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Post by Tana Nile on Mar 17, 2009 20:39:02 GMT -5
So is anyone else reading this book? I got issue #1 and thought it was very entertaining. The art by Paul Pelletier was fantastic - if you like Alan Davis, I think you'd like this. I'm enjoying what D n' A are doing with the Inhumans here. Practically since their creation, the Inhumans have been pawns or victims, but now, they are taking on a much more pro-active, aggressive stance. Whether this will lead to their own destruction is a question yet to be answered. But it's good to see them guiding their own fate for once.
It's also fun to see the Imperial Guard again. As a fan who remembers them mostly from their first appearances in X-Men 107, 108, and 137, it's interesting to see what's changed. Gladiator's personal code puts loyalty ahead of morality, something I don't think I've really seen in a comic before. And of course, Vulcan is the real wild card here, probably as insane as Maximus but a lot more dangerous.
Lest anyone think this is a talking heads book, there's also some terrific battle sequences - I loved Blackbolt vs. Gladiator! All in all, this book is high on my pull list.
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Post by Ignore Me! on Mar 18, 2009 14:07:12 GMT -5
Sounds exciting! What are the Inhumans doing in Shi'ar space? Thought they had a beef with the Skrulls and the Kree.
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Post by sharkar on Mar 22, 2009 17:35:36 GMT -5
So is anyone else reading this book? Tana, needless to say I'm reading it , as it showcases many of my long-time favorites: Crystal, Medusa, Karnak, Polaris and Havok; and a newer favorite, Caligul--I mean, Vulcan. Overall I liked War of Kings #1; an compelling story with a diverse cast of characters that is nicely drawn. I plan to continue reading this series. Some other thoughts about it: edit: SPOILER ALERT!!!Does anyone else think Black Bolt is something less than an ideal leader ? Every time he's in power it seems some sort of calamity befalls the Inhumans (which is what makes the character and his divine right interesting to me.) Now he's decided to become an aggressor? Okay, let's see where it leads (an interesting series, that's where). A calmed-down Maximus (as here) or Karnak would be a more effective leader, IMO... The device of having the story narrated (by Gladiator and Crystal) seems a bit forced to me. I prefer the old fashioned device of editorial narration. Anyone interested in WOK may also want to pick up Secret Invasion: Inhumans, recently issued as a tpb. It's the mini-series that leads into WOK (on the Inhumans side) and shows how distressed and out of control Medusa has become after the whole BB/Skrull impostor debacle. Crystal has become the voice of reason. Also, in SI:I, we're reminded that Crystal can extract the air of the atmosphere (so opponents can't breathe); in WOK #1 one wonders why--if she's so powerful --she doesn't act when attacked. The explanation given is because she and the others are "too stunned" (by the surprise attack) to act right away. Okay, sounds reasonable... I didn't buy the Lorna-Crystal bff friendliness that's shown at the beginning of WOK; if anything, it's kind of disloyal because Lorna was always shown to be close to Crystal's ex (Pietro) from their X-Factor days--and a couple of years ago she (Lorna) was revealed as Pietro's half-sister. Well, I guess Lorna is letting bygones be bygones and also, she wants to get to know her niece Luna better. Nostalgia time: also, the aforementioned scene--in which Lorna (playfully?) questions how on earth Crystal can marry Ronan- -reminds me of the scene in Avengers #60, in which Crystal asks the same thing of Jan (who is marrying Yellowjacket). And as I understood, like SI:I, the limited series X-Men:Kingbreaker was supposed to lead into WOK (on the Starjammers side). But WOK #1 was issued on March 4, while Kingbreaker #4 (the concluding issue) was scheduled for March 18 and has since been bumped to March 25. So WOK #1 kind of makes Kingbreaker #4 anticlimactic (because we know major players Havok, Polaris, and Rachel Summers will survive). Despite this, I'm really looking forward to the rest of WOK and based on the exciting first issue, I wholeheartedly recommend the series. EDIT: added Spoiler notation
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Post by sharkar on Mar 22, 2009 17:42:52 GMT -5
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Post by goldenfist on Mar 23, 2009 22:54:45 GMT -5
I can't belive that the story will have Darkhawk in the story but they also have some of the X-MEN.
