Category Archives: Comics
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 5/24/14
I don’t know about you guys and gals, but I’m still too broken up about the Edgar Wright/Ant-Man news! He was supposed to be the Chosen One! Talk about a bad way to start Memorial Day weekend. Fortunately, I wrote these reviews before I heard the news, so let’s get right to them, shall we?!
The biggest deal this week was the finale of Forever Evil…but the delays definitely hurt the book. I feel it kind of limped across the finish line, overfilling the issue with ‘cool moments’ to try and compensate. Fortunately, the Justice League follow-up was much better. On the Marvel side of things, we’ve got the second issue of Original Sin! Or what I like to call, issue #1.5. Yeah.
Much more fortunately, I snagged a copy of Lumberjanes #2 in time to review it, so that’s exciting! And Comic of the Week goes to Uncanny X-Men #21, especially for its awesome handling of Magneto and Blob!
The bromance is over
Comic Reviews: All-New X-Factor #8, Amazing Spider-Man #2, Batman Eternal #7, Forever Evil #7, Justice League #30, Lumberjanes #2, Original Sin #2, Sinestro #2, Uncanny X-Men #21.
Review: Saga #19
Back for one issue and already you’re breaking my heart again, Saga. You’re a twisted, cruel, evil comic that toys with my heart strings like a child playing with ants! I haven’t read a cliffhanger ending this inhumane since you nearly killed Lying Cat all those issues ago! Why must you destroy me like this? Why must you be so damn good, only to kill everything I love?!
Saga #19
We’re talking ‘Red Wedding’ levels of sadness here, folks. Prepare yourselves for the return of Saga!
Comic Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.
I’m as pleased as anybody to have Saga back in my hands. Saga, by writer Brian K. Vaughn and artist Fiona Staples, is one of the best comics being published today. It’s thoroughly enjoyable, features a universe that never stops sprawling on and on, and is probably the most deeply emotional comic book I’m reading these days. I don’t even feel this deeply about Multiple Man, my favorite superhero. The story of Hazel and her family is simply beautiful. In less than 19 issues, and Vaughn and Staples have crafted such a wonderfully warm and touching cast of characters. I was in love with them from issue #1. And I’m so glad they’re back.
But man, my heart is in tatters.
From the end of the last volume to this new issue, we’ve skipped ahead a few months or years, depending on how long it takes for baby Hazel to grow into toddler Hazel. I don’t know babies. But she’s walking and talking these days, and that’s going to be a delight to behold, I can already tell. Saga #19 is mostly spent getting us all up to speed with how things are and what the family unit has been up to for the past few months. They’re hunkered down on a safe planet, Hazel is growing up, Alana got a weird job, and everybody’s kind of getting on everybody else’s nerves – typical family stuff. So it’s a light, scene-setting issue that showcases Saga‘s usual level of enjoyable storytelling and character building.
Until a final page that will gut you.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review!
6 Things I Want to See in an X-Force Movie
Initial reviews for X-Men: Days of Future Past are looking pretty good, so maybe this movie will wipe away any apprehensions I may have about the X-Men film franchise these days. I doubted X-Men: First Class, but quickly came to love it. Perhaps FOX really does have the X-Men’s best interest at heart.
So let’s let the apprehension of the proposed X-Force flick begin!
It was a different time
We haven’t heard much about the X-Force movie, only that there’s a script in the works. For those of you who don’t know, X-Force is kind of the rebellious younger sibling of the X-Men. Whereas the X-Men are this big, family-like team of noble superheroes, X-Force is the rougher, meaner, grittier squad that tries to be more proactive in their crime fighting. If FOX wants some X-spin-offs, then X-Force is definitely a great place to start.
Join me after the jump for my six suggestions for an X-Force film!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 5/17/14
It’s Godzilla Day, my friends! I’ll be off to see the movie before the night is over, and I can’t wait! The Big Guy has been smashing his way through my brain all week. Will it live up to the hype? Will Godzila once again be the ruler of all cinema? What’s that you’re saying? Godzilla isn’t even a comic book? And this is a comic book review article?
Well you’ve got me there!
Plenty of good and plenty of crummy comics this week. For one thing, I learned that I need to start reading Jonathan Hickman’s Avengers and New Avengers again. I also very nearly worked up the energy to read Superman: Doomed…but that didn’t happen. Ain’t nobody got time for dat.
Comic Book of the Week goes to Ghost Rider #3 because it was just the funnest comic of the week, despite a few flaws inherent to the title as a whole. Though Moment of the Week has to go to Captain Marvel #3 and Kelly Sue DeConnick’s continued attempts to turn Carol Danvers into the coolest superhero ever. Cool, but rude, that is.
Carol may just be the best superhero ever. She can make children cry!
Comic Reviews: All-New Ghost Rider #3, All-New X-Men #27, Batman Eternal #6, Captain Marvel #3, Justice League United #1 and Nightcrawler #2.
You can also check out my reviews of Avengers #29 and Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #1.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 5/10/14
It is with a heavy heart that I announce that I am throwing in the towel of doing full, giant-sized reviews of All-New X-Factor. I got hit with a lot of work at the end of this week, including those reviews of Teen Titans and Ultimate Spider-Man, and I took a long hard look at All-New X-Factor and decided that I just didn’t care enough anymore. I started the long-form reviews for X-Factor because it was my favorite comic starring my favorite character, but it has since become a shadow of its former self.
So from now on, let’s welcome All-New X-Factor to our Hench-Sized Reviews! I hope it finds the place a nice fit.
Beyond that new issue, this week brought an avalanche of good comics, some of which I had to simply skip right over due to time constraints. I really want to get back to reviewing Black Widow, and She-Hulk was really good again, but this week I had to focus on the first chapters of Original Sin and Futures End, the new Big Event comics from Marvel and DC.
Neither one is all that great, quite frankly.
Comic Book of the Week goes to Magneto #3, though I have a feeling that some of the comics still on my pile waiting to be read might be a little better. Still, out of the stack I managed to get done in time for reviews, Magneto was pretty cool.
Plus he’s got that starring role coming up in X-Men: Days of Future Past. So I want to be on his good side.
Comic Reviews: All-New X-Factor #7, Aquaman and the Others #2, Batman Eternal #5, Futures End #1, Iron Fist: The Living Weapon #2, Magneto #3 and Original Sin #1.
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