Category Archives: Comics
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 11/29/14
Happy Turkey Week, Comic Book fans! Did everybody have a good Thanksgiving? And for those of you who don’t celebrate, did you have a good Thursday? I had a blast. I always get together with my family, and they’re a good group of people. I made banana bread, because it’s nice to contribute something, especially if it’s my favorite dish. I’m a grown up now, I should contribute.
Speaking of contributing, how about adding some more comic book reviews to the Internet? I know I can’t get enough! We’ve got new issues of Aquaman, Arkham Manor, Superior Iron Man and more, but the real standout this week is the (regrettably) final issue of Superior Foes of Spider-Man! Why couldn’t this series have done better or lasted longer? It was so much fun!
Shocker Rulz!
But all good things must come to an end. Or maybe it’s that we can’t have nice things? Surely one of the two.
Comic Reviews: Aquaman #36, Arkham Manor #2, Batman Eternal #34, Scarlet Spiders #1, Superior Foes of Spider-Man #17 and Superior Iron Man #2.
Beta Ray Bill Can and Should Appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
I never thought I would see the day where Thor was a household name. Marvel Studios has accomplished a lot in the past 7 years, but I am still most amazed at how they have turned previously unknown heroes like Thor, Iron Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy into bonafide celebrities. It’s amazing. There are kids out there who want to dress as Thor for Halloween. The Dark World was a truly great film, and I still herald it as one of Marvel’s best. I am legitimately excited to see the third one, Ragnarok.
I just think it should also include Beta Ray Bill, one of the greatest and weirdest comic book characters of all time. Yes, I’m talking about Horse Thor.
Comics, everybody!
Shortly after leaving the theater when the first Thor film debuted, I joked to myself that there was no way Beta Ray Bill would ever fit into what Marvel was building. But now we’re several films deep, including the amazing and alien-filled Guardians of the Galaxy, and I have completely changed my mind. Beta Ray Bill should appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
And if you’ll join me after the jump, I’ll tell you how!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 11/22/14
This was a weird week for comics, and I mean that in the best way possible. It was another big week, stretching my wallet to its limit, but I actually found myself passing on a few of my usual reviews. Both Avengers and New Avengers came out this week, continuing Jonathan Hickman’s massive Multiverse story, but I found that both issues, while good, were far too dense to properly discuss. I would have confused myself. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the new issue of Harley Quinn was just too simple and weird to devote too much time. So I skipped it too!
But I do have some quality reviews for you henchies! Spider-Verse continues, and I’m still enjoying it – though check out my review this week of Spider-Woman #1 at Word of the Nerd for the storyline’s first major misstep.
Comic Book of the Week goes to Lumberjanes for a fantastic finale! But the big disappointment is Wonder Woman #1, which pretty much does everything I feared it would now that Azzarello and Chiang are gone. Adding to the weirdness this week is the new issue of Uncanny X-Men, which robs me of my hero, Cyclops.
You’re not the man whose action figure I bought!
Comic Reviews: Amazing Spider-Man #10, Batman Eternal #33, Batman and Robin #36, Lumberjanes #8, Uncanny X-Men #28 and Wonder Woman #36.
Ladies and Gentlemen, Howard the Duck
Fresh off his laughter-inducing cameo at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy, Howard the Duck is going to get a new ongoing series at Marvel in March! It’ll be written by Chip Zdarsky, who is absolutely hilarious on Sex Criminals at Image, and drawn by Joe Quinones. Based on the preview art so far, I already love the look and feel!
Hey, that duck is wearing a hat…
Zdarsky and Quinones were interviewed by Entertainment Weekly about the comic, and it sounds pretty neat. Zdarsky’s a big comedy go, so it’s going to be something of a comedy book about an angry, exasperated Howard working as a private eye in a New York City filled with superheroes.
Said Zdarsky about the series:
He’s an everyman who happens to be a duck! He’s angry, exasperated, and he’s had it up to here with the world around him, but he’s trapped here! Infinitely relatable! I love the contrast of Howard against both the normal world of us hairless apes and the weird worlds of Man-Things and Dr. Stranges and Spider-Mans. Cause he doesn’t fit into either, really. I’m just going to continue exploring those contrasts, but my ultimate goal is to make it funny. Marvel has taken chances on funny books and injecting humor into superhero titles, so I want to make sure this is worth some chuckles here and there. God, I’m picturing the reviews now: “Some chuckles here and there.” Shoot for the stars, Chip!
Sounds like a pretty solid take on a Howard the Duck comic to me!
The year of the duck
Let the build up to a new Howard the Duck movie begin…
————–
Review: Teen Titans #4
In a previous decade, the content of Teen Titans #4 would have made me ecstatic. It’s an issue about Tim Drake using his brains and his skills to defeat an infinitely more powerful foe. It should be a testament to just how damn cool Robin can be. But this is Teen Titans in the New 52, so don’t anybody get their hopes up.
What Teen Titans #4 is instead is a showcase for writer Will Pfeifer’s S.T.A.R. Labs plot and his apparent love of Manchester Black. So simmer down, Tim Drake fans; despite his starring role in the issue, he has zero personal impact on the story.
Comic Rating: 5/10 – Alright.
Is it really so hard to write a comic that’s actually about the Teen Titans? I’m not sure if the previous writer, Scott Lobdell, ever managed to do it in 30+ issues. Lobdell only ever wrote about his plots or the bad guys; rarely did his stories ever actually grow from the Titans themselves. Even when he wrote about the characters’ origins, it was never about them. Wonder Girl’s origin story was all about her ex-boyfriend the super-villain, and Kid Flash’s origin story was all about this big space civil war and his role in that.
Pfeifer is a little better, but he’s relegated all of the stories about the Titans themselves to merely sub-plots. The main plot, the one about the villainous Algorithm and her attacks on S.T.A.R., is all about Algorithm and her villainous boss, Manchester Black. Teen Titans #4, especially, is all about Black and his drama. Tim Drake just happens to be caught up in that drama. But for all Tim actually does to drive or impact Black’s story, he could be swapped for any other Titan or any other superhero, for that matter.
And Teen Titans #4 also features one of the most baffling endings I have ever read in this comic. The only reasonable explanation for this ending is that Pfeifer is just toying with us and it’s totally fake. Otherwise, Teen Titans is just never going to get any better.
Join me after the jump for the full synopsis and more review!
Henchman-4-Hire 