Category Archives: Comics
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 2/15/14
Where is all the love? Valentine’s Day was only yesterday, yet none of this week’s comics were lovey dovey in the very least! Where was the pink? Or the hearts? Maybe Cupid has gone crazy and starts attacking Gotham City? Not even a Star Sapphire one-shot special? I feel very disappointed.
Heck, not even Superman/Wonder Woman was all that romantic, unless you count fighting super-villains to be date material…which I do. But love aside, we’ve got a smattering of good comics this week, including the future of Harper Row over in Batman, and the future of Toad in Wolverine and the X-Men. I was very tempted to celebrate all things Toad this week, but the new She-Hulk series files the proper motions to become Comic Book of the Week.
Not that Toad wasn’t awesome…and a little romantic.
Comic Reviews: Batman #28, She-Hulk #1, Superior Spider-Man #27, Superman/Wonder Woman #5, Wolverine and the X-Men #41 and X-Force #1.
The Wrong Cyclops is Getting His Own Series
Marvel has announced that Cyclops is going to get his own ongoing series, written by legendary writer Grug Rucka, no less. The only problem is that it’s going to star the Young Cyclops from the original X-Men, who time traveled to the present day and is currently a member of the All-New X-Men.
Lame!
Cyclops in SPAAAAAAAACE!
I’m all for Greg Rucka working at Marvel, but are they unaware that regular Cyclops is pretty much the coolest, most badass character at Marvel right now? I know he’s got a starring role in Uncanny X-Men, but come on, adult Cyclops is waaaay cooler than this young punk!
Anyway, the series is going to be about Cyclops connecting with his dad, Corsair, who is a space pirate. Can’t say as how I’m all that interested, but Comic Book Resources has an interview with Rucka.
Review: All-New X-Factor #3
I need to talk about the cover of All-New X-Factor #3 for a moment. I don’t usually discuss covers in my reviews, but this needs to be said, because cats in comics is kind of my kryptonite (as well as Youtube videos of cats who sound like they’re talking). I dig the unique look of the All-New X-Factor covers. But this cover shows Gambit snuggling with a bunch of cats, and the quote, “I’m their freaking king” above his head. This led me to believe that X-Factor was going to meet an army of cats, and they were going to really like Gambit, and therefore he was going to declare himself the ‘King of Cats’! BUT IT DOESN’T HAPPEN!
All-New X-Factor #3
I kind of want to demand my money back. And I want the ‘King of the Cats’ to become a thing immediately.
All-New X-Factor #3 shows a bit of improvement over the first two issues, but not by much. The characters and their relationships are still paper thin, the premise is still a bit uncomfortable, and writer Peter David hasn’t found anything really interesting for anyone to do (other than crack crappy jokes). But somehow, this issue at least felt like it was put together a little better than the first two.
Comic Rating: 5/10 – Alright.
At three issues in, I see signs that some of my concerns with this comic might even out. PAD is clearly trying to build up the relationships between his main characters, but he’s still working with a bunch of blank slates, so there’s just not much he can do yet. I get why Gambit doesn’t trust Quicksilver, but the characters have never had anything to do with one another, so the mistrust just rings hollow. And Polaris has been such a non-player for the past few years that she doesn’t really have any sort of relationship with anything, whether it be her teammates or the Marvel Universe as a whole.
Also, when has Gambit been a crazy cat person? That cover isn’t about Gambit becoming King of the Cats, but instead its about how Gambit has brought three pet cats to live with him at Serval Industries. When did that happen? Has Gambit always had a bunch of pet cats and I’ve just never noticed?
Or is it another bit of plot that PAD has pulled over from Gambit’s recently cancelled solo series? I hope the lot of you were reading that series, because X-Factor’s second big mission is mired in characters and plot points from it. Of course, considering the series was cancelled due to low sales, I think we can all agree nobody was reading it.
But PAD forges ahead anyway! Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Robin Watch: The Immediate Future of Harper Row
Welcome to the latest Robin Watch! As some of you may recall, I am keeping my eye on DC Comics’ search for the new Robin, because I am confident that they’re not going to keep Batman solo forever. The phrase ‘Batman and Robin’ is just too well ingrained in the public’s mind. It’s marketing gold. The last Robin, Damian Wayne, has been dead for about a year now, but Batman is still flying solo. DC doesn’t seem to be in any rush to name a new Robin. They’ve got more than a few contenders in play, and something pretty major happens to my pick, Harper Row, in this week’s Batman #28!
I can’t believe I didn’t see this coming. It pretty much changes the entire game!
Though any game with Batman is still fun
I want to warn everybody that there will be massive SPOILERS for Batman #28 in this article. If you don’t want to be SPOILED, then don’t click to continue.
Want a little hint? Let’s just say that the developments in this week’s issue are so massive that I may have to change the name of this feature. And for those of you rooting for Harper Row, like me, this issue should be both amazing and bittersweet.
Join me after the jump to see what happens to Harper!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 2/8/14
What a fun comic book week this turned out to be! Four Marvel comics debuted their new #1 issues this week, keeping the All-New Marvel NOW! going strong. Will they be as good as Black Widow? Or will they tank like…some other comic that was so bad I can’t even remember what it was. You’ll have to read on to find out!
Or I could just tell you now. I think Loki: Agent of Asgard, Wolverine, Punisher and Ms. Marvel were all good comics, well made and with some direction in mind, but only Ms. Marvel stood head and shoulders above the rest as a legitimately exciting new series. Out of the four, that’s the only one I’m definitely going to be buying from here on out. Ms. Marvel lived up to all the hype and easily won Comic Book of the Week!
My fan fiction was never this good
As for the rest, it’s probably a matter of taste, and I’m sure other people will love those comics much more than I did. I’m sure people will keep buying Wolverine comics no matter what I say.
Comic Reviews: Forever Evil #5, Loki: Agent of Asgard #1, Ms. Marvel #1, Punisher #1, Wolverine #1.
Henchman-4-Hire 