War Journal Entry number 660 - Weekly Haul 6/24/09
MARVEL
Astonishing X-Men #30 - Warren Ellis + Simone Bianchi. A weak end to the story arc with the pointless death of a character that was rarely handled as well as he should have been.
Avengers: The Initiative #25 - Gage + Ramos. A satisfying endcap to the Disassembled storyline, and to all that has come previously in the series. Also offers the beginning stages of what it will evolve into under the direction of Norman Osborn. There are always things hyperbolically referred to as turning points, but that is truly the only way to describe this issue as Camp Hammond is decommissioned and the mission of the Initiative is realigned.
Avengers/Invaders #12 of 12 - Jim Krueger/Alex Ross + Steve Sadowski/Jack Herbert. It's OK. It's certainly not helped by being so out-of-date at this point having entirely occurred before Secret invasion. Not taking timeliness into account, it still feels disjointed to me. I felt that they made use of too many short term plots that weren't handled fully instead of concentrating on a single plot. That kind of writing is acceptable in an ongoing series, but I want a miniseries to feel more cohesive.
Daredevil #119 - Brubaker + Lark. Still going strong.
Dark Avengers #6 - Bendis + Deodato. The cover image, featuring Noh-Varr battling the Sentry's evil half, the Void, isn't just misleading, it's downright stupid since Noh-Varr doesn't even appear in the issue. In fact, Noh-Varr's absence is mentioned a couple of times. The issue does feature the building tension between Norman and his Cabal, especially Namor.
Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia one-shot - Matt Fraction + Marc Silvestri. This issue begins the Utopia crossover between Dark Avengers and Uncanny X-Men with rioting in San Francisco and brief tussles between members of the two teams. Thankfully it's being helmed by the writer of the stronger series, and the art here is as good as Silvestri's has ever been.
Dark Reign: The Hood #2 of 5 - Jeff Parker + Kyle Hotz. While the person haunting the Hood's life makes her reasons known and her threat serious, the Hood tries to move on some plans regarding his own personal demon.
Dark Wolverine #75 - Daniel Way/Marjorie Liu + Giuseppe Camuncoli. Yes, they seriously renamed Wolverine into Dark Wolverine, and have allowed Daken, the loser with pretensions of coolness, to take over the focus. (Imagine a cross between Wolverine and the Fonz.) The character's manipulative son-of-a-bitchiness is on even stronger display here than in any of his other appearances, but what convinced me to come back for the next issue was that they brought in the Fantastic Four. Boosh!
Guardians of the Galaxy #15 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Brad Walker. The Guardians find themselves quite literally caught between the Inhuman Royal Family and the Shi'ar Praetorian Guard in this War of Kings tie-in. As they say - hijinks ensue. But it's not all fun and games as one character taps his inner darkness, another zaps a goup of our regulars to parts unknown, and a deadly warning is delivered. Continues to be one of my favorite reads.
Immortal Iron Fist #27 - Duane Swierczynski + Travel Foreman/David Lapham. There is a lot of nice symmetry and resolution in this series finale. I was surprised by how much I continued to like it after the original writing team of Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction left, and I'm looking forward to the follow-up miniseries, Immortal Weapons, which focuses on, who else, the individual Immortal Weapons.
Incredible Hercules #130 - Greg Pak/Fred Van Lente + Ryan Stegman/Rodney Buchemi. In an attempt to save his father from the underworld, Hercules speaks for the defense at his trial. Unfortunately, it's not very easy to defend someone that was consistently a dick. Still an engagingly well written examination into Greek mythology, and a damn good comic on its own merits.
New Avengers #54 - Bendis + Billy Tan. The new Sorcerer Supreme stands revealed, and his work starts right away as he has to join with the New Avengers to stop Dormammu's excursion into this realm. I'm curious to see how events depicted here concerning the Hood play out in his other current engagements (like his Dark Reign miniseries).
Nova #26 - Dan Abnett/And Lanning + Andrea DiVito. Another War of Kings tie-in that tops the list of my favorite reads. Richard Rider is back in place as Nova Prime and Worldmind is back to sanity, but there are a lot of inexperienced Nova Corps member out in the thick of battle that need to be rescued, including Richard's brother.
Skaar: Son of Hulk #12 - Greg Pak + Ron Lim/Rodney Buchemi. It's Hulk versus Skaar, with cataclysmic collateral chaos. I'm a little confused about how the story of Skaar is going to be split between this series and Incredible Hulk, and that confusion hurts the ending. Hopefully it will hold up better upon a later reading.
