Comic releases of 3/23/11 and 3/30/11
Hey all, well I thought we would not have seen such a feat, this week I have a combined reading from last week and this week, a total of 15. That's right friends, the week of 3/30/11 has 11 issues and the prior week 3/23/11 was only 4. Among these readings I have a 2 new reads; Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters (from IDW) and the new Fantastic 4 series simply called FF. I will be following the War of Green Lanterns event in the three Green Lantern series; Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, and Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors. So now with the inclusion Godzilla, I will be adding in IDW to my reviews, he won’t be alone in it, soon a Rocketeer mini-series will be released and I’m super stoked for it. Plus, I’m super glad that I have switched from the old format to this new one, my fingers would bleed if I did 15 full in-depth reviews. With all that said, lets begin…….
Comics: Amazing Spider-man #657, Avengers #11, Batman Inc #4, FF#1, Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #1, Green Lantern #64, Green Lantern Corps #58, Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #8, Kick-ass 2 #2, Secret Avengers #11, Teen Titans #93, Thor #621, Wolverine #7, Wonder Woman #609, and Zatanna #11
DC Comics
Top Pick: Wonder Woman #609
Abridged Story: Diana is shown various lives through various universes where her story and origin is told in a variety of ways yet all of them lead to the same destiny. She must forge her true destiny and cast aside the old and start anew.
Review: I’m sure most of you are surprised to see Wonder Woman as my top pick. Well I decided that this issue has marked the turning point for her as a character and the title itself. I loved the idea of seeing her witnessing the various lives, even though we only get a small handful we still see that each one share a commonality, her becoming a strong warrior. The great moment of her realizing her potential was the point where I finally see that she is becoming her old self again with a new outlook on life. This new writer that has taken over JMS, Phil Hester, has turned this arc from a convoluted mess into something readable.
Artwork: The cover befits the issue, various versions of Wonder Woman fighting each other in dilapidated ruins. The rest of the issue looks as this arc has been, looking good and seeing all the various Diana’s were really cool and showcase some various nationalities. The wall of Wonder Women is the most impressive piece seeing all these different worlds united.
Grade: Surprised to see how well this issue was, turns this arc around and is placing it on the right direction. The writing did a good job; the artwork is still good as ever, I give this issue a B+
Quick reviews
Batman Inc #4: We get a new look seeing the first Batwoman and Bruce's life while he and El Gaucho duke it out. This was a very interesting issue that gives us a new perspective of the past continuity of this family. Artwork was good and Morrison is a mad genius when it comes to Batman. This issue gets a B-
Green Lantern #64: Hal and the Rainbow Team find Krona’s hideout, they get ambushed while Hal is on his own and entering the War of Green Lanterns. Great set-up for this Corps event, art is good as ever, this issue gets a B
Green Lantern Corps #58: The second part of the War Kyle Rayner and John Stewart get caught up in the War as they are forced to fight one another but depower and have to survive while being hunted by former allies. Nice way to introduce us to Kyle and John, writing done really well, artwork was nice. This issue gets a B-
Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #8: The third part of the War has Guy Gardner and Hal Jordan meet up and discuss a battle strategy but leads to them fighting it out over how they handle the power of the Green Rings. Very well done issue, amazing amount of action in one issue, still lacked a coherent part to me at least, the artwork is really great during the fight scenes. This issue gets a B-
Teen Titans #93: The team meets up with a new heroine, Solstice, to help find her missing parents. The team comes across a demonic presence and one gets taken away. Nice to see the team dynamic pushed with this issue, new girl looks to be an interesting addition, writing is spot on as ever, and the artwork is still good. This issue gets a B+
Zatanna #11: Z finds a way to break free from her puppet form and overcomes her fear of them. So glad this arc is over, they made this very light hearted after a “dark” issue #10. The artwork has changed again but it fits the series like most have. This issue gets a B+
IDW Comics
Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #1
Abridged Story: Godzilla awakens and attacks an island, and heads towards Japan. They fight back using a nuke which gives him his ability to breathe his trademark blast. The big G heads toward Japan while our President ponders what to do.
