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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 21, 2015 16:00:55 GMT -5
Those are some valid points, especially for Peter. But there are some other points to keep in mind in regards to his current situation. Doc Ock, as Superior Spider-Man, started Parker Industries. So when Peter 'returned', he inherited the company. Now, with the 8 month gap, we don't know yet the impetus that launched PI from being perhaps a local or even national company to being a global entity. Still, Peter retains his same morals and priorities. He's not jet-setting around with Playboy bunnies on his arms like some other bigwigs (*cough* Tony *cough*) Instead, he sees this an opportunity to improve the quality of lives on a global scale. But his goals may not jibe with others, who may see more profitability in exploring (and exploiting) other areas. So Peter's naivety in global management may end up haunting him. Also, can Spider-Man handle the more exposure? As a more public bodyguard (gotta admit, love that), will public perception change about him? (No sign yet, that I know, of JJ's response to this). What new strains will this place on Peter? In the first issue, we've already seen that Peter has arranged for a Spidey stand-in in some instances (I seem to remember this person, but I can't quite recall his previous identity). It allows for different explorations for his character. Yes, it's a milieu that Peter has little to no familiarity with and no one has counted out the ol' Parker luck from cropping up at some point. As for the seemingly abundance of teams, I think it's Marvel showing more diversity in their make-up. A wider mixture of genders, races, even mixing up members from the more familiar teams. How long it lasts, who knows? Hopefully, it will be done well, if nothing else.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 21, 2015 15:33:43 GMT -5
Alright, #1 of this new volume, just a reminder of the members of this new team: Old Man Steve Rogers, Rogue, Deadpool, Spider-Man, Brother Voodoo, Synapse, Johnny Storm (Human Torch), Quicksilver
We start off witnessing an elderly man (and someone else) undergoing Terrigenesis. Reborn, the elderly man gains abilities that give him empathy (and perhaps control) over the forces of nature and the environment (which fits in with his being a former environmentalist).
Switch to the new Unity Squad taking on a Super-Adaptoid. Things are hectic till Deadpool performs a risky action, touching the Adaptoid with his bare skin. The droid absorbs his cancer disease, collapsing, rather than absorbing his more dangerous healing abilities. This infuriates Spidey, who is already mad over Steve allowing Deadpool to join the group because Wade is too unpredictable and unstable. He threatens to quit to which Steve is ready to accept.
Then, they hold a press conference to introduce the new squad but tensions run high between Rogue and Synapse (a new Inhuman character). The Terrigen Mist is affecting mutant physiology worldwide, starting with making them sterile (these issues will be explored more in the upcoming new X-line of books). Steve tries to calm tensions as they return to their new HQ, oddly enough, a refurbished theater that also used to be a speakeasy. We see the effects of the mist on Rogue and Brother Voodoo voices his concerns over the choice of their HQ to Steve (Voodoo has been speaking to the ghosts that still haunt the theater).
Meanwhile, Synapse (who has some form of telepathic abilities) receives flashes of danger from Boston while out with Pietro. They summon the team, who travel to Boston to find the city under siege from large-scale fauna and insects. The team struggles to fight off the assault while we witness the source of this attack (supposedly), the Shredded Man.
I'm not sure, this book had some good moments and some not-so-good moments. Some dialogue was cheesy (especially during the press conference) while Steve's resultant talk with Rogue about her concerns was heartfelt. I liked Johnny here, he seemed happy to be part of a team again, even if Steve's priorities don't exactly align with the priorities Johnny was more accustomed to with the FF.
For the record, I don't like Deadpool. He's over-exposed, over-hyped, and most times, I don't like the humor. (For example, in Boston, he snickers out the phrase 'wicked pissah'. Not only does this remind me of bluefish tuna, but also works very well to draw me out of a book).
The art is rough in some spots, especially with character's anatomies. Steve looks pumped up on steroids for an old man for example. Though Spidey's movements and webbing did have a McFarlane-esque quality about them.
I'm not completely sold on this title yet, may check out the next issue or two to see where Duggan takes this (and hopefully the art will step up as well).