Thor #602 - J. Michael Straczynski + Marko Djurdjevic. Thor has a couple of good things happen for him this issue, but on the horizon there is still, as all-seeing Heimdall himself puts it, "Death."
Uncanny X-Men #512 - Matt Fraction + Yanick Paquette. In this pre-Utopia story, a team of X-Men scientist travel back in time to get some pre-Decimation genetic material to learn more about the mutant species, and hopefully be able to restart it. It's wild, it's crazy, and it's another riotous example of the wonderful mix of action, absurdity, and drama that has rejuvenated this series for me.
Wolverine: First Class #16 - Peter David + Gurihiru. Wolverine works security at a Dazzler concert. I know I've used it a lot recently, but, come on, with a setup like that, you know that hijinks will ensue. (Damn, I need a new phrase.)
Wolverine: Noir #3 - Stuart Moore + C.P. Smith. Another installment in the series most deserving of the award for the best usage of the Wolverine character outside of the superhero genre.
Wolverine: Weapon X #3 - Jason Aaron + Ron Garney. While an X-Filesian conspiracy investigation surrounds the events, Wolverine is at his most brutal against a team of soldiers all equipped with his powers and abilities. I'd probably be able to relax into enjoying this more if Aaron hadn't burned me so badly with the crappy end to his "Get Mystique" story in Wolverine.
X-Factor #45 - Peter David + Marco Santucci/Valentine De Landro. Yes, it's the issue that caused the gaynerd community to go all a-twitter and Twittering, but the long awaited kiss overshadowed some excellent storytelling. The high-tension action sequences in the present had both great banter and exciting visuals. Meanwhile, the story in the future has a wonderful take on Dr. Doom that shows that Peter David gets the character and Mark Millar is whistling out his butt. Oh, and for the record, I was thrilled by the kiss and the open confirmation of the relationship that has been hinted at for 15 years.
X-Force #16 - Craig Kyle/Chris Yost + Clayton Crain (with Ariel Olivetti). Messiah War comes to its bloody conclusion with X-Force succumbing to time-displacement syndrome (don't ask), Bishop receiving some more grievous wounds (because losing an arm wasn't enough), and Stryfe getting what he deserves (hopefully, anyway, it's difficult to tell since Clayton decided to depict it in an extremely indiscernible wide shot).
X-Men Forever #2 - Chris Claremont + Tom Grummett. That train wreck I saw on the horizon? Yeah, it's here and it's asking for $3.99. Removed from my pull list to prevent more pain.
DARK HORSE COMICS
Empowered volume 5 - Adam Warren. As usual, I'm digging the hell out of this series, the best satire of the superhero genre that has ever been put to paper.
DC COMICS
Gotham City Sirens #1 - Paul Dini + Guillem March. We've got Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. What can go wrong? Well, the writing is fast and fun, the art is gorgeous, and though Ivy and Harley have a history of working together, it still feels like a stretch for Catwoman to be with them.
Green Lantern #42 - Geoff Johns + Philip Tan/Eddy Barrows. More on Agent Orange, who isn't really interesting enough to have deserved a four part story. But further developments with the Blue Lanterns and the Blackest Night story make it worthwhile.
IDW PRESS
G.I.Joe #6 - Chuck Dixon + Robert Atkins. I think the most frustrating thing about this series is that so far it has been too much about the Joes not trusting one another and looking for traitors in their midst while there is a major threat out there (you know, COBRA) that they haven't even acknowledged yet.
Transformers: All Hail Megatron #12 of 12 - Shane McCarthy + Guido Guidi. "Brutally awesome" is the best way I can describe this finale which contains countless movement of intense action and rewarding characterization. Though a large portion of the ending bears far too much similarity to the ending of Dreamwave's first Transformers miniseries, I was overjoyed to see Thundercracker finally get a character defining moment after 25 years of stories. In the final analysis, I'll hold this series up as one of the best Transformers tales out there.
WILDSTORM
Starcraft #2 - Simon Furman + Federico Dallocchio. It still hasn't differentiated itself from any other outlaws-in-space stories, and has also failed to grab me. I still can't really judge whether it's good or not for its intended audience, just that it's not engaging to me and will probably leave other non-Starcraft fans cold. And so, this will be my last issue of the series.
WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT
Twisted Toyfare Theatre volume 10 - Highlights include Conan seeking anger-management help, "The Xbox 300" (the Spartans from Halo in the plot of 300 against the forces of Mario), send ups of Planet Hulk and Secret Invasion, and even some fun with Transformers. Same as it ever was.
