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Post by The Captain on Dec 23, 2017 13:15:06 GMT -5
Doctor Strange #383 This title has been pretty lackluster since Jason Aaron left with issue #20 (this one is #29 in the current incarnation, although it has reverted to its legacy numbering), as Dennis Hopeless piloted the title through the Secret Empire mess, followed by John Barber writing a couple of forgettable issues. Donny Cates came on with issue #381 (#27), putting Loki in the role of Sorcerer Supreme and having Stephen trying to make sense of his life following his time in that position. The first two issues of this arc were pretty average, setting up the plot of Loki searching for a spell that will funnel all of the magic in the universe into him, while being aided by Stephen's former librarian/potential love interest Zelma Stanton. Stephen, as he is apt to do, did something shady and stupid with Zelma, using her in a way that is going to backfire and lead Loki to exactly what the Norse god wants. At the end of the previous issue, we find Stephen tracking down his old buddy Robert Reynolds, better known as The Sentry, who has been living in an exile that Stephen helped him set up. Yeah, The Sentry is back... ...and, surprisingly, it works to good effect in this issue, which finds Stephen and Robert going to the one place that Stephen knows an abundance of magic still exists: Asgard. The issue actually opens with Stephen explaining how Loki came to be Sorcerer Supreme, calling back to a concept that was used to great effect in the classic Doctor Strange & Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment story, that being a contest of sorcerers for the benefit of the Vishanti to pick their champion. Following that, which is a story told by Stephen to Robert as they go to Wong's house to retrieve an item to let them access Asgard (and which leads to some funny panels involving The Sentry overestimating the bond between Stephen and Wong), the two heroes head to Asgard to petition Odin, who is not there but has been replaced by his brother Cul, who is less than eager to help Stephen regain his magical strength; this is where The Sentry comes in, and it is smart, maybe the smartest thing Stephen has done in a while. The diversion allows Stephen to find Yggdrasil, and the issue wraps up with the World Tree giving Stephen what he wants, which is to use magic once again, although it may be more than he can handle... The writing by Cates is solid, as he isn't writing Stephen like Tony Stark as past writers have, and the art by Gabriel Watta is good. It isn't as otherwordly as Chris Bachalo's (but whose is, honestly) and it does suffer a bit from a muddy color palette, but it is overall pretty nice. After being less than enthusiastic about this title for a while, I really enjoyed this issue, including The Sentry's role in the proceedings. I'm looking forward to where it goes next, as it is leading to an epic Stephen Strange vs Loki showdown. 8/10
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 23, 2017 21:42:59 GMT -5
Doctor Strange #383This title has been pretty lackluster since Jason Aaron left with issue #20 (this one is #29 in the current incarnation, although it has reverted to its legacy numbering), as Dennis Hopeless piloted the title through the Secret Empire mess, followed by John Barber writing a couple of forgettable issues. Donny Cates came on with issue #381 (#27), putting Loki in the role of Sorcerer Supreme and having Stephen trying to make sense of his life following his time in that position. The first two issues of this arc were pretty average, setting up the plot of Loki searching for a spell that will funnel all of the magic in the universe into him, while being aided by Stephen's former librarian/potential love interest Zelma Stanton. Stephen, as he is apt to do, did something shady and stupid with Zelma, using her in a way that is going to backfire and lead Loki to exactly what the Norse god wants. At the end of the previous issue, we find Stephen tracking down his old buddy Robert Reynolds, better known as The Sentry, who has been living in an exile that Stephen helped him set up. Yeah, The Sentry is back... ...and, surprisingly, it works to good effect in this issue, which finds Stephen and Robert going to the one place that Stephen knows an abundance of magic still exists: Asgard. The issue actually opens with Stephen explaining how Loki came to be Sorcerer Supreme, calling back to a concept that was used to great effect in the classic Doctor Strange & Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment story, that being a contest of sorcerers for the benefit of the Vishanti to pick their champion. Following that, which is a story told by Stephen to Robert as they go to Wong's house to retrieve an item to let them access Asgard (and which leads to some funny panels involving