Category Archives: Comics
Change. Change Never Changes. The Next Marvel NOW!
Guess what! Marvel Comics has a bunch of awesome plans in store for all of their most popular characters! And for a few of their upcoming movie stars! They’re setting up their third Marvel NOW! wave, and personally, I think it all looks pretty neat. Check out this lineup!
The Amazing Avengers? Invincible Avengers? Irredeemable Avengers?
If you haven’t heard yet, we’ve got female Thor and the fact that Sam Wilson, the Falcon, is taking over at Captain America. I’m a big fan of that idea. Cap with wings? Bring it on! The Winter Soldier is getting a new series, where he becomes the protector of Earth. Deathlok is getting a reboot to bring him closer to his TV counterpart. And Marvel is still trying desperately to make Inhuman happen. See that flaming guy in the picture there? That’s Inferno, the new Inhuman. He and Medusa are the stars of the comic Inhuman, which has published all of 2 issues so far. If Marvel is really serious about making the Inhumans a force to be reckoned with, they are failing terribly.
Seriously, Inhuman is terrible. Inferno should be ashamed to be in that group picture.
Also in that picture, you can see Ant-Man and Doctor Strange, both of whom have upcoming movies on the Marvel slate. I’m excited for both, and if Marvel can get both heroes their own comics, that would be a blast. Marvel is doing great things with comics these days. I’m dying for a quality Ant-Man comic.
Entertainment Weekly has some of the details.
Iron Man is getting a big change too. See his fancy new white/silver armor? That’s the Superior Iron Man!
Iron Man is suddenly big into testing
Tony Stark will be moving to San Francisco, where he plans to implement some darker, tougher technology upgrades. Tony’s going a little dark. Good for him.
I don’t know about you, but all of this looks great to me. Maybe I’m just really into Marvel these days. I know that’s the truth. They can do little wrong in my book. I have always been a Marvel man, and the various Marvel NOW! campaigns have been comic book gold. So you better believe I’m excited to get my hands on some of these new books.
This is going to be the year of the Ant-Man!
————————–
Review: Teen Titans #1
After only a few short months, Teen Titans is back with a new #1 issue and a new…not much else. Scott Lobdell’s reign of terror is over. Bring on Will Pfeifer’s reign of terror! I say that with my tongue planted firmly in my cheek, but after reading and digesting Pfeifer’s first issue in this new, relaunched Teen Titans, it doesn’t look like much has changed. I’m willing to go easy on Pfeifer, and artist Kenneth Rocafort, and give them the benefit of the doubt, but the problems with Lobdell’s Teen Titans were very clear and very easy to fix. So why Pfeifer and DC didn’t do a complete 180 and try something totally new is beyond me.
Teen Titans #1
Teen Titans #1 could just as easily have been Teen Titans #31. It picks up exactly where Lobdell left off and brings absolutely nothing new or interesting to the table.
Comic Rating: 5/10 – Alright.
I was ready to forgive and forget, and embrace a new approach to the Teen Titans comic. I stuck with Lobdell’s stink pile for the entire run, watching and wincing as DC let him have 30 whole issues and some annuals. Whereas nearly ever other comic in DC’s New 52 was given a new creative team at some point, or cancelled outright, DC stuck with Lobdell despite the fact that everyone pretty much hated and abandoned the comic. Lobdell’s Teen Titans was a frantic mess, unwilling to sit still for even a second to focus on the characters, the team or anything other than hectic superhero action. I could go on and on about all of the problems with the first run of Teen Titans, but I don’t have the time or energy. We’re here to talk about the new relaunch.
And you better believe I’m disappointed.
Pfeifer’s Teen Titans #1 is wall-to-wall action, starring pretty much the exact same Titans team that Lobdell left off with – only now Beast Boy is green for some reason. No explanation given on that change. It’s Red Robin, Wonder Girl, Raven, Beast Boy and Bunker stopping a group of terrorists on a speeding bus (yep!), while Pfeifer hints at some kind of future plot with S.T.A.R. Labs. There’s plenty of chatter among the team members as they go about their business, but there’s little in the way of actual, meaningful interactions. No effort is made to explain why they’re still a team or why they spend any time together beyond being the selected roster for the book. No background is given, no establishing information is put out; nothing beyond a bunch of superheroes responding to a sudden emergency on the streets of New York.
In that regard, Peifer and Rocafort make a fine comic. The action is well-paced and well-drawn. I suppose it’s as exciting as any generic action scene in a comic might be. There’s a good use of everyone’s powers and abilities. Everybody is generally likable. I don’t necessarily think Rocafort’s hyper-detailed, sketchy style is the right fit for Teen Titans, but it works fine. No real complaints from my end on art. It’s also definitely a colorful comic.
But Teen Titans #1 doesn’t do anything new to warrant the relaunch. It looks like business as usual, even after I got my hopes up that something would be different this time around.
Oh wait, there is one change. After 30+ issues of Bunker’s sexuality not being an issue for anybody, Pfeifer is apparently totally going to make it an awkward, clumsy issue. Great.
Join me after the jump for the full synopsis and more review!
Thor Becomes a Lady, the World Loses Its Mind
I love it when comic book storylines somehow become mainstream news. I love watching reporters or celebrities or whoever try to interpret something that probably doesn’t make any sense to them, but they’re being paid to promote it nonetheless. Like when Fox News freaked out about the death of Ultimate Spider-Man. Or when Fox News freaked out about the introduction of a half black, half Latino Spider-Man.
Today’s comic book news is that Marvel is going to tell a story about a female Thor. This was announced on The View, of all places, and it’s all over the Internet. Lady Thor is even trending on Facebook!
