War Journal Entry number 704 - Weekly Haul 12/3/09
MARVEL
Black Widow & The Marvel Girls #1 of 4 - Paul Tobin + Salva Espin. Detailing the Enchantress's part in Black Widow's origin, the issue is much better than that ludicrous statement would seem to indicate. The issue also shows how Natasha can outsmart the most paranoid of adversaries and out-plan her superiors.
Dark Avengers Annual #1 - Brian Michael Bendis + Chris Bachalo. It's the Sentry versus Marvel boy in the best Noh-Varr story since the original Grant Morrison Marvel Boy miniseries. It features some promising developments with the character as well as just some great character development.
Deadpool Team-Up #898 - Mike Benson + Carlo Barberi. Has some good jokes and correspondingly funny artwork with DP teaming up with the Zapata Brothers, a pair of bounty-hunting luchadors with a bad case of mercenary worship. But some of the plot moments are unclear, including ones dealing with the main story. Since I think these are all one-off issues, it's probably not something that will be returned to and clarified, therefore it just seems like sloppy storytelling.
Fall of Hulks: Alpha one-shot - Jeff Parker + Paul Pelletier. I wasn't too optimistic when I heard of the Fall of Hulks crossover... until I heard that Parker was part of it. This issue was great, even without the whole Fall of Hulks thing. It reveals that a while back the Leader drew together a group of some of the smartest villains with the purpose of cooperating behind the scenes as well as collecting and storing the information of the ages. It's a great ret-con that explains how some villains came back time and again, while also deepening the characters of some villains that never got a second look before. Plus, it features some serious fun with M.O.D.O.K.
Hulk: Winter Guard one-shot - David Gallaher + Steve Ellis craft a story featuring the latest Darkstar around a reprint of Incredible Hulk #393 by Peter David + Dale Keown. It's a brief insight into a character and what it means to take on a role in the institution that is the Winter Guard.
Iron Man: Requiem one-shot - Matt Fraction and Kano provide the framing sequence of a deteriorating Tony Stark around a reprint of Tales of Suspense #39 (1st Iron Man) by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Don Heck, as well as a reprint of Iron Man #144 (origin Jim Rhodes) by David Micheline, Bob Layton, and Joe Brpzpwski. Far from shying away from the parts of Iron Man's origin that have been rendered apocryphal by later ret-cons (like the fact that it originally took place during the Vietnam War), they instead embrace them as an example of Tony's increasing dementia.
Nova #32 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Andrea DiVito. “Classic” Nova villain the Sphinx shows up to play with space and time on the edge of the Fault, a great big tear in space and time that resulted from the War of Kings. Science fiction, super-heroics, and Egyptian mythology have rarely been blended so well.
Siege: The Cabal one-shot - Brian Michael Bendis + Michael Lark. The Cabal breathes its last gasp and implodes, as we all knew it would, owing to a combination of Osborn's insanity and Doom's Doomosity. But it's just in time for the next part of Bendis' master plan. Still not sure who Osborn's secret weapon is, though I'm thinking it's either the Molecule Man or the Beyonder. I'm not really looking forward to it being either one of them, though, as Molecule Man has already had his best tales told and anything remotely interesting about the Beyonder was effectively eliminated by a lazy and stupid ret-con that Bendis himself did in the Illuminati miniseries.
EDIT: After flipping through the latest issue of Dark Avengers (#12), it looks like the secret weapon is someone else, but I'm not going to spoil that here. (And, no, I didn't actually buy it.)
Strange #2 of 4 - Mark Waid + Emma Rios. Another enjoyable issue in the new, understated take on Dr. Strange. It may not be as loyal to the Steve Ditko roots as The Oath miniseries by Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin had been, but it's no less a valid vision of the character.
Thor #604 - Kieron Gillen + Billy Tan. Dr. Doom's been making cyborg warriors out of Asgardians. Loki's role in the horror is discovered. Violence is wrought. And Thor isn't around. The new creative team isn't hesitating to ramp up the excitement, a marked difference from the way Straczynski paced the series. Whether it will work or not in the long run, only time can tell.
Uncanny X-Men #518 - Matt Fraction + Terry Dodson. Cyclops takes a trip into the White Queen's mind to free her from the influence of the Void, but he finds more Emmas than he bargained for. Is this the stuff of the greatest X-Men saga ever? No, not quite. Does it continue to be a pretty fun and mostly exciting read? Yes, yes it is.