Review: First off, yes this features Godzilla preparing to attack Japan, and no this is not in poor taste after the recent incident in their country. This is Godzilla doing what he does, nothing more. With that said, I loved this first issue. It begins as somewhat of a reboot of the character, no one knows that he existed until this point. His attack on the island town was shift and as usual, destructive. The big surprise was how they made him gain his Atomic Breath, via a nuke, instead of just having it before. Only a minor nitpick from a big fan of the character. The only funny thing I think they were using a a running gag was they had a few people say the line “You have to be F’ing kidding me”, even our president says it too, that was pretty funny seeing a real life president swear.
Artwork: The cover is iconic as the character, it features a ground view looking up at Godzilla destroying the sides of a building, and sadly my comic shop didn't have a special cover with the shop being smashed. The rest of the issue is pretty good; of course the design of Godzilla is important. His design seems to be a combination of the Millennium Godzilla's mostly a mixture of Godzilla 2000 and Giant Monster All-out Attack which are a good combination since this is a new continuity of the King.
Grade: This is a definite must for fans of the character and a great way for non-fans of being introduced to this iconic creature. I enjoyed the artwork and seeing all the angles of Godzilla. This issue gets an A+
Marvel Comics
Top Pick: Thor #621
Abridged Story: The battle comes to an end; Thor and his father continue to do battle with the tenth world villains. Thor in his giant golem thing cuts the world tree, cleansing the people and sealing the villains inside the tree, bound by the laws of the 9 worlds.
Review: Another run has been completed; Matt Faction has brought this well done arc to a spectacular ending. It pretty much follows his formula; he builds up with exposition and story and has all the action at the very end, without spacing it out evenly through a run. Still the arc was good, setting up so much and bringing back the status quo of this title. I'm still at a loss with what happened to the World Tree, is it rooted on earth now or stuck on its own plane of existence. Next issue is no longer being called Thor, instead its going back to being Journey into Mystery but follow Thor's numbering instead of the original number which should be Journey into Mystery #126(excluding any prior times they used it).
Artwork: The cover is Thor fighting off the Tenth World soldiers. Ferry's artwork will be missed since I love the way he combined his sci-fi influences to mythological beings. The giant beings they control are really cool and the moments with the World Tree is really awesome.
Grade: So another groups run has ended, wish it could stay around a little longer. The story was great and changes these characters greatly. The artwork is fantastic as ever. This issue gets an A+
Quick Reviews
Amazing Spider-Man #657: Spider-man and the Fantastic 4 reminisce about their lives and experiences with Johnny. A good filler issue full of emotion parts mixed in with the fun adventures they went on. Art varies per story. This issue gets a B+
Avengers #11: Uatu watches the Avengers do battle with The Hood as he seeks out the final two gems, plus a huge twist at the end. Great issue loved the ending, full of Uatu talking though. This issue gets a B-
FF#1: The team brings Peter into the family as they gain their new outfits and go on a mission and have a dinner. An amazing way of bringing new readers to this title and characters, great jump on for any one. Artwork was good and the writing was top notch. This issue gets an A
Kick-ass 2 #2: FINALLY the second issue introduces us to the team Dave has joined, one being a friend of his. They go on a raid as there is word of Red Mist preparing an army. I LOVED this issue, full great moments and full of action and tension. Romita’s artwork is topnotch as ever and Millar is the Man, this issue gets an A-
Secret Avengers #11: Rogers goes Inception on Steele as he delves into his mind to find out when and where did he turned bad. Brubaker does great with the Cap character and this feels like it could be its own mini-series, but won't. Deodato does a good job with art as usual. This issue gets a B+
Wolverine #7: The battle in the mind and body wages as the demon Wolverine continues to battle all the forces to keep him at bay until Logan can win. Aaron like Morrison is a genius when it comes to writing Wolverine. The artwork is great in this arc. This issue gets an A-
Phew, well that’s all there is for this week. I hope you all give each or most of these a view. Next week is a tiny week so again, so I will be skipping out once again. Still this was a good week, I loved each read but man it was a lot, a big record for me at least. Catch you all later, ComicCritic87 OUT!!!!