Category Archives: Comics
Review: X-Factor #253
The Hell on Earth War continues in this issue of X-Factor and it’s still pretty good. Not great. Not bad. It’s just kind of entertaining and enjoyable to read. And I think that’s good enough. I would like to see something really dramatic or amazing happen, but I’m not expecting it. The best issues of X-Factor are usually the quiet, introspective issues. Hell on Earth War is definitely not that. It’s big. This is probably the biggest storyline X-Factor has ever done, at least in terms of in-comic scale. Hell has come to Earth, and both the Avengers and Fantastic Four make cameo appearances.
X-Factor #253
In terms of scope, this storyline is huge. And it feels like it within the story. That’s a good thing. But something like the Hell on Earth War serves to remind us how little an impact X-Factor has on the rest of the Marvel Universe. And that’s a shame.
Comic Rating: 4/5: Good.
My opinion has wavered up and down a bit on this storyline so far. It has its faults. Few of the characters feel particularly engaged in the actual storyline. Everyone just kind of feels like they’re being dragged along with no real emotional depth. The story revolves around Tier, who we barely know or have any connection to at all. And the story makes it perfectly clear that Tier is the only character who can actually stop the various Hell Lords, so what is there for X-Factor to do?
But beyond those faults, it’s still an entertaining story. The characters are written well, the villains are strong and Tier isn’t so bad. Writer Peter David is keeping a fairly rapid pace, and the stakes are definitely high. It also feels like there might be a twist or two coming up somewhere along the line. I guess we’ll wait and see. I am enjoying the story, and I remain cautiously optimistic that it’s going to be pretty awesome in the end. Though I am slightly annoyed that my favorite character, Multiple Man, has been sidelined for who knows how long.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review!
What if Ultron is Not the Villain in Age of Ultron?
I’m usually incredibly wrong with these types of predictions, like with Amazing Spider-Man #700, but hear me out. I think we’re going to find out that it wasn’t Ultron who took over the world and killed all the superheroes, it was instead Hank Pym! Or maybe some kind of hybrid of Pym and Ultron!
Pymtron!
I have very little evidence to base this on. Only two issues of Age of Ultron have come out so far, but the clues are starting to be dropped. There are also solicitations for issues all the way up until the finale in June that we can pore over.
I don’t think anyone at Marvel has actually teased that there’s a big surprise coming. This is deliberate, I think. If someone in PR said ‘Who is really behind the Age of Ultron?’ then everybody would already know the answer is Hank Pym. So if they don’t tell us that there’s a big surprise twist coming, then we won’t know to expect it, and it’ll be even stronger when it does hit.
Join me after the jump to see my evidence.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 3/16/13
This was not a good week for friend-of-the-blog Jason Aaron. I’ve been a huge fan of his Thor: God of Thunder series, and have enjoyed his Wolverine and the X-Men comic, but both of them take horrifying nose dives in quality this week. I was shocked at just how bad those comics were. Maybe it’s because they both take a break from the normal storytelling to focus an issue on the villain. Is Aaron just bad at villains? I couldn’t say, but both comics were very disappointing.
On the better side of things, we have a few Batman titles tackling the fallout of Damian’s death, and we have hot and cold Brian Michael Bendis. The second issue of his Age of Ultron is a dud, but the new issue of Uncanny X-Men is everything I want from this comic. It’s on fire, and easily wins Comic Book of the Week. This is the best Cyclops has been since Joss Whedon was writing, and honestly, this is the best any superhero has been in years!
Comics Reviewed: Age of Ultron #2, Batman #18, Batman and Robin #18, Fearless Defenders #2, Thor: God of Thunder #6, Uncanny X-Men #3, and Wolverine and the X-Men #26.
Robin Watch: Harper Row Gets It Right
Welcome to a new, ongoing feature here at Henchman-4-Hire! By now we all know that the most recent Robin, Damian Wayne, died in the heat of battle. And so for the first time since the late 80s, Batman is without a Robin. But like how chocolate needs peanut butter and peanut butter needs jelly, Batman needs a Robin, so it’s only a matter of time before a new hero rises into that iconic role.
Being the huge Robin fan that I am, I’m going to cover the ongoing search for a new Robin. Whether it happens in the comics themselves or maybe interviews with the writers and creators, I’m going to stay on the front lines of Batman journalism – which, of course, is the best kind of journalism.
Let’s kick things off with this week’s Batman #18, one of the first comics to deal with the fallout of Damian’s death. Writer Scott Snyder has taken the curious tactic of having the issue star Robin frontrunner Harper Row as she tries to help a grieving Batman.
With an butt-kicking
I was a big fan of this issue, and my full review will go up on Saturday with the rest of the Hench-Sized reviews. But first I want to explore this issue for the ways in which it pushes Harper ever closer to becoming the new Robin. I recently wrote several articles about this subject, both on why I fully support Harper as the new Robin, as well as the criteria that goes into picking a successful new Robin.
Suffice to say, in this issue, Harper Row gets everything right.
Join me after the jump to see what I mean.
6 Other Comic Book Captains
I wrote an article last week teasing Captain America and calling him a big, patronizing jerk. That was unfair of me. I’m sure he’s a nice guy. Plus ‘Murica! Amiright? So to make up for that perceived slight against our nation’s greatest superhero, I’ve dedicated this List of Six to the noble act of being a Captain Superhero. Because for some reason, there are a ton of comic book characters who put the word ‘Captain’ in front of their name.
Yaar!
Why not ‘General’ or ‘Private’ or ‘Sergeant’? Why is ‘Captain’ the go-to rank for superheroes? Heck, some of these guys aren’t even in the military, let alone any business that would use the word ‘Captain’. None of them pilot boats or airplanes. Somehow it’s just stuck. One of those weird comic book traditions, I guess. So join me after the jump for six comic book characters who consider themselves Captain of…something.
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