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 19, 2015 16:46:51 GMT -5
Okay, #1 of this new volume, just a reminder of the members of this team: Sunspot (leader), Songbird, White Tiger, Power Man, Squirrel Girl, Hulkling, Wiccan, Hawkeye.
There's a strange plague infecting residents of Paris, the infected's head turn to crystal and they act in a zombie-like fashion. Bobby thinks this is a good job for his A.I.M. (Avengers Ideas Mechanics) and sends the team to investigate. Meanwhile on Avengers Island, Bobby receives a visit from SHIELD agent Dum Dum Dugan, who introduces Bobby to his newest member, Clint Barton. Not mincing words at all, Dum Dum blatantly informs Bobby that, given his new power and influence, Clint is only there to spy on them for SHIELD to which Bobby acquiesces.
Meanwhile, the team investigate Paris as they begin to mold themselves as a functioning team. Power Man, using his chi abilities, discerns that there is more supernatural at work here, that the infected have lost their souls and their actions are forming a conduit to unleash the afterlife into the real world. All part and parcel of the Maker's new plan (the Ultimate Reed Richards). During his visit, Dum Dum observes the situation, telling Bobby that SHIELD has sent in a gene-modified team (super-soldiers?) to gather intel but they lost contact with the team. Then, the Maker decides to really test A.I.M. by unleashing the transformed, infected SHIELD team on them.
In all, a decent start. Good sense of humor throughout, with banter. Characterization is good as the team knows they aren't a team just yet and work to achieve that. LOVE that Songbird is the de facto team leader. I've loved her since Avengers Forever and have been waiting for her to join the team ever since. I know next to nothing about Squirrel Girl, she was tolerable here, obviously meant as the comedic relief. They put in a great diagram of Avengers Island, reminiscent of the old MU Handbook diagrams of Avengers Mansion and the WCA's Compound.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 18, 2015 10:22:29 GMT -5
Last week saw the release of Avengers #0, a set-up intro issue for all the upcoming new Avengers-related titles.
The framing story involves the new Squadron Supreme, a team composed of multiverse-tossed members. In the 8 month gap, they have acquired a front company, Oracle Inc, to serve as their base of operations. Nighthawk's intentions are for them to protect their new home of Earth at any cost, by any measure, whether the other heroes and teams of this world agree with them or not. To that end, he analyses the other Avengers teams in preparation for the time that they may be faced to fight them.
First, we have a short featuring the Vision, who goes to see Wanda. Vision is having difficulties, his perfect memory is malfunctioning, giving him 'visions' of past events at the most inopportune times, which culminates in the death of a young victim in a bus crash when the Vision made the wrong choice after being unable to determine which 'victim' in his mounting memory visions was the real one. Wanda tries to comfort him, offering her help when Vision replies that he knows what is causing these visions now, his emotional attachment to those memories. He then begins to wipe his emotional core to the horror of Wanda.
Next, we have a collage of moments for the New Avengers, Sunspot's A.I.M. (Avengers Ideas Mechanics). Basically, it's an overview of the storylines coming up apparently within the first year, but we catch a glimpse of their first major villain, the Maker (the Ultimate Reed Richards) who has apparently gained sway over the remnants of the original A.I.M.
Next, we have Captain Marvel and her Corps, now charged with defending Earth against any and all cosmic/extraterrestrial threats. An energy being arrives at Earth, prompting a response from Carol. It's only with help from one of her new scientists aboard their space station that Carol is able to send this intelligent light being back to where it came from. (Shame, Alpha Flight is supposed to be aboard the station too, offering assistance and while their level was seen on the station, no Alphans are seen)
Next, we have Uncanny Avengers, in which we see how Deadpool joins the Avengers. Old Steve tasks him with retrieving an item that may help Rogue, who has fallen into a coma apparently caused by the Terrigen's Mists' effect on mutant physiology. Deadpool succeeds thus earning him a membership card.