I guess they are not going to have the Eternals in the story.
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Post by sharkar on Mar 24, 2009 20:58:34 GMT -5
I guess they are not going to have the Eternals in the story. As far as I know, no Eternals among this cast of thousands . It would have been interesting to see former Avengers/romantic rivals Crystal and Sersi in this series. I wonder whatever became of their bomber jackets?
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nova36
Force Works-er
Posts: 19
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Post by nova36 on Mar 25, 2009 6:05:02 GMT -5
I love me some war of kings.. what a great idea !! First of all i love the writing of DnA i collect Nova ( no really i do ) and GoTG and this is the good thing about marvel these days if you do not like the mainstream.. well there is something out there for you. For me its the Cosmic books they have that old school storytelling but with an edge. Ppl complain that super-heroes are the only comics you can buy and some have bemoaned them.. yet marvel cosmic has both heroes and just cosmic drama. I do not really care bout the Inhumans and as far as the x-men well i have not read anything x-men related in about 10 years or so and yet this mini works. I love how the writers have fleshed out the Kree empire in the recent conquest and annihilation mini-series, as a result ronan has become a new favorite of mine. I can't wait till Rich shows up as well as star-lord and his crew, the art is fantastic..Crystal looks really good and there are some nice character moments with her and Lorna. I would also recommend anyone picking up Nova ( yea i did it i am gonna give it some free promotion ) and GoTG . Nova's new artist is none other than Andrea Divito of Annihilation fame. Quasar-Wendall Vaughn also has a nice supporting role in Nova and is guest-starring in GoTG this month soo i guess it is avengers related.. AHA !! I can't wait for issue #2
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Post by Tana Nile on Mar 25, 2009 15:20:33 GMT -5
I would agree with Nova36, the cosmic books have been a lot of fun, and I'm sure the main reason for that is Abbnett and Lanning. They've managed to get me interested in characters I really hadn't spent much time on before (Rocket Raccoon? He's fantastic!) and turned old C listers like Nova into really strong, intriguing characters.
As for the War, it would seem vastly in Vulcan's favor, with all the resources he has at his command. Unless...he was overthrown...
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Post by goldenfist on Mar 30, 2009 8:46:07 GMT -5
Read this interview from ign as they talk with Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning about War of Kings. IGN Comics: War of Kings kicks off with a bang as Vulcan invades Kree territory to abduct Lilandra. Why take such a bold step for such a seemingly small target? Does Vulcan not realize the beast he's awoken? Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning: Probably not. Vulcan doesn't think twice about attacking anything. It's the new Shi'Ar 'Age of Expansion'. Lilandra and the 'jammers gave him an excuse to take out an old, annoying enemy before it could grow strong again. media.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584367.htmlmedia.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584370.htmlVariant Cover IGN Comics: How much of Vulcan's incursion is motivated by power, how much is motivated by avenging the ships he lost during the Inhuman/Kree skirmish in the Secret Invasion: War of Kings special? How much is simply unknown to the reader at this point? Does this assault factor into your attempt to evolve and mature Vulcan in the eyes of readers? DnA: Like we said, Vulcan is Empire building (he's taking a huge empire and making it bigger!). The lost ships, Lilandra, etc. are excuses... and also annoying things that have reminded him it's time to deal with the Kree Question. IGN Comics: How would you characterize the relationship between Vulcan and Gladiator? We see in the first issue that Gladiator seems obedient, but he also has a blossoming relationship with Lilandra. Does the leader of the Imperial Guard have a breaking point? DnA: Doesn't everyone? Saying that, given Gladiator, his strength of body and strength of character, that's got to be very, very high indeed. He serves at the pleasure of Emperor Vulcan. He has always served the Throne of Aerie. media.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584358.htmlmedia.