Hey all, time for another helping of Comic book reviews. I was gone the previous week, due to last week only having just 2 releases, I felt it would be to simple and small to actually do a full and legitimate review for only 2. So now that I'm back I got an amazing 11 issues to review this week. Today's reviews: I finally give my take on Big Times, The Avengers meet the RED HULK, Batman goes global, Dead-man gets his revelation, Green Lantern takes a turn for the worse, Power Girl cat fight, Superior gets tested, Superman and abuse, Thor reunites with his brother, Thunderbolts VS The Avengers, and Savanna in Hollywood. We got a lot to cover so lets get started.
DC
Batman Inc #1
Story: The new series has Bruce and Selina teaming up in Japan to meet the Japanese Batman known as Mr. Unknown(catchy). As they search they uncover more than they expected and have to save Mr. Unknowns allies from the villain Lord Death Man(no joke) before its too late.
Review: I didn't wait to spoil it all for a new series, but from what I can say, this is a great premiere for a new series. This follows pretty much after Batman and Robin #16 where he announced Bat Inc. So his first stop was Japan and trust me when I say it has a lot of funny moments. Especially a part with Cat woman in the middle and at the end, let me just say it all comes in full circles. Grant Morrison does some terrific writing with his new project, especially with Selina, she has these feline mannerisms now(read it to know what I mean) and it shows her line between human and animal instincts.
Artwork: The artwork is done by Yanick Paquette, who does an amazing job at the design of each character, especially with Lord Death Man. The coloring has a tons of different moments, some parts are bright and fun, while the other is dark and moody, giving us that classic Batman sense.
Grade: After a great first issue, I highly recommend this for any Bat fan. The artwork is top notch and Morrison's writing fits like a glove. This issue gets an A
Brightest Day #14
Story: This issue is another focus issue mainly dealing with Boston coming to terms with the white ring. He finds Batman and forces the ring onto him, this backfires and causes Boston to see his life leading up to his death. He realizes the error of his ways and the ring gives him another chance.
Review: This to me was a good issue, I never knew that much about Bostons back story to understand why and how he became Dead-man. This has a lot of great moments with Batman in the beginning but after that, he leaves and does his Bat thing. Johns writing is good in this issue, giving us some touching moments with Boston and shows just how much he has grown as a character, by far the most developed of the 12 that returned. I keep saying that single character focus with this series is rough because you have so many to count on, yet we get some moments of them that are much better than others, and this was one of them.
Artwork: Believe it or not, a White Lantern Batman sounds cool, but he was kinda hard to make out because of how bright the coloring was on his form. It looks cool but unlike Hal, the 12, and Sinestro, all of them you could see clearly, Batman has a hard time being seen. The scenes Bat not in white are best, and there is one that involves Mr. Freeze and it is EPIC!!!
Grade: It's a hit and a miss for me with this issue. I love the writing and well developed part of Boston, but the artwork with Batman is unimpressive, even if it is The God Damn Batman. So for now I give it a B-
Green Lantern #59
Story: This issue brings in the Indigo tribe and bringing forth their entity, placing it into an Ambulance driver. Meanwhile the guardians of Oa worry of Hal and his mystery doings, so Salaak seeks someone to keep an eye on Hal. Meanwhile with Hal, Larfleeze, A Blue Lantern and its Entity come into contact with Barry Allen. Barry warns Hal to quit while he is ahead and get help from the league, and not the other Lantern corps. The Indigo tribe crashes the party and bring along Black hand, under the control of the Indigo ring. They are interrupted by a mystery being who controls Parallax and has it take over Barry.
Review: Now this is has one of the best setups for the next issue. This was mainly an exposition issue, because it deals with Hal's insubordination with the Guardians, Testing his friendship with Barry, and how it tests him with the other Lanterns with their own agendas. Its like waiting for a house of stacked cards to fall, all it takes is one tiny thing and it ruins it all. The entities are getting more interesting. So far 4 have possessed humans: 2 regular people and 2 Meta. Whoever this new mystery villain is must be powerful enough to control the entity of Fear and I can't wait to see what he/she has in store for the DCU.
Artwork: The design of the Indigo entity in a human body is freaking amazing, it looks like a guy who went crazy with tribal tattoos and done a few on his own face. The characters are drawn amazingly well and the combined Barry and Parallax is awesome.
Grade: A great issue for building up tension and exploding it in the last few pages, clearly giving Johns lots of room to experiment. I give this issue an A-
Power Girl #18
Story: Power Girl fights her cloned version called Divine. As Divine develops and becomes stronger she easily takes out PG. After the confrontation, Kara remembers who Max Lord is and what's happened.
Review: This is an interesting issue, while it has some amazing fight moments and has a well developed plot going on, it seems to be missing something, but I can't put my finger on it. I love the moments between Kara and Divine, seeing how they are exactly the same being except for their hair and outfits. Also the opening with Max talking to Dr. Sivana was well done too. The big reveal at the end was done great, because we now see a huge shift in her character, finally breaking from Max's power. Winnick's writing is done really well and I love the story he his telling, we hit what I feel is the half way point for this story, so hopefully it gets much better from here.
Artwork: This artwork made me feel dirty and I LOVED IT!!! I bet Basri did this with full intent of showing off Divine's body, and her name fits it. Divine is blessed with HUGE...tracks of land and while she is not gonna be Power Girls replacement, she is however a great foil because how do you stop an exact copy of you.
Grade: I give this issue a B+, because it still has something missing, yet this issue has a lot of great moments and.....amazing artwork.
Superman #705
Story: Superman heads to Chicago and meets a young boy who's dad is an abuser and beats both his son and Wife. Superman saves the day..blah blah blah.
Review: THIS WAS BORING!!!! and I mean it too. Nothing about this issue brings up anything worth following. I mean why have Superman deal with child and Spousal abuse, I know its a touchy subject but this came off as a PSA, and a BAD ONE at that.
Artwork: The artwork is good but doesn't bring this issue up any more than it deserves. The character design is well done but for the most part it has some good moments but again, the subject ruins it all
Grade: This issue gets a first for me and any of my followers have rarely seen this grade, but this issue gets a D-.
Zatanna #7
Story: A filler issue involving Zatanna returning to Hollywood to see the first Mystical museum. She does battle with an old family friend and brings more closure to her and her father.
Review: This was a fun issue to read, while it was technically only filler, it adds nothing to the main story line, and all it does is bring in closure to Zatara and Zatanna once more. The action scenes are few in this issue and the writing is done by Adam Beechan, someone I never read before but he does a good job...he no Paul Dini tho.
Artwork: The artwork was done by a different artist once more, and it felt sorta out of place. The character expressions were good some times, and wonky on others.
Grade: I give this issue a B-, because it's only filler with some good writing but the artwork could have been better.
Marvel
Amazing Spider-man #648
Story: Peter Parker has entered a new era and has a lot in store for him. The issue begins with him on a mission with the Avengers fighting off Octo-bots. After figuring out how to save the day, the Avengers praise him for doing it. The next day, Parker loses his apartment and seeks for a new place to stay. All fail until a Jamenson's wife brings Parker to a science department where he meets unique people and saves the day after one experiment goes awry. After that he gets a quick test and a huge pay. Mean while as he does all this a mystery villain lurks and stalks his prey. We also see Mac Gargan getting split from the symbiote.
Review: Finally I can post this. I LOVED THIS. This is a great way at showing us how much great this new era is gonna begin. I love the beginning where we see Parker actually using his level of smarts even though we have Reed and Stark trying to assess the situation. This issue is a great starting point for a lot of new readers because it shows us all the people that Parker himself interacts with. I am surprised that they are introducing a new mystery villain who is bringing back some old villains into the fray(i.e. Scorpion). I like the new people he is joining with at the science lab, seeing how they can perhaps help him gain some new gadgets for spider-man. There was one moment I gotta call out, and that's when Parker was looking for a place to crash(which was too long), he meets up with MJ and they begin to laugh at the idea of them together even though she and him are not a couple, they are friends, she should be at least generous.
Artwork: This is some interesting artwork design for this series. I like the way it gives it a more cartoon look and has some cool moments with other characters outside of the Spider-man universe. This is miles ahead from the Origin of Species artist, but he did a good job(I won't discredit his work) and I can't wait to see more from this team.
Grade: I give this issue an A- for having a terrific launch for the character and series, giving us lots in one issue prepping us for something BIG, along with having some good artwork that compliments the title.
Avengers #7
Story: The issue begins with a mystery man searching a ruined city of the inhumans, where he discovers one of the Infinity Gems. Meanwhile Tony and Thor meet up with Wonder Man, who once again tells them to undo the Avengers team before they cause more harm. As he disperses, Tony and Thor head back to Avengers Tower. Meanwhile the mystery man finds Reed sleeping and heads into a pocket dimension and finds another Infinity Gem. He winds up in the middle of a desert where the Red Hulk attacks him. At Avengers Tower, Noh Varr is showing off his new girlfriend until Red Hulk crashes into the tower.
Review: Once again the Red Hulk joining the Avengers is sort of a red herring, he doesn't join them willingly. This issue has a pretty good set up, someone is after the Infinity Gems and most likely the Gauntlet as well. It some nice moments, the talk between Tony, Thor and Wonder man is top notch, because its one man trying to convince them despite their better intentions. I did find it strange that Reed never had any precautions if someone gained any of the gems and have a counter system for it. This is really quick read and I like how it gives us a lot in a little. I can't wait to see what comes next.
Artwork: JRJR is once again doing some terrific artwork for this series. I love his design for Red Hulk and the city design of the Inhuman city.
Grade: I give this issue a B+, it has a good start but it leaves wanting more. The artwork is top notch as ever.
Superior #2
Story: This issue mainly deals with Simon testing out his new powers, seeing if they are based on the comic or movie version of the character(clever).
Review: Again I can't spoil much because you gotta read it to be amazed by Millar at handling this superhero take on Big(its referenced too). I like how he tests all his new abilities and the ending leaves us on a great cliff hanger.
Artwork: This some good design and the end scene is just as cool, especially what it is.
Grade: Because I'm such a Millar whore, I give this issue an A-, for giving us a great issue and a great follow up to issue one. I love the artwork and how it is done with the final pages.
Thor #617
Story: Thor heads to France where he meets a young con artist. He realizes who it is and chases him. After catching up to him, he tells the child that he is Loki, his brother and he can now live a new life after Ragnarok and the end of Siege. He restores him to his former self, but there's a slight mishap. Meanwhile, the World Eaters have attacked another one of the 9 realms, and that worlds inhabitants arrive on earth and head for Asgard.
Review: Finally some actual progress. After a slight stall with the first two issues, we finally get this series on a roll. I love the way Thor figures out the child is his brother, and the outcome of his rebirth is kinda funny. The best part was when Tony meets with Balder and they about the pending doom that is to come. Fraction is known for taking long in getting the goods out but this has plenty of build up now and I can't wait to see whats in store.
Artwork: Ferry once again does great work with this issue. I love the look and design of the characters. The redesign of Loki is cool, and Iron Man looks amazing.
Grade: I give this issue a B+, for having some great moments and bringing Thor some closure with Loki, and the beginning of something more. The artwork is amazing as ever with some cool redesign and coloring.
Thunderbolts #150
Story: This is a huge issue with lots going on. Luke Cage wants to leave the Thunderbolts Program while Rogers, Stark, and Thor arrive on the Raft to see how its all going. All goes well until Ghost gets a devious plan to get him, crossbones, and Juggernaut away and make a break for it, that fails and it leaves them in a strange world with a frog man. They search around and find the Thunderbolts and do battle. Rogers fights Crossbones and has the upper hand until Crossbones uses his new power. Stark fights ghost who gains the upper hand but stops after finding out that Stark is not super rich anymore. Thor and Cage fight off Juggernaut who gives them so much trouble until Tony intervenes. Rogers wins his battle with Crossbones and tells Cage as they return that he is doing a good job.
Review: Like I said, this is a huge issue and has lots of stuff going on in it. My favorite parts are the beginning that involves the first half of the Raft. Where the you can see and feel all the tension the villains and heroes have in this one spot. Cage doubting the program is interesting seeing how he acts tough up til now. The second part involving all the fights are pretty cool because Rogers win by a technicality that involves the dimensions water. The fight with Tony and Ghost does end abruptly and it is a funny way on how it ends. Another great moment was when Thor was talking with the troll girl, trying to convince her she can be part of Asgard, but her mind is too corrupted by her upbringing that it seems she will never return. The frog guy is really funny and sadly he is only seen in this issue.
Artwork: The character designs for The 3 Avengers are well designed. Like JRJR, I prefer this kind of Rogers, who isn't all muscle but has a well defined body, unlike Deodato who makes him look like a body builder.
Grade: I give this issue an A-, its got some great moments with each Avenger battling their counter parts and has some good outcomes with them. The artwork is top notch still and has some cool redesigns with the Big 3.
PHEW...that was a trial. Well thats all for this week with my reviews. Hope you all enjoy and stay tuned for the coming weeks. Another comic announcement, I will be picking up Heroes for Hire in December, because it has GHOST RIDER!!! Til next time, catch you all later ComicCritic87 OUT!!!