Finally, we have the Ultimates, who will apparently tackle the real BIG threats. We learn how Miss America joins T'Challa's group though her intentions for joining may not be what everyone believes them to be.
All in all, a decent look at what's to come for the Avengers. New Avengers #1 and Uncanny Avengers #1 have already been released though I've yet to read either so reviews are forthcoming.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 18, 2015 10:00:53 GMT -5
The only comic-related dream that I recall is this:
My family and I are traveling to a college for me to enroll. We are riding in a Mystery-Machine type van when we pull off at a rest stop area to eat lunch. While eating, someone hears a plane flying overhead. I look up and see an anime mecha fleet flying over. Huge battle cruiser with an accompaniment of mecha jet fighters. Then suddenly for an instant, I'm one of the pilots, flying my mecha in patrol around the cruiser, listening to the comm chatter and seeing the wide beautiful blue skies all around me.
Then, just as suddenly, I'm back on the ground and we're back on the road. We get to the college, only to discover that part of the college has been destroyed by a rampaging Hulk. I approach a scorched, burnt-out building, finding it to be the remnants of the school's library. I then find out that the reason the Hulk attacked the school was that they had a mint copy of Hulk #211, which the Hulk didn't want anyone to read. Picking through the rubble, I pick up what appears to be a burnt, tattered copy of a Hulk comic....and then I wake up.
No, even to this day, I've never read nor seen a copy of Hulk #211.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 18, 2015 9:49:49 GMT -5
Yeah, it's always sad to hear of a comic store closing down.
I've heard of motion comics though have yet to watch any of them. I've also yet to see Ant-Man nor buy Avengers 2 on blu-ray. Though I'm a bit disappointed. Season 1 of the Flash on DVD apparently comes with nearly 3 hours of bonus content yet the Avengers 2 DVD apparently has only 45 minutes of bonus material. What gives?!
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Post by Marvel Boy on Oct 18, 2015 9:40:35 GMT -5
Alright, the last week or two have seen Marvel starting to release their ANAD titles and from what I've read so far, they've been very good.
All these titles feature an 8 month gap, from the resurrection of the MU to the current moment. Also, kudos to the creators and editorial for while SW is still being published, there has been little to no spoilers in these titles (so far) about what the resolution to SW will be.
So, first up, Amazing Spider-Man #1, which sees Peter Parker as the head of the global company, Parker Industries. We begin to see how this affects his professional life, his personal life, and his time as Spider-Man. Taking a page from Stark, Spidey is now publicly Peter's bodyguard and Peter's goals to help improve the quality of life globally are balanced against the general public's growing perception that he is a 'poor man's Tony Stark'. I was most impressed by Slott's ability to pick up on his sub-plots from the last volume and continue them here with nary an interruption. In fact, if you didn't know any better, you'd think SW would never have happened between these two volumes.
We also got brief intro stories for the upcoming Spidey-related titles: Spidey 2099, Spider-Woman (yeah, Jessica being pregnant is going to take some getting used to), Silk, and Web Warriors. Also as a final tease, we see elements from Renew Your Vows that Slott has brought over to the main title, which should make this title (and Peter's life) more interesting to follow.
Next, we have Doctor Strange #1. Jason Aaron has hit a grand slam right off the bat, this is how you begin a brand-new series featuring a classic character. First-person narration boxes may get stale from long-term overuse, but here, Aaron uses them effectively to immediately get into the mindset of Stephen, being world-weary from defending Earth as the Sorcerer Supreme but still eager to fight the good fight. The number of new elements introduced here are terrific, from the Bar with No Doors to the composition of Strange's mage cabal to the idea that magic bears a price (and has Stephen been paying his tab?)
Chris Bachalo's art is a perfect match for this genre. While a few scenes in the early fight are a bit difficult to follow, overall, his tone and style effectively capture the waking world of magic that Stephen travels (and his novel ideas about Stephen's cloak are so simple and elegant, one wonders why no one else has thought of this before). And yes, weird as it may sound, seeing Stephen hack and slash with a sword and battle axe looks awesome! Brilliant start.