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584360.htmlIGN Comics: Speaking of motivations, I was a bit surprised that Ronan actually seemed hurt by the fact that Crystal was simply marrying him out of duty. How deep are his feelings for her? Will that continue to play out in the series despite the fact that the war is on? DnA: If he lives that long. Ronan is a 'person' too. Maybe he feels it's time to stop being 'just an accuser' and start thinking about subtler aspects of life... companionship, offspring, dysnatic liasons. Maybe he just fancies her. IGN Comics: Black Bolt has determined that the Inhumans are no longer going to be slave to any master, conquering the Kree with overwhelming force. Ronan cedes the throne easily. Will we be seeing the reactions of other Kree (and Inhumans) to this change of power? Will Bolt's quest to strike back at the Shi'ar be deviated by internal power struggles? DnA: Yes, we will. The reverse is probably true. The war with the Shi'Ar is getting in the way of the Inhumans grand scheme of reshaping and evolving the Kree culture. IGN Comics: The first issue features narration by both Crystal and Gladiator, giving us insight into two of the leads of the series. Will readers have the opportunity to see how members of the Starjammers or Kree are reacting to this situation that's spiraling out of control? DnA: Yes, but Crys and Kallark are our two key viewpoints. media.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584354.htmlmedia.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584364.htmlIGN Comics: I think one of the reactions readers had from the War of Kings prologue is that Black Bolt seemed nearly unstoppable. Was this first issue's near-squash of the Inhumans a direct attempt to counter that notion? Did you find yourselves even wondering how the Shi'ar could assault the Inhumans and get away with it? DnA: Yes, sort of. We wanted to make it clear that the Imperial Guard and Vulcan are awesomely powerful. When it comes to which side can kick the most butt, the only difference seems to be that the Shi'Ar have superior numbers. And, from the Shi'Ar's POV, it's probably a shame they didn't finish the job. IGN Comics: Let's talk tie-ins and the other cosmic books under your control. Will we see the Nova Corps, Darkhawk and the Guardians enter directly into the War of Kings mini-series? Will they only be dealing with shockwaves in their own book? DnA: Yes, they will all weave into the main story, some tighter than others, and some unexpected ways. The stories being handled in the three titles are examinations of various aspects of the war. They are all very different and all very important. media.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584362.htmlmedia.comics.ign.com/media/142/14295105/img_6584356.htmlIGN Comics: Let's put the spotlight on Paul Pelletier before we wrap this up. First, feel free to gush over his beautiful art all you'd like. More importantly though, I'm curious how much stage direction you give Paul... There are some brutal, brutal moments here – how much is Paul directing these sequences and how much is planned ahead of time? DnA: Paul's work is awesome. It always has been. We've loved working with him since day one, and his awesomeness just grows with each issue. We plot fairly tightly, and we try to imagine all sorts of funky visuals (places, things, aliens, tech etc) that might get Paul's juices flowing, but we're also open to whatever he brings in terms of invention, setting, storytelling or layout. He's an incredible talent and a proper professional. IGN Comics: Last but not least, the obligatory tease – what's coming up? What is in store for the Starjammers, Shi'ar, Inhumans and Kree? Are there any other players who have yet to enter this conflict? DnA: Now we're not going to give away the end of the story now, are we?!? Just brace yourself. This is big in scope, epic in consequence, and (for some) it will all end in tears.
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Post by sharkar on Mar 30, 2009 21:24:37 GMT -5
Well, I finally picked up Kingbreaker #4, which leads into War of Kings (on the Havok/Polaris/Starjammers side). It really wasn't very illuminating (WOK #1 is much more exciting!), but we can see some of the potential weak links: Havok is hellbent on revenge against his brother and seems almost as out of control as Vulcan is. Gladiator's Achilles' heel seems to be Lilandra (there was a great scene involving them in Kingbreaker #2...kudos to writer Chris Yost). So there's vulnerability all around. Then there's the rest of the cast (as many of you have mentioned in this thread's posts)...while the cast may not be composed of A-Listers, that just means anything can happen here. DnA sure have a lot to work with!
