Age of Ultron #3
Rating: ★★★★
Despite a slow start in its first couple of issues that didn’t quite encourage me to keep reading, I decided to pick up #3 of Age of Ultron, and I’ve very happy I did. Things definitely pick up in this issue as we finally start to see the scale of Ultron’s invasion. We start to get some answers to the questions that we’ve since the event began, although there are still plenty of mysteries and more than enough to keep me interested. We begin to realise how much of a threat Ultron truly poses as we see, to my surprise, many of our favourite heroes fall in battle against Earth’s invaders. It’s nice to see some friction between some of the survivors when they are forced to make some very difficult decisions as we realise just how powerless and hopeless they are after losing some of their toughest teammates. And there can be no complaints about Bryan Hitch’s artwork, who it seems was born to draw desolate and ruined landscapes. Overall, this was a surprising issue which, thanks to a final-page twist, has interested me in reading the remaining issues. But at $4 an issue, I’m hoping for the next seven issues to at least be on-par with this one.
Guardians of the Galaxy #1
Rating: ★★★★1/2
When Guardians of the Galaxy, the re-launched series from Brian Michael Bendis, made it’s a debut a month ago with #0.1, I was blown away. So I’m very happy to say that #1 exceeded my expectation this week. Whilst #0.1 slowly built from a grounded story on Earth to an epic Sci-Fi adventure, in #1 we dive straight into one of the Guardians’ missions, and things only get crazier from there. Whilst #0.1 focused on Star-Lord, this issue fells a lot more balanced and, although we don’t know everything about the team’s members just yet, none of them are overshadowed here. This begins as an issue surrounding a father and son and their struggle to accept each other, and develops into a Sci-Fi adventure of epic proportions, beautifully drawn and very cinematic. This series is turning into something that I’d love to see on the big screen. And with this issue’s surprising last page, there’s no doubt I’ll be picking up #2 next month to continue the adventure.
Batman Incorporated #9
Rating: ★★★★1/2
I, along with many, was shocked by Damian’s death last issue (despite DC’s need to spoil the issue prematurely). But his death hasn’t made me dislike the series, in fact, if anything, it has made me respect Grant Morrison even more for taking such a huge risk by killing off a such as fan-favoured character. I can see many people disliking this series because they don’t believe it was the send-off Damian deserved. He didn’t die saving Gotham. To put it harshly, the boy wonder died for nothing. But the way I see it, Damian’s death fits perfectly into this brutal world Morrison has created and almost acts as a reminder to Batman (and his fans) not to underestimate his enemies. There is simply no room for a happy ending for Robin in Morrison’s world. But, whilst the issue does serve as an aftermath to last issue’s shocking events, it still includes all of the action and “fun” that you would expect to find in Batman Incorporated. The panel breakdowns have been very intelligent in this series, and this issue is no exception. And the artwork is as good as it’s always been (unless you’re not a fan of Chris Burnham of course). Overall, although there are no huge developments in the plot to be found here, #9 is still a great addition to the series. Morrison’s many puzzle pieces are starting to come together, setting the stage for a final few issues that are surely not to be missed!
Young Avengers #3
Rating: ★★★★
So far I’ve really enjoyed Kieron Gillen’s Young Avengers. As a fan of the team, it’s been great to see these characters interact with each other on an all-new adventure, especially when the writing is this good. And #3 is no exception. If anything, it’s my favourite issue so far as we start to see the team coming together, facing the consequences of Wiccan’s actions in #1. We get some answers in this issue but there’s still a lot to be seen in future issues which I’ll no doubt be picking up. Loki threatens to steal the show here with some hilarious dialogue and a genius reference to a TV Show we all (I hope) love. I also can’t complain about the artwork might also be at its best here thanks to a particular sequence in a nightclub where the colours are all that matter, and it’s astonishing. Overall, this series is getting better every month and I’m looking forward to the next issue in which we’ll hopefully see even more heroes join the team and the continuation of the Young Avengers’ epic adventure.
"We miss you already, Damian..."
-George