Bendis has arrived with Invincible Iron Man #1, but I still get the title via mail and my copy hasn't arrived just yet so a review of that is forthcoming.
But so far, I think ANAD Marvel is off to a very strong start.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Sept 3, 2015 10:18:52 GMT -5
Strange, growing up, my only real memory of the Beast's time with the group didn't even happen in the book. It occurred in the Dark Phoenix Saga, when Hank, on monitor duty, sees the police call about the X-Men's fight at the Hellfire Club. He decides to assist his old teammates, wiping the call from the Avengers' computers records.
Since then, I've read various appearances of his on the team, quite liked his friendship with Simon. I found the general public's reactions to him as an Avenger intriguing though. Bouncing across the streets, most of the public seemed enthused to see him (one kid, I think, called him a 'Blue Wookie'). So either Claremont's mutant hysteria wasn't as widespread or being an Avenger outweighs that, maybe.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Sept 3, 2015 9:56:33 GMT -5
Marvel announced that Secret Wars will be extended by one more issue (9 issues now instead of 8), due in part to Hickman (apparently) having SO much story left to tell that they're willing to give him an extra issue to do so. What this means though is that SW will be unfinished by the time Marvel starts releasing all their new titles. Also, Starbrand and Nightmask receive their own ongoing title.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Sept 3, 2015 9:44:23 GMT -5
I didn't see Hank in the same light that you apparently did. Whenever Ultron appears, I think Hank is going to slip mentally regardless. It's almost inevitable, given their history together. What I observed in ROU though is a Hank with very strong convictions on handling dangerous AIs. Remender crafted a very strong ethical debate in that regard, on the sentience of AIs, real or perceived. Obviously, Hank's opinion on the issue is heavily biased, and as presented here, he feels completely justified in his convictions and actions in dealing with such matters (such as building his killer AI weapon). Vision, naturally, disagrees just as strongly, and soon their debate splits the team members as well.
So, in the context of the moral righteousness of killing AIs, no, I don't think all the team agrees with Hank's position. Which in turn may help fuel old feelings of inadequacy in Hank. But instead of being a step backward, I saw it more as a step forward, Hank being convinced of his righteous cause in this matter.
Now, at this point, discussing Hank's 'father' relationship to Ultron is like beating a dead horse. I thought Busiek had the worthy last word on the matter back in Vol 3. But I can't fault Remender for trying to find new avenues to explore in their relationship and having the two merge at the end, I think, qualifies as such. I don't see that as being a writer out of ideas (no, that's when you decide to simply kill off your character) instead, I see it as an unexplored avenue. Who may sway whom in what regard?
Yes, merged characters are somewhat cliched, but I think it's wrong to write this merger off as being worthless. For starters, we have yet to see anything concrete about their future motivations, actions, or encounters. They simply flew off at the end and that's all we've seen so far. I would, at least, like to see in what directions they take them before writing this merger off as perhaps a bad idea. In fact, I would love to see where Remender would've taken this thread but alas he has chosen to focus more on creator-owned projects on this time.
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Ant-man
Aug 23, 2015 11:59:38 GMT -5
Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 23, 2015 11:59:38 GMT -5
Corey Stoll was that actor's name, yeah? The guy that played Cross? HB I've liked Stoll, ever since I saw him in the short-lived Law & Order:Los Angeles TV show. He's been on the House of Cards show too, which the wife loves (mainly because of Spacey). I'm going to dare to be different, in that, this film is the first Marvel film that I've been hesitant to watch in theater. That's not to say that I don't want to watch it, but my attachment to the character isn't strong enough for me to warrant paying even matinee prices to see. Y'see, Ant-Man has never been my favorite of Pym's many guises. My intro to Pym was around the time of his Trial, after his ordeal with Egghead so I'm more accustomed to thinking of Hank in his guises of Yellowjacket and even Giant-Man. I've read very little of him as Ant-Man. Also, while I like Scott Lang having assumed the guise, I've always felt that Marvel has never really done much to push him in that regard. During the '80s, he was mostly relegated to secondary status and guest-starring roles. Beyond his appearances in the Avengers, I mostly remember Scott for helping Tony during the opening salvos of the Armor Wars. So I've never taken a real opportunity to try and attach to the character. So that's why I wasn't all too keen in seeing this movie at the theater. I'm glad that it's gotten great reviews and it's certainly made a great impression on you all here, which is fantastic. So when it drops down on pay-per-view, I'll definitely check it out.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 17, 2015 15:33:20 GMT -5
Wow, I'm reading more DC now than in previous years.