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Post by Tana Nile on Mar 31, 2009 15:39:38 GMT -5
Well, I finally picked up Kingbreaker #4, which leads into War of Kings (on the Havok/Polaris/Starjammers side). It really wasn't very illuminating ( WOK #1 is much more exciting!), but we can see some of the potential weak links: Havok is hellbent on revenge against his brother and seems almost as out of control as Vulcan is. Gladiator's Achilles' heel seems to be Lilandra (there was a great scene involving them in Kingbreaker #2...kudos to writer Chris Yost). So there's vulnerability all around. Then there's the rest of the cast (as many of you have mentioned in this thread's posts)...while the cast may not be composed of A-Listers, that just means anything can happen here. DnA sure have a lot to work with! I agree, Kingbreaker 4 was sort of anti-climactic after having already read War of Kings 1. I wish both Marvel and DC would get better at putting books out in an order that makes sense! However, I did enjoy the book. I haven't followed any X-titles in years, so I didn't realize how powerful Rachel was -although now that the ** SPOILER!!!!!** Phoenix force seems to have left her, I wonder what she's capable of. And just where did the Phoenix force go?! I can't quite recall, but weren't Gladiator and Lilandra lovers at one time? Or was it just that Gladiator loved Lilandra, unrequited?
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Post by sharkar on Apr 1, 2009 18:38:04 GMT -5
I can't quite recall, but weren't Gladiator and Lilandra lovers at one time? Or was it just that Gladiator loved Lilandra, unrequited? My take (based on their events in KB #2) is that it's unrequited, on Gladiator's side as you said. The Glad-Lil scene in KB #2 was fantastic and gave me a great sense of these characters... it was a standout scene that stopped me in my tracks, and as I mentioned, very good writing by Yost. It's fun for me to "discover" comic book characters I'm unfamiliar with. Reminds me of the time, decades ago, when I "discovered" the FF, Avengers, et al.
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Post by sharkar on Apr 24, 2009 11:40:46 GMT -5
I picked up War of Kings #2 a couple of weeks ago and the series continues to be a good read. If there's a flaw it's that it's not exactly subtle when it comes to telegraphing what the characters are going to do. We get a shot of Gladiator glowering as Vulcan threatens the captive Lilandra, so it's pretty obvious Gladiator will eventually turn against Vulcan. And take a look at the cover, which features Gladiator and Lilandra grappling with one another (I'm referring to the art on the original cover; there's also a variant cover featuring Black Bolt by Coipel...it's beautiful, if static). Also a given is that the compassionate Crystal will turn against her family and their escalating quest for revenge and dominance. Here, Crystal bonds with the devastated Kree; it reminded me of her (similar) reaction when coming upon the destroyed Kree world (when she was with the Avengers) in Galactic Storm.
The notion of Lorna and Crystal being best buddies still seems a bit forced to me, but here the ever-shrewd Lorna also acts as Crystal's pr agent. I guess Lorna's days on Genosha gave her some insight into politics. So Princess Diana--I mean, Crystal-- is the champion of the downtrodden people, while Medusa and most of the other Royal Family members come across as clueless, humorless, and out of touch. The clearest thinking Inhuman is Maximus! And I know Black Bolt's lack of action is to being used as a contrast to his later, inevitable confrontation with Vulcan...but the shots of BB just sitting don't convey strength and power--he just seems impotent and boring. And I hope a BB-Vulcan face-off doesn't preclude an encounter between Havok and Vulcan; after all, Vulcan killed their father! And poor Havok hasn't seen much action so far (Lorna's been the most prominent X-Man/Starjammer, and only because of her new role as Crystal's secretary of state). I'm still not buying the Crystal narration bit (I assume Gladiator will narrate the next issue). She does not know the people involved here well enough to be able to say things that would better served by an omniscient narrator. And why would she say something like it "always" stuns her that Havok and Vulcan are brothers, because one is good and one is evil? She should know all about about brothers and strained relations deadly conflicts; after all, her kin BB and Maximus have been at each others' throats for years! Still, despite what I've related above, none of this really harmed the basic storyline. There is some stunning art here and the emphasis on the characters gives this a good, old-fashioned feel. Overall it was a good read. I believe the Inhumans, Starjammers, Vulcan et al., will next appear in Guardians of the Galaxy #13, on sale now, so I'll probably pick up that issue soon.