What If? Secret Invasion one-shot - Kevin Grevioux/Karl Bollers + Pow Rodrix present the answer to “What if the Skrulls succeeded in their Secret Invasion?” It's pretty typical of a What If? story with a fast and dense plot featuring a sizable body count. But it's interesting and most of the characters are done well.
Chris Acosta + Larry Stroman answer “What if the Secret Invasion remained secret?” It's yet another story revolving around Norman Osborn (seems no matter what happened, Normie was going to have a big part in Secret Invasion). This time Norman acts the part of a classic sci-fi movie role, where he's the only one that sees how events point towards a subtle invasion, but no one is willing to listen to him. Also fairly decent, which actually puts both these stories above the typical level of most What If? tales.
X-Babies #3 of 4 - Gregg Schigiel + Jacob Chabot. The X-Babies continue their quest to find the person responsible for replacing them with younger, cutesier versions, and along the way help rescue assorted other characters that have been likewise replaced. Among the rescued characters are older, mildly more realistic versions of various Star Comics properties, including Planet Terry, Royal Roy, and Top Dog. Also among the people that needed rescuing due to being replaced by sickeningly sweet versions are... the Mini-Marvels. Glad to see the nod to readers like me that find the Marvel Superhero Squad an insidiously family-friendly (read: commercialized) piece of soulless fluff. But I'm not sure what that says about the original Star stars.
Speaking of the originals, this issue includes the first six pages of the first issue of Top Dog, by Lennie Herman + Warren Kremer. It was much, much better than the Planet Terry reprint in the previous issue. Truth be told, I wouldn't have minded if they'd reprinted the entire issue so that I could have read the whole thing.
X-Force Annual #1 - Robert Kirkman + Jason Pearson. Not really an X-Force story, it's more a Wolverine solo, albeit an action-packed, well illustrated one.
The Deadpool back-up by Craig Kyle/Christopher Yost + Carlo Barberi is also not really an X-Force story, but does take place during Necrosha where DP has the time of his life fighting opponents that can't be killed.
BOOM
28 Days Later #4 - Michael Alan Nelson + Declan Shalvey. Another great issue. Very highly recommended for people that liked the film and/or The Walking Dead.
DARK HORSE COMICS
Aliens #4 of 4 - John Arcudi + Zach Howard. A quality Aliens tale that pays more attention to science fiction and suspense than it does to the monsters.
Empowered Special - Adam Warren. Haven't been brave enough to plunk down the $16 for a full volume of the best superhero satire ever? Then check out this self-contained nugget of joy for only $4.
Why do I love Empowered? It makes me laugh. It mercilessly plays with the stereotypes of superhero comics, action manga, and anything else that comes into view. And while the heroes are typically as much egomaniacal, celebrity-focused douche bags as the villains, Empowered herself is one of the sweetest, most upright characters you're likely to find in comics. Her boyfriend and best friend both embody different cliches, yet are still made deeper and more complex with each successive volume. Adam Warren may try to come across as the biggest cynical bastard since Hunter S Tompson, but the truth is he's a big softy with a lot of heart.
DC COMICS
Lobo: Highway to Hell #2 of 2 - Scott Ian + Sam Kieth. As bizarre as the phrase “Sam Kieth drawing Lobo” would imply. Fantastic if you're into that sort of thing.
IDW PUBLISHING
G.I.Joe #12 - Chuck Dixon + S L Gallant. The action builds, and the Joe head honchos finally acknowledge that this Cobra organization may be a real and legitimate threat. Took them long enough. The series continues to get better as it continues to build the tension. But is it slacks off, it could be easy to drop.
WILDSTORM
Authority vol.5 #17 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Simon Coleby. A very, very satisfying closing to Abnett & Lanning's run. Not sure it can be topped anytime soon.
back-issue buy, ½ price trade paperback
MARVEL
Hulk: World War Hulk - Front Line trade paperback - Collects World War Hulk: Front Line six issue miniseries by Paul Jenkins + Ramon Bachs/Shawn Martinbrough/Chris Moreno. I've avoided the various Front Line miniseries because of how annoyed I was by the Generation M miniseries that preceded them. But with it half off, I gave it a chance. Meh. I might pick up some of the others aif I also see them half off, but not otherwise. It still focuses too much on the uninteresting Sally Floyd instead of the event itself or other, better characters.
Also, reprints the fairly good Wold War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker by Peter David + Al Rio/Lee Weeks/Sean Phillips.
