Category Archives: Comics
Maybe DC is Not So Sexist After All
After all that talk about DC Comics being pretty sexist towards their female characters in the New 52 reboot, they may have finally done something right. They’ve taken the creepiest, most tasteless superheroine costume ever and have actually given it a complete makeover – including pants! Not even Wonder Woman got pants.
Behold the new Phantom Lady:
Doll Man is really struggling to keep his eyes on her face
Phantom Lady and her partner Doll Man, both characters from the series Freedom Fighters, will be starring in a new mini-series that will launch at the end of August. Written by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti (writers of that fantastic Power Girl series), and drawn by Cat Staggs and Rich Perotta, Phantom Lady will be a 4-issue series featuring the characters as pulpy, street-level vigilantes. Sadly, Amanda Conner is only going to be doing the covers, I guess. She’s got that important ‘Before Watchmen’ project to work on. But there would be no greater way to sell a Phantom Lady mini-series than have Conner on art.
Gray and Palmiotti also wrote that Ray mini-series a few months ago, which I’m sad to say I didn’t end up buying the last issue. It was fun, but different from most of the other New 52. This has all led some to speculate that a new Freedom Fighters is in the works – which seems odd, since the title was never very successful.
But we’re getting off point! You see Phantom Lady’s new costume up there? I like it. Well here’s what she used to look like:
All the scotch tape in the world…
She actually wore that as a costume. As a legitimate superheroine, fighting crime and getting into fights. That’s worse than a bikini! Worse than that infamous green dress that Jennifer Lopez once wore. All a super-villain has to do is just grab one of those yellow straps and you’ve got a very uncomfortable fight!
Phantom Lady’s old costume always bugged me, and I’m glad DC have fixed it. I might even be willing to pick up the new mini-series.
The 6 Coolest Moms in Comic Books
I love my mom. She’s sweet, kind, caring and I know she’d do anything for me. She’s got questionable tastes in reality TV, but she’s easy to make laugh, so my family has a jolly good time with the jokes when we’re all back home for the holidays. My mom is pretty darn cool. And though it doesn’t come up very often, I’m fairly certain that she approves of my love of comic books. So she’d also hopefully approve of today’s list of the 6 Coolest Moms in Comic Books!
Moms = superheroes
Sometimes they’re good guys, sometimes they’re bad guys, but either way you’ve got to be super tough to be a mom.
Review: Scarlet Spider #5
The latest issue of Kaine’s ongoing series (still weird to say it) is an entertaining one-off story that gets a little too big for its own good. Our hero saves the day in glorious fashion, but brief cameos by Iron Man, President Obama and the new SHIELD (featuring Fury Jr. and Coulson!) create a magnitude that is more jarring than exciting. If writer Chris Yost wanted to go this big this soon with his fledgling series, he should have given more time for the story to grow. Perhaps a two-parter.
Scarlet Spider #5
While this done-in-one story doesn’t feel rushed, it definitely feels like we’ve jumped into the middle of the action-packed story and are expected to catch up. And the flashbacks don’t provide nearly enough material to help in that regard.
Comic rating: 4/5: Good.
There’s also a new artist, Neil Edwards, who while not as good as regular artist Ryan Stegman, easily holds his own in the action department, and looks similar enough to Stegman that the change isn’t a problem. Although he’ll have to do, since Stegman got the bump up to the Fantastic Four. We won’t have him around much longer.
If nothing else, this issue is a fantastic look into Kaine’s mindset when it comes to being a superhero. He’s got a lot of great character moments throughout that show he’s not a goody two shoes like Spider-Man. He’s definitely an anti-hero, though the series hasn’t pushed him over the edge just yet. I’m sure it wants to maintain some level of decency in its protagonist. Still, he’s a lot of fun to read when he really lets the bad guys have it. And while I suppose I’d like to see Kaine interact with the rest of the Marvel Universe in time, this issue just gets too big too fast, but doesn’t do anything interesting with those high stakes – unless next issue follows up on some of these story ideas.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and review.
Review: Mimic and the X-Men #3
How freakin’ awesome is it that the Mimic is now a regular character in an ongoing comic book series? We haven’t enjoyed this since back in the 1960s for about three issues of X-Men – that is if you don’t count Exiles, which I don’t, since it was a very different Mimic. We’re truly living in a Golden Age of being a fan of the obscure comic book character the Mimic! But sadly, as awesome as this is, it’s also a double-edged sword. Because in the first issue following Mimic’s grand return to the X-Men, he’s reduced to just a side character with very little panel-time.
One very Mimic-less issue
This is Rogue’s comic, after all. But I may keep up these reviews since I know I’m not the only Mimic fan in the world.
Comic rating: 3/5: Alright.
As a Mimic comic, this issue sucks. He barely appears. It’s great that he’s in the cast now, but it’s sad to see him doing nothing. As a tie-in to Avengers vs. X-Men, the comic isn’t any good either. It’s been less than a year since Regenesis, when Wolverine split the X-Men in half in order to go off and re-open the school in Westchester. Yet one giant crossover later and everything he set up is being thrown under the bus, all in the name of yet another punch-fest between superheroes.
This issue pushes the whole school idea just a little too far, revealing it to be the sham that it is. The students don’t want to learn, they want to join in the fight against the Avengers. If they wanted to fight so badly, why didn’t they stay on Utopia? And the ‘teachers’ spend all their time worrying about making sure they stick to the class schedule – yet they all still dress in superhero costumes.
But who cares about all of that? Bring on the Mimic!
Review: Ultimate Comics: All-New Spider-Man #10
For an issue that’s almost entirely talking heads, writer Brian Michael Bendis knocks it out of the park. But that shouldn’t come as a surprise. Bendis is a master of dialogue, and of crafting characters and conflicts through that dialogue. He does more for Ultimate Prowler in this one issue than he’s done in the entire series so far. And star Miles Morales has some fantastic moments as well, making decisions that will define him as a superhero and provide fascinating stories for us readers.
Ultimate Spider-Man #10
Bendis is basically writing a Masters Course on superhero comics with this series.
Comic rating: 5/5: Great.
Seriously, this issue is almost entirely talking. It’s a chat between Miles and his Uncle Aaron, only now they are both dressed in their respective superhero/villain costumes, and standing on a rooftop. The oddness of such an exchange is not lost on the characters either. But rather than let the 13-year-old Miles get bowled over by his adult uncle, Miles holds his own in the exchange, revealing true growth for the kid. He’s finally no longer beating up losers like Omega Red or the Ringer. It’s time for Miles to get a dose of the real world, courtesy of someone he thought he respected and idolized.
Uncle Aaron, meanwhile, reveals several new layers to his character during this rooftop chat. He’s not just some scumbag super-villain. He’s a thief, and he’s a smart thief. And he also, to some extent, has an eye out for his nephew. So even though he wants Miles’ help with nefarious things, and even threatens to blackmail the kid, Aaron still wants the best for the boy.
That’s some fascinating character work in what is another great issue of the Miles Morales saga.
Henchman-4-Hire 