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Post by goldenfist on Apr 24, 2009 14:58:16 GMT -5
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Post by Tana Nile on Apr 24, 2009 23:00:08 GMT -5
I've been meaning to come chat about the second issue of WOK! I thought it was a solid effort. The story is moving along nicely. It does seem though that the Inhumans are heading for a fall. I wouldn't be surprised if, after the dust settles, we wind up with Ronan and Crystal ruling the Kree, with the Inhumans perhaps headed back to Earth.
As Sharkar has said, some plot elements are being telegraphed -obviously Gladiator is not going to let anything happen to Lilandra. I missed his first fight with Vulcan, so I'm really looking forward to their next showdown!
I also thought it was a very odd cover - Gladiator and Lilandra fighting made no sense and indeed, nothing like that happens in the issue.
Here's a question I'm hoping someone can answer: we only see the blue Kree in WOK. What happened to the pink Kree (who I believe were a minority in the Kree worlds)?
I loved the Pelletier art, and especially enjoyed his Chorus Sentries - hey, space battles with giant robots are hard to beat!
I'll be getting Guardians of the Galaxy tomorrow - can't wait to see how the Guardians get involved in the war.
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Post by sharkar on Apr 27, 2009 22:32:23 GMT -5
Thanks for the previews...boy, Kallark looks more Kal-El-ish than ever, doesn't he? ;D So apparently Marvel is releasing four War of King one-shots featuring the "backgrounds" of Gladiator, Crystal, Lilandra, and Blastaar (?). These seem to be available on-line only so far; not sure if they'll be available as physical comics!
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Post by goldenfist on Apr 27, 2009 22:44:22 GMT -5
Gladiator is going to on the Nova Corps I can see that fight being one big battle.
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Post by sharkar on Apr 27, 2009 22:53:07 GMT -5
I've been meaning to come chat about the second issue of WOK! I thought it was a solid effort. The story is moving along nicely. It does seem though that the Inhumans are heading for a fall. I wouldn't be surprised if, after the dust settles, we wind up with Ronan and Crystal ruling the Kree, with the Inhumans perhaps headed back to Earth. That would be something...Medusa already seems so jealous of her little sister, doesn't she? I missed his first fight with Vulcan, so I'm really looking forward to their next showdown! If you can, try to pick up X-Men:Rise and Fall of the Shi'Ar Empire (which features Vulcan and Gladiator's battle). I think you'd like it; among other things, the art is pretty consistently good; and the Imperial Guard are featured. The follow up series is Emperor Vulcan, which I haven't read yet (but plan to). Here's a question I'm hoping someone can answer: we only see the blue Kree in WOK. What happened to the pink Kree (who I believe were a minority in the Kree worlds)? I was wondering that myself. At first I thought one of the young girls helping Crystal with her wedding attire (in WoK #1) was a pink Kree, but now I think she's an Inhuman girl; or perhaps she;s the new type of Kree, called a Ruul I think (because the girl looks like she has tentacles on her head, which I believe is supposed to be a hallmark of the new Ruul breed). I'd read somewhere that the pink Kree had escaped the Nega Bomb devastation (Galactic Storm) a while back, but I'm not sure where they are now. Even though the stars of this series are the Inhumans, I hope Rachel gets to play a bigger role soon. She's related to Vulcan (by virtue of her alternate-future timeline parentage), but so far she's been invisible.
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Post by Tana Nile on Apr 28, 2009 0:05:29 GMT -5
If you can, try to pick up X-Men:Rise and Fall of the Shi'Ar Empire (which features Vulcan and Gladiator's battle). I think you'd like it; among other things, the art is pretty consistently good; and the Imperial Guard are featured. The follow up series is Emperor Vulcan, which I haven't read yet (but plan to). Funny you should mention that - I just finished Emperor Vulcan ( I picked it up at the library). I really wanted to read Rise and Fall but it was not available. I may have to actually pay money for it! I thought Emperor Vulcan was OK, but I don't feel like it added anything new to the characters. A lot of time was spent with both Vulcan and the Starjammers dealing with another race, the Scyar Tal. I think I got more out of the recent WOK and Kingbreaker books. Right now I am reading my BF's X-Men Deadly Genesis books - pretty good stuff!
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Post by sharkar on Apr 28, 2009 18:10:46 GMT -5
Deadly Genesis is great...I bought the tpb several months after the series was issued. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it; I felt a lot of sympathy for Vulcan.