Black Widow & The Marvel Girls #1 of 4 - Paul Tobin + Salva Espin. Detailing the Enchantress's part in Black Widow's origin, the issue is much better than that ludicrous statement would seem to indicate. The issue also shows how Natasha can outsmart the most paranoid of adversaries and out-plan her superiors.
Dark Avengers Annual #1 - Brian Michael Bendis + Chris Bachalo. It's the Sentry versus Marvel boy in the best Noh-Varr story since the original Grant Morrison Marvel Boy miniseries. It features some promising developments with the character as well as just some great character development.
Deadpool Team-Up #898 - Mike Benson + Carlo Barberi. Has some good jokes and correspondingly funny artwork with DP teaming up with the Zapata Brothers, a pair of bounty-hunting luchadors with a bad case of mercenary worship. But some of the plot moments are unclear, including ones dealing with the main story. Since I think these are all one-off issues, it's probably not something that will be returned to and clarified, therefore it just seems like sloppy storytelling.
Fall of Hulks: Alpha one-shot - Jeff Parker + Paul Pelletier. I wasn't too optimistic when I heard of the Fall of Hulks crossover... until I heard that Parker was part of it. This issue was great, even without the whole Fall of Hulks thing. It reveals that a while back the Leader drew together a group of some of the smartest villains with the purpose of cooperating behind the scenes as well as collecting and storing the information of the ages. It's a great ret-con that explains how some villains came back time and again, while also deepening the characters of some villains that never got a second look before. Plus, it features some serious fun with M.O.D.O.K.
Hulk: Winter Guard one-shot - David Gallaher + Steve Ellis craft a story featuring the latest Darkstar around a reprint of Incredible Hulk #393 by Peter David + Dale Keown. It's a brief insight into a character and what it means to take on a role in the institution that is the Winter Guard.
Iron Man: Requiem one-shot - Matt Fraction and Kano provide the framing sequence of a deteriorating Tony Stark around a reprint of Tales of Suspense #39 (1st Iron Man) by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Don Heck, as well as a reprint of Iron Man #144 (origin Jim Rhodes) by David Micheline, Bob Layton, and Joe Brpzpwski. Far from shying away from the parts of Iron Man's origin that have been rendered apocryphal by later ret-cons (like the fact that it originally took place during the Vietnam War), they instead embrace them as an example of Tony's increasing dementia.
Nova #32 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Andrea DiVito. “Classic” Nova villain the Sphinx shows up to play with space and time on the edge of the Fault, a great big tear in space and time that resulted from the War of Kings. Science fiction, super-heroics, and Egyptian mythology have rarely been blended so well.
Siege: The Cabal one-shot - Brian Michael Bendis + Michael Lark. The Cabal breathes its last gasp and implodes, as we all knew it would, owing to a combination of Osborn's insanity and Doom's Doomosity. But it's just in time for the next part of Bendis' master plan. Still not sure who Osborn's secret weapon is, though I'm thinking it's either the Molecule Man or the Beyonder. I'm not really looking forward to it being either one of them, though, as Molecule Man has already had his best tales told and anything remotely interesting about the Beyonder was effectively eliminated by a lazy and stupid ret-con that Bendis himself did in the Illuminati miniseries.
EDIT: After flipping through the latest issue of Dark Avengers (#12), it looks like the secret weapon is someone else, but I'm not going to spoil that here. (And, no, I didn't actually buy it.)
Strange #2 of 4 - Mark Waid + Emma Rios. Another enjoyable issue in the new, understated take on Dr. Strange. It may not be as loyal to the Steve Ditko roots as The Oath miniseries by Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin had been, but it's no less a valid vision of the character.
Thor #604 - Kieron Gillen + Billy Tan. Dr. Doom's been making cyborg warriors out of Asgardians. Loki's role in the horror is discovered. Violence is wrought. And Thor isn't around. The new creative team isn't hesitating to ramp up the excitement, a marked difference from the way Straczynski paced the series. Whether it will work or not in the long run, only time can tell.
Uncanny X-Men #518 - Matt Fraction + Terry Dodson. Cyclops takes a trip into the White Queen's mind to free her from the influence of the Void, but he finds more Emmas than he bargained for. Is this the stuff of the greatest X-Men saga ever? No, not quite. Does it continue to be a pretty fun and mostly exciting read? Yes, yes it is.