The Sentry overestimating the bond between Stephen and Wong), the two heroes head to Asgard to petition Odin, who is not there but has been replaced by his brother Cul, who is less than eager to help Stephen regain his magical strength; this is where The Sentry comes in, and it is smart, maybe the smartest thing Stephen has done in a while. The diversion allows Stephen to find Yggdrasil, and the issue wraps up with the World Tree giving Stephen what he wants, which is to use magic once again, although it may be more than he can handle... The writing by Cates is solid, as he isn't writing Stephen like Tony Stark as past writers have, and the art by Gabriel Watta is good. It isn't as otherwordly as Chris Bachalo's (but whose is, honestly) and it does suffer a bit from a muddy color palette, but it is overall pretty nice. After being less than enthusiastic about this title for a while, I really enjoyed this issue, including The Sentry's role in the proceedings. I'm looking forward to where it goes next, as it is leading to an epic Stephen Strange vs Loki showdown. 8/10 I might need to pick this back up, I thought Aaron's run was one of the best on Doctor Strange and was bumbed when it ended. |
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Post by Dizzy D on Dec 24, 2017 5:03:33 GMT -5
I liked Aaron's Strange, but I found it to be the wrong direction for the character. The filler episodes were mediocre to bad, but I'm liking where Cates is going. I also really like the recent incarnations of Loki, so this was a nice follow-up to those issues (kinda missing the Ewing version and Verity though).
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 24, 2017 12:08:53 GMT -5
I liked Aaron's Strange, but I found it to be the wrong direction for the character. The filler episodes were mediocre to bad, but I'm liking where Cates is going. I also really like the recent incarnations of Loki, so this was a nice follow-up to those issues (kinda missing the Ewing version and Verity though). I didn't care for the filler episodes either but I liked the general tone of the book and the whole death of magic story felt like it would make for a great second or third Doctor Strange movie. I was mostly sad when Aaron left because I felt like we weren't going to get a proper story about how Stephen got his groove back as I felt the whole depowered thing was always going to be temporary. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 24, 2017 12:16:11 GMT -5
 Thor #702. Written by Jason Aaron. Art and Cover by Russell Dauterman. After last issue's one long fight scene...a lot happens this issue. Jane goes to Hercules to get the Gods of Olympus to help with the War of the Realms. Odinson takes Jane to see Volstagg's battered body. Odinson pleads with Jane to take her chemo treatments. Jane confronts Odin. Freyja sides with Jane against Odin. And Mangog appears in front of Heimdall... Whew. What an issue. My favorite this week. 9/10.This was a pretty great read in my book as well, so many awesome scenes that just came away as feeling absolutely classic. I loved the arm wrestle between Thor and Herc, it echoed past rivalries but it still felt uniquely Jane which is a fantastic feat by Aaron. I love the Odin-Son dearly, especially under Aaron's pen, but I'll be really sad when Jane puts the hammer down. I'm hoping for an outcome where she gets something of her own, sort of like Beta-Ray Bill, if someone could pull that off with out it feeling cheesy I think it'd be Aaron. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 24, 2017 12:48:59 GMT -5
Future Quest Presents #5 Written by Phil Hester Art by Steve Rude Summary: Birdman and Avenger square off against a cult that can bring the old gods back to life.
Plot: With a revolving door of talent you can't always expect every issue to be fantastic but when the indicia reads Phil Hester and the Rude Dude then you just know you're in for a good time and this issue certainly doesn't disappoint. What I really loved about Hester's work here is that he managed combine the sort of hokey elements of the classic cartoon I loved watching in reruns all the time on Cartoon Network as a kid growing up in the early 90's with a more realistic aesthetic of modern comic book story telling and the humor of Harvey Birdman that I loved as I got older into the same book and none of it feels forced. It has a serious romantic subplot, cartoon action and lines like, " 'If you ever take this collar off me Birdman, you're never getting it back on.' ...'Ha, Ha, good old Avenger, your sarcastic jibes always brighten my day!'...'I don't know what sarcasm is. I'm a Bird.' " which just killed me. I thought the Space Ghost story that they lead with in this book was great but this was even better. I can't wait for the next issue, and that child like response is something that most comics can no longer illicit from me.
