Comic releases of 4/27/11
This was once again a big week of releases, 11 in total, sadly I was down an issue because Rocketeer Adventures #1 was delayed for some reason*runs up to a moutian*NNNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO*runs back to computer* With that said this was this a pretty powerful week full of really great issues….let’s begin shall we…
Comics this week: Amazing Spider-man #659, Batman Inc #5, Brightest Day #24, FF #2, Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #2, Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #9, Mighty Thor #1, Secret Avengers #12, Venom #2, Wonder Woman #610, Xombi #2
DC Comics
Top Pick of the Week: Xombi #2 & Brightest Day #24
Xombi #2
Abridged Story: David Kim, the Nuns, and Stacy Cross fight off a band of demonic little children. They try to figure out who was James Church. Someone learns of an ancient creature known as the Maranatha (The physical form of God’s Wrath). David spies on a strange girl with who may or may not be James Church.
Review: I wish to thank DC for bringing to comic back from the dead. I love this comic so much that its surprising that it is not part of the Vertigo imprint, it says DC right on the upper left corner. What I love is the sheer amount of creativity this series has shown and takes full advantage of those without having to explain much to the reader. We are provided the information on everything and everyone but not having to go into backstory as to how they have these powers (Example, one guy can put souls into change and uses them to locate things). It’s rough writing how much I love reading this series and always dying to read the next issue to see what cool thing they are going to do next. John Rozum was the man who wrote the character and it’s great to see him continue perfecting his work, the dialogue is perfect, the characters are memorable (especially the nuns as weird as that is) and the story is just too much fun to enjoy.
Artwork: Irving is pretty much the best fit for this comic. His surreal artwork is just beautiful to look at. There are some really cool and iconic looking images. There could be zero dialogue but I could still look at the expressions and emotions these characters are going through, which shows how good his artwork is. The cover is one of the Nuns showing at the reader, with a stern look to her face, behind her is a shadowed image of David Kim (I have seen this image used in movie posters). The coolest image in this book is the creature form of the Marantha.
Grade: Loved the issue, love the art, love the writing, and love the characters. I love this book, this issue gets an A++
Brightest Day #24
Abridged Story: The White Lantern battery has its wishes fulfilled; Alec Holland has been reborn and given back to the power of Swamp thing. We learn that Nekron’s influence has corrupted the Earth has made the black lantern Swamp thing. Alec now infused with Swamp Thing once again he does battle in giant monster style against Black Lantern Swamp Thing. The gift of life has been restored to all but 1 who became one of the elements. Each of them has a new outlook on life except for one. We also are re-introduced to a familiar face.
Review: Well this my friends has been quite the ride, Brightest day has been one of the stronger series that DC has released, seeing many secondary heroes and villains now given life again in order to fulfill a greater purpose. It’s been a literal roller coaster, some good issues, some not so good, but all leading to this moment, a moment where we the fans were finally given a true moment of awe, DC was able to keep the two big reveals for issue 23 and 24. The issue is longer than your typical issue, since it was a finale they went all out, setting up the universe for so much more, most likely after or during Flashpoint we will start to see some new titles and series to bring us up on these new events. As for the return of Swamp thing, this was a great issue to basically bring you and new readers up on all of the history of character, which they have stuck well too since his many changes over the years. The giant fight with him against his rotted counterpart was the first of two highlights in this issue. Seeing Swamp thing back into the DCU brings many new things and I can’t wait to see where it goes. The last page I can’t say because I hate spoiling but trust me when I say if you avoid spoilers, you will have a fan boy gasp….I did. Lol.
Artwork: This artwork has stood strong with this issue, the splash pages are the highlight, even twice you have to turn the comic on its side but this does relate to the size of both giant creatures. The cover I have is a retro tribute to Swamp Thing with a White Lantern symbol, which I like the classic look and overall tribute to the character. The character design and use of Swamp Thing as a creature and a part of the Earth which is good they made it Swamp Thing rather than a mixture of Alec’s form in the swamp thing body.