Credit to DC though, unlike in Secret Wars where you don't know which version of what character you are reading, in their Convergence event, DC did rather well in clarifying which multiverse version of the characters you are reading. I didn't read all the 2 issue tie-ins though, mainly just checking out the characters I loved (Superman, Flash, and Shazam) or favorite creators back on certain characters (Jurgens/Weeks on Superman, Wolfman on New Teen Titans, Rucka/Hammer on the Question). Overall, I enjoyed the tie-ins that I read.
As for follow-up series, I'm reading:
Superman Flash Justice League Justice League of America Superman/Wonder Woman Green Lantern GL: Lost Army
Also, DC has apparently become less strict on tight continuity, instead trying to focus more on quality stories, an approach that I think is working for the most part.
For example, in the Bat-Family books, Jim Gordon is now Batman, wearing a Bat-mecha suit as Bruce Wayne has 'died'. Yet in both main JL books, Bruce is still Batman. In the Supes-Family of books, Clark's identity has been exposed and he's suffered some form of power loss. Yet in both main JL books, he's his normal self. Same with Hal as GL in the JL books yet in his core books, he's a renegade on the run as the Corps has vanished. (In fact, he's not even wielding a ring. He's using a power gauntlet, a prototype before the rings, developed by Krona).
So in some ways, I'm looking more forward now to DC's releases than Marvel's.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 17, 2015 14:45:30 GMT -5
Could the change in their origin be an issue as well? I've never read Ultimate FF but that seems more the source of inspiration here than their traditional origin.
The biggest gripe I've read against this film is the almost complete lack of the family aspect. Reed and Ben's relationship seems to have gotten the most focus while, if I understand correctly, Ben and Sue didn't even talk to each to other for the whole film.
But like you said HB, it's not really fair to judge a movie without actually watching it. So I'll probably bite the bullet when this does drop down on pay-per-view.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 17, 2015 14:35:02 GMT -5
SW #5 -
Well, we learn some answers, seems Owen Reece, the Molecule Man is still 'alive' as Doom visits him after Strange's memorial service. If I understand this correctly, the Beyonders engineered Owen as a 'bomb' to destroy a universe and engineered multiple versions of Owen to destroy the multiverse.
Doom and our Owen discovered this plan, preempted it by 'detonating' some Owens prematurely, and collected the rest as a MM bomb to use against the Beyonders. Strange learned of their plan, joining them as they assailed the Beyonders. Owen seemed to absorb their power, Strange backed out of assuming that much power and responsibility thus allowing Doom to take the mantle of god.
Meanwhile, Doom charges Valeria and her Foundation with hunting down the 616 survivors (and the Cabal) by laying blame for Strange's death on their hands. We get some usual Hickman technobabble over how they are going to do that as we see snippets of where some of the 616 survivors are located (Remember? Strange scattered them across Battleworld before being killed).
I'm beginning to get some event fatigue here. The delay of this issue didn't help matters much. The story is still interesting and I'm still following some of the tie-ins, but given the press releases and interviews about the titles following this event, I'm starting to wish that Marvel would just get on with this so we can peruse the new titles.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 9, 2015 10:12:50 GMT -5
How do you screw up Doctor Doom though? This is Fox's, what, second, third attempt on the character? It's startling when you consider how well they've portrayed Magento on the big screen yet they seem to be missing the main points on Victor.
Should Doom even be used at this point? What other FF villains could they have used instead?