What If? Secret Invasion one-shot - Kevin Grevioux/Karl Bollers + Pow Rodrix present the answer to “What if the Skrulls succeeded in their Secret Invasion?” It's pretty typical of a What If? story with a fast and dense plot featuring a sizable body count. But it's interesting and most of the characters are done well.
Chris Acosta + Larry Stroman answer “What if the Secret Invasion remained secret?” It's yet another story revolving around Norman Osborn (seems no matter what happened, Normie was going to have a big part in Secret Invasion). This time Norman acts the part of a classic sci-fi movie role, where he's the only one that sees how events point towards a subtle invasion, but no one is willing to listen to him. Also fairly decent, which actually puts both these stories above the typical level of most What If? tales.
X-Babies #3 of 4 - Gregg Schigiel + Jacob Chabot. The X-Babies continue their quest to find the person responsible for replacing them with younger, cutesier versions, and along the way help rescue assorted other characters that have been likewise replaced. Among the rescued characters are older, mildly more realistic versions of various Star Comics properties, including Planet Terry, Royal Roy, and Top Dog. Also among the people that needed rescuing due to being replaced by sickeningly sweet versions are... the Mini-Marvels. Glad to see the nod to readers like me that find the Marvel Superhero Squad an insidiously family-friendly (read: commercialized) piece of soulless fluff. But I'm not sure what that says about the original Star stars.
Speaking of the originals, this issue includes the first six pages of the first issue of Top Dog, by Lennie Herman + Warren Kremer. It was much, much better than the Planet Terry reprint in the previous issue. Truth be told, I wouldn't have minded if they'd reprinted the entire issue so that I could have read the whole thing.
X-Force Annual #1 - Robert Kirkman + Jason Pearson. Not really an X-Force story, it's more a Wolverine solo, albeit an action-packed, well illustrated one.
The Deadpool back-up by Craig Kyle/Christopher Yost + Carlo Barberi is also not really an X-Force story, but does take place during Necrosha where DP has the time of his life fighting opponents that can't be killed.
BOOM
28 Days Later #4 - Michael Alan Nelson + Declan Shalvey. Another great issue. Very highly recommended for people that liked the film and/or The Walking Dead.
DARK HORSE COMICS
Aliens #4 of 4 - John Arcudi + Zach Howard. A quality Aliens tale that pays more attention to science fiction and suspense than it does to the monsters.
Empowered Special - Adam Warren. Haven't been brave enough to plunk down the $16 for a full volume of the best superhero satire ever? Then check out this self-contained nugget of joy for only $4.
Why do I love Empowered? It makes me laugh. It mercilessly plays with the stereotypes of superhero comics, action manga, and anything else that comes into view. And while the heroes are typically as much egomaniacal, celebrity-focused douche bags as the villains, Empowered herself is one of the sweetest, most upright characters you're likely to find in comics. Her boyfriend and best friend both embody different cliches, yet are still made deeper and more complex with each successive volume. Adam Warren may try to come across as the biggest cynical bastard since Hunter S Tompson, but the truth is he's a big softy with a lot of heart.
DC COMICS
Lobo: Highway to Hell #2 of 2 - Scott Ian + Sam Kieth. As bizarre as the phrase “Sam Kieth drawing Lobo” would imply. Fantastic if you're into that sort of thing.
IDW PUBLISHING
G.I.Joe #12 - Chuck Dixon + S L Gallant. The action builds, and the Joe head honchos finally acknowledge that this Cobra organization may be a real and legitimate threat. Took them long enough. The series continues to get better as it continues to build the tension. But is it slacks off, it could be easy to drop.
WILDSTORM
Authority vol.5 #17 - Dan Abnett/Andy Lanning + Simon Coleby. A very, very satisfying closing to Abnett & Lanning's run. Not sure it can be topped anytime soon.
back-issue buy, ½ price trade paperback
MARVEL
Hulk: World War Hulk - Front Line trade paperback - Collects World War Hulk: Front Line six issue miniseries by Paul Jenkins + Ramon Bachs/Shawn Martinbrough/Chris Moreno. I've avoided the various Front Line miniseries because of how annoyed I was by the Generation M miniseries that preceded them. But with it half off, I gave it a chance. Meh. I might pick up some of the others aif I also see them half off, but not otherwise. It still focuses too much on the uninteresting Sally Floyd instead of the event itself or other, better characters.
Also, reprints the fairly good Wold War Hulk Prologue: World Breaker by Peter David + Al Rio/Lee Weeks/Sean Phillips.