Grade: This has been a great run, not just an ending but the beginning of something much more. Johns has crafted an amazing story. This issue gets an A+
Quick reviews
Batman Inc #5: 4 Bats of Batman Inc must team up to stop a mad man from causing war between two nations. Grant Morrison continues to shine with this series and the artwork is solid as ever. This issue gets an A-
Green Lantern: Emerald Warrior #9: The 4 Earth Lanterns reach the inner area of Oa, two leave to save Mogo while two must fight off the guardians. Great action and characters, this issue gets a B+
Wonder Woman #610: Diana saves her sisters from the influence of the Morrigan and is reaching the end of this arc. Not bad, its improving and we are getting old Diana back. This issue gets a C+
IDW Comics
Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters #2
Abridged Story: Godzilla continues the destruction of Japan. We are introduced to Angirus in Mexico and Rodan in Russia.
Review: The story is pretty much all that, I don’ want to spoil what they do in each area but two of them are real downer moments. When I was reading this my jaw dropped at two moments because the situations were so different but same result. It’s great to see the character back in action and now he is getting some old friends back into the game as well. The issue still avoids the topic of when, where, and how these creatures came to be, except for Rodan, we do learn where he came from. There are some jabs at our world mostly America, we have one moment in Texas and the president talks about how even he has no say in how to stop Godzilla, I hope this so called satire eases up, I just want Godzilla and friends doing what they do best.
Artwork: The artwork continues to fit really well with this new title. The look and design of both Angirus and Rodan is classic with a mix of Final Wars mixed in. The human reactions to all these attacks are classic Godzilla affair. The cover is Godzilla (of course) but with the design being more towards the 90s US version (I don’t know why)
Grade: I enjoy reading this new series, its just starting out to get better, with bringing in more iconic monsters. The artwork is good and works great with the monsters. This issue gets a B+
Marvel comics
Top Pick of the Week: FF#2
Abridged Story: Controversy has arisen when Valeria has brought Doctor Doom into the Future Foundation to aid them in their needs on one condition….they must restore his memory. Sue and Ben leave as Reed, Peter, Val, and Doom figure out the best option to restore his memory…..via his son
Review: This is the kind of second issue that I love, where it continues to build upon the prior issue, picking up immediately from issue #1. Seeing Doctor Doom, one of the most iconic and powerful villains now a former shadow of himself. It is a good to see a conflict of interest when it comes to Sue and Ben not agreeing to this predicament considering Ben hates his guts and Sue hates Victor for what he has become. The one greatest contribution is Valeria Richards; she is very great character both smart and funny with the situation, one of the funniest moments when she tells they need to fix Doom, and it repeats, but in a funny effect. Spider-man does add some contribution to this effort so it is nice to see him useful other than being the jokester.
Artwork: The cover is this iconic image of Doctor Doom with fire behind him, like a power head dictator that he is. The inner artwork is strong as usual, I love the character design, Doom for some reason appears shorter than he does in most other comics that I have read before. The funniest image is of Doctor Doom with his adopted son who is playing with letter cubes…..the contrast is too funny.
Grade: I enjoyed this issue, improved from the first; Doom is always a great villain. Artwork is great and at times some funny. This issue gets an A+
Quick Reviews
Amazing Spider-man #659: Peter and the FF go to an island to stop the destruction of reality. Not bad, just want it to move on from his new team up since he’s in FF also. Artwork is no longer retro, nice improvement. This issue gets a B+
Mighty Thor #1: Thor gets the seed from the tree of life while the Silver Surfer senses its power for his master. Impressive first issue, the church guy could have been left out but great. Oliver is back and shines with this group of characters. This issue gets an A-
Secret Avengers #12: Steve goes back in Steeles mind and finds out what was the cause for betraying everyone. This was not a bad issue, somewhat surprised by the ending…wonder where it’s going. Good artwork and writing. This issue gets a B+
Venom #2: Flash and the Suit are being attacked and stalked by a deranged Kraven in the Savage Land. Artwork is so fantastic and gritty. The action is amazing and constant. This issue gets a B+
Well I hope you all enjoyed this week. Next week will be a smaller week….I won’t be getting Moon Knight because I have seen the art and it looks meh to me, but to each his own. Catch ya later. ComicCritic87 OUT!!!!