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 9, 2015 10:07:54 GMT -5
Yeah, those were some good moments, playing off Namor's haughty and arrogant manner.
The backlash over Alonso's definitive comment on Herc's sexuality has been widespread. If Marvel doesn't want to include that facet of him in their version, I'm okay with that. It's not as if Lee & Kirby followed every single aspect of Norse mythology when they created their version of Thor so there's some form of precedent here.
But if Marvel has since published hints of such behaviour from Hercules, then they should own up to it and acknowledge it. But Alonso's definitive answer (rather than one of his typical vague/evasive answers) seems to have closed the possibility of any future writer (or even Abnett in this new series) from exploring the issue any further.
While there have been some minor hints of bisexuality in the 616 Herc, what fans are referring to is the Ultimate version of Hercules, who was involved with the Ultimate version of Logan. Alonso's rebuttal basically boils down to 'two different universes, two different versions of the character'.
Although how this plays out when both universes have been 'destroyed' and (apparently) re-merged into a whole single new universe is slightly perplexing.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 9, 2015 9:39:41 GMT -5
Oh, okay. I remember Spidey on the Electric Company (and a young Morgan Freeman) but I never saw that title on the racks in my area.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 8, 2015 9:10:32 GMT -5
Well, early reviews are in and this movie appears to be a major disappointment. Even the director is distancing himself somewhat, saying that studio influence was heavy-handed.
If I watch this film (IF), it'll be when it drops down onto pay-for-view.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 8, 2015 9:05:33 GMT -5
Wait. Hold the phone. Did you write that Captain America is now MAN WOLF? How many Captain Americas are there at this point? 10? 15? There is the usual one, the Falcon as CA, a black female CA from the future...my head hurts. There's also Sheriff Steve Rogers from the 1871 mini, an Old West version of the MU. (Though if I'm reading the Wild West, I want to see the Two-Gun Kid, Rawhide Kid, more of Marvel's classic Western characters) I dunno, I've read the first issues of a good portion of these tie-in minis but haven't felt invested enough in the story to continue reading most of them. Alt-world stories have a limited appeal for me so there's really only a few that I continue to read. From what I understand though, these stories will have no lasting impact on the restored MU come October.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 8, 2015 8:51:30 GMT -5
I'm not sure what happened. I recall a few years back, Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente doing the Incredible Hercules title, which was some sort of fill-in for the Hulk title at that time. So I don't know if he's undergone some form of power loss or not.
Every time I think of Herc though, it always brings to mind his excellent first mini-series from '82 by Bob Layton.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 8, 2015 8:44:11 GMT -5
I take it that's supposed to be Jen reading the Wall Street Journal whilst wearing fuzzy pink slippers too. Hahaha.
Y'know, looking over the list of titles in that ad, I don't recall Machine Man having his own series. And what is Spidey Super Stories?
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 2, 2015 8:55:23 GMT -5
Regarding some of the SW tie-ins (SPOILERS of course) :
A police procedural/detective noir story starring alternate versions of Thor sounds preposterous but man, if Jason Aaron and Chris Sprouse haven't turned Thors into one of the most interesting of the tie-ins. You have Ultimate Thor, Beta Ray Thor, Stormborn (Storm of X-Men), Rune Thor, Destroyer Thor (yes, THAT Destroyer), Throg, Odin, even Groot Thor (I am Thor!).
Ultimate Thor and Beta Ray Thor, partners in the Hall of Homicide, are assigned the important case of solving an apparent serial killing, 5 dead women across 5 different kingdoms. The case becomes more intriguing when it's discovered the 5 dead women are all the same woman, Jane Foster. The situation turns deadly though when Ray is killed while searching for leads, Thor Odinson appears (the only Thor to ever become unworthy) and what may a homeless, street-living Loki have to do with all this?
This book reads like Law & Order: Valhalla Unit, very enjoyable.