Astonishing X-Men #30 - Warren Ellis + Simone Bianchi. A weak end to the story arc with the pointless death of a character that was rarely handled as well as he should have been.
Avengers: The Initiative #25 - Gage + Ramos. A satisfying endcap to the Disassembled storyline, and to all that has come previously in the series. Also offers the beginning stages of what it will evolve into under the direction of Norman Osborn. There are always things hyperbolically referred to as turning points, but that is truly the only way to describe this issue as Camp Hammond is decommissioned and the mission of the Initiative is realigned.
Avengers/Invaders #12 of 12 - Jim Krueger/Alex Ross + Steve Sadowski/Jack Herbert. It's OK. It's certainly not helped by being so out-of-date at this point having entirely occurred before Secret invasion. Not taking timeliness into account, it still feels disjointed to me. I felt that they made use of too many short term plots that weren't handled fully instead of concentrating on a single plot. That kind of writing is acceptable in an ongoing series, but I want a miniseries to feel more cohesive.
Daredevil #119 - Brubaker + Lark. Still going strong.
Dark Avengers #6 - Bendis + Deodato. The cover image, featuring Noh-Varr battling the Sentry's evil half, the Void, isn't just misleading, it's downright stupid since Noh-Varr doesn't even appear in the issue. In fact, Noh-Varr's absence is mentioned a couple of times. The issue does feature the building tension between Norman and his Cabal, especially Namor.
Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia one-shot - Matt Fraction + Marc Silvestri. This issue begins the Utopia crossover between Dark Avengers and Uncanny X-Men with rioting in San Francisco and brief tussles between members of the two teams. Thankfully it's being helmed by the writer of the stronger series, and the art here is as good as Silvestri's has ever been.
Dark Reign: The Hood #2 of 5 - Jeff Parker + Kyle Hotz. While the person haunting the Hood's life makes her reasons known and her threat serious, the Hood tries to move on some plans regarding his own personal demon.
Dark Wolverine #75 - Daniel Way/Marjorie Liu + Giuseppe Camuncoli. Yes, they seriously renamed Wolverine into Dark Wolverine, and have allowed Daken, the loser with pretensions of coolness, to take over the focus. (Imagine a cross between Wolverine and the Fonz.) The character's manipulative son-of-a-bitchiness is on even stronger display here than in any of his other appearances, but what convinced me to come back for the next issue was that they brought in the Fantastic Four. Boosh!
Guardians of the Galaxy #15 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Brad Walker. The Guardians find themselves quite literally caught between the Inhuman Royal Family and the Shi'ar Praetorian Guard in this War of Kings tie-in. As they say - hijinks ensue. But it's not all fun and games as one character taps his inner darkness, another zaps a goup of our regulars to parts unknown, and a deadly warning is delivered. Continues to be one of my favorite reads.
Immortal Iron Fist #27 - Duane Swierczynski + Travel Foreman/David Lapham. There is a lot of nice symmetry and resolution in this series finale. I was surprised by how much I continued to like it after the original writing team of Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction left, and I'm looking forward to the follow-up miniseries, Immortal Weapons, which focuses on, who else, the individual Immortal Weapons.
Incredible Hercules #130 - Greg Pak/Fred Van Lente + Ryan Stegman/Rodney Buchemi. In an attempt to save his father from the underworld, Hercules speaks for the defense at his trial. Unfortunately, it's not very easy to defend someone that was consistently a dick. Still an engagingly well written examination into Greek mythology, and a damn good comic on its own merits.
New Avengers #54 - Bendis + Billy Tan. The new Sorcerer Supreme stands revealed, and his work starts right away as he has to join with the New Avengers to stop Dormammu's excursion into this realm. I'm curious to see how events depicted here concerning the Hood play out in his other current engagements (like his Dark Reign miniseries).
Nova #26 - Dan Abnett/And Lanning + Andrea DiVito. Another War of Kings tie-in that tops the list of my favorite reads. Richard Rider is back in place as Nova Prime and Worldmind is back to sanity, but there are a lot of inexperienced Nova Corps member out in the thick of battle that need to be rescued, including Richard's brother.
Skaar: Son of Hulk #12 - Greg Pak + Ron Lim/Rodney Buchemi. It's Hulk versus Skaar, with cataclysmic collateral chaos. I'm a little confused about how the story of Skaar is going to be split between this series and Incredible Hulk, and that confusion hurts the ending. Hopefully it will hold up better upon a later reading.
