Category Archives: Comics
Review: X-Factor #246
I never particularly bought into Pip the Troll being a member of X-Factor. He was often funny, with writer Peter David giving him some of the best zingers in the comic, but what the heck was Pip the Troll doing as receptionist for X-Factor? It just never made much sense to me. Well PAD clearly loves the idea, and so he has devoted an entire issue to the secret life of Pip the Troll. It’s a somewhat entertaining issue, with a surprise finish. But I can’t say that it has relieved my Pip prejudice any. Pip never becomes anything more than PAD’s in-joke to himself.
X-Factory #246
Still, if you’re a fan of Pip the Troll, this issue is probably a hoot.
Comic rating: 3/5: Alright.
This is a ‘day in the life’ issue, fairly common in all types of fiction. What does Pip get up to behind the scenes? Quite a bit, apparently, some of it entertaining, some of it downright funny and some of it more than a little sleazy. I suppose it gives us more about Pip as a character, but the oddness of a cosmic space imp playing receptionist for a very grounded team like X-Factor is still his defining element. It’s a weirdness that I don’t particularly like to see in X-Factor, but that’s a personal taste more than anything. I don’t think Pip ever fit in, but I suppose PAD makes it work.
Still, it’s a fairly entertaining comic, for what it is. Nothing really special about it, unless, like I said, you are a huge Pip the Troll fan. He has an adventure, reveals some funny secrets about himself, and we all move on with PAD’s ongoing story. He’s been building to this big picture story forever and a day. Let’s hope it gets here soon, and let’s hope he really knocks it out of the park!
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
The Ladies Are Kicking Ass at Marvel Comics
Some have said that an all-female team comic book could never succeed, but Marvel Comics is going to try anyway with the new Fearless Defenders! It will star Valkyrie, Misty Knight and Danny Moonstar, and supposedly several more cast members to be revealed at a later date! It’s not going to be written by a woman though, which is too bad. Instead, Cullen Bunn is writing and Will Sliney is on art. In random news, Cullen Bunn once followed me on Twitter for like a day. I don’t know why…
Ladies vs. Ninjas!
I think this is a great idea. I’m always in favor of more diversity in comics. What kind of guy doesn’t love a kickass female lead? I’ve heard all sorts of stories in the past about all-female teams getting shot down editorially. I think Gail Simone has been trying to make one happen for years. Somehow Cullen Bunn has done it.
He did an interview with Newsarama. And this is what he said about the book’s premise:
The basic idea of the book is that Valkyrie is choosing a new team of Valkyrior, and she’s been asked to choose all these women from the heroes of Midgard, instead of from Asgard. She has completely failed in this task. Valkyrie has been unable to choose anyone that she feels is worthy to be one of the hosts of the shield maidens. So she just hasn’t done it. She’s dropped the ball.
Because she’s not done what she said she would do, nature — or supernature, as it is — abhors a vacuum. The absence of the Valkyrior has opened the door to something terrible. Something awful is waking, and Valkyrie finds that it’s really her fault that she’s put everything at risk.
Sounds reasonable and maybe fun. I’ll probably check out the first issue and see where it goes.
Vibe Gets a Comic! Katana Gets a Comic! You Get a Comic!
UPDATE: There’s more information out about the Vibe comic! You can find it lower after the jump!
Blowing the minds of comic book fans everywhere, DC Comics announced today that C-list nobodies Vibe and Katana will get their very own comic series next year, to highlight their membership in the new Justice League of America series!
Because already having the Justice League, Justice League Dark and Justice League Fruit Loops wasn’t enough
This is a brilliant move! I have zero interest in Vibe and Katana as characters, but I am a huge fan in giving new and minor characters a chance to shine. Not every comic can star Batman, Spider-Man or Wolverine. If you want to find some new breakout characters, you’ve got to give the little guys a chance! Just look at how well it worked out for Multiple Man. He was a C-list nobody back in the day, but one well-received Madrox mini-series later and now he’s been headlining X-Factor for nearly 100 issues! Iron Fist had absolutely nothing going for him until Marvel gave him a series written by Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction, and now he’s one of the leading Avengers and stars in that new Spider-Man cartoon.
It could happen for Vibe!
Agent of S.T.U.D.
Anything could happen for Vibe.
Vibe, of course, being the absolute worst member of the Justice League of all time. He was the bottom of the barrel back when they were known as Justice League Detroit, and worked out of a warehouse. He died an ignoble death. But since this is a reboot, he’s back to life and looking to actually make something of himself for once! He was also my pick for which DC character was going to be revealed as gay.
Katana is a sword-wielding badass warrior who…well, that’s basically it. She used to be with the Outsiders back in the day, and was a Bird of Prey in the new continuity. She’s also going to be Batman’s new sidekick in the upcoming Beware the Batman cartoon…for some reason. So I guess DC want to give her a push.
Before she cuts your freakin’ head off!
And who wouldn’t!? I fully support the existence of both these series…though I can’t guarantee I’ll buy either one.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 11/3/12
It’s a new week, there are new comics, and here we have the second installment of Hench-Sized Reviews! I’m kind of excited that I was able to keep to my schedule. I do have video games to play, after all. Plenty of good issues this week, at least in the comics I buy. I think the stand-out best of the bunch was AvX: Consequences #4. Cyclops is the best he’s been since Joss Whedon was writing him.
Well you are
Other reviews this week are Aquaman #13, Captain Marvel #6 and Wolverine and the X-Men #19. Join me after the jump!
Review: Mimic and the X-Men #5
Mimic successfully beat his record for appearing in issues as a member of the X-Men, then promptly quit. Oh sorry, SPOILERS. No wait, I’m not sorry! I’m angry! I’m angry that writer Christos Gage would make all my dreams come true by putting Mimic back on the X-Men after nearly 50 years, then went ahead and spent a bajillion stupid, boring issues on Rogue being transported to another planet to join a war between stupid, boring aliens who don’t have anything to do with anything! And I’m angry at Marvel NOW!’s stupid decision to take Gage off of X-Men: Legacy and completely change the title, forcing him to wrap up his personal storylines and take Mimic out of the series before his time!
And yet Mimic isn’t on the cover
And what I’m angry at the most is that Gage did this by giving us the greatest Mimic adventure of all time!
Comic rating: The square root of sadness/5: Terrifisad.
Do you want deep Mimic introspection and character development? BAM! You got it! Do you want Mimic mimicking all the powers in the world and then single-handedly holding off a super-villain prison riot? BAM! You got it! Do you want hot Mimic on Rogue action? BAM! You got that too – sort of! This is the Mimic we have always wanted! He’s handsome, he’d badass and, most importantly, he’s a hero. I would even go so far as to say he’s the greatest hero the Marvel Universe has ever seen! Not only that, but he’s hip, as you’ll see in the synopsis. This is one awesome guy. I mean, I suppose there is a large portion of this issue dedicated to Rogue. But nobody cares about that, right? That would be like watching The Matrix and caring more about Neo than Switch. And Switch was awesome.
If Mimic had to go out – though I think he would have been awesome as new leader of the X-Men – he probably couldn’t have gone out any better way. Rest well, gentle soldier. This review will sing you to your sleep.
Henchman-4-Hire 