Still blonde
First of all, why the heck is Marvel using The View to announce anything? Is there really a big crossover audience? I think they’ve done it before, and while it may be a female-centric show, is that the only place they could think of to announce news about a female character? Why not package the announcement during Sex and the City reruns? There has to be a better way to reach women.
Second of all, who cares?! It’s a comic book storyline! It may be getting a new #1 issue, but it’s still just a single storyline that Marvel feels like doing. Why does this warrant mainstream news coverage?
Why the metal face mask?
I’ve felt pretty cynical about the world for a few years now. This sort of thing falls squarely in the whole ‘the mainstream news is distraction’ sort of conspiracy theory. Why bother reporting on important things when the news can talk about a comic book storyline? Or the search for a crashed airplane? Does any of this coverage talk about how awesome Jason Aaron’s Thor: God of Thunder has been? Did Whoopi Goldberg on The View tell people where, how and why they should start reading this Lady Thor comic? Or is this just an announcement for announcement’s sake?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely going to read the comic, because Jason Aaron’s Thor has been pretty amazing. But how weird is it that it’s getting this much attention? I wish the universe cared this much about comic books for real. But why not have reporters who actually understand comics talk about real comic book news instead of paying Whoopi Goldberg to read a press release?
Maybe then they could make jokes about Frog Thor or Horse Thor.
Or Valkyrie, who already is a blonde, female Thor.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 7/12/14
Do any of you lovely readers know the best way to treat a sprained muscle? I pulled something in my calf and I’ve been limping around all week because I’m an idiot. And I don’t trust doctors, what with their voodoo and medical degrees. So anyone with a magical, non-voodoo cure is welcome here!
Fortunately, I don’t need my leg to read comics! We’ve got a somewhat light week this week, mostly because a lot of books I’ve already given up on were out this week, like Nightcrawler, Fantastic Four and Justice League United. Fortunately, we’ve got All-New X-Men, Captain Marvel and Batman Eternal to keep us company.
Not to mention the first issues of the New Suicide Squad and Grayson, which wins Comic Book of the Week for actually being pretty good (and because I couldn’t get my hands on the new Lumberjanes). Despite all the setbacks he’s faced, Dick Grayson at least keeps getting good, solid writers behind him in the New 52.
I guess now we know why Nightwing was blonde at Batsgiving
Comic Reviews: All-New X-Men #29, Batman Eternal #14, Captain Marvel #5, Grayson #1 and New Suicide Squad #1.
You can also check out my review of Spider-Man 2099 #1 at Word of the Nerd!
Does Batgirl’s New Look Signify a New Direction for DC?
Now this is a legitimate surprise, and one I find myself welcoming with open arms. DC Comics has revealed a new creative team on Batgirl for this fall, and with it, I think they’re signaling a new direction for their entire company. At least I hope that’s the case. Forgive me for getting a little hyperbolic over here, but I like what I see and I see what I like.
Look at this picture, from artists Cameron Stewart and Babs Tarr, and tell me it isn’t Batgirl channeling Ms. Marvel or Lumberjanes.
Hipsters are still popular, right?
I don’t know how things look from where you’re sitting, but for me, we’re in the middle of a comic book revolution. Cute, quirky, artistic and personable comics are my favorites, these days, and Marvel is leading the charge. Hawkeye, Silver Surfer, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, FF and, especially, Ms. Marvel are the comics on everyone’s lips. They’re new and interesting, with a focus on both style and substance. These are comics that push the medium towards a true art form. Or at the very least, a great entertainment. In my curmudgeony old age, I find myself flocking towards these types of comics, ones that focus on the people first and the superheroes second, ones that love art and revel in how unique comic book art can be. There is also a stronger focus on women, both as characters and as creators.
Basically, everything Marvel and most Indie comics are doing these days.
But not DC.
Since the start of the New 52, DC has been glued to their House Style for the past three years. Comics Alliance goes into detail here, but basically, DC has strictly followed the designs and style of artists like Jim Lee and David Finch when making all of their comics. Whether it was Superman, Batman, Blue Beetle or Hawk & Dove, DC has only cared about creating grim, gritty, detailed and action-filled comics.
But who is talking about DC Comics these days? Aside from praising maybe Scott Snyder’s Batman or Brian Azzarello’s Wonder Woman, who out there has any kind words for DC? Nobody. There’s nothing but derision, for the most part. Whereas Marvel books are the talk of the town.
Well now it looks to me like DC is finally going to reach outside the box and try something new.
I love this costume design
According to Mtv’s interview with the books creators, including writer Brenden Fletcher, Barbara Gordon is going to move to Burnside, the hipster borough of Gotham City, where she will immerse herself in youth culture. She’s going to build that new costume out of materials from vintage clothing stores. Barbara Gordon is going to become hip. She’s going to take selfies and probably drink coffee.
I’m not knocking these facts, I think they sound great. I love Gail Simone as much as the next person, but she was writing to the House Style Batgirl. That’s on DC, not on her. She even said so on Twitter that she was told to keep her Batgirl grim and gritty.
I never read Gail Simone’s Batgirl series because I just couldn’t bring myself to care, for some reason. I’ve never cared very much about Batgirl, and I loved Secret Six a bit too much to forgive DC when they launched the New 52. The point is, I am definitely going to give this new Batgirl direction a try in October.
Very cute pop!
I don’t know if DC can pull it off. I don’t know if their heads are in the right place or if they’re just playing copycat. But between Batgirl and Gotham Academy, I really think they may have finally caught on to the way the winds are blowing. Perhaps there is hope for them yet.
———————————-
Henchman-4-Hire 