Spider-Man Renew Your Vows continues to be enjoyable as well. The exploration of 'With great power comes great responsibility' continues as Peter now believes his greatest responsibility is to protect his family at all costs, especially his daughter, who is now exhibiting her own powers, from the forces of the Regent. But when she is possibly detected at school (a beautiful misdirection here by Slott with a great guest appearance), Peter in street clothes races to save her, revealing that, in this domain bereft of heroes, Spider-Man still survives. Fearful of being hunted, MJ convinces Peter that the best way to protect his family is to be Spider-Man, handing him a black costume. Some really great story-telling here from Slott.
While I have yet to read the main Spider-Island story, the Spider-Island tie-in was fun. Flash Thompson Venom leads a rebellion against the Spider-Queen in infected Manhattan. It doesn't help that Spidey is dead and the majority of the Avengers are now infected (Spider-Cap leads the Queen's forces). With the help of the Vision and Jessica Drew, Flash enacts a plan inspired by Jack Russell, the Werewolf by Night.
During the day, Jack is an infected spider slave. At night with a full moon though, his curse takes over, turning him into his normal free werewolf self, who works with Flash in the rebellion. Flash has been collecting certain items, the moonstone of Man-Wolf, Morbius' vampire serum and the lizard serum of Curt Conners and uses them to free Cap, Carol Danvers and the Hulk from their spider-influence. So yes, Cap is now Man-Wolf, Carol is a living vampire, and you have a Lizard Hulk! A wonderful fun twist as Flash now hopes to use his new Monster Squad in destroying the Spider-Queens' reign.
But the real reason I picked this up was the back-up story of Spider-Girl by her creator team of DeFalco and Frenz. Within the span of 10 pages, we see the after-effects of Spider-Universe on Mayday Parker, from her social life to her family life to her superhero life, where a new threat appears. It's an old-school Marvel approach to story-telling that still works beautifully when handled by a pro such as DeFalco. Bendis should take notes.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 2, 2015 8:22:47 GMT -5
Black Knight will receive a new ongoing title. The setting will be in Weirdworld as Dane continues to struggle with his wielding the Ebony Blade. Hercules will receive a new ongoing as well though this somehow led to speculation over Hercules' sexuality in this series. A 2010 Hercules one-shot had Northbird (of Alpha Flight) saying that Northstar (who is openly gay) should be counted amongst Hercules' past lovers. While bisexuality would be more in line with the classic Greek mythology version of Hercules, Alonso has responded, saying that no, their Herc is not bisexual. So much for social progress. Also, Alonso and Brevoort have confirmed that Bendis will launch a sister title to his upcoming Invincible Iron Man title, apparently something to do with the huge last page reveal in the first issue. No details on who is the focus of this sister title yet.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Aug 2, 2015 8:02:29 GMT -5
A subscription ad. I also remember this one - I much prefer the first one. :lol:
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 10, 2015 10:25:41 GMT -5
@starfoxx - Yeah, I remember the Electric Company, with Morgan Freeman and Spidey's appearances on the show. His theme song on that show was quite catchy, as I recall. I really didn't start following Spidey till Stern started writing, around the time the Hobgoblin first appeared. Until then, it was just sporadic issues that I acquired in various ways. Another favorite solo issue of mine is #219: Story by O'Neill with art by Luke McDonnell, I didn't find out till years later that Miller drew the cover. Peter infiltrates Ryker's Island prison to uncover why so many super-villains have escaped recently, only to become incarcerated himself thanks to the machinations of the Grey Gargoyle. But when your lawyer is Matt Murdock, Peter is soon freed and it's up to Spidey to find the proof needed to clear Parker's name. Another great Done-In-One story, I don't recall seeing much of McDonnell's art elsewhere but his work here was fine.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 10, 2015 10:06:39 GMT -5
Secret Wars #4...Strange becomes aware of the Cabal's location, since they are currently in battle with members of the Thor Corps. A Thor prays to Doom for guidance and assistance and Doom observes the situation along with Sue and Valeria. Valeria reports that these beings, while being represented elsewhere in other domains/kingdoms, are significantly more powerful than those other versions.
