issue. Peter J. Tomasi has a way of just making Bruce's desperation after Damian's death so real. I found the issues containing Carrie Kelly to be quite entertaining. She is a quirky little rebel who doesn't really make much sense but is kind of a nice presence. I feel like the author went a little over the top with how surly Bruce was. You could try being a little less rude next time someone who loved your son is over Brucie. I know you don't know this from experience, but people don't like a brooder. Other than that this issue is pure gold. Jason and Bruce plan to strike a clan of assassins in Ethiopia that were sent to kill Damian earlier in the timeline during Batman Inc. I like how much this other has kept the whole Damian, Dead, thing. He really is giving an accurate and meaningful depiction of what life is like if your a Batman without a Robin.

Once the Bat and the Hood are in Ethiopia Batman gives a command I thought he would never give to Jason: "HANDS, KNEES, AND ELBOWS!" He is of course implying that Jason is going to use a firearm, something I am glad Batman has made his peace with. The Dynamic Duo is BRUTAL when taking out the snipers. It is so fun to watch them completely maim these terrible people. After the assassins are good and unconscious Batman drives Jason to another very emotional place in Ethiopia, the spot of Jason's death. Jason gets mad at Batman for bringing back terrible memories, but he really has every right. But then Bruce says a line that really stuck with me: "BECAUSE I WANT TO WATCH DAMIAN GROW UP, DAMN IT!" He is just a father looking for his son. He is so tender at heart. Jason and Bruce do eventually part ways. I am so ready for next issue!

• Thor: God of Thunder #008

Watching young, callow Thor slave away is one of the most entertaining things in comics. Early in the issue he gets really mad and throws a giant boulder at a berserker. He then gets lectured and threatened by Thunder goddesses who we later learn are Thor's grandkids. There is a particularly awkward moment where one of the goddesses fesses up to thinking "impure" things about her grandfather. All of the enslaved gods are seen at a meeting where they decide to use their bomb to try and destroy the Godbomb soon. Thor becomes reckless and awesome in a moment where he runs through berserker's carrying the slave's bomb and making it rain fire. Can it get any more epic? No. He throughs the bomb at the Godbomb with all of his strength. The explosion ripples through the omniverse but doesn't do much to the Godbomb. This issue ends well as all of the Thors team-up and get ready to battle Gorr. I really hope they end Godbomb well, it's just so good to go to waste.

5/1/13

This was a relatively short week, not a terrible amount of books, five purchased, four read. The odd book out that I didn't read was Teen Titans #19. My friend reads it and I buy it for him, but I have given up on the series. I have wasted enough of my life reading the crap Scott Lobdell calls writing. As +Steven Viscido likes to say all the time in his blog: (statuesandsuperheroes.blogspot.com check it out, it's really good) DC no longer wants to please the reader, but rather sell books. Scott Lobdell lives for one reason: to sell trash that ties-in with other books. Take the tie-ins he wrote (that's not even the right word, his work is not writing) for Death of the Family. He created both Red Hood and the Outlaws and Teen Titans #15-16. They both barely tied-into the Death of the Family arc, but they had the words Death of the Family on them so they sold. And if that wasn't enough the tie-ins tied-in with each other. That is just a disgrace to the comic book industry. Can we really not think of any other way to sell books other than: "Hey, buy this other issue so you can get one or two panels of your favorite characters for $4!" Couldn't we say, make quality books? The DC editors would be all like: "No! That takes effort and doesn't sell as well as crossovers! Your fired Mr. I want to make quality comics go to Marvel!" Thank God I don't have any DC books to read this week, I'm just kind of fed up with them right now. But it is Batman Day and A Comic Wednesday, so who could be unhappy?

• Thanos Rising #2 of 5

This was the book I was looking forward to most this week, no question about that. I enjoyed the first one so very much and will literally buy anything with Jason Aaron's name on it at this point. He is really delivering a quality tale of Thanos's origin in a not so nice way. This issue continues the brutality depicted in the first chapter as a young Thanos finds joy in cutting open specimins at first searching for a scientific answer, but after a while just killing because he is addicted. It is really tragic how crazy and messed up this guy is, but after all it's not so different from people in our world. If I may elaborate on my previous point, I have a connection to make. Although not completely the same, Thanos and the Boston Marathon bomber aren't terribly different. Both have crazy family dynamics that lead to excessively violent behavior. It is sad to see such a brilliant mind as that of Thanos go to waste, as it was sad to see a kid who behaved so well and got such good grades to make a bomb. It is tragic to see these young lives turned to violence, almost as tragic as their victims. While I am talking about such tragic events I would just like to take a moment to pay tribute to the lives lost and people injured in the marathon bombing.

Now, back to Thanos. The art was good, I am really starting to dig Simone Bianchi. The ending was a little excessively brutal, but I guess that's just the character. I am really excited to see where this goes.

 

• Age of Ultron

BIG decisions were made in last weeks issue, the killed off HENRY PYM! This issue is even more risky as the effects of Wolverine's cockiness ripples through the time-space continuum throwing everything off. Bendis is very creative as we see what happens to all the super-heroes we have come to know and love when Henry Pym doesn't exist. The most creative was the fact that Scott Summers was Cable in this messed-up reality. Logan and Sue Storm make up an awesome team on their time-hopping adventures. +Brandon Peterson's art really gets to shine in this issue in particular as most of the book takes place in the time-period he illustrates. If you do stumble across this review Mr. Peterson, your art rocks! I am loving your style in Age of Ultron.  Anyways, the battle/confusion between Sue and Logan and the "Defenders" is awesome. It is a pretty accurate and fresh take on the Marvel U that I am looking forward to reading about. I am still a little skeptical about the end of the arc though. I am not sure if they are going to say this just didn't happen or it was all just Hawkeye's dream. Either way would be good though.

Love how sleek and new the characters all look, great design.

• All-New X-Men #11

I absolutely love how Brian Michael Bendis has taken control of the X-Men through both of his titles Uncanny X-Men and All-New X-Men. There was a period of time that just seemed to be missing from Uncanny X-Men #4. For those of you who did not read it the Uncanny X-Men go to Jean Grey's school to recruit mutants but we never see them at the school. We just see Angel come back with them to the New Xavier School. Well, this issue explains the whole gap of time. Quite well I may add. Although it is mainly a verbal confrontation Jean Grey does a psychic explosion thingy that blasts everyone. There were certain moments in this comic I would like to highlight. Here they are:

•  Jean's psychic blast
• Jean learning that mind-controlling is a no-no
• The X-Men lobbying for Warren to stay
• Mystique and Sabertooth causing havok
• Above all: the talk Kitty Pryde had with Jean Grey

The only part I didn't really like was the inclusion of the Uncanny Avengers. The Avengers suck and I really don't want them messing with this awesome X-Book. Hey, when was the last time you saw Beast in Secret Avengers? Huh? Didn't think so.
Stuart Immonen draws the hell out of this book. He is especially good with all of the magical blasts and the other magic stuff. I really love this book, Marvel if you are there. Keep up the great work with the X-Men, I am having such a blast reading it.

 

•  Indestructible Hulk #007

I was really concerned about the direction this book was headed, for a while I even considered taking it off of my pull-list. But +Mark Waid you have definitely won me over. This issue was fantastically entertaining. I loved how it turned out with Thor's hammer (you had me sold that Hulk was strong enough to lift it in #6.) Ice giants make really good enemies for Hulk because the Jade Giant can smash away and they just keep coming. I absolutely loved the incorporation of Maria Hill and how the Ice Giant reaches through the portal. I particularly liked how the portal was trans-time, and how Banner and his crew have to survive now that the portal's gone. I think that this will draw Banner and his team closer as a result. Keep up the great work +Mark Waid you have me hooked, don't loose me again.

 

These reviews, as I said before, are dedicated to the victims of the Boston Marathon Bombings.