The Emperor Vulcan tpb is something I've wanted to buy for quite some time...but I've never seen it in bookstores or comic shops. I know it's available from online vendors, but my preference is to have a book in my hand before I buy it, so I can look through it--too often Amazon or Barnes and Noble/online have sent me books that have little rips in the pages, or the cover is slightly bent or torn or something...that sort of stuff drives me nuts. Maybe I should try the library for Emp. V, but I'm greedy ;D...I want a copy of my very own. So it looks like online vendors may be my only option, since the book seems so hard to come by in my neck of the woods.
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Post by sharkar on Apr 28, 2009 18:13:01 GMT -5
Hey, Goldenfist, if you see anything more about this Gladiator comic would you let me know? I still can't tell if this is going to be issued as an actual comic at some point...or if it's just available online. Thanks! ;D
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Post by goldenfist on Apr 29, 2009 22:59:55 GMT -5
I think the War of Kings Warriors mini series will come out next month or it comes in June or July.
It will talk about he became leader of the Shi'Ar Imperial Guard.
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Post by sharkar on May 4, 2009 18:47:46 GMT -5
I think the War of Kings Warriors mini series will come out next month or it comes in June or July. It will talk about he became leader of the Shi'Ar Imperial Guard. Thanks, goldenfist! I see Marvel has posted its July solicits, and you're right- - War of Kings:Warriors #1 will contain the Gladiator and Blastaar chapters. It's scheduled for a July 1 release. I assume a #2 will be published sometime later on, featuring the Crystal and Lilandra stories.
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Post by goldenfist on May 4, 2009 23:25:09 GMT -5
Your welcome Sharkar
You were right about Gladiator he seem's to be Kal-Elish his real name is a mix of Kal-El and Clark Kent.
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Post by sharkar on May 5, 2009 19:13:51 GMT -5
You were right about Gladiator he seem's to be Kal-Elish his real name is a mix of Kal-El and Clark Kent. Right...I'm an old-time DC and Legion of Super-Heroes fan, so as you can imagine, I get a real kick out of Gladiator and the Imperial Guard!
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Post by goldenfist on May 5, 2009 20:01:46 GMT -5
The Imperial Guard is an homage to the Legion of Super-Heroes.
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Post by Tana Nile on May 5, 2009 23:59:29 GMT -5
Dave Cockrum did a wonderful job designing those 'pseudo-Legionnaires'. When they first appeared I must have spent hours trying to figure out which Legionnaire each Imperial Guard member represented.
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Post by Tana Nile on May 29, 2009 15:21:23 GMT -5
I can't believe we haven't discussed issue 3 yet! So here goes (SPOILERS follow):
The divide between Crystal and the rest of her Inhuman family continues to grow. While she is concerned for the Kree people, her family seem focused solely on defeating the Shi'Ar. More and more we see this gap, between Crystal's altruism and the Royal Family's selfishness (in that they are mostly using the Kree people). It can't end well. We also get to see the development of mutual respect between Crystal and her husband, Ronan. I still think the two of them, essentially the two most unselfish and noble characters in the War, will come out on top.
The action with the Starjammers and the Guardians of the Galaxy was pure fun. Rocket Raccoon's ploy with Gladiator was smart and funny. Favorite line in the book: "Accessing Fist."
I have to admit I was surprised that Gladiator turned on Vulcan so soon. I thought it might drag out til the final issue - although there was never any doubt in my mind that he would eventually come around to Lilandra's side.
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Post by Shiryu on May 29, 2009 15:32:36 GMT -5
I hadn't read the Inhumans in years, but I was surprised with Black Bolt's coldness towards the Kree, and to some extent also by Ronan's selflessness. Has there been any retcon regarding this, or is it only the author's take on them?
On a side note, I was also surprised by how some Inhumans have changed look-wise. I suppose is a consequence of the 2° exposion to the Terrigen mist from Civil War time?
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Post by woodside on May 29, 2009 19:10:44 GMT -5
Shiryu, Ronan has been through some major changes due to the events of "Anhillation" and "Anhillation: Conquest."
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