But it's not till Strange arrives on-scene, with the 616 survivors in tow, that Doom decides to take a personal interest in the matter. For he spots Reed...the only Reed that he's been able to find throughout the parallel histories of Battleworld. Doom teleports to the battle site, where he engages in conversation with Reed and Thanos.
But Cyclops, imbued with the power of a Phoenix Egg, steps up to admonish Doom and attacks. Doom gets the upper hand and ends up snapping Cyclop's neck, apparently killing him. In the melee, Strange teleports all the 616 survivors and the Cabal away, spreading them across Battleworld (with the possible exception of Black Panther). Afterwards, Strange confronts Doom, telling him that even after going so far as to steal everything of Reed's life for himself and despite his awesome power, Doom still fears Reed...and rightfully so. Doom then, apparently, strikes Strange down, killing him.
Wow, you get a strong sense of the power that Doom commands in this new world. The conversation he has with Reed and Thanos was interesting, as was Stephen's accusations against Doom. I've read elsewhere that Strange may have pulled a trick here with T'Challa, something similar to what they did when they first interrogated Black Swan in NA. Strange may have turned T'Challa invisible, so as to witness his later talk with Doom. He may have also transferred his magical Eye over to T'Challa as well, but I'm unsure of that.
My only nitpick is with Scott. His finding a Phoenix Egg was Bendis' idea in UXM, we still don't know what all that means, and now he's apparently dead with little rhyme nor reason. I hope Hickman didn't bring him along just to serve as cannon fodder for Doom.
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 10, 2015 9:48:35 GMT -5
Also interesting, there are some notable character absences in these new title listings.
Among the missing are: Black Widow, Thor Odinson, Bruce Banner/Hulk, Reed and Sue Richards, Loki, Doom, Hank Pym, Luke Cage and Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Maria Hill, Gorgon, Mockingbird, Moon Knight, Nick Fury, Nick Fury Jr., Punisher, Shang-Chi, Sif, War Machine, Wasp.
Among the mutant missing: Cyclops, Emma Frost, Havok, Rachel Grey, Cable, Gambit, Cannonball (along with his wife Smasher and their baby), Angel, Firestar, Namor
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 7, 2015 20:07:54 GMT -5
I was wondering, what was your first issue/exposure of Spider-Man? My first Spider-Man issue was #191: Part 1 of a two-part story by Wolfman with art by Pollard. Jonah is upset over the presumed death of his son and of course, blames Spidey. He approaches Professor Spencer Smythe about creating another Spider-slayer. Smythe already has, unleashing it upon Spidey to Jonah's pleasure, which is short-lived when he learns that Smythe has planned this as a trap not only for Spidey, but for Jonah as well! I can't remember how or where I got this issue, but I've read and re-read it as a child that today, a few pages are kinda loose. It was a fun issue, the spider-slayer had a slightly creepy look to it, and it gives Peter a decent run for his money. The cliffhanger page, of Spidey and Jonah being handcuffed together via a bomb was very good. Though now that I think about it, I need to get #192 to see how this story ends! :lol:
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 4, 2015 20:29:53 GMT -5
I buy most of my comics digitally these days, so I don't get all these ads. I will agree with the white blank pages with the titles, they do seem overly grand, as if they are trying to increase the 'epic' feeling to Hickman's stories. Also, due to the HUGE cast of characters that he employs, you do need the cast of characters' page. Ads should be used judiciously though. Over-abundance just interrupts the flow of the story. (And just recently, DC received quite a bit of flak for re-introducing half-page ads. So imagine just getting a half page worth of art and story over a large ad at the bottom of the page). They should also make me interested enough to check out the title in question, which in most cases these days, they don't. The ads that I remember from the late 70s to 80s were highly imaginative, had some great designs and carried a high level of excitement. This is one of my favorite X-Men ads: or this ad for the underrated Shogun Warriors title: and this ad actually made me buy the issue:
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Post by Marvel Boy on Jul 1, 2015 20:36:59 GMT -5
Un-believable.
I would at least hope that she would recognize Downey Jr. should he ever be a passenger.
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