Thor #602 - J. Michael Straczynski + Marko Djurdjevic. Thor has a couple of good things happen for him this issue, but on the horizon there is still, as all-seeing Heimdall himself puts it, "Death."
Uncanny X-Men #512 - Matt Fraction + Yanick Paquette. In this pre-Utopia story, a team of X-Men scientist travel back in time to get some pre-Decimation genetic material to learn more about the mutant species, and hopefully be able to restart it. It's wild, it's crazy, and it's another riotous example of the wonderful mix of action, absurdity, and drama that has rejuvenated this series for me.
Wolverine: First Class #16 - Peter David + Gurihiru. Wolverine works security at a Dazzler concert. I know I've used it a lot recently, but, come on, with a setup like that, you know that hijinks will ensue. (Damn, I need a new phrase.)
Wolverine: Noir #3 - Stuart Moore + C.P. Smith. Another installment in the series most deserving of the award for the best usage of the Wolverine character outside of the superhero genre.
Wolverine: Weapon X #3 - Jason Aaron + Ron Garney. While an X-Filesian conspiracy investigation surrounds the events, Wolverine is at his most brutal against a team of soldiers all equipped with his powers and abilities. I'd probably be able to relax into enjoying this more if Aaron hadn't burned me so badly with the crappy end to his "Get Mystique" story in Wolverine.
X-Factor #45 - Peter David + Marco Santucci/Valentine De Landro. Yes, it's the issue that caused the gaynerd community to go all a-twitter and Twittering, but the long awaited kiss overshadowed some excellent storytelling. The high-tension action sequences in the present had both great banter and exciting visuals. Meanwhile, the story in the future has a wonderful take on Dr. Doom that shows that Peter David gets the character and Mark Millar is whistling out his butt. Oh, and for the record, I was thrilled by the kiss and the open confirmation of the relationship that has been hinted at for 15 years.
X-Force #16 - Craig Kyle/Chris Yost + Clayton Crain (with Ariel Olivetti). Messiah War comes to its bloody conclusion with X-Force succumbing to time-displacement syndrome (don't ask), Bishop receiving some more grievous wounds (because losing an arm wasn't enough), and Stryfe getting what he deserves (hopefully, anyway, it's difficult to tell since Clayton decided to depict it in an extremely indiscernible wide shot).
X-Men Forever #2 - Chris Claremont + Tom Grummett. That train wreck I saw on the horizon? Yeah, it's here and it's asking for $3.99. Removed from my pull list to prevent more pain.
DARK HORSE COMICS
Empowered volume 5 - Adam Warren. As usual, I'm digging the hell out of this series, the best satire of the superhero genre that has ever been put to paper.
DC COMICS
Gotham City Sirens #1 - Paul Dini + Guillem March. We've got Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. What can go wrong? Well, the writing is fast and fun, the art is gorgeous, and though Ivy and Harley have a history of working together, it still feels like a stretch for Catwoman to be with them.
Green Lantern #42 - Geoff Johns + Philip Tan/Eddy Barrows. More on Agent Orange, who isn't really interesting enough to have deserved a four part story. But further developments with the Blue Lanterns and the Blackest Night story make it worthwhile.
IDW PRESS
G.I.Joe #6 - Chuck Dixon + Robert Atkins. I think the most frustrating thing about this series is that so far it has been too much about the Joes not trusting one another and looking for traitors in their midst while there is a major threat out there (you know, COBRA) that they haven't even acknowledged yet.
Transformers: All Hail Megatron #12 of 12 - Shane McCarthy + Guido Guidi. "Brutally awesome" is the best way I can describe this finale which contains countless movement of intense action and rewarding characterization. Though a large portion of the ending bears far too much similarity to the ending of Dreamwave's first Transformers miniseries, I was overjoyed to see Thundercracker finally get a character defining moment after 25 years of stories. In the final analysis, I'll hold this series up as one of the best Transformers tales out there.
WILDSTORM
Starcraft #2 - Simon Furman + Federico Dallocchio. It still hasn't differentiated itself from any other outlaws-in-space stories, and has also failed to grab me. I still can't really judge whether it's good or not for its intended audience, just that it's not engaging to me and will probably leave other non-Starcraft fans cold. And so, this will be my last issue of the series.
WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT
Twisted Toyfare Theatre volume 10 - Highlights include Conan seeking anger-management help, "The Xbox 300" (the Spartans from Halo in the plot of 300 against the forces of Mario), send ups of Planet Hulk and Secret Invasion, and even some fun with Transformers. Same as it ever was.