Art: It's by the Rude Dude. I feel bad that I don't have a thousand words to spend on how awesome he is here...but saying, "It's by the Rude Dude" Kinda says it all pretty succinctly. His style is really just perfect at conveying good old fashioned super hero story telling and making it look effortless. I mean, just look at it:  Now Just try and tell me that isn't glorious. Grade:10/10
Buy it now.Seriously, I'm not joking. If you're not currently thinking about how you can get your hands on this book we can't be friends anymore. I mean it. |
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Post by Paste Pot Paul on Dec 25, 2017 22:05:09 GMT -5
 Marvel Two in One #1. Written by Chip Zdarsky. Art and Cover by Jim Cheung. The Return of the Fantastic Four starts here? This title reunites The Thing & The Human Torch. It appears they will go looking for their presumed missing (or deceased) team members (the Richards family). Somehow Doom fits into this also. Zdarsky gets us up to speed quickly & reunites Johnny & Ben. Good first issue. Good dynamics between the two main characters. He grabbed my attention right away. Cheung's art has changed somewhat. I saw some JR Jr influences in this issue. In a good way. Great job showing Johnny's emotions. Another hit for Marvel with Legacy. 9/10.Great book, hit all the right notes, very pretty, exceeds expectatitions, well worth getting. Cant agree with String though, Ive enjoyed Bendis's Doom and felt this was on the same par, tho the last page ...  Nightwing # 35. Written by Sam Humphries. Art and Cover by Bernard Chang. New creative team. Dick stays in Bludhaven. Humphries has him opening a gym to be a personal trainer. We see little of his supporting cast from Seeley's run. The villain is a new one from Dick's past. An unsolved case. Also Nightwing is wanted by the police. A slight change in status quo. I like that they left Dick in Bludhaven. It's difficult to judge the change in direction with one issue. Although I liked it enough to read the first arc. Chang's art is outstanding. 7/10.Have to agree with you here too. Ive followed your recent reviews of Nightwing in an attempt to find something to like in the book(which I couldnt) and finally with the new creative team I may have. Early days but at least I could finish it. Super Sons of Tomorrow:
Superman #37. Written by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason. Art by Jorge Jimenez.
Super Sons #11. Written by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason. Art by Ryan Benjamin.
Parts one & two. Part 3 in next week's Teen Titans #15.
We see Future Tim Drake as Batman returning to stop Jon from destroying Metropolis in the future. In Superman he takes down Bruce & Clark. In Super Sons he takes down the Teen Titans. Next week the Titans of Tomorrow try to stop Tim.
We see some loose ends from the Batman & Superman titles being tied up with this arc. The first 2 parts were awesome. It appears that at the end of this story we may see Conner & Cassie & Bart restored to this DCU. The art in both parts was beautiful.
9/10.
Speaking of finishing it, with these I couldnt, just too dang confusing for me. Ive been enjoying both titles for a while, Sons a little more, but this story just didnt engage me to the extent I just stopped reading. (Ive got to the stage where I'll put aside poorly written or really ugly books instead of forcing my way thru) I think the multiple alternate versions of Bats n Supes running around all at the same time (JL, Metal, and here for a start) just pissed me off for all of the affected titles.  Spectacular Spider-Man #298. Written by Chip Zdarsky. Art by Adam Kubert and Juan Frigeri. Cover by Adam Kubert. While this arc is more serious than the first arc there was some humor this issue. We get the Human Torch & the Black Panther helping out Spidey. We get the Vulture & Whiplash as villains. This arc just got better with this issue. Nice art by Kubert. 8/10.Heres another I just couldnt finish(or is so bad I cant remember finishing it) with the main complaint being the awful change in style by Adam Kubert, which it seems has been around for a few years now. It is so bland it just pulls me out of the story, where he used to be a guy who could make an average story memorable. Thor #702. Written by Jason Aaron. Art and Cover by Russell Dauterman. After last issue's one long fight scene...a lot happens this issue. Jane goes to Hercules to get the Gods of Olympus to help with the War of the Realms. Odinson takes Jane to see Volstagg's battered body. Odinson pleads with Jane to take her chemo treatments. Jane confronts Odin. Freyja sides with Jane against Odin. And Mangog appears in front of Heimdall... Whew. What an issue. My favorite this week. 9/10. My favorite too, the wait between issues is becoming painful, not because of delays, its just so damn good. Nice to see Dauterman on the interiors again, by the gods it must take some time for him to do that level of detail. A beautiful book, with my favourite superhero writer kicking arse and taking names. Batman #37 by Tom King and Clay Mann: I can’t recall the last time I bought an issue of Batman. For me, part of his charm was diminished when the title became so dark and depressing in the 90s. When I saw this was a double date with Batman, Catwoman, Superman, and Lois, I couldn’t say no! No crazy super heroics here, just fun banter as the characters visit the Gotham Fair. Lois and Selina steal the show ( I didn’t know Bruce and Selina were engaged). Bruce doesn’t show much personality, however this trait feeds into his relationship with Selina as explains it to Lois. She and Lois discuss their men while Clark and Bruce hang out. The final page had a very Silver age feel to it and made me smile. Glad I picked up this issue and revisited my old friend Bruce Wayne. It might be enough to make me check out his title again. 9/10 This was nearly as enjoyable as the Batman Ann a couple weeks ago, almost my best Batman issue in years. Ive always really dug those slice-of-life issues over the years Marvel were so good at throwing them in, The Thing having a poker party in MTIO, or the X-Men playing Baseball one issue, where you get to see who these folks really are, see them experiencing the same things we do for a change, showing that their lives arent all SAVE-THE-WORLD. Well done Messrs King and Mann. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2017 15:26:43 GMT -5
I actually picked this up yesterday but haven't had a chance to hunker down and read it yet. I only get to the LCS every 4-6 weeks so I never know what came out which week when I pick up my new stuff. -M It was a blast to read, it had a classic feel. Finally had a chance to read this book this afternoon. It was hella fun! It's been a while since I have seen Adam Hughes do interiors, so it was enjoyable to see that too. -M |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Dec 27, 2017 17:15:39 GMT -5
It was a blast to read, it had a classic feel. Finally had a chance to read this book this afternoon. It was hella fun! It's been a while since I have seen Adam Hughes do interiors, so it was enjoyable to see that too. -M Yeah, I haven't seen him do anything but pin up style covers in years so I wasn't sure what to expect as far as storytelling chops art wise but he did incredibly well. |
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Post by String on Dec 29, 2017 11:44:00 GMT -5
Thor #702. Written by Jason Aaron. Art and Cover by Russell Dauterman. After last issue's one long fight scene...a lot happens this issue. Jane goes to Hercules to get the Gods of Olympus to help with the War of the Realms. Odinson takes Jane to see Volstagg's battered body. Odinson pleads with Jane to take her chemo treatments. Jane confronts Odin. Freyja sides with Jane against Odin. And Mangog appears in front of Heimdall... Whew. What an issue. My favorite this week. 9/10. This was a pretty great read in my book as well, so many awesome scenes that just came away as feeling absolutely classic. I loved the arm wrestle between Thor and Herc, it echoed past rivalries but it still felt uniquely Jane which is a fantastic feat by Aaron. I love the Odin-Son dearly, especially under Aaron's pen, but I'll be really sad when Jane puts the hammer down. I'm hoping for an outcome where she gets something of her own, sort of like Beta-Ray Bill, if someone could pull that off with out it feeling cheesy I think it'd be Aaron. As great as Aaron does action scenes, his character moments/dialogue is equally impressive as evidenced here. Herc's scenes were great, Odinson's plea for Jane to finish the chemo she desperately needs was heartfelt and Jane's speech for Asgardia to fully enter the War was rousing. I've loved the Lady Thor ever since her debut & reveal and I hope that her end as foreseen isn't her final fate, that Aaron has some final sweet twist that will make her story (and legacy) a true classic. And I must say, Dautermann's art, as ever, is spectacular. I do have the option to receive variant covers of these issues from my LCS but I don't because his covers are just so beautiful and epic. They should be available as posters